A/N: Hey guys, thanks for all the support once again! Glad you're excited for season 2. As for news, there's currently a new OVA right now (I've seen it, it's pretty funny lol), and season 2 is being dubbed. I really like Saitama's English dub voice (maybe even more than the sub), so it was nice to see that return. I don't think a lot of people like Genos' dub voice but I actually kind of like it? I think it suits him. His dub voice actor also does the English voice for Tanjiro from Demon Slayer, but imo he doesn't sound as good there. It's too deep for Tanjiro. :p Anyway enough talking about English dubs, and on with the chapter!

Ayano punched the punching bag, snapping it off the chains with one punch. A dark grin surfaced on her face. She stared at herself in the mirror.

Her figure had become a lot more muscular. This was added by the fact that she could very easily lift extremely heavy weights. Two at the same time, in fact.

She stared at her clenched fist.

I'm coming for you, Saitama, she thought. Just you wait.

"Your rank has increased to Class B rank 7, Master Saitama," Genos said, as he scrubbed the dishes. "I've increased to Class S rank 15, while Ayano is now Class A rank 40."

"All I'm doing is pummelling monsters I stumble across," Saitama said, focusing on his video game. "I've gone up that much?"

"Well, monsters are beginning to appear on a daily basis now," Genos explained. "Even though you defeat monsters, you are not reporting them to the Association. Your rank is still increasing, though, so that must mean there are witnesses reporting your victories to the Association. That means you're becoming more recognised as a hero among the masses. I think you might even have a fan-club soon, Master Saitama."

"Yeah right," Saitama snorted. "You're in Class S and Ayano is in Class A, and neither of you have fan-clubs."

"Actually, I do have a fan-club," Genos replied, wiping a tea-towel over a plate.

"Me too," Ayano said, looking up from her Miyuki Volume 100 manga. "They call themselves the 'Yan-Fans'."

"Seriously?" Saitama asked.

"By the way, Master Saitama," Ayano said, "since you are a high-ranking Class B hero, the Class B rank 1 hero Blizzard of Hell and Class B rank 2 hero Remarkable will come and try to get you to join their group, the 'Blizzard Group'."

"Group?" Saitama asked.

"Some heroes have factions, rather than working alone," Genos explained. "Either because they prefer to work in a group, or because it makes it easier to increase their rank."

"And why do these Blizzard people want me to join their group?" Saitama asked.

"They don't like being out-ranked," Ayano answered, simply.

"Well, not like I'm going to steal rank 1 from them," Saitama scoffed. "As soon as I get to the top of Class B, I'm going into Class A." He scowled at his Saikou-brand console. "DAMMIT! I was so close to finishing that level!"

Genos' eyes suddenly lit up. He looked out the window. Ayano tensed, turning on her Yan-vision. She could see something too, something incredibly fast.

"You sense it too?" Genos asked her. She nodded. "I will deal with it myself. Stay here with Master."

Ayano kept using her Yan-vision as Genos went outside. She could see that Speed-O'-Sound Sonic was there. She looked away. Genos could handle him by himself.

"Crap..." Saitama grumbled, grabbing her attention. "I accidentally saved over King's save data."

"King?" Ayano asked.

"Yeah," Saitama said, holding up the console. "This belongs to King. I… kind of borrowed it without asking. Don't tell him."

"You… are friends with King?" Ayano asked, gripping her pants leg. "The S Class hero King?"

"I guess?" Saitama shrugged. "We play video games together, sometimes. He's insanely good at them."

King, The Strongest Man on Earth, Ayano thought. Saitama is friends with him? This could work well in my favour. If King comes over here, I could get him while he's not looking.

Suddenly, there was a ferocious knock on the door.

"Huh?" Saitama asked.

"Class B rank 7 hero Saitama!" a familiar voice - Mountain Ape - yelled. "Come out at once! Class B rank 1 Blizzard of Hell and Class B rank 2 Remarkable would like to speak to you!"

"They are here, Master," Ayano said. She faced Saitama. "Would you like me to tell them to go away?"

"Sure, go for it," Saitama shrugged. "I'm not interested in their group or whatever."

Ayano stood up and went to answer the door. Deja vu hit her as she faced Fubuki, Mountain Ape, and Kencho Saikou. There was also another girl there, who looked around 14. Ayano recognised her as Lily of the Three Sectioned Staff, Class B rank 76. She'd met the girl during the graveyard incident.

"Class A hero Yan-chan?" Fubuki asked, frowning. "What are you doing at this house?"

"Master Saitama is not interested in joining your group," Ayano said, bluntly. "Please leave."

"Hold on - did you say Master?" Kencho laughed. "Don't tell me a Class B hero is your teacher."

Ayano didn't respond, only giving him a doll-like stare.

Fubuki scowled. "I would like to hear those words from Saitama himself."

"Master Saitama is busy at the moment," Ayano said. "And even if he wasn't, I can guarantee he would not be interested in joining the group."

Mountain Ape glared at her, eyebrows twitching. "You wanna have another fight, girl?"

"Please leave," Ayano repeated.

Kencho held out his taser. "You got lucky last time, but this time, I'll make sure you go to Hell, you runt!"

"RIGHT!" Mountain Ape agreed, holding up his fists.

"I heard about what you did last time," Lily said, clenching her staff. "You won't get away with it now!"

"What's with all the noise?" Saitama asked, appearing behind Ayano. He stared at the Class B heroes. "Who are all of you supposed to be? Why are you harassing my disciple?"

"Saitama," Fubuki cleared her throat. "I am-"

"She told you I'm not interested in your little group, didn't she?" Saitama asked. He shook his head. "You guys and your hierarchy. You aren't gonna be powerful heroes like that, you know?"

"You stupid commoner," Kencho snorted. "Lily, Mountain Ape, break them both!"

The two roared and charged towards Saitama and his disciple, but the man just punched them away.

"Did you guys harass Yan-chan too?" Saitama asked. He sighed. "So you attack heroes that don't want to join your group? What kind of heroes are you two? Do you even know how to be heroes?" He glanced at Kencho. "I mean, this guy's a kid, but you're an adult, lady. Shouldn't you know better?"

"Remarkable, stay back!" Fubuki warned, raising her arms. "Hellstorm!"

Her hellstorm seemed more powerful than before, since it swept Ayano right off the balcony. She flew through the air, landing in some trees.

"Ayano!" Saitama shouted. He glared at Fubuki. "What was that for, lady?"

Ayano crashed down onto the pavement, grazing her arms. A kunai was near her head, sitting on the ground. She looked up, and saw Sonic and Genos having a battle of their own. She turned back, and saw Fubuki attempting to hurt Saitama with her ESP, while Kencho was holding out his taser. Ayano stood up, the wind blowing through her Miyuki sweater (which had been a gift from Midori).

"Master!" she yelled.

Then Genos yelled and blew something up. Ayano felt the explosion beneath her feet. Smoke was everywhere. Ayano began to cough.

"Yan-chan," Genos said, approaching her. "Are you okay?"

She nodded, standing up. A bruise was underneath her eye. Genos offered her a tissue.

"Was that Speed-O'-Sound Sonic?" Ayano asked, accepting the tissue.

"It was," Genos replied. He glanced over at Saitama, Kencho and Fubuki, whose fight had come to an impasse. "What is happening with Master?"

"Blizzard of Hell and Remarkable attempted to recruit him," Ayano responded.

Genos scowled. "I see. So they made him a target of their newbie-crushing."

"Hey guys!" Saitama shouted, waving to them. "Sure is dusty around here!"

"My apologies," Genos replied. "My attack-"

"EXPLODING SHURIKEN!"

A shuriken flew out of nowhere, exploding near Ayano and Genos. Genos' scowl deepened.

"You could throw a hundred of these at me," he growled. "They won't do a thing."

"You haven't even been able to hit me once, so stop talking big," Sonic replied smugly, sitting on top of a street-light. "You stupid puppet."

"Sonic," Ayano said, standing up.

Sonic glared at her. "Saitama's girlfriend? You're still around? How annoying."

"SHE'S NOT MY GIRLFRIEND!" Saitama yelled. "SHE'S A MINOR!"

Fubuki glowered at him, turning to Kencho who was examining her injuries.

"This is so weird, Kencho," she said. "Both of Saitama's disciples out-rank him, and there's an extremely dangerous criminal coming after him… who exactly is this guy?"

"A psychopath," Kencho grunted. "A damn commoner who stuck his nose where he shouldn't have."

"Master, this guy is annoying stalker," Genos said, glaring at Sonic.

"Let us take care of him." Ayano agreed, standing beside her fellow disciple.

Sonic chuckled. "As if some fools like you could ever 'take care of me'. I easily defeated that little girl the last time we fought."

"I've gotten stronger since then," Ayano replied.

"And I haven't shown you my true abilities," Genos added.

"You lose." they said, together. Genos exploded the road, appearing behind Sonic in a flash. He sent a flurry of fists flying towards the ninja, who gasped in surprise.

"Ayano!" Genos shouted. Ayano appeared in front of Sonic, an axe in hand.

Where the Hell did she get that from? Sonic thought, staring at the weapon. She wasn't holding that a second ago!

Ayano swung the axe. Sonic jumped out of the way, and slashed his katana. To his surprise, she quickly slid out of the way. Genos appeared on his other side, and used his hands to send a ray of fire towards the villain. Sonic dodged it, gritting his teeth.

That annoying girl has gotten faster, he thought. And so has that cyborg idiot. But they still can't keep up with me!

"I can't even see them…" Fubuki gasped.

Kencho didn't say anything, and just stared, brows furrowed.

I can't see them either, he thought. What the Hell is with these low-lives?

"Machine gun blows!" Genos shouted. Ayano chucked her axe towards Sonic, cutting some lint off his hair.

"You let your guard down, Speed-O'-Sound Sonic," Genos told him. "Begone!"

Sonic cackled, disappearing before Genos could hit him. In his place were a load of shadow clones.

"You pathetic fools," he taunted. "How does it feel to hit nothing but air? My special footwork and fast framerate create an afterimage. I call it fourfold funeral! Now, die! Scatterfold slash!"

"I can't see his movements," Genos told Ayano, scowling. With normal vision, Ayano couldn't see him either.

"Hold on," she said. She turned on her Yan-vision, and time slowed down. "I will handle this."

She saw him. Even Sonic couldn't hide from her Yan-vision. She held out her hand, summoning her strings. The red stuff trailed around her hand.

Fubuki's eyes widened. "Those strings…"

What is she doing? Sonic thought, staring at Ayano. What are those weird strings all over her?

Genos frowned, examining his fellow disciple. This move of hers… what is it, exactly?

Saitama just watched, a blank expression on his face.

The strings made their way towards Sonic.

How does she know where I am? he thought.

The strings wrapped around Sonic's arm. He scowled, clenching his fists. He then began to cry out in pain, while a creepy smile surfaced on Ayano's face. Sonic forcibly pulled himself out of the strings, glaring at Ayano.

"What the Hell are you?" he asked, teeth gritted. Ayano didn't respond. Genos' arms lit up, like he was about to blow the place up again. Then the disciples were on the ground, unable to move. Saitama had appeared, standing behind his disciples.

"Saving your disciples?" Sonic asked. "You're soft, Saitama."

"It'd suck if Genos set off any more explosions near my house," Saitama said. "Besides, there's no reason for you guys to fight. I don't think your powers are meant to be used in some stupid street brawl." He gazed at Sonic. "You're persistent, so I'll fight you seriously once in a while. Come at me, bro."

Sonic grinned. Finally, he'd get to use the special move he'd been training and perfecting!

A FEW MINUTES LATER

"Dammit…" Sonic glowered up at Saitama from his spot on the floor. "I'll get you next time…"

"He's too strong," Fubuki lamented. "This isn't normal."

"Damn right," Kencho grunted. "He might actually be as strong as my sister."

"I couldn't be number one. Not in strength, intelligence, or practical smarts… or natural psychic ability."

"My father is CEO of Saikou Corp, a massive business conglomerate. He had two children: a daughter named Megami, and a son named Kencho."

"I was supposed to be someone who stood at the top… if it weren't for her."

"Megami, being the eldest, became heir to the company. Meanwhile, her brother became nothing more than… a back-up."

"My older sister and the strongest esper… Tatsumaki."

"My older sister, and the heiress to Saikou Corp… Goddess."

"Because of my sister, I've never been number one at anything in my whole life."

"My sister and I had the same training, but she's always been able to out-perform me."

"I was alone in this world, until I found Kencho."

"No one understood how I felt, until I met Fubuki."

"Kencho and I decided to found the Blizzard Group, and manipulate lower B Class heroes into joining. United, we would be able to surpass our sisters with sheer numbers."

Genos frowned, interrupting the story. "That stupid brat - Tornado of Terror - is S Class rank 3, and Goddess is rank 2. Why not aim for A Class rank 1?"

"Rank 1 is impossible," Fubuki said. "It's not impossible to get into the upper ranks of Class A, but we won't make it to rank 1. No way."

"My sister's crappy group takes up Class A ranks 2-4," Kencho added. "Black Turtle, Red Bird, Blue Dragon, and White Tiger, AKA the Guardians. My sister might be on hiatus from the Association, but they're still going strong. But there is a reason they can't become S Class heroes."

"The man who's Class A rank 1," Fubuki said. "Handsome Kamen Amai Mask. No one can surpass him." She scowled. "There are a lot of monsters in this world beyond human reasoning. You're quite the monster yourself." She turned to Saitama. "But you're no match for Sweet Mask, or my sister. There's also the strongest man in the world, King, Goddess, a girl on a whole other level of hero, and the man who stands atop the hero world, Blast. They're monsters even among monsters."

"It's hard to move up on your own," Kencho said. "Why not make a faction?"

"Do what you want," Saitama said, not looking up from his manga. "I'm just not interested."

Ayano nodded in agreement.

"Pfft, stupid commoners," Kencho scoffed. "Fine, go and get your ass kicked, then. Don't come crying to us when you're at the bottom of Class C."

The doorbell rang. Genos went to go and answer it.

"Hey, Saitama," a deep voice said. "Did you happen to take my video game?"

Fubuki and Kencho almost choked. Ayano's brow went up.

It was King, the S Class rank 8 hero. He was a tall man with tanned skin, and slicked-back blonde hair. A scar was over his left eye, alongside his sunken cheeks, giving him an intimidating appearance. Ayano swore she could sense his strength from where she was sitting.

"My bad," Saitama said, casually. "I did."

Ayano couldn't believe it. The supposed Strongest Man was right in front of her. Saitama was currently searching for the video game he owed the man.

"Mr. King," Ayano stood up. She'd better introduce herself, at least.

"Huh?" he turned to face her.

Wasn't this girl at the Class S hero meeting? he thought.

"Hey, are you 'Yan-chan'?" he asked.

"I am," Ayano responded.

"Oh, cool," King said. "I ran into one of your friends on the way here. I think her name was… Midori?"

"YAN-CHAN!"

Midori suddenly appeared at the front door, excitement in her eyes. She was bouncing up and down, like she was on a sugar high.

"There she is," King said.

"Who are you?" Genos asked, staring at Midori.

"An Akademi High student…?" Kencho grumbled.

"Midori, what are you doing here?" Ayano asked, walking over to her friend.

"Well, I was going to visit you, but then I got totally distracted by the newest Miyuki game going on sale," Midori explained. "So I went into the game store, and I met him-" she pointed to King, "- who is also a Miyuki fan, and we talked about the game for a while. He's really good at it, y'know? He might even be better than me! He knows all the cheat codes! Even the ones from ten years ago! And he said his favourite character is Miyuki, which is the same as me - I mean, who else would it be, ha ha - and then we talked about the end of the anime, because the ending was so unsatisfying, I mean, you can't even-"

"Midori." Ayano said, calmly. "Off-topic."

Midori blushed. "Right! So that guy over there said he was visiting his friend Saitama, and I was all like, hey, my friend Yan-chan knows a guy called Saitama! So I tagged along!"

"Midori…" Ayano gave a side-glance towards King. "Do you know who that is?"

"No idea," Midori giggled, "but he's great at Miyuki! We should all play it together sometime - Kuu as well!"

Ayano just sighed. "Perhaps we should."

Genos didn't say anything. Fubuki frowned.

It seems Saitama attracts strong people into some kind of group, she thought. I want to be part of it too.

Kencho just huffed and looked away. "Commoners."

"By the way, how is Oka?" Ayano asked Fubuki.

"She is fine," Fubuki answered. "Quite shy, but fine. She recently joined the Hero Association, and is currently at the bottom of Class B."

"Who's Oka?" Midori whispered, but of course, her whispering was more like whisper-shouting.

Ayano sighed. With Midori around, it was going to be a long day.

"S Class Rank 15 Genos, A Class rank 37 Ayano, and B Class rank 7 Saitama. Do we agree on their hero names?"

"No objections!"

"Because Genos aggressively attacks the most heinous monsters, he shall be known as Demon Cyborg!"

"Ayano was given her hero name by her fellow students! Yan-chan, a cute nickname for a cute schoolgirl!"

"And Saitama will get his name from his bald appearance! Behold, Caped Baldy!"

The associates laughed and laughed, while Sitch frowned. They were more concerned about hero names than the human-monster Garou. They told Sitch not to worry. Supposedly, the human-monster was being hunted by Silver Fang, a capable S Class hero. And besides, the Association had Tornado, Goddess, and Blast if something went wrong! Not that Goddess was around at the moment...

"Don't worry, Sitch," they all said. "We'll be fine without Goddess! The other Class S heroes are competent enough! And besides, we still have Goddess' group, the Guardians!"

Sitch kept frowning. Why now of all times did Goddess have to be out of commission? He had faith that of course, if the world was in great peril, she would show herself again. She was the best hero by far - a model hero, he'd call her. Reliable, powerful, and respectful… yet, she wasn't here now. And Sitch truly wished she was.

Info-chan:

Hey. Go to the Sakura Tree behind the school. Right now.

Ayano:

Why?

Info-chan:

There is something you really need to see.

Ayano had no idea what she meant by that, but she knew it had to be important. So, saying goodbye to Kuu Dere and the book she was absorbed in, she headed over to the Sakura Tree behind the school. The tree in question was known as the 'Confession Tree'. The rumor said that if you confessed your love to another person underneath the tree on a Friday afternoon, they were guaranteed to accept your confession.

Ayano didn't really care much for rumours, or what the tree stood for. She saw Taro Yamada standing nearby the tree, reading his book. She slipped into the bushes, hiding. Why was he there?

Amai Odayaka suddenly approached him, holding a cupcake. She sat down beside him. The two had been spending a lot of time together, especially after Osana's death. Ayano scowled. Why should she care about this?

Ayano:

You want me to see Amai and Taro interacting? Why should I care about this?

Info-chan:

Watch.

Amai and Taro were blushing as they stared at each other. Ayano was still confused, and then she saw it. Not the cupcake, or the fact that the two were hugging.

Taro had strings around his hands, just like Ayano's. Ayano's eyes widened, as she watched them float around.

"It's so amazing that you're a Class A hero," Taro said. "You're so brave…" he sighed, deeply. "But… I like someone else… yet, I like you too…" Pink and red exploded everywhere. The strings pointed in Ayano's direction.

Ayano gritted her teeth. Taro could use the strings too? If he could, then…

Ayano:

How long has he been able to use those strings?

Info-chan:

Not entirely sure. It seems they were triggered by Osana's death. He doesn't seem to be aware of them.

Ayano:

Was it a mistake to have her killed?

Info-chan:

That depends on how you decide to use those strings.

Now she understood. Taro was just as dangerous as all those heroes.

And he would have to perish.