Another chapter. Enjoy reading!
Chapter 10 - Enforcing Justice
Saitama opened his eyes.
The moment he was swallowed by the darkness, he didn't think that he'd have the chance to open his eyes again.
Sunlight lit the room he was in as he looked outside the window, feeling the soft bed and pillow underneath him. No longer does he feel the hot and burning feeling inside him when he walked through that hell. Here he was, alive and still kicking.
The doctors called it a miracle. He supposed that it would have. He was sure that death was claiming him at that time… yet when he woke up, there wasn't even a single burn in his body anymore.
But when he was questioned, he found out that the memories before that hell were no longer present. He can't remember anything beyond his name. He can never think beyond the heat, the cries for help, and the desperate urge to forge on.
He had this feeling they're not really important… but still, it was a problem. He didn't have anywhere to go to after this, so the doctors told him that he was going to an orphanage if he didn't remember. It didn't really bother him since it felt like there was no one waiting for him anyway.
"...You could be adopted by me, if you want."
But one day, a strange man visited him, saying that. The man had a gaunt face and empty eyes, yet for some reason as he looked at him there was a strange spark in his gaze. He didn't know why the man looked at him in such a way, and he didn't remember meeting him anywhere.
"Who are you?" he asked the man.
"You don't remember me? I was the one you went towards in that fire."
…So that was why he's familiar. Now that he said it, he does look like that desperate man he saw right before getting claimed by the darkness.
He didn't really try to remember his face or anything. He was more preoccupied telling where the others were. And it was getting hard to see that time anyways.
The man gave him a slight look of surprise when he voiced that out, before shaking his head in amusement.
"My name is Emiya Kiritsugu. What's your name?" he suddenly asked.
"...Saitama."
The man gained a curious expression. "You mean… the place?"
He nodded. It was a strange name, but it was the only thing he remembered.
"Very well, Saitama." the man continued on. "As I was saying, you can go to an orphanage… or you can come live with me, if you want it. It's your choice."
Saitama was quiet for a few moments.
…He didn't know that man, nor the reason why he wanted to adopt him. But he didn't really care about that. He had more important things to know about, one that had been in his mind the moment that he opened his eyes.
He gripped his hand to a fist, then and he asked him a question.
"When you arrived… when I pointed you to where the others were…" he started, looking at the man in the eyes. "Were they saved?"
The man stared back.
…Then, he smiled.
"Yes. Yes they were." he answered. "You were a hero to them, Saitama."
With that answer, an almost ever-present burden that he didn't know lifted up his shoulders, and Saitama felt that for the first time ever since waking up that he had done something right.
He didn't hesitate and accepted the offer of the strange man in front of him.
That was the moment it was decided that he would start to live with Emiya Kiritsugu.
—The man that would lead him to his fateful path of becoming a Hero.
Saitama opened his eyes.
He registered that sunlight was streaming past the shoji door, lighting up his room. It was morning.
The grogginess of waking up made him just lay down there, unthinking as he stared up at the celing. Then, after a moment, the events of the day before finally caught up to him.
Him getting picked up by an angry Taiga. Her asking him to stop being a hero to be safe. Some weird guy attacking Taiga and old man Raiga's men and them being injured as a result, who he defeated quickly when the guy was spouting some stuff he didn't really listen to.
Then, his decision to be the strongest hero, so that he can save others and not worry Taiga from him getting hurt.
Saitama closed his eyes and sighed, remembering the dream—no, the memory that played in his head.
"I guess the old man must have dealt with these things too…" Saitama muttered, recalling the hesitation he felt when Taiga told him what she felt. Then, he shook his head. "But it's not like it matters now. I already know what to do."
Saitama stood up, then after fixing his futon, walked out of the room.
Things were busy after the whole fight. Thankfully, Taiga and the men were healed with Tohsaka arriving. There's also the whole thing about collateral damage. Tohsaka—and Taiga, after she recovered—had scolded him for destroying the building next to them.
And besides all that…
"What did you even do to Saitama, you witch!?"
"I'm telling you, I have no clue!"
There was the fighting.
Saitama sighed as he heard the shouts of Tohsaka and Taiga even when he was still in the hallway. "They're still going, huh…?"
Thankfully his injuries had mostly healed up, so he didn't have to deal with a headache while also feeling like his whole body was in pain.
He didn't get the specifics, but he just found out yesterday that for some reason, Taiga was involved or was working with Tohsaka dealing with all this magus stuff. He didn't know how long she did that, but it's not like Saitama can blame her when he hid his heroing from her as well. Still, she had misunderstood that Tohsaka involved him towards this and was very angry about it.
When the whole fight was finished, Tohsaka had cleared that up by saying that he was already fighting monsters on his own in the first place and just assisted her.
Naturally, Taiga had her doubts.
Saitama slid the door to the living room.
"What do you mean you have no clue!? No normal person can be that strong! Tell me what you did to him!" Taiga shouted as she slammed the table in front of her.
Tohsaka slammed the table as well. "And I'm telling you I don't know! If anything, I should ask you how he turned out like that!" she shouted back.
Taiga looked confused. "Hah? What are you even on about?"
Tohsaka exhaled harshly, before turning to him. "Emiya-kun. Please explain to your idiot sister how you managed to get your strength."
Said idiot sister growled. "What'd you say you brat? I'm still your teacher, you know!? Treat me with respect!"
"I would if you actually put effort into understanding the situation instead of shouting at me when I come here first thing in the morning!" Tohsaka bit back.
Taiga was about to snark something back, before holding it in and turning to Saitama, who sat down on the sofa to watch some TV. "Saitama, explain. Now." she commanded.
"You want me to tell you how I became this strong?" he asked, idly listening to the conversation, before shrugging. "I just trained."
There was a sudden silence that appeared in the room.
"...Huh?"
Saitama picked his nose, eyes glued to the TV. "Like, you know, pushups and all that. I did it a lot."
The silence appeared again.
Then there was a sigh. Saitama glanced to the side to see Tohsaka palming her face.
"Do you see what I'm dealing with?" Tohsaka said while giving a look at Taiga, who had a really complicated look on her face.
"So you're telling me it's not from some magical experiment that he got his strength from?" Taiga asked doubtfully.
"No, of course not!" Tohsaka shouted, throwing her hands up in exasperation. "I would actually be glad if that was the case! At least with that there'd be a plausible explanation instead of… whatever he's doing!"
"...Okay, so you might not be the one responsible for this." Taiga acquiesced. Then she gave a glare at the younger girl. "But still! You don't need to involve Saitama in all this!"
Tohsaka was speechless for a moment. "Y-You, are you serious?" she asked, dumbfounded. "Didn't you see what sort of things he's capable of!? He knocked out a monster and destroyed a building! And that's not even on the most ridiculous list of things about this guy!"
"I don't care! Let the monsters roam around—he's going to study and become a doctor!"
"Be reasonable, damn it!"
I can't even hear the TV anymore. Saitama deadpanned in his mind as the two started again. Mentally sighing, he stood up again from the sofa and moved to the kitchen, intent to make breakfast.
The two continued their bickering as Saitama cooked, and it was only until he actually set the food on plate that things started calming down again. Somehow, the smell of breakfast must have been a cause for reasonable discussion.
Saitama sat down beside Tohsaka as the girl nodded in thanks for the breakfast.
"Alright." his sister started, chopsticks held in her hands. "So, what you're saying is… Saitama was going out defeating monsters on his own, and it's only recently that you managed to find out that he's actually the cause."
"That's right." Tohsaka nodded, taking a sip from a bowl of miso. "I gave him an offer of working with me since I knew sooner or later he's going to attract attention. That way, I can protect him from worst case scenarios like getting a Sealing Designation."
"And because he can defeat monsters for you." Taiga pointed out with narrowed eyes.
"He was going out doing it on his own anyway. What am I gonna do, stop him?" Tohsaka countered back.
Taiga considered that for a moment, before sighing in dismay. "Saitama… why do you need to complicate things like this?" she whined, giving him a complaining look.
He didn't look her in the eyes, instead focusing on eating breakfast in front of him.
When he didn't respond, Taiga shook her head. "Alright, fine. So maybe you're not as fragile as I thought." she muttered. "I'll allow you to keep doing this thing you're doing… for one condition!" she suddenly said when Saitama looked at her hopefully.
Taiga turned to Tohsaka, leaning towards the girl with a stony expression. Saitama tensed as it reminded him of her face yesterday, and he knew that the woman was being entirely serious. The woman felt like a tiger that would rip you to shreds.
"You make sure that Saitama will remain safe, and you will protect him to the best of your abilities. Got it?" she growled out.
Tohsaka was quiet for a moment, staring at Taiga straight in the eyes and not backing down.
Then she huffed.
"Hmph, who do you think I am? I already promised that when I made a deal with him—what kind of first-rate magus would I be if I don't live up to it?" she answered. "I don't need you repeating things again for me."
Taiga raised a brow, before losing her stony expression as she leaned back to her seat. "Alright, as long as you understand that then there's no problem." she said with a small smile.
And just like that, the normal Taiga was back. The sudden tense atmosphere in the room disappeared.
Taiga started putting food in her mouth. "Now, dersh shtill the matter with the shect people, right?"
Tohsaka nodded. "...Yes, we need to find out where they are immediately. If grafting the muscles of the muscle monster leads to that much power… then they're a priority amongst other targets."
Taiga swallowed her food before humming thoughtfully, tapping the chopsticks on her chin. "The whole attack earlier made our previous eyes on them fall back since they said they're aware of them. No need to worry though. Right now, I'm having my men sweep the entire city as we speak."
Tohsaka opened her mouth to reply—
"Excuse me for the intrusion!"
—before pausing, as a small voice called out from the entrance, followed by the sound of the door opening and closing.
A few steps, and a head peeked in the living room.
"Ah! Fujimura-sensei, you're back!" Sakura greeted her happily. "I tried to come here yesterday but there wasn't anybody… home…"
Sakura's voice trailed off as she stared at Tohsaka, who was looking at her with wide eyes.
Saitama noticed that the two seemed to be very tense, and he caught Sakura's lips frowning slightly and Tohsaka looking away.
He blinked. What was that about? Do they know each other?
"Sakura, good morning!" Taiga greeted with a smile, ignorant of the exchange. "Sorry about yesterday, I had some things to do. Come sit and join us eat breakfast!"
Sakura remained motionless for a moment before smiling. "I'm sorry, sensei. I already ate earlier." she said but still moving to the table and sat down.
She took the spot beside Saitama… though the distance was a bit too close for comfort.
"Sakura?" he asked as the girl almost leaned at him.
"Oh. I-I'm sorry, senpai." she apologized, pulling back—though there was something odd in her tone he couldn't quite place. She properly moved to sit on her spot. "I guess I'm feeling a bit sleepy this morning."
"That can't be good. Are you sure you're sleeping right, Sakura?" Taiga asked with a frown.
"I am, sensei. It's nothing." the girl answered.
"Well if you say so." Taiga said, before blinking. "Oh, right! I better introduce you—this is Tohsaka Rin. She's your upperclassman. Tohsaka, this is Matou Sakura: the Ace of our Archery club!"
Sakura blushed slightly at the praise and looked down… but Saitama noticed that despite it she was side-eyeing the girl seated beside him. Tohsaka for her part stopped looking down on her food and instead straightened, before turning to look at Sakura.
The two made eye-contact.
Sakura gave her a smile. "...It's nice to meet you."
Tohsaka was quiet for a moment, before looking away and nodding. "...It's nice to meet you too." she said quietly.
Taiga was also being suspicious as she looked at them with eyes narrowed. Then suddenly, she slammed the table with a bang! that made the two girls jump. "Hey, Tohsaka! What's with that greeting!? Is that how you should treat your precious kouhai!?"
"W-What's wrong with my greeting!?" the girl said back, oddly flustered.
"Look her in the eyes, with respect! You think that she's not worth greeting that way, huh!?"
"I'm—!"
"—It's fine, sensei." Sakura smiled. "I don't really mind. We're strangers after all."
Tohsaka stiffened, before seemingly shrinking on her seat.
Saitama frowned. No, seriously, what's this about?
Taiga didn't seem to notice this as she turned to Sakura with an indignant expression. "What!? If you think that I'll let someone walk over a person in the Emiya household, then you're dead wrong! Respect is the highest virtue here!"
"B-But I'm not part of the Emiya household…?" Sakura muttered.
"Nonsense! You're practically family! With all the times you've been here it'd be strange not to consider you a part of it! Hell, why don't you make it official already and marry Saitama—"
"Sensei!" Sakura shouted, flustered. Saitama scratched the back of his head.
Taiga laughed, much to the continued embarrassment of the purple-haired girl.
Breakfast continued as Taiga continued to talk her mouth off as usual. Saitama and Sakura were already used to the woman's antics, and so the previous awkward atmosphere slowly abated as things went on a more familiar turn. Tohsaka, though, was mostly keeping silent as she ate.
"—And then Neko tried to show off saying that she can get a man if she tried, but when she tried to approach one she got all flustered!" Taiga slapped the table while roaring in laughter. "You should've seen her face, Saitama!"
"I don't think that Neko would appreciate you telling that story…" he muttered.
"Bah! She was getting arrogant anyways. Who does she think she is, saying she can get a man and only choosing not to because of her business." the woman raised her tea and drank it all in one go, before setting it down hard on the table. "She's just the same as me! She just won't admit it! Why, I'd—!"
Her rant was interrupted by the sound of her phone ringing. The woman paused and took it out, reading the message.
Then she stiffened, before narrowing her eyes as she peered on the phone intently.
"...Sensei?" Sakura asked in concern.
The woman blinked, before shaking her head. "Oh, n-nothing. Just a message for all the faculty." she then stood up. "By the way, I think I need to get there early. Has something to do with recent issues." Taiga said, giving a look at Tohsaka, making the girl gain a pensive expression.
Saitama blinked as well. Did she get information on where the sect is? That was fast.
Sakura noticed the byplay. "Does it have something to do with Tohsaka-senpai?" she asked the girl.
Tohsaka blinked, surprised at being suddenly addressed. "A-Ah, yes. Something like that…" she trailed off.
Taiga cleared her throat. "Y-Yeah, she's involved. I needed her help for something, that's why she's here in the first place." she then walked off. "Anyway, you two go to school on your own! Be safe alright!"
Tohsaka stood up as well, following the woman and leaving the room.
However, Saitama noticed her giving a glance at Sakura before leaving, followed by… a regretful expression. If there was any doubt from Saitama of something between the two girls, then it's gone.
Sakura tilted her head as the two left. "I wonder what that is? I don't think I've heard of anything important happening at school…"
Saitama stood up and took the dishes, putting them in the sink. "Taiga just probably slacked off again or something, so maybe she wants Tohsaka's help?" he lied, trying to cover up for the two of them.
"...You're not very good at lying, senpai." Sakura muttered.
Saitama wasn't able to hear what she said. "Hm? You said something, Sakura?"
Sakura was quiet for a moment, before giving him a smile. "It's nothing, senpai. Why don't I help you with cleaning that up?"
Saitama blinked. "You sure? I mean, I can—"
"I'll help, Saitama."
"A-Ah, yeah. Sure."
With that, as they went cleaning up breakfast and preparing for school, morning at the Emiya residence ended peacefully like always.
…Saitama thought that Sakura was being strangely forceful though.
A few hours earlier in Fuyuki.
In a hidden warehouse that no one would look into, sounds of battle and blood being spilt echoed inside its walls as a massacre was taking place.
Inside, corpses of men wearing robes were laid haphazardly on the floor, blood pooling around their bodies. Next to these men were also various oriental weapons, and looking closely, one would see that some parts of their body were modified with strange-looking flesh grafted into their bodies.
And from all these people, only one remained standing.
Out of all of them this person seemed to carry the most modifications, wielding a Chinese Dao sword. With muscles swelling with power, combined with the large degree of destruction around him, one would look at him as a very powerful foe.
"You people…!" he shouted, voice pained and exhausted. "You will pay for doing this to our sect!"
Yet for all the power that the person showed… the amount of blood flowing from his many wounds showed that he was the one losing. The man was right in front of death's door.
This was the leader of the illustrious and unparalleled Ancient Cultivator Sect.
"There is nothing to pay. Long have your little group been allowed to run around recklessly." a voice coldly stated. "Your ignorant quest for power will end now."
The grotesque squelch of flesh of a body echoed throughout the warehouse, followed by a body being thrown to the ground in front of the sect leader. The sect leader flinched at the sight of his follower's corpse.
And from the darkness of the warehouse from where the body was thrown, a figure came out, followed by many more behind him. They were sharply dressed in suits, covered by the blood of the sect leader's followers.
They were few, being a group of seven, and compared to the sect leader they were almost tiny in size. Yet undeniably, they carried an air of experience and professionalism that pointed to their effectiveness as killers. Any competent magus would be able to recognize who they are and what they represent.
"The Mage's Association no longer tolerates your existence." said the enforcer. "And we have come to end your sect."
The sect leader twitched in rage. "End the sect…!? Do you think you can stop my ascent to heaven!?" he shouted. "You cannot, fools! For I have already begun my ascension! With this phantasmal creature, my power has gone beyond what is possible!"
His body twitched as the muscles started transforming, enveloping the whole body and sword of the sect leader and turning it into something different—something more sinister and immensely more powerful.
"Try and defeat me now if you can! I'll listen to your screams and enjoy your suffering as you beg for your life!"
The monster roared, then moved with speed that surpassed anything that it had before, dashing to the newly revealed enforcer with its sword raised up.
The enforcer remained unmoving.
"Die!" it shouted.
The sword was about to be brought down—
—Then there was a flash of light.
…
Steel clattering echoed, as the sword had fallen out of the monster's grip.
"W-What…"
…And the monster, who had a hand raised up mid-attack, fell to the ground with a shocked look on his face, bleeding slowly due to the newly created hole from where its heart had once been.
The enforcer simply looked to the side. "Impressive work."
The female enforcer beside them nodded as the mystic code returned to her hands. "Sir."
The enforcer then looked around to the others. "Split up and sweep the area. Make sure none are left alive. Afterwards, dispose of the bodies and contact the association that we got the target."
They nodded, swiftly following the instructions.
Leaving the female and leading enforcer behind with the corpse of the sect leader.
"...Fascinating, isn't it? To see such a curious phenomenon."
The female enforcer blinked as she was taken out from her staring at the corpse. She turned to look at the leading enforcer who had suddenly spoken up.
"Sir?"
"Phantasmal creatures are rare in this day and age—all that remains are usually the likes of dead apostles and their ilk." he spoke. "Yet here we are, seeing one right in front of our eyes."
There was a pause.
"Did you know that reports that trace back the recent influx of phantasmal creatures in the market usually point towards here in this city?" he revealed.
The female enforcer's eyes widened. "In this city… alone?"
"Yes. Curious, isn't it?"
"But that's…"
The female enforcer's voice trailed off.
"What should we do now, sir?" she eventually asked.
There was a moment of silence as the question was considered.
"'What should we do now', you ask?" the leading enforcer repeated.
He looked down on the corpse of the ground, studying the transformed body of the sect leader with a curious and, most importantly, hungry gaze.
"Now…" he began. "We find answers from the Second Owner of the city."
The enforcers are here! That doesn't bode well doesn't it? Hm, I wonder who that female enforcer is too? A female enforcer sounds familiar…
Anyway, with Saitama's recent arc being over there really is no point for the sect anymore so they're killed. Now comes the next characters to come into stage and for a new arc to start as people start wondering why monsters keep appearing in this city for some reason. Really, it's a wonder how this didn't happen earlier.
Also, Sakura and Tohsaka officially met each other for the "first time". Now that Sakura is aware that Tohsaka is actually involved in Saitama's life, I wonder how things will develop? Dunno, still figuring that part out. I'm flying by the seat of my pants here.
There's a question also asking if I'll involve the Grail War in the story. The answer for that is yes. Aside from that, things are not set in stone. I'll confirm one thing though—Archer Emiya? He's not in the story. The reason for that is because he exists as Shirou's character arc and Shirou is not here. He'll be replaced by another servant, because if not then it's pretty awkward for him to fit in the story.
Maybe if I somehow made an FGO crossover then it's possible for him to be included… but alas, that's still far from the future.
Anyways, leave a review if there are any criticisms as always. I hope you enjoyed reading.
