"Ha ha ha ha… do you really think you can defeat me alone?!"
A mocking smile appeared on Boros's face. He opened his mouth to continue his taunt—
But suddenly…
A fist appeared in front of him in the blink of an eye.
He had no time to react.
The punch hit him directly in the stomach.
"BOOOM!!"
Boros felt like he was hit by a heavenly hammer. His whole body flew backward like a cannonball, sending a shockwave through the whole hall.
"DOOOM!!"
His body crashed into the wall of the spaceship. The thick steel wall broke, leaving a huge hole, with metal pieces and dust flying everywhere.
When the dust slowly cleared…
Boros appeared, falling onto one knee, his face confused, his single eye wide open in pure shock.
On his stomach, there was a deep wound, like a hole, with dark blue blood dripping to the floor.
He didn't even see when Saitama moved closer.
He only saw… the result.
And the most important thing—
That punch actually hurt.
This had not happened to him for a very long time.
Impossible…
Of course, with his regeneration and healing ability, this injury was nothing. He could fix it in a few moments…
But inside, Boros was furious.
He was the ruler of the universe, who had fought in countless battles across many planets, and never met an enemy who could damage him this much with a single blow.
He raised his head, looking at Saitama with a mix of shock and anger.
On the other side of the hall…
The S-class heroes were staring with wide eyes.
They had just seen Saitama disappear for a moment, then flash forward, and in the next instant… the cosmic ruler who had crushed them earlier was smashed into the wall, with a wound in his stomach.
Tatsumaki was the least surprised.
She had already seen the emperor's challenge against Saitama once before, and she knew—at least vaguely—that this bald man was not normal at all.
But the others…
They were shocked to their core.
What is this power?!
How can a man who looks this simple… hit a monster like that so easily?
An uncomfortable thought passed through all their minds:
If his target right now… was us…
Could any of us escape?
And what made it worse in their hearts…
Was that this same man had already lost once before to Emperor.
Their eyes turned toward Louis without thinking.
If this bald guy is this terrifyingly strong…
Then how strong is the man who defeated him?
With that thought, their eyes filled with awe, respect… and a small hidden fear.
Louis felt all their gazes on him, but he said nothing, keeping his eyes calmly on the fight.
Suddenly, a rough voice cut through everyone's thoughts.
It was Boros.
Boros stood up slowly. His blue body tightened, and the wound on his stomach started to close in front of their eyes, until it looked as if he had never been hurt at all.
"Oh…" Saitama muttered quietly as he watched the regeneration.
"It's healing…"
Inside his heart, something like interest began to rise.
This is the first time…
I see someone stand up after taking a punch…
Other than Emperor, of course!!
Then Saitama gave a small smile.
"Ah… Emperor was right. You really are strong."
A laugh came from Boros's throat—wild, a little crazy—and his face filled with savage excitement.
"Long ago, the prophets of my race said that one day I would meet an opponent who could beat me… on a distant planet in the depths of the universe."
"At first, I didn't believe it. I thought it was just empty talk."
He pointed at Saitama, his eye glowing:
"But now… it seems the prophecy was true!"
"I have always wanted a real opponent, someone who can stand in front of me without breaking in an instant… but I never found one."
"This is… amazing!"
After he finished speaking, his single eye moved between Louis and Saitama.
It was clear he was still wondering about this human who knew so much about him, but…
In the end, his gaze locked onto the one who made him feel pain.
Saitama.
Whatever the other man's secret is…
My priority now is this enemy in front of me.
In the next moment, before anyone could react—
"BOOOM!!"
A deafening sound shook the hall.
This time, Boros was the one who moved first.
He vanished from where he stood and appeared right in front of Saitama, punching him in the face with all his strength.
Saitama's body flew away like a cannonball shot from a gun.
The steel structure of the ship broke along his path, leaving a massive hole, and then Saitama flew completely out of the spaceship, thrown into the open space outside.
With this punch… Boros showed a part of his true power.
Any other S-class hero—
If they had received that hit directly…
Their bodies would have been torn apart in the very first instant.
What followed was not just a normal fight…
But a battle that shook the sky and earth, between a man in a simple yellow suit…
and a cosmic ruler who had spent his whole life searching for one worthy opponent to stand face to face with him.