Chapter Eleven:
Mall-Time Memories
Makerboy, Saiko, Boopkins and Team Blue swung on down to the Inkopolis Mall not very far from Inkopolis Square. The place was busy as it usually was during certain days, various Inklings and Octolings were heading in to buy stuff or meet with friends while others left after getting whatever was on their list.
A couple Jellyfish wandered about, sporting security uniforms, and would often scan customers as they came in. There were a few humans just like Saiko who visited the mall, but the patrons were mostly cephalopods or Jellyfish.
The first spot in the mall that the group decided to visit was the anime store, which had opened up a couple months ago, and Makerboy, Boopkins and Saiko helped themselves to whatever anime or manga of interest was on sale, starting with a section dedicated to the Dragonball series.
Makerboy found a Vegeta mask on a shelf alongside various DBZ masks and tried it on, mimicking the Sayan prince's voice as he declared; "ITS OVER NINE-THOUSAND!"
"Heeeyyyy, that's pretty good." Boopkins said with a smile, seeing the green-haired Inkling mimic Vegeta, "But I think that my impression of Frieza is better."
Boopkins put on a Frieza hat and coughed, faced Makerboy with near-intensity, and declared; "You stand no chance against me, miserable monkey!"
"Wow, dude. Your anime voice impressions have gotten better." Makerboy said with a smile as he took off the mask, "We should do some recordings and have Bob listen to one of them to see what he thinks."
"Yo, Makerboy, Boopkins!" Saiko put on a fake scouter and looked at the two of them, "What did the scouter say about the power level?"
Both Makerboy and Boopkins laughed. "C'mon, babe. That's not how the line goes." Makerboy told her, he put on a gruff voice, "'Vegeta, what does the scouter say about his power level?'"
"ITS OVER NINE-THOUSAND!"
Goggles had walked over while his team was looking at a sector dedicated to the One Punch Man series. In fact, the goggles-sporting squid may as well have been a Dragon Ball fan since he knew the line, or had he overheard Makerboy's impression?
"Nice voice, Goggles." Makerboy said with a smile.
"Yeah." Boopkins agreed, "Very nice."
Makerboy, Boopkins, and Saiko set aside the DBZ merch for now and joined Goggles in looking at the different One Punch Man items from manga issues to toys, masks, and a few copies of the movie. An inflatable One Punch Man Inkling got Makerboy's attention, almost concerning him, especially after he heard about the Kingpin turning into an Inkling.
"Hey, should I buy a One Punch Man pillow?" Boopkins asked, holding up a pillow with One Punch Man's likeness on it.
"Honestly, I wouldn't mind." Makerboy replied, "It would be a nice change of pace with your anime pillow collection, which has consisted of a lot of anime girls. Having a pillow with a super dude sounds dope, I haven't even gotten myself a pillow with the likes of Goku on it yet. The only anime pillows I have are Pokémon pillows."
"Didn't you and Boopkins share a One Piece Gold Nami bikini body pillow?" Saiko teased, flashing her green-haired boyfriend a suggestive wink.
"It's funny that anime & manga franchises are a thing while real versions of anime characters are wandering around." Specs quipped, "It's even crazier than we Inklings & Octolings existing in the same world as the humans, while there's a video game where Inklings and Octolings live in a world where the humans went extinct."
"Yeah, it's... funny..." Goggles piped up, showing a somewhat uncertain look on his face, "When you think about it, and take the multiverse into account, and forget the whole 'we live in a simulation and free will is a lie' notion, it feels like our world came into existence because of a universe-shattering multiversal crisis that saw various worlds shattered and merge into one...
"Maybe, at one point, we all had different lives on different worlds, and then our universes were destroyed, and whatever was left got merged into one, becoming the world we live in and resulting in craziness like this. Could some of us be reincarnated versions of people we used to be? Are we variants?! And what's going on out there in the multiverse?!"
Goggles looked pale, like he was about to panic. Makerboy and Boopkins stepped in, hugging the blue-haired Inkling in a reassuring manner.
"Dude, it's alright." Makerboy said, "It doesn't matter if our world was created through some multiverse apocalypse. What matters is, we're friends, and we're all real. And, even if we existed in some fictional medium, our lives would still matter and we would still have good days."
"Th-Thanks, MB10." Goggles hugged Makerboy back, "I feel better now. So, uh, you still wanna help ourselves to some merch and go around the mall some more?"
Boopkins bought the One-Punch Man body pillow, and Headphones found a Squid Girl costume from the section dedicated to the Squid Girl manga. Makerboy, Saiko, and their friends went around the anime store for a little longer, looking at various anime items, until they decided it was time to leave the place and paid the Jellyfish cashier for what they'd selected from the sectors.
Makerboy was looking forward to playing with his Vegeta mask, and doing some Vegeta impressions, later on. He snapped a photo of Boopkins hugging the One-Punch Man body pillow, which didn't raise any eyebrows since, well, it was just a harmless pillow hug and nobody seemed to be offended by the scene.
The group walked around the mall, often chatting with folks they bumped into, with Goggles meeting his team's old rival and trainer Rider. Rider was usually tough and gruff, but it was nice to see his kinder side, and Makerboy had Saiko pose with the Inkling for a little photo shoot.
"I must say, you are lucky to have an anime girl as your flame..." Rider told Makerboy, "Some people claim that dating an anime waifu is impossible, but looks like you and Saiko got it to work. Not bad, kid."
"And you're good at compliments." Makerboy shook Rider's hand, "You had any luck with a girl yet?"
"Can't say." Rider hung his head, "Then again, I haven't tried yet, but I'll figure something out."
"Good luck, dude." Goggles said happily.
"Thank you..." Rider smiled, "See you around, Team Blue. And, Makerboy? You stay fresh."
He never heard a guy like Rider say that, but Makerboy took the compliment, and watched as Rider disappeared into the crowd. The green-haired squid and the others popped by the clothing store, thinking about what new clothing they could get, and it had been some time since Goggles or the rest of Team B had gotten any new gear for their Turf battles.
Goggles found a, well, goggles sector, and looked at the various types of goggles that were on display. He had plenty of goggles, which he wore all the time, and often switched the current brand of goggles he was wearing for the other goggles he'd saved.
Makerboy walked past a swimsuit aisle, which got his attention, and he looked at a couple swimsuits that hung perfectly on the racks. A gray-ish speedo got his attention, along with a black-colored swimsuit trunk that had an orange lining on it. The speedo got Makerboy's eye a little more, then he felt a tap on the leg.
"Did you find something, Makerboy?" Fishy Boopkins asked.
Makerboy looked at the swimsuit rack and picked up the speedo, looking at it for a second, and then he looked at his aquatic anime-loving amigo. "You could say I did..." He quipped, "Can you tell Saiko to meet me near the changing room?"
Boopkins nodded, and Makerboy walked to the changing room with the speedo. He went behind the curtain, and removed his jacket along with his boots. In the store, Boopkins found Saiko as she was looking at a sultry-looking pink dress, and he said to her; "Excuse me, Saiko. Your boyfriend wants you to meet him in the changing room."
"Ooh, what did he find?" Saiko asked curiously.
The anime girl left the dress rack and passed the swimsuit area, stepping into the changing room. She looked around for Makerboy and called for him, "Where are you, handsome?"
"Right here, babe."
Makerboy stepped out from behind the curtain, and wearing the speedo he'd just selected. He leaned against the wall, and put a hand on his hip, giving Saiko a dreamy smile. Saiko was mesmerized by what she was seeing, and her eyes were wide as a puppy's.
"Now who are you trying to impress?" The anime girl asked.
"This speedo here?" Makerboy replied, flexing his arm with a smile, "I was just trying it on, and it fits quite nicely if I'm being honest, and I can tell you like it."
Saiko took a picture with her phone. "You are the cutest boy I have ever dated." She said to the green-haired Inkling with a smile, "And that speedo looks so good on you. Will you wear it the next time we go to the beach together?"
"I might." Makerboy stretched, and leaned against the wall, "I might buy you a new bikini as well."
The anime girl blushed. "Makerboy, stop it..." She protested playfully, "You're embarrassing me in the mall."
Makerboy took her hand, and caressed Saiko's face gently, then he pulled her into a tender kiss while Saiko gently stroked his smooth shoulder. The green-haired Inkling went back behind the changing curtain and put his clothes back on, then he and Saiko went back into the store, and found Team Blue right as they were buying a couple of new shoes.
Boopkins, who had found a new brand of slippers, hugged Makerboy and Saiko. Makerboy paid for the speedo, adding it to his wardrobe, and Goggles pat the green-haired Inkling on the shoulder, playfully remarking that they were now the Speedo Squid Bros.
'I wouldn't dream of that.' Makerboy thought with a chuckle.
He and the others were leaving the store when Makerboy heard a buzzing on his phone, even the rest of Team Blue seemed to pick up the same thing with their phones. A notification had just popped up.
Makerboy pulled out his phone and unlocked it, checking to see what the buzz was about. It had to be a text message, maybe some news. People often got news notifications on their phones. And, sure enough, it was a news notification complete with a text message. Goggles, Specs, Headphones, and Bobble Hat looked at their phones, all seeing a similar news notification like Makerboy's.
"Squid-tastic." Makerboy and Goggles said with amazement.
"What is it?" Boopkins asked.
"The results of the Genie V. Pirate Splatfest are in, they just did the final match a short time ago..." Goggles explained, "375 to 347, 80% to 45%."
Makerboy smiled happily. "Team Genie sent the pirate team packing..." He said, "Shantae came out on top in the Splatfest."
"This is the happiest day in Inkopolis." Bobble Hat hugged Headphones, then she hugged Makerboy, "It should be for you as well, Makerboy. Weren't you dating Shantae as well, she's just as cute as Saiko is? I haven't gotten a Headphones-Shantae selfie yet, maybe today is the day we fix that. Genies are so cute next to unicorns."
"I'm so glad Shantae succeeded for Team Genie." Saiko said happily, "We should be there to give her a hug and rejoice with her, so let's get back to the Plaza. Shantae and I are friends after all..."