Unconscious bodies and grimacing ones were strewn at the sides of the crack-littered hallway. A crowd of bullies cowered and hid behind their leader as they faced off against him.
Saitama stood his ground firmly, face slick with sweat, his blue sweater-tracksuit torn and sliced in several places, caked with dust of the scuffle. Saitama took on his fighting stance, fiery eyes reading and anticipating his opponents' next moves, fists ready to counteract the next strike towards him.
"Come on Saitama. Join us. We need your strength in the next turf wars."
Maybe taking the full brunt of the slicing whirlwind blast attack wasn't a good idea to start with. But there was always someone who needed help in this superhuman society. The Quirkless and less powerful that exist with him.
"Don't worry. I will hold them off. Run."
There were short dustings and sniffling sounds, and then footsteps as the main victim ran away, her dusted over skirt flailing.
"Ignoring me eh? How about you ignore the fact that you're Quirkless?"
The alpha took a hand out of his pocket, already crackling with winds and thunder, energy swirling around his arm. The others behind him followed suit, and activated their own Quirks, inspired by their leader to fight further after their sound defeat against Saitama earlier. Alone, they could not take on Saitama effectively. But together, they could beat him soundly.
In a school at this hour, there was of course little witnesses.
"Ever since you poked your head into our hierarchy, our business, you've been nothing but TROUBLE!"
Rings of shimmering clouds solidified around his arm, before a palm was raised towards Saitama. Twisting cyclones of stormy grey shot out, sparking with arcing electricity. Saitama clenched his fist, and let loose a full straight punch into the cyclone.
The cyclone beam dissipated, its streams torn apart and deflected to nothing by one punch. The leader scowled, his cool already lost, and already charging up an even stronger blast. After all, how can a Quirkless boy stand up to his Quirk?
"LAST CHANCE SAITAMA! RESTRAIN HIM!"
Following this, several members stepped out from their small band, faces clearly fighting the fear from taking on Saitama, already knowing what he was capable of. If a high-tier can't beat him down easily, that what can?
Tendrils of blue scales extended out from the back of a girl, lashing out to hope to catch Saitama within its grasp. At the same time, another boy ran towards him, hands forming into red claws of energy, desperately eager to pry into his skin. A third boy leapt from behind the claw Quirk-user, an entire arm stretching and zooming forwards.
Saitama exhaled, relaxing his muscles and sharpening his mind. Seemingly, everything stood still for a split second.
The tendril girl has got to go first.
Letting out a flurry of quick punches, small but powerful gusts of pressurized air threw the cobalt appendages off, along with the rubber arm that aimed for his face. Shifting his weight, he twisted a roundhouse kick to smash the claw user flying unconscious towards the side, colliding and leaving another crack against the wall.
Another cyclone beam blasted in his direction, Saitama closed in the distance between him and the alpha with superhuman speeds, eyes flaring with heat of the skirmish, before delivering a full left gut punch to his victim, who fell and crashed through his followers.
Seeing the tendril girl recuperating, ready to strike once more, Saitama once again zoomed to close the distance between them within a single exhale of a breath, letting his momentum deliver a right hook towards the face of the girl.
The fist barely brushed past her terrified face, crashing against the wall and crushing a dent into its surface, debris from the porcelein blowing outwards eith the wind currents that ensued. A small cut on her face was left in its wake, a drop of blood pooling from it. Traumatized, the girl could only stand still, shoulders hunched and eyes shut as tightly as possible, tears already dripping down.
"Anyone else?"
Saitama stood deadly still, in his position and stance of his punch. So were the entire audience and band of 'rulers of the school' paralysed, the atmosphere dangerously silent.
"Go home."
Saitama let down his fist, dropping his stance and intent to fight, his eyes no longer gleaming with danger, and walked right through the crowd, picking up his bag along the way, running his hand through his sweaty spiked hair.
He wondered if the girl that they targeted was fine. Still, Quirkless bullying was commonplace in this sad society.
How troublesome these kind of people are. Just because they have some kind of more powerful Quirk they think they are above the rest. What kind of generation does he even live in? Even after the new Symbol of Justice was crowned, why is it that people still look down on each other?
That was his thought train until he heard sobs coming in from behind the staircase, near the exit of the school.
"Hey."
He stood in front of the girl whom he has saved from a beating, his sillhoutte of his shadow covering her cowering form: knees up to her face, arms wrapped around her knees.
The only reply he got was more sobbing and crying.
Saitama moved over to her side, gently plopping himself down to sit beside her.
"You know, when I was a little boy, I wanted to become a hero. A hero that can send rotten villians flying with a single punch.
"But turns out, I'm Quirkless. Most people would think that that's the end of the line for their hero career."
The girl's sniffing and sobbing slowed down, as if she was paying attention of what he was saying.
"But not me. I trained like hell every single day since a year ago. And I became this strong.
"It doesn't matter if you have a weak Quirk or no Quirk at all. Because you have the power to change yourself and become stronger."
The girl finally looked up towards him, her eyes shining in the warm orange light, brimming with hope, as if all her doubts were dispelled. As if, she had met her saviour.
"You can become a hero."
an: hi guys sorry that ive discontinued the old before one punch due to stale ideas, and that ive been extremely busy these months. thank you for your continued support and i hope that youll enjoy this new before one punch.
