140: Sister Complex

After a second of stunned silence—

Her expression darkened in rage.

If it were anyone else talking back to her, she would have dropped a meteor on them already.

But Fubuki was different.

She was her precious little sister.

And this proved that her worries were valid.

If this guy kept sticking around, who knows what else Fubuki might start doing?

She had to stop this.

Just as she was about to explode—

Beep. Beep. Beep. Beep.

Just as Tatsumaki was about to vent her frustration on Kizaru and force him to stay away from her sister, her communication device suddenly rang with an urgent tone.

Since she disliked interacting with others, Tatsumaki rarely carried a phone. The only time the Hero Association could contact her was in critical emergencies.

And when that happened—even Tatsumaki had to answer.

"Tch! You better stay away from Fubuki—next time I see you, I'll definitely settle this!"

Her annoyance was palpable.

Damn monsters, always choosing the worst possible timing to show up.

Tatsumaki's temperament was notorious, but when it came to priorities, she knew what mattered.

Of course, the real reason she was backing off was because she wasn't confident she could defeat Kizaru quickly.

If they fought, it would take time—and if a monster went on a rampage while they were at it, she'd be the laughingstock of the Hero Association.

With that, she took off into the sky, flying at full speed toward the monster's location.

Before Kizaru showed up, Tatsumaki was unrivaled in terms of destructive power, defense, and mobility.

Her overwhelming abilities even earned her the title of the Association's Ultimate Weapon.

And she lived up to it.

Aside from her awful personality and refusal to cooperate with other heroes, she was flawless in every other aspect.

Even now, with her sister at stake, she chose to eliminate the monster instead of continuing her grudge against Kizaru.

"Forget her. She's always been like this—never caring about how others feel."

Fubuki bit her lip, watching Tatsumaki's figure disappear into the distance.

She was sick of her sister's overbearing nature.

"Hm? That bad-tempered little girl left already?"

The restaurant's head chef emerged from the kitchen, holding a steaming bowl of creamy soup.

His expression was slightly bewildered.

Earlier, the Oven Monster's sudden attack had scared off most of the waitstaff, forcing the chef to act as both cook and waiter.

"Hm? Chef-san, do you know Miss Tatsumaki?"

Kizaru raised an eyebrow in curiosity.

Given Tatsumaki's personality, it was hard to imagine her interacting with ordinary people, let alone a chef.

She wouldn't even acknowledge A-Class heroes, let alone weak S-Class ones.

In a way, Tatsumaki and Saitama were very similar.

She became a hero because she wanted to—not because she cared about recognition or approval.

Fubuki, who had been about to leave, turned back as well.

She was a regular at this restaurant and was quite familiar with the old chef, yet she had never once seen Tatsumaki dine here.

"Oh? That little girl's name is Tatsumaki? I don't know her personally, but…"

The chef scratched his head.

"Every time after Miss Fubuki finishes her meal, that little girl always shows up and sits in her favorite seat, ordering the exact same dish.

I thought she was one of Fubuki's admirers."

The chef's understanding of the Hero Association was limited.

He knew Fubuki was a B-Class hero—but he had no idea that Tatsumaki was the S-Class Rank 2 hero, Tornado of Terror.

But that wasn't his fault.

Fubuki needed recognition to expand the Fubuki Group, so she deliberately made herself more visible.

Tatsumaki, on the other hand, saw communication as a waste of time.

Her power was so overwhelming that most monsters never even had the chance to realize she was there before she annihilated them.

That's why, even though the chef had seen Tatsumaki before—

He didn't even know her name.

"…You're joking, right?"

Fubuki was stunned.

Her first thought wasn't that Tatsumaki was protecting her—

It was that her sister's obsessive protection had worsened to the point where she might just lock her in a basement someday and never let her out.

"Sister complexes are terrifying…"

Kizaru stroked his chin, suddenly realizing that getting both sisters might actually be easier than he thought.

With Tatsumaki's level of obsession, all he had to do was win over Fubuki—

And Tatsumaki would come as a buy-one-get-one-free bonus.

"Kizaru, I'm a bit tired. Let's head back."

Fubuki shook her head.

Up until now, she had been completely focused on recruiting Kizaru.

But after everything that had just happened, her mind was a mess—

She needed time to sort things out.

"Alright."

Kizaru, ever the gentleman, offered his arm to support her.

He wasn't in a hurry.

Considering the time difference between worlds, he could spend two whole months in the One Punch Man world and still have time to spare.

Besides, Haibara Ai and Orochimaru needed time to research Pure Gold.

He was actually looking forward to seeing if they could create an artificial version.

"Chef-san, could you pack up the food that's ready? How much is it in total?"

Fubuki suddenly remembered that Lily was probably waiting for her and quickly turned to the chef.

"No need. This one's on me. If it weren't for you, I'd probably be dead at the hands of my only apprentice…"

The old chef sighed, looking a decade older than when Kizaru and Fubuki had first entered the restaurant.

"That monster was…?"

Fubuki's face darkened as she recalled the quiet, introverted young man who used to work under the chef.

"I was planning to pass this restaurant down to Kenjiro.

But now that he's turned into a monster and died, there's no point in keeping it open.

After today, I'm retiring and going back to my hometown."

The chef steadily packed the food for Fubuki, but his hands trembled slightly.

Kizaru watched silently, gaining a bit more understanding of why so many people wanted to become heroes in this world.

"What do you think? Our world… it's terrible, isn't it?"

As they walked toward the Fubuki Group headquarters, Fubuki suddenly spoke, her tone low and weary.

"Well, it's definitely bad… but compared to the World Government, the Celestial Dragons, and those corrupt kings and nobles, it doesn't seem that bad."

Kizaru replied earnestly.

He had done a serious comparison—

And monsters that only knew destruction still couldn't compare to the despicable Celestial Dragons.

Sure, there were a few exceptions among the Celestial Dragons—those rare, redeemable individuals—

But those were the odd ones out, the one-in-a-million anomalies.

Fubuki snorted in disbelief.

She refused to believe there was a place worse than her world.

How could there possibly be humans more monstrous than actual monsters?

Before long, they arrived at the Fubuki Group headquarters.

Despite having a total of thirty members, the building was often empty—

Most members were out patrolling the city.

If a monster appeared, they would immediately report it and rally the entire Fubuki Group for battle.

"Lady Fubuki! Lord Kizaru! Thank you so much!"

As soon as they stepped inside, Lily sprang to her feet, bowing deeply in gratitude.

She had already seen the official announcement—

A Dragon-level disaster had struck City A, and Kizaru had dealt with it single-handedly.

She had also contacted her mother and confirmed that she was safe and sound.

"Ah, no need for thanks. It was just a small effort.

But if you really want to show your gratitude, how about bringing me a cold drink?"

Kizaru's gaze subtly drifted to Lily's chest—

But the moment he realized there was nothing worth looking at, he quickly looked away.

A flat-chested rich girl was still flat even when she bowed.

Completely oblivious to the fact that her measurements had just been analyzed, Lily cheerfully went to prepare drinks for Kizaru and Fubuki.

"Here's your food. Who's on duty today?

Moustache and Mountain Ape?

Call them back so they can share."

Fubuki gently lowered the floating bags onto the coffee table.

Psychics had it easy in daily life.

Compared to them, even the most masterful Devil Fruit users couldn't match the convenience of telekinesis for everyday tasks.

Of course, Devil Fruit abilities had a higher ceiling overall—

Even Tatsumaki, despite her overwhelming strength, was a step below true top-tier powerhouses.

She was stronger than Hancock, equal to Gion, but weaker than Esdeath, who had mastered all three types of Haki.

And Esdeath herself was half a step below the three Admirals.

In a life-or-death battle, Kizaru wouldn't even have to think about it—

Akainu would definitely beat Esdeath, while Aokiji would at worst end up in a mutual defeat with her.

"Long live Lady Fubuki!"

Lily, still a young girl at heart, cheered excitedly at the sight of the food.

"Is there a large open area nearby with little to no foot traffic?"

Kizaru leaned back on the couch, legs crossed, openly admiring Fubuki's curves.

She couldn't compare to Hancock, of course—

Hell, even Nami, after growing up, outclassed her in both size and shape.

But after seeing so many over-the-top figures, sometimes a different type of beauty was refreshing.

"Are you planning to train the A-Class heroes?"

Fubuki, a bit slow on the uptake, didn't notice Kizaru's gaze, but she did catch on to his intentions.

Back at Hero Association HQ, when he defeated Vaccine Man, Kizaru had mentioned helping the heroes get stronger.

She just never expected him to follow through on it.

"Yeah. B-Class and C-Class heroes can come too—I won't turn anyone away."

Kizaru nodded.

As an Admiral, he was more than qualified to train others in Rokushiki (Six Powers).

After all, even CP agents could learn it—there wasn't much reason to keep it secret, especially in another world.

"Really?! Then can I and my Fubuki Group members join?"

Fubuki's eyes lit up.

She knew exactly how strong Kizaru was.

A top-tier powerhouse offering free training?

Even she was tempted to learn from him.

"Uh, you at least need a solid foundation—weak bodies won't cut it."

Kizaru added a disclaimer—

He had zero patience for training from scratch.

According to Marine standards, a person needed at least 100 Doriki to have a chance at learning Rokushiki.

To fully master it, one needed at least 1,000 Doriki.

For reference, a normal Marine grunt only had 10 Doriki—

So the entry bar was pretty damn high.

A physically weak esper like Fubuki?

Trying to learn Rokushiki would be a complete waste of time.

"I'm a psychic! Of course, my physical strength is a bit low!"

Fubuki immediately figured out Kizaru's train of thought and responded with mild annoyance.

Still, while she felt a little disappointed, she also secretly breathed a sigh of relief upon realizing she couldn't learn Rokushiki.

The thought of training alongside her subordinates made her uneasy—

If they all mastered it while she, their leader, couldn't…

That would be way too embarrassing.

"That's why there needs to be a baseline… Hmm, let's use Lily as the standard. Anyone physically weaker than her is out."

Kizaru's Observation Haki swept over Lily, not only assessing her physical fitness but also confirming—

His instincts about her figure were, as always, spot on.

Meanwhile, in the next room, Lily remained completely oblivious.

She was too busy calling in Moustache and Mountain Ape for dinner.

Truthfully, using Lily as a benchmark was a bit strict.

Her hero ranking might not be high, but her physical stats actually surpassed most B-Class heroes.

Converted to Doriki, she was around 230—

Which meant that many heroes who could have theoretically learned Rokushiki wouldn't even get the chance.

Not that Kizaru minded.

He was just offering a hand, not playing babysitter for the entire Hero Association.

And besides—

The idea that anyone with 100 Doriki could learn Rokushiki was just a theory.

Teaching from scratch would be a complete waste of time.

"If Lily's the standard, then a lot of my subordinates won't qualify..."

Fubuki felt a headache coming on.

If they had to match Lily's level, then most of the Fubuki Group wouldn't make the cut.

"Then they can train until they meet the requirements.

Once they're strong enough, they can just learn from those who've already mastered it.

I'm not banning them from passing it on."

Kizaru shrugged.

Rokushiki was never meant to be some classified technique—

The old Marines who developed it originally hoped even civilians could learn it to fight back against pirates.

From Kizaru's perspective, as long as someone wanted to protect themselves and others, they were qualified to learn.

"Understood.

I'll find a suitable location as soon as possible."

For the first time, Fubuki truly grasped Kizaru's intentions—

And she had to admit—

He was grander than she'd ever imagined.

Just the fact that he was willing to teach others without asking for anything in return was already incredible.

But Kizaru wasn't just offering to train a few people—

He wanted to give as many as possible the opportunity to grow stronger.

°°°

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