More chapters at my Patreon, and you help me make ends meet while at it.
patreon.com/TheSynonym
────────────────────────
[Success]
────────────────────────
Song Taka is playing: Future in my hands - Devil May Cry (Instrumental only in his case, but hear the full song either way)
The entire avenue was dumbstruck as the unknown guy began playing a catchy song out of nowhere, still sitting on the edge of a rooftop, casually strumming while the villain and hero stared at him in disbelief.
The blatant disrespect was staggering.
What the hell was this guy doing in the middle of a battle?!
Still—
'He's kinda good…' That thought echoed in more than a few heads, some people in the crowd instinctively bobbing along to the rhythm of the guitar solo.
However, not everyone was entranced by the music.
The chameleon villain—though momentarily confused—soon smirked, clearly thinking this was the perfect distraction to slip away.
Force Kick was still staring at the black-clad figure above, trying to make sense of what was even happening, making this the perfect moment to get away.
'Kukuku… I don't know who this weirdo is, but thank you very mu—huh?'
However, just as the villain tried to dart off, using both speed and stealth to vanish unnoticed, something shoved him back at the last second, making him stumble and land on his butt.
He quickly scrambled up again, narrowing his eyes at the air in front of him.
'What the heck was that?'
He took another step forward—
Only to be pushed back again.
"Kgh—!"
This time, he caught himself before falling, glaring at the path that should've been his clean getaway with disbelief.
"W-what the hell?" he muttered, scanning the open space in front of him like it had just betrayed him.
It felt like… gravity itself was changing directions just to not let him pass.
His gaze suddenly snapped to Force Kick—was this his doing?
'No. His Quirk doesn't work like that. And he's still distracted by—wait…'
His eyes locked onto the figure in black.
Still up there. Still playing a song like this was none of his business.
And in that moment, when their eyes met—
He saw it.
Contempt.
The guy was looking at him with contempt!
"It's you!" he snarled.
The culprit was the guy in black!
Without thinking twice, he shot his tongue toward the rooftop—intent on teaching this random a lesson.
"Dynamic Kick!"
–BAM!–
"Ugh—!"
Sadly, before it could reach, a powerful blow slammed into his side.
He tumbled across the street, rolling like a kicked can, before catching himself mid-spin and landing on all fours.
Furious, he turned to his attacker.
"You fucker!"
Force Kick.
Apparently, the moment the villain had tried to lash out at the masked guitarist, Force Kick had finally snapped out of his confusion—and launched a high-powered kick to his ribs.
He had planned on using the guitarist as a distraction, but ended up being distracted himself!
"Damn it," the villain cursed, glancing up at the rooftop again.
He wanted to attack him—but with the hero meddling, it didn't seem like he could for now.
Still… it seemed the guy in black didn't plan to interfere beyond stopping his escape.
Otherwise, he'd have done more already.
For now, he just kept playing—watching them with cold eyes from above… Like he wanted them to fight, all while playing his music.
Using them as entertainment.
'Sick bastard.'
Unfortunately, as much as he didn't like it, with Force Kick meddling he didn't have much option but to fight as the masked guy wanted.
Force Kick seemed to come to a similar conclusion.
Annoying as this interruption was—whatever law this fell under—the real threat was still in front of him.
So, he had to focus on that first.
'As for the guy with the guitar… I'll deal with him later!' The two thought the same thing, unknowingly in sync.
And with that, the fight resumed.
Only now—with a sick soundtrack on the back.
Blow after blow, hero and villain clashed without pause.
Sometimes, Force Kick landed devastating kicks, sending his opponent flying down the street—only for him to spring back to his feet like nothing happened.
Other times, the chameleon villain caught Force Kick by the ankle with his tongue, spinning him like a ragdoll before hurling him across the intersection—only for the hero to stabilize mid-air with a burst of energy and shoot back in like a missile.
Meanwhile, someone else was banking on this whole fight.
'HAHAHAHA, YES, YES, LET IT RAIN!!!'
<[+13 Aura]>
<[+15 Aura]>
<[+11 Aura]>
<[+14 Aura]>
<[+9 Aura]>
Taka was grinning like an idiot behind his face mask as he continued playing, soaking in the beautiful sound of system notifications popping up erratically every once in a while through the song.
This had been a genius idea!
He'd already collected around 60 Aura since the start of the song, and there were still two minutes left.
If it kept up like this, he'd earn a full 100 points in a single day.
A massive-ass gain!
And all thanks to a piece of music pulled straight from his past life's memories.
Thankfully, just before he got permanently KO'd by that banana, he'd been watching that obscure Devil May Cry anime from the 2000s. This song had made it onto his playlist, so it was still relatively fresh in his head.
Well… most of it.
There were a few parts he'd had to make up during the past month or so since he couldn't recall them, but it had turned out pretty damn good regardless.
His technique was still that of a total noob, though. The only reason this "concert" was going well was because the song was unknown, so people couldn't really tell when he missed notes or completely butchered a section.
Plus, it was the only song he'd practiced since picking up the guitar.
It made sense that he could play it decently. If he tried anything else?
He'd probably suck three times as much.
But hey—
It was doing its job.
<[+5 Aura]>
<[+7 Aura]>
<[+7 Aura]>
Taka's playing sped up in response to the notifications, a wide grin spreading under his mask. Though his expression twitched slightly when he noticed the numbers were starting to dip.
'Hmm… the gains are diminishing a bit. Guess the surprise factor can only carry me so far.'
His eyes flicked toward the two still going at it in the street below.
That reminded him—he had another problem he hadn't quite figured out yet.
What the hell was he gonna do when the fight ended?
Just casually walk away?
Yeah no, he had the feeling it wouldn't be that easy.
The last thing he needed was to get arrested for interfering with a public arrest or some other nonsense.
That would wipe all his Aura.
Then again… maybe if he played it right, he could spin this into some kind of "mysterious bad boy vigilante with a sick riff" image.
Surely someone out there would get flustered and toss him a few bonus aura points.
Still, jail time wasn't exactly a good look when you were aiming to get into U.A.
'That might leave a mark on my file.' he mused, discarding the idea right away.
As Taka mulled it over—or as much as he could, given half his brain was focused on not screwing up the guitar—he eventually just shrugged.
That's Future Taka's problem.
Right now?
He had to focus.
The climax of the song was approaching fast.
And just like the song, the battle down below was also reaching its peak.
–BANG!–
"Galactic Kick!"
Force Kick slammed his boot right into the chameleon villain's face, releasing a burst of energy that blasted the villain backwards.
–Crash!–
The impact launched him several meters, straight into the side of a nearby building—shattering glass as he crashed through a window.
"Huff…"
With his opponent seemingly down and his foot having a bit of smoke coming out of his sole, Force Kick heaved a weary sigh. This fight had left him utterly drained.
Who would've guessed that someone with a chameleon Quirk could fight that well?
But that last kick… It had to be enough, right? It was his strongest move—
–Whip!–
"What?!"
His thoughts were cut short as, suddenly, a tongue lashed out from the broken window where the villain had crashed—shooting toward him like a bullet.
Tired and worn out, the hero had no chance to dodge.
In the blink of an eye, his wrist was caught.
There was a moment of eerie stillness as he glanced at it… Then, the realization hit him.
"Oh no."
And then—the tongue pulled.
"Aaargh!"
-Bam!-
-Crack!-
-Slam!-
-Crash!-
Force Kick was flung like a ragdoll.
He crashed against cars, bounced off buildings, got dragged along the asphalt and smashed through the ground like a plaything at the mercy of that unnaturally powerful tongue.
Then, just when it looked like he couldn't take any more, the tongue snapped upward one final time, launching him high into the air before letting go.
Up he soared, like a beautiful bird.
Then—gravity kicked in. He began falling helplessly, his eyes rolling back.
As he plummeted, the villain leapt out of the ruined building on all fours like a beast, quickly beginning to gather momentum as he dashed towards the falling hero with an enraged face.
And just as Force Kick was about to hit the ground—
–BAM!–
The chamaleon tackled Force Kick mid-air like a meteor, slamming into him with terrifying speed.
–CRASH!–
The hero's limp body was sent hurtling into another building—piercing through another window and ending up stuck halfway in, his legs dangling limply outside.
He didn't move.
He was out.
"Haaah… haaah… haaah… That's what you get," the chameleon villain panted, grinning triumphantly as victory washed over him.
The crowd was stunned... They had expected the hero to win. That's how it always went.
And yet… now their hero lay limply on a shattered window, unmoving and unresponsive.
He was knocked out cold.
Dozens of wide, fearful eyes locked onto the villain, who glanced back at them with a chilling expression.
'I'd kill all of you right here… but I guess you're safe this time.'
As much as he wanted to take out his rage on these onlookers—the same people who had just cheered his beatdown moments ago—he couldn't afford to stick around.
Another hero could show up any second. And this time, he was spent and barely had any strength left in him.
So, without wasting another breath, he dropped to all fours and began to run, preparing to make his grand escape—
"Gah!"
Only to end up letting out a surprised cry as he was once again thrown backwards by a mysterious force.
"Kgh—what?!"
Catching himself, his eyes widened—the masked guy was still blocking his way!
Angrily, he turned to the figure in black above.
That's when he noticed it.
"...!"
The song was still not over.
The guy in black hadn't stopped playing, even when the hero lost.
And he had stopped him from leaving yet again.
That meant…
"You…"
The chameleon's eyes burned red with fury as his teeth clenched.
This freak was still treating him like part of the show. Still making him look like a fool!
He was planning to keep him here until the song ended!
Was he gonna fight him next, so the show didn't end like that?
Or was he planning on keeping him here until reinforcements came?
Whatever the answer was, he wasn't going to sit and take it.
If he thought he'd be an easy opponent, then he was gonna show this fool who he was messing with!
His tongue curled in preparation, tension building like a spring.
"If you won't let me leave… then don't blame me for what's about to happen to you!"
And with those words—
The tongue shot out like a bullet.
"Watch out!" someone yelled from the crowd, worried as even when being attacked, the figure in black continued playing the song unbothered.
Fortunately, their worries were unfounded, as the next second—
"Nani?!" The villain's eyes widened.
His tongue stopped midair, like it had been stuck on something invisible.
He immediately tried pulling it back, using all his strength—yet, it refused to move. Whatever was grabbing it was stronger than him and his tongue.
'This—can't be!'
Back to Taka, he heaved a sigh as he watched everything unfold.
'I didn't expect that herp to lose so suddenly. I didn't even have the time to cushion that last hit he took.' He glanced with pity at the still-fallen hero not too far away, before turning back to the villain, his troubled face slowly turning into a grin. 'Still, it's not all that bad… The fight ended before the song's final part, so I was worried it'd look a bit stupid for me to continue playing with nothing going on in front.'
His fingers picked up speed, finally entering the last part of the song.
'But it seems I got myself the entertainment I wanted.' A twisted grin appeared on his face, hidden by the mask.
With those thoughts, the song intensified, and at the same time, the villain's tongue began being pulled.
'Time for the grand finale.'
"Aaaaargh!"
Just like the hero had been earlier, the villain was swung around without mercy, using his tongue as the focal point of the swing
-Crash!-
-Bang!-
-Thud!-
-Slam!-
A building, a car, the street, even the nearby trees—Taka didn't hold back in the slightest, slamming the villain against anything in view.
His AP was now nearing 500 points—basically enough strength to lift two really heavy men.
So tossing this chameleon guy around was no problem for him—if anything, it was trivially easy.
And as he focused on thoroughly beating the guy, he also made sure to play the final part of the song as best as he could, pouring in every drop of sweat he had spent the past month practicing for this one moment.
And that showed.
His concentration reached its peak. The poor chameleon was now being swung to the rhythm of the song, drawing every onlooker into the melody again, hypnotized by the strange harmony of violence and music.
And they weren't the only ones.
For a brief moment, Taka immersed himself fully in the show—fusing both the beating and the song into a single, seamless act. There was no longer a distinction between them.
The villain was no longer an enemy, but more like an unwilling orchestral conductor, dictating the tempo of the piece—by being flung around.
Then, as the guitar's chords sped up, the melody began to signal that the end was near—just like the villain's fate.
The notes grew sharper. The melody built tension. All leading up to the grand finale.
As the music reached its most intense moment, the villain was sent flying—just like the hero had been earlier.
And, with the final note—
—CHAN!—
—he was slammed into the ground, cracking the asphalt beneath him.
His downfall timed perfectly with the song's ending, a single powerful guitar chord cutting through the air.
Then silence.
The crowd stood frozen, staring in awe as both the impromptu concert and battle reached their dramatic end.
<[+50 Aura]>
That's when a final burst of aura followed—generated from the awe of seeing a villain, one who had overwhelmed a hero, defeated with such bizarre flair.
And with that, this entire thing was done!
Taka heaved a satisfied sigh and eyed his gains.
158 Aura, all in just a few minutes.
He almost let out a loud laugh out of disbelief at his insane gains, when something even more surprising popped up.
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
[COMPLETED!]
[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. ✔
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
<+150 Aura!>
<+Skill [Connoseur]>
Remember, aura favors the brave!>
"Hah…"
If it weren't because he didn't want to lose aura by looking like a lunatic, Taka might have burst out laughing maniacally right then and there.
A gain of 298 aura points in one day. He had almost doubled his aura since the morning.
He hurriedly opened his status screen.
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
[STATUS PAGE]
▸ Strength: 66
▸ Defense: 132
▸ Aura Projection: 430
─────────────
Total Aura: 430→728
─────────────
Skills:
▸Clean
▸Trouble Radar
▸ Connoisseur (New!)
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
"Nice…"
He eyed the new numbers with delight, then his attention shifted to the new skill, and he quickly opened its description.
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
[Connoisseur] (Passive)
Description: Since you've already shown others that you can be capable in this area too, it's only natural that your talent and skill are not merely average. You've got to show the whole world that you shine in more than one way, for you are the shiniest gem of all.
▸Increases your learning capabilities and talent in all types of art.
▸Augments your creative thinking.
▸Increases chances of entering a state of absorption on the type of art you're doing.
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
"Huh…"
Yet another skill that didn't exactly make him jump in excitement, but definitely didn't look bad either.
Especially because he had now seen how good aura farming through art could be. If he improved further, then there was no telling how much he'd be able to gain in the future.
Plus, his goal of getting famous online might now be even more feasible.
"This day just gets better and better."
As Taka was admiring his gains with a satisfied face, the sound of police sirens approaching startled him.
"Oh shit!"
Without hesitating, he enveloped his instruments in aura and began making them float.
Then, with all the aura he could spare, he boosted his physical stat and made a run for it.
He wasn't about to get caught.
Of course, he first made sure to do a bow to the still-watching crowd before dipping out of there.
<[+10 Aura]>
"Nice."
…
────────────────────────
-To be Continued-
────────────────────────
(A/N: How was it? I'd have liked the chapter to progress along the song, but it ended up a bit too long. Either way, I think it did its job.)