Chapter 27: The Divine Vine!

A day had passed since the shopping trip, a whole day that Izuku spent trying to erase from his mind the memory of a bite of cake and the horrified faces of three of the most eccentric heroines in Japan. The outing had been a social disaster of historic proportions, and yet he still filed it away as a surprisingly productive data-gathering mission. His notebook was full of useful notes.

Fact one: Mirko has a weakness for good-quality leather, he thought, going over his mental list.

Fact two: Nemuri-san can convince anyone that a pair of sky-high heels is an investment and not a splurge. I almost bought a pair myself, and I'm not even a woman... She's so good at marketing, huh.

Fact three: Yu has a limit for secondhand embarrassment, and once you cross it, she turns into a sniper with perfect aim for throwing bread rolls.

He was sitting alone on a bench in a big, quiet park, far from the noise of the city. His tablet rested on his knees with the list of UA applicants open again.

He swiped to the next one. A boy who fired a beam of light from his stomach.

"Flashy, I'll give him that. But he gets dizzy if he uses it too much and the beam bounces all over the place, so it's better for photos than for pulling someone out of a burning building."

He sighed and let his head fall back against the bench.

Well, this is tricky. I'm supposed to find someone with an average Quirk who doesn't stand out, but... I'd like that person to be special, he told himself, closing his eyes for a moment.

I need someone who needs confidence to become unstoppable, and who knows how to give it back to me... I need someone with conviction.

He opened his eyes and lowered the tablet in frustration. The information was flat, built to impress a panel of judges, and none of those faces meant anything to him. He looked up to rest his eyes, letting the green of the park clear his head a little, and that was when he saw her.

On the other side of a small pond, among ducks paddling around without a care, there was a girl.

She had the strangest and most beautiful hair Izuku had ever seen in his life, a cascade of thick green vines that fell down her back. She moved calmly beside an older gardener who was fighting with a climbing plant that refused to stay on its trellis. The man was tugging at it with trembling hands, about to give up, and she raised a hand with a kind smile.

A couple of thin strands of her own hair stretched out slowly, guided the rebellious plant back to its place, and tied it to the trellis without tearing off a single leaf. The gardener gave her a grateful bow, and she answered with one just as gentle.

She... definitely has an interesting Quirk.

He put the tablet away in his backpack and stood up. He circled the pond with determined steps, startling a couple of ducks that quacked at him, offended, and reached her side just as the gardener was saying goodbye, stopping at a respectful distance, suddenly very aware that he had no idea what he was going to say.

"Um, excuse me, Miss Plant..."

The girl turned around. Up close she was even more striking, with serene green eyes and an expression that showed neither the alarm nor the annoyance anyone would have at a stranger approaching them in a park. She just looked at him with quiet curiosity.

"Your hair," Izuku continued, because honesty was the only thing he knew how to use in moments like this. "It's incredible. Is it part of your Quirk?"

A sweet smile formed on her lips. She brought a hand to the vines and touched one fondly, an affectionate gesture.

"It is," she answered with a peaceful smile. "The Lord saw fit to grant me this blessing, and every day I give thanks to Him for it."

Izuku blinked. He had heard people call their Quirks "powers" or "abilities," and even "curses" when they got stuck with an awkward one, but never "blessing."

"I'm Izuku Midoriya," he said, and gave a slightly clumsy bow.

"It's a pleasure, Midoriya-san. My name is Ibara Shiozaki."

"The way you helped that gardener was impressive," he went on, looking for a way to keep the conversation going. "You could've just forced the plant into place and been done with it. But you guided it carefully, trying not to hurt it."

Ibara clasped her hands in front of her and nodded serenely.

"Your observation honors the truth, Midoriya-san. Many see my Quirk and think only of binding villains or raising walls," she said. "Yet every faculty Heaven grants us carries a responsibility with it. It can serve to create or to destroy, and true heroism lies in the wisdom of knowing when to do each."

The conversation flowed without any bumps or awkward silences. They talked about Quirks and heroism, and though each of them said it in their own way, Izuku realized they were arriving at the same place. He saw it in terms of what worked and what didn't; she saw it in terms of what was right.

"I totally get you," Izuku said, forgetting his shyness the way he always did when a topic he loved came up. "It took me years to figure out what my power was even for too. For a long time I thought it was useless, until recently I understood that my thing was never about making myself strong. My thing is helping other people bring out what they've got inside. Actually, I had my big philosophical revelation underneath a pro heroine's butt. It's a long story."

Ibara was stunned for a moment. The sentence, delivered with complete seriousness, was too much for her composure, and a clear, soft laugh slipped out before she could stop it. She covered her mouth with her hand, her cheeks turning red.

"Oh... please forgive me," she said, tilting her head slightly. "It was not my intention to be disrespectful or to mock your words. It is only that... the Lord has granted you a most singular way of telling things."

Izuku smiled, a little embarrassed.

"Don't worry about it. People tell me that pretty often."

Ibara let out a small smile, calmer now.

"And yet... if that experience led you to understand the mission Heaven had prepared for you, then I suppose even so peculiar an event could become an instrument of providence. The paths by which truth arrives are often more mysterious than we imagine."

She told him she wanted to get into UA because she considered heroism a sacred service, and that her goal was to prune the branches of evil so that the light could reach more people. Izuku listened, fascinated, and the certainty he felt inside grew larger with every word.

Ibara, for her part, was also surprised at herself. She was usually reserved, especially with boys who approached her without knowing her, since they generally wanted something from her and made her uncomfortable. With this green-haired boy it was the opposite. There was no arrogance or hidden motive in his gaze, only honest curiosity, and the anxiety that usually tightened her chest in situations like this simply didn't appear.

The chat reached a natural pause. Izuku felt a stab of panic, because he didn't want this to end, and the same impulse that had brought him to her came back full force. He pointed at a colorful stand on the other side of the path.

"I'd like to keep hearing the way you see heroism. It's... refreshing. Would you want to grab a slushie with me? My treat."

Ibara stayed quiet for a few seconds. Accepting an invitation from a young man she had only just met was not something she normally did. Still, she sensed no malice in him, only an honesty so transparent that it inspired trust.

She lowered her eyes slightly before answering.

"If the Lord has allowed this meeting, it would be discourteous to refuse a gesture born of kindness. I accept with gratitude, Midoriya-san."

The two of them walked over to the stand, where an old man with a thick mustache greeted them with a friendly smile.

"What can I get you, kids?"

"One lemon, please," Izuku said.

Ibara waited patiently for her turn before speaking.

"Grape for me, please. Thank you very much."

Izuku paid, and insisted when she tried to pull out her wallet. They sat down on an empty bench under a maple tree, slushies in hand.

"So..." Izuku began, stirring his with the straw. "Besides having a philosophy of heroism that's better put together than most pros', what else do you do? Do you have any hobbies?"

Ibara was silent for a few moments before answering, as if she wanted to arrange her thoughts.

"I enjoy caring for plants. I suppose that was easy to guess. I also find a great deal of peace in reading. There are writings that strengthen the spirit and help one contemplate the world with greater clarity. I am always grateful for words when they have been written with honesty."

"Ah, I love reading too," Izuku said, perking up. "Combat manuals, hero analyses, studies on Quirks... Anything I can study and fill up with notes."

A delicate smile lit up Ibara's face.

"It seems our interests reflect the path each of us wishes to walk, does it not?"

"I guess so," he admitted, scratching his head. "So how about school? Any subject that's given you trouble? Not that... um, well, it's just that it kind of seems like you do everything perfectly, so... you know, I was wondering if there was anything you find hard."

Ibara lowered her eyes for a moment before answering with a modest smile.

"Mathematics, on occasion. Though I try to apply myself with diligence, numbers do not always come to me with the same clarity as words. I trust that, with perseverance and the grace of Heaven, I will come to understand them better as well. And you, Midoriya-san? Is there any subject that gives you difficulty?"

"You can call me Izuku," he said. "And for me it's the other way around. Language can be tricky sometimes, especially in old literature. I've got a suspicion that some authors tangled things up on purpose just to seem interesting."

"Perhaps they did not wish to tangle it... Izuku-san, perhaps they wished to invite you to think," she suggested in a low voice. "Discovering the meaning is also part of the path."

They talked about the pressure of the entrance exam. Ibara told him she was preparing with physical training and a lot of prayer, trusting that providence would guide her if this was her path.

"Doesn't it make you nervous?" Izuku asked, curious. "I mean the practical exam... There are so many applicants competing, and the challenge looks really demanding."

Ibara nodded gently. For an instant, beneath her usual serenity, a small shadow of unease showed through.

"It is. It would be improper to claim that my heart does not waver. Yet fear, too, is a trial the Lord places before us. If we face it with righteousness, our faith grows stronger and reaffirms the path we have chosen."

Izuku watched her speak, completely convinced of one single thing. It was her, he had no doubt left. Her spirit didn't break in the face of anything, her intentions were clean, and she wasn't looking for glory for herself, only to serve others. And her Quirk hid a potential that everyone underestimated by seeing it as nothing more than a tool for restraint.

Most important of all, he felt he could trust her, and that she, given time, could come to trust him. What he felt was a gut feeling shouting at him from the inside.

It's her I have to help, he confirmed, as the last doubt dissolved. She's got the strongest heart I've ever seen. And with a little help, she could become someone no one would dare underestimate.

When they finished their slushies, they stood up. The sun was already brushing the horizon, a cooler breeze running between the trees.

"Thank you for the conversation, Izuku-san," Ibara said, with a small bow. "It has been the most providential encounter I have had in a long time."

"No, no, I should be the one saying the pleasure was mine, Shiozaki-san," he replied, smiling.

"Then please, call me Ibara."

The goodbye seemed settled, and panic tightened Izuku's chest again. It couldn't end there.

"Hey, it's getting late," he said. "I don't know where you live, but if you want I could walk you home. To make sure you get there okay, of course."

Ibara blinked, surprised, and a faint blush returned to her face.

"Oh... Your consideration honors me, but I have no wish to be any inconvenience to you."

"It wouldn't be any inconvenience," he insisted. "Just the opposite... it'd make me really happy to do it."

She stayed quiet for a moment, taking in the sincerity in his eyes. Finally, a smile lit up her face.

"Then... I will gratefully accept your kind offer, Izuku-san. May the Lord reward your gentleness."

They left the park together, their steps falling into a similar rhythm on the quiet path, and the conversation picked back up in lower voices.

"Are you sure I'm not taking you too far out of your way?" Ibara asked as they turned onto a quiet residential street.

"Not at all," Izuku answered. "My route today was pretty undefined anyway. So, well, this is an improvement."

She laughed a little.

"Always so analytical."

They stopped in front of a modest but well-kept apartment building, with flowerpots on every balcony.

"Well, this is it," she said, turning toward him. "Thank you so much for walking me, Izuku-san."

"You're welcome, Ibara-san."

The two of them lingered in that awkward space where a goodbye stretches on longer than it should.

WELL... THEY DO SAY THE THIRD TIME'S THE CHARM.

"So... um..." he began, his voice a little tense. "Ahem... I've been watching a lot of movies lately. For research purposes on human social interaction, of course, since my boss says I'm kind of clumsy... And, uh, from what I've observed, at the end of a... date... there's usually a kiss."

Ibara stayed still. Her green eyes widened in surprise and the blush slowly rose until it covered her cheeks.

"A-a date...?" she murmured, lowering her eyes.

Izuku suddenly remembered the several identical scoldings he'd gotten after asking for a kiss...

"I mean!" he blurted out, waving his hands. "It's not like I'm expecting it! Forget what I said, I..."

Ibara let out a brief laugh, so soft it almost seemed like an exhale. Then she brought a hand to her chest, regaining her serenity.

"Izuku-san... your sincerity is uncommon. I confess your way of speaking caught me completely by surprise."

Her cheeks were still flushed.

"But I sense there was no malice in your words. Only a heart that seeks to understand what it does not know. And that... is worthy of esteem."

She took a small step forward, as if she had made a decision after a brief silent prayer.

"If this has been an encounter blessed by the Lord... I wish to say goodbye without leaving any regrets behind."

She rose onto her tiptoes and placed a light kiss on Izuku's cheek.

As she pulled back, she hid part of her face behind a shy smile.

"I, too, will treasure our... date very much, Izuku-san. May God watch over your journey home."

She gave a slight bow of her head before going into the building.

Izuku was left alone on the sidewalk, motionless, one hand resting on the cheek she had kissed.

After what felt like an eternity, a slow smile formed on his face. A smile of certainty.

The search was over.

He turned around and set off, feeling light as a feather. He pulled out his phone and opened a new email.

To: Nemuri Kayama. Subject: Candidate Selection.

Dear, beautiful Nemuri-san: I've made my decision.

The real work was about to begin.

****

While you're reading this, Patreon supporters are already on CHAPTER 44.

No artificial delays, no drip-feeding finished work — when a chapter's ready, it's up. Every single one hits 2,000+ words and comes with original cover art. That's just the standard over there.

You don't have to wait. patreon.com/itszeroo — come join the people who already stopped waiting.