Aren't you too strong?

"To make it more applicable, I can give you these strands that you can use to test on people. I have genetically modified them so that when they come into contact with a parasite's cells, they will turn black."

Junpei furrowed his eyebrows deeper.

When the strands come in contact with parasitic cells, the receptors on the outside Hikaru's cells will be stimulated and will trigger a cascade of signals, through the cell membrane and the cytoplasm to the nucleus where it activates the gene expressing melatonin production. The pigment will be produced in excess, causing the strand to turn black.

Seeing that Junpei was sceptic, another white tendril split from the one on Hikaru's palm.

"Try it."

Junpei and Hiromi plucked them from Hikaru's palm and the part of the strand where they touched turned black while the untouched parts stayed white.

Junpei's eyes snapped open in bewilderment.

"But if it reacts with us, how will we use it on others?"

"I already have both of your DNA from when we've touched in the past so the 'test strands' won't react to either of you. The ones you touched were purposely unprimed to your DNA for demonstration purposes."

"Hikaru you're so clever!" Hiromi praised.

Junpei was still perplexed.

'When did we touch... From our fight? Just by grazing with the skin on his fists? He can do that with just a graze?'

Junpei thought back to when he saw Hikaru absorb a whole dead body that he had accidentally killed in the gym. Every single cell in our bodies has the genome of the entire individual. Theoretically, just absorbing a single cell Hikaru could acquire the DNA of that person.

'Isn't this broken?' he thought.

"What are your abilities exactly? Could we do some of the same things if we practised?" Junpei asked remembering the first meeting with Daichi Atsuo, the parasite officer of Midori ward.

Junpei wasn't an idiot. Getting a C grade average just meant he lacked focus on his academics regardless of what reason it is.

Although the science stuff was complicated, he understood that the parasites had learning potential just like the humans do albeit to a much larger degree physiologically. They all had innate abilities encoded in their genes but that didn't stop them from learning new things.

However, depending on how talented or smart they were, the growth rate could be fast or slow. Daichi also explained that the more successful the degree of parasite-human bonding or specifically the better the hybridisation of human-parasite genomes, the faster they could reach their maximum potential or not at all.

If the bonding didn't happen at all, the parasite would have just killed the human inside out. Although that extreme case never happened.

"Honestly, I don't know much about that since organism X, the parasite that infected me was engineered differently as an experimental parasite. It might even have some sort of defect or weakness that I don't know. Although, I think you might be able to change the pigment of your body if you practised enough. One of the abilities we all possess regardless of parasite species is an increase in our baseline physical attributes. The bonding with the parasites has changed our genes. Seeing how some parasites like Botan for example, could change his body structure, we may have some control over our bodies on a genetic, or at least a morphological level."

Basically, Hikaru said it's possible.

"Mmm." Junpei uttered with a face that seemed like he was thinking deeply.

Junpei felt his brain loosen like a sphincter muscle that gave up. While Hiromi tuned out Hikaru's reply as she knew from Junpei's question that it would invite the kind of answer she wouldn't understand.

She felt that Hikaru was reliable and that he'd be right 90% of the time so she didn't bother wasting her energy to think and just went with the flow.

Hiromi caught the scent of Junpei's deodorant wafting over to her from the breeze through Hikaru's partly opened window. She gazed at his poker face.

'You shouldn't have bothered. Just listen to what he says. Why stress yourself out?' She thought.

She felt at ease. With Hikaru being the brains, she simply had to follow his will. She didn't have to worry about anything. She could leave it all to him and enjoy her time with him.

While Hikaru talked, she would admire his beauty. She looked at his face with every chance she got, intent on memorising every line of his face, hoping that when she did dream about him, his image would be as vivid and clear as the man in front of her.

A flash came on Junpei's face as he remembered something.

"Ahh right, my abilities... As you both have seen, I can absorb my enemies. Apart from the benefits of eating fast and other effects following their consumption, I can also gain their abilities."

Hiromi wasn't surprised as she saw it first hand when Hikaru grew Luffy's wings.

The shock came on Junpei's face, then disbelief and then fear before he said in defeat, smiling "Aren't you too strong?"

Hikaru smiled at that comment. "Not at the moment, as things stand there are many stronger parasites that we have to look out for. We haven't even seen how strong Daichi is and he's not even on top."

If Daichi was just an officer of Midori ward, he wasn't even the cream of the crop. He was probably just a barrier separating the common and the rare parasites from the elites. The rare parasites, so far, are the enhancers. Ones that are capable of morphing part or all of their bodies into weapons.

The ones he encountered so far were Phillip - whom he got his spike ability from, Botan - who can enhance the strength of his arm punches and gigantify his fists, Juro - whip tendrils, Mami - diamond-shaped spider legs, Luffy - wings with bladed edges - Hiromi's father, mother and brother respectively.

"Rest assured, as long as I'm alive, there is no insurmountable barrier -"

*Smash*

The bedroom window broke as a girl crashed through it.

"Die!!!" She shouted.