Monkey .D. Izuku!

A Mighty Reunion!

"All Might..." Izuku whispered as he stared at the skinny, grinning man in front of him.

"Haha! Indeed, young man!" All Might laughed and assumed his buff form, only to swiftly return to his original state, coughing up blood.

Normally, Izuku would have questioned why All Might was coughing up blood in this peculiar place, but at the moment, he was too overwhelmed by seeing his mentor again. "All Might... I don't understand how I am able to meet you... talk to you. No. More importantly, where are we?"

"Well, I assumed you'd recognize this place. After all, among all of us, you were the first to interact with it while still alive," All Might replied, making Izuku confused for a moment before he widened his eyes.

"Are you saying this is a vestige realm?" Izuku asked, surveying the beach around them. "But how is that possible? As far as I know, the vestige realm was supposed to be a part of a room floating over a void."

"That's because the vestige realm you're describing originated from Yoichi's memories, and this one is from yours," All Might explained. "You see, young man, One for All wasn't just a simple quirk. It might have started that way, but by the time you received it from me, it had become a unique existence, completely merging with your soul and strengthening it beyond that of a normal human. That's why I believe it allowed you to recall memories from your past life, even though you didn't inherit any stockpiled power or quirks from One for All."

"I see..." Izuku whispered, trying to make some sense of All Might's words. Then, a sudden realization hit him like a truck. "But last time we were here, you just had your silhouette representing you because..." Izuku stopped, unable to utter the words that were almost on his lips. Instead, he just sat down on the sand and tucked his head between his knees, not even wanting to entertain the thought.

All Might sighed and joined his protege, sitting beside him. "You guessed it right; I passed away in our old world," he said, gently placing a hand on Izuku's trembling shoulder.

A moment later, Izuku gathered himself and looked at All Might with teary eyes. "How?" he asked, stumbling upon his words. "When?"

Once again, All Might sighed and looked at the setting sun. "It all began after the three months following your battle with Shigaraki and All for One, when my age and past injuries caught up with me. For the next nine months, everyone tried all they could to help me. However, after All for One's defeat and your passing, there was nothing left in that world to bolster my will to keep going. So, after nine months of struggle, my body finally gave out, and I took my final breath."

"But then, when I opened my eyes again, I found myself here in your mindscape, witnessing your new life," All Might continued, moving his hand to Izuku's head and ruffling his hair. "I must say, this is quite a peculiar world you've found yourself in. Well, knowing you, I can't say I'm surprised."

"Well, I can't deny that, can I?" Izuku chuckled, injecting a bit of lightness into the somber atmosphere.

After a moment of comfortable silence, All Might spoke again. "So, young Izuku, how are you?" he inquired, prompting Izuku to turn his head toward his mentor and raise a brow at the unexpected question.

"I... am good?" Izuku replied with a question, unsure how to respond.

"That's not the answer I was looking for, and I'm certain you know what I'm asking about," All Might said, shaking his head. "So, I'm going to ask you again. How are you, young Izuku?"

This time, Izuku took a minute and thought over All Might's question before he realized what his mentor was actually asking him. "I am... I feel so lost, All Might," Izuku replied with a sigh.