In a small cafe near Sakurai Prefecture, Minoru Mineta could be seen sitting at a table alongside Himiko Toga, Mei Hatsume, and Toru Hagakure.
The table had drawn some attention. It wasn't every day people saw three cute girls sitting together with a short boy, and naturally, a few customers cast curious glances their way, whispering among themselves.
Mineta ignored all of it, resting his chin on his hand as he watched the chaos in front of him unfold while drinking his boba.
"Look at this one!" Mei said excitedly, spreading out a bunch of blueprints across the table. "This baby here is a reinforced propulsion gauntlet! And THIS one—this one can launch compressed air bursts strong enough to break concrete!"
"Woah~ that sounds amazing!" Toru's voice rang out, full of curiosity.
Himiko leaned forward slightly, her eyes sparkling. "Can you make it explode?" she asked with interest since she imagined villains being confused as a hero threw their support item towards them, only for it to explode.
"Of course it can explode!" Mei replied proudly. "Everything can explode if you try hard enough! And it is easy for me to explode things!"
Mineta sighed. '…Why are all the girls around me like this?' he thought, deadpan.
Still, he let them talk. After all, he was the one who had allowed Mei to meet Himiko and Toru in the first place—though that decision hadn't come from him alone.
It came from Mei's parents. And just remembering that—Mineta still felt a bit shocked.
Flashback
Mineta walked forward, pushing a trolley loaded with machinery parts that weighed at least 290 kgs, the wheels creaking loudly under the pressure as he leaned into it with effort.
Beside him, Mei walked casually, chatting non-stop.
"So! About those ideas you gave me!" Mei said excitedly. "What if I make those rocket boots? But better! Like, REALLY powerful ones! So powerful that you can shoot straight into the stratosphere if you want!"
Mineta nearly tripped. "Absolutely not!" he said immediately, sweating—not just from the weight of the trolley, but from her idea.
"No stratosphere! That sounds like suicide!"
He quickly redirected, "What about the shock-absorbing shield I mentioned?"
Mei tapped her chin. "That one's tricky… but fun! I'm still thinking about what components to use for it."
"And the multi-tool device?" Mineta asked.
"That baby will take time too," Mei replied. "I need more components before I can build it properly."
Mineta nodded. "Take your time. I'll need them for hero work in the future anyway."
Mei grinned cheekily. "Just don't forget to advertise who made your gear!"
Mineta smirked and gave a mock salute, pushing the trolley with one hand. "Of course! 'All my support items are made by the greatest inventor of all time—Mei Hatsume~'"
Mei puffed her chest proudly. "Good! You better!"
Then suddenly, she remembered something.
"Oh right!" Mei snapped her fingers. "I finished the training clothes you asked for!"
Mineta froze. "…You're serious?" he asked, his face lighting up with excitement.
Mei nodded. "Come on! I'll show you!"
They reached her father's garage, and Mineta parked the trolley inside before following Mei upstairs to the third floor.
She opened the door. "Welcome to my lab!"
Mineta stepped in—and immediately felt like he had entered a sci-fi movie.
Machines, tools, half-built inventions, wires, metallic parts—everything was scattered around in unorganized chaos.
"Whoa," Mineta muttered.
Mei smirked proudly before dragging him toward a mannequin placed in the center of the room.
On it was a black-colored suit. (It kind of looks like Guy's jumpsuit but black)
"This," Mei said dramatically, "is your training suit!"
Mineta stepped closer, eyes shining.
Mei began explaining excitedly, waving her hands around. "I used special materials so you don't have to worry about outgrowing it! It can stretch a LOT without tearing, so you can use it for years!"
She pointed at different parts. "It's made with Neoprene and 600D Nylon—super durable and sweat-resistant!"
"And inside," Mei continued, "I added a Hydrogels layer! You can increase the weight of the suit by heating it, and it'll also protect your spine and act like a therapy suit for your body during heavy training!"
Mineta's eyes sparkled.The more she explained—The more impressed he became.
Without thinking, he reached out and grabbed her hand, stopping her excited movements.
"Thank you," he said sincerely. "You're already a great inventor. Making something like this so fast… and putting this much thought into it… it really means a lot!"
Mei froze at his words.
"…A great inventor…" she repeated softly.
Those words hit her deeply. Her usual loud personality faltered for a moment as a faint blush appeared on her face, and for the first time, she smiled shyly like a girl, while shedding her tomboy persona for a moment.
"I… just did what I could," she said, her voice softer than usual.
Mineta stared at her smile.
And in that moment, It felt like he got struck by lightning.
'What the—why is that so cute?!' he thought, his heart taking critical damage.
The room fell silent.
Both of them just stood there, hands still touching, surrounded by an oddly soft and pink atmosphere, Neither knowing what to say next.
Their moment was suddenly interrupted by soft hushes, giggles, and whispers coming from the door, making Mei Hatsume and Minoru Mineta both turn their heads at the same time, only to see two pairs of eyes peeking from the slightly open door of Mei's "lab," clearly spying on them without any shame.
The moment those eyes met theirs, they widened in surprise, and the people behind the door panicked as the door suddenly swung open, causing both of them to lose balance and fall inside, landing on top of each other in a completely comedic fashion.
"Yui, you are heavy!" the pink-haired man groaned from the floor, his small eyes squinting as he struggled under the weight, his thick eyebrows furrowed while his small beard and moustache twitched in annoyance.
"Benji, don't be mean!" the blue-haired woman snapped immediately, pushing herself up while adjusting the goggles resting on her forehead, "I still am the same weight as I was before our marriage!"
Mineta stared at the scene with a visible sweat drop, watching the pair scramble to their feet like nothing had happened, while Mei crossed her arms and glared at them.
"Why were you spying on my secret lab!?" Mei demanded sharply, clearly annoyed.
"This isn't a secret lab, it's just your room and it's our house!" Yui shot back without hesitation, but before she could continue—"It was Yui's idea!" Benji immediately pointed at her, throwing her under the bus without a second thought.
Yui froze before slowly turning towards him.
Her eyes changed. The iris of her eyes shifted into the shape of a sniper scope lens as she glared at him with a terrifying intensity.
"Benji…" she said in a low, dangerous tone. Benji instantly panicked, sweat forming on his forehead. "W-WAIT! Didn't Mei need my help for something!?"
Mei blinked once, then immediately forgot everything. "Oh right!" she said excitedly, grabbing her father's arm and dragging him toward a metallic box filled with small bowling ball-sized holes, "Dad, I need your help bending these parts! If they don't bend enough, the grenade launcher will likely explode without firing!"
Mineta watched in silence as the father and daughter duo suddenly started cackling like evil scientists while hammering metal parts together, sparks flying as Benji enthusiastically explained something while Mei listened with shining eyes, both of them completely immersed in their work.
'…So Mei got her personality from her dad,' Mineta thought with a deadpan expression.
"Honestly…" Yui said, letting out a small sigh as she walked over and stood beside Mineta, watching the chaotic duo before turning her gaze toward him with a softer expression, "You must be Mineta Minoru, right?"
Mineta straightened immediately. "Yes, I am. It is nice to meet you, aunty," he said politely, giving a slight bow.
Yui laughed lightly and suddenly patted his back strongly. "Ahh, don't be so formal!"
THUD.
Mineta almost stumbled forward from the force, barely catching his balance.
'…Yeah, Mei definitely got her strength from her mom,' he thought with another sweat drop.
"I'm actually really happy to finally meet you," Yui said, her tone becoming gentler.
Mineta blinked in confusion. "Happy to meet me?"
Yui glanced towards Mei, who was diligently working with Benji, completely focused on the metal piece in her hands.
"You see," Yui began slowly, "because of our workshop, Mei has always been surrounded by machines and tools."
Mineta stayed quiet, listening carefully.
"That led to her developing a deep liking for machines," Yui continued, a small smile appearing on her face, "and eventually, she started dreaming of becoming an inventor. Benji and I are supportive of her… though Benji more than me."
She let out a small sigh. "He had the same dream once, but couldn't pursue it because of family problems."
Mineta glanced at Benji for a moment before looking back at Yui, silently taking in her words.
"But…" Yui's expression dimmed slightly, "because of Mei's hyperactive personality and her love for machines, she was always isolated."
"Other kids found her too much," Yui said. "Some were jealous of her high IQ and others were scared of anything she carried, especially after the incidents."
"Incidents?" Mineta asked.
"She used to try making things by watching tutorials from YouTube," Yui replied, rubbing her forehead slightly, "and they always exploded."
"So you can imagine my surprise," Yui continued, turning to him with a warm, kind smile, "when I heard her talking about you."
"…About me?" Mineta asked, clearly taken aback.
"You were the first person besides us who didn't push her away," Yui said softly. "You didn't mind her personality or her inventions either."
Mineta scratched his cheek awkwardly. "I mean… she's not that bad…"
"She's been smiling more," Yui said, her voice softening even further, "and not those fake smiles she used to wear to hide her loneliness from us, these are real ones."
Tears formed at the corners of her eyes. Mineta froze slightly, not expecting both Mei's isolated childhood or to suddenly see her mom cry.
'The brightest smiles hide the strongest pain behind them…' he thought quietly.
Before he could say anything, Yui bowed slightly.
"Thank you," she said sincerely.
"A-Aunty, please don't!" Mineta quickly stepped forward, panicking as he tried to stop her.
"I'm serious," Yui said, straightening back up while looking at him, "Please continue being her friend."
Mineta looked at her for a moment, then nodded firmly.
"I will," he said. "I won't leave Mei alone. I'll always be her friend."
He tapped his chest with his fist. "And not just that," he continued, "I'll introduce her to some of my friends too. They're really nice people. They'll welcome her with open arms."
Yui smiled warmly at his words. "Then I'll leave Mei in your care."
Meanwhile, Mei, who appeared completely engrossed in her work while Benji loudly explained things beside her to distract her, had actually heard everything clearly, since she was used to multitasking, and although she didn't turn around, her hands slowed down slightly as she felt something warm in her chest, her lips curling into a small smile behind the iron mask she wore while welding a metal sheet.
Flashback end
"Hey, Mineta!" Mei's voice snapped him out of his thoughts.
Mineta blinked and looked up as Mei held out a blueprint in front of him.
"This is the design of the shield you asked for!" she said proudly.
Mineta leaned forward as Toru Hagakure and Himiko Toga also moved closer, all three of them looking at the blueprint carefully.
"Yeah," Mineta said after a moment, nodding, "I like this design."
Mei smiled brightly at his approval.
"Waaah! Can you make something like a laser gun for me!?" Toru asked excitedly, her sleeves waving around energetically.
"Ooo~ what about a plasma knife?" Himiko added, her eyes shining with curiosity.
Mei grinned widely. "Of course I can! Just leave it to me!"
Mineta leaned back slightly, watching the three of them interact with a small smile on his face.
'This is nice,' he thought.
Mei glanced at him for a brief moment, her expression softening as she watched him smile.
'So this is what it feels like to have friends,' she thought quietly.
She closed her eyes for a second, her smile growing just a little more genuine.
'Thank you for saving me from loneliness… my hero.'