Saitama

Saitama (サイタマ Saitama) is the main protagonist of OnePunch-Man, and the most powerful hero alive. Having supposedly trained himself to superhuman condition, Saitama faces an existential crisis as he is now too powerful to gain any thrill from his heroic deeds.

He is registered with the Heroes Association as a C-Class Superhero and is tasked to defend Z-City against Mysterious Beings.

Appearance
Saitama is a bald man of thin, but well-built physique and average height and weight. He claims to have lost all of his hair suddenly and prematurely as a result of the toll taken on his body by intense hero training. Three years before the storyline, Saitama had spiky, black hair. Saitama's eye color is unclear, as his eyes are usually represented by dots.

Saitama is usually deliberately drawn in a simpler style than other characters, with a very rounded head and only a simple mouth and eyes. When drawn in a more 'action-oriented' style with more detail, Saitama is revealed to have sharp features, dangerous looking eyes, and chiseled musculature. His costume is a plain yellow jumpsuit with a short zipper at the collar and a belt. The costume is finished out by a red ensemble of boots, gloves and a cape.

Personality
For a superhero, Saitama is rather laid back. Because even the mightiest foes pose no challenge to him, he doesn't take his hero work very seriously. In spite of this, he is constantly searching for an opponent that can challenge him, since his superhero work is beginning to bore him because it's too easy. The combination of his attitude, unstoppable strength, and distinctively simple and 'unimpresive' appearance often cause his battles to become anticlimactic. Saitama will usually allow his opponents to rant about their motives and power up into their strongest forms before suddenly and nonchalantly obliterating them with one punch.

History
Three years before the current storyline, Saitama was an unemployed youngster on job hunt. One day, he was yet again rejected and wandered aimlessly through the streets. It was then he encountered Crabrante. Saitama is not scared of Crabrante and doesn't run away and after stating the reason, Crabrante identifies with him and lets him go. Crabrante tells him that his prey is a child with a cleft chin anyway.

Walking on, Saitama spots the child Crabrante was talking about. He decides that he doesn't want anything to with it but after Crabrante's arrival, Saitama impulsively runs towards the kid and saves him from Crabrante's attack. He urges the child on to run away and Saitama asks why Crabrante wants to kill him anyway. After listening to the monster's story, he recognizes the creature as a villain from a show he once watched. Crabrante punches him against a wall, but Saitama remembers his youth dream of becoming a superhero and so does not give up and prepares to fight the giant crab. The monster pummels him, but Saitama is able to wrap his tie around the creature's eye and pulls it out. The monster is defeated.

Resolved to become a superhero, Saitama started a daily training schedule which consisted of 100 push-ups, 100 sit-ups and 100 squats along with running 10 km every single day. He ate three meals a day, but only a banana as breakfast and also didn't use the AC, to strengthen his mental resistance. These daily activities were extremely tough and caused his body excruciating pain; muscle aches and internal bleedings. However, Saitama didn't give up and continued his training day after day. After a year and a half, he had become strong. But as a side-effect, Saitama had also lost all of his hair. He continued his training for another year and a half and gained the overwhelming power he has today.

Magicicada Larva Attack
Some time between when Saitama started training and when he had lost his hair, Z-City experienced a Mysterious Being attack by the 170,000-Year Magicicada Larva and therefore the citizens were evacuated to Shelter Nr. 7. The three heroes sent to defeat the Magicicada were defeated and on their way back to the shelter grabbed some people to take with them, one of those people being Saitama.

When Saitama finds out that he is in the shelter, he gets rather upset, stating that he though that following the heroes would lead him to the Mysterious Being. Saitama attempts to leave so he can find the Mysterious Being, but gets restrained by the citizens, thinking he's attempting to kill himself and they call the guards. The guards attempt to explain that the doors can't open while the disaster is occurring and that the shelter is able to withstand any sort of attack. While praising the structure, Saitama confronts the guard again to ask where the bathroom is, to which she replies there is none.

Saitama becomes rather distressed about the situation due to the fact that he doesn't know if his bladder can hold till the situation ends. He then overhears that two A-Class heroes were defeated by the beast. At this point Saitama can't take it anymore, so he walks over to a wall of the shelter, breaks a hole in it and runs off stating that he's going to the convenience store. Just as he is about to reach the store to use the bathroom the 170000 Year Magicicada Larva appears in front of him, which he then promptly kills.

Introduction Arc
Saitama first appears when watching a news report on Vaccine Man attacking Z-City. Seeing the destruction, he remarks, "I should go...". He then appears at the scene, saving a little girl from being killed. The monster is angered and asks who Saitama is and he replies that he is just an average guy who serves as an average hero. After reluctantly listening to the monster's monologue, he kills it with a mere punch. After this, he screams out in frustration at another easy victory; a pattern which will be repeated in future battles.

Some time after, Saitama hears about a Demon-level disaster emergency, reporting about the Brain and Brawn Brothers destroying D-City. Soon after, Saitama arrives and leaps onto Beefcake's shoulder and tells him to put some pants on. Oldface, Beefcake's brother who is on his other shoulder, is freaked out by Saitama's appearance and orders his brother to swat him, but Beefcake mistakes the shoulder and accidentally kills his own brother. He becomes enraged by this, grabs Saitama and throws him into the ground. Saitama is unaffected, but Beefcake jumps and stomps on Saitama's body. He continues to punch him, creating a large crater. Believing to have killed Saitama, Beefcake moves away. However, Saitama is completely unfazed, dashes out of the crater, towards Beefcake's face and delivers a heavy blow, crushing the giant's face and making him fall. Saitama states that having an overwhelming power is boring as hell. Beefcake falls on top of B-City and the town is destroyed.

House of Evolution Arc
Saitama later is shown being rather jaded about how strong he is, lamenting how every fight ends with a single punch and comparing all his battles to swatting insects. At that moment a mosquito lands on his hand and he, rather dramatically slaps it, but when he lifts up his hand the mosquito flies away and after unsuccessfully swatting at it several more times, it flies off and Saitama is left in a rage. The mosquito is then shown to fly off to Mosquito Girl. Afterwords Saitama is watching the news report a story about a mass mosquito outbreak that is headed towards Z-City.

When Mosquito Girl raids the city, Genos makes his first appearance and starts to fight her and does well for a while, but then she takes all the blood from her mosquitos and becomes even stronger. As she's absorbing the blood from her mosquitos, Saitama comes running around the corner on to fighting scene, in pursuit of the mosquito he'd been trying to kill. At that moment, Mosquito Girl finishes her evolution and sends her mosquitos crashing down on Saitama and Genos, who then sets them all on fire and kills them all. When the smoke clears Saitama is standing there naked, slightly singed thanking Genos for killing the mosquitos.

The newly empowered Mosquito Girl starts attacking Genos and tearing him apart to the point that the only way to defeat her would be to self destruct and take her with him, which he was about to do, until Saitama suddenly slaps Mosquito Girl in the face sending her flying and taking out the roof of a building with her and the casually saying "Man I hate those mosquitos."

After that, Genos starts bugging Saitama about becoming his apprentice and shows up at his house to continue asking to be his apprentice. Saitama lets him in and Genos tells him his life-story, but Saitama is completely uninterested. Genos eventually summarizes that he wants to become as strong as Saitama. Saitama accepts in training him. While there, the House of Evolution sends more of its creations to attempt to capture Saitama. It starts with Manty crashing through Saitama's ceiling and immediately getting his head punched off. Saitama and Genos then go outside and Saitama buries Frog Man and Slugerous's heads in the ground complaining about how they made a hole in his ceiling. Saitama's leg gets grabbed by a hand that shoots out from under the ground and he's dragged down until only his head is visible, which he compares to being a flower growing through concrete. Genos begins to rush to Saitama's aid but is distracted by Armored Gorilla. While Genos is fighting Armored Gorilla, Saitama is approached by Beast King.

Beast King congratulates Ground Dragon on dragging Saitama underground but then notices that Saitama is falling asleep due to how nice it felt underground. Beast King starts to get angry and threatens to scratch Saitama's eyes out, at which point Saitama simply steps free out of the ground. Beast King then attacks Saitama, who easily avoids the attack, and continues to avoid several more attacks, one of which kills Frog Man and Slugerous. Beast King is enraged that none of his attacks are hitting and goes berserk, sending a flurry of attacks at Saitama, who dodges them all and then demolishes Beast King completely. Seeing Saitama's strength Ground Dragon tries to run away by digging underground, but Saitama appears in front of him through a hole of his own and punches Ground Dragon high up in the air. When Saitama gets back to the surface, he finds that Genos has defeated Armored Gorilla and is questioning him. After Saitama shows Armored Gorilla the remains of Beast King he tells them all they want to know.

Roughly four hours later, Saitama and Genos run up a mountain to the House of Evolution's base which, when they arrive, Genos promptly destroys. Saitama is surprised by Genos' sudden shot, but eventually agrees with his quick and effective actions. In the rubble they find a metal door which leads to the basement, they open it and go inside. As they are walking down the hallway of the lair, Genos notices several life forms most of which are emitting the same signals causing him to presume that they are all clones, when all of a sudden he notices that two of them are heading towards them at an extreme speed. Dr. Genus and Asura Rhino appear and after throwing Dr. Genus aside Asura Rhino smashes Genos into the wall of the hallway. He then introduces himself and offers to fight Saitama in a nearby room. Saitama is angered because Asura Rhino turned Genos into "modern art" and agrees to fight him.

The fight is about to start when Genos re-appears and attempts to fight Asura Rhino, but gets beaten down again causing Saitama to step in to fight. Asura comments on how he can feel that Saitama is really strong, Saitama tells him to not disappoint him, as he expects Asura to be the strongest being from the House. Asura then disappears and reappears behind Saitama and is about to punch him, but suddenly becomes extremely intimidated and jumps back thinking to himself that if he had attacked that he would have been killed. He freaks out and yells at Saitama to ask him how he got so strong. Saitama agrees to tell them and explains to them that to get as strong as he is, you need to see the training through to the end and that one must do 100 sit-ups, push-ups and squats and 10km of running every single day. Genos freaks out, stating that what Saitama just said was standard BOG strength training, and Asura Rhino is angered, thinking Saitama is mocking him.

Enraged Asura Rhino enters "Asura Mode" and states that he'll stay in this form and go on an uncontrolled rampage for a week, until next Saturday. Asura then begins to pummel Saitama, sending him flying around the room, while this is going on, Saitama comes to the realization that if Asura will stay in "Asura Mode" for a whole week ending on Saturday, that it is in fact Saturday right now and that he missed the special sale day, states so in despair and punches Asura Rhino's head and the majority of his torso off.

Abilities
Saitama is by far the strongest character introduced so far. No enemy has so far been able to injure him in any way, or to survive even one of his punches. Saitama's 'power' is that his body is far beyond human limits, allowing him to achieve astounding physical feats. His strength is so great that it vastly eclipses even artificial beings designed or bred specifically for superhuman combat, such as the android Genos or the warriors of the House of Evolution. Notably, since no enemies have yet posed any challenge to Saitama, the upper bound of his strength is likely even higher than it appears. However, his power is notably limited to heightened human traits; Saitama cannot fly or fire energy blasts, for example.

The origin of Saitama's unbelieveable strength is mysterious and unclear. Although he tells everyone he got his incredible power through mere strength training, no one believes him. According to Saitama, after a year and a half of 100 daily push-ups, sit-ups, and squats, plus ten kilometres daily running, he had achieved some level of superhuman strength. This training was apparently so intense for Saitama that he at times felt as if he might die, and claims it is what caused all of his hair to suddenly and prematurely fall out. He apparently continued training for another year and half before beginning his hero career. Genos believes that Saitama doesn't actually know or understand how he gained his power, and hopes to learn the secret to it by sparring with and observing him.

Super Strength: Saitama is capable of effortlessly defeating any enemy, even ones many times his size, with a single, nonchalant punch (although this strength does not extend only to punches). Saitama's punch is so powerful that many enemies simply explode when struck by it. He has also been known to effortlessly destroy walls and buildings with his attacks. An example of this casual, yet overwhelming offensive power occurs when Saitama uses an inelegant smacking motion to smash Mosquito Girl through a nearby building and into the sky, killing her. His dialogue implicitly likens the attack to swatting a mosquito. His inability to fly is somewhat compensated for by his ability to use his strength to leap tremendoes heights and distances.

Super Speed: Saitama was able to complete a 1500 metre dash in an instant during his hero tryouts. He has proven able to effortlessly keep up with Sonic, whose main ability is super speed. Even Genos' computerized targeting systems have difficulty tracking him. He is so fast that he leaves afterimages when moving at speed, and is agile enough to dodge the Beast King's rapid-fire Limbcutter attacks while moving in for the kill.

Extreme Senses: Saitama's senses are far beyond the human norm, being able to keep track of extremely fast opponents (such as Sonic) easily. He also seems to have developed a sixth sense, being able to dodge danger even though he hasn't seen it. Nevertheless, Saitama's senses do not have the same degree of 'resolution' as some of Genos's sensors, which can detect and distinguish foes at a greater distance.

Invulnerability:  Saitama can withstand blows from extremely powerful beings such as Asura Rhino without taking a scratch or apparently feeling any pain. Indeed Saitama has only been seen to bleed from a blow during a dream in which he imagined facing opponents close to his level. When Genos created a huge, spherical blast of flame to kill Mosquito Girl's mosquitoes with Saitama standing right next to him, Saitama was totally unharmed and unperturbed, although his civilian clothes were incinerated. It is worth noting that mosquitoes seem to be able to penetrate his skin, and that Saitama seems to prefer to dodge or block attacks using edged weapons rather than take them head on, as he sometimes does with strikes from fists or blunt objects.

Quotes

 * (To Beefcake) "Having an overwhelming power is boring as hell."