Dabi ignited his flames again, trying to penetrate the dense darkness that was trying to smother him. There was no effect.
There was a reason it was suggested to leave this guy to Muscular. Burning sand is very difficult.
Of course, he could do it, but that would require significantly increasing his temperature, which would end up hurting him more than his opponent.
It wasn't that Dabi was weaker than Tetsumaru. It was a matter of compatibility. In a one-on-one confrontation, he had no realistic chance of winning.
—Hahahaha! Isn't this brat quick to understand the situation!?— Muscular mocked as he swung his arms in a blur of motion, shoveling the sand aside and protecting both of them.
Suddenly, a crash resounded in the place when Muscular tried to move a pile of sand. It turned out it wasn't loose sand, but a solidified pillar the size of a bus.
Dabi jumped to the side, narrowly avoiding the collision as Muscular was completely run over, thrown several meters away, and crashed into the street.
Sand snakes slithered after Dabi, trying to entangle his legs. They had already been informed of this tactic. If they let themselves be caught, they would be stabbed.
The pyromancer spat out more flames, propelling himself away from Tetsumaru's attack zone.
For his part, the black-haired boy drank his cup in one gulp, reluctant to waste good coffee.
More sand poured out of his seals, quickly moving to the sides and forming high obsidian walls.
The Satetsu crossed to the other side of the street, blocking the way to the houses opposite so as not to involve people in this brawl. He determined that the fire zombie would be capable of setting innocent people on fire to gain an advantage.
While concentrating his mind on raising the walls, the pillar that should have left the muscular blonde unconscious and with broken bones was returned to him with double the power.
Tetsumaru clicked his tongue and split the pillar that was on a collision course with his face in two, dissolving it into loose sand and narrowly avoiding impact.
But his senses with the magnetic fields of the sand alerted him to an imminent danger.
The shinobi jumped aside a second before Muscular's reddened fist smashed against the door frame, wildly blowing it away in an explosion of splinters.
—You better have money, you creep. You'll pay for that door— the black-haired boy said coldly, while a Satetsu wall rose behind him, blocking Dabi's sneaky flare without even turning around.
—That Quirk really is annoying— Dabi complained, feeling completely useless.
—Kukuku, leave the brat to me. Go and capture the bitch— Muscular suggested.
—Hm, you'll have to wait, zombie. The lady is changing clothes— Tetsumaru intervened.
Without warning, solidified sand spikes emerged from the high walls enclosing the trio. Dabi was sprayed by a rain of senbon from the rear, forcing him to take to the air with his fire.
The needles continued on their path, on a collision course with Tetsumaru. Before piercing him, the senbon looped around the black-haired boy and fixed onto Muscular.
With a snort, the blonde reinforced his muscles and charged directly at Tetsumaru, the senbon bouncing off his body without causing any damage.
Tetsumaru's eyes darted between Dabi in the air and Muscular in front of him, watching the former so he wouldn't spit flames at his house and ignoring the latter, because he already had a surprise for him.
Just like with the Nomu at the USJ, having great strength doesn't mean his weight is enormous.
Less than a meter from Tetsumaru, Muscular was lifted by an explosion of sand that emerged from the subsoil and wrapped around his body from head to toe.
Sensing the opportune moment, Tetsumaru extended his palm and closed his fist.
Sand Coffin.
Inside the Satetsu cocoon, Muscular felt the pressure increasing, crushing him like a piece of fruit. He clenched his teeth and his muscle fibers rippled, fighting against the pressure of the sand coffin.
Meanwhile, Dabi tried to launch fire at the house windows, where he could glimpse the silhouette of a young woman casually adjusting a dress, as if there wasn't a battle outside her house.
—Little bitch!— Dabi spat with anger.
A jet of blue flames headed towards the girl, but another layer of dark sand intervened.
—OORAAAA!!— the Satetsu cocoon roared before exploding into blackened dust. Muscular, with his body completely red, as if his skin had been stripped away, fell heavily to the street.
His enraged eyes drilled into Tetsumaru, and he shot toward him at ridiculous speed.
Tetsumaru slightly widened his eyes and took evasive action, relying on his shinobi speed and agility, boosted by chakra bursts.
Muscular's fists were not only extremely strong, they were also overwhelmingly fast.
Tetsumaru's forearms covered with a hardened layer of sand, and he decided to test his Taijutsu against an opponent who wasn't Mei.
A punch was deflected by the black-haired boy with a graceful turn, sparks flying from the contact with his iron sand for some damned reason. He completed the turn and delivered a back kick to the blonde's side.
As he feared, he barely moved the muscular guy a few centimeters.
—Hmph! You call that a punch!?— Muscular scoffed as he launched another flurry of punches that displaced the air and cracked the street with shockwaves.
—That was a kick, not a punch. Ape— Tetsumaru retorted, which angered the blonde.
Tetsumaru understood that his brute strength couldn't compete with that of this savage, but the difference wasn't as overwhelming as that of the USJ Nomu.
However, he didn't plan to expose his physical abilities yet. So far, everything he did could be considered within the human realm. At most, it could be argued that his sand allowed him to deflect blows without breaking his arms.
—Mei, the muscular guy is manageable with Taijutsu. You deal with him while I take down the fire zombie— he informed his other half.
Tetsumaru was aware that unless Mei unleashed a true tsunami, her water would be useless against those flames. It wasn't mere fire like Todoroki's. Its heat was much higher.
And unlike him, she wouldn't be able to unleash a Tsunami and lift it from the ground. That's not how her water worked. If it came to that, it would cause a disaster that not even his sand walls could contain, and he didn't want the government to charge them for the damages.
Being a Hero wasn't as easy as saving people and fighting bad guys.
—Stop running, damn it!— Muscular growled, throwing another punch at the black-haired boy's face.
Tetsumaru didn't even give him a second glance and jumped into the air, forming a sand platform at his feet that carried him to meet Dabi.
Before Muscular could pursue him, a water wave roared from the broken entrance of the house, lunging at him and smashing him hard.
Mei, dressed in her full shinobi attire, stepped out calmly with a flirtatious smile on her lips.
—Fufufu, you really do look like a creep. Too bad for you, I already found my ideal man— the kunoichi mocked, gazing at Muscular's unmasked face.
—You took too long— Tetsumaru said through their bond.
—Hmph, a woman needs time to get ready, even if she's going into battle— she retorted.
The truth was she rushed as fast as she could, but her hair wouldn't cooperate. It was a tough opening fight, and she barely had time to adjust her tights, smooth out her dress, and tie her shin guards.
—Ah, I guess you even put on perfume— the shinobi commented.
—Tsk, no, I didn't have time...— Mei was in the process of replying, but she was interrupted by two things.
First, a runaway Muscular who lunged at her with arms pulsating with power, and second, because she noticed that the smell of perfume wasn't the only thing missing.
She leaned and evaded the blonde's lunge, taking the opportunity and her position to discreetly sniff under her own arms, and the color drained from her face.
—I... I forgot the deodorant!— she shrieked in her mind, in a corner that Tetsumaru wouldn't hear.