Successful Rescue

"Glug!"

Tony and Yinsen saw that Saitama didn't seem to intend to restrain or harm them, so they tried walking out of the cave, which had been reduced to a mere overhang. Once outside, they saw what had happened. The small basin that had once been nothing more than a depression had become a canyon, spreading outward at a forty-five-degree angle from the cave.

They couldn't see anyone at all—not even any bodies.

With what looked like a casual swing of his fist, Saitama had changed the entire landscape.

Tony and Yinsen couldn't help swallowing nervously. When they looked back at Saitama, their eyes held even more fear.

The bald man had a bored expression and a vacant stare, and didn't look like a powerful fighter at all.

At last, Tony couldn't hold back any longer.

"Um, I'm Tony Stark, and this is Yinsen. We don't know what to call you yet."

"I'm Saitama."

"Saitama? Mr. Saitama, did Stark Industries hire you to come rescue me?"

"Mm-hmm. I did come especially to rescue you, Mr. One Hundred Million Dollars."

"Uh, I think I understand how much you'll be paid for rescuing me, but could you maybe change that 'Mr. One Hundred Million Dollars' thing?"

"Sure, Mr. One Hundred Million Dollars. No problem, Mr. One Hundred Million Dollars."

"...All right, call me whatever you want. Could I ask you how you did that?"

"Did what?"

"I mean, one punch, just like that, and this place was turned into this. How did you do it? Are you really human? Was your body made with some kind of advanced technology?" Tony knew Saitama had come to rescue him and wouldn't hurt him, so he relaxed a little before pressing him for answers.

"Of course I'm human. I've never had any body modifications. I'm just a hero for fun," Saitama said, shaking his head.

"A hero for fun?" Tony had never heard anyone put it that way, and he was sorely tempted to mock it. For fun? He'd become a hero because he enjoyed it?

Tony stared blankly at Saitama. He still found it hard to believe that anyone could be this powerful. A casual punch had caused enough destruction to rival an intercontinental missile. It was absurdly powerful. Was Saitama really human? He looked like a human nuclear bomb.

Tony couldn't help sizing Saitama up, hoping to spot something unusual about him.

From Tony's perspective, Saitama looked utterly vacant, his eyes unfocused. He lightly touched the wall, and dust fell from it, landing all over him—and even seemed to get into his mouth. Tony could tell from how Saitama kept spitting and sputtering.

Still, how could someone so powerful let a little dust get into his mouth? Was Saitama really that strong? No, he definitely was. Tony had seen it with his own eyes. And yet, even after witnessing it, he still found it hard to believe. Aside from that one punch, Saitama showed no sign of being a powerful fighter. He'd even let dust get into his mouth without noticing.

Vrrrrm...

The sound of an engine reached Tony's ears, and his spirits lifted. Whatever else was going on, he'd been rescued.

He hurriedly turned to call out to Saitama, only to find that Saitama had vanished without him noticing. He froze for a moment, then quickly called to Yinsen, and the two of them climbed toward the direction of the engine.

After a difficult climb to the top of the canyon, Tony saw a woman looking down at him with a bright smile. Well, she was pretty. If they'd been at a party, he wouldn't have minded asking her to dance and seeing where things went. But right now, he wasn't in the mood.

Saitama had already left him deeply shaken, but seeing the Happy Jeep in front of him still filled Tony with joy.

"Mr. One Hundred Million Dollars, I finally found you. Come on, get in. I'll take you back. Uh, and who's this?" Skye greeted Tony, then looked over at Yinsen.

"Yinsen, another poor guy who got captured by the terrorists," Yinsen said with a smile.

"All right, the Happy Jeep has plenty of room, so there's space for both of you. Get in. We're leaving."

"Thank you!"

All four of them climbed into the Happy Jeep. Saitama sat in the passenger seat, while Tony and Yinsen took the back.

"Would you like some water? There's some food in the car, too, so you can have some if you're hungry. It doesn't taste very good, though, so you can also wait until we get back to the US military base and have a proper meal," Skye said, in a very good mood.

"Thank you, thank you."

"Thanks. Uh, is this instant ramen? Don't you have any cheeseburgers? I really want a cheeseburger right now."

"Sorry, there's no McDonald's here. Besides, that kind of fast food is much harder to carry and store than instant noodles. Of course, if you don't like ramen, you can wait a little."

"All right. Actually, I really want ramen right now, too. You have no idea what Yinsen and I have been eating for the past two weeks. Just thinking about that stuff makes me feel sick. If it weren't giving me the nutrients my body needs, I'd never touch it again, even if someone killed me. Mm, mm! This is great! The ramen's amazing! It's even better than a cheeseburger." Tony's eyes widened, and he looked like he'd just tasted the most delicious thing in the world.

He'd been through so much lately that even a mouthful of instant ramen naturally seemed like a gourmet feast.

Tony wolfed down the ramen, let out a burp, and slumped back in his seat, feeling comfortable. He listened to the music up front, his body swaying along to the beat. Suddenly, Tony had a strange sense of déjà vu, as if he'd been through this before. When he thought about it, he realized it was just like when the terrorists had captured him. He couldn't help feeling uneasy. It was a psychological scar.

Meanwhile, Skye drove back and contacted the US military base over her communicator.

"...We've found Mr. One Hundred Million Dollars. Uh, I mean, Mr. Tony Stark."

"He's been rescued. We're on our way back."

"That's right. Yes. You can hurry over."

"All right, no problem." Relaxed and cheerful, Skye switched off the communicator.