Chapter Text
It is right after Killua takes the Hunter Exam for the second time when this story first begins. In one world, it’s a tale that lasts no more than a minute. Yet in another, in a world full of quirks and superheroes that one would normally believe to be fantasy, this story lasts a lifetime.
The boy in question, Killua Zoldyck, had just finished and passed the Hunter Exam and was planning to return to the game Greed Island. Once there, he would regroup with Gon, his best friend, before finishing the game along with Bisky, their trainer. This, however, would not end up being as simple as it should have been. After all, life never seemed to go as planned for the young ex-assassin.
I’m too exhausted to deal with these guys, thought Killua as he was backed into a corner by two weird-looking men. He thought he recognized them from somewhere, but couldn’t be too sure.
“I can’t believe you, kid,” stated one of the men. “I trained for five years straight to take the Hunter Exam, yet you’re the only one who passed? As if! You must have had some bargain going on with the examiner, am I right?”
Killua looked up at the one who spoke, not bothering to answer. He realized these guys must have been part of this year’s group of Exam failures and just wanted to take their anger out. Dealing with these types of people was simple, though. A few punches would be thrown at Killua and then he would be on his way.
“Hey kid, answer me!” Shouted the guy. “Stop giving me that uncaring look, or I’ll turn this into a fight!”
Despite the man’s proclamation, it didn’t look as if he wanted to fight. After all, they were in a public area. It didn’t matter that it was nighttime. Enough attention, and people would take notice. Before the first guy could throw a punch, however, the other one spoke up.
“Don’t worry Taichi, I’ll take care of this guy. He may have beaten us in the exam, but not now when we have him cornered.”
Killua did nothing more than roll his eyes and wait for the punch. He could have run away by now, but he didn’t want to have to deal with two people chasing after him. It would be too much of a hassle.
The unnamed man raised his fist and looked over at the other one, Taichi, before nodding. He then looked back at Killua and opened his mouth as if delivering a death sentence.
“Boy, you act too confident. There are people in this world and others that are born weak, and you will learn to feel that weakness. No one, and I repeat, no one, gets away with anything too easily while I’m there to witness it.”
Suddenly, Killua could see Nen forming around the guy’s fist. Eyes widening, he instinctively used Ten to try and mellow out the guy’s attack. This, however, did not work. The second the man’s fist collided with Killua’s stomach, he felt the guy’s aura combining into his own. It was almost as if his body was being consumed, swallowed whole by an unknown substance. Yet that was impossible, wasn’t it? Killua had never seen a Nen attack so powerful that it knocked people out after one hit. Yet all Killua could think was oh, shit, before passing out onto the floor.
“Hey, Tetsuya, are you sure it was a good idea to use your ability on that kid? I’m angry at him, sure, but you told me that whoever you use that power on wakes up a completely changed person,” said Taichi.
Tetsuya lowered his fist and turned to his partner. “Yes, I’m sure. He should only be out for a few minutes at the very least, and by the time he wakes up I’m sure he’ll have learned his lesson.”
“What did you even do to him? You never want to tell me.”
Tetsuya smiled in a mischievous way. “I sent him to a different world, one in which he’ll be forced to live out the life of someone weak. Someone who has no hope of being strong. He’ll have to face being powerless as payback for making us and countless others lose our chance at the Hunter Exam. After all, it’s only fair.”
The two men looked down at the boy they had just knocked unconscious, a boy neither of them even knew the name of. They believed their actions would not have a consequence. In a way, they were right. But in another world, they were completely wrong.
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Midoriya Izuku was born in an ordinary hospital, in an ordinary city in Japan. He cried like an ordinary child, and was brought home by a happy mother like any other ordinary birth. This baby, however, was a very unordinary kid. About a week after he was born, he stopped crying completely. His eyes became more curious, as if studying the world around him, and he scrunched his tiny eyebrows in confusion whenever called Izuku by his mom. Inko Midoriya began to worry for her child, afraid that he had gotten sick or that something had gone wrong with the pregnancy. However, after taking her newborn baby to a doctor, she was told that he was perfectly fine.
Killua, however, was far from fine.
The second he had gained awareness, he knew instinctively that something was wrong. His body felt weird, and his vision was blurry. Upon trying to move his hand, he realized that his arms were smaller than they should have been and that his body was practically immobile. He couldn’t control his actions and his head bobbed from one side to the other like crazy. He wasn’t even able to speak!
Trying to gain control of the situation and gather as much information as possible, he ruled out the fact that he was kidnapped. There was some sort of warm blanket on him, and no kidnapper would willingly provide comfort to their hostage. Think, Killua, think! He thought to himself, once again catching a glimpse of his baby-like hands. Wait a minute, those are literal baby hands. And they’re on my body. Did that mean he was somehow turned into a baby? No, that was impossible.
Before Killua could continue contemplating, however, an unfamiliar woman appeared before him. He didn’t recognize her from anywhere, and she looked far too friendly to be working with the guys who had knocked him out in the first place.
“Who are you?” Killua tried to say. Instead, it had only come out as some sort of incomprehensible babble. Why couldn’t he talk?
“Oh, my precious little Izuku!” Exclaimed the woman. “You are so incredibly cute!”
Izuku? That was not Killua’s name. It wasn’t even close. Maybe this lady had the wrong person? Killua tried speaking again, but once more he received gibberish in return. Alright, so talking was completely hopeless. He would just have to try and figure out his situation on his own, then.
Killua’s babble made the woman smile even more, and she brought her face up to meet his own before rapidly kissing his weird, tiny arm. He hated the feeling so much that his face just scrunched up in disgust. Killua had never felt this weak in his life.
Hold on, that’s it! He thought. What did that guy say to me before knocking me out with his Nen? Something along the lines of ‘you will learn to feel weakness.’ The unfamiliar woman, her using the wrong name, his hands that were very clearly baby hands, it was all starting to piece itself together. The reason that Killua felt as if he had been turned back into a baby was because he was a baby, just not the one named Killua Zoldyck. It was now more obvious than ever that he was trapped inside the body of this toddler named ‘Izuku’. The question was, when would he get back to his own?
The woman finally put Killua down before frowning at his expression. He knew he must have looked either shocked or angry, though he couldn’t tell. Either way, he didn’t care. Killua would find a way to get back to his world, to get back to Gon, even if it meant having to wait until he could walk. If there was one thing he had done when growing up in his own body, it was waiting. He waited to be old enough for training. He waited to gain the respect of his family. He waited, until he was finally done waiting, and went out to see the world for himself. And even if Killua had to go through that experience again, he would.
If Inko Midoriya had only taken the time to look at her baby’s face in that moment, she would have realized that the expression was far too adult for a one week old child. It just so happened, though, that in that moment she was looking away. Maybe, if the timing had been better, she could have seen that something was wrong far sooner.
Meanwhile, Killua finally was able to control his face long enough to contort his mouth into a weird sort of smile. He had information now, and he had a goal.
I swear, he thought, I swear I will get out of this body and go see Gon again.