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[The Song]
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(A/N: Ready your songs readers... or don't.
Anyway, your author's choice was SPECIALZ, in case you feel like hearing it too.)
…
As Taka's voice fell, the crowd—silent but brimming with anticipation—erupted all at once.
The melody struck them instantly. The rhythm, the vocals, the arrangement, everything burrowed deep into the audience's chest in a single beat, dragging their emotions along with it.
The visuals were not falling behind either.
Red and blue lasers sliced through the air, sweeping across the stage and illuminating the silhouettes of the many Rockinesises, while a thick veil of theatrical smoke spread over the floor, giving the identical figures an almost otherworldly presence.
Cheers and whistles came from the excited crowd, but the song overpowered all of them, and the audience didn't seem to mind in the slightest. They jumped, screamed, and even cried as their emotions overflowed.
—There were always those emotional ones who cried at concerts.
The entire place was submerged in the performance so deeply that almost no one noticed what was happening at the sides of the stage.
Hidden beneath the thunder of the music, frustrated shouts struggled to be heard.
"Dammit, has anyone made it up there to stop that guy?!" a hero in a blue-and-white suit yelled into his radio, trying not to be swallowed by the deafening song.
A reply crackled back through the static.
{"East side here. The path is completely blocked by a clone. We can't get through!"}
"Shit! How the hell can clones be enough to hold all of us back?!"
A hero beside him groaned. "This is getting depressing…"
Unwilling to give up, the first hero shoved the radio into his pocket and marched toward the stairs leading up to the stage.
But before he could reach them, a figure silently appeared in his path.
Rockinesis—a clone, presumedly—floated calmly in midair, arms crossed, and legs dangling. It appeared in front of him, blocking his path completely.
The hero clenched his teeth.
"Rockinesis, y-you don't have permission to perform here! Actually, forget that—you're a wanted fugitive! Get out of the way and put an end to this farce!"
"..."
A second of silence passed, both of them clashing gazes, in a contest of will—until the black-clad figure suddenly lifted a hand…
"...!"
…and wagged a single finger left and right. The hero's request, denied.
"Enough!" The hero snapped, thrusting his hands upward.
Pebbles—sharp, dense, and accelerated—shot up like a hailstorm toward the vigilante.
Sadly, they all crumbled into dust before even reaching him.
"Wha—?!"
Then, in the blink of an eye, the hero was yanked off his feet, hoisted into the air like a misbehaving child by the telekinesis, and flown straight back to the cluster of other heroes before being unceremoniously dropped onto the ground.
Seconds later, he scrambled back to his feet and groaned, rubbing his temples. "Why is my Quirk so pathetic…?"
Before he could fully wallow, his radio buzzed again in his pocket.
{"All heroes, be advised—you are not to stop Rockinesis."}
The hero snatched it up instantly. "But Mr. Takeda, he—!"
{"He is sending the crowd wild. Sure, he may have butted in forcefully on the stage and messed with the schedule, but this is incredible publicity for the event."}
"You're kidding me."
{"Besides… he's completely overwhelming all of you, isn't he? Just let him be. It's not like you could do anything anyway."}
The hero's posture slumped forward in defeat, looking on the verge of tears.
Back on the stage, the many Rockinesises kept playing in perfect coordination, each clone hitting their part with almost supernatural precision.
But they didn't stop just at that.
Before long, some of the clones started breakdancing while still playing, flexing so hard it bordered on showboating.
But judging by the public's excited reaction, they sure didn't give a damn about the obvious flexing.
Taka, meanwhile, sweatdropped from his spot at the front, standing normally while playing his part.
'You bunch are doing too much.' He sent his clones a look.
His clones looked back at him. 'We are doing everything!'
'…Fair enough.' Taka sighed inwardly, eyes darting away.
He had to admit… watching someone shred a piano, bass, or a drumset while spinning on their head was objectively impressive.
"Whatever…" he muttered aloud.
Then, in one smooth motion, he dropped down, braced his palms, and began spinning on his head too, guitar in hand, holding it with Aura while his fingers continued playing. The rhythm he played surged in intensity, taking over the melody as his legs kicked and swung wildly in the air.
And then pumped the show up.
He floated—all while still spinning, his guitar riffs blazed through the song, momentarily drowning out the clones, who slowed to let the main act take the spotlight.
The crowd froze. Their frenzy died mid-jump, the sheer awe enough to bring everything to a still.
And there was more.
As the song approached its climax and Taka landed back on the stage, every Rockinesis lifted a single finger.
And then—
A barrage of lights blasted into the sky, rapid and relentless, like Gatling guns firing fireworks that never exploded.
The audience's eyes sparkled. The emotional ones were already foaming at the mouth. Even the heroes who'd been trying to shut everything down earlier could only stare, entranced by the spectacle.
Taka's eyes gleamed beneath the mask, an excited smirk tugging at his lips.
This was it.
This was what he'd spent months preparing for.
This was the culmination of all his efforts.
The proof of what he could create with his own hands—with his own mind.
The waves of aura notifications ringing in his ears were ignored entirely. All he cared about was the stunned faces before him and the sound of his own song filling the night.
The heat, the sweat, the deafening volume—any other day, it would've driven him insane. But tonight, every sensation fueled him, sharpened him, pushed his performance further.
Tonight, he wasn't the Taka he was every day. Tonight, he was at the peak… Even if it was temporary, even if it was only in his own head—
Tonight, he shone brighter than anyone.
"Haha…" Taka laughed, eyes gaining a glow.
Another system alert rang in his ears, but once again, it was tuned out. Taka's smirk behind the mask widened into a full-on toothy smile.
Once again, he rose into the air, floating higher and higher, the guitar cable stretching taut behind him as the speakers followed.
Soon, the song reached its final stretch, and with it came the climax—an overwhelming surge that sent the crowd into emotions most had never even grazed before. Inspiration, excitement, raw motivation. Their throats tightened, their bodies trembled, their hearts thundered in sync with Taka's.
For a moment, every single person in the venue felt it.
No—they saw it.
His presence, his existence, his very essence blazed brighter than anything they'd witnessed. Like a new star had erupted across the night sky, drowning out the rest. They felt it ripple through them, every cell shivering as if awakened.
His Aura.
…
As the climax faded, Taka slowly drifted back toward the stage. The blinding light around him receded, and the crowd's emotions began stabilizing—though not fading.
Eventually, the frantic beat slowed, and the melody softened.
And finally, with a last resonant chord, the song ended—leaving behind a satisfying, almost cruelly tempting sense of wanting more.
A full minute of absolute silence fell over the entire festival.
Not a whisper or a breath from the public. Instead, everyone just stared ahead with blank gazes.
For an instant, Taka's smile wavered behind his mask.
But that had simply been the crowd snapping back from the trance.
Once they all returned to reality—
-Clap-
One single applaud broke the silence.
And then another.
And another.
Until the entire venue erupted into applause, not a single person stayed still. Even the heroes, who'd been scrambling to stop him minutes earlier, couldn't help but clap.
Taka let out a long, satisfied sigh, sweat rolling down his face beneath the heat of the lights and the stuffiness of the mask and hoodie.
He snorted lightly, closing his eyes as he soaked in the crowd's frenzy and awe.
His heartbeat and the intense state he had been in earlier cooled down as the crowd's cheering reached his ears.
His clones did another batch of ridiculous poses behind him, but he didn't care. All that entered his mind at that moment was the people's acclaim.
—at least, until the blaring wail of police sirens cut straight through the cheers.
His eyes snapped open, and his until then relaxed face turned to a deadpan in one go.
"…Ah, shit."
Immediately, he snapped his fingers, and every clone on stage puffed out of existence at once.
A single wave of his hand disconnected all the instruments from whatever setup he'd jury-rigged.
And then, after a short bow to the audience—
—BAM!—
Taka shot into the sky, soaring upward as every piece of equipment trailed behind him like a floating tail of metal.
…
°
°
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| Taka's POV, minutes later, through the sky: |
…
It's finally done.
Three whole months of work finally paid off.
"Phew…" I exhaled, trying to calm my still beating like crazy heart.
That had been amazing. Even now I felt… elevated. Like I'd ascended or something.
Maybe I'd fall back to mediocrity once I collapsed on my bed tonight, but for now, I felt like the whole world was in the palm of my hand.
Instantly, my mind went back to the concert. Would I ever feel like that again? That sensation of standing at the top?
My fist clenched, a small mocking smirk tugging at my lips.
'What the hell, I'm acting like an overly excited kid.' I shook my head. Whatever that was down there, it had shaken me more than necessary.
For now, I should focus on outrunning the police—
'Huh? Ah, right, I forgot you existed for a second.'
It was partially the system's mission that pushed me into doing all this, wasn't it? Crazy how I completely forgot.
"Well, whatever. Hit me with it," I said, waving a hand beckoningly.
And hit me it did.
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
[COMPLETE!]
[You've taken a step forward in your path to true aura farming, for the True Aura Farmer does not steal. The Aura farmer creates, shows, and inspires.]
Conditions for completion:
▸Develop your own song.✔
▸Once done, present it in a place with more than a thousand people.✔
▸Have people enjoy your song.✔
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
<+1000 Aura!>
<+Skill [Imaginary Technique: My Theme]!>
"That's a lot of Aura…" I muttered, eyes sparkling at the reward.
Naturally, I opened my status to see how ridiculous my numbers had become—
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
[STATUS PAGE]
▸ Strength: 119
▸ Defense: 238
▸ Aura Projection: 6062
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Total Aura: 9052
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Skills:
▸Clean
▸Trouble Radar
▸Connoisseur
▸Pain is Just a Feeling
▸Innamovible Object
▸True Speaking
▸True Breathing
▸True Walking
▸Good job beating me… But that was merely a clone!
▸Efficient Body
▸Aura Projection - Pew Pew Mode
▸Imaginary Technique: My Theme
▸Sperm Eye
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
"Whoa—what the hell?!" I gawked at the number.
It was… it was…
OVER 9000!!!
How the heck had that even happened?!
My AP had barely been in the six-thousands this morning.
It jumped by 3000 in a single night… that's crazy.
A thousand was from the mission, so the other two thousand must've come from the audience?
"Haha…" I let out a wry laugh. This—this was beyond anything I expected.
My prediction of hitting ten thousand by the time U.A. started suddenly felt way too conservative.
Three months remained. With stats like these now, who knows how broken I'll be then?
"Yeah, I know, the 'my theme' skill, right?"
"Huh? Just now?"
"Oh… so what is it?"
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
[Sperm Eye] (Active)
Description: The eyes are the window of the soul, and they too can reflect the sheer aura you exude.
You just gotta make them glow a little. 'Cause glowing eyes means you're locking in.
▸You can change your eye color to your choice.
▸You can make your eyes glow.
▸You can add a small non-burning flame to your eyes to give yourself that classic sperm eye.
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
"Huh… Well, I guess it makes sense something like this would show up," I muttered, looking the skill up and down, before deadpanning a bit. "But did that have to be its name? Couldn't you just have called it the edgy eyes or something?"
Whatever. You do you, buddy.
Still, as amusing a skill as it was, it wasn't the one I was looking forward to at the moment.
So, having given it a look over one final time, I closed the notification and opened my newly gained skill, eager to see what it could do.
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
[Imaginary Technique: My Theme] (Active)
Description: Everything seems lost. The heroes are beaten, the world is a disaster, and only doom stains the horizon.
Now, the weak simply stand powerless for a fate they are unable to change.
Evil has triumphed… There is no hope left.
—Or so they thought.
As the survivors cry in defeat, something sharp cuts through their despair.
A melody. One they all know too well.
Heads rise, and tears of hope fall.
And all eyes are centered on one point.
There he is—bathed in the sunset, accompanied by a song engraved in the world's memory.
The Aura Farmer.
▸Play a song of your choice in the minds of the people around you whenever you desire.
▸The song chosen won't manifest as a literal song playing in their heads like a speaker had been put in their brain. Instead, it will be created by the unconscious of the person, making them imagine said song, even if it's not actually playing. Pretty much like Schizophrenia, but cooler.
▸You too can hear the song if you desire.
· · ─────── ·𖥸· ─────── · ·
…
"Zamn."
Yeah… that's…
Ahem.
It's not like I'm already dying to try it out or anything.
Sighing, I closed the screen and focused back on flying—though I kept glancing at the empty space where the window had been more times than I want to admit.
"Well, that's gonna be one hella fun skill to use in the future," I muttered and smirked faintly.
But then, my phone buzzed.
I raised an eyebrow and took it out. Someone had sent a message.
Had Seiji seen the stuff I was up to and finally decided to hold me accountable for my actions?
Curious, I opened the app.
And my eyebrow twitched upon what I saw.
{Jiro: Yo Takahashi guess what??? I was at this music festival in Tokyo, and suddenly Rockinesis popped up! Can you believe it?}
[Image of Jiro making a peace sign with the Rockinesis gang in the background, rocking hella hard.]
I massaged my face in something akin to confusion or frustration, I don't know.
'Of course she was there.'
Then, sighing, I tapped a response.
{You: Stop fangirling}
{Jiro: ???}
…
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-To be Continued…-
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(A/N: Well, and that was the song chapter. From here on, just a few more preparations are in order before Taka finally makes his debut at the U.A.
There's still one skill I want him to acquire. I'm sure you guys will like it. It's very… uh, to make you take a seat from the awe?
I don't know how to describe it. But it's for sure a skill an aura farmer should have. So look forward to it.)