The atmosphere grew heavy and oppressive.
Masata's laughter was the first sound to shatter the silence.
"Hahahahaha! I'm talking to you! Are you even a man?! What was that punch supposed to be—a massage?"
At this moment, the previously aggrieved Masata felt refreshed from head to toe.
"Shut up, brat!"
The dragon-man scowled, clearly irritated by Masata's ridicule.
"I didn't even use my full strength!"
"Then die already!!!"
Another fist slammed straight into Masata's chest.
This time, Masata didn't even bother dodging. Knowing escape was impossible, he crossed his arms and raised them in front of his head, lava surging instantly to shield his vital points.
Boom!
A dull, explosive impact echoed.
Masata remained completely unharmed.
"Hahaha! Looks like you really can't do anything to me!"
Feeling only a faint vibration against his chest, Masata laughed arrogantly.
"Then it's my turn."
His arm came crashing down toward the dragon man—but the opponent sensed the airflow shift and dodged in advance. Masata had expected that and wasn't frustrated in the slightest.
"Judging by how you dodge, you're the agile type," Masata said calmly, watching the dragon man retreat to maintain distance.
"Unfortunately for you, I'm a power type."
"And not a slow one."
"As long as I drag this out, your stamina won't hold up."
Hearing Masata's matter-of-fact analysis, the dragon man's expression darkened.
Unfortunately, Masata wasn't wrong.
In pure strength, the dragon man wasn't outstanding.
In speed, he wasn't actually faster than Masata either.
He relied entirely on his Quirk—airflow perception—to predict attacks in advance and dodge them.
As for endurance?
What kind of monster was this kid's body made of?
Even a full-power punch barely slowed him down!
Knowing that UA staff would soon notice the disturbance, the dragon man grew anxious.
"I don't believe you're iron all over!"
He lunged forward, suddenly switching tactics, using a vicious monkey-steals-the-peach move aimed straight at Masata's lower body.
"Hey—HEY! Where are you trying to hit?!"
Masata's heart skipped. A chill ran straight down his spine.
He slammed both hands downward.
"Lava Wall!"
Roiling magma erupted from his palms, instantly forming a blazing wall in front of him. Scorching heat surged outward, cutting off the dragon man's attack.
"I warned you—don't get too arrogant!"
Masata still felt lingering fear from that move.
If it had landed properly… even All Might might have been forced to kneel.
"I don't want a battle of attrition!"
"I just want to punch you flat!"
"Lava Fist!"
An enormous volume of magma surged outward, engulfing Masata's entire arm. It flowed, compressed, and solidified layer by layer until it formed a colossal molten fist.
Unlike Big Spitfire, this attack was composed entirely of condensed lava.
The impact range was massive, the temperature terrifying.
The compressed eruption not only simulated a volcanic blast—it also fired molten fragments outward, creating devastating secondary damage.
Masata was fully aware of how dangerous this move was.
That was exactly why he held back.
Killing someone here would be a nightmare to deal with.
Even heroes weren't allowed to kill freely—especially a first-year student without a license.
"Dodge again! Keep dodging!"
Masata shouted arrogantly, swinging his arm.
The massive lava fist cast a shadow over the entire open area. Everything within it fell under the attack's range.
Unless the dragon man could escape instantly with extreme speed—
there was no way to avoid it.
And he couldn't.
BOOOOOOM!!!
A deafening explosion shook the ground.
Birds fled from the surrounding woods.
The earth trembled violently.
Then—silence.
"…I didn't kill him, right?"
Masata frowned when he didn't see the dragon man burst out of the impact zone.
He quickly retracted the magma, leaped forward several times, and grabbed a charred figure from the crater.
"…Yeah. He's still breathing."
Masata exhaled in relief.
"Good thing I controlled the temperature. If I'd gone any harder, this would've been a real problem."
"Guess I really do need to be careful with high-output moves before I get my license."
The dragon man was completely scorched black. Very little skin remained intact, and his body smelled unmistakably like barbecue.
Literally a sigh of relief.
Fortunately, in a world of Quirks, medical technology was equally advanced. As long as he wasn't dead, he could be saved.
The explosion and tremors spread across campus. Before long, UA's faculty and staff rushed to the scene.
"Hey! Momo! Ochaco! Aizawa-sensei!"
Masata waved at the approaching crowd.
"Masata, where's the villain?"
Aizawa Shouta asked seriously, all trace of his usual lethargy gone.
"He's been beaten into the ground," Masata replied casually, pointing at the unconscious dragon man in his hand.
"Call Recovery Girl quickly. His Quirk's tricky, and I hit a little hard. If treatment's delayed, it might get dangerous."
Masata had discovered and subdued an intruding villain—an undeniable achievement.
Unfortunately, he had also used his Quirk without authorization.
As a result, he was immediately caught by an unusually strict Aizawa-sensei and subjected to a long lecture, while a worried Yaoyorozu and Ochaco hovered nearby.
Painful… yet oddly satisfying.
Afterward
"So you're saying the villain was here to steal information?"
Inside the principal's office, Principal Nezu asked gently.
"Yeah. That's what he claimed," Masata replied weakly, sprawled on the sofa like a deflated balloon.
"His Quirk is Airflow Perception—lets him sense movement in advance and dodge attacks. Pretty troublesome. He's strong too. Probably a low-level elite among villains."
Masata hadn't eaten much since noon, fought another intense battle, and—
He was starving.
After Masata left, Principal Nezu's expression turned serious.
"So the school gates were damaged, surveillance was interfered with in advance, and he used airflow perception to avoid staff patrols…"
"That allowed him to infiltrate undetected."
"Whether this was simple information theft or a declaration of war, we're currently at an intelligence disadvantage."
Nezu's eyes sharpened.
"Strengthen campus security immediately. Repair the gates. Upgrade monitoring systems."
"Students must never be put in danger."
As Principal Nezu calmly issued orders, a trace of worry crept into his thoughts.
If the villain's presence had been discovered any later…
UA might have been completely blind.
Was that really just coincidence?