Being a cyborg, he required very little sleep. Normally, this was a good thing, but today he wished that he could have stayed asleep a little longer. He was taken aback when he spotted her curled up on the floor. The blonde had nearly forgotten that Noriko was there.

She was sleeping on the floor, on her side, with her long violet hair fanned out behind her. The girl's cat tail was draped over her leg, her feline ears twitching slightly in her sleep. She was wearing a pair of black boyshorts and a black sports bra, exposing quite a bit of her pale flesh. He stood there for a long moment, taking in her appearance, before shaking his head and moving to begin breakfast.

Her story stirred emotions in him that he did not like. Anger. Frustration. Things that he should not feel so strongly when it comes to a stranger. Of course, he had heard about her before.

The Hero Association often sent her to fight monsters since she was Class A and also basically deemed disposable. The idea that she had started off as a normal girl and then put through such an ordeal reminded himself of his own past, in a way. Though, of course, her situation was also different.

Someone wanted to make her into their ideal girl and then turned around and created another version. What sort of pain had she felt when he betrayed her that way? He had destroyed her life in order to make her into something he could love and then created another version. Genos curled his hands into fists and considered leaving.

She shifted in her sleep, curling into a tighter ball. Her tail's tip twitched and she shivered. It made him wonder if she was having a nightmare. What she would be dreaming about.

With a frown, he dragged a blanket over her and turned his back on the girl so he could focus on making breakfast. His master was still asleep, snoring in his futon. Another glance at Noriko over his shoulder showed that her upper half had moved out from beneath the blanket.

Shift P.O.V

Noriko blushed red when she woke up. Saitama was eating at the table and tried not to look as she pulled on a pair of shorts and a tank top from her bag. Settling a cat bell choker around her neck, she frowned. I hate this thing, but when I wear it, I feel like I can sense my sister better. I know that she still wears hers. I've seen the pictures.

Without a word, she pulled on her freshly dried jacket and moved toward the door. "Saitama-san, Genos-san, thank you for letting me stay the night. I'll be sure to repay the favor when I can."

"So what can you do anyway?" Saitama's deadpan stare was directed at her as he scratched his stomach. "I mean, you said that guy tried to make you into his 'ideal girlfriend', right? So what can you do?"

Her brow furrowed and she gestured to the twin swords on her back. "I can fight using swords or hand to hand combat, I can cook and clean, I can balance a checkbook, I can create and manage budgets, I can do tea ceremony, and I can learn quickly. When my mind was altered, he wanted to make sure that I was able to do these things so he took out a lot of my memories from my earlier life."

"You can cook and clean?"

It was now that she noticed how messy the area around him was on the table. She felt herself beginning to grow a bit pale. "Yes. I know a lot of recipes."

"Ugh." He leaned backwards and fell onto his back on the floor. "Uuuuugggghhh! Fine. You can stay until you get a lead on your sister. You don't have hairballs, right?"

"Why would I want to stay here?" she bluntly asked.

"Why wouldn't you? You wanted to sleep in an alley last night and look how that turned out. How old are you?"

"Eighteen," she replied. "I'm an adult. I can take care of myself, Saitama-san."

"What are we discussing?" Genos set down a tray with three cups and an electric kettle. He looked at his master, who was lying on his back, and then looked at Noriko.

Saitama sat up at the smell of the tea and turned his gaze to Genos. "I told her she could stay, but she doesn't want to."

"You should stay. It would be safer for you. At least until you find Little Catgirl."

"I…can take care of myself."

"It's not just about that," Saitama argued. "I want to see how strong you are." He met her confused gaze with a determined one for a brief instant before regaining his default deadpan expression. "What do you think? Want to spar with me? I want to see what you can do."

I have no idea what either of these men are capable of. Genos is a cyborg! He might have missiles or flamethrowers! And Saitama is a complete mystery to me! I'm still not convinced that he isn't a pervert, either. Noriko started to eat the food placed before her, noticing bits of shredded meat bun in her rice. "I don't want to spar with you," she determined. "You're…unsettling."

"Spar with me then. I would like to see how you fight," Genos determined.

"I fight with swords."

"That is fine. I am sure that this sparring match will be beneficial to both of us." He stared back at her until she finally conceded. At this, he seemed quite pleased. She was a Class A hero so she was bound to be strong.

She slouched a little as she continued to eat, glancing up every so often to watch Saitama shovel food into his mouth. Her ears went back, tail twitching with agitation. I need to get out there and find monsters so I can fight to get stronger! I should at least try to find Koneko, too! If I stay with these two, there's no telling what might happen!

The girl watched as Saitama got up, leaving her alone at the table with Genos. Noriko tried to not look his way, feeling his eyes on her. Though his interest seemed to lie mainly in sparring, she still felt uneasy in his presence. Most men made her feel this way.

"Why are you trained in swordsmanship? Didn't you say that your creator was trying to create his 'ideal girlfriend'?"

Noriko stiffened. "Er…well he wanted me to be able to protect him because he was bullied in school." Thinking about Kenta made her angry and sick to her stomach. He had been fourteen when he kidnapped her, two years older than her, and as much as she hated it, she knew that he had been infatuated with her.

He had claimed to love her, at least for a while. When he took her, she became his world and he made himself her world. She was only able to speak to him, saw only him. He doted on her and tried, in his own creepy and misguided way, to make her happy. Then he began to ponder having a second girl to dote on and Koneko was created.

Unlike Noriko, Koneko was created from a faux-organic material in a large test tube. She formed quickly, over a short period of time, and lived with them for one year. Kenta taught her everything that she needed to know, but when she heard Noriko talk about the outside world, she began to ask questions that made Kenta very angry. That was when he became violent with both of them.

Genos saw her shiver and wondered what she was thinking about. "What sort of person was your creator?"

Bowing her head, she shrugged. "He was a creep. He was older than me…chubby and he wore glasses…he had stringy black hair." Noriko stared down at her empty rice bowl, mouth twisting into a deep frown. "He loved me, but it wasn't real love. The years I spent with him were full of misguided affection and disgusting obsession."

"Sounds like a creep." Saitama scratched his stomach again, standing in the doorway. "What time do you want to spar?"

"You want to spar with me?" Genos asked, hopeful.

"I'm just going to watch. I want to see what Nya-chan can do." He moved off toward a clothes basket and rummaged for a yellow hero suit, red gloves, and red boots.

Noriko hurriedly looked away as he began to changed clothes, her face turning red. He's just going to change right here in front of us?! And why did he call me that? That name is an embarrassment!

The three went to a large, open field where no citizens could possibly be harmed and the girl stood a good distance from Genos. Her jacket was discarded and her swords were in her hands. "So…it's just sparring, right?" she asked with caution. Even from over a hundred feet away, she could see that he was excited to spar.

"Yes, just sparring. But do not go easy on me. You should know that I am difficult to injure." He watched her take on a fighting stance and felt his excitement grow. True to her hero name, the stance was very similar to what one would expect from a cat. When he rushed forward to engage her, the girl moved swiftly and gracefully to avoid being hit. He watched her take several steps backwards before running at him with both blades ready to strike.

She twisted to avoid another hit and shifted behind him. When he turned, swinging an arm as if to punch her, Noriko raised both blades and sent a sharp current along them. His expression turned to one of surprise and he took steps back, trying assess what had happened.

Her swords had been created by Kenta and were gifted with certain abilities that she rarely used. But if I'm going to spar with Genos, I want to show him what I'm made of! Rushing forth once more, Noriko lifted both blades and brought them down to sink into his shoulders.

He hurriedly caught both blades in his hands and twisted hard, sending her body flying several feet away onto the hard ground. She skidded over the dust and gritted her teeth as she tried to steady herself. At times like this, she envied Koneko; the younger girl had much better balance due to her smaller frame.

Genos watched her regroup and tossed her swords aside. The current had come from seemingly nowhere and ignited something within him. When she ran at him this time, with her fists ready to strike, he could not wait for her to try to connect.

Noriko pursued him, trying desperately to strike him as he avoided each hit with care to where they were stepping. There were cracks in the earth here and he seemed to be trying hard to keep her from tripping over them. At the same time, he was trying to keep her from actually striking his metal body and injuring her small hands. It was when her gaze turned from frustration to rage that he knew she was becoming serious.

Genos moved back quickly to avoid a swipe from her sharp nails. She was beginning to act on feline instincts and he was starting to understand how her mind had been warped by her creator. Noriko was bearing sharp fangs and growling lowly at the back of her throat.

When she closed the distance between them and aimed at his throat, he acted without thinking. A blast of energy left his palm and connected with her chest, sending Noriko flying backwards and into a rocky wall. Dust rose and he immediately regretted pursued her.

The breath had been knocked from her lungs and she tried to gasp for air as he appeared in her line of sight. She was on the ground, staring up at the sky, and flinched when his face came into view. To her utter embarrassment, he lowered himself to his knees at her side and brought his face close to hers. What is he doing?! I just need to get some air…

"Are you alright, Noriko? I did not mean to-"

"Is she okay?" Saitama appeared behind him, staring at the girl over his shoulder. "Ouch. Better clean that up," he remarked, pointing at the scorched flesh at the center of her chest.

The blast had burned through her shirt and bra, leaving the skin beneath bruised and bloody. She coughed up a bit of blood and gasped. "D-damn it…ngh!" The girl's right hand moved to try to cover her exposed skin, but a cold metal hand gripped her wrist to stop her. "Genos-san, I-"

"Please. Allow me to take care of it."

Before they could start arguing, Saitama grabbed her other hand and put her over his shoulder. "It looks pretty bad. I have ointment back at my place so we'll just go there." He glanced over at Genos quizzically. "Can you get her stuff?"

"Y-yes, of course, Master Saitama."

They watched the blond run over to where her jacket and swords lay, neither speaking for a moment. Finally, Noriko broke it. "I…don't know why you want me around."

He shrugged. "Dunno. Just don't want to see you get hurt, I guess. So what's with you and Genos?"

"Genos-san? What do you mean?"

"I mean, you two are acting weird. What happened after I went to sleep?" Saitama stared straight ahead at the blond as Noriko fell silent.

The wind blew through her long, purple hair and brushed over his scalp. She silently brooded, draped over his shoulder like a sack of rice, and was alarmed when she felt her tail being touched. It quickly coiled around the wrist of the hero and he raised an eyebrow. "D-don't touch my tail, please! It's sensitive!"

"I just wanted to see if you could feel it when someone touches it. You know, you really do look like an anime character." He paused and frowned ever so slightly, but she was unable to see it. Realization was dawning on him. "That creep was trying to make a-"

"Y-you don't have to say it out loud."

Again, he shrugged. "I mean, it's not like he didn't succeed. You're probably everything he wanted, right?"

She sighed, frustrated, and released his wrist. "Not everything."

He watched as Genos started back toward them, feeling the wind flow over his scalp. "Hey, but at least you away, right? It really seems like you like being a hero, too." There was a pause before he continued, his voice quieter. "You've got a pretty firm resolve and you can fight pretty well. I don't know. You might be my type."

"Wait…what?" Noriko gasped as he suddenly rushed off over the rocky terrain, carrying her like it was nothing. The scenery sped past her, the girl's green eyes going wide with shock. He's really, really fast. And Genos is keeping pace with him, too. How are they so fast?

Anxiety was beginning to build within her and she found herself pressing a hand to Saitama's back in order to brace herself. Her fingertips dug into the fabric of his hero outfit as she briefly glimpsed a figure in the distance. A figure wearing black and watching the trio with venomous contempt.

"Are you sure that she will be safe that way?"

Saitama shrugged, inadvertently jostling her. "Better than making her walk, right?"