Hanta's patrol route took him across the city, covering some of the more dangerous areas that the less experienced or more fame seeking Heroes avoided.
That was fine though. It needed to get done, and Hanta knew that he was capable enough of a Hero to handle it. He'd been training partners with the likes Of Deku and Dynamight when they were in school. He had to be capable of keeping up with them.
Firing a strand of tape from his elbow, Hanta swung across the gap between two buildings, landing on the top of the lower one to take a look around for trouble. Seeing nothing, Hanta sighed.
Lately it seemed like his former classmates at UA were all the rage. The infamous Class A of UA had long since graduated and began their hero careers, and almost everybody owned and operated their own agencies. Hanta even had his own, and the Cellophane Hero Agency was his pride and joy. However, lately it seemed as if all his old classmates were far outpacing him in popularity and the rankings.
The constant battle for number one between Deku, Dynamight and Shoto was always a hot topic, and there always seemed to be a story in the news about some amazing rescue by the Gravity Heroine, Uravity, or another epic villain takedown by Red Riot or Chargebolt. Creati's latest charity was taking off, and even Grape Juice's new promotion about being respectful and safe with intimacy was gaining traction.
Hanta laughed a bit. Mineta sure had come a long way since high school.
It wasn't that Hanta necessarily needed to be in the spotlight to feel fulfilled. He was simply happy to help others and make a difference in his own corner of Japan. He had a fulfilling life, a good circle of friends, and a great career. He'd even gone on a date recently with an old classmate from Class B, and they had a second one planned.
Even so, sometimes Hanta couldn't help but wish he got as much recognition as his more famous classmates. He wasn't as colourful and charming as Pinky, or as strong as Tsukoyomi, or kid friendly like Froppy. He was just Cellophane, your friendly neighbourhood Hero, and he enjoyed being Cellophane, but sometimes Hanta just couldn't help but wish to be recognized like his friends.
Taking off once more with another strand of tape, Hanta swung in the direction of his agency. That was enough of being alone with his thoughts for one day. It was time to reconvene with his sidekicks and call it a day. Perhaps he'd see some action tomorrow.
Almost as if called out, Hanta's comm unit crackled to life.
"Come in Cellophane. This is Sticky Fingers. We've got a situation on my patrol route, requesting backup."
"Come in Sticky Fingers. This is Cellophane. What's the situation?"
"There's a villain going on a rampage about a block north of the agency. I was on my way back when I got attacked out of nowhere. Seems like some punk looking for trouble, but he's tougher than he looks. I'm keeping the civilians safe, but he's making it tough and keeps charging me. I think he's got a basic strength enhancer. Punched a hole clean through the side of a building."
"Roger that Sticky Fingers. I'm already on my way."
Twisting in midair, Hanta angled his elbow to the north and launched a new strand of tape, pulling himself towards the battle.
Sticky Fingers; also known as Aoi Shinhai, had been Hanta's sidekick for a few years now, only having recently graduated from Ketsubutsu academy. She was a good kid, with a useful support Quirk that let her make surfaces sticky. It made finding leverage about a million times easier for Hanta, and he owed several of his villain takedowns to her support.
However, as smart and resourceful as she was, she just wasn't built for direct combat, so Hanta needed to move quickly if he wanted to ensure the safety of his sidekick and the civilians.
Swinging around another building, Hanta came into view of the battle, and was pleased to see Sticky Fingers holding her own. By applying her Quirk to the ground before the villain could charge at her, she managed to slow him down and trip him up, keeping herself and the civilians out of harm's way.
Unfortunately, without a Quirk that had effective combat applications, Sticky Fingers was fighting a losing battle. Hanta needed to end it here.
Letting gravity take hold, Hanta plummeted towards the fight, aiming his elbows to the sides. Firing strands of tape out at the buildings on either side of the street, he quickly grabbed ahold of them and used his momentum to swing a powerful kick at the villain who was mid monologue about the unfairness of society.
The villain was knocked up into the air by the combined momentum of gravity and Hanta's swing, and Hanta followed close behind him, using another strand to pull himself into the air.
"Time for an ultimate move!" He cried. "Tape Coffin!"
Deploying several strands of tape, Hanta grabbed hold and manipulated them similarly to the way his old teacher Eraserhead used his weapon, quickly binding the villain head to toe, before using the strands he was holding to slam the villain back down to the ground.
For a moment, everything was quiet. The villain moved, trying to stand, but collapsed back to the ground.
The crowd cheered as Hanta touched down near his sidekick. After ensuring Sticky Fingers was okay, he turned and faced the crowd of bystanders, only to be surprised by the enthusiasm on display. As nice as the attention was though, he had to finish securing the villain.
Assigning Sticky Fingers to begin the clean up, Hanta walked up to the Villain to check his restraints, but was surprised to see tears on the Villain's face. He wasn't struggling against the tape anymore, but his face was a blubbery snotty mess.
"Hey, uhh…" Hanta said, hesitating slightly. "You alright man? Ugh stupid question, of course you're not alright. What's your deal dude? Going on a rampage like this? Not cool. You could've really hurt somebody."
The villain sniffed, and all of a sudden Hanta realised the guy was barely an adult, if not still a teenager.
"I- I'm sorry, Cellophane. I was just so tired of it all. The stress of trying to apply to college, my mom's failing health, not feeling like my efforts are enough. It was too much, and something just snapped. My Quirk converts my anxiety into power, but normally I'm in perfect control. I know I messed up, I'm sorry I caused you trouble."
Hanta felt his heart pang. He could sympathize with those feelings of anxiety, feeling like you didn't measure up. It had been on his mind not ten minutes ago. Making a decision, he smiled.
"I get it kid. Life is tough. You messed up today, yeah, but that doesn't mean the end for you. Once you've served your sentence, which shouldn't be too steep, I want you to call me. Here's my Agency's card. You're tough. We could use someone like you! What d'ya say?"
The teenager looked at him in awe.
"Yes! Of course Mr. Cellophane! It would be my honour! Thank you! I won't let you down, and it won't happen again!"
"Good. I'm rooting for you, alright dude? Can't wait for you to join me one day!"
With that, Hanta handed the boy to the police officers who had been on the scene, and turned back to the crowd. To his surprise, their cheers began again in earnest.
"Nice speech, Cellophane!" Aoi said. "You really moved the hearts of those people. Who knew you could be such a charmer!"
Aoi elbowed him in the ribs good naturedly as Hanta took off his helmet and rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly. "I didn't realise everyone could hear me," he said. "I was just doing what I thought best."
Aoi was about to speak again, likely to tease him some more, but was interrupted by a young boy with a doll in his hands approaching the pair of heroes.
"Excuse me," he said," Cellophane?"
Hanta looked at the kid, a little surprised, but smiled, and kneeled down so he was eye level with the kid.
"Hey, little man! How's it going?"
The kid smiled shyly. "Good," He said. "Thank you for saving us, Cellophane!"
Hanta's smile widened. "Hey, no sweat. I'm always around the neighbourhood, ready to help out kids like you!"
The shyness vanished from the boy's expression, and he beamed. "Um, do you think you could sign my doll?"
The boy pulled a marker out from his pocket, and offered the doll to Hanta.
"I'd be glad to!" He said as he accepted the toy. Uncapping the marker, Hanta made to sign the dolls back, when he noticed that it was a Cellophane plush.
"Hey is this me? They really captured my likeness don't you think?"
Hanta held the doll up next to his face and posed dramatically, and the boy laughed.
"Who should I make it out to, kid?" he continued, preparing to write a message for the boy.
"Oh! My name is Taiju!"
"Alright then! To… Taiju, always… do your… best… your friendly… neighbourhood… Cellophane! Here you go Taiju! You and Mini me can do me a favour and be good little heroes, alright?"
Taiju radiated excitement, and smiled even brighter than before. "Thanks so much! You're the coolest Cellophane! You're my most favourite Hero, ever!"
Hanta's jaw dropped as Taiju scurried back to his parents. He was that boy's favourite Hero? Feeling his cheeks flush, Hanta smiled, feeling elated and proud of himself. He may not be as powerful as Shoto or as popular as Chargebolt, but helping people, and moments with the ones he was protecting like Taiju, made everything worth it.