Author's Notes: Chapter edited and corrected by Vongrak.
Mirko POV.
I stopped in front of the building with the elegant sign, 'Iori Cake Shop', then took two steps towards it and opened the door. The small bell rang in the empty shop. There was no one at the counter and most of the shelves were empty.
"We're closing, esteemed customer, please—Mirko-san?" I glanced at the woman who appeared from behind a corridor, wiping herself with a cloth. I looked closely at the woman in front of me, Iori Miyamura, Izumi's mother.
The woman was… plain at best. In terms of features, she bore a striking resemblance to Izumi, except for her different eye color, but that's where the similarities ended. Where Izumi's body moved gracefully, with confidence and a contained strength, Iori was… plain. There was no other way to describe her.
She was an average person among average people. Like, that woman was a descendant of Ryuma? How was she Izumi's mother? She really lost the genetic lottery completely, ending up as someone so average among a lineage like Ryuma's and Izumi's. I just shook my head in disappointment.
"Did something happen, Mirko-san? Izumi is at UA." Iori said softly, and I clicked my tongue.
"I'm not looking for Izumi." I grumbled as I approached, she tilted her head slightly.
"Would you like to buy something?" she asked gently. "We still have some carrot cakes left," she added. My ears twitched slightly, and Iori chuckled softly.
"I'm not here for food." I snapped. Iori just smiled slightly. "I'm here for information," I finally said. Iori hummed as she walked over to the counter and began to organize things with a slowness that I found exasperating.
"I must admit I'm confused, Mirko-san. What kind of information could I possibly have? She ran a pastry shop," Iori said matter-of-factly. I tapped my foot impatiently.
"But you have it, I need information about the Zenin." I said immediately. Iori paused momentarily before turning to look at me, almost emotionless, a stark contrast to her earlier demeanor, but something that vanished almost instantly.
"Did Izumi mention something?" Iori asked as she placed the items on the counter. Then she walked around and headed for the door, closing the blinds before shutting it behind her. I just frowned. A door wouldn't stop anyone, least of all me.
"No," I said immediately. Iori just hummed.
"Then it must have been Nezu, or someone affiliated with him," Iori said easily as she went back behind the counter.
"That doesn't matter, I need information." I insisted again. Iori just chuckled.
"If you're with Nezu, then I have nothing more to say. I already told him everything I knew about them; there's no point in repeating myself," Iori said, shrugging. "Besides, Izumi said he could take care of them," she added.
"And you believe him?" I asked, almost defiantly. Iori laughed amusedly.
"You've trained and taught my son, do you think he'd lose?" she asked simply. I grimaced. She was right. Izumi is strong. He was strong when we met a month ago, and he's only growing by leaps and bounds. He was a monster, in a good way.
"Tch." Click my tongue.
"Then why do you want information from the Zenin? If you're with Nezu, he'll tell you everything you need to know," Iori said easily.
"That doesn't matter, just tell me everything you know." I said without hesitation. Iori just raised an eyebrow.
"Do you like my son?" Iori asked curiously, I made a face.
"Of course not! Why would you ask something like that?" I asked incredulously. Iori shrugged.
"As irritating as my son can be, he somehow still manages to get more and more partners. Not that it bothers me; I have more daughters-in-law to pamper. So I thought you were doing this for him or something," Iori said with a small smile.
"And you thought I'd be one of them? I'm more than seven years older than him." I said incredulously. Iori shrugged.
"And I'm almost forty, you're not old enough," Iori said easily. "Besides, I know Izumi's taste in women is... YES, as long as he likes them, he wouldn't have any problem dating someone older than him." Iori rolled her eyes. I sighed heavily.
"Even so, I wouldn't date your son. The type of person I like is someone stronger than me," I said, almost dismissively.
"Stronger? Strong enough to beat you in a fight? That's pretty tough." Iori hummed easily, and I crossed my arms.
"I won't settle for anything less." I grunted as I lifted my chin.
"And I'm not telling you to do it," Iori said, shrugging. "It's your decision," she said casually. "Out of curiosity, my son doesn't meet that criteria?" Iori asked curiously. I wrinkled my nose.
"No idea." I shrugged. "We never fight without holding back, physically we're pretty evenly matched." I said honestly. Iori just hummed.
"I see, as expected of my son," Iori said with a small, proud smile. "Even so, there are many ways to defeat you without even fighting," Iori added, and I pricked up my spine slightly.
"Impossible." I said immediately. Iori laughed.
"Do you want to try it?" she asked playfully. I wrinkled my nose and lifted my chin.
"Is this a challenge? I accept!" I said with a wide smile. Iori smiled slightly with a mysterious smile.
"Let me prepare something first," Iori said and went back down the hall into the… kitchen? My ears perked up as I heard several dishes being moved and Iori's footsteps moving. After a few minutes, she finally returned with… a cake?
"Let's eat first, we can't do this on an empty stomach, right?" Iori said gently and placed the plate in front of me. I frowned.
"It's not necessary." I grumbled. Iori just shrugged.
"Come on, it's carrot cake, don't let it go to waste. Izumi would be upset if I didn't treat her boss well." Iori shrugged, pushing the plate toward me. My ear twitched slightly, and I clicked my tongue.
I grabbed my fork from the plate, cut a slice of cake, and ate it. I almost wanted to close my eyes at the delicious taste of the carrot cake, but I had better things to do. I cut another slice and ate it just as quickly. In no time, the cake was gone.
"Okay, let's go now." I said impatiently. Iori chuckled slightly.
"But... we've already started, Mirko-san," Iori said. I could see her smile widen, a sadistic grin I'd seen on Izumi a few times. It was completely identical; they were definitely mother and son. I opened my mouth only to see my vision begin to blur. I tried to move, but my body wouldn't respond. The last thing I saw was Iori's smile as I fell unconscious to the side.
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I woke with a start and tried to sit up, only to find my hands and legs creaked and stayed put. I turned my head to see my limbs were bound with heavy handcuffs, but that wasn't the worst of it; I could barely muster any strength in my body.
"Truly impressive, the effects of the sedative disappeared faster than I expected." I turned my head to the side only to see Iori Miyamura, sitting calmly in a chair, slowly eating a small cake in her hands.
"You poisoned me." I said incredulously. Iori just laughed.
"My quirk is food enhancement, Mirko-san. I make food more delicious. I could give you the most lethal poison in the world and you would taste it like the most delicious delicacy you've ever had." The sinister words were spoken so lightly and naturally that it surprised me.
"You-" I tried to say incredulously. Iori just continued eating peacefully.
"The sedative will still be in effect for several more minutes. The handcuffs are special; Izumi bought them for one of his partners. They're supposed to be practically indestructible, so you won't be able to free yourself." Iori said before standing up, putting the cake aside, and heading towards the nightstand next to the bed where she was sitting.
She take out a small box before opening it. she reveal a syringe; she carefully takes it out and looks at it almost with… affection.
"You know, the Zenin hate the weak, they despise them, humiliate them, they... raise them to be servants, to serve their superiors," Iori said easily. "I escaped from them, I managed to get away alive through trickery, taking refuge in Musutafu, and I protected Izumi from their influence as much as I could, until he was strong enough to protect himself."
"But... I'm his mother. And the Zenin family is my responsibility. If... Izumi were ever in danger, I... would take care of the Zenin family." Iori said, finally looking at me. Her expression had vanished, and I could only see an emptiness in her eyes that made me shudder. "I even had plans, several of them, to kill all the Zenin."
"As I said... I would be capable of preparing the most lethal poison to make it the most delicious delicacy. I just needed to find a way to infiltrate the mansion once more. And that... was terribly easy." Iori hummed as she took something out of the box, a small stone, that was it...
"A rune stone?" I asked incredulously.
"It is," Iori confirmed. "It was terribly expensive, but not so much as to be inaccessible. After all, the quirk inside the stone is... terribly weak by hunter standards." Iori said almost disdainfully. "According to those who sold it to me, it allows you to physically imitate someone you touch with your right hand, adopting their face, physique, and voice."
"Simple, 'weak,' but very effective," Iori hissed as she began to smile. There was nothing pleasant about her smile. My whole body trembled slightly; it was like standing before a predator. "All I had to do was infiltrate the mansion, prepare them a meal, and they'd all be dead in minutes."
"And the poison in question? That's something Ryuma took care of getting for me." Iori's smile only widened to a terrifying degree as she stared at the syringe in her hand. "This is a poison, one of the lethal ones for anyone with an awakened aura. It feeds on its victim's aura and begins to destroy everything inside; the more aura they have, the more lethal it becomes."
"A few drops into your system, and you'll die in agony, feeling your aura being torn apart, consumed, and used to slowly and painfully destroy your entire body." Iori laughed sadistically before turning to face me. I shuddered again and tried to move, something I still couldn't do properly. She slowly approached, the syringe in her hand.
"Let me go!" I yelled loudly. Iori just laughed.
"But, Mirko-san, you already know too much about my plans against the Zenin, and two people can only keep a secret if one of them is dead. Don't worry, this will be extremely painful." Iori laughed sadistically. The syringe was pressed against my face; I could feel my heart pounding. I tried to writhe and break free, to use my muscles, my Haki—anything to escape as the syringe drew ever closer.
She couldn't penetrate my skin, so she'd have to inject the poison orally. I clamped my mouth shut and glared at her. Iori smiled broadly. Her mouth was a devilish crescent. It was all I could see. I refused to close my eyes, so I stared straight at her.
Iori brought her syringe close enough—fear, I was feeling fear, my body was reacting to it, I could feel it trembling uncontrollably—and cold. I felt cold on my face. I braced myself for the worst, only to blink in confusion when I felt my face wet, damp, and cold. I could feel my heart about to burst when I saw Iori drench me with the liquid from her syringe while she laughed amusedly.
"Relax, Mirko-san, it's just saline solution." Iori chuckled, laughing heartily. Her shoulders trembled as she laughed, one hand covering her laughter as she looked away.
"You—" I tried to say incredulously. "You just tricked me?!" I said, completely outraged, my body still racing. Iori sneered.
"Just proving my point. I said I'd beat you, and I did." Iori shrugged. I continued to stare at her in disbelief as I calmed down. My body, which had been bristling with fear, began to relax. A feeling of humiliation and shame began to bloom inside me.
She had tricked me?! First she poisoned me, and then she tricked me with a damn syringe full of water?! I stared at Iori in disbelief. She just had a wide, mocking, and petulant smile. My eye twitched violently. She was just like Izumi, that damn bastard idiot, exactly like his mother!
"You tricked me." I growled, almost furious. "Was it all a lie? The runestone, the poison, everything?!" I spat out sharply. Iori shrugged.
"Not really, the stone is real, I bought it years ago, and the aura-eating poison too, Ryuma actually got it for me. If the Zenin had acted against Izumi without him being able to defend himself, I really would have killed them all." Iori said so casually, as if talking about killing an entire clan was on the same level as talking about the weather.
"You-" I tried to say incredulously.
"The Zenin live in the shadows, always teaching that all tactics are permissible as long as they benefit the clan. Blackmail, threats, murder, hostages—the Zenin are masters of it all. They live in the shadows, stab people in the back, trample everyone else as if they believe themselves superior, and yet, they value strength above all else."
"They're so arrogant they'd never realize, or even be able to conceive, that someone as weak as me could kill them from the very shadows they love so much." Iori sneered contemptuously, setting the syringe aside as she approached my restraints and began to release them.
"Why are you telling me all this?" I asked, feeling my limbs begin to respond once again. Coincidence? No, she planned everything, calculated the timing perfectly. I looked at Iori with different eyes. I was still annoyed by that trick, but I was genuinely impressed.
"You're with Nezu, and Izumi said I could trust you. I trust my son; that's all I need to know about you," Iori said easily. I flicked my newly freed wrist. Finally free, I lunged at Iori. She didn't react as she fell backward. Her back hit the ground, and I hovered over her.
"I've got you." I hissed with a savage smile, my face right in front of her. Iori looked at me with contempt.
"Does that make you feel strong?" Iori said condescendingly. "Knowing that a civilian without an aura can't physically force you to stay away from her?" she added mockingly. I stared at her in shock as I shuddered.
"What, no-" I stammered, then fell silent as Iori reached out and kissed me on the lips. My eyes widened. I could feel Iori's tongue invade my mouth and- did it taste like carrots? Iori placed something in my mouth and I unconsciously swallowed before I realized what I had done. "You damned daughter of-" I stopped when I began to feel my arms go numb once again. Iori smiled sadistically.
"Now, Mirko-san, let's chain you up again." Iori said before I fell unconscious once more.
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I opened my eyes again with a start, completely alert. This time I didn't thrash about; I just stared at the ceiling in disbelief as I felt the handcuffs on my arms, restraining me. Then I groaned loudly as I heard laughter.
"Don't torment yourself, Mirko-san, that's my job." Iori mocked. I glanced to the side; she was peacefully eating another cake while sitting in the chair next to the bed.
"You poisoned me... again." I said incredulously as I looked at her. Iori shrugged.
"That was easy. I could do this all day," Iori said, as if it were obvious. I stared at her incredulously. I could feel my chest thumping, completely different from the last time.
"Have a date with me," I said without hesitation. I wasn't a woman who hesitated; I took what I wanted, and what I wanted now was the woman in front of me who had the audacity and was completely capable of poisoning me twice. Iori only paused slightly, turned to look at me, still with the spoon in her mouth, looked me up and down as if she were assessing me, and finally nodded before smiling.
"Okay." Iori said easily, and I smiled broadly.
Author's Notes : I'm sorry to those who are disappointed by this, but somehow, this is how it turned out, even I was honestly surprised! I hadn't planned for Mirko to be Izumi's partner, at least not in the short and medium term. There were already too many girls to focus on, and with Eri added, I wanted to wait a while before adding anyone else.
Even so, I wanted some interaction between Mirko and Iori, but somehow, it turned out this way. I mentioned a couple of times (I think) that Iori was a lesbian (and if I didn't mention it, I'm doing so now), so I don't really dislike how this turned out. Iori needs to find someone, and who better than Mirko!
Once again, I'm sorry to those who are disappointed with how this turned out; sometimes even I don't have control!