Chapter Text
Hitoshi’s story began in a small village.
A small, ordinary village, filled with ordinary people, living ordinary lives and working ordinary jobs.
All Hitoshi had ever wanted was to be normal, blend in with people his age, find a normal job, live a normal life.
But Hitoshi wasn’t normal.
And if there was one thing he had learnt about ordinary people, was that they didn’t like you if you were different.
He had never asked to be different, though, he just was. He had been ever since he turned five.
Hitoshi still remembered that day.
His parents had thrown him a small birthday party, and all his friends from kindergarten had been invited.
They had been playing together peacefully, when suddenly, one of the bigger kids, pushed one of Hitoshi’s friends, stealing the ball from her. Hitoshi, just as his mother had taught him, had tried reasoning with him, but the bully had responded by punching him in the stomach.
He remembered feeling angry and frustrated as he yelled at the other to stop and give the ball back. He remembered his own shock seeing the way the boy’s eyes glazed over, his jaw slacked as he followed Hitoshi’s order and emotionlessly gave the ball back to the little girl.
He remembered the way she screamed and ran to her parents, terrified. He remembered how his own father had shielded him from the other kids’ parents, pointing at him, shouting and calling him a freak of nature, a monster.
He remembered crying himself to sleep in his mother’s arms that night.
He even remembered hiding in his room the following day, as the Mayor visited their home, giving his parents a bottle of pills for him and they, albeit reluctantly, giving him one of those pills every day.
“I don’t like it mum.” He shook his head, tearing up, “It makes me feel dizzy and weird...”
“I know baby, I know.” She replied, as she held him close.
They stopped giving him the pills after, when he was six, they found him passed out in his bedroom, body shaking with convulsions.
After his recovery, his parents sat him down and smiled at him “We won’t give you those pills anymore Hitoshi.” His father reassured him, stroking his head “We were also thinking about pulling you out of school and teaching you at home, what do you say?”
All Hitoshi could do was shrug, he honestly didn’t really care either way. He didn’t have any friends left in school. Everybody kept their distance and made fun of him, some even bullied him or hit him on a daily basis.
“It’ll be okay, sweetie...” His mother had comforted him, hugging him close. “Your dad and I will protect you.”
Now Hitoshi was fourteen, he had learnt to control his ability (brainwashing was its name he had read somewhere), but, despite how much time had passed, people in his small, gated community had never forgot. Anywhere he went they would avoid him like the plague, whispering hateful comments as he walked by.
He had stopped trying to fit in, trying to make friends.
Aside from his parents, he was completely and painfully alone.
“Hey you, freakshow!” Hearing the awfully familiar voice, Hitoshi could feel his whole body tense up. It was the voice of his most active and persistent tormentor, the very same boy he had accidentally brainwashed years before.
The teen immediately picked up the pace, deciding to just ignore him, as he always did, when suddenly he felt a sharp pain in the back of his head, the force of the impact making him fall forward.
The group of friends laughed loudly “Bullseye! You got him Tasuku!” One of them exclaimed as they walked up to Hitoshi.
“Well, hard to miss a head so big!”
As they started laughing once again, Hitoshi shakingly stood up and touched his head, ignoring the way it throbbed painfully at the contact; when he pulled his hand away, he felt something warm and liquid sticking on his hand.
Was he bleeding?
He looked around, confused, and on the ground next to him, sure enough, he saw a rock. It was about the size of a baseball, and it was clearly stained with what, Hitoshi realised, could only be blood. His blood.
His hands started shaking with anger as he slowly stood up “What the fuck?” He whispered “You fucking threw a rock at my head? You could have killed me!”
Takusu’s friends stopped laughing and took a step back in fear. Everyone was terrified of Hitoshi brainwashing them after all, and, while usually he would feel a pang of pain in his heart, seeing that fear in people’s eyes, now he basked in the feeling, letting it give him courage.
“So what? We’d be doing the village a favour if we killed you, you freak.” Tasuku walked forward, another rock in his hand “I actually think we’d be even doing your parents a service.”
Hitoshi’s vision flashed red and he took a step forward “Listen here, you fucking-“
“Hitoshi!” He heard his father’s voice and immediately stepped back, chastised. How many times his parents had told him not to respond to people’s provocations and he still hadn’t learnt his lesson.
Tasuku smirked smugly “Ah, Matsuda-san. I think your beast got off his leash. You should be more careful, you’ll get in trouble if he bites someone.”
Hitoshi’s father put his hand on his son’s shoulder “Let’s go Hitoshi, it’s not worth it.” Then he looked to the other boys “Maybe I should have a word with your father, Tasuku. I wonder what he would think knowing that, instead of working in the shop, you are running around, harassing people.”
The boy frowned, but didn’t retort.
“Whatever. Tasuku, I’m bored. Let’s go away.” His friends pulled him back, disappearing down the street.
Matsuda looked at Hitoshi and cupped his cheek “Are you okay?” He asked, concerned, but Hitoshi just shrugged, gently pushing his hands away.
“It doesn’t matter. Let’s just go home.” He muttered, avoiding his father’s eyes “Here, I’ll carry these.” He picked up the bags the older man had been carrying and they made their way back home.
“Hitoshi, please talk to me.” The man said after a minute or so of tense and heavy silence.
“There’s nothing to say, father.” He snapped “I’ll never be anyone but ‘the freak’ here. I just...!” Hitoshi’s voice cracked, his eyes burning with unshed tears “I tried so hard to just, belong, but no matter what I do it’s never enough!”
He let out a shaky breath “Sometimes... Sometimes I wonder if somewhere out there... There’s people like me. If there even is a place for me in the world.” His voice trailed off, his shoulders sagging, making him seem smaller and more tired than he ever felt before.
Matsuda opened his mouth, then closed it again and just squeezed Hitoshi’s shoulder comfortingly.
“It will get better, son. I promise.”
Later that evening Hitoshi was lying down in his bed with a cup of tea and a book, it was the only book he owned, a gift his father had brought him from the “outside”, one of the few times he had been allowed to leave the village.
Hitoshi adored it with all his heart and had read it countless times. As pathetic as it sounded, to him, it felt like it was his only friend. Sometimes he even wished and dreamed that he could just disappear from his reality and find himself in a world of adventures, just like the main protagonist of the book.
A soft knock on the door startled him out of his thoughts and he carefully sat up, groaning as his head throbbed painfully in protest. “Come in...”
“Hey...” His mother walked in, followed by his father “How are you feeling?” She asked as they both sat on his bed.
“I’m feeling a bit better, just a nasty headache now.” He reassured her with a small smile “What did you need?” He wrinkled his nose “Am I in trouble?”
His father shook his head “No, not at all Hitoshi. Your mother and I... We need to tell you something.”
She nodded “Just, please, know that this doesn’t change how much we love and care about you, at all.” The older woman hesitated and then sighed “But... You’re old enough to know. You deserve to know.” She whispered and took his hand.
“Today you told me that sometimes you wonder if there is some place in the world where you could belong, where people are just like you.” His father said, voice shaking “There is Hitoshi.”
“What do you mean?” He asked, perplexed.
The two shared a pained look and then the old woman nodded, resolved “Tell him.”
“Hitoshi, son, your special ability is what people outside call a ‘quirk’. Almost everyone in the world has one. And there are all kind of quirks out there. People even make jobs of them.”
“You were not born here, Hitoshi, we are not your biological parents...” His mother continued “You were taken here when you were just a baby.”
Hitoshi’s jaw dropped, as he struggled to register all that information “So, my biological parents... They are just like me? And everyone outside the gates as well?”
She shook her head apologetically “Unfortunately we do not know anything about them, Hitoshi, but yes, there is people like you out there. This ‘community’, is nothing but a scam, a cult, that the Mayor founded because he believed that quirks were sinful.” The woman rolled her eyes “He deceived people and took them in, with the promise of protection and prosperity.” She said those words with poorly masked disgust.
“Your mother and I were naive and we fell for his empty words. He is a criminal Hitoshi. We do not know how he got his hands on you, but I highly doubt it was through legal means. We knew right away that something was off, but... We had been trying to have a child for so long and suddenly you were there... A real blessing.” His voice cracked with emotions and Hitoshi’s mother wiped her eyes.
“We fell in love with you immediately. You were so cute and bright.” She cupped his cheek, her eyes watering as she smiled sadly “You were such a happy child, and, after you didn’t manifest a quirk when you turned four, we thought you might be quirkless, which was a relief, because it meant you wouldn’t have to suffer through suppressants. But then you manifested at five years old and that disgusting man forced us to give you those horrible pills.” She spat, her fingers curling tightly in her skirt “But we couldn’t do that to you. Those medicines, they have some horrible side effects. So we just pretended to keep giving them to you, to keep you safe.”
“But why are you telling me all of this, now?” Hitoshi breathed out, feeling completely shocked and overwhelmed.
“Because we want you to have a chance to be happy, Hitoshi. And you can only find happiness if you leave.” She smiled and pulled out a small plastic band, it was yellowed by time and you could barely make out the writing on it “Hitoshi Shinsou – 01.07.2xxx – Aizawa-Yamada”
“You were wearing this when they brought you to us. We believe those are the names of your parents, Hitoshi. I always kept it, hoping that one day, maybe, your father could look for them outside the gates. But we never had any luck.” She put it in his hands and smiled “We can’t leave, but it’s not too late for you. You can still go and find them, find a life that will make you happy.”
Hitoshi looked at her and then at his father, who, despite the tears in his eyes, smiled at his son as he nodded, his arm wrapped tightly around his wife’s shoulders.
"I-I don’t know what to say.”
“Say you’ll go and be happy for us, baby.” She pinched his cheek and the boy smiled, his own eyes filling up with tears.
Hitoshi looked down at the plastic band, feeling warmth and hope spread inside his chest. He had a goal, a purpose for the first time in almost ten years “I will.” He took her hand, squeezing it, pouring all his gratitude in his voice as he whispered “I promise.”
And so he left.
It only took them a couple of days to come up with a plan: he would leave at night, taking his father’s bike and head for the closest city.
His parents had quite a sum of money hidden away, having been saving up to get Hitoshi out of there for years.
Once the night finally fell on the third day, they made their way through the empty streets together, making sure to stay undetected, to buy Hitoshi all the time he needed.
As confident as Hitoshi was in his decision, when he was finally at the gate, about to step out, he hesitated. Was he ready to leave on his own? How would he pull it off? However, before all those negative thoughts could overwhelm him, his father smiled encouragingly at him “You’ll be fine Hitoshi, and so will we. Now go.”
The boy felt a lump in his throat and hugged them both tightly “It doesn’t matter what I find out there, I will never forget you and what you did for me.” He whispered, before pulling away, trying and failing to hold back his tears.
“We won't either, Hitoshi. You will always always be our son.” They both said, as they let him go.
“Be careful out there and, please, be happy, Hitoshi.”
He slipped outside the gate and climbed on his bike “Thank you for everything.” He whispered, letting his eyes linger on them for one last time, before taking off.
Hitoshi pedalled all night, never taking any breaks. According to his parents nobody would go after him and, even if they did, he’d be long gone before they even realised he wasn’t in the village anymore.
He didn’t even know how long he rode for, but the sun was already high in the sky when he finally reached the next city over and decided to stop there to gather a few more supplies and figure out his next step.
The teen walked inside a small store, and it immediately stood out to him just how different it was from the ones he was used to back in the village. There was so much variety and everything looked so colourful. Up in the corner there was even a TV, which was tuned to a news channel Hitoshi had never seen before.
Curiosity got the best of him and so he decided to stop for a bit to take a look and listen in .
“Another big victory this morning for Japan’s number one hero, All Might, after he saved two young boys from a villain known as ‘Sludge Villain’. Apparently the two boys are middle schoolers and, when one them was captured, his friend threw himself into danger to try and save him.
According to the police reports they both are fine and have already been cleared out of Musutafu’s General Hospital...”
Hitoshi’s eyes widened as he saw the symbol outside the hospital showed on the screen and quickly scrambled to pull out of his pockets the plastic band his parents had given him.
Just as he remembered, on it was the very same logo as the one on the hospital in the TV screen.
He rushed to the counter and addressed the old man behind it “Excuse me, sir? Do you know where that hospital is?” He pointed to the screen, his heart hammering in his chest, he would have never thought he’d find such a solid lead so soon.
The store clerk glanced at the TV and then nodded “That is Musutafu, it’s where that Hero school is.” He scoffed, looking straight into Hitoshi’s eyes, his tone serious “Only trouble in Musutafu city, boy. Stay here in the countryside, it’s much safer and quieter.”
Hitoshi looked back at the TV and smiled “You don’t understand, sir, I need to go there. Do you know what’s the fastest way to get to Musutafu?”
The old man sighed and grabbed a brochure from behind the counter “You need to go to the next city and then take the train. I’m sure someone at the station will be able to give you directions, boy.” He smiled and Hitoshi bowed lowly.
“Thank you so much sir, you’ve been a great help.”
He paid for his goods and put the brochure securely in his backpack, then, with a wave and another thank you to the old man, he got back on his bike and left.
As he started pedalling down the road he couldn’t keep a bright smile off his face; he was going to get to Musutafu, find his real parents and nothing would get in his way.
It took him one more day to reach the city and finally find the train station.
Hitoshi had never been in a place that big ever before, so he couldn’t help himself as he looked around in awe, while he waited in line to buy his tickets.
He realised he had been too distracted, however, when the lady at the cashier loudly cleared her throat, looking mildly annoyed as the man behind him patted his shoulder “If you don’t need to buy a ticket, hurry along. There are people who need to get to work.”
He blushed and apologized profusely, quickly stepping up to the glass “Uh, good morning.” He started “I would like one ticket for Musutafu please.”
“Which station in Musutafu?” She quickly tapped on the keyboard of a small screen.
“Which... Station? Is there more than one?”
She stared at him, unimpressed “Are you making fun of me?”
Hitoshi’s eyes widened “What? No! I... I just... This is my first time taking a train there, so... I’m sorry. I don’t really know. I need to get to the hospital there, which is the closest station?”
She eyed him suspiciously, but turned back to the screen “So Musutafu central station. One way ticket?”
“Uh, yes please.” He said, figuring it was better not to ask what the other options were.
“Are you travelling alone? Do you have any luggage? Will you be travelling with your bike?”
“I can take it on the train with me?” He asked, eyes wide.
“Yes, you can, but it will cost you extra. When do you want to leave?”
Hitoshi looked at the clock “When is the next train?”
She looked at the screen and then back to Hitoshi “In thirty minutes.”
“Then I’ll be taking that, please.”
Finally finished with the interrogation, the lady printed him a ticket and Hitoshi handed her the money. He already felt drained, definitely no longer used to that much human interaction.
By some miracle (and a lot of blind guesses), less than fifteen minutes later, he found the right platform and awkwardly stood there with his bike, hands trembling slightly in both excitement and nervousness.
The purple haired teen still didn’t know what he would do once he got to the hospital. He knew it was unlikely he would find his parents there, but any step forward at that point, could be a step in the right direction.
Barely a week before he had felt like his life was meaningless and now, suddenly, he had a purpose again. There was so much to see and to discover. He had even bought a book about quirks in the station’s bookstore, wanting to know as much as possible about them and this society’s history.
He couldn't help but wonder what type of quirks would his parents have? Would they like his quirk? Would they help him learn how to use it?
As he mulled over those, and a thousand more questions, the train pulled up in the station. Not sure what to do Hitoshi followed the group of teens in front of him and got on. He found an empty seat in the car designated for people carrying bikes (thanks to the kind old lady that had pointed him to it) and immediately pulled out his new book and a snack. Apparently it would take at least 3 to 4 hours to get to his destination, so he made himself comfortable.
He spent his time between reading and looking out of the window, mesmerized. The world seemed to be even bigger than he had ever imagined, but, to his surprise, the thought didn’t scare him, on the contrary, all the possibilities excited him.
For the first time in his life, Hitoshi didn’t feel trapped in a cage way too small for him.