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As one of the biggest hero fanboys, Izuku was familiar with pretty much every single hero in Japan, even the obscure underground ones that most people had never even heard of. While his all-time favorite hero was All Might, his current obsession was directed towards Eraserhead, a hero who was near invisible to the public eye and fought practically quirklessly. Izuku, being quirkless himself, took him as an inspiration.
It took a long time and several nicked fingers, but he made a copy of Eraserhead’s capture gear out of his supportive mother’s scarves and knitting kit. Even though it looked more like a patchwork quilt than a weapon, Izuku was still very proud of the result. Using the knockoff capture gear was a whole other story, though. No matter how hard he tried to copy Eraserhead’s fluid movements, the scarf simply refused to comply and would instead flop limply to the floor.
Despite his failures, Izuku still adored the capture gear and brought it with him everywhere he could. When he had it on, he could pretend like he was as awesome and cool as Eraserhead, just without the intimidating red eyes and long hair.
Which led to now. Izuku and his capture gear had made their way to one of the spots he’d seen Eraserhead fight in. He’d been patrolling the ones closer to his house in the hopes of seeing Eraserhead take down villains in real life to learn what he was doing wrong with the gear but had been completely out of luck thus far.
Today seemed to be yet another unlucky day. The alley was devoid of life, and the only company he had was a stray cat that ran away from him when he approached. A solitary gust of wind raked through his hair, knocking a leaf up in its wake.
Izuku sighed and kicked a pebble on the ground glumly. Maybe tomorrow, he thought. If he hung out here any longer, his mom would be worried. Turning, he went back the way he’d come from.
Before he could walk very far, the still air was suddenly pierced by a scream, one that ended abruptly. Izuku stopped dead in his tracks, his head snapping toward the direction of the scream. His heart raced. Was this what he’d been waiting for all this time? Suddenly, it didn’t feel as fun as it did earlier and he wished he’d never come out in the first place.
The scream came again, and Izuku was spurred into action. Running as quickly as he could, he rushed back to the alley he’d just left, right towards where the scream had come from.
Turning the corner, he found himself face to face with a villain attack, except unlike the other ones he’d seen on TV, there were no heroes in sight. Instead, all he saw was two men with visible mutation quirks towering over an elderly lady clutching her purse.
“Come on, don’t make us hurt you,” said the one with long claws for fingernails. “Just hand it over and we’ll leave you alone.”
“No! Thieves! Stay away from me!”
The other man laughed. “Or what?”
Izuku’s legs trembled and he clutched his capture gear tightly. What should he do? Stay behind and wait for a hero to come? Run away? He knew what his mom would want him to do if she were here.
No, he had to be brave. He wanted to be a hero in the future, so why not start now? He didn’t know how to use the capture gear at all, but he was sure he’d be able to figure it out when push came to shove. At least, that’s what the movies told him.
Yeah. He could definitely help the old lady. Taking a deep breath, he channeled his inner Eraserhead and charged in before he could talk himself out of it.
“Get away from her!” he shouted, trying to make his voice as long as possible. “You…you b-bastards. Stealing f-from an o-old lady is horrible.” That was something Eraserhead would say, right? He added his most ferocious glare in as well for good measure.
The two of them stepped away from the old lady to look at Izuku, menacing sneers on their faces. The sneers quickly turned to shock, then to grins.
“Why, it’s a kid!” he said. “How old are you, little boy? Shouldn’t you be at school? And what’s with that funny scarf? It’s summer!”
“I’m seven!” he said defiantly. “And it’s not a scarf!”
“What are you doing here, child?” the old lady croaked. “Run. It’s dangerous.”
“Don’t worry, old lady! I’m here to help,” he proclaimed, striking a pose.
“Listen here, brat. I’m not above hurting kids, so you better run before I change my mind,” he said.
Izuku narrowed his eyes. His glares alone were clearly not as effective as Eraserhead’s, which left only one more option: attack! Tightly grasping the side of his capture gear, he tossed it forward in a perfect mimic of Eraserhead’s movements. Miraculously, his aim hit true and landed right over the claw villain’s head, falling and pooling at his legs.
“What the hell?”
Izuku didn’t think he’d get this far. His heart was racing and his arms were trembling. What was he supposed to do now? In a panic, he did the only thing he could think to do, which was to yank as hard as he could.
It wasn’t nearly as effective as when Eraserhead did it, but the man staggered. Izuku quickly took the chance to sprint toward the villain and punch as hard as he could at the only place he could reach.
“Ow! You stupid brat!” the man screamed, clutching his groin. “You’re going to pay for this!”
Izuku’s mind was so jumbled from the adrenaline that he couldn’t remember another thing from all the Eraserhead videos. All he could do was follow his instincts, which was to charge at the man again and try to land another hit.
In his frantic state, however, he neglected to notice the other villain going towards him and landing a solid hit on his back.
Izuku yelped and got a face full of asphalt.
“Got you.”
The two villains were towering over him, both with furious expressions. Izuku tried not to let the fear take him—how else was he going to be a hero if he couldn’t deal with a simple mugging—but his eyes were already watering. Still, he forced his aching body to rise and position himself in a fighting stance.
“What? You want another go?”
“I’m n-not scared of you,” he said. “I’m…I’m gonna be just like Eraserhead, and he’s much stronger than you! ” His capture gear was in a sorry state after the tussle, but it didn’t matter. Just wearing it was enough to give him confidence.
“Eraserhead?” He laughed. “Is that what the scarf is supposed to be for? That’s hilarious.”
“What’s hilarious?” a deep voice asked from behind Izuku.
The villain’s amused faces turned into fear in a split second. “Oh shit!”
It couldn’t be…could it? Izuku turned back to look, not quite daring to hope.
“E-Eraserhead?!” It was! All of his terror vanished at the familiar sight. Yellow goggles, white capture gear, and a black jumpsuit—it had to be him! Best of all, there was a scary glare on his face, one that was directed toward the villains just like in those videos he’d seen. Izuku was so happy that he nearly swooned. This was the best thing he’d ever witnessed.
“Language,” Eraserhead said with a menacing grin. “There’s a child here.”
Izuku blinked, and in that time, Eraserhead had flown into action, tying up both the villains with his capture gear simultaneously all the while using his quirk. His movements had been so fast and fluid that Izuku was certain not even the world’s best camera could capture it properly, making him think that trying to study from those 30 frames per second videos was a grand waste of time. It was almost as if the capture gear was another extension of his arms from how easily he was able to command it even while it was in mid-air—just how was that possible?
“How pathetic,” he said, walking towards them leisurely. “But I guess I shouldn’t have expected anything from villains that would go after kids and the elderly.”
“S-s-so c-c-cool!” Izuku’s mind was changed. Eraserhead was no doubt his favorite hero from now on. “Y-you’re s-so cool!”
Eraserhead glanced over at Izuku briefly as he handcuffed the two cursing villains, looking vaguely uncomfortable now that he wasn’t wearing a glare anymore. “Er…thanks, kid,” he said. “Are you alright?”
He nodded fervently, ignoring the sharp pain in his back. “Yeah! Totally fine!” he said. “B-but…you’re the underground Eraserhead, right? Can I please have your autograph? I’m your biggest fan! And…and…”
“Woah. Deep breaths.” He finally finished up with the villains and walked towards Izuku, the discomfort on his face growing more obvious. “And um…yes. I am Eraserhead. How do you know who I am?”
“Videos online. I’ve watched every single one I could find! You’re the only hero with a weapon like that so I’ve been studying them to learn how to use it for when I try to become a hero,” he said, practically bouncing up and down. “See? I even made capture gear to practice. It hasn’t worked very well so far but I got the villain to trip earlier with it!” He took off his gear and thrust it towards Eraserhead, eager to show off his handiwork.
“Er…” Eraserhead stared. “That is…certainly…something. You tried to use it against the villains earlier?”
Izuku nodded proudly. “I got a hit in with it.”
“You…got a hit in?” he asked with a frown. “Don’t tell me you were trying to fight the villains? The old lady who had called in said you were attacked.
“Is the old lady okay?” Izuku couldn’t believe he forgot. The old lady was nowhere to be found now and he hoped she’d run away during the commotion.
“She’s completely fine. Resting at the police station, I believe,” he said. “Don’t change the subject. You picked a fight with the villains?”
Izuku suddenly wanted to cry. Had he done something wrong and upset Eraserhead? “I was just trying to help. The old lady was being robbed and…”
He sighed. “I see,” he said. “Well, I guess it all worked out this time. But next time, don’t involve yourself. Leave it to the heroes.”
“O-oh. Okay,” he said in a small voice. “I’m sorry.”
Before Eraserhead could respond, the sound of sirens pierced the air.
“Finally,” he muttered. “Give me a second.”
Izuku watched the police talk to Eraserhead and loaded up the villains in the police car. Was Eraserhead right? Should he have let the old lady get robbed right in front of him? And more importantly, how was Izuku going to get his signature? All Might and the other heroes on the top ten list were all extremely eager to interact with fans from what he’d seen, but with Eraserhead, Izuku felt like nothing but a nuisance.
Fortunately, instead of leaving with the police, Eraserhead returned to Izuku’s side, this time with his goggles off.
“Hey, kid,” he said. “Are you sure you’re not hurt? I should take you to the hospital.”
“Yeah.”
He sighed. “Well, let me bandage your legs at least. They look banged up.”
Izuku looked down, and sure enough, his legs were scratched and bleeding from the fall earlier. “Okay. Thank you.”
He fumbled around with his pockets, producing a roll of bandages. Izuku was, again, ridiculously impressed. A good hero should always be prepared! He made a mental note to pack some bandages in his school bag when he got home.
“Sit,” he said.
Izuku sat. “S-so…can I please have a signature? Pretty please?” he said. “I really am your biggest fan! I can prove it to you!”
“No need. I believe you,” he said. “You’re the first to ask, you know?” He sprayed something cool on Izuku’s legs, and he winced.
“What? Really?” There was no way, right? Even if he was an underground hero, surely he had at least a few fans.
“Yeah. I prefer that way. It’s easier as an underground hero,” he said.
“So I can’t have a signature?” he asked, crestfallen.
He sighed. “No. I’ll give you one.”
“Oh my god! Thank you, thank you!” he cheered, grinning from ear to ear. “I’ll treasure it forever! I’ll…I’ll laminate the page and hang it up in my room!”
“Um…okay.”
Eraserhead finally finished bandaging his legs and helped Izuku to his feet. “So where do you want me to sign?”
“Oh!” Izuku took off his backpack and rummaged through it eagerly. He’d been bringing his Eraserhead analysis notebook around for this very reason. “Here!”
“Is this about me?” he asked, flipping through the pages with a raised eyebrow.
“Yeah. There wasn’t that much information on you online so I had to make a lot of assumptions on your quirk,” he said. “But I think I got more information to add from today! Like how your capture weapon moves and how you were able to use it on both villains at once.”
“This is incredibly accurate. You were able to put this together just from videos?”
“Yep.” Izuku was quite proud of the analysis he’d done on Eraserhead. It took far more work than the other public heroes, but he always loved a good challenge.
“Impressive, but you’re wrong about the material of my capture weapon,” he said, pointing at the corresponding page. “There’s no fabric. It’s made entirely out of metal and carbon fibers.”
“Oh! So that’s why it moves like that,” Izuku said in realization. “Can I touch it?”
“Go ahead.” Eraserhead unfurled part of his capture gear so that it was floating in front of Izuku.
“Wow. So cool,” Izuku whispered. Sure enough, it didn’t feel like cloth at all. It was extremely hard and rigid, completely unlike Izuku’s homemade version. “Isn’t it heavy?”
“Not as much as you’d think, but it did take some time to get used to it.” The capture weapon coiled itself back around Eraserhead’s neck without him having to even move, and he scribbled quickly on the last page of Izuku’s notebook. “Here you go, kid.”
“T-thank you!” Izuku almost couldn’t believe how great today had been. He’d gotten to watch Eraserhead fight, which was already amazing enough by itself, but then he got to touch the real capture weapon and even get a signature. Was he dreaming? Not even All Might convention had been this amazing. “I…I really can’t thank you enough! You’re the best!” Dang, was Izuku’s eyes watering? He quickly wiped his eyes with his capture gear before Eraserhead could see.
“It’s not that big of a deal,” he said, shifting uncomfortably.
“It is!” he said sincerely. “Oh! Can you…can you show me how you throw your capture gear again? It was hard to see earlier and I really, really wanna learn. Please?”
“I can, but even if I do, you’re not going to be able to recreate it with the one that you have,” he said. “It lacks the material strength to stand on its own no matter how accurate your form is.”
“I don’t care! I’ll just have to make another one out of metal,” he said determinedly. “I wanna be a hero one day, just like you! But I’m…but I’m quirkless so I have to figure out a way to make up for it. That’s why I think you’re so amazing. You don’t have to rely on your quirk with your awesome weapon! I want to be able to do that too!”
“You’re quirkless?”
He nodded, his heart sinking to his stomach. “But I…but I will definitely become a hero,” he said, his confidence waning. “Do you think I can? Even without a quirk?”
“If you’re sure that you can, then does my opinion matter?” he asked with a faint smile.
Izuku brightened. “So you think I can?”
“Maybe, if you’re willing to put in the work. It took me years to master the capture gear, and another few years to figure out my fighting style,” he said. “Becoming a hero isn’t easy, even for those with quirks.”
“I’m willing.” Izuku was close to crying now. Eraserhead hadn’t said no! This was the first time he’d ever gotten a positive response. “I’ll do anything it takes.”
He grinned. “Good.”
“So can you show me how to use that capture gear?” he asked, feeling more determined than ever. He finally felt like he had a clear path toward getting into U.A. and becoming a hero.
“Just for a bit. Then we’ll have to get you home. Your parents must be worried.”
He nodded.
“Let me see yours first,” he said, holding his hand out to Izuku.
“I made it out of my mom’s scarves,” he said, blushing as he handed over the scuffed mess that was his capture gear.
“I see,” he said, weighing it in his hands with a thoughtful expression. “Well, even if it’s not going to work exactly like mine, it can still be good practice for you until you get a real one. Here, copy how I’m holding with my hands. You need to do it exactly like this for it to travel the furthest.” Eraserhead handed back the cloth and demonstrated with the real thing, and sure enough, it was able to travel upwards in a gravity-defying manner.
“Woah!” Izuku tried his best to mimic the strange way he gripped it. “Like this?
“No, not quite,” Eraserhead said, adjusting Izuku’s grip. “Feel this?”
“Yes.”
“Remember how this grip feels so that you can recreate it every time you pick this thing up. It’s a good way to build muscle memory for when you get the real thing.” He gently pried Izuku’s fingers off the cloth. “Now try again.”
Izuku tried, this time more successfully than the last.
“Good. One more time.”
To Izuku’s surprise, Eraserhead continued teaching him the basics of the capture gear even after he’d learned how to hold it properly. He’d expected him to want to be rid of him as soon as possible, but it seemed like Eraserhead wanted Izuku to succeed. That only made him want to master the capture gear even more, and he hung on to every single piece of advice and every movement he made like his life depended on it.
“Okay, I think that’s enough for now. Time for us to go. I’ll walk you home and explain things to your parents.“
“Are you sure? I don’t want to take more of your time,” he said. He hadn’t noticed when, but the sun had gone down sometime during their impromptu training session.
He shrugged. “It’s fine. My shift’s about finished anyway,” he said.
Izuku gave him his most grateful and blinding smile. “Thank you!” he said.
“No problem,” he said gruffly.
“What should I do next? With the capture gear, that is?” He’d learned so much today but he wasn’t sure if it was enough. If he ever wanted to go against the likes of Kacchan, he’d have to work much harder.
“Why don’t you focus on what I showed you today and come find me when you can do it perfectly? This is just the beginning. There’s still much for you to do if you want to get into U.A.”
“Really? I can go find you?”
Eraserhead grimaced like he just had a bad thought. “Yeah, I guess,” he said. “As long as you’re not…annoying about it.”
“I won’t,” he said earnestly.
“I’ll give your parents my contact info later then if they’re okay with it.”
“Yes! My mom would be for sure! She helped me with the capture gear and everything.”
“Did she now?”
“Yep. She’s awesome,” he said cheerfully.
“Hm…sounds like it,” he said.
Izuku couldn’t stop smiling the entire walk home. There was so much for him to do now. So much more information to analyze and so many moves to practice. He couldn’t wait to tell Kacchan and his mom about everything. Maybe then, they would believe that he could become a hero too.
Aizawa eyed the green-haired boy walking next to him with a mix of amusement and exhaustion. What had he just gotten himself into? On the one hand, he hated giving himself more unnecessary work—he was already busy enough as it was. On the other hand, he truly wanted the sincere boy with the ridiculous cosplay of his costume to succeed. He could never forget how arduous it was learning the capture weapon on his own, and that was with the help of U.A.’s facilities and staff. If he could spare the boy the struggles and frustrations at the cost of sleeping a bit less, he’d do it in a heartbeat.
Maybe Hizashi had been right, after all. Having fans, or a fan rather, felt better than he’d thought it would.