"And that is how I got promoted!" Mizuki finished with a smile.
"Nice job." Saitama commented with a smile.
"Yeah." Beast Queen agreed before leaning over and whispering to her. "You wouldn't happen to have any of that monster turkey on you?"
"Nope. Sorry." Mizuki replied with a shake of her head, earning a sad sigh.
"All that talk of those food monsters you beat made me hungry." she groaned.
"Quit whining. Dinner will be finished soon." Ki told them from the kitchen area of the apartment that she and Genos were occupying.
"Hmm." Saitama hummed, his gaze skyward and his chin resting between his fingers in thought.
"Is something the matter, Master?" Genos asked.
"Well, I was wondering if any of the food monsters I've defeated before would've been edible." said the bald hero.
"Is this because we sometimes make meals with our hair?" Ki asked.
"Isn't that risky eating something from a monster?" Tank-Top Girl asked in concern.
"I never thought it was risky the first time. And even after all this time, nothing bad's happened." Saitama replied.
"It's true." Mizuki added as she held up one of Nori's strands of hair. "I mean, I've been using some of Nori's hair for my protein shakes and nothing's happened to me."
'That's what you think.' Midori thought, a smirk hidden from the others.
"Maybe it's because." Ki began before a smile came to her lips, the images of a halo appearing on her. "Through Saitama terrifying us into being good, we've become pure, thus removing anything wrong with our hair." The image stayed for a moment before shattering with a scoff of "Yeah Right!" from the Beast Queen.
"You four?! Pure?! Ain't nothing 'pure' about you perverts!" she continued.
"Fair enough." Ki shrugged before going back to cooking.
"Alright, who's next?" Jet Nice Girl asked as she looked at the ones who hadn't spoken up. She stopped when she noticed one of them fiddling with her fingers. "How about you, Kogane?"
"Me?!" the tall one asked in a nervous voice.
"No one else is fidgeting in place." she said. Everyone looked towards her, making her very uncomfortable.
"Well...oh boy." she sighed before reaching into her pocket. She then took out a photo and handed it to Saitama. He and others looked at the photo before they looked up at her, most giving her a deadpanned glare.
"What did you do?" Vaccine Woman asked, her tone not angry, but still giving her a critical look.
"It started as me just wanting to run in a bigger space." Kogane began.
-Kogane Flashback-
The tallest of the four Kombu Sisters had finally stopped running and was hunched over panting, a smile on her sweating face.
"That...that was...fun." she panted as she stood up and looked around the area. "I wonder where I am. How far did I run?"
"HEY! GIVE IT BACK!"
Kogane blinked and looked to see four young boys in a park nearby. Three of them were laughing, with one holding what looked like a book above his head and away from the last one, who was desperately reaching for it.
"If you want it, then you gotta take it back!" laughed the boy with the book before throwing it towards another boy, causing the poor boy to chase the book as it was tossed between the other boys in a game of keep away.
"Come on! It's the newest edition! Lightning Genji's signature's in there!" the boy in the middle cried as he chased after the book.
"Then why not call the hero and have him get it back?" another boy laughed as the snivelling boy merely stood there and cried, causing the other three to laugh while he glared at the ground. He closed his eyes and let his head hang in defeat.
"Aw, Tareo's crying! Ya big crybaby!" one boy snickered, which only served to bring Tareo down more.
"...give it back..." he begged in a quiet voice as he listened to them laugh. He opened his eyes when he heard the laughter suddenly cut off into gasps. He looked up to see the three boys staring above his head, sweat trickling down their faces as they shook in place. "Huh?" he muttered before looking over his shoulder. He was confused when all he saw was a pair of legs.
"I'm only going to say this once." came a voice above him. He looked up and up and up, craning his neck, before his eyes widened at the sight of the tallest woman he'd ever seen in his entire life. He then swallowed a lump when he noticed that she was glaring at them, arms crossed over her breasts, and her foot tapping the ground in a slow rhythm. "Give. Him. The. Book."
The three bullies just stood there trembling before the book slipped out of their hands. The sound of the book hitting the ground snapped them out of their stupor and sent them running away from the scary lady, leaving Tareo to stand there in terror. His breath hitched when she bent over and reached down before he covered his head eyes.
"Hey."
He slowly lowered his arms at her voice, the tone sounding much friendlier than before. He looked up to see holding the book before his face, waiting for him to take it back.
"Go on. Take it." she said with a smile.
After a moment's reluctance, the boy slowly took the book back. He looked down at the book with a tearful smile before looking back up at her.
"Thank-" he began before suddenly stopping. The two simply stared at each other for a moment before the child slowly reached for her hat. She flinched back at first before sighing and leaning down, signalling the child to continue. The child did so and gently lifted the hat off her head, revealing...
"...y..."
"..uhhh..." Tareo groaned as his eyes fluttered opened, a blurred figure leaning over him.
"..oy...ttle boy, you okay?" he heard them ask before he felt a hand gently smack his cheek.
"Whuh?" Tareo grunted as the figure fiinally came into focus. The moment Kogane did, his eyes shot wide open in terror. His screaming was muffled by Kogane hastily clamping her hand over his mouth while he flailed on the ground.
"Could you stop that?" she asked as she placed her hat back on her head. "I'm not going to hurt you." Sadly, the boy was too busy thrashing around and screaming to hear her, causing her to sigh. "Okay. Let's try something else.
CR-CR-CR-CR-CR-CRACK!
Tareo stopped when several strands of Kogane's hair shot out and embedded themselves in the ground around Tareo's head, scaring the poor child into obeying her.
"If I wanted to hurt you, I'd have done so already!" she stated, her voice holding nothing but irritation.
"Mmph mmph mmm mmphe?" he muffled.
"What?" she asked before removing her hand.
"Y...You're not...gonna hurt me?" he sobbed.
"No." she answered before pulling him to his feet.
"But...But you're a monster." he stated.
"And?" she responded.
"Well...monsters attack humans, right?" he asked.
"Well, yeah. That's true." she shrugged. "But some, like me, want to just live a happy and content life."
Tareo could only tilt his head in confusion at her words.
"That doesn't sound like a monster." he said before trying to glare at her, only for it to end in a timid look. "I bet you still attack humans, don't you?"
"NO!" she shrieked, her eyes wide and panicking, scaring the crap out of the Tareo. She quickly coughed and looked away, her tone wavering as she chuckled. "I mean, not unless they attack me first. And only to incapacitate in self-defense."
"But...why?" he asked. He flinched as a haunted look overcame Kogane, her pupils shrinking as she stared at nothing.
"Because any other reason will earn me a trip to oblivion." she said.
"You mean from the heroes?" he asked her.
"Well, there are probably quite a few heroes that can kill me with ease. But the one I'm talking about..." she trailed off as the image of a red gloved fist came to her mind, sending a shiver down her entire body. "The one I'm talking about is truly terrifying."
"Is it a Class-S hero?" Tareo asked curiously, his trembling only coming out occasionally.
"Class-S?" Kogane asked before snickering. "No. It's not a Class-S. It's someone in a class all their own." When he didn't say anything, she bent down to his level. "Have you ever been sprayed with a garden hose?"
"Yes." he sighed, remembering the times the other kids would do that to him.
"Pretend that the spray from that hose is the combined might of all of Class-S." she said before standing up to her full height, her arms spread wide. "Now, the one that I'm talking about? He's far more than that. He's a roaring tsunami that reaches up into the heavens and engulfs the entire horizon no matter which way you look, with enough strength to not only level every city in it's path, but to keep on going without end! That is the power of the one I obey!"
"..."
She looked down at him when he hadn't said anything. She had thought that he hadn't believed her, when he was in fact frozen with his mouth wide open.
"Tareo?" she said as she bent down again. "You in there?" she asked before waving her hand in front of his face. "Tareo?"
"...hose...tsunami...Class-S..." he muttered before shaking his head and staring up at her. "That sounds a little much."
"Trust me, if you saw what they could do with a single punch, you wouldn't think that." she scoffed.
"Well, what class are they in?" he asked as he flipped through the Hero Directory. "Are they in Class-A like Spring Mustachio and Golden Ball?"
"Who?" she asked as she looked down at the page he was pointing at, showing one picture before flipping to the next. "Nah. Though I do recognize those two."
"You do?" Tareo asked as Kogane sat down, which still made her taller than the boy.
"Yeah. Though I was...well, can't say a lot of details due to certain parties not being here. Suffice to say, back when I was still a raging monster, I encountered these two. They were weak. They barely made a dent in my hair, and it's a lot stronger than it was then."
"Your hair?" he asked her while thinking of how human she acted, what with the fond way she spoke of her hair. She then smiled and removed her hat again before her hair lifted out from inside her shirt, allowing her to display each strand before him. "Whoa!" he gasped before he suddenly began flipping through the book. "I thought I recognized you! You're Kombu Infinity!"
"How do you know that name?" she asked, shocked that he knew Ki's name. He answered by pointing at a picture of Ki before splitting up in the book.
"They say that this monster is roaming around inside the City-Z abandonded district." he said before gasping again. "You're from City-Z?!"
"Um...yes?" she answered.
"...What are you doing all the way out here?" he asked, shock replaced with confusion.
"Why? What city am I in?" she asked. He flipped through the book again before coming to a map of the cities that was used to reference where Heroes would usually patrol. He then pointed at the city they were in. "CITY-O?! HOLY CRAP! I RAN THAT FAR?!"
"Ran?" Tareo said in confusion, with a hint of disbelief in his tone. She answered by hoisting a leg up and sliding her pants up, revealing skin to the boy.
"These legs aren't for show." she chuckled. All Tareo could do was stare as a tint of pink came to his cheeks.
"Uhm..." was all Tareo could say as he continued to stare. A stare that Kogane noticed and recognized.
'Ah crap. He's staring too much.' she thought as she put her leg down. 'Gotta think of something to say. Anything!'
"Wanna play a game?" she asked.
'That's the best I could come up with?!' she thought while mentally kicking herself.
"W-What game?" he asked nervously, wondering what kind of game a monster would want to play.
"A play fight. I'll be the monster, obviously, and you can play the hero." Kogane suggested.
"What?! B-But..." Tareo stuttered before shrinking in on himself. "I'm not strong. And I-" His words were cut off when a strand of kombu gently placed itself against his lips.
"I said it's a play fight. Make believe." she reminded him. "Don't all little kids want to play the hero?"
"Well, yeah. But I never get to play the hero. My friends keep having me play as the monster." Tareo explained.
"Well that's no good. Why don't you ever get a turn?" Kogane asked.
"Because I'm weak...and they all keep making me the monster...or just throw rocks and pick on me all the time." He began to cry again as he finished. He just stood there as he thought about all the times he had been picked on and bullied by the other three, too scared to fight back, but too wimpy to run. His eyes opened when he felt a pair of arms wrap him up in a hug.
"It's okay to be scared, Tareo." she said in a soothing voice. "A true hero is someone who doesn't care about what the masses think of them. They care about doing what's right, even if they're scared or get hurt."
He looked up to see her giving him a kind smile before wiping his eyes.
"Is...Is that what the hero you talked about before is like?" he asked, earning a nod from her. "And they were scared? And they also got hurt?"
"That's right. But they stuck it out and kept up the fight." she answered before patting his head. "So if you get bullied, or want to play the hero, then don't give in to the fear and fight back. Okay?"
"Alright!" he nodded with a teary smile.
"Good. Now, brace yourself 'Hero!'" Kogane said as she stood back and grinned down at him. "I, the evil Kogane, will triumph over good today!"
"Huh? I mean, no! No you w-won't!" Tareo shot back after a moment before charging forward.
-Time passes-
Tareo was hunched over on his knees, a smile on his lips as he laughed and panted. Lying on the ground next to him was Kogane, looking completely fine, her eyes closed and tongue hanging out.
"And so, the mighty monster fell at the hands of Tareo, the brave hero." she whispered out.
"I...I did it!" he wheezed before turning to her. "But why...did you have...to make defeating you...so difficult?"
"Since when does a real monster make it easy for the hero to win?" she chuckled.
"Well...you didn't...use your hair, right?" Tareo asked her.
"Would've stood out too much. What if someone had seen it?" she said before noticing the sun going down. "Uh oh. I gotta get going."
"Will I see you again?" he asked her.
"Don't know." she answered before noticing a photo booth nearby. "Hey! Wanna get a picture? A memento of our meeting."
"That sounds fun!" he smiled before they got up and walked over.
-Present-
The group were looking at the four strip pictures of Kogane and Tareo making poses and faces while Kogane finished her story.
"So after we each took a copy of the photos, I took a bus, met up with the other on the way back, and here we are." she finished.
"Sounds like you had fun." Nori said before taking a spoonful of food.
"Not meaning to rain on your happy mood, but you do realize that letting him know you're a monster could prove fatal in the future, right?" Deep Sea Queen said.
"Yeah. Honestly, I don't know why I didn't run after he fainted." Kogane sighed. "I guess I felt bad and wanted to make sure he was alright."
"Let's just hope he doesn't rat you out to the Hero Association." Mizuki said as she looked out the window, images of various heroes waiting outside to break down the door.
"Meh. If they come, Saitama can knock 'em down." Midori scoffed.
"And have everyone turn against him." Ki reminded her before turning to Saitama. "What do you think?" she asked. Saitama didn't look up from the pictures, his gaze focused and serious. "Saitama?"
"Is something wrong, Master?" Genos asked.
"Something's bothering me." he said in a low tone.
"Um...about what?" Kogane asked, not liking how Saitama was now looking at her. His gaze was paralyzing her on the spot, causing her to sweat as she wondered what she said to upset him.
"...Where'd you get money for the bus?" he asked.
The majority of the room practically collapsed on themselves after that question.
"That whole story about making friends with a kid and such, and all you care about is where she got money for a bus ticket?!" Midori yelled.
"Did the rest of the story mean nothing to you?!" Sub Queen asked in disbelief.
"I heard it. I'm happy you made a friend. I'm just curious about where you got the money." Saitama answered before at the other heroes. "Any of you lend her any?" They shook their heads no.
"That is a good question." Genos said, his eyes glaring at Kogane. "Where did you acquire the money to pay for the bus?" His glare intensified as he continued. "Did you steal it?"
"No way! I know that doing something like that'll get me killed!" Kogane answered with her own glare. "I'm shocked you'd think I'd do something like that!"
"Then where did you get the money?" Jet Nice Girl asked.
"I...I..." Kogane answered, her eyes shifting to the side.
"Oh for crying out loud. I gave her the money!"
Everyone turned to the Beast Queen outside the door as she reached into her pocket and threw a bag inside the room. Genos caught the bag before scanning it, then opening it to reveal it's contents.
"Holy crap! That's a lot of cash!" TT Girl gaped in awe.
"Okay. But where did you get the-" Saitama began before she held up a few sheets of paper. "What are those?"
"Bounty papers." she answered as Ki brought the papers in with a strand of her hair. "I've been doing this after training with Mizuki and Kogane for awhile to get some cash in case of emergencies or for the fun of it. Luckily, they don't ask me to take off my disguise."
"That's awesome!" Mizuki said with bright eyes before a thought came to mind. "But why didn't you say anything earlier?"
"The first one was by luck. I though they were some punks trying to...do something to me. I flattened them, not killed, and was about to leave when some of the people who some me pointed out who they were and asked if I was a bounty hunter. After I saw the amount of money they were worth, I just kept it up. And I was keeping it a secret because I thought that you guys would get angry I was attacking humans." she explained.
"You are correct."
Everyone turned towards Genos as he glared at her, his body powering up as he walked towards the door.
"You have violated Master Saitama's trust and broken the promise you made." he growled as he raised his hand towards her.
"HEY!"
Genos barely cast a look at Midori as some of her hair wrapped around his arm.
"Knock it off, Tin Man!" she yelled. "I beat up Charanko at the Dojo all the time during our spars! You gonna fry me too?! Besides, you're mostly robot! Who's more of a monster now, huh?!"
"What'd you say?!" Genos snarled.
"First you accuse me of betraying Saitama. Now Beast Queen. Who next?" Vaccine Woman growled. "In case you've forgotten, all of us know how strong Saitama is. So we all know it's pointless to disobey."
"Even so, you should've run it by Master Saitama first before-" Genos began before cutting himself off, his sensors picking up an rising energy signature.
'Where is this coming from?' he thought before his sensors pinpointed the target, his eyes widening in shock. 'Behind me?!'
"Hey, Master? Senpai?"
Everyone turned to see the three female heroes gathered around a few wanted posters, an ominous arua surrounding them as their heads were hung low just enough to shadow their eyes.
"I don't know about you two, but I think that the Beast Queen did the right thing." Mizuki rumbled.
Everyone else in the room looked at the trio in confusion before Tank-Top Girl handed Saitama one of the flyers.
"Thomas 'The Butcher' Crain. Class-A Criminal. Wanted for...oh that's just wrong." he said.
"What? What is it?" Nori asked as Genos looked over Saitama's shoulder.
"It says that the Butcher is a serial killer that leads a group who kidnap young women, rapes them in various bizarre ways, then kills them before harvesting their organs for the black market. Then they sends the severed heads of their victims to their loved ones in a box full of pictures of each act." Genos explained. The moment the last word left his lips, his sensors detected a massive spike in the energy coming from all the women, humans and monsters alike. 'What is this energy?'
"Hey. Can you girls not break my home?" Saitama asked, a bead of sweat running down his head at the strained smiles the women were giving him.
Mizuki was the first to snap out of her murderous rage as she apologized to Saitama.
"S-Sorry, Master." she said before glaring at the poster again. "But still, scum like this needs to be dealt with!"
"Too late. I already dealt with him." Beast Queen said nonchalanty while she picked at her teeth with a claw.
"Careful. You'll get indigestion." Mizuki laughed, earning some worrying stares from the others.
"You've been hanging out with her for too long." Tank-Top Girl whispered to herself.
"After reading what's he done, I honestly think it's what he deserves." Mizuki huffed.
"Nah. I don't eat rotten food." Beast Queen chuckled.
"Can we move along already? I'd like to keep my dinner inside, thanks." Deep Sea Queen huffed while Ki did her best not to retch.
"Right." Beast Queen mumbled before turning to Saitama. "Anyway, is it alright if I continue bounty hunting?"
"If it's bad guys and bounties, than sure." Saitama permitted with a nod.
"Really?!" Beast Queen gawked before grinning. "Alright! Thanks a lot, Saitama!"
"Sure thing." he replied with his own little smile while she turned away, her body feeling warm all of a sudden as her cheeks turned pink.
'What's wrong with me?' she thought to herself.
"...uh...guys?" came Nori's tiny voice. Everyone turned to her holding a couple of flyers, her eyes wide and unblinking. "We may have a problem."
"Why's that?" Midori asked as she looked at the flyers, causing her own eyes to widen. "Oh boy."
"What? What is it?" Newtina asked as she looked over their shoulders. She stared for a second before...
"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
After the rest of the room stopped rubbing their ears, they tuned in to Newtina frantically clawing at her hair as she paced back and forth.
"THIS IS BAD! THIS IS SO VERY BAD! THEY'LL FIND US AND TAKE US AND IMPRISON US AND EXPERIMENT ON US OR OUTRIGHT KILLS US OR-"
Bop!
"Are you done?" Saitama asked, his fist smoking alongside Newtina's smoking head.
"Twinkle, twinkle, liddle thtar." Newtina sand in a dizzy voice.
"Wonder what had her going crazy like that." Saitama said aloud.
"I believe it is because of these." Genos answered as he handed him the flyers that Nori was holding a moment ago.
"The wanted flyers?" he asked as he looked them over. "Wait. These show Ki, Vaccine Woman, and the Deep Sea Queen."
"They what?" Ki asked before she and the monsters in question looked as well.
The flyers showed them pictures of the three monsters, along with their estimated threat levels, gathered information, possible locations, bounty amounts, and so on.
"Holy crap! They even give out bounties for monsters?" Vaccine Woman asked as she examined a picture of her looking pissed and yelling at the people in the hazmat suits during the little smog creature's appearance.
"It feels so long since we looked like this." Ki mused as she looked at their smaller pre-split form, her hair raised in a threatening manner.
"I wished they had gotten me in my dehydrated state." Deep Sea Queen grumbled as she looked at her more monstrous form on display, the photo blurring out her exposed breasts.
"You didn't mind it when you were fighting in City-J." said Beast Queen.
"Couldn't help it. I didn't know it would rain and expose me." she grumbled. "At least they blurred out my nipples."
"Afraid of 'interested parties' hanging you in their room?" Ki smirked, earning a glare from DSQ.
"No!" she snapped before turning away with a blush.
"Hmm. Hadn't noticed." Saitama commented as he looked at the picture.
"How on Earth did you not notice?!" Ki demanded. "You'd have to be blind to not see her practically nude! And you were at point blank range when you socked a hole through her!"
"You say that like I'm supposed to stare at the monster rather than fight." said the bald hero.
Deep Sea Queen's eyes widened at his comment before she turned away from him, her face heating up at how he didn't eye her like the rest of the humans did, even in fear.
'What's up with them?' thought Saitama as he noticed the women constantly blushing for some reason or another. He decided to drop it and turn back to the wanted flyers before a detail caught his eye.
"Something up with the flyer?" Tank-Top Girl asked.
"The price for monsters is a lot higher than for humans." he said.
"That is no surprise. After all, the strength between human criminals and monsters is very different most of the time." Genos explained.
"So that's why Vaccine Woman's bounty is 100 million yen." he said aloud as he looked at the other flyers. "Deep Sea Queen's at 75 million. And Ki's at 25 million." he finished as he stared at the flyers, a look of deep thought. A look that was slowly unnerving a few of them.
"Uhm...Saitama?" Ki spoke up with a shaky smile. "What, uh...what are you thinking?"
"Hmm?" he said as he looked up to see a few of the monsters looking a little nervous. "I was thinking about trying this, but decided against it." He then handed the flyers to the Beast Queen. "You can do it if you want since a disguise will work. Besides, if I'm out looking for specific people or monsters, I might miss all the rest when they start doing something. I mean, I didn't become a hero to just chase after a payday. I do it for a hobby."
Most of the occupants, hero and monster alike, smiled at Saitama's character. Genos was too busy scribbling down in his notebook to smile. The only other one who wasn't smiling was Newtina, her dizzyness gone, and a blank look on her face.
"So, what about the rest of you?" Saitama asked.
"Well...I was...um..." Nori trailed off while twidling her fingers before muttering something under her breath.
"What?" Saitama asked.
"...othes."
"Speak up already!" Midori griped.
"I was trying to make myself some clothes!" Nori finally answered.
"Clothes?" Saitama asked.
"Yes. Clothes. The kind that are big enough that these!" she said as she lifted her breasts before letting them go, causing them to bounce. "Don't feel so constricted!"
"That is strange. During the times you and the others have roamed the abandoned district for such items, you should've come across some articles of clothing that fit your needs." Genos mused.
"Well the reason I don't have them is because some of us keep hiding them!" she snapped as she glared at Ki and Midori, who merely giggled at her plight.
"Isn't that a little mean?" Tank-Top Girl asked with a frown. I mean, she is your...sister?"
"Yeah, but she's so self-conscious about her body. She should flaunt it!" Midori explained.
"Yeah. People love a show." Ki said as she stood behind Nori before lifting her shirt. "LIKE THIS!"
POW!
"THOSE ARE FOR PRIVATE SHOWS ONLY!" Nori snarled in a crazed tone as she brought her shirt back down, leaving Ki to nurse the lump on her head.
Ki's eyes widened for a moment as she took in Nori's tone of voice and crazed look in her eyes. She would've been more concerned at the moment, but her mind went towards another part of Nori's words.
"Oh? A private show? For who?" she asked with a smirk.
Nori's eyes immediately lost their insanity as they widened, her everything turning as red as her hair and beyond.
"AAAAAHHHHHH! WHY'D YOU MAKE ME SAY SOMETHING LIKE THAAAAAT?!" she shrieked as she ran out of the room, leaving most of the rest of them to laugh.
"What was she talking about?" Saitama asked, earning wide-eyed stares from most of the women.
'Even you can't be that clueless.' they thought.
'Oh, it is going to be sooo much fun when you realize.' Ki thought with a grin.
"And what about you, Ki?" Jet Nice Girl asked.
"She was using my laptop for research purposes. What they were, she would not tell me." Genos explained. "Although, now I must take it to get fixed. A virus has infected it somehow."
Ki merely giggled even after Kogane thwacked her upside the head.
"If that is all, I'll take my leave." Sub Queen said as she stood up outside and turned to leave.
"Hold on. We haven't heard your-"
"I didn't attack humans. That's all you need to know." she answered before leaving, with the Deep Sea Queen giving a short "Same." before following her friend.
"Should we be worried?" Tank-Top Girl asked.
"Nah. She hasn't attacked anyone, so I say it's all good." Saitama said before yawning. "Well, it's getting late. I'd like to sleep, so can you all go home now?"
"Wait. We haven't heard what you two have done today." Midori stated while pointing at Genos and Saitama.
"We are not the ones that needed interrogation." Genos answered with a scowl.
"It's called simple curiosity, you dummy." Midori huffed.
"I see." Genos said after calming down. "I merely read through my notes on Master Saitama's training and words while patroling."
"Mmhmm." Ki said with a nod before turning to Saitama. "And what about you?"
"Nothing much. Just convinced this one guy to not jump off a building before beating up some random monster causing chaos." Saitama explained.
"Well, that was nice of you." Vaccine Woman smiled.
"Yes. And it also explains your rise in rank." Genos stated with a smile, catching everyone's attention.
"Rise in rank?" Saitama parroted.
"Indeed." Genos nodded. "I had been meaning to ask how it could've risen, but felt the need to understand Vaccine Woman's actions left me little time to ask."
"Oh. Okay. So what's my rank now?" asked the bald hero.
"You've shot up from 101 to 63." Genos explained.
"Rea-"
"NO WAY!"
Saitama's words were cut off as he felt Mizuki hugging him again in joy.
"AT THIS RATE, YOU'LL BE ALL THE WAY UP IN CLASS-S IN NO TIME, MASTER!" she squealed.
"Okay. Now please let go of my head." he muffled through her breasts.
"AHH! SORRY!" she yelped with a blush as she let him go again before turning towards the door. "W-Well, it's getting late. I'm gonna head home. Bye Master Saitama. Bye everyone."
"Bye!" they all said before they too left, leaving only Saitama and Genos in the room. That ended when Saitama asked Vaccine Woman to hang back for a moment, meeting her outside his apartment while the rest scattered.
"Something up?" she asked.
"Why'd you do that?" he asked.
"I told you. I wanted to let the people know about that drink and-"
"Not that." Saitama interrupted with a hand raised to silence her. "I meant this morning before you left."
Her cheeks flared up as she caught on to what he meant before looking away.
"T-That was...in case I had gotten caught or killed." she muttered loud enough to hear.
"Okay. But why did you kiss me?" he asked.
She looked back at him, blush in place, and sighed at his question.
"Why do you think I kiss you?" she asked before leaving towards her room, leaving Saitama alone. he merely shrugged before walking back inside.
-Kombu Room-
Nori was sitting amongst her stuffed animals while hugging her breasts, her blush still not receding.
"I can't believe Ki made me say that." she grumbled before casting a glare at the door when the others walked in.
"Hey Nori." Ki greeted, causing Nori to turn away. "Still angry?"
"What do you think?" she huffed.
"Come on. Cheer up." Midori said with a smile.
"If you want to have anything between you and Saitama happen, you'll need to get over having them in his view." Kogane added. That last bit only made Nori blush more as she and the others began to strip and spread their hair out to act as a giant hammock.
"Speaking of view." Ki began with a grin after they all got inside the hairball. "Any of you notice Saitama's reaction when Nori was topless?"
"I was too busy being embarrassed." Nori snapped.
"Well, he's face didn't twitch, but I definitely saw his cheeks have the faintest pink show up." she explained.
"Whaaaaaat?!" Midori drew out in surprise.
"It's true~" Ki sang with a giggle. "He's finally starting to show an interest."
"How long do you think it'll take before we can get him in here with all of us?" Midori asked.
"Let's handle it one at a time first." Kogane said.
"Whatever." Ki shrugged before they all settled in to sleep.
-Meanwhile, across various cities-
"You wanted to see us, Miss Blizzard?" Eyelashes asked as he stood with all the other members of the Blizzard Group.
"Yes." she said as she stood before them. "I want you all to get ready for tomorrow."
"Are we going after a monster?" Mountain Ape asked.
"No." Fubuki said with a shake of her head before narrowing her eyes at nothing. "Do you all remember that mysterious bounty hunter?"
"Oh? You mean that big woman that single-handedly took down that Class-B criminal group recently?" asked Lily.
"Yes." Fubuki nodded before turning towards them. "I got curious about her and asked at the bounty office about her. She never shows her face, but she's known by a few other bounty collection places to bring in other more dangerous groups. Like Thomas 'The Butcher' Crain and his thugs."
"Th-The Serial Killer/Rapist?!" one of the members shouted as the whole group stared in utter shock.
"The very same. At first, I was angry that someone stole our target. But now?" Fubuki said, a scheming smile forming on her lips. "I'm wondering how she'd feel about working with others."
-Tank-Top Army-
"Huh? You're gonna head to City-Z tomorrow?" Tank-Top Al Dente asked after swallowing his spaghetti.
"Yes." Tank-Top Master nodded. "Tank-Top Girl said that is where she's been going recently. And after coming back from one of her visits, she looked visibly shaken."
"I remember that she looked frightened, but she wouldn't say what." Tank-Top Mask added.
"That fraud of a hero lives in City-Z!" Tank-Top Tiger said with a scowl.
"I bet he did something to her! Perhaps he's trying to blackmail her like those other two heroes he's got working for him!" Tank-Top Black Hole growled, veins throbbing on his forehead. The other members began to speak about this before Tank-Top Master silenced them with a raised hand.
"I'll get to the bottom of those rumors when I meet this hero tomorrow." he said before standing up off the weight bench he was sitting on.
"Master! May we come with?" TT Rockabilly asked.
"You wish to accompany me?" asked the Class-S hero.
"Yeah. I mean, if he is a fraud and is doing something to Tank-Top Girl, then I want to put him in his place!"
"Same here."
"Mess with one of us, mess with all of us!"
Tank-Top Master looked at his followers with a small smile before simply nodding at them, causing them to cheer.
-Swim-
The young Class-C hero was lying in her bed, her overthinking mind preventing her from sleeping. She had fought a monster earlier, but could only stall it until other heroes had arrived and finished it with ease. While she was happy the monster was defeated, she couldn't shake this feeling of doubt welling up in her.
"I need to get stronger." she said out loud. "Otherwise, I'll never rise up to Class-B and join the Blizzard Group." She sighed as she rubbed her face before a thought came to her. She had remember another Class-B hero she'd met recently, her suggestion of training under her master running through her head.
"Maybe...they could help me get stronger?"
-Monster Association-
"You summond us, Lord Gyoro Gyoro?" a random monster asked as they and a group of monster stood before them.
"Yes. We recently had two monsters here today. The Subterranean Queen to pay her respects, and the Deep Sea Queen following them for one reason or another." Gyoro Gyoro explained. "I don't care what happens to the Subterranean Queen, but the Deep Sea Queen had the potential to take down two Class-S heroes. I want that strength in our army."
"So you want us to find her and drag her back by force?" another monster asked with a grin.
"Yes. They have quite the healing capabilities, so don't hold back." Gyoro Gyoro ordered. "They currently live in the abandoned district above us, so you won't have to travel too far. Now go."
"Right!" the monsters agreed before walking off towards the tunnel that would lead them up to the surface.
-In a random dark alley-
"So you're heading towards City-Z as well?" asked a random monster.
"Yeah. Heard this rumor about strong monsters gathering. Plus some really freaky strong...something there interests me." said another.
"Looking to make a name for yourself?"
"I don't care. I just want to slaughter things!"
"How 'bout I slaughter ya and shut ya up?!"
"You wanna go?!"
"Hey! A fight!"
"Forget it. I'm heading for City-Z. Night's the best time to move after all."
"At this pace, we should make it by tomorrow."
"Can't wait!"
A/N: Next chapter, we start a little deviation from canon. Hang on for the ride readers!
