This was a fireball spanning dozens of meters. An ordinary person probably would have been unable to withstand it.
But...
"What are you thinking about, Bakugo?"
At that instant, X suddenly appeared at his side with a charming smile, carrying the unique fragrance of a young girl. Durian Head's expression froze as well.
"The ability to sense approaching danger at any time and come up with an effective solution—that is the intuition possessed by the Strongest Saber!"
Saber Star C++ activated.
Considering the enormous boost this move provided, X suddenly switched from attacking with her sword to using her leg at the moment she closed in. Her body twisted through the air in an utterly unnatural way as she kicked down at his shoulder from above.
"Saber!"
Here it came—
What she had not expected was that Katsuki Bakugo released a second explosion at the last moment, attempting to resist her attack.
Rumble!
The entire arena instantly crumbled beneath the explosion. The spectators focused intently, doing everything they could to see what was happening.
Then...
When the smoke cleared, only Durian Head remained, his body trembling and one arm braced against a leg.
Mic took a deep breath.
"Katsuki Bakugo's attack was dodged, then he took a solid kick and endured it with his own strength."
Whoosh~
After delivering that kick, X flipped backward and landed lightly.
My combat experience is still lacking, but fighting Bakugo has allowed me to quickly and thoroughly grasp certain techniques within this body.
X thought this while still keeping Yukino protected behind her.
Having had the foresight to keep Yukino summoned, she was glad she had not dismissed her. That arena-wide explosion had already injured her slightly. If it had been her main body, she would not have been able to recover so quickly.
"Let me send you out of the ring, Bakugo... Did you feel my sincerity in that kick just now? I was completely focused. I did not underestimate you in the slightest."
The gap between them was simply too great.
Her sunny smile made Bakugo's mood somewhat heavy.
Then...
Whoosh~~
With one step, the ground shattered with a boom, and X rapidly closed in on Bakugo's side at a speed too fast for the naked eye to follow.
"You lost!"
Bang—
A solid punch. Her terrifying arm tore through the air and slammed into his abdomen, whipping up a fierce gust.
"Gah—"
It seemed to have injured his internal organs. Blood surged from Bakugo's stomach as the scenery on both sides rapidly flew past, and his body landed outside the arena.
"Katsuki Bakugo is out of bounds. The winner of this match is Su Lin!" Midnight snapped out of her shock and quickly announced the result while waving her whip.
Clap... clap... clap... clap...
Continuous applause erupted throughout the venue.
"Unbelievable. Katsuki Bakugo's previous move already surpassed the abilities of many Pro Heroes, didn't it? Yet that child called Su Lin came out completely unharmed after taking on his strongest move."
"Hey, hey, did any of you see how she dodged it?"
"Teleportation, maybe? She was too fast. I could not see it at all."
"Are U.A. students all this terrifying? These matches are getting more insane with every round."
"No, no, maybe there are just more freaks this year."
As the audience continued discussing the match, Bakugo lay on the ground and stared blankly at the sky, no one knowing what he was thinking.
He had known there was a chance he could lose, but even after using his ultimate move, he had still been completely beaten one-sidedly. The unpleasant feeling weighing on his heart was difficult to calm.
And that punch... it felt like X had deliberately put extra strength into it and dealt out a private punishment. Otherwise, if she had only meant to knock him out of the ring, how could he have been injured this badly?
"OK~~ The first semifinal match only lasted a short minute, but it was incredibly exciting. Let's take a short break and look forward to the next match!"
Mic's words declared the end of the match.
After dismissing X-Hair, Yukino closed her eyes and took a deep breath. Then she turned around and slowly walked toward the rest area.
So this is what it feels like to be the center of everyone's attention? she thought as she walked.
Standing before countless people and enjoying cheers like an ocean. At this very moment, perhaps an entire country was watching her.
A feeling I've never had before... But when I think about it carefully, it's nothing special.
Outside the stadium, inside an unknown building.
Tomura Shigaraki sat in front of a television, watching Yukino silently walk into the shadows beneath the camera's gaze. He scratched his neck fiercely.
Scratch, scratch—
Anyone sitting beside him would have felt that his fragile neck could be torn open at any moment.
Just then, another man's voice sounded from behind him. "Watch carefully, Tomura Shigaraki. Perhaps she will be the person who causes you the greatest trouble in the future."
"Hehe, how ridiculous..." Tomura Shigaraki stopped moving, and it was impossible to tell whether the expression on his face was caution or something else.
"Don't you feel pressured?" The voice behind him fell silent for the moment.
"..."
Back in the waiting room, Yukino saw Shoto Todoroki sitting blankly in his seat.
Separated by a table, she silently took out her bag and pulled out some snacks, stuffing them into her mouth.
Half a minute later, Shoto Todoroki shifted his gaze away from Yukino's mouth. He looked slightly annoyed, probably with the feeling of, I'm nervous as hell, and you still have the mood to eat snacks?
"Hey, Todoroki." Yukino glanced at Todoroki, who was in a daze, and tossed two candies over to him. "Remember one thing... What belongs to you will always belong to you. No matter whether others acknowledge it or not, you do not need to care. Because the only person who can decide who you are is yourself."
As she spoke, her main body separated from Yukino.
Though he was wearing a school uniform, Su Lin's temperament was already completely different from when he had first crossed into this world. This was not a change brought by confidence, but purely the pressure his strength placed upon others.
As the saying went, as long as you were strong enough, even if you looked like a beggar, others would treat you as a reclusive master.
And if you were weak, even if you tried to act like an emperor, others would still think you were an idiot~ (crossed out)!
When he reached the door, Su Lin's main body suddenly turned around and sneered. "Todoroki!"
Shoto Todoroki immediately raised his head.
"If you don't use all your strength, you'll be utterly humiliated... and completely crushed."
After saying that, Su Lin's figure had already disappeared into the distance. Todoroki stared blankly for a moment, then turned to look at Yukino, who was eating snacks in front of him, feeling a little unreal.
Infirmary.
Su Lin stood outside the door and knocked gently.
Knock, knock, knock!
"Come in."
He opened the door and walked inside.
"It's you, young man. Are you here to see Bakugo and Midoriya?" Recovery Girl asked with a smile as she turned around.
"Yes. How are they?" Su Lin asked directly.
"Bakugo is doing well, and after two treatments, Midoriya's condition is no longer serious."
As he spoke, Su Lin's gaze fell upon the beds. He saw Izuku Midoriya cowering at the head of one bed, while Bakugo, in the bed beside him, was glaring at him fiercely.
The two of them simply stared each other down, no one knowing how long it had been going on.
"..."
"Sorry for disturbing you."
After saying that, he immediately left.
Fumikage Tokoyami and Shoto Todoroki's match began soon afterward. By the time Yukino returned to the venue, Tokoyami had apparently said something that directly caused Todoroki to unleash his fire ability.
Then, a thrilling match of exploiting weaknesses continued until the end, with Shoto Todoroki emerging victorious.
There was still some time before the next match began. Bored, Yukino wandered around while kicking at the weeds on the ground. When she reached an area closer to the spectator stands, several unfamiliar young men waved small slips of paper and called out to her, "Su Lin, can we get your autograph?"
"Huh? An autograph?"
Only then did Yukino realize that she was now half a celebrity herself. After all, anyone who displayed such power at the U.A. Sports Festival was bound to become a formidable hero in the future. It was only natural for people to ask for an autograph early.
"Then I'll sign here?" Yukino asked as she accepted the pen.
"Yes, yes, thank you so much."
"Give me one too." A middle-aged woman rushed over impatiently and directly held out her sleeve to Yukino.
With several quick strokes, she left her name on their belongings.
The woman before her looked extremely excited. She even took the chance to touch Yukino's hand, leaving her speechless.
About half a minute later, a young man with glasses lowered his voice and secretly asked, "Um, can I have one of your intimate garments? The kind you wear against your body. Please don't wash it. I'm willing to pay for it."
Yukino cautiously stepped back half a pace. "What do you mean?"
Had she encountered some legendary hentai?
"No?" he begged. "One million yen per piece? I really, really like you."
"Damn it, even if you like me, you can't do something like that!"
The key was that one million yen was just too damn tempting. It practically made her want to throw away her dignity.
But... she refused!
"What do you want my clothes for, you damn hentai? I haven't even licked my own clothes yet. Get lost!"
The instant those words left her mouth, everyone seemed to freeze.
Yukino gave the man a disgusted look, then turned and ran toward the viewing area.
"Come to think of it... System-kun, whenever I summon an avatar, if I take off the clothes I'm wearing, will new clothes appear the next time I summon one?" Once she reached a place with few people around, Yukino instinctively asked this question.
More than a full minute passed before a line of text finally appeared on the screen before her.
The next day, you will receive a second set of clothes.
The system seemed utterly helpless as it answered.
"Well, I won't sell them anyway. After all, lots of hentai would hold my clothes and fantasize about all sorts of things, doing certain indescribable acts."
Yukino decided she still needed to preserve her dignity.
But in order to give her avatars a few extra clothing options in the wardrobe, she still decided to take off a few pieces.
Mineta, who was peeping from not far away, felt a surge of excitement. "Ah, Su Lin-chan's..."
Smack!
Before he could finish, Tsuyu Asui mercilessly slapped him with her tongue.
After the intermission, the final decisive battle was finally about to begin.
After receiving the notice to enter, Yukino stepped onto the rectangular arena. Looking at Todoroki's serious expression more than ten meters away, she let out a soft breath.
"X's transformation time has about three minutes and fifty seconds left."
Before you continue