Hi, guys! Another chapter here!
I'm gonna be writing completely originally for this again, so big apologies if the quality of the chapter is lower considering how I have no source material to go off on.
That being said, I hope you enjoy the chapter!
(oH hoHO i sure love missing three points on my summative report just because my teammate d i d n o t a p p e a r over z o o m)
Initial Release Date: September 17, 2020
~~~~~
As the group of four leave the restaurant, Genos asks, "Sensei? What did Sweet Mask talk to you about?" And for a moment, just a moment, something occurs to Genos that he didn't think he'd ever notice: Saitama thinking over his words. By his expression, he was clearly choosing them carefully.
"Nothing, much," he explains. "Just caught me off guard with a bit of hero stuff." He scratches his ear a bit, glancing away from Genos a bit. Luckily for Saitama, Genos didn't seem to notice. Same with Fubuki.
Tatsumaki, on the other hand? She noticed his tell. After hanging out with him for so long, she knew exactly what his tell was. It was a pretty obvious one, considering how he never seemed to itch or feel any bodily irritation in the slightest. All he did was scratch his ear.
That by itself was enough to concern Tornado. He'd told little white lies before, stuff like groceries and stuff that ended up being really trivial, but something intuitive told her it was different this time around.
"Baldy, are you sure?" She asks discreetly, as Genos and Fubuki talk. "If you gotta talk, we can talk at my place."
He contemplates her words, then nod. He glances at Fubuki and Genos, where the former is still shocked that Sweet Mask came to talk to them. Genos, however, seemed a bit distraught at the odd amount of hatred and animosity he felt emanate from Sweet Mask.
"Oy, Genos, Fubuki," Saitama calls out, prompting their attention. "I'm gonna head to Tats' place. What are you two gonna do?"
Fubuki looks at her wristwatch and then points out, "It's still decently early. Genos, you down to come shopping with me?"
"I don't see why not," Genos shrugs. "I shall see you tomorrow, Sensei?"
"Yeah, I'll probably be back home by tomorrow morning. It's all good. Have fun, you two," Saitama nods to Genos and Fubuki.
"So, Baldy, you wanna head to my place now or are we just gonna stand here?" Tatsumaki asks, tapping her foot. He rolls his eyes.
"Fine, fine," he goes along with an amused smile on his face. "See you two."
As the two of them head off, Genos and Fubuki head their own way to their own little date. It only takes a few minutes for Saitama and Tatsumaki to get to the Terrible Tornado's place.
"I just realized, Tats...I don't think I ever remember being here. It's always you coming to my place," Saitama remarks, looking around. "Do you remember if I've ever been here?"
"I don't think so," the knowledge dawns on her. "Anyways, c'mon in. It's not like seeing my place is taboo or something."
"Do you have something to change into?" Saitama asks. "This thing isn't really too comfy. It's....ew to wear, in a way." Tatsumaki chuckles and that and shakes her head. Even though he asked, he didn't really think she'd have anything that'd fit him. It was practically asking for a miracle in terms of comfort.
However, a miracle is exactly what he got when Tatsumaki snaps her fingers, "Wait, I think I accidentally took one of your hoodies home with me once because I forgot to take it off! Lemme go look for it real quick." As she dashes into her room, Saitama takes a seat in her living room couch. The apartment size looks gigantic to the bald hero, far larger than what he had lived in for the past few years.
"So I guess I'm just going to keep this pair of pants on," Saitama mumbles to himself. After a minute or two, Tornado walks in with one of his hoodies and tosses it at him.
"There. I guess you can change in the bathroom, or if you really want to, I'll just look away," she offers. "Either way, I'm probably going to make a cup of coffee or something."
"Coffee?" He raises his eyebrow. "It's like nighttime already. Why would you need coffee?"
"Don't question my choice of drink, Baldy," she mutters to himself more than him as she heads to the kitchen before calling out to him. "I'm guessing I'll probably be staying up for a bit longer."
"Okay," is all he responds before he starts changing. The hoodie is warm and smells like Tatsumaki. He realizes how much she wore it before, probably just cause it was big and warm. He doesn't mention it.
"So, Baldy," she starts, holding a cup of coffee in her hand, still hot enough to see steam coming from it. "What'd that guy tell you?"
"Who?"
"You know who I'm talkin' about. Sweet Mask," she points out, absentmindedly casting her hand in Saitama's direction. "Look, Saitama...I don't think you're concerned about a lot of things."
"Hey, a lot of things matter to me!" He protests, though knows he has little to no evidence.
"The amount of things that matter to you are countable on one hand..." Tatsumaki deadpans. "The Saturday Sale, trying to find a fight that'll make you happy, and somehow, in some goddamn way...me." She finishes the sentence with: "Though I have no idea why me of all people." In addition to that, there's a light pink blush on her face as she looks a bit to the side, slightly embarrassed that she admitted that apparent fact.
"So, what did Sweet Mask tell you?" She asks, taking a sip of her coffee. However, by the expression on Saitama's face, she knew it'd be a long night.
Especially considering how Saitama, who had literally no emotion on his face at all times, had an emotion on his face that Tatsumaki couldn't even begin to pinpoint.
This, from what she could tell right off the bat, was gonna be tough.
~~~
Now of course, from what Tornado knew, there weren't many things that mattered to Saitama. She had even said it, in fact. However, things that caught him off guard? She speculated there were one or two, but had never confirmed it.
That should be sufficient evidence as to her surprise when she witnessed his eyes widen ever so slightly at the words Sweet Mask whispered to him. She knew both Sweet Mask and Saitama to be what she could only describe as impossibly unpredictable, though for different reasons. Saitama because there was nothing to go off of. Sweet Mask? Because there was too much to go off of.
It was similar to a snake's grasp, those in his crosshairs. He was infamous to most of the hero world as the one who could break the fame of anyone. With few immune due to their hostility, his power not only in the hero world but over people as a famous celebrity put him on a pedestal.
Of course, one would wonder exactly what Sweet Mask would say that could catch even Saitama off guard properly.
"He figured out that we're dating."
Now, what would the normal reaction be, given that a huge secret that could potentially ruin your reputation is at risk of coming out? Of course, one would think the mind would go to panic, sheer panic. An instant push to keep it hidden from the outside world, no matter if it harms others involved.
Perhaps it would be best to keep it in, to seem rational and keen on the outside, when you're panicking on the inside. Break instantly, maybe? Cave in to pressure?
Of course, neither Tornado nor Saitama were exactly normal people. No matter what angle anyone had looked at it from, whether it be from the eyes of someone saved by them to an accepting soul such as Tetsuya, they still weren't your ordinary, everyday people.
"And you...just let him tell you that? You just...let him have the upper hand like that?!" Tatsumaki nearly explodes, her eyes narrowing. "No. That's not happening. I don't care if he's the top A-Class hero. I don't care if he thinks he has the upper hand. He doesn't. Because I'm not letting that little piece of fucking shit have any sort of power over you, and I'm certainly not letting him have any sort of power over me!"
"Tats, does it really even matter if he knows? I doubt he'll try to use it against us. And even if he does think he has power over us, who really cares?" Saitama asks, shrugging and leaning back a little bit. "It's not like he's stronger than us or anything."
Of course, he was missing the point by at least a few miles, if not more.
"That's not it! The fact that he even thinks that he could manipulate me...it's disgusting!" She gags, almost; it's a weird sort of fury emanating from her. "I...I can't believe it!"
"So, what are you planning to do?" Saitama puts a hand on his chin. "I doubt just telling everyone about our relationship isn't the best way to do it."
"No. That's exactly what I'm going to do."
Saitama's eyebrows furrow, "Tats, seriously. You gotta think this over. I don't think that'll help either of us, and it definitely won't seem like a great decision since you seem pretty angry right now."
"I don't care, Baldy!" She explodes, standing up, nearly knocking the cup of coffee over. Saitama, on the other hand, had no idea what to do. He had dealt with a drunk Tornado. He had dealt with a sad one, an embarrassed one, and an indifferent one.
Saitama, however, had no clue as to how to deal with a furious Tornado.
He didn't know what to say. He didn't know what to do. He didn't know how to act. And what was hardest for him to comprehend, he had no idea how he'd calm her down. He racked his brain. He tried to think.
He just didn't know what to do.
"Look, Baldy, I don't want to reveal our relationship right now!" She explains. "But I just can't let him have this sort of misguided thought process that he has a morsel of control over me!"
"And I don't think he should," Saitama agrees, his tone a bit firmer. "But we shouldn't just act like this because of one little thing just to get the jump on him."
"What if he tries to take it first and do something irreparable? Are we just gonna wait?!" She brings up, plopping herself back down onto the seat. "I can't let that happen!"
"Why?"
"Because it'll get out to the public as some sort of scandal!" She explains, annoyed. "Don't you see that?"
"No, he'd try to get the upper hand first..." Saitama ponders, looking a bit too deep in thought for someone like Saitama. "Don't you think he'd want something in return? Like a threat?"
Somehow, in some way, Saitama makes a good point, "It'd be like something in those movies, like a hostage situation. Right?" Tornado's interest piques at this. She hadn't considered it, but she still held some animosity.
"So what you're saying is that we should lie in wait for him to make a threat about it?" Saitama nods at that. "No."
"What, do you have a better idea?"
"Yep."
"Then please, do explain what could be better," Saitama prompts, listening to what Tatsumaki makes up on the fly, but starts to agree with it.
Any way you looked at it, there was a very, very low chance that this was going to work out for the both of them in an ideal manner.
This was where that low chance did not become reality.
~~~
"Saitama-Sensei, did you and Miss Tornado really reveal that you two were in a relationship?" I ask, incredulous. I didn't think they would do it so suddenly.
"Huh? Oh, yeah. It was Tats' idea," he explains concisely. Fubuki, sitting next to me in her home, is catatonic at this. Neither of us thought that she would be the one who would choose to reveal their relationship before Saitama-Sensei, but at the same time, it sort of makes sense.
It had only been two hours since Miss Tatsumaki had revealed that she and Saitama-Sensei were in a relationship over Twitter, and the internet was in a panic. Multiple people were trying to find the two of them to interview them and get to the press with the information, but neither of them were too keen on public attention in the first place.
There were quite a few people accusing Miss Tatsumaki of cheating the hero system to bring Saitama-Sensei to power, a few people defending both of their honor, and people just trying to get info on it.
Whatever the case, I think that this entire ordeal may help Saitama-Sensei's reputation, even if Miss Tornado's may be slightly damaged due to this. It isn't every day that you find out two of the strongest heroes in the world are in a relationship, after all, and I can fully understand the public's reaction to the situation.
"Well, well," Fubuki muses, having finally returned to the world of the living. "I didn't think you two'd ever reveal it to the public! However, I gotta say, getting through all the hero work because of it is absolute hell." I'm instantly reminded of the processes and questions that the Hero Association sent the two of us through because of our relationship. She's correct. It was hell.
"Oh my god," Saitama mutters under his breath. "I hate paperwork. How long does it take?"
"Probably thirty minutes of them asking questions, then fifteen minutes of them showing you papers and asking you to sign certain things after explaining stuff but not explaining some stuff that's in the fine print, and lastly about five minutes of going through stuff they recommend heroes in a relationship should do as professionals," I quickly run through what I remember. "Did I miss anything, Fubuki?"
"Oh, yeah. I think for ten minutes they separate the two of you so they can ask you questions separately so they can try to manipulate you into doing something as heroes, otherwise you'll lose your job. Obviously, that didn't work on Genos and I because of both of our influences in the hero world. Imagine how dumb of an attempt that'd be on you two," she scoffs, almost insulted that the Hero Association tried to manipulated the two of us.
Personally, I didn't care because being a professional hero came second to actually helping people in need, so I think that same principle would apply to Saitama-Sensei. It's a bit odd to revel in the fact that the Hero Association seems so corrupt to the eyes of the four of us, but I think that's mainly due to Miss Tatsumaki and Fubuki, who've worked with them far longer than the two of us.
"Sensei, are you sure this is going to go well? With the concerns regarding Garou, with the public, with the Hero Association?" I ask, slightly concerned. There were a lot of risks that the two of them were taking, especially with the controversy surrounding Saitama-Sensei.
"Yep. Not like there's a way to go back on it now. Now we've just gotta deal with the present."
Wise words from Saitama-Sensei, as always.
"I've got a question, Saitama," Fubuki holds up a finger to illustrate her point. "If you two are going to go through all that hero stuff, is there a reason that you two even revealed that you two were dating?"
He seems to choose his words carefully, as all he answers is only this: "It was Tats' choice. Personally, I'm fine with it. I'm just not sure if everyone else will be."
I leave it at that, and so does Fubuki. Apparently, Miss Tatsumaki had gone to talk with the Hero Board about the entire situation and see if she can work something out that doesn't involve an entire hour of paperwork and questions. I doubt it'll work, however with her influence, it's going to end up with some results, hopefully.
And just as I think that, Saitama-Sensei gets a call. Most likely from her. As he opens up the phone, he holds it up to his ear and greets whoever's on the other line as casually as he'd greet God himself.
"Oh, you want it on speaker. Sure," he clicks his tongue, placing the phone on the table in front of us. "So, Tats, what didja wanna say?"
"There's something that the Hero Board wanted to tell the four of us. That includes you and Genos, Fubuki," Miss Tornado starts, her voice firm. "You know the supposed hero hunter guy? Garou?" We're silent, but we all know the news going around. The aggressive disciple of Bang gone rogue. Apparently, he's already put 6 A-Class heroes out of commission on his own, and they're all in the hospital. The three at the meeting, Golden Ball, the fencer with the mustache, and one more, though I can't remember their name for the life of me.
"They're thinking of sending the four of us out as a squad against Garou, if the other A-Class heroes can't handle it. However, there's been updates saying that some man already knocked him out once. Weird."
"Hmm...what does this Garou guy look like again?" Saitama-Sensei asks, and I can see the gears in his head turning already.
Fubuki explains, "Young, yellow eyes, silver hair that prong upwards, lean? Looks like a literal wolf?" Saitama-Sensei puts a hand on his chin.
"Y'know, there was a guy that tried to attack me on the shoulder a few days back while I was shopping in the street market. He might've been strong, I dunno. His karate chop made me go down a few feet since there was a crater beneath me but he didn't make me fall."
"Um. Saitama. Was there a bar nearby with a shady alleyway?" Fubuki asks, and I can see where she's going with this. "And do you remember passing an short guy wearing a suit that was beat up?"
Saitama-Sensei nods, "Yep."
"Dumbass!" Miss Tatsumaki starts to lecture. "That was Garou! Are you so goofy you don't even recognize someone who's strong when he hits you? I mean, he made a crater when he chopped you! That's gotta count for something, right?!"
"I mean, I guess," Saitama-Sensei feebly interrupts, his voice trailing off as he ponders her words. Meanwhile, Fubuki and I watch on, slightly amused at the extreme contradiction in their reaction to the situation.
"Why didn't you try to do something about it?! It is a human being karate chopping you so hard there's a crater beneath you and you just knock him out?! Can't you even try to bring him in if he's a criminal?!"
"Who cares if he was? Even if he wasn't Garou, I'm not going to bring him into the nearest police station if he's already knocked out," Saitama-Sensei shrugs, and I can only hear the animosity in Miss Tatsumaki's voice at the moment.
This was going to be quite the spectacle, wasn't it?
~~~~~
You know, oddly enough? I feel most comfortable writing as Genos! I dunno why, but I feel like my natural writing style just sort of fits how he talks. Wordy, analytical, and just generally anime-nerd like. The only thing that's tough to adapt to whenever I write as Genos is dialogue of other characters, in my opinion, because sometimes how I'm writing as Genos leaks into that.
yo should i make a real short chapter to go along with the main story about how tf sweet mask found out because i don't think i tackled that in the chapter ngl
Also, I know the last two chapters were pretty short compared to what I normally write, and I'm sorry for that, but what I'm planning to write in the next chapter will hopefully make up for that as it's gonna be something important at least to me in terms of writing. Yep, next chapter's gonna be me trying to write as Garou again, and from a unique way of approaching what I'm planning! I hope you guys will enjoy that!
And lastly, I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. If there's an issue whether it be a plothole, grammatical, or something else, please tell me!
Sincerely,
SpiritBloodDragon