MHA Universe, Earth, Japan, Tokyo.
"It's been almost two hours." Sakura said while picking up and examining an extremely heat resistant material used for making Hero Costumes. "And that guy is still following us. Doesn't he ever get tired?"
"Yeah, it's kinda unsettling." Tatsuo replied while pinching the piece of material between his fingers. "I mean, I'm kinda used to having eyes on me. But this is downright creepy. Having a stalker isn't fun at all."
Currently, Tatsuo and Sakura were in a store that sells fabric and other materials used in the creation of Hero Costumes inside the Kiyashi District Shopping Mall. And as Sakura said, they've been walking from store to store for almost two hours.
During their whole date, they were followed by Tomura, wearing casual clothes, at a distance that most people would not be able to sense.
But thanks to their [Quirks], [Spatial Manipulation] and [Shadow Space], keeping track of Tomura was easy for Tatsuo and Sakura.
It goes without saying why it was easy for Tatsuo, as his [Spatial Manipulation] allowed him to feel everything in his range of awareness. As for Sakura, it would have been more difficult if not for Tomura sticking to the shadows as much as possible, making Sakura's job much easier.
"Honestly, I've never had a stalker before." Sakura said as she put the fabric back on the shelf. "But his gaze feels a lot like my brother's… I mean, Shinji's did."
Noticing that Sakura's mood dropped after mentioning her brother, Matou Shinji, Tatsuo instinctively wrapped an arm around her and pulled her into a hug, causing the violet haired beauty to flush immediately. Even so, despite the embarrassment she was feeling, Sakura made no move to get out of Tatsuo's embrace.
Instead, she…
*Sniff!* *Sniff!*
… took the opportunity to deeply inhale Tatsuo's scent.
"Oh, do I smell good?" Tatsuo asked with a mischievous grin.
Immediately, Sakura's face turned iridescent from embarrassment as she finally tried her best to separate herself from Tatsuo after he pointed out that she had been sniffing him.
"Wha! No! I mean, yes!" Sakura stammered, too embarrassed to realize what she was saying. A moment later, she just covered her face with her hands and let out a cry filled with embarrassment.
"Anyway, why don't we get going to the next store?" Tatsuo asked with a smile. "I'm not really sure we'll find anything worth buying, considering Alfonzo's suppliers. But still, it's fun spending time with you."
Hearing that, Sakura lowered her hands slightly, revealing her eyes, as she looked up at Tatsuo. And although she could still see the mischief swirling in the depths of his eyes, she could also tell that he was genuine when he said he enjoyed spending time with her.
So, with the blush still present on her face, Sakura finally lowered her hands completely and carefully wrapped her hand around Tatsuo's arm before allowing herself to be led out of the store.
However, before they could get too far, Tatsuo came to a complete and sudden stop, his head snapping in a certain direction.
"Tatsuo-Kun, is something wrong?" Sakura asked curiously.
However, Tatsuo did not respond. Instead, he made a b-line towards what caught his attention, unintentionally dragging Sakura along with him.
At the same time, Tomura, who had been watching Tatsuo and Sakura the whole time, was also curious about what caught Tatsuo's attention. So, he chanced getting closer to see what it was. Though he felt the chance was quite small, he might be able to take advantage of whatever it was when he eventually tried to capture his target, Tatsuo.
"I'm only going to have one chance at this." Tomura said to himself. "If he discovers me, he'll run away immediately. And if that happens, I won't have another chance until the mole at U.A. gives Sensei some new information."
If Tomura knew he had already been discovered, it was likely that he would be the one to escape, thinking that Tatsuo had already called in reinforcements. And despite how strong he thinks he is, Tomura knew that he was no match for Static in a head-on fight.
While talking to himself, Tomura drew nearer, eventually stopping a little way behind Tatsuo and Sakura. And when he saw what had caught Tatsuo's eye, he looked at it with a blank expression.
"Are you fucking kidding me?" Tomura muttered to himself. "What is he some kind of dragon, attracted to gold and shiny objects?"
Once again, the look on Tomura's face when he found out just how correct his question was would have been priceless.
The thing that drew Tatsuo's attention looked rather normal, a pair of golden shoulder pauldrons. However, most golden pieces of Hero equipment were only gold-plated. But these…
"Those are pure gold." Tatsuo said in a dreamy tone.
"You mean twenty-four karat?" Sakura asked while tilting her head in curiosity.
"Not exactly." Tatsuo replied. "I'd have to actually touch it to tell if it was one hundred percent gold. But I mean, it's not plated with gold. The whole thing is made of gold. And that intrigues me… Probably a lot more than it should."
"You're not planning on actually equipping something like that, are you?" Sakura asked. "I mean, gold is pretty heavy, isn't it? Wouldn't it hinder your movements?"
"Not really…" Tatsuo replied nonchalantly. "I'm pretty strong, you know?"
"I know." Sakura replied while smiling sweetly. "You had to be strong to save me from the Matous. And because of that, you'll always be the strongest in my eyes."
Tatsuo had to admit that statement rubbed his draconic pride the right way. And it was made evident by the smile that spread across his face and the arm that snaked around Sakura's waist.
"Eep!" Sakura squeaked in surprise. Though, she made no effort to separate.
"Anyway, let's go." Tatsuo said with his smile widening at the blush that covered Sakura's face. "I don't have enough money to buy these things. And I'm pretty sure Alfonzo wouldn't give it to me if I asked. Damn cheap skate. Mom would have let me buy them."
Sakura could not help giggling at the pout on Tatsuo's face as he led her towards the store's entrance to continue their date.
Meanwhile, Tomura, who was unable to hear the conversation from where he was watching, wanted to know what was so special about those pauldrons. And if there was anything special about them, how did Tatsuo know?
"His [Quirk] has something to do with space…" Tomura muttered to himself. "Then, does that mean that those gold-plated pauldrons are actually hiding a special metal underneath? I should let Sensei know. He might be able to find a use for them."
And just like that, Tomura came to a wrong conclusion based on a lack of information. And unfortunately for him, that would lead to him buying a piece of treasure that Tatsuo was interested in.
After noticing that Tatsuo and Sakura left the store, Tomura quickly took out his smartphone to call All for One. Then, after a short conversation where he relayed everything he just saw, he was ordered to buy the pauldrons so that All for One could do some research on them to see if there was anything special about the metal. Then, after ending the call, Tomura quickly bought the pauldrons the legal way before hurrying to catch up with Tatsuo and Sakura.
However, when Tatsuo sensed that Tomura had taken the pauldrons he had designated as a future part of his hoard, his eyes narrowed.
"Oh, you done fucked up now." Tatsuo said in a quiet, menacing, tone.
"What's wrong, Tatsuo-Kun?" Sakura asked as she went on alert.
"That blue-haired bastard just took something that was supposed to be mine." Tatsuo said. "And for that, he's going to pay dearly."
Hearing that, Sakura was dumbfounded. She had heard about a dragon's greed for treasure from the myths, legends, and stories. But to see it up close was more than she expected. However, she was fully on Tatsuo's side. So, if he wanted to make Tomura pay, she would be willing, able, and happy to help him take his revenge.
*Growl!*
Yet, before she could voice her support, Sakura's stomach protested. Although she had breakfast with Akatsuki and her family before she started picking an outfit, that was a long time ago. And her stomach reminded her of that.
"Looks like someone's hungry." Tatsuo said with a chuckle. His chuckle then turned into full-blown laughter when Sakura's blush returned with a vengeance. "Well, I'm a little hungry, too. So, what do you think about checking out the mall's food court? We might be able to find a gem if we're lucky."
Too embarrassed to speak, Sakura only nodded her head while avoiding eye contact. Then, she and Tatsuo made their way towards the food court, following the mall's layout they memorized when they looked at the map shortly after they entered.
Unfortunately, the two were unable to find any of the gems Tatsuo mentioned. So, they were forced to eat food that Tatsuo would describe as barely edible thanks to eating only his own and Alfonzo's cooking for over a year.
"Well, I can't say that was a letdown…" Tatsuo said, trailing off at the end.
"Yeah, I know what you mean." Sakura added with an understanding nod. "It wasn't bad, per se. It's just..."
"Our palettes have been a little too spoiled since we got here." Tatsuo said, finishing Sakura's sentence.
"Exactly." Sakura said, nodding once again.
"Anyway, were there any other stores you wanted to check out?" Tatsuo asked as he and Sakura walked away from the food court.
"Not really." Sakura replied while shaking her head. "But… should we do anything about him? Maybe find a secluded place to deal with the issue?"
"Nah, that would end up drawing attention." Tatsuo replied. "Especially with his [Decay Quirk]. Although I doubt he could hit either of us, it could do a lot of collateral damage. And that's a headache I don't wanna deal with."
"I guess you're right." Sakura replied. "Then, are we just gonna leave him alone?"
"Of course not." Tatsuo said with a smile. "Instead, we're gonna leave him a gift. That way, I'll be able to find him later and make him pay for taking something that was supposed to belong to me."
Tilting her head with a smile, Sakura continued following Tatsuo as he walked towards the entrance where they entered the mall. And naturally, Tomura followed them from a distance.
"Damn it! Damn it! Damnit!" Tomura cursed quietly. "They have to be cheating. They never went anywhere that would give me a chance to catch them. This isn't fair. Why does that little bastard always mess up my plans?"
Surprisingly, that was about as far as Tomura's tantrum went. Instead, he took a deep breath while trying to calm himself down.
"But Sensei did tell me to not force it." Tomura said begrudgingly. "Drawing attention to the League of Villains again would be bad for his plan. Especially now that the bastard doctor is dead. We only have a few useable Nomus left. So, we have to be even more careful."
While continuing to talk himself out of doing something stupid, Tomura watched Tatsuo and Sakura round a corner while heading back to the train station. And just as he intended to quickly follow them so as not to lose them, he felt that something was wrong. Then, he felt something touch his back softly.
Spinning around quickly, Tomura's right hand shot out at the thing that he saw out of the corner of his eye.
"It's just a napkin?" Tomura asked in an irritated tone after looking at the thing that he caught. "These fucking people are disgusting. Can't they throw their trash in a trashcan?"
Then, Tomura gripped the napkin in his fist, making sure to touch it withal five of his fingers. As a result, the napkin decayed into dust before slipping through his fingers and scattering in the light breeze.
Ironically, Tomura had just littered like the people he was just complaining about. Though, the trash he failed to throw in a trashcan was too small for anyone to make a fuss about.
"Damn it! I got distracted." Tomura said after realizing that Tatsuo and Sakura had probably taken even greater distance from where he was standing. "I need to hurry, there still might be a chance."
With that, Tomura hurried to catch up with Tatsuo and Sakura.
About a minute earlier, Tatsuo and Sakura stopped shortly after turning the corner that broke Tomura's line of sight.
"Tatsuo-Kun?" Sakura asked, curious why they had come to a stop.
"Like I said, I'm gonna give that guy a little gift." Tatsuo said with a smirk spread across his face.
As he spoke, Tatsuo pulled a folded napkin he took with him before leaving the food court. Then, he balled it up in his palm. A moment later, with the same hand he held the napkin, he extended his index finger, which was glowing with [Spatial Energy], and swept it down, making a small tear in space.
On the other side of the tear, Tomura's back was visible. Tatsuo then extended his hand through the tear and gently tapped Tomura on his back. At the same time, he let go of the napkin, letting it flutter through the air before quickly retracting his hand and letting the tear close.
"What did you just do?" Sakura asked curiously.
"I put a spatial marker on him." Tatsuo replied with a shrug. "The napkin was just a little distraction."
"Spatial marker?" Sakura asked rhetorically as she pieced the series of events together. "Then, doesn't that mean...?"
"Yup." Tatsuo replied with a bright smile on his face. "When we go on our internships with Alfonzo next month, we'll be able to find him no matter where he hides. And if we're lucky, when we raid his little hideout, we'll be able to take down AFO, too. Then, we'll be able to finally go home... I miss Mom after being away for so long."
Hearing that, Sakura smiled, too. Though, the emotions behind her smile were a little complicated. On one hand, she found Tatsuo's longing for his mother adorable. On the other hand, she knew that her time with Tatsuo would be coming to an end once the [Mission] was over.
Seeing Sakura's smile, Tatsuo decided not to say anything. The way Sakura felt about him was no secret. But he had no intention of extending his stay in this world just so she could, perceivably, have him all to herself.
"Alright, we're pretty much done here." Tatsuo said, blatantly changing the subject. "You ready to go home?"
"*Sigh* Yeah..." Sakura replied. "Let's go home."
With a nod, Tatsuo once again swept his hand through the air, opening a much larger tear in space. And on the other side was the training room at Alfonzo's apartment. Then, just before the two stepped through the tear, Tatsuo turned to SAkura with a smile.
"I had a good time today." Tatsuo said. Then, he leaned forward and planted a short kiss on Sakura's lips before continuing. "We should do it again."
Naturally, Sakura's face was red to a worrying degree. Despite that, the silly smile on her face made it clear that she had no issue with the sudden kiss. And when Tatsuo saw her expression, he smiled once again before taking her by the hand and leading her through the tear in space, bringing an end to their date.