Saitama called

Bang waved with a chuckle, but when Josen turned back with a sly grin, the smile on his own face froze.

Sure enough, the kid suddenly unleashed the force of the Flowing Water Fist. His feet shifted, his body blurred like a phantom, and in the blink of an eye, he was halfway down the mountain steps.

"..."

Bang took a deep breath and returned to the dojo, his hands behind his back and his face expressionless.

You're supposed to become someone's disciple before learning their martial arts, you little bastard!

Slurrrp-

Once he got home, Josen cooked himself two packets of instant noodles, adding some braised beef, vegetables, and five eggs for extra nutrition.

When the big pot of noodles was ready, Josen lifted a mouthful to taste it, only for the phone in his pocket to ring.

"Hello, Josen speaking."

"Josen, it's Saitama."

"Oh, Saitama. What can I do for you?"

That evening, in a phone booth.

Saitama glanced behind him at the monster and wanted criminals tied together in a circle. "Here's the thing. I caught a bunch of bad guys, including a monster. Since you're a police officer, I figured I'd call you to report it."

"A bunch of bad guys, and a monster?"

The sheer amount of information packed into those words left Josen a little bewildered. More importantly, calling a cop friend's private number wasn't the normal procedure for reporting a crime!

Still, remembering how Saitama's mind worked, he took it in stride. "All right, got it. Where do you live? I'll be right over."

"I live at..."

Using his psychic power to fetch a pen and paper, Josen wrote down the address Saitama gave him. Then he picked up the pot and wolfed down the noodles in a few quick mouthfuls. The scalding food went straight into his stomach, turning into energy to replenish his body after the grueling training.

Once he had eaten and drunk his fill, Josen made two calls.

Then he opened the balcony door, wrapped himself in azure psychic power, and shot into the sky.

Ten minutes later.

Acting on Josen's information, the Police Station dispatched a SWAT team. With an armored vehicle leading the way, they roared down the streets and arrived outside Saitama's home, a row of basic two-story rental units.

Remote and cheap, the place attracted all sorts of tenants and had long since become a criminal hideout known in urban legends as the "crime department store."

Only someone as oblivious as Saitama could have lived there for so long before noticing anything wrong.

Of course, his finances didn't leave him with any better options.

A group of fully armed SWAT officers filed out of the police vehicles and quickly secured the scene.

Meanwhile, the Hero Association had also rushed over after receiving the news, with Lanny leading the group. The two parties arrived face-to-face.

At that moment, Josen was pulling Saitama aside to ask exactly what had happened.

It turned out that when Saitama went to pick up his clothes, he learned that the Clothing Store owner had borrowed money from a loan shark because of cash-flow problems and now had no choice but to surrender his shop to settle the debt. Driven by his sense of justice, Saitama decided to solve the problem for him.

Who would have guessed that the loan shark's operation was right next door to his rented room? The owner had even transformed into the Dark Goldfish Monster right in front of him. It wasn't strong, but it was disgusting.

So much so that his freshly repaired tracksuit had torn again.

"Loan sharks, an underwear thief, a counterfeit money factory... Who knew getting your clothes mended could stir up this much trouble? That's just like you!"

"Huh, is that a compliment? Something about it feels off."

"Just take it as one." Josen led Saitama over to the police and Hero Association representatives, who were busy arguing. "Come on, tell them what you just told me."

"Huh? I have to say it all again? What a pain!"

"Good grief, so you do know what a pain is? Quit complaining and get on with it!"

"The association can coordinate directly with the Police Station from here."

"Thank you, Mr. Josen. The association is currently preparing to build the world's most advanced monster prison. I'll persuade the police to hand that goldfish monster over to us!" Lanny thrust out her sinful bust, her face full of gratitude. "If you make another catch like this, please be sure to contact us!"

"Sure, sure. Absolutely." Josen thought of Saitama, who was currently giving a statement precisely because he had wanted to avoid the hassle. "By the way, Saitama defeated that monster all by himself. He's also the one who defeated Frog Man last time. Would you like to meet him?"

"Oh, is he a friend of yours, Mr. Josen? Of course. When I get back, I can also ask the association to approve a cash reward for a helpful civilian like him."

"Huh? This isn't about the reward..."

Seeing that Lanny had no intention whatsoever of recruiting Saitama, Josen could only drop the matter.

As his friend, he didn't want their relationship to turn into something as vulgar as a monetary transaction.

(Saitama: No, I'm vulgar!)

By the time everything was settled, it was late at night.

After seeing off the large contingent of police, Saitama kept feeling that he had forgotten something, but he couldn't remember what.

Then I just won't think about it.

Saitama habitually tuned out life's little details, to the point that he had forgotten the news saying there were rewards for capturing wanted criminals.

And so, a certain unlucky man with thinning hair missed out on another pile of money that had been his for the taking.

"Josen, want to come up for a bit? My place isn't big, but I do have tea."

"Sure. After running around half the night, a cup of tea sounds nice." Josen stretched. "Sorry for the intrusion, then."

The two went upstairs together and entered Saitama's room.

Just as he had said, it was tiny, with clutter piled everywhere from the entryway to the living room.

"Sorry about the mess..."

A bead of cold sweat formed on Saitama's forehead. Living alone, he never noticed, but now that he had a guest, he realized just how messy his home was!

After frantically clearing a space big enough to sit in, Saitama switched on the television and busied himself boiling water and making tea.

Knowing Saitama's financial situation, Josen didn't mind. He sat down cross-legged.

He had barely settled in when a sudden knock came at the door.

Knock, knock, knock!

It was quite a loud knock, too.

"Who could it be this late?"

Seeing that Saitama was pouring the water, Josen got up to answer the door.

"Coming."

He opened the door to find a grim-faced old woman standing outside. Recognizing Josen as one of the police officers who had just dealt with the criminals, she abruptly lost some of her aggressive momentum. "...Huh? It's not that guy?"

"Are you looking for Saitama?" When the old woman nodded, Josen turned and called into the room, "Saitama, someone's here for you!"

"Huh? Coming..." Having finished making the tea, Saitama walked over. The moment he saw who it was, he wanted to shut the door.

At the sight of Saitama, the old woman's face darkened, and the murderous aura she had exuded while knocking returned. "You there, get out here! We need to talk!"

"Ugh, I have to go outside, too? What a pain!" Saitama's expression stiffened as he reluctantly headed out. "Uh, Josen, make yourself comfortable. The tea's poured. I'll be outside for a minute."

"No problem."

Bang!

The old woman slammed the door shut, and shrill yelling could be heard faintly from outside.

Josen picked up his cup and leisurely took a couple of sips. The tea was nothing special, but he wasn't picky. He simply enjoyed the chance to relax.

Bang!