Chapter 21 — A Draw?
The temperature in the corridor continued to drop.
Akio Tatsuma's right arm felt stiff from the freezing ice. Todoroki's attack had not been meaningless at all—his blood circulation slowed, and the cold crept deeper into his muscles.
His ice is stronger than before, Akio realized.
Todoroki must have increased the density and purity of the ice. Otherwise it wouldn't have affected him this much.
Maybe Todoroki had pushed his Quirk specifically to counter lightning.
Behind him—
Bakugo was still recovering from the paralysis caused by Akio's earlier lightning strike. Even with his combat suit reducing the damage, the shock had numbed his body.
His nerves still burned.
But Bakugo refused to admit weakness.
BOOM!
The floor beneath Akio suddenly shattered.
Akio jumped upward instinctively as the explosion tore through the ground.
Smoke filled the hallway.
From inside the smoke—
A wave of ice shot toward him.
"So you're going all in now?" Akio muttered.
This narrow corridor wasn't ideal for him. There was limited space to move, and lightning attacks risked injuring himself in such a confined area.
Then Bakugo's voice roared from behind.
"Don't think about running, lightning bastard!"
Bakugo burst out of the smoke with an explosion in his palm, launching himself toward Akio.
Akio accelerated instantly.
Lightning flashed under his feet as he dodged and sprinted upward toward the eighth floor.
Inside the room at the top floor, Kaminari and Yaoyorozu heard the explosions below.
The entire building trembled.
"Is Akio okay?" Kaminari asked nervously.
Yaoyorozu remained calmer.
"His Quirk is extremely powerful… but facing both Bakugo and Todoroki at the same time is still dangerous."
At that moment—
The door burst open.
Akio stepped inside.
He looked slightly battered but still calm.
"Get ready."
"You two handle Bakugo. His strength is already reduced."
"I'll deal with Todoroki."
Before they could respond—
BOOM!
The door exploded open.
Bakugo and Todoroki appeared through the smoke.
Akio raised his hand immediately.
"Thunder Release — One Hundred Thousand Volts!"
Blue lightning exploded outward.
Electricity surged toward both opponents.
Todoroki reacted instantly.
Ice erupted from his arm, forming a thick wall.
Lightning struck the ice with violent crackling sounds, slowly melting and splitting the frozen barrier.
Bakugo gritted his teeth.
"Damn it… how is he this strong?"
The moment the lightning weakened, Bakugo jumped forward with an explosion.
But this time—
Kaminari and Yaoyorozu intercepted him.
"Don't interfere!" Bakugo shouted.
He launched explosions toward them.
Yaoyorozu instantly created a large metal shield, blocking the blast.
The two sides clashed immediately.
Meanwhile, Akio destroyed the last fragments of Todoroki's ice wall.
But his breathing had become heavier.
He had used too many lightning attacks.
His stamina was dropping.
Still—
His Qi training gave him a strong physical advantage.
Akio suddenly dashed forward, closing the distance with Todoroki in an instant.
He reached out with his lightning-covered hand.
But Todoroki had anticipated the move.
"I've been waiting."
Ice erupted again.
Before Akio could react—
His entire body froze.
Ice wrapped around him completely, leaving only his face exposed.
Akio's eyes narrowed.
"…So this is how it ends?"
He considered breaking the ice with his air manipulation, but that ability was something he couldn't reveal yet.
Not in front of All Might.
And not with his stamina nearly exhausted.
Todoroki's breathing had also become heavier.
Even with the special combat suit regulating his temperature, he had used too much power against Akio.
But he still walked slowly toward the nuclear device.
The battle was nearly finished.
Nearby, Bakugo continued fighting Kaminari and Yaoyorozu.
Even weakened, he fought fiercely.
His pride alone forced him to keep moving.
He refused to lose.
Especially not to Akio.
The thought of someone surpassing him at the same starting point made him furious.
More furious than even Midoriya.
"It's over," Todoroki murmured as he approached the nuclear weapon.
This fight had shown him many of his own weaknesses.
He would need to improve.
But just as he reached the device—
Two blue flashes burst through the room.
CRACK!
Lightning shot from Akio's eyes.
The nuclear device shattered instantly.
Todoroki's expression changed.
The lightning had come directly from Akio's eyes.
The concept behind Thor's Return was simple:
The power of lightning flowed through the entire body.
Any part of the body could release electricity.
Even the eyes.
The attack was small—
But more than enough to destroy the device.
The moment it broke, pink smoke erupted from the warhead prop.
The room filled instantly.
Everyone watching the monitor stared in shock.
No one had expected this outcome.
Then All Might's voice echoed through the training ground.
"The match is over!"
"The first battle… ends in a draw!"
The students reacted immediately.
"A draw?!"
"Seriously?"
Many of them believed Akio's team had been winning.
Another student said,
"Well… Akio destroyed the nuclear weapon. That means both sides lost."
But Iida raised his hand thoughtfully.
"I disagree."
Everyone looked at him.
"The nuclear device belonged to the villain team."
"That means the lives of the entire city were under their control."
"Todoroki was about to neutralize the threat… but Akio detonated it first."
"If this were real, the villains would have destroyed the city along with themselves."
"That means the heroes failed."
The class fell silent.
"That's… actually true."
All Might nodded slowly.
"My official result remains a draw."
"But Iida's analysis is very important."
He looked toward the screen.
"Real villains will not hesitate like heroes."
"If a villain has a method like Akio's, heroes could be placed in an extremely dangerous situation."
He folded his arms.
"That is why you must always grow stronger."
Inside, however—
All Might sighed quietly.
Akio Tatsuma had once again exceeded his expectations.
This so-called dark horse…
was far from ordinary.
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