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Here are some things you should know about this universe beforehand:
One. Midoriya Inko is dead.
The details are not important, but if one must know, Midoriya Inko died in a freak accident involving a truck. Pretty standard stuff, especially for this genre.
This unfortunate incident leaves her son, Midoriya Izuku, orphaned. If this had been any other type of story, then maybe Izuku could’ve grown to be a fearless vigilante or a villain who had been feeling left abandoned by society. Except, he doesn’t.
And according to the law of technicality, Midoriya Izuku is not actually orphaned. His mom had died, yes, but there’s still one parent left in the household, one that hasn’t been mentioned to little Izuku past “He’s busy working overseas, he might come visit one day” and “Your father was… a very serious man who… takes his work very seriously”. Very careful choice of words there, Inko.
This, of course, depends on if said father wants Midoriya Izuku. Said father does want Midoriya Izuku. Well, alright then.
Two. All for One, as a concept, is on hiatus.
This one is more complicated to explain because it starts with the accident that nobody could control—the death of Midoriya Inko. You see, years ago, Hisashi was very active in the underground scene and had met a young short, green-haired woman who didn’t even realize that the company she had started working for was a money-laundering front. Hisashi found it highly amusing. What was even more amusing was the woman’s reaction to finding out about the entire ordeal.
Things happened, the details aren’t really that important and most of them inane, a wedding, Midoriya Izuku gets born somewhere in between them, and All for One was still… well, active even when his son had come into existence. Clarification: both Midoriya Hisashi and All for One simultaneously existed, but his wife would never know that. Not even when she died.
The death of Midoriya Inko hit him unexpectedly. He had… certain people in certain places, certain connections to keep his family safe from a distance, but nothing could’ve really stopped this. Of course, the truck driver is to be blamed, but the fact of the matter is that simply a man did not see a woman crossing the street when he barreled his vehicle forward in a rush, and there was no malice intent behind it, she hadn’t been targeted. It just happened.
Hisashi had been in the middle of investigating the Seventh One for All holder’s descendants when he had gotten the news. He had to put those plans on hold to rush to the hospital, where it was already too late, and then deal with the logistics of circumstances involving wills, funerals, a son, and everything in between.
When things were finally settled down months later, Hisashi once again observed the Shimura family and came to a stellar realization.
That, perhaps, keeping one’s family at a distance doesn’t keep them as safe as one thinks, and only serves to build up resentment and blame and guilt and the sense of abandonment. Watching Nana Shimura’s son precariously stumble through the inanity of daily life reminds him of Inko’s crumpled up letters shoved in a drawer, all of which were addressed to him, and none of them were flattering, but rather, understandable. And the exact opposite of whatever life he imagined in his head when they had exchanged wedding vows.
Hisashi didn’t even realize there was a choice to be made up until this point: his family or All for One. He always pictured he could have both. By the time Inko was gone, it almost felt like it was too late—except it isn’t because he still has a son waiting for him.
(Of course, he makes the right choice this time.)
Three. The League of Villains does not exist in this timeline.
Shigaraki Tomura was never born as Shimura Tenko is never lured away from his household by a suspicious man, never kills his family and destroys his house in a fit of rage and is never taken and raised by Hisashi—All for One—to be a mastermind supervillain.
The League of Villains doesn’t exist, but All for One stepping down created various power vacuums in the underground criminal empire. There was no longer a dictator pulling the strings as far as anyone was concerned, so it was the perfect opportunity to gain unadulterated power without needing said dictator’s help and there was no… restrictions on who was controlling what. It was a free-for-all.
Four. Heroes knew of All for One, but nobody on the hero side of things knew the most-wanted criminal had “temporarily” retired.
Things were kept vague even in the underworld side of things as things became quieter, usual ironclad barking became mere whispers, and nobody who wasn’t on the “inside” of things (which very few people were) knows exactly what happened. Even Hisashi did not reveal that he took a break to deal with family matters to his fellow doctor, merely offering some other excuse and leaving the man to his own whims.
The “why” is less important than the result of his disappearance. It’s not a mystery anyone finds worth solving, and All for One almost fades into obscurity, but more in the sense that Voldemort faded into obscurity—that perhaps if that man is mentioned enough times, he’ll suddenly pop out of nowhere one day to return to terrorize both sides of the coin in society.
The impact on Hero society was much more indirect as the criminal underworld began to devolve more into anarchy when everyone knew All for One was gone, at least for now, as different groups and bands of people with different ideologies try to take control.
Five. Midoriya Hisashi is an embarrassingly overbearing single father.
This, itself, is an understatement. When Izuku was young, it was alright, and Izuku even basked in all the amount of attention and adoration his father sent his way, especially when he had been so curious about the other seemingly absent parent. His father wasn’t anything his mother—a quick yet painful memory to conjure up—had described. In fact, Hisashi tried to act goofy around his son, balancing the line between the parent-who-is-worried-about-the-safety-of-his-son-and-how-everything-could-kill-him-within-a-second-if-he-isn’t-careful and the parent who prioritizes his son’s good childhood.
There is a push-and-pull as Izuku turns out more reckless as he grows up—already being a naturally reckless child from the get-go, it serves to give Hisashi a heart-attack more than once when he sees his son squeezing through the legs of a crowd to “get a closer look at mister hero beating the bad guy up”. The universe was cruel, but ultimately it was Hisashi’s fault since he wasn’t there to raise his son from the very beginning, and his son is a hero fanatic because fate thinks it’s funny that his son’s room is plastered with memorabilia of the one man he’d give anything to kill. Sadism, Hisashi calls it.
Six. All Might still gives Midoriya Izuku One for All. All Might does not know All for One “retired”, let alone gave up his title for his son, let alone that such a “monster” could even have a family.
One automatically assumes that All for One would go into hiding, biding his time until he can publicly show himself and give the world one big scare and maybe attempt world domination while trying to snuff out the embers of One for All. That’s the natural assumption, and both All Might, Nighteye, and Gran Torino are all on the same page for that conclusion.
Nothing in this universe is really much different except for the fact that All Might isn’t rushed to find a successor because of a life-altering injury, although the flame is certainly still dying out every day, and a certain instinctive urge has been weighing on him day-after-day to retire All Might as a figure because something is happening, although he doesn’t know what, and he needs to find a successor to pass down One for All.
This was through a strange occurrence of events and it’s not something Toshinori can really go into much detail about because of how crazy it must sound. It’s almost as if the quirk is influencing his thoughts, but quirks can’t do that, at least to his knowledge, but his knowledge of his own given-quirk is only what Nana had told him—almost next to nothing except for its origins and limits—and Midoriya Izuku seemed to fit nicely in the pieces of this altered timeline.
(Later, Izuku will find out from the first One for All user that had Toshinori kept One for All for much longer, maybe years, that the quirk might’ve overwhelmed the man’s body to the point of turning it into a ticking time bomb. This is probably what All Might was experiencing when he felt the “urge” to find a successor.)
Seven. Five and Six do not mix well together. Overbearing father would not be very happy to discover that his son had become the prodigy of his (former?) arch-nemesis, accepted his quirk, got accepted into a hero school, tried to keep all of this a secret for as long as possible from him, promised said father that he would be careful and lay low, then proceed to break his bones for the umpteenth time from whatever stupid stunt the boy would pull off lately.
Hisashi knows All Might hates him for the death of that foolish woman, Nana Shimura, but that hatred is returned tenfold. No, one-hundred-fold. Infinity-fold. The worst part is that he can’t even properly communicate to his son how angry this whole ordeal makes him—because that would be revealing that yes, Izuku, your father used to be a supervillain and the archnemesis of All Might and I may-or-may not have been keeping things from you that I specifically would’ve taken to the grave.
It’s all one big giant mess.
Hisashi should’ve taken the reins when it came to the power vacuum he left behind in the criminal underworld because it still keeps biting him back to this day. Every time his son has to fight another crazy group with radical ideologies, it makes Hisashi want to return to being All for One just to put those nutjobs back in their places and execute anyone who even messes with his son.
(He’s already made a few personal visits. For the sake of brevity, all that needs to be revealed is that second meetings are not physically possible after said visits.)
But… he can’t. The parenting book said it would be bad for his son’s growth if he eliminated all those hardships and challenges his son are going through! The teenager phase is the most delicate, and if Hisashi doesn’t let his son breathe properly, then he might accidentally turn his son against him, and if there’s one thing Hisashi would hate to lose—well, other than his son’s life—is his son’s approval.
Hisashi can’t do a single thing about his son wanting to become a hero and going through with it, and it’s even more frustrating to know Izuku knows that he can’t do a single thing about it. Not being in control is Hisashi’s least favorite feeling in the world. His son even acts smug about it sometimes.
To summarize, Hisashi wants to punch All Might in the face.
Eight.
Hisashi punches All Might in the face.
Now that the context has mostly been explained, we get to… a certain day where the U.A. dorm system is being implemented for all students of all ages because All Might’s public announcement of stepping down has sharply steered the criminal underworld into more madness and chaos than ever before. Class 1-A has been involved in villain happenings far more than Hisashi would like, it’s almost like his son is the protagonist of a shounen series or something.
Because the U.A. dorm system is being implemented, the teachers are going out personally to the parents of students to… apologize for the school’s lack of accountability for not preventing those happenings from happening. When this was being explained to the students, Izuku started to pour buckets of cold sweat. This can’t be happening.
Yes, Izuku, this is happening. Izuku is at least self-aware to some degree, and he understands that his father never liked All Might. His father liked All Might even less after he was forced to reveal that he became the man’s successor. Izuku understood that he did everything in his power to prevent this fated meeting from happening, and he still has regrets when he sees his father’s fist come into contact with Toshinori’s face.
Oh dear.
Izuku thinks he is having a panic attack. Aizawa, who was behind All Might at the time of the incident, had insisted on coming despite All Might’s attempt to lure him away so he could have a proper talk with Izuku’s guardian alone. Aizawa already met Midoriya Hisashi and knows what to expect after many, many thorough phone calls with the man, and it was with Izuku’s added pleads that he come to play “peace-maker” that Aizawa tells Toshinori, I’ll buy you a drink if you let me come to this one.
Now back to the present.
“Dad!” Izuku screams, absolutely mortified, “You did not just—just punch—assault—All Might—the All Might in the face!”
“Oops,” Hisashi says in the most unapologetic tone ever, “I was practicing my defensive blitz. I didn’t even see the man at the door there, my apologies.”
Izuku mouths, what the fuck, in the most outraged silence he can muster, before panickily looking back at Aizawa, who doesn’t even blink. Aizawa looks like he expected all of this, oh my god, have they exchanged that many phone calls already, Izuku thinks with awe.
“You’ll probably be charged for that. Let’s get this over with,” Aizawa groans with a monotone voice, pointing to the inside of their tiny apartment.
“All Might-san, are you okay?” Izuku asks with worry laced in his voice. He looks over his mentor’s arms trying to get a good peak of the injury despite Toshinori’s hands obscuring the sight of it.
“I think he may have broken my nose,” Toshinori announces, voice nasal.
“Good,” Hisashi is unable to bite back, spite seething from his teeth.
This is going to be the longest evening of my life, Izuku groans in his head. Little did he know the inner turmoil of his father and his mentor at the moment…
Nine. Apparently, All for One has a son, and that son’s name is Midoriya Izuku, and apparently, he is the single father parent of Midoriya Izuku, and apparently he had broken Toshinori’s nose in an obviously intentional attack.
And also apparently, Hisashi owns a Hello Kitty apron. Toshinori thinks this is the most haunting detail revealed today, something that will come back to him in his nightmares from all the repression he’ll have to do after today.
“Ah, I’m sorry All Might-san, I didn’t realize he’d do that, I thought he would’ve been a bit mad but… I didn’t know he hated you to the point of actua—”
So, Izuku knows nothing. He doesn’t know anything about the fact that his father is All for One, that his father wants to kill All Might, or even that he and his father have extensive history with each other.
“It’s alright, young Midoriya, I just hadn’t been expecting it.” That’s one way of putting it. Understatement, again.
“He can be sensitive, he’s been careful ever since mom got into an accident. Maybe a little too careful. He worries too much for me.” Izuku says this while grasping at one bandaged arm with his hand—which is also attached to a bandaged arm. The irony is lost on Izuku, and it almost makes Toshinori laugh. “That’s probably why he resents you for taking me under your wing.”
“I don’t think that’s the exact reason…” Toshinori grumbles under his breath. Izuku hears it but doesn’t really understand what Toshinori means.
Now that men have survived initial encounter with each other, the next hurdle to be overcome is… a game of trust.
Hisashi comes into the living room where the pair of teachers are seated on one side, and Izuku anxiously waiting for his dad on the opposite couch. With his Hello Kitty brand apron showing in full view, Hisashi bends down to set down a tray with four cups of tea. All Might spies the tray suspiciously.
“Help yourself,” Hisashi says with an air of elegance, although his eyes spell mischievous malice or maybe malicious mischief. Either is a death sentence for Toshinori, who knows how little the man in front of him values lives. His death would just be a total win for the villain who treats everything like a game.
“I’d rather not,” Toshinori deadpans.
“More of a coffee person, then? Should I go make some?” Toshinori really, really wants to punch All for One in the face right now, but he can’t “stoop” to the other man’s level. He wants Izuku to have a good image of him inside his head.
“No, that won’t be necessary,” Toshinori all but spits back.
Hisashi smiles, Toshinori can almost hear the “Did you really think I would lace your drink with poison in front of my son” implied. The look that Toshinori sends back is the epitome of “Well, I would not put it past you.”
Aizawa already knows the complete bullshit that is the Midoriya residency, both father and son, nothing surprises him anymore.
“Have you two…” Izuku scrunches his noise, pointing his finger between Toshinori and Hisashi with perceptive eyes, “…met before? Or am I just missing something here?”
“No,” both Toshinori and Hisashi answer at the same time, the same amount of tension in their voices.
I’m going to kill you as soon as my son turns his back.
I’d like to see you try.
“…Right…” Izuku says, unconvinced. “So, uh… the dorm system?”
Ten. A new battle has formed, with Midoriya Izuku caught in the crossfire of it, but it is not a battle of power nor strength, but a mental battle between the protective father-figures of a singular boy.
I’m definitely missing something here, Izuku figures whenever he sees Toshinori and his father interact. It’s almost as bad as he imagined, except worse, yet not as bad at the same time. He’d imagine his father would show his very strict “I-am-serious-business” side but instead, All Might seems to bring the worst out of his father by provoking that goofy side—the dangerous-goofy side.
“I will be pulling my son out of—”
“Dad, for the last time, I’m not going to quit being a hero.”
“You are not ‘being’ a hero. You’re barely sixteen, you’re pretending as if you’re full-fledging, thrusting yourself in these needlessly dangerous incidents that don’t involve you—you came to hero school to become a hero, that doesn’t—”
“Practically the same thing,” Izuku hotly counters.
“It’s not,” Aizawa flatly disagrees. “And he’s right, for a change.”
“Practically,” Izuku emphasizes. “Look at this letter I got from a boy I saved! He says I changed his mind about heroes!” He holds up the letter and shoves it in his father’s face.
Hisashi takes the letter and rips it in half after scanning it with his eyes. It’s a message that screams that he cares enough to actually read the words on the paper, but not enough that he’ll even acknowledge if these meaningless possessions can convince him to hand his son over to heroism.
“That was a copy,” Izuku says, completely serious.
“Well done,” Toshinori praises Izuku.
“Talk to my son again,” Hisashi threatens, pulling Izuku closer to his body, “I dare you.”
“He’s joking,” Izuku says nervously.
Even Aizawa could tell that the man was not. “Maybe you should go, I’ll stay to diffuse whatever the hell is going on,” he whispers to Toshinori.
“I’m not leaving young Midoriya with him and you alone,” Toshinori whispers back discreetly. “Who knows what he could do to the both of you?”
“Quote a million things from various parenting technique books about how bad of an idea it is to let his son in Yuuei? Rant about how hard it is to wash blood out from his son’s uniforms? Lecture me about what a horrible teacher I am?” Aizawa says all of this as if he were listing off various torture methods.
“…Has he done all of those things over the phone?” Izuku meekly asks.
“And more,” Aizawa adds with a deadpan tone. “More than I’m getting paid to deal with.”
Izuku glares at his dad, who merely shrugs, shamelessly admitting, “I would give anything to have you stop this hero nonsense, even if it means gradually wearing down your teacher.”
“You said you’d support me!”
“And look where we are now,” Hisashi says, gesturing to all of Izuku, “Look what’s happened to your body since.”
“I just need to be a little more careful in the future, that’s all,” Izuku protests. “I’m fine, I’m still standing after everything!”
“What would it take for you to stop? A pair of broken legs? Broken arms? Going into coma for two months?” Hisashi’s voice turns graver than is has this entire meeting, “How am I supposed to support you when you come home with all these horrid injuries, assuring me that ‘it was fine’ when in reality, you had only escaped death by an inch and a half?”
Hisashi continues, “Would any sane parent allow their child to do the same? Chase their dreams when their dreams land them in the hospital on a weekly basis? Now the supposed top hero academy of the country wants to implement a dorm system, where I’ll be even more distanced from my son, and my son will be allowed to go willy-nilly all over the place adding more to the collection of scars he’s suddenly gained over the past year—” Hisashi glares at Toshinori specifically when saying that part, “—if you were in my shoes, you’d perfectly understand my concerns.”
--and there it is. Aizawa knew it was coming, and it doesn’t make him feel any better. The thing is despite the craziness of the Midoriya residence, the bottom line is that Midoriya Hisashi wants nothing but to keep his son safe and happy, but his son wants to become a hero which is the opposite of a “safe” job, and it’s a problem unique only to this household because of how much Midoriya Izuku is a problem child.
“I know my son very well. I know how much becoming a hero means to him, which is why he’s willing to throw himself in front of a bus if it meant saving others,” Hisashi states, “and that is also the reason why I feel that… I cannot allow this to go on further. He’s only grown more reckless since he started school here. If he’s not going to learn anything, then what would be the point?”
“I’m getting stronger, though!” Midoriya insists, albeit less defiantly than before. His expression looks more deflated than before, akin to a flame that’s slowly in the process of dying out. “That’s just because I couldn’t control my quirk, but I’m getting better at it, I promise. I can even demonstrate—”
“I don’t care,” Hisashi tells his son, putting a gentle hand on his shoulder. Midoriya Inko flickers in his mind, the variable that couldn’t be controlled. This could be controlled, even if only a little, at the very least. “I was at least hoping to see a growth in your maturity, but not even that was accomplished within the past months.”
“…Someday, you’ll realize…” Hisashi mutters under his breath. In his lifetime, it took him more than two centuries for him to learn. He doesn’t want the same for Izuku, for it to be too late. Power and strength only mean so little in the end.
Eleven. Midoriya Hisashi, also (formerly) known as All for One, clearly cares about his son.
It’s a shared mutual interest, and Toshinori remembered what he had came here today to do in the first place. Despite who said father turned out to be, it shouldn’t erase that initial objective anyways. Even if it is the worst candidate ever thought possible.
Toshinori bows his head, not because he respects All for One, because he never will, but because he respects Midoriya Izuku’s father, even if he refuses to ever accept him as a person or concept. He has to do this, however, as a promise for himself and a promise for Izuku.
“I apologize for that,” Toshinori says, voice low and humble, “that is my fault. Ever since this year has started, it has been a rocky path for your son. I’ve done my best to guide him through it, but I’m not perfect—nor even a great mentor, but I’m learning in this process too.”
Izuku gapes at his mentor-figure, but words can’t come out of his mouth.
“I don’t know if I can promise anything. This is the path your son has chosen, and I want to do my best to prepare your son for that path, whatever it takes.” Toshinori clenches his fist, “Your son… I saw something in him that called out to me. I’m prepared to walk down that path with him together, and while I cannot guarantee that he won’t be injured in the process…”
“…What I can promise is that I will start trying to work on teaching him to take better care of himself. I’ve been neglecting certain parts of his education, and I will be more involved from now on.”
When Toshinori looks back up to a thoughtful-looking All for One and a furiously blushing humiliated-looking Izuku and a taken aback Aizawa, he wonders if his speech has done what it was intended to do.
All for One claps his hands together, passive-aggressive smile on his lips, and says, “So, what I’m taking from this is that I would be a better teacher than you, yes? Maybe I should start teaching at Yuuei High School myself, where can I send in my application?”
The second-most terrifying image to pop into Toshinori’s head is of a smug All for One, all suited up in his elegant costume, explaining to a group of students how worthless heroism really is while ripping a villain straight in half in front of them with his bare hands, and then revealing an embarrassing tidbit about “the time that his son had…” while Nedzu would probably say, “Hmm, this doesn’t seem to be working out…” and it is only second to the image of All for One in a Hello Kitty apron.
Aizawa, meanwhile, puts his face into his hands with a groan. School night or not, you’ll be damn sure he’s getting wasted tonight. Toshinori finds himself wishing to do the same when this is all over, whenever that’ll be.