Five years later…
"Shit, it's so damn hot today."
A young twenty-year-old male drenched in sweat slowed his pace and slumped down under the green shade of a nearby tree to hide from the sun blazing heat in the park. Dark patches formed on his grey sleeveless hoodie from his underarms, and his face, biceps and hair were damp with sweat from all the running he had done up until this point. He swung his light rucksack off his back and within seconds his water bottle was out. Taking a few good gulps, he sighed after the cool liquid he seriously needed ran down his throat. He wiped the sweat from his forehead and rested his chin on his palm as rays of sunlight penetrating the leave above him made the dark turquoise fade of his naturally raven hair glisten. He figured he would stay here to catch his breath, and then head back home. After stealing another quick gulp of water, he leaned back on the tree trunk and closed his eyes, only to hear a familiar voice soon afterwards.
"Oh, hey! Is that you, Zen?"
Zende opened his eyes and saw a young bald male wearing a blue running suit and carrying a grocery bag, standing in front of him. He instantly sat up the moment he recognised him.
"Oh. Hey, Saitama," he greeted.
"Hey. You out on another run?"
Zende chuckled and ran his fingers through his hair.
"Yeah, I was. I think I'm going to take a breather and head home," he replied before glancing at his shaven-headed friend's blue running clothes. "Hey, aren't you hot in that? It's blazing out here."
"Well, you've been out running, right?" Saitama pointed out, "Of course you're going to feel hotter. You can come over to my place if you want to."
"You sure? Genos will most likely kill me if he sees me like this." Zende tried to say jokingly, remembering Saitama's cyborg disciple reacted the last he saw him in this current state.
"That's okay. You can sort yourself out when we get back."
"Saitama, I live just below you."
The twenty-year-old smiled with a shake of his head. He had never met anyone in his life as chill and casual as Saitama. He remembered when the two first met: just two months before he was nineteen, he got caught up in a fight against a monster in Z-City, and he sustained multiple injuries to the brink to defeat. He would have died that day if the hero for fun hadn't arrived and saved him, giving the younger man a good insight of how powerful the guy truly was. He had been Saitama's friend ever since, and that day his childhood dreams of becoming a hero came back to him, and sure enough, after he became registered as a B-Class hero, he was training himself up to get stronger so that he would be able to fight tougher monsters and villains and raise his rank. As he learnt from Saitama, he decided to become a hero not for sake of public praise, but because he wanted to. Not only that but he had his own secret motive.
"Well, no matter. I guess it wouldn't hurt to crash at yours again for a bit," he remarked, getting to his feet. "Do you want to head back now?"
Saitama smiled, "Well, if you're ready to go, then yeah!"
The two heroes chatted and occasionally joked all the way back to Saitama's apartment in the abandoned area of Z-City, where they both lived since Zen lived on the next floor down. The conversations were about small stuff, like hero work, brief plans for the next week and so on, until Saitama asked a question that changed Zende's mood entirely.
"So, Zen. Have you found any clues yet?"
"Huh?"
"You know, about your sister?"
"Oh…that…" Zende hung his head and gazed down at his feet. Five years ago, his father was killed during a terrorist attack, and out of his own guilt and self-hatred, he took his anger out on his younger sister as though the incident was her fault, even though he knew deep down that it wasn't. He had walked away from her, leaving her on her own, before he soon succumbed to his injuries and passed out, only to wake up in the hospital. And his sister? He was told that she was never found, and he was immediately seized with knife-twisting remorse. For the last five years, he had been trying to search for his younger sister, and every time he recalled that day, he regretted what he had done to her. He still loved her, and missed her terribly every day. He missed her bright smile, her outgoing and energetic personality. He even missed seeing her cute little face and being able to pick her up and swing her around in his arms. He could've given up entirely, but his thoughts of her, along with the hope of being able to be with her again was enough to keep him going. In fact, finding his beloved sister was the ultimate, and only, goal he had. It was the reason why he wanted to get stronger, why he chose to become a hero. But deep down inside, it threatened to kill him with pain. Whenever he thought of the day their father died, and of how he left her, ignoring her pleads for him to come back, there was always that pain in his chest, that twisting and crushing in his heart, and he ended up breaking down. He tried his best not to let the pain show in front of others, including Saitama and Genos, but whenever the topic of his sister was brought up, it wasn't always easy.
"No," he said quietly, "No I haven't. Sorry."
"Oh," was the response from Saitama, "What was her name? Jaela, right?"
"Yeah…" Zende whispered, his voice slightly starting to break. Any more of this and he could shatter.
To his surprise, Saitama placed his hand on his shoulder with a comforting pat, and when the black haired male looked up, he saw a smile on his friend's face.
"Don't worry about it too much, okay?" he said, "I'm sure you'll find her soon. I bet she's out there somewhere waiting for you. So don't give up hope yet, okay?"
Zende, whose dark hazel eyes were glazed with tears, gave a sad yet hopeful smile. He was happy enough to know that Saitama was there for him when he needed it. He may not have looked it, but he was the kind of guy who could actually understand, someone Zen could easily talk to.
"Thanks, Saitama. I appreciate it."
"No problem. I mean, I am your friend and all," he replied casually, giving Zen another shoulder pat before lowering his arm. "Hey, if you're struggling, then don't be afraid to ask me to help you find your sister. I wouldn't mind."
"Sure. Thanks."
After that, Zende felt slightly better. Knowing that he wasn't fighting alone was enough for him to keep going, to keep fighting until he reached her. The sadness instantly washed away and soon he was continuing to talk and joke with his friend. It was the least he could do to take his mind off things, apart from the exercise and training he was doing.
'There's still some hope left. I can't waste it. I won't give until I find you, Jaela. I promise, no matter where you may be right now, I'll find you. I'll save you…'
