Back from school, Taro, Vincy, and Yukiko headed downtown for shopping before returning home.
"Ne, why didn't Ema-chan come with us?" Yukiko asked suddenly.
"No idea, she said she had something to do at home," Vincy responded. "What are we buying, by the way?"
"Soap and other necessary cleaning supplies," Taro answered. "We can also separate and buy what you guys want."
After that, the trio headed in different directions. Roughly fifty minutes later, Taro and Yukiko returned with their purchases.
"Vincy isn't back yet?" He asked.
"It seems so," Yukiko responded.
After a couple of minutes, Vincy returned in a hurry.
"Hey, Vincy, what took you so–" Taro asked.
"NO WAY, DUDE! YOU WON'T BELIEVE WHAT I FOUND!" Vincy yelled, interrupting.
"What is it?" Taro asked.
Vincy pulled Taro away from the crowded area and began showing him what was inside the shopping bag. Taro and Yukiko witnessed two heroic-like outfits.
"TADAAA!" Vincy exclaimed.
"What are these?" Yukiko asked, confused.
"In the clothes shop, I found these two costumes," Vincy explained. "There was a thirty percent discount on these."
Yukiko stared for seconds at the clothes, unimpressed and confused. Then, she asked:
"You wasted your money on clothes like these?"
"Idiot, these aren't ordinary clothes," Vincy replied. "These copies were made from the original heroes from one of my favorite cartoon shows: VISION-MAN AND CAPTAIN HAMMER!"
Silence roamed the corner they stood in, as Taro and Yukiko froze in confusion.
"Hey, what's wrong?" Vincy asked.
"Vision-Man? Captain Hammer? Maji ka?" Yukiko repeated, completely mocking.
"Ow come on, they look amazing!" Vincy replied.
"Umm, Vincy... you know that we have our outfits already, right?" Taro asked.
"Yeah, but changing can be better sometimes... am I wrong?" Vincy responded.
"No, I guess... anyway, why don't you tell us about these two characters," Taro suggested.
Vincy began explaining about the characters in the show. Vision-Man was a fictional character who could blast lasers from his eyes.
For his clothes, he wore a red and black heroic-themed outfit, complete with a long black cape. At the center of the outfit was a bold red V. His glasses resembled those used in laboratories, though they were designed to match the overall style of the costume.
As for Captain Hammer in the show, his ability allowed him to create transparent objects to stand on or use as barriers against enemies. In addition, he could throw his hammer and have it return like a boomerang.
His outfit followed the same style as Vision-Man's, with the same black cape, but the color theme was blue instead. The only distinction lay in the icon at the center, which was shaped like a blue hammer. Finally, his mask was the familiar, classic heroic eye mask.
Seems like Captain Hammer's ability can match my {Azure Shield},Taro thought.
Yukiko grabbed them to inspect and noticed the material wasn't good in quality.
"Oi, it's cheap cosplaying," she said. "Your original outfit is better."
"So what? That doesn't stop us from becoming heroes!" Vincy replied.
"You know, Vincy, being a hero doesn't mean you have to–" Taro began.
"HELP! Thief!" A voice shouted nearby, interrupting Taro's speech.
Out of shock, the trio turned around immediately.
"A thief? We didn't catch one for a long time," Vincy said. "Wait! This is our chance! Use your spell to help us wear these outfits!"
Instantly, Yukiko raised her arms toward them. Since she touched the outfits, she could easily use her {Equip Spell}. Without waiting, they wore their masks and headed to stop the thief.
On their way, they saw an old woman trying to stop the masked thief from grabbing her handbag. However, he managed to steal it and flee away.
"That's him!" Vincy shouted, following him instantly.
Vincy continued behind, while Taro went through another way. For minutes straight, Vincy kept following him without bumping into other people.
Tsk, that thief sure has fast legs! Vincy thought. I can't even use my {Berserk Mode}... that might kill him.
However, Vincy slipped on a piece of rubbish on the sidewalk, falling on his back.
"AH COME ON! STOP THROWING TRASH ON THE STREET!" He yelled, standing up and continued chasing.
Suddenly, an {Alternative Shield} appeared in front of the thief, and he crashed into it. Taro was on a roof, summoning more around him.
"Nice one, pal!" Vincy exclaimed. "Let me handle this!"
The moment Vincy got closer, Taro removed his shields. Then instantly, Vincy jumped and kicked his face, causing the thief to lose consciousness. Seconds later, Yukiko arrived, wearing her kimono outfit.
"You came just in time," Vincy said. "Bind him and leave the rest to the cops."
Later, Yukiko returned to the old woman and gave her the handbag back, wearing her casual school outfit.
"Dozo, obaasan!" Yukiko said, handing her the bag.
"Thank you, pretty polite girl," the old woman thanked. "Where is the brave guy?"
"Who knows," Yukiko answered.
"Here... let me reward you with something," she replied, opening her bag.
The woman grabbed candies out of her bag, but Yukiko had already left.
"Where did she go?" The old woman whispered, confused.
Yukiko used her {Sakura Rope} upward onto a building roof, where Taro and Vincy were waiting.
"Thanks, Yukiko, time to return home," Taro said.
"Why now, dude?" Vincy asked. "What if there were more crimes? What if someone needs help?"
"Vincy... it's 7 PM already," Taro responded.
"So what? We don't have school tomorrow!" Vincy replied.
"Yeah, but..." Taro began.
"Come on, man, this is our duty after all!" He added.
"Oi, it's our responsibility to stop the portals, not chase thieves," Yukiko jumped in.
They paused for seconds, then Taro declared:
"Fine, Vincy, you're right. It sure is our responsibility to stop the portals, Yukiko. But still, it's also our responsibility to help people in need, since we have our powers."
"That's the spirit!" Vincy exclaimed. "We can also pretend to be Vision-Man and Captain Hammer for today!"
"Alright, but I'll help Yukiko first to return home. Wait for me here," Taro said.
Around forty minutes later, Taro returned and waited with Vincy on the roof.
"Nothing yet?" He asked.
"Yeah, nothing," Vincy answered, bored.
"By the way, do these glasses shoot lasers?" Taro asked.
"Of course not, it's just normal," Vincy responded.
"Then how are you going to pretend like Vision-Man?" He added.
"Meh, I'll just use my fists for combat," Vincy answered.
"Remember not to use your power except for supernatural situations," Taro reminded.
"Yeah, I know... portals are more than enough," he replied.
Minutes passed, and still no sign of trouble.
"UGHHH, THIS IS BORING!" Vincy exclaimed.
"Yeah, we should've finished our homework or done something useful rather than waiting," Taro added.
"Sadly, you're right," Vincy agreed. "Despite how I hate doing anything for school, I still prefer finishing it rather than waiting for nothing."
Suddenly, they heard a lot of barking. There was a kitten climbing a tree, surrounded by a bunch of dogs.
"It's just a dog-after-cat chase," Vincy commented.
"Better than waiting," Taro said, summoning a staircase of shields. "Try distracting or scaring these dogs. I'll handle the kitten."
"Alright!" Vincy agreed, going down through the staircase of shields.
After a few seconds, the dogs heard a whistling sound from behind. It was Vincy, holding a small branch and waving with it.
"Hey hey! Who wants to play? Go... GET IT!" He said, throwing it away.
The dogs stared at him for a few seconds, then continued barking at the cat.
"Ignoring me, huh?" He whispered, irritated. "Well then, I'll consider this supernatural."
The moment he pumped his fists to activate his {Berserk Mode}, the dogs fled away, as the shockwave impact scared them.
"Hehe, that's what I thought," he replied.
Meanwhile, Taro approached the kitten, standing on shields.
"Come on, little guy, jump on me," Taro whispered, offered his arms.
After a few seconds, the kitten jumped, and he landed down. Then, he let the kitten go.
"I expected something better, but it was disappointing," Vincy replied.
Suddenly, a massive sound burst downtown.
"Whoa! What was that?!" Vincy asked, shocked.
"Must be a portal, but it seems different," Taro answered.
"Oh great! Now things are getting exciting!" Vincy exclaimed.
"I don't have the Azure Blade, this might be bad," Taro replied.
"Nah, don't worry," Vincy said. "Even if it gets worse, I can still use my powerful mode. Now let's go!"
Immediately, they rushed into the portal...
...Getting prepared for a different battle!
(To Be Continued...)