The Heroes had spent a dozen minutes looking around for any hidden monsters. Amongst all the ones the group had hunted down, Shunshi and Lin Lin had taken out a few that had been hiding in an alley, while Uchiara had crushed the skull of one he'd found underneath a wrecked car.

Finally, the last of the monsters were located when Superalloy Darkshine picked up the train cars that Evil Eye had dropped to block their escape. The S-Class Hero then bashed the cars against an overhead road, shaking the few monsters that had been hiding within them through the broken windows. Before these monsters could even hit the ground, Feather and Crescent Eyebroll jumped into the air and cut them to pieces.

Meanwhile, Double Hole and Green had taken over the duties of managing the first-aid kit. Needle Star had a bandage on his cheek as well as a tissue shoved up his bleeding nose, while Stinger and Lightning Genji were given some light bandages on their arms as well as cold compresses for their bruises.

After confirming with a scanning device that all the monsters in their immediate vicinity were dealt with, Child Emperor addressed everyone, "Good work! We dispatched all of the ones in our vicinity! The Support Squad will stand by and await orders at the central location! Leave the rest to the Strike Team! Strike Team members, assume your individual positions, and begin the assault!"

Just as the Strike Team Heroes started making their way to the different entrances, Sekingar spoke up, "I would like to remind you all of the important details one last time! The top priority is rescuing the hostage! You will get no backup once you enter the Monster Association's hideout! No matter what happens, you are in charge of your own safety!"

"Excuse me! Can we get some help here?!" Captain Mizuki's voice suddenly called out.

Looking over to her, everyone saw as Mizuki and Gearsper were trying to shove Pig God through a public transit staircase. The S-Class Hero's massive bulk having gotten him stuck halfway through it.

"Pig God-Senpai is stuck!"

Standing up and walking over to them, Stinger readied his spear and suggested confidently, "I think I could smash the ground apart with another Meteor Thrust. Just give me a sec-."

Before Stinger could finish talking, the entire staircase at the ground surrounding it was cut into cubes. As a result, Pig God, Stinger, Mizuki, and Gearsper all fell through the street and into the tunnel. Quickly, the latter three climbed out of the hole. After they got back to the surface, they saw Atomic Samurai and Iaian staring down at them.

"Are you sure this plan of attack will work, Master?" Iaian asked.

Grinning, Atomic retorted, "Don't worry, Iaian. Any problem can be solved by cutting it in half.

Gritting his teeth, Stinger complained internally, Assholes. You guys took my chance to show off.

Clearing his throat after watching that, Sekingar finished his speech, "As I was saying, don't any of you die on me!"

With that, all of the members of the Strike Team descended underground through various entrances. Some went through tunnels, others made tunnels, while the smaller Child Emperor went down through a manhole.


With all of the S-Class gone, Monster Mask addressed the Support Squad, "Alright, everyone. Unless you'd all rather I help keep an eye out for more monsters, I'm gonna start meditating."

Sekingar was the first to respond to that, yelling, "Are you kidding me?! The whole reason you're the leader of the Support Squad is because you're its strongest combatant!"

However, Death Gatling countered that, countering, "Would you calm down? He's not going anywhere. He's just going to sit in the middle of the formation. If something that actually needs him to step in comes up, he'll be there. Besides, there's more than enough of us here to keep a watch out while others relax."

"I... I guess you're not wrong," Sekingar relented.

"Affirmative! One Shotter and I can keep a watch out for enemies at a distance. Then two more teams can be made to patrol the surrounding area and uphold this position," Uchiara added.

Looking somewhat put out, One Shotter asked, "We can...? Eh, I guess we should."

Lighting Genji then walked up to the two and said, "Okay. Then, I'll go with you guys to protect you both from close combat sneak attacks."

"Roger that," Uchiara replied.

"Yeah, that's... probably a good idea," One Shotter remarked.

Once those three went to get onto their position, the patrol team started forming.

"Alright, I'll lead whoever's going on patrol! We don't just need powerhouses for this, though. We need a team with some diverse abilities to make sure we can handle whatever comes at us. On top of that, we'll need to cover up any other exits out of the monsters' base that we find in order to make sure none can escape without having to go through us first!" Death Gatling stated.

"I suppose it'd be best if I came along then. My powers are rather diverse, and I can handle sealing any exits we find with my vines," Green said wearily.

"If Green's going, I'll go too!" Crescent Eyebroll stated.

"My agile fighting style should help mix things up," Feather remarked.

Taking an eccentric stance as he gripped a rose in his mouth, Narcisstoic exclaimed, "In that case, my beautiful and graceful techniques should come in handy as well!"

"Guess it wouldn't hurt if I came too," Strange Binding Shell said.

"I can use my ESP to help us locate monsters and the exits!" Gearsper added excitedly.

"If we're looking for diverse abilities, I guess I can tag along," Lin Lin chimed in.

Giving her a cold stare, Death Gatling asked, "You sure you can bear to separate from your boyfriend for a few agonizing minutes?"

Glaring back at him, Lin Lin shot back, "We'll be fine being apart. It's not like I can't fight without him or anything!"

Snickering, Death Gatling replied, "Really? Well, I hope so. I'm not having Monster Mask hold me responsible if you get yourself hurt."

By now, Shunshi had assumed his meditative posture. However, when he heard that, he opened his eyes and remarked, "She'll be fine, Death Gatling. Lin's as strong as an A-Class Hero."

Folding her arms and smirking, Lin Lin asked rhetorically, "See? I've got this."

As Death Gatling chuckled slightly, Captain Mizuki stepped up next.

"Uh, I've got a good mix of tools, so I can come too."

Nodding, Death Gatling replied, "That'll work. I think we have enough for the recon now, then."

Rushing up, Stinger remarked, "Hold on! I can help with this too! You guys could use another powerhouse, right?"

"No. You should stay here, Stinger," Death Gatling remarked bluntly.

"What?! Why should I-?"

Cutting him off, Shunshi spoke up again, "Sorry, but Death Gatling's right, Stinger. If we send anyone else away, our position here at the entrances will be too weak. Besides, if you leave too, I'll be the only heavy-hitter left here."

For a few moments, Stinger looked over the recon team, lingering his gaze on Captain Mizuki for a few seconds longer than the others. It was clear from his expression how annoyed he was.

Eventually, he let out a sigh and responded, "Gah, fine. I'll stay."

With that, Death Gatling told the others, "Okay, team. Let's move!"

Listening to his instructions, the eight other Heroes followed Death Gatling to patrol for monsters.


With the one he wished to impress gone, Stinger sat on a slab of debris and began to sulk. This didn't last long, though, as Needle Star was quick to approach him.

"Hey, Stinger. I got a question for ya."

Looking up, he responded, "Hmm? What's that?"

"You're in the top tier of A-Class, so I always figured you were strong, but you weren't this tough the last time I saw you fight. What happened to you exactly?"

Smiling a bit, Stinger asked with a hint of superiority in his tone, "Looking for training for tips, eh?"

Without hesitating, Needle Star responded eagerly but confidently, "I plan to get ta S-Class one day, so He'll yeah I am! You and those other guys totally outshined me when that rhino bastard attacked!"

Closing his eyes as he gestured with his spear to the meditating Monster Mask, Stinger remarked, "Well, it's not me you should be asking. Me and Lightning Genji started getting stronger when we started getting chummy with that guy there. Just keeping up with him is a Hell of a workout. Not to mention, he gave me some pretty good training tips yesterday that I used to make my new attacks."

"Wait, so... If you're a buddy of his, why aren't ya using that Kie stuff too then?"

Opening his eyes back up, Stinger took a second to think before awkwardly explaining, "Uh, well... I never thought to ask what exactly that stuff was. First time I actually heard about how this stuff works was yesterday when we fought the Hero Hunter... I guess I could try to figure it out?"

Looking over at Monster Mask, Needle Star let out a, "Hmm." Before ditching Stinger and approaching him.

Having immersed himself in his meditation once again, Shunshi didn't pick up on Needle Star's presence until the B-Class yelled, "Hey! Boss-man!"

Shooting his eyes open and looking up at Needle Star, Shunshi asked frantically while climbing to his feet, "Huh?! Yes?! What's going on?! Is a monster here?!"

Once Monster Mask stood up at his full height, a few inches above Needle Star, the lower-ranked Hero bluntly replied, "Nah, nothing like that. Stinger says you give good advice for getting stronger. I wanna make it to S-Class one day, so whata' ya got? Should I just figure out that Kie stuff you're using? Cause' I'm not into all that spiritual shit."

Taken off guard, Shunshi spent half a minute processing before giving an answer, "Um... Well, uh... I'd always recommend trying to unlock Kie to other Heroes, but for you specifically? Uh... Um... Well, your techniques are good at the moment. The only things I can think of would be to replace your weapon with one made of stronger stuff, so Demon-Level monsters can't just knock it away, and... Exercise more, I guess...? How often do you work out anyway? And what do you do?"

Needle Star was, at first, somewhat offended by the question. He quickly calmed himself, though, having been the one who asked for such criticisms, to begin with.

"Huh... Well, I usually train on the weekends, practicing attacks and working out, and spend Mondays through Wednesdays on the job. Chasing down monsters and crooks, ya know? I take Thursdays and Fridays off. I'll still step in to help if I come across some bastards causing trouble on those days, though."

Putting the clawed finger of his gauntlet to the jaw-piece of his helmet, Shunshi thought for a moment.

After a minute, Monster Mask spoke up again, recommending, "Well, this might help you get stronger faster. If you think you can handle it, I train every single day and also go do Hero work after I'm done. I take one day a month off from the hardcore stuff, but I still do some specific light training that my Master has instructed me to do every single day. I'd need to see you fight one or more times to know exactly what kind of training would work best for you but at the moment... I'd say, take whatever it is you already do and increase the repetition of it by five or ten times over."

Needle Star was taken off guard when Monster Mask revealed the absurd level of training he did. The extreme lengths he went to worried and discouraged the B-Class at first. However, Monster Mask's remark about doubting his capabilities lit a fire in Needle Star's belly.

Gritting his teeth, Needle Star stomped his foot and shouted, "Hell yeah, I can handle that! You think I'm some kinda pansy?! If it means getting to ma' goal, I'll train so hard it'll make you look like a chump, and I'll figure out that Kie stuff at the same time!"

Monster Mask understood the intended hostility behind the B-Class' words. Regardless, his response was still one of genuine optimistic encouragement.

"That's great! I can't wait to see you become that strong, Needle Star, sir! It's gonna be awesome to have more S-Class Heroes one day!"

For a moment, Needle Star tried to ascertain whether or not Monster Mask was patronizing him. However, after the sincerity of his words became clear, Needle Star couldn't help but smirk and chuckle.

However, the two of them both raised their brows when they took notice of the fact that Poison had approached them. The loud conversation had drawn the attention of a few other Heroes around them. In fact, it had grabbed Poison's interest enough for him to walk up and ask a question.

"Hey, uh... Monster Mask. I don't know if you saw me fight, but do you think you could give me some advice too? I'm a bit sick of being stuck near the bottom of C-Class. I know we're all getting promotions after this, but... still. I don't wanna plateau at whatever that's gonna be."

Rubbing the back of his head, Shunshi thought for a moment before answering, "Um... Sorry, I don't think I noticed you during all the carnage. If you tell me how you fight, I might have some tips. Maybe?"

Without hesitating, Poison pulled out a dinky knife with a ring at the end for a thumb or two fingers to fit through.

Spinning his blade a couple of times for emphasis, Poison explained, "I fight with poison-covered knives. All I need to do is make a single small cut to bring a monster down. So, you got anything specific for me? Or should I just increase my training the same way you suggested Needle Star does?"

"Hrmm... I guess... First, make sure the material you're using for your blades can cut through the skin of whatever monster you're up against. From my experience, most monsters of Demon-Level and above have hides stronger than iron or steel. Although, even some Tigers are that tough too. Physically speaking, while you shouldn't neglect building your strength, I'd focus the majority of your training on improving your speed so you can get in, make the cuts, and get out. Maybe study up on what Flashy Flash does for his training? Also, I don't know if you're skilled with larger blades at all, but if you feel like you can do it, you could make bigger blades for monsters that can regenerate. That way you can get more poison in them with each cut, not to mention the extra damage from making bigger slashes. Hopefully, that'll let you overpower whatever regeneration the monsters potentially have."

Poison looked a bit surprised for a moment. The sheer amount of advice Monster Mask came up with on the spot had overwhelmed him.

However, Poison's expression shifted to one of more annoyance as he complained, "I can do the training stuff, but I already make my knives out of the best materials I can afford on a C-Class salary. I just don't have access to the best stuff."

Poison's words stung Shunshi's soul, not because he was offended, but because of how inconsiderate he felt.

Geez... I guess I never really realized how lucky I was to meet Genos-Senpai on top of meeting Saitama-Sensei. Dr. Stench gives me armor made out of metal that can take hits from Demon Level monsters... wait, Shunshi thought to himself as he looked at his gauntlet.

Lifting his hand to Poison, as if offering the C-Class Hero his appendage, Monster Mask asked, "Do you want my gauntlet? It's made out of the same stuff Demon Cyborg's body is made from."

As his eyes went wide, Poison stammered out, "Wha- wha- WHAT?! Are you serious?! Don't you need it?!"

Nodding, Shunshi explained, "It's fine. I don't know if you have the equipment to repurpose this material, but I can get my gauntlet replaced if you want it."

Lifting his hands up shakily, Poison replied, "Uh... Uh... Sure, thank you!" He then reached to pull off the gauntlet from Monster Mask's hand, only to fail to remove it.

Realizing the problem Poison was having, Shunshi told him, "Oh, hold on. Let me get that off." Monster Mask then adjusted his gauntlet, unlocking it out of place and sliding it off.

He then handed it to Poison, with the C-Class thinking gleefully, I feel like a player who just started an RPG and got his hands on the best weapon in the game right away... I might not even need to turn this thing into blades. With the claws and spikes on it, it might do as is.

Getting up and approaching his friend, Stinger inquired, "Hey, you sure about that, Monster Mask? You gonna be okay being down a claw?"

Lifting his hand to show Stinger as he focused Kie onto his fingernails, Shunshi explained, "Yeah, I'll be fine. It'd be easier with both my gauntlets, but my Kie can make up for the loss."

Looking somewhat exasperated, Stinger replied, "Of... Of course, you can."

However, as soon as Stinger made this remark, another Hero approached Monster Mask, one with particularly large nostrils.

"Hey, Monster Mask," Double Hole greeted plainly as he gave a respectful bow.

Bowing back, Shunshi replied, "Hello, Double Hole, sir. What's up?"

Standing up, Shunshi's fellow martial arts Hero explained, "Can I ask you something too?"

"Sure. Go ahead."

Nodding, Double Hole explained, "I don't know if I'm up for the kind of training you're recommending to the others, but I'm at least interested in learning these Kie techniques. If you have time, would you be willing to give me a couple of lessons on how to use that stuff? As a martial artist, I'm sure you can understand my desires here."

Extending his uncovered hand to Double Hole, Shunshi told him, "Sure, no problem. We can meet up sometime after this is all over, and I can explain the basics. Sound good?"

Accepting the handshake, Double Hole smiled slightly and replied in an almost monotone voice, "Sure. That sounds great to me."

Although his mask hid it, Shunshi was actually rather dumbstruck at the moment.

This is... Surreal. Before becoming Master's disciple, I never would have imagined in my wildest dreams that Heroes would be asking me for advice on getting stronger. It's only been a couple months, but do the other members of the Hero Association already think of me as something special? I know Sneck was complimenting me on that back at Super Fight, and that originally I... Well, overestimated how strong Pro-Heroes actually are, but still. This just doesn't really seem real to me.

After finishing his thoughts and shaking Double Hole's hand, Monster Mask saw one other individual walking up to him. This time, it was Jet Nice Guy, who brought the total number of Heroes crowding around Monster Mask up to five.

"Uh, hey there. Did you want some tips for getting stronger, too, Mr. Jet, sir? You're a cyborg, though, so I'm not sure if I've got any good advice for you," Shunshi said, addressing the B-Class Hero.

Straightening his already mechanical posture, Jet Nice Guy explained, "Well, sort of... The thing is, do you remember that I was there at the fight with the Deep Sea King?"

Put on the spot, Shunshi strained his mind for a minute. Eventually, fuzzy memories of a mechanical figure who tried to attack the aquatic monster came back to him.

"Uh, vaguely... I think? Um, sorry. I almost got killed that day, so my memories of it aren't exact."

After spending a moment trying to process if he should be offended, the cyborg B-Class chuckled awkwardly and remarked, "I guess that's fair. Well, yeah, I was there. I got taken out of the fight pretty quickly, but I was still able to watch when the Demon Cyborg showed up. I got inspired by his abilities, and I worked tirelessly to upgrade myself based on what I saw from him. I haven't had a chance to show it off yet, but I even have a jet-powered punch attack. I call it Ultimate Jet Straight."

Perking up somewhat, Monster Mask remarked, "Really? Good work, dude!"

"Th... Thanks. But, well... You're one of Demon Cyborg's sidekicks, right?"

At that question, Stinger had expected to see Shunshi grow upset. However, instead, Monster Mask at first had seemingly no reaction, due to his helmet hiding his face. After just a few seconds, though, Shunshi suddenly burst out with laughter.

After he had calmed down, Monster Mask responded, "Hehe! No, no. I don't work for him. He is my Senpai, but we just study under the same master. I'd say we're friends, but he's really touchy about that topic. So, why do ya ask?"

Looking somewhat surprised, Jet wanted to inquire further on this topic but instead chose to focus on the matter at hand, "Ah, right. So, I was wondering if you could introduce me to him. I'm smart enough to work on upgrading myself, like I've been saying, but, well... I'm still only powerful enough to be a B-Class Hero. Even just a few engineering pointers would be great."

Tilting his head, Shunshi asked, "Sooo... You wanna pick Genos-Senpai's brain?"

Lifting his boxing glove fists up, Jet Nice Guy replied excitedly, "Yeah! I was hoping he could show me some tips on how to upgrade my body. With the kind of tech he's got, even if I just get a few tips from him, I might actually become strong enough to become an A or S-Class Hero!"

Instinctively, Shunshi was about to explain Genos' relationship with Dr. Stench but stopped himself when he realized that such information wasn't his to share.

Instead, Monster Mask replied, "I'll... talk to him and see if he's willing to share any secrets. Hopefully, I'll catch him in a good mood, and he'll have the time."

Grabbing Monster Mask's still-covered hand, Jet Nice Guy began enthusiastically shaking it while telling him, "Thank you so much! I can't tell you how much this means to me!"

Looking at the B-Class cyborg shaking his hand, Shunshi got a sudden idea. Pulling his hand away, Monster Mask removed his other gauntlet and held it out to Jet Nice Guy.

"Here. If Genos isn't willing to share info for any reason, like I told Poison, my armor is made of the same stuff as Demon Cyborg's body. It's not much, but maybe you could study the metal and figure out how to make it yourself?"

Taking the gift hesitantly, Jet Nice Guy replied shakily, "I... Thank you... Seriously. Even this should help out a lot in upgrading my body."

Pointing at Jet Nice Guy, Stinger remarked monotonously, "And there goes both your sets of claws."

At Stinger's concern, Shunshi thought about how King told him that Saitama would be here, before insuring, "Eh, don't worry. The S-Class are here. They'll probably take out any of the monsters who could be actual threats before we ever see them."

"Hmm. If you say so. Either way, you sure-."Stinger began to say. However, before he could finish speaking, the entire ground began to shake.

Instinctively, everyone went on guard, pulling out their weapons or putting up their fists.

Frantically, Shunshi began scanning his surroundings as he ignited his Kie and yelled, "What's going on?! Is there a monster?! Does anyone have eyes on it?!"

Before anyone could give an answer, though, something in Sekingar's coat started to beep. Pulling out the source of the noise, Sekingar was holding a circular device the size of a poker chip, with a blinking light in its center. Then, as a holographic display of multiple drills burrowing through the floors of a structure was projected from the device, Sekingar began to sweat.

"No! It's not a monster, it's...! This is...! Child Emperor's ultimate secret weapon! What the Hell could be making him use it so soon?! What kind of monsters are down there?!" Sekingar exclaimed.

Even as the shaking continued, Shunshi relaxed somewhat and muttered, "Is that all? Great, now I feel like an idiot for panicking."

A few moments later, after the rumbling subsided, Stinger gave Monster Mask a nervous look and asked, "Are you sure you don't need all your gear?"

Taking up a more ponderous stance, Shunshi replied, "Well... I don't know. I should be fine, but..."

Before he could finish that thought, Poison extended the gauntlet given to him back to Monster Mask, gesturing for him to take it back.

"Huh? What are you doing? Don't you need this for-?"

Cutting Monster Mask off, Poison explained, "Yeah, I still want this thing. But you can use it better than I can, and besides, I can't make use of it at all right now anyway. We can meet up later, sometime after this is all done if you're still willing to let me have this."

Hesitantly, Shunshi grabbed hold of his gauntlet, and responded, "Well... I mean, if you're sure."

Simultaneously, Jet Nice Guy handed his gauntlet back over.

Before Monster Mask even had an opportunity to question this, Jet explained, "It's the same reasoning with me. I'd just be carrying this around, slowing myself down. Better for you to keep it for now."

Shunshi frowned behind his helmet for a moment after this, before letting out an understanding sigh. He then gave both of them a nod and put his gear back on his hands, locking them back into place.

Just as Shunshi began to say, "Sorry about-," a piercing gunshot went off on top of a nearby building.

For a half-second, everyone flinched. After recomposing their nerves, they all recognized the sound as coming from either One Shotter's sniper rifle or Uchiara's assault rifle.

"Guess they spotted a monster in the distance," Twin Tail remarked stoically.

After taking a drink from a carton of chocolate milk, Food Battler commented, "Well, I hope they're able to take care of any monsters before they get here. That'll make things easier for us."

Giving the plus-sized C-Class an inquisitive look, Shadow Ring asked him, "Say, Food Battler, you're a melee fighter, right?"

With a blank expression on his face, Food Battler responded, "Of a sort, you could say."

Gesturing to the Heroes gathered around Monster Mask, Shadow Ring went on, "Well, why don't you ask him for training advice too, then? He seems to be in a generous mood at the moment."

Taking out a candy bar and scarfing it down, Food Battler replied, "Hm... Well, maybe if I run into him again, I'll ask him about that Kie stuff. But as for the physical training...? Nah. It wouldn't work well with my high-calorie foodie fighting style."

With an expression that screamed bewilderment, which was mostly hidden by her mask, Shadow Ring responded, "Uh... If you say so... But, yeah. Those Kie techniques seem too bombastic to work well with my ninjutsu, and I don't know if Twin Tail could make them work for her either."

Although Twin Tail heard this remark, she had no time to comment back on it, as the ground began shaking once more.

While working to keep his balance, Monster Mask asked, "Hey, Mr. Sekingar! Is that still Child Emperor?"

Pulling out the same device from before and producing another holographic display, Sekingar saw as an image of a robot of some kind was now flying through the various floors of the Monster Association.

Gulping nervously, Sekingar responded while shouting to make sure he could be heard, "Looks like it! However, Child Emperor's secret weapon only has a couple of minutes' worth of power! The shaking will stop once it runs out, or hopefully sooner if he defeats whatever he's fighting before then!"

"Oh, geez. That does sound pretty intense. I hope he'll be okay," Shunshi stated, even as the vibrating ground bounced him and the others up and down ever so slightly.

Fighting to keep his balance, Poison remarked, "Weren't you the one saying that you're fine since the S-Class are here?! Besides, he's the one making the city shake!"

"Yeah, I think the kid's got this!" Stinger added.

Thinking about what he'd said earlier, Shunshi worried internally, Hrm... Master's down there by now, right? If Child Emperor does need help, I hope he finds him.

Before the rumbling could even finish, though, both Uchiara and One Shotter started opening fire.

After a few seconds of this, Lightning Genji shouted down to the rest of the group, "They said we've got an incoming hoard of monsters! About another hundred! And one of them's not going down no matter how much they shoot it! That one's shielding the others from the bullets!"

Upon hearing this news, Shunshi ignited his Kie as he and everyone else jumped into fighting positions. Shunshi and Stinger got to the front of the formation, while the B and C-Class Heroes were in the middle. Meanwhile, Twin Tail, Shadow Ring, and Sekingar were at the back of the group, standing next to the entrance that Child Emperor had used. Sekingar was in the back due to his relatively weak combat abilities, while the other two were there to guard against potential attacks from the rear.

A couple of minutes later, the shaking of the ground seizing coincided with the stampede of monsters coming into view. At the front of the hoard was an odd, large, monster with a square body made of riveted metal. The creature stood over ten feet tall and had a face and limbs like those of a cartoon character from an old black-and-white cartoon. Across its body were numerous small dents, indicating where Uchiara and One Shotter had shot it.

Lifting up his claws, Monster Mask addressed everyone else on his team in a loud but relaxed tone, "Okay, everybody! Do you all want to take on the big guy while I handle the pack, or do you want me to take the freak on while you all handle the small fries?!"

While the others were somewhat dumbstruck by this inquiry, Double Hole was able to remain composed enough to answer dully, "It'd be better if you take on the big metal cube. If those two on the roof can't hurt that thing, then most of us probably won't be able to do anything to it."

Crouching, Shunshi responded, "Got it! I'm going in!"

He then sprung forward, leaping through the air as he landed a jump kick into the cube monster's face. This attack had enough power behind it that it actually knocked the big monster off its feet, causing it to fall on and crush a few of the smaller monsters behind it.

"Aaa! That one knocked over Big Bob!" "But he's a Demon-Level monster! I thought all the S-Class Heroes went underground!" A couple of monsters shouted.

Before the other monsters could recover mentally from this shock, Stinger and the other Heroes came rushing in as well, tearing into their opponents. Meanwhile, with Big Bob out of the way, the Heroes on the roof took care of any monsters that were trying to run or were going after other Heroes in their blind spots.

In the center of all this action, Big Bob threw a punch at Monster Mask in an attempt to knock him away. The attack came faster than Shunshi had expected, with him just managing to raise his arms to shield himself. While the punch did hit hard enough to force Shunshi away, he wasn't in any real pain and was able to easily recompose himself before landing at the monster's feet.

Huh. Those noodly arms of his are fast, but they don't have much strength behind them despite his size. I wonder if it's just this thing's metal body that makes it a Demon, Shunshi pondered as Big Bob stood up.

Taking up an overly exaggerated boxing stance, Big Bob declared, "So you got back up from my iron-hard punch, eh? Well, it's not just my fists, but my whole body is as strong as iron! My durability will wear you and your buddies down, and then I'll be able to crush you all!"

Taking a split second, Monster Mask knocked on his armor, before taking up a proper stance again and retorting, "Sorry, but what I got on is way tougher than iron. Even if it weren't, my Kie makes my body tough enough to take hits like that already. I got you beat on the durability front. Why don't you just tell me where your weak points are so I can kill you painlessly?"

Gritting its cartoonish teeth, Big Bob yelled, "That's bull crap! I'll flatten you!"

Jumping at Monster Mask, Big Bob was going for a bellyflop as it exclaimed, "My twenty-ton body'll turn you into a pancake!"

Bracing his muscles, Shunshi muttered to himself, "Wait. Am I strong enough to lift that much?!"

Landing on Monster Mask as a cloud of dirt went into the air, it seemed as if Big Bob had actually crushed him.

For a moment, both Stinger and Lightning Genji shouted, "Shunshi!" But just as they were both about to abandon their positions to attack Big Bob, the dust cleared, and they calmed down.

Holding up Big Bob by its flat face over his head, Shunshi was standing there with a flabbergasted but ecstatic look on his hidden face.

"I...! This is...! This is way too easy! I didn't know I'd gotten strong enough for something like this!" Monster Mask exclaimed.

While all the other Heroes and monsters were sparing a moment to look at Monster Mask's display of strength in shock, Stinger and Lightning Genji had relief mixed into their faces.

Not wasting another moment, Shunshi suddenly threw the flailing monster he was holding, clearing over fifteen feet with the creature and crushing some more monsters.

Before Big Bob could get back up again, Monster Mask landed on its face and started unleashing a flurry of clawed strikes, shredding and melting the surface of the monster's iron face.

What the Hell's going on?! I thought all the strongest Heroes went underground! I thought the S-Class Heroes and the Cadres would all destroy each other, and then I could be the new Monster King! Big Bob thought to itself in a panic.

Just as Bob roared and tried to land another desperate punch on Monster Mask, the Hero in question took the opportunity to throw a Light Ball the size of himself into the monster's mouth.

Big Bob gagged on the light for a split second. However, as soon as the Light Ball detonated, and Monster Mask jumped away, its gagging and flailing had stopped. The front of Big Bob's body had been blown open, leaving behind a corpse that resembled a metal cube with one surface that had been torn apart and had metal organs spilling out.

With that monster dealt with, Shunshi turned to see how his allies were doing and was happy with what he saw. While Stinger and Uchiara's attacks were taking out the majority of the monsters, the rest of the team had been holding their own, as half the monsters had been dealt with already. Even Sekingar stepped up, having broke one of the smaller monster's arms as he put it into a choke-hold and strangled it to death.

Deciding to lend a hand, Shunshi rushed into the fight without bothering to use his Kie.


After a few more minutes had passed, Shunshi and the rest of the guard team had taken out the monsters that had assailed them.

As Sekingar and the B and C-Class Heroes were sweating and gasping for breath, except for Food Battler, who was stuffing his face, Shunshi and the other A-Class Heroes had hardly broken a sweat.

"Well, those guys weren't too tough, so I'd say that was some decent training," Monster Mask remarked confidently.

At that comment, Needle Star, who had admittedly been doing better than the other lower-ranked Heroes, quickly straightened his posture and remarked, "He... Hell yeah! Little pukes like those make great practice!"

Giving Monster Mask an exasperated look, Poison muttered under his breath, "This guy's insane..."

At the same time, Stinger playfully punched Monster Mask's armored shoulder and told him, "Man, you had me worried there for a sec with that big metal guy! Guess I shouldn't be surprised you had it handled with how crazy strong you are."

"Huh...? Oh, uh, thanks," Shunshi replied hesitantly.

In his mind, though, Shunshi began to analyze himself, That sounds kind of like what I've thought about underestimating Saitama-Sensei a few times. Huh... Actually, a few people for the past couple of days have been telling me how strong I am. The Hero Association is even gonna make me an S-Class Hero... Holy crap! After this mission is done I'm gonna be an S-Class Hero! This is... I mean, I've taken down two Demon-Level monsters today alone, and it was pretty damn easy. Not to mention all those Tigers and Wolves I fought. I took them out like they were nothing. Before I started training under Master Saitama, taking down Tigers was at least somewhat of a challenge for me, but now I'm... I'm looking down on the monsters that exhausted all the B and C-Class Heroes. I know what I said to Suiryu, but maybe... Maybe I really am strong now?

Giving Monster Mask a puzzled look, Stinger asked him, "Hey, you alright? You kinda went quiet there all of a sudden, dude."

Coming out of his stupor, Shunshi flinched as he replied, "Wha...?! Oh, yeah. I'm fine. Just... Had an epiphany, I guess."

For a moment, Stinger hesitated before replying, "Oh, cool."

In his mind, though, the spear-wielder wondered, The heck's an epiphany?

As Stinger wracked his mind, Twin Tail approached Monster Mask and asked him, "What was it about? What conclusion did you come to? Nothing bad, I hope."

Smirking behind his helmet, the blue-eyed Hero responded, "No, nothing like that. I just-."

Before Monster Mask could finish, Uchiara's voice called out to everyone, "The away team is coming back! They're approaching from the same direction as the monsters we just dealt with!"

Turning to look down the street, Monster Mask and the others saw as the scouting team, somewhat exhaustedly, was marching toward them. A few of these Heroes had minor injuries but overall seemed as if they were just tired. What was more noteworthy was how half of them had splotches of monster blood covering their costumes.

Noticing all the monster corpses as he approached, especially Big Bob's, Death Gatling yelled tiredly, "I was going to talk about all the monsters we had to deal with on our patrol, but it looks like you all had your hands full as well!"

Walking up to meet Death Gatling halfway, Monster Mask asked him, "So, how'd the scouting mission go?"

Taking a deep breath, Death Gatling explained, "Well, first off, no casualties on our end. Everyone's still in fighting condition. Gearsper found all the other exits from the Monster Association, and Green sealed them up, while the rest of us held the monsters off their backs. Now Child Emperor should be able to return with the hostage through the entrance he used before. What about you guys? What happened here?"

Gesturing at Big Bob's body, Monster Mask explained, "That Demon-Level monster tried to lead a bunch of weaker monsters to take us out while we were separated. Big mistake on the monsters' part. We took them all out without any losses for our troubles either."

Keeping his typical stoic frown on his face, Death Gatling lamented internally, Damn. I was hoping I could outshine Monster Mask on this one.

"Well, good to hear everything was relatively fine here, then... Did you take that metal guy down on your own, or did the others have to help you? Just curious is all," the gun-wielder asked Monster Mask aloud.

As the rest of the Support Team gathered around, Jet Nice Guy spoke up for Monster Mask, "He did it all by himself! It was incredible! He actually picked up and threw the bastard before blowing its face open with one of his light bomb attacks!"

"Right... Of course, he did," Death Gatling grumbled.

Upon hearing this, Narcisstoic twirled to the front of the group and remarked, "My oh my! Those Kie techniques of yours are truly something quite flashy! They would compliment my elegant fighting techniques splendidly, I'd say. Say, would you be willing to show me how to use that power at some point? You were saying on the way in here how it's something that can be learned, yes?"

Walking up to Monster Mask as well, Feather added, "I'd hate to be a bother, but do you think you could show me how it works too? That stuff seems invaluable in melee, so I'd be stupid not to at least try to learn the basics of it."

"Hey, it's no problem. Needle Star, Double Hole, and Poison asked me to teach them about Kie too. We can all get together after this mission and work on it as a team," Shunshi replied pleasantly.

"Hey, count me and Genji in on that too!" Stinger suddenly remarked as he grabbed Monster Mask's shoulder.

"Oh, you guys wanna learn Kie too? You should've said something sooner! Of course, you're welcome to join us."

"Wait, we're learning about Monster Mask's Kie stuff now on top of going on patrols with him?!" Lightning Genji shouted from the roof he was on.

Waving his spear at Genji, Stinger yelled back at him, "Of course we are! I'm not getting left behind, and I'm not letting you fall behind either!"

As Stinger and Genji were yelling back and forth at each other, Uchiara watched the chummy Heroes and pondered, I don't know if I could use Kie in the state my body's in, but if I've got the freedom to do so in the future, I'd definitely wanna try to learn.

Stepping up as everyone was conversing, Lin Lin proudly folded her arms and remarked to the group, "I guess I'll be helping out with that then. I can use Kie too, and besides, I'm a Hero now as well."

Raising his fist to Lin Lin, Shunshi told her, "Heck yeah! That's the spirit, Lin!"

Giggling, Lin Lin returned her boyfriend's gesture, lightly knocking the back of her fist against his.

Seeing Monster Mask interact with his girlfriend again, Stinger looked over at Mizuki and smirked. He was about to tell her that she should come to this training as well, so he could show her his spear techniques at the same time. However, his chance to do so vanished when an explosion suddenly went off at the base of the building that Uchiara, Lightning Genji, and One Shotter were standing on.

Reacting just in time, Uchiara picked up Genji and One Shotter under his arms, as his rife hung from his chest by its sash, and leaped off the building with them as it collapsed. Just as Uchiara landed next to the Support Team and was about to ask what happened, more explosions went off at the foundations of several more buildings that lined the street.

"What the heck's going on?!" Sekingar yelled.

As the various buildings collapsed, two of the structures landed on the manhole that Child Emperor was supposed to use to escape.

"The opening!" Sekingar and a few others shouted all at once.

Standing atop the six-story buildings that fell on the manhole was a cackling monster. Its body was the shape of a tall detonator with a single eye and a razor-toothed maw. It had fleshy and clawed arms and legs, and a tail made from an electrical cable. The creature then suddenly reached up and grabbed its detonation trigger, blowing out the base of another nearby building as it did.

Continuing to laugh, the monster exclaimed in a nasally voice, "Hahaha! Dumbasses! Thanks to the great Building Booper, the Heroes that entered our base are as good as dead! No one can escape Lord Orochi's wrath while trapped down there...! HUH!?"

As Building Booper taunted the Heroes, it noticed too late as a glowing sphere of light approached it.

Without hesitating, Monster Mask had thrown a sizeable Light Ball at the detonator monster as soon as he pinned down where its voice was coming from. Upon contact with the Light Ball, Building Booper was faced with an explosion twice as powerful as what it could produce. As soon as the blast resolved, what remained of the Demon Level monster's body was sent flying off the rubble of the structures it stood atop.

"Annoying bastard," Monster Mask lamented aloud as everyone else looked at him with surprise. Only those already familiar with his abilities weren't stunned silent by the bronze medal A-Class' throwing arm.

Giving the destroyed buildings a quick once-over, Monster Mask turned to ask Sekingar, "Excuse me, Sekingar, sir? Do you know if Child Emperor is on his way?"

After taking a moment to recompose himself, Sekingar replied, "Um... Well, if he's not still in the middle of a fight, I can call and ask him. Otherwise, it'll take me a few minutes to pinpoint his location."

Taking a second to stretch out, Shunshi explained, "Okay... Well, I'll need, like, five minutes at most to clear all this out. Maybe only two. If he's close, let him know the situation."

Pulling out the poker chip device, Sekingar responded, "Uh... Right! Of course!"

He can get rid of those buildings?! There's no way! Crescent Eyebroll thought.

While beginning to ready True White Sun, Shunshi muttered confidently, "Maybe I'll only need one minute for this."

However, just as Sekingar began to call Child Emperor, the two buildings that were blocking the exit were suddenly flung into the air, as if by an act of God. The buildings traveled a good distance, flying miles away before crashing to the ground and shaking it.

After the buildings landed safely away from everyone, a group of individuals climbed out of the manhole. First was Child Emperor, who was accompanied by a robotic, bipedal dog. Next to them was the Caped Baldy.

"It opened!" Child Emperor exclaimed as Saitama pushed the metal cover away.

"It's Child Emperor! He made it!" A few people shouted simultaneously.

However, as he continued to absentmindedly charge his attack, Shunshi stuttered out, "Ma- Ma- Master...?"

Climbing out over the metal dog's back, the child hostage popped out of the hole, declaring, "We're out! We're safe!"

"Waganma too!" Sekingar exclaimed as he rushed over to help him up.

Approaching Child Emperor, Captain Mizuki asked him shakily, "Um, excuse me, but how exactly did you do that?"

"Hm? The cover? Just gave it a 'one-two' and pushed really hard. Was kind of rusty, I think, so I had to put in a little extra effort," Child Emperor explained.

Turning to talk to the others, Mizuki whispered, "That was him being rusty?!"

"Did he use an invention or something?" One Shotter asked

"He... He had to uv'. He's just a kid!" Uchiara added.

"He might look like a kid, but holy crap..." Needle Star commented.

However, as Lightning Genji looked at the individuals who came out of the hole, his gaze focused on the bland-looking man amongst them, asking himself, Hold on. Is that...?

Before anyone could make any other comments, though, Shunshi, still charging his attack, suddenly shouted with excitement, "Master Saitama!"

As everyone turned to look at the shouting Monster Mask, Saitama took notice of him as well and commented, "Oh, Shunshi. So this is where you ran off to?"

"Master?! Wait, isn't that the guy who was pretending to be Charanko?!" Lin Lin asked.

"Um... Right. There's actually a good reason for that, Lin," Shunshi replied nervously.

"Hold on, I thought Silver Fang was your instructor," Uchiara added.

"Well, he is, but so is Saitama-Sensei," Shunshi tried to explain.

"Oh, hey. That is him. Huh, wow, with how bland he is, I didn't even notice he was there at first," Genji commented.

"Wait, who is this guy?!" Sekingar asked.

Giving Saitama a hesitant look, Child Emperor said, "Oh, right... I didn't want to bring this up while we were escaping, but you are the B-Class Hero that Demon Cyborg and Monster Mask have claimed to be their teacher, right? In fact, Monster Mask has told me that you're also King's sparring partner. Is this true?"

After being confronted like this, Saitama thought back to all the times that he and King had played video games, and then responded plainly, "Yeah, I guess you could say that."

"Wait, King?!" Several of the Heroes shouted.

I thought Monster Mask was Demon Cyborg's sidekick or something. But they actually work for this guy? What?! Sekingar thought.

Hearing everyone ask so many questions about the Caped Baldy, both Stinger and Lightning Genji started giving Monster Mask cautious glances. The memories of how aggressive he would get to defend the Caped Baldy's honor came flooding back, which weren't helped by the still-growing orbs of explosive light in his hands.

Turning to look at Shunshi again, Lin Lin asked him, "Wait, so... He really is your teacher? Why was he disguised at Super Fight, then? He must be a pretty good martial artist, too, right?"

"Well, you see, the thing about that is-."

Before Shunshi could properly explain things, Child Emperor spoke up, "Everyone, please be quiet! I'm not done questioning Caped Baldy!"

With that command, all the Heroes went silent, like students who had been scolded. At the same time, Saitama's brow twitched ever so slightly at the mentioning of his Hero name.

Giving Saitama a more serious look, Child Emperor asked, "So, I need you to tell me why you're here. Did Monster Mask tell you of our operation?"

Immediately, Saitama answered bluntly, "Nah. I got no idea what you guys were doing here until you told me on the way up. I just came here to complain to the monsters about all the noise they were making."

Instinctively, almost everyone there wanted to yell at this B-Class for giving such an answer. However, Child Emperor's instructions had kept all but one person quiet.

"Wait, seriously, Master? You didn't know the Monster Association was here? But you live in this town. When I learned about them being here, I just assumed you were fighting them by yourself in secret to keep myself and Genos-Senpai out of danger," Monster Mask exclaimed.

Shrugging, Saitama responded somewhat defensively, "Hey, what can I say? I just punch all the monsters I come across around here. I don't bother asking each of them twenty questions... Hey, Shunshi, why are you getting your light attacks things ready?"

Jolting a bit when Saitama pointed this out, Shunshi looked to his sides and realized what he'd been doing. Immediately, Shunshi was overcome with embarrassment as he stopped channeling power into the Light Balls. Unfortunately, by this point, they were both twice the size of his Miniature White Sun attack.

Oh, good going, moron! What are you supposed to do with these now?! Monster Masked yelled at himself.

Initially, Child Emperor wanted to scold Monster Mask for speaking up, but when he processed what had just been said, he instead asked the Caped Baldy, "Hold on, you live in the Ghost Town?"

"Hm? Uh, yeah. For a bit over two years now. There's no rent to pay here after all," Saitama responded in a tone that suggested some hint of self-satisfaction.

Immediately, Child Emperor began processing this news, He's been in the heart of monster territory for so long?! But... If he were on their side, he would have helped Phoenix Man during our fight. Instead, he helped me break out of Phoenix Man's mental realm... I think he's an actual Hero, so if he's been living here, then he's either an incredibly stealthy and careful person, or there's some truth to what Monster Mask is saying about his capabilities... Looking at Caped Baldy, though, it's hard to believe that either possibility could be true.

Walking over to Child Emperor, Death Gatling suddenly spoke up, "Hey, I don't know how much you feel you can believe me, but I'd at least like to vouch for this guy. I and Stinger saw him arrive at the fight yesterday against Elder Centipede, alongside King. They even left together. At the very least, Monster Mask is telling the truth in regards to him being associated with King."

Everyone except for Child Emperor, Monster Mask, Death Gatling, Stinger, and Lightning Genji gave Saitama doubtful looks, thinking simultaneously, This guy?!

At the same time, Death Gatling smirked to himself, thinking, I'll take any chance I can get to tear down the S-Class' hierarchy! And a B-Class being King's closest confidant sounds like a perfect way to shake the boat.

With this being enough info to trust the Caped Baldy for the moment, Child Emperor asked him, "So, Caped Baldy. I need to inform the other S-Class that the hostage has been rescued. After that, we'll be escorting him to safety. What do you plan on doing now? It'd probably be safer if you came with us."

Pointing downwards, Saitama smiled and replied, "Nah. I'm heading back down there. I still gotta give those monsters a piece of my mind for all the noise."

Unable to contain himself, Sekingar yelled at Saitama, "Are you crazy!? That's the Monster Association down there! It's a job only for S-Class combatants!"

Speaking up with a surprisingly patient tone, Monster Mask interjected, "He is S-Class, though. He's my teacher, he could beat me with all his limbs tied behind his back, and I'm supposed to be promoted to S-Class after this is all over."

Sekingar was, at first, taken off guard by Monster Mask, due to the huge explosive energy orbs in his hands. However, he then looked at the unimpressive Saitama, who seemed minimally frustrated, before turning back to Monster Mask.

With a look of complete disbelief, Sekingar told him, "You... You can't be serious."

At first, Shunshi's hidden face began to scowl at that remark. However, as the light from his energy orbs shined on his helmet and reflected off of Saitama's bald head, Monster Mask's frown turned into a smile.

"Hey, Saitama-Sensei. Would you mind walking to the end of the street over there?" Shunshi asked as he gestured with his head,

"Why?" Saitama asked.

"I think I have an idea to get this guy off your back."

With his face defaulting to its usual emotionless state, Saitama responded, "Um... Ooookaaay?"

As Saitama did as his student asked and started walking down the street, Sekingar asked, "Hey! What are you up to?!"

"I actually have to agree with the suit, Shunshi. What are you doing?" Lin Lin added.

"Don't worry. Just trust me," Shunshi answered confidently.

Having reached the foot of a building that hadn't been blasted apart, Saitama yelled over to Shunshi, "Alright, now what?!"

"Just stay there, Master!" Shunshi yelled back.

All the Heroes around him were looking at Monster Mask with confusion and/or doubt. However, what he did next left them all shocked silent.

Without warning, Monster Mask threw both Light Balls he was holding at the Caped Baldy, shouting, "True White Sun!"

While flying forward, the two orbs merged into one another, creating a Light Ball three sizes larger than either one. As Saitama looked at the Light Ball with minor confusion, it collided squarely with his face. The resulting explosion leveled five of the multi-story buildings behind the Caped Baldy and caused a huge cloud of smoke to form. In addition, the shockwaves of the blast knocked the weaker Heroes in the group off their feet and sent them tumbling back a couple of meters. The only reason as to why Waganma hadn't been sent flying by this explosion was because Child Emperor's dog robot had caught and held onto him.

As the shockwaves seized, Shunshi smiled to himself, satisfied. However, this was interrupted as a few of those in the Support Team began to yell at him.

"What have you done!? You just murdered an innocent man!" Sekingar shouted.

"Shu... Shunshi! Why?!" Lin Lin yelled as her eyes began to grow misty.

"This guy's really scary!" Waganma exclaimed.

Suddenly, Child Emperor, Twin Tail, Needle Star, Shadow Ring, and Feather took out their weapons and surrounded Monster Mask. Before he could react to this, Strange Binding Shell took out a rope and lassoed it around Shunshi's torso, restraining his arms.

"Monster Mask, we're going to have to place you under arrest for the murder of Caped Baldy," Child Emperor stated.

"Wait! Hold on!" Lin Lin and Stinger shouted.

"I'm sure there must be an explanation for this!" Lightning Genji yelled.

"Right! There's no way he'd kill a man! Not after what he did for- Uh, I mean..." Uchiara added

If those surrounding Monster Mask could see behind his helmet, they'd see just how annoyed he was at that moment. Fortunately for him, the smoke from his attack had already started to clear.

Raising his arm to point in the direction he'd thrown his attack, effortlessly breaking Strange Binding Shell's rope in the process, Shunshi asked the group, "Could everyone just look over there for a second?!"

The heads of his friends and a few others, including Child Emperor, turned to see what he was talking about, not sure what to expect. However, when they saw the Caped Baldy standing there, with some dirt and ash on him but otherwise completely unharmed, they all dropped their guard.

"Uh... Shunshi, you working out some anger issues with me or something?" Saitama asked bluntly.

"What...? How is he still alive?!" A few people shouted.

"I told you guys. He's my Master for a reason. Saitama-Sensei is the strongest Hero there is. Heck, just look what's behind him," Monster Mask instructed.

As if surviving that attack unharmed wasn't enough, behind Saitama was a silhouette of himself made of stone stretching throughout the entirety of the blast radius.

"Look, if that's all you needed, dude, I'mma head out," Saitama yelled as he walked around the corner.


Almost as soon as he turned the corner, Saitama found one of the entrances that Green had sealed up with his plants. Instead of ripping apart the plants to get in, Saitama ripped off a huge chunk of the road that surrounded the entrance and jumped down the hole while dropping the slap of asphalt back into place behind himself.


Saitama had left before anyone could recover emotionally enough to stop him.

With Saitama gone, Child Emperor looked back at Sekingar and told him, "I... I think... I think we're gonna need to look more into Caped Baldy after this operation is done."

He... He actually is as strong as Monster Mask's been yelling about?! Genji screamed in his mind.

"So, that bald guy really is Monster Mask's mentor... Well, I'll be," Uchiara muttered to himself.

Speaking up, Monster Mask asked, "Hey, so, am I off the hook for that murder charge?"

Still shaken, Child Emperor turned to Monster Mask and told him, "Ye... Yeah. I guess you are."

Quickly, however, Child Emperor realized how unprofessional he was being and hastily slapped his cheeks to refocus himself.

Okay, okay! Focus on the mission at hand! Besides, as surprising as this is, it's a good thing! It just means we have another S-Class combatant on our side, Child Emperor thought to himself.

With his mind refocused, Child Emperor addressed the support Team, "Alright, everyone! I know that was startling, but let's get back on track! I'm going to contact the rest of the Strike Team and let them know that the hostage has been rescued! We'll decide our next move after that!"

Child Emperor then pulled out his communicator, the same kind which Sekingar had, and broadcasted to all frequencies connected to it, "This is Child Emperor. Waganma and I have rendezvoused with the surface team. The hostage rescue mission has been successful! I repeat! The hostage rescue mission has been successful! In addition, a B-Class Hero by the name of Caped Baldy has arrived on the scene and is down there as well! He has displayed S-Class combat abilities and claims to be here to help us eliminate the monsters! Everyone, be sure to keep an eye out for him in case he cannot actually be trusted!"

Seconds after he relayed the message, Child Emperor heard Zombie Man's voice from the communicator, "This is Zombie Man. Well done, Child Emperor. Still got more work to do down here, but I'll see you when I'm done. I'll be sure to be careful around this random guy too."

At that praise, Child Emperor's face softened. It was similar to the look of admiration a kid would give to a loving older sibling.

"Mr. Zombie Man..." Was all Child Emperor could say in response.

The next voice to come from the communicator was Amai Mask's, "Amai Mask here. I understand the hostage situation. The monsters here are no big deal, so I will continue to carry out justice. And if this Caped Baldy is a traitor, I'll handle him myself."

When Amai Mask finished his response, Monster Mask couldn't help but let out an involuntary grunt of frustration. The memories of what happened the last time he was present for when Amai Mask carried out justice still sat sore in his mind. On top of that, the idea of him attacking Saitama-Sensei did nothing to calm his frustration.

Another voice then came from the communicator, however, this one was heavily obscured by static, "Child(kkssksh). This is(zzzssiii). Nothing(kkkakshh) ordinary."

"I'm getting some interference on my end. Who is this?" Child Emperor asked.

"Sorry. Currently digesting."

Smirking, Child Emperor concluded, "Oh, it's Mr. Pig God."

One last voice responded to Child Emperor's message, Atomic Samurai's, as he informed everyone listening, "Atomic Samurai here. I'm kind of busy right now! I found a child way near the bottom floor."

"What?!" Numerous Heroes shouted.

Flinching at that, Waganma began sweating as he thought, It's Tareo! He's still alive?!

"I thought it might have been a monster pretending to be a kid, but he was being chased around by a tiny black monster with a white face, so I guess he's probably Human. The location is... Um... Where am I again...? Whatever, I'm going after him!"

Somewhat panicked, Child Emperor shouted into the communicator, "Wait! Hello? Hello?! This is Child Emperor! What does the kid look like...?! It cut off... That base was huge. There must have been other holding cells down there."

As Child Emperor theorized why he hadn't found this other kid, Waganma went up to Poison, tugged on his shirt, and told him, "H... Hey, you. Go help him...!"

Flinching, Poison replied, "Huh?! N- no, our job is to-."

However, before Poison could finish, Child Emperor faced the entrance of the Monster Association and declared, "I'll be right back."

Shocked, Waganma yelled, "Huh?! Cu- cut it out! You already used your secret weapon to save me, right? We should let the grownups handle things from here?!"

"That's not an option. This child needs to be saved too. Also, it's my sole duty to analyze the enemy's special technology and abilities and come up with counter-strategies. Besides, it's not like I'm completely out of secret weapons," as Child Emperor explained all this, he gave Waganma a comforting smile.

As Waganma began to sweat more and grow even more nervous, Monster Mask, Uchiara, Stinger, Needle Star, and Captain Mizuki stepped up to Child Emperor.

"Even if you're S-Class, there's no way we're letting a kid go back down there on his own!" Needle Star exclaimed.

"Yeah, we're going too!" Mizuki added.

"Yeah, look at you, bud. You're all scuffed up. If there's another kid down there, you'll need backup!" Stinger stated.

"If you'll take me, I'll come too, sir. No way I can stand by if another kid's in danger," Uchiara said.

"Count me in too! We'll work together to keep monsters off your back so you can find the kid in no time, Child Emperor, sir!" Shunshi declared.

Just as Sekingar was about to object to Uchiara leaving his sight, Child Emperor responded, "No, that's not necessary. We can't afford to be short-handed on the surface! Waganma needs the security, too, after all. We should all stick to our tasks. Besides, if that Caped Baldy can hold his own as well as it seems, then he should be enough to divert the monsters' attention. Now, I'll see ya all in a few!"

The S-Class kid then turned to his robot dog, petted its head, and told it, "Thank you for all your hard work! I'll give you a bone later." With that praise, the dog then turned into a baseball-sized metal sphere and flew into Child Emperor's backpack.

As Child Emperor was about to walk off, Waganma's face was overcome with guilt as he fearfully stated, "The other kid...! His name is Tareo...! He's fat and wearing a shirt that says 'BG' on it, and he has a bald spot, and fish lips, and a unibrow."

Shunshi, Child Emperor, and all the other Heroes looked at Waganma with shock when he told them all this.

However, despite the pressure this caused, the boy continued, "He was actually in the same cell as me... But then he got taken away by a monster... When you asked if there were any other hostages, I didn't mention him because I figured you'd probably go back to save him, but I... I just wanted you to save me first... I'm sorry."

As a few people started giving Waganma dirty looks at this revelation, Child Emperor approached him. Instead of chewing the boy out, though, the S-Class kid slapped his palm onto Waganma's shoulder and gave him another smile.

"Thanks for letting me know, and wish me luck."

"Huh?" Was all Waganma could say in response to this.

With that, Child Emperor walked over to the manhole he'd climbed out of.

Suddenly, Food Battler rushed up to Child Emperor, holding a donut and a juice box, and asked, "Do you need anything to eat before you go back in there, sir?"

"Uh... Actually, I could use the juice at least. Thanks," Child Emperor answered as he accepted the apple juice and quickly sucked it all down.

After that, all the other Heroes went up to Child Emperor as well. Each of them offered their emotional support and told the boy to be careful.

Once everyone had said their peace to him, Child Emperor dropped back down through the manhole and was gone.

With admiration and frustration in his eyes, Needle Star pontificated internally, S-Class... Man, I wanna become one of them one day, but there's a Hell of a long way to go.

After a few moments of silence, Lin Lin walked back up to Shunshi as he was deciding the next course of action to take and asked him, "Shunshi?"

Coming out of thought, he replied, "Hm? What's up, Lin?"

Frowning a bit, she told him, "You... You really need to tell me what's going on with that bald guy. What's he teaching you? How did he take a hit like that? How did you meet him in the first place?"

While stretching his arms out, Monster Mask answered, "Don't worry, I'll explain everything once I get back!" He then started walking off, stunning Lin Lin for a moment.

"Huh...?! Hey, wait a second! Where do you think you're going?" She asked as she recomposed herself.

Walking up to Waganma and picking him up without a word, Monster Mask addressed the group as he held the startled kid, "Everyone, I think it's evident to everybody how much physically stronger I am! As such, I'm going to rush off on my own to take Waganma back to our forces waiting on the outskirts of the town! They should be here by now, right, Sekingar?"

"Uh... Ye- yes, they should be," the worker answered.

On the way to the Ghost Town, Sekingar had explained to the team that an escort force would be arriving behind them to surround the town for Waganma's rescue.

"Okay, good! I should be back in just a few minutes! While I'm gone, everyone stick together for safety and patrol for monsters trying to escape the battle! Once I'm back, myself and whoever else wants to come too are going into the Monster Association base to back up the S-Class Heroes!"

"You- You will?! Thank you!" Waganma exclaimed as he looked up at Monster Mask.

As Monster Mask smiled at Waganma and said, "Of course! That's a Hero's job, after all," his namesake helmet stared back at the kid.

Flinching slightly, Waganma thought, So scary! Is this guy really a Hero?! Will I be safe with him?!

Smirking, Needle Star remarked, "Oh, I get it! Get the kid to safety as fast as possible so we can free up our duties. Nice!"

"Wait, that wasn't part of the plan!" Sekingar exclaimed.

Switching to holding Waganma with one arm, Shunshi gave Sekingar a thumbs up with his free hand while telling him, "Don't worry! If there's anyone up here who's fast and strong enough to ensure Waganma's safety on their own, it's me!"

Tilting his head, Lightning Genji remarked, "That's... surprisingly bravos of him... I mean, he's not wrong, but it's still out of character." Genji wasn't the only one with these concerns, as Lin Lin and Stinger gave Shunshi uncertain stares as well.

Uchiara, however, commented, "Hey, if Monster Mask says he's got this, then I'll believe he's got this."

"As much as I hate to admit it, I have to agree with you. He's at a different level than the rest of us are at... At least for now," Death Gatling added.

With exasperation covering his face, Sekingar tried to speak again, "Wha...? Bu- but-!"

Monster Mask then switched to pointing at the group, remarking, "Besides, if anything happens while I'm gone, we got some real badasses here who can handle whatever it is, so long as you all stick together."

A few of the other Heroes smirked when Shunshi said this. The vote of confidence from someone as strong as Monster Mask had bolstered their faith in their own abilities, even if only by a small amount for some of them. In particular, One Shotter subtly glanced at Uchiara and Monster Mask's other companions.

"I think I know who he's talking about specifically," the sniper Hero muttered in a dejected yet amused tone.

Switching back to using both his arms to hold Waganma, Monster Mask exclaimed, "Alright! I'll see you guys again in a few minutes!"

He then turned from the group and used his immense strength to leap to the top of a building, before beginning to leap from one roof to another.


A few minutes later, Monster Mask was nearing the exit point.

Initially, Waganma was screaming in fear at how fast they were moving, in addition to how high up they were. Fortunately, this soon changed to yelps of excitement as he came to enjoy the exhilarating experience. The change from dread to enjoyment was like that of when one rode a rollercoaster and was going down the first drop.

As he carried Waganma through the air, Monster Mask began addressing him for the first time, "Hey... Waganma was it? Mind if I talk to you about what happened in the Monster Association?"

So polite! Seriously, could this guy's attitude and look be any more different?! Waganma thought to himself.

Speaking aloud, the kid replied, "Uh... Okay?"

"Thanks... So, you understand what you did down there was wrong, right? Not telling Child Emperor about the other boy ahead of time, that is," Monster Mask questioned.

Remorse hitting his face, Waganma replied, "Ye- yeah... I know."

Nodding, Monster Mask jumped off another roof and went on, "Good. You should know, I'm disappointed in you for that."

"Huh?! Bu-!"

Cutting off Waganma's protest, Shunshi continued, "But, you did do the right thing by telling him about the situation when you did. It's never too late to redeem yourself. For that, I'm proud of you. And besides, I understand why you were scared. You're still just a kid, after all. It's natural."

With a bit of relief, Waganma smiled slightly and said, "Oh... Okay. Thanks, Hero guy."

Chuckling slightly, Shunshi replied in a friendly tone, "The name's Monster Mask. I'm getting promoted to S-Class after this mission, so remember the name and tell your friends all about this!"

Laughing a bit, Waganma answered, "Oh! Okay, yeah! I can totally brag about this!"

Switching back to a slightly more authoritative tone, Monster Mask added, "Now, regardless of all that, you should understand that what you did was still wrong at first. If you have the power to help someone in the future, you should never abandon them. You understand?"

Looking at the frightening Hero with a bit more respect, Waganma answered, "Yeah... I get what you're saying. I'm... I'm gonna learn from this, I promise!"

Gently patting Waganma's head with his metal gauntlet, Shunshi told him, "Glad to hear it, dude! I'm sure you'll grow up to be a fine man one day with that attitude!"

By now, Shunshi and Waganma were only several more leaps away from the exit point. Relief and satisfaction started to set into both of them. However, this feeling would soon be interrupted.

Out of the corner of his eye, Shunshi saw some movement. Instantly, he stopped on a roof, set Waganma down against a vent, and took up a defensive stance in front of him.

"Huh?! What are you doing?! What's going on?!" Waganma yelled.

As if in response, a pair of large, quadrupedal, bestial monsters with striped fur landed on the other side of the roof from them.

"Looks like I got one last fight before I can get you out of here," Monster Mask explained as Waganma began shaking with fear.

Despite their animalistic appearances, the two monsters began laughing when Shunshi said this, with one of them remarking, "Get out of here? I don't think so! You killed a lot of our pals!"

Adding to the taunt, the second creature exclaimed, "You left the safety of your little team, and now you have to worry about keeping that kid safe all by yourself! How about we take him off your hands for you!?"

Without saying a word, Shunshi readied his Burn Whips without igniting his Kie aura, as he thought to himself, I'm too close to Waganma to use my Kie without burning him. The same goes for using my Light Balls. This building doesn't look like it could handle any explosions anyway. I'm gonna have to stick to the Burn Whips for this one and remember that my defense isn't gonna be as good as usual.

As the monsters' jaws unlatched into four segments, they pounced forward and roared out, "Since we're taking stuff off your hands, how about we take your HEAD too!?"

Not wanting to give the monsters a chance to get near Waganma, Shunshi began whipping his tendrils of flames so quickly that he practically made a wall of light between himself and the monsters.

As the monsters got engulfed in the armored Hero's attack, Monster Mask yelled out, "Lashing Inferno!"

In an instant, the monsters were torn and burnt apart by the whips, leaving them as charred piles of chopped-up meat. Monster Mask, meanwhile, was still in a combat stance as he took a second to catch his breath from the stamina-consuming technique.

Sweating a bit and rubbing his eyes from the intense heat and light, Waganma remarked, "That... That was almost as cool as Child Emperor!"

Straightening his posture at that, Shunshi asked excitedly, "Wait... Seriously?! You think so?!"

"Uh... Yeah?"

Gripping his fists and shaking them with excitement, Monster Mask exclaimed, "That's... That's awesome! I'm actually being compared to an S-Class Hero by someone who's seen one in action! AWESOME!"

Blinking in confusion, Waganma pondered, Okay, seriously. What's up with this guy?

Before Shunshi could celebrate anymore, he began to feel the floor beneath him give out.

"What the heck?! What's going on?!" Shunshi yelled as he looked at his feet. To his self-disappointment, he realized that his Lashing Inferno had been such a reckless move that it had smashed apart the roof itself.

So much for not damaging the building, Shunshi grumbled to himself as he rushed over and picked up Waganma. He then jumped away with the boy as the top story of that structure collapsed in on itself, causing a chain reaction that took out the entire building, one floor after the other.

Despite the fact that this frightened Waganma further, there was nothing else blocking his and Monster Mask's path.

After just three more jumps, Shunshi had reached a metal gate going around the Ghost Town, with yellow and black warning stripes on it. The gate seemed to have been set up just recently, as Shunshi didn't even remember it being there when he arrived with the other Heroes earlier. Once he landed behind the gate, Monster Mask saw several dozen more of the same type of security guards he saw outside of A-City's Hero Association headquarters. Alongside them were two armored convoys at the ready.

A couple of the guards pointed rifles at Monster Mask when he suddenly landed in the middle of them all.

However, once Shunshi stood up and revealed Waganma in his arms, their commander snapped at them, "Put those down, you good for nothings! That's a Hero! And he's got the hostage with him!"

Setting Waganma down, Shunshi gave the guards a thumbs up and told them, "Alright! The hostage is secured! I'm heading back in to support the other Heroes! Can I trust you guys to keep Waganma safe until more Heroes arrive to escort you all back?"

Nodding to Monster Mask, the commander replied, "Of course you can! With our gear, we're at least as capable as C-Class Heroes, and our convoys have stealth capabilities, so we can avoid most fights anyway. Just leave it to us!"

Speaking up, Waganma complained, "Wait! I want Monster Mask to stay here and protect me until I get home!"

"We... would be safer that way," one of the guards added hesitantly.

Smiling behind his helmet, Monster Mask knelt down to meet Waganma at eye level, placed his hand on his shoulder, and told him, "Hey, come on now, man. You know I need to go help Child Emperor and my Master save the other kid. Besides, more Heroes will be on their way to protect you as soon as I get back to them. You just gotta be brave for a few minutes, okay?"

Pouting for a moment, Waganma eventually relented and answered, "Okay, fine... I'll stay here with these soldier guys for now."

"Don't worry, sir. You'll be just fine with us. You have my word," the captain said as he approached Monster Mask and Waganma.

"If you say so..." Waganma replied in doubt.

Standing up again, Monster Mask exclaimed to all the guards, "Alright, I'm heading back in! Expect some more Heroes to be here within ten minutes or so!"

With that, Monster Mask jumped away, leaving the guards stunned and impressed by his feat of strength.


As Shunshi leaped from one building to another, moving considerably faster without a child in his arms, he thought, Don't worry, Saitama-Sensei! I'll be there soon to keep the small fries off your back! Then we'll rescue the other kid in no time!

After spending some time trying to reorient himself in regards to where he was going, Shunshi was blessed with an easy path to go along. By following a trail of dead monsters, Shunshi was able to find the area of town he was looking for.

Within just another minute, Shunshi began to close in on where he had last left the other Heroes. Once he got back near the Support Team's pseudo-stronghold, though, his eyes went wide as it was clear something was wrong.

First, Monster Mask saw Jet Nice Guy, Needle Star, and Twin Tail all lying unconscious on the ground with their chests and torsos cut into. After them were Feather and Shadow Ring, with the same kinds of injuries. In fact, looking around, the only ones still standing were Sekingar, Food Battler, Stinger, and Lin Lin. Strangely, Food Battler almost looked as if he had lost half his weight, while the latter two were on their knees, heavily injured and barely clinging to consciousness. In fact, Stinger's spear had even been split right in half. In addition to all this, all the surrounding buildings had been reduced to rubble, and a massive hole was in the street that was big enough for a few bulldozers to fit through and penetrated far down enough to reach the Monster Association tunnels.

However, despite its relatively unassuming features, what stood out the most to Shunshi was the monster standing parallel to the Heroes. It was a humanoid cat creature with pink and white fur across its body, and black fur covering its hands and feet, which blended in perfectly with its black claws. The only other noteworthy traits of this creature's appearance was that it was actually somewhat tall, standing over seven feet, as well as the collar around its neck with a small bell attached. This monster had some scuffs on it, but, aside from a single burn/bruise on its right leg, none of its injuries even seemed close to what it had inflicted on the Heroes.

Landing behind his few conscious allies, Shunshi wasted no time and exclaimed, "What the hell happened?!"

Turning around to see the dark-clad Hero's return, Sekingar yelled, "Monster Mask!? Thank God you're back! This thing showed up out of nowhere and took most of us out! It says it's a Cadre, one of the Monster Association's leaders!"

As Sekingar explained all this, the cat monster had taken a couple of steps toward Lin Lin. Suddenly, the cat monster started moving faster than anyone could see; anyone, that is, except for Shunshi.

Shunshi could just see the blur of pink and white, headed for Lin Lin, and instinctively dashed to intercept it, his speed nearly knocking over Sekingar and Food Battler. Although Shunshi had intended to properly block the attack, he only moved just fast enough to put himself between Lin Lin and the monster's long claws. As a result, Shunshi took the slash directly to the faceplate of his helmet, shattering it and cutting his cheek slightly.

The monster then backed off, the only reason being that the heat coming off of Shunshi's Kie flames startled it. At the same time, Monster Mask recomposed himself, taking up an open-claw stance as he activated Fist Of The Impenetrable Fire Spirit.

Tilting its head, the cat monster smiled with a huge grin of razor-sharp teeth before calmly commenting, "Well, well, well. You managed to react to one of my effortless attacks. You're the first one here to do that. And it looks like you were able to take a hit. Hehehahaha! Tormenting you will be so much more fun!"

Through shallow breaths and the blood in her mouth, Lin Lin yelled at her lover, "Shunshi, you need to run! This thing knows about Waganma, and it's gonna go after him once it's done with us! You have to go get him out of here!"

With a smoldering rage in his voice, Shunshi spoke to Lin Lin as composed as he could, asking her, "Lin, where's Uchiara?"

"What?" She replied, bewildered.

"The super-soldier. Where is he?" Shunshi clarified.

With desperation welling in her eyes, Lin Lin forced herself to her feet and shouted, "Look, you idiot! I tried to say it in a way you'd understand, but I need you to run away! This thing'll kill you, and I can't watch you die again!"

Stroking its whiskers, the cat monster asked mockingly, "You don't mean that traitor monster who blew himself up, do you? He thought he could make a difference and take me with him, but he just managed to graze my leg. Still... that really pissed me off! If you're a friend of that bastard, then this'll make things even more entertaining!"

Despite his wounds, Stinger also forced himself to his feet, clutching what was left of his weapon as he shouted, "Monster Mask! It's my fault this freak knows about Waganma! I'll hold it off for a few seconds so you can go back and get the kid out of here!"

"You think I'll let you leave?" The cat monster asked Shunshi in a sadistic tone.

However, just as it took a mocking step towards Monster Mask, the Kie-wielding Hero suddenly started shouting at the top of his lungs. This startled the monster enough to stop it in its tracks. Simultaneously, the four remaining Heroes looked at Monster Mask with shock and concern.

As his eyes glowed an intense white, despite the reduced flames of Fist Of The Impenetrable Fire Spirit, Shunshi shouted as loudly as he could, "YOU BASTARD! YOU HURT MY FRIENDS! YOU HURT MY GIRLFRIEND! AND YOU KILLED UCHIARA! I'M NOT GOING ANYWHERE! I'M GONNA BURN YOU TO A CRISP AND BREAK EVERY DAMN BONE IN YOUR BODY! BRING IT ON, YOU PIECE OF SHIT!"

With his declaration made, Shunshi rushed at the cat monster, as it smiled wickedly with perverse excitement.