I, without any personality, become a hero!

Why is this thing here again...? But since it received a gift from its owner last time, I can't really chase it away...

Saitama, constantly being stared at by the Grim Reaper, remained under the Grim Reaper's watchful gaze, whether he was lying down watching TV or picking his nose with his little finger. The Grim Reaper kept its eyeless, spherical head pointed at Saitama, maintaining a state of careful observation.

"I'm going out on patrol!"

Saitama, feeling utterly terrified by the stares, put on his hero costume and went outside; he simply couldn't stay in the house any longer.

The Grim Reaper was clearly not going to miss this opportunity. Just as it was preparing to move out and continue tracking Saitama, a mechanical arm pressed down on its shoulder.

Why are you staring at the teacher?

Genos, wearing a kitchen apron, had just finished his chores and came out. He found it strange that the "Hell Monster" kept staring at Saitama.

"Of course, we want to uncover the secret to Saitama's immense power through observation!"

"The secret to a teacher's greatness!!"

Genos, captivated by the words of the messenger of hell, untied his kitchen apron and laid it aside, then nodded seriously and said:

"I'm also very interested, let's work together!"

"OK!"

The hand of nothingness and darkness and the mechanical hand clasped together, and the "Squad to Investigate Saitama's Powerful Secrets" was formed!

Chapter 8 Sonic the Hedgehog

Saitama, who patrols the streets, joined the Hero Association a month ago. Although the process was somewhat convoluted and absurd, Saitama is now a registered C-class hero and must participate in hero activities once a week, or he will be expelled from the Hero Association.

Genos also joined the Hero Association along with Saitama and is currently ranked seventeenth among S-class heroes. It seems that the Hero Association has attributed the credit for destroying the House of Evolution to him.

"What's going on today...?"

Saitama, who was patrolling the streets, always had a creepy feeling down his spine... as if someone was watching him from behind.

But when Saitama turned around, there were still only Z-city residents chatting and laughing on the street, and no suspicious people behind him.

"It must be that guy..."

The thought of this "hellish monster" that had run into his house gave him the creeps and kept staring at him, so it wasn't surprising that it was now following him around.

However, Saitama, who had almost gotten used to it, didn't care too much. He still had the hero activities he had to complete every week.

"Have we been discovered!?"

The Grim Reaper and Genos, who were far behind Saitama, were clinging to the wall like thieves who had been caught, trying to avoid being seen. Their strange behavior also attracted the attention of the ordinary citizens around them.

The Grim Reaper, its head sticking out, was relieved to see Saitama continuing his training, while Genos, standing nearby, offered his opinion:

"Doing this will not be effective."

"Hmm! How did you know?"

"Before I became my teacher's apprentice, I secretly followed and investigated his daily habits for a week, but I was unable to uncover the secret to his greatness."

The Grim Reaper, its confidence shaken by Genos's answer, still stubbornly retorted:

"But if we want to find out the secret to Saitama's strength, there's no other way but to follow and investigate him. We can't just ask him face to face, can we?"

"That's true..."

Genos had no choice but to accept this method and ask his teacher in person how to become stronger... It was indeed better to reject it without even thinking about it.

The two continued to secretly follow Saitama, while Saitama, who was ahead, was getting impatient... He could feel the piercing gaze behind him, but he still had to complete the weekly hero activities of the "Hero Association".

"Wait a minute? Isn't 'Hellman' the perfect filler to make up the numbers?!"

Saitama was getting increasingly frustrated because he hadn't been able to find the strange guy or thief causing trouble. But then a brilliant idea struck him: "Hell Monster," that guy, had recently been on TV and was quite famous, right? Although he felt a little bad for him... well, to complete the mission, he figured it would be better to keep it simple, since this guy had been bothering him all along.

Having made up his mind, Saitama nodded in satisfaction, then turned around and shouted:

"Come out, I've found you!"

"Oh no... we've been discovered!"

Just as the Grim Reaper and Genos, who were hiding in the corner, were about to appear in front of Saitama, an unexpected situation occurred.

"As expected of Saitama, he actually saw through my perfect disguise!"

A slightly effeminate-looking man dressed in a black bodysuit suddenly appeared in front of Saitama, leaving Saitama completely dumbfounded...

Who are you?

"Damn it! I'm Sonic, 'Sonic the Hedgehog'! Didn't I announce my name?!"

"Oh! It's the person whose 'egg' I accidentally hit!"

"You bastard, don't mention that again!"

This happened some time ago, before Saitama joined the Hero Association. A group called the "Peach Blossom Gang," composed entirely of bald men, was causing trouble. It was during this time that Saitama inadvertently formed a grudge with Sonic.

On the other side, seeing an unfamiliar guy jump out to take the blame for them, Hellbringer and Genos retreated back to the corner. They peeked out to see what was going on.

Saitama was also somewhat embarrassed and helpless. He thought it was the "Hell Monster" following him, but it turned out to be this guy named "Sonic"... It seems that he had misunderstood it this time.

"In short, I'm here this time to avenge my previous defeat!"

Sonic, who drew his blade from behind, knew he wouldn't make the same mistake again. Last time, he had been careless and Saitama had hit him in a vital spot, leaving him unable to fight.

"I'm very busy right now... I don't have time for you."

"Enough with the nonsense!"

Sonic immediately launched an "explosive shuriken" attack, but Saitama easily dodged all the attacks by simply shifting his body slightly, and it didn't matter if they hit him.

"Take this!"

Sonic, wielding a sharp blade, lunged at Saitama, a wicked smile playing on his lips. Behind Saitama, unnoticed, the "explosive shuriken" he had just dodged was flying back to attack his back, while Sonic himself was attacking from the front – an unavoidable pincer attack.

"You're so annoying!"

Saitama, his face contorted with impatience, vanished from Sonic's sight in an instant, leaving the ninja, who was preparing to attack from both sides, directly facing his own "Explosive Shuriken" attack.

In the heat of the moment, Sonic used his blade to slice through all the shuriken in an instant, but he himself was also engulfed by the blast wave.

"Hey... are you alright?"

In an instant, Saitama flashed to the other side of the street. He still kindly inquired about Sonic's current situation, but amidst the smoke of the explosion, several shuriken attacked him.

This time, Saitama didn't dodge. His hand movements became blurry in an instant as he caught all the shuriken that were attacking him.

"This is just the beginning. Witness my ultimate move, Saitama!"

"Stop messing around, I have things to do."

Faced with Sonic's troublesome entanglement, Saitama turned away in annoyance and continued his patrol. Why did one troublesome guy after another keep coming to him lately?

"Don't even think about escaping!!"

Sonic, having escaped with a multitude of shuriken, leaped into the air and hurled them at various angles, effectively sealing off Saitama's escape routes.

"Take this 'Chaos of Slaughter'!"

Sonic was very confident that his special move, specifically designed to counter opponents of similar speed, would completely defeat Saitama. However...

You're so annoying!

Saitama turned around and threw the shuriken he had just grabbed. This time, it not only destroyed all the shuriken that Sonic had thrown at him in half, but the more powerful shuriken also pierced through Sonic's purple scarf in mid-air, carrying him to a nearby high-rise building and pinning Sonic to the wall.

"Damn it... the difference in strength is so huge."

Sonic, clutching his scarf tightly, had to admit the reality that the gap in strength between himself and Saitama was too great, and he needed to train even harder.

"The teacher is indeed very strong..."

Genos, who had secretly witnessed everything, exclaimed in admiration, gaining an even deeper understanding of Saitama's immense strength.

"As expected, the follow-up investigation is useless; we must find a different approach."

Reflecting on what had just happened, the Hell Messenger realized there was a good way to find out the secret to Saitama's power, and the "Hell Monster" immediately started plotting something sinister.

Chapter 9: Saitama's Secret to Power!

"This probably won't work, will it?"

"What does it matter? It's just a try anyway."

The "Squad Investigating Saitama's Powerful Secrets" changed its strategy. Although Genos himself felt that this approach was completely unreliable, he couldn't refute the Grim Reaper's statement that it was just a trial.

The idea that came to Hell's Grim Reaper during his battle with Sonic the Hedgehog revealed that Saitama never really hurts humans; he only kills them with a single punch after confirming they are monsters.

The Grim Reaper was absolutely certain of this, after all, he had been killed by Saitama hundreds of times, so he came up with a wicked idea.

...............

Saitama, who was patrolling the streets of Z City, was a little annoyed. The Hero Association stipulated that Class C heroes must participate in hero activities once a week. Although today was only Friday... and there were still two days to slack off, the thought of "Hell Monster" at his house made Saitama want to avoid trouble and do his hero work.

"Forget it, let's go home..."

Saitama, having wandered around Z City for a while without encountering any unexpected events, decided to go home, lie down, and watch TV. As for the "Hell Monster," he figured he could let it do whatever it wanted.

However, at that moment, a colossal creature stood in front of Saitama, blocking his path.

"I've finally found you, Saitama!"

Who are you?

Looking at the guy dressed in an oversized salted fish mascot costume who appeared in front of him, Saitama was a little confused... Who is this guy? Do I know him?

"Um... I'm the 66th ranked A-class hero, 'Salty Fish Hero'!"

The salted fish doll hurriedly called out its name, and Saitama realized that the guy in front of him wasn't some weirdo blocking his way, but why was he blocking his path?

"Never heard of it. What do you need me for?"

"That's good, you haven't heard of it!"

Hearing Saitama say that, the lazy doll actually breathed a sigh of relief, and immediately got to the point, saying righteously:

"I heard there's a really powerful C-rank hero out there, so I've come here specifically to see what he's got!"

"Is that so..."

Saitama's first reaction was that he had been bothered by another troublesome guy. After all, after registering with the Hero Association, an A-class hero named Snake, ranked 38th, came to cause him trouble. Although Snake ended up being knocked unconscious by Saitama's punch and falling into the bushes.

"In short, I've come here today specifically to fight you!"

The lazy doll declared its goal again, and Saitama also perked up a bit. He planned to defeat the guy in front of him in a few moves and then go straight home.

"I knew I didn't recognize him!"

The creature inside the salted fish doll was none other than the Grim Reaper. It knew that Saitama would never bother to find out who the specific A-class heroes were, so it simply impersonated him without being detected. Then came the next move.

"Take this! Receive my 'Salted Fish Thrust'!"

The Grim Reaper leaped up from the ground with a powerful burst of energy, aiming the spikes from its Salted Fish Doll costume directly at Saitama. This was its temporary special move, "Salted Fish Thrust."

"Salted fish should just lie obediently on the ground."

In an instant, Saitama flashed to the side of the salted fish doll, and with his right hand, he made a chop motion and struck the doll's back, knocking the Grim Reaper to the ground.

"Let's go home..."

Just as Saitama clapped his hands and was about to turn around and go home, the salted fish doll lying on the ground suddenly flipped over and jumped up.

"Wait, I haven't failed yet!"

"Huh? She didn't faint?"

Saitama was somewhat surprised. Based on the power he used against humans, he should have no problem. This guy called "Salted Fish Man" was actually quite capable.

"Take this second move, 'Salted Fish Draw Sword Slash'!"

The Hell Messenger ripped the spikes off the Salted Fish Doll costume and grabbed them in his hand, instantly teleporting to slash at Saitama.

However, it only happened in an instant. The salted fish doll and Saitama passed each other and switched places. Saitama casually picked his nose with his little finger, while the spike in the salted fish doll's hand suddenly broke off.

"I actually...failed...?"

Trying to speak in a heart-wrenching voice, the salted fish doll slowly stood up and faced Saitama, earnestly asking:

"Saitama, I never expected you to be so powerful! Can you tell me how you became so strong?!"

Although the chances of such a plan succeeding are slim, it's never a problem to give it a try. The Grim Reaper had this idea in mind: to play the hero and challenge Saitama, and after failing, to naturally ask him for the secret to his strength.