"BEGIN!" All Might's thunderous voice reverberated at that moment.
That was the signal!
Within the building, Mina had gone on ahead to face Tokoyami, leaving behind Ryūjin at the lower floor, guarding the bomb.
Up above, Tokoyami and Mina were engaged in a fierce game of cat and mouse.
Mina had tried to surprise him with an AOE attack, fanning out her acid as she maneuvered between thick pillars.
However, Tokoyami's Dark Shadow was extremely volatile and powerful. Its sensory ability was also one of a kind even at its current stage.
It had easily defended against the terrifying attack that Mina released.
"The darkness will not falter to your tricks."
Dark Shadow then warped around him and propelled him towards Mina in a blur.
"!!!"
Mina's eyes widened in panic as she saw a black missile flying straight towards her. She worked her Quirk immediately.
Her feet were swallowed by acid instantly as she sped away faster than ever. .
As she passed by several pillars, she would touch them and excrete her acid, having it penetrate the thick material and eat away at its sturdiness.
She repeated this method without Tokoyami catching on until she was a good distance away. Then she concentrated her Acid in a new way she hadn't really put more thought towards.
Channeling it at the center of her palms she forced it to rotate as fast as she could manage in the form of a sphere, before pushing her control over her current limits and having them begin shrinking.
She waited.
As much as it hurt her to maintain this currently, she made a promise to not let Ryūjin down.
So she waited, just for the right time.
When she finally saw him approaching the center of the still corroding pillars, her sweat covered face cracked a smile.
"Corrosion Blasts!" Mina shouted as two powerful spheres of rotating acid flew out of her palms like twin missiles.
They headed straight for Tokoyami, alerting him as Dark Shadow sensed something dangerous approaching.
Immediately, Dark Shadow swallowed him in an attempt to protect him.
The acid blasts were so powerfully concentrated that the moment it made contact with Dark Shadow, a living sentient Quirk, Tokoyami as well as him felt a burning sensation transmit throughout their bodies.
But that wasn't the end!
In the next instance Tokoyami was seen being flung back like a broken kite, before colliding with the corrosion-filled pillars.
One by one, they snapped in half before beginning their collapse.
The first crumbling pillar to touch the very edge of another one immediately triggered a chain reaction, causing all the others to begin doing the same.
That did it for that area of the ceiling. As more pillars crumbled, a belly was formed within the ceiling. It wasn't long before it all crumbled, swallowing Tokoyami who was still shielded by Dark Shadow.
"He'll live…hopefully.." Mina said through rushed breaths. She was hunched over, her mind buzzing still from the excessive stamina demand.
Still, she couldn't believe her Quirk could have been so versatile.
Not wanting to waste this opportunity, she turned and left, heading towards a more secluded area in order to recuperate her energy.
[Outside]
"H-Holy..!" Kirishima was stunned. No, like literally.
"D-Did you guys know Mina could do that..?" Jiro asked the girls.
"Most likely she created that on the spot! She knew she needed more than just simply throwing around acid. She—" Hagakure was about to finish her sentence when someone else did so for her.
"She needed strategy and power. To those two things that mattered in that moment, she was able to achieve it. Amazing!" Yaoyorozu ushered, shocked.
Watching the screen, All Might nodded in praise. "But she has about five minutes max, my students." His words caused a wave of confusion to wash over many.
Todoroki grunted, it was his turn to speak now.
"All Might's right. Tokoyami's Quirk is a dark elemental based power. Being buried beneath that rubble isn't really holding them off, much less weakening them.
Sure it was a good way to buy herself time but she unknowingly gave them a power boost since Dark Shadow becomes stronger when any form of darkness is involved or so Tokoyami informed me."
His words were as heavy as an anchor. Now they had each realized that Mina would have to face a stronger Tokoyami. And they were certain the same tricks weren't going to work this time.
———
Back up in the building, standing in front of a large nuclear missile was a figure. A massive man, 6'3" tall with a body packed with coiling muscles that looked as though they were ready to spring into action at any given moment.
Ryūjin stood tall with his hands in his pockets and his hero costume flaring casually as wind passed in and out of the building.
Though he appeared to be casually standing there uninterested, his eyes had not an ounce of playfulness within them.
They were focused, filled with intent.
He stared into the distance where another figure walked towards him.
Half of the figure's body was covered in thick chunks of ice that caused a chilling, an almost frosty breath of air leaving his mouth with every step he took towards Ryūjin.
Todoroki's advance looked ominously controlled. It was the march of a predator that had found its prey.
Well that was what he had believed. After all, he was adamant on hunting Ryūjin down today.
Ryūjin's face finally cracked a smile.
But then something terrifying happened, something that looked so off putting it would stir the stomachs of seasoned warriors.
As he readied himself, his burnt-gold irises started growing, the black pupils shifting and strecthing alongside them.
It was then, in that moment, that a monstrous almost demonic aura was released from his entire being. Off to the distance, Todoroki's march halted for a moment.
'W-What is that?'
Ryūjin's stance shifted. His calves tighten and loosen with every flex and release.
Then—
THUMP!
THUMP!
THUMP!
There it is.
Todoroki was immediately broken out of his confusion the moment he heard the roar of Ryūjin's engine. Immediately a smile formed on his face.
And it was chilling.
Why?
Because it was the first time since arriving to U.A, that's why.
Not willing to let Ryūjin get the advantage, a heavy, bitingly cold silence was the last thing that remained in the atmosphere before it was absolutely decimated.
A heavy, large wave of ice flared out with an intense frenzy, rushing towards Ryūjin with the promise of destruction.
King's Engine!
VWOOM!
Ryūjin vanished with a crackling boom, slingshotting forward with terrifying speeds. His form shifted midair as he called forth his technique.
Iron Edict's Seventh Cycle—Crushing Overthrow.
The Ogre's large body spun as his tree trunks of forearms stiffened, his elbow joints hardened like they were being infused with iron when eventually—
KA-BOOOOOOOM!!!!
He collided with the oncoming wave of ice, obliterating it with ease and passing through it with a blurring intensity.
THUMP!
THUMP!
THUMP!
King's Engine roared to life once more the moment his feet touched the ground, his momentum carrying over with terrifying adaptation.
Ryūjin's smile was nothing short of demonic as he literally ripped apart his surroundings as he flew towards Todoroki.
Shoto's eyes widened in panic as the Ogre reached him in the blink of an eye.
Ice flared in the spot Ryūjin had appeared, encasing him immediately allowing for Todoroki to retreat. Ryūjin's approach was halted, freezing him in place the moment he was swallowed.
But Shoto didn't stop there.
Not at one layer. Definitely not.
Not with a monster like Hanma Ryūjin.
One after the next, thick, monstrous layers of ice bloomed around the cocoon that was now Ryūjin.
CRANK!
CRANK!
CRANK!
Thick layers formed the moment the last encased around him.
Using this as his chance, Todoroki bolted towards the bomb with extreme speeds, aiming to finish this immediately.
But Ryūjin would never let that happen.
We knew this. And so did he.
BOOOOOOOOOM!
All those layers of ice Todoroki had shackled the monster with, just exploded. Like it was nothing. Like they were fucking paper.
Ryūjin's smile never faltered, that raw and predatory smile that he carried with him to any battlefield.
It was nightmare fuel.
"Nuh uh, Shoto-san."
Forms shifted, Iron Edict bloomed once more.
The air quaked, trembling like it was about to crack. Then, suddenly, it just looked as though everything had begun agreeing with Ryūjin entirely.
His body's muscles pulsed, shifted and grew. His back muscles moved, like a fucking puzzle. A demonic structure flickered for briefest of moments.
Then—
Iron Edict's First Cycle—
—Iron Pulse.
The cherry on top was King's Engine follow up.
It flared to life with a menacing thump as he catapulted through the air, closing the distance between him and Shoto with horrifying levels of speed.
Somehow, he appeared even faster than before.
Iron Edict's Fifth Cycle—
"See ya." He grinned.
—Great Collapse.
Two fists met Shoto's stomach as rings of pressurized air formed in front of his figure. His belly caved in, yet even in that almost instantaneous moment, ice had managed to form on the point of contact.
"Hah." Ryūjin laughed.
VWOMM!
BOOM!
Todoroki passed through quite a few walls, his body flipping with every collision.
Wounds opened on his skin as he tried his very best to shield his vital areas.
Eventually, he exited the building.
After colliding with a few more walls he would soon find himself lodged into one, barely having passed through it.
BOOM!
"G-Gah..!!"
He called upon a breath of life yet it felt as though it was refusing him. His mind was wracked, his vision spinning.
He was broken in that moment, finding himself spiraling in and out of consciousness.
Yet? His spirit fought with grit.
"I-I can still fight..!"
Shoto tried to move but ultimately, the concussion was far too severe. He just couldn't.
He had soon passed out.
!!!
Far off in the distance, All Might and the returning Aizawa panicked. In an instance, All Might boomed over in frightening speed. He gently withdrew Todoroki from the wall.
With gentle arms, he placed him on the ground before taking out his cell phone and calling the first phone number in his most recent.
"Miss Chiyo! We need you at the field immediately! There's a student that's been critically injured. It's bad!"
A couple meters away, several students came rushing in, concern etched into their expressions.
"A-All Might sensei! Is he okay?!" Yaoyorozu called out. Her expression looked pale, she was genuinely terrified for his safety.
"Todoroki-san! All Might sensei, please tell us!" Ida's face was covered in sweat.
Off to the side, Kaminari grew teary eyed looking at the state of his peer. He knew they would get injured facing one another, but to this extent? What was the point?
His hands covered his face for a moment before his eyes turned and caught the expression of a rather neutral Izuku.
"Y-You! What the hell is wrong with Ryūjin?! How could he go to this extent??? Is he fucking insane?!"
His words triggered a wave of concerned people's emotions. Izuku sighed and was about to walk away when another chimed in.
"Seriously? You're not going to say nothing?!" Jiro stepped up, furious at the lack of expression on Izuku's face.
Off to the side, Uraraka got between them. Her concern showing as she feared an internal dispute beginning between one another.
All Might, still crouched next to the unconscious Todoroki, was about to open his mouth and speak on behalf of the towering Izuku but immediately thought otherwise.
"Tell me. Why should Ryūjin have gone easier? Shoto Todoroki declared to my brother that he would beat him at his fullest.
Yet he still refused to use his full strength against a man like Hanma Ryūjin. Towards a man like that, thats no different than a slap to the face.
In other words, the greatest disrespect.
Ryūjin warned him that this outcome was the only one to come if he had refused to use his other side. Looking at the loser of this match, was my brother, Ryūjin wrong?"
His words immediately brought silence onto the bickering of the students.
"Hmph. And you all expect to become heroes with that mentality? Next time, before jumping the gun. Ask yourself something before you go into anything. Are you going to give it your all? Or are you going to half ass your way through it?" And with that, Izuku Midoriya departed.
Behind him, the faces of Yaoyorozu, Jiro, Tsuyu, Kaminari, Ida and even Ojiro was one of utmost disbelief. Yet in their minds and hearts, somewhere—they knew Izuku was right.
All Might gave a small smile at the departing back of Izuku, who was returning to the monitoring screen of the field.
All Might strongly believed in what Izuku had said. 'Well said young Midoriya. Soon they will all open their eyes. I just hope you remember that they aren't as experienced as you and young Ryūjin!' He thought.
Uraraka looked on between Izuku and her classmates with a conflicted expression whilst biting her finger nails nervously. With a tired sigh, she turned towards Izuku before sprinting off and chasing behind him.
"Deku-kun!"
———
Meanwhile.
From within the building Ryūjin's presence withdrew the moment he felt Shoto's intent disperse.
"Maybe if I hadn't adapted to your ice and you had never refused my offer of using your other half, could we have gone on a little longer. Nonetheless, thanks for the fight, Shoto."
He said those final words as he turned on his heel and walked back towards the bomb. He dropped into a lotus position before crossing his arms and listening to what was going on with Mina.
He was confident in her strategies and if she needed the hand, he wouldn't hesitate to step in.
TO BE CONTINUED!!!