My hero academia:Am I worthy?

— This is just impossible! That can't be! — Inko exclaimed passionately, refusing to accept the reality. A deep fear gripped her heart: her lips began to tremble in panic, and her heart beat so hard it felt like it was trying to burst out of her chest. With sorrowful eyes, she looked at Doctor Akira, searching for even a hint of deception in his words, but his expression remained firm and unwavering. Soon, her gaze shifted to Izuku, who stood frozen like a statue, unable to tear his eyes away from the doctor's hospital gown. His eyes became empty, reflecting a chasm of despair. Time seemed to stand still around Izuku, and he lost all strength that kept him on his feet. His grip weakened, and he dropped his beloved figure of All Might to the floor, which crashed loudly, breaking the oppressive silence in the room. No one present dared to utter a word, not even to comfort the green-haired boy who was experiencing shock in every cell of his body.

Izuku was brought back to reality by the ticking of the wall clock, which echoed in his head like a reminder of the relentless passage of time. He lowered his gaze, focusing on the All Might figure lying on the floor. It stared at him with lifeless eyes, and the once fearless and inspiring smile now seemed a mockery of his grief. The toy looked directly at Izuku, and if it had been the real All Might, not just a figurine, he would surely have said:

—I'm sorry, young man, but you cannot become a hero without a Quirk. You are simply unworthy of it. Accept your position before it's too late for realization.

His imagination filled with dark thoughts of All Might mocking him for his lack of a Quirk. However, deep down, Izuku understood that the number one hero and Symbol of Peace, who had inspired countless other heroes, would never say such words, right? — he asked himself.

At that moment, Izuku noticed that the figurine began to slowly approach him, as if an invisible force was drawing him closer. With each passing second, the distance between them shrank, and the words breaking through his trademark smile became increasingly insistent:

— No... Unworthy... UNWORTHY!

These words echoed in his head like a curse, growing more persistent, until his dark thoughts were interrupted by his mother's voice, who, with a worried expression, placed the figurine in his hand. Inko couldn't help but ask if he felt okay after the doctor's words.

— Dear, are you alright? If you're feeling unwell, we can go home, — she said, noticing that her son's grip had weakened to the point that he stopped resisting and was looking at the doctor.

Akira, feeling his gaze, finally decided to intervene. A stab of conscience compelled him to speak, as he realized he had made the poor boy experience such shock at a young age. He said:

— As you can see, the impossible sometimes becomes possible. — The doctor pressed a button, revealing a panel with an X-ray image of Izuku's leg and fingers. The images looked completely normal for an ordinary person, but for someone with a Quirk, it meant that they had found cancer, which was now incurable.

— The image shows that he lacks an extra joint that every person with a Quirk has. Your son does not have this joint, and therefore he also lacks a Quirk.

These words weighed heavily on the souls of both members of the Midoriya family; the day had turned into a catastrophe, as they had expected a completely different outcome. It was especially painful for Izuku, for whom the door leading to the path of heroism was now forever closed.

— I want to add that your son will become an outcast among those who have Quirks. According to statistics, only 2% of people in the world lack Quirks. However, in Japan, this figure is significantly higher than in other countries. The Quirkless make up 7% of the total population of present-day Japan.

— I sincerely regret that I had to say this, — the doctor said, lowering his head. Izuku felt worse with every word spoken, but within him, there still flickered a glimmer of hope and a tormenting question that had plagued him since he was told he was Quirkless.

— What about heroes who awakened their Quirks at a later age, even though everyone told them they were Quirkless? — Regaining his former smile, he looked at the doctor with hope, who raised his head and met his gaze with his emerald eyes, which once again sparkled with hope. But to his disappointment, the next blow awaited him, one that would shatter all his expectations.

— That's an excellent question. Indeed, there have been documented cases of late Quirk awakenings in the field of medicine. This can be attributed to many factors, such as a dormant Quirk factor in the DNA or a special Quirk that does not manifest in childhood but appears in adulthood. In medicine, this phenomenon is called "special conditions for awakening the Quirk factor." Inko, like Izuku, felt a faint but persistent hope that Izuku might awaken his Quirk, if not now, then in the near future, and until then, she would support him alongside Hisashi in his journey to become a hero. However, the doctor's further comments ultimately made them both forget for a moment what "hope" even meant.

— But not in your case...

— What? — Izuku said, his voice barely a whisper.

— You see, according to your blood tests, you have a special genetic mutation that is found only in Quirkless individuals. This constitutes a mere 1% or even less. This means that you will not be able to awaken a Quirk in the near future. And I would like to mention... — He didn't get to finish, as tears began to fall from Izuku's eyes, and he started to sob. Inko desperately tried to encourage him, but Izuku could no longer hear her comforting words. His mother wiped the accumulated tears from his eyes, but it didn't help; the tears streamed down his face with even greater force. Izuku's heart ached painfully, while Inko felt sorrow and pain because she couldn't help him in this difficult situation. If there were a way to transfer her Quirk to Izuku, she would agree without hesitation, but unfortunately, even with advanced medicine and various Quirks, this was impossible.

Snot began to drip from his nose, and the tears fell into his mouth, leaving a salty taste.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the door, Nejire, curious to meet Izuku, pressed her ear to the door and began eavesdropping on everything that was happening since her dad had pulled her out of the room. However, Izuku's voice was not heard; only the doctor and Izuku's mother's voices could be heard, raising a wave of questions in Nejire's mind.

— Is everything okay with Izuku? Maybe he's silent because his mom won't let him interrupt adults? — But her ears caught a sound of crying, and by the sound, she realized it was Izuku. She thought he was crying because of a shot, but that didn't seem to be the case. Usually, when kids cry from a shot, they mostly scream and sob weakly, but here it was accompanied by genuine sobs and hiccups, familiar to Nejire thanks to her mom, who often cried even over trivial things. At that moment, she heard something that made her heart stop for a second.

— Son, don't cry, everything will be alright; after all, heroes don't cry, right? — Inko tried her best to comfort and encourage him, but instead, she only made things worse, pouring salt onto the wound. Izuku couldn't hold it in any longer and, overwhelmed by emotion, shouted at his mother:

— MOM, WHAT KIND OF HERO AM I IF I DON'T EVEN HAVE A QUIRK!!!

These words shocked Inko; she held back her tears, but they desperately tried to escape her eyes. Meanwhile, Nejire, hearing Izuku's desperate cry, couldn't withstand it and, purely on instinct, burst into the office searching for Izuku. She didn't have to look long, as he was sitting with a tall green-haired woman with long hair, who was currently hugging Izuku tightly. Finding Izuku, Nejire rushed to him and embraced him with all her strength. Inko lifted her gaze and saw that besides her, someone else was hugging Izuku — it was the same little girl who had barged in here eight minutes ago. Inko was happy that now Izuku had a new friend who cared about him, but she still couldn't shake the pain her son was experiencing.

— Izuku! Izuku!! What happened to you? Why are you crying? Did someone hurt you? Did you lose something? — A torrent of questions poured down on Izuku. Inko let go of him, allowing Nejire to hug him in a friendly way.

— Nejire, I... I... I... — His sobs continued while Nejire held him tightly. Izuku, casting aside all thoughts, buried his nose in Nejire's shoulder, still crying. Meanwhile, Nejire started gently patting him on the back, which seemed to help a little. Izuku tried to say something, but Nejire interrupted him.

— Izuku, let's get out of here! I think if you stay here any longer, you'll only feel worse. — Izuku agreed with her, opened his eyes, and saw that Nejire's dress was damp from his tears. She released him from her embrace, and as she met Izuku's gaze, she noticed his emerald eyes and studied his freckled face in detail. His adorable face made Nejire smile with delight, and without a second thought, she grabbed his hand and pulled him out of that oppressive office.

They sat down near the door, where the chairs were, and began talking about everything under the sun. Gradually, Izuku's despair began to fade, giving way to the conversations and questions from Nejire. Meanwhile, with the door slightly ajar, Nejire didn't realize she hadn't closed it fully, allowing them to hear the conversation between Inko and Doctor Akira.

— I'm glad he now has a good friend, — said Akira, smiling weakly as he looked at Inko, who was also not in the best state. However, Inko decided to ask the question that had been troubling her since the doctor had said her son was Quirkless.

— Doctor, is there anything we can do for him? I'm willing to do whatever it takes! — Inko said in desperation, but the reality was much harsher than her expectations.

— I understand your concern, but I can't help in this regard. Medicine is also powerless in this situation. I'm truly sorry...

— But I want to tell you something very important, — Akira said in a dramatic tone, causing shivers to run down Inko's spine, and she nodded, signaling that she was listening.

— Due to the peculiarities of your son's blood type and his genetic mutations, the boy's blood has undergone very unusual changes. To put it simply, he can become a donor for all blood types, but the problem is that if he needs a transfusion, it will be impossible.

— But how is that possible? — she asked in confusion.

— Now, people with Quirks or without cannot transfuse blood to him due to the mutations in his body. If anyone tries to do this, it could harm him, and if he were in a critical condition and blood were transfused at that moment, he could die.

These words struck Inko like lightning, sending her into a panic. Now, her son was not only Quirkless but also at risk if anyone found out about his mutation. Anticipating the worst, she decided to ask the doctor about any new symptoms her son might have.

— Is there anything else I should know?

— No, I have nothing more to say. That's all I wanted to tell you. I'm sorry, but your son will never become a hero. Due to his underdevelopment, he will be unworthy of being a hero. I hope you can change the goal of his life.

But they didn't know that Izuku had been eavesdropping on their conversation. With one ear listening, his inner world collapsed under the weight of the doctor's words, forming an emptiness in his soul.

**To be continued.**