Chapter 5: The End of the Trip
"Okay, students, time's up," Mr. Trump announced, clapping his hands to get everyone's attention. "The trip is over."
Most of the students looked relieved—some because they had actually learned something new, others because they no longer had to learn anything new.
But there was one exception.
One student who was visibly, undeniably, utterly disappointed.
"What's wrong, Mr. Parker?" Mr. Trump asked, noticing my downcast expression.
"Nothing, sir," I said, forcing a small smile. "Just thinking about when we'll get an opportunity like this again."
Mr. Trump nodded, clearly pleased. "Don't worry, Mr. Parker. I'll speak to the principal about arranging another trip before the end of the year."
He looked genuinely happy that at least one student was eager to learn. If only he knew the real reason for my disappointment.
Ned stepped in beside me, giving me a knowing look. "You really want to come back here, huh?"
He clearly hadn't found whatever he was hoping for.
"Nah," I said, smirking. "Just putting on a show."
Ned raised an eyebrow. "For who?"
I gestured vaguely. "The readers. Gotta keep them entertained."
"You've become weird."
"Just more sane."
With that, we left the building, going through one last security screening to make sure no one had 'accidentally' taken any top-secret Oscorp tech.
Once on the bus, I settled into my seat and let my thoughts wander.
What did I actually get out of this trip?
Well, first off—no birth of Spider-Man.
Or rather, no Peter Parker becoming Spider-Man.
Because, yeah, I didn't get bitten.
Was I sad about it? Not really.
Sure, I'd been kind of hyped at the idea of getting bitten by a radioactive spider and unlocking all the cool powers that came with it. But now that it didn't happen, I wasn't exactly disappointed.
Why would I be?
I mean, I have the GACHA.
Getting superpowers is the last thing I need to worry about.
But that just unlocked another problem.
If I'm not Spider-Man… then who is?
Yeah, I didn't see anyone else get bitten. Didn't even spot the spider.
But that doesn't mean no one got powers.
Maybe I just didn't notice.
Of course, there's also the possibility that this world won't have a friendly neighborhood spider guardian at all.
And somehow… that thought was more unsettling than not getting bitten myself.
A chill ran down my spine.
"What happened? Are you cold?" Ned asked, eyeing me curiously.
"Yeah, late-night cola effect," I said, shrugging it off.
But in reality? My brain was already running a background scan.
I needed to keep an eye on everyone who had a chance of becoming Spider-Man—or Spider-Woman. Gwen, MJ, Flash (yes, even Flash), and anyone else who might've been in the wrong place at the right time.
Even Ned was on the list.
Because if he couldn't be the Hobgoblin right now… well, who's to say he couldn't end up as something else?
And then there was the other problem—Dr. Connors.
In one universe, a female Octavius led to the birth of the collider. The last thing I needed was some multiversal Godzilla apocalypse happening .
So, yeah. Time to dig through Dr. Connors' background. But first... the explosion.
Sigh. With my luck, this day was only going to get weirder.
I stopped my thoughts right there. No point in spiraling just yet. I grabbed the armrest with one hand and Ned with the other. Boom.
"Seriously?" I muttered under my breath.
We felt the shockwave hit the bus, shaking it from the outside in. My stomach dropped, but my brain was already processing.
Glass shattered from nearby windows, and the deafening boom of the blast was followed by the hiss of metal screeching under pressure.
"What the hell was that?" Ned shouted, his face pale with fear.
"Attack," I muttered, instinctively scanning the chaos outside. People were running in every direction, screaming, while some buildings were engulfed in thick, black smoke. It didn't take a genius to figure out this wasn't an accident.
The bus rocked again, this time with a more deliberate force. Someone—no, something—had fired at us. The whole damn city was under attack.
"Mr. Trump!" someone screamed from the front. "What are we supposed to do?"
But he didn't have an answer. His face was ashen, his hands trembling as he spoke into his phone, trying to get in touch with whoever was still on the other side of the line. "Stay down! Stay quiet!" he ordered again, but there was no certainty in his voice.
Another explosion shook the bus, far closer this time. The force of it sent us veering off course, crashing into something another vehicle, a barricade, I couldn't tell. The tires burst, and the bus skidded dangerously to the side. The panic inside the cabin grew exponentially as the students screamed in terror.
"Everyone, stay down!" Mr. Trump shouted again, trying to regain control of the situation, but it was clear we were at the mercy of whatever was going on outside.
Ned and I were thrown forward as the bus jerked violently to the side. I heard something heavy crash into the side door, and I immediately went into survival mode. "Stay low, keep your head down!" I yelled, grabbing Ned's arm and pulling him to the floor with me. "This is real, Ned. We're not safe here."
"I know, I know!" Ned replied, his voice tight with fear. "What do we do? We can't just sit here!"
I glanced at the other students, some crouching low, others frozen in terror. The bus shook again, and this time the unmistakable sound of gunfire rang out in the distance, followed by another blast. I pushed my face against the cold metal floor, trying to stay as small as possible. My mind was racing. Who was behind this? Terrorists? A targeted attack? It felt like everything was collapsing around us, and it wasn't slowing down.
***************
Author's pov
In Naruto, multiverse and more with Gacha system. 30+ chapters