At this moment, Shigaraki slowly spread his five fingers, as if he were about to crush the entire world in his palm.
Even though his face was half-covered by a severed hand, it could not hide the manic smile twisting his lips.
"Hey, little Bakugo… you like winning too, right?"
"But I heard there's always someone pressing you down, standing above you."
"I think his name is… Igarashi Masata, right? That must be it."
As he walked toward Bakugo step by step, Shigaraki's voice grew louder and more intense.
"Because of him, you can never be number one."
"And what a coincidence… I hate him too."
"Don't misunderstand. We're not brainless thugs who commit evil for fun. Choosing you wasn't an accident."
"Everyone here has been hurt by this society—by rules, by systems, by so-called heroes."
"You're the same."
"You're bound by Igarashi Masata."
"As long as he disappears from this world… won't you finally become stronger?"
Shigaraki stopped right in front of Bakugo.
He placed one hand on the cuffs restraining him and squeezed.
Crack.
The metal handcuffs turned to ash and drifted into the air.
"I don't think you're stupid enough to believe you can beat us in this situation," Shigaraki said calmly.
Just like that, Bakugo was freed.
Shigaraki showed no concern at all about being attacked. As he said, with so many villains around, Bakugo wouldn't act recklessly—unless he wanted to die.
"I'll apologize for being rough before," Shigaraki continued. "So… how about joining—"
BOOM!!!
Before he could finish, Bakugo twisted his wrist and detonated an explosion at point-blank range.
The violent blast lit up the dark bar instantly.
"Shigaraki! Are you okay?!"
The League members' expressions changed dramatically. No one had expected Bakugo to strike so suddenly.
Bakugo landed steadily, smoke rising from his palm.
"You guys really talk too much," he sneered. "Endless whining."
He glanced at the surrounding villains without fear.
"Your speeches are long, boring, and stink."
"To put it simply—'We hate heroes, so please join us,' right? Save your saliva."
His grin widened.
"When I was a kid, I watched All Might beat villains and stand there smiling like a true hero."
"That image never changed for me."
"And that magma bastard—"
He snorted.
"I may not get along with him, but he's not someone trash like you gets to talk about."
"I heard you lost a few people to him? Hah. Guess I'm lucky I didn't have to see his smug face."
Surprisingly, even though Bakugo often clashed with Masata, he defended him fiercely now.
When it came to outsiders, Class A was united.
Spinner's face darkened.
He was one of those defeated by Masata, and Bakugo's words stabbed straight into his pride.
Strength—not empty ideals—was what truly mattered.
Shigaraki, however, didn't react much.
He lowered his head silently.
The severed hand on his face had fallen to the ground from the explosion, its fingers scorched and curled.
"...Father…"
Seeing Shigaraki fall silent, Bakugo felt secretly relieved.
The League had spent enormous effort to capture him. They had even lost several members.
That meant he still had value.
They wouldn't kill him so easily.
Realizing this, Bakugo prepared to take advantage of the moment—injure a few of them and escape.
"Kill him."
Shigaraki suddenly spoke.
His voice was cold and emotionless.
"What?!"
Bakugo froze.
Just moments ago, Shigaraki had been trying to recruit him. Now he had turned hostile without hesitation.
And his tone was deadly serious.
"Haha! Perfect! I've wanted to slice this kid for ages!"
Twice pulled out a knife and approached, laughing wildly.
"Little Bakugo is so cute!"
Originally, during the forest attack, Masata had been the primary target. Bakugo was only secondary.
If Masata had died, the impact would have been even greater.
But Masata survived.
Not only that—he destroyed their special Nomu.
That alone filled Shigaraki with rage.
He had begged his master for that Nomu.
There would never be another one like it.
Coupled with Bakugo's ridicule, his patience finally snapped.
Right now, he didn't care about strategy.
He only wanted heroes to suffer.
Even the corpse of a top hero student would be enough to cause massive chaos.
Seeing Twice getting closer, Bakugo clenched his teeth.
If they wanted to kill him, he would go down fighting.
Sparks flickered in his palm.
He prepared his strongest explosion, planning to blast a hole in the wall and escape.
Just then—
Knock. Knock.
A voice came from outside.
"Hello, your delivery pizza is here."
Everyone froze.
All eyes turned toward the iron door.
Even Twice paused.
And in the next instant—
BOOM!!!
The wall beside the entrance was smashed apart from the outside.
A gigantic arm burst into the bar, sending stones and debris flying everywhere.
Shigaraki raised his arm to shield himself.
Dust and smoke filled the entire room.
Several villains near the wall were blown across the bar.
With the wall destroyed, light flooded in.
Not moonlight.
But crimson light—
Like flowing blood.
Like raging flames.
"Shigaraki Tomura…"
A deep, furious voice echoed through the ruins.
"Igarashi Masata is here…"
"…to settle the score."