"Hey—wait! Don't just go in like that!"
Minoru Mineta shouted in panic as he watched Igarashi Masata ignore the explosion behind them and continue walking deeper into the building. "This place is crazy dangerous! Shouldn't we at least discuss some countermeasures first?!"
"Relax. It's not that dangerous," Masata replied casually without stopping. "The explosions are pretty weak. At worst, they'll hurt a bit."
Mineta, still trembling, stared at him in disbelief. "You say that like getting hurt is nothing!"
"In my opinion," Masata continued calmly, "the real purpose of these traps isn't to injure us. It's to slow us down. As long as the villain team delays us past the time limit, they win. That's all."
Despite his muscle-brained reputation, Masata's analysis was surprisingly sharp.
"And besides," he added, turning his head slightly to glance back at Mineta, "you want to become a Hero, don't you?"
"Of course I do!" Mineta answered instinctively.
"Then remember this," Masata said seriously. "Heroes don't turn back."
Those words hit Mineta far harder than any explosion ever could.
Just a few weeks ago, he had still been an ordinary middle schooler. He had never experienced real danger or actual combat. In his mind, this was just a class exercise—lose and that's it, no big deal.
But when Masata looked at him with those unwavering eyes and said those words, Mineta felt something ignite inside him.
So cool…
So manly…
"It's too cool, Masata!!!" Mineta suddenly yelled, tears in his eyes.
"I want to be that cool too!!!"
"So girls will like me!!!"
"You're my big brother now!!!"
"…That escalated fast," Masata muttered.
Still, seeing Mineta regain his resolve made him smile.
"Alright, little grape," Masata said, clapping him on the shoulder. "Then it's time for you to contribute. By the way—what exactly is your Quirk? Can those grapes on your head be eaten? Like a perpetual energy source or something?"
"That's not how it works!" Mineta snapped.
He plucked one of the purple spheres from his head.
"This thing is insanely sticky. If I'm in good condition, the stickiness lasts almost a full day. But if I pull too many at once, my scalp starts bleeding badly. They grow back immediately, but pulling too many at once is dangerous."
He pressed the sphere against the wall. It stuck firmly, stretching and bouncing like jelly when he tugged it.
"They don't stick to me," Mineta explained. "And they're super elastic."
After that explanation, the two fell silent.
"AAAAAAHHHH!!!" Mineta suddenly screamed, clutching his head.
"My Quirk is completely useless for fighting!!!"
"…Not entirely," Masata said after thinking for a moment.
"It could be used as super glue. Or trampolines. Or—"
"Stop! Just stop talking!" Mineta interrupted, already emotionally collapsing. "Let's move! Hurry!"
He rushed toward the staircase.
BOOM!
"WHY AM I ALWAYS THE ONE GETTING HURT?!!"
Lost in the Maze
"…Something feels off," Masata muttered after a while.
The scenery around them looked eerily similar no matter where they went.
They had triggered countless traps—roadblocks, constant explosions, and iron spikes that suddenly shot up from the floor. Thanks to Masata leading the way, Mineta avoided the worst of it. Otherwise, he would have broken down crying long ago.
Whenever they encountered a steel wall blocking the corridor, Masata chose to detour instead of destroying it.
Unfortunately, that meant—
"…We've been walking in circles, haven't we?" Mineta asked weakly.
"Looks like it," Masata replied, cracking his neck. "Which means the correct path is probably behind those steel plates."
He clenched his fists.
"Magma Gauntlet."
Molten lava surged from Masata's hands, wrapping around his fists and solidifying into glowing, hardened gauntlets.
This wasn't a high-cost move like his major techniques. It was a simple, efficient application of his Quirk—low stamina drain, high effectiveness, perfect for sustained combat.
"Stand back," Masata said.
BOOM!
He slammed his fist into the steel plate.
CRACK—
The plate shattered in half, a massive hole punched clean through it.
These barricades were hastily created by Yaoyorozu's Quirk. The materials weren't particularly strong—no match for Masata's magma-enhanced strike.
As he stared at the broken steel, an idea suddenly formed.
"Mineta," Masata said slowly, "your grapes are sticky and elastic, right?"
"Yeah… but I can only throw them at villains," Mineta replied, confused.
"Who said anything about attacking?" Masata grinned.
"Just do this…"
After explaining his plan, Masata burst into laughter.
"See? We can win without hurting them at all!"
"…That actually sounds really smart," Mineta admitted. "It's already dangerous enough. A direct fight would be even worse. This way is way safer."
"And way funnier," Masata added.
"Then let's do it!" Mineta nodded firmly.
Villain Side — The Final Defense
"They're coming," Ochaco said, pressing her ear against the wall. "I can hear them."
Yaoyorozu Momo nodded. "Alright. I'll get to the cannon."
She turned serious.
"Remember—don't engage Masata at close range. Once he gets close, neither of us can stop him. Even your Quirk won't help if you can't touch him."
"Our goal isn't to defeat them," Momo continued calmly. "We just need to stall. Time is on our side."
"Got it," Ochaco said, swallowing nervously.
"MO-MO-CHAN! CHACHA!"
Masata's loud voice echoed from outside the door.
"I'M COMING IN!!!"
Ochaco immediately stepped away from the wall, standing beside the nuclear weapon in a ready stance.
BOOM!
Smoke filled the room.
And when it finally cleared—
What appeared before Momo-chan and Chacha was something neither of them had expected.