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There are many sentences Toshinori had never expected to speak out-loud or even hear being spoken, be it for the sheer ridiculousness of them or various other factors. Out of all of them, there was one that took the cake.
“Young Midoriya!” He beamed as he opened the doors to the teachers’ lounge. “What’s bringing you here?”
“Ah, hi, All Might!” The boy smiled up at him, though his eyes soon slid off of Toshinori’s frame, glancing behind him and inside the room. He was hugging one of his notebooks to his chest, bouncing lightly in place. Was he there to meet with Aizawa-? “Is Zen-san in? I wanted to pick his brain about my quirk!”
…That sentence. That one took the cake.
Because in what universe could have Toshinori expected his successor to prefer All For One’s advice when it came to the quirk he shared with the boy?
“Ah-” Only years of practice kept the smile plastered on his face. He glanced back, eyes landing straight upon the villain in the room. Or, not a villain. Not the boogeyman of the underworld.
Just… A version of him from a universe where he never turned to evil.
Aizawa, much less hesitant about interacting with the would-be villain than Toshinori suspected he ever would be, lobbed an eraser at his head.
All For One caught it before it could even make contact, slowly blinking himself awake.
“Am I needed?” He asked, perfectly calm. It wasn’t a pretense, Toshinori had realized as much by now. He was just… Completely unflappable. His eyes rowed over the room, stopping at Toshinori and his boy. That heavy gaze still caused him shivers, even when it wasn’t filled with malice. “Ah. Midoriya-kun. Have you tested the latest ideas already?”
The boy nodded enthusiastically even as Toshinori’s blood froze in his veins. They already shared ideas-?
“You were right!” Midoriya bounced in place, opening his notebook and leafing through the pages. “Combining the quirks worked way better when I went in reverse order, and getting a handle on one meant easier time dealing with the next one-”
Toshinori had no idea what he meant by that. He was happy that Midoriya was making progress with One For All, of course… But it still stung to feel so out of his depth.
He ushered the boy into the room, ensured he was properly engaged, and left.
***
UA rooftops weren’t really made for spending time on them in a recreational manner, and Recovery Girl would have had his hide if she caught him sitting on the cement — even though he was wearing his trench coat! — but he just… needed to hide himself somewhere no one would find him.
“Yagi-kun? Are you alright?”
Correction: where almost no one would find him.
Toshinori’s hands clenched where he held onto the edges of his coat, pressing it closer together. He stayed still as All For One approached, bringing with himself the lack of wind and atmosphere of warmth.
He hated it. Hated the compassion, the aura of benevolence, the genuine kindness this man had no trouble handing out like candy. It was objectively better for everyone, he knew as much. That civilian at Kamino using their quirk on All For One in panic and switching him with this counterpart singlehandedly improved the state of the world.
And yet…
“I’m fine,” he bit off, praying the not-villain would leave him alone.
No such luck, though. Instead, All For One sat down near Toshinori, one arm laid over his knees as he took in the view.
“I know the relationship you had with my counterpart was… Antagonistic, to say the least,” Toshinori snorted mirthlessly at that. Understatement of the century. “But you’re not that different from the Toshi I consider my brother; At least personality-wise. I know something’s bugging you.”
“Yeah. You are.”
All For One didn’t laugh at him. Didn’t dismiss it as a joke. He took it seriously. “Is there anything I could do to help you differentiate between me and the counterpart you’re used to?”
Toshinori didn’t give it much thought. Why bother? “You’re already different enough; Your face isn’t a potato.”
The bafflement is pretty amusing. There wasn't a lot of good footage from Kamino, and All For One had spent most of the time wearing his mask. General public wasn’t really aware of his faceless state. It stands to reason that All For One — the non-villain one, Toshinori meant — wouldn’t know about it.
He sighed. “I just… Need to accept that you’re not here to hurt anyone,” he acknowledged. Bringing in Tsukauchi to confirm that had been one of their first moves after the switch, though All For One’s general compliance and non-aggression was a major tip-off. “It’s weird to see you get along with Young Midoriya so well, when I spent so long terrified about him dying at your hand.”
All For One seemed to be digesting that for a moment, head tilting in contemplation. “Yagi-kun.” Oh, Toshinori did not like that tone. “In my world, you were a natural with One For All. You took to it like a duck to water, having an instinctive handle on it. Is that the case in this universe, as well?”
Toshinori stiffened, suspicious. “Why do you ask?”
“Because one cannot teach what he had not learned,” All For One wasn’t looking at him, staring out into the distance. “You’re a genius tactician. When it comes to physical fighting, there is truly no one on par with you.” He turned, then, his expression so soft that Toshinori could barely stomach it. “But no one is the best at everything, and quirk analysis was never your interest or strong suit. Holding yourself to such a high standard would be irrational.”
“Gran Torino was able to help,” Toshinori forced through gritted teeth. “And he never even held One For All.
“He was a homeroom teacher. That’s a job where, every year, you must figure out how to help twenty-odd students with unfamiliar quirks reach their full potential. That made him more than qualified for that purpose.”
Great. So it was just Toshinori who shouldn’t have tried instructing Young Midoriya.
“You did the best you could-”
“And it wasn’t enough!” Toshinori threw his hands in the air, back straightening. “All Young Midoirya got out of my tutelage are broken bones and chronic pain-”
“That’s not true.” All For One’s voice is solid as he interrupted, yielding no quarter. “You advised him on the diet and exercise plan necessary to bulk up within a very short period of time. I can see your guidance in his fighting style. You gave him the motivation and encouragement to continue down this path. When he struggled, you knew to direct him towards someone you knew could help more. You did the best you could, Toshinori, and I am so proud of you for that.”
There were tears prickling at the corners of his eyes. Toshinori pretended it was because of the wind.
“I’m… Jealous of my counterpart,” he whispered. “That he got to have you. While all I had was a murdered mentor, a grieving teacher and the worst villain to walk the Earth.”
He saw the arm coming, but didn’t move away, didn’t say anything as All For One — as Zen-san — carefully laid it over Toshinori’s shoulders, pulling him into a half-hug.
“I am here now, for what little it’s worth,” he offered.
But the dam had burst, and Toshinori’s curiosity that’s been eating at him for weeks finally tore through his barriers, crawling out of his mouth.
“What was the difference?” He asked. “Between you and him, I mean. If you know.”
Zen-san sat silent for a moment. “Our mother didn’t die,” he said.
As simple as that, to make a man into a monster.