"You bastard...! If you've got any guts, undo your ability and fight me fair and square!"
In the middle of Tatsumaki's living room, Garou lay sprawled on the floor, his body as limp as a pile of mud, completely unable to move. Yet, despite his helpless state, he continued to curse angrily.
Standing before him, Fubuki sat calmly, looking down at the incapacitated Garou with a hint of satisfaction. Behind her floated her Stand—a pale green, humanoid figure wrapped entirely in bandages, its silhouette distinctly feminine.
Her Stand's ability was simple yet effective: as long as Fubuki could inflict even a single wound on her opponent, her Stand's power would activate, spreading from that injury and rendering the target completely weak and powerless.
Under normal circumstances, someone of Garou's skill level could easily avoid getting injured if he knew about Fubuki's ability beforehand, rendering her power useless against him. Unfortunately, Garou had underestimated a mere B-Class hero, leaving an opening for Fubuki's psychic abilities to land a cut on him.
In the original timeline, Garou had suffered wounds before due to underestimating other heroes, and now history repeated itself—this time, falling victim to Fubuki's newly acquired Stand ability.
This outcome left Garou seething with frustration. He was convinced that the only reason he lost was because he hadn't known about Fubuki's ability, and thus, he had been caught off guard. The entire way back, as Fubuki telekinetically carried him, he had been shouting demands for a rematch.
Of course, Fubuki had no intention of releasing him—not only had she legitimately defeated him, but Garou was also someone Zuke had explicitly requested. There was no way she would let him go.
But what humiliated Garou even more was that while he lay helpless on the floor, Tatsumaki couldn't resist toying with him. Using her own psychic powers, she flipped him over repeatedly, like a child poking at a defenseless insect.
"So this is the Garou Zuke wanted? Doesn't seem all that special to me."
After rolling him around a few times, Tatsumaki smirked—Garou's body was as soft as slime right now, making him look utterly pathetic. She couldn't fathom what ability he possessed that would make Zuke take such an interest in him. If Fubuki could take him down, then his strength couldn't be all that impressive, right?
Compared to Garou, Tatsumaki was far more curious about Fubuki's new ability—this so-called "Stand," which Fubuki claimed was the crystallization of her spiritual energy, floating behind her. But no matter how hard Tatsumaki looked, she couldn't see anything resembling a Stand. For a moment, she even wondered if Fubuki had been so traumatized by her past defeats that she had started hallucinating.
Yet, there was no denying that Garou had been incapacitated by Fubuki's Stand ability—something her psychic powers had never been capable of before.
"Inflict a single wound, and the opponent's entire body weakens and softens..."
Even Tatsumaki had to admit—this was an ability that could easily kill an opponent in their first encounter.
If Fubuki's psychic abilities grew just a bit stronger, even Tatsumaki herself might accidentally sustain a minor injury in battle. And if that happened, even the slightest wound could lead to a complete collapse in the fight.
"So Zuke has abilities like this... and he never even told me."
The thought that Fubuki's Stand had been granted by Zuke made Tatsumaki pout in annoyance. Zuke had never mentioned anything like this to her.
Sure, it could be seen as a sign of his confidence in her strength—that she didn't need a Stand to become stronger—but it still felt like unfair favoritism.
"What? You want to awaken a Stand too?"
Just as Tatsumaki muttered under her breath, the door swung open—Zuke walked in, holding the spare key to Tatsumaki's apartment. After their last... encounter, Tatsumaki had given it to him, and he had stored it away in his treasury.
Now, Zuke could come and go from Tatsumaki's home as he pleased, giving him a comfortable place to stay in the One Punch Man world.
Sure, he could always rest at the Hero Association—they'd be more than happy to accommodate him—but compared to the cold, impersonal atmosphere there, Tatsumaki's home was far cozier.
"Unfortunately, Stand awakening depends entirely on innate potential. You don't have the qualifications to awaken one."
Zuke had already tested Tatsumaki's Stand compatibility using the "Arrow," but unlike Fubuki, she lacked the necessary potential.
In JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, bloodline inheritance was one way to awaken a Stand—but not all bloodlines were like the Joestars, capable of passing down Stands through generations.
In the original JoJo series, most Stand users had family members who were completely ordinary. Tatsumaki was just like those relatives—unable to awaken a Stand.
That said, Tatsumaki was already strong enough on her own. A Stand would only be a minor enhancement for her, unlike Fubuki, for whom it was a game-changing power-up.
"Lord Zuke!"
The moment Fubuki saw Zuke enter, she immediately approached him, her demeanor filled with respect.
For someone as prideful as Fubuki, this level of deference was rare—even in the original story, after witnessing Saitama's overwhelming strength, she had still maintained her usual arrogance in front of him.
It seemed Zuke's gift of a Stand ability had truly earned her loyalty. After all, she must have realized that without it, she would never have been able to defeat Garou.
"You did well."
Zuke nodded in approval. He hadn't expected Fubuki to be the one to capture Garou—and in just a single day, no less.
In a way, the internal communication efficiency of the Fubuki Group was far superior to the Hero Association's. Whenever they spotted Garou, they could relay the information almost instantly, whereas the Hero Association's bureaucracy often caused delays. By the time their heroes arrived, Garou would have long since vanished.
Hearing Zuke's praise, Fubuki's face lit up with pride—his acknowledgment meant a lot to her.
Meanwhile, Tatsumaki couldn't help but frown. For the first time, she felt a twinge of jealousy toward her little sister.
Zuke ignored the subtle expressions on the sisters' faces. After complimenting Fubuki, he walked over to the center of the room, where Garou lay in a motionless heap, and looked down at him.
"So it really is Garou... Just as I remember, though a lot more pathetic-looking right now."
"You're Zuke, huh?!"
Garou glared up at him, his voice dripping with hostility. He had heard Fubuki and Tatsumaki mention Zuke's name so many times that his ears were practically ringing—it was obvious both sisters held Zuke in high regard.
Garou had no interest in women. Right now, all he cared about was reclaiming his pride.
"If you've got any balls, tell that woman to undo her ability and fight me again!"
To be continued…
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