NOVEL WEB Issue #4: I am Smiling
My breathing hitches as I land in front of them. They barely notice my arrival. My body is moving on it's own again.
'Shave, Iron Body, Smash' Time seems to move relatively slow as my body moves towards them at great speeds. All these years of training are unleashed as I smash my fist against one of the assailants chest. I feel his sternum shatter as my fist keeps going. It almost feels as if I'm in a first person view of slow motion.
I can't even hear what's going on. I'm so angry, so mad. I even forgot what I planned to say. My eyes only see red.
No need to fear! Because Smiley is here!
The image of a hero everyone would depend on breaks as I keep going and knee the guy right in the face and drive his body against the wall.
My fists start to blur at faster speeds, aiming at his shoulders, arms, legs, stomach, head. I keep punching, kicking, kneeing, elbowing, not even giving him a moment of rest. Bones break and shatter by my fists. If I keep going I could kill him for goo-
A gunshot. A bullet grazes my shoulder but I barely register it.
I'm so blinded by my own rage, I forgot there was another assailant nearby. I pant and move with the intention to intercept him before he can keep shooting anyone else, but the mugger is already gone by the time I turn to the exit of the alley.
'You won't get away from me'.
Before I take a step in his pursuit I hear the faint sound of the lady on the ground, blood still pouring from her wounds. Making my way towards her I get on my knees and hold her hand.
'Oh no… fuck… if I only I didn't waste my time with this stupid breathing' I seethe trying to regain my breathing, but I'm hyperventilating.
"Ah… a… I don…w-want to d-die… " she weakly says. My eyes are burning.
"Hold on, help is on the way," I choke, tears start to form at the edge of my eyes "Please hold on, you're going to be ok"
She's barely breathing, got shot in one of her lungs. I better search for someone to hel-
"STOP RIGHT THERE!" I froze, still holding her hand "DON'T. MOVE."
Ah… ah…
Without thinking I jump and get away from there.
Tears begin to fall from my cheeks as I keep jumping through the air, hearing shouts from the distance that keep getting lower until I can't barely hear them anymore.
I will later learn that, I will still hear them, not through my senses…
But through my nightmares.
Crack Crack Crack
"Ghk" I mutter in pain. Tears won't stop falling through my cheeks as I punch a large slab of rocky terrain. Knuckles bare and bloodied as I keep going at it. I blink and the memory of the woman in that alleyway, barely alive, flashes through my eyes. "Nrgh… " I groan.
'I can still see her' I bitterly think. The thought of stopping my onslaught against my training partner doesn't even cross my mind. It's been a few weeks since that fateful day. I couldn't sleep the night after that… experience. Since then I developed a poor appetite, I felt no motivation to keep going on, being for training or patrolling the city.
Just anger and regret.
Anger at myself.
How could I let my emotions get the better of me? The guy I beat up, he… he probably died of his injuries that day, didn't he? Villain or not, Quirk or no Quirk, he was still a human being who had to go through the fruits of all these years of training.
Was it worth it?
I'm repulsed that my first thought was yes.
It's not that I didn't know how to control my emotions that day, but the fact I couldn't guide them to save a life, to stop them both instead of unleashing my fury against one of them. It felt like I was trying to kill that guy for real.
If only I knew more people to help me.
If only I was a little bit faster that day.
If only I took my training more seriously instead of feeling complacent with where I was.
If only I had more self control on my emotions.
Would I've able to save her if I had any medical training or knew someone who had?
CRACK
"Rngh!" I scream through gnashed teeth as I finally hear the damned rock crack under my fists. So far only my knuckles were the ones making the sounds. I tiredly sigh and direct my sight to my bloodied hands. I should feel accomplished that I was finally able to put a dent in the huge rock formation I'm currently using as a training dummy.
But the only feeling I had was a big wave of disappointment.
"Raahh… !" I angrily scream at the skies. With all the leg strength I could muster, I jump in the air and start to use 'Moonwalk' to keep going upwards with a specific objective in mind. Once I get to the desired height I close my eyes and let myself go. My muscles tense and contract as I start to descend, the image of blood leaking from the wounds of that woman passes through my eyes as I approach the ground.
'Iron Body!'
My hardened body collides with the ground below creating a huge explosion of dirt and rocks. I try not to groan as I feel my body contract again in pain at the impact.
It hurts… It hurts a lot.
'Hnrk… I can't stop here. I need to keep going… ' I think, grinding my teeth. Slowly I stand up straight and look at the sunny sky, small birds fly by and small clouds slowly move and disappear. It's a beautiful day.
I let out a breath trying to remember the principle of the breathing techniques from the shows I used to watch. Bracing my stomach I breathe in again. Clean air starts to fill my lungs, this time going beyond the usual 3 seconds mark, up to 5 seconds now.
'I won't let something so simple such as internal injuries slow me down' controlled air leave my lungs as I breathe out, the sound resembles a low whistle of a tea kettle. A look of pure concentration plastered on my face. From my understanding, nobody had died from training themselves to the bone… at least that's what I know from the shows I used to watch. In fact, extreme hardships only made them stronger.
This won't be any different.
"Ahhh… " I let out as I jumped once again into the air while maintaining my breathing under control. This is the only thing I'm currently good at and I don't have any intention in stopping.
That night. Whenever I wanted it or not, it changed my life forever.
It opened my eyes. I was getting complacent, I was getting cocky, The sudden learning and execution of these techniques made me feel powerful for the first time in my life.
But there was no control, no finesse. Just raw strength.
I need to find a way to control it… but right now I don't really feel like doing it.
"So that's why you haven't been around, huh?" I hear Salt speak next to me. After a month since the incident I finally found the strength to come back to the city with my costume on. Right now we're in the same alleyway we met before, Salt, the homeless man I encountered during one of my patrols is sitting right next to me on a crate, found a couple of them next to the trash, seems like small stores throw them away. "Don't beat yourself too much about it brat, what's done is done. All that matters is that you're alive."
He said it so easily and with so much conviction that it made me stop eating, I lower the stick holding the takoyaki ball back to its original place. Did he even understand what I did to that man? He was a mugger, a 'bad guy', but he was a person. And that woman too… I couldn't do anything to save her… I had the power to do so too. I-
"Brat, you're thinking too hard about it." he said, stopping for a moment trying to finish his food, a fish stew with onions and tomato salad "You keep trying to put the blame on yourself for what happened to that woman. Nobody was there for her that night, but you." he puts the chopsticks aside and brings the small container to his lips and start to drink the remaining contents of the stew "Ah… this is better than last time, a bit liquid for my taste though"
"I don't have a good way to store flour," I defend my cooking. It was so painful to hear someone else insult my cooking skills the first time, considering I've been doing it for so long. I take a small breather, remembering to keep my breathing under control.
"You'll find a way one day." he calmly says putting down the plastic container and giving it to me with the chopsticks.
'Is he talking about the food or… ?' I look at him and see a smug smile plastered across his face like he said the most impressive advice in the world 'Hrnk… this guy pisses me off sometimes'
I hear a small sound from my right and I look away from Salt towards the end of the alley where I see two small figures making their way towards us. Two kids a few years younger than me nervously walking in our direction, they were dressed in dirty rags and baggy clothes too big for them. I was so surprised by their appearance that I forgot to lower my mask to hide my features.
They stop a few steps away from us and look at the food in my hands.
Ah.
"Tsk, more mouths to feed." I hear Salt say under his breath, probably thinking I wouldn't hear it.
"Shut it, old man." I say before directing my gaze towards the two kids next to us "Want some takoyaki? They're good."
The girl nods and tries to take a step towards me but the older brother stops her and puts himself in front of her.
"Heh heh, they noticed your smell old man." I said with a small smile gaining an annoyed 'hey' in return. "Here, I'm gonna put it in this crate, you can take it if you want."
I redirect my attention to the old man not really caring if they eat it right away, the smell will win them over eventually.
"Have you seen them before?" I whisper to Salt trying to see if the old man has any information on them. He shakes his head no. It figures that this smelly man would be of any help at all. Well it's not like I need it. Going by their appearance they probably come from a low income area. Maybe they were separated from their parents… or they're like us.
The little girl finally moves past his brother and takes the cardboard container with the remaining takoyaki. She gives it a tentative bite, then drops the rest of the ball in her mouth. Now she's trying to convince her brother to eat one too.
I feel like I've seen this scene before, not through the eyes of 'Gurē', but through 'mine'.
'It's like watching my little cousins again' I think smiling lightly.
This was it.
This was the day I realized what I really wanted to do with my new life. Up to this point I was following the dreams of a broken child, someone who didn't have anything, the world ignored, but wanted to be a Hero. And I was okay with that, I had a reason to keep on living.
But this is the first time I felt the desire to do something with my life. To actually pursue something besides becoming strong. As I see Salt making the kids laugh by making weird faces with his quirk I close my eyes and smile.
I want people like me to find happiness too.
Remember to breathe, slow and easy
Why should I do that? This is so stupid
It tricks your brain into thinking you're in a relaxed state, it helps you relax
Whatever…
'Oh man I was such a shithead, no wonder people didn't want to hang out with me' I think, cringing a little after remembering the reason why I started to dedicate my time into learning proper ways of breathing. So far it has proven to be a slow success, one that I'm almost proud of.
I had to relocate my training closer to the mountains. Once I started to notice the improvements my breathing was contributing to my overall physical capabilities I decided to move to a higher ground so I could train my lungs. Even my normal training routine in this location leaves me gasping for air. But at the end of the day I still need to go down after a few hours of training, it would take me years for my body to get used to the low density of the air.
I breathe in, this time it goes for 12 seconds. Something I'd consider impossible in my world, considering the human limitations, location and time it took me to improve it. But the curious aspect of this world is…
Such limitations don't exist in this world.
I let my breath out, as it flows through my closed teeth it sounds very similar to the whistle of a kettle, this time it sounds stronger than before. My lungs start to burn, but my body feels reinvigorated. It gives me the belief I can take on anything. It almost felt like my body was filled with energy.
In times like this, it makes me wish I had a katana to practice the breathing techniques with. I don't really have any intention to use it against normal humans… but I would look so cool with one.
Maybe I should get a Bokken? Would that be enough? I hope there isn't a law about carrying weapons in public. The only things I know about Japan is what I saw from anime and random youtube videos and even then, this world is totally different from the Japan of my world.
I breathe in again and let my body start to move, very slowly. Recently I had to fight against a quirk user who was able to hurt me in the process. Nothing too concerning, just a punch that almost knocked me out. Normally I would use 'Iron Body' to protect myself, but this guy had a quirk that let his body "speed up" making him faster than me by small increments of time and it was enough to wound me. In the end I beat the guy but it was an annoying fight I don't want to repeat, which brings me to the present.
My muscles contract as I slowly move my body while keeping my breathing steady. While training the strength of 'Iron Body' by angrily dropping myself from bigger and bigger heights I learned that I was able to slightly move my body when my body approached the ground. At first I attributed it to my brain entering in a state of panic which would make me believe my body moved while all my muscles were toughened. But after thinking with a clear mind I got the realization that it could be done, I only need to keep doing it until I get it right. After all, all the techniques I now know were recreated by me practicing them until I got them right.
The concept isn't that fantastic, instead of just tensing my muscles with the intention to tank blunt and piercing damage, I do it constantly. This way I train my body so it becomes an unmovable wall at all times. The only downside I can foresee is the time it would take me to master the movement and then implement it to my fast paced fighting style.
'Maybe I should invest time in learning martial arts' I think trying to come up with any techniques that I could remember. A few that come to mind are from Dragon Ball… but at the end of the day they were very useless after they started to use energy attacks and I don't really think this world has something like Ki… yet.
I let out a long breath while struggling to move in direction to my camp. I steadily start to get close to the river that connects to the one I'm living close to.
'There's also the use of brute strength against people who don't have the physical capabilities to match mine. If I add more power without a way to control my strength I could kill them.'
I breathe in.
As I keep moving at a snail pace next to the river, continuing both my breathing exercises and training my muscles at the same time, my mind begins to wander to martial arts. Even to this day and skillI still think they're extremely cool. Prediction of movements, spinning in place to deliver a stronger attack, positioning, takedowns and deflection of attacks… or bullets.
'Now that I think about it, a lot of martial artists in anime were able to catch or deflect bullets. If I could do that I would look so awesome' I think, Ignoring the fact that I can easily deflect bullets with 'Iron Body'.
'Well, I'm not really in a hurry, I still have time to figure it out. I need to learn control first'
I sigh now a bit more content thinking in all the new possibilities I could come up with to refine what I know and improve it upon.
"Heh Heh Heh!"
'Guh! Forgot my lines again… I was supposed to say something corny like 'Stop right there, ruffians!'- now people will think I'm a laughing weirdo' I bitterly think landing in front of 3 quirk users holding a few bags with money in it, probably.
"Hey! Smiley is here!" I heard someone say from the sidelines.
'Nope, still not liking the name' I think, my face adopting a sour expression that is hidden by my mask.
The thing about hero work people don't tell you about is that if you don't make a name for yourself people will start to give you a name and stick with it even if you name yourself differently. While I was struggling with a name to call myself while training, people had to see me more than a few times to come up with one.
I had a few ideas at first. I really wanted to call myself after a band or a song but while some of them were catchy and others were a mouthful, I couldn't decide fast enough at the end. Which brings me to this point in time. I'm just going to run with the punches, not like people will change their minds if I start to call myself Daft Punk all of the sudden.
"Shit, he's here!" "Who the fuck is Smiley?!" "Run for it, this guy is fast!"
Before the punks can get far I appear between them and kick everyone in the chest, back and legs. Not hearing any cracks this time I sigh. Man, people are so fragile. Months of training I managed to learn how hard I had to punch to hurt and not to break. I had to practice by punching trees again but this time I concentrated on just ratting the tree or pulling my punches in the last minute.
Hard surfaces are not a good measuring stick.
The trio of punks go flying in different directions. I sigh again bringing out my trusty rope, which I didn't steal this time. I used to leave the people I beat up behind, but that ended up being a bad idea. Some can get their bearings and escape and I didn't really feel like waiting around until the police showed up like a few times. I have a… somewhat rocky relationship with them.
After tying them up I give a few salutes to the crowd and jump away, disappearing through the night. The pros can take care of the rest.
I smile behind the mask as I hear impressed shouts and a few clapping. Heh, they didn't even notice I got their wallets too.
On top of a building I look below. It's been a year since I put on this mask. I have a reputation now, most of it negative, but I still hear a few praises here and there. It's nice to finally be visible after years of feeling the opposite.
'Tonight I'm going to invite the old man and the kids to some Ramen, it's been a while since I got some myself.' my stomach rumbles, guess it's time to count the goods before dropping by Salt's favorite alleyway.
Before I can count the stash I notice a familiar scent of someone I've been avoiding since I started my debut as a Hero/Vigilante. I hear the sound of a step on the same building behind me and jump to the side evading what appears to be a grey scarf attached to a black haired dude in a… black onesie and weird looking googles.
'Um… what was this dude name again? Hmm… Shota?… agh… if only I knew how to read japanese at all.' I lament thinking of the hero guide I saw a few weeks ago, but not getting it after taking into consideration my lack of reading skills.
"Smiley I presume?" I hear him say a bored expression plastered on his face.
"Heh!" I laugh nervously, I know I can easily outrun him if I so desire, but… this could be my chance to learn from a pro and see how far I am right now. If I'm ready for the big leagues.
But then again, should I put myself in a situation that would label me as a Villain? Man this is confusing.
"Not the one for words, huh?" At first glance he appears relaxed from the other extreme of the building, but he's far from that, I can see his feet tensed, probably figuring out a way to defeat me before approaching me "A blatant display of quirk use in public and vigilantism… are against the law" he said before he rushed towards me.
'Guess I don't have a choice in the matter' I think before jumping off the building giving a salute to the man.
But before I can make my escape the grey scarf wraps around my wrist. I raise my gaze and see the mummy man holding the end of the scarf, his hair waving in the air.
'He was the erasing quirk guy, right?' I ponder before making up my mind and use 'Moonwalk' in his direction spinning in place and liberating my arms from his scarf 'Good thing I don't have any!'
"Wha-" he gasped before turning to me, but I'm already moving around him with 'Shave' then once I get what I want I make my exit by jumping away through the air laughing like a child.
My heart is beating like crazy as I keep running away from the guy. A smile creeps on my face.
Got his wallet.
A/N: Not really happy on how this chapter turned out. I had a lot of ideas and this is me at my lowest throwing them at a wall hoping for them to stick lol. Also before anyone jumps to conclusions, Gurē is using a mask and lowers his voice so people think he's an older teen or young adult.
I'm still in the early stages of planning, developing Gurē personality and dreams, planting seeds for the future such as considering a martial art so he can fall back. I wanted to keep it a secret but this chapter and a few suggestions just speed up the process of developing it, so I'm just gonna straight up and say it:
Gurē will reverse engineer "Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist" martial art from OPM. It was in my original notes for the endgame of this fic, considering this and "Whirlwind Iron Cutting Fist" (OPM) being the peak of human martial arts, at least that's what I'm gonna stick with.
There's going to be a few more surprises in the future and I'm open to any suggestion, no matter how dumb or crazy, there's merit in crazy lol