Dandadan : The True potentiel of Psychic powers

Kenta's POV.

"Sh... shit!!"

I barely managed to finish my jog to the park, but my body screams in agony like a pig being led to the slaughterhouse.

I'll never lose weight at this rate!!!

"... I... I... gotta... find a trick!!"

This idea has become an obsession after that session.

I really have shit genetics in this life.

Why didn't I end up like Jiji??

Even Momo's ex would've been not so bad.

"Young man!"

Reflexively, I turned toward the person who called out to me, my mind still a bit foggy from exhaustion.

"Here."

I snatched the water bottle he was holding out and drank greedily.

"Sorry... I was just thirsty," I said with difficulty while trying to catch my breath.

"No problem, kid," he replied, sitting on the bench next to me.

"Tell me, you just started training recently?"

At first, I was a bit wary of his question, but the old man seemed just curious, nothing more.

How do I know?

When you transport... suspicious stuff for your gang, you end up developing a certain sense of reading facial expressions, thanks to the cops.

"Yes, I want to lose some weight," I answered honestly.

He smiled before suddenly standing up.

"You don't have the eyes of someone who just wants to lose weight."

He handed me a poster before walking away.

"If you want to train more, you know where to find me," he said, leaving me standing there with that enigmatic phrase.

This situation is like those manga clichés about the meeting between a master and a student.

Out of curiosity, I read the poster's content:

[Nishikawa Club Membership]

"I knew his face seemed familiar." I gave a serious glance in the direction the old man went, then stuffed the poster into my hoodie.

I'm not interested in boxing, but it could be useful before obtaining my powers.

After all, I haven't completely settled things with the bullies, and I have no real martial arts knowledge.

In Marseille, I was just an ordinary gangster with street fighting experience and weapon handling.

So I knew how to seriously injure or kill, but not how to neutralize.

This could get me into trouble during a confrontation with these brats.

"I'll go find this man tomorrow after high school, but for now..."

I looked at the ground with a serious expression before starting push-ups.

Thanks to my little break and my encounter with the old man,

I was able to relax, and it helped me find a trick to surpass my physical limits.

This trick has a name: the power of words.

"One punch!"

With each exercise in Saitama's training routine, I visualized his fist, the emblem of his absolute power.

To understand my action, you must grasp the idea of the power of words in the Dandadan universe.

Seiko and Momo Ayase are capable of exploiting the power of words for various purposes, but its most common use is to provide a global boost of strength or power in a specific attack.

It's a power that alters or influences reality through words spoken with conviction or inscribed on an object.

For example, on Seiko's metal bat, it's written "Nessie".

For Momo, Nessie is the strongest creature in the world. By convincing herself she has Nessie's strength, Seiko was able to project a punching bag several meters with a simple bat swing.

Momo, meanwhile, used this trick to enhance her psychic powers, to the point of launching an attack directed toward another dimension.

Even Jiji, as stupid as he can be sometimes, knew how to do it.

During my training, I didn't feel a tangible increase in my physical strength, but...

"One punch!"

My motivation climbed to a whole new level.

The very idea of stopping to rest had completely disappeared from my mind.

...

(a week later)

"Okay, I'm gonna have to replace the words 'one punch'."

I don't know if it's because I'm visualizing Saitama too much, but I've been losing a lot of hair recently, during my bath...

Honestly, I don't really know how to take this news.

You should know that the power of words is temporary and depends on the user's conviction for its proper functioning.

Thus, it's theoretically possible for me to use part of Saitama's strength based on my visualization and quantification of his power.

But it will never be permanent.

Why? Because I would need to visualize Saitama in my head 24/7 to maintain this strength, and I doubt I have enough spiritual energy for that shit.

I'm not an anomaly like Jiji, to think such a crazy idea is possible.

Moreover, this remains purely theoretical, since I don't remember seeing this in the original story.

The only thing that comes close is Jiji spamming Kamehamehas combined with the power of words.

"In any case, prolonged use of the word 'one punch' seems to cause premature baldness"

I ended up leaving home after eating a hearty breakfast prepared by my mother in this life.

A single working mother, these words correctly define the original Kenta's mother.

I don't really want to form emotional bonds with her, but I've been behaving like a more responsible son since my reincarnation.

A situation she seems to appreciate, since she recently praised my efforts to lose weight and take care of myself.

I'm happy that my fitness and boxing training are working, since I've lost some fat, according to my mother.

Despite this, my appearance hasn't changed much.

I've just gained endurance and physical strength.

"It's him..."

"You mean the former otaku?"

"Shh, he might hear you. You want to end up like Akira and his gang yesterday?"

I ignored the whispers before sitting next to a guy with blonde-dyed hair... or is it natural?

"Got the goods?" I said calmly while looking at my former bully.

"Here, boss. It's about 10,000 yen." he said, handing me the money, a bit hesitant.

I snatch the money from his hand and quickly count before nodding in satisfaction, since smiling makes me look like an ugly bastard.

After the nurse created a scandal by forcing the principal to summon their parents, these idiots calmed down temporarily.

Unfortunately, I was right to assume this would be temporary.

They started bullying other students again a few days after the meeting with their parents in the principal's office.

Surprisingly, I wasn't their target.

They probably wanted to avoid the risk of me reporting them to the nurse, but I had other plans for them.

So, I decided to control the high school delinquents yesterday.

"Did you take your cut?" He nods at my question.

You're probably wondering why I'm intimidating kids after beating them, right?

The answer is simple: the great replacement.

If I beat up these idiots, another idiot will take their place in the high school or district.

So, I decided to take control of their small gang after giving them a good beating.

Of course, the extortion continues!

I just reduced the amount demanded by the bullies by 40%, based on their pocket money content, since asking for a large sum at once isn't profitable.

If the student doesn't bring money, they're just bullied all day, or their homemade breakfast will be devoured by me.

I'm not doing this for pleasure, but I've become a necessary evil.

Unlike that stupid hero, I'm alleviating this high school's problem, while a shonen protagonist will just beat up the delinquent.

He forgets that he can't keep an eye on the weak 24/7.

"Anything new recently?"

I opened my phone to pass the time, browsing the internet.

"Nothing new except Hiroto broke up with his girlfriend Momo Ayase this morning."

My ears perked up at this information.

I grabbed my "desk neighbor" by the shoulder and pulled him toward me.

"Tell me more about this story."

I didn't know it, but my glasses were sparkling at that moment.