Muscular's presence in the clearing changed everything. This was no longer an earth beast that could be defeated with strategy. This was an apex predator, the embodiment of brutal physical strength and pure killing intent. The air, which had been filled with the adrenaline of a difficult test, now felt cold and heavy with the pressure of his overwhelming aura. He didn't radiate madness like Shigaraki or ideology like Stain. He just radiated a simple, terrifying joy in testing his strength by breaking others.
My group and I—Momo, Shoji, and Ojiro, while supporting the two unconscious Class 1-B students—remained hidden at the edge of the forest, silent witnesses to the drama that was about to unfold. I instinctively pulled them further into the shadows. The plan to help directly vanished from my mind. Charging forward now would be suicide.
'His physical strength is on another level,' I thought, my mind racing to analyze this new threat. 'Far above the villains at the warehouse. Maybe on par with a mid-tier Nomu. A partial manifestation of Incursio won't be enough to block his blows directly. I'd need a full manifestation, and I'm not sure I could control it in this situation.'
Before I could finish my analysis, the fight began. Midoriya, seeing Muscular approach Mandalay and Kota, shot forward. "Stay away from them!" he yelled, his arm already glowing with the green energy of One For All: Full Cowling.
He launched the first attack, a 5% Smash that landed cleanly on Muscular's face. It was a blow that would have sent a normal villain flying, but Muscular didn't even flinch. He just tilted his head slightly, as if he had just felt a gust of wind.
"Huh?" he said, sounding genuinely disappointed. "Is that it? I thought you'd be a little more fun."
With one swift motion, he swung his arm. The muscles in his arm writhed and expanded like living cables, becoming both a thick shield of flesh and a blunt weapon. The blow hit Midoriya, sending him flying across the clearing like a rag doll.
"DEKU-KUN!" Uraraka's voice cried out from somewhere in the forest.
The fight was a slaughter. Midoriya, with his incredible speed, tried to attack from various angles, but each of his punches just sank into Muscular's mass of muscle, which could harden and spread at will. Muscular, on the other hand, was enjoying his game. He let Midoriya attack him, laughing at his futile efforts, before retaliating with a single powerful blow that injured Midoriya even more.
In the midst of all this, Mandalay's second, more urgent telepathic message came into our heads. "EVERYONE, CLASS A, CLASS B! ON BEHALF OF ERASER HEAD, YOU ARE ALL GRANTED FULL PERMISSION TO ENGAGE IN COMBAT! PROTECT YOURSELVES!" Her voice was strained. "WE HAVE IDENTIFIED ONE OF THE VILLAINS' TARGETS! A STUDENT NAMED 'KACCHAN'... BAKUGO KATSUKI! BAKUGO-KUN, AVOID COMBAT AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE!"
The message sent a shockwave through all the scattered groups of students. So this was their goal. Not just to terrorize, but for kidnapping. I looked at the fight before me. Midoriya wasn't just fighting to protect Kota; he was also fighting to protect Bakugo from a distance, by being a roadblock for one of the strongest villains.
The fight continued. Midoriya was being pushed further and further back. It was then that a small act of courage occurred. Kota, the boy who hated heroes, saw Midoriya about to take a fatal blow. With a terrified cry, he used his water Quirk, spraying a small stream of water at Muscular's face.
It was a pathetic attack. No stronger than a toy water pistol. But it managed to distract Muscular for a split second. He turned his head toward Kota, his cruel eyes narrowing. "Oh, I almost forgot about you, brat."
He turned away from Midoriya and started walking toward Kota. "Your parents, those heroes... they had the same look in their eyes as you do before I crushed them. Maybe I'll reunite your family."
Mandalay screamed in horror. But Midoriya moved faster. Driven by pure adrenaline and hero instinct, he charged forward, placing himself between Muscular and Kota. He took the punch meant for the boy directly. I heard the horrifying sound of cracking bone even from my distance. Midoriya's left arm was shattered.
I clenched my fists so tight my knuckles turned white. 'He's… he's a complete idiot,' I thought, an overwhelming admiration mixed with horror. 'He doesn't even think. He just moves to protect.' I compared his actions to my own. I always analyzed, always calculated the risks. But Midoriya... he just saw someone in danger, and he jumped. That was the difference between us. I was a soldier learning to be a hero. He... he was born a hero.
"You're protecting him?" Muscular laughed, a laugh that echoed through the forest. "You're protecting him with your already broken body? How heroic! How foolish!"
He grabbed Midoriya's broken arm. "I'm going to enjoy this," he growled.
But Midoriya didn't give up. "I... won't let you... touch him," he whispered, tears and sweat mixing on his face. He drew back his other arm, which was also badly injured.
"ONE FOR ALL... 100 PERCENT... DELAWARE SMASH!"
A concentrated blast of wind pressure hit Muscular, enough to make him release his grip and stagger back a few steps. But that was it. He was still standing, looking more annoyed than hurt. Midoriya's right arm was now just as broken as his left. He was helpless.
"Done playing, hero?" Muscular taunted, walking closer.
I knew I couldn't just watch anymore. I had to do something. "Momo!" I hissed. "I need one thing! A non-lethal projectile, as heavy as possible, with kinetic impact! Something to push him back, not to hurt him! I need one opening!"
Momo, who had been watching in horror, her face pale and tears streaming down her cheeks, reacted instantly. Her trembling hands became steady as concentration took over. "Got it!" She began to create a solid metal sphere from her arm.
Shoji and Ojiro looked at me, ready to move.
Just as Muscular was about to deliver the final blow to the helpless Midoriya, I gave the signal. "NOW!"
Shoji, using several of his arms to create a catapult effect, launched the metal ball Momo had created with incredible force. The ball shot out like a cannonball and slammed into Muscular's side. The impact wasn't enough to seriously injure him, but it managed to make him stumble to the side, his movement disrupted for a split second.
It was the opening Midoriya needed.
I saw it, even with both arms shattered, he gathered all his remaining strength. His eyes glowed with a blinding green light. He was no longer just fighting to protect. He was fighting to win.
"ONE FOR ALL... ONE MILLION PERCENT!" he roared, his voice no longer that of a boy, but the roar of nine generations of heroes. "DELAWARE... DETROIT... SMAAAAAASH!"
The punch was a natural disaster. The entire ground beneath him shattered. A giant crater formed. The shockwave was so powerful it tore down the trees around us and forced us to take cover. Muscular, who took the full force of that attack, didn't stand a chance. He was thrown backward like a meteor, slamming into the cliff face behind him with so much force that he was embedded in it, unconscious.
After the explosion, a silence fell over the forest.
Midoriya stood in the center of the crater, his body broken, both arms hanging limp and useless, but he was still standing. He had won.
Our group finally emerged from hiding, running toward him. The scene before us was horrific. Midoriya lay on the ground, his body battered, but there was a faint smile on his face. Momo immediately started making emergency medical equipment. I knelt beside him. I didn't know what to say. All strategy, all analysis, felt meaningless in the face of such pure sacrifice.
"You're… a complete idiot," was all I could say, my voice filled with an infinite admiration.
He just looked at me, his green eyes still shining, and gave me a weak, bloody smile before finally collapsing from exhaustion and pain.
I stood up, looking at his shattered body, then looked at my own hands. I had the power to end that fight more easily, with less pain. But I hesitated. I calculated the risk. I thought too much. Midoriya, with a power that destroyed his own body, didn't hesitate for a second to use it to protect a small child.
In that moment, I realized a humbling truth. I may have won the Sports Festival. I may have the power of a dragon. But this boy, lying broken before me... he was the real hero. And I still had a very long way to go to ever be his equal.