Chapter 404: The Bald Caped Baldy
Wandering Earth, though technically one of the group's founding members — every bit as veteran as Ryū, Whitebeard, Kaguya, or Yukari themselves — hadn't been paying much attention back when the group first discussed Saitama and the One Punch Man world. So it never really grasped just how absurdly strong the man actually was.
The only thing it had retained was a vague impression that Saitama was strong — top-tier by One Punch Man's own standards, presumably stronger than Tatsumaki.
But hearing it laid out just now, this newcomer's strength apparently went well beyond even that expectation.
Wandering Earth had figured Saitama might edge Tatsumaki out, sure — but Admin-sama saying she could realistically only hold out against him for about 25 minutes? That felt like a genuinely absurd gap.
Was this newcomer really that ridiculously strong?
Hiss... unbelievable. Genuinely terrifying. Hard to process. Shaking in its boots, honestly.
Another member who could casually blow up a whole planet, just walking in the door like it was nothing. Terrifying, truly.
And why did every recent newcomer turn out this absurdly powerful, anyway?
Master Roshi, the Ancient One, Ahri, Saitama — and out of that lineup, Ahri was probably the weakest one, with the other three each stronger than the last.
Wandering Earth genuinely felt like it was dragging down the reputation of the group's founding members at this point — one of the original batch, and here it was, unable to even hold its own against a random newcomer. Genuinely embarrassing.
Was there anyone else in the whole group more pathetic than itself right now?
Surely not.
Surely there couldn't be.
Wandering Little Planet: Newcomer's a legend!! Well, since that's settled, guess I'll just lean on you for protection going forward. Lovely.
Hero for Fun: Uh... I'm really just a hero for fun, honestly. Not exactly in the business of "protecting" anyone specifically?
Wandering Little Planet: Let me put it this way — you're a hero, right?
Hero for Fun: Yep, that's right!
Wandering Little Planet: And as a hero, isn't protecting Earth kind of your whole job?
Hero for Fun: Also right!
Wandering Little Planet: Well, there you go, then! Protecting adorable little me is functionally the same as protecting Earth!
Wandering Little Planet: Because I am Earth, after all!
Hero for Fun: ???
Kaguya-sama: Checks out, honestly — Little Sphere genuinely is Earth. The real deal, too, 100% authentic.
Kaguya-sama: Sure, it's a planet that wanders freely around the universe these days, but you can't deny — it's still, technically, Earth.
Hero for Fun: Wait... hold on. The one with the handle "Wandering Little Planet" is literally Earth?
Eternally Seventeen: Correct — Little Sphere is Earth. Not the One Punch Man Earth specifically, mind you, but an Earth all the same.
Hero for Fun: Hold on — isn't a planet supposed to just be, you know, a planet? Why does it think? Why can it talk?
RawrSoFierce: Hm... just think of Little Sphere as something like the "Gaia consciousness" concept from movies, more or less.
Hero for Fun: Oh, Gaia consciousness, huh? I see, that kind of makes sense.
Hero for Fun: Oh wow! Almost forgot — today's the big meat sale at the supermarket, and it ends in an hour! Gotta run, need to get shopping done. Talk later!
Eternally Seventeen: Eh? He's just... leaving? Genuinely bizarre newcomer, this one.
RawrSoFierce: Says the group where literally nobody qualifies as "normal."
Eternally Seventeen: Emmm, fair point, honestly. Nobody's remotely normal in this chat, except this one adorable youkai sage present company.
Edward Newgate: Hiss... never in my life have I met someone so utterly shameless!
Eternally Seventeen: Well, of course you haven't — I'm not exactly a person. I'm a seventeen-year-old youkai sage.
Kaguya-sama: And there we go — Yukari-nee shedding what little dignity she had, right on schedule.
My True Form Is Cola: No, actually, you have to understand — Yukari-senpai never had any dignity to begin with.
My True Form Is Cola: For Yukari-senpai, dignity's more of a mythical, unattainable luxury.
Eternally Seventeen: Pah, my dignity is absolutely overflowing, thank you very much. How could I possibly have none?
RawrSoFierce: Supermarket meat sale, huh... genuinely fits my exact impression of him. Classic Bald Caped Baldy.
Kaguya-sama: "Bald Caped Baldy"? What's that supposed to mean?
RawrSoFierce: Saitama's official hero title, basically — same category as Tatsumaki's "Terrible Tornado." His is "Bald Caped Baldy."
My True Form Is Cola: Pfft, what kind of nickname is that? If someone slapped that title on me, I'd punch them clean across the Pacific.
Street-Corner Illustrator: Genuine question — whoever came up with that hero title for Saitama, are they still alive?
Terrible Tornado: Earth-Splitting Punch, incoming!
"..."
Since Saitama had rushed off to the supermarket almost immediately, this particular newcomer's arrival ended up a good deal quieter than usual — more like a brief little footnote than a real event.
After a few more minutes chatting, Ryū logged out of the group interface, remembering to hit the daily sign-in button on his way out.
Hm... 70 Points from the sign-in. Another lucky day, apparently.
He let out a bored yawn, glancing through the old-fashioned wooden window beside him at a street scene that could've easily passed for ancient China, and murmured to himself, "This world's got monster beasts too, right? Wonder what they taste like. Might catch a few before I leave."
The idea genuinely piqued his interest, though there was no rush — plenty of time to grab a few before heading home.
Ryū got up, stepped out of the inn, and breathed in the crisp morning air, rolling his neck before setting off in one direction.
He hadn't gone more than a few steps when an unfamiliar voice called out from behind him. "Excuse me — young... ahem, senior, could I have a word with you? In private?"
The speaker turned out to be Ling Ying, Xiao Xun'er's secret bodyguard — he'd spent the entire previous night wrestling with the decision, and had finally resolved to seek out this mysterious powerhouse directly.
He simply didn't believe someone this powerful had shown up in Wutan City for no reason at all. There had to be some purpose behind it.
Whatever that purpose was, Ling Ying didn't want it landing anywhere near his young mistress — hence the need for a direct conversation.
He'd very nearly slipped and called Ryū "young friend" a moment ago, but caught himself just in time, correcting to "senior" instead.
Whatever Ryū's actual age, Ling Ying figured the title was well-earned — the man's strength dwarfed his own by a margin far too wide to measure casually.
☆☆☆
-> 20 Advanced chapters Now Available on Patreon!!
-> https://www.pat-reon.co-m/c/Hollowborn
(Just remove the hyphen (-) to access patreon normally)
If you like this novel please consider leaving a review that's help the story a lot Thank you