"Deku."

The familiar moniker stopped Izuku in his tracks. Katsuki had shot off the second the school bell rung, so it was a surprise to find him waiting by the school gates with his arms across his chest. His familiar glare was present, still with that same undertone of something that implied a change in their relationship, whatever it may be.

"Izukun?" Manami tugged gently on his sleeve, questions in her eyes he knew he couldn't answer right now. How could he still put up with Katsuki after all this time? What did their fight earlier mean? Was it okay to leave them alone together?

"It's fine." He settled on the idea that some talking would do them some good. It was long overdue as is. "Can you wait for me up ahead? I shouldn't be long."

She looked meaningfully between the two boys before nodding, leaving Izuku with a reassuring squeeze of his hand.

"I'll be just around the corner." She walked away, giving Katsuki a pointed glare that caused him to bristle, although he didn't say anything. In fact, neither boy spoke a word until Manami was out of sight, her vibrant hair disappearing behind the school gates.

"You…" It seemed Katsuki was going to start, having initiated the conversation in the first place, but he stopped after a single word, looking almost lost.

"I'm not sorry for standing up for myself, Kacchan." If Katsuki wasn't going to get right to it, Izuku would.

"Good for you." The aggravated, sarcastic retort seemed almost instinctual. Katsuki flinched as the words came from his lips, sighing deeply. "God, you're so fucking annoying."

"I-"

"Don't even start, Deku!" Katsuki's growl grew more pronounced. It seemed his emotional dial had finally settled on its usual setting: anger. "You let your weak-ass mentality control you for years! You said you looked up to me? No shit! You should've been paying better fuckin' attention!"

He huffed, crossing his arms with an indignant glare.

"Let's get one thing perfectly straight: I may have lost to you today, but it won't matter in the long run. Watching those fights just made me realize how complacent I've been. I can't beat that half-n-half bastard right now, but I'll get stronger until I can! Can't actually believe I'm saying it but I even had to agree with fuckin' Ponytail's assessment on my flaws. Today was nothing but a damn warmup for me; I'm just getting started! Next time we fight I'll be the one to kick your ass. And every time after that, too! And I'll put down every single extra that dares get in my way until I'm number one! You hear me, Deku!?"

There were definitely the beginnings of tears making their way into Katsuki's eyes; Izuku could tell even from this distance. It was so surreal. He'd always known that Katsuki hid his more genuine emotions under a veneer of rage and ego, but it was another thing to see what happened when the cracks started to form. He'd lost a fight for the first time since they were children, and it seemed to be a wake-up call in more ways than one. That said, today had lit a fire under Izuku as well.

"I… I won't lose either, Kacchan! Someday, I will be the number one hero!" the words came unbidden from his mouth; a challenge that he knew he couldn't take back. Katsuki matched his intense determination with a soul-piercing glare but didn't say anything in response. How long the silence lasted neither could tell, but eventually, Katsuki brought his sleeve up to wipe his eyes, coming away with a dry face and his standard sneer as if his moment of weakness hadn't even happened.

"I'd like to see you try, Deku."

He marched away without giving Izuku time to reply, shoving his hands deep into his pockets in that oh-so-familiar Katsuki fashion. He ignored Manami on his way out, walking past the small girl without so much as a glance in her direction. Izuku didn't know what to think about what that meant.

"Izukun?" He hadn't realized he'd been standing idle for so long until Manami called his name, tugging on his sleeve to get his attention. He blinked slowly, trying to comprehend what had just happened and what it meant for his friendship with Katsuki going forward. It was hard to tell if it had just collapsed completely or cemented itself with a stronger bond, as always seemed to be the case with his explosive classmate.

"I'm okay." Izuku put a smile on his face, answering her unspoken question, "Kacchan just had something important to say."

"… As long as you're happy, Izukun." She sighed, taking his hand and following his lead out of the school gates. He was grateful that Manami didn't seem keen on pressing the issue, her opinion of Katsuki already something she'd made clear.

"I am. Thank you, Manami-chan." He grinned at her, pointing off into the distance with a somewhat dramatic flourish, "Now, how would you like to see where we'll be training?"


"It's… surprisingly clean." Manami couldn't hold back her trepidation when she'd finally convinced him to reveal her their destination, but the picturesque view of Dagobah Beach was nothing like she'd been expecting. "Last time I was on this side of Musutafu, this place was more like a public dumping ground than a beach."

"Mhm." Izuku nodded even though she wasn't even looking at him, taking in the fruits of his labor with a self-satisfied smile. Farther down the bank, away from the rockier shores where the largest piles had lied, he could see couples and families enjoying the springtime weather with picnics, volleyball, and other beach classics. "This place was where my teacher brought me to start my training. The ten hardest months of my life prepared me for everything I might face during my first years at U.A.; he made absolute sure of that. In honor of him taking that chance on me, it's also where we'll start yours, Manami-chan."

Manami was quick on the uptake; there was no need for Izuku to tell her outright.

"You're the one that cleaned up the beach?" It was with a newfound wonder that she looked all around the sunbaked sands of Dagobah Beach, not an ounce of trash in sight. New 'no dumping' and 'no littering' signs had been posted to maintain the effort that had been put in on the city's behalf. There had even been an art wall erected, graffitied upon which she could make out a few stylized figures that without a doubt resembled Izuku putting in the work that led to its creation.

The green and black silhouettes were illustrated carrying various appliances and posing atop piles of refuse stuffed into dumpsters. One, surprisingly, portrayed him using his quirk to move a broken-down truck across the sands, a sprawling piece with stark red lines that contrasted with the artist's depiction of Izuku's bright green outline.

"My teacher believed that heroics is more than a simple career—it's a calling. He said that back in the day, they'd do community service projects just because they felt like it—because they were a part of that community too." There was something ethereal about Izuku's voice. A twinkle in his eyes. Everything about him was almost soft and far away as he talked about the ideals his mentor had shared with him, "After I got the results from the U.A. exams, being accepted after having been so convinced I'd failed, I came back here. I don't know what I was looking for, but what I found was just a little bit of peace. The thought that no matter what happened in the future, I'd be doing the right thing by being myself."

He couldn't even begin to describe the honor he'd felt. The appreciation. His actions had been noticed by others and for the first time in his life, he'd been accepted rather than spurned. He'd done something good. He'd done something heroic. It hadn't mattered to them what his quirk was—it was his actions speaking for him that drew their attention and earned their gratitude.

"Izukun…" His smile had turned sad, so Manami tugged on his sleeve, bringing Izuku out of whatever memories he'd dredged up along with what he'd told her. He started, as if he'd forgotten she was there, but quickly calmed himself, placating Manami with a neutral smile and stepping backward a few feet with a thoughtful look on his face.

"S-Sorry! I lost myself for a minute. I'm not sure you'll need to focus on strength training due to the nature of your quirk, but we can get a gym membership together just to keep in shape; despite its effectiveness, I'm not sure there are actually any other dumpsite-beaches around here we can use to train you up…"

Of course, even if there were, it was kind of disgusting in the moment when he was doing it. Banana peels? Dirty tires? Rusted appliances? Not a fan. Plus, just thinking about how much danger she would've been in with some of the larger objects made his heart ache. That, of course, not to say anything about the differences in body type, weight, and— Manami was laughing at him.

Even though it was at his expense, Izuku found himself smiling at his girlfriend doubled over and giggling with a finger pointed in his direction.

"Y-You… ha… S-Sorry!" She tried—unsuccessfully—to get a hold of herself, but it took a few more minutes to sober completely. "I just-You were so serious about the banana peels."

"They were very unpleasant."

They shared a mock-solemn look, which almost sent Manami into another fit of cackles, but she held it in.

"Alright, it's time to be a little serious. How do you want to start, Izukun?"

"I think… combat training, maybe?" Their moment of brevity having calmed Izuku's nerves, he returned to his thoughts, calculating in his mind everything that he knew about Manami's quirk and her current physical capabilities from their first day at U.A. "Just to establish a baseline. We can work out a training regimen once we have a better idea where you're at." He nodded, satisfied with his own reasoning, even if there remained a lingering sense of nervousness having never actually tried to train anyone before. Without missing a beat, he dropped into a combat stance, indicating for Manami to do the same. "We'll start with the basics of hand-to-hand. I want to see your form, so we'll do a quick sparring exercise I used to do with my teacher. When I say 'offense,' try to hit me. I'll block or divert your attacks, but I won't counter."

"Okay." Manami tried to recall what the books and videos she'd used prior to the entrance exams said about stances and the proper manner of throwing a punch. She widened her feet a bit, holding her arms vaguely in front of her torso.

"Offense!"

With a glance at Izuku's serious expression, she charged.

Unfortunately for Izuku's pocket-sized protégé, she was certainly no match for Stendhal in speed, nor a natural at combat. Her advance was slow, mostly a consequence of her short legs and uneasy footing on the sandy beach. She telegraphed her movements in an obvious manner. Her stance was a little off. Izuku analyzed every movement, every mistake, and committed each to memory as he prepared himself to counter her.

Once she was close enough, Manami made to punch her opponent, winding up a heavy straight punch that would have connected with his diaphragm given her angling and height. Izuku stood his ground, swiping his left hand down with an open palm. It redirected her fist and threw off her already-precarious balance in a single movement. Manami's eyes shut tight as she stumbled, prepared to crash into the sand at any moment.

"Are you okay, Manami-chan?" The expected crash never occurred, stopped preemptively by Izuku. He'd caught her with one arm, the other steadying her as he set her on her feet.

"Yeah… wait!" The heroine-in-training stepped backward, crossing her arms indignantly and leveling a fierce glare at Izuku. "You're not supposed to just catch me if we spar, Izukun!"

Right. They were sparring. Izuku felt his cheeks growing warm.

"S-Sorry. Habit, I guess?"

"Look, Izukun. I'm small, not fragile. I want you to take this every bit as seriously as your teacher did with you. I want—no, I need to be able to keep up. Not just with the others, but with you too. I won't be satisfied holding you back in fights. I want to be right by your side kicking Tiny-eyes' ass next time we get the chance!" There was a fire in her eyes that he'd never seen before. A determination like no other.

'I've told you before, kid, I won't go easy on you just for a confidence booster.'

Izuku couldn't help but recall Stendhal's words after their final spar. He was right, and so was Manami. As much as he hated the idea of hurting her, coddling Manami would be detrimental to her training. Only the hardest efforts would produce the strongest results.

"Sorry." He repeated, backing away from Manami and returning to his combat stance. "You're right, Manami-chan. If I'm going to train you, I have to treat you like a student, not someone that I…" his face grew red; how was he supposed to phrase that?

"Have affections for?" Manami had another quick laugh at his expense when his face turned the same shade of red as her hair at her words, stuttering something that may or may not have been an affirmation that she missed while trying to get a hold of herself.

"Uh… something like that." Izuku cleared his throat, trying his best to maintain his composure. "You want to be a hero, too. I can't disrespect that dream by going easy on you. It's going to be difficult, and I can't promise I'm the best teacher, but I'll try my hardest to make sure you have everything you need to succeed, Manami-chan!"

They shared a look, no other words needing to be said. This was Manami's start line. A rebirth of her determination to be a hero.

"Offense!"


Izuku paced nervously across the train station platform, completely ignoring the passersby that stared cautiously at him in his frazzled state. Each rotation was marked by the squeak of his signature red high-tops on the linoleum tile and a new string of unintelligible thought that flowed uncontrolled from his lips.

"No big deal. No big deal. You can do this…"

It was only his first date, after all.

"Izukun?"

The green-haired hero-in-training made a noise somewhere between a choked scream and a strangled cough before he whirled around to meet his companion for the night.

"M-M-Manami-chan! H-How are—You look b-beauti—um—H-Hi…" 'Oh Gods that was so lame.' Izuku's hands immediately flew to his face, covering up his shame and embarrassment as best he could. He wasn't even really sure why he was so nervous, practically speaking. Manami and he had been almost intimately close to each other as a result of her combat training over the previous few days, and though his heart still raced when she was in close proximity, he'd somehow managed to avoid becoming a bumbling mess enough to continue giving her pointers. Now, however, his brain had shut down the moment he'd seen her in her casual clothes.

Manami's outfit was a perfect match for her, suiting her personality to a T. The knee-length pink skirt was an exact match for the shade of her eyes and the frilly white blouse reminded him of the gloves she wore for her hero costume. In between the two articles she wore a wide brown belt, seeming more for showing off her small waist than performing a function. She seemed a bit taller than usual, and a glance told him she'd switched out her school uniform flats for a pair with a little more heel and ankle straps, adding about an inch to her overall height.

"Hi to you as well, Izukun!" Ever-patient with Izuku and his timid nature, Manami merely smiled good-naturedly at his botched greeting and looked him up and down, garnering that much more heat from his already blazing cheeks. "You're not looking so bad yourself."

Socially aware enough to realize that his school uniform was not casual, date-appropriate apparel, Izuku had ditched the slacks and blazer for jeans and a plain white t-shirt that his muscled physique filled out quite well. The rest he'd been lost on. Being as obsessed with heroes as Izuku was, 'women' was a subject that had been shuffled into the far reaches of his priorities for most of his life. Luckily, one very embarrassing conversation with his mother later, he was both much more confident in his plans and completely mortified because Inko had seen this coming well before he did, apparently, and had poked good-natured fun at him over dinner for it.

"Th-Thank you!" Awkward silence seemed to consume them as Izuku once again found himself tongue-tied. It was ridiculous of him, honestly. Their dynamic at school was already rather close, and they certainly got closer physically speaking during training, so what was it about simply spending time together outside of their heroics studies that had him so flustered?

"Hey, it's okay, Izukun." Manami brought him down to earth with a gentle tug on his wrist. "Look at me." He did as she asked, looking up from the floor and into her eyes, the alternating pink and purple rings soothing him with their familiarity. "I already like you. You know that. So you don't need to worry about how you act or what you do. Right now, we're just two people getting to know each other better. No pressure. Say it for me."

"No pressure." He sighed gently, strangely feeling as is if all of his tension had left his body along with the words. She was right, of course; he was overthinking everything. He liked Manami and Manami liked him; there was nothing else to worry about. "Thank you, Manami-chan." His lips slowly curled into a sweet smile, "Want to go catch that movie now?"

"I'd love to!"


"-and then Kacchan's mom says: 'If I have to buy one more pair of mittens, Katsuki, they're coming along with a winter onesie!'" The two teens shared a laugh at the thought of a younger Katsuki sent off to school in a onesie by his equally terrifying and overbearing mother. "It-It wasn't his fault, really," Izuku tried to explain between breaths, "but Mitsuki-san had already gotten him four pairs that week, and Kacchan's quirk was a little too unstable to handle the confinement. He ended up needing to go to a specialized course to control it."

"Tiny-eyes' mom sounds like my kind of lady!" Manami chortled, imagining Katsuki's expression facing down his—kind of scary, according to Izuku—mother.

"Yeah, you'd like her, I think." Izuku couldn't help but get the feeling the two would get along just fine given their common interest in putting Katsuki in his place.

He had surprisingly fond memories of Mitsuki Bakugo, a woman who was every bit as brash and high-strung as Katsuki, but swung in the opposite direction on the sweetness scale where Izuku was involved. She'd always had a kind word to say to him, even in the face of the other adults shunning him and his quirk; she might have even continued to do so if he and her son hadn't continued to drift apart.

These days, their only interactions happened on the rare occasions when she dragged Inko away for a girls' night out, a quick 'hello' and similar-paced 'goodbye.' It was hard to tell, but he'd always thought she felt more than a little guilty for Katsuki's behavior, no matter how hard she'd tried to curb it when they were kids. The youngest Bakugo just seemed to have an innate ability to tune out the opinions of others—even his parents and go his own way.

Eventually, their laughter died down and the two were left in companionable silence walking down the streets of Musutafu. They'd watched a romance flick at the theatre at Manami's insistence, not that Izuku thought even for a moment of fighting her on the topic. It felt kind of nice to be able to shut his mind off for once around his date. He'd focused mainly on the movie, every so often reminded of his pounding heart whenever she'd squeeze his hand at a particularly romantic scene.

Their next destination was the local park, an opportunity to stretch their legs and indulge in a quick picnic lunch Izuku had prepared with Inko's advice. Picnic basket in hand along with each other, the two meandered about, showing off their favorite relaxation spots and pointing out the wildlife prancing about in the springtime sun.

"Does this seem like a good spot?" Izuku asked, holding up their basket. The two stood in the shade of a Sakura tree, the pink petals in full bloom and gently wafting about in the breeze. A little ways away a small pond reflected the mid-day sun across its calm surface, adding to the atmosphere.

"Oh, absolutely! It's so beautiful here!" She nodded enthusiastically, taking in the area with wide eyes. Other couples milled about here and there, the teenaged sweethearts evidently not the only ones taking advantage of the beautiful weather. That said, from their point of view, it seemed as though they had the best spot of the bunch.

"Great!" Izuku reached into the basket without wasting any time, taking the blanket stashed within and spreading it over the grass for the two to rest on. 'Table' arrangements complete, he began to unveil their spread, carefully prepared earlier that day with his mother's advice on what made good picnic food. "We've got cucumber sandwiches, some fresh-cut fruits, and cookies for dessert!" He announced proudly, satisfied that someone as clumsy as him in the kitchen could at least accomplish this much.

"Oh wow, Izukun, this all looks so good! Did you make it yourself?" Manami took a seat across from her date and accepted the sandwich half he offered her, which had been cut into a neat little rectangle along with all of the others.

"Full disclosure: my mom helped with the cookies because I'm a bit hopeless in the kitchen. I'm um… surprisingly clumsy outside of hero activities." His cheeks tinged pink at the admittance, reminded of all the times he'd accidentally cut his fingers trying to help his mom chop vegetables for dinner. "It was eventually decided that I should stay supervised around sharp objects for my own well-being."

Izuku tried his best to look grim, but it wasn't working out very well with Manami's laugh seeming to be as contagious as the pro hero Miss Joke's. It wasn't long before his will was broken and he too was guffawing at the absurdity of a hero-in-training coordinated enough to pass the U.A. exams but unable to control himself with a kitchen knife. Manami took another bite of her sandwich, giving Izuku a jokingly-smug look.

"Lucky you, I love cooking and baking. Maybe I'll be the one giving you lessons for once, hm?" She nudged his shoulder affectionately, letting him know she wasn't being that serious, but the offer seemed genuine enough.

"I may take you up on that sometime, Manami-chan."

The two allowed their conversation to lull to a comfortable stop after that, taking some time to continue digging into their lunch. After a few minutes, however, Manami's smile grew devious, and she leaned forward with her entrancing eyes fixed on Izuku's.

"Izukun~. Close your eyes and open up." She commanded, scooting herself closer such that the two were sitting next to each other instead of across.

"I-I… um, I don't know—" Izuku didn't know what to make of this new development, and so settled on his standard social response—panic.

"Don't worry, Izukun. Nothing bad, I swear!"

That didn't sound particularly comforting, but it wasn't like he didn't trust her…

"O-Okay."

Izuku did as he was asked, waiting patiently for whatever it was his date had in store for him. He had a few ideas, naturally, although it would have short-circuited his brain to try and admit them aloud. That to say that he wasn't all that surprised when he tasted the sweetness of a strawberry on his tongue, even if his heart didn't get the message and began to race a mile a minute.

"Open your eyes." Manami was, as expected, leaning directly in front of him, one hand over his on the picnic blanket. The other was slowly pulling back, obviously the method of dispersion for her succulent surprise. She flashed him a cheeky smile that seemed more flirtatious up close, but he could see her cheeks were about as pink as his felt. Just a few inches closer and... "How was that, Izukun?"

"S-S-Sweet." The sudden mood change was quickly overloading Izuku in every sense of the word. He already could tell that one of Manami's favorite pastimes seemed to be teasing him, but this was the farthest she'd ever taken it. Then again, they were on a date, so wasn't flirting standard? Should he flirt back? How exactly does one flirt?

"Izukun? You've been staring off into space for a minute. Am I making you uncomfortable?" Manami's voice grew farther away as she backed up, and Izuku realized that for once his thoughts hadn't been leaking out through his mouth, but he wished they did if only to stop her from thinking he didn't enjoy every moment she was close to him. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to—"

Izuku cut her off with a peck on the lips, catching her as she backed away.

'That is not how flirting works.'

"S-Sorry." One look at Manami's wide-eyed expression of surprise was enough to confirm that he was an idiot. "I-I don't know what came over me, I should have asked—"

Manami cut Izuku off by returning the favor, with interest.

"—you." He could scarcely find the breath to finish his sentence with the whispered word, feeling as if all of the air in his lungs had been stolen away by Manami's kiss, even if it had only lasted a few moments.

"I'm not complaining." Their separation was brief as Manami dived back in for more to which Izuku was more than happy to oblige her. For all of the heat that seemed to well up from inside of them, the teens both seemed comfortable to keep everything going at a slow and steady pace, the impromptu make-out session kept chaste in spite of its spontaneous beginnings.

Despite the cliché nature of it all, Izuku really did feel as if he was losing track of time. How long had they been kissing? A minute? Thirty? An hour? One hand found its way to Manami's cheek, cupping her gently whilst the other grasped at her hip to steady her when she leaned into him further. Her hands, likewise, had wrapped themselves around his neck. When they finally split, it was with reluctance and out of necessity for air, leaving them both panting with their foreheads touching.

"That was…" Izuku couldn't find the words for it. He knew deep down that this wasn't normal first date fare, but it didn't feel wrong in the least.

"Yeah…" At least Manami seemed to share his sentiments, for she made no effort to extricate herself from his hold, nor release hers on him. Her breathless voice was enticing, leaving him tempted to dive in for a third round, but his sense of propriety told him they were already pushing the bounds of what was acceptable in a public setting.

"Maybe we should… leave it there. Before we go too far." All but admitting that he was on the brink of losing himself to the newfound sway of his hormones was enough to embarrass the both of them into separating at last with a matching rouge tint creeping up their cheeks.

"'Slow and steady,' and all that." Manami agreed, both knowing well that what had just occurred was about as far in the other direction as possible. That said, Izuku certainly didn't regret what they'd done, and the giddy smile Manami wore implied that she felt much the same. Without missing a beat—or giving Izuku time to overthink what had just occurred—she placed her hand over his once more, grasping at his fingers until they intertwined with hers. "No more dwelling; I'll kiss you again later. For now…"

The red-haired heroine then flashed Izuku a cheeky grin, using her other hand to push him gently back onto the blanket until he faced skyward.

"Manami-chan…?" He wasn't sure what to make of the situation until he felt the sheet dip beside him as Manami lied down as well, leaving a bit of distance between them. The hand that wasn't holding his appeared in his peripheral vision, pointing vaguely toward the sky.

"Doesn't that cloud look a little bit like a rabbit?"

Izuku followed the general direction her finger was pointing, coming across a fluffy grouping of clouds that vaguely resembled a round head with two long protrusions coming out the top. In the back of his mind, he was vaguely aware that this was Manami's attempt to change the subject, avoiding talking about what had just happened just like the other day after class. He didn't really understand why, but he was willing to wait if that was what she wanted.

"I think it looks a bit like All Might." He countered, playing along with her game. They had plenty of time to figure things out, right? There was no reason not to just enjoy the moment with someone he found quickly worming her way into his heart.

"Hmm… I can kind of see it, I guess. His hair instead of bunny ears."

"Yeah… oh! That one looks like Aizawa-sensei in his sleeping bag!"

"Ooh, good one, good one. How about… there! Teddy bear…"

Yeah. This was enough for now.


Ugh, blegh. Sorry, I was just choking on fluff.

Another month, another apology. Long story short doctors are really hard to get appointments with right now and I had finals, so the health issues I talked about last time only got worse and I've been busy, busy, busy. I sincerely apologize for making you wait.

Now onto things that don't make me sad:

I considered lengthening this chapter with another, more combat-oriented, training scene to wash down all the mushy romance bits with, but I think we'll be starting with that next chapter instead. The picnic felt like a really big moment that I didn't want overshadowed by other things.

If you need a visual for their date clothes, it's just Izuku and Manami's casual outfits from the manga. They're available for viewing on the wiki and I'm sure there's oodles of fanart out there for colored versions which may or may not have matched my vision.

Hope 'the date' wasn't a huge disappointment. I struggled a little bit deciding between monologuing with Izuku or straight going off with dialogue and from the looks of things ended up with a mixture of the two, which is fine by me. I really tried to vibe in the feeling of Izuku awkwardly not knowing what to do and Manami sort of holding herself back from pouncing on him as they get to know each other on a more personal level.

You may, however, notice Manami still isn't doing much of the talking (about herself, at least). That's deliberate, I assure you; I'm not blank-slating her character. You can probably see what I'm planning if you squint a little.

If you think the Izuku/Manami relationship is progressing fast, buckle up, because it's not exactly slowing down. Manami is characterized in canon as someone who falls fast and falls hard. I've been trying to express that while also showing that in many respects Izuku is just along for the ride, except when she teases him into doing something stupid like kissing her out of the blue. (Don't do that at home, kids. Consent is sexy (even though Manami totally did it last chapter so it's probably a standing consent thing let's not talk semantics)).

Rant over, life goes on, I'll make a more conservative estimate of 3-4 weeks for chapter 10 if all goes smoothly (which it probably won't). 5 if it doesn't.

Reviews sustain my life force in these trying times. If you have a free moment, please help this poor author last another day.

Next time on Bloodstained Hero: More Manami Melee and… a field trip?