Deku and Ochaco walked down a dirt road with bags slung over their shoulders as the sun radiated down on them. They had left when the sun rose, but hours had passed since then. Deku placed a hand on his injured side and gritted his teeth as the wound continued to pulsate with pain. He fell behind Uraraka for a few moments as he tried to regain his barrings, but he quickly caught up to the girl. He jogged next to Ochaco and grinned,"How are you letting a crippled man keep up with you ?"

The girl rolled her brown eyes and remarked,"Cause if I got to far ahead you'd be lookin' at my ass."

"Don't flatter yourself; I am a man of standards."

"You slept in my barn, so how high could your standards possibly be ?"

.....

The pair walked down the same long road, but stopped as they spotted an odd sight. On the side of the road rested an old wooden building. Deku and Ochaco slowly approached the sight and batted curious eyes at is as they spotted a man standing inside of it. Deku rushed to the rectangular box shaped building and looked at the older man behind the counter."Well I'll be damned."

Uraraka followed behind the messy-haired man and furrowed her brow in uncertainty as she studied the man Deku spoke to. The stranger's tanned old face was wrinkled, yet despite all of the wear he displayed a wide smile. His hair was predominantly white, but there were a few streaks of a yellowish-blond hidden within his palm tree like hairstyle. The man's eyes were sunken and his thin frame made the woman worry for his health.

The man behind the counter looked at Deku and his smile faded, and was replaced with shock. The man took a step back and placed a hand on his head. He then muttered under his breath,"No, no, no, that's not possible. Y-You died years ago."

Deku scratched the side of his head and chuckled,"It's me."

The elderly man looked up and his crystal blue eyes were filled to the brim with tears."Midoryia !"

"The one and only."

"Y-You look just like you did all those years ago."

Deku shrugged his shoulders,"Good genes I guess."

Ochaco pulled Deku backwards by the end backside of his cloak and whispered into his ear,"How do ya know this guy ?"

"Me and Toshi go way back."

Ochaco nodded her head and tossed Deku onto the ground. The man landed on his butt and mumbled under his breath,"Jerk.", as Ochaco extended a hand towards Toshi.

"Hi Mr. Toshi, I'm Uraraka."

"Y-You look just like her."

"Sorry ?"

"You look just like Deku's-"

Deku jumped to his feet on queue and butted into the conversation."It amazing that you guys get along like two peas in a pod, but I think we are moving a little fast."He then asked his old friend,"What's up with all of this ?" He then pointed to the small shop the old man was running.

"Oh, this ! It's what I've done for the past twenty plus years."

Ochaco squeaked,"You've been doing this for twenty years !"

"More like twenty-eight."

"Wow, that's impressive."

"Really ?"

"I don't think I could do that and although Deku would swear he could do it for fifty years he'd really just scare away all of the customers."

Deku glared at Ochaco and quipped," And if you ran it you'd have them thinking they walked into a freak show."

Toshi shook his head,"That is no way to treat a woman Midoryia."

Ochaco roared,"Finally someone calls him out on it !"

"Trust me Tosh, she isn't a woman." Ochaco smacked Deku on the back of the head for his comment."Ow !" 

"Can you stand him cause I can't ?"

Toshi chuckled,"If he teases you that means he likes you."

.....

Ochaco sat on the floor of Toshi's shop and read many of the books. They were filled with wonderful stories that she could have read forever, but one caught her attention. The book was titled: Japan's Most Valiant Heroes. She looked at the cover and the many heroes scattered across it and smiled. Her mind raced to the many storied her father told her and a lone tears streaked down her cheek. She opened the book and carefully read every word of each page. The first page pictured a tall seven foot man in a bright costume and her mouth gaped open in realization. She looked at the name All Might and remembered what Deku told her before he left."He was tellin' the truth." Uraraka turned the page and her eyes widened at the bold green name at the top. Deku. This page especially caught her attention and she read the description of the man with more focus than with anything else in her life.

Deku was the biggest riser this year in the hero rankings. The mysterious man broke onto the scene when he saved Pro hero Uravity during a prison break. His quirk is quite spectacular, but is not officially listed in Japan's database. He had quickly become a fan favorite with his snarky attitude and the fiery passion he displays while in the field. Most believe he will be the heir to the throne once All Might retires, but in a world filled with talented people nothing is set in stone.  Fun fact : Deku is the shortest male hero to ever make it to the top ten in the official rankings.

Ochaco snickered at the last sentence and began to study the hero. The man wore a padded green costume and an odd metal contraption across his mouth, which covered about half of his face. She could make out a few freckles, but two things stuck out about the man. His eyes glowed a magnificent green and his grassy hair seemed untamable. The girl flipped through a few more heroes and was not outside of the top ten. She flipped to hero number twelve and felt a jolt of joy when she saw the name Uravity. "So this was the girl Deku loved huh ?" Ochaco read through the description and doubled cheeked when she saw the woman's quirk description. Zero Gravity."That's neat we have the same quirk !" She then peered at the photograph of Uravity. The woman was not very tall and her beautiful figure was complemented by a skin tight costume. Ochaco squinted as she tried to make out the woman's face behind the pink visor of her helmet, but she couldn't. The only thing revealed by the helmet was her short brown hair that flowed out the back and framed her hidden face. Ochaco stopped studying the page and decided to continue flipping through the large book.

.....

Deku leaned against the wall to the building and talked with Toshi."So why the hell do you run this shop ?"

"I sell stories in hopes of inspiring the younger generation to take up what we did in our prime."

"Nobel as always," smirked Deku.

"You say that like you aren't."

Deku couldn't contain his laugh."That's not me anymore."

Toshi frowned,"I'm sad to hear that; I had never seen a heart as big as yours."

"The world doesn't have a place for heroes anymore."

"You're wrong Midoryia, people just need to be brave and the darkness will one day be lit."

"I'm not so sure about that. No-one can take down the regime, not even me."

"What makes you say that ?"

" I've tried, they're too powerful. If I don't butt in when I shouldn't then people don't get hurt."

"That's malarkey," insisted Toshi."Think about the people that are harmed when you don't act, those are innocent lives being lost."

Deku scoffed,"You sound like Ochaco."

"Well then she's a smart girl."

"She's naive, there is a difference."

Toshi sighed,"If she's so bad then why are you protecting her ?"

"Huh ?"

"News travels Midoryia. I heard about a man named Deku and a woman on the run from the Regime, but I never believed it was you. Are you doing this because she reminds you of-"

"No !"

Toshi apologized,"I'm sorry I didn't mean to-"

"It's okay," assured Deku."You were making a logical assumption."

"Midoryia I have a question ?"

"What do you want to know ?"

"What are you planing ?"

"I'm not following you."

"What are you and this girl going to do, run forever ? You know the farther north you travel the more you near the capital, and who lies there."

"I know," sighed Deku as he grabbed the bridge of his nose.

"I'll give you a warning. The nearest city is a hotbed for the Regime and its leaders, but if you cut through that forest nearby than you can completely avoid them."

Deku turned and pointed to a gathering of trees."That one ?" Toshi nodded his head. Deku stepped from the wall and gave his old comrade a hug."Stay safe you old fucker cause I'll be back here and we'll be having a drink together."

Toshi smiled,"I'll do my best."

Deku banged his hand against the door to the shop and yelled,"Hey bookworm, we need to get going !"

Ochaco opened the door and looked at Toshi."I love the stories, I wish I had the money to buy one."

The man looked at her and grinned,"Take any two you want free of charge."

"Really !" Ochaco turned around and grabbed the book filled with heroes she was only halfway through with and grabbed another book that seemed to be at least one thousand pages. She stuffed them into her bag filled with clothes and rushed outside and gave the old man a hug."Thank you !" 

The man laughed and returned the favor."Think of it as a reward for keeping my friend in check."

Deku rolled his eyes and grabbed Ochaco's hand. He lead the both of them into the thick forest ahead.