What It Means

by HorrificallyDreadful

After a brush with near-death, Tatsumaki realizes she cannot be the pillar of hope the people need. For the first time in a long time, she is afraid. The only one who can save her from that fear doesn't understand the concept of responsibility. There's more to hero work than a good fight and more to bravery than strength alone. The world needs a true hero, but what does that mean?

38. You and I

AN: Hey everyone! Welcome back! I know last chapter I said to expect this one in the next two weeks... but that didn't happen, haha! Sorry about that, but I wanted to make sure this was one of my best for obvious reasons.

Before you read to find out why, let me just take a moment to thank you all of you guys for giving my story a chance, and being patient with the build of this slow-burn romance! I love all of you who've stuck around through the thick of it!

Again I want to give a thanks and a shoutout to my friend and BETA reader El_Cato! And other than that, I have no words! Please, enjoy this chapter!

Disclaimer: I do not own One Punch Man or any of the characters associated with the title. All rights belong to their respective owners.

---

'You didn't save us...'

A few hours later, those words still plagued Saitama's every thought. He couldn't escape it. Despite all of the worries that were racking his brain about what was to come, those words just seemed to hang around the front of his mind. 'I... didn't save someone?'

Who? And when?

What didn't he save them from?

At a certain point, he even started to wonder if that girl was even real. Maybe she was some hallucination brought on by his lingering guilt about that whole bunker massacre situation. Part of him wanted that to be true, but he couldn't buy it. He knew she was real because he had seen her before. He just couldn't remember where.

In short, it was yet another mystery added to his list of growing irritations, but for the rest of the day, he vowed to lay it to rest.

He sat on a bench at the entrance to the amusement park they decided on, in City-E. His outfit was casual; beige cargo pants, a white short-sleeved button up, and a pair of black hiking boots; and of course a good ol' bucket hat. The idea was to blend in, and considering they were at an amusement park, normal street clothes felt like the obvious route to take. '... But it does feel like I'm dressed for some kinda safari or something...' This was really something he would've liked to get some advice on from his group of helpers.

Them not knowing about this was weighing on him a bit more than he thought it would now that he was actually there. It felt like an extra layer of nonsense thrown on top of something that could be so simple. This was literally the goal of their alliance. The moment she asked him out it was mission accomplished, right? So, why wouldn't he just let them in on where they stood?

Truth be told, he just didn't really feel comfortable ditching their little game plan they had worked out for him. It felt wrong, somehow. Especially after all the hard work they'd put into it. He wasn't sure how, or when, he was going to break the news, but he knew he couldn't keep them in the dark forever. 'If tonight goes well, then I'll tell them in the morning,' he reasoned. 'Or... if it goes bad, maybe...?'

With a shaky sigh, he leaned back against the stone bench and watched the dense crowd of people funneling in and out of the front gates. Mostly families, groups of friends, and lovers out on dates...

And it honestly terrified him to know that he was soon to be one of them...

'Damn... h-I'm actually nervous!' He pulled the lid of his bucket hat down a bit further as if to hide from the world for a bit. For some reason, he thought getting there early would give him a little time to calm down, but it didn't. Watching all of the couples walk by made him question if he was even ready for this. Most of them were holding hands from the parking lot. 'Should I hold her hand, too...? Would that be weird?'

"Oh, Mr. One-punch-maaan!"

"er-!" Saitama stiffened at the shout of his embarrassing hero name. No way someone already spotted him through his trusty disguise.

"Mr. One-Punch! Over here!"

His head snapped in the direction of the calling voice and he was shocked to see a woman he didn't know waving in his direction.

"Mo~om!"

A youthful voice drew Saitama's attention to a boy a few feet away from him. He was dressed in a pretty crappy looking One-Punch-Man costume. Something you'd find at a halloween store in the clearance section. And he wasn't even bald. 'Terrible cosplay.'

"Hurry up! I wanna get in line before it's too long!"

Saitama watched the mother jog to catch up with him as he scurried along. He was kinda right to rush her. The crowded ticket booth was stacking by the second.

"One-Punch-Man!"

"uh-!" he gasped when he heard another shout from someone behind him. Again it was a woman he didn't know, frantically waving at someone nearby. This time it was a slightly chubby man wearing a much higher quality version of his hero suit. It was still a bit tacky looking, though. 'What the heck is going on?' he wondered. 'Is there another Fanclub meetup or something?'

"Excuse me, you look familiar."

"Er-!" This time, the voice was clearly directed at him.

"Do I know you from somewhere?"

He thought he was caught for sure, but when he turned to the unexpected voice, it was a short pretty stranger proudly standing in front of him with a smug look. Her skin was pale and she had beautiful straight black hair pinned up into a bun on top of her head. She had on a big dark-green trench coat, and big square sun-glasses that hid a majority of her face.

"o-Oh, uh..." Before he went through the trouble of denying the accusation, his eyes zoned in on the way the corners of her mouth twitched when she tried to bite back a smile. If her size didn't give it away, that was definitely a detail he was all too familiar with. "Eh-hah, that kinda scared me."

Tatsumaki giggled and pulled the big glasses off. "How'd you know it was me?"

"Hm...? Oh, is that your disguise?"

She was appalled. "Hah! Really? Your disguise is a hat, ya know."

He shrugged. "No one's recognized me, yet. Plus, this one's pretty cool, right?"

She flinched and leaned away when he bent over to show her the emblem in the middle. It was a small chibi-styled version of her face.

"I just bought it from that guy with the cart over there."

"Oh-hoh," she nervously chuckled, waiting for him to lean away. "That's... cool."

"Hmh, thanks... And you look–w-warm?" That was all he could think to say considering he couldn't actually see what she was wearing beneath the coat other than her eye-catching white boots. She was really going heavy on the disguise bit.

"o-Oh, hah! Yeah, thanks! I… didn't know it was gonna be this cold, I guess."

He stared at her with a confused look. It wasn't cold at all… and that didn't exactly make sense. If she didn't know, then why bring the jacket?

"w-We should head inside while the line is down!"

"... Hm?" Saitama watched her scurry away. That wasn't really how he thought their initial meeting would go. Actually, he expected it to be a lot more awkward. That was almost comfortable, right off the bat. Up until the end, at least. '... Should I have said something else?'

The awkwardness reared its head eventually. They endured a long silence during their wait in the ticket line, and it lingered for a bit when they made it inside.

Tatsumaki felt like she was in for a stroke at some point; either from the embarrassment of her cowardice or from the heat. Her trench coat was actually a last second decision when she lost confidence in the outfit she decided on. Not that it was ugly or anything. She actually felt really cute in it, but it felt a little too revealing for a date at an amusement park. Seeing how Saitama showed up convinced her she had made the right call.

"Uh... hey," Saitama muttered, startling her a bit.

She glanced up to see him scanning the crowd with a confused look.

"Is... there something special going on?"

"Something spe-...?" Her words caught in her throat when she finally saw what he was hinting at. The crowd around them was filled with... hero cosplayers? Most of them were just wearing hero merch, but there were a good amount of people fully costumed up, just marching around. It confused her, too, until her eyes finally landed on the unusual scenery. "Oh... did that really start already?"

"Hm? What?"

Tatsumaki rolled her eyes. "It's-.."

"Hero Appreciation Week!" a random man with flyers yelled out, basically answering his question. "Thank you for celebrating with us! The cosplay competition starts at 8pm!"

"Hero Appreciation Week?" Saitama muttered.

"It's something stupid they started last year," she said. "I didn't think it was really gonna stick."

"What is it, like a new holiday?"

"Something like that," she shrugged. "All they do is slap discounts on merch and stuff."

"Ah... Well, I guess we didn't even need disguises, huh?"

"eh-!" Tatsumaki flinched. "w-What do you mean!? Are you... taking it off?"

Saitama looked around the crowd and couldn't even count how many bald heads were scattered among them. Some were obviously wearing bald caps, but there were also a few who went the extra mile and actually freshly shaved their heads. He could tell by the tan lines. This was probably one of the only times he could actually blend in thanks to his baldness.

"Mh-!" Tatsumaki suppressed a gasp when he pulled his hat off. She was almost expecting someone to immediately recognize him. When no one did, there was a new wave of panic that flooded through her body. Hopefully, he wasn't expecting her to do the same.

Saitama glanced over and watched her turn away, tightening the belt around her waist. Maybe she just wasn't comfortable. He turned ahead and thought up a question to get the conversation started. "Sooo... when's the last time you've been to one of these?"

"Umm, about two months, maybe?" she shrugged. "I think it's been that long."

"Two months? So, you come pretty often?"

"Eh-heh," she chuckled. "Sort of. I—come mainly for the food, honestly."

"Really...? Well, what's your favorite spot? It must be good."

"It's... not really like food~food," she said. "It's more like a—dessert that I like."

Again, he stared at her with a confused grin. "Seriously?"

"What?" she asked with a defensive snap to her tone.

"You come all the way here just to get a dessert?"

"Yeah? And?"

He turned away from her aggressive scowl. "I don't know. Just seems like a lot, I guess... What is it anyway? Cotton Candy?"

"n-No, it's—" Tatsumaki froze when she suddenly felt uncomfortable answering. What if her favorite treat sounded too childish?

"Ice cream?" he tried again.

She looked up to see him staring at her expectantly. "... Guess."

"... Huh?"

"Guess," she shrugged. "Let's make it a game."

"Guess what your favorite dessert is? How is that fair?"

"It's fair because we actually talked about this before..."

Saitama slowed his pace a bit and watched her stroll ahead of him with a cute and playful sway to her steps. "We did?"

"Yup," she happily chirped.

He scratched at his cheek and desperately tried to fish for the answer in his mind. He couldn't remember them talking about food other than once when they were texting the other day, but she didn't say anything about a favorite dessert.

Tatsumaki could see the gears churning in his head. "Mhm-hm! Want a hint?" His attentive look told her 'yes'. "w-We—talked about it the first time we met, actually..." That felt oddly embarrassing to say.

"Pfft, really?" he sputtered. "That's my hint?"

She giggled. "That's it!"

"Okay...? Doesn't really seem fair, but—"

"How is that not fair!?" she protested, still smiling from cheek to cheek.

Saitama shrugged. "h-I mean, how would I remember that?"

"I don't know...! i-I did..."

"Well, yeah, but... seems like such a long time ago, doesn't it?"

"Oh-hoh please! That was like three months ago...!" She surprised herself with that as soon as she said it. It was actually a little closer to four months ago, but that really wasn't very long. At this point, it felt like she had known him forever.

"Sheesh, and I'm supposed to remember some random conversation from way back then? This is definitely rigged."

"h-Yeah, right!" she rolled her eyes. "Look, dummy. No one said you had to guess, right now. We're probably gonna pass it a few times while we're here, so maybe you'll see something that jogs your memory."

"... Yeah, I guess that's true," he shrugged. "Okay, so what do I get if I win?"

"Umm... Heh, I don't know... What do you want?"

"Hm...? I get to choose?"

"a-As long as it's not something stupid!" she nervously replied. What exactly did that open a door to? "... Tch, it's not like you'll ever guess it, anyway. It's pretty random."

Saitama watched her with a curious look. She didn't exactly sound confident, there. If she came to an amusement park just to get it, then it obviously had to be something unique to a theme park... or something that was only good at a theme park. "... Hmh, okay, you're on," he said. "I'll figure it out, eventually. For now, though..." He turned ahead and locked onto something in the distance with an unreasonably serious look in his eyes. "We've got something important to do..."

Tatsumaki giggled and shook her head. "Sure, we do..."

---

At Tatsumaki's apartment, Fubuki sat on her sister's couch, lazily flipping through the channels while she floated various cheese cubes into her mouth from the trey on the coffee table. Her phone hovered next to her face ringing her sister's line for the fourth time in a row. Again, she was sent to voicemail after the sixth ring. 'Where the hell is she? Did she forget I said I was coming over?'

She sighed and hopped into their messages. The last four were sent by her asking where she is. No response. "Ergh," Fubuki groaned. 'What the hell is up with her, recently?'

Tatsumaki's strange behavior was not going unnoticed. From the unusual smiles to the constant phone use, Fubuki saw it all. She just couldn't understand what it meant. Though, she had a guess...

After their talk about her 'Saitama dream' this morning, her sister had another one of her random spurts of inspiration where she was suddenly filled with inquisitive questions; again about what to expect on a first date.

'What should I wear? What if we run into someone we know? Should we pretend it's something else? Should I wear make-up?'

She was like a child asking any random thing that popped into her head. Even throwing in her oddly specific questions. 'Say we go to like an amusement park or something. Should I eat beforehand or just wait and eat when we're there?'

It was almost too suspicious not to mean something, and Fubuki had a sneaking suspicion that that 'something' was that she had already jumped the gun...

(THUD!)

"uh-!" she gasped at the muffled sound of commotion from the direction of the front door, presumably from her sister's only neighbor. 'Saitama?'

(k-THUNK!)

Again, there was a loud noise. 'What the heck is going on over there...?'

"Mh-!" she gasped when an intrusive thought flashed through her mind. She looked down at her phone with a suspicious squint in her eyes. Tatsumaki wasn't texting back and she wasn't answering her calls...

On top of that, she's been doing a very good job of suppressing their psychic connection, lately. Usually, Fubuki could tell exactly where she was and how she was feeling at any given moment, but lately she'd been 'going off radar' in a sense at random times of the day. Essentially hiding from her...

'Could... they already be dating!?' A blush ran across her cheeks at the very thought of it. Were they in Saitama's apartment at this very moment causing such a loud commotion? 'n-.. No... No, that's stupid, Fubuki. No way they'd be doing something like that so soon, even if they were dating...'

(Thud!)

She flinched, again. '... No-no-no. I don't need to check. I'm sure it's just Saitama doing something completely ridiculous...'

(th-Thud!)

'But, I guess it wouldn't hurt to check in on him to make sure he's okay!' she told herself on the way to the door. 'Nothing wrong with being neighborly!'

She stepped into the hall where the sounds of the commotion were a lot more audible. The closer she got to the door across the way, the more she could make out. It, thankfully, didn't sound like what she had originally thought it was. No moans and groans at least. She raised a hand to knock but hesitated when she heard what sounded like breaking glass. Was someone fighting in there? She put her ear to the door for a better listen...

Little by little, the commotion died out into an eerie quiet, and Fubuki feared that whoever it was already knew she was there. '... m-Maybe this isn't such a good idea,' she thought. She took a timid step back, hoping the door didn't just swing open. When nothing happened, she scoffed at her own stupidity and turned to leave.

"Who's there?"

"uh-!" she flinched at the commanding voice she knew to be Genos. "It's just me!" she blurted out. "Fubuki!? I was looking for Saitama!"

"Master is not home, right now," he informed her through the door.

"o-Oh! Heh, okay, then!" she replied. "I'll come back later! Sorry fo-.."

"Wait," he quickly stopped her.

She abruptly complied with the command and didn't say a word.

"Can you open the door?"

Fubuki reeled at his words. "The… front door?"

"Yes."

"O–kay?" she suspiciously muttered. She gave the knob a twist and found it unlocked. When she pushed it open, the reveal of what was inside only added to her confusion.

The cyborg stood about ten feet away like a statue, staring at her with his ever present look of intensity.

"Genos?" she said, hesitantly. "Is everything... okay?"

"I am well," he said with a stiff nod. "Is there something you needed from Master Saitama that I can help you with?"

"Oh, no-no-no!" she waved him off. "I was just gonna ask him about something, really quick."

"I see," he replied. "Master was called away for a special assignment. He said to expect him home late."

"Yeah, okay! Ah-haha!" she awkwardly laughed. "Well, I will try again later, then."

"Miss Fubuki, I would like to ask for your help."

"Uh-!" she gasped. "m-My help...? With what?"

He turned to his left and stared at something around the corner. "I attempted to prepare a meal for Master Saitama's return, but..."

When he hesitated, Fubuki made her way over and peeked at what had his attention. "Oh..." There appeared to have been some kind of savage battle in Saitama's kitchen. Everything was broken.

---

"One-Punch vs Boros!?"

"Tornado vs Psykos."

"Oo-oo! One-Punch vs The Hero Hunter!?"

"Tch! Easy! Tornado vs Dupli-pine!"

"Hey, that's not fair! One-Punch was there, too!"

"Yeah, and he got the credit for that kill on the Hero board!"

Saitama and Tatsumaki stood in line for a roller coaster with baffled looks on their faces as they unintentionally eavesdropped on the debate of the group of teens in front of them. They had been going back and forth on which one of them had cooler fights for the past twenty minutes.

Tatsumaki found it funny. Four of the five seemed heavily in favor of Saitama, but one was apparently a Tornado stan to the fullest. It felt like a small-scale reflection of what the world actually thought of them. Or... it was definitely how she saw it, at least.

As for Saitama, he was just confused by the random names they were giving to some of the monsters. The Hero Hunter was the only one he knew for sure. The rest of them sounded made up. 'Dupli-pine...?'

(BUZZ!)

A red light flashed above the entrance, signaling them all to move up a bit more. The closer they got to the front, the more nervous Tatsumaki felt. The reason this was so 'important' was because it would finally settle the debate of her height... one way or the other.

To be completely honest, she's never tried to ride any of the so-called 'adult' rides before. Every time she came with her sister, if they rode anything, it was usually just the ferris wheel or other little slow moving attractions. Not because she feared she couldn't. It just never really appealed to them, considering they could both fly faster than anything on tracks. It felt like a stupid thing to do, even now, but...

She glanced up at Saitama when he tried to get a peek at the height-requirement sign again. She smiled and turned away to hide her amusement. If this was what it took to shut him up, then so be it.

They marched forward as the new group of riders funneled into their seats. For a moment, it looked like they were gonna be left behind for the next cycle, but the ride attendee waved them forward before stopping the group behind them. They were the very last two.

Tatsumaki made an attempt to walk right on by, but unfortunately, she was stopped.

"Excuse me, miss? Could you step over her for just a second?"

"Krr-!" Saitama snickered from behind her.

Tatsumaki bit back a smile and did as instructed. The sign to test their height was the amusement park's mascot holding its cartoonish hand out. She dawdled over and put her back to it. As soon as she did, her eyes locked onto Saitama who intensely measured her from a distance.

It was a little hard to tell from the angle he was viewing from, but she seemed to be just barely scratching the line.

"Oookay, you're good," the attendee said, waving her off.

"Hmph!" she happily hummed, sending the baldy a smug look as if she expected nothing less.

Saitama narrowed his gaze at the sign when she stepped away. He watched her strut along with that pleased look of hers. She gave him a cute smile and a shrug that just screamed told-ya-so. With a chuckle, he followed after her, but before he passed the ride-attendee, he just had to know. "Hey, is that really 5 feet? Seems a little short, right?"

"Height requirement's only 4'10, sir."

Saitama's eyes snapped to Tatsumaki's retreating form when he could see her steps falter.

"Please, enjoy the ride."

"Oh... Okay..."

In complete silence, they buckled into the cart at the back of the line. Tatsumaki tried her hardest to act like she didn't hear that, but it was damn near impossible to hold her composure when she could physically feel him taking little sneaky glances at the side of her face. When she was completely secured, she turned straight ahead and tried to ignore him, but a smile was desperately trying to creep its way up.

They held it in for a good while, but when they made it to the top of the tracks, the silence of the anticipation drew on for a second too long... Saitama just couldn't hold it anymore.

"... PFFFFT!"

"Aha-haha! Shut up!"

"AH-HA-HA-HA!" He did not. His boisterous laughter of victory was muffled under the sounds of the thrilling screams of the other riders and the rushing wind, and Tatsumaki couldn't help but laugh with him.

Surprisingly, they enjoyed the ride. From an outside point of view, one could even assume they enjoyed it far more than anyone else. They were a cackling mess in the last cart, the entire time, and it only dwindled down a bit when they made it back to the platform. They walked out like two giggling idiots, ignoring the few strange looks from the other riders as they left.

Tatsumaki tried to bite her amusement back, but it was damn near impossible. She had never heard Saitama's laugh before. It was obvious that he was desperately trying to stop by the way he bursted out every time she looked up at him.

"Ah-hahaha!"

"Hmh! Okay!" she shouted.

"Pfft-hahaha!"

"w-Whatever! You're still bald!"

"AH-HAAH-hahaha!"

If it wasn't clear before, they were definitely in for a good time.

The next two hours or so felt like a blur. They ran through the park like excited children, shuffling their way onto a number of rides. And every-single-time Tatsumaki was stopped for a height check, Saitama made the same dumb joke, which was really just stating the obvious, 'It's okay, she's 4'10!' followed by a laugh. She found it annoying after the third time, but she still giggled the next five rides.

They eventually got bored of the lackluster thrill seekers and turned their attention to the games and other little stands set up between the main attractions. They did everything that everyone else seemed to be ignoring in favor of some of the more popular games. So, their choices were limited to some of the more frustrating tasks like cutting out a picture in a cookie with a needle without breaking the cookie.

Tatsumaki was amazing at it, but Saitama... not so much. He broke at least two dozen before he was steaming in anger at his unreasonable luck. Tatsumaki found it to be absolutely hilarious... which is why she kept breaking his cookies with her powers. They were kicked out by the owner after Saitama smashed the table in a rage. Tatsumaki was in a laughing fit the entire time the two yelled at each other. Saitama claimed his game was obviously rigged with brittle cookies, and the attendant dismissed him by calling him a One-Punch-Wanna-Be, funny enough.

After that, they found a stall where if you could land all five little rings on a bottle, you could win a stuffed animal. Saitama made it a competition, so naturally, Tatsumaki cheated, again. Any time he was close to ringing five bottles, she would mess up his last toss. She didn't miss a single throw, of course. Her aim was always perfect thanks to her incredible luck...

It honestly amazed her that he hadn't called her out on cheating with her powers. She was being discreet about it, but he still should've noticed. She demolished him in that and a number of other precision based games before he gave up at trying to beat her at something.

After they had their fill of mindless fun, they found their way to the food court where they were immediately assaulted by the most enticing smells from every direction. Everything from steaming fried sweets to savory meats. Saitama found himself a stand selling giant turkey legs, and Tatsumaki decided on a little shop selling homemade cup noodles. They made their way to an area filled with picnic tables that wasn't too crowded and enjoyed their food while they spoke.

"You're lying..."

"Nope."

"Then, you're joking," Tatsumaki chuckled.

"I'm serious."

"You did not eat a monster!" she protested with a beaming smile on her face.

Saitama took a bite of his turkey leg and shrugged away her denial. "I really did. Or... it's hair at least."

"Ah-haha!" she laughed. "That is a freaking lie, and you know it!"

"I'm serious. It was real Kombu stock, though... after we boiled it down, at least."

"You're-...!" She bit her bottom lip in a poor attempt to contain her smile. This had to be one of his you're-pretty-gullible moments, for sure. "h-Yeah, okay. Whatever..."

Saitama chuckled and took another bite of his leg while he watched her pick around her box of noodles. For a moment, he really focused on her hands. Maybe because it was the only bit of skin he could actually see, other than her face. 'Hmh... They really are small,' he mulled.

To be honest, he had thought about holding her hand at a number of points along their journey through the park, but there was never a moment that felt natural to ask. '... Or maybe I shouldn't ask?' He saw a lot of guys just going for it as they walked through the crowds, but there was no way to know what their situations were. They could be four or five dates in... or married.

The more he stared at her dainty little appendage, the more he noticed. Her fingers were really slender, and her nails looked freshly painted with a very bright shade of white. But the most glaring thing he noticed was the slight glisten that coated her skin. 'She's gotta be hot in that coat, by now,' he figured. 'It's like eighty degrees...' The only thing worse than the heat of the summer days was the night time humidity.

His gaze shimmied up her thick coat until he caught sight of her perplexed look. She was staring down at her food, seemingly still trying to decide if he was lying or not. Her tight-lipped grin slowly blossomed into a big-toothy smile when she looked up at him, already giggling. He immediately broke out into a smile of his own when he realized what she was thinking. "h-I'm serious!"

"Ah-hahaha!"

"It was REAL Kombu stock! AND it was free!"

She laughed harder. "That is absolutely disgusting, if you're not lying!"

Saitama shrugged. "We washed it first... And we have a co-worker that eats monsters all the time, ya know!"

"Yeah, but that's literally his power. If you're saying you just ate some monster's hair for dinner? That's grosse."

"Hmh, okay," he relented. "You just don't know how to shop."

She laughed again, for what felt like the thousandth time since the start of their date. Her cheeks were aching. Saitama had some sort of unnatural humor to him that just seemed to tickle her in all the right ways. Everything he said, or did, was just unbelievably hilarious. It was strange because she could definitely see herself being completely annoyed if it was anyone else.

He's made fun of her height more than anyone ever has, he's told completely ridiculous lies for absolutely no reason, and he's shamelessly talked with a mouth full of food. Two of those were her biggest pet-peeves. Yet, none of it bothered her...

This was undoubtedly the most fun she's ever had in her life. It was nothing like the daunting chore her sister made it out to be in their 'lessons'. In fact, it was going so smoothly that she was starting to wonder if they were even doing it right. Maybe they had missed a step or two in her sister's ridiculous itinerary, but she didn't care. This was everything she had hoped it would be.

Now, her only worry was about how Saitama was feeling. He seemed to be having a good time, for the most part, but there were little moments when it didn't really seem like it. Moments when their conversations ran dry, like now...

His eyes were focused on something below her eye level. She assumed it was her box of noodles until she looked down and caught a glimpse of the back of her hand. It was slightly red and drenched in so much sweat that it was reflecting the bright flashing lights around them.

She nervously dropped her chopsticks and pulled her hands beneath the table. Luckily, he didn't even flinch. He was apparently lost in thought, again. It felt like something was bothering him. Maybe something he didn't want to talk about?

"Want some?" she asked, breaking the drawn out silence.

"Hm?" Saitama blinked away the daze he was in at the sound of her voice. "Oh, uh... Nah, that's okay. I'm fine with this."

"Well... Heh, can you stop staring at my noodles?" she chuckled. "You're kinda making them nervous."

"eh-... Oh, sorry," he said, awkwardly rubbing the back of his head. "I wasn't uh... I was kinda thinking about this... thing that happened to me today."

"Really?" She wiped her hands on her thighs before reaching for her chopsticks again. "What thing?"

"It's... kinda hard to explain, really..."

"... Oh," she muttered when he didn't even try.

Saitama noticed her sink away. Did she really want to hear about that? "Earlier, I was uh... chasing Genos who was trying to fight some kinda monster and there was this little kid on the sidewalk who said something that I just can't understand."

She perked up almost immediately. "A kid? What was it?"

"She said... 'You didn't save us,'" he recalled. "I know what the words mean, but... I don't really know who she was talking about."

"You didn't save us?" Tatsumaki muttered with a confused look. "Hmm... Was that all she said?"

He shrugged. "Hmh, to be honest, I didn't really get a chance to talk to her before I was dragged through a building."

"Oh," she muttered, as if that was a completely normal thing to hear. "... Well, did she look familiar?"

"Yeah, actually. I just can't remember where I know her from. I was thinking it could be Metal Bat's sister, but... I don't see why she would say that..."

"Hmm..." Tatsumaki bit her lip as if she were really thinking of some way to help.

Saitama noticed the effort, and for some reason, it gave him a really warm feeling... Or maybe the humidity was really starting to get to him, too...

Nope, he was definitely blushing.

He glanced down to her sweaty hand again. "I don't know... Maybe it was nothing. Maybe I'm just overthinking it, ya know?

Tatsumaki thought it over for a moment longer before she gave him a meek, comforting, smile. "Yeah... Maybe it was nothing… b-But even if it wasn't you shouldn't take that kinda stuff to heart. Trust me, I've been a hero for a pretty long time, now, and... honestly, the worst part about it is everyone expecting you to be absolutely perfect. In their eyes, we're not allowed to fail... and if we do, no matter what, it's our fault. We always could've done better..."

Saitama took a sip of his drink and processed her words. It definitely sounded like a raw deal when she put it that way. "You sound pretty familiar."

"Tch," she rolled her eyes. "Yeah... In case you haven't noticed, I'm not exactly everyone's favorite hero."

"... Hm? But you're-.."

"I'm the number one hero because of my strength," she cut him off. "Not because of my fanbase... Honestly, out of the entire S-Class, I probably have the least..."

"Mh-hmhm," Saitama suddenly chuckled.

She shot an uncomfortable look his way, hoping he wasn't judging her. She didn't mean to sound ungrateful about it. It was just the truth. "What?"

"Do you think you don't have fans, or something? I've seen a bunch of green wigs today."

"That's not what I said." Her tone came off a little aggressive. She could tell when his expression sank. She looked away and took a deep breath to mentally reel it in a bit. No need to turn something dumb and small into an argument. Her gaze landed on a pair of siblings a few tables over. One boy, and one girl, both donning cheap One-Punch-Man costumes. "You really have no idea how much more popular you are than the rest of us, huh?" She turned back to see his confused look, which only made her chuckle again. "Saitama... do you know what they call you?"

"Hm...? What who calls me?"

"The fans," she said. "The news, the world..."

He stared at her with a dumb look. The answer seemed too obvious. If it wasn't One-Punch-Man, then he had no idea.

"They call you the 'Hero of heroes'."

"... Oh," he replied in an unimpressed tone. "Yeah, I think I heard that somewhere before."

"But do you know what it means?"

"Ummm... yeah?" he shrugged. "It means I'm like a hero to... other heroes and stuff, right?"

"h-Yeah... Pretty much... No one's ever seen anyone like you before. You're... like some kind of god or something."

"Tch, what?"

"h-I'm serious," she chuckled. "I know you're not, but... that's just how the world sees you. I mean, take a look around if you don't believe me."

He took her advice and scanned the area. He hadn't noticed before, but he definitely seemed to be a crowd favorite. Even when it came to the decor in the park. His smiling face was absolutely inescapable.

(Youthful voice in the distance)

"Serious series! Seriouuus Punch!"

His gaze trickled over to the family Tatsumaki had spotted a moment ago. The mother and father were recording their son and daughter giving their best One-Punch-Man impressions as they stood proud on the stone table.

"You're more than just a hero to them, Saitama... If it wasn't for you, they'd all be dead, right now." She smiled at the happy looking family as they all eagerly huddled around one of the phones to see how they did. Then, her gaze shifted back his way and, as always, he was completely unreadable. "When we thought we were all out of options, you appeared and... now, it feels like we never are..."

Saitama heard every word, but his mind was trying to work out how this had anything to do with what they were originally talking about.

"I know I have fans," Tatsumaki stated, drawing his attention back. "I know that there are people out there who really believe in me to–be the strongest..."

He took another bite.

"But I also know that it's not nearly as many as y-..." She froze under the weight of his confused look. "a-As other heroes... And to be honest, my fans aren't really like yours, either."

"What do you mean?"

She sighed and pulled the belt strap on her coat a little tighter. It felt like the entire world was trying to listen in on their conversation. "They don't like–crowd around me if they see me in the streets and stuff... My fans just kinda stare at me from a distance and pretend they weren't looking when I look back at them... It's like they're–scared of me or something..."

Saitama continued to listen while he took another bite. To be honest, that didn't really sound too bad to him. The crowds never really bothered him, but he definitely saw the benefit in being able to walk around without being hassled for a picture or something. Perhaps it was a grass-is-always-greener situation going on here. "*munch* *munch* *munch*... Ish probably cause you don't sh-mile."

"h-What!?" Tatsumaki immediately reeled at his mouth-filled proclamation. "Yes, I do! Why does everyone think I don't smile!? I smile all the freakin' time, actually!"

"You do?" he asked with a genuinely curious look. "Feels like anytime I see you on the news and stuff, you always just look bored or... mad sometimes."

"Tch-! So? It's the news. It's boring and it makes me mad. Any other time I'm literally the happiest person ever..."

Saitama opened his mouth to respond but he hesitated to speak when he wasn't sure how she'd react to his words.

"And why the heck does that even matter to people? Smiling doesn't make someone a nice person, ya know... It's usually the exact opposite."

"Geez," he muttered. "That's... pretty pessimistic."

"Keh-!" she rolled her eyes. "So...? Doesn't mean it's not true."

"... Hmh," he chuckled lightly. "I don't know... People aren't so bad, I think. I mean, there are a lot of bad ones, but... most of them are pretty good."

She scoffed again. "I guess that depends on how you define 'good'," she air quoted.

He watched her pick around her noodles with an amused look in his eyes. He was starting to get a clear picture that she really wasn't a people person. "I guess those that don't try and kill other people and stuff."

"Pfft," she sputtered. "That's such a bare minimum requirement. There are definitely bad people out there that don't try and kill."

"Hm...? What do you mean?"

"Hah! Are you serious? What about thieves and rapists and... liars!?"

"... Oh," he muttered.

"Ahaha! Geez, did your parents never warn you about the shady people in the world?"

He chuckled and admired the joy in her expression. That laugh of hers always brought a stupid grin to his face. It didn't really matter what she said before, after, or between it. "I guess not."

"Well, what the heck did they teach you? How to lift a building with your bare hands?" she giggled.

"Haha! Nah," he waved her off. "I guess they didn't really teach me anything. I've never met em."

"uh-!" Tatsumaki's smile dropped away immediately.

Saitama took another bite before he continued talking. "But I learned about bad people and sh-tuff from teachers in sh-chool, though... Oh, and my old building manager." He took a beat to swallow. "I used to hate his lectures about not talking to strangers but, now that I'm older, I definitely understand why it was important."

Tatsumaki was stuck on the never-met-em part. He said it so casually, as if it wasn't a big revelation in his backstory. "You... w-What happened to them?"

"Hm?" He gave her a confused look. "Uhh... I'm not sure. Most of those teachers were kinda old, and that building manager quit when-.."

"No," she cut him off. "I meant... your parents."

"Oh, uh... I guess they died during a monster attack or something when I was too young to remember anything. Hmh, there really weren't a lot of heroes back then, so it was a pretty common thing."

"Mm…" That she already knew. "Sooo, you were an orphan?"

"Yeah, I guess so... For a little while, at least."

"Then–you got adopted?" Her tone was hopeful.

"Pfft, nah. I wish," he said. "The orphanage I grew up in got a little overpopulated or something. So, those of us that were struggling to get adopted got put in this program where... I guess they bought a whole apartment complex near a school for us. So, I had my own apartment when I was like ten. As long as we kept our grades up and stayed outta trouble, all of our bills were paid for us, which was pretty cool."

"Hmh," she chuckled through a somber smile and tried her hardest to match his enthusiasm. But truthfully, "That... sounds pretty lonely."

"Heh... yeah," he said in a casual tone, briefly looking back to the passing crowd with a loopy grin. Truth be told, he had no problem talking about those days, but he was starting to notice the heavier atmosphere. When he shifted his gaze back to Tatsumaki, she almost seemed sad for some reason. "i-I got pretty used to it, though, so... I guess it was okay," he shrugged. "That building manager I was talking about was a really cool old guy that always left me a slice of cake on my table when my birthday came around... So it wasn't all bad."

"Hmh," again, she failed at trying to smile through it. She couldn't just shrug that off like it wasn't the saddest thing she's ever heard. He said it with such a light tone that she almost wanted to believe he was joking. Her mind conjured this image of a little boy eating a slice of cake, alone, on his birthday; year after year...

Tatsumaki was no stranger to childhood trauma. Her absolute lowest moments in life all happened long before she had even hit puberty. She even had a taste of what it felt like to feel alone, herself...

But not like that...

For all she had been through in her adolescence, it all seemed so much smaller now, because, 'At least I had my sister...' Saitama didn't just 'feel' alone. He literally was all alone from the very beginning.

"How bout you?"

"Uh-!" she gasped lightly at the sound of his voice, and when their eyes met again, she felt so much smaller than she did before. "w-... What about me?"

"Your parents?" he said. "Were you close, or-.."

"i-I don't–wanna talk about that," she cut him off.

"Oh."

"I'm–sorry." She nervously shifted in her seat. "That's... I just don't wanna talk about that..."

"Um... Okay?" He could tell it was a lot more personal to her, so he didn't force the issue.

"Sorry," she said with a frustrated head shake. "I know that's not fair, but... i-I..."

"Nah, it's cool," he said. "No worries..."

Tatsumaki turned away with a scowl. Her own cowardice really pissed her off anytime it reared its head. And she definitely hated that it tended to happen only around Saitama.

"Hey," he grabbed her attention. "You wanna get dessert? I think I'm ready to guess your favorite."

Tatsumaki's frustrated look lingered for a moment, but again, it slowly melted into a smile.

---

An hour later, they found themselves absentmindedly dawdling toward the exit with the last bits of their desserts in hand. Saitama had a cup of ice-cream filled with colorful berries, and Tatsumaki had Saitama's 'certain guess' in hand. The last thing he could think of as being her favorite treat. A funnel cake.

She picked around the little cardboard cup with two fingers. "It really is good," she nodded. "But... *munch* *munch* Not my favorite."

"That's crazy," he muttered. "What else could it possibly be?"

"It's something," she said, giggling at his growing irritation.

"Was that close at least?"

"Mmm," she thought about it. "I mean... I guess so? It is kinda sweet," she shrugged.

"Did we pass it, today?"

"Mm-hm. Twice, actually."

"Twice...?" He scratched his head. "Damn, I must've missed it."

"Haha! So, do you admit defeat?"

Saitama ate a scoop of his ice-cream and let it melt in his mouth as he desperately tried to remember every sweet scent he could identify. At this point, a hail mary attempt could be his only option. The park was already informing everyone that they had less than an hour until closing.

"Ah-haha!" Tatsumaki laughed at his stern look. He seemed so desperate for some reason.

"Licorious."

"Nope."

"Apple pie?"

"Mh-mh," she shook her head.

"... Yogurt?"

"Oh-hoh my god you suck!"

Saitama groaned and rolled his neck out. This was getting way too stressful. He felt like he had said anything and everything that made sense. If she wasn't lying, then her favorite dessert had to be the most obscure thing ever.

"Hey, why don't you think it over a bit more while you wait for me," she said. "I have to uh... use the bathroom, really quick."

"Uhhh... Okay," he shrugged. Why was she acting so weird about that? "I'll just wait here, then."

She smiled and sank into the passing crowd.

When he couldn't see her anymore, his gaze shifted up to the flashy lights of the few vendors around them. He passed right over a small stand with a bright cartoonish candy apple. '... What the hell could it be?'

---

That was exactly where Tatsumaki went. She stood in the dwindling line and waited like everyone else. Though she was notably eager. She didn't want to take too long in 'the bathroom', especially after they just ate not too long ago. Knowing Saitama, he'd probably assume she was stuck on the toilet. She almost decided to skip out on her favorite treat this time, but the temptation was far too strong. What better ending to this beautiful night could she possibly ask for? If she could manage to buy herself a candy apple and still win the game, then it'd just make the scenario that much funnier.

Plus, if he did manage to guess it, part of her was curious about what Saitama would come up with for a prize. She didn't think to add any restrictions beyond 'nothing stupid'. So that left a lot on the table. Her mind conjured a few ideas; some that honestly scared her to death, and others that made her blush at the thought alone. Given the situation of them being on a date, it almost felt like he was sure to ask for something cliche like a kiss. That's what she'd assume most guys would do, anyways... But Saitama isn't necessarily like most guys.

Even after spending this half a day with him, and him alone, Tatsumaki still couldn't say she even had a clue of how his mind works. He was just as big a mystery as ever. It honestly wouldn't surprise her if he asked for something completely innocent like a high five or something. She wouldn't mind that, but in all honesty... she was kinda hoping for that cliche scenario...

With a sigh, she pulled her phone out of her coat pocket. Surprisingly, her sister had stopped blowing her up. Hopefully, that meant she gave up on their scheduled meeting and went home by now. Figuring she had a moment to spare, Tatsumaki gave her a call.

It rang...

It rang again...

And before it could fully ring a third time, Fubuki answered in a shockingly suspicious tone. "h-Ha-..! Hey! th-.. It's Fubuki! It's me, hah! Hi!"

Tatsumaki reeled. "Uh... hey, it's me, dummy."

'o-.. Oh-hoh! Yeah, hey! Tatsumaki, I'm-... I'm at your apartment, waiting on you! Haha! Did you forget about that uh... thing tonight or something?'

"Nnno, I... got called away for work," she replied with a suspicious tone. "What's going on? Why are you talking like that?"

'Huh!? Ah-haha! I'm not talking like anything! I'm-... talking normal!'

"You're talking normal?" Her tone implied her doubt.

'Tch-! Yeah! I'm totally normal, right now! I wasn't doing anything! I'm... just waiting on you... By myself, heh...'

"... Riiiight... Well, go home, already. I gotta work late."

'What? Why? Where the hell are you?'

"I'm on a special assignment," she said. "Sitch sent me way out to City-N, and we're not done with what we need to do."

'Oh, please, that is such BS! What 'special assignment' could you possibly be on that isn't on the news, right now?'

"It's not that kinda mission! I'm doing recon on some important stuff!"

'Keh-! Yeah, because you're so very subtle.'

"Whatever! Like I said, I'm busy! So, just go home tonight!"

'Wait!' Fubuki stopped her before she could hang up. 'i-I... really need to talk to you, tomorrow. Like... urgently, because something really weird just happened to me...'

"Huh? What happened? Did someone hurt you?"

'No! It's nothing like that it's-..'

"Then, whatever it is can wait till tomorrow. Byyye!" She rushed the farewell when she noticed she was nearing the front of the line.

The esper got her treat without issue. Luckily, they came in a pretty discrete white bag. She shuffled through the crowd in search of Saitama, but with the many bald heads around, it was a lot harder than usual. She finally spotted him sitting on a bench near where they parted ways, seemingly taking a phone call of his own.

"Huh...!? The entire island, or like... a piece of it?"

Tatsumaki furrowed a brow at his words. Who was he talking to?

Saitama took a deep breath that he blew out in a long exasperated sigh. "Shattered. Okay... Well, put in a work order with the front desk, I guess. Hopefully, the installation process isn't like a week-long thing... Uh-!" he gasped when Tatsumaki suddenly leaned into his field of view with an adorable smile to get his attention. "Hey, I gotta go... and stop breaking stuff or I'll kick you out."

(click)

Tatsumaki giggled. "What was that all about?"

"Ah, nothing really." He stood to his feet. "It was just Genos. Apparently, he broke the island in my kitchen."

"The entire island?"

"Shattered it."

"Keh-! How the heck did that happen?"

He pushed out another frustrated sigh as they continued on their way to the exit. "It's kind of a long story."

He brought her up to speed on everything that happened regarding his student's upgrade as they left.

---

An hour and a half later, for whatever reason, the two seemed completely content with walking the entire way. Or perhaps their latest nonsensical conversation made them forget that they were three cities over.

"Soooo, is the Demon King always just a pretty girl who can transform?" Tatsumaki wondered.

"Yup, pretty much. Or sometimes a master wizard or a dragon or something," he shrugged. "It's a really weird genre, in my opinion, but a lot of people like it."

She giggled. "But you said you play it all the time."

"Yeah, it's King's favorite type of game, though. We play co-op sometimes."

"Mmm," she hummed, feigning interest. Her eyes lingered on the side of his face for a moment before she looked away with a smile. "Sooo, what kinda games do you like?"

"Uhhh... I don't know. Fighting games, I guess?"

"Tch, of course," she rolled her eyes. "Why did I even ask? I almost forgot about how mad you were after I beat you in Road Brawler that one time."

"Hey, my controls were broken!"

"Because YOU broke them! Ahahaha!"

Saitama scoffed and shook his head. "Yeah, okay... I really just let you win because you're a girl, ya know."

"Pfft! Yeah, right! Is that your excuse now? You can't beat a girl?"

He shrugged. "I mean, I definitely can... but someone told me that if you like a girl you should let her win at everything, so that she's happy or whatever."

"Tch-! What!?" She looked up at him in disbelief. "Who the hell told you that? That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard."

"Tch, okay...? It kinda worked though, right?"

She giggled. "No. It really didn't."

"You sure do bring it up a lot."

"Ah-hahah! I bring it up all the time because it makes you mad!"

"Hm? No it doesn't."

"It does! That was what, like two weeks ago? And you're still making excuses!?"

"... Mhm-hm-hm," he chuckled in a patronizing way. "Ya know, I actually started playing a lot more after that."

"Training?"

"Er-..! n-No! I was—just playing more! I learned some new combos and stuff like that, so you probably couldn't beat me, now."

"Is that so?" Her tone was dripping in doubt. "Hmph, I'm not too worried, honestly. You can't even remember my favorite dessert, what makes me think you'd be able to remember some combos?"

"I swear we never talked about your favorite dessert—"

"We definitely talked about my favorite dessert!" she cut him off.

"When? I really can't remember."

Tatsumaki laughed at his visible frustration. "Look, to be fair, I never explicitly said this-is-my-favorite-dessert. We just talked about it in conversation... and for your information YOU actually said that that amusement park made it the best."

"Huh? Made what the best?"

"The ca-..!" she stopped herself from letting it slip when she saw the eager look on his face. "Mhm-hm, nice try."

"Damn," he muttered. Tatsumaki tilted her head back when she laughed, and a single strand of her actual hair slipped out from the front of her wig, catching his attention in a death grip. It was then he realized she was still in her heavy disguise for some reason. There were a few people lingering around the streets, but they were few and far between. He looked down at her hands to see if he could spot her sweating again, but he was side-tracked by a little white bag she was holding onto that he didn't remember her having. "... Hey."

Tatsumaki chuckled the last of her amusement out before she turned her attention his way.

"Did you end up buying something?"

"uh-!" she gasped when she realized how careless she was being with the topic of their ongoing game. "Oh, uh... yeah, I did buy something. f-For my sister..."

He stared at her with a look that didn't exactly seem convinced. His gaze shifted from her face to the bag and back again. "For your sister?"

"Eh-hah, yeah," she chuckled. "It's for my sister."

Saitama nodded. "... What is it?"

"Huh?" she replied a little too quickly. "Uh... What is it? It's... a candle."

"... A candle?"

"Yup! Fubuki... likes candles from... amusement park gift shops, sooo..."

"Oh... Okay..." He gave her another suspicious look before he turned ahead and continued walking…

And Tatsumaki's gaze lingered on the side of his face after he did. Did she seem too suspicious there? Coming up with a dumb lie on the spot was a lot harder than she thought it would be. At the very least, she made it through...

"Can I smell it?"

"er-! w-What?"

"The candle," he said. "Can I smell it? What kind is it?"

"i-It's just a dumb little candle! It says like–lavender on it or something. It's really not that interesting."

"Okay...? I still wanna see it."

"Ah-haha! Why?" she nervously laughed.

He shrugged and hummed I-don't-know. "I like candles and stuff too. Why can't I just take a look?"

"Because! It's like... sealed all nicely and stuff. I don't wanna take it out until I give it to her."

"Pfft, what? Come on, that's dumb. Lemme jus-.."

"Whoa!" She gently shoved him away with her free hand when he tried to reach across her. "Whoa-whoa-whoa! Are you serious? You're just gonna try and take it from me?" she asked with a daring grin.

Saitama smiled at her as if he caught on to what was happening here. "You bought your favorite dessert, right?"

"Oh-hoh my god! That's-..!" she shook her head and averted his gaze. "No, I didn't. I..."

"Then can I smell the candle...?" She happily ignored him. He watched her with an amused look. Normally, he would've just let it go, but he was awfully tired of losing to this woman...

(WOOSH!)

He lunged for the bag, but Tatsumaki swiveled away and flew into the air as if she knew he would try it. She giggled at his attempt with an astonished look on her face, floating back a bit to keep some distance. "Really?"

The bald man sighed and looked away for a moment, as if he were embarrassed at his miss. Then, before she could blink, he lunged at her again.

She avoided him like a dancing bull fighter. "Hah! That's cheating!" With a soft boom, she blasted away.

Saitama chuckled and hesitated to give chase. The rules were likely different this time around, but he was definitely up for another game of tag. He took off with a huge leap and landed on the edge of one of the nearby buildings where he immediately broke into a sprint.

Tatsumaki was like a flower in the wind. She twisted, twirled, and danced through the maze of tall buildings while keeping track of her pursuer. And she made sure to throw him a smug look or two just so he had more of an incentive to catch her.

Not that he needed one. Saitama was completely locked in. He maneuvered the rooftops with the speed and agility of a startled cat.

Again, the city became their playground. In a lot of ways, it felt similar to that time in the storm, but the big difference was the serenity. The city was asleep, and there were no monsters to fight. They had nowhere to be, and all the time in the world.

Tatsumaki banked around the corner at an intersection. She peeked back to see Saitama leaping from building to building with his eyes firmly locked on the bag in her hand. With a grin, she sped up a bit. He may have her beat in strength, but no way she'd give him speed without a fight.

Suddenly, her relaxed flight shifted into more of a zooming, heat-seeking, missile that could somehow cut even the sharpest corners without breaking its pace.

"mh-!" Saitama gasped at the shift in her speed and immediately kicked it up a notch. Soon, he found himself using the rooftops as stepping stones rather than platforms. He planted one foot and jumped to the next, and she was still a half a step out of reach. 'Damn, she really is quick!' he mulled. 'I gotta catch her on one of these corners, somehow.'

He waited for a perfect opening, but her flight pattern was flawless, and her strategic use of leverage made him second guess every attempt. She was low enough from the tops of the buildings that if he did take a chance, he'd have to jump down, which would cost him dearly considering her speed. It wouldn't be a problem if he didn't have to worry about accidentally crashing into someone's window. Or just tearing straight through the wall itself. So, since he couldn't attack from above, he got a wild idea.

Tatsumaki was oblivious to his scheming. She continued her fast paced flight through the maze of the city without a break in her pace. She peeked back to see where he was only to find him gone. Did she manage to lose him...? She slowed down just a bit, and the moment she did–

(Woosh!)

–Saitama jumped from directly beneath her, snatching the bag from her hand.

"Ah-haha! Hey!" she shouted.

He continued shooting into the sky, but he wasted no time in going for a peek. He looked down at the bag, hoping to at least see if it had a label or something, but just before he could get a good look, his view was suddenly blocked by the black wig Tatsumaki had on. "mf-!"

She snatched the bag from his grip before he could tear the fake hair piece from his face.

Before she could get too far, Saitama grabbed onto whatever he could reach. It just so happened to be the very tip of her boot.

"Uh-!" She looked down to see him struggling to hang on as he cleared the hair from his face. It made her laugh when, for just a moment, it looked like his real hair before it slipped off. "Ah-haha!" She ascended higher, far past the tallest nearby building, before she tried to shake him off.

"Tch-!" Saitama struggled to readjust his grip, barely managing to grab hold of her ankle before he fell. "Just let me see it!" he yelled through the roaring wind.

"Mhm-hm! No! You cheater!"

"How is this cheating!? You can't just make up rules whenever you want!"

"Ohoh! Wow!" Tatsumaki blasted into the sky with a soft sonic boom when they broke the sound barrier.

Saitama held on like a ball and chain when she started hitting evasive maneuvers in an attempt to shake him loose. She looped, barrel-rolled, and nosedived to no avail. He limply clung to her boot as if he were growing from her ankle. "Hey! THIS is cheating!"

"Ah-haha! You can't just make up rules, remember!?" she mocked him.

"Keh-!" he shook his head.

"uh-!" Tatsumaki gasped when he pulled himself up enough to wrap his arms around her legs, just below her knees. "Hey! Ah-haha! Let me go, you idiot!"

"I can't!" he said with a smirk. "We're too high, now!"

"Too high!? For a man that's been to the moon, this should be no big deal!"

"I'm not scared of falling!" he said in a tone that said obviously. "I just don't wanna break anything when I land!"

She giggled, diabolically. "Then stop chasing me and I'll put you down, nicely!"

"Mmm, nah, that's okay! I plan on winning this time!" He reached up and grabbed onto the bottom of her coat.

Tatsumaki gasped when she felt the tug. She looked down to see him intently eyeing the bag as he tried to crawl his way up her body. With a mischievous smirk, she undid the fabric belt around her waist, drawing his attention. "Okay, then..."

The two locked eyes when Saitama realized what she was planning. Before he could readjust his grip again, her coat slipped right off her shoulders. "Uh-!" he gasped...

Perhaps he could've grabbed onto her boot again or something if he was focused on his task. But he wasn't. Instead, his full attention was on her outfit. She had on a tight fitting jean skirt and a fancy looking black, long sleeved, shoulderless, crop top. Her white boots were actually knee-high, and he could see the long black socks she had on poking out of the top. It was probably just as revealing as her usual outfit, but for some reason, he was absolutely sure that he had never seen her look so beautiful...

It was admittedly strange how attracted he was seeing her exposed shoulders and stomach. Those were normally things he didn't even care to notice about people, yet seeing her had his brain shorting out. He didn't even care to notice that he was falling...

---

In a shady looking warehouse, somewhere in City-F, two heroes stood back to back, both breathing heavily. One had the look of a delinquent teen with a slingshot in his hands, and the other was a normal looking guy in a tracksuit with glasses. Surrounding them, a mob of gangsters and crooks with melee weapons, watching them with smug sneers.

"Golden Ball, i-.. I don't think we've got this under control anymore," the man in the tracksuit muttered through labored breaths. "It may be time to call for reinforcements."

The slingshot wielding hero spat the toothpick from his mouth. He dug into the pocket of his jacket while keeping a keen eye on the crowd of villains around them. "Tch... relax Glasses. Like I told ya,"-He loaded his slingshot with another round-"I'm Class-A for a reason."

"Ah-hahaha!" a commanding voice laughed from the crowd. The sea of bodies parted to reveal a man who seemed to be the ringleader. He strolled toward them with the clack of his cane cutting through the silence. "Not so fun playing hero when things get tough, huh? You think I didn't sniff you out as a rat the moment you stepped into my office? Tch, you heroes are all the same. So arrogant."

"Pfft, yeah that's rich comin' from a bastard like you," Golden Ball said. "You really think you'll get away with killing two heroes? That kinda thing tends not to go unnoticed."

"Hm-hmh!" the man chuckled. "Funny... I've never had a problem before..." He lazily raised a hand in the air and snapped his fingers. Immediately, the crowd of thugs charged the two, but before they made contact–

(CRASH!)

–Something shot through the roof, exploding the ground between them. The street thugs scattered in a panic, giving the cloud of smoke a wide berth. Golden Ball and Glasses jumped back as well, fearing an attack.

"o-Oh, shoot!" Saitama sputtered, swatting the smoke away with an embarrassed look on his face. "Uh–hey, it's just me! Sorry about your roof! I was uh-.."

"o-One Punch Man!?"

"What the fuck!?"

"What the hell is he doing here!?"

"They're sending an S-Class hero after us, now!?"

"... Hm?" He took a moment to survey the area when the surrounding crowd broke out into a nervous chatter. "What's going on here? Are you guys in a play or something?"

"One-Punch," Glasses muttered with a sigh of relief, stepping up beside him with his fists at the ready. "Thank god you're here. We were really in a tough spot, just then."

"... Huh?"

"No, we weren't," Golden Ball said, stepping up on his other side "I had the situation under control... But since you're here, mind lending us a hand with the clean up? It's pretty late."

"Saitama!"

The entire room gasped and looked up at the broken ceiling to see Tatsumaki swooping in with a worried look. She met Saitama's gaze first before the rest of the room came into focus. Her expression quickly melted into a confused sneer. It looked to her like they just stumbled into the final act of some sort of B-list gangster movie.

"Uh-! Tornado, too!?" someone from the crowd shouted.

"Why is SHE here!?"

"This is crazy!?"

"What the hell do we do!?"

"What's she wearing?"

The gang leader was more surprised than anyone. He knew they were creeping up on the Hero Associations radar, but he never thought they'd send S-Class heroes their way; let alone the top two. "d-.. Don't fear, men! e-Eh-heh-heh! th-They're foolish for attacking us outta the blue in our own hideout! We run this block for a reason! The Hero Association and their dogs don't scare me! Remember what you're fighting for and nothi-..!"

"Hey," Saitama called up to Tatsumaki, cutting his big speech short. "I think these guys are like a gang or something."

"Hmph!" Tatsumaki scoffed. "These idiots?"

"Yeah, they don't really look too intimidating," he muttered. "But this is definitely some kinda shady crime boss warehouse."

"It stinks, in here," she noted.

"Heh, I guess it doesn't matter that you threw me through their roof if they're bad guys."

"h-What!? I did NOT throw you through the roof!"

"Pfft," he nudged Glasses on the shoulder. "She definitely did."

"h-Hey!" the crime boss shouted. He was promptly ignored.

"You're the one that let go! What, was I supposed to catch you?" Saitama hummed I-don't-know with a shrug and a smile. Tatsumaki scoffed and averted his gaze.

"Wait, is another attack going on out there or something?" Golden Ball asked. "What the hell are you guys doin' around here, anyway?"

"er-..!" Saitama stammered. "w-We uhhh-.."

"None of your business!" Tatsumaki answered for him. "What the hell are you and your dumb little friends doing in here!? Selling guns!? Drugs!?"

"What!?" he protested. "I ain't with these bastards! I'm a hero!"

"Keh-! Yeah, right! I don't recognize ya!"

"I am a hero! I swear! I'm Class-A, rank 24!"

"Class-A!?" she chuckled. "And you couldn't handle a bunch-a nobodies in a warehouse on your own!? Ah-haha! How embarrassing!"

"i-I'm here, too, ma'am," Glasses interjected with a wave.

She spared him a glance before the gang leader decided he'd had enough of their disrespect.

"Alright! That's it!" He ripped the tie from around his neck. "We won't stand for this! Men, ready your weapons and fight for the right to live! Fight for each other! Fight for your freedom! And more importantly... fight for ME!"

"YEAAAAH!" The crowd roared their cries of war and charged forward, hearts full of fight and an unshakable will to survive...

(Fwoom!)

Half a second later, they were all unconscious, thrown across the room from a half-assed push from Tatsumaki.

"w-.. Wow!" Glasses exclaimed. "Miss Tornado! You're amazing!"

"Hmph, obviously," she said, flicking her hair over her shoulder. "I bailed you out this time, but in the future, make sure you can actually handle the job before you take it."

"We had it under control," Golden Ball held firm. He didn't appreciate his status as a hero being undermined. Especially when it was coming from the top of the organization. "I was just about to drop every last one-a these jackasses before you showed up."

"Hoh, really?" she said, her tone dripping with doubt. "With what? Your slingshot? What are you, eight?"

"er-!" Golden Ball took a threatening step in her direction before his arm was grabbed by Glasses.

Saitama chuckled at the petty argument as he watched her interaction with the lower-classed heroes. She told them to go ahead and take credit for the victory if they wanted to. In her words, it was embarrassing that she even had to help with something so stupid. In all fairness, it seemed like bullying, but Saitama saw it for what it actually was.

She just had a very strange way of being nice.

He took the moment to shamelessly examine her while her attention was elsewhere. Her outfit still had him in a choke hold. Not to say he didn't notice before, but he was definitely being hit by the realization of just how pretty she truly is.

Truth be told, there was a point in his life, long before he got strong, where he often thought about what kind of girl he would end up with. He was a realist even as a kid, and his less-than-spectacular time in school let him know where he stood as far as looks went. He wasn't ugly, but he was pretty far from handsome to a majority of women. The general consensus was that he just had a very plain face. So, he was pretty sure that he'd only be able to go after a girl who had a similar issue...

So to be where he was now with the most beautiful woman he's probably ever seen was like a dream that he was afraid to wake up from. He traced every detail of her face in amazement. Every shift in her expression–as she ruthlessly mocked the lower-class heroes–was like watching a beautiful dance. '... Hmh… she really is beau-..'

Before he could finish that thought, something came into view over her shoulder. It was the white bag, floating just outside of the hole. She was still trying to keep him away from it even after all that? His gaze flickered to her then back to the bag...

(WOOSH!)

"Hey!" Tatsumaki shouted with a beaming smile when Saitama suddenly jumped back through the hole in the roof. "You son-of-a-..!" She blasted off after him leaving the scene just as abruptly as they had entered.

Golden Ball and Glasses stared up at the broken ceiling for a few moments, still trying to wrap their minds around what just took place. They shared a curious look before their eyes shuffled around the room.

"... We're splittin' the credit," Golden Ball muttered.

---

Saitama frantically chased the bag that was magically zipping away from him everytime he tried to grab it.

Tatsumaki trailed behind him, controlling its every move. She could've easily flown it back into the palm of her hand at any moment, but she was having way too much fun dangling it in front of his face. He was like a cat chasing the dot of a laser-pointer. If only it felt as easy.

Not to say she hadn't noticed before, but he was incredibly fast. In fact, he was so fast that she was having trouble navigating the bag away from him while also keeping track of his movements herself. Her struggle came to a head when he lunged off the side of a building far stronger than he had before. She sent the bag screaming into the sky, narrowly avoiding his reaching hand.

As if he knew she would do that, Saitama gently absorbed the impact when he planted his feet on the side of another building, then he grabbed hold of the ledge above him and threw himself into the sky, hot on the bags trail. He stuck a hand out as he quickly closed the gap, but just before he could grab it, Tatsumaki came swooping by him, snatching it first. Again, he instinctively grabbed onto her before she could jet away from him. This time, he managed to grab her around the waist from behind.

Their momentum sent them spinning up into the sky, both laughing hysterically at the joy of the chase.

"Ah-hahaha! Let me go!" Tatsumaki demanded, steadying their flight. "h-I can't breathe!"

"Ah-haha! Let me see the bag and I'll stop!" Saitama kept a hand wrapped around her exposed stomach as he reached for the sack. She stretched it out as far as she possibly could, but their size difference played a major factor. He managed to trap it in her grasp by grabbing the back of her hand in a gentle squeeze.

"Ah-haha! Stop!"

He did not. They were so enthralled in the moment that neither of them noticed the intimate position they were in. It eventually sank in for Tatsumaki, first, when she started to feel her sternum on his forearm every time she chuckled. What's more; she could feel his voice boom from his chest against her back when he spoke.

"What the heck is it?"

It brought her giggling amusement to a slow stop. She almost zoned out at his touch. Her hand rested on the back of his arm that was wrapped around her gut. It was hard as a rock and completely hairless, much like his head, but it was also very warm... And she hadn't noticed before then, but his hold on her was so soft. It was so soft that she almost couldn't believe this was the same man that had one-shot every single monster she had ever seen him fight. How could a man so powerful possibly be so gentle?

"Oh! That's right!" Saitama exclaimed in an excited tone when he finally figured it out from feeling it through the bag. "The first time we met you were buying uhh—candy apples from my store, right!? a-And I said that...!" His excited revelation died out when he suddenly realized he was talking at the side of her beet red face. The nature of their position finally sank in and he immediately assumed she was unspeakably mad, right now. Within seconds, his face was as red as hers. "O-Oh crap!" he muttered, trying to pull away. "I'm sorry! I-...! uh-!"

For some reason, she wouldn't let him go. She held his forearm against her stomach like it was the foam padded bar on one of the rides at the amusement park and she was dreadfully afraid of it coming loose. For a few good seconds, they were almost stuck in the moment. Completely frozen in the intimate pose, neither drumming up the courage to say anything else.

Saitama felt like his heart was beating as loud as King's. Everything about the situation was making him nervous. The scent of her hair wafting into his face, the feel of her body expanding and contracting against his chest, and the soft, lotion-y, feel of the back of her hand that he still had engulfed by his own. Everything about her was sending out a dangerous signal to... let's just say a very specific part of his body that he had to fight to ignore. And when she finally spoke, the vibration of her voice through her back almost lost him the battle.

"Hey..." she paused when she felt him flinch. "Can—I ask you something...?"

"u-Uh—Yeah, heh," he stammered, nervously. "Yeah..."

Tatsumaki could feel her hands shaking. "You... You like me... right?"

"... Yeah," he muttered his reply.

"I mean like m-more than just a—co-worker or something..."

He swallowed the lump in his throat. "I do..."

The esper drew a cool breath in, but found she couldn't let it go. It felt like she was physically squeezing her own heart. That revelation likely seemed obvious at some point long before then, but to hear him admit it in his own words was a completely different level of relief. She swallowed an excited squeal that was welling up in her throat and blew it out in a calming breath. "f-.. Fine!" she said, her tone a little more aggressive than she was going for. "i-I do to…"

Saitama furrowed his brow in confusion before he caught onto what she meant. When it sank in, a smile crept back in. Of course, he knew that. Why else would she have asked him out? "... Sooo, what happens now?" he asked.

"Heh, i-I don't know," she shrugged. "Like I said, I've... never done this before..."

"Yeah, me neither…" He stared at the little bit of her face he could see. "It... feels kinda terrifying, doesn't it?"

The two shared an awkward chuckle that died down when Saitama readjusted his hold around her waist, again drawing attention to their position.

Tatsumaki had never felt so small in her life... yet in some bizarre way, she also felt safer than ever before; like nothing in this world could hurt her if she stayed right here, forever. Considering who had her, that was probably true.

Saitama, on the other hand, was feeling a strange panic as the seconds drew on. He suddenly felt highly aware of just how strong he was, and he wasn't too sure how hard he could grab her. She seemed so very fragile, like she would absolutely shatter if he squeezed just a little too hard. He was being so careful, that at some point, he wasn't even holding her waist, anymore.

Tatsumaki noticed the fluctuating pressure on her hips, and correctly assumed he was overthinking his strength. "Hmph... Okay," she said. "You win..."

"Uh-!" he gasped when she suddenly shifted as if she wanted him to let her go. He immediately raised his arms to comply, but instead of floating back a bit like he thought she would, she just spun around. He would've surely stumbled back himself if he had any were still miles in the sky. His petrified gaze peered down onto the top of her head.

"You cheated, but... you did win."

Her words were spoken directly into the middle of his chest. "... Huh?"

"Did you think of a prize...?" Tatsumaki stared at the wrinkles of his shirt with a face as red as an apple, patiently waiting for an answer until the silence lingered. "Remember...? i-I said that... you could choose anything..."

"Mh-!" he gasped when she looked up at him with the most adorable look on her face. Her big green eyes were hypnotic, lulling him into some sort of inescapable trance, and though she didn't say anything else, he got the sense that she was begging him to say something specific. "u-Uhhh...! Eh-heh-heh... I–don't know," he stammered.

Tatsumaki's smile rose when she noticed how nervous he was getting. It honestly made her excited to know that she was possibly the only person in the world that could make the strongest man alive lose his composure like this. Maybe she could lean into it a little. "You... don't know?" she asked, floating a little higher.

Saitama averted her gaze the closer she got. "i-I mean... I didn't really think I was gonna win, so... I guess I just didn't think about it."

She stopped at his eye-level and studied the panicked look on his face with a smile. "Well... you're thinking about it now," she said.

"... h-Yeah," he chuckled, softly. The smile that came with it slowly faded, however, when he finally drummed up the courage to keep his eyes on her. Only, now, his gaze seemed intent on drifting around her entire face, stopping at her lips when she rubbed them together. Could that possibly be what she was hinting at?

Tatsumaki saw the realization sink in on his face. She leaned a little closer.

Saitama wasn't expecting it, so he leaned away, slightly.

Her smile deepened and she leaned a little more. "Hmph… You look nervous," she noted. "What exactly were you thinking just now?"

He watched her eyes flicker to his own lips before he was sure he knew where things were going… Then, he swallowed the lump in his throat.

'Mh-!' Tatsumaki's teasing grin faltered when there was a slight change in the look on his face. He was still visibly nervous, but there was a more focused intent to his searching glare. She was only joking… but he didn't look like he knew that…

Was this really about to happen?

Saitama was prepared for this, oddly enough. The first kiss was in one of his lessons a week ago. King thought it was important enough to start training in it as soon as possible. According to his studies, most women prefer experience in those kinds of things; and experience was the main thing Saitama was lacking… So, he was really starting to hope that King knew what he was talking about.

'Okay,' he mulled. 'First I…' He nervously reached out and put his hands on her hips as if to hold her steady.

Tatsumaki flinched and awkwardly lifted her arms when he did. This was really about to happen…

She took a deep breath and slowly let it out, visibly relaxing a bit. She let her arms come down until her hands landed on his biceps.

They locked eyes, both looking more terrified than they had ever seen each other before…

Then, like a game of chicken, they hesitantly leaned in ever so slowly, stopping when they were a literal breath away…

It always felt like, in these moments, there was bound to be some sort of frustrating interruption. Truthfully, they were both expecting it. Tatsumaki had seen it a dozen times in the movies Fubuki forced her to watch, and Saitama had seen it in that girly video game King tried to pass off as a simulation...

But this wasn't a movie or a game...

They were alone up there, in the sky; the world had gone as quiet as their own thoughts...

Like magnets, they were drawn together until their lips finally met. It was a soft peck that lasted all of about three seconds, but it was a kiss, nonetheless.

Tatsumaki's heart soared, and a burst of wind shot up around her. Saitama was the first to pull away; she was locked in place, basking in the passion of the moment…

Eventually her eyes creaked open to a startling realization:

She was alone…

"Oh-hoh, crap!" Her mind had gone so blank that she forgot she was holding him. Her eyes darted around until she spotted him falling through the clouds below. Her smile blossomed before she blasted into a nosedive. She reached a hand out to try and regrasp him only to find she couldn't.

Saitama was thrashing around in a panic, likely fearing he would crash through another rooftop. What were the odds of it being another bad guy hangout?

As luck would have it, it didn't matter. When he broke through the last thick cloud, he saw that they had drifted over a lake, and he was falling toward the very center of it. That, he didn't mind as much. Just before he hit the water, he flipped back around and spotted Tatsumaki chasing after him.

He could still feel his lips tingling...

When his back hit the water, the resulting splash was massive. Saitama must have sunk at least halfway to the bottom before his momentum was stopped completely. He immediately clawed his way back to the surface, following the glimmer of the moonlight. When he emerged, Tatsumaki swooped down over the water with a bashful grin. "h-Hey! I'm so sorry! I-... Pfft, hahaha!" She broke out laughing when he emerged from the water.

Saitama squeezed his eyes to clear his vision before looking up at her with a confused sneer. 'Hm…?' He turned his head from side to side before he realized what it was. A catfish was sucking on the back of his bald head, flopping around like a loose-ponytail. "Urgh-!" He shook it off with a grunt of disgust. "Heh, hahaha!"

"Ah-hahaha!" They laughed full force for another few seconds until the momentum slowly started dying down. Tatsumaki held her stomach and wiped a tear from her cheek. They locked eyes just as the last few chuckles fumbled out. She shook her head and tried to say something through her ear splitting grin. When she realized she couldn't get it out without laughing again, she sealed her lips…

Saitama noticed that. He smiled…

Then she smiled…

And then, they broke out laughing again, immediately returning to the comfort of each other's company. The awkwardness of their first kiss was suddenly gone; replaced by the excitement of the fact that they were a lot deeper in whatever this relationship was than either of them expected to be. How much deeper was a mystery, but two things were absolutely certain: they had fun on their date, and they couldn't wait for the next one…

---

AN: With a kiss to seal the deal, the Saitatsu romance flourishes into its next stage! Thank you for reading, and don't forget to drop a review if you get a chance! Till next time!