Chapter 1: Prologue

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ Reborn! _ _ _ _ _ _ _

Hello there, my name is *ERROR*, I am 19 years old, and my favorite hobbies are reading, watching anime, and running errands for the mafia! Yeah, you read that correctly, the mafia! You see, my dad worked as an information broker for several mafia groups, or Families, and although he himself wasn't part of any Family, several people tried to get him to either stop selling information to their rivals, or join their own Families. Of course, my dad refused all their offers, which as you can imagine, didn't sit well with some of them. So, when i was about 10, me and my mom ended up getting kidnapped by a small-time Family trying to increase their power by forcing dad to join them.

Thankfully, a few members of a certain Family were in the area, and caught wind of this. That Family was the Vongola, one of the biggest, if not THE biggest, and most powerful Families out there. The ones who heard about the situation were the famous Sun and Rain guardians: Ryohei Sasagawa, and Takeshi Yamamoto. They immedietly saved me and my mom and in return, my dad decided to work full-time for the Vongola.

I was, of course, in awe of the Vongola. Not only did two of their strongest warriors save me all on their own, but they also did it with no expectation of personal gain. In my mind, they were heroes, and i wanted to be just like them. So, after months of begging and pleading with my mom and dad, i was allowed to ask the boss of the Vongola, Vongola Decimo: Tsunayoshi Sawada, if i could join the Vongola.

At first, he was completely shocked that I would want to join a mafia Family after what happened, but when he heard why i wanted to join, he got a small smile on his face. He told me that he would allow me to join the Vongola, but i was only allowed to do small, super low-risk jobs until i was older. While i was a bit miffed at first, i was also just pleased that he let me join at all.

For the next 9 years, i did odd jobs all over the place. Helping the Guardians with small tasks that they were too busy to do themselves, assisting the other members of the family with their jobs, and just generally running errands. That's not to say that my time was spent doing nothing though.

At 12, i started learning Martial Arts. Turned out i had a natural talent for Boxing, which caused Ryohei to shout with joy even louder than he normally does. At 14, I was taught how to unlock my Dying Will Flames: i ended up having Lightning Flames, with secondary Sun Flames. Perfect for boxing: i could harden my skin and bones with my Lightning Flames, and increase the power and healing rate of my muscles with my Sun Flames. At 16, I got to pick a weapon to learn how to use. I went with a pair of gauntlets, so that not only would they not get in the way my boxing, but i could also reinforce them with my Flames, allowing me to block with them. In addition, i learned how to concentrate my lightning flames into actual electricity, turning my gauntlets into makeshift tasers. The gauntlets themselves weren't super fancy, just metal plates that went all the way from my fingertips to my elbows. They did have the vongola symbol engraved on the forearm though, to show that i was a member of their Family.

And so my life went. I was happy with where i was. Did i wish i could be on the front-lines more? Definitely. It was my greatest dream to help people like the Vongola helped me and my family. However, there's no point trying to rush things. I'm sure i'll be sent on bigger missions sooner or later. Or at least, i would have.

After all that training, after all that effort to become stronger, i died. Somehow, that's not even the worst part. "How is that?" you ask, well i'd say the worst part has to be the fact that i didn't die doing anything cool or heroic. I died because of a drunk driver. That's right. I was just walking through the city, enjoying one of my infrequent days off, and when i crossed a road, with the light clearly red, a drunk driver who wasn't paying attention drove right into me.

'Well, what a shitty way to die.'

Why did it have to end like this?'

'I demand a re-do, this is totally unfair!' That's what i thought as i died. At first i got mad, as the world faded away, and the pain disappeared, but after what felt like a few minutes, i just felt tired and resigned. Then, a few more minutes passed. And then a few more.

'huh, always thought dying would be a lot faster than this. And where the hell's that light that supposed to at the end of the tunnel?' Finally, right as i thought that, a light appeared. At first it was a tiny speck, but it very rapidly started to get bigger and bigger, becoming brighter as it did so. As i was completely engulfed in this blinding light, the last thoughts to go through my head weren't sadness or anger, but rather resignation. I had wanted to help people, like the Vongola helped me, but now i'll never get that chance. As the end approached i closed my eyes and waited for it to all be over.

Only instead of hearing the singing of angels in the background, or the screams of the damned, the only thing i heard was a steady, and frankly quite annoying, beeping sound. Extremely confused, i opened my eyes, expecting to see either the pearly gates, or fire and brimstone. Instead, what i saw was a plain, white tile ceiling. As i looked about, i noticed that i'm apparently in a hospital bed.

'huh, did an ambulance manage to get to me on time after i passed out?' As i continued to observe the room, i saw that the beeping was coming from a heart monitor to my right, although what confused me was that that was all i saw. As i'm pretty sure i broke quite a few bones when that car hit me, there should have been at the very least an I.V. bag or something attached to me.

Deciding to investigate further, i tried to push myself up into a sitting position. That's when i noticed problem number 2: My arms were way too short. Unless this bed was made for giants, then i should be able to easily reach from one side to the other with only one arm, and yet my right arm was barely able to reach the right-side arm-rest. Travelling my eyes down my now tiny arm to the rest of me, i have to amend my earlier thought. Problem number 2: I'M way too short.

I don't know how this has happened, but i've shrunk. That's the only explanation i have, seeing as how my torso and legs now appear to be a fraction of my previous size. I start to panic, as shown in the beeping of the heart monitor increasing quite a bit, but i'm too worried to care about that right now.

I quickly take off the little device they put on your finger to take your pulse, and hop off the bed, looking for a mirror. When i hit the ground i wobble, almost falling down due to my new size, but i manage to catch myself. That's when i see a small hand-held mirror on a chair next to the bed. Moving as quickly as i can, what with my center of gravity now shot, i hurry to pick it up.

When i do, i almost drop it again in shock. The good news, i now have an answer to problem number 2. It's not so much that i've shrunk, but rather that i've found myself de-aged into a little kid. Although this brings me to problem number 3: this is most definitely not what i looked like as a kid. This body has what appears to be green hair and eyes the likes i haven't seen since that one time former Lightning Arcobaleno Verde showed up at the Vongola home base. It's also fairly pale and has freckles. That's not such a huge deal, but when you consider that my former appearance was dark brown hair, black eyes, tanned skin, and not a freckle to be seen, it all makes for a very confusing image.

As i'm sitting there mentally stunned at what i'm seeing, the door to the room slams open as a doctor rushes in. Guess having the heart monitor of a kid go from completely calm to racing, and then flat-line would be concerning. The doctors eye rush to the empty bed, and then around the room until they land to me, still holding the mirror. She sighs in relief. "My my. I'm glad you've woken up, little one, but please don't take off your monitor on your own, okay?"

If i wasn't still reeling from my new appearance, i might have taken offense to being called 'little one'. As it is, all i could do sort of nod at her, and let her lead me back onto the bed, the mirror placed back on the chair it was on when i woke up. Gathering my wits about me, i finally ask her, my voice way too high for my liking, and a little dry, "W-What happened?"

She gave me a small smile, and reached towards to end of the bed, pulling up a clip-board. "Hmm, let's see. Ah, here we go. Izuku Midoriya, age 4, was playing with his friends near a river, when he tripped and hit his head on a rock. no major injuries or blood-loss, but was brought in for observation in case of brain damage." At this point she stopped reading the clip-board, looked at me, and then seemed to remember she was talking to a little kid. Or, at least a person who looked like a little kid. "Well, little Izuku, do you mind if i call you Izuku?" I just kinda shook my head, trying to absorb what was going on. "Well, Izuku, you were playing with your friends and bumped your head. Do you remember that?"

Of course i don't. I have no clue who the hell this 'Izuku Midoriya' is in the first place. My mind starts working over-time to figure out just what in the actual fuck is going on. Absent minded-ly, i realize the doc is still waiting for an answer, so i just shake my head a little. The look of confusion and concentration that's no doubt on my face making it seem like i'm trying real hard to remember whatever it was she said happened before i 'hit my head'.

"Well, what's the last thing you remember, then?" Maybe the tech department was futzing with the ten year bazooka again, and accidentally sent my mind into that of a kid in another dimension? Or maybe the car also hit my head, and now i'm in a coma, having weird dreams. Or perhaps - oh, wait, she asked another question. I just shake my head again.

"Oh dear." Well, whatever happened, i guess i just have to roll with it for now. Either the tech department will figure something out and pull me back to my old world, or i'm stuck here. Either way, there's no point in worrying. "Just wait here, okay izuku?" At my nod, she starts to leave the room, a worried frown on her face. That's when i notice something i hadn't before, too wrapped up in my own thoughts to really pay attention.

She has a tail. It's like a cats tail, and it even looks like she has cat ears on the top of her head. They don't look like accessories, and the tail is even twitching as she walks, so the possibility of her being a cosplayer or something is pretty low, unless wherever i am has better costume tech than i'm used to.

Since she didn't close the door all the way when she left, i can see her walk over to another doctor, this one a male who, besides a scar or two on his face, looks completely normal. They exchange hushed words that i can't make out, and then they start to walk back over to this room. I quickly look off to the other side, so that it looks like i'm looking out the window that's on that wall. Incidentally, it looks like it's about mid-day or so.

I hear the door open all the way again, this time in a more calm manner, and i turn my head over to look at the two doctors. "Hello there, little Izuku. My friend here was just letting me know that you'd woken up. You can call me Doctor Hanatarou. I was curious if you'd let me use my quirk to see if you're injured." Well, i may not be a genius like Spanner or Shoichi, but i'm pretty sure with the way he phrased that, the word 'quirk' means something different than it's dictionary definition.

"Quirk? What's that?" No better way to get information than to ask questions. Plus, with my new look, who's gonna suspect me of anything other than child-like curiosity? Unfortunately, it looks like that might have been a bad question to ask, as the two look at eachother in a mixture of shock and confusion.

"You really don't remember anything?" The male doctor asks me. Dude, if i had a clue what was going on, do you think i'd be asking questions? Sighing mentally, i just nod my head. I seem to be doing a lot of head moving. Probably not good if i actually do have brain damage, now that i think about it.

"I see. Well, i guess i can give you a refresher course, though i'm no teacher. You see, in our world almost everybody is born with some sort of 'special ability' like flying, or being super strong, or anything else you can imagine. We call those abilities 'Quirks'. Most people discover what their Quirk is around ages 5 and 6. People who use their Quirks to help people are called 'Heroes' and those who do bad things are called 'Villains'. My Quirk is called 'X-Ray', and it let's me see if people are hurt and where they hurt."

I see. Well, that doesn't really help me out in figuring out what's going on, but i guess i can safely say that i don't think we're in Kansas anymore, Toto. A world full of people with superpowers? That's like if everyone had Flames, but if everyone had a different flame, rather than there only being 7 types. Wait, did he say that there are heroes and villains in this world? Like, actual, honest to god, comic-book style heroes? Well, either i really am dreaming, or i might just be the luckiest mafioso in history. Except Decimo, of course. Dude either has literally the worst luck, or the best luck. Zero in-between.

Any-way, i tune back in to the Doc, who seems to have finished his little exposition rant, and is looking at me as if waiting for something. Oh, right, he asked if he could check me out with his X-ray eyes or something. "W-Well, you're the doctor, and i don't wanna be hurt, so i guess it's okay." Good god, kill me. I can't wait till puberty hits me and my voice deepens. And there's a sentence i never thought that i'd ever think.

The Doc gives me a warm smile that would have made me feel more comfortable if i was actually a kid. How old did the other doc say i was? 4? Geez, i am not looking forward to elementary and middle school. Kids can be vicious, man. Anyways, his eyes suddenly go completely white, and he slowly looks me up and down. Again. wouldn't be a problem if i was actually 4, but as an almost 20 year-old, getting ogled by an older dude is kinda creepy.

"Well, it doesn't look like you're hurt bad anywhere, though you do have a small crack in your skull. Nothing dangerous, though it might be why you can't remember anything right now. With luck, that should clear up in a day or two."

Yeah, probably not. If i've actually straight up replaced this kid in mind, the chances of remembering anything is pretty slim to none. I kinda feel bad. Poor squirt never really got a chance to be a person. But oh well. It's not like i wanted to do this, and as far as i know, there's nothing i can do about it, so there's no point getting emotional about it. If anything, if i'm stuck in this kids body, i might as well live life to the fullest to make up for it.

As i'm mentally debating exactly how ethical this whole thing probably isn't, the male doc says goodbye and heads out again. No wonder. With a power like that, any hospital would want to have him around. He's probably super busy. After he's gone the lady Doc starts talking again.

"Well, since you're more or less in full health, and there's nothing we can do about your memories, we're gonna call your mom and have her come pick you up, okay?" As i don't really have a reason to deny her, i give the Doc the green light as well as a large grin that has her smiling as she walks off, this time fully closing the door.

I proceed to spend the next half-hour or so just moving about the room, getting used to this new body. After all, if i'm gonna be stuck with it for who knows how long, i might as well get used to it. Although i do have to say, i am definitely going to convince whatever parental figures i might have in this world to enroll me in boxing lessons as soon as i can. I haven't been this weak in years. Of course, as i'm practically still a toddler, i don't worry too much.

Huh, if everybody in this world has super-powers, maybe i will too? And for that matter, do i still have access to my flames? What if i could combine the two, make a sort of super-super power? Heh, i'll figure that out later. For now, i'm pretty sure whatever passes for a parental unit in this world should be here soon.

"Izuku!" Speaking of the devil, a woman practically bulldozes her way into the hospital room, causing me to jump a little. This is probably my mom. Tall, skinny but more healthy than the almost too thin to be good for you of models, with green hair several shades darker than my own, and gray eyes that are currently ringed with red. Probably from crying and worrying herself sick over me. How touching.

"Izuku! Are you okay? Does it hurt anywhere? Do you remember who you are? What about me? Do you remember mama, Izuku?" Wow, this lady sure does go a mile a minute. Better cut her off before she suffocates herself, or worse, decides i need to spend some time in a mental facility.

"M-Mama?" i hate doing this to a poor, innocent woman, but i can't exactly tell her that her son's not really among us anymore, so for now i'll play along. And besides, what with an additional two decades of knowledge, if i'm lucky i can play this off as the impact to my brain making me a genius or something in exchange for my memories. That's probably not very scientifically accurate, but i'm not a brain surgeon, and i've heard stories of people who were hit in the head real hard suddenly waking up being perfectly fluent in other languages, so who knows what is and isn't possible.

"That's right Izuku, Mama! Mama's here now." The woman seems to be on the edge of crying again, so i just go with the flow and hug her real tight. Her response is to immedietly give me a hug that almost has my back in two pieces. After a moment, cat-Doc cuts in.

"*Ahem*, well mrs. Midoriya, he's free to head home now, but do keep an eye on him for the next few days. If he has any really bad headaches, or hits his head again, bring him in as soon as you can. His memories, if they come back, should return in a few days."

My mom thanks the doctor profusely, and we all say our goodbyes as my new mother - boy am i gonna have to get used to that - drives the two of us home. We end up in a medium sized apartment building. The room we're in has two bedrooms in addition to a small kitchen as well as what appears to be a living room that merges into a dining room as you approach the kitchen. My mom leads me to one of the two bedrooms, and when she opens it up, i'm almost paralyzed with shock again.

Everywhere. All over the walls. On the bed. On the ceiling. There's merchandise of some super buff dude who looks like he was ripped straight out of a comic book and plastered all over this room. According to the 5 trillion name tags on the merch, the dudes name is 'All Might'. My mom notices my slight hesitation and starts rambling again.

"Ah, this is All Might! He's the Number One Hero! You always love watching him when he comes on TV! Whether it's a talk-show, or the news, you just love watching him and listening to the things he says!"

Well shit. Looks like the pip-squeak was a fanboy. At least she said he was 'the number one hero' rather than 'your favorite hero'. Shows that at least i had some taste. Not that that makes the fact that i now have his face literally covering my room from floor to ceiling. I am really gonna have to re-arrange this place. Some paraphernalia of this All Might dude is fine, but at the absolute minimum add some variety. Like, who's the number two hero? Can we get some of that in here? And i'm about to hit puberty again, maybe some female heroes?...Too soon?...Yeah, too soon. Need to remember i'm just a kid now. Worry about making it through school for now, worry about girls later.

Thankfully, mom seems content to let me sit there and take all this in, although she's probably mistaking my silence for awe or something. She heads out to the kitchen, saying she'll make lunch, leaving me in here with a hundred smiling faces staring at me. Yeah, first thing i'm gonna do is take most of this down. Won't trash it though, some of this looks like premium merch. Might be worth a fortune in the future.

And so i decide that my first course of action is to investigate. And by that i mean i'm gonna go sit down at the computer in my room and see what version of Wikipedia exists in this world, see if i can get a basic understanding of everything. Several hours later, after taking breaks for lunch and dinner, i've got a general sense of the world. 'Hero', it seems, is more an occupation than a title, while 'Villain" means everyone from pickpockets to terrorists. I'm also apparently in Japan. A bit odd, as i lived mostly in italy, and died there, but thankfully, what with most of the Vongola higher-ups being japanese, and taking a couple trips over there, i'm not completely out of my element. And now that i think about it, i really should have noticed that when everyone was speaking japanese. Oh well, i think i can be forgiven this once for missing a few details, considering what all's happened in the last 12 hours.

Besides getting a brief history of the last decade or so for japan, especially the heroes and villains that have appeared, i spend most of my time double checking the basic knowledge a 4 year old should have in this world. That means a lot of stupid online quizzes coupled with hunting down records of tests given to kids in the last few years. The plan is to have people think that i'm talented, not question why a brat is capable of solving advanced high-school level problems. I may not be as bright as most of the tech department when it comes to academics, but you pick a few things up after hanging around them for long enough.

At the end of the day, i finally convince mom that i don't need to be under constant surveillance, and yes i'll wake her up immedietly if my head hurts, and so on and so on. As i lay down for the night, i still have several thoughts buzzing in my mind, but there's only one thing that i can focus on. If this world is a world of heroes and villains, then i'm gonna do everything in my power to become the best hero i possibly can. To honor those who helped me grow into the man i am now, to honor the kid i've replaced in this world, and ultimately, because it's what i've always wanted to do. And the first thing the Vongola taught me was to always do what your heart tells you to.

_ _ _ _ _ _ _ Reborn! _ _ _ _ _ _ _