Chapter 2 l F-Rank Reality

The streets of Neo-Tokami City were alive with movement. Neon signs flickered above crowded marketplaces, and powered children ran freely across rooftops and alleys, their abilities leaving sparks and streaks of light in the air. For a normal six-year-old, this would have been overwhelming... but for Yuto Matsumoto, it was just another day.

Yuto ducked behind a stack of crates in an alley, his amber eyes scanning the city. He had just returned from another of his rooftop runs, testing his powers in secret. Pulling, pushing, floating, it all felt natural to him now. But there was one problem: the world didn’t see him the same way he saw himself.

“F-Rank…”

The words echoed in his mind like a curse. Yuto had taken the Hero Association’s preliminary test the day before. Out of hundreds of kids his age, he had ranked F, the lowest rank possible.

Even now, the memory stung.

He remembered the stern instructors, tall and imposing, watching him with unreadable expressions.

“Name?” one had asked.

“Yuto Matsumoto,” he had replied, chest puffed up with pride.

“Abilities?”

Yuto had tried to demonstrate a simple Gravity Pull, tugging a stack of crates toward him. But it wobbled, too weak, barely moving the boxes. The instructors had frowned.

“F-Rank,” one had finally announced, stamping the results. “Raw potential, unstable control. Do not expect much progress without proper training.”

At first, Yuto had felt crushed. How could someone with powers like his, Temporal Gravity Manipulation, be labeled the weakest? But then, as he walked home through the bustling streets, the anger turned into determination.

“I’ll show them,” he whispered under his breath, his fingers curling around the faint glow on his wrist. “I’m not weak… I’m just getting started.”

Back in his small apartment, Yuto’s guardian, a small floating AI drone left by his father, hovered quietly, observing him. Its single glowing eye blinked as it spoke in a soft, mechanical voice.

“Yuto… F-rank does not define you. Your abilities are beyond conventional metrics.”

“I know, I know,” Yuto replied, pacing. “But everyone else… they don’t see it that way. I need to get stronger, faster, smarter… or I’ll always be at the bottom.”

The drone hovered closer, scanning the city map. “There are rogue experiments in Neo-Tokami. Other children with unstable powers… training against them could accelerate your growth.”

Yuto’s eyes lit up. “Rogue experiments? You mean like… enemies?”

“Not all enemies. Some are potential allies. But all will test your control.”

Yuto’s small hands clenched. “Then I’ll beat them. I’ll pass the Hero Association’s trials. I’ll climb every rank until no one can call me weak!”

That night, Yuto lay in bed, staring at the ceiling. The glow on his wrist pulsed faintly, as if echoing his determination. F-rank didn’t matter. Age didn’t matter. Size didn’t matter.

He was Yuto Matsumoto, a child born from science, legacy, and something more… something no one had seen before.

Tomorrow, he would begin training in earnest. Tomorrow, he would face the first of Neo-Tokami’s challenges. And tomorrow… the boy who defied time would take his first step toward greatness.