Genos kicked the battered can on the dull asphalt. Not finding any joy in the simple act. One he had did as a child, playing such a game with fellow children. The other s-class members just as uninterested in the environment. Another false lead. "This is getting ridiculous! We've been running in circles for hours now. Sight after sight of dead people. This sure as hell wasn't caused by some newfound black market drug." the only women in the group groaned. And for once not even saitama could interfere with a disagreeing comment. The four all looking at each other for some new idea. The mission had now become a sense of pride, no one longer carried about the prospect of making money. Well, aside from saitama. "We should each go back to one of the located areas of tragedy, maybe which will confuse the "enemy" as well as allow us to spread out." genos mentioned, his matter-of-fact voice laced the smoggy air. While the three found slight annoyance in how perfect the teen could be they agreed.
"Sensei, you should probably stay here and look at the ones we haven't checked yet. you are the most strong after all." genos said, slightly for the reasoning of him knowing his absentminded teacher won't remember how to get back to their past searchings'''. The bald man nodded his head resulting in his student praising him for his generosity. "Oi! Get a room already you two! And who are you calling the strongest?! He's not even a- class." tatsumaki said impatiently at her last wit with the two childish men. Before genos could loyally retort ,to the woman's unwanted opinion, Bang put his hand on the woman's shoulder and led her away. Saying something about "letting them have this one". The elder man stopping any sort of catfight. Leaving the two men alone in their comfortable companionship.
The deep chuckle of saitama peaked genos's interest ,the sound of laughter was almost as rare to hear from the older man ,as it was to receive from genos. "Sensei?" saitama, no longer in his cartoon like aesthetic ,smiled making his sharp eyes crinkle in humor. "I think you spend more time trying to prove my strength to others than I do genos." the cyborg commented, not quite grasping the concept of this being a rhetorical sentence, "that's because the fools aren't treating you with respect saitama-sensei. I've respected your choice of humility, but I won't allow the ignorant to insult your-." saitama did a long dramatic groan, his student resisted the urge to remark on the childish noise "in twenty words or less dumbass. You worry too much about what others say."
" Don't you sensei?"
"If I kept worrying about what people said behind my back I would never have the time to do the things I want to do."
Genos was silent, his face transitioning from understanding to a pout. His golden orbs almost invisible from the harsh slant of his eyes. Caused by the aggressive furrowing of brows. Saitama crossed his arms in annoyance.
"And what's the problem now?"
"Nothing."
"Genos…"
"It's just the one day I forget to bring my notebook.." the cyborg said ,thoroughly upset at his neglect to bring his saitama-study guide. The bald man rolled his eyes. "Get to work idiot." the cyborg nodded unwillingly removing him from his instructor's side. The suited man watched genos as he darted expertly through the city. "Idiot.."
Saitama turned around, now alone in the middle of an empty alleyway. No sign of life but the few rats that scurried timidly across the asphalt. Scratching the back of his head he noted how satisfying it was to do so, now that there was an absence of hair. The only good thing that came out of losing his black locks. Well, that and immeasurable strength. Taking a minute to readjust his beloved suit he allowed the words he had been holding in seep out. "You can come out now." a cackle, more sounding like the dropping of plated pierced saitama's ears. The location of the noise was undetectable. "You seem to be quite worth the time.. Being able to notice me like that. When even the cyborg couldn't." saitama stiffened at the mention of genos. "Leave them out of this."
"Don't worry, I plan to. While I was expecting a stronger "toy" I wasn't expecting a whole trio of s-class heroes. And now I come to realize there is a figure that could even control the actions of the demon cyborg himself. This will be quite entertaining.."
"Oi. What are you some kind of video game villain? Get your ass out here so I can hit you." saitama popped his knuckles. Not so much because he felt the physical need to. He just felt he needed to capture the aesthetic. People in manga did it. An eerie silence filled the area. saitama positioned himself ready for an attack…" don't worry I'm going to let you do a whole lot of punching.." saitama scoffed at the cheesy line. Momentarily distracted when a foreign tube whipped around the corner. The caped hero allowing for the wire like roped to wrap around his toned arm. He smirked. Bad idea. Controlling the amount of strength he utilized saitama yanked his arm that had adorned the trap. "Now I know where you are idiot."
"Not quite."
A new set of tubes busted from around the corner, viciously cutting the already damaged buildings. Saitama turned and grabbed ahold of them with ease. "I can go all day asshole!" the ferocity in the usual uncaring hero glared holes in the air. The unknown looker shuddered in sadistic delight. "I don't think we have the time for that.." and with the promise of bad things to come, came a hundred piercing of needles into saitama's skin. Not quite enough to fully damage the hero, but enough to enter his bloodstream. The hero yelped, the sense of adrenaline too much for his desensitized heart. The hero fell to the floor, his knees hitting the unforgiving street with the might of a wounded beast. A foreign substance pulsing into the two outlets (his arms) caused his body to wreck his nervous system. The limbs of the victim shivered in spasmodic agony.
That was, until saitama's mind went blank. The only way the hero could to describe such a sensation was too relate to a dream. The one where you are one minute seamlessly doing nothing , until you begin to fall. An unknown reason, yet a terrifying occurrence. The weight of your conscious feeling as if it is sinking to the bottom of a treacherous abyss. Except, for this time there was no release to come to the man. No end to the forever limbo of falling, saitama was left to feel that way- stuck in existential helplessness. When saitama said he wanted to feel again this wasn't what he meant. The godlike body now in control of another mind. The experienced limbs of the caped man stood like a marionette. The body of saitama looked up. a smile that was not his own stretched the confinements of humanity in the bald man. Saitama punched the building next to him, clearing through the brick as well as the next 10 buildings. the screaming of civilians unable to reach into saitama's compassion.
"This is going to be quite entertaining."
to be continued..