"Heroes can relate too you know" -?

Chapter 1: Since I'm Unpopular, I'll just get Transported to a Popular Manga

Another day...

Another day has ended as Tomoko walks home from school, another unsuccessful day for her. Months have passed since she started High School and her work to becoming the school's most popular girl has been nothing but muttering, occasional mental breakdown, and also the lack of having any new friends.

There is Yuu, she and Tomoko had known each other since Middle School, which only made the first day of High School even worse when Yuu had a different school to go to. So basically at Tomoko's place of education, she has no friends.

What a depressing and stressful life it's been! Hell, the characters in Mangas and Animes actually looks like they're having an easier life than Tomoko, and they had to go through battles against Demons, Aliens, Heart Wrenching Romances with many boys, etc!

Even though Tomoko loves Anime, there were times she wished that the shows would be a little more accurate to life, or at the very least, pull her out from this hell hole she's living in and take her to a whole new world where she can spend the rest of her life without the constant company of stress. That's what Fanfictions were made for. However, no matter how much she wrote herself being thrown into those worlds, she's always reminded that she's still in her room, sitting in her chair, and staring excitedly at the screen to see if a new follower had liked her story.

So far, she only has one, but it's a start!

Tomoko sighed, honestly, the dull yet hard life she's living in is too much for her to handle. If only a superhero would come in and swoop her off her feet and take her away, or maybe help get rid of the anxiety off her back with just one punch. Damn those lucky airheads in most Animes, they would always blush when their crush is nearby, acting all innocent and helpless while the guys save them, well if Tomoko were in the heroine's place she would act all cool, that way the hot guys are the ones who fall for her.

She may not look attractive now, but she still has a few good years ahead if her, plenty of time for her own pair to grow!

Tomoko's thoughts which were an attempt to bring herself up while also pulling herself down emotionally were disrupted when she stepped over something, looking down, it turned out to be a book, but not just any book, Tomoko knows a Manga when she sees one. She picks it up. The cover gave off a pretty intense look at a bald guy, a white cape over his shoulder, wearing a yellow jumpsuit, and red gloves with one hand clenched thus the image fits the Mangas title.

"One Punch Man," Tomoko read out loud, a smile formed on her face which had been a first for today, "Hey, this day might actually be my lucky day, I found a Manga I don't have to pay for."

She stands back up with the manga in hand, "I've heard of this, yeah this got an Anime recently." Tomoko had been too busy watching other Animes while also dealing with her usual Life Habits that she didn't really have any time to look this Anime up online, but has heard that it's really popular.

Popular, if only Tomoko were in a Manga or Anime, then she'll be popular in a snap.

Tomoko resumes her walked to her home when she opened the first page of the Manga, what a coincidence that just a moment ago Tomoko had been thinking about Mangas and getting rid of her problems with one punch. Her original destination back home averts to the public park as Tomoko got to a page where the main hero of the series is revealed.

And it turns out he looks like the most disinterested guy in the whole world. In hindsight, the character pretty much looks like a potato to Tomoko. Not only did he look disinterest even up against a monster called Vaccine Man who is planning to exterminate all of humanity, but the bald guy has a good reason not to be, as he just destroyed the monster with literally just One Punch.

"Seriously? That's it?" Tomoko said, sitting on a bench, "That was...kind of lame, I mean I guess it would be cool to kill anything with just one punch, but wouldn't that get boring?"

Apparently, the hero thought the same way as he fell to his knees, distraught that he killed yet another opponent all with just one punch, and cursed loud enough for Heaven to hear. Or at least as loud as Tomoko assumed it would be with the letters all capitalized. Tomoko remained on the bench reading the manga as the sun gets closer to the horizon, she had already made it pass by the hero's back story which almost made her flinched to see how much the guy changed when she realized how late it was getting. The sky as orange as that time she had a bad sun burn.

"Well, I better get going," Tomoko said, she closes the manga and stands up from the bench while adjusting her backpack on. The manga was okay, but she still doesn't see how it's going to play out with a guy so overpowered that it could even outdo Goku - an interesting debate but Tomoko knows a crack hero joke when she read this particular manga. Well, she could always use another manga in her collection.

She did have to admit though, when she read the guy's backstory, she saw a little bit of her in him.

"Huh," Tomoko said, "Maybe I'll come across other mangas. I could put them in a stash somewhere only I know," a smile that was not at all suppose to be devious - but nevertheless looks so - forms, "Haha, I'll try to be so discreet but be so obvious that everyone will be wondering what that interesting, mysterious girl is doing-" In her ramble, she fail to see a boulder in her foot's way and trips.

"GAAAH!" Tomoko lets out an unattractive yelp as she dropped the manga to the ground which causes the book to open at the near end of one of the chapters. With a look that knows she cannot avoid what is to come next, she face-planted into the manga so hard that it made her eyes roll back, and all consciousness fades.

Head hurting, as the nose was all Tomoko needs to ensure that she's not dead, she had a feeling that she was knocked out but it felt like she slept for years. Twitching her closed eyes, she uses all her strength to force them to open, and when her vision cleared she pushes herself up.

"Ow..." Tomoko rubbed her nose, she looks at her fingers to see if her nose is bleeding, thankfully it wasn't. And thank goodness not much people were around to see her pathetic fall.

She looks around just to prove her point, and while she is right that no one saw her, Tomoko realizes something very startling. She isn't in the park anymore, in fact, she has no idea where she is. The girl jerked her head left and right to look at her surroundings, it seems to be an alleyway she's in, getting to her feet, panic begins to rise in her rapid heart as she spun around in confusion.

"Wait, where the hell am I?!" In her panicked state, many theories popped in her head. For how long was she knocked out?! And who took her here? WAS IT A PERVERT?! OH GOD NO! Tomoko did not want to lose her virginity this way! Was there actually someone who thought her as someone cute enough to drag her into an alleyway?! Tomoko doesn't care if this is her getting closer to popularity, SHE DID NOT WANT IT TO GO THIS WAY!

Tomoko looks down to her clothing in case the pervert pulled down her skirt, and in utter relief, she sighed in seeing that she still has on her school uniform. Additionally, she didn't feel violated in any way, so maybe a pervert didn't kidnap her. But if a pervert didn't bring her here, then who did?

"The Surface is ours!"

Tomoko hears a voice from just around the corner where daylight is shining, which is weird since not a moment ago the sky was orange. When Tomoko looks around the corner to where a new street is seen, she...has no idea how to describe what she's seeing.

"You Surface Dwellers must die!"

In Tomoko's sight, there was this guy in a monster costume with purple glow coming out from his body, she also sees that there were other guys dress up like the taller guy, they were in a hole like they just dug out of it.

"Are those guys cosplaying?" Tomoko questioned quietly to herself.

"I am the Subterranean King!" The taller guy in 'costume' announced, "Surface Dwellers, prepare yourselves for-"

Tomoko saw a shadow appear over the guy's head and looking up to see if that was just a bird, her jaw dropped, and her eyes widen in disbelief.

There was a guy, bald too, jumping off from an apartment building a few stories high, and his foot crushed the forehead of the Subterranean King, Tomoko swears she heard something crack when the bald guy's foot made contact.

'WHAT THE HELL?! IF THESE GUYS ARE ROLE PLAYING THEY'RE GETTING WAY TOO INTO IT!' Tomoko was too shocked to say anything other than making faint sounds.

The shorter guys reacted similarly to see their king be crushed by the bald man's foot, and that didn't stop there. The bald man, with a white cape attached to his shoulders, wearing a yellow jumpsuit, with red gloves and boots, he raised both of his fists and shouted, looking forward to fighting.

"All right! Bring it on!" The caped man challenged.

Tomoko just watched as the other guys put up a flag saying that they surrender and left without another word, leaving the bald guy with his fist raised. The man lowered his hands and scratched his cheek as he looks to the side, "I've gotten too strong," he said to no one in particular.

Tomoko just lets out an inaudible gasp, she flinched when the man's body shift, showing that he heard her. Her mind screamed for her not to be seen by this crazy guy and taking heed, she turned her heels and bolted just as the man turned his head to where he heard the gasp from.

"Huh, I thought I heard something," the man said, he continues to look where he thought he heard the gasp, "...Guess it was nothing." Saitama walks back into his apartment.

*Cue the Opening Song of Watamote*

Tomoko ran, flailing her arms back and forth as she sprinted down the unfamiliar street, her heart racing with adrenaline, also in a panic. "What was up with that guy?! I'm pretty sure I just saw him commit MURDER!"

She turns to a corner and further into the unfamiliar territory that looks to be a city only deserted. "And where the hell is this?! WHERE AM I?!" Tomoko's head jerked from left to right to see any signs of a street leading her back to her house, when she sees there were none, the fear in her heart increased.

"ISN'T THERE ANYBODY HERE WHO CAN HELP ME?!" She yelled in hopes of at least one soul to hear her, but no one came to her as she ran. Eventually, she slowed down and collapsed to the ground on her hands and knees in exhaustion, her backpack weighing her down and the thought of face-planting to the stone ground became tempting just to see if she can awake from this possibly the worst nightmare ever.

"Wait. Mom! I can call her, and she can pick me up!" Tomoko searches for her phone through her backpack. Finding it, she looks through the phone numbers in her phonebook - which didn't take that long at all - and selects her mother's phone number, but not even a dial tone is made, and instead, a message appeared on the screen, her fear increased by the double.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN THIS PHONE NUMBER DOESN'T EXIST?!" She yelled at the phone, she tried it again and again, but the message kept appearing. Did her mother change her phone number? Why do that without telling her?!

"T-Tomoki, I can call him instead, I mean he'll probably be pissed at me for calling him in the middle of testing, but I'm pretty sure that this is a hell lot more important than some stupid exam." Tomoko called Tomoki, but the message appeared yet again, her eyes were coming this close into popping out of her head.

"Y-Yuu-chan, maybe Yuu-chan," Tomoko tries to select her friend's phone number, it's difficult to do so with her hand shaking, "I don't even care if she can't get me out of this, I just want to talk to someone, anybody!"

Tomoko presses the call button and puts the phone to her ear, for once hearing the dial tone play.

"YES!" Tomoko beamed in hearing the phone answered, ready to listen the voice of her old friend.

"Thank you for calling Hero's Pizza Place, how can I help you?"

Not a sound is made from Tomoko when she heard the voice of a man spoke on the other end, her eyes were empty, and her heart just dropped.

"Hello?"

"Are you kidding me?" She asked. She would like for her insanity to end now. "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" Tomoko hanged up, and grips onto the phone with shaking hands. Grabbing her backpack, she ran once more. To anywhere that looks anything like she's near home.

"WHAT IS HAPPENING?!"

Tomoko can feel that her heart is about to explode, she has no way of contacting anyone she knows, and the fact that she knows only three people in her lifetime just shows how her social life has been, which only makes this matter worse for her!

"This isn't real, this isn't real, this isn't real, this isn't real, this isn't real, THIS ISN'T REAL!"

While Tomoko is having a mental breakdown, Saitama remains oblivious to who had just appeared next to his home, unaware of that someone who unexplainably came from another world.

Fall for me!

Tomoko swung one arm up.

Fall for me!

Saitama puts on his casual clothes.

Fall for me!

Tomoko swung another arm up as her eyes are crossed.

Fall for me!

Saitama turns on the TV.

Make me popular!

Tomoko let out an exhausting cough.

Make me popular!

Saitama opens up a bag of snacks.

Make me popular!

Tomoko screamed like someone who has never been so terrified in her life.

Make me popular!

Saitama chills on the floor, picking his nose.

We'll meet in the future where everything has changed…

A fenced doorway came into view with signs set on in that basically screams to stay out of where Tomoko is.

No matter how I look at it.

Tomoko busted through the gates and tripped.

It's your guy's fault that I'm not popular!

She fell to the ground and shortly slid across the pavement, if not for her school uniform she most certainly would have got many scratches, though her body is immobile at the moment, her mind is still trying so desperately to think up a reason why this is all happening. Like what was up with that bald guy in the cape? Or why she's suddenly in a different universe?! Tomoko, of course, meant that as an exaggeration...

But it's actually true, not that she understood yet.

"I get it!" Tomoko lifted her head up with a smile, as if now coming to an understanding, "It's just a dream!"

She pushes herself up, and her mood now enlightens with this theory in her head, "Yeah, yeah, it's totally a dream! I mean, I couldn't have transferred to a whole new city just out of nowhere. Wow I must have knocked myself out real good."

Quite the realistic dream it is, just now she almost felt pain when she slid across the solid ground.

"Well okay, enough is enough," Tomoko laughed, "Time to wake up now," she pinches her arm, but when she saw that she is still in this unfamiliar place, she pinches harder and harder until she changes her action to just slapping herself on the cheek.

"OW!" Tomoko winced at the pain on her cheek, rubbing it, "Damn, this is the most realistic dream I've ever had. I must be a coma or something, hehehe," she gets to her feet and pats the dirt off her skirt.

"Well, I guess as long as I'm here, I might as well go check everything out," Tomoko's eyes brightens like an eager adventurer, or so some enthusiastic character she has seen on TV. "Okay! Until I wake up from this dream, I'm gonna do whatever I want! This is my dream, so obviously I can bend the rules the way I want to!" Tomoko said, "Hm, but you know...This place does kind of look familiar," she pondered for a bit with her thumb to the bottom of her chin.

"Now that I think about it, that bald guy back there looked familiar too..." Tomoko thought it over until the manga she had just read in the park came to mind.

"Oh that's right, he's that potato head hero from the manga! HA! This just proves that I really am dreaming!" Tomoko fist pumped the air as if she accomplished something. "Okay, now that I know I really am dreaming, that means..."

And so Tomoko does a series of events that people would usually do if they are in a dream, like trying to fly. But this ends up being a failure as Tomoko only ends up back to the ground on her feet, she tried it again with a lot more effort, but this time she landed wrong and ends up on the ground on her face, man, what is with her nose getting beat up today?

Tomoko pushes herself up and rubbed her nose and is surprised to feel pain, "This is a seriously realistic dream," she gets to her feet, "Looks like I'll be walking," and walking she does, out of the abandoned jurisdiction.

Tomoko continues to walk on the sidewalk and further into the city until she comes across people at last. Since Tomoko still believes this to be a dream, she happily walks past the people, knowing that in dreams she wouldn't be held back because of her awkwardness. With this much confidence she might even make a conversation with someone.

But just before Tomoko would decide who to talk to, her belly let out a small growl which she can hear and placed a hand over it to calm the hungry beast. "First pain, now hunger. Jeez, this is starting to get scary," who knew dreams could get this realistic? "Well, I might as well eat something."

Tomoko looks left to right until a sign placed on the restaurant window caught her attention.

"Free Meal. Compete in a Karaoke Contest, all age applies to enter, only two can compete for every meal."

Tomoko reads a crooked smile made its way to her lips. "Alright, I haven't sung Karaoke since I was still in Middle School. I mean sure all those sluts and easily aroused boys sang together all the time, but there's no way me doing this will bring me to their level!"

The growl in her stomach became louder than before, her mind is set, "Alright, let's go win a free meal!"

Tomoko enters the store and saw the place slightly crowded with music playing as well. Apparently, everyone else was either broke or bored. She heard the guy in the register greeting her and Tomoko assumed that she had to approach him.

"U-Um, H-hi," Tomoko stuttered. Weird, shouldn't she sound more confident if she was in a dream?

"Well hello young lady, would you like to participate in the Karaoke Contest?" The Clerk asked.

"U-uh, y-yes, yes please," Tomoko said quietly, and thankfully the Clerk smiled thus showing that he heard her, he got something from the desk in front of him and took out a ticket.

"Here you go, it's your number, we'll be setting you up with another. But once you get to the stage over there," the Clerk points to where the Karaoke box is which were also currently being used by two people. "We'll be flipping a coin and ask which side you want to choose. If the side you chose faces up, then you get to choose which song to play, you get me so far?"

Tomoko opened her mouth while also trying her best to put on a smile which only comes out crooked, "U-uh, y-yes."

"Okay then," the clerk gave Tomoko the ticket with the number fifteen on it, "Just wait around for a bit, and I'll call you up, okay?"

Tomoko nodded and walked away.

'The hell?' Tomoko questioned in her mind, 'Why did I act the way I always act when I'm awake. I guess even in the dream state I won't be able to escape my socially awkward self, this might actually suck.'

But Tomoko tries to remain optimistic, and so decides to look around the place and found a spot for her to sit in, upon sitting the chair, she kicks her legs up repeatedly like she used to when she was just a little girl and remains that oblivious crooked smile on her.

Outside the store…

A man with no hair wearing blue casual clothing is walking down the sidewalk until he stopped when the music reaches to his ears and a faint aroma hits his nose, he looks up, noticing the sign right beside him and read it.

"Hm. Free Meal," said the bald man, his stomach growled so loud that even a passerby would be able to hear it.

"…Yeah, I can go for that," after all, when living the kind of life he's living, you don't always come across money every now and then.

Back inside the restaurant, Tomoko was humming to herself along with the music she's never heard before until the song ended, and a sound of applause is heard after.

"Number Fifteen, please come up to the stage, Number Fifteen," the speaker from the intercom echoed throughout the restaurant.

"Alright," Tomoko jumped out of her seat, "Time to make myself a name around these parts," she smirked, she made it to the stage just as the speaker calls out the person she'll be competing against.

"Number Sixteen, please come up to the stage, Number Sixteen."

Tomoko waits patiently for the guy she's competing against coming up to the stage, and when he did, she nearly gasped.

'It's that bald guy!' Tomoko thought to herself, 'That guy who can do a one hit kill, I'm gonna be singing against him? Doesn't he have something better to do than get a free meal?' The bald guy gets on stage, 'What was his name again?' Tomoko wonders, 'I'm pretty sure they mentioned it in the manga, but what was it?'

Both he and Tomoko gets a microphone from another worker of the restaurant while Tomoko continues to stare at the bald man beside him.

"Alright, are you two ready?" The Worker asked, the bald guy and Tomoko nodded, "How about giving us your names first before we toss a coin?"

"Okay," the bald guy said, "I'm Saitama."

'Saitama...' Tomoko thought, she flinched when the worker asked for her name as well.

"U-uhm, I-it's Tomoko. My-my name is Tomoko."

She shivered when Saitama glances at her. She didn't know that he's only wondering why someone who looks obviously shy would be up here in front of a crowd. Guess he would call that bravery or something.

"Alright," the worker pulls out a coin, "Now choose a side, whichever side is shown gets to pick a song."

Saitama looks over to Tomoko who flinched again in feeling his eyes upon her, "You can pick first."

"Uh, really?" Tomoko asked, Saitama just nodded, "Okay, um, heads."

The worker nodded and flipped the coin. Catching it, he slams the coin on his other hand and just to make it suspenseful, he hides the coin a little longer before revealing it.

"Alright little lady, it's up to you to pick a song."

Tomoko was actually surprised, "What? Really? Me?" She smiles, maybe this dream might not be so bad after all. She looks to the Karaoke box which shows a list of songs on the screen. Having no clue what she's doing, she touches the screen like she does with her phone and drags her finger down, thus moving the song list down as well, Tomoko smiled and continued to scroll down until at least one song that looks familiar shows up.

Tomoko has to admit, for a dream it sure does a damn good job showing all the details, even putting in songs and artist names she's never heard of until one song came up.

"Hey, I sang this before," Tomoko said to herself, she presses over the song, and the title of the song lights up. A counter is placed for Tomoko and Saitama to get ready.

"Okay, quiet now everyone, because these two are about to sing!" the worker says before getting off the stage followed by a round of applause.

Tomoko actually felt excited, she's going to make herself known even if this is all a dream, who knows, this might actually help her out in real life.

The song started to play, the first line that popped up on the screen is for both singers, so when the number counted down to One, Saitama and Tomoko began singing.

"I tried to talk someone, and they just ask do I know you? How am I supposed to respond to that...Am I the Idiot?!" Unlike Tomoko who put in a little too much effort in her voice, Saitama just sang plainly.

The next verse was for Saitama to sing only and he began.

"I'm all alone on the way home, haven't said goodbye in a while to anyone I know..."

Well, this suddenly got depressing, Saitama thought.

"Sitting and waiting until something comes up on TV. Maybe, tomorrow it'll be different."

This...is strangely becoming too relatable for Saitama, a small frown is formed over the strange song as Tomoko's verse came up who doesn't seem to care how relatable this song is in her part, but that's just because she still believes this is all a dream.

"Everything on the internet is so simple," Tomoko sang, "But these people don't really know who I am-" Tomoko had to cough because of how much strain she is putting her voice through but she quickly recovers and continues to sing too forcefully. "This is my life, living in the shadow, I see! There's still time for me to change!"

Saitama side-glanced Tomoko before looking back to the screen.

"So what if I have nothing to do?" Saitama sings.

"So what if I don't meet anybody?" Tomoko sings.

"If I get serious, I'm sure I'll be recognized!" They synchronized.

"If I read every manga all night then I'll know how to be popular!" Tomoko sang.

"Not every chapter can help you with Anxiety." The choir comes in, and Saitama sang the next verse.

"Maybe if I am a hero to everyone then I'll get noticed."

"There'll still be no one to see." The choir sang in response to his verse.

This is getting TOO relatable in Saitama's part.

"Maybe if I pretend to know something then everyone will like me!" Tomoko sang-badly mind you.

"You'll be found out eventually." The choir pointed out in song.

"Maybe if I leave a name somewhere then I'll be known by a lot of people." Saitama sang.

"They'll still think you're just some bald guy."

Saitama was ready to punch this machine until Tomoko's part came up which requires for him to sing as well as if to respond her verse.

"I'm a girl with poor social skills," Tomoko turn to face Saitama "Who are you?"

"Just a guy with a hobby," Saitama responded, they were strangely his own words he's reading off from the screen. What is this?

"Are you an Idiot too!?" Tomoko sang like a dying pig.

Okay now that's just mean, and Saitama believes that the girl is pushing herself too much over just singing this song. The next verse is for Tomoko, and it was this that not only did Saitama believed the girl sang this song before, but this song seems to relate to her as well.

"Speaking to myself, speaking to myself, speaking to myself does not stop."

"Eh?" Saitama lamely responded.

"Who, who, who can I talk to?"

"You're...really into this," Saitama said to the girl.

"In isolation, in isolation, in isolation I laugh," as if to prove a point, Tomoko laugh creepily with a little bit of insanity.

Saitama blinked at the weird girl, "You should probably go out more often," he suggested, he looks back to the screen where at the same time as Tomoko, he has to sang "He" just as Tomoko sang the repetitive words.

"He" "When playing alone" "He" "Playing alone" "He" "Playing alone I'm very good!"

"Me too." Saitama sang.

"Da" "Whose" "Da" "Whose" "Da" "Whose fault is it?!"

"Don't ask me." Saitama shrugged.

"He" "In isolation" "He" "In isolation" "He" "In isolation I laugh," Tomoko chortled as she pointed at Saitama, "Haha, you just said 'I fart' in Japanese! GOD I'M SO LAME!"

"Well, I'll give you credit for trying." Saitama sang.

"Was it even that funny?" Tomoko asked.

"In every life that's hard for everyone, a little humor is needed!" Saitama actually found himself putting effort to the song, but he's starting to worry that the girl beside him will lose her voice.

"Will I be able to go to the sky, to the sky just like you?!" Tomoko asked like a dying pig singing.

"We're humans, we're meant to stay on the ground together." Saitama answered.

"But the sky, the sky will be able to illuminate me!" Tomoko persisted.

"And then after that what would you do next?" Deep down, he's actually asking the girl directly.

"I'll do anything, anything to be popular!" Tomoko sang.

"I want to be known just as much as you do." Saitama sang.

"So what are we supposed to do?!" Tomoko practically yelled for an answer, startling Saitama which is rare to do against the overpowered man.

"Won't somebody get me out of this pit?" Tomoko sang in a sadder tone.

"I'm a hero, but I don't think I can just pull you out of this." Saitama sang, and for some reason, compared to the other verses, he didn't like this verse specifically.

"Then what kind of a hero are you, how can you help me?" Tomoko asked.

"I can always lend an ear, one advice or two." That doesn't sound too bad to Saitama

"Then tell me, what should I do?" Tomoko sang as if begging.

"First take a deep breath and relax." This is more or less something Saitama would say.

"I don't think I can, not with all this stress, I JUST CAN'T!"

"O-oi, oi, You're going to lose your voice if you keep forcing yourself like that!" Saitama wasn't even singing anymore, now he's actually becoming concerned for the girl, but Tomoko ignored him, and when the next verse came up, her tone changed to a more upbeat yet also crying out in desperation, while singing.

"What are we supposed to do, how can we get popular?!" Tomoko asked.

"You need calm down, don't strain yourself." Saitama was reading the words and yet also meant them.

"But I only got a couple of years left until I get thrown into life!" Tomoko sang.

"Just slow down and talk to me." Saitama sang back to Tomoko.

"How come you're not freaking out that no one knows you yet?!" Tomoko questioned, now this would be something she would ask if she's being serious.

"I just leave those problems for tomorrow to tomorrow's me," Saitama answered.

It was weird, but hearing Saitama replied that infuriated Tomoko, here's a guy who's all laid back while she has to face all the crap in her life.

"I just don't get it, how can you be so laid back?!" Tomoko wasn't even facing the screen and just sang in actual questioning to the bald man.

"Just take a step back and don't forget to breathe." Saitama wasn't facing her, but in a way, he did answer her.

'Oh yeah, because it's SO easy just to do that' Tomoko thought bitterly if this dream is telling her to calm down well who in the hell is her own mind telling her to calm down?! Well, we'll see how this dream responds to her answer, which is given by the last verse of the song, which was supposed to be a final duet but Tomoko sang otherwise.

"Oh, you mean like you? A Baldie and Workless too? Sorry but I'm not falling that deep down, YOU IDIOT!"

"THAT WASN'T PART OF THE SONG, THAT WAS DIRECTLY AT ME WASN'T IT?!"

Tomoko jumped back when Saitama literally screamed into the microphone, adding more, volume to him. It's one thing to call him workless since he really does have no job, but the line is crossed when someone makes fun of the fact that he has no hair. Saitama is very aware of that, but he'll punch anyone who would go far as to laugh at it. Seeing how Tomoko is freaked out just by his yell alone, it was enough for Saitama to give, so long she does not call him out with that again. But it looks like he may have went too far, the girl is shaking because of it. With a sigh, he turns to face the worker who's standing beside the stage.

"You know what, you can just give her the free meal," Saitama points to Tomoko, "I'm not even hungry anymore."

Before either the worker or Tomoko could respond to that, Saitama gave the microphone back to the worker and got off the stage, heading towards the door. 'Besides,' he thought, 'That girl obviously deserves a free meal more than I do.' No one sings that badly yet put so much effort to it unless they're trying so hard to impress.

Tomoko however, she thought of a different reason why Saitama is willingly letting her have the free meal.

"Ha ha, haha haha ha," Tomoko chuckled quietly, 'HA! My voice was so superior compared to his that he knows he lost the battle and decided to give the crown to me himself!'

She cleared her throat and looked to the worker, "I'll take that free meal to go please," she said it, and for the first time, she said it with confidence. It's not every day - or night depending what timeline she's in while she's dreaming - that she gets to outshine the main character of a manga, she must have looked so cool right now!

The people were, of course, relieve to hear that the song is over so that Tomoko would not sing anymore.

Tomoko left the restaurant with a triumph smile on her, carrying with both hands a paper box filled with she assumed to be a delicious meal, she continues to walk until she comes across one of the parks in this city. Tomoko goes to sit on one of the benches and opens the box with the plastic fork that was in the box.

'Alright, this dream has been going pretty good so far, I mean I got over my awkwardness by singing up on stage in front of everyone, and I beat that potato head by voice alone, so overall, this is becoming a kick ass dream!' Tomoko thought to herself.

She grabs the fork and stabs the food with it, 'I wonder if Yuu-chan has dreams like this where everything is just so realistic that you feel like you traveled to another world? I should ask her as soon as I wake up,' she picks the food up by using the fork, raise it to her open mouth, and bit the food right of the fork.

"Mmm! This is pretty good!"

Tomoko sat there, listening only the sing-song birds and the happy children playing in the park with a soccer ball. The wind occasionally coming in and rustling the leaves from the trees, and the sounds of cars passing by along the road with the added noise of people's steps their making as they walk along the pavement.

A sudden shock hits Tomoko, which isn't anything literal, it's just something she would get when she realizes something.

'THIS IS WAY TOO REALISTIC!' Tomoko screamed in her thoughts. 'I mean WHAT THE HELL?! I can still feel pain like in real life, I sort of still have my issues when talking to people, and I can even taste this food that doesn't taste like a pillow! How is this even possible?!'

The fear Tomoko had is coming back to her until she forces herself to relax. 'Stay calm, stay calm, there's a perfectly sensible explanation for this, like I hit my head so hard that I'm in a coma and currently in the hospital which makes this reality like the reality I lived back home. Mom, Tomoki and Yuu-Chan must be crying right now cause I'm not awake yet, hehe, yeah that's it.'

Tomoko closes the boxed food, only making a few bites out of her meal and gets up from the bench. 'They must be really thinking just how much worth I've been in their lives, so I might as well fool around a bit before I force myself awake, hehehe, yeah, that sounds like a great plan, hehehehahehahaHAHAHA!'

Tomoko knows that if she were to believe that she's in another reality all together, then she would have a serious break down right now, as she keeps reassuring herself that this is all just a dream, she hadn't noticed herself unintentionally crossing the streets.

"LOOK OUT!"

Tomoko looks to her left, and for her, her mind and heart stopped when a large truck is heading her way, a passerby calls out to her, but the warning too late.

Flashes of memories went by her head and to put it simply, they were memories of her mostly lazying around save for her memories of childhood, and a bundle of emotions went through her: Shock, Fear, Sadness, Regret, and at the bottom of her heart a little bit of Acceptance. But Tomoko never wanted to accept something as horrifying as death, especially if she has done nothing in her life, she never even got her first boyfriend, nor did she ever made a friend in her first year in high school.

It just can't end like this.

And it won't.

In a matter of seconds, Tomoko felt something around her, like she was being hugged, and her view of the truck coming towards her suddenly changed like swiping your phone to the next picture, and the next picture Tomoko sees was one of the kids in the park looking at her in fear and worry. Loud sounds of tires screeching to a stop, followed by yelling in concern over the girl who almost got ran over. But Tomoko was in a state of shock, too much for her mind to even register what was happening around her, as facing death just a moment ago had slowed the functions in her brain down.

"You okay?"

Tomoko flinched in gaining her sense back and looks up to the person who not only is hugging her but is the one who saved her.

And who else would do a job like this other than the main character of the Manga Tomoko's in himself?

"You need to pay attention when you're crossing the street," Saitama couldn't help but lecture, seriously though, he just left that restaurant and walked on when he saw this girl from he had a karaoke battle with mindlessly walking across the street while a truck was coming in her way.

Tears were breaking out from Tomoko's eyes as she looks up to Saitama, "I-I-I'm sorry."

Saitama lifts Tomoko but held on to her shoulders when he noticed her legs shaking, "Can you stand?"

Tomoko sniffed as she tried to form her words out but they only come out as small gasps, so she nodded instead.

Saitama slowly released his grip on Tomoko's shoulders, "That was too close a call for you," Saitama said, "But at least you'll live another day to see your parents."

A pang is felt in Tomoko's heart, and tears began to fall.

"Oh yeah," Saitama held up the small box of food, "I saved this too-"

He stopped and was surprised to see Tomoko falling to her knees, and a rain of tears fell from her eyes.

"O-oi, what's wrong, are you hurt?" Saitama's hand hovered over Tomoko, unsure what to do, he's saved people plenty of times and those people were beaming in seeing that they're alive, so how to deal with a girl still crying even after being saved is new to him, he has no idea how to handle it.

"Hey, how about we find your parents, I'll help you look-"

Tomoko spoke before Saitama could say any further.

"What's the point in doing that? IF THEY DON'T EXIST ANYMORE!"

Saitama didn't know what Tomoko meant, and he stood there as the girl began her ramble.

"Hell, my only friend, the one I needed the most isn't even here! That's nothing new, but I might not actually talk to her again! Not my brother or my mom, they're the only people I know I can talk to and they're gone! How the hell am I supposed to live on like this?!"

Tomoko stares at the ground and sees a small puddle forming because of her falling tears.

"This might actually be my fault," never in a million years would she ever thought in saying that. "I mean, I'm the one who always begs for something in my life to happen, to just leave the life I have and go do something crazy like how it always happens in Anime."

Tomoko dragged her fingers on the ground together and clenched her fist, "But this is actually scary, this is really scary. I take back all the things I've said, I want to go see my friend who's actually more popular than me. I want to see my brother who hates me, but I don't care. I want to see my uptight mom and actually do chores around the house, hell I can even deal with all those annoying kids at school!"

She shut her eyes and with her voice hoarse from emotions, "I actually to go back to my sucky life, I...I..." Tomoko couldn't finish, interrupted by her own loud sobbing.

It may have just been because she has narrowly miss death, but when Tomoko finally puts the pieces together, that she's actually in a world where all kinds of disaster can happen, there is a chance that she could actually die because of what this world offers, and the worst of it all.

Tomoko is ultimately alone.

Saitama stood there, watching the girl on her knees crying while he showed no emotions at all, no words were spoken from him, for it is better not to. As if anyone would dare come in and say to this girl that everything will be alright when they don't know what it is that's troubling this girl. Saitama knows that he knows that it's better not to say anything like that if he doesn't know what the heavy problem this girl has was. That's why sometimes, he let his actions do the talking.

He slowly raises his hand and placed it over Tomoko's head, gently patting it to calm the girl or at least let her know that Saitama hears her. The girl continues to sob, and he continues to give some small, wordless comfort.

'I use to cry like that too,' Saitama couldn't help but think.

Tomoko sat on a chair with her head down, her eyes red from all the tears she spilled out and remained in this position even as the policeman talks to her.

"What's your name?" The policeman questioned.

"...Tomoko Kuroki."

The policeman typed down her name on the computer and searched for any records of her living in the city, nothing was found, so he expanded the search, he checked in every City, there was nobody with the name of Tomoko Kuroki that matched her appearance. He turns to his partner and shook his head, "Stay right where you are, we're going to figure something out alright?"

Tomoko nodded and the two policemen left to discuss in private when they left, Tomoko looks behind her to see if he was still there, and he was.

Saitama was just getting some doughnuts and coffee from the table against the wall, looking like he's going to be here for a while.

'Why is he still here?' Tomoko thought bitterly, 'I mean it's not he has any reason to stay, not that I'm ungrateful that he saved me.'

The policemen came back and called for Saitama, he approached the two men, and Tomoko thought the policemen would freak out when meeting the ridiculously strong hero in person, but oddly they remained composed.

"You're the one who found her?" One policeman questioned.

"Yeah," Saitama plainly answered.

Tomoko couldn't help but make a "Ch" sound, 'Honestly, you think you might kill a guy if you at least show some sort of expression.'

Also, why didn't Saitama mention the part that he saved her anyway?

"Well we have a bit of a problem, her name isn't coming up in any of the cities, not even a relative."

Saitama looks back at Tomoko who looks away to avoid making eye-contact with the guy, he looks back at the officer who had something else to say.

"So we have three choices, she can either tell us her real name," Tomoko actually felt her blood boiled in hearing these guys not believing her name to be true, but then forces herself to calm down. After all, she's in a different world where she doesn't exist, and it's not like they'll believe her if she said so.

"We send her off to an orphanage."

Does it look like she wants to be served sticky oatmeals and deal with crazy caretakers?

"Or you can take her in."

"Eh?" Both Saitama and Tomoko said. 'What the, why is that an option? I don't even know the guy, I haven't even read that far into the Manga so for all I know this guy could be a major perv!' Tomoko thought.

One policeman leaned in to whisper for only Saitama to hear.

"Sometimes, victims who are traumatized from a near death experience are closer to the ones who discovered her first," the policeman explained, but that only just confused Saitama, Tomoko wasn't that traumatize he noted, she was just terrified.

"So, what will it be?"

What, now? They want Saitama to decide now?! Tomoko fidgeted in her seat as she stares at Saitama, what was the potato head going to choose, she flinched again when his expressionless eyes met her green/pink ones with, of course, the dark circles.

"What do you want to do?" He asked.

"Huh?" Tomoko said and pointed herself, "Y-You want me to decide?"

"I can't decide this myself, it's like I'm choosing your fate or something," Saitama explained, "I don't really mind either way."

Tomoko stared in awe at the man's simplicity, hell, she might find it easier to talk with a simple guy than a complex character, she looks down to her feet in thought with a frown on her face.

She really doesn't know the guy, but from what she gathered so far in the Manga she read only a couple of pages from, and also what she experienced from him in person, it might not be that bad. Besides, she knows no one else and really, Saitama is the only guy she's familiar with the most out of everyone here just because she read his backstory a little. So with a trembling finger, she points at Saitama while looking at the policemen.

"C-c-can I s-stay with h-him, p-please?" She asked with her voice wavering.

"That's for him to decide," the policeman said and looked to Saitama, "Is that okay with you?"

"Yeah, it's fine."

Tomoko couldn't believe what just happened that she made a dumbstruck face, 'Seriously, THAT'S IT?! You don't even want to stop and think about it?' She thought.

In all honesty, Saitama preferred if Tomoko picked the orphanage, but what's done is done so he just has to accept it.

Plus, the girl needed help, and it just wouldn't feel right for someone like Saitama, who worked as a hero as a hobby, just to ignore someone in trouble. Sure, this is the first he has ever come across something that doesn't require punching, but nothing he can do now. The police gave Saitama some papers to write on for whatever reasons, and before Tomoko knew it, she was out of the police station, with her guardian now being the bald guy who can kill his enemies with one punch standing beside her.

They stood there side by side in an awkward silence, and it's killing Tomoko. 'Should I say something?! I mean, I guess thanking him would be a start. Man, this is just so weird,' Tomoko thought to herself, with her head shaking a little, she turns to Saitama like a robot that needs her oil, or she'll continuously just halt her movement every second.

"Uh, I, Uhm, Th-Than..." Tomoko began, but she was feeling so awkward that it's hard just outright to say it.

"Well," Saitama said before Tomoko could say what she wanted to say, "Guess I should show you my home then," he began walking to one direction, "Let's go."

"Uh-I-Uhm..." Tomoko tried to say something but nothing came out, she mentally sighed, 'Why can't I just say it, if this is how I'm always going to be with this guy around, then maybe I should have chosen the orphanage.'

Saitama stopped when he realizes that Tomoko isn't following and turns to her questioning, "What's wrong?"

"O-oh, um, nothing," Tomoko weakly insisted, seeing as how there's nothing else she can do, she followed Saitama and walked beside him, occasionally glancing up at him before quickly looking down to her moving feet.

'I should say something, at least thank him for taking me in, it's the least I can do!' Tomoko ordered herself, she cleared her throat and with her eyes hardened with determination, she stopped until she is but a feet away from him.

"Uh...uhm," Tomoko cleared her throat, "U-um..."

She flinched yet again when Saitama looks back at her before looking in front of him again, "It's fine, it'll just be long enough until we can figure out how to get you back home."

Tomoko was surprised to hear that, she lowered her head where her bangs cover her eyes.

"Thank you," Tomoko, finally said.

Saitama didn't respond, he did however hear Tomoko and the two walked on to where Saitama lives, all the while Tomoko brings herself up with optimism.

'Okay Kuroki, you are in an entirely different world, but with the main character by your side, you might get back home soon, so until then, it looks like this is the beginning of something new, the first chapter of Tomoko's adventures!'

Despite how optimistic she sounded in mind, she openly sighed in exhaustion, 'Normally I would be more excited about how the events of my life have suddenly changed like a curved ball,' she looks up to the sky, 'But I'm really scared.'

Tomoko looks back at Saitama, and when she did, somehow the small bit of fear rising in her began to fade away, she picks up her pace so that she would catch up with Saitama and looks ahead of her as well.

'I think I preferred staying home and watching Anime than being in an Anime, or, Manga, whatever.'

Little does Tomoko know, that this was the start of a very odd friendship between the most unpopular girl in the world and the most overpowered man in the universe.

So what do you guys think of this? I would like to hear some honest feedbacks. This idea just popped into my head when I started watching Watamote and One Punch Man, and I've noticed a few similarities between them, not the shows, just the main characters.

Like how Tomoko wants to be popular and how Saitama wants to be recognized by people all around, and yet for both of them, life seems to always be there as a huge weight on their back. They just react differently, like for Tomoko she's basically being crushed by life while Saitama is just handling it with one hand.