(A/N: ALRIGHT here is the brand spanking new chapter 72, again I am so sorry to be wasting yall's time like this, but as promised it is double the length AND this will never happen again so long as I draw breath, anyways enjoy the "New" chapter)
Death is a curious thing, all living creatures must face it eventually but some are more eager to meet it than others, whether it be due to incredible sadness or simply a lust for something can only end in one's demise, death truly is the only thing in life that is inevitable. But what if upon reaching that final destination that all living things must arrive at something were to happen? What if instead of meeting a reaper, a god, or even just nothing what we were met with was a sort of dream like purgatory? Would we even know that it was a dream, that the sensations we would feel within it's space were not be tied to reality and that for all intended meaning and purpose the truth was our soul was adrift in the ethereal?
Perhaps if enough time passed by and we had grown accustomed to the empty plains that would make this place we would begin to see the limitations of it's existence. We would begin to see passed our bliss like state of weightlessness and lack of feeling and realize that something was wrong. Or maybe after what he had endured in life we would simply embrace this seemingly eternal drift through oblivion, never really wanting or needing to arrive at a heavenly body or perhaps even a hellish one, maybe after everything we had been through we were simply ready to accept any end. This was what became of the once mighty and feared lord of all known space vanquished by the hand of a great warrior, the being known as Boros now knew of such a void as his home.
He wasn't sure how long he had been there, nor if what he was feeling was even real, all he knew was that he had achieved his goal and found someone capable of defeating him in battle, and despite the immeasurable pain it caused him in the end it still brought him joy. For unlike now where he drifted in bliss he did the same among the stars in a sort of comatose like state, his very life had become so dull and boring that he often contemplated hurting himself on purpose just so there would be something that could cause him pain. Without the fear of losing, the uncertainty of victory that he once had in the earliest days of his power, every breath he took and every waking second of his existence felt more like a horrid form of psychological and emotional torture that he'd give anything to escape from. But now as he was certain his life was over and that if this were indeed his soul and it now wandered an endless dark plain, if there was but one regret he could say he possessed is that he would never get to experience a battle as great and as fulfilling as the one that was his end.
Yet even in death mysterious things can happen, strange chances that should not be possible can occur which have the potential to change your fate entirely, and so as a light brighter than any he had seen before soon overcame Boros's senses, he realized that for some reason beyond his understanding, he was being given such an opportunity.
Several different sensations all came back to him within an instant, the feeling of cold metal and air pressing against flesh he had since been without, his lungs inhaling and exhaling filling to the brim with oxygen, the warmth of light cascading across his skin and seeping down into his bones, there was no mistaking, he was alive once more. Slowly opening his eye after what seemed like ages his vision quickly adjusted and revealed where he was, which brought even more questions to his mind. He was in a lab of some kind though not one he was familiar with from his ship, and the technology while surprisingly advanced still was by what he had known fairly basic, then there was also a massive pane of glass that resided on the other side of the room which he knew for certain concealed an unknown amount of onlookers.
"Where...am I..." He spoke though quietly and weak, as this had been the first time he had even opened his mouth since his passing.
"Please step out of the chamber." A voice instructed him the moment he was awake, having come from all sides it was clear that whoever observed him also had the means to communicate.
"Who are you?" He asked this time a bit louder, all the while he began curling his fingers and toes in order to reacquaint himself with the feeling of a body
"Please. Step out. Of The Chamber." The voice repeated, though far more stern and authoritative in tone.
Though he was fairly certain that he could just charge forth and breakthrough the glass in order to answer his question, seeing as how whoever was responsible for all of this clearly went through the great trouble of reviving him, Boros decided it would be best to just play along for now.
"Thank you." It said, as he followed it's instruction and moved forward "Now, there are no doubt many things going through your mind at this moment, which is fair given you have been pulled from whatever heaven, hell, or abyss you have been in since your death, however to ensure the safety of both myself and you we need to proceed with a few basic physical tests before we go any further, do you understand?" It asked, to which he responded with a nod "Good, now first I want you to just move around the space however you like, we need to make sure that your body has no movement issues and that your muscles aren't suffering from any kind of atrophy due to the sudden nature of your release." It explained.
Even though that was very little to go on it still gave Boros something to think about as he began to walk around the room, "The sudden nature of your release", whatever reason he was brought back for this alone told him that something had gone wrong with his "Savior's" plan, and if that was the case he might be able to use it to his advantage.
"Very good, now onto the second test." It spoke after a minute or so, bringing him to a stop "We need to see if you are lacking in any of you previous powers and physical strength, so please feel free to unleash yourself on the room." It instructed.
Admittedly being surprised by the permission to use his power, Boros still wanting to play things smart simply began punching and kicking the air around him, and while he was able to do so with near imperceptible speed and incredible power, this did not seem to concern or surprise his mysterious observer.
"Do you not wish to use your powers?" It asked him.
"I don't want to destroy the room." He replied.
"Don't be concerned about the room's stability, if anything you won't be able to even scratch the glass separating us." It informed him.
Feeling a slight tinge of anger flare up within him at his abilities being taken so lightly, Boros decided to respond in kind by unleashing a blast of his energy onto the glass window, only to be stopped in awe that the voice's claim of it's durability was in fact true.
"Surprised? you shouldn't be." It told him as the smoke from the attack began to dissipate "After your attempted invasion of earth failed the entirety of your vessel was possessed and recycled by the hero's association, as a result this room and even the headquarters for the organization have all been upgraded in a sense to withstand any kind of damage or attack, even YOURS." It emphasized.
"What about Saitama's?" Boros asked, which due to the brief silence that followed seemed to successfully catch his spectator off guard.
"So, you remember One Punch Man then?" It asked.
"Oh yes, I remember it all." He answered as a smile came to his face, though unlike before in their battle when it was that of a crazed psychopath, this one was far more understated "It was a glorious battle, I gave it everything I had and yet I still managed to lose, truly he is deserving of his title as your world's strongest hero." He admitted, as the entirety of their battle played like a film in his mind.
"So you do know what'll happen to you if you try to try to step out of line?" It asked him.
"Is that a threat?" He responded.
"A promise." It replied.
Knowing well that they would not say that less they truly meant it Boros fell silent to think for a moment, for while the idea of fighting with Saitama did make his blood boil from anticipation, he knew that if he were to attempt the same global wide destruction that he did before there would be no second battle, only a second death.
"Answer me this then." He spoke as he crossed his arms "What purpose do you wish me to serve then? I find it hard to believe that you would go to such lengths to revive me especially given what remained after our battle if not to serve you in some way, so am I merely a slave or perhaps a weapon for you to use?" He asked.
"Even with the certainty that One Punch Man would kill you should you try to destroy the world again, I would have to truly be the greatest idiot in the history of all time and space to try and incur your wrath, be rest assured Lord Boros you are by no means a slave, nor are you a prisoner, however I am giving you one chance and one chance only to make a decision that could better your situation." It answered.
"Go on." He urged, curious as to what they meant by that.
"Before you there was not a single entity in this world that could withstand even one blow from him, admittedly this was thanks to your incredible regenerative capabilities which also helped a great deal in your recovery, however you also possess an absurdly high pain tolerance and by default are incredibly resilient for an organic creature, and so I as well as my associate wish to offer you the chance of a lifetime which I urge you to consider carefully, you can either leave this room and become a hero of this world just like One Punch Man, which would allow you to live here peacefully, be given all the luxuries we have to offer, and an endless amount of rematches with the very man who ended your existence." It explained.
"Or?" He questioned, even more curious to know what his other option could be.
"You can leave this room, seek out One Punch Man, die once more, and proceed to stay dead." It replied simply.
Unable to keep a smirk from creeping onto his face from how blunt the other was with that answer, he knew very well that even if their connection to Saitama wasn't significant he would still come and destroy him like before should he repeat the past.
"Then I suppose there's only one real option, if I want to keep breathing that is." Boros said as he pointed to the window "But before we go any further I would like to see the face of the person I have to thank for giving me this second life."
Instead of responding with words whoever was behind the glass opened the door leading out of the room, which had been designed to blend in so well with the wall you wouldn't have even known it was there. Walking over and through into the next room Lord Boros was met by a human man dressed like a scientist.
"My name is doctor Genus." The man introduced the moment he walked into the room "I am the world's leading expert on genetic research and development, and from a purely scientific standpoint I must say what an honor it has been to study your genetic code Lord Boros." He admitted.
"Thank you?" Lord Boros replied, as he had never been given a compliment like that before.
"Follow me, we'll get you dressed in addition to briefing you of what your first assignment shall be." Dr. Genus told him as he walked out of the room via another door.
"Wait first assignment? you mean that I'm already going to be a hero?" Lord Boros asked as he followed, noting how the hallways were very scarce and cold much like the room he was in before.
"Yes, as you might recall I said before that your release is a bit sooner than I would have wanted, I wanted to ensure there were no issues with your new body and that there would be no disconnect from your mind." Dr. Genus explained.
"And there isn't correct?" Lord Boros questioned.
"Yes, though your release has been rushed due to an unexpected disaster requiring your unique abilities, be rest assured that I would not have awoken you less I was certain both your body and mind were sound, however there IS one drawback to be had due to these circumstances." Dr. Genus admitted.
"Which would be?" Lord Boros inquired.
"Both me and my associate, who is currently dealing with the disaster you are about to face wanted to reintroduce you to the world slowly, assure them that you were no longer a threat and if possible even get One Punch Man to support the whole thing, which would have done a great deal to put everyone's minds at ease." Dr. Genus explained "However since that is no longer a plausible option, at least not for now, in order for you to carry out the task at hand as well as all hero work for the foreseeable future, you will have to do so inconspicuously." He went on as they stopped at another door.
Entering a code of some kind into a keypad that rested on the door's frame, once it was open Lord Boros was met with something he never could have believed he would see again. Standing there on some kind of mannequin was none other than his suit of armor, the very same that had been instantly destroyed by one of Saitama's punches, however it was altered in many ways to no doubt avoid alerting anyone to his identity if they in fact remembered it. The first major alteration was the overall color scheme, before his armor was mostly solid gold with but a few streaks of purple leading up his gauntlets and chest until it stopped within the center of his abdomen, but now it was solid black. Then there was the matter of it's design, before it was mostly a chest plate accompanied by the aforementioned gauntlets and a set of armored boots, now it was designed to be one whole suit that would cover him head to toe.
Finally and this was the most significant change of all, resting atop of the mannequin's head was a helmet specifically designed with his head's anatomy and overall structure in mind, complete with one massive visor that while he could not see passed was no doubt like the mirror from the room before.
"This suit is a joint project between me and my colleague, a melding of both living genetic material as well as the most advanced technology we have to offer, as it was of course taken directly from your ship." Dr. Genus explained as they both walked in to look it over more closely "Even though One Punch Man had shattered your original armor to pieces when your fight first began we were able to find those pieces in what remained of your throne room, and through a great deal of effort were able to use them to make this one both as durable as it's predecessor, as well as even more so in many ways."
"How do I put it on?" Lord Boros questioned as he stood before it "It seems to be completely closed off?"
"As I said, this is a joint project between me and my colleague, and while he is far more of an expert in the field of robotics and engineering, I exceed him in genetics, and thus with our expertise combined we have made the first TRULY semi autonomous living battle suit, all you need to do is touch it for it to become attuned to your unique genetic sequence." Dr. Genus explained.
Admittedly surprised by what he was just told Lord Boros still put his hand onto the suit's chest, then almost like a wave quickly crashing against his body the suit converged on him, completely covering his form within seconds.
"How...is this possible?" He asked as he looked himself over, impressed by both the suit's functionality as well as how comfortable it was.
"Well, the answer to that is actually quite simple, though I don't know if you'll like it." Dr. Genus warned.
"Why? what did you do?" Lord Boros questioned.
"When we were scouring the ruins of your ship we found a great deal of bodies, one of which was of course your own, however as we continued to search we eventually came across what we believed to be the remains of the shape shifting creature you sent to attack us after your first bombardment." Dr. Genus explained.
"So that means this suit is..." Lord Boros began to say, only to be cut off by the other.
"No, be rest assured you are in no way wearing your fallen subordinate, unfortunately there was not enough remaining genetic material for me to be able to clone him, let alone attempt reviving him as I did with you, however from what WAS left I was able to create the first ever non sentient genetic material that can be controlled via thought." Dr. Genus explained "However you should not be concerned that anyone else might try and do the same, as I said it is specifically bonded with YOUR DNA, it will only react, move, fight, and do whatever else you may have in mind should you give the order whether it be vocally or mentally."
"I see." Lord Boros simply responded as he continued to look it over, his fascination growing by the second "So what all can it do? what are it's features?" He asked.
"Only what your imagination limits Lord Boros." Dr. Genus replied "While you of course need to take into consideration the overall amount of material available to you, as the suit is only made of so much, through your thoughts you can turn parts of your suit into a nearly infinite amount of tools and gadgets, as it is still made with technology of course." He explained "For example, if you wanted to have a sword or even a hammer to wield in battle, all you would need to do is will it and it shall be."
Deciding to put that into practice Lord Boros held out his hand and imagined in as much detail as he could a sword appearing within his palm, and as the doctor said within a literal instant the thought was exactly as Boros desired a sword made of the same material as the suit appeared in his grasp.
"Incredible." Lord Boros said truly stunned by what he had just witnessed, bringing the blade closer to inspect it "Everything is as I envisioned, down to the exact curvature of the blade." He noted.
"Like I said though you do have to take into consideration the suit's reserves, which at any point in time you wish to see you need only to will it just as you did with the sword, and it will appear on the inside of the suit's visor." Dr. Genus told him.
Once more putting that into practice Boros desired to see not only that particular information but any and all other information the suit could provide, to which it immediately did. Popping up on the visor in a holographic like projection, not only was the amount and detail of the information given incredibly abundant and precise, but it did not hinder his vision and he could still clearly see everything in front of him.
"This...is truly remarkable." Lord Boros praised, causing a proud smile to appear on the other's face.
"Coming from someone who has spanned the stars and has seen countless worlds, that is a very high and welcome praise." Dr. Genus replied.
"What does this one percentage mean? regenerative support?" Lord Boros asked as he looked over all of the information.
"Simple, if you so desire you can allow the suit to use your own regenerative abilities to make repairs and even create more excess material to help serve as your weapons and tools, however depending how great the request the more of your own power it will need to carry it out, which of course is displayed via the percent." Dr. Genus answered "Take note that should you allow a great deal of your own strength to be used on your suit, while it will not cause you pain or discomfort you will begin to rapidly feel fatigued and light headed as a result of over exertion, so try to use this function only in dire circumstances as the suit has it's own form of regeneration, though nothing that can match your own." He explained.
Well beyond satisfied with the suit Lord Boros would have continued to look it over and test it's full capabilities had there not been an interruption. The sound of a phone ringing filled the air causing Dr. Genus to pull out a cellular phone from his pocket.
"Hello, yes I am aware time is of the essence, I just finished debriefing him on his suit, I will have him there momentarily as I debrief him about the task at hand." He swiftly spoke to the person on the other end, before ending the call right after "That was my colleague, he is beginning to run low on ammunition and will not be able to distract your opponent much longer, so we need to hurry and send you there." He explained as he refocused on Lord Boros "Come, we'll talk as we walk to save us the time." He directed as he left the room.
Following behind both men exited the room and made their way down another hallway, this time finding themselves at an elevator.
"Here is your mission." Dr. Genus began as they both entered "You are going to travel to city S, there currently wreaking havoc is a massive centipede like creature that is well beyond what we are capable of handling, without the aid of One Punch Man of course." He explained as the elevator began to ascend rapidly "However as we have been unable to contact him you are going to deal with it instead, I estimate given both your raw natural power and your newly acquired suit, it should only take you five seconds in total to deal with the whole mess, any questions?" He asked.
"How am I going to get there?" Lord Boros asked, for while he could in fact defy gravity with the aid of his power, he had no idea where it was they needed him to go.
"Do not worry, another feature of your suit is a built in GPS, all you need to do as you have thus far is request directions to city S, and not only will it give you precise directions but if you want it can also provide you with live feed from the city itself, so that way you might see your opponent before you kill it." Dr. Genus answered "Once you have successfully dealt with the monster and any other creatures that may be in the area, you are to return here, understood?" He asked.
"Perfectly, thank you." Lord Boros replied as the elevator came to a stop.
Continuing to follow him through the facility which now had more lights, windows, and spacious rooms as they were on the surface, doctor Genus led him outside to the font of the building where he was met with the warmth of the sun and scent of fresh air. And while these were not new things to him Boros did for just a moment close his eye and take in a deep breath, to truly relish in the fact that he lived once more.
"Alright, I'll be back." He said simply, before he reopened his eye and looked to the sky.
Thanks to the suit's aid the amount of power he would need to fly was actually even lesser than it already would've been, and as a result he decided to increase his output as to make getting to his destination all the faster. Though as he flew through the air, reflecting on what the doctor had told him in addition to the information he had his suit bring up on his visor, he couldn't help but wonder to himself, where was Saitama and why wasn't he dealing with the threat?
"Saitama PLEASE let's just go home!" King pleaded in a whisper, hoping to appeal to his friend's rational side.
Staying true to his word Saitama after having left King's apartment with both him and Kaemon in tow decided to venture out into the world disguised as Charanko to prove that his plan would work. And while at first King and Kaemon were admittedly surprised that the few people they passed only seemed to recognize King, once they had gotten on a train which neither of them had expected, they only were surprised further as even on a crowded train of people not ONE soul managed to see that it was Saitama. But where as they thought Saitama was just taking them to a store somewhere or perhaps a very public place to really cement his point, when they arrived at their destination and stepped off of the train, both of their hearts sank when they realized what he had done, and they both felt incredibly stupid for not realizing it sooner. Saitama, without so much as a single ounce of hesitation had brought them to the "Super Fight Tournament" in city C, which he fully intended to participate in.
"Why would we do that? we already came all the way here and my disguise is working, so there's no problem." Saitama casually replied with a shrug of his shoulders.
"There are SEVERAL problems with this! Kaemon help me out here!" King protested, hoping the other would back him up.
"Eh, to be honest I'm actually excited to see how this turns out." Kaemon admitted catching King completely off guard."I mean yeah at first I was kinda worried that this whole thing would end in disaster, but from the train ride to the massive crowd of people we pushed through to get in here, no a single person managed to recognize Saitama, so I wanna see how far we can take this."
"See? Kaemon's on board." Saitama chimed in.
"Next!" The woman in charge of registration called out, signaling that it was his turn to come up.
"Saitama please!" King begged, only to be ignored as the other walked up.
Watching on with baited breath as he was certain this was going to end horribly, the woman suddenly let out an audible gasp in surprise, which he believed would be their end.
"Oh my gosh! has anyone ever told you that you look JUST like One Punch Man?" She asked in disbelief.
Feeling as though his jaw could hit the floor out of the massive tidal wave of shock that just hit him, where as King watched this unfold with a completely baffled mind, Kaemon on the other hand had to wrap their kombu around their mouth to keep from erupting into laughter.
"Really? first time I've heard that." Saitama said as he handed her his ticket "So I bought this ticket to participate, it's still good right?" He asked.
"Mhm! yes sir it is!" She replied as she took it from him and looked it over, just to be sure "All I need from you now is your name and fighting style and we can be all set to go." She told him.
"Right, my name is Cherry and my-" He began to say only to have King leap forward and clasp his hand over his mouth.
"CHARANKO! W-what he meant to say was Charanko!" King quickly shouted out in panic "And his fighting style is the flowing water crushing rock technique!" He added.
"Alright then! please head down the hallway to your right and enter the fifth door you reach, that will be the locker room you'll be using over the course of the tournament." She instructed.
"Okay, thank you." King replied as he took his hand off of Saitama's mouth.
"What was that for?" Saitama asked as the trio left the line and proceeded down the hallway.
"Look, if you're actually going to see this thing to the end then we have to be careful about it, starting with the fact that the person who you're trying to impersonate's name, is CHARANKO." King explained to him, making sure to emphasize the name to hopefully get him to remember it.
"WAIT!" The woman called out to them from her table, followed by the sound of her pushing her chair out and getting up.
Freezing in place the trio, even Saitama, began to feel a creeping sensation of dread come upon them as it seemed like after thinking on it the woman had figured out the facade.
"Excuse me, sir?" She questioned as she stopped just behind them.
Expecting her to be referring to Saitama they were all surprised when she reached out and tapped King on his shoulder, causing him to turn around and face her.
"Uh, yes?" He asked, now admittedly confused.
"Are you the S class hero King? One Punch Man's sidekick?" She asked, with big hopeful eyes.
"Um...yes?" He answered hesitantly, causing her to squeal out in joy.
"I knew it! I knew I recognized you!" She exclaimed excitedly as she then took out a paper and pen "Could I have your autograph? if it wouldn't be too much trouble?" She asked.
Having to blink a few times to be certain that what was happening was indeed real, and not the product of a sudden unexplained stroke, King took the pen and paper from her and gave her his signature.
"Thank you so much mister King!" She exclaimed as she took it from him "I'll be sure to tell the rest of the staff that we have the honor of you attending the tournament!" She said as she then hurried off back down the hall.
"Wow, good job King." Kaemon praised as they patted his back with their kombu "For a moment there I thought we were in trouble."
"WAIT!" She shouted once more before she ran back over to him "If you're attending the tournament, does that mean One Punch Man is going to too?!" She asked, causing Kaemon to once again wrap their kombu around their head to avoid laughing out loud.
"Well...he's currently working right now dealing with a super big monster somewhere, but he'll probably show up before the tournament's over." He answered causing her to squeal a second time.
"OH THE PROMOTERS ARE GOING TO LOVE THIS! THANK YOU SO MUCH MISTER KING!" She shouted in appreciation before running off to spread the news.
Left in silence the trio waited until the woman was for sure gone this time before they all released a sigh of relief.
"Good save there King." Saitama said as he patted his friend on the shoulder.
"Yeah, good save..." King replied as they all then continued on their way to the locker room, he still having trouble coming to terms that this was ACTUALLY working.
Sometimes in life a series of unpredictable events can just suddenly occur, and we don't realize just how insane it all is until there is a pause in the chaos. This perfectly described the last several minutes of the S class hero Metal Bat's life, as one moment he was fighting a giant centipede creature and then the next he was fighting the self proclaimed hero hunter Garou. It had all happened so fast that he wasn't really sure if it was real or maybe he was just lying unconscious somewhere and thus everything that followed was a dream. Then again with every blow that he took from the hero hunter, who managed to somehow block or evade all of his swings, he definitely could feel more and more of his bones either breaking or fracturing, in addition to the countless flesh wounds that were also opening as the battle raged on.
Having been flung from the monster after delivering several different blows that yielded no success, Metal Bat found himself in a shopping district far off to the outskirts of the city. Yet just as he was about to make his way back to the creature and resume dishing out justice with his weapon, he was approached by a strange looking man with wild gray hair and what seemed to be a martial artist's outfit, who challenged him to fight. At first believing he was just some random idiot he prepared to leave, only to then discover the truth as he defended against the other's sudden attack, thus marking the beginning of their fight. But after several minutes of fighting passed by his opponent was perfectly fine while he was beaten, battered, bloody, and exhausted.
Still, he refused to allow himself to fall, for looking beyond his own will and spirit as a fighter to beat his foe into the dirt, he didn't want to let down the very person who inspired him to become a hero in the first place.
"What's wrong Metal Bat?" Garou questioned with a twisted grin "Feeling a little tired? maybe you wanna take a break?~" He taunted.
Gritting his teeth at how annoying this bastard was Metal Bat was about to reengage the fight, only to stop as something strange caught his attention.
"The hell is that?..." He asked as he looked to the sky behind Garou.
Confused as to what could have possibly gotten his attention so suddenly Garou too looked to the sky, only to be left as confused and surprised as him. Flying towards the city appeared to be some kind of man in armor, though unlike the obvious answer Metal Knight this person didn't seem to be a robot of some kind, then again the only reason they figured that was because he lacked any kind of absurdly large guns on his back. But before either of them could ask each other if it was with the other, they watched it come to a stop in midair appearing to look right at the centipede.
"What's it doing?" Garou asked, as both men had completely forgotten about their fight due to this strange sight.
Feeling both their eyes widen in unbridled shock at what happened next, the mysterious figure seemed to hold out one of their hands, and then within the blink of an eye a massive purple light shot forth from it's palm and went straight for the creature. At first when it made contact it seemed like nothing had happened, but soon the entirety of the monster's body quickly grew darker and darker before it all came crashing down in a massive heap of ash. Unable to keep their mouths from opening from having witnessed that near city sized bug be reduced nothing in the span of seconds, they watched as with complete disinterest the being as quickly as they had appeared flew off into the distance.
"Who...who...WHO THE HELL WAS THAT?!" Garou shouted out as he turned to look at Metal Bat "I'VE NEVER SEEN A HERO LIKE THAT BEFORE! WHO THE HELL WERE THEY?!" He demanded to know.
"WHY THE HELL ARE YOU ASKING ME?! YOU THINK I WOULD KNOW?!" He asked in return.
Trying to process what exactly they just saw both men though still somewhat wanting to fight, more so wanted to walk away and try to understand what they had just seen. And so that's exactly what they did, both Garou and Metal Bat slowly turned away from each other and walked away, their brains racing a million miles an hour.
"Was that? no there's no way, he can't fly, and he can't shoot lasers either..." Metal Bat thought, for just a second considering the possibility that somehow some way that might've been One Punch Man.
"There's...there's another hero that can just one shot monsters..." Garou thought as he balled his hands into fists "DAMN IT! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT?!" He wondered.
Turning around opposite street corners both men continued to walk away from the scene as they were far too shocked to really do much more. But where as Garou was able to go on his way with no one stopping him, Metal Bat was brought to a stop by none other than his younger sibling, who had come looking for him after their phone call.
"Big Brother!" Zenko, a young girl who just happened to be Metal Bat's little sister called out to him as she ran up, a look of excitement present on her face "Big Brother did you see that? that person just killed the monster in one shot!" She exclaimed.
"Uh huh..." Metal Sounded, barely able to register that she was even there.
"Who was he? do you know him? is he friends with Saitama?" She asked in a rapid fire fashion.
"Uh huh..." He repeated, which in turn caused her to glare at him.
Seeing as how her brother was actively ignoring her Zenko jumped up from the ground and deliver a karate chop to his head. And while she unlike her brother was not superbly strong in any way, combine that one chop with his wounds from the centipede and Garou, as well as his current state of shock, it was just enough to send Metal Bat straight to the ground completely unconscious.
"Huh?" She sounded, as she honestly hadn't expected that "Hey! Big Brother! wake up!" She exclaimed, as she began to prod him with her finger.
"I have to say, this was far beyond my expectations." Metal Knight admitted as he watched the footage of the "fight" between Boros and the centipede "Not to say I doubter your work of course, but given the circumstances of his release it is still quite remarkable." He explained.
After Boros had arrived and dealt with the monster, Metal Knight besides calling back the unit he had sent to distract it also called his colleague to go over what had transpired.
"Indeed, it seems as though that even with there having been some rushed steps no complications arose, which truly is the best thing we could've hoped for." Dr. Genus replied.
"I'll get to work on preparing a case for us to present to the executive members of the association, if all goes well then perhaps we may also begin reintroducing him to the world sooner than planned." Metal Knight said.
"That would be beneficial, though a key to that plan succeeding is One Punch Man's cooperation, we're going to have to reach out to him about this soon." Dr. Genus noted.
"Yes Yes I'm well aware of that, but for the time being let us just focus on regaining order, as with Boros's aid we should be able to deal with all of these sudden monster attacks within a quick and efficient amount of time." Metal Knight reasoned.
"Agreed." Dr. Genus replied, before they both ended the call.
Taking a deep breath of relief from how well everything was working, before the good doctor could truly revel in his and Metal Knight's success, a knock was heard at his door.
"Come in." He invited, revealing as the door opened the person who had knocked was Boros "My, you did make it back here quite quickly didn't you?" He asked.
"It could have been faster, but I'm still getting used to living again." Boros replied, as he entered the room and closed the door behind him.
"I'm assuming one of my clones told you where my office was?" Dr. Genus asked, as the other approached and sat down.
"Yes, I hope I'm not interrupting anything." Boros answered, receiving a shake of the head in response.
"No not at all, in fact I had just finished talking with my colleague about you and your remarkable success in dealing with the monster." Dr. Genus admitted.
"Oh? is that all?" Boros inquired, curious if they had discussed anything else.
"Well, we were talking about how we should approach revealing you to the world, and decided that besides making a case for the association to review, we're going to absolutely need One Punch Man's help." Dr. Genus explained.
"Speaking of, why didn't he respond to the monster? surely it would have made more sense to send him than anyone else?" Boros asked.
"Well, for some reason or another the association is rather hesitant to call upon him for every single monster that appears, most than likely due to the fact they're afraid to anger him." Dr. Genus answered "But looking beyond his absence at this particular monster, there are many more that have been surfacing across the world that you could also deal with, which before we arrange a meeting between you and One Punch Man will go a long way to build a positive public image." He explained.
"But when might I get to see Saitama?" Boros asked as a smirk came to his face "I'd love to see his reaction to me standing before him once more in the flesh." He admitted.
"All in due time Boros, as I told you before we need to be careful going ahead, but if everything goes well then you shouldn't have to wear that helmet to hide yourself from the public for too long." Dr. Genus explained.
"Very well, then I shall wait until there is another threat for me to deal with." Boros told him as he got up from his seat and headed for the door.
"Wait Boros." Dr. Genus spoke, as something came to mind "Make sure that none of my creations see you without your helmet, many of them know people within the association and Mutsuko specifically is friends with One Punch Man, while I trust them they still could let something slip." He warned.
"Don't worry doctor, your suit continues to prove quite useful beyond compare, be rest assured that at a moment's notice I can make my helmet reappear in order to hide my face." Boros replied.
And so, with their conversation as it's end both men then went on to focus on other things, all the while both were admittedly excited for what the future was bound to bring.