AN: Welcome back! Thanks to everyone who reviewed and provided feedback on the things I wasn't too sure about. I really appreciate the continued support. That being said, I've got some exciting stuff happening in this chapter... namely the introduction to a new character...! And... to be honest, it's a character that I previously introduced in a much different way. This time, it's a full introduction, and I hope the ability is as confusing as it should be... Not gonna say any more than that, right now. I just hope you guys enjoy this latest installment.
Disclaimer: I do not own One Punch Man or any of the characters associated with the title. All rights belong to their respective owners.
[8 am/ 2 Days later]
(On the television)
"Goood morning City-F! This is Kaminari Machi with City-F morning news, and today's top story is, of course, the talk of every city, the new hero currently known as Saitama."
The video recording of Saitama punching Elder Centipede appeared over the news anchor's shoulder.
"It has now been two days since his debut battle against the Monster Association and Hero Hunter Garou, and so far, the Association has remained relatively quiet regarding their newest S-Class member. Sources say there have been talks of a press conference in which he will officially be given a proper hero name, but so far that is only a rumor that has yet to be confirmed by anyone within the Association. The lack of information from the organization has not stopped the hero's newly formed fanbase from scouring the internet in search of whatever they can on the spectacular man. There have been thousands of reports popping up in chatrooms and blog posts from people claiming to have been saved by the hero before. Some even suggesting he had hair at the time."
A little boy watched the screen from behind his mother as they stood at the counter of a coffee shop. His eyes were glued to the small screen showing Saitama's amazing punch on repeat. "... Awesome...!" he whispered harshly. "Mom, look! They're showing it again! Look!" He tugged on the sleeve of her coat to no avail. She was locked in conversation with the barista and swatted at his hand almost absentmindedly. He smacked his teeth and tuned back in when the video changed to Saitama's amazing display of strength against Garou when he flipped the battlefield. The video was grainy and it was kind of hard to see, but it was amazing, nonetheless. '... wow... I wish I could be that strong...'
When that thought came and went, the little boy noticed when the television suddenly glitch. It didn't cut out completely, but it sputtered for a moment... Then, his gaze shifted over to the chandelier hanging from the roof when all of the little diamonds slowly started shaking. He looked at his mom, who didn't seem to notice. She was digging through her purse in search of change, still locked in friendly banter with the woman behind the counter. He turned around to see if anyone else had noticed anything, but the entire room was lost in their own individual conversations... Then, his gaze shifted outside the big glass window when he saw people running by... What were they running from?
He had been told many times what he was supposed to do in case of a monster attack, but he couldn't help his curiosity. For whatever reason, he slowly hobbled his way to the door. The moment he opened it, the other patrons finally noticed the commotion. The boy stepped out onto the sidewalk, vaguely hearing his mother shout his name from inside, but... his focus was captured.
"RUUUUUN!" a random man howled from within the crowd.
Everyone was in a desperate sprint, trying to put as much distance as possible between themselves and the creature behind them. It was a big brutish monster trudging through the street, tossing empty cars aside like they were nothing. Its appearance resembled an oversized mutated grizzly bear with cybernetic enhancements. It had wires jutting from its temples leading down to the engine embedded into its back. Its size wasn't necessarily colossal compared to the creatures they had seen before, but it wasn't small by any stretch of the imagination. It was easily at eye level with those on the third floor of the buildings around it. Many of them had their phones out to record the incident. The creature seemed oblivious to them as it mindlessly marched down the street.
"RAAAAARRRRGGGHHH!" It swiped its paws through the cluttered crowd of emptied vehicles in its path.
The boy from the coffee shop was locked in place watching the monster's rampage. Everything was happening so fast around him that he couldn't find the courage to move his legs. He just... watched... Even as the sea of fleeing bystanders flew by him, he just stared at the beast with his heart pounding and his legs shaking beneath him.
"Ryuji!"
The sound of his mother's muffled voice shouting his name pulled him back to reality only slightly. Enough to turn his head at least. He saw her with her hands on the glass, staring at him with horror written in her eyes. She started shoving her way toward the door, desperately trying to make it to her son, but everyone else was clogging the way, all trying to see what the danger was.
Ryuji watched her panic as his own heart nearly beat its way out of his chest at the sound of the monster's roar. Why did he come out here? Why didn't he just stay by her side...? Why was everyone suddenly yelling at him to turn around? His gaze shifted back in the direction the monster was coming from, but his view was obscured by a taxi that came flying toward him far too fast for him to avoid. He could only shut his eyes and gasp before it was too late...
He heard the impact... or some kind of impact before a voice caught his ear.
"Hey there...! You alright!?"
When he opened his eyes, he was shocked by the man standing before him. "s-... Stinger!"
[Stinger/Class-A/Rank 10]
The A-classed hero had split the taxi in half without a second to spare. He was bleeding from the forehead, and it almost looked like his arm was hanging far too low. But still, he smiled at him. "Heh, yup, that's me...! Uh, how bout we get you inside? That's your mom?" He hurried the boy to the door as the people backed away so his mother could get him.
Ryuji stared at the side of his face when he was suddenly grabbed by his shoulder and dragged back into the coffee shop. He continued watching the hero even as his mother tried to force his gaze, barking out a lecture that he couldn't really hear.
Stinger spat a glob of blood from his mouth before grabbing his transponder. "Hey, there's no containin' this thing! Any word on backup!?"
"Arriving now," a female voice responded. "Good work, Stinger."
He sighed, relieved to be done with his part in the situation. His gaze fell on the helicopter that suddenly came swooping in from over the building. It landed on the road, directly in the path of the monster. The first to climb out was a group of four soldiers all dressed in black tactical gear with rifles. They immediately began peppering the beast with shots that did very little. Their bullets had no effect, other than drawing its attention.
The leader of the squad suddenly signaled them to stop firing when the beast roared in their direction. "Hold...! Alright, we have its focus! You're up!"
Stinger, Ryuji, and everyone else watching turned back to the door of the chopper when a red boot stepped out. They all bore witness to the man they had all been pining to see since his debut.
Saitama climbed out with a big yawn as if he had just woken up. His costume was fully repaired, new gloves and all. He casually scratched at his stomach and looked around at all the upturned vehicles riddling the road. Then, his gaze found its way to the beast that seemed to notice him as well. "urgh," he groaned, rubbing the sleep from his eyes, "... okay."
Inside the coffee shop, a soft murmur of excitement began circulating at the sight of him. Ryuji had a front-row seat for what was sure to be an epic battle. His mother had him hooked with both hands beneath his armpits as if she were afraid he'd do something so stupid as run off again... yet, even she watched the bald man fearlessly trudge toward the rampaging monster.
"i-It's him...!" a man said from behind them.
"Yeah...! That's... that's Saitama!"
"He's here!?"
"Let me see!"
"Move!"
Suddenly, Ryuji and his mother were being forced up against the window as the others began crowding forward in an effort to see him. Saitama nearly passed by without so much as a glance, but... Ryuji's breath hitched in his throat when the bald man suddenly stopped and looked right at him.
Saitama stared at the boy in the window for a long moment... more specifically, at his t-shirt. It was an impressive art piece of himself doing a cool pose. '... huh... That's new...' Suddenly, the kid shouted something at him, and he returned his focus to the threat at hand, but he was a second too late. A car was a split second away from absolutely clobbering him. Saitama caught the incoming projectile against his forearm and harmlessly tossed it aside.
As soon as he did, the creature was in his face with an angry roar. It swiped its massive paw at him, but Saitama caught it in an iron-like grip with one hand. He held firm and stared the beast in its cybernetic eyes without a shred of urgency.
"RAAAARRRGGGHHH!" the monster roared, swiping with its other paw. Before it connected, Saitama had already landed a punch to its chest. The creature's torso was completely obliterated, splattering the road behind it in a mix of black blood and mechanical scrap.
"... hurgh," he groaned quietly to himself. 'One punch, huh...?'
"w-... Whoa," one of the Association soldiers behind him muttered, drawing his attention. The other three looked just as stunned.
He stared at them awkwardly for a moment. "... So... I guess that's it, huh...?"
The leader of the squadron took his helmet off and stared at the remains of the monster behind him. "... uh... Yeah, heh," he chuckled. "Yeah, that's it... Mission accomplished."
"... Okay," Saitama muttered as he began walking back. "Hey, can I get a ride home? Or-.."
"YEAAAAAHHHHH!" He was cut off by a sudden uproar of screaming cheers.
Soon, there were civilians rushing out of seemingly every surrounding building in waves.
"Mr. Saitama!"
"Mr. Saitama, over here!"
"I'm your biggest fan!"
"Can I get a picture!?"
"Please, sign my shirt!"
There were so many of them, and nearly all of them had their cameras and markers out at the ready, begging him for just a sliver of acknowledgment. He also noticed that that boy wasn't alone in sporting something with his face on it. There were shirts and hats all around. One girl even shoved her phone in his face to show off a charm of his head hanging from a chain.
"w-Whoa," Saitama muttered, reeling slightly at the sudden ambush. 'There's merch already...?'
[Three hours later]
(On the television)
"SAI-TA-MA! SAI-TA-MA! SAI-TA-MA!"
A cellphone recording of one of Saitama's post-fight interactions encompassed the entire screen. The crowd in the video chanted his name as the man recording captured him trying to shake, or at the very least, touch whatever hand reached out for him along the way to the chopper. The four Association tactical squad members did their best to clear a path for him.
"SAI-TA-MA! SAI-TA-MA! SAI-TA-MA!" the crowd chanted as he left. "Whew!" the man recording whooped, sparking a round of ecstatic applause from the sea of civilians watching him climb back into the chopper with a final wave. His face was still as unreadably flat as ever.
Tatsumaki sat in her seat across from Sitch and Sekingar, all three of them watching the broadcast with great interest.
"Heh," Sekingar chuckled, cracking their silence. "That's his fifth defeat today... and it's not even noon."
Sitch shook his head in amazement. "The cybernetic bear and that squid-faced monster were both classified as Threat Level: Demon."
"You sound impressed."
"Heh... Impressed is an understatement," he muttered his reply. "One punch... every time..."
Tatsumaki didn't say a word. Her eyes were locked on the different angles that kept popping up. She stared at his dull look with an unreadable expression, far quieter than usual...
Sitch and Sekingar weren't oblivious to her odd behavior. It was glaringly obvious, even during her mission report a few minutes ago. For as long as they'd known the woman, she was never one to simply comply. Whether it be sitting still in her hospital room or summarizing a mission, she was usually annoyed very quickly, and had no problem letting them know that... but, there was something different this time... She was here, and fully aware, yet somehow miles away. They could see it in her steel-like gaze, and it made their next topic of discussion that much harder to approach... There was no telling how she'd react.
The two shared a quick glance between themselves before peeking back toward the woman still transfixed on the screen.
Sitch was the first to make a move. "... Alright, Tornado," he muttered, turning the volume down on the screen.
Tatsumaki's clouded gaze drifted over to him, still showing no sign of her usual self.
"Is there anything more you wish to add to your mission report?"
She shook her head with a shrug of her shoulders and huffed out a hefty sigh. "... nope."
Sekingar watched her turn her attention back to the screen for a moment before he jumped in. "... well, like always, as representatives of the Hero Association, we thank you for your heroic efforts."
"... yup..."
The two shared a glance, yet again, at her odd behavior, but didn't draw attention to it. Sitch hit the stop button on the recording device they had set up and continued from there. "Before we let you go, there is... something else we'd like to discuss with you... before it gets leaked to the public..."
Tatsumaki's lazy gaze shifted back toward the two.
"... As you could probably guess," he continued. "Saitama has made a rather big splash upon his revelation... So big, in fact, that the issue of his current rank has been making rounds through the organization..."
Sekingar watched closely for any reaction he could gauge from the hotheaded woman. Surely, she understood where they were heading with this, but... still, she wasn't fazed.
"Now, before you say anything, let me first say that your own individual efforts during the attack did not go unnoticed. You were a phenomenal asset, and I can not imagine how things would have turned out had you not been there. That being said... the sponsors have taken great interest in Saitama, and-.."
"They think he should be number one," she suddenly finished for him.
Sekingar and Sitch froze at her statement. She hit it right on the button. Again, they glanced at each other, neither seeming as if they wanted to take the reigns from there.
Sekingar cleared his throat and leaned forward on the table. "Well... to put it bluntly, yes... But, they haven't made an official decision. There are many on the board that recognized your defeat of Psychos as a more vital victory to the overall success of the mission. But... there has been a notable outcry from supporters that see it differently..."
Tatsumaki slowly nodded as she calmly processed everything he said. She glanced back to the screen and watched a girl trying to fit Saitama into her selfie as he walked by the crowd of jeering civilians.
"So," Sitch continued from there, "all of that being said, the Sponsors have left the decision to us, and... as far as we're concerned, Saitama is fit for, at the very least, top two."
She didn't turn away from the screen. They were talking at the side of her face right now.
"Sekingar and I have been in heavy discussion for the past 48 hours, and to us, the decision is clear." Sitch glanced over and let his partner take over.
"Saitama is impressive, and humanity itself owes him a great debt, but... considering your history, we do believe you are still the top hero..."
Tatsumaki looked back at the two with a confused expression on her face. "... Considering my history?"
"w-.. Well, yes," Sitch said. "Your many years of heroics cannot possibly be ignored."
"What about his?" she asked immediately. The look they shared told her they didn't understand her question. "What about his history...? The Sea King... the invasion...?"
Sekingar was the one to reply. "Um... yes, well... there's the issue with viable evidence... The fact that many of your accomplishments were accurately documented sort of swayed our opinion on the matter."
"Aside from the partial video from the alien invasion, Saitama's supposed victories cannot be properly validated. So, we saw it fit to exclude those particular instances from our decision."
Her gaze shifted back and forth the two for a long moment until she turned back to the tv. "That's stupid..." Again, her words came out with no sign of her usual energy. She watched Saitama slamming some kind of squid monster into the ground before he flew in and completely destroyed it with a casual punch. "I know what you're trying to do, but... I don't care about being number one... I'm not the strongest hero anymore... and the strongest should be number one..."
Sitch narrowed his gaze, completely baffled by such an... honest response. They had considered what she would say about this when they were planning to tell her. This definitely wasn't a possibility they thought of. "... So... you are willing to give up your rank?"
She glanced at him for only a moment before she looked back to the screen. She was really seeing his face everywhere she looked now. "... You know... now that they see him... thousands have come forward with stories of him saving them in the past... Defeating monsters left and right... All those times that idiot King took credit for reported Dragon levels... The whole time it was him..."
Her words, though not meant to offend, somehow unsettled them. It all told the story of their own lack of efficiency when it came to scouting heroes. How they could let someone like Saitama go unnoticed for so long was beyond them.
"As far as I see it," she said, rising from her seat and into the air, "he is the number one hero..." She floated toward the door, her gaze still locked on the screen, but she stopped when Saitama suddenly looked right at the camera of whoever's video they were showing. "... I'm the one trying to catch up."
Tatsumaki flew through the midday sky with her eyes shut, enjoying the rush of the cool wind that hit her face. It felt so good to be in the air again. The doctors advised her to continue to take it easy until the end of the week, but she was already back to feeling like herself... well, as far as her body went, anyways...
Her mind was another story...
'... I didn't wanna lose you...'
That one simple line clogged her thoughts anytime they began to wander. And when it did, there was some sort of reaction that fluttered through her... Something she had never experienced before... Her hands were shaking even now, and it felt like her face was on fire.
"... that idiot," she muttered, clenching her hands shut at her sides. With a tilt of her head, she suddenly jetted off into the clouds. She breached through to the other side with a twirl before she started weaving through the haze, watching her fingers tear through its fluff along the way.
It was always so peaceful up there... No one was around to bring up Saitama's name on the way by... no TV showing his face... and still, she couldn't get him out of her head...
There were times when it felt like it did when she would see Blast, but... it was so very different than that.
Blast was a hero to her... in every sense of the word. Someone she adored and admired, and eventually, someone she considered a friend, but... that wasn't the case with Saitama.
He's saved her ass many times. She'd be dead right now, without him, and she had long since admitted that to herself, but still... he just didn't feel like her hero. Possibly because he was everyone's hero...
And they're not exactly friends. She had been nothing but mean to him ever since she met him... just like with everyone else, 'because... because I don't need friends...'
It wasn't necessarily a rule she verbally declared, but that was something she had come to terms with long ago. As long as she had Blast and Fubuki, she didn't need another friend... They only hold you back with promises to cover your shortcomings, but... what happens when they're not there? What can you do when you find yourself all alone...? That was why she had no qualms with marking Blast as a friend. He understood that better than anyone... hell, he taught her that. As long as the two of them understood that, there was no room for letdown... and, if Fubuki wasn't her sister, Tatsumaki doubted the two would be friends at all...
She had no problem being all alone, and besides... that wasn't necessarily the issue here... In her heart of hearts, she knew the truth. A truth she would probably never admit to anyone except the clouds around her... When she thought of Saitama, "... I don't wanna be his friend..."
That was the only way she could phrase it without actually saying it, and even still, it left room for interpretation. It had never happened to her before, but she wasn't an oblivious child. She was a grown woman with a firm grip on reality, so... she knew what it was that made her heart race anytime she saw him...
And, apparently, her sister knew it too, or suspected it, at the very least. The other night when she got back from her run to the vending machine... she was all smiles when she gave her his message.
Tatsumaki turned away from the television at the sound of the door opening. She scooted up in her bed and watched her sister shuffle in with an odd smile on her face. "... what?"
Fubuki shut the door and bounced over to the side of her bed with her hands full. "Nothing," she expressed happily, setting the stuff down next to her. "So, I searched like five different vending machines, and none of them had any of the candy apples left, so... I got you these."
Tatsumaki took the bags of chips she handed her while still eying her down suspiciously. Why was she suddenly so bubbly? There was something she wasn't saying. "... thanks," she muttered, never relenting in her suspicious glare.
Fubuki giggled through her sealed lips and tried to think of how to introduce the conversation. "... Oh," she suddenly yipped, reaching down for the banana she had sat down. "Here..."
Tatsumaki stared at it as if it were some kind of prank... Why was Fubuki acting so suspiciously... And where the hell did she get a banana? "Um..."
Fubuki shook it a few times, lost as to why she seemed so afraid of it. "What...? It's just a banana..."
Tatsumaki nearly reached for it, but her hand stuttered. "... from where?"
Fubuki sighed and rolled her eyes. "Just take it, already. It's from Saitama."
Tatsumaki's eyes widened ever so slightly at the news, but it left her even more confused.
"I... ran into him in the hall and... well, he said to give that to you." Fubuki's smile widened little by little when her big sister slowly took it from her hand.
Tatsumaki accepted it, but still her mind tried to make sense of it... Why did he have bananas, and... why give one to her...? And why the hell is Fubuki smiling so much? She looked back to the banana and tossed it next to her leg for later. "... okay..."
Fubuki still stood there smiling down at her big sister like an idiot. Admittedly, she wasn't the best liar, and when it came to Tatsumaki, this was completely new territory. She tried as hard as she could, but her cheeks wouldn't go down... they were actually starting to hurt. "... he also told me to thank you, again," she finally said.
Tatsumaki was already digging into the bag of chips. She glanced her way once before her gaze returned to the television hanging across the room. "For what?"
"For... saving him...? I think?"
"... oh," she whispered her reply. Without another word, she began eating one chip at a time, her eyes locked on the screen above, but she could feel Fubuki staring at the side of her face. It was honestly getting annoying very quickly. "... what, Fubuki?"
"Wh-.. Huh?" she stammered out quickly.
She turned to her with an irritated gleam in her eyes. "Why are you staring at me... and why are you smiling?"
"Oh... uh... I-..." Every time she tried to speak, she couldn't think of what to say, and her damn smile wasn't going away. Especially after noticing what she just did about her sister... She didn't mean to, but Fubuki let it slip. "You're blushing..."
Tatsumaki stared at her with so many negative thoughts running through her mind. With no discernable reaction, she turned back to the screen. "Get out."
"Tatsumaki!" Fubuki finally broke, grabbing at her shoulder with excitement. "You're blushing!"
"No, I'm not!" she rejected, shrugging her off. "It's hot in here!"
Fubuki didn't relent. "No-no-no! That's a blush! You're blushing!"
Tatsumaki sighed and shook her head, hoping she would drop it.
"Tatsumaki!"
"Would you just go away, already!?"
Thankfully, Fubuki never said it, but... Tatsumaki knew that she knew. She didn't know how, but... Fubuki definitely knew. '... Is it really that obvious...?'
She came to a stop in her flight and stared out toward the horizon. That worried her almost more than the fact that she actually liked that bald idiot. '... she wouldn't tell him... right?' Fubuki was an awful liar. What if she let it slip one day? What if she tells someone else...?
"Tch-!" she sneered. '... Whatever... It's just a crush... as long as I don't see him, I'm... I'm sure it'll go away... Just let it go away...'
'... I didn't wanna lose you...'
With a groan, she hid her face in her hands as if there were someone around to see her. "urgh...! Why did you say that...?"
Saitama waved at the crew of Tactical escorts as the chopper took off from the top of his building. They all waved back at him with beaming smiles on their faces as they took their leave.
"Heh," he chuckled. "Finally home..." With a deep sigh of relief, he looked around at the view for a few moments. "... what should I have for lunch?"
He trudged his way down to his apartment, thinking about the long morning he just had. Five monster attacks in total. One in City-F, three in City-J, and the last one was in City-M. With most of the S-Class still recovering from their mission, Sekingar and Sitch informed him after his report that he would likely be seeing a lot of work this week, so he knew what to expect, but the crowds at every battle were ridiculous. He could hardly fight his way back to the chopper without being swarmed by a sea of reaching hands and cheering fans. It was more than a little overwhelming, considering he was virtually invisible just a week before.
He stepped in through his balcony door and cut the kitchen light on. Before he did anything, his stoic eyes swept around the bachelor-style condo for a moment, taking it all in. It felt so... quiet... He could remember hearing the traffic and trains running all the time back in City-Z... before it became a ghost town, that is... That wasn't necessarily something he liked about it, but it was a fond memory that really made him appreciate this new location a bit more.
He hobbled over to the living room and took a seat on the couch, cutting the television on. It was on a news station that was, of course, on a story of him and one of his latest victories. "hergh," he groaned lightly, watching a second of it before he flipped the channel. Again, another news station with his face plastered all around. He flipped the channel... and then flipped it again... and again... and again until he finally found something unrelated. It was a commercial for some kind of online dating site. Not interesting in the slightest, but it was different...
(On the television)
"Life is short. Too short to wait for love to find you! Sign up today, and find love yourself!"
A string of happy couples flashed across the screen with a beautiful song playing in the background before the site's icon popped up. Then, the screen cut to black for a moment.
...
"And welcome back to City-B, news at noon, bringing you the top stories of the day. And our top story this time around? Saitama of course! The new S-Class phenom has been on an absolute tear today, defeating five monsters! All in a single blow!"
Saitama stared at the screen with a blank expression. It almost felt like the TV was mocking him at this point. He lazily shut it off and stood up with a stretch. "urgh...! What should I do, now...?"
Saitama swung his front door open to see King standing there with his usual look of intense focus. He had his system tucked in his armpit. "Yo... You made it, huh?"
"Yup," King said, slipping in behind him. "Thought your doorman was gonna lock me out or something."
"Mm," Saitama hummed as they trudged their way to the living room to get everything set up.
"... Nice apartment," King complimented in his usual flat tone as he got to work hooking the system up.
"Yeah... guess so," Saitama replied, plopping down on the couch.
"Don't like it?"
"I do."
"Mm... Doesn't sound like it."
"I do, though... It's just an apartment."
"Better than your last one."
"Yup..."
"Any neighbors?"
"Just one... haven't met him yet..."
"Mm..." He peeked over to see the bald man casually reading a manga. "You sure you want me to beat you in your new home? I could take it easy, today."
"Nah," Saitama said before yawning with a much-needed stretch. "I feel lucky today. Think I can win, fair and square."
"You said that last time."
"... My button broke, that's why I couldn't win."
"We switched controllers four times... This time, I'll only use two fingers."
"NO TAKEBACKS!" Saitama suddenly shouted with an aggressively angry look on his face. "I'LL KILL YOU!"
"... what is this...? Where am I...? It's so... dark here... How'd I get here...? Where is here...? Did he... did he kill me, after all...? Am I... floating...?" He felt no pain... no sensation whatsoever... as if he was truly nowhere.
'... You keep saying you're a monster, but... I think what you really want to be is... a hero...'
"... That voice..." It came as a hollow echo that encompassed him completely. It didn't come from any specific direction... because there was no direction.
'... It seems pretty easy to be a villain, sometimes...'
'... You're... kind of different from any other villain I've fought...'
"...wh-... who is that...?"
'... In the end, as long as I'm a hero, it doesn't matter what your goals are. If you can't beat me, you'll never succeed...'
"That voice... it's so familiar..."
'... I guess I'm saying that you should just give up on all that..."
"... who said that...?"
'... You could try again if you want to, but... I'll still be right here to stop you...'
"What was his name, again...?"
'... you should just give up on doing it the easy way... If you wanna be a hero, then...'
"... Saitama...?"
'...just be a hero...'
There was a long bout of silence that followed that last proclamation, until...
"'There is no such thing... as unbeatable evil...' That's what he told you... right, Garou?"
"w-.. what...? Who is that...?"
"No matter how many times you try... no matter how strong you get... if you can't beat me, there's no point," the new voice mocked in a croaky, almost bored-sounding, tone. "Pfft... fuckin heroes dude... All the same..."
"Who the hell are you...!? And why can't I see anything!?"
"Relax... you're safe here... I saved you..."
"... why?"
"Heh... heh-heh... Why..." it mocked again. "I don't know, why... 'cause I found you interesting...? 'Cause I can smell your potential...? There's a lot of shit I could feed you, but... it's all bullshit... If you want the truth, I'll tell ya the truth... I'm the bad guy..."
"... heh... the bad guy, huh?"
"Baddest motherfucker around... they just don't know it, yet..."
"... okay... well, what the hell do ya want with me...?"
"... Well... I guess ya could say I want your help."
"Tch, baddest around, and you want my help, huh...? Just tell me what you're sellin' or fuck off and let me go!"
"... Heh-heh-heh... Ya know, that arrogance of yours is kinda refreshing... I've always admired shitheads like you... So tough... even when ya ain't got a shred of power in the conversation..."
"No power...? You're askin' for MY help..."
"Hm-hm..." it chuckled. "Yeah... yeah, I'm 'asking'... But, believe me, I really don't have to... The moment I took interest in you, you were as good as mine... I could've taken you the moment you triggered your little transformation... Or when you tried to save that dumbass kid from those low-tier heroes at the shed... but I knew you weren't ready yet. I wasn't sure you were ever gonna be ready... but, I am so glad I waited..."
"So... you've been watchin' me this whole time, huh?"
"Heh... I'm so glad I chose you... because... thanks to you, I've finally found him... the one I've been waitin' for, all these years... Saitamaaaaa... Heh-heh-heh... gotta be honest, the name's shit, but... I've always wondered if that old proverb was true or not... No light without dark... no up without down, no yin without yang... I always hated that shit, but... Saitama is proof... and honestly... I'm so fuckin' glad he is... I've never seen such raw strength before. It's almost not even fair, huh...?"
Garou didn't respond... that was just too true.
"One punch, and bam...! Gone... It's like some shitty op character from the mangas I used to read... Always strong enough to save the day, no matter what... I used to love that shit... Never thought someone like that would exist in real life, though... Then again, I never thought I'd exist, either..."
"... am I dreaming?" Garou suddenly asked. "Yeah, heh... Yeah, I gotta be dreaming... This ain't happenin'."
"... Oh yeah...? Heh..."
Suddenly, Garou's sensation of floating was ripped away, and it felt like he was falling straight down to his face... or being pulled up. "w-Whoah!" He twisted and turned through the darkness, trying to gain some sense of awareness, but there was none. No up or down. No left or right. No light...
It was like he was falling through a void of absolute nothingness...
Then, all at once... there was everything...
With a flash of blinding light, he shouted at the top of his lungs when he was suddenly flung through a city that warped all around him. He saw glimpses of its creation, its prominent era, and even its destruction before he found himself barreling through a forest full of trees that began decaying the further he flew. Then, he was jetting through a body of water, desperate for a breath of air that was nowhere to be found. He couldn't describe it if he tried... It was almost like he was falling through life itself. As if he were afforded a single glimpse of everything that had ever been all crammed within a twenty-second window.
Then, without warning, he emerged from the water and it was like he flew directly into a wall of gravity that forced him from his weightless flight and sent him tumbling down a field of dirt. He didn't know how long he was tumbling, but every time his body made contact with the ground, it hurt... He could feel it... Whatever this was, this... illusion...? Hallucination...? It was real...
He finally slid to a halt with his face in the dirt. "...er-..! ergh-..!" he groaned, picking his head up enough to see what was in front of him. His unfocused eyes landed on two red smudges on the floor in front of him. The more he sat up, the more his vision returned to him, and he could see that they were boots... It was Saitama standing before him staring out into the distance with his cape fluttering in the wind...
'...I-... I'm back! That bastard must've sent me back!'
"... You're the old dude's former disciple, or whatever, right...?"
Garou narrowed his gaze suspiciously... he was almost certain he had asked him that already. '... d-.. Did I just... time travel..?
"... You know, he told me something, one time that... I didn't really understand, until now..."
Garou peeked around him to see what he was looking at... there was nothing but darkness out there... That same unnatural darkness. "... what the f-..."
"... There's no such thing as an unbeatable hero..." Saitama turned around, and somewhere within that brief motion, his entire appearance changed... He was no longer the bald man with the ridiculously bright hero costume. In his place was a man with a scruffy beard, a suit with a loose-knotted tie, and a head full of wild black hair. He had heavy bags beneath his eyes as if he hadn't slept in days. He looked like a homeless man in a business suit. It was a blink and you'd miss it transformation... and Garou knew he didn't blink. "Because of me," he finished, "... and you can call me Code..."
Garou stared at the man, confused beyond belief. Nothing was making sense anymore. He couldn't tell if he was dreaming or not, but all signs were pointing to no... Everything had a sensation... The wind on his face, the dirt beneath his hands... If this wasn't real, then... what the hell kind of power is this? With his eyes still locked onto the man's uninterested gaze, he gasped when someone suddenly laid an arm over his shoulders... and when he turned to them... it was him... well, another him...
"Heh... come on, relax guy," this one whispered into his ear. "Like I said, I really saved your ass back there..."
Garou turned back to the other one just to realize he was gone... and they weren't on that barren field anymore. All he did was turn his head, so how the hell were they now standing on the ledge of a building overlooking a burning city...? When had he even stood up from the ground in the first place...? It was like he had no control over anything here... not even himself...
"See... the world is so broken... It's just a shitshow of fucked up people doing fucked up shit... for fucked up reasons... Almost makes me wanna just... off myself sometimes... ya know...?" Without warning, he suddenly shoved him over the ledge.
"w-Whoooaaaa!" Garou screamed on his way down... but the gravity changed again... Suddenly, it was like the side of the building pulled him in, and he tumbled against it as if it were the ground. Then, he suddenly busted through a wall of what turned out to be wood. When he did, the city was gone. He was in the forest again... more specifically, he was standing right in front of that shed...
"o-... Old guy?" a familiar voice called out from behind him.
"... huh...?" Garou peered into the hole he had just busted through. He squinted his eyes trying to see the figure that was emerging from the darkness. "... Tareo...?" That unsightly little boy that he had tried so hard to protect stepped out with tears in his eyes.
"a-... Are you okay!?"
"... I-.."
(BRRRRRRRRRRRT!)
Suddenly, the entire shed was being peppered with gunfire from every direction, completely tearing it to shreds. Garou reeled at the sudden attack that seemed to come from everywhere all at once! Then, from the treeline all around came walking multiple Codes all dressed like the Class-A/Rank 9 hero, Death Gatling.
"For so long, I've been wondering what to do with the world!" the closest one shouted over the sound of the Gatling guns spewing their fire. "Truth be told, I could've burned the fuckin' thing down if I wanted to...! Heh...! Or maybe be that Absolute Evil, or whatever the fuck you were goin' on about!"
(BRRRRRRRRRRRRT!)
Garou could somehow hear his every word, even though the sounds of those Gatling guns reducing the shed to ash were deafening. He watched it crumble to the ground in a plum of smoke before the guns stopped firing... Still, his ears rang from that horrible screech they made.
One of the Codes stepped up next to him and examined the aftermath with a groan. "Hurgh...! I definitely had the power to do it... but...what's the fuckin' point... ya know?" When Garou didn't respond, he turned to him, forcing his gaze. "You wanna know my biggest problem...?"
As soon as he took his eyes off the shed, the world around them changed again... Now, they were surrounded by a void of white... standing firmly on nothingness...
"I think I overdid it... Heh, I mean, I actually just got too fuckin' powerful... So powerful, that... the game wasn't fun anymore..."
"... what the fuck are you talking about!?"
Code turned away from him and started casually strolling forward with his hands behind his back. It was only then that Garou noticed he wasn't dressed like Death Gatling anymore. At some point, his black suit returned.
"But, you," he said, ignoring his question completely, "you may have truly shown me why I am what I am... Why I was always meant to be this powerful..."
Garou's gaze traveled past him when he noticed something in the distance... It was Saitama standing a few feet away from Code with that same bland expression of his.
"... This man... is my yang... and I am his yin... Heh-heh... I almost can't believe it... All these years of... secretly watching the world explode with power, thinking of what to do... I had a plan for the heroes... A full strategy to absolutely dismantle them one by one... but... now that I've seen him...? Heh-heh-heh... fuck that plan..."
Garou stared at the back of his head... he looked down at his own hands to see that he actually had some level of control over his body again... and the bastard was wide open... But, it somehow felt just like it did when Saitama was there instead...
"What the fuck are you...?" Garou suddenly demanded again. "What kinda power is this...?"
Code continued to face off against the bald man standing opposite him for a moment. They both had the same look in their eyes... he knew it all too well... He turned around to look his captive in the eye again as he thought of an answer to that question. "... Life sure is a funny game..."
("Game over! You lose!")
Saitama stared at the screen with a crazy look in his eyes. His face was red with anger and he snarled at the screen, nearly hyperventilating through his flaring nostrils and clenched teeth. "... Again!"
King sipped the juice pouch hanging from his mouth as he used his two pointer fingers to restart the match. "Okay... Do your best."
"SHUT UP!"
They started the match, and King zoned out almost immediately. He mindlessly tapped the buttons as his gaze shifted over to the side of Saitama's unreasonably frustrated face. He was surprised when he invited him over to play video games. For the past two days, he's seen his face circulating through, quite literally, every news station he's checked. His co-workers that knew they were friends from the times they'd walk to work together were pestering him with questions about the man that he really didn't know too well. They played games and talked every now and then, but he really had no idea who Saitama was, or... where he came from... He was just as much a mystery to King as he was to everyone else. So, to receive a call out of the blue for something so... ordinary was rather shocking.
Regardless, now that he was here, he was even more assured that, '... Saitama really is a weird guy...' It didn't make sense that he wanted to hang out with him of all people.
When King first became an S-Class hero, after the panic of the situation settled down, he was floored by the sudden rush of women begging him for a date... but, they never actually got around to asking him. Anytime he was approached by a beautiful woman he didn't know, his stupid 'King Engine' fired up and he made an excuse to jet out of there... His social anxiety was his number one flaw when it came to dating...
Saitama obviously didn't have that issue, so... why wasn't he out there truly enjoying the perks of being a technical celebrity...? Well, he was honestly more than even that. King vaguely remembered seeing one report on the well-being of Amai Mask, who used to dominate the face of the media, but everything else was all Saitama. '... he's probably the most eligible bachelor in the world, right now... and he's playing video games with someone like me...'
It just didn't make sense... but, in the long run, it was better for King's plan. He had been thinking about it ever since he managed to convince his friend to rejoin the association. Never did he expect such a monumental shift in Saitama's popularity so quickly. It was just dumb luck that it didn't seem to go to his head. As far as King was concerned, the story of the most powerful couple to ever exist was already set, and all he had to do was give the right little nudges to advance the plot.
"Heh..." Saitama chuckled, pulling King from his mental stupor. "... heh-heh... that's BULLSHIT!" he shouted glaring at the screen as if he were trying to make it burst into flames. "I had you down to one hp! That was a lucky win! One more time and I'll kick your ass!"
"Heh-heh," King chuckled lightly at his antics. '... I don't think I even looked at the screen that time...'
They started the next match and it began as usual with King putting very little effort in as he watched Saitama struggle. Along the way, he figured he'd kick up a conversation since they hadn't actually spoken about anything since he's been there. Maybe he could steer it toward the topic of Tatsumaki to gauge how Saitama felt about her. There was no way for him to confirm her feelings, but seeing her so desperate for Saitama to join was weird enough for him to run with his assumption. Now, all he had to do was pry just a sliver of hope from Saitama himself. "... So... you're like a celebrity, now..."
Saitama was too focused to reply.
"... How's it feel?"
Saitama shrugged with one of those I-don't-know hums. "... pretty boring, I guess..."
"Yeah...? How so...?"
Now that they were talking about something that had been weighing on him all day, Saitama basically lost interest in the game as a whole. He just watched his life bar drain away with no reaction. "Well... all I do is fight monsters all day."
'ergh-! That's boring to him!?' King finished the combo he was working on before he spoke again. "... y-.. You have a fan club, now though... That's pretty cool, huh?"
"Yeah... guess so... Kind of annoying sometimes... They always want me to sign stuff or-.. take a selfie or something..."
"Yeah... It really makes it a hassle to walk the streets sometimes when everyone knows you..." He was obviously speaking from experience during his time pretending to be the 'World's Strongest Man', but back in those days, he was hardly ever swarmed... likely because of his first public interaction after his 'reveal'. There was a group of fans who had supposedly survived the latest attack he was credited with, and they waited for him outside of his apartment. When they swarmed him, his 'King Engine' started blaring, and they all ran in terror thinking they had disrespected him in some way... From that point on, King was a hero many fans advised not approaching in public for fear of enacting his wrath... Little did they know, it was just his own crippling anxiety...
Even these days he couldn't escape the notice of a crowd... only now he was more infamous than famous. People sneered at him and pointed him out to whoever they were with on his way by... Despite his newly formed distaste for fame in general, he couldn't see himself living the rest of his life like that. '... I have to re-invent myself in an honest way, just like Saitama said... And the only way I can think of... is to document this love story and pitch a new storyline for one of the Heartbeat Hotties games... heh... or maybe just make my own game someday...'
King finished Saitama's character off with a brutal final combo before they both mindlessly watched the after-battle report trickle across the screen. "... So, I guess Tornado really made good on her promise, huh...?"
"Hm...?" Saitama hummed, sitting the controller down with an exhausted stretch.
"Tornado... when she said she could get you into S-Class..."
"Oh... yeah, I guess so..."
King watched him settle into the corner of his couch with his manga, flipping through the pages until he found where he was. "... she's... she's quite the woman... don't you think?"
Saitama's gaze shifted over to him for only a moment... Almost immediately, he lost his train of thought. '... man, I'm starving... I should start thinking about dinner...' He looked back to his reading material before he responded. "Yeah... She is the number one hero, after all..."
King watched him, hoping to find some sort of crack in his composure talking about a woman, but Saitama gave him nothing... It was like he was talking about a chair or something. "... yeah... guess that's true..." What could he say that would naturally lead the conversation toward romance...? This was all so much harder without dialogue options.
"She's actually pretty cool," Saitama suddenly continued.
"uh-!" King gasped at his words, but he held his composure. He watched him flip through the manga with his usual look of disinterest as he continued.
"She seems mean and stuff, but... I think she's actually kinda nice... sometimes..."
'huh...!?' King gasped in his head. 'ts-... Tsundere...?' His mind was in a whirl, thinking about all the good material he was collecting. Never did he think Saitama would be this open about stuff like this. Was he not embarrassed...? Not even a little...? "... hm... I never got that impression from her when I met her... She was usually always condescending and rude..."
"Mm..." Saitama hummed, offering nothing more as he continued reading.
King sat there awkwardly, mentally selecting the next branch of dialogue that would further the conversation toward the answers he sought... just like in Heartbeat Hotties. All he had to do was play the ultimate side character. "... maybe it's just with people she likes...?"
Saitama didn't respond... in fact, he didn't react at all.
"... heh... I mean... that's usually how women are... right?"
"... hm?" Saitama hummed, finally looking over at him.
"uh-! n-... nothing... I was just... thinking out loud, is all..."
"... oh," Saitama muttered, his eyes dropping right back to his spot on the page.
'... heh... Well... I knew this wasn't gonna be easy,' King pondered, glancing up at the clock hanging on the wall. 'Guess I shouldn't push too hard too fast... I want things to progress as naturally as possible, after all...' He stood to his feet with a stretch. "Ah... alright, I should probably get going before it gets too late..."
"For sure," Saitama agreed. "Get home safe..." It was a common thing to say, but he knew with King it was probably more like a prayer.
King stepped out of Saitama's apartment and began walking down the long hall to the elevator. His mind was busy trying to mentally recap the entire conversation they just had. It felt pretty awkward, but he knew if he could get it written down, he could spruce it up to be a bit more romantic and really get the story rolling. When it came to romance, it was really these small moments between one of the protagonists and a side character that tend to push the ball in motion. Someone had to plant the seed, and if he wanted this to work, it was gonna have to be him...
'... heh... who am I kidding... this story's a longshot at best... I know from my time in S-Class that they'll hardly ever see each other... That's a big issue in itself... ' The past few weeks were an anomaly. There wasn't any sort of weekly meeting among the S-Class heroes. They were pretty much free to do their own thing until they were called out to handle a situation that needed their assistance... so, unless the two just magically happened to pass each other by one day and hit it off, the story was bound to hit a stalemate soon.
He made it down the hall and pressed the button for the lobby. "Hurgh," he groaned, rubbing at his face. '... If only it really was like Heartbeat Hotties... There's always something stupidly convenient about the plot just to pit the two in awkward situations... I guess that's one thing I hate about reality... without convenient plot points, things tend to progress slowly... or sometimes, not at all... I mean, if nothing else, I could just reference them as characters and write my own story... Then it could be exactly as I-..'
(Ding!)
"er-!..." King was stuck... staring at the open elevator in pure shock. '... no-freaking-way...'
Tatsumaki stared right back at him, just as confused, with a bag in her hand. "... what the hell are you doing here!?"
AN: And there we go! Now, this chapter, lots of set-up, lots of introspection, but I did attempt to feed the masses in a way by including some of Saitama's budding recognition. As a fan of the show, I know that's what we all really want. I also really wanted to hammer Saitama's boredom in, so if it seems like his dialogue is bland and uninteresting, then that's probably why.
It's actually pretty fun to be at this point in the story! But, since I'm so deep in, I thought it would be the perfect time to truly introduce the Yin to Saitama's Yang...! Yes, this is that leader from the shadowy organization I've introduced in the past! And to be completely honest... somewhere along my return to writing this, I had a very different vision for what he should be like than I did before. It's a jarring change, for sure, but I do plan on going back and editing his earlier showings to more accurately portray this version. His dialogue was just so boring the way I was writing him before. I really wanted to give him some character, so he is almost a completely different person, now... but, yeah, this is that leader.
Now, of course, I left his power and his motives pretty vague at the moment, but trust me when I say he's got motives beyond his claims... and what I hope will be an interesting idea for a power... I can almost assure you that whatever you think it is... it isn't... maybe... I really hope I was vague enough, haha! And I hope that display of his wasn't too confusing. I actually wanted it to be confusing, but I also wanted it to be something you could hopefully visualize without too much trouble. If it's no good, please let me know! This is a major deviation from the source material, so I really want it to at least read well enough. So, if it doesn't, I've gotta know! Thanks for reading, leave a review, and I'll see you next time!
