"Whoa—!"
Two metallic discs shot out from Kaminari's equipment in an instant, streaking through the air toward Shishikura.
However, Shishikura's reaction was far from slow.
Because his Quirk made him unsuitable for close combat, evasion had always been his main focus.
With a quick sidestep, he easily dodged both discs. Kaminari's attack missed completely.
Although he didn't understand what those devices were for, his instincts told him they were dangerous.
Projectiles? Then I'll deal with you first!
In the next instant, flesh separated from his body and expanded in midair, forming a massive hand.
If that hand grabbed Kaminari, his fate would likely be even worse than Kirishima's.
"I'll make you understand what it really means to face Shishikura High!"
The enormous flesh hand descended, covering a huge area.
Kaminari had nowhere to escape.
"Ahhh! I don't want to turn into one of those meatballs!"
He glanced desperately at Bakugo.
But Bakugo was still tangled up in countless small flesh chunks and couldn't move freely.
There was no one to rely on now.
"Even if I hurt my teammates… I have no choice!"
The ground was conductive.
Bakugo and Kirishima were still on it.
The positioning discs he had fired earlier were already out of place.
If he discharged now, it would affect everyone—including his friends.
But he had no alternative.
Even if he didn't know whether the flesh hand was weak to electricity, he had to try.
Yellow lightning began flickering around his body.
Kaminari prepared to unleash everything.
"Hmph. Going for a full discharge?"
Shishikura recognized Kaminari's Quirk immediately.
Even in his separated state, his flesh still felt pain like a normal body.
But he was confident.
He would crush Kaminari before the electricity could stun him.
The light grew brighter.
The giant hand drew closer.
Just as the two were about to collide—
"Xiao—Bao—hao!"
A loud shout suddenly echoed from above, accompanied by the sound of air being torn apart.
The three fighters instinctively froze and looked upward.
A figure in a crimson suit and white cloak was descending rapidly from the sky.
When Bakugo and Kaminari recognized the outfit, their eyes widened.
"Magma bastard… Masata?!"
That's right.
The one falling from above was Igarashi Masata—the same person who had eliminated more than three hundred opponents earlier.
After crushing that massive group, Masata had continued wandering around the battlefield, hoping to find new challengers.
Unfortunately, after Murayama Ryo's broadcast, everyone knew his record.
Combined with his reputation as the Sports Festival champion, most examinees had already memorized his appearance.
The moment they spotted him, they fled like they had seen a walking disaster.
Even teams that had been fighting fiercely moments before would immediately retreat once someone warned them that Masata was approaching.
As for why Masata found Bakugo's group—
It was simple.
He had heard the explosions.
There weren't many people with explosive Quirks.
Among those he knew, Bakugo stood out the most.
With a clear direction, Masata used his terrifying physical strength to leap from structure to structure, finally landing near the overpass.
And Bakugo's hairstyle was so distinctive that Masata recognized him instantly—even from midair.
"The one in the Shishikura uniform… looks like a villain, right?"
Adjusting his posture, Masata activated his Quirk.
Steam erupted from his feet, changing his trajectory.
Whoosh!
Although it felt long, less than a second passed between his appearance and his landing.
Shishikura, still shocked, had no time to react.
Chop!
A clean strike landed on his neck.
Shishikura collapsed instantly.
His physical endurance was nowhere near Masata's level.
Against someone like Masata, he had no resistance at all.
"Hey! What the hell?! He was my opponent!"
Bakugo exploded in frustration.
Masata had finished the fight before he could.
Didn't that mean he was inferior again?!
…Even though that was already true.
"Haha, sorry, sorry. I just happened to pass by~"
Originally, Masata hadn't planned to knock Shishikura out immediately.
He only wanted to show off a little and then watch from the side.
Interfering in others' fights wasn't exactly noble.
But after so many battles, his instincts had sharpened.
The moment he saw Shishikura's face, he subconsciously attacked.
"Hah… you really saved me, Masata."
Unlike Bakugo, Kaminari felt nothing but relief.
Someone had solved the problem for him.
Even if his electricity might have worked, the risk was too high.
He didn't want to experience becoming a meatball.
"Yo, Kaminari. How was your first test run with the new gear?"
Masata noticed white smoke still drifting from Kaminari's equipment.
Clearly, it had overheated.
Kaminari's expression froze.
His face darkened.
So far…
He hadn't successfully used it even once.
It was humiliating.
"Looks like you two are fine. I'll head out first."
Neither Bakugo nor Kaminari was injured.
Although strange flesh lumps were scattered everywhere, Masata didn't know they had once been people.
To him, they were just debris.
With a light crouch, he leapt into the air again and quickly disappeared.
"I'm so jealous… flying must feel amazing, huh?"
Kaminari stared into the distance in a daze.
If Masata heard that, he would probably knock Kaminari on the head.