A Smile Is Worth A Million Words
is a fanfiction of My Hero Academia by Dnote147.
Sir Nighteye and his team, including his intern and the new wielder of One For All, Mirio Toogata, have investigated the activities of the Shie Hassaikai Yakuza organization for an indefinite amount of time, and are planning to infiltrate their hideout and put an end to their evil acts once and for all.
When he discovers that the Yakuza have been working together with the League of Villains and are using a helpless, Quirkless little boy with brilliant green eyes and matching curly hair as their lab rat, Mirio will stop at nothing to save this scared, innocent child.
The story has the following tropes:
- Abusive Parents:
- Both Tomura Shigaraki and Overhaul were this towards Izu before the boy's rescue from them. The two young men showed that they have no love for Izu while only seeing him as a pet and a lab rat.
- It was implied that Hisashi was the one who got his wife, Inko, killed and sold his young son, Izu, to the villains. Subverted when it's revealed that Hisashi had no idea of his wife's murder until he was told about the attack and his son's disappearance. He even went as far as to beg the League of Villains to give him his son back by saying he'll be loyal to them.
- Mirio had discovered that Quirkless children in the foster system will be abused by their foster parents due to being powerless. This is something he makes sure that Izu will never face thanks to the latter already facing abuse at Shigaraki's and Overhaul's hands.
- The Ace: Just like canon, Mirio is considered to be the best student of U.A. He's even All Might's successor in this story.
- Adaptation Name Change: Zig-zagged with Izu's name as it's still Izuku, but everyone had been calling him "Izu". Even after it's discovered that his real name is Izuku Midoriya, everyone keeps using his nickname since they feel it suits him better.
- Adaptation Relationship Overhaul:
- All Might and Sir Nighteye's relationship had been rebuilt after the former choose Mirio as his successor, while in canon their relationship was never repaired until Nighteye was on his deathbed.
- Izu's relationship with all of Class 1-A in the story. In canon, almost everyone in the class looks up to and admires Izuku for his kind and heroic personality. Here, however, they all act like older siblings to him due to his young age.
- Izu's relationship with Bakugo is changed in the story. From the canon series, the two are childhood friends whose friendship went downhill after Bakugo had his Quirk and then became a bully to Izuku until they went to U.A. where their relationship is slowly repairing. The story has them being strangers to each other when they met due to the Age Lift Izu has. Also, Bakugo doesn't become a bully to Izu like he was in canon, instead of becoming more like a Big Brother Mentor figure towards the boy.
- There's the relationship between Izu and Ochaco. In canon, Ochaco has a crush on Izuku do his heroism. However, because Izu is a young child instead of a teenager, Ochaco acts like an older sister figure towards him.
- Eri's and Overhaul's relationship is also changed in the story. In canon, Overhaul is Eri's adoptive uncle through her mother, and abused and used her to create his bullets. However, the story has them as strangers who never met before with no mentions of relations to each other.
- Izu's relationship with Sir Nighteye is also changed here. While canon, the latter was harsh, and even telling the former that All Might picking him as the next holder of One For All was a mistake. However, Nighteye is very kind and caring towards Izu, even reminding himself about his All Might collection to show to Izu later.
- Adaptational Angst Upgrade: Izu has this. His mother was killed and his father just disappeared while Izuku was sold to the League of Villains, where he became a Human Pet to its young leader, Tomura Shigaraki.
- Adaptational Backstory Change: Both Izu and Eri have this in the story. Izu ends up as an abused child whose mother was killed by a villain attack. Eri appears to have had a normal childhood and is happily going to school without any of the trauma from the canon series.
- Adaptational Badass:
- Mirio was already powerful in the canon series, but here, he gets the power of One For All.
- Hisashi is revealed to have been a Pro Hero once, while in canon, he's just a businessman who currently works overseas.
- Adaptational Job Change: In the canon series, Hisashi is an ordinary civilian man who's working overseas in America while the story version of him was a Pro Hero before being forced back into villainy by All For One. Though this version still has him working in America before his family fell apart.
- Adaptational Villainy: Zig-zagged. Hisashi was once a criminal in his teens until he was reformed and became a Pro Hero. However, it was implied that he went back to his troubled ways and was a broker to the League of Villains. But when he met Inko, he became a better person after marrying her. Unfortunately, he was forced back into becoming a broker for the villains again after they took his son.
- Affectionate Nickname: Subverted with the villains who give Izu his nickname, as it's more like a nickname an owner would call their pet, and makes it even clearer that almost none of the villains have genuine affections for Izu. But played straight with the heroes who truly care about the boy and his well-being. When they say it, it has a more genuine love and fondness for Izu.
- Age Lift: Switching their ages, Izu is a young child here while Eri's a teenager who goes to U.A. High.
- Big Brother Instinct: Mirio will often rush to Izu's side whenever the latter is in distress.
- Big Brother Worship: Izu greatly loves Mirio as any younger sibling would towards their older siblings. Considering Mirio is the first person ever that shows Izu love and kindness, it makes sense.
- Birthday Buddies: Like in canon, Mirio and Izu share the same birthday: July 15. Mirio was happy to find out about it and looks forward to celebrating it together with Izu.
- Both Sides Have a Point: Both All Might and Sir Nighteye have two good points on someone like Izu's father, Hisashi, who had a criminal record before becoming a Pro Hero. All Might has a point about giving people second chances to redeem themselves. On the other hand, Nighteye also does has a valuable point on making sure that Hisashi was fit into becoming a Pro, or at least making sure he was screened and monitored just in case.
- Broken Tears: Izu breaks down in tears after Mirio tells him that he (Mirio) will save him (Izu) regardless of whether the boy is Quirkless in the very first chapter.
- Children Are Innocent: Despite being a smart child, Izu is shown to still be as innocent as any child his age would be. Mineta tried to use this so the boy could tell him how soft Nejire's breasts felt whenever she hugs Izu, much to the anger and disgust of Class 1-A.
- Completed Fic: This story was completed August 31, 2021.
- Cooldown Hug: Momo gives a hug to Izu when he was having a panic attack after all of Class 1-A ask him about his Quirk (unaware that he doesn't have one) and imagining Shigaraki telling him how the heroes won't care for him because of his Quirklessness.
- Corrupt the Cutie: Played for Laughs. When Mineta tried to get Izu to tell him how soft Nejire's breasts are whenever she hugs the boy, Class 1-A is far from pleased when they overhear Izu asking Mineta what breasts are. Tenya chides Mineta on this.
- Death by Adaptation: Inko was killed by villains when her son was a toddler. See Missing Mom below.
- Disappeared Dad: Hisashi is alive, but his current whereabouts are unknown.
- Early-Bird Cameo: Dabi, Himiko Toga, Twice, Mimic, and several others of the League of Villains and the Shie Hassaikai all appear in Izu's nightmare.
- Embarrassing Damp Sheets: Played for Drama. In chapter 14, Izu has a nightmare where he was returned to both Shigaraki and Overhaul and where Mirio told the younger boy that he wasn't his brother, with Izu watching his big brother figure abandoning him before the villains could turn Izu into a Nomu. Naturally, Izu ended up wetting his bed.
- Fantastic Ableism: As both Tomura Shigaraki and Overhaul stated, society will shun those who are Quirkless and turn them away. Quirkless children who are in the foster system will face hardship and abuse from both the other children and the adults who take care of them.
- Former Teen Rebel: Hisashi had a criminal record in his teens before he became a Pro Hero. However, it seems he had fallen back into his troubled ways once again. But when he met Inko, he fully went straight and became an actual hero. However, the murderer of his wife and the kidnapper of his son forced Hisashi into going back to his villainous ways for the sake of his son, Izu.
- Good Parents:
- Mirio's father is very kind, caring, and supportive of him.
- As usual, Inko was a very doting mother towards Izu before she was murdered in a villain attack.
- Heal the Cutie: Izu is slowly but surely recovering his trauma throughout the story. Granted, he still has scars both mental and physical from the abuse he endured by Shigaraki and Overhaul under their "care".
- Human Pet: Izu was this to Tomura Shigaraki before he was saved by Mirio. Unsurprisingly, Shigaraki was extremely abusive to Izu and often let Overhaul "play" with the boy as well.
- Intergenerational Friendship: Izu has a close relationship with Mirio, Class 1-A, and the U.A. staff. It's also justified since he hasn't interacted with anyone his age yet.
- It's Personal: Shigaraki strongly hates Mirio for stealing his "pet", Izu.
- Kill and Replace: In Chapter 18, Toga kills Mami and transforms into the latter to get into U.A. to kidnap Izu from the school.
- Love Redeems: Hisashi only became a real hero after meeting and marrying Inko. Unfortunately, Inko was killed in a villain attack and their toddler son ended up being kidnapped by one of the villains who sold him to the League of Villains. Willing to do anything to save his son, Hisashi went to All For One and said that he'll be loyal to them in exchange for having his son back.
- Missing Mom: Both Izu and Mirio share this trope. Inko was killed before the events of the story and Mirio's mother is long dead.
- Parental Abandonment: Izu's father's whereabouts are still unknown.
- Playing with Fire: Hisashi still has his fire Quirk like in canon. His hero name was Flamethrower.
- Posthumous Character: Inko was killed in a villain attack years ago when her son Izu was still just a toddler.
- Reasonable Authority Figure: In Chapter 2, Nedzu lets Izu come to live at the campus of U.A. High after the boy was rescued from the League of Villains and Shie Hassaikai. The principal even lets Mirio become Izu's caretaker, recognizing that the boy is deeply attached to Mirio.
- Secret-Keeper: Tamaki Amajiki and Nejire Hadou are among the few people who know about Mirio succeeding All Might, One For All, and All Night's health. They're very supportive of their friend as ever before.
- Slice of Life: Chapters 11-12 have Izu spending time with each member of Class 1-A.
- Trauma Button: Thanks to Shigaraki using him as a lab rat to test his Nomus, Izuku ends up having a panic attack when he meets Shouji for the first time. Thankfully, he gets over it over time.
- Unrelated in the Adaptation: Overhaul is Eri's adoptive uncle in the canon series on her mother's side of the family. But in this story, there's mention of them being related in any way or ever meeting each other. This version of them has them being strangers.
- Villain Team-Up: Both the League of Villains and the Shie Hassaikai have allied at some point before the presence of the story.
- Would Hurt a Child: Both Tomura Shigaraki and Overhaul had done this to Izu before the latter's rescue, both physically and mentally. Shigaraki had his Nomus chase Izu in a maze when the boy was "misbehaving" and "disobedient" towards him, to test their powers and strength, or if Shigaraki was simply bored and wanted to entertain himself. Meanwhile, Overhaul took Izu's blood and cells to create his Quirk-Erasing bullets and destroyed Izu's body before putting the boy back together, much like what he did to Eri in canon.
