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[I Need More Power]
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| A month later… |
…
"Well, this idea sucked," Taka muttered, glancing at the laptop in front of him with dissatisfaction.
He had, in fact, not been onto something.
It had already been an entire month since he had received the new mission of learning a type of art, and after very little deliberation, he chose the guitar.
Why? Because if he wanted to aura farm, it was the best instrument. You don't see chicks going crazy for the pianist, drummer, or bassist, right? The one getting attention was always the guitarist.
Of course, singers were also pretty popular, so it was also a choice, but his voice honestly wasn't very melodious.
So, he just chose the guitarist path.
As for where he got a guitar, considering he was out of funds after spending all his savings on skin care?
Well, Seiji seemed to have one taking dust on a corner of the house. When Taka asked him for it, the guy just shot him a disbelieving look before waving him off as he muttered, "So you're at that age, huh?"
And like that, he got a guitar.
A month passed since then, with him practicing with the instrument and learning not to suck.
During it, however, Taka decided to try uploading his process on QuirkTube. Awaiting the moment his videos would explode in popularity, and aura would begin raining like crazy.
Sadly, as may be evident from how he complained earlier, that didn't happen.
Not to mention that he forgot to account for the fact that him just showing his progress on learning it wouldn't generate much aura—if any at all.
To top it off, he also barely received any visits on his videos.
He had gotten, like, 10 subs throughout the span of these four and something weeks.
Truly, a disappointment of a project.
"Who could have thought becoming famous would be such a hassle?" Taka grumbled, turning his laptop off and glancing at the ceiling with a lazy expression.
Of course, his attempt at going viral was secondary. His main concern was the mission, which was going fairly well.
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
[Now that you're capable of holding your ground—barely, it's time to focus on other aspects of the perfect aura farmer. Not all in life is fighting, so be sure to sharpen your other skills so you're not only a one-trick pony! Aura Farming is present in all actions.]
Conditions for completion:
▸Practice a type of art for a month.✔
▸Dominate the basis of said art.
Reward: Gain Aura depending on your performance beyond what is asked of you | Gain the skill: [Connoisseur]
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
—If it weren't for that last condition that he had yet to fulfill...
"What does 'the basis' even mean? I'm pretty sure I already learned most of what there's to know." Taka grumbled, squinting his eyes as he glanced at the mission screen.
If he had to say so himself, he already could play fairly well… When not rushed or under pressure.
And he might sometimes make mistakes.
And he might forget the notes from time to time.
But he could play, and that was all that mattered.
So he didn't know what this damn system wanted, but he assumed all that was left for him to do was to keep practicing until he eventually fulfilled that last condition and took that aura and skill with him.
"What does 'connoisseur' even mean anyway?"
With a grumble, he got up and left his room.
He walked into the living room, meeting once again a wild Seiji reading a newspaper with an amused expression.
Noticing him, Seiji smiled and pointed at the newspaper, showing it to him like it was some incredible discovery. "Hey, kid, look at this. Some kids your age just did something crazy!"
Taka raised an eyebrow and took the paper, eyeing it with curiosity—until he saw the cover.
It was an image of Bakugo trapped inside a mud monster, and Midoriya running after him to save him.
His eyes squinted faintly.
The article explained pretty much what had happened in the anime, with All Might helping them at the last minute and saving them from the mud villain.
Besides that, it didn't offer much information. Just a few declarations from All Might, the list of crimes of the mud villain, and the usual spicy stuff to anger someone.
None of that mattered to Taka, however.
His mind was focused on something else.
"That guy is already hogging the spotlight, huh?" He clicked his tongue, eyeing with annoyance the green-haired kid in the image.
Without a word, he returned the paper to Seiji, who looked at him with an odd expression.
"What's wrong, kid?"
"Nothing." Taka ignored him and walked to the door. "I'm going out."
Seiji tilted his head. "What? Where are you going so suddenly?"
"To buy stuff, I'm hungry," Taka replied without looking back.
Seiji scoffed, shooting him a deadpan look. "Already spending your allowance? The month is barely starting, kid. Try to make it last."
"If you gave me more, it'd last longer."
"Hah, you wish."
With a mocking smirk, Seiji lifted the newspaper and proceeded to ignore Taka, who looked at him with an annoyed glare.
"Stingy prick." With a curse under his breath, Taka opened the door and left. Swearing in his mind to one day find something to blackmail Seiji to increase his allowance.
Minutes later, as he walked through the street, Taka let out a quiet grumble, glancing up at the sky with a scowl.
"My time is running out…"
As he mumbled that, he pulled up his status screen with a displeased frown.
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
[STATUS PAGE]
▸ Strength: 66
▸ Defense: 132
▸ Aura Projection: 430
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Total Aura: 430
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Skills:
▸Clean
▸Trouble Radar
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
There were only ten months left until the U.A. entrance exams—until the anime's main events began unfolding.
Right now, he was way stronger than he'd been two months ago. And by the time the exams came around, he'd probably be even stronger.
With Seiji's training still underway, his physical stats were steadily increasing. So he'd probably be pretty fit by then, even without using his aura to boost his physical stats.
And his AP, well, it was unnecessary to mention it was his favorite stat. Being able to use telekinesis was awesomely convenient.
When he was in bed and needed to stand up to pick something, he could just use his AP to bring it to himself.
—And that was pretty much the only use he was giving it.
But well, regardless of the menial tasks it was being subjected to, its growth was undeniable, and Taka would probably continue pouring his aura on it whenever he got more.
If he had already gained over 400 aura points in around three months since getting his system, how much higher would it get by the time the exam happened?
Would he reach the 2000 points? Maybe even more?
He was awaiting it expectantly.
Suddenly, Taka's look full of anticipation turned slightly more moody, glancing ahead with a squint of eyes.
'But will it be enough?'
Midoriya would enter U.A. practically powerless. Total baby-tier. But within a single year, the guy would shoot up to All Might levels.
Taka would have a head start, sure. He'd be strong right from the beginning if he reached the 2000 aura mark by then. That was a ton in terms of force, after all.
But who was to say he wouldn't be outpaced?
He didn't know how strong All Might was in terms of stats, but judging from his feats, he was sure the guy was pretty far ahead of his current self. Maybe in the hundreds of thousands? in the millions?
So, for Midoriya to reach that guy's level in merely a year—Taka couldn't help but ask himself, would it be possible for him to also have that level of speed in his growth?
Would he really be able to keep up with the protagonist of this world?
Cause if he didn't, then his entire plans of aura farming would come down as Midoriya hogged the spotlight all to himself.
He needed to stay on top—mark the difference clearly from the very beginning.
A difference the guy wouldn't be able to cross, even with that protagonistic luck of his.
Taka narrowed his eyes, then finally closed them.
'In that case... I guess I should start taking this a bit more seriously.'
With that resolution, he commanded the system to activate "that".
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
[Trouble Radar] (ACTIVATED!)
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
Instantly, Taka felt something, a faint, eerie sensation in the vicinity… not too far—actually, it was just around the corner.
Opening his eyes, he quickly made his way toward the source. Not wanting to miss anything.
When he arrived, though, he saw nothing.
Just the usual bustling street he sometimes passed through.
"Hold up…"
He squinted.
A hero had just stepped into the street, quickly gathering attention as people surrounded him, asking for autographs.
If he recalled correctly, the hero's name was Force Kick, a colleague of Seiji.
However, what truly caught Taka's attention was that despite the crowd surrounding him, the hero's eyes scanned the area intently, as if looking for someone specific.
Taka immediately picked up on what may be happening, and with the quickness of a normal teenager with no vision-enhancing Quirk, he began scanning the crowd himself, eyes sharp.
It took him a while, and nothing seemed out of order.
But then—he saw it.
Someone in the crowd shifted, their appearance warping for a split second. A flash of reptilian features surfaced before the figure morphed into another look entirely.
Taka's eyes widened.
That was it. These two were about to fight!
Maybe he was being mutantphobic, but judging from how the guy looked like he was hiding, and the hero being on the look out for something, plus his trouble radar telling something was about to happen here, Taka immediately came to the conclusion that the reptile-like guy was a villain escaping, and that soon Force Kick would discover him, giving place to a fight.
That, or a car crash would happen. That was also possible.
But for now, he was gonna lead into his first supposition.
"But what should I do…?"
This didn't feel like a high-threat incident. Nothing catastrophic. So there was no need for him to jump in.
But that didn't mean there wasn't an opportunity.
What was the best way to aura farm from this?
Attacking the villain right away was an option—except he wasn't completely sure the guy was a villain.
Plus, Taka would get in trouble later if he attacked with his face and identity exposed. He didn't have a hero license, after all.
So, yeah, for now, that was discarded.
…For now.
'Damn… Aura farming really is troublesome…'
He groaned, rubbing his chin with a deep, thoughtful expression.
Until—
His eyes lit up. A spark of inspiration hit.
"That's it!"
Without another word, he turned on his heel and bolted back home, a wide grin stretching across his face.
…
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°
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| Minutes later… |
…
Just like Taka had predicted, the hero eventually spotted the chameleon-quirked guy, and a fight broke out.
Force Kick's Quirk consisted of producing small bursts of energy from his feet, which could be used for both mobility and for combat, enhancing his kicks and his running speed.
The chameleon's Quirk, on the other hand, not only let him copy people's appearances—as it'd be expected of such a Quirk—but also gave him enhanced agility and a long, powerful tongue that he could use to attack.
Both combatants were… fine. Nothing special. Middle-of-the-road power levels.
But that meant the fight lasted a while.
Neither side gained the upper hand. The hero held his own, but the villain wasn't being overwhelmed either. The chameleon's only real threat was that more heroes might arrive and tip the scales.
For now, though, he held his ground.
All he needed was the right chance to slip away—
—CHA-KA-CHAN! —
But then, the sound of an electric guitar strummed sharply across the city block, cutting through the noise of battle.
Both combatants were startled mid-motion, halting just before their next clash. They looked around, confused.
Then they saw him.
Perched atop a building, overlooking the fight with both legs crossed and an electric guitar in his grasp, was a figure dressed in a black hoodie that cast his face in shadow. A dark mouth mask obscured the rest of his features.
The only thing visible were his eyes—sharp, black, and fixed directly on them.
Behind him, a compact kit of amplifiers stood humming softly, making sure every strum of his guitar echoed powerfully across the street below.
Both hero and villain glanced at the newcomer in confusion, darting looks at each other every now and then, as if asking, "Can you believe this?".
The crowd around was just as stunned. What was this guy doing?
Fortunately, they would get their answers right away.
Without a word, the figure tightened the grasp on his guitar and…
Began to play.
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-To be Continued…-
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(A/N: I don't know how to play music, so don't expect perfect realism... and while at it, I also don't know how to do many things Taka will do, so the same applies for that.
Whatever unrealistic part, let's simply attribute it to the great System.
Also, if we reach 100 power stones, I'll be uploading an extra chapter!)