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To Toshinori, humans had always seemed like bugs. Not necessarily in the way that they were meant to be crushed, but more like they were meant to be left alone if they weren't bothering him. He respected them, even as they cowered before his hunger. This was in the days before Kars' slaughter.
During that time, he learned of the young pillar man's plot and fled far away from him. He travelled across the seas to an oriental land, and took shelter in the mountains of the biggest island.
The year is now 1951, only a few years after the Second World War and the brief reign of Kars' terror. Toshinori is accidentally awakened by a murder in his cave. He takes in the scene before him.
A young man with an odd contraption in his hands. A girl, bleeding out on the ground, a hole through her head. The murderer shoots him in fear. Toshinori likens the weapon to a highly advanced slingshot.
The man quivers in fear. He has never encountered an immortal being before.
Toshinori manages to grind out a question about the weapon, his throat dry from a mounting thirst.
The human doesn't understand him. Toshinori doesn't understand the human either. Japanese is not a language he encountered before. It would not take him long to learn it.
The boy with the metal device runs. But before he can leave the cave, Toshinori darts in front of him with incredible speed. This man has killed another of his kind. If the same rules apply now that they did back then, then the murderer will be punished.
The pillar man considers that making a meal of the man would be more merciful than letting him suffer. As he takes in the human's body, he feels his strength return. But it is not enough.
Toshinori returns to his pillar to take one of the masks. He shudders upon remembering their creator, though he concedes to use the device because of its usefulness. It makes his prey stronger and more valuable.
It is night outside. Toshinori is thoughtful in his meal. He chooses someone who lives on the outskirts, who does not have a home or family. He slashes them across the cheek with a dagger and presses the mask to their face.
Soon the homeless one succumbs to the evil in his heart, and leaps at Toshinori, thisting for blood. The pillar man digests the vampire in only a matter of minutes, not wasting a single drop of blood.
This was much better. With the return of his strength, Toshinori's curiosity also grew. He inspected the belongings of his prey. There was some sort of sack, and a giant square of stuffed fabric that mimicked animal skin.
Dawn was fast approaching, and Toshinori had to retreat to his cave to inspect these items. Inside the sack was a change of clothes and several small books, made entirely of paper, rather than leather. Clearly, humans had advanced much farther than he had anticipated in his slumber.
The giant looked at the symbols on the page. He studied the character's patterns throughout the day, and by night he was fluent in Japanese.
Inside the backpack, as he learned it was called thanks to the magazines, was a wool hat, a light overcoat, a shirt, and some pants, none of which fit the pillar man, other than the hat. He put it on over his fuffy head of hair to hide his horns, which poked out from his long bangs.
There were also a few wrapped granola bars, a toothbrush, and a lighter. Toshinori tried the lighter and discovered it made a small flame. Tucking it in his hat for later, he returned his attention to the bag. Perhaps he could trade these things among the other homeless for bigger clothes and other valuable items. If he wanted to survive in this time, it was important to blend in.
Toshinori didn't have the same reckless confidence as the pillar men who attempted to conquer the world. He was going to do his best to respect the way of life in this town and interfere as little as possible.
This led to him becoming a legend in the area. Mothers scolded their children for breaking curfew and told the story of the fearsome giant who picked young boys and girls off the street and ate them if they weren't home by dark. His influence spread among the homeless, scaring away some, and attracting others. Those who had given up came to him as sacrifice to keep others safe. The town established an order, and even as it grew, his cave was feared and respected. Eventually they dared to build a shrine to him, but that was the only development on his land the humans dared make.
Toshinori was amused at how they worshipped him. Though he had all the influence he could ever need, he never used it. He stayed true to the traditions of his ancestors and only took what he needed.
In his cave he wore only his ancient clothing, to preserve his image and to keep the townspeople away, aside from the few who gave themselves to him.
When he went to the town to tradefor reading material and other such hobby material, he wore a mismatch of larger clothes he had aquired over the years.
And so things stayed for many decades.
It is now some time in the 21st century. People of different super powers have appeared across the world, and villainy is at an all time high. Less people have come to his shrine as of late, and Toshinori is being forced to fight for his food.
Many villains are strong enough for Toshinori to consume them for energy without the stone mask. Unexpectedly, a side effect of the pillar man's abilities allow him to take the Quirk of those he has eaten. Reports say there is a vigilante who stays in the old shrine of the legendary stone man. Crime rates drop near his cave. Toshinori has to venture farther into the city to find humans causing problems.
One night he witnesses an explosion from an alley. From it drift voices, locked in an argument. One sounds to be vehemently angry, though the undertones in his voice suggest confusion and fear. The other one is truly terrified, and can barely get a word in.
Toshinori steps into the alley, the attention of the explosive boy now on him. Derogatory phrases are shouted at the pillar man. He considers eating the boy against his established rule to only feed on adults, but does nothing more than consider. With a show of power, he punches the volatile boy and tells him to run home.
Suddenly the green haired one, who had been quiet before, starts shouting at Toshinori, asking why he did that, and crying that "Kacchan" will come back and beat him harder. The pillar man wonders why the boy did not defend himself.
He doesn't have a Quirk, the young man explains. In this world of super powers, 20% of the population is powerless. The child stands in terror at the hulking man before him. Toshinori feels an unfamiliar emotion blooming inside him. What? What is it?
Before he can find out, the boy has ran off and the sun is coming up. Toshinori darts to his cave, barely making it in time.
He felt... concern... toward that boy. And affection. Could this be... compassion?
In a world full of powers, this boy has none. Toshinori absent-mindedly stares at the masks hanging around the chamber of the cave. He remembers the vampires of the old days, whose power greatly exceeded that of normal humans. Maybe...
The giant shook his head. These masks were designed to unlock the darkness in people's hearts. Letting the boy use one would only lead him to villainy.
Toshinori had his own supply of Quirks, but he could not give them away. He thought of several that might suit the green haired boy. One in particular...
It was a simple stockpiling quirk. Toshinori had a near-infinite amount of energy and thus had no need for it. It sat passively in his body, storing useless power. If he could find a way to pass this power to the boy...
He spent the next few weeks theorizing, testing on the unfortunate few who still remembered his legend. Toshinori came to the conclusion that Quirks could be passed through the stone masks if he used his own blood to activate it and isolated the DNA of that quirk. However, those that came to him already had Quirks of their own and thus could not handle more than one. They became brainless puppets.
He gave up, frustrated. He couldn't find a solution, and this troubled him to no end. He paced restlessly about his cave, until one day a quirkless girl came to him. She had given up on finding any profession that remotely resembled her dream.
Toshinori felt sorry that her powerlessness should be a thing to determine her worth, but conceded to her wishes anyway.
Except this time, instead of becoming a mindless slave, her body accepted the power. She was granted the quirk called metallokinesis, and suffered no physical detriment.
That night Toshinori was overflowing with excitement. He scoured the town for that green haired boy. But he couldn't find him.
Nights drew on and Toshinori worried he had missed his chance.
It was a year later that he found that boy on a trash-infested beach. The young man remembered him and introduced himself. Midoriya Izuku. The boy had dreamed of being a hero since the age he could speak, and wished to follow in the footsteps of the mysterious vigilante the press called All Might.
Toshinori gave his proposal that night. That if he gave Young Midoriya a quirk, he would promise to follow his dream and become a hero. But... Toshinori's power was too much for him to handle at once. Without the proper body strength, Midoriya suffered greatly.
His body was being torn apart, and Toshinori could tell. In his guilt he panicked. The only beings who could handle even remotely that much power were pillar men and to an extent, the vampires they create. Toshinori had no choice but to use the stone mask on the boy for its intended purpose.
He held the small vampire close, not daring to eat it. Toshinori knew it was only a matter of time before Izuku's hatred and jealousy manifested into pure malice.
Instead, he only heard a small question. Midoriya had asked if Toshinori was All Might.
Yes, my boy. He responded. I am All Might. And he cried. Midoriya had proven too pure for the mask to corrupt, and yet Toshinori still felt responsible for turning him into some kind of monster.
He fled to his cave with his boy in his arms. He needed to fix this.
There wasn't a way to reverse what the stone mask had done. Toshinori apologized over and over to the weak little vampire in front of him. He fed the boy his blood and laid him to sleep in the sleeping bag he found so many years ago. Midoriya didn't really need sleep, but it was a comforting action.
Toshinori worried even more throughout the day. He had ruined this boy's life, ruined his chances at becoming a hero. Taken him from a family. He cursed himself for being so foolish.
That day, Midoriya's mom thought he had gone to school as usual. It wasn't until after dinner that she was truly worried. Just as it became dark, she called the police. But before she could finish the call, in walked her son, looking deathly pale, with a giant of a man behind him.
It took both of them to explain to her what happened. Naturally, she was angry and confused. Toshibori apologized profusely and promised his mortality for Izuku's life, which was indeed a very strong promise for a near-immortal being.
From then on, the two of them worked as vigilantes of the night, until Toshinori could invent a solution. He was invited to the Midoriya household to coop up during the daytime, and seemingly became a part of the family. Izuku became homeschooled in the meantime, and things felt truly calm for the first time in months.
Until one day... A villain by the name of All For One came out of nowhere, searching for an item known as the Red Stone of Aja. Toshinori knew immediately that this man could only be another pillar man, and set out to stop him. Midoriya joined his side in the search, and the two made their debut as vigilante duo, the Symbol of Peace: All Might, and the Hero That Does His Best: Deku.