“Understandably you two have questions” Tomoro began “ask away but keep in mind I will be answering them at my own discretion.”

“How have you been able to maintain your youth?” Bomb immediately asked.

“Getting straight to the point huh?” he smiled sardonically before shrugging “what can I say? The ability to freely manipulate my own life force energy comes with some perks. I’m sure the two of you are already aware of chi energy.”

“But not like this” Bang interrupted with a stern frown.

Bomb mirroring his brother’s expression folded his arms “don’t insult our intelligence Shiva. Without having a grasp of it neither my brother nor I would be able to do half the things we could at our age but to hold onto your youth through chi? He shook his head “that would require …” he trailed off with sudden realization.

“An understanding of chi energy coupled with an amount that would be considered unprecedented?” Tomoro finished causing Bang’s expression to go partially wide eyed with shock “well there you have it.”

Bang uttered a single word “how?”

“Have neither of you heard of cultivation?”

“Impossible!” Bomb denied.

“And yet here I stand as proof to the contrary.”

Neither of them were strangers to ‘cultivation’ as it was one of the most debated practices in martial arts. Both men remembered when archaeologists unearthed an ancient temple and recovered some texts written in a dead language predating modern society by thousands of years. Linguistic experts were able to roughly translate a portion of said texts some of which were revealed to be historical records and martial arts manuals.

Naturally such a discovery once announced set a portion of the martial arts world ablaze with curiosity. Stemming from studies of the records of long standing martial arts schools it was speculated that there was a blank period in history where something happened which caused the ruination or near destruction of all martial arts sects. It was said that due to this cataclysm many of the techniques from the surviving schools were lost and had to be rediscovered and refined through later generations.

For some this discovery would help to shed some light on that missing piece of history while a majority of others held the belief that in studying the ancient manuals it would aid in refining current martial arts techniques. In any case for the first time in a very long time the martial arts world had collectively gained an interest in the mundane world. Even Bang and Bomb held their own curiosities for the contents.

Eventually, over the course of years the contents of the texts would come out and the martial arts world raised a collective eyebrow at them. Despite the translations being on the rough side it didn’t prevent these alleged records and martial arts texts from reading like a fantasy novel. A lot of unknown terms and practices were thrown around however chief among them was cultivation or rather chi cultivation.

Many prominent grandmasters decried these writings as fiction however there were those who did not. Of particular note in the supporting camp were the grandmasters whose martial arts schools were amongst the longest standing. Debates sparked that still waged on to this day about the legitimacy of chi cultivation though in recent years it seemed that the number of people agreeing on cultivation being a legitimate martial arts practice was firmly in the minority.

“No one has been able to prove the legitimacy of cultivation” Bang spoke aloud “or so we thought.”

“It’s fine if you don’t believe me but don’t expect me to go spilling my secrets.”

“Of course not” Bang shook his head, as if he would be so uncouth.

“I hope that satisfied your curiosity then.”

Bomb could only give out an aggravated sigh “unbelievable.”

It was but at the same time the abilities he has demonstrated thus far were eerily similar to some of the feats in those records.

“Do you have any other questions?”

Bomb didn’t but Bang did “a while ago when Saitama destroyed that meteor you were the one who got rid of the fragments weren’t you?”

“Indeed I was, how did you figure that?”

“I sensed your chi.”

Bang has been exposed to Tomoro’s unique brand of ki before and the experience was seared into his mind.

Tomoro hummed at his words but frowned at that particular incident “what Saitama did was sloppy work. I thought I taught him better than that.”

“Taught? Didn’t you say he wasn’t your student?”

“He’s not but I find myself in the position of being his keeper and voice of reason on a regular basis” he sighed “Saitama’s doesn’t exactly have the best judgment and combined with his natural apathy” he trailed off with a shake of his head “if I wasn’t here to keep him focused then you would see a lot more incidents like with what almost happened with the meteor.”

Before Bang could comment on this they all felt an approaching presence.

“Expecting more guests?” Bang questioned

“Yes actually” Tomoro replied before they all raised a collective eyebrow at the sight of what looked to be an armored astronaut walking towards the apartment building “I’ll be right back.”

And with that he hopped over the corridor balcony to greet his final expected guest.

~O~

After what felt like an hour running Tareo’s stamina finally ran out and he collapsed to his hands and knees on the side of the road next to a storm drain.

“Haa…haa…haa…”

Despite being, drenched in sweat, his lungs burning and his heart pounding in his ears Tareo couldn’t help but worry.

‘That mister…’

No, not ‘mister’ but Garou the Hero Hunter. Despite witnessing him take down a group of (mostly) A-Class heroes, despite being on the receiving end of his anger and despite him flat out telling him that he was a monster Tareo just couldn’t reconcile him as the Hero Hunter.

“Wh-what do I do?”

It felt as if he should be doing something. The first option to come to mind was calling for help but after remembering how his last meeting with the heroes went he shut that down.

“What do I do?” he once again questioned himself but no answer came.

At least none that he wanted or asked for.

“You can stay right there for a few seconds” the voice was proceeded by the sound of horrible squelching and a shadow rose to cover Tareo’s form.

The boy whirled around and gasped before he was enveloped by a wave of disgusting brown sludge.

Meanwhile…

When the two monsters charged at him Garou charged back choosing to evade Royal Ripper in order to intercept Bug God. He reared back a fist and launched it dead center at his chest.

*Twack*

The sound of skin on carapace echoed and Garou retracted his hand and leapt away to gain distance.

Shaking his fist he gritted his teeth ‘damn, he’s tougher than I thought!’

Not only did his hit not seem to phase the monster but he ended up splitting the skin of his knuckles for the effort.

Unfortunately he had no time to rest as blade hands came charging in a second time swinging wildly at him. This wasn’t the first time Garou fought someone that used a bladed weapon however none of them were like this monster. Fast, relentless and lacking any kind of finesse Royal Ripper only seemed interested in cutting him up and it was for this reason why Garou couldn’t find out a discerning pattern in the monster’s frenzied attack.

‘He’s like a rabid animal’ Garou thought whilst dodging the monster’s frantic strikes and to make matters worse the bug was capitalizing on the exchange by coming up on his flank.

In that moment a devious idea came to his mind and whilst dodging Garou hastily moved into a ‘proper’ position before with a hasty yet careful maneuvering Garou redirected the monster’s strikes towards his incoming partner.

“Hah!”

*Screech*

Garou couldn’t help but smirk as his plan succeeded and the sound of blade impacting carapace echoed.

‘One dow-’

“Huh?” his smirk vanished into an expression of shock however as he hastily brought up his hands to block a massive fist coming down at him.

*SLAM*

Bug God’s attack held so much force behind it that Garou felt the bones in his forearms nearly fracture as he was sent to a knee while the ground underneath him shattered. And to make matters worse the bug monster didn’t have a single scratch on him from taking a direct hit from his partner.

‘How tough is this bastard!?’

Bug God reared his free hand back and punched the kneeling Garou away with a devastating left hook. The Hero Hunter sailed through the sky a short distance before his body hit a power line causing him to get electrocuted which worked to his advantage. Now with several thousand volts of electricity coursing through his body Garou felt re-energize and as the two monsters leapt at him he launched himself back at the two with smoke wafting from his body and a war cry escaping his bloody lips.

“RAAAARRRGGHH!”

With a large armored fist aimed to pulverize his head and a long sharp blade poised to skewer his heart Garou smoothly flipped his body mid air to avoid the fist whilst using his hands to deflect the blade. In the same instant he slammed his foot into Bug God’s face using him as a spring board to launch himself at Royal Ripper slamming an elbow into the monster’s unprotected face.

“Hrm!?” Bug God couldn’t help but be shocked at the force of Garou’s kick which sent his body crashing into ground behind the canopy of trees.

Meanwhile on the other side of the clearing Royal Ripper growled his eyes filled with bloody murder as he and Garou landed several dozen feet apart.

Garou was quick to launch himself forward ‘if I take him out I can handle the other one without issue!’

Really Bug God was the bigger threat here with that solid defense ofhis. Royal Ripper on the other hand was just annoyingly persistent. Speaking of, instead of rushing forward as he had been doing the monster’s visible lone eye shone as he adopted a pose.

‘What is he doing?’

Garou had the good sense to slow his momentum which turned out to be the right choice as just then the monster launched his attack.

“Bloody Carnival Dance!”

In the next instant Royal Ripper was a literal whirlwind of blades forcing Garou to take evasive actions.

‘This spinning shit again!’

This was the third time Garou fought someone whose attack was basically lashing out while spinning like a top. He would have laughed at the action if it wasn’t for the fact that it was particularly effective here than the other two times.

“…!”

Garou silently cursed as the monster began barreling towards him whilst somehow able to maintain his spin forcing Garou into taking evasive action.

“Whoa!” Garou narrowly ducked a swiping blade.

‘The hell!? I should be out of his range!’

Somehow not only was Royal Ripper’s range extended beyond what it was before but his strikes had gotten even more powerful and savage. Everything so much as grazed by those blades got cut and Garou was pretty sure that amongst the slash marks on the ground there were strands of his hair.

‘Tch, this is annoying’

Despite this escalation as well as Garou’s body not completely recovered he still kept a calm head and maintained his distance whilst studying the monster’s movements.

‘I can see it!’

Unfortunately before he could capitalize on his discovery the hairs on the back of his neck stood up and he was already leaping away before the shadow was cast over him.

*BOOM*

Bug God’s fist smashed into the ground where Garou was with the force of a small meteor his entrance came fast and unexpected even to his partner who was once again the unwitting initiate of friendly fire.

*Clang*

Not that either seemed to care as Royal Ripper gave an annoyed huff as his blades were repelled while Bug God only spared his partner a brief glance before charging at Garou with a devastating haymaker. He moved faster than what something his size should be capable of however compared to Royal Ripper’s speed combined with his wild near unpredictable ferocity Bug God might as well be doing telegraphed punches through molasses.

Not a single one of Bug God’s punches came close to hitting Garou and for every missed hit Garou was able to get in up to half a dozen hits in retaliation but unfortunately it wasn’t working. No matter where he hit Bug God wasn’t at all affected and the monster continued his relentless onslaught against Garou.

‘This is getting me nowhere!’

To make matters worse he saw the light of the waning sun glinting from his peripheral.

‘Tch and I have to deal with him too.’

A devious thought came to mind and Garou smirked before redirecting one of Bug God’s punches into the approaching Royal Ripper thus completing the cycle of friendly fire. Except because Bug God hit with the force of a freight truck going at max speed and Royal Ripper didn’t have solid steel-like skin he was sent flying back by the force of the hit.

“Royal Ripper!” Bug God yelled out in surprising concern.

It caused the hulking bug monster to halt his onslaught giving Garou more of an opening than he already had which Garou capitalized on by sweeping his legs from under him. In the split second that Bug God’s foot left the ground Garou appeared before him and grabbed one of pincers.

“Eup!”

With a grunt of effort the Hero Hunter used the monster’s pincer as leverage to do an overhead throw launching Bug God at Royal Ripper and even threw several kicks at his body to increase the momentum. Even with that however Royal Ripper was able to dodge to the side but oddly enough he didn’t start attacking immediately. Rather he seemed to be reassessing Garou as an opponent and the same can be said for his partner who after tumbling for a bit managed to halt his momentum by stabbing his hand into the ground.

As for Garou the adrenaline from the exchange was doing wonders for helping him ignore the aches around his body.

‘These guys are more troublesome than the heroes’ by themselves neither could pose a threat to him but together…

A gust of wind blew against his sweat stained face cooling it and eventually his panting breath came under control.

‘But compared to the old man and Watchdog Man they’re nothing’ he grinned at the thought.

Perspective was a funny thing like that. He might not have appreciated being either of their punching bags in the moment but he could sure as hell appreciate the experience after the fact. Now enemies that would have given him pause in the past he was now confident he could against.

‘I can win this!’

“You’re pretty strong” Royal Ripper spoke in a low growl reluctantly acknowledging Garou’s strength.

“To think a human could be so tenacious” Bug God stated with seeming shock.

“That’s funny” Garou spoke with a bored tone “because of all the opponents I’ve fought the two of you are by far the most disappointing which is really saying something.”

Royal Ripper did not take kindly to his words “let’s just kill him.”

“We were ordered not to” Bug God reminded.

“Screw the orders!” Royal Ripper screamed “besides, it’s clear that he was never going to be one of us.”

Garou chuckled “he’s right you know.”

“You would reject Lord Orochi’s invitation?”

Garou shrugged “far as I’m concerned your Monster Association is a rival at best and an obstacle at worst” he thumbed himself “I’m the one who’s going to become the symbol of fear after all.”

At that Royal Ripper let out a dark chuckle “you, the symbol of fear?”

Bug God shook his head “you’re delusional.”

“The only one delusional here are you two who call yourselves real monsters” he spat to the side “fucking pathetic trying to talk down to me, telling me I’m not a ‘real monster’ because I won’t kill some brat. I’ve been waging a one man war against the Hero Association for the better part of a week. I’ve put down over a hundred heroes including two from the S-Class. What the hell have you two done?”

As another gust of wind blew through the area there was a tense silence as Bug God and Royal Ripper regarded Garou. Their gazes were scrutinizing as they reassess the man standing before them.

Finally Bug God spoke in a calm tone “I was only planning on instilling some discipline in a new recruit.”

“Then are we done playing around?” Royal Ripper questioned not taking his eyes off Garou.

“…yeah, let’s kill him.”

“I’m fine with continuing this little song and dance” Garou spoke nonchalantly before smirking “but now that I’ve memorized all your moves, you won’t be able to land a single hit on me.”

“We’ll see about that!”

And with that they both charged at human again and it soon became apparent that things were not as they were before.

“Rargh, hold still!” Royal ripper roared with murderous frustration as he swung wildly at the human.

Despite going faster, wilder and more precise with his attacks Royal Ripper found that just as Garou boasted he was unable to land a single attack on him, none of them could. The man weaved between their attacks like a deadly feather in the wind. Using his palms to deflect a double stab he clapped both blades together between them dragging Royal Ripper to the side and delivered several kicks at his leg, torso and head in quick succession.

It was that final kick to the head that made the murderous monster rip his blades away from Garou’s hold cutting at his leg. At the same time Bug God came in for the assist with a devastating punch only to once again miss when Garou dived between the blade and the fist heading directly for Bug God’s legs.

“Hrn!” exclaimed Bug God as Garou pulled his leg from under him.

With a grunt of exertion Garou grabbed both of the monster’s legs and spun him around knocking Royal Ripper away before slamming Bug God into the ground back first. The action did no damage but Garou knew this so before Bug God could properly recover he slammed his fist into the insect monster’s chest creating a widespread fissure that covered a good circumference of the area.

Without looking back Garou suddenly bent forward missing the slash that would have lopped his head off while sending his leg back into Royal Ripper. While the monster was able to use his free blade arm to block the attack he was still sent skidding backwards. At the same time Garou pivoted his body back while swinging his leg forward in an axe kick to deflect a swipe from the prone Bug God. That axe kick came went back down in a devastating stomp right into Bug God’s chest widening the devastation and practically terraforming the area turning the fissures into a large crater.

Again it did not do any kind of visible damage to him however Bug God actually felt that one. Before he could retaliate again Garou was on the move as Royal Ripper chased him off. Bug God was quick to scramble to his feet and join the fray to try once more. Garou upon noticing his approach deflected Royal Ripper’s swords and slammed his palms on the monster’s ears eliciting a grunt of pain and frustration before sending him away with a front kick.

Spinning around Garou intercept a punch, deflecting it to throw a jab at Bug Monster’s carapace with a resounding *wham* before deflecting another two hits and returning two more punches to his chest. So it went for the next several seconds as Bug God tries and fails to land a hit whilst Garou continues to unload a steady stream punches into the insect monsters abdomen.

Bug God began to notice that not only did he actually feel the hits despite not taking damage he also noted something else that was vaguely alarming. That despite drenched in sweat, panting for breath, his knuckles bleeding and his hits ineffective against his tough exoskeleton Garou was livelier than when he started. He was moving faster and hitting harder than he was when they first started despite his body and stamina getting worn down.

‘Is he getting stronger?’

Bug God tested this hypothesis by switching up his tactics going for a rapid series of ‘light’ punches exchanging power for speed. In response Garou entered a pose and it was as if his fists flowed around the human’s body like water streaming against a rock. Then after a fashion Garou stomped his foot heavily into the ground before smashing his fist into Bug God. Not only did the monster feel it but the force caused him to step back.

If he had eyelids they would have widened in shock ‘impossible.’

Garou disproved this notion by stomping his foot again, dodging a hasty backhand and smashing another fist into the monster’s chest causing him to stumble back a step again. Again and again this occurred each time Bug God was sent a step back and Garou was right on him with a single stomp forward to chase and another hit to deliver. Always one hit and always at the same place. The entire time Bug God could feel the pressure mounting in his abdomen and his instincts telling him to put a stop to this at once, so he did.

“Enough!” he yelled and slammed both his fists into the ground uprooting it.

The move forced Garou to leap away and narrowly dodge several fast slashes at his vitals. He struck out with a knuckle strike to Royal Ripper’s shoulder joint disrupting his arm movement. Several more knuckle strikes to his other shoulder joint and along his arms rendered them temporarily useless.

“YOU-HRK!”

Royal Ripper’s shout was interrupted by another harsher knuckle strike directly to his throat. With a smirk Garou clinched the monster’s neck and pulled him into a knee strike to his gut.

“GAH!” Royal Ripped gagged.

Another knee strike this time to his ribs.

“GURK!”

Finally Garou grabbed the monster’s greasy hair and shoved his face down into a leaping knee strike.

*CRACK*

Royal Ripper was sent flying several dozen feet landing on his back with his face visibly caved in.

He did not get up again.

With his work done Garou turned towards Bug God with a satisfied smirk on his face “one down.”

For his part after having experienced his prowess and witnessing what he did to his fellow Demon level monster companion Bug God was fully convinced “we underestimated you.”

“No shit” Garou scoffed “well it’s too late for regrets now.”

“Regret?” Bug God stated as his fists clenched “you have not been able to do any damage to me this entire time.”

It was a clear fact from his bleeding knuckles that Garou actually did more damage to himself with his attacks on Bug God.

Garou sneered “I’ve just been testing the waters a bit and without the other one distracting me I can focus on breaking that armor of yours.”

His words caused Bug God to twitch. The memory of their previous engagement and the continued pressure he felt as the human laid into his armor still fresh in his mind. Bug God’s instincts told him he had prevented something catastrophic from happening in that moment.

‘It couldn’t be’ he thought in denial.

Had he prevented his own destruction?

He did not entertain the thought for another moment as there was one thing he knew for certain.

‘This man is too dangerous to let live.’

“I was saving this for my confrontation with Darkshine but you leave me no choice” Bug God announced before his body began tensing and convulsing.

Garou’s smirk only widened “still got some tricks up your sleeve eh? Go ahead! In the end you’re just fodder for my growth.”

And with that declaration he waited patiently for Bug God to transform only for them to be interrupted by the arrival of another.

*Squish*

The presence had Garou’s attention immediately as another opponent however the sight before him doused his flames of excitement with the ice cold waters of apprehension. And why wouldn’t it as it was the sight of Tareo being held in the clutches of a familiar monster.

‘That’s the monster that tried to kidnap Metal Bat’s sister…’

Bug God seemed more confused than surprised at the monster’s appearance however “Sludge Jellyfish, what are you doing here?”

“Oh~ I’ve got my own personal grudge against that guy” he answered “I was just waiting for the right time to mess with him. You seem awfully protective of this one kid ‘Hero Hunter’” the monster taunted.

“I’m sorry…mister…” Tareo feebly mumbled.

The sight had Garou’s anger boil to a new high as he yelled out “dammit the kid has nothing to do with this!”

Unfortunately in his anger tunnel vision set in and he was briefly unaware of his environment thus opening himself up to surprise retaliation by Royal Ripper who took advantage of the distraction to launch himself at Garou’s flank. With a single swipe of his blade arm Royal Ripper cut into Garou’s exposed back his blade cutting deep enough to where he severed the man’s spine.

Garou’s expression was one of shock and disbelief as he felt the loss of feeling in his lower extremities. That was not the end of it however as before his body could even begin to fall Royal Ripper stabbed both blades through his chest before tossing him towards Bug God. The monster reacted immediately and slammed his most devastating punch into the man’s torso eliciting an ugly sounding *crack* that shattered bone and pulped organs. Then in the same breath he slammed Garou into the ground with an axe handle pulverizing his spine.

Not a moment later Royal Ripper was upon him, slashing, stabbing and cutting with wild abandon. The monster was silent as he did this, no words were spoken only the grunt of a crazed being indulging in its grisly work covering himself and the ground in blood as he did so. Bug God was also silent as he watched his partner while Sludge Jellyfish whistled in vindicated satisfaction. Tareo could not take his eyes off the grisly scene no doubt traumatized for life, for however long that would be at this point.

Eventually however Bug God caught Royal Ripper’s blade before it could go for another swipe “that’s enough.”

“Why did you stop me?” Royal Ripper growled.

“He’s already dead” the monster stated bluntly.

It was true beyond the copious amounts of blood and viscera Garou was now an unmoving corpse stabbed and cut up all over with a few detached limbs.

“The sun’s going down, we need to get back to base and inform Gyoro Gyoro and Lord Orochi about this.”

Royal Ripper’s partially obscured eye looked with his partner’s for a while before straightening up and taking a deep breath. Then like a switch being flipped the murderous aura that had surrounded him this entire time was suddenly gone and he exhaled.

“Fuuu~ I feel so relaxed now~” his gaze immediately went to Tareo whose faced paled even further causing his eyes to crinkle in a smile “let’s all go home like the good friends we are.”

And so the three monsters and lone boy left the bloody, mangled and cut up body of Garou never noticing the minute twitch of his finger.

~O~

Dr. Kuseno had arrived and he came with the gift of premium beef which immediately netted him Saitama’s respect. Genos despite Tomoro offering to help Saitama with the food in order to give him the opportunity to catch up with his father figure declined. Do-S was sulking in the corner while Suiryu and Suiko were engaging in conversation with Bang and Bomb leaving Tomoro the one to speak with the doctor.

Tomoro found himself engaging in an oddly deep conversation with him. The topic of said conversation started with their mutual relationship with Genos but eventually evolved into philosophy of all things. Kuseno was…well the phrase more than meets the eye came to mind. When he looked into the older seeming man’s eyes he saw more than the façade of a kindly old grandfather figure he put out. Not in the sense that he had some evil persona but it was clear that the doctor had been through some experiences that left a dark mark on his life.

Why else would he give an angsty teenager extensive cybernetic enhancements practically sponsoring his single-minded revenge quest?

Genos called him a ‘scientist of justice’ but whenever the man spoke of the cyborg Tomoro could sense a hint of melancholy in his words buried within the pride and fondness. It was suspicious but then again given Genos’ disposition the young man basically gave up his life to seek revenge. There was not a single organic aspect of Genos remaining now, his body was completely mechanical. Physically Genos was an android but because he still had his ‘human spirit’ he can technically be called a cyborg. Had he not met Saitama (and Tomoro) then it was likely he would have eventually lost his humanity in its entirety becoming a machine in both body and spirit.

Funny how a change of perspective can turn a comedy into a tragedy.

Right then Saitama ducked his head around the corner “hey Tomoro can you help set this up.”

“Excuse me” Tomoro got up and went into the kitchen and whistled at what he saw. There were assorted foodstuffs on the counter including two different types of high grade beef, veggies, mushrooms, noodles, dumplings and even rice cake. The pot that was to be where they would be cooked was ‘family sized’ with a partition in the middle for two different styles.

“Genos can’t carry this stuff with only one leg no matter how much he tries to tell me otherwise” he added when the cyborg spoke up.

Tomoro turned to said cyborg “I got this Genos, go talk to Dr. Kuseno” he paused grabbing the hot plate stove “take this with you I’m coming in with the pot.”

Dutifully the cyborg accepted the mini stove and hobbled out the kitchen with his makeshift crutch. Tomoro and Saitama were quick to set up everything in short order. The stove was turned on, the pot was delivered, the stock was poured into both sides of the partition with one side having a spicy soup base and the ingredients were placed on the low table along with the ingredients. Partway through this they realized they wouldn’t have enough room and so Tomoro had to go back down to the moving truck and get his own low table to supplement for the space.

Neither him nor Saitama were pleased but credit to the purple haired man he completed his task in only a few short minutes. After some awkward maneuvering and repositioning they now had the extra space for plates, cups and drinks.

By the end of it Tomoro sat down with a sigh “man we did not think this through.”

At that Saitama gave him a side eyed glare “what do you mean ‘we’? You’re the one who decided to invite other people!”

“Alright I concede your point” Tomoro surrendered “at least your girlfriend and her sister decided not to stick around. That’s two less people taking up space.”

“She’s not my girlfriend!”

“You do realize vehemently denying it doesn’t really help your case right?”

“Shut up.”

“So, how long until this is ready?” Suiko interrupted looking at the covered pot “because I’ve had to endure hospital food before coming here.”

“It will take an estimated two minutes for the meats to properly cook.”

“Oh okay.”

Suiko looked around at the people gathered and still couldn’t believe it. Not including herself and her brother there were three grandmasters, two S-Class heroes, an old scientist and a monster girl all under the same roof about to have hot pot together after planning to infiltrate an organization of monsters responsible for a global terrorist attack and the destruction of at least two cities.

The silence was then broken by Saitama who looked to his oldest friend “so how did you and the old man know each other?”

“All grandmasters know each other” Tomoro answered causing Saitama to roll his eyes

“He’s not wrong” Bomb defended then shrugged when he caught their attention “whether by seeking challenges or by being challenged if one wins enough their name will get out there and when you reach a certain level your name becomes renowned.”

“Unless you’re living in complete isolation” Bang interjected “but then again I don’t think there is a martial artist in existence who wouldn’t want to test their skills against others.”

“They’re right and to answer your question Saitama I met Bang some years ago while he was dealing with some criminals.”

Bang almost scoffed however ‘he’s not wrong.’

“Admittedly we didn’t get along at first” Tomoro continued “but we’ve grown to respect one another over the years.”

Bang nodded at his words “I was surprised to learn that you even associated with Saitama and Genos let alone share an apartment building with them.”

“I assure you it was a coincidence” he lied through his teeth “though I should have figured someone else would pick up on this fine piece of real estate.”

“Isn’t this place supposed to be overrun with monsters?” Suiryu pointed out before glancing at Do-S sitting right beside Tomoro “no offense” he added awkwardly.

The monster girl rolled her eyes at him.

“Yeah sure you get the occasional encounter with monsters but what’s a bit of pest control when the building is practically unscathed, utilities are free, the rent is dirt cheap, it’s quiet and its close to a supermarket and the train station” he pointed out.

For a moment Suiko stared at him in thought before muttering to herself “you’re right that is a good deal.”

“Yeah sucks we have to leave, I don’t think we’ll ever find a place like this.”

“Still haven’t” Saitama grumbled.

“It has been two minutes Master Saitama” Genos announced and suddenly everyone’s gaze focused on the hot pot.

It hadn’t escaped them that the room had been steadily filling with the scent of assorted meat, veggies and spices.

Staring at the pot Tomoro came to a single conclusion ‘it’s cooked.’

Suddenly a tension rose in the air that he’s sure everyone else can feel and seemingly without prompt everyone raised their chopsticks towards the pot only to freeze.

“Now before things escalate” Tomoro began only for Do-S to jump the gun striking towards a strip of beef that has been marinating in the spicy broth.

This in turn created a chain event as everyone else barring Dr. Kuseno and Tomoro struck as well. Only their chopsticks did not go far as a purple barrier appeared over the hotpot shielding it from their assault. Saitama’s chopstick actually ended up creating a spider web crack along the barrier for a brief moment before it was repaired.

The one to create this barrier cleared his throat “as I was saying before being rudely interrupted” he gave a side glare to Do-S who looked away with a scowl “we have enough food to feed everyone here so let’s not turn this into some kind of battle royal okay.”

There were a round of nods some more reluctant than others but once he got confirmation he let the barrier go and this time they were more civil in their acquisitions. They would continue this friendly atmosphere until…

“Okay who took the spicy dumpling?” Tomoro interrupted “I was saving that.”

Eyes turned to the person beside him and he looked to Do-S who ate the rest of said dumpling. Using her too long tongue to lick her lips Do-S uttered a single word whilst giving Tomoro a dispassionate look.

“Delicious.”

Afterwards she went back to her meal leaving Tomoro to stare at her for a few seconds before he too uttered a single word in a harsh whisper.

“Bitch…”

~O~

Night had fallen upon City Z and with a curfew now in effect the streets were practically devoid of life as everyone continued to wait with bated breath. Fubuki watched the now silent city from her penthouse room at the top floor of the Blizzard Group headquarters with a big screen TV playing news in the background wearing a bathrobe and sipping wine from a glass.

‘Dr. Psycho’

That name has haunted their family for over a decade. To this day Fubuki was unaware of the details of what exactly happened to her sister all those years ago when she was taken to that infamous so-called Psychic Research Facility. If Tatsumaki had her way then she wouldn’t have even known of both it and the demented doctor’s existence. Solaria obliged her curiosity once the older esper deemed her ready and she was given access to what was left of the PRF’s research notes, uncensored.

Understandable Tatsumaki was not at all supportive of this and Solaria did not grant her access to her sibling’s batch of reports. Considering what she found in the content of those reports Fubuki was rather glad she was spared the exposure.

“Shit” she drained what was left of the wine and telekinetically had the bottle pour another glass full.

The things she read in those reports were…she shook her head. She didn’t think humans would be capable of doing things like that to their fellows. No those actions were more befitting a monster which is fitting considering Dr. Psycho not only somehow survived the combined efforts of both Blast and Solaria destroying the PRF but joined the Monster Association as one of its leading members.

“Tch, fitting” she sneered.

This information brought clarity to the situation with Solaria however that was hardly a comfort. Dr. Psycho was the enemy of all psychics and the fact that he was somehow successful in disabling Solaria…well that’s the kind of news that made Fubuki want to drink and so she did draining another glass and holding it out for a refill.

Except before the red liquid could pour Fubuki found her control of it overwritten and the bottle was placed back on the counter without her input. Fubuki’s gaze returned to the window once she became aware of the familiar presence. Tatsumaki floated before her on the other side of the window with a frown and a complicated expression on her face.

“Can I come in?”

Fubuki blinked and stiffened at the voice before realizing it came from Tatsumaki. She was half expecting her to barge in like she owned the place.

She must have stayed silent too long because the diminutive psychic continued “I brought ice-cream” and true to her word she held up a gallon tub of ice-cream.

Fubuki opened the window to allow her inside. As the older esper passed she glanced around the rather extravagant room doing a full 360 rotation as she did.

“Nice place.”

“Thanks” Fubuki replied with a heavy amount of apprehension not knowing what to make of her sister’s current attitude.

“Well?” Tatsumaki interrupted “you just going to stand there or are you going to get the spoons?”

“R-right” Fubuki acquiesced “I’ll be right back…make yourself at home I suppose.”

She trailed off as Tatsumaki was already floating way towards the living room. Fubuki can’t even begin to imagine the thoughts running through her sibling’s head right now. After putting away the wine glass and retrieving two spoons she returned to the living room only to freeze at the sight. Tatsumaki was watching a news segment where they were discussing the kidnapping of their adoptive mother with pictures and videos interwoven in them.

Immediately the remote flew to her hand and Fubuki switched channels to some random drama.

“I was watching that” Tatsumaki’s tone was not one of annoyance, actually there wasn’t much of any kind of inflection in it to be honest and that worried her greatly.

Swallowing her worry however she managed to respond with a succinct “I don’t think that would make for good ice-cream entertainment.”

Tatsumaki didn’t say anything to that and the two sisters settled onto the couch with the tub of ice-cream between them watching a trashy romantic drama.

“I don’t know if you still like this flavor” Tatsumaki spoke as the lid was taken off exposing its content.

‘Vanilla’

“I do”

It was a guilty pleasure, a comfort food and it helped to alleviate the tension despite herself.

Several minutes into their binge Tatsumaki commented “I think this is the first time I’ve ever been in here.”

“It is.”

When Fubuki left to strike out on her own as a hero Tatsumaki wasn’t exactly supportive of her independence. She lobbied hard to have her change her mind about being a hero and when that didn’t work tried very hard to keep her under her thumb. Some could say that she was just being an overprotective older sibling, some could say that she was coddling her but in actuality Tatsumaki was smothering her. And when her final gambit failed Tatsumaki effectively cut her out of her life for a time.

She wouldn’t talk to her, she wouldn’t even look at her and on the occasions that they would encounter one another mostly when Tatsumaki would ‘save her’ the most Fubuki would get out of her was a scathing glare and maybe some words of derision. Fubuki thought that Tatsumaki hated her but if she was being honest it didn’t bother her as much at the time. She was too preoccupied with her hero career, psychic training and Blizzard Group to be too concerned with her deteriorating relationship with her unreasonable sibling.

It was only after their mother took her aside one day to explain some of Tatsumaki's insecurities that Fubuki understood why Tatsumaki acted the way she did. Of course it didn’t excuse her actions but Fubuki can empathize if only a bit with her still unreasonable but extremely complicated older sister. Still Fubuki had no idea what she was supposed to be doing right now. Whatever reaction she thought her sister would have to the return of her childhood tormentor capturing their mother it certainly wasn’t this.

It wasn’t until they were a quarter of the way through the tub that Tatsumaki broke the silence again.

“Fubuki, you know that I love you right?”

Fubuki, the 2nd ranked A-Class hero Blizzard of Hell recoiled in shock.

Tatsumaki couldn’t help the chuckle “yeah, I should have expected a reaction like that. You must think that I’m a really terrible big sister huh?”

“No!” Fubuki quickly caught herself “no, I don’t think that!”

Unreasonable? Yes. Terrible? No, not quite.

“You’re not a terrible sister you’re just…” she trailed off when Tatsumaki met her eyes.

She still couldn’t quite place the emotions behind them.

“I’m just what?”

Fubuki swallowed “you just…show your affection differently.”

Tatsumaki held her gaze for a moment staring at her with clear doubts and Fubuki fought the urge to cringe at that terrible delivery.

In the end Tatsumaki gave her signature scoff and looked away shoving a spoonful of ice-cream in her mouth.

“That’s sound like something mom would say.”

This time she did cringe but quickly recovered and opted to take a dive “why are you here Tatsu?” she asked using the childhood nickname she gave her.

“What? I can’t spend time with my sister?”

Fubuki didn’t rise to the bait and instead pressed forward “you know what I mean. When you showed up I half expected you to order me not to go behind your back and infiltrate the Monster Association.”

“I thought about that” Tatsumaki admitted “but it’s clear to me that you don’t respect my authority as the older sibling. In hindsight it was kinda dumb to believe that I could intimidate you into doing what I want.”

“Mom taught us better.”

“Yeah, she did.”

There was a brief pause after this, neither sister took a spoon of ice-cream as they both contemplated things.

Fubuki was the first to break the silence with the apprehension returned to her voice “so what will you do now?”

“Now I’m going to try Plan B” Fubuki tensed “I know I haven’t set the best example for you as an older sister, I know I can come off as overbearing and condescending towards you and I know you don’t have any reason to trust me right now but I am begging you please don’t go to the Monster Association. Just stay here and keep safe, keep the city you claimed safe and leave rescuing mom to me.”

“…”

Fubuki was lost for words, she tried to muster up something but for a long while she was just absolutely floored. Here was the second most powerful esper in the world, a woman so proud and arrogant that she would look down on even her fellow S-Class heroes was pleading with her. No this wasn’t the S-Class hero Tornado of Terror this was Tatsumaki her older sister trying to keep her out of legitimate harm’s way.

Fubuki took a long moment to contemplate her answer. This was not something she could take lightly. She didn’t before however her sister’s plea added more weight to the situation. It meant that Tatsumaki herself was uncertain about the outcome of her own survivability. It meant that should Fubuki decide to embark on this mission she may not have Tatsumaki as a safety net should things go wrong.

Fubuki had never in her entire career as a hero ever consciously banked on her sister’s protection. In hindsight however this may not be the case as while she may find Tatsumaki’s ‘protection’ to be annoying and overbearing in the rare instances where she needed it Fubuki always felt gratitude towards her older sibling even if she was too proud to admit it. Because of that there was always this subconscious confidence in her survival in a dangerous situation.

Her battle with Do-S was just the latest example as there was never a point where Fubuki thought she would perish at the hands of the monster. Her main concern had always been her subordinates, her fellow heroes and the civilians put in danger. This however was different, this time their enemy was someone whom not even Tatsumaki was certain she could defeat and this was the main driving force behind her next words.

“I know about the facility.”

Tatsumaki’s eyes widened the grip on her spoon tightened “you what?”

“Mother told me, showed me files-not yours!” Fubuki quickly added when she felt more than saw Tatsumaki’s agitation spike.

The admission hardly helped to alleviate “she showed you…”

“I don’t know what exactly happened to you but I…I can guess.”

“Then you know why I can’t let you go anywhere near him. I need you to swear to me that you won’t go near City Z when we go to raid it.”

“I understand you’re doing this to protect me” Fubuki spoke softly “but who’s protecting you?”

“I don’t need your protection” Tatsumaki retorted.

“I can’t let you face him alone.”

At this Tatsumaki looked down her bright green bangs covered her eyes “is that a ‘no’ then?”

“…yes” and with her answer Fubuki tensed.

Tatsumaki simply sighed at her answer “I knew you would say that but you can’t say that I didn’t try.”

She placed the spoon in the tub and stood up with Fubuki mirroring her actions standing with her.

“What will you do?” the taller sibling questioned warily.

This wariness was well placed as suddenly Tatsumaki’s psychic aura erupted with ferocity blasting Fubuki away only to lock her body in a stasis field.

“Plan C” the older esper spoke with power lacing through her voice.

Fubuki found herself unable to move, unable to even summon her power and even moving her lips to speak took gargantuan effort.

“Tatsu…maki…” she grunted through gritted teeth.

“He took me away…he took my mother…” she spoke looking her sibling dead in the eye with the kind of determination that could shake mountains “I will NOT let him take you.”

“W-wait…”

But before Fubuki could utter another stilted word Tatsumaki reached a hand out to her forehead causing her to lose consciousness. Tatsumaki stared at her unconscious sister for a moment her determination unwavering. Before she left the room however she took the tub of ice-cream with her as it was her favorite flavor after all and she could use a bit of comfort food right now.

~O~

“Garou botched the test” Royal Ripper reported “turns out the little freak was never planning to join us in the first place. Then he got uppity when we showed up. I mean we just wanted to talk, honest but he kept pushing the issue and well” he shrugged “I might have gotten carried away and cut him up into pieces.”

Once Bug God, Royal Ripper and Sludge Jellyfish returned with Tareo in tow the former two along with the boy reported to Gyoro Gyoro in his private room. Now the psychic monster looked down at the three from his plush seat seeming utterly unimpressed with the psychotic monster’s ‘report.’

“If you’re going to lie then at least do a better job” the Monster Association tactician spoke in a bored tone “there’s no need to save face tell me what really happened?”

To that he looked to Bug God who had an expression of contemplation “Royal Ripper was correct in that Garou had no intention of joining the Monster Association. He admitted as much himself. He took on the title of ‘monster’ but kept his humanity and saw the Monster Association as his enemy to his true goal.”

“True Goal?” Gyoro Gyoro questioned with some intrigue.

“He said he wanted to be the symbol of fear”

“Oh~” Gyoro Gyoro’s lone eye widened minutely at the proclamation “interesting.”

Royal ripper scoffed “guy wants to be the ‘absolute evil’ but refuses to kill a single boy” he mocked.

Ignoring his partner Bug God continued “since Garou declared us his enemies we took the initiative to eliminate him before he became a problem. Are you displeased with our decision?”

“Oh no” the psychic monster waved him off “you made the right call I just find Garou to be a fascinating specimen but oh well” he paused for a bit looking between the two Demon level monster “I see the two of you look worse for wear, I take it he was formidable?”

“He…surprised me” Bug God admitted reluctantly “I never thought such a small body could hold so much power. It is fortuitous that you sent both Royal Ripper and I after him.”

“Yeah it’s almost like you expected a bloodbath or something” Royal Ripper added.

“…” Gyoro Gyoro remained silently impassive.

“Wait” the monster giggled “you knew this was going to happen didn’t you?”

Gyoro Gyoro ignored his question instead his lone eye went to shell shocked boy between them.

“And what of the boy?”

“He seemed to be such great friends with Garou I brought him along~”

“Spare me the theatrics and just get on with it Royal Ripper.”

“Aw don’t be like that with little ol’ me. Besides you know if I don’t get my time to play I’ll end having to play with someone from here” Royal ripper looked down at the boy with absolute glee sending a shiver down his spine “we’re going to have nice looong chat, just the two of us~”

“There won’t be any time for you to play around” Gyoro Gyoro interrupted bringing up some kind of machine that oddly enough looked like a children’s toy “these tracking robots have been found tracing the paths left by Elder Centipede. Lately a bunch of them have been found too close for comfort. The Hero Association may have our location in a day or less. Our long awaited battle with the S-Class is almost here so we need to prepare for battle.”

“Understood” Bug God replied promptly.

“A day huh?” Royal Ripper sighed “I can make do with that~”

Before they could leave however Gyoro Gyoro spoke up “about Garou, are you certain he’s dead?”

“You don’t believe me?”

Gyoro Gyoro remained silent.

“I messed him up pretty good, even took off a limb here or there. Even if by some miracle he survived, he won’t be a problem for us.”

“…I see, dismissed” Gyoro Gyoro intoned turning his back to them.

As the three left none of them were able to see the psychic monster slumping down like a puppet with its string cut.

Meanwhile…

A series of popping, cracking and squelching noises permeated the area as limbs rejoined, bones mended and sinew knitted together under back cloth-like flesh. What was once a bloody, mangled and cut up corpse was forcibly remade whole in a rather grotesque fashion under the moonlight

*Gasp*

Finally Garou opened his eyes.

~To Be Continued~