Masata's blunt, almost reckless confession lingered in the air.
Yaoyorozu Momo's face flushed faintly, while Uraraka Ochaco couldn't help the trace of envy that flickered across her eyes. Ever since the seaside vacation, she had already come to terms with her own feelings.
Only Himiko Toga—still pinned to the ground—showed no reaction at all.
Her eyes were fixed on Masata's body, now glowing red as energy gathered. A faint blush spread across her face, and she unconsciously licked her lips, as if staring at an irresistibly delicious meal.
With a powerful push of his legs, Masata shot into the sky like a rocket.
Watching the blazing figure rise like a small sun, Mandalay and Tiger could do nothing but sigh. At that point, stopping him was impossible.
The night wind lashed against Masata's face, clearing his thoughts. He pulled out his phone midair and checked his position.
He wasn't far from Midoriya Izuku anymore.
"Let me see…"
From this altitude, the forest stretched endlessly below him. The view was wide, but the dense canopy completely concealed the ground. It was impossible to discern anything clearly.
Then—
BOOM!!!
A deafening explosion echoed through the night.
Masata snapped his head toward the sound and saw thick smoke rising from a cliff slightly ahead and to the left.
"That's it!"
Such a massive disturbance could only have been caused by Midoriya. The location matched perfectly.
Masata adjusted his trajectory, black smoke trailing behind him as magma surged and propelled him forward like a falling meteor.
"So you wanted to protect that brat? Then why are you running now?! Isn't this slapping yourself in the face?!"
As the distance closed, mocking laughter reached Masata's ears.
On the cliff below, a massively built man was relentlessly chasing Midoriya Izuku, beating him without mercy. Nearby stood a Nomu, gripping Midoriya tightly like a lifeless object.
"Midoriya!!!"
The moment Masata saw his classmate battered and struggling, rage exploded inside him. Crimson light erupted from his fist, bathing the entire cliff in a hellish glow.
"Heaven-Dog Smash!!"
Masata's speed left the muscular man no time to dodge. He could only glare in fury as Masata descended upon him.
"Nomu!!!"
In desperation, the man barked an order.
The Nomu—previously standing motionless—did not move out of the way.
BOOM!!!
Masata's fist slammed forward.
It pierced straight through the target without resistance, and violent magma erupted from behind, instantly melting half the mountain.
Yet Masata's expression turned grim.
At the moment of impact, his fist had felt… wrong. As if it had struck empty space.
"Be careful, Masata! He switched places with the Nomu!!!"
Midoriya Izuku shouted with what little strength he had left.
Only now did Masata fully register it—the face in front of him belonged to the Nomu that had been holding Midoriya moments ago. The muscular villain had somehow swapped positions with it at the last instant.
Because both had similarly grotesque, overdeveloped physiques, Masata hadn't noticed immediately.
The Nomu collapsed into the magma, while the muscular man reappeared nearby. Ignoring Masata, he rushed straight to Midoriya and knelt beside him, his demeanor completely different from before—almost concerned.
"Midoriya. Tell me everything you know."
Masata's voice dropped, deadly serious.
He could tell at a glance—Midoriya's arms were twisted unnaturally. There was no doubt he had forced One For All far beyond its safe limits.
Masata had seen the true power of One For All in All Might's hands. That overwhelmingly simple, absolute strength still surpassed even his own current output.
And yet—
The man in front of him had taken those blows and was still standing.
"His Quirk is Muscle Augmentation," Midoriya said weakly. "It multiplies muscle fiber density and drastically boosts strength and speed. Fighting him head-on is extremely dangerous."
Masata listened intently.
"He used muscle fibers to block my attack earlier… but that's not the worst part," Midoriya continued. "That Nomu—it can instantly switch positions with others. It regenerates insanely fast, and its raw power is terrifying. My strongest hit was nullified because it swapped in at the last moment."
Without that Nomu, Midoriya might have already won.
Earlier, he had unleashed One For All at 1,000,000%, even with broken arms. The resulting explosion was the one Masata had heard from afar.
But that decisive blow had been intercepted by the Nomu.
After tanking it, the Nomu regenerated almost immediately, while Midoriya—used as a hostage afterward—lost all ability to continue fighting.
That was the situation Masata had arrived to see.
"Again with this disgusting ability…" Masata muttered.
The muscular man said nothing.
Masata was already sick of regeneration-type enemies. Like cockroaches that refused to die, they stripped all enjoyment from battle. Unless you obliterated them in one strike, all that remained was a tedious war of attrition.
As they spoke, the Nomu rose again from the magma.
Granulation surged from the massive hole in its chest, rapidly filling the cavity. Flesh and skin regenerated layer by layer until, aside from its slightly darker coloration, there was no trace of injury left.
"That was dangerous…" the muscular man said, staring at the melted cliff with lingering fear. "Good thing I brought this secret weapon. Otherwise, I'd really be dead."
He clenched his fists.
"My muscle fibers can withstand pure physical force… but against something unreasonable like magma? They only buy me time. Nothing more."
...
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