"Hey... bowling ball uncle, what can you do?"
Shin-chan poked his head out from the crowd, cupped his hands around his mouth, and shouted at Pandora's Actor.
He had been brokenhearted just this morning, yet he was so lively in the evening. This kid recovered pretty quickly.
Pandora's Actor paused.
'Bowling ball uncle… was he talking about me?'
He scratched his head, then demonstrated his ability as a Doppelgänger... his body began to twist and deform. His bowling ball face was kneaded like by an invisible hand. His features reorganized. His hair grew back.
In less than two seconds, another Shin-chan stood where Pandora's Actor had just been.
The same potato head, thick eyebrows, and red top, yellow shorts.
Shin-chan was startled, but he was Shin-chan after all. He quickly recovered and gestured at his copycat self.
He made the classic Action Mask pose, hands crossed, right hand slightly higher... the firing gesture for Action Mask's light beam... very similar to Ultraman's.
"Can you do this? Action Mask Light Beam... pew pew pew pew pew"
Pandora's Actor's eyes lit up.
He was a Chuunibyo to begin with. He had no resistance to this kind of thing.
He also made the same gesture and fired a Dynaman Light Beam back at Shin-chan. "Action Mask Light Beam... pew pew pew pew pew"
The two mirrored each other's actions perfectly.
The surrounding children watched with great interest.
In the crowd, the Pleiades maid squad rolled their eyes. Solution commented that Pandora's Actor was fitting in pretty quickly.
"Pretty impressive, you." Shin-chan showed an expression of approval, then put his hand on his waistband. "But can you do this?"
As he spoke, he hummed a strange song. "Elephant... elephant... why is your nose so long—"
Just as his finger hooked his waistband and was about to pull it down, an iron fist fell from the sky.
Bang—!
Misae's fist precisely hit Shin-chan's head. Then she grabbed her son by the back of his collar, like carrying a chick, and dragged him away.
"Sorry, excuse us—! Ahhhhh—"
She dragged Shin-chan back into the crowd, followed by the familiar scolding, "What do you think you're doing?!"
"Wow! The three-layered belly witch has appeared—!"
"What did you say?!"
Listening to the mother and daughter argue, Hiratsuka's eyes lit up. She felt she had found a way to deal with this potato kid.
Makoto introduced Pandora's ability to the women who hadn't transmigrated to the other world. "Doppelgänger, can transform into any form he has seen, retaining eighty percent of the original's strength."
The girls were moved hearing Makoto's stories of his experiences in the other world.
But Megumi and the others couldn't help feeling the same worry as Itsuki... what if in the future, the Reincarnation Game pulled them into another world, Makoto wasn't there, and they couldn't return safely?
The school was filled with sounds of celebration.
Outside the school, many students who hadn't passed the exam were dejected.
They stood at the school gate. Some had their heads lowered, some had red eyes, their faces full of unwillingness.
Nijika walked out of the school gate carrying a basket. The basket was filled with snacks... handmade by the Elite Ten of Totsuki. Akanegakubo Momo's apple jam dorayaki, Yukihira Soma's mapo tofu buns, Kobayashi Rindo's grilled skewer platter. The fragrance wafted out through the lid.
Pikachu lay on her shoulder, its tail gently swaying behind it.
She walked to those failing students and handed out the snacks one by one.
"It's okay. There's always next year."
Nijika's voice was soft, like coaxing a child. Her golden strands of hair fluttered gently in the breeze. The corner of her mouth curved in a gentle arc.
The students who took the snacks looked at her face, shining under the night sky, and praised in their hearts...
'An angel!'
Then Nijika saw the durian-haired.
Bakugo stood alone in a corner outside the school gate, hands in his pockets, glaring sideways at the celebrating students on the other side.
Nijika hesitated.
She looked down at the last snack in the basket, hesitated a moment, then took out the dorayaki and walked toward Bakugo.
"...Um... student, have something to eat."
Nijika handed over the dorayaki. "It's okay. Just start over next year."
Bakugo looked at the dorayaki in front of him for two seconds.
"Hmph." He turned his head away.
Nijika's hand froze in mid-air. Pikachu's face darkened.
"Pika—!" A yellow lightning bolt shot from Nijika's shoulder.
Pikachu's tail trailed a golden afterimage through the air. Its body spun and slammed into Bakugo's chest.
Bakugo's body flew out from the wall and hit the wall behind him with a dull thud.
Nijika was startled. She quickly ran over and scooped Pikachu up, tucking it under her arm. "Stop it, stop it, stop it."
Pikachu struggled twice, but Nijika held it down.
Nijika, still apologizing, ran toward the school. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. Wait for me here. I'll go get Moeha—!"
Nijika ran into the school gate with Pikachu in her arms.
By the time she dragged Moeha back, no one was at the school gate.
She stood where Bakugo had been sitting and noticed the smashed dorayaki on the ground, a little worried.
'Why did he leave? His injuries... are they okay?'
Her voice carried a hint of self-blame.
Moeha looked unconcerned. "Nijika, can you not be so kind? Who cares if that piece of trash dies?"
She had also heard some rumors about Bakugo. If not for Nijika's sake, she wouldn't have wanted to make a special trip to heal that kind of person.
…
Two years later.
"I'm home—!"
Shin-chan shouted and pushed open the door.
Misae was washing dishes in the kitchen, her tone full of helplessness. "You should say 'I'm off'. Run fast, you're going to be late—"
Ever since her son joined the superpower school, she no longer had to try every day to wake him up and rush him to the school bus. But her daughter was now three years old, almost kindergarten age.
Thinking of this, Misae glanced at her youngest daughter, Nohara Himawari, still sound asleep in the bedroom.
The thought that in two years she'd also be going to kindergarten, and she'd ninety-nine percent likely be rushing her onto the school bus every morning,
She felt exhausted again.
Shin-chan was wearing a red and blue bodysuit today. A large 'A' was printed in the center of his belt. Red underwear outside. A mask on his head, completely covering the upper half of his face.
It was his favorite Action Mask costume.
That's right, this was Shin-chan's daily attire now. His Hero name was [Action Mask Shin-chan].
"Shiro, I'm off. You'll have to take your walk yourself today." Shin-chan crouched down and patted Shiro on the head.
"Woof—" Shiro rolled his eyes, as if saying, 'When did I ever not take my walk myself?'
Shin-chan ran at full speed.
Everywhere he ran, the roadside grass bent under the wind pressure.
He had gained superhuman physical abilities because he had undergone modification by Vegapunk, just like the Vinsmoke Family in the One Piece World. His genes had been optimized. His strength, speed, and reaction time were all far superior to ordinary people.
The Action Mask outfit he was wearing was also specially made for him by Vegapunk, possessing all the functions of the entire Vinsmoke Family's combat suits.
Unfortunately, regarding the invisibility ability of Sanji's suit that Shin-chan had always wanted, Vegapunk wouldn't add for him.
"Good morning—Shin-chan—" The auntie by the roadside waved to him.
"Late again today—Action Mask Shin-chan—"
The owner of the fish shop poked his head out from behind the counter.
Shin-chan pursed his lips, dissatisfied, and corrected him. "It's Action Mask."
Today was the start of the new school year.