It was raining outside. It was as if the world could sense his mood and decided to laugh at him. After the Sports Festival was concluded, Katsuki was left in a state of limbo. To the entire world he looked to be one of the best students in 1-A. In his own mind, all he could think of was the shame he had to bear. Thrice now he'd been bested by lzuku.
Once at the Entrance exam, then again at the battle trial and finally now at the sports festival. It hurt to stand on the number 2 spot at the stadium, but somehow it hurt even more to see Izuku smiling as he, Madara and All Might all posed for a picture together. Katsuki had seen what the news were saying in regards to that photo. The Trinity, the Three Pillars, the Legendary Three, all these were the names used to describe All Might, Madara and Izuku.
Katsuki was no fool, he knew that as he was right now, he couldn't compete with the power of Madara and All Might, but it should have been different with Izuku. For as long as he could remember, it had been Katsuki that was the best, the fastest and the smartest. Well maybe not the smartest, but definitely the bravest of the two.
Now….. now he was nothing. Was he always a
pebble on the road? A roadblock for Izuku to
surpass and not the other way around? Katsuki
was lost, that much was obvious to him. Once he
got home, he couldn't bring himself to care
anymore. He went to bed without dinner and
woke up and went to school without going through his morning exercise routine, a routine
that he'd been following religiously for the better
part of two years.
Even the large number of offers for internship
couldn't rouse him. He wasn't the first in this
either. Even worse he was third, after Todoroki
and, of course, Izuku.
Was this his life now? Always playing second fiddle
to Izuku? Never being good enough to stand on his
own, a forever prisoner of Izuku's heroic shadow?
Katsuki liked to think himself a rational person, despite his temper. Even so, he couldn't quite
shake the unease he felt when Izuku was better
than him at something. It made him angry and for
the longest time he simply accepted it as
annoyance at the useless Deku who wasn't
content with his place at the bottom. If it wasn't
for Madara, Katsuki would have put said Deku in his place, but since Madara was there and much
more powerful than him, Katsuki quenched his
rage with putting down the other rabble that tried
to reach for his place.
Maybe he needed a good long walk to collect himself. He remembered a nice secluded spot in the mountains where he used to train with his quirk, in fact that may just cheer him up a bit.
Rain was pouring down by the bucketload and thunder and lightning flashed in the sky above.
Katsuki cursed his luck. Of course, it would start raining the moment after he was finished with his workout. So here he was, trying to get to a shelter somewhere. Only problem was that he had lost track of time and it had gotten dark outside and the downpour wasn't helping matters at all, in fact it was making it even worse. The ground was either a muddy bog or slippery rock.
"Dam this fucking rain" muttered Katsuki under his breath "who the fuck though it would be a good ideal to go and train in the mountains, oh yeah, me, fuck me"
Worst of all was that he was lost and his phone was smashed to bits. He fell some time ago and because the rain interfered with his quirk's functionality he fell on his side and smashed against a rock. He was lucky that his phone took the brunt of the damage. Otherwise he'd be trying to get to safety with a busted hip.
Even so, the weather wasn't doing him any favors and a lightning bolt struck a tree next to him causing it to come crashing down on Katsuki. He managed to doge, but failed to get a good grip on the ground and fell in a ravine. Katsuki tried to save himself with his quirk, but the dirt and water had diluted his sweat to the point that he couldn't even get a spark from his hands. He fell on the dirt bellow and pain shot up from his leg.
Katsuki didn't manage to bite back a scream.
Looking down he could see his foot had been twisted at an odd angle. He didn't break his bones, but he did break his ankle. At any rate, he was now more or less immobile. Every attempt to move was painful, but Katsuki knew that he couldn't let it end like this. Even as his strength left him and the beginnings of hypothermia began to set in, Katsuki used what little strength he had left to drag himself to safety, somewhere out of the rain.
As he fell unconscious, all he could see was a small speck of light in the distance.
'Useless runt'
'You're so cool, I hope to be just like you when I grow up!'
'I'm sure that you'll be a great hero with a quirk like yours'
'Didn't you hear the news? They say he's quirkless'
'What's a quirkless? Is it some kind of disease?'
'Now boys you take care of Izuku, after all quirkless people aren't as resilient as normal children'
'You useless Deku!'
'Don't go near my brother ever again, or I'll make you regret the day you were born!'
'I'm sorry, you just looked like you needed help'
'Are you all right, kacchan? That fall looked pretty nasty
'I don't need your help, useless Deku!'
'HA, HA, I, All Might welcome you, Katsuki Bakugou to UA high. You'll be happy to know that you scored second!'
'Dam Deku, how dare you try and usurp my place.
I'm the number one, you hear!'
'More like number one looser, after all, that's what you said the number two spot was, isn't that right, Kacchan?
'Hero team wins!'
'RHO AIAS!'
'Have you seen yourself lately? Ever so desperate to prove you superiority over others that you take to bullying those beneath you'
'It sickens me to think that I once called you my friend!'
Darkness
That was all that was in this place
'Am I dead?' Katsuki asked himself
He failed. He lost. What reason was there for him to live any longer? Friends? The only one he'd ever considered his friend just made his feelings quite clear on that matter. Family? Sure, he had his dad and that hag of mother. They'd mourn and others would pay lip service at his funeral, but all in all he'd be forgotten come winter. Just another body in the ground.
"I see you're awake" came a voice.
"Huh?" Katsuki opened his eyes and looked around
He was in a wooden house with a stove burning wood in a corner of the room he was in. That was odd. Usually even the most remote of places had gas or electric stoves.
He heard a chuckle beside him and instantly snapped his head in the direction of the sound.
What greeted him was no villain or woodsman, or anyone he could reasonably think of. By his bedside was an old man, with flowing white hair and a tired old wrinkly face. He was dressed in a dark orange yukata and had the brightest blue eyes he'd ever seen this side of All Might.
"Who are you, where the hell am I?" asked Katsuki trying to stand
He was pushed back down by the old man
"You must rest. You are safe in my monastery. I am the last of the monks that used to live in this place"
Monastery? Katsuki never knew that there was a monastery around here. The old man chuckled again and thusly broke Katsuki from his thoughts.
"Who the hell are you? I've never heard of a monastery around here!" yelled out Katsuki, returning to his default mood when faced with the unknown
"No, I suppose you haven't. After all, not many of your generation want anything to do with history" said the old man
"What?"
"It's nothing. Rest, young warrior. The night is young and you need to recover your strength. I'll leave some clothes for you to change into and if you want, there is some tea by the stove" said the old man
Katsuki watched silently as the old man got to his feet and walked to the door with the aid of his cane. Normally he wouldn't have given him a second thought, but seeing the way he walked and carried himself, Katsuki couldn't help but think of Madara and Izuku. They too had this regal grace round them as they walked, not that Katsuki would ever admit it.
Katsuki decided to do something productive and threw the sheets off him. Strangely enough, his ankle didn't hurt as much as he should. Looking down, he saw that someone had taken off his sweatshirt, trousers and socks, leaving him only in his boxers. His left foot, the one he'd injured was bandaged and set properly and he could feel a whiff of a mixture that was probably used to treat the swelling. All in all, it was quite professionally done. Looking around, he found his clothes hanging by the stove and by his bedside there was a loose shirt and pants, the nightwear the old man left him. Looking around and seeing no one, Katsuki removed his slightly wet boxers and got himself dressed. He then set them up to dry alongside the rest of his clothes and went back to sleep to the sound of rain falling on the building's roof.
Katsuki awoke the next morning. From what he could hear, it was still raining. Looking around, he could see that the fire in the stove had burned out during the night. Next to the door, there was a set of clothes. Seeing as his workout clothes weren't the best of choice for the weather outside, Katsuki swallowed his pride and got dressed in the clothes the old man left for him. He couldn't help but think about that man and the supposed monastery he was in. Katsuki opened the door and he was surprised to see that it led to a walkway that surrounded an inner courtyard.
"You are awake, I see"
Katsuki spun around.
There, a few feet away from his door sat the old man. He appeared to be reading some book or another
"Of course I am. Not that I'm not thankful or anything, but do you have something to eat? I could really use some food"
It galled Katsuki that he had to beg for food in this manner, but he wasn't stupid enough to starve himself for the sake of pride.
The old man raised an eyebrow at the question, seemingly surprised. He reached beside him and took a bowl of something that he handed to Katsuki. Without question Katsuki dug in. After he finished, he set the bowl down and took a seat next to the old man.
"Ok, now spill. Who are you? What is this place?
And no dodging unless you have a phone handy so that I can get out of here" said Katsuki
"If you wish to leave, then you are most welcome to do so. I'm not holding you here against your will, far from it. It's curious though, how you managed to drag yourself to the gates of the monastery before falling unconscious"
"You've still not answered my questions"
The old man laughed
"You may call me the Custodian"
Katsuki raised an eyebrow at the name
"You doubt my word?"
"I doubt your sanity. Being up in these mountains must have messed with your mind, but fine, don't tell me. Now what is this place?"
The old man seemed to lose his mirth for a bit as he said with sorrow
"This is where the past comes to die"
Katsuki cocked his head to the side. What kind of an answer was that? Before he could demand an explanation, the old man got to his feet and began walking. Without being asked to, Katsuki followed.
The old man led him down several hallways. Lining the hallways, Katsuki could see weapons from ancient time. Swords, axes, spears and more were hanging off the wall.
"What is this?" Katsuki involuntarily asked
The old man turned around to see this young charge looking in wonder at a katana. The old man had seen that look before and seeing it on this young boy now, it lit a spark in him that he was sure had long been snuffed out.
"Come. That blade was meant for the hand of a warrior, not that of a child" said the old man
Katsuki recoiled his hand and glared at the old man, but followed nonetheless. He was lead down several stairs before finally arriving at a pair of giant doors. The old man twisted a pattern on the nobs on the doors and with a clang they creaked open.
As he walked inside, Katsuki couldn't help but wonder at what he was seeing. Entire rows of books as tall as the room and seemingly never ending. Each book was in its own case that looked to be airtight. Katsuki turned to the man, but before he could speak, he was cut off by the Custodian.
"This is one of the Great Libraries entrusted to the different orders of wise men across the world.
When the quirks became mainstream and heroes rose up to guard the people, there were those that saw the stories and legends about ancient heroes to be damaging to the minds of young people.
They did everything in their power to stamp out these works of literature to ensure that the population remained pacified. This is one of the only repositories left in the world that contains that ancient knowledge"
Katsuki was speechless for a moment as he tried to come up with the right things to say.
"Why me? Why show this to me?"
"Because you are no hero"
Katsuki felt that something was constricting his heart. He couldn't help but fist his borrowed clothes as he looked in anger at the old man
"I'm a hero student at UA, you fucking old man! I will be the number one hero, you hear me!" yelled
Katsuki
The old man looked on impassively
"If this is true, then why did you have a look of anguish on your face as you said that?"
Katsuki recoiled and looked at the old man with wide eyes. The old man closed his eyes and hummed
"When I look at you I see something that I haven't seen in a hundred years. A true warrior shackled by the chains of conduct that society has thrust upon you. I doubt that if given the choice you would really become a hero"
"That's not true! I wanted to be a hero! I wanted to beat All Might and be number one! I've trained every single day of my life-"
"Foolishly" cut inn the old man abruptly "I've seen you do battle at the Festival. You fought only with your quirk, relying on it for every attack. To rely solei on a single tool is unbecoming of one such as yourself"
"And what the hell do you know about me?" snapped Katsuki
The old man was silent for a bit as he approached
Katsuki
"You are in turmoil, that much is clear. You have great potential but your imbalance is your undoing. Let me help you, Katsuki Bakugou"
'Arayou all right, Kacchan?"
"Dam it, old man I don't need your help, I don't need anyone's help!"
The old man was silent as he bowed his head
"When one is at their lowest point, he is open to the greatest change. Should you ever need it, I will be here. Come find me"
As if by magic, the rain had cleared during the time they were in the underground library. Without saying a single word, Katsuki got dressed in his now dry clothes and took off. The old man was there, watching silently. Katsuki glared. He'd show him. He'd show the world, he was a hero, and nothing will ever change that fact.
With renewed resolve, Katsuki followed the winding path from the monastery down to the village at the base of the mountain.
Even so, he couldn't forget what the old man had said to him.
'You are no hero'