It had to be said—although Bakugo had a terrible temper and a razor-sharp tongue, his desire to become a hero was second to none.
That overwhelming self-confidence of his unconsciously ignited everyone's fighting spirit.
Even the candidates who had fallen earlier struggled to stand back up.
"Die already!!!"
Bakugo had already charged straight at Masata.
His palms thrust forward.
"BOOM!!!"
A violent explosion erupted.
But Masata had predicted the trajectory in advance.
He tilted his head slightly.
The blast missed.
Before Bakugo could recover from the recoil, Masata reached out, grabbed his arm, twisted his waist, and—
With a clean throw, hurled him straight into three or four other examinees.
No pause.
Before Masata even finished that motion, Todoroki attacked.
Sharp ice spikes surged forward like an endless mountain range.
"Too slow."
To Masata, their speed was no faster than crawling turtles.
A few light hops carried him out of range.
At the same time, he counterattacked, landing a punch on every nearby opponent.
One fell.
Another rose.
Then another surrounded him.
Because Masata wasn't striking viciously, they kept getting back up—like cockroaches that refused to die.
His expression never changed.
The black cloak on his body remained spotless.
He adjusted his slightly crooked hood calmly, as if the "villains" in front of him weren't even worth noticing.
"Letting you chase me forever isn't very efficient."
"Since I'm the villain right now, shouldn't I be the one attacking?"
The candidates were speechless.
You're the one chasing us!
How are you twisting the logic like that?!
Whoosh!
Masata vanished.
In the next instant, he appeared in front of an examinee.
"Down."
Behind the black mask, his eyes curved into a smile.
He grabbed the boy's head and slammed him into the ground.
But before his hand even withdrew—
Kirishima's fist came crashing down.
"No improvement at all."
Masata felt disappointed.
Without even raising his guard, he sensed that Kirishima hadn't grown much.
Back during the Sports Festival, Kirishima's hardening could form armor-like layers.
Now, it was still at the same level.
In a flash, Masata slipped to his side.
He grabbed Kirishima's wrist, hooked his foot, and tripped him.
Kirishima yelped and fell flat.
Then Bakugo rushed in again.
Facing such straightforward attacks, Masata barely had to think.
Observation Haki predicted everything.
The moment Bakugo detonated, Masata drove his elbow forward.
Crack!
Bakugo's arm went numb.
His attack collapsed.
Boom!
Scorching flames surged toward Masata.
Todoroki had switched tactics.
Since ice didn't work, he went all-out with fire.
At the same time, Yelan Inasa joined in with passionate laughter.
Violent winds gathered into a massive tornado.
Rubble was shredded into dust.
Fire and wind merged.
The flames rode the storm.
The temperature and scale multiplied.
A roaring inferno formed.
"Now this is interesting!"
Masata's eyes lit up.
This was no longer an ordinary student attack.
Even many pro heroes couldn't produce something like this.
In the control room, Murayama Ryo was also excited.
The purpose of this exam was teamwork.
After All Might's retirement, heroes had to rely on cooperation.
And now—
Someone had finally achieved it.
Everyone understood that 1+1 > 2.
But few could truly apply it.
"I wonder…"
"Can my current body do what All Might used to do?"
"Punch away the air pressure and blow this out?"
Masata felt a surge of excitement.
This time, he didn't dodge.
He chose to face it head-on.
His fists clenched.
Muscles bulged.
White steam faintly rose from his body.
"Not a SMASH…"
"But still a powerful iron fist!!!"
BOOM!!!
His punch detonated the air itself.
A massive shockwave burst forward.
It collided with the firestorm.
An explosion erupted between them.
"Hah—so refreshing!"
Masata let out a long breath.
A clear channel had been carved through the flames.
The inferno split in two.
It passed harmlessly on both sides of him.
Standing in the center of fire, Masata looked like an emperor ruling over flames.
"Damn—!"
His voice slipped out.
His real tone returned.
"Huh?"
Bakugo froze.
That voice—
He stared into the fading fire.
"It's really careless…"
"This hood can't even handle heat."
"I'm definitely complaining to the manufacturer."
"They must've cut corners!"
Masata's voice echoed.
Anyone unaware might think he'd just bought defective goods.
This was an ordinary hood.
Expecting it to be fireproof was ridiculous.
As the flames dispersed, the mysterious man in black was finally revealed.
"…Igarashi?!"