Chapter 4: Explosion Boy
"What?!"
The people near Izuna were stunned when they saw what had just happened. It wasn't because the monster looked terrifying—it was simply that everything happened too suddenly for anyone to react.
In just a few seconds, Izuna disappeared together with the monster.
"What just happened? Was that thing a criminal?" A middle-aged man in a suit who had just finished work stretched his neck forward, trying to see what had happened, but there was nothing there anymore.
"Call the police. The one who was taken away looked like a kid," another young man said with a frown.
"Yeah…"
"Hahaha, what a nice body."
In a dark street, the green tentacles wrapped tightly around Izuna's neck, sliding across his body.
"Kid, you're unlucky to have run into me. Better luck in your next life."
As he spoke, several slimy tendrils stretched toward Izuna's nose and ears.
Bound by the sludge monster, Izuna slightly narrowed his eyes. His dark pupils quietly began to change.
"Hey! You monster over there!"
Just as Izuna's eyes were about to transform into the Sharingan, an impatient voice suddenly rang out from ahead.
Both Izuna and the sludge monster turned toward the source of the voice.
Standing there was a boy who looked about the same age as Izuna.
He had pale blond hair, and his eyes were filled with a fierce, almost murderous intensity that made it clear he wasn't someone easy to approach.
"Huh?" Seeing that it was just a kid, contempt flashed through the sludge monster's eyes. "I thought some big hero had shown up. Turns out it's just another brat."
The sludge monster tightened its grip around Izuna's neck.
"I don't have time to waste on you. I've got business to take care of."
"Then you'll have to get past me first."
The boy lifted his chin slightly and looked at Izuna, who was still bound. Clenching his fists together, he spoke arrogantly:
"Wait there. I'll get you out soon."
"You?" The sludge monster laughed as if it had just heard the funniest joke in the world.
Just a kid—probably someone who hadn't even mastered his own Quirk yet—and he was talking about saving someone?
Who did he think he was?
A professional hero?
Izuna knew exactly who the boy was.
A kid with great potential. Hot-tempered, but surprisingly calm and decisive when it mattered.
Overall… a pretty good kid.
Bakugo Katsuki.
His Quirk was Explosion. The sweat from his palms had properties similar to nitroglycerin, allowing him to ignite it and create powerful explosions.
Bakugo could generate explosions directly from his palms, or use the blasts as propulsion to move himself.
The strength of the explosion depended on how much sweat he produced.
Because of that, his power was stronger in summer and weaker in winter.
"Are you looking down on me?" Bakugo raised an eyebrow, grinding his teeth as sparks ignited in his hands.
"I'll show you what hell looks like!"
"It looks like I'm being completely ignored," Izuna muttered as he glanced between Bakugo and the sludge monster.
Because the monster's attention had shifted almost entirely to Bakugo, the tentacles binding Izuna had loosened considerably.
At this point, even with the strength of an ordinary person, he could easily break free.
"Such an excellent Quirk… even I'm tempted," the sludge monster muttered as the flames in Bakugo's palms grew brighter.
If he could take that Quirk…
He could finally get revenge on that man.
Almost instinctively, the monster completely forgot about Izuna. The tentacles binding him loosened as the sludge monster lunged toward Bakugo.
"Perfect!"
Bakugo's lips curled upward as the flames in his hands grew brighter.
A hint of excitement appeared in his eyes.
"BOOM!!!"
Bakugo gathered his power into his right fist and threw a punch, colliding violently with the sludge monster.
Explosions echoed throughout the area as flames scattered in every direction.
The commotion quickly attracted nearby police officers, and curious civilians rushed over.
"It's the sludge monster from earlier!" someone in the crowd shouted.
"Didn't All Might already capture him? Why is he here?"
"Who's fighting it right now?"
"I can't see clearly… it looks like a kid."
"Wait—there's another kid standing over there!" a girl exclaimed, covering her mouth in shock.
The one she was pointing at was naturally Izuna, who was calmly watching the fight from the side.
"Where are the heroes? Have they been contacted yet?"
"Yes, they're on their way!"
"Damn it… why isn't this working?"
Bakugo planted his foot against a wall and jumped backward, creating distance between himself and the sludge monster.
He had attacked with all his strength, yet the monster seemed completely unharmed.
It clearly didn't have a defensive Quirk, yet all of his attacks had somehow been neutralized.
Bakugo clicked his tongue, his expression growing more serious.
"Did you just dissolve all my attacks?"
"Hehe… kid, I like you more and more," the sludge monster said as it twisted its body and advanced toward Bakugo.
Bakugo could only keep attacking while dodging.
But after several exchanges, his stamina was starting to run out.
"You! Run!" Bakugo suddenly shouted at Izuna.
In his eyes, Izuna—who had been standing there the entire time without doing anything—was either Quirkless or someone with a very weak Quirk.
"The farther away, the better!"
"You've already turned this place into a mess," Izuna said with a helpless shrug. "Where exactly am I supposed to run?"
Flames were burning everywhere around them. For an ordinary person, one wrong step would mean dying in the sea of fire.
"Then find somewhere safe and hide!"
As he spoke, Bakugo rushed forward again and launched another attack at the sludge monster.
"Boom—!"
The flames grew even larger.
"…"
"Thanks for the advice," Izuna said calmly.
"But I don't need to hide."
He slowly closed his eyes.
When he opened them again—
His pupils had changed from black to scarlet, and three tomoe slowly rotated within them.
The Sharingan had awakened.