Tenko's dads wish him luck on his first day of school!

Here's a little glimpse of an AU I've been working on. Oboro lives, and he, Aizawa, and Mic find Tenko on the streets after he's orphaned and take him in. (For AU proposes, Tenko is aged down to 15 instead of 20, so the three of them find him when they're 20 instead of 15. I don't think highschoolers are allowed to adopt children.)

genuine question: do you realistically think if tomura/tenko had better mentorship and care that he would have eventually been able to learn how to control his quirk?

Dad for one fic rec!

Snare by B_O_M_B, Chaoticdeer, Goofy_Boss, Ilentari, katydid, Ravelights, Shad0whuntress, SilveRanger, WindySkyes, Zyla_SweetBean

Summary: all for one, the long standing champion of the hunger games, treats Izuku with mercy (is it really mercy though?)

MHA 418 leak reactions

Izuku blips over middle school and becomes a child in Tomura’s mind scape as Tenko decays Mon.

Baby Izuku holds baby Tenko’s hands in order to stop him from decaying Hana. Izuku starts decaying (!!!) but tells himself this is an imaginary place??? Dude, 2 chapters ago you were saying that you COULD get hurt in this mind scape. Which one is it?!?!??! WHICH ONE IS IT IZUKU?!?!!?!

Tenko cries and says no, he WANTS to destroy his house and family, because if he doesn’t want to destroy, then why was he born bad? (Ugh, poor kiddo!)

Tenko tells Izuku to go away, and it’s still not clear if it’s out of self-hatred or to keep Izuku safe. I lost count of how many times this happened in the last 3 chapters….

But Izuku says no. AGAIN. And finally, Izuku says something honest about why he wants to be a hero and save Tenko: Izuku feels relief when he holds the hand of someone who is hurting.

And with that, Izuku tells Tenko, “I am here.” Brilliant.

We see Tenko smile as he’s on a playground with his friends, and Tomo-chan tells him that he can play as All Might. Join the club, Tenko!!!!

Oh but of course it’s not that easy. If Izuku finally says why HE wants to be a hero, then it’s Tenko’s turn to explain why he has to be a villain: Because he hates and destroys things, and even if he didn’t, there are others who need him and look to him to destroy.

Back in the “real world,” there are some citizens cheering for Shigaraki. They’re sad (??) when the finger armor begins to disappear when ….

AFO’s MEMORIES APPEAR!!!! OH LAWD HE COMIN!!!!!

KOTARO WAS DRINKING WINE AND TALKING ABOUT TENKO’s QUIRK WITH MYSTERY HAT MAN???

Okay the chapter ends with vestige AFO returning (and maybe able to control Tomura again?) BUT it sounds like Kotaro bought his son a quirk from AFO? Or was Kotaro himself somehow taken under AFO’s wing after Nana gave him up for adoption??? Like they know each other and have dinner together????

You guys, this is so much worse than just “oh AFO gave Tenko decay……” Well done Horikoshi for one more good twist.

Tomura and Dabi both telling Toga she doesn't have to get a villain name if she doesn't want one hits even harder when you finally remember the circumstances of their own villain names.

Tomura got assigned a villain name because he was turned into a villain against his will. He didn't get to choose his identity, he didn't get to choose his destiny. Someone else came to him and then changed him until he couldn't recognize himself in the mirror anymore.

Dabi was rejected by his father over and over and over again. It's not like he wanted to deny who he was, in fact, he wanted to use it as a weapon and that's why he got a villain name. Dabi is more like the manifestation of all his trauma and grief. Dabi is a reminder, a scar and a story to tell.

See their arguments against the villain naming yourselves and get some free analysis about it:

From right to left*

Dabi:

(Villain names are) stupid. That's just some crowd-pleasing crap. A holdover from before the quirk registration system.

Dabi is the first to mention the origins of the hero and villain naming convections. Before there was order in their society, people needed names to identify their powers.

He's also aware that taking a villain name is done to both appeal to the public and oneself. See how Mr. Compress mentions that a villain name gives you class, or how Twice and Spinner seem to get it as a matter of being cool.

Touya himself knew he picked the name Dabi for the show. He's not particularly attached to it and he doesn't even defend his name when Compress decides to criticize it. Being Dabi is just a tactic.

Tomura:

There basically used to be no differences between heroes and villains. One story says... The alias stuff started when you'd have an anonymous enemy and you needed to call them something. From there, some decided to adopt those very nicknames to hide their identities.

Assuming another identity —like a new skin— was a matter of survival.

At some point, they went all-in with code names, ripped straight from comic books. According to this theory, it all started with people announcing themselves by those aliases, that's why the world's turned into a comic book.

Anyway, I'm good. (The names can be cool and all, but eh).

The rest assumes that Tomura has always been Tomura Shigaraki (even after hearing during MVA his confession about his past). In truth, you see he doesn't want a villain name. Like Toga, he rejected the idea when it was suggested.

Mr. Comic Book Fan #1 (AFO) was the one who gave Tomura his name and we all know what he did with those words. Similar to Touya's intention with the name Dabi, AFO hid Tenko Shimura so he could later use his identity as a weapon against All Might.

It was a matter of survival for Touya and Tenko alike. No one could know they were a Todoroki and a Shimura. That new identity prevented little Tenko from being found and allowed Touya the freedom to plot his revenge.

It's very important to me that they are the ones who tell Toga she doesn't need a villain name. She is good as she is, she must be able to live as she is too. Somehow, they protect her in her choice of not picking a skin to hide behind.

So I’ve had this idea where Teenager Tenko catches his mom (reader) and Toshi in the act or being romantic and stuff infront of him?😭 and how he reacts??

LMAOOO PLSSS 😭 this is too funny 😭

Hands up!: Boyfriend!Toshi x reader x platonic yandere son!Tenko

Okay look, first of all let me tell you that mommy!reader LOVES her son and would never want to be caught in the act with Toshi, cuz that would be so traumatizing

THAT being said, Toshi and you are still fools in love and sometimes might slip (happens to the best of us)

Toshi loves you, loves talking to you, loves listening to you, loves touching you.

The only time you allow Toshi and you to get all romantic and stuff, is if Tenko is at school or as long as he’s not home

But what happens if by some reason he comes home early 😭

“Babyy stopp” You giggle as Toshi keeps sucking and kissing the sensitive spot on your neck. It has been a while since you both got really intimate since Tenko was always at home during winter break. “Its okay baby, young Tenko isn’t home, and won’t be home for a while right? Just one round please?” You grab onto his shoulders as he lifts you up, pinning on the wall of your bedroom, your legs locking on his waist while he holds your bottom. You giggle as you both make out, your hand making a mess of his hair. “You know it’s never just one round” “It’ll be quick, we’ll be done before Tenko comes home, hm?” He starts kissing your neck again, leaving hickies which you lightly scolded him for, Tenko was gonna have a panic attack if he notices. You let out a whine and you were finally gonna fold when suddenly— “What the fuck??” You were both surprised by the loud slamming of the door, before it completely disintegrated. You immediately pushed yourself off your boyfriend and silently tried to wipe the spit on your neck. Toshi fixed his hair while you stand protectively in front of him, knowing your son was gonna throw a fit “Oh hi sweetie! When did you got home haha.. Umm how about we go and bake some cookies :D” You were so obviously panicking, and for some reason you weren’t seeing the same thing Toshi was seeing. Toshi is literally so scared of Tenko right now, he really looked like he wanted to kill him. And of course, without a doubt, the angry teenage boy attempted to punch the pro hero. Tenko went insane, how dare this shithead violate my mother? It took you an hour to stop the fight, and you asked Toshi to go home for now, apologizing on the behalf of your son. When you were gonna talk to him about enough is enough, he can’t keep interfering with your love life like this, you noticed that he was furiously scratching his neck, something you haven’t seen in a long time since you adopted him. You immediately stopped his hands, and rubbed some medicine on his neck. He looked up to you with teary eyes and said “Please don’t leave me”

This incident made you more careful when you were goint to be intimate with Toshi

Too careful in fact to the point that Toshi was so touch starved

And Tenko is smiling at a corner, happy seeing Toshi suffer

ShigaDabi au where Endeavour heavily disapproves of Touya dating All Might's protege and adopted son and it's really annoying for both parties, a grown ass man can somehow be so passive aggressive towards a 16 year old teenager for *checks notes* making his son happy.

But it does not matter which incarnation we're talking about, wheter it's Shigaraki Tomura or Shimura Tenko they are driven by spite and righteous anger. So when the No.2 hero openly tells Tenko to stay the hell away from his son, he won't allow Touya to be corrupted by a snotty upstart with a quirk like Decay who causes trouble on the regular in school and backtalks both teachers and heroes alike(lowkeyhighkey delinquent tenko is basically canon and people can fight me on that).

And Tenko's response is basically "You wanna bet?"

And from then on Tenko swears to become the No.1 hero exclusively to stick it to Endeavour, and then he's going to use his influence to tear down the ranking system to the ground, because it's corrupt and terrible but also that way Endeavour can never become number one. Mostly the first one, but the second is definitely a small part of it. He was going to tear it down anyway, but now he's gonna beat his bf's shitty old man first.

And because he knows it will make Touya lose his shit laughing, many times, and Touya smiling is basically the best thing in the world and people can fight him on that.

so like one can do whatever the heck they want in fanfiction and they’re under no obligation to stick to any degree of realism or do research or abide by canon or even the laws of reality and physics at all,

but I do wish English-language bnha fanfics would take into consideration that child adoptions in Japan are rare. Generally speaking, kids just don’t get adopted - the legality of blood ties are strong, biological parents are often prioritized even if they’re unfit, so much so that their consent is still needed to put the child anywhere; there’s cultural stigma, kids who do get adopted are usually very young - 6 or younger - so that couples can pass off the child as their biological own.

Like, the vast majority of adoptions in Japan is of adult men - families and businesses taking in an heir to continue the family name. That’s the ‘regular’ type of adoption. Adopting a child is ‘special’ adoption - literally called that.

(Then there would be other typical not-necessarily-cultural-specific factors - only married couples can adopt children, you can’t be too young or old, etc.)

Outside of formal adoption, there’s been attempts to get the children fostered in a family-based home, but mostly, kids are overwhelmingly placed in (small, overcrowded) child care institutions.

HeroAcaLand, though largely based on modern Japan, is set in a slightly more futuristic world, so it’s entirely plausible to say things have changed - adoption laws have changed, gay marriage is legal, so - let’s say - husbands Aizawa and Mic can adopt Eri (whose blood relatives are still alive). Or maybe All Might is just so rich and powerful that even though he’s single and nearing age 60, he can sidestep the rules to adopt Shimura Tenko - and he’s fine with ignoring cultural norms (ex. ensuring the Shimura lineage - Nana’s lineage - continues) so he even gives Tenko his last name.

However, canon is still based on current Japan, and the setting reveals itself in small but important details - orphaned Kouta is sent to live with his blood relative Mandalay; Nana gives up Kotarou to an orphanage and not another family; Eri would’ve been sent to a children’s home if UA didn’t specifically accepted her (partly because her quirk was liable to go berserk, and extremely luckily, here was the one guy who can stop her). Before that, she was already an abandoned child - her mom ditched her, left her with her grandfather, and when he fell into a coma, Overhaul was able to take over her guardianship with no one the wiser.

More on that point, actually: characters that we see take in lost, non-blood-related children to raise them to adulthood are… largely villains and criminals. All For One, Yakuza, Re-Destro. It’s easier for them because they simply ignore laws and any ethical problems that arise.

But the fact remains that people who most often give the orphans and runaways a home are not the Heroes and not the system the Heroes support.

Adopted kidfics are adorable. Fix-it fanfics are great. But I do wish they’re a bit more cognizant of cultural specifics, especially the things that set the foundation for the canon material that creates the need for these fix-it fics.

For your ask game. What do you see happening in a world where the Fourth OFA User unlocks the ability to speak to the vestiges? He's the guy who explicitly trained the quirk to increase its power for future users and thus the most likely to unlock its secrets. Within a month of getting the quirk, the guy's meditating under a waterfall and now he's in a discord call with the boys, and so will the future users.

I love this concept!

This happened before Hikage met Banjo, so he was really lonely and missed his predecessors. He didn't see the point in meditating under a waterfall, but he remembered how every manga Yoichi liked had a scene like that, so he decided to try it out to honor him. The cool water and white noise were actually really comforting since it also happened to be summer, and next thing you know, he fell asleep and ended up in the void. He thought he was dreaming at first, especially because he was only there for a few seconds before he woke up. Except it kept happening and he realized that OFA must stockpile not only strength, but memories. Eventually, he was able to stay there for a full 8 hours, but no matter how hard he tried, it could only happen when he was asleep. He died in his sleep, so when his body finally gave out, it felt as if he never had to wake up from a wonderful dream. (It was a little less wonderful when the first three got all lovey-dovey and he had to fourth wheel)

Banjo didn't really believe that Hikage could see his predecessors. He just thought that was a product of imagination from his loneliness (in fact, that was part of why he wanted to be his friend so badly in the first place, because he was worried about his mental stability). Imagine his surprise when he falls asleep the night after Hikage dies and sees his friend again. He's so freaked out he wakes up. Then he remembers what Hikage told him and decides to try and go to sleep again. It works, and for up to 10 hours, he had to deal with Hikage going "I told you so!". But even so, he was happy to see him and meet the three he talked about so much. And when he died, Hikage was so happy that he would no longer have to fourth wheel.

En, unfortunately, did not get to live long. He had fun talking to Banjo and meeting that weird forest guy he always talked about, but just a few months after getting OFA, he was killed. He was only able to extend the dream time to 11 hours, but his successor would reach new heights.

Nana got a longer run and along with seeing them in her dreams, could hear their voices in her head. Not always since they had to choose to speak to her and if she tried to hear them when they weren't speaking, all she would hear was static. At first, it was nice to be able to speak to her predecessors, but the unsolicited advice got annoying real quick. When the unsolicited parenting advice started, she went to the void the next night and slapped them. They shut up after that. But when she was considering putting Kotaro in foster care there was a big argument over it. In the end, she still did it, but they convinced her to let Torino and Toshinori check up on him.

Poor Toshinori. At first, it was cool meeting his predecessors and being able to see Nana again, but like with her, the voices in his head got annoying. And after a little while, they could even appear in the real world, though they were more ghostlike and no one else could see them, so he never got a break. At least Nana was able to watch Kotaro grow up after Torino decided to adopt him and Hana and Tenko lived decent lives. Kotaro was still really tough but not as bad as he could have been. And AFO stayed away realizing that with Torino and All Might, Kotarou won't be easily swayed.

And now, Izuku. Honestly, part of the reason Toshinori picked him was that he thought they would bother a kid more often. Oh, and he had heroic spirit and all that. There was certainly arguing over whether a kid should get that power but he argued with "well, I got that power as a high schooler and look at me now." "You're a skeleton." "Only because of AFO and he's dead." "Ugh, fine." (AFO is not dead but only Yoichi knows. He could sense it through twin bond but didn't want to ruin everyone else's celebration). Because they can all communicate Izuku gets better instruction and makes it through the exam with fractures in his legs and a single broken arm. After that he later gets a lecture from Hikage and goes "Oh, I need to let it spread through my body instead of one sole place" "Yeah exactly-" "Like a microwave!" "..." So, he reaches that a lot quicker and doesn't have to break a finger on the first day of school. It all goes well until the USJ happens. The vestiges were out of the void, wanting to observe the training, but no one but Izuku could see them. Then Kurogiri comes in with the nomu and the vestiges are so startled they become visible to everyone. And 7 ghosts appearing around one green haired boy startles everyone else so much they all freeze and stare. AFO (who was watching at home) sees his brother and orders Kurogiri to take everyone back and leave.

I'll stop there for now since I don't want to rewrite all of Mha. But yes, there is no substitute for Tomura since I couldn't think of anyone to take his place.

This might sound weird. In my viewpoint AFO feels like a child trapped in a grown man's body with his attitude and mindset. A man-child if you will. He's trying to enact childish fantasies onto the world, this obsession may stem from an event he experienced in his youth. He feels like a kid, felt it again when he blamed Kudou this chapter. In a better world AFO would've gone into the age regression community to get his chance to act out his childish impulses in a safe environment to process whatever trauma he endured instead of taking it out on the world.

YEAH I'M LOVING IT BC

Hori typically uses child imagery to like, show characters at their most vulnerable and honest and represent like the "naked essence" of who they really are. AFO rewinding into a literal child plays with those expectations, in a way-- but in this case, AFO "at his most honest/vulnerable" is almost monstrous in its depiction:

Like, AFO's got some pretty heavily implied hang ups about feeling powerless/being powerless and he uses escapism + the constant degradation of others to distance himself as far as he can from those hang ups. I wouldn't be surprised if his backstory ends up depicting some horrible violation of his own autonomy where he was treated as subhuman/toyed with-- and he's now attempting to inflict that same feeling of powerlessness on everyone else. Instead of healing from whatever trauma he experienced, he's become a slave to it. Of course, there's always a chance I'm reading into this too much-- But Hori's been pretty consistent in his depiction of abuse as a cycle (esp. with the Kotaro-Tenko and Endeavor-Touya plots), so tbh, it would strike me as an odd writing choice if he decided "yeah, AFO just woke up one day and decided to Be Like That."

And I've said this before on twitter, but like-- AFO is SUCH an Umineko/"Witch" coded character. It's one of the reasons I find him so fascinating, bc I've always loved the way umineko depicts coping mechanisms in severely traumatized/abused individuals and how it depicts abuse as a vicious cycle:

In Umineko, "a witch" is typically a manifestation that's born from a person's horrible trauma (or from a person's "will" to overcome that trauma and escape from an otherwise inescapable fate). They're born from humans who have been violated in some terrible way and who are desperate to redefine themselves as something powerful-- something that transcends that pain, something that pain can no longer "touch." They reclaim a sense of agency over their trauma/abuse/etc by adopting powerful alter egos who blend fiction and reality-- but ultimately, it's all still a form of escapism.

It's hard not to see the similarities between how umineko defines "witches" and how mha defines "villains"-- especially with characters like AFO, Tomura, and Dabi who have all adopted trauma-based alter egos-slash-identities and who attempt to reclaim "agency" over their trauma in intensely destructive ways.

Like.... so much of heroaca is just "my trauma takes the form of a powerless child because that's how it made me feel, and that's how it still makes me feel even though I'm not a child anymore-- but what if you could see that?" and then AFO won't even allow that much bc he's throwing his whole afoussy into rejecting MHA's usual tactics for humanization and instead going "OH??? YOU LIKE CUTE KIDS???? YOU LIKE CUTE INNOCENT WEEPY KIDS?? I'LL SHOW YA'LL CUTE *rips his entire face open*". We gotta respect his commitment to the bit, I guess, but at the same time jesus fuckin' christ dude.😬

Since the All for One in Walk A Mile Another Shoes is single, do you think I have a chance of getting him to marry me? (I can cook just as good as Inko btw)

Actually, yes, "Walk a Mile in Another's Shoes" is single and seeking a partner to be his baby incubator/child minder for a replacement Yoichi. He would like you to fill out the following questionnaire and get back to him.

What color are your eyes? (Green is preferred in order to produce a child with green eyes. Do not try to trick him with contact lenses. He will check.)

Do you have a fertile womb? If not, will you let Dr. Garaki experiment on you for the sake of producing a child between you and All for One to be a replacement Yoichi? The good doctor is confident in his abilities to create a child with the genetics of any two people regardless of their gender assigned at birth.

What are your feelings on genetically engineering a child to look like Yoichi? It would not be necessary for you to have green eyes if you are willing to genetically engineer eye color.

What is your policy on tracking devices and cameras planted on unknowing children?

Are you willing to be a stay-at-home parent to support a career-oriented villain?

It is currently unknown to "Walk a Mile in Another's Shoes" All for One if there is a vestige of Yoichi inside One for All. However, All for One has plans to resurrect his brother using a Nomu, clone, or preserved corpse as a mainframe and the memories inside One for All. If he succeeds, then would you be open to adoption? Additional biological children could be discussed between the two of you. All for One would not be adverse to a biological child with you so he could finally have a family member join his evil empire, but he would also be willing to stick to one child if you prefer to focus on brainwashing Yoichi.

Excellent cooking is a huge plus. Can you cook both Japanese and Western meals?

Do you prefer to finish stories or always stop before the last chapter/episode?

Do men look better wearing ties?

Who is better, the Demon King or Captain Hero?

Is it possible to love your family too much?

Are you willing to temporarily look after any orphans that All for One might kidnap? They will not impose on you for long before being moved to the orphanage or turned into Nomu, and you are welcome to kill them if they get on your nerves. Except for Tenko Shimura, who is important to All for One's plans and thus must be kept alive.

What are your opinions on the blond oaf, also known as All Might?

What are your opinions on people with spikey hair?

The ideal home should contain: A. No bank vaults; B. One large bank vault in the basement; C. As many bank vaults as possible.

How would you rate hero society on a scale of one to ten, with one being a crumbling failed relic and ten being mindless All Might worship?

Do you believe that relationships with age gaps of more than a century are: A. Creepy; B. Not necessarily bad between consenting adults but both parties should be wary of a potential power imbalance; or C. The younger person should unconditionally obey the older one, who is much wiser.

If your future child wanted to become a hero, then would you: A. Support their dreams; B. Gently attempt to dissuade them; or C. Stick them in a bank vault?

Children should be disciplined: A. Very harshly with physical violence; B. I don't believe in any discipline, spoil them rotten; C. Vaulting is always the solution.

Which of the following is the best name for your future baby: A. Yoichi; B. Yoichi; or C. Yoichi.

If All for One started trash-talking All Might for two or more hours in a moment of postcoital bliss, would you: A. Put on your clothes and leave; B. Make him sleep on the sofa; or C. Enthusiastically join in?

Quirks in bed: hot or squicky?

If you discovered that your husband is a supervillain would you: A. Call the Police; B. Flee; or C. Support his world domination efforts?

If you selected option C, then do you look good wearing black as potential dark consort to the Emperor of the World?

Marriage should be: A. Until death do us part; or B. If your loved one dies, then resurrect them from the dead.

Optional: you may attach an essay describing why you love All for One.

...Seriously, Anon, don't do it. No amount of money is worth this walking red flag factory.

I've seen some theorise that Tomura decaying represents "the death of tomura shigaraki a being of hate and the false persona created by afo" which means that tenko shimura is free and can live again (considering the roles names and identities play in mha). What's your opinion on that?

hard disagree especially considering the story is now trying to sell us that "tenko" is also an afo construct, from his family struggles to his heroic hopes to even his fuckin birth lmao. i fall in line with what @codenamesazanka said about 'shigaraki' and 'tenko' as personas here, where despite afo's influence there is something real. it's weird to say that shigaraki is false because of afo's influence when what we learned is that tenko as a whole exists because of afo's influence. both of them have gotta be real or fake or nothin.

but i would have disagreed even without the 419 development. i never agreed with the interpretation of there being a clean break between tenko and tomura. shigaraki's frustrations and desires stem from what he experienced as a child, even with the amnesia; tomura's formed his own relationships and goals beyond afo; he straight up has just spent more of his lived life as tomura than he did as tenko. SHIGARAKI is the character that i first fell in love with, because he's enough of a full, charismatic, and engaging character on his own without being reduced to a crying child.

i'm also kind of so-so on whatever people might be saying about names and identities? i think that there is importance there, but it's not that going by one name or another indicates entirely discrete personas. i don't wanna do an in-depth thing about it, but i pulled a couple of quotes about the whole hero/codename thing to reference.

What future do you see for yourself? The name you choose will bring you ever close to cementing a certain image…because names are capable of reflecting one’s true character.

Aizawa, Chapter 45

the phrase "cementing a certain image" could be interpreted as trying to put up a false persona, but "names are capable of reflecting one's true character" messes with that, because it's the new hero names that are meant to represent that truth. more accurately, i'd say that hero names evoke an idealized self that the students are learning to embody. midoriya reclaims deku, tsuyu as cutesy froppy is meant to be approachable, shoto is trying to self-actualize as himself, bakugou wants to murder people with explosions, kirishima and iida are trying to live up to their personal heroes, etc etc.

at no point are the kids trying to be something that they aren't. they're working towards who they want to be.

if one wants to argue about different names symbolizing different selves/personas, the best example is probably all might/toshinori, who does literally do his hero work as a separate persona up until kamino. but most of his story afterwards is that learning that just because he no longer as one for all, the power that made him all might, doesn't mean he actually stops being a hero/all might. as badly demonstrated by him donning that dumb fucking mecha. in any case he more or less reconciles those parts of himself i guess.

in contrast, we have this more recent lore about codenames:

There basically used to be no difference between heroes and villains. One theory says…the alias stuff started when you’d have an anonymous enemy and needed to call them something. From there, some decided to adopt those very nicknames to hide their identities. Assuming another identity - like a new skin - was a matter of survival. At some point, they went all-in with code names, ripped straight from comic books. According to this theory, it all started with people announcing themselves by those aliases. That’s why the world’s turned into a comic book.

Shigaraki, Chapter 393

here we do have the claim that adopting a new name is similar to adopting a new identity, which lends itself to the idea that you're trying to escape an original/true self, or protect that self from harm. spinner, twice, and dabi are all in ways trying to reinvent themselves, to escape or separate from the things that hurt shuuichi, jin, and touya. mr compress it just stylish. that doesn't stop who they WERE being a part of who they ARE, though. there's also no way for them to go back to who they were, it's just part of them.

it's also really interesting that toga and shigaraki explicitly did not take on villain names (because shigaraki tomura isn't a villain name, because one, this is before he recovers his memories as tenko and two, literally just his name, that he lives every day with.), because they make no pretense about approaching villainy as anything but themselves. this is toga's whole deal, that she wants to live in the world as herself without compromise.

overall, i'd approach the idea of names + identities the same way i approach the running narrative thread about 'origins'. in a sense these origins represent a "truth" about the characters, but it's not that these origins are the only true thing about them. the origins act as a starting point, a reminder of what the characters value and what they want to do. it's grounding, not all encompassing.

anyways nah shigaraki was never anymore false that tenko is and that's that i guessssssssss no matter what. the story says.

hi with the current leaks of 417, do you think vestiges are completely erased from existence but i know that they got transferred to tomura but i hope it's not the end for all of them especially Nana and also do you think that nana and tenko would atleast have an interaction? i love your leak reactions btw. 417 was gutwrenching

Thank you anon! I agree, this chapter brought the PAIN. To answer your q, I don’t think the vestiges are perma-gone. At least, I really hope not, because I still want Tenko and Nana to interact, just like you. I need Nana to know that, before AFO’s distortions, Tenko DID want to be a hero. He was THRILLED she was his grandmother and wanted to know more about her. I also want Toshinori to see Nana and let them both have closure. She may have made a mistake in adopting out Kotaro, and Toshinori may have made a mistake in never meddling in Nana’s family affairs, but they both did their best and don’t hold anything against each other. Now that they know better, I’m sure they’ll do the right things for Tenko.

As for why I don’t think the vestiges are perma-gone yet, we know:

(1) AFO and OFA are resonating and can see inside each other. It goes both ways too. Shigaraki can see En inside Izuku, for example. It follows that Izuku should be able to see his vestige buddies inside Shigaraki, if they choose to appear

(2) But they’re shattered and gone! How can they reappear??? Well, remember how All Might can see/hear what’s happening inside Izuku AND Shigaraki? He learns about the black mass and scar inside Shigaraki from Star’s vestige (who was gone but then manifested somehow to become our reporter on the scene, coming to you live from inside Shigaraki’s soul). All Might also learns about OFA “unraveling” from within Izuku. Is it his status as a former OFA holder that’s letting him see & hear both sides? Or does he have more than one vestige??? All Might’s vestige is different from the other vestiges because it’s not tied to a quirk factor. It’s more like a spiritual essence or embodiment of willpower, so there COULD be more than one. To recap, “dead” vestiges can reappear within the same physical body when THEY have something urgent to say/do, plus there’s an Aura Might wildcard. “Its very will finds its way to me” indeed.

(3) Throwing the vestiges at Shigaraki so hard that they “shatter into nothing” is Kudo’s theory. The vestiges don’t actually know what will happen, because nobody’s ever done this before. Notably, Kudo points out this tidbit:

…WITHOUT GIVING [SHIGARAKI] CONTROL OVER MY POWER, he says. Ah, but what if….what if our heroes need for Tenko to use that power? Or what if, like the Sports Festival, Izuku is incapacitated and needs a lil vestige jolt? Or, what if Izuku needs the various vestiges inside AFO (the quirk) to help free Tenko in the first place?

Basically, between these 3 things, I feel like Horikoshi can cook up whatever he needs in order to have our vestige friends appear one more time. He’s laid the groundwork for it to make enough sense in-universe. I don’t know if the vestiges, OFA, and AFO will survive the ending of the series (cynically, I think it depends on the sequel/spinoff possibilities the publisher will undoubtedly want to explore), but I feel pretty confident that the vestiges will reappear to fight one more time, just like Ochako, Shoto, Tenya, Katsuki, Himiko, and Toya.

Growing up I never understood why the road to hell was paved with good intentions. Good thing art is such a big part of my life, because I didn't learn that lesson from experience, but through fiction.

The lesson in question is that your intention alone is worth very little. I'm not saying here that good intentions are utterly worthless, 'cause hey you didn't mean to. However, the consequences of your actions can't be erased or reverted just by the cry of "This is not what I wanted to happen".

Now, I'm very aware that I'm writing this post on a bnha blog. You might ask: hey Shan, what does it have to do with anything?

I just want you to think about how bnha plays with the intentionality of the characters vs the consequences of their actions. Forget for a while that you know those characters at all and study them on the basis of what they wanted to do and what they ended up doing.

Example A:

Nana Shimura gave Kotaro Shimura in adoption when he was still a little child.

While she intended to keep him from being hurt by AFO and while she did it out of love and care for her son, her abandonment traumatized him. She left him with a letter to excuse herself and Kotaro grew up knowing that her mother would rather go to save strangers than stay with him.

In consequence, Kotaro was unable to trust in the system of the Hero Society. He became a sad, bitter man with a lot of repressed anger and self-worth issues. He ended up pouring all those thoughts poisoning him into his role as a father and started abusing his kids.

Kotaro had good intentions: he didn't want his kids to become like Nana. He didn't want them to abandon their own families for strangers and act like it was a selfless act of love, instead of a cowardly act of selfishness.

In turn, Tenko Shimura grew up in a house full of abuse and repression. He didn't understand why his dad got so mad whenever Tenko said he wanted to be a hero. No one ever explained it to him. He kept on resisting the rules his dad had set, causing the punishments to become more and more severe.

At the age of 5, Tenko's quirk manifested and reacted to the accumulation of hurt and anger within him. Being a kid and as it was usual in the bnha world, Tenko couldn't control either his quirk or his emotions: the outburst killed most of the Shimuras. Unprepared to deal with the situation, when Tenko reached for Kotaro —his dad— to help him, Kotaro hit Tenko in the face and told him to stay away. It was a familiar gesture between them. It further triggered the kid, tho. Tenko killed Kotaro in his blind fury.

Tenko was now alone, confused, in distress and severely traumatized.

The perfect state for someone to groom him and manipulate him into becoming a weapon.

I don't doubt Nana loved Kotaro and that Kotaro loved Tenko. In fact, if Nana and Kotaro hadn't loved their sons, they wouldn't have reacted the way they did. Both identified a threat (AFO or the Hero Society) and decided for a course of action that would "keep their children safe and sound".

If good intentions were enough, the Shimuras would still be alive, right?

Here's another saying: "ignorance is not excuse".

We have three generations who inflicted great damage on the people around them. A pro-hero, a common man and a villain. The only difference is that Tomura is the least hypocrite of them all: he intended to cause damage right from the start. He was being manipulated by AFO, of course, but he never ignored how his actions impacted other people and he never claimed to be innocent.

Was Tomura right / morally correct? Nope. That's not my point.

What I'm trying to say is that some actions can't be forgiven/erased on the basis of intention alone. This simple fact is one of the side themes of bnha. Pro-heroes cannot be ignorant because there'd be no excuse for their wrongdoings. No matter how much they want to do good, if they hurt people by accident, they still would have to answer for it or well, deal with the consequences themselves.

Example B:

Although Enji, Touya and Shouto's intentions were very different, they all caused (different levels of) damage with their actions.

Shouto recognized that his cold behaviour was having a negative effect on others. He didn't want that, so he became more aware of how he interacted with others.

The entire world got caught up in the middle of Touya's revenge mission. Dabi knew very well he was affecting a lot of people and he knew to what extent his actions were hurting others. He still thought he was willing to pay the price for it, meaning he didn't intend or not to hurt those people in the first place. In order to make Enji's life hell, everything was allowed.

Finally, Enji's journey goes from him being very ignorant on how his actions affected his kids to him realizing just how deep he had fucked up. It was a matter of admitting he had the chances to not do what others told him was wrong, but he still did it 'cause (like Touya) he thought that the end justified the means.

Even if his intentions were different, he turned the blind eye to the damage he was causing.

And like these there are many other cases in the story. Do you remember that time Inko called out All Might on Deku's safety? Or even when Deku left on his own because he wanted to keep his classmates safe? Do you remember Overhaul and his intention/motive? What about Aoyama?

The fact that they didn't mean it doesn't mean that they weren't wrong for doing it. That simple fact is instrumental to define what differentiates Deku's hero style from his predecessors.

Like I said, go back, re-read the story and decide what you want to think about it, okay? Right.

BNHA

Bakugou Katsuki:

Dragon hybrid!Bakugou pt2 pt3 pt4

Sleepovers: Boyfriend!Bakugou x reader

Werewolf!Bakugou introduction pt2

Todoroki Shoto:

Yandere vampire!Shoto x reader pt2

Dabi / Todoroki Touya:

Brahms!Dabi x reader

Midoriya Izuku:

Baby!Deku’s first appearance

Life with Toddler!Deku

Shigaraki Tomura/Shimura Tenko:

Platonic: Adopting baby!Tenko

Platonic: Nightmares: baby!Tenko

Platonic: iPad kid!Tenko

Platonic Yandere!Tenko x Mommy!Reader

Platonic yandere son!Tenko x Mommy!reader x Boyfriend!Toshi

Platonic yandere son!Tenko vs Boyfriend!Toshi

Enrolled in UA: Platonic Yandere son!Tenko x mommy!reader

Broken Ties: Platonic yandere Tenko x reader x Yandere boyfriend!All Might

Toshinori Yagi/All Might:

Platonic yandere son!Tenko x Mommy!reader x Boyfriend!Toshi

Platonic yandere son!Tenko vs Boyfriend!Toshi

Caught in the act

Aizawa Shota/Eraserhead:

Sulking: Boyfriend!Aizawa x reader

Mommy dearest 5

After taking in Tenko, you have your hands full. Life is slowly getting easier, but of course adopting a kid at age 23 raises eyebrows. It turns out you weren’t the only one who would be willing to look after Tenko, but how will Tenko react to your visitor?

With the new normal of having Tenko and you at work and school, created time to have bonding weekends. Tenko absolutely loved it, being out and about with his mom who never hurt him or scolded him. And after some getting used to raised brows and judgmental people asking you questions about his adoption. You could enjoy your weekend with your precious son uninterrupted. Nothing could shake you, you stood at the top of the world with your cute Tenko alongside you. Or so you thought.  

The picnic the other weekend had been a success, and Tenko had since then asked everyday when the next picnic would occur. Everytime the answer was the same ‘not in the near future’ of course that bummed Tenko out, but he understood once you sat him down and taught him how time management works. Your weekends together had been peaceful and so far uninterrupted, but that was about to change.

It all started when you got a phone call from the police precinct, you picked up the call assuming it might be a follow up on your complaint about the unprofessional, prejudiced and misogynistic detective who conducted Tenko’s interview. “Hello, this is officer Tsukauchi. We have received a request to receive guardianship over Shimura Tenko, but as you have full guardianship we would like to inquire if you would be willing to negotiate the custody of Tenko Shimura ” The officer on the other line explained to you. For a minute you froze, not quite believing the audacity of the officer on the other end of the line. Guardianship, is putting it too lightly. You adopted Tenko, you are his mom now and have parental rights. After unfreezing white hot rage shot through your veins, so you turned back to the officer on the phone to give him a piece of your mind.

“Negotiate custody, you must be joking. I adopted that child, he is my son now and I will protect him and love him as my own for the rest of his life. He is not some kind of toy to be switched out when a distant relative suddenly decides they want the government's money for taking care of family and raising Tenko. I owe nothing to you, and will not be open to negotiate custody so to speak, and am quite frankly disgusted you would ask after I have been approved as a suitable mother by child protective services connected to YOUR precinct. Good day ” with that you hung up the phone, and walked back into the living room where Tenko was watching a cartoon. 

He lit up at the sight of you exclaiming a happy ‘mama’ when you joined him on the couch and pulled him into your lap to cuddle. With Tenko being so happy and enthusiastic about the cartoon he babbled about to you, it simply solidified it furter for you that you weren’t ever going to give Tenko up.

A few days later when you were on the way to pick up Tenko from school, there was a queasy feeling in your chest like something was going to happen today. You ignored it in favor of parking the car and going to the school gate to wait on Tenko, so you joined the other parents who were also waiting and had a bit of small talk. You one of the single dads trying to impress you with boasting about how well he was raising twins, he kept hinting at wanting to give his kids a mother figure all while he was more or less eye fucking you. It was a public space, and so you kept your polite smile but didn’t contribute to the conversation.

As the bell rang and the school was officially done for the day, you walked away from the dad who had just reached the point of asking for your number in favor of meeting Tenko halfway. Tenko waved goodbye to his friends, before sprinting over to you with a toothy smile and a loud “mommy”. You caught Tenko in with open arms “did you have a good day honey?” you asked as you stood up with Tenko in your arms as you made your way to the car. “Yeah it was awesome, we had to talk about our parents today. So I told them how you rescued me and adopted me mama, but one of the other kids was rude and said then you probably didn’t want or like me. But I know you do, cuz you always say you love me. So I said at least my mama got to choose, your mama didn’t have a choice. The teacher was so impressed that I didn’t even get that big a scolding” Tenko huffed out in one breath.

The trip back home was filled with more stories from Tenko’s day in school, and you wondered if you really were that sarcastic around Tenko for him to pick so much up on it. It made you laugh so you decided it wouldn’t be a problem, besides you would rather Tenko end up as the passive aggressive type than the violent type. Everything came to a stop though when Tenko stopped and tugged on your pant leg on the way to the front door. “Who’s that mama?” Tenko asked as he pointed towards the large silhouette in front of your front door. “I don’t know, stay behind me okay Tenko” He nodded, and so you began approaching the silhouette. The closer you got the easier it was to see that the silhouette was a man, hulking over you. He was tall, broad and so filled with muscles that you were sure he was either a pro-hero or a bodybuilder. 

“Excuse me sir, can I help you” Your tone was clipped but polite, your only concern was Tenko’s safety as he hid behind your leg like you instructed him to do. When the man turned around, it knocked the air out of your lungs. In front of you stood the number one hero All Might, his blonde hair and blue eyes were very telling. “I’m looking for a y/n l/n and her son Shimura Tenko” he said very politely, though it was like it took him a minute to find the words. Your protective instincts had simmered down a bit when you realized that it was the number one hero who was standing in front of you, but it did make you confused. Why was All Might tracking you and Tenko down?

Focusing on the man before you, you reply “that would be us, would you like to come inside. I would take a wild guess and say whatever reason led you to track us down, you wouldn’t want the press all over it, would you?” So with a raised eyebrow and a look at the now sheepish man and jerk your head for him to follow you and Tenko inside. Tenko is still clutching onto your pant leg, his little fist going white with the force used to hold the fabric. Tenko was annoyed, why was the stupid number one hero here. Tenko didn’t need saving anymore, he had his loving mama and her warm hugs and that was all he would need.

The three of you went inside, away from prying eyes. You offered All Might something to drink, as any gracious host would before sitting down to discuss the reason the pro-hero was in your home. “So All Might, why have you seeked Tenko and I out? '' you asked him curiously. Tenko was sitting sideways in your lap, so that he could see the both of you although he mostly side-eyed the pro-hero. The hero-jumped almost startled, he had been caught up in gazing at you and Tenko that he almost didn’t hear your question.

“Right, a friend of mine from the police force should have called you earlier, you see I used to know young Tenko’s grandmother. So when I heard from an old mentor of mine that Shimura Tenko had been registered in the system as an orphan I wanted to adopt him. But it seems you beat me to it, I would still like to be involved if possible ” The older man explained, hope glinting in his eyes.

It made sense to you, if he used to know Tenko’s grandmother that he would like to know Tenko. You would still like to know exactly how All Might, the symbol of peace and number 1 hero, knew Tenko’s grandma. Even if All Might wanted to be involved, it would ultimately be Tenko’s decision. Before you could mull over your thoughts too much, Tenko went tense in your lap. His eyes that were previously distrusting of the hero, turned down right angry. He was shaking in your lap from rage, his thoughts raging inside all with a negative view of the man in front of him. So as any tense child would, Tenko exploded.

“So now I’m good enough, I hate hate hate heroes. Nobody wanted me or wanted to help me when I needed it except mama, and now you want to take her from me. I hate you All Might” He yelled before storming into his room and slamming the door. You knew Tenko didn’t like heroes, and you know he had gotten better with the help of his therapist. In the beginning he was tense as soon as a hero even made an appearance on the TV, and he would scratch at his neck to relieve that stress. From working together with Tenko these past months, you knew he just needed some time to cool off. So you turned your attention back to the frozen man.

“Sorry about that, Tenko has almost exclusively only had bad experiences with his prior family and heroism. Then when the accident occured and he was alone and afraid, not one single hero of any rank, took the time to help him. And now when he finally has a stable and loving environment to grow up in, with a mother who does her best to support him emotionally you frase it as if you are here to take it from him. You can’t really blame him, he’s a traumatized child. But if you do blame him, then get out of my house you have no business being a parent” you explained to the man in front of you in a neutral tone of voice. You were an adult so you could have a mature conversation without you going on the defense immediately.

All Might looked shocked at the information. “But I thought you were a hero?” The older man tilted his head like a puppy would, and he had no right being cute doing that. But the head tilt or how attractive the hero was, wasn’t the thing to focus on now or ever. “No, I’m a doctor at the Mayumi Private Hospital '' he made an O’h face, as if it only now occurred to him that not all ‘heroes’ were in the pro-hero business. Now that your occupation was cleared up, the question that had been nagging you in the back of the head, could be asked.

“How exactly did you know Tenko’s grandmother”

So the pro-hero began explaining how Nana Shimura had been his mentor and foster mother. How Nana had to prioritize her son Kotaro’s safety after her husband died in an attempt to kill Nana, so she had put Kotaaro in the foster system. He explained how Nana had made himself and her best friend, who coincidentally is All Might’s other mentor, promise to not seek out Kotaro. And how sad he was when he heard the news of the Shimura family’s death, and how when he heard of little Tenko how he couldn’t just stay away this time.

In turn you told him about how you found Tenko, all bloodied and malnourished. How he had flinched when you went to touch him. And how your doctors and parental instincts had gone haywire. You told him of the things Tenko had admitted in therapy or simply to you. How all the heroes who were sworn to protect the citizens had ignored him in favor of 15 minutes of glory from a small villain take down. How Tenko had suffered from physical abuse at the hand of Kotaro Shimura, for wanting to be a hero. The emotional neglect he had suffered from, that the therapist and yourself had concluded. You told him about his progress, how he seemed to be a natural leader with his peers in school, and about the picnic the weekend prior.

After having exchanged stories and sentiments, your bleeding heart had made up its mind “All Might, I would be willing to try co-parenting with you.” The blond haired man lit up, similarly to Tenko when he played video games. “But. You have to be committed and patient, Tenko is not fond of heroes as you are learning. In the end Tenko is the one whose opinion matters the most, I will talk to him and explain to him why you want to be involved in his life. But I can’t garanti he wants anything to do with you” You tell him apologetically

“That is fine, I’m just happy you at least want to give me a chance to prove myself to young Tenko” he stands up, and holds out his hand to shake on it. “I’ll call you and update you, okay?” When he nods, you connect your hands in the handshake. He also hands you his phone so you can put in your number, so he knows who is calling him and will actually pick up the call. So you put your contact name as ‘Tenko’s Mama y/n’ All Might leaves not long after, he was called to the scene because “A hero never rests” as he yelled when he was leaving.

Now all you had to do was talk with Tenko, to calm him down and reassure him that All Might would not take him from you. So you prepare a snack for him, before starting your mission. With a sigh and a gentle smile you open up the door to Tenko’s room. The sight is heartbreaking, Tenko is laying in his bed curled up in a fetal position as tears stream down his face. “Oh, honey. Come here” you sit down the snack on his desk before sitting down next to him on his bed, and opening your arms so he can hug you. Once Tenko is sitting in your embrace, he begins to sob. “Please don’t leave me mama, I’ll be good I swear” He cries. That just breaks your heart, because of course Tenko has abandonment issues, you just hadn’t noticed because things have been going so well. 

You spent a good half hour soothing your crying son, loving him to the best of your abilities. Rubbing his back and giving him forehead and temple kisses, hugging him and singing his lullaby to help him relax a bit. You explain to him the concept of shared custody, of how 2 people both can love you and want to raise you. But one might have him for longer periods of time than the other, because of a job. You ask him if he would let All Might be in his life, for starters just as a cool uncle like the ones from his favorite cartoons. Tenko agrees, but only if he and mama can go on vacation this summer. Something some of his classmates had talked about. So you agreed and texted the blonde hero the details of Tenko’s agreement. Before putting the phone away and spending the night, cuddling and watching a movie with your precious son.

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