Respectable Home

by Nasha Rei-Kun

Ippan wanted to be accepted, wanted, and 'normal'. She'd become an idol to become a 'person' in this world of quirks. And yet, she'd gained HIS heart, that 'normal' man's, Obito's. He was her polar opposite, he thought differently, he looked at the world in a light she couldn't possibly understand... And... And he loved her. He who was so 'extraordinary' he made HER look normal.

3. The Idols I

So, for this story, there won't be too many changes.

Manami Aiba, La Brava for those who don't know her real name, is 24 to 25 instead of 21 to 22. I'm not really bothered by the ten-year gap but I'm doing this for narrative reasons so I can include her and Gentle Criminal, Danjuro, earlier.

There will be a few interesting ones, for one, Ippan Josei's max height will be around 8'4 since the wiki's kinda gave a range and I'll use the one I can work with the best.

~NRK~

Getting inside had been a trial in embarrassment and frayed nerves as they were welcomed by hotel staff. Habami was all grins by the time she got them their rooms before handing the men their own.

"I know you're 'in that phase'," she winked at Obito's twitching eyebrow as he took his key. "But don't make any mistakes~ You're still young!" The bat idol laughed as their elevator stopped. "Hah! Your sass can be beaten!"

Watching her go, Obito's red face quaked with embarrassment as Shinji chuckled.

"Apologies, she is a bit tough around the edges," he smiled as they all left before finding their rooms on the sixth floor. "But she means well, she's honestly quite happy for you two," the bull man told them.

"Y-Yes, well, she can not e-embarrass us on the internet," Ippan whined before Hachika dragged her to her room. "H-Hachi-chan?!"

"Time to strategize!" She shot Obito a wink before the two were inside the fox's room. "Girl, I'm gonna give you tips!"

Watching them leave, Obito just sighed hotly before finding his room. "Shinji, remind me, what amenities does this hotel have?" He asked.

~NRK~

Having found clothes prepared for him in his room ahead of time, surprisingly, Obito hadn't spent a moment more and left to find the hotel's hot springs.

Wearing his old attire with a bag holding a new one thrown over his shoulder, Obito entered the men's side of the hot spring area situated in a downstairs area of the hotel.

He didn't give the idea of their being 'men' and 'women' sides to the same collection of five hot springs more thought.

'This is going to change things,' Obito thought as he put his things away before wrapping a nice fluffy towel around his waist. "Oh, they don't use the small thin ones," he noticed as he walked out and into the arrangement.

He washed up in the nearby showers, ears filled with the sound of the rainfall shower head above.

Missing the 'glint' of eyes from the women's locker area before a tentacle slipped back quickly.

Finishing up his shower, Obito got up and turned around to see the heavy amount of steam that hid half the area.

Going inside the largest pool, trying to predict any possible horrid situation, he slunk in and relaxed after the day he'd had.

Leaning back against the hot spring edge, arms thrown over the back of the warm stone borders, Obito rolled his shoulders.

"Hmm, I'm going to need to get a massage I swear," he said to himself as he pushed out his chest and felt a crick before relaxing more with closed eyes. "God knows I'm going to need a personal one from now on."

"Oh yeah? Maybe Ipp-chan will do it for you," a smug voice said from his side, the feeling of two presences slipping in beside him.

Obito's eyes widened in disbelief before his eyebrow twitched at the snickering from his left yet the blushing on his right. "Hachika-san," he uttered as she laughed.

"Oh, come on! I'm being supportive," the half-naked octopus woman said, nothing but a towel around her body. "Besides, we got dirty today," she smirked.

Obito's eyebrow trembled as he clenched his eyes shut, Ippan's red visage sitting at his side in a similar state of dress. "I'm… Sorry?" He said unsurely to the fox who shook her head before realizing he was being considerate.

Ippan blushed harder. "I-It's fine! W-What I mean is… I-I mean, it is fine b-but that's for down the road!" She stammered as Obito's eyebrow trembled.

'She's just as good at this as I am,' he thought weakly. "Look, we're adult enough here to… I think, I don't know if you're eighteen or not but we're old enough that we can adapt to this," Obito tried to say before groaning.

Ippan held her claws in her lap, eyes stuck to the half-clear water before they snapped to the right. 'No, stop! Be a good fox!' She whined mentally. "Y-You're right, um, I'm eighteen."

'Same physical age, likely past half of my mental,' which was honestly impressive in his eyes. "... I'm guessing that works for us," he said before sweatdropping as Hachika laughed her ass off while Ippan tilted her head before daring to look at him.

Seeing his dumbfounded expression, she giggled.

"I'm sorry, that was unbecoming of any man."

"It's fine, I'm not sure how to w-work this situation out either," she smiled bashfully.

"... So, how are your wounds?" Obito asked after some thought. "I only saw them after everything happened and even then the police came so our attention was drawn elsewhere."

Ippan touched the left side of her noggin. "I-It's fine. Despite how accommodating my quirk can be, it's got some small things that at least make life better. M-My body heals faster, I'm more durable than I look, a-and like I told you. I can go fast."

"And she kicks like a damn champion," Hachika said with a whistle as Ippan looked bashful. "S-She really, like, kicked a man through concrete and another half of the Aoi Mei. I've never thought she was even that strong but now I know," she added.

"Really? Ippan-chan, you don't happen to train do you?" Obito asked, getting a shake of the head in the negative.

"No? I just do my exercises," Ippan fiddled with her claws. "I mean, I don't really get as tired doing them though so it's not like I'm pushing myself, my body's just stupid like that."

"... I think it's amazing, your physical ceilings are incredibly large," Obito said, not paying attention to Ippan's complete and total embarrassment. "Likely, you have an innate physical enhancement that outclasses most just on principle. Your body is impressive," he nodded without a lick of sense thrown her way.

Ippan's sudden sink into the water confused him as Obito tilted his head at Hachika's laughter.

"Did… Did something happen? Did I say something wrong?" He groaned.

The oldest of the trio snorted. "Y-You just complimented a woman's body without a second thought," she said.

"... Is that it?" She guffawed at his words. "Ippan-chan, please, it's just a compliment!"

The set of ears still poking out of the waters twitched as he sweatdropped.

"Please, trust me? I'm not trying to be perverse if that's what you might have thought. I'm just saying that part of you is amazing, I don't think that's wrong."

She slowly peeked out of the waters, red past her ears before coming up some more and scrunching in on herself.

"I-I'm not used to that," she whined.

"Um, which part?" Obito asked sheepishly as she pouted at him before looking down.

"The quirk part?"

"I mean what I said. It is fascinating to me on a skill-level."

She observed him and noted his smile before her pout straightened out. "I-I just… You know I don't have good experiences with my quirk," she sighed as Obito frowned and Hachika wore a sad smile. "I'm not used to my quirk being complimented."

"I… I really do find that weird, being honest. The sheer amount of variety your quirk can have, the amount of skills you can pursue like dancing as you've shown me, the flexibility of your vulpine abilities, it just doesn't make sense to someone like me who trains almost every day," Obito succinctly, gaining their attention.

"Actually, Obito-kun, I know you train but I've never asked 'why'. You… Do you get into fights often?" She asked, concerned.

"Mmm, well, yes. Outside of school, you need to understand that I've gone against people a lot. I told you a bit of it but it's not everything. I train and fight to protect my way of life and, from now on," he looked a bit bashful. "To protect you."

Ippan froze, eyes shrinking before she steamed hotter than any hot spring.

Hachika grinned at her before throwing her friend a thumbs-up.

Obito rubbed the back of his neck, looking embarrassed a good bit. "Oh, yes, now I also need to continue my sword training," he muttered as Ippan scrunched in on herself further. "Butsuri isn't a normal weapon by any imagination so I might need to go back to my martial school."

"Really, Mr. Swordsman?" Hachika chuckled. "I mean, you kind of dominated today."

"Perhaps but that doesn't mean that's the best a villain has to offer or the regular crazy fan. Did you see that one from five years back? That giant person with laser balls alongside his quirk?"

"?" Ippan snapped out of her reverie to pay attention, much to Hachika's amusement. "W-What were we talking about?"

"Just that event from five years ago, that giant salamander with the laser ball quirk near Naruhata ward. I was around there with jiji doing some community work when it happened," Obito shook his head. "It was almost a really big disaster if not for the Purple Agency. I did my best to move kids out of the way and help that cloud boy who saved us. I know he got a serious head injury during but I applied what medicine I knew, had on hand from my small class on first aid, and just did what I could. It's been a while, I don't remember his name but last I heard about him? He was supposed to be getting sent to a special hospital to help with the head damage."

"O-Obito-kun, that's amazing!" Ippan said in awe as he shrugged. "You might have saved his life."

"Maybe? I just didn't want the person who saved those children's lives, he was still only 16, 17 maybe? He was way too young to lose his life like that."

"... Damn, I'm actually jealous," Hachika said in shock at this mature MAN. "Woman, you got a MAYUN!"

Ippan blushed but nodded all the same as Obito blushed. "I-I hope I match up to his expectations," she declared.

"Freaking, I don't have such high standards. I just need someone to care about me," he said flatly before wheezing as he revealed that.

"You hear that, Ipp-chan?! That's your 'in'!" Hachika declared with a grin as Ippan nodded.

Obito groaned before swimming around them and stepping out. "Okay, I'm done. I'm leaving," he said as he rolled his shoulder before walking towards the men's section with an arms-behind-the-back stretch.

The two women gawked at those incredible back muscles as he walked away, the gunshow revealing just why he could handle Ippan's enhanced weight so easily.

"My God, Ippan," Hachika burned up as Ippan turned a crimson shade. "T-That man's muscles could make any hero look half as good," she whispered quickly.

The fox was still kind of taken-aback by Obito's powerful form before she covered her nose once the nosebleed hit.

"He's that fine, I was right!"

"Hachi-chan, not now!"

~NRK~

The following morning, Obito left his room with an aim for breakfast in a simple black shirt-and-shorts combo and some house slippers.

As he did, he raised a brow at another closing door before looking up to see Shinji leaving his own room.

"Ah, you're awake," the older male greeted, wearing a red tank top, white shorts, and his own house slippers. "I hope your wounds are better."

As a matter of fact. "They are, I went to the hot springs last night," he told him as he made it over before they went to the stairwell. 'It's actually better than that,' his body didn't throb.

His arm felt a bit of pain but it wasn't the same as yesterday, his sides felt better, and his wrists?

Obito rotated them before clenching his hands. 'They're halfway there,' had his spirit awakened?

Had making a pact with his grandfather's spirit-infused weaponry done something for him?

"Shinji-san," he called, getting a raised brow for his troubles. "How accomplished of a man are you? You've been Habami-san's bodyguard for six years?"

"Yes, I suppose you are curious," the older man said with a smile as they entered the stairwell and looked down the spiral of steps. "I'm the oldest of a family of four, my younger sister, Onemu, my father, and my mother."

They jumped down, eyes on their landing.

"Curious, I don't have any siblings."

"She's quite a handful but she's got spirit," Shinji chuckled.

He landed on the ground with a crouch while Obito kicked off handrails to land beside him seconds later.

"You're truly a physical marvel. Did you need to bleed off momentum?"

"Not in most cases but I need an angle to land without any chance of harm at all. That fall would have caused me to get a crick somewhere."

They walked out, ignoring the other guests who gawked at their stunt.

"Continuing on, my sister and I learned our family's martial arts before I finished college. Around that time, she'd been starting out, Habami-dono. There'd been a harsh backlash from a couple people in the crowd who didn't like mutant quirks and I defended her."

Obito shook his head. "I know it's more likely to happen in the countryside where they're less modern even nowadays but that concept just doesn't make sense to me," he frowned as Shinji nodded. "It's like hating people for having a different skin color, it's downright baffling. Racism, prejudice like this, and more have no basis. These people didn't choose to be these things."

"Sadly, this world of ours is still developing even in that direction," the older brunette said. "Back on my tale, Habami-dono had been grateful for the help and even paid me to help her 'start-up tour'. I didn't have any jobs lined up, didn't need to return home for anything yet, and was curious & concerned. I followed her for half a year and soon was hired."

They reached the breakfast area where they heard a familiar set of women chatting or eating.

And, there at a table, Obito saw his new… Wait.

"Wait, what are we right now?" Obito blinked once he tried to mentally place Ippan in his life. "... We want to date but haven't yet. Still," he colored slightly. "I know we feel close but I'm not sure of the etiquette here."

"Yen for your thoughts?" Shinji asked.

"I'm not sure what I'd call Ippan-chan when it comes to our relationship status. I mean, we want to date but have done so yet."

The bull man looked intrigued, chin in hand. "I suppose you two are 'significant others'?"

Obito reddened a bit more. "I… I suppose we are? But, ahem, isn't that too close? I care for her, I do want that to become our truth but that feels rather fast."

"Ah, it does."

"Is 'going steady' the right term?"

"I think that's what most teens use, yes."

"What's the term for that when it comes to the man and woman within it?"

"You've stumped me again, I'm not exactly sure."

"What in the world are you two doing?" Came Habami's voice as she looked at the pensive brunettes in amusement, some coffee in hand. "Man, you guys are thinking hard!"

Wearing a white spaghetti-string tank top, black sweatpants, and some black flip-flops, the idea raised a brow at them.

"What would he/I call Ippan-san/-chan?" They asked her in unison.

The idol blinked, drank some coffee, and just tilted her head. "Is that what you two have been thinking about this entire time?" She asked, utterly fascinated by the prospect. "Geniuses? There are two answers to that question."

They leaned forward in interest and she laughed.

"I-It's either you call her what she's fine with," she grinned as Obito looked shocked. "Duh. Otherwise, 'girlfriend' is fine. It's like a catch-all title for someone you've agreed to date, are dating, and have dated. Now, come on, I gotta talk to you two about something that hopefully Shinji-kun can lead you through."

"Hmm?" Both men looked at each other before following without a thought.

Reaching the relaxed-looking fox woman currently in some blue flip-flops, black shorts, and a white shirt, Habami waved at her as the three sat with her.

"Good morning," the fox greeted with a smile, tea in hand as Obito sat at her side and had her blushing. "M-Morning, Obito-kun."

"... Good morning, Ippan-chan," Obito said after some thought. "I'm surprised so many of you beat us to breakfast."

"I could hear you cleaning your blades," she said, surprising him before Obito nodded. "I mean, you did buy that kit last night so you woke up first but came to breakfast after us."

"Right, isn't it 7:40?" Obito checked his phone and hummed. "I guess I need to be more aware next time. Still, Habami-san wanted to talk to us about something."

"Hehe~," the bat woman grinned at the couple's antics before nodding. "Yep, just something that'll need to be done for you to keep up. Obito-kun, you need to get a bodyguard and quirk-work license."

"Wait, why the second?" Ippan asked, alarmed. "Obito-kun is quirkless…"

"It's because of my swords," Obito said as he crossed his arms. "Likely, I'll also need to get an open-carry license. The first and last are going to be far easier to get than the second, though."

"Yep but you'll have my company's backing. The worst-case scenario? You need to demonstrate your blade's 'quirks' and then have an examination," the idol said. "Meanwhile, Ippan-chan, you need to get your company visa, all of your group does."

"What'd we need?" Hachika asked as she came over and sat down.

"Company visas for our potential trips. Speaking of, when do you all have Summer vacation?"

"I'm not in school, I work at a fishing spot because… Well," the octopus gestured at her head. "That said, we recently got a big haul so the pay's still going strong. I've got time."

"We have Summer by the end of the month," Ippan said. "Obito transferred in halfway through the year but he's already taken all his tests online and turned in the results," she said encouragingly as Obito rubbed the back of his head, flustered at her support.

"She's correct and I've already offered her all my notes for her classes. We'll be open," he said. "Still, how early can I grab my licenses? The first two, I mean, I know how to get my carrier license in a couple days."

"Well, for the first, you'll go through company channels and register with us. You need to pass a test but I'm wondering if they won't just take ya after what happened yesterday so let me send you a link," the Bat Princess pulled out her phone before her fingers blurred over the screen.

In seconds, she asked for his number before sending a link.

Ippan looked over his shoulder as Obito opened the link. "This form's interesting. Nothing unusual," he filled in it with the fox looking away from the 'personal' section before Obito clicked to the next. "... Wait, you all get permission for support items?" Obito asked, mind awhirl with an idea.

"Ah, I can see where your mind is at," Shinji said, realizing the path ahead as the quirkless man nodded.

"Huh?" Habami blinked as Ippan tapped her chin before gasping.

"O-Oh! Habami-senpai, he can just register his weapon under the Support Item section, can't he?" She asked, looking over Obito's form.

"Oh, right! I totally forgot about that but what'll he put under the 'Company' section? Despite how small that seems, it's important so that any 'malfunctions' get reported," Habami told them. "It might not work."

"Not if we do this with a known company," Obito said as he tapped away from the link before going to his texts and composed a message. "... Sent," he nodded before returning to the form and filling it in.

"The… Toudou Subsidy?" Ippan whispered to Obito before sheepishly giggling at Habami putting her fingers in her bat ears. "Um, Obito-kun?"

"It'll exist as a minor company's alias in a matter of five minutes," Obito said as he kept going before, three minutes in, his phone got a 'ding'. "... Alright, it's set-up," he chuckled as she gawked at the message.

'What kind of friends does he have?!'

"And that should do it," Obito said as he shot Habami a look that had her regaining her hearing. "I put it under you as a referral or…" He shot Shinji a look he nodded at.

"It'll be under me, actually. The thing is, the bodyguards are very diverse in their uses," the bull man began. "For one, positions like ours allow us to make a security force for our idols if the time comes. The Weasel Idol, Taira Goumou, has a bodyguard who has a nationwide security force funded by her personal investments and his workers' mercenary business."

Now, Obito was downright impressed. "That's incredible, honestly. I didn't think we had such types in the public eye these days," he said with a knowing look as Shinji raised a brow at.

'Curious,' did they have another who could navigate the 'other side' of the world? That could be good. "Yes, they're technically 'contractors' but he's a business man first and foremost. Does the name 'Tomoyasu Chikazaku' sound familiar?"

"Isn't he the IT Head of Feelz Good Inc?" Ippan asked as Obito tilted his head. "O-Oh, remember? My camera, monitor, and computer are from that company. They boast the best versions of video/data hardware."

"I didn't know but I'll look into it," Obito said as she smiled happily. "But what does an IT company have to do with mercenaries?" He asked Shinji.

"A lot, after all, villains exist. It's a good show but, really, the big reason is because Goumou-san's connection to the company makes it so that she has a large amount of pull. Seeing as she comes from a military family on her father's side, she's big on large collective protection services. That's why he got called in to help her set-up a monitoring station and hire the folks she currently employs."

"That's an incredible system, it has to be so efficient," Ippan said with a smile as he shrugged while Habami sweatdropped.

"Sometimes a bit too efficient, I swear they have scanners everywhere she goes," she shook her head. "But we got off track, Shinji-kun."

"We did. I'll explain more later on but, just know, as a bodyguard with tenure in Creatoria you have a powerful amount of responsibility. You also have to be fashionable, they say but I've never been admonished for how I dress. It might just be a lax code or I'm doing something right, perhaps," he explained as Habami wore a smug look. "Habami-dono?"

"I already approved it but my producer's looking it over before meeting up with the group's board. We'll get an answer by the end of the week, hopefully. And if things get rough? I'll pull some strings and call ya but, just know, the other bodyguards of the Priestesses are also heroes compared to you and Shinji-kun."

"One of them is no issue, Takeshita, he's someone who just went Pro recently. He's done well for himself and got scouted by the Lizard Princess while the other two are…" Shinji scoffed, something that got Obito's attention. "They're not bad at their jobs, they get them done… But their personalities could use a lot more work."

"Bad co-workers?" Obito asked.

"Well, one of them's worse than the other. Sensoji-san isn't exactly a humble man but he's willing to listen usually, not great at hiding his temper but he's got no shortage of achievements under his banner. No, I guess the worst would be her," he frowned deeply. "That crazy dictator of a woman for the Mouse Idol's protection, Asuka Dokudami. She's actually a sword-user like you, Obito-kun."

"From her name, does her quirk involve poison?"

"Not necessarily, she can absorb lifeforce from plants," he frowned. "But that's where the trickiness begins, she not only absorbs their lifeforce but can both supply it back and gain the effects of the plants she absorbs," Habami shivered.

"We were once on a forest retreat," the bat grimaced. "Really, it was a nature tour to show us off for the event but it wasn't trouble, just sing some songs, sign some autographs, the usual… But then we hit a snag with kidnappers. I wasn't worried because our bodyguards were there but then… Then she wanted us all to let her handle it."

"The thing with Asuka is that she's never one to put in more effort than necessary but that day? I think she got angry about someone rejecting her on the tour? I'm sure she'd gotten this weird idea in her head about someone who didn't even know what was happening so she was pissed. And we were in a forest where her worst trait came out, her sadism. It was a day where that forest vanished and those men along with it."

Ippan and Hachika flinched while Obito's eyes narrowed. "How powerful can her quirk get? What are the limits to her power?" He asked.

"No one knows, Asuka hides these facts most of the time. This was simply one of the only times where we saw what she was made of. There's both no surprise and much of it when it comes to wondering how she got this job," Habami frowned. "She's not normal, not even by quirk standards, but if I had to put her in a rank? The Top Ten easily when she starts going. Before that? Maybe the top 50? She's a real demon with her wooden sword."

'Likely, she can enhance it beyond its normal 'roots',' what a troublesome person. "It's fine, I have no issue with this person as long as she just ignores us entirely," he said outright. "Though, I'm curious, how old is she?" Obito asked, more out of just giving them a way to make a final statement than anything else.

… So, why had that somehow made the two MORE nervous.

"Habami-chan? H-Hey, yer lookin' kind of pale," Hachika said, fiddling with a biscuit covered in olive oil and butter. "It's not like it's some big thing… Right?"

Shinji frowned deeply before pulling out his phone with Habami, the two finding what they were looking for before showing the trio.

What they saw was surprising. 'Wait, isn't she just a teenager?' Obito's mind began to tick away as a slow, horrid, realization began to settle in.

She was a young woman, notably around his age in looks, with long crimson-red hair that fell to her knees, white skin with a beauty mark under her lip, and slightly big pure black eyes. Being of mature build even for her age, she had on a simple tight black dress shirt, black slacks, black heels, and a white tie.

Oh, and out of her rear end came what had to be a simple black fox's tail.

So, what about this unassuming 'young woman' bugged these two?

"R-Revealing a lady's age is always a faux pas," Habami whispered. "For every other lady, Obito-kun, it's a BIG 'no no' spot but she doesn't care, Asuka never cared because she was always a prideful woman about it."

"This young woman in this picture who could have passed for your classmate," Shinji began with a small hiss. "She is 87-years-old."

~NRK~

She bit her nail at the sight of the footage playing for the 2,322nd time.

"How?" She whispered in desperate need, the want to know being high on her list. "WHO IS THIS? A quirkless man? That's nothing but a hock of shit-kon!"

She paced before playing it again and again, eyes memorizing each of his moves, that bastard.

That quirkless fucker, GOD she couldn't stand those worthless pieces of trash society hadn't bred out of the human race.

She kissed her teeth before looking at the beginning of the video with that tall fox woman.

'What I wouldn't have given for my quirk to be so all-encompassing,' well, she'd have wanted her tail as well. "Some people get all the luck," and then there was that kick.

That woman, girl, teen, whatever had such a powerful leg length with strength to match!

She repeatedly watched that before focusing on the other fights only to come back around to 'that trash'.

'No one's said his name but those swords should be easy to locate,' such powerfully-intricate designs were much to her fancy. "Honestly, these young ones would have been so much better in Our Age, Yoroi-kun," she whispered, eyes dilating as she held her flushed cheeks. "Our lives would have been grand ruling over them-kon."

But, she'd lost her chance. All she had to show for it was her skill and a lacking body.

She cooed as she slid her fingers over herself before gasping as she scrunched in tight.

"B-Best handle this before I go and look after that stupid girl of mine. Did she really have to be a damn mouse, God? Is this your way of spiting me-kon?" She smirked as she quickly hurried away, shedding her robe. "Well, I guess you'll never truly get that chance, hmm? I mean, I can't die."

A reflection in one of the ten full-body mirrors revealed a tattoo of brown 'stone' on her back, the biggest piece being a diamond-shaped rock in the center of it.

~NRK~

They spent their first day as a couple stewing over what they'd learned in one of the hotel's recreational areas.

Sitting on a large couch by a game system, large TV, and vending machines, Obito and Ippan sat beside one another as Hachika played some game called 'FFXVI' on the screen.

"T-Things seem like they got weird really quickly," Ippan whispered to him.

"It did but, at the core of it all, it's not really our business," Obito whispered back before hesitating.

With his hand on his knee, hers on her feet in her scrunched-up posture, and the current feeling between them had his limb slowly reaching for hers-Before it came out to grasp his own gently.

Obito almost jumped before looking up to see a smiling fox and felt his heart ram about its cage.

He blushed while looking away, intertwining their hands before finding a warm body shifting closer to lean against him.

Obito's heart roared at him. "It's going to be okay," he told Ippan as he released a breath before leaning against her as well, her head on his as her powerfully long legs crossed with his knee under hers. "I'm going to make sure you're unbothered by this as much as I can. Not just as someone who cares about you, not just as… Not just as your potential boyfriend if I can not screw this up by that point but as a man, as someone who wants to protect someone or something with all his might. I'm no hero but this embarrassing feeling lives on within me," it was true.

Ever since reincarnating, ever since living this life, ever since he realized how much he'd previously fucked up, Obito had felt this urge.

This protective urge to make himself into the man he should be, one who helped people, fixed problems, and protected without question. And, now, Ippan held all three of those spots for him.

He really cared from the bottom of his heart.

"I know, you're an extremely honorable man," Ippan giggled as Obito released a breath. "Still, w-we have a month to get everything we need."

"It's honestly not that complicated, visas of most kinds only take two to three weeks," Obito explained. "You can handle that while I try to make my own situation work. With the bodyguard license hopefully taken care of, the next is the Support Item license. It's going to be a curious thing for me to get one of those so I wonder what will get in the way."

"I think you'll get it done," she smiled as he reciprocated. "We just gotta get ready for this trip."

~NRK~

They'd spent the rest of the weekend at that hotel before returning to normalcy on Monday.

Well, mostly normalcy.

Obito smiled for Ippan in the afternoon, the two dressed similarly from the previous Monday.

"I-I'm ready," she said with a bashful smile as Obito crossed his arms, amused, as he noted a black purse. "I figured, you know? I have coupons, too," Ippan said flusteredly.

"Wait, they take those at The Kara?" The quirkless man asked in surprise as the fox woman nodded excitedly.

"Yeah! There's an app for coupons you can use that you sometimes get good deals from. Usually, there's some good general items but you get the occasional big ticket."

"Alright, I'm liking where this is going. Give me the name and I'll download it on the way."

Those around gawked at the quirkless young man's grasping of Ippan's hand, getting a blush and smile out of the mutant.

They walked out, leaving behind a laughing receptionist and horrified young women.

Walking away from the girls' dorm, Ippan felt giddy and anxious.

Feeling her hold on his hand grow a bit tight, Obito relaxed as he pat it before walking a bit faster.

They left that area quickly before going across the schoolyard to the side entrance, passing more students, teachers, and visiting parents as they did.

"I-It feels so weird to me," she blushed as Obito rubbed the back of his head. "I never thought I'd get this kind of chance, Obito-kun, I-I mean it. This means a LOT to me."

"I want you to enjoy this, for however long you want it to last. I'm happy to be the one to make you the same but I won't deny that you might want something in a man that I might not have," he admitted without fear. "I just want to do right by you."

She hugged him, the young man only stumbling a bit before he reciprocated.

His Named Blade bounced happily on his hip.

They continued on, hand in hand, before exiting the school.

Walking down the sidewalk had come with a few more surprised looks, the two teens doing their best to ignore them.

"I know you said you cook often, I-I've tasted a few of your meals," Ippan said with a look of delight on her face. "But do you cook specific dishes more than others? Or do you just cook random things?"

"Not random things, no, I try to make foods that are good-tasting & nutritious. I'm not against meat but there are a lot of vegan foods that fit those bills while I try to fill up on actual meat protein for most of my dinners," Obito explained as they crossed the street. "I do follow a set 'rule' on the weekdays but on the weekends, days where I visit Jiji, and big events? I try something new or things I haven't cooked often."

She looked intrigued as they went left down the sidewalk.

As they did, the looks became more sparse but didn't end. These ones, though, were more looks of surprise from some of the adults around with the occasional mutant-quirk-user nodding to them or children who came up to them and asked her about her 'missing' tail.

Like now. "Hm, hm," Ippan giggled at the girl who'd come up to them. "Yes, well, I've never had a tail," she told them in amusement, crouching by an amused Obito.

The little girl looked bright-eyed and excited, her big blue eyes looking at Ippan in wonder before they went to Obito. "You're that mister who's super-weird-strong!" She said in awe as Obito sweatdropped while Ippan covered her mouth with a giggle.

"Yes, um, thank you, shoujo," he said.

"My name's 'Nejire Hado', my mom's here for vacation," the newly-introduced 'Nejire' said with an expression full of energy.

She was a short girl with fair skin, big blue eyes with white pupils, and periwinkle-colored hair that fell to the small of her back. Wearing a blue shirt, black skirt, and brown boots, she looked a bit roughed-up but overall fine.

"Why are you so dirty, Nejire-chan?" Ippan asked, taking a napkin out of her purse before wiping the smiling girl's face. "You got a few smudges on your squishy cheeks," she chuckled.

"I was playing soccer with the boys but they said my quirk made it unfair," Nejire pouted. "So, I began to play in the trees! I saw so many birds, bugs, dogs, and squirrels!"

"She's an excitable sort, I swear," Obito said as Ippan nodded. "We were on our way into the store, Nejire-kun, where are your parents?"

Getting that information, they followed her inside and searched the store for her parents. Nejire's explosive energy a never-ending 'quirk' of their search before finding the girl's father.

"Ji-chan?" A man with light-gray hair, tan skin with stubble, and royal blue eyes asked, looking surprised. "Ah, sorry, I guess you found her father," he chuckled as Obito nodded while Ippan smiled.

"We just found her outside, I guess she was done playing, Hado-san," the fox woman told him as the man nodded.

"Thanks, I know my little girl is a bit excitable but she's quite good at knowing good people."

"They're dating, papa! And he's the strong guy from the internet!" Nejire said while spinning her arms around. "Wheeeeew!"

"Really?" The father blinked at the bashful couple. "Congratulations if I may be so eager, you seem like you two were in the middle of something before all of this."

Red in the face, Ippan shook her head. "N-No, we were just going past here to get to the administration office," she said, surprising him.

"Oh, you are? I believe you may need to be a bit more hasty," he said, confusing them. "The Administration Office has been changing the hours to get there and how to do the paperwork. You may want to look it up and go in the morning, we closed around half an hour ago."

The two gawked at him before Obito's phone was in his hand and searched for answers.

Ten seconds later, he groaned. "They're undergoing management changes?" Obito grunted. "They open at '5', at least, so it can't be that bad. Still, we missed today," he told his girlfriend who looked worried for a moment before nodding.

"We'll go in the morning," Ippan accepted. "I mean, it's not crazy is it?"

"It shouldn't be, though our hours are changing, the process has gotten easier. Getting things like visas, birth documents, and more have been cut down by a lot. Which are you going for?"

"A company-aided traveling visa," Ippan said.

"A Support Item License," Obito said.

"Okay, so, for you," Mr. Hado gestured to Ippan. "That should only take a week."

"Thank God," the fox smiled, relieved.

"For you, young sir, um… There has been talk about you."

"What?" Obito blinked as Ippan froze. "I'm unsure of how to take that."

"No, no, it's just that most offices like ours are aware that you might eventually ask for a 'carrier' license. We think you'll have to go to Mustafu for your specific needs," Mr. Hado said as the quirkless man cupped his chin.

"It's around a three-hour bullet train ride. I'll get to it, it shouldn't be much different to me but what about the time it takes to get it?"

"Two weeks, that we're sure of. You just need to go early even if I'm not sure why you're in a hurry?"

Locking eyes, Obito and Ippan explained their situation in hush tones.

Currently by an aisle of juice, the Hados looked surprised.

"Y-You're an idol?!" Nejire said in a quiet yell. "That's amazing, Josei-san?!"

"Y-Yes, well, I'm more a trainee than anything," Ippan said with an embarrassed smile. "I'm trying, though."

"And you're her bodyguard?" Nejire's father asked Obito, his eyes blinking in disbelief. "U-Uchiha-kun, I know you've shown your strength, my department has seen it in full… But you're both still young, shouldn't you pursue more solid careers?"

"No offense taken or meant, Hado-san, but this is our way ahead," Obito said as Ippan nodded. "These are the things we want to do, Ippan-chan especially, we won't be making mistakes if we put our all into this."

"You gotta protect her with all your heart, Uchiha-san," Nejire said with fire in her eyes. "That's what princes do!"

"... Princes?"

"Yeppers! The kids in my class say you're a prince! I can see it!"

Obito looked utterly baffled while Ippan giggled. "Quiet, my princess, make the connections," he snarked with a poke at her side.

She squeaked something fierce, getting a snort out of him and a giggle out of Nejire.

"O-O-Obito-kun?!"

Obito smirked.

~NRK~

They simply did their shopping and returned to Obito's dorm afterward.

Becoming the 'spotlight' as they did, the receptionist laughing like an idiot as 'it' hit, they quickly got to the quirkless man's room.

"T-This is gonna be a while, i-isn't it?" Ippan asked him as Obito put away the things.

"Yes, most definitely," he answered before shrugging. "But it's none of their business, what happens between you and me only matters to us, Ippan-chan."

The fox slowly nodded, a smile coming to her face.

"Now, come on, time for lasagna."

---

An hour later, post-dinner, they sat in his living room and watched some videos of Creatoria on his TV.

"This is their usual song and dance routine but they've been adding to it over the years," Ippan told him, legs crossed in his nice large couch. "Two years ago, they added Nagabiko-chan and she added a new string of slow recovering dances to their performances. Ever since, they've mixed them together to follow high-performance songs and physical tributes to regain energy."

"That's honestly rather incredible," Obito said, nodding as they watched one such performance. "... She's the youngest there, isn't she?"

"Yes, it's a bit rough on her since she's being surrounded by so much popularity out of the gate but she's done her best! She's timid but Nagabiko is said to have a lot of heart and she clearly enjoys bringing smiles to people's faces."

"She does? How do you know?"

"W-Well," Ippan blushed as she wore a shy grin. "I've seen her interviews and went to a few of her conventions, she's always so unsure of herself on large TV shows, press conferences, and public announcements but when she's at those personal meet-and-greets? She just lights up, she's so eager to speak to each of her fans that she once stayed overnight to meet us."

"It doesn't sound healthy but I can't imagine how accommodating such a person would be… Well, I can't say that I don't know…" Obito muttered, looking away from his curious girlfriend. "... You remind me of that description," he admitted with red cheeks.

Ippan blushed but was honestly touched by his feelings. 'I can't imagine how difficult that is for him to say,' Obito always tried to counter her personal views on herself but he rarely added more unless the situation called for it.

This was his rare moments of doing it 'unprovoked' as they say.

"I-I'm happy to be that for you!"

His head fell into his hand as he steamed.

They watched some more before Obito paused it on a frame.

"That's her, Asuka Dokudami," he said as they looked at the paused frame.

Their eyes locked.

"She's a kitsune," Ippan blinked the more she observed this 87-year-old woman. "This gets weirder and weirder."

Letting the video play, Obito observed the old woman's mannerisms, disposition, and interaction with Nagabiko.

The Mouse Idol seemed to defer to her authority often, not once biting back against the mentally older woman's words or barks.

She also added a '-kon' at the end of her sentences so the 'kitsune' guess seemed to be apt.

"S-She's actually saying that?" Ippan looked appalled.

Despite the importance of this watch-through, Obito chuckled as she pouted and hugged his side.

They blushed but Obito kept on smirking.

"You're mean."

"Guilty as charged."

~NRK~

Walking her back to her dorm as had become the norm, the two looked up during their walk to find the many shadows of night-patrolling heroes passing by the moon's visage.

"Did you ever consider being a hero, Obito-kun?" She asked him, the two stopping by a pair of familiar statues and structures in the middle of the schoolyard.

"I never gave it a thought and, before you ask, not because of my quirklessness," Obito explained, getting a curious hum out of his girlfriend. "I'm not fit for herodom, I don't have the proper mindset, the want to give a damn about the public, nor the want to dedicate myself to living a lie."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm not a hero in many aspects, Ippan-chan."

They locked eyes.

"I'm more than willing to kill as a first option," he told her, getting wide eyes from his potential future. "I'm emotionally-driven when it comes to those I care about and I'm willing to face the world, God, and All Might altogether to defend those close to me. I can't be a hero, I don't have the selflessness needed for it."

The wind brushed past them before Obito sighed as she hugged him close.

"I'm noticing this is how you approach me, I can't help but say it's appropriate. I'm acting like a child at this point."

"I think you're just someone who thinks too much," Ippan told him with another deep embrace before holding his shoulders and locking eyes with her boyfriend. "I don't know how much this means, coming from me, but I think you'd have been an amazing hero. You say you're not selfless but, Obito-kun," she beamed at him. "You did that all for me."

Obito frowned softly. "Yes but I… I feel that we have a deeper connection than I would with someone I don't know," he admitted flusteredly as she wore a red-faced grin. "I can't say that it's remotely the same."

"Maybe… But, for me, I think you're the exact kind of hero you should be."

Obito's expression went flat before he initiated the hug this time, Ippan reciprocating easily.

"Dammit. Look, I do take your words as important but I'm, for certain, NOT becoming a hero. That's a whole different conversation but thank you. Thank you for that. For your trust in who I am, that's more than I have in myself."

"W-Well, significant others a-are supposed to help like that," Ippan burned as he did, pressing her forehead to his. "Is that not the right way?"

'Dammit, she's taking my heart,' Obito thought. "I don't know."

"... S-So, we can make it that way?"

His face thrummed with embarrassment as hers did the same.

"... I suppose?"

They let the wind around them take them away, back to her dormitory where the receptionist smiled at them.

"I'm going to drop her off, Hina-san," Obito told her as Ippan smiled. "Then, I'll get out so you can get some rest."

"Take your time, dearies, you're in a special time of your lives," the old receptionist smiled nostalgically. "Never let that go, you both have something important you should grasp wholly."

Stuck there, eyes wide, they both grew thoughtful before nodding to her and taking the elevator up. Locking eyes the whole way to her floor, Obito moved.

They left the elevator box hand-in-hand.

Reaching her room, they stopped before Obito held Ippan close and she melted into his embrac-

The feeling of something warm on her cheek, a tighter embrace, and the sight of red skin in her view had Ippan freezing.

Obito's finger scratched his cheek before he looked away.

"J-Just letting that… Sit," he said weakly.

Holding her kissed cheek, Ippan erupted into red.

The next moment, Obito gawked at a kiss to his cheek before the door to her dorm closed.

"S-See you tomorrow!"

Standing there, startled, Obito rubbed his cheek with a mutter. 'Oh boy, I asked for that one,' and that concept made him steam further before he hurried to the stairwell.

Obito jumped through the open doors before flipping over the railings, the former shinobi falling deeply alongside his feelings.

~NRK~

The following morning, knowing that they had to be somewhere real early, Obito had gotten a headstart and cleaned up before walking to the girls' dorm.

With the Summer air still being rather warm, he wore a simple gray muscle shirt, black gloves, black pants, and black flats sans his limiters.

'I just hope today goes well,' they'd hopefully not miss a class. "I should probably tutor her," he thought.

As he made it to the girls dorm, Obito raised a brow at what had to be a pair of female students waiting outside on some of the stone benches.

'Odd, why would they be out here?' Obito thought as he walked past before finding them scrambling as he did. "..." His eyes narrowed before he exploded towards the girls' dorms.

"Shit! Rana-chan!"

'These bitches,' Obito felt something crawl up from his heart and settle heavily in his mind as he slipped inside, ignored the empty receptionist desk, and lunged for a stairwell.

He bypassed any possible 'resistance' these school girls could have given, hopping onto the stair railings before lunging up them past gawking 'stair blockers'.

"W-What the hell?!"

"I thought he was quirkless!"

"Shit!"

Obito kicked open the stairwell door and the very next second?

Murder and bloodlust filled the hallway like a thick haze that combed over every one of those girls standing before Ippan's door.

"I'm not going to ask nicely, I'm not going to give you chances," he hissed as he got closer, the group paling as they tried to back away.

He lunged at them before vanishing from sight.

"W-What the-?!" One of them, a girl with shark-like markings on her forearms, began to utter before she froze.

"If you come near MY girlfriend's door again," a hissing breath, curling hand, and intense eyes coiled around her neck. "We'll ALL know what your fake-ass make-up is going to COVER tomorrow."

She was pushed as the others jumped or scrambled back, the five of them hitting their rears in fear.

"RUN."

They didn't take a second to get the 'hint'.

The hall was filled with scrambling girls, yelling students, and fearful screams.

Obito growled-

The door opened to reveal a confused Ippan, the fox student looking around with a frown. "Obito-kun? W-Was it you who knocked?" She asked, looking worried.

The quirkless man's eyes relaxed as he stuffed his hands into his pockets. "Yes," he told her, surprising Ippan before she smiled. 'You don't need to worry,' because Obito was perfectly willing to make a rather absurd move. "Will you be ready soon? I know I came a bit early."

"Oh, that's fine! I already told the den mother that I'd be out early so we're good. Let me go get my purse!" Ippan said as she closed the door before staring at it with a soft look. 'You really don't see how strong you are when you protect someone,' she thought sadly as she looked at her open window.

It would seem she'd not be going through that way, today.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the door, Obito opened his phone and texted someone.

'I'd best prepare for this,' and he'd follow through if things got too out of hand.

He was her protector now and, perhaps, for the rest of their lives.

Obito's eyes softened as he finished composing that text before putting it on 'Hold'. That was his trump card, now.

Seconds later, his girlfriend left her dorm with a smile in a pair of those black jeggings, a v-neck blue shirt, and her favorite flip-flops & purse.

Holding out his hand to her, Obito smiled at the happy fox as she took it and they walked to the elevator.

Getting in and going down it, Obito's eyes slowly narrowed as it opened in preparation only to smirk at the lack of females inside the lobby and outside.

They left the dorms without being bothered, Obito's eyes & Ippan's ears twitching in the direction of the corner of the building.

'This won't end like this,' they thought in unison, one in sad annoyance and the other in heated resolution. 'There's no way this ends without a fight.'

And both were prepared for the outcome.

~NRK~

Rana, the shark-marked young woman, kicked over a trash can with a growl. Her hands clenched at her sides as she hissed at the dorm wall.

"I don't give a damn, we're sicking the boys on that bastard," she slammed her hand into the wall, cracking the brick. "He's too nosy."

"B-But he's so damn scary!" Another young woman said, growing pale along with a good amount of the others. "T-There's no way he's quirkless! You heard what Suika said on the stairwell, he's too strong, Rana-chan!"

"Hmph, at running maybe," Rana said with narrowed eyes. "Akira's not gonna have a problem, only one of them is worth something in this world. And even with his little sword, he's nothing. Get all of them, we'll make a 'deal' they can't refuse. She's going to learn that her fat ass being so damn smug is gonna come back around."

~NRK~

Walking out into the Osaka streets, they stopped by an open cafe to grab a snack before continuing on.

Looking at Obito out of the corner of her eye, Ippan bit into her donut while rubbing his knuckles.

The young man shot her a look before intertwining their hands without prompting.

Despite the worry about when they'd come back, she smiled and leaned on him.

Finishing their food, they actually jogged for a good bit, passing that familiar food market before they kept going.

As their jog took them for another couple miles, Obito couldn't help but focus on Ippan's lack of exerted breath. Eyes trembling over her chest but keeping their professional gaze as their jogging got a bit more intense.

'It's like she's barely trying,' truly, how ridiculous was his girlfriend's body if doing something like this out of the blue didn't even strain her? "Ippan?" Obito called.

"Y-Yeah?" She answered as they circled a corner.

"Are you sure you're just a fox?" Obito asked as they stopped at a Don't Walk sign. "Your body's incredibly powerful, I simply don't get just how enhanced you are."

Ippan colored a little but looked down at one of her claws, the digits folding inward. "I mean… I don't really think too much about it," she admitted.

"I can imagine, with your view on it, that you don't but we just ran six miles."

"Wait, what?"

Looking behind her, Ippan looked surprised as Obito nodded.

"You might find out that your body's actually more capable than either of us can imagine," he chuckled as she blushed before looking sheepish. "No issues but if the time comes when you want to push your body, let me know, I can give training that'll truly take your skills to new heights."

"I've never thought about that kind of stuff, I-I'd rather run than fight," she told him. "Still, maybe, when we can get some more time to ourselves, I would like to get to know you better by doing the things you like to do."

He was touched once more but realized he was getting used to that. "I'm sure we can, one day. Maybe, after the school year's over. Speaking of," Obito continued as they began their light run again. "What are your plans while you're growing in the idol industry?"

"I-I'll be a full-time trainee by then, Obito-kun," she told him, confusing him.

"Wait, is it an actual job as is?"

"Yep!"

Obito looked surprised as their run took them further into the administration district before reaching a large building at the corner of a plaza. "It's as Hado-san said, right near the beginning of the district."

Coming to a stop and going inside, they found themselves in air-conditioned walls, a large lobby not yet brimming with people, and a familiar man sipping coffee in one of the lobby chairs.

"Ah, there you are," Mr. Hado said with a smile, dressed professionally in a white-and-gray plaid dress shirt, black slacks, and brown dress shoes. "Welcome, Uchiha-kun, Josei-kun, I'm glad you're both so punctual. More younger ones like you seem so determined, it's inspiring."

"Thanks for your help, Hado-san," Ippan smiled. "This is serious business for us."

"I can imagine, you're here for some rather surprising things, the both of you are," Mr. Hado said as he looked at the weapon on Obito's back. "You were actually that man in the videos, I'm truly shocked by your strength."

"I've trained greatly from a young age but the energy waves are more from this," Obito gestured to his Named Blade. "I'm still quirkless, I just pushed the limits of what that means in our current era."

"You've certainly made that impression, for sure."

He got up and led them to a stairwell where they went to the third floor and reached a hall covered in cubicles.

"I've gone ahead and started some of your paperwork since you were intent on doing this as soon as possible," Mr. Hado said. "While notarizing them, I got a curious email when I texted Creatoria about that Support Company of yours, Obito-kun."

"Yes, I can imagine the liaison was a man by the name of Tei?" Obito asked.

"Yes, he was also quite well-spoken and straight to the point. With his signature, you can go on ahead to Mustafu as soon as you need to get it taken care of. As for your bodyguard license? You can fill out this form, since we've spoken to Creatoria it will actually come by next week."

Receiving their forms on clipboards, the two young adults filled them in as best they could.

"I'm sure this should go well," Mr. Hado smiled as they finished up and handed him the forms. "Thank you. For now, you both have had your fees waived, your documents notarized, and your simplest forms put in for processing. For now, as I told you, Uchiha-kun needs to go to Mustafu to get his Support Item claim processed. I'm sure it won't go badly, honestly, Mustafu's rather understanding on the that front."

Obito nodded as he and Ippan got up. "Thank you, sir, for all the help," he bowed alongside his girlfriend as Mr. Hado shook his head with a smile.

"Please, it's an adult's job to help others, I can't very well deny you something as simple as this. So, go on, enjoy your school day."

~NRK~

Jogging back to their high school was far more worrying than leaving it.

Obito frowned while Ippan grew anxious the whole way before they slowed their run to a crawl a couple blocks away.

"Ippan-chan, this morning… I…" Obito tried to bring it up.

Bring up that things weren't as calm as he'd presented. That he'd done his best to not make her worry but, now that they were back by the school, he felt his concerns rise.

"I know, Obito-kun," she told him in a whisper, startling her boyfriend before her ears twitched.

"... Shit, I'm sorry I lied. I wasn't trying to but I thought this would be easier to handle. Turns out, I'm someone who should definitely know better that people don't like being walked out. They'll likely try something and I won't allow that to happen," Obito declared, arm around her waist and eyes narrowed into a frosty glare. "I've already put some things into motion, Ippan, one way or another? I'm ending whatever starts."

She smiled, holding him close to her side as they continued their way back.

Ten minutes of their slow walk later, they made it to the gates where they found Rana waiting with a smirk.

Obito's eyes gained a dark gleam that sent a quake down her spine.

"Y-You don't scare me, you quirkless bastard," she hissed out a breath, throwing something at him that he caught. "Follow me and we won't toss your little toy down a sewer drain," Rana growled.

Obito caught the picture, took one look at it… And allowed his bloodlust to rampage around the shark woman like a horde of hellions.

Rana stumbled back, scrambling away only for Obito's foot to find hers and lock her in place.

His gaze cast a hellish glow over the world around her and Rana's eyes trembled, sweating bullets, as he leaned down like a skull-faced specter. The young man crushing the picture of his sword in the hands of some fucker he'd likely be wounding in a matter of minutes.

"Where is it?"

~NRK~

The walk to the Quirk Coliseum didn't settle his rage so much as shelve it.

Coolly looking at that large building meant for the development, relief, and control of quirks/high bodily enhancements and found that group outside of it much to his pleasure.

Because he was about to ruin the faces of every man there but first.

None of them had seen it coming, not Ippan, not Rana.

And definitely not the student whose face he'd caved into stone in the blink of an eye.

The sound alarmed them and caused the whole pack to jump or scatter in shock, Obito lowering his leg and catching Mumei.

"A-Akira?!" Rana's pale skin dropped another shade when Obito's head turned towards her.

"Every one of you FUCKERS get inside the gym," the quirkless man whispered, the sudden chill causing the students to freeze in place. "If you DON'T, I'm going to hunt each and EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU down throughout the school year and break some jaws. AKIRA certainly figured that out quickly."

Obito walked inside without a worried glance at Ippan, his 'will' cementing any possible 'transgressions' against his significant other into the dirt as she hurried up to him.

"O-Obito-kun?" The fox whispered, holding his arm in concern.

The 'cold pressure' rumbled before vanishing all at once, the quirkless young man looking at her.

"I'm going to ensure that my statements will live carved into their hearts for the rest of their lives," Obito told her simply. "There won't be any acts against you, myself, or our things unless they want me to shatter every bit of their pride and possessions."

As they walked in, Obito already punched in the code for Rana's so-called 'punishment room' she'd written on the back of the photograph.

They'd gone in, ignoring whatever or whoever was behind them before reaching the area in question.

"It's been a while since I've been in a room like this," Obito observed as Ippan blinked.

"You've come here before?" She asked as they walked into that forty-meter wide room that sported white walls with tile-like patterns, a gray floor, and many forms of equipment along the walls as a large red mat sat in the middle of the room.

Obito unhooked Butsuri before handing him to Ippan alongside Mumei. "Please, hold onto them while I handle this," he requested as Ippan looked at the offered weapons before nodding.

She took them with ease, showing once again just how ridiculous her physical prowess was. "These are heavy, aren't they?" Ippan asked, getting a nod in response as the room door opened again to allow in their 'guests'.

"Ah, my demonstrations are here," Obito declared as he hooked his hands under his top and lifted it. "I'm going to carve a warning into your bodies."

The more skin that was revealed, the paler his 'opponents' got as Ippan kindly took his top before observing the 'experience' laid upon Obito's body.

'He's got so many scars,' she thought as Obito stretched.

Those large and small cut-like marks, the sight of a burn on his left side, and then the large one on his right deltoid.

His fingers flexed and each one of those scars tightened before he turned to his classmates with 'that look' in his eyes. That one that made it clear just what was going to happen here.

"Get your asses on the mat," Obito said. "Every single one of you who had the BRIGHTEST idea to start shit with me."

His classmates looked ready to speak up, to try to negotiate.

Obito was far past that. "Do it or I," he began to walk over to the flinching group. "Come for YOU."

He stopped by the edge of the mat, eyes uncaring as Rana hit her knees before bowing.

"WE'RE SORRY!" She pleaded in full dogeza, a fact that did surprise Obito a good bit.

The quirkless man considered her for a moment before crossing his arms. "All of you KNEEL. I'm feeling gracious and it seems only the coward could figure out how to save your pathetic lives. So, do it," Obito ordered. "Kneel and swear to me that you'll keep to yourselves, swear to never bother myself or Ippan's persons or possessions, and swear to just fuck right off."

The air grew silent before, like dominoes, they began to follow his order.

Obito kept his eyes on them all as the females were the first to fall in line before the males followed suit.

The quirkless would have been fine with this, this was a suitable punishment for cowards… But he knew that there were worse in this crowd.

There was the sound of roaring and stomping steps.

"Nagao, wait!" One of them shouted as one of their classmates rushed the Uchiha.

"I'm not going to let some quirkless bastard make ME look like a damn DOG!" He growled, his form growing in size before becoming some thick-armed, scale-skinned, cobra-headed beast whose clothes were clearly meant for just this occasion as they conformed around his enhanced body. "I won't let some quirkless freak think he can get away with th-!"

"I'm sure someone like you," Obito whispered in his ear, the naga-man's eyes going wide at his voice.

He came to a stop as Obito stood on his shoulder, hands in his pockets before one of his feet reared back.

"You litt-"

"Too late."

His foot 'clapped' past the naga-man's chin with a harsh burst of speed.

The transformed student's body trembled as Obito hopped off of him before he fell, the quirkless young man's eyes never straying from his terrified classmates.

"Now, where were we… Right, kneeling."

One of the few girls who'd been willing to stand in the face of his rage had recorded it all, the entire situation from start to finish. Yet, even she hit a kneel before him in pleading.

The camera watched the quirkless male look them over before he shook his head.

"Then that's it," he said simply as they peeked up at him. "Just remember what happened today and all of us won't get in trouble," Obito said before turning around and walking back to the shocked Ippan who looked at him in confusion.

The brunette shrugged.

"Let's go," he told her, gently taking his top and putting it on before holstering his weapons. "Thanks."

"Anytime, I just hoped you'd be alright," Ippan said as she stuck to his back before they went out the other way? "O-Oh, there are two doors," she realized as they exited before walking down the hallway towards the front. "I'm sorry for this, Obito-kun."

"Don't be, there's only so much you can be held accountable for. I had every bit of want to dominate them before breaking their formation and pride, this just happened to be simpler and I wanted to defend your honor & privacy."

She blushed a familiar crimson hue before Obito chuckled at the hug he'd received before getting an idea.

"I'm curious, Ippan-chan?"

"Yes?"

"No offense, how much do you weigh? I mean, I really only feel a fourth of it at any time so I might not be a good measurement," Obito said.

Ippan looked sheepish, fiddling with her claws once they parted. "A-Around 120kgs."

"I see."

The next second, she squeaked as he chuckled while carrying her down the hallway?!

"O-O-Obito?!" Ippan burned like a damn torch.

"I was always curious," Obito said as he adjusted again. "Still, I was right. You're not that heavy to me, just a bit long," he smirked as she covered her face.

She squeaked in his princess-carry all the way to the double-doors by the receptionist desk before he put her down with a stretch.

"Hmm, I should do that more often, I'm sure you liked it," the quirkless man said, amused, as his girlfriend just kept squeaking while looking at him with the biggest pout. "Come on, we do have classes in an hour."

Jogging ahead with a smirk, Obito didn't give her presence at his side a look as they left before coming down the steps.

The people around jumped at his entrance, his lack of care for Akira's face in the stone perimeter of the Quirk Coliseum, and then his & Ippan's departure.

~NRK~

The news showing the events had surprised him to no end.

"What the hell did they feed this kid? What? They shit in his cereal?" Overclock thought as he saw the news. "Still…" His eyes rewatched it. 'They clearly started something they couldn't finish,' and he couldn't find it in him to admonish the quirkless young man.

Stealing one's property was a serious offense to a man's pride and would likely be paid back in full one day. 'One day' just so happened to be under thirty minutes from the footage.

~NRK~

Getting to his dorm room, Obito found the dorm father there.

"Morning, Kenta-san, I see you found this bit of wonderful damage," Obito said as he looked at his open door, the lock & knob on it broken. "..." His eyes narrowed as he walked into his dorm with the man behind him.

"These friggin' kids, Goddammit," the man groaned as Obito frowned at the sight of his torn-up living room, pan-covered kitchen floor, and more.

Going through it, Obito took stock of what 'truly' happened.

'They didn't find the safe, my other weapons, or my electronics,' and it seemed like nobody could just move his limiters. "How long do you think it will take to get this fixed?"

"Give me until the end of today," Kenta answered. "Dammit, kid, this isn't the kind of 'welcome' you should have gotten just for dating someone."

"It's fine now."

"... Wait, where were you just now? I thought you said that you went way earlier to get something done at the administration building."

"I did and then I came back, found out what had happened, and handled it. If you see Akira and Nagao come through looking disturbed, they'll know better from now on," Obito said succinctly before going inside and going to his closet in his room to find most of his clothes on the floor. "... I wonder if I can just go back on my own vow to beat some sense into some of them," he groaned before getting his uniform… Only to drop it entirely. "Kenta-san? I think I'll be skipping today to clean all of this up."

"I mean," the middle-aged man frowned deeply. "You shouldn't have to do this, this needs to get done by the ones who did it."

"Maybe but making them all go to school as they currently are will be far more satisfying than the opposite," Obito said as he pulled out his phone before sending a text. 'I hope nothing bad happened on her end,' he thought with a determined frown.

His phone vibrated and he looked it over before sighing in relief.

The door was graffiti-ed but nothing was broken or taken, thankfully, I swear it.

He rubbed the back of his head at her using his own form of pledge in her text before relaxing and shooting her a 'I'll see you in a bit' text.

~NRK~

It took him an hour to clean up most if not all of the messes, the only thing left being his living room's hole in the wall from what looked like an idiot's fall and his half-broken pans.

'If I'd have known,' but the time had passed and now he had to buy both some new furniture & kitchenware. "God, I didn't realize teens were this ridiculous."

"It seems like you dealt with a lot," Ippan whispered from his side, hugging him close before sneezing off the side. "A-Achoo!" She sniffled as he smiled apologetically.

A shower, a new set of clothes, and a few napkins later, Obito offered Ippan some tea as she looked over the damage with a wince.

"I can't imagine how you feel about all of this," she said softly, accepting his offer of hot tea with ease that surprised Obito for a moment. "But I know you're honorable, you won't go back on your words."

Well, damn, woman. He didn't think you could figure him out like that.

"Be that as it may, I can't say I wasn't livid about the state of my dorm," Obito said, taking the seat beside hers. "I can't even begin to imagine what's wrong with some of them. Was all of this over someone who's dating someone else? It's downright pathetic behavior I can't begin to process."

"Y-Yeah, in the grand scheme of things, this takes the cake on unexplainable stuff."

They sipped their drinks before Obito was, once again, surprised by Ippan's ease at drinking. Not 'sipping' like him.

"Ippan-chan, isn't it hot to you?"

"Hmm?"

They locked eyes before Ippan tilted her head and looked at her drink. "I mean, it is but it's comfy. I-I guess this is my quirk?" She offered.

"... I truly think your quirk isn't just 'fox' but kitsune-related. You handle heat without problems even if you say it's still there," Obito observed. "Have you tried… No, stupid question. The point is, every day that passes seems to show off another facet of your quirk."

"I-I've never thought too much about it," Ippan looked down at her feet, her padded toes rubbing against the clean wooden floors. "... A-Actually? There is something else."

He raised a brow.

"I don't like carpet, Obito-kun, I get extremely shocked whenever I walk over it."

Obito was more sure now than ever before. "Yeah, it seems like I'm right. Your quirk is a 'kitsune' quirk which is interesting," he chuckled.

Her ears flopped down a bit as she caressed her cup. "You're not disappointed?" Ippan asked.

"What?"

"I know that you… You think differently than I do, about this," she gestured to herself. "I mean, I'm constantly shooting down ideas on using my quirk."

"I… I don't want you to feel uncomfortable about this," Obito said. "I'm sorry if I came off strong, you're right, I do think differently than you but that's on my end. For me, I see things in a combat light."

"I noticed, you keep thinking about 'advantages', Obito-kun. Even if you're ridiculously strong, fast, and skilled already."

"Sadly, Ippan-chan, only recently have I gained things that will help even the playing field," Obito said, looking at his katanas currently set on a rack in the middle of his living room. "At the moment, even with my precise knowledge of bodily weaknesses, I'm at the mercy of most people with elements that are liquid-like, such as fire, water, gas, and so on, or instant like electricity, ice, explosions, or more. Butsuri-Teki Ryōiki is incredible for enhancing what I already excel in but I'm at a loss for most elements."

"T-That's a really detailed explanation," Ippan said surprised.

She'd never be able to think like that, it wasn't in her.

Combat really was a whole other 'world'.

~NRK~

The trip to Mustafu had to wait until the weekend, a fact that didn't leave Obito feeling great but he'd compromised with Ippan.

That's why, on Friday morning, they rushed out of the school at the same time as Monday.

Wearing similar clothes plus some thin tracksuit jackets, they'd hurried towards the parking garage under the worried, confused, or unsure eyes of their fellow students or their teachers on their duffle bags.

'This is going to be different,' skipping school to follow her boyfriend to another city.

Ippan couldn't lie, this felt oddly exciting as they got to the eighth floor of the parking garage before hurrying towards the back where his bike sat covered in a bolted-down tarp.

"Someone tried their luck," Obito noted, minding the scuff marks on the Caution Vehicle Tarp. "I'll check the footage tomorrow, for now, let's go," he told her, offering the kitsune her helmet.

Putting it on, Ippan got on the bike before hugging him. "How long do you think this will take? Mustafu's near Tokyo and a bullet train ride would take almost three hours," she told him.

"I know," he started his O-Dai. "But that's why we take the Toll System," Obito explained, pointing to a sticker on his windshield.

They moved down the slopes of the parking garage at a good pace before taking off out of it but not before coming to a stop by a familiar, surprised, teacher.

"Wait… Obito-kun? Ippan-kun?" Raiku blinked, stopping his walk towards the school with a coffee in hand. "When did you drive, Obito-kun?" The man asked, sipping his coffee. "Also, don't you have class?"

"Yes, well, sir. Some important documentation came up," Obito told him, getting a worried look out of the man. "No, please, it's not THAT kind of bad but it's urgent I get them handled. We're heading to Mustafu so we won't be going to class today or tomorrow."

Raiku considered it, eying Ippan's embarrassed smile for a moment. "Well, I guess it shouldn't be too bad. Ippan-kun's keeping up with her school work, especially after you gave her your notes. That said, your Summer exams are coming up."

"It'll be easy."

The man snorted before laughing. "Okay, okay! I guess I should have expected that. Hmm," he smiled in amusement. "Just make sure to take good care of her, Ippan-kun is good at some subjects but most of them have their own bits and pieces. Also, I hear you two are dating."

The two blushed before nodding in unison. "We started on Monday," they said.

"Alright, I was just curious. Enjoy your trip."

They gave him one more nod before driving off.

~NRK~

He looked through the digital papers, eying the latest news he could find about the so-called Quirkless Guard.

As he did, he raised a brow at testimonies before finding a name!

'Obito Uchiha, aye?' A further read explained what people already knew about this young man.

Apparently, he'd transferred into his most recent high school, was quirkless as his title would suggest, had apparently gained that pair of swords after entering the illustrious Akame, and was surprisingly from a wealthy family from speculation.

'Hmm, he's quite stacked in traits,' he thought with a hum as he sipped some tea. "But what of this sudden skill with a sword?"

The more he read, the less he found out about said skill.

"I might be running into this blind-"

-H-Hi!- Came a voice from his screen, a sudden intrusion of what had to be a cutesy cat shouting shyly at him. -I-I love your videos!-

He blinked once, twice, and then three times before looking at his tea in confusion.

He jumped and yelled.

"OH MY GOD!?"

~NRK~

Himiko sat in one of her school's bathroom stalls, her phone in her hand and showing her videos of the quirkless bodyguard's physical skill.

'He's so strong,' was a quirkless person supposed to be so fast and STRONG? And then there was his skill with a sword.

The internet had said a lot about that, many of them revealing that this 'Obito' guy had apparently gone to one of Yoroi Musha's dojos!

'That's so cool!' Himiko never got to have cool lessons.

She was made to take lessons on ballet, piano playing, and music. She was told to be demure, gracious, and kind.

She was told to be normal by her parents and that 'therapist' who they'd hired.

Himiko's body throbbed as her eyes closed, the red walls of her stall blinking away to reveal the pristine white.

The girl released a shuddering sigh.

Be 'normal'.

Just be normal.

~NRK~

Their drive down one of the big highways was honestly an amazing ride.

Ippan looked around at the sun-glazed scenery passing them by. [T-This looks so amazing!] She said in awe as Obito chuckled.

[I'm glad I can show you, I don't make these sorts of drives often. It's not like I have to go to a different city like this.] He told her. [But, maybe, we'll be able to do this more often after high school.]

[I'd love that!]

They chatted occasionally during the ride, two hours passing by before they stopped for a bit in the city of Nagoya.

"This is where Nagoya Castle is," Ippan looked around as Obito curled around a corner with ease, his bike an apparent attraction as people stared in wonder at it whenever they came to a stop at a stoplight. "T-This is also where SKE48 originated!"

"Who?" Obito sweatdropped. "Wha… What in the world is that name?"

"It's fashionable! They were a big idol group 150 years ago. Nowadays, idols have conferences here in their old amphitheater that got changed into a meeting hall. Their name is 'SKE' because those are the letters of each of their main groups. Team 'S', Team 'KII', and Team 'E', the 48 I think was from the man who started them."

Obito looked eternally baffled as they kept going down the street before curving out towards the edge of this ocean-adjacent city. "The Italia Mura should be here," he told her as they came around a corner before finding themselves on a road with metal railings alongside a view of the ocean.

"This is amazing," she whispered.

"It is. We should come back here one day," he told her and got a hug in response.

Yet, life wasn't so nice, huh?

There was the sound of rumbling from above, Obito's head snapping up with Ippan to see one of the many tall buildings near the port covered in smoke.

"Just great," he thought before his bike thrummed.

They accelerated and were a quick-turning blur that widened the distance.

Reaching the edge of the port, Obito turned them around before stopping to eye-up the explosions that trailed towards them?

His eyes widened as he watched what had to be a burst of explosive lights tearing through the sky after a flying figure. "Oh, you've got to be shitting me," Obito grimaced as Ippan held worriedly. "Ippan, that's coming towards us," he told her, looking behind them towards that old Italian-Japanese shopping mall filled with concerned people.

"O-Okaa-chan-kero," one of those little girls in the crowd ribbited as they all watched the approaching explosions. "Will we be alright?"

Ippan looked back at her with a look of concern that had Obito sighing softly, getting off his bike before going to the back to remove Butsuri.

The soft glow around it had him getting ideas but that was for later.

He latched it to his waist alongside Mumei before something shone out of his peripheral.

Black eyes snapped to it before widening.

Ippan blinked at a scent, heard the splash of water from the ocean behind her, and 'felt' something that only happened in dangerous times.

She'd already memorized Obito's blades, holding them, feeling them, and observing them.

This wasn't metal that'd been there a second ago!

Her eyes snapped behind her to that man whose form shot over the edge of the port before coming down on them with malicious intent.

"Watch out!" She cried out.

Before metal met metal, another body slamming into the to-be assailant's own with his blade clashing with the man's large knife.

Obito pushed him away, landing by that frog girl's family while the assailant landed by the edge of the port.

"Kero?!" The frog girl squawked and croaked in shock, eyes going up to Obito's blade before locking onto his back. "Whoaaa-kero."

"Go back inside!" The quirkless man ordered, blade held aloft as he kept his opponent in his sight. "We don't know about this villain's wants or means!"

"Come along, please!" Ippan called out to the civilians, ushering that frog family back towards the Italia Mura. "Please, be careful, Obito-kun!" She called out to him as he nodded.

The knife-user grinned a wicked grin. "Don't run too far, shoujo, I'm after you kiddies," he declared with a pointed knife as Obito's eyes narrowed while Ippan flinched. "Tracking ya down was rough, good thing ya got recorded, man. This could've been WAY harder, thanks for that."

'What is he-FOR GOD'S SAKE!' The quirkless man felt like throttling Rana and her little posse right now.

Because God forbid those stupid bastards got them into this mess!

"Who the hell are you?"

"Hanzo, the name's pretty nice, ain't it?" The man chuckled with a croaking tone. "Hanzo Suiden, the Nagoya Slicer, at your service."

Hanzo was a tall muscular man, wearing a black full body wetsuit with shoulder pads, grey gloves, and armored boots, he had a pale, noseless, white face with grooves under his eyes, sunken eye sockets, and a lower jaw pushed underneath the upper region, giving his face the appearance of a skull. With those sunken eyes being blue with white pupils, his skull-like face had red markings on the cranium, a wide set of lipless teeth, and a gold, armor-like piece surrounding his entire lower head.

'A Nagoya-based villain, how quaint,' Obito thought flatly before widening his stance. "Well then, Slicer, come over here," he told him, body wound.

The skull-faced man grinned before raising his free hand at the water.

Obito cursed as the waves arose at the man's hand, the water seemingly under his control glowing a translucent blue.

He skipped in and out of a barrage of crushing water shots, his hold on Butsuri never lessening.

'If it's just something of this level, I'll be fine,' Obito thought as he lunged at the water-user, eyes narrowed as the man grinned before bringing his hand down.

The former shinobi threw his body into a short sideways spin that ended with his blade drawn.

Hanzo jumped back into the waters to dodge an arcing white energy blade.

Watching him splash into the water didn't fill Obito with confidence. 'This isn't in my favor,' so he didn't make it.

Obito ran the moment the water villain vanished, eyes locked with Ippan's as she stood by the door in concern.

Halfway there, he jumped before turning upside-down in the air.

The water villain's sea-covered form shot through the air in a water-propelled stream that shot around before coming towards the quirkless male again.

Obito swung out when he got close, the gong of his blade sending the two of them flying back before he recovered on heavy feet while the villain rolled against the pier before recovering with a growl.

His knife back in its holster, he held out both his open hands before clapping them together at the brunette.

Obito glared at those arcing streams of sea water before spinning low and releasing a wide-arcing slash.

That powerful white arc hung there and collided with those pincering streams before Obito looked ahead to find the villain rushing him.

Obito's body felt tense, the rebound of his attacks planting him there too long and making it so the moment Hanzo got close, his knife flew and hit a mark.

"Obito?!" Ippan cried as red flew for a moment before the quirkless man's leg shot up into Hanzo's diaphragm, the cut below his eye glistening with blood.

Obito leaned back from the choking villain before lunging into his chest and slamming his blade's pommel into Hanzo's noggin but finding the blow rebuffed?!

Black eyes widened at the water molecules on the villain's body coalescing around him like a blue film that didn't just rebuff him.

Obito solidified his stance, arms crossed, right before he got sliced into by small streams of water that shot out from Hanzo's body in random fashion.

"Obito?!" Ippan cried out as the translucent barrage cut into the ground, sliced past the building's brick, and then glanced off her cheek. "A-Ah!?" She jumped and held her bleeding skin before going pale as Obito stood at the forefront of it all. "Obi?!"

The quirkless man grimaced as those random streams got closer to home before his eyes dilated, his senses enhancing as he drove past the pain and acknowledged every high-speed attack.

He didn't have the speed to block them from this close, no, he didn't have the time.

His wrist went slack before the base of Butsuri fell right in front of a stream with precision only to be held tightly again to allow a stream to bounce off of it.

Obito wasn't capable of just blocking.

Each one of those parries rang out with the sound of a pin drop before he inched back and did it again, another 'ping' making him more aware.

His body coiled with strength before he parried more and MORE. Each parry coming with a more solid shift before Obito was ducking along with it, not letting any of the ones coming for his body to reach Ippan.

It was ten seconds, just ten seconds, but his body felt heated, taut, and sore afterward as Hanzo kept gasping, eyes dilating as his skin grew dry.

"W-What?" He choked out, breathing in coughs and heaving breaths as he hit his knees. "W-What are you…?" Hanzo's eyes went white before he hit the wooden floors of the port and didn't move.

Obito kept his body ready for the next five seconds, eying Hanzo's body in preparation for any moves.

When ten seconds passed and the man hadn't moved? Obito's body slowly relaxed before he released a long hiss as his body's wounds began to throb. He gripped Butsuri in one hand while feeling his puncture wounds with a slightly shaky hand.

"Not good," he grimaced before the explosions of light from above got louder, the sight of two figures throwing around bright bursts and arcs of plasma.

His legs were cut on the sides but they still felt usable-

Obito released a soft groan as Ippan hugged him close, coming around to his front to hold his cheek with a look of concern shining in her eyes.

"Obito…" She whispered as he nodded.

"I'm fine, we have to go," Obito said as she nodded before picking him up. "We need to go inside and brace the doors."

Rushing her boyfriend into the mall, that frog family held the doors open for them before they slammed them shut, Obito grunting as Ippan rested him on the side of a wall before sitting beside him.

"Good, we just need to wait," he hissed out a breath before groaning. "Dammit, my bike's out there," Obito cursed.

"I hope you got it insured, boyo," the father of that frog family said with a relieved look. "It is a beaut, never saw an O-Dai before. What? You a rich kid?"

"Ganma," what was presumably his wife said as the man shrugged.

"Just curious-kero."

"It's fine, the Juubi is an amazing bike," Obito said with a wince as Ippan helped him sit before taking off his jacket. "I need to get these wrapped. If there's one thing I'm not worried about, it's them being clean."

Dropping his coat, Ippan helped him get off his shirt before they ripped it up and tied it around his wounds.

By the end, he looked like he just put the shirt back on in strips. "Haaah, not the worst," Obito observed before getting to his feet.

"M-Mister, you have to heal," the frog girl, 'Tsuyu' as they'd learned in this short instance, said in concern.

She was short for her age with slightly tan skin, big black eyes, a wide mouth, and shoulder-length dark green hair. Wearing a white shirt, green overalls, and green boots, she croaked in worry.

"It's fine, Tsuyu-kun," Obito told her as he hitched Butsuri-Teki Ryoiki on his back. "I just need to be ready for anything to come," he explained, walking to the door with Ippan at his side. "... I know I'm not exactly winning in status at the moment but, seriously, I'm fine."

"I…" She held bicep as they reached the doors. "I just want you to be okay."

"I know… Prep your ears, Ippan-chan. What can you hear?"

She closed her eyes and allowed her eyes to shoot up, those rather long appendages lifting up and widening slightly.

The air was silent before being filled with more explosions from above before there was a roar from the skies.

"Raging UNION!"

There was a powerful 'POW' before the screaming of something falling towards earth.

The fox jumped as Obito held her side, the ground rumbling from an explosive impact before they braced the doors against strong winds.

Obito hissed out a breath as they kept holding them before it died down, the sound of hissing wood and stone reaching their ears alongside the sight of smoky wisps.

There was a set of clomping metal boots before someone knocked on the doors.

"I got it done!" A gruff but strong voice declared from the other side of the entrance. "If there are any civilians inside, call the cops and stay safe!"

"No, tell them they can come out!" A female voice said, confusing them all sans Ippan and Obito.

"No," Obito said in disbelief as they opened the doors to reveal the destruction outside and the pair of folks there. "... You wouldn't happen to be Mister Blaster and the Bobcat Idol, would you?" He asked the surprised duo.

"Haha!" The woman grinned smugly as she nudged the annoyed hero. "See~ They love me, yes, I am an important woman," she said with a sharp-mouthed grin.

Ippan gasped at her. 'This is Hosoi Jounetsu!' Her jaw dropped as the smug woman smirked while the man beside her looked annoyed.

She was a woman of above-average height with chocolate skin, yellow eyes, and chin-length orange hair that held two tuff-covered bobcat ears. Wearing a white tube top that revealed her rather toned stomach, a white half-skirt with crossing sashes on her waist, a pair of black capri pants, and brown boot-like heels, she looked on top of the world.

Until her bodyguard's comment.

"Your personality's not helping," he said as the woman's brow trembled, a tick mark forming on her brow. "Talk about noisy-"

"You got something to say to me?!" The Idol hissed. "A-Ki-KU?"

The now-growling man was easily the tallest one there, even beating Ippan's 6'6 frame by half a foot, with fair skin covered in a couple scars, sharp yellow eyes half-hidden by tilted shades, and mostly short orange hair with a large 'horn' bundle of hair coming out above his forehead alongside a short beard.

Being rather robust and muscular, he wore a skin-tight sleeveless black top with an orange triangle on the chest bordered by white lines that went over his shoulders, bicep-length black detachable sleeves with white bicep bands, a metal wrist plate, and fingerless white gloves.

With a pair of black trousers covered by those white lines on the sides, he had on a thick white metal belt, knee pads, and padded shoes all sporting notable circular indentations on top.

"Bite me, cat woman!"

"NYAW?!"

Looking between the growling pair, Obito sweatdropped as Ippan tilted her head.

"Hello? Is all well?" The quirkless man asked flatly as the two stopped before turning to him with quickly-regained composure. "... Right, is everything over with?" Obito asked.

Mister Blaster looked at him with a confused expression. "What the hell happened to you?" He looked around before finding Hanzo's defeated form on the ground. "... Did you fight him?" The Hero asked.

"Yes? I couldn't very well ignore the man threatening our lives."

"That's still kinda crazy, civvie," the bobcat said, chin cupped. "I mean, you're not exactly hero stuff… Well, you got a body for it. You should have been a bodyguard, might have been better company than this guy," she prodded Mister Blaster rapidly while the hero's eyebrows trembled.

"Next time, I'm LETTING YOU get kidnapped."

"And lose your job~? Why, AKIKU, that's a bad idea."

The man looked ready to throttle her before ignoring the woman entirely, much to her indignation.

"For one, I am a bodyguard, at least," Obito shrugged, confusing them. "I'll be getting my license with your company next week."

"... WAIT?! You're that weirdo!" Hosoi gawked while Mister Blaster blinked in confusion before cupping his chin. "He's that quirkless guy from the news that Habami put forward. I can't believe this," she said, hand on her head before she looked at Ippan. "So, that'd make you his charge, right? Ippan Josei, man, your parents must have been a REAL set."

"Y-Yes, well," Ippan looked uncomfortable. "Things moved on so…"

"Nah, I get it."

Meanwhile, Obito and Mister Blaster tied up the two villains with the hero's restraint tape.

"You gotta get looked at properly, ain't no bodyguard worth his weight if he ain't healthy," the hero said even as he frowned deeply. "I don't get how a quirkless guy like you is a bodyguard, though," he said without filter.

"Have you seen any of them try? Or did people put these individuals down for so long that it was never even given a chance?" Obito shot back without heat as the Pro kissed his teeth. "The point stands, despite how weird it might be the populace? There's no such thing as a normal person in this world, far bygone era that it is. They just said so much that they ruin people's chances without them getting them, that's all the populace's fault, not my problem."

"Ya gotta lot of words for it, though."

"Because I will get my point across. People are stupid, when the individuals start thinking for themselves, I'll give a damn before proving them wrong."

"Hmph, we'll see about that," Mister Blaster said uncaringly before the sound of police sirens reached them. "Friggin' finally."

"I'm guessing this got in the way of something," Obito said, blade in its scabbard before he used it as a crutch, its length perfect for the task. "I mean, you're not supposed to be in this city."

"I'd say the same."

"We were taking a break, I had to get a Support Item License for my weapons."

The older man looked down at the beautifully-designed katana. "Those weird things, I can't imagine needing 'em," he said with crossed arms and a small grimace. "You lose those, it's over."

"No it's not, my body is trained to its current peak and will continue to be so, I have no lack of faith in my skills," Obito said. "Weapons or not."

Mister Blaster scoffed but said little else as the cops came.

---

For the second time in under two weeks, Obito found himself getting EMT treatment.

Finishing up his wrappings, he got up before putting his clothes back on and returning to the others.

Ippan smiled, relieved, as Tsuyu looked up at Obito in wonder.

"You're alright, Uchiha-san?" She asked as he shrugged.

"Yes, I'll be fine," Obito told her. "Sadly, unlike the last time this happened, I won't have the help of someone's quirk but this shouldn't be that bad," he hitched his weapon back onto his lower back. "That said, my bike's not gonna have me riding it for long over these next two days. It's too powerful for these wounds of mine."

Looking at his ride, Hosoi gawked at it before looking excited.

"They're so beautiful!" She cheered as Mister Blaster, or Sensoji Akimitsu, cupped his chin at it.

"It's just a bike," he said and Hosoi's eyebrows trembled.

"Listen, that's not just a bike, that's an O-Dai! That's one of the BEST on the market!"

"It's a bike."

As bodyguard & idol bickered, Obito rubbed his side before nodding to Ippan.

"We might need to stay for today," he admitted apologetically before getting another hug. "Sorry."

"It's fine, I'm more worried about you. You're in bad shape," she said solemnly.

"I am, I wasn't expecting such a desperate move. If Hanzo had been that skilled from the offset, it'd have been worse. Like I told you earlier this week, liquid attacks are far more problematic."

"Hmm," she looked around at the destruction such a villain could cause. "Is there anything you can come up with?"

"Kero?" Tsuyu croaked below them, the two looking down at her in surprise before growing sheepish. "Y-You make gadgets, Obito-san?" She asked, intrigued. "You can make a froggy suit!" Tsuyu said, looking pleased with herself.

Beru, the girl's mother, chuckled as her two-year-old son, Samidare, sat in her arms. "She's very helpful-kero," the woman smiled as Ganma nodded. "I'm not sure, though, if you have such materials. I always saw Support Items as being costly."

"In a way, they are," Obito said as he raised a brow at the happy Tsuyu. "..." He cupped his chin and closed his eyes. 'Is there anything to her words?' Could he find a way to handle liquid attacks? "I'll think about it, Tsuyu-kun. It's not an easy process making Support Items but I'll keep it in mind."

The frog girl looked beyond pleased. "I'm gonna become a hero, too! Then, I'll be 'Froppy'!" Tsuyu said with another smile.

"... Froppy?"

Ippan giggled. "I'm guessing that's her hero name," she said.

"I… I see, well, I'm sure you'll do well," Obito said. "I don't know how well your body translates frog-like qualities but there are so many kinds. Are you a type of frog or is it a catch-all?" He asked the girl's parents.

"Hmm, we never think about it," the father said, eyebrow raised. "You sayin' my girl's got different skills?"

"I believe so. The best bet, as she grows and trains, is for her to read up on a lot of frogs, possibly even toads if that applies, and learn from them. It's another aspect of animal quirks I'm curious about to this day, 'do some of them specialize?'."

Ganma crossed his arms before nodding. "We'll see-kero."

"No problem."

"Alright, well, if you're done cleaning up," Hosoi began. "Let's get you two to the hotel."

"Wait, what?" Ippan blinked. "No, please, we couldn't impose on you."

"She's right, we can find one," Obito added.

"One that'll have healing quirks?" The bobcat idol smirked.

"... Dammit."

"Good, now bring that beautiful bike to the Oguri."

~NRK~

An hour later saw Obito resting in another hot spring, body bereft of bandages once more. "I think it's a bit ominous that these idol-sponsored hotels all have healing stations," he said to Sensoji.

"There's some messed up crap out there, ain't nothin' 'ominous' about it," the larger man said as he relaxed. "Still, you gotta be strong so shit like this never happens. A bodyguard whose body can't guard won't last long, better think about it."

"I do, often, I'm not as worried about most opponents but like I told my girlfriend, liquids or gase-"

"You're dating?!"

Obito blinked as the older man gawked at him.

"She's a woman, how the hell did a guy like you get with her?" The Pro looked shocked.

"What? Um, Sensoji-san? Ippan and I are the same age," Obito explained.

The carrot top's jaw dropped while the brunette shook his head.

"Her quirk makes her body bigger as an enhancement."

"T-The hell?! She's gonna be huge!"

"You mean physically?"

"Yes! I'm 23!"

Obito blinked. "I… Uh-Oh," he slowly realized something.

The man was RIGHT. Ippan wasn't fully grown yet, most likely.

"Yep, you're in for it," Sensoji said with red cheeks as Obito's cheeks colored a good amount. "If she turns into a giantess? I hear there are quirks for your situation-"

"Okay! I GET IT!"

~NRK~

Meanwhile, on the women's side, Ippan blushed as the bobcat woman gawked at 'her sizes'.

"W-What, do you suffocate him with those things?!" Hosoi said in shock, face completely red. "Y-You know, I do wonder what that's like," she fiddled with her finger tips before wearing a big embarrassed grin. "Y-You got pointers?"

Steaming worse than the springs, Ippan scrunched in on herself.

"W-We've never DONE that!" She squeaked as Hosoi flinched with a completely red face. "W-We started dating this week."

"?!" The idol burned like a boiling pot. "N-No, wait, I'm not trying to say anything! I mean it!" The woman's ears flopped down alongside her trainee-counterpart, the two stewing in their embarrassment.

~NRK~

Returning to his room in a pair of blue shorts and a black muscle shirt, Obito raised a brow at the red-faced Ippan seated on their shared bed.

It'd been the damndest thing that made a good part of this embarrassing but they tried to not let it get to them.

"Hey," he called out as he rubbed his ears with a towel. "Ippan-chan?"

"YypE?!" The fox woman jumped, eyes wide and face flushed as she sat there in a long-sleeved tight white top and dark blue pants. "O-Obito-kun?" Ippan looked down as her cheeks colored further. 'I let what she said get into my head!' And she couldn't handle it!

She'd seen Obito without a shirt on, more than enough times by this point, and had no problems realizing that he was really freaking HOT. The handsome face, scars, muscles that could hold HER up in a princess carry?

The whole thing made her feel flustered, the last one especially.

"What's going on?" Obito asked, coming to sit beside her with a concerned expression. "... Did everything go well in the hot springs?"

"Y-Yes, they did!" Ippan squeaked, getting a raised brow for her troubles. "I-It's just girl talk, ya know?"

"... I wouldn't."

They sat there, eyes locked, before she blushed but giggled.

Obito sighed in relief as she did.

"I'm glad I could get you laughing, that must mean things aren't dire," he said before humming pleasantly at her hug. 'I am getting used to it,' yet Obito liked every second of each iteration.

Truly, he was a sucker for romantic action.

Leaning back, Ippan smiled shyly. "I'm being weird, aren't I?" She told him while messing with her hair, the towel around her shoulders put to use.

"Nothing crazy as I've just realized, I'm going to say that as long as it's no problem, I'm fine with staying in the dark."

He was just so… Ippan couldn't help it.

Obito was actually a bit startled this time by the hug that pulled him in close, one he reciprocated but grew more and more confused by.

By the end, they sat there with him throwing her an unsure smile.

"Thank you, for being so accommodating to me," she admitted.

"I don't need you to thank me for that," he told her honestly. "I want to be the best for you, it's just that simple."

They smiled at one another before looking out over the Nagoya skyline.

Tomorrow, they'll be back on the road.

~NRK Out~