"—Only!"
Seeing the incoming attack, All Might didn't panic in the slightest. He swung the steel bar in his hand horizontally, cleanly deflecting the blow. Naturally, the steel bar was completely destroyed in the process.
"There's an opening!"
Masata, who had already rushed in close, spotted All Might's exposed position and felt a surge of excitement. He shifted his weight with a sliding step, moved to All Might's side, and aimed a punch straight at his waist.
"Unfortunately," All Might said calmly, "that opening was deliberately exposed to mislead you."
Before Masata's strike could land, All Might swept his arm sideways. His counterattack reached Masata's abdomen first.
"Guh—!"
Just like Bakugo earlier, taking a heavy blow to the stomach was unbearable. Masata was sent flying violently, smashing straight through a nearby wall.
"BOOM!!"
A thunderous explosion followed from the place where Masata had fallen—naturally caused by the unstable magma still clinging to his body detonating on impact.
"Cough—cough… that hit was really ruthless."
Despite the pain, Masata forced himself back to his feet.
"Even if my attack power is high… I still can't hit him!"
It was the first time Masata had encountered such a frustrating situation.
In the past, aside from All For One, most enemies were inferior to him in speed. He could rely on overwhelming destructive power to crush them. But now, he'd run into a wall.
"If only my speed were faster…"
With that thought, Masata charged toward All Might once again.
"You clearly know you're not my opponent in close combat," All Might said, shaking his head. "And yet you still rush in? That's not a rational choice, Igarashi boy."
"If I don't try," Masata replied with a grin, "how will I ever know my limits? If I retreat here, I might never surpass you for the rest of my life!"
As he spoke, Masata sprinted past All Might at incredible speed, leaving behind afterimages like ghosts.
"…His speed increased again?"
Masata himself hadn't noticed, but All Might had.
He really deserves to be called a genius, All Might thought. He's growing stronger even during battle.
"Then I'll be your whetstone," All Might said inwardly. "I'll sharpen you even further!"
With that resolve, All Might slammed his fist toward one of Masata's afterimages.
"Found you?!"
Realizing he'd been spotted so easily, Masata abandoned feints altogether. He clenched his fist and struck head-on.
"Heaven Dog!!!"
Although the technique wasn't fully charged due to the rush, it was still Masata's strongest single attack.
All Might didn't hold back. His already powerful right arm bulged even further.
"Texas Smash!!!"
One large fist and one smaller fist collided.
Blazing red magma and roaring white airflow crashed together. The resulting shockwave felt as if it could split the ground in half.
"They actually clashed fists!!!"
Kirishima shouted in excitement. To him, this was the purest form of combat—a real man's battle, smashing through obstacles with nothing but fists.
"Masata!"
Yaoyorozu Momo cried out anxiously. All Might was terrifyingly strong—could Masata really withstand that kind of punch?
As everyone stared at the screen, the outcome was revealed.
Masata was blown away—without any suspense.
But this time, he wasn't launched like a cannonball into a wall. Instead, he adjusted his posture midair and landed firmly on his feet.
"My whole arm is shaking…"
Looking at his uncontrollably trembling left hand, Masata let out a bitter smile. Just one clash, and his fist had temporarily lost its combat capability. The title Symbol of Peace truly lived up to its name.
"But my real ultimate move… hasn't come out yet!"
With a confident smile, Masata stomped his foot.
The surrounding ground instantly transformed into a boiling magma pool, leaving only a single foothold beneath All Might's feet.
"Once I use this move," Masata thought, "my stamina will be completely gone. It's all or nothing!"
As his body slowly sank into the magma, Masata's eyes burned with determination.
Although All Might didn't fully understand Masata's strategy, he stood there calmly and waited. That was absolute confidence in his own strength.
The earlier clash had hurt more than expected. The skin on All Might's fist had been burned away, exposing the muscle beneath—despite being protected by wind pressure.
Feeling the intermittent throbbing in his hand, All Might steadied himself and scanned his surroundings. He had already been using his Quirk for a long time today, and fatigue was beginning to set in.
Suddenly, the magma surged.
A human-shaped magma figure silently rose behind All Might, slowly extending its arms toward him.
"So sneaky," All Might thought. "Just like an Igarashi boy who can't win head-on."
With sharp instincts, All Might turned instantly, his fist slicing through the air and dispersing the magma figure.
"Lava Burst Punch!!!"
At the exact moment All Might turned, another magma figure appeared in front of him. This time, the magma rapidly condensed into Masata's solid form.
Masata clenched his right fist. Rings of magma spun rapidly around it. This was the technique inspired by Kirishima's words—and completed in this very moment.
"What?!"
The sudden shift startled All Might. This time, he was truly caught off guard.
Masata had used part of the magma as a decoy, luring All Might into attacking, while the real body seized the moment to strike.
There was no other way. In direct combat, Masata couldn't keep up with All Might's speed. He could only attack during the brief stiffness that followed All Might's movements.
Now, All Might's old power had just been spent, and his new strength hadn't yet surged back.
There was no time to dodge.
All Might raised his arm and blocked Masata's fist head-on.
"BOOOOM!!!"
A mushroom cloud exploded between them.
The explosive force of magma combined with the destructive power of high-speed rotation didn't result in a simple one-plus-one—it multiplied exponentially.
However, since Masata had used this technique for the first time, it was unstable. After striking All Might, it dissipated before releasing its full power.
Masata himself was blasted backward by the explosion, crashing heavily to the ground.
This time—
He truly didn't have the strength left to stand.