Saitama and Fubuki arrived at the supermarket one after the other. As for Genos, Bang found an excuse to keep him behind.
"I'll help you carry those."
Wearing a beige blouse, with an impressive figure and waist-length hair, Hell Fubuki followed closely behind Saitama. Her tall, slender frame and graceful curves drew plenty of glances from other shoppers.
Saitama was picking out a lot of items—after all, the sale only happened once a week, so he had to buy everything he needed for the week in one trip. But for Fubuki, with her psychic powers, carrying them was no problem at all.
Under the many envious and jealous stares, Saitama left the supermarket, with Fubuki trailing behind him. Along the way, she looked like she had something to say.
"Do you want to say something?"
Saitama stopped and asked curiously.
"You… you never told me you were that strong, Saitama."
Fubuki's mind was still replaying Saitama's punch that had blasted through the ruins. Her sister—who was far stronger than her—had unquestionably lost to him.
"Oh, you never asked."
"Thank you… on behalf of Tatsumaki… thank you, Saitama…"
Fubuki muttered softly, and just as Saitama was about to respond, she suddenly leaned in and kissed him.
The yellow streetlights cast their shadows long across the ground.
Saitama froze where he stood. The faint fragrance was as fleeting as a dragonfly skimming the water. Under the night sky, Fubuki's face burned red.
"I'm looking forward to you, Saitama!"
Without waiting for him to answer, she turned and left, fleeing in shy embarrassment.
Although she and Tatsumaki were often at odds, just as Tatsumaki still looked out for her, deep down, Fubuki cared about her sister.
Even though Tatsumaki had gone too far today, Saitama had still held back and spared her. As her younger sister, Fubuki felt deeply grateful, and her attitude toward Saitama had improved greatly.
Saitama touched the lingering scent at the corner of his mouth. The icy stillness in his heart seemed to loosen slightly. Ever since breaking his biological limit, his emotions had grown increasingly cold—but now, he felt a faint, long-lost warmth.
Late at night.
The Hero Association headquarters was still brightly lit.
Tatsumaki, her arms covered in blood, was hurriedly brought back by Bang, Child Emperor, and the others, causing quite a stir along the way.
"What's going on? Who's that Bang and Child Emperor are bringing back? And Atomic Samurai too—why did so many top S-Class heroes mobilize?"
"Is that… is that Tatsumaki? Oh my god! She's injured?"
"You've got to be kidding me! Tatsumaki getting injured? She's the Association's triumph card!"
"Could it be a Dragon-level monster?"
That last comment made all the pro heroes present go pale.
In the One Punch Man Hero Association's classification, monsters are ranked into five levels:
Wolf — A potential threat with some danger to human life, capable of causing harm.
Tiger — A crisis causing widespread casualties, beyond what unarmed civilians can handle, able to destroy concrete or similarly hard materials.
Demon — A crisis that could disable or destroy a city's functions.
Dragon — A crisis that could destroy multiple cities.
God — A crisis that could wipe out humanity.
Most pro heroes only faced Wolf- and Tiger-level monsters. Demon-levels typically required S-Class intervention. Dragon-levels… hadn't appeared in a long time.
As for God-level… it was purely theoretical—never actually recorded.
"No way! If it was a Dragon-level, the Association would have summoned all of us. But Tatsumaki's injured like this!"
Tatsumaki was practically the Association's golden symbol. Forget getting injured—she never even suffered setbacks!
Compared to the points challenge sparked by Sweet Mask, his fight with Genos went completely unnoticed. Now, news of Tatsumaki's injury shook the entire Association, becoming the center of everyone's attention.
Special Medical Room.
Tatsumaki was placed inside a medical pod and had already fallen asleep.
"Sir, Miss Tatsumaki's body is fine overall. Her right arm has ten fractures, her left has five, and her psychic power is severely depleted. The main thing is…"
The doctor in the white coat spoke nervously.
"What is it?!"
An overweight, balding board member with age spots snapped. Beside him stood a lean middle-aged man and a sharp-suited woman with black-rimmed glasses.
"Miss Tatsumaki seems to have… suffered an intense mental shock. Her brainwaves are extremely unstable. I'm afraid she went through something exceptionally terrifying." The doctor's voice trembled.
The three Association executives' expressions shifted. Tatsumaki, who feared nothing, had been… scared? Was that even possible?
Their eyes all turned toward Bang, Child Emperor, and the others.
"Uh… this might be a little complicated. We're having trouble believing it ourselves."
Atomic Samurai gave a helpless smile and began recounting what had happened at the branch earlier.
(End of Chapter)
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