"Who was that on the phone, Kaminari?"
Tetsutetsu asked curiously as he and Kaminari walked side by side toward the subway station. While asking about phone calls might be considered rude in Japanese culture, it all depended on the closeness of the relationship.
"It was about my combat uniform," Kaminari replied casually. "It's my new one. They want me to try it out soon."
Then, as if suddenly struck by an idea, Kaminari grinned. "You know, if the combat uniform they've made for me turns out great, I'll have the same company—Mitsui—design yours. They're a big name, so the quality will definitely be top-notch."
"Deal!" Tetsutetsu said immediately, without a hint of hesitation. "I'm counting on you, though! It's gotta be military-style and make me look cool."
"Don't worry," Kaminari said with confidence, patting his chest. "I'll make sure it's everything you want and more!"
But as the two approached the subway station entrance, they noticed an unusual commotion around them. At first, it was faint whispers, but it quickly grew louder and more chaotic.
"Hey, isn't that Kaminari Denki and Tetsutetsu Tetsutetsu?!"
"It is! I can't believe I just saw them on TV, and now they're here in person!"
"Wow, it's so surreal seeing the real number one and the real strongest person walking together!"
"What's the big deal?" someone chimed in. "Didn't you hear Tetsutetsu's shout at the end of the sports festival? They're clearly good friends!"
The murmurs turned to excitement, and then came a sudden, high-pitched scream.
"It's Kaminari Denki!!!"
"Ahhh! He's so handsome!"
"No way—am I actually seeing Kaminari in person?!"
Within seconds, a group of middle school girls wearing uniforms came rushing toward them, their faces alight with excitement. They surrounded Kaminari in an instant, effectively pushing Tetsutetsu to the side without a second thought.
And that was just the beginning. As it was the end of the school day, more students—elementary, middle, and high school alike—poured into the station. The crowd quickly grew, with more and more girls flocking toward Kaminari, their voices merging into an overwhelming chorus.
"Denki! Denki! Where's your Pikachu?!"
"Yeah, bring out Pikachu!"
"Is it in a Poké Ball? But Pikachu hates those, doesn't it?!"
The entire subway station was soon packed with a swarm of students, all clamoring for a chance to talk to Kaminari.
Kaminari, on the other hand, couldn't move at all. No matter how hard he tried to step forward, the crowd was so dense that he was completely stuck in place.
The scene wasn't just inconvenient, it was causing problems for the other subway-goers. Calls were quickly made to the local police, and within minutes, two patrol cars pulled up outside.
But when the officers arrived and saw the mob of kids swarming the station, they were momentarily stunned.
"Is this some kind of celebrity meet-and-greet?" one officer muttered, bewildered.
"We need to disperse them fast," another said grimly. "If something happens, it could turn into a disaster."
Using megaphones, the police began urging the students to leave, but their voices barely reached the outer edges of the crowd. The noise from the excited children drowned out everything else, and the officers could do little more than contain the chaos.
Not long after, professional heroes arrived on the scene to help. Among them was Kamui, his distinct wooden mask making him easily recognizable.
"What do we do, senior?" asked Mount Lady, who had followed Kamui to the scene. She seemed slightly panicked by the size of the crowd.
"We need to find the center of the commotion and pull them out. That should calm things down," Kamui replied, leaping onto a nearby streetlamp with his wooden arms.
From his vantage point, it didn't take long to spot Kaminari in the heart of the crowd.
"It's him… Well, no wonder," Kamui muttered.
As he prepared to use his wooden branches to extract Kaminari, a sudden burst of music interrupted him.
The music blasted at maximum volume, cutting through the cacophony like a sharp blade. The crowd, initially buzzing with excitement, began to quiet down, their voices lowering to a murmur as they turned to look at Kaminari.
He was holding up his phone, the source of the loud music.
Once he was sure he had everyone's attention, Kaminari stopped the music, flashed a bright smile, and called out loudly, "Hi, everyone! Yep, it's really me—Kaminari Denki!"
"Thanks so much for liking me and supporting me. I'm honestly so grateful!" he continued, his tone warm and sincere.
"But, uh… I'm super tired and hungry after today's festival. So, while I'd love to sign autographs and take pictures, I really need to get home. You're welcome to snap photos from where you are, but can you please clear a path for us?"
The students exchanged glances, and then, after a brief pause, began to laugh.
"He's so cute!"
"Yeah, Kaminari is adorable—even when he's desperate!"
"He actually used music to calm us down! I like him even more now!"
Although some were disappointed, the crowd eventually began carving out a narrow path for Kaminari and Tetsutetsu to walk through.
As they reached the entrance to the subway station, Kaminari turned back, smiling again.
"Oh, by the way," he said, his voice loud enough to carry to the back of the crowd, "the Pikachu Band will be recording a new song the day after tomorrow. It'll drop on MTV this Sunday—don't forget to check it out!"
The cheers that followed were almost deafening, but Kaminari didn't linger to soak it in. He quickly headed down the stairs with Tetsutetsu at his side, leaving the excited students behind.
---
Once inside the subway car, Kaminari and Tetsutetsu finally had a moment to breathe.
"You're seriously something else," Tetsutetsu muttered, shaking his head. "What are you gonna do if this keeps happening?"
Kaminari chuckled, leaning back in his seat. "Eh, I'll take it as it comes. If anything, it just shows how much people like me, right?"
Tetsutetsu sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I guess… but man, being surrounded like that would drive me nuts. I don't know how you deal with it so easily."
"Well, that's something you'll need to work on," Kaminari said seriously. "Pro heroes are public figures, too. If you want to be someone admired like All Might, you've got to get used to the attention."
Tetsutetsu raised an eyebrow, smirking slightly. "You're probably right… but sometimes it feels like you're just trying to convince me to suffer along with you."
***
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