History#
As a child, Izuku Midoriya greatly admired Heroes and dreamed of being a hero like his idol, All Might, once he got his Quirk. However, by the time children his age manifested their powers, Izuku still showed no signs of developing any special abilities. A doctor's visit revealed the devastating truth: Izuku has two joints in his pinky toe, a telltale sign that he was born Quirkless.
Izuku had trouble accepting this at first and hoped for a miracle while he was still young. He tried desperately to use telekinesis or breathe fire (his mother and father's Quirks respectively), but to no avail. Izuku would eventually have to face reality: he was one of the very few people who would never develop a Quirk.[1]
Later on, Izuku kept watching videos of All Might that night on his computer and tearfully asked his mother if he could still become a hero. She hugged him and apologized, words that Izuku would remember as not what he wanted to hear because they made him feel inadequate to those with Quirks.
Even so, Izuku still kept aiming to be a hero and to get into U.A. High School. This ambition led him to be constantly bullied and ridiculed by his classmates, especially his childhood playmate, Katsuki Bakugo, who believed it impossible for someone without a Quirk to ever become a hero. Despite this, Izuku still considered the two of them to be friends at the time, always following him around.[2]
However, things escalated when Izuku tried to help Katsuki after he fell off a small bridge into a stream. Izuku offered a helping hand, but Katsuki's pride caused him to take this as an insult. He believed that Izuku made him appear as if he needed aid from someone who is beneath him. This would strain the relationship between the two for years to come, and Katsuki would relentlessly bully him from that day forward. Despite coming to fear Katuski and considering him a jerk, Izuku continued to admire him for his strength and skill.[3]
During his second year of middle school, Izuku was reading a hero magazine at the Tatooin Shopping District when he ran into Katsuki and his two friends. Izuku was then bullied by the three boys, with Katsuki saying that a useless Quirkless boy like him could do nothing but dream. At that moment, a villain suddenly appeared, using his Quirk to rob wallets and purses. Katsuki decided to chase down the villain, hoping to get into U.A. High School on recommendation. As Izuku continued to admire Katsuki for continuing to fearlessly chase after the villain, even after a powerful storm came in, he realized that the villain's Quirk was likely sand-based rather than smoke-based and began searching the alleyways for him. Izuku eventually found the villain after they had already been found by Katsuki and Airjet, the latter of which recommended that Izuku stay back while he praises Katsuki. Before leaving, Izuku thought that Katsuki, being able to deduce the true nature of the villain and arrive before him, makes him incredible despite his unpleasant personality.[4][5]