Chapter Text
Izuku was surprised when All Might called to meet him at a family restaurant, on a day they were supposed to be on Dogoba Beach for their usual training. He had a suspicion he knew what this sudden meeting was about, but despite Izuku's excitement he decided to stay quiet until All Might brought it up himself. He fidgeted in front of his water as All Might took a sip from his tea.
"I made arrangements for you to leave within the month." All Might, currently in his skeletal form, looked squarely at Izuku from across the table.
"LEAVE-! THIS MONTH-?!" Izuku choked. He knew All Might had wanted to privately sponsor him a semester abroad, and he knew the matter with All For One was serious, but this was… way too early, way too fast… They were talking about uprooting his whole life and starting anew at a foreign country, all before he even got to experience a year at UA, the Hero school of his dreams! Izuku lowered his voice when a waitress came over to pour him more water. As the waitress left, he steadied his voice. "But All Might, All-for-One couldn't possibly find me among the millions in this country this fast and I haven't even-"
All Might didn't let him finish. "Yes, but he has figured out that I've passed on my power to someone. I'm sure he's already started looking."
Izuku clenched his fists on his thighs as he tried to think, trying to remember everything he's experienced till now and what his future goals were. He knew what he was getting into when he accepted One for All, was completely ready to take on the responsibilities that come with it. He just, well, never thought he'd be doing it in America, far away from everything familiar in his life, far from all the people he wanted to protect. "My mom, does she…?" he started.
All Might nodded, probably having already guessed Izuku's thoughts. "I sent a copy of an Acceptance Letter to your house today, and the scholarship papers." He put down his tea as he spoke, "The school is extremely prestigious, even among Americans. One of the oldest academies in the city you'll be living at. The city itself is not the absolute best, but I'm sure you'll make good friends you can trust to help." All Might lowered his voice before he continued, "More importantly, it'll cover your tracks better."
Izuku saw his sullen expression reflected in the glass of water he gingerly held. He looked up at All Might, determined to ask him one last thing before he can feel at peace with his situation. "If I'm not here, will my friends and family be safe from All for One too?"
All Might smiled. "I will personally make sure your mother and the Bakugous never come in harm's way. She might even decide to move abroad to live with your father."
Izuku nodded without looking up. "Mom has lots of friends here, I don't think she'll want to leave," he said fondly. Even as he thought of this, he steeled his heart to prepare himself. He trusted All Might to protect his loved ones more than he trusted himself, and it's not like he had that many friends here to miss to begin with. He'd miss his first day at the prestigious high-school him and Kacchan had gotten into, but suddenly he was more concerned with what he'd do once Kacchan found out about…this. All Might had also spent most of his youth in America to keep him away from harm's way till he could finish his education and had trained enough to be a powerful hero who can protect others, and Izuku was being sent away for the same reason. Now that he thinks about it, he should actually be extremely excited that he gets to see firsthand what inspired All Might's american aesthetics, and he really hopes he can come back to Japan once he finishes his training out of All For One's reach and gosh he needs to brush up on his English before he-
"Young Midoriya," All Might cleared his throat, jolting Izuku out of his muttering spiral. "Be careful with your quirk till then, and even after you're there. The city has a high crime rate, but I have acquaintances who will….hopefully…keep an eye out for you." That 'hopefully' didn't sound too hopeful, Izuku thought.
"Don't worry All Might," Izuku assured, looking over online information on the city he'll be living at in a month, "A higher crime rate means they could probably use my help." He tried spelling out the english letters instead of relying on the kanji. "Gotham Academy," he read out, unsure of his pronunciation. "It definitely looks…different…from UA." Izuku examined it further. "Um…to be honest, it looks like a haunted mansion from an old vampire movie…"
All Might laughed heartily. He knew he was asking a lot from the young boy in front of him, but he was touched at how hard Midoriya was working to follow All Might's instructions no matter how difficult it got. He knew Midoriya wanted to become a hero who could protect everyone, and is, in All Might's opinion, of the exact mindset All Might wanted the 9th Holder of One for All to have, as kind and helpful as each of his predecessors. If anything happened to him while he was just starting out, then…All Might could never live with himself. This was exactly why Midoriya was being ripped from his life in Japan to go prepare thousands of miles away in the first place. America has some of the largest number of operating Heroes in the world. Izuku would learn well. He reached out to point at the english text Midoriya was reading. "My boy, your english pronunciation could use some work."