Chapter 86: It Begins
Wait—this doesn't add up. Since when does Tatsumaki have this many friends?
As one of the Hero Association's executives, Sitch knew the S-Class heroes well. Tatsumaki was textbook tsundere—arrogant, prickly, and a habitual loner. The concept of her having friends was essentially a contradiction in terms.
And now a whole crowd of them had materialized out of nowhere?
This was nothing like the Tatsumaki he knew.
Did I open the wrong door this morning?
Worse still, he'd walked into the room without noticing the strangers, and had already disclosed top-secret intelligence in front of them. If any of this leaked, it would trigger global panic—panic that could destabilize the entire planet before any actual disaster even arrived.
Tatsumaki fixed Sitch with an expressionless stare:
"Sitch. That look on your face—are you suggesting my friends would leak what was said here?"
Sitch swallowed hard and shook his head stiffly: "N-no. Not at all."
He now believed these people were Tatsumaki's friends. No one else could have elicited that tone from her.
And even as a Hero Association executive, Sitch had no desire to get on Tatsumaki's bad side. He was painfully aware of her power. She could demolish every building the Hero Association owned in under ten minutes.
Killing him specifically? That would take less than a second.
* * *
Meanwhile, Whitebeard—who'd spoken up during the briefing—paid Sitch's bewildered stare no mind. But worried that speaking aloud might reveal too much about the Dimensional Chat Group, he switched to the group chat instead.
Edward Newgate: "@RawrSoFierce Admin-dono, you know One-Punch Man's plot, correct? I have a feeling something is about to happen. My Observation Haki keeps pinging danger."
Edward Newgate: "Combine that with what that fellow just said… trouble is definitely coming."
RawrSoFierce: "…Yeah. You're not wrong. Something IS about to happen."
RawrSoFierce: "The timing on this is painfully awkward."
Terrible Tornado: "Wait—Admin-dono, are you saying the six-month crisis Sitch mentioned is about to happen RIGHT NOW?!"
RawrSoFierce: "Yep. That's exactly what I'm saying. Give it less than a minute…"
RawrSoFierce: "…and the Hero Association is probably getting attacked."
Kaguya-sama: "Huh? So this trip just turned into a brawl?"
Crazy Diamond: "*Bottom-tier combatant trembles*"
The Little Wandering Planet: "*Bottom-tier combatant trembles*"
Kaguya-sama: "*Bottom-tier combatant trembles*"
RawrSoFierce: "The monster hitting the Association isn't even the real boss, though. In the original story, it gets obliterated by the actual big bad. THAT's the real crisis."
RawrSoFierce: "But Tatsumaki's world has a certain bald overpowered protagonist."
RawrSoFierce: "So… it'll be fine."
* * *
Ryū knew exactly what was coming next. A certain hot-blooded young alien challenges the bald protagonist—and gets utterly demolished. A tragic, pitiable story.
Boros's ultimate attack was described in the manga as capable of scorching the Earth's surface to ash, and in the anime as a planet-destroying strike. Either way, his power was genuinely terrifying.
And Saitama had scattered that ultimate attack with his Killer Move: Serious Series.
Then punched Boros to pieces. A spectacular death.
As for exactly how strong Saitama was—Ryū had no idea. He wasn't some Saitama fanboy. If he tried to analyze it objectively…
Objectively? Screw "objectively." There's no way to analyze it. The man defies analysis.
* * *
BOOM.
A sudden, deafening explosion ripped through the building. The entire Hero Association shuddered as if struck by a giant fist. Walls vibrated violently. Dust cascaded from the supposedly indestructible ceiling.
Ryū silently sent a message to the group chat.
RawrSoFierce: "Looks like the real plot just started. The Children's Day event's timing is… spectacularly unfortunate."
Edward Newgate: "The walls are shaking. Gurararara—it really is an attack."
Edward Newgate: "Admin-dono said this isn't even the worst of it?"
RawrSoFierce: "Correct. This is just a passing mini-boss."
RawrSoFierce: "Hardly even a mini-boss. An elite mob, at most. It'll probably be dead in seconds."
Terrible Tornado: "…I'm so sorry. I never imagined my world would have something like this happen. The whole event is ruined."
Kaguya-sama: "Don't feel bad, Tatsumaki-nee-sama. Nobody could've predicted this."
RawrSoFierce: "Exactly. Also—Tatsumaki, the city where the Hero Association is located is about to be destroyed. If you want to save civilians, you need to move now. Wait too long and there won't be many left to save."
RawrSoFierce: "Against this enemy, this city doesn't stand a chance."
Ryū wasn't exaggerating. Against Boros's alien armada, this city was paper. And Tatsumaki was an S-Class hero—saving people was her job.
Whether she'd go was her call.
Though realistically, it was probably already too late. One-Punch Man's plot moved fast.
Even if Tatsumaki left right now, she likely couldn't save that many civilians. The city's destruction was a certainty. How many would die? He didn't remember the specifics—who paid attention to casualty counts when watching anime?
He remembered the broad strokes of the plot clearly enough. The granular details? Remembering even a fraction was an achievement.
* * *
Terrible Tornado: "The city… is going to be destroyed by these enemies?!"
RawrSoFierce: "Yes. And I'm not sure there's time to get there."
RawrSoFierce: "Going by the original plot's pacing… probably not."
The words had barely left his fingertips when the Hero Association convulsed. Cracks splintered across the walls, multiplying and widening by the second.
It was like being inside a magnitude-fifteen earthquake. Everyone swayed on their feet.
Ear-splitting detonations hammered at their eardrums. Some of the weaker heroes inside the Association were knocked unconscious by the shockwaves alone.
Ryū rose from his Fish-Man Island chair and steadied himself.
He turned to Tatsumaki:
"Looks like it's already too late."
Tatsumaki nodded gravely. She could feel it clearly now—the devastation that had just been visited upon the city.
Exactly as Admin-dono had said. The city was destroyed.
Civilian casualties numbered in the millions at minimum.
Even the surrounding cities had been caught in the blast radius.
Massive death and destruction—like a natural disaster. Worse than a natural disaster.
The timing really was painfully awkward.
So much for Children's Day.
* * *
Josuke spoke up, curious: "Admin-dono, should we help out?"
Ryū shrugged:
"This is free time. Help or don't—it's up to you. If you're feeling restless… feel free to jump in and join the fun."
Whitebeard laughed heartily:
"Gurararara! In that case, this old man will stretch his legs. It's been quite a while since I've thrown a punch."
☆☆☆
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