I. Three-Point Infiltration
The team approached the Hero Association headquarters in A-City, a monolithic fortress designed to withstand Dragon-Level attacks.
"The dimensional Ki is concentrated in the main substation, three levels below the data center," explained Kaguya, wearing a black stealth suit that absorbed light. "What they call the 'Heart of Gaia' is likely a fragment of dimensional energy in its most stable state, used as an unlimited power source for the city."
The plan was simple and risky:
Kaguya and Akiha: Silent infiltration to basement 3 (B3) to hack the power system and locate the "Heart of Gaia."
Erza: Lookout and magical diversion on the upper levels, ready to use Bang's Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist to deflect attacks instead of destroying them.
Goku: Full diversion. Locate the "anchor," Saitama, initiate combat, and keep the Class S elite busy.
Goku used Instant Transmission and appeared at the door of Saitama's apartment in Z-City. The flat Ki aura was strong there.
"Hello! I'm here for my fight!" Goku yelled, knocking on the door.
II. The Challenge of the Ki-less Hero
The door opened, revealing Saitama in his hoodie, holding a supermarket receipt.
"Are you the noisy guy from before?" Saitama said, looking at Goku's suit with total disinterest. "Look, if you don't have a coupon for the noodle shop, don't bother me. My favorite ramen is on sale only until today."
"No, no! I'm Goku, and you're the strongest person I've ever sensed... or not sensed!" Goku explained, brimming with excitement. "I want to see what happens when you hit me! If you can withstand my best punch, I'll know you're the anchor we need!"
Saitama sighed. The boredom was palpable. "Look, I agree. Do what you have to do. But make it quick, alright?"
Goku felt slightly offended by the lack of enthusiasm, but then he laughed. This guy was a total mystery!
"Alright! Here I go! Just one test!"
Goku prepared. He wouldn't use Super Saiyan, but he would focus his Ki to a base level that would vaporize any city. It was the 10% Contained Punch. A golden Ki burst began to surround him, making the apartment floor tremble.
Saitama, feeling the pressure, for the first time, raised his guard. His simple eyes focused. The atmosphere became dense. The air stopped moving.
"Punch... Seriously..." Saitama murmured, his face turning completely serious. He was about to launch a Serious Punch, something he had never done to a human being.
III. The Hack and the Alarm
Meanwhile, in B3 of the Hero Association Headquarters, Kaguya and Akiha were in the data center. Kaguya had disabled the lasers using a low-frequency wave, and Akiha had cut a titanium ventilation grate with the Water Stream Rock Smashing Fist learned from Bang, leaving only a clean slice.
Kaguya was connected directly to the mainframe, her fingers flying over the keyboard.
"I have it! The Heart of Gaia is a dimensional crystal. It's pure, stabilized Ki! I only need ten seconds to extract the jump coordinates!" Kaguya muttered.
Suddenly, a surge of Class B security robots, armed with plasma cannons, burst into the room. Erza, covering the door, re-equipped into her Lightning Empress Armor, ready to stun.
"Akiha, containment! Don't destroy the room!" Erza shouted.
Akiha used her speed to create a wall of sword slashes that deflected the plasma bursts into the armored walls.
"Hurry, Kaguya! The Association is sending Class S reinforcements!" Akiha warned, her movements now fluid and not rigid, thanks to Silver Fang's teachings.
Kaguya focused on the screen. 8 seconds... 7 seconds...
Just as Kaguya extracted the last bit of data, the Hero Association's main alarm blared with a deafening red shriek.
"Disaster Class Alert! Core Breach! All heroes, head to Headquarters!"
IV. The Interrupted Fist
In Z-City, Saitama and Goku were about to collide. Goku's contained punch and Saitama's Serious Punch faced each other across a distance of one meter. The latent energy was enough to erase the horizon.
But just as Goku was about to unleash his Ki, he sensed the panic and refined Ki of Erza and Akiha.
"No, they're in trouble! That alarm!" Goku immediately stopped his punch. The golden energy faded from his body.
Saitama, with his fist ready for a devastating blow, blinked.
"What? Are you done already?" Saitama asked, his face returning to its usual expression of boredom.
"Sorry, you have to be fast! My friends need me!" Goku put two fingers to his forehead.
"Wait, we just...!"
Before Saitama could finish his sentence, Goku activated Instant Transmission, disappearing just as a hero with a yellow lightning streak, Flashy Flash, zoomed past the building at an almost impossible speed, leaving a sonic trail.
Flashy Flash was heading at full speed toward the Hero Association Headquarters. He had detected the energy spike in Z-City (Goku's canceled punch), but the priority was the breach at headquarters.
Goku suddenly appeared in basement 3.
"I got it! Let's go!" Kaguya shouted, holding the tablet with the coordinates.
Erza used her magic to create a smoke diversion, while Akiha threw a precise slice that disabled the room's light generators. The group headed for the extraction point.
Saitama, alone in his apartment with a fist in the air, shrugged and grabbed his receipt again.
"What an annoying guy," he muttered, before hearing his phone ring. It was the Hero Association.
"Yeah, I get it. An attack on Headquarters? No, I was busy... and some guy in orange pajamas came to challenge me. He quit halfway through. Yeah, he was just playing around. I'll go now."