The men's locker room had filled with hostility. As everyone was changing, Bakugo started fighting with Fujimi. This annoyed Allen, who stood up and stopped them, grabbing Bakugo's face with one hand while stepping on Fujimi's back.
"Do you want to die?!" Bakugo growled after being humiliated like that, but before he could use his Quirk, Aizawa walked in with a deadly glare.
"What did I tell you brats?!"
After Aizawa scolded them, they headed to the training area for today.
....
Allen walked forward while Toru held onto his arm, but he couldn't help glancing at Isami's students.
The heroine's suit of "Sensor Girl" was a tight, navy blue high-neck bodysuit with white and blue lines running along her torso and thighs. She wore light-blue shoulder pads with the letter "S," a red visor instead of her normal glasses, red gloves, and thick wrist guards with radar screens on her forearms. Her hair was tied up with a special clip, and she wore thigh-high boots with heels and a pointed design at the front.
When the girl noticed Allen's gaze, she felt embarrassed, but at the same time, she felt a strange flutter in her stomach—she didn't dislike the way he was looking at her.
Mina puffed up her cheeks and grabbed Allen's other arm, making him chuckle under his breath and promise her an ice cream after class. Kashiko, who had heard what happened in the girls' locker room, blushed.
Switching to Nobuko Mangoose, her hero costume consisted of a full-body blue suit with a high collar and built-in high heels. The pattern resembled a snake running along her arms and legs, along with a long yellow piece of cloth tied around her waist and a divided yellow visor over each eye.
When Nobuko noticed Allen's gaze, she hid behind Tsuyu, who scolded Allen for scaring her friend.
Fujimi wore a black double-breasted coat with a high collar. He had a translucent purple mask over his mouth, gloves, pointed dress shoes, and striped pants visible underneath. As for Dandan, he was the most peculiar—his suit was a colorful robotic armor that covered almost his entire body. It looked designed to launch missiles, something Allen confirmed with his X-ray vision.
Both boys didn't notice Allen's gaze; they were too busy staring at the massive forest stretching out in front of them.
....
Once they arrived at the location with Aizawa leading the way, everyone fell silent. This time, it wasn't a city—it was a forest.
Aizawa stopped at the edge of a cliff and turned toward them.
"Originally, we had planned a battle royale where teams of four would fight and the last one standing would win, but there was too much imbalance with Allen in the equation, so it was changed. It will still be a survival test, but the objective will be to see who survives the longest against the hunter."
As soon as he finished speaking, all of Class 1-A turned to look at Allen. They were already used to facing him during training.
"There will be restrictions for Allen. After all, it's unfair even if he holds back."
Allen shrugged. "That's fine, but I won't hold back, so make those restrictions good, Aizawa."
"Tsk..." Aizawa sighed. "Also, this class will be assisted by three more teachers."
Two explosions rang out—Mirko and All Might landed heavily, and Kaina appeared as well, descending from the sky without making a sound.
"It's Mirko!" Nobuko exclaimed excitedly.
"All Might!" Fujimi shouted. It seemed even this unfriendly guy was a fan of All Might, which made Deku smile.
....
I won't hold back...
The words lingered in the air, leaving behind a sense of invisible pressure. Throughout all the training sessions, Allen had rarely said something like that—and it was never an empty promise.
The UA students spread out across the forest.
Allen wouldn't fly, wouldn't use top-tier Quirks, and wouldn't use any templates he had used before. But unexpectedly, that only made everyone feel even more pressure.
Humans always fear the unknown.
....
Rias – "At first, it seems like an inevitable outcome, but perhaps the students will surprise us."
Akeno – "Ufufu, it all depends on my little brother's mood~"
Kiriko – "Allen can be both cruel and kind, so it's impossible to know what he'll do this time."
Donna – "That's what you think. I believe Master will wipe the floor with them mercilessly!"
Anissa – "It's better that he shows them cruelty now rather than when their lives are truly at risk."
Thor – "Exactly, Allen, kick their asses!"
Orihime – "But I hope he's not too harsh on them, hehe..."
....
At the top of a cliff overlooking the training area, Allen swapped his templates.
"So, can you do it?" Aizawa asked from beside him. Meanwhile, All Might wore a concerned smile on his muscular form.
"Yes," Allen replied in a low voice with his eyes closed. 'One more time, can you tell me how I can permanently become Superman?'
[Host, since the template integrated into you became something "permanent," any Superman templates that appear in the slot machine are converted into "time," which is added to the Iridescent template: +1 minute per silver template and +10 minutes per gold template. Once twenty-four hours are completed, it will become a permanent transformation you can use without limits whenever you want.]
'I see… and of course, this applies to the other templates too, right?'
[That is correct...]
'That's pretty strange… just like my whole life.' Allen smiled.
At that moment, five golden cards emerged from his body and faded away (entering his inventory). The Superman template had already integrated into his body. Interestingly, this template functioned differently from the others—it no longer had a usage time limit, but it did have a cooldown once its usage was depleted, which was currently 79 minutes per day.
Kaina, Mirko, and Nemuri all went on high alert. Without templates, Allen was in a vulnerable state. Of course, he still had strength beyond a normal human, but against enemies on the level of All For One, it was nothing.
But that didn't last long. Five more cards appeared around Allen—all of them gold. They spun and merged into him.
When Allen opened his eyes, he looked at his hands. He could feel these new templates.
'Before, it felt uncomfortable… because I didn't just gain powers—it was like experiencing a second life. Sometimes my will was tested, other times my morality, my ideals, my desires… now it feels easier. Even so, this accumulation of emotions and experiences that come with each template is still heavy.'
"Are you okay?" Nemuri asked, worried as she saw Allen lost in thought.
Allen smiled—a serene, calm smile, not his usual shameless, mocking one—as he glanced at her. "I'm fine."
Right after that, Allen jumped off the cliff, ready to face the young pillars of heroism of this generation.
Aizawa scratched his head. "Is it just me, or for a second did he feel more…"
"Stronger!" Mirko said with a proud grin.
"More mature," Kaina said, satisfied.
"Sexier," Nemuri said, earning looks of disdain from both of them.
"I was actually going to say he looked taller, but I guess that works too," All Might said.
....
The Isami students decided to form a team. Even though there were no restrictions or limits and they could literally all attack together, they chose to go on their own—partly due to Fujimi's insistence on going solo. Meanwhile, most of Class 1-A were grouped, as they didn't believe they stood a chance against Allen otherwise.
However, five people were separated from the others. Four of them—Todoroki, Tokoyami, Tetsutetsu, and Monoma—formed a team. The reason for their decision was that they wanted an "elite" team to face Allen, since large groups are difficult to coordinate, and defeating him with numbers didn't seem realistic.
As for the fifth person...
"I don't give a damn—I'm going to kill that bastard!"
"Wait, Bakugo!" Shoji shouted, extending his hand.
"Kacchan, don't face Allen alone!"
"Stupid Bakugo, always making things more complicated!" Mina shouted, sticking out her tongue.
"Shut up, extras! Stay in your little herd like a bunch of herbivores—I'll take Walker's head!"
"Huh?! Say that again!" Momo snapped, about to attack Bakugo with a cannon, but Ochako stopped her.
"Calm down, Momo-san. Bakugo-kun will regret it on his own." Momo snorted in Bakugo's direction, then immediately scoffed. "It's true—even now, he still doesn't understand the difference in power..."
"You shouldn't be so confident. He's our enemy now, and we have to defeat him," Ojiro said, scratching his cheek.
"We should all come up with a plan," Deku added, drawing their attention. "Even if Allen-san is only using weaker templates, he'll still be very hard to defeat."
....
Bakugo advanced through the forest, "hunting" Allen. With these actions and what he had done during the exam, anyone could see Bakugo's serious personality flaws. But was Bakugo stupid?
Unexpectedly, the answer was no. Despite having a head filled with boiling lava, Bakugo had proven multiple times that he could think deeply, analyze situations, and choose his actions accordingly. Therefore, his actions were based on the fact that he had thought something through—and believed he had a chance to win.
'All those damn extras were scared. That's why side characters always stay in the background! I was right—including you, Deku, you're just an extra!'
With every explosion, Bakugo accelerated through the forest—but it wasn't just for propulsion. It was clearly a provocation. He was shouting at Allen to come after him if he dared.
'Hasn't anyone thought about it?! Why does that bastard always use the same Quirks? Why does he prefer to wait for a template's cooldown instead of replacing it with another?! Why?!...'
'Also, even if it's just a guess based on the fact that he always uses the same Quirks—creating them must take more than just time. Otherwise, it wouldn't make sense for his strongest Quirks to always be the same. What if creating one of those so-called templates is as complicated as assembling a Swiss watch?!'
'He can't… if it's true that every Quirk he creates takes time, then that time can't be short. Even if it's just a day or an hour, it becomes impossible to replace them mid-fight. So now that he replaced the templates he used in the festival and against All For One, he must be using backups.'
'Finally, it also doesn't make sense for him to create weak templates. If he can create, emulate, replicate, and even improve any Quirk, then why is there such a difference in power between them?! That means they can fail during creation. It's not that he didn't want them to be stronger—it's that he couldn't make them stronger!'
At that point, Bakugo would be right—Allen would not need to create weak templates.
Bakugo smiled.
'Bastard, do you know what your mistake is?! You never took me seriously! You think you can humiliate me without your strongest Quirks?! You think I haven't been training to the brink of death just to surpass you?! Listen, Allen Walker—today I'm going to carve my name into your flesh!'
Bakugo's eyes became bloodshot, and his smile turned predatory.
'I will be the strongest—?!'
Bakugo stopped out of nowhere. His expression changed, his eyes widened, and his smile vanished. Bakugo didn't just have the attitude of a beast—he also had some of its traits, like instinct, and it was thanks to that instinct that he stopped.
"What's there?! Don't try to hide—I know you're there! If you don't come out in three seconds, I'll blow this whole place up!"
"You don't have to do that. I'm right here," Allen said, leaning against a tree behind Bakugo while eating an apple.
"Walker!" Bakugo growled, entering combat mode.
"Yo, Bakugo-kun..." Allen smirked mockingly. "I didn't think you'd come alone. Even after so many beatings… after everything, you still underestimate me?"
Bakugo took a slight step back as he felt that same pressure Allen always exerted in battle, but the moment he realized what he had done, he struck his own knee and forced himself to stay in place.
'What am I doing?! Am I always going to be beneath him?! No! I refuse to be an extra! I have to believe! I have to trust myself! It's fine! I have a chance! My analysis is correct!'
Bakugo's muscles swelled, and his veins bulged across his skin.
"Walker, I hate you—but not because you're stronger than me… I hate you because of that attitude you always have!"
"Of course it's not fun when you're the one being bullied, right, Bakugo?" Allen mocked.
"...!"
"You know, Bakugo, I don't like you either. But unlike you, I don't hate you… I just feel sorry for you."
"Shut up..."
"You had a good friend who always admired you, someone who always believed you'd be strong—a great hero… and he never envied what you had."
"Shut up."
"But what did you do? You mistreated him, mocked him, looked down on him!"
"SHUT UP!"
Allen's gaze turned cold. "Even now that he finally has a chance to fulfill his dream, instead of being happy for him, you hate him even more… no, you envy him. More than that, you feel inferior—because you know he has what it takes to become a better hero than you. Bakugo, you know something? I don't hate you… But I do think you're a disgusting person."
"I said shut up!" Bakugo propelled himself toward Allen with a massive explosion.
"Idiot!" Kaina growled. She had seen and heard everything along with the other teachers thanks to a drone.
....
Bakugo wanted to tear Allen apart. At this point, he didn't care about the training or anything else—he just wanted Allen to stop talking.
Bakugo aimed both hands forward. They lit up with a bright orange glow—the natural shine of his explosions.
"Die!"
Allen didn't dodge. Instead, he lowered his head for a moment before raising it—and when he did, his eyes had turned a deep crimson.
"Die!" Allen shouted, making all the teachers—and even Bakugo himself—stare in disbelief.
Allen's hand collided with Bakugo's, and a massive explosion erupted, echoing throughout the forest.
....
Bakugo was blasted away by the explosion. He crashed into several trees before rolling across the ground until he finally stopped.
"What?! Impossible! That bastard copied my Quirk!"
Ugh!
Bakugo tried to stand, but when he supported himself with his right hand, he noticed his grenade gauntlet was gone—and his hand was burned.
"Stun Grenade."
"What?!" Bakugo tried to cover his eyes, but it was too late—he was blinded by his own technique.
As Bakugo struggled to recover, the sound of footsteps approached.
"You're weak..." Allen said. There was no mockery in his tone—he wasn't taunting him. It was a sincere opinion, because now that he had Bakugo's template, he could understand him perfectly.
"Bastard!" Fueled by rage, Bakugo blasted the ground beneath him, launching himself away from Allen.
When his vision returned, he saw Allen standing not too far away—but not close either.
Already covered in injuries, Bakugo grew irritated. "What are you waiting for?!"
"Maybe you forgot, but this isn't a fight to the death—it's training."
"Don't screw with me! After provoking me like that, you think this is going to end as just training?!"
Bakugo's eyes began turning an intense red. The muscles in his body swelled even more, and it looked like he was pushing his Quirk to the limit.
The teachers were about to intervene, but Nezu—who had appeared out of nowhere alongside Ectoplasm—stopped them. According to him, Allen himself had requested it.
"You think I'm disgusting?! Those are my words!!"
Bakugo attacked once more, but he didn't reach Allen. Allen vanished and reappeared right in front of him, his hand already on Bakugo's face.
"What?!"
"What's the surprise? I just compressed an explosion to propel myself—something you usually do."
Essentially, the Quirk was the same. Both allowed the user to create explosions from their sweat. However, there was a major difference between them.
Bakugo only used explosions from his hands because they were easier to control. His gauntlets also helped limit the power of his explosions, since he still couldn't fully handle his Quirk's full force. None of those limitations existed for Allen. His body was more durable than Bakugo's, and beyond that—for someone who had used and mastered all kinds of abilities such as superpowers, magic, ki, chi, chakra, cursed energy, haki, demonic powers, divine powers, and even had experience wielding Lucifer's will and the Dunamis Demiurgos—the base code used to forge multiverses like candy… of course someone like that would have no trouble perfectly handling Bakugo's Quirk.
Bakugo tried to attack—sparks already forming in his hand, the precursor to his explosions—but he was a step too late.
Allen detonated a point-blank explosion directly in Bakugo's face.
Bakugo fell backward, his eyes rolling white—he had lost consciousness. However, before hitting the ground, light returned to his eyes and he attacked again.
"Not yet!" Bakugo shouted, pointing his hand forward. His face had light burns, and he had lost two teeth, yet his eyes still burned with the desire to win.
"..." Allen watched in silence.
Explosion
Bakugo used the explosion to create distance. He ignored his injuries, clenched his teeth, and prepared for Allen's counterattack.
"Come on!" Bakugo was ready—he would take this to the very end.
However, the attack never came. When the smoke cleared, everyone saw that Allen hadn't moved from his spot.
Not only that—he didn't have a single injury despite taking a direct explosion.
....
"What does this mean?" Aizawa asked, sweat forming on his forehead. "Don't tell me he's immune to explosions?"
It wasn't an unreasonable possibility. After all, they believed Allen could not only copy Quirks—but improve them.
"No," Kaina said. She had the best eyesight among them. "Right before the explosion hit him, Allen created his own explosion to neutralize Bakugo's."
"Before it hit him?" All Might exclaimed. "That was a point-blank explosion—what kind of reflexes does young Allen have?"
....
"Damn it!" Bakugo blasted himself into the air again. Once there, he aimed both hands at Allen. The muscles in his arms screamed—this time, Bakugo didn't care about injuring himself and used all his power. "THIS TIME, DIE!"
"You will!" Allen shouted, doing the same as Bakugo.
When their attacks collided, a massive explosion erupted—tearing trees from the ground and destroying the terrain. The drone that had been transmitting to the teachers was obliterated.
The rest of the students had to endure the shockwave, grabbing onto whatever they could.
"What's happening?!" Ochako exclaimed, clinging to a tree root.
"Is that Bakugo?!" Iida shouted, running against the force of the explosion to avoid being thrown.
"Impossible! He shouldn't be capable of an explosion that strong!" Momo yelled, gripping a tree tightly.
Deku clenched his teeth, worried.
'Kacchan!'
====
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