Chapter 15

-Meanwhile, In City-F-

"WAIT! HOLD ON! I JUST-I JUST WANTED TO GET OFF FROM WORKING! THAT'S ALL!" pleaded a bald, muscular, and naked man with a throwing star in the back of his head named Hammerhead. The other, our favorited bald hero, merely stared at him before lowering his arm, causing Hammerhead to flinch in fear.

"Don't be bad anymore." Saitama ordered casually, stunning the other man.

"What?! Wait, you're not gonna kill me?" Hammerhead asked in confusion.

"Get lost." Saitama responded, prompting the man to turn tail and run. Saitama sighed in relief as he accomplished what he set out to do. He didn't know where the Paradiser terrorists were, but that didn't matter with their leader defeated. Now he didn't have to worry about others calling him a terrorist.

"Guess I'll head home." he said before turning to leave.

"Where did Hammerhead run off to?"

Saitama stopped and turned to see a thin man in a ninja outfit glaring directly at him.

"There's no one else here but you." the man continued.

Saitama didn't respond at first before he pointed his finger in the direction Hammerhead ran off in.

"He was yelling and screaming while running off in that direction. Butt naked." he answered before his hand caught something a few inches from his face. "What's this thing?" he asked as he stared down at the throwing star, only to bring his other hand up and stop a blade mere millimeters from cutting his eye. "Hey. You got it wrong." he said before breaking the ninja's sword.

"What have I got wrong?" they asked after backing away.

"I know how this looks, but I'm not one of the Paradisers." Saitama explained.

"Liar." the ninja scoffed.

"No no! Don't be stupid! Look at me!" Saitama yelled, his voice actually sounding offended.

"Don't have to. With a bald head like that, there's no mistaking it." the ninja retorted.

"Come on! Really! Take a good look at me!" Saitama nearly begged. "I'm the guy who's out being a hero for fun! I'm not a-"

"Never heard of you."

Saitama almost felt himself withering away at the man's words, his face one of dejected sorrow.

"Oh...I see." he responded.

"Either way, it doesn't matter to me in the least." the ninja stated, a murderous aura practically shrouding his face. "You were able to read my attacks twice in a row! This is unacceptable!"

Saitama merely stared and listened to the man rant about a ninja village, training, and something or other.

'What's he talking about?' Saitama thought as the man neared the end of his monologue.

"My pride won't allow it. I don't care who you are!" the ninja said before speeding off behind Saitama. "I simply can't let you just walk away!"

"Oh come on." Saitama said, a smile on his face. "You just want to try out those honed and perfected moves on me. I can tell by that innocent smile on your face."

"HEHEHEHEHE!"

With a burst of speed, the ninja vanished from sight before zipping all around Saitama at speeds men were not meant to travel.

"What do you think of this speed that breaks the sound barrier? Of these shockwaves?!" he boasted from practically everywhere. "Can you even see me? HOW CAN YOU POSSIBLY KEEP UP WITH ME?!"

Saitama said nothing as he stood in the clearing, the wind whipping his cape back and forth from the stranger's speed.

"Uh..." he spoke, prompting the ninja to finally lunge for him. "Can I go home?" he asked, his head turning to look right at him, startling the ninja.

"BASTARD! WIND BLADE KICK!" he roared as he spun in the air, using the moment to bring a devastating axe kick down on Saitama's head. What he didn't see coming was Saitama effortlessly dodging it while bringing his fist up.

"Checkmate." Saitama stated as the ninja came down. Everything seemed to go in slow-motion as Saitam's fists entered between the man's legs, leaving the ninja's nether regions to collide at the speed of sound. "Oops! Sorry! That was an accident!" Saitama apologized as the ninja jumped back into a crouch. "I didn't do that on purpose! I meant to stop, but your momentum carried my fist into your, um-"

"AAACCKKK! GACRK!

-ONE MOMENT WHILE THE AUTHOR LAUGHS HIMSELF SILLY-

"Listen." the ninja began, his gaze focused on the bald hero. "I've taken every job from assassin to bodyguard. I'm the deadly ninja: Speed-o-Sound Sonic! But for the time being, my work will be on hold. Now that I've found such a formidable opponent, I'm dedicating myself to training! Guh! Let me know your name!"

"It's Saitama." the baldy deadpanned.

"SAITAMA!" Sonic yelled from where he stood trembling, legs crossed, blue in the face, and sweating bullets. "Next time we meet, it'll be your demise!"

"...sure." Saitama agreed slowly.

"I, Speed-o-Sound Sonic, the ultimate ninja, will not rest until I have BROUGHT YOU DOWN!"

"Go train hard!" Saitama ordered with a clenched fist, his serious smile being less dramatic with the sweatdrop in the side of his head.

-Later, at Saitama's apartment-

Saitama had finally returned and was a moment away from entering his home, but was stopped when he heard someone approaching him. He turned to see Vaccine Girl standing there, I smile on her face as she walked towards him.

"HI!" she greeted.

"Hey. You're back to normal." he said.

"What gave it away? My lack of a stomach dragging on the ground?' she joked before spinning around, the sleeves of her shirt fluttering before she stopped and faced him. "Notice anything new?"

"Well, you're not naked." he said, earning a pout just as Saitama opened the door, revealing Genos, Beast Queen, and Sub Queen waiting inside.

"Welcome home, Master!" SQ and Genos greeted simultaneously while Beast Queen merely waved. Saitama merely groaned as he entered his home, kicked off his boots, and sat at his table.

"Something wrong?" Beast Queen asked. "You ran off before checking up on Vaccine Girl today."

"Sorry. Something came up on the news before I had a chance to." he groaned. He then explained to them about the Paradisers, them stealing his looks, defeating and releasing the leader, meeting Sonic, punching Sonic (he had to wait a moment for the monsters to stop laughing), and then him coming home.

"Speed-o-Sound Sonic? What kind of person would posess such a redundant name?" Genos asked.

"Don't know. He just said we were rivals and then took off." said Saitama.

"If he is bothering you Master, then I will get rid of him!" Genos offered.

"He's not a monster. Wouldn't that be murder?" SQ pondered aloud.

"I think Genos' answer to everything is to burn shit." Beast Queen joked.

"No. No one burn anyone or anything." Saitama ordered before glaring at them all. "As a matter of fact, I want everyone to please leave. And that means you too, Genos."

"Master, I must become strong to-"

"SHUT UP!" Saitama yelled, his fist slamming into, and leaving perfectly intact, the table. His face was shadowed as he stared wide eyed at the table, his voice low as he continued. "The events of today have pointed out a serious problem for me and I'm reeling from shock. So please, all of you go home."

"A serious problem? For somebody as great as you?! Please, tell me!" Genos begged, voicing the words of everyone else in the room. The tension was so thick, it would take one of Saitama's punches to breatk through it. Finally, Saitama revealed the problem he now faced.

"No one knows who I am."

Everyone's eyes widened at that as Saitama glanced up at them all.

"It's been right around three years since I decided to become a hero. I've beaten more monsters and evil organizations than anyone else out there. I've never even heard of anyone else doing half the stuff I've done! I mean, isn't it a little strange that I don't have any fans?!" His voice lowered as he kept speaking. "You know what he said to me? 'Never heard of you. Never'. On top of that, everyone else thought I was a terrorist! They forgot about how I beat those guys and all the other stuff I've done!"

"Are you serious?!" SQ asked incredulously. "You mean they don't know about you stopping my invasion?!"

"Or destroying the House of Evolution?!" Beast Queen added.

"Or stopping my rampage?!" Vaccine Girl finished.

"Nothing." Saitama groaned.

"Hold on." Genos whispered, catching their attention. "Master! Are you listed with the Hero Registry?"

A moment later had everyone looking over Saitama's shouders at the laptop Genos brought. It showed the Hero Association Home Page before Saitama clicked the icon regarding joining their ranks. He read that citizens could take a test and join if they scored high enough, and that all the heroes in the registry were certified pros. He sounded disheartened when he read the end that stated that self-proclaimed heroes were viewed as weirdos spouting nonsense and viewed with great suspicion.

"I had no idea." Saitama groaned.

"And here I thought humans couldn't get any more pathetic and stupid." Vaccine Girl sighed.

"If they're so great, then why not just recruit you after seeing your first act of heroism?" the Subterranean Queen wondered. Beast Queen merely growled while rubbing her face in aggravation.

"So Genos, are you listed?" Saitama sighed out.

"No. I found no need to join." Genos answered. Saitama looked up at him, his expression blank before cracking a smile.

"Hey, let's sign up! Go register with me and I'll make you my official desciple!" Saitama declared.

"Sounds like a plan!" Genos agreed.

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