"What do you mean she's hospitalized again?!"
Shicchi, one of the head of Hero Association, bursted his distress to the poor, quivering co-worker who innocently informed him about the infamous Senritsu no Tatsumaki's current predicament. The unfortunate employee involuntarily accepts his higher up's awful outburst while quivering on the spot, clutching his clipboard like his lifeline.
"She can't be hospitalized especially when the association needed her the most!"
The employee squeaked, barely collecting his wits. "B-B-But sir, Tatsumaki-san fought a D-Demon level while still being hospitalized so I think it's an u-u-understatement?"
Shicchi clicked his toungue. "She should know better."
Peering another glance to his employee, he said. "You may leave."
"Y-Yes, sir!" the employee squeaked, scrambling his way out without glancing back.
Shicchi is becoming restless. He is completely fine with the other S-class hero ending up in the hospital, but after some report he received from one of the intel about wolf-bull monster attack, he panicked when Tatsumaki is included in one of the injured. She is the Hero Association's trump card since both King and Blast were really hard to be cooperated with.
The statistic about monster attack is high on this year, he needs to be cautious. If there is no strong hero other than Tatsumaki to beat level dragon or god monsters, then who will?
Shicchi mumbled something incoherent under his breath then leaves his office.
The first thing she saw when she woke up is the blinding beam of the hospital lights. Tatsumaki narrowed her eyes instinctively and she suddenly feel nauseous when disinfectant hits her nose. She groaned loudly, realizing where she is.
She was in the hospital. Again.
She blinked her eyes twice to adjust her senses and then decided to get up. She abruptly pause when she felt a burning pain attacking her midriff like she had been stabbed deeply. She lifted the hem of her shirt just below her chest, discovering her bandages being replaced into freshly new one. She scowled and let go of her shirt to touch her forehead wrapped in bandages as well.
She cursed herself mentally for her carelessness. She admitted that it's her fault for ending up hospitalized but still, deep inside, she's annoyed to herself. She is not suppossed to be here, healing for another god-knows-when. She is suppossed to be outside, fighting monsters and increasing her strength. How will she able to protect her sister when she's recuperating in this cursed hospital.
'This is humiliating.' She thought grimly as she gripped her blanket tightly in utter annoyance.
"Yo."
Tatsumaki jumped in surprise and automatically activated her power, her whole body glowing green. She turned her head to her right and grimaced when she saw the last person she wanted to see at the moment.
Saitama. Great.
"What are you doing here?" Tatsumaki asked rudely as she watch the A-class hero Saitama closed the door with a grocery bag in hand.
"Hey, I'm here to visit you. Be grateful."
Tatsumaki answered the bald hero with unappreciative hiss as he sits on the available chair propped next to her bedside.
"Your welcome." he added, responding the green esper's reaction. "For you, by the way."
The esper simply watch Saitama in curiousity as he proceeded to open the grocery bag he had carried with him and sprung out a bunch of bananas. He placed it on her table but took one to eat.
As Tatsumaki lowered her power, she wondered why this poker-face hero has the audicity to even visit her. It's not like they are close or anything. Heck, they are not even acquaintance. And why is he eating the banana that he gave to her?!
She could feel her eyebrow twitched when Saitama peeled the banana for himself. She lifted her hand to levitate the banana that was suppossed to be hers including Saitama's.
"That's a gift for me right? You don't have the right to have one," Tatsumaki declared, peeling completely Saitama's former banana and chopping it one by one in biteable size using solely her telekinetic powers.
"That's cheating," grumbled cape baldy as he eyed the chopped banana floated inside the esper's mouth.
"I don't need your preaching, baldy," the midget esper stated and proceeds to take another one of floating banana with a swipe of her finger.
Saitama did not say anything after and just watched Tatsumaki finished her filling thoughtfully. The silence soon creep over them, making the S-Class nervous for some unknown reason. Tatsumaki tried thinking some logical explanation why, of all people, Saitama suddenly visit her. They tried to kill each other for goodness sake! Oh, does he want to rematch? That's totally fine with her. She's ready to kick that egg-head ass anytime.
"If you're still recuperating then stop doing something reckless just like what you did yesterday. Fubuki can't take you on if you're still on that state."
Her trail of thinking stopped when she heard the tone of concern coming from that lightbulb. She remembered her fight with that bull-wolf monster. Saitama was there, and she imprisoned her with using her powers to disrupt his chi, or aura. Unfortunately, to her frustration, it did not affect him to a great extent like she expected to.
The result irritated her to no end.
The fact that this baldy is stronger than her and currently giving her worthless pity she does not need only makes her blood boil.
"You think I need mercy?!" she exclaimed, her hair floating once again when she activated her power.
"Hey, it's unethical to hurt someone who is already hurt," answered Saitama, he frowned while he scratch his head with his finger. Giving explanation to this obstinate midget sure is tiring.
Tatsumaki crossed her arms to her chest, facing away. "Hmph, mercy is for the weak. It's not for me. She can take me on whenever she wanted. She's strong, I admitted. But she can't defeat me!"
An angry vein appeared on Saitama head. "Hey, I've been meaning to ask but what's your big deal with strong and weak? You think if person is weak then they're less a person in your eyes?"
Tatsumaki eyes widened with the unexpected question but immediately tried to school her features. She look away from Saitama and dragged her eyes to her hands, clutching the sheets weakly.
"...no," she murmured softly.
"Then why? Fubuki even disbanded her group because of you!" Saitama retorted. Saitama is never one to preach, heck he even hate it. But this girl is a hero. A hero. She is supposed to be protecting the weak. And this girl also is such a terrible sister to his acquitance, another reason why he dislikes her.
"Shut up! Shut up! Shut up! Don't preach me like your word is a heed I need to take on! I don't need you to teach me, Baldy!"
"I'm not teaching you! I am just asking! it's okay if you don't wanna answer. It will be your problem anyway."
"I've already had enough with the weak!"
Saitama gritted his teeth. "There you go again with strong and weak—"
"They're scary."
Saitama fell into silence.
"When they're together, they could do whatever they want. They could seize the strong and turn them their own lab rat. They could give false accusations and ripped away your identity. They could destroy you if they want to..."
"I...I am not one of them. I could protect them but I will never be one of them. I already had enough of what they did to me. They could find happiness and be in their own bussiness as long as they do not interfere with my life. I don't mind keeping the peace for them."
Tatsumaki wondered why she's even bothering to tell all of this to someone who is even lower than her rank. She thinks he is dangerous. This man is dangerous. Coexistent, attachment and relationship, she don't need them. She will severe them. She had enough of the experimentation, of empty wishes, and sweet lie. She will protect Fubuki from it.
And she blurted something, a word she swore she should never used for to any situation,circumstances or anyone; scary. 'Scary' as if she just said she had induced fear against the weak.As if she perceived them as a threat. It humiliating, stupid, careless…
Saitama is silent for a while and Tatsumaki fidgeted on her position, fearing on what the certain hero's reaction is making. Lifting her unsure, green eyes from the sheets, she is surprised to meet Saitama's serious one.
"Hey about our rematch… let's do it after you recovered. I will take you on."
Tatsumaki stared long and hard, her eyes softening a little. Realizing this, she scoffed to hide her forming blush. A smirk then appeared at the esper's lips. This baldy seem to heared her mind.
"That's what I wanna hear!"
I'm really sorry for slow update! I will try to not really slow for next one. Thanks for my beta-reader to make this chapter readable!