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Present Mic excitedly stood up from his chair, slammed the sole of his right foot on the commentary desk, and asked Aizawa Shota next to him:
"Hey, Eraserhead! Who do you think is more likely to win between the two of them?"
Aizawa rarely dozed during matches and replied solemnly, "Shoto's strength has grown since he's now willing to use fire, but Itadori isn't someone to underestimate. The overall strength of the two is comparable."
"Oh! That's Eraserhead's take! So, everyone in the audience, are you ready?"
Present Mic yelled, raising his index finger to hype up the crowd.
"Yeah!!!"
One hundred and twenty thousand spectators erupted in cheers.
"Then... START!!!"
Present Mic's voice had barely faded when Todoroki Shoto took a step forward with his right foot, and Yoarashi Inasa waved his left hand.
An enormous iceberg and a powerful tornado rushed toward each other simultaneously.
BOOM BOOM—!!!
Even outside the stadium, the violent vibrations could be felt.
Spectators outside the venue lost their balance, falling to the ground as they tried to steady themselves.
Looking up, they saw ice shards scattering across the sky above the stadium, carried by powerful winds.
What followed was a clash of fire, ice, and wind—a melee that grew fiercer with every passing second.
"How insane are these two students' powers? Even many professional heroes can't compare!"
Kamui Woods, who had been called in to help maintain order outside the stadium, looked up at the intense battle.
To be honest, even he wasn't confident he could beat Yoarashi Inasa or Todoroki Shoto in a fight.
"Hey, that guy..."
Mt. Lady, also present to assist, pointed toward the left.
Kamui Woods and another professional hero turned to look.
Under the shade of a tree, Itadori sat calmly, sipping from a can of coffee.
At that moment, the chaos erupting in the stadium seemed completely unrelated to him.
"Does he not care about his upcoming match? Or is he just absolutely confident?"
Kamui Woods asked in astonishment.
Through the big screen outside the stadium, they had all witnessed Itadori's chillingly composed demeanor during previous matches.
"That calm look is intriguing. Should I go chat with him?"
Mt. Lady chuckled softly, making it hard to tell whether she was joking.
"Hey, don't embarrass professional heroes like that," Kamui Woods retorted, frowning.
Back in the arena, Todoroki Shoto and Yoarashi Inasa demonstrated just how overwhelming a battle between natural elements could be.
Even with Cementoss tirelessly rebuilding the stadium, the destruction caused by the two students far outpaced his repairs.
In the audience, Bakugo Katsuki gritted his teeth, glaring at the shattered arena.
As much as he hated to admit it, he couldn't deny the truth.
'I don't know if I can beat either of those two.'
Of course, if Itadori were nearby, he'd have a snide comment ready:
"Doesn't matter. You're not winning the next round anyway."
After nearly ten minutes of intense fighting, both combatants began to pant heavily.
"The next move will decide it," Midoriya murmured, finally snapping out of his deep thoughts on how to counter Itadori's stand.
Even the strongest have limits. The more powerful their quirks, the greater the toll on their physical and mental endurance.
Both Shoto and Inasa were nearing their breaking points.
"How passionate! But the one who'll fight Itadori next will be me!"
Yoarashi Inasa shouted, mustering every ounce of strength he had left. With a storm propelling him forward, he rushed toward Todoroki Shoto for a decisive close-combat strike.
"Could this final clash determine the winner?!"
When Bakugo Katsuki heard this, he almost gritted his teeth.
What does this bald guy mean?
Are you saying that you can't beat that twin bastard in the next game?!
Seeing this, Todoroki Shoto waved his hand and blasted out flames.
Yoarashi Inasa's pupils shrank, and he controlled the wind pressure to move upward, shouting, "Shoto, you will use ice to double-snipe next, I've seen through it!"
However, what happened next was something Yoarashi Inasa did not expect.
Todoroki Shoto didn't even use his best long-range attack.
Instead, after emitting the flame, he directly entered it, hiding inside the fire and rushing toward Yoarashi Inasa from below.
"Oh no!"
Yoarashi Inasa was startled and subconsciously raised his hands to resist.
However, at that moment, Todoroki Shoto, who was not known for close combat, delivered a swift right fist to Inasa's lower body.
Yoarashi Inasa was knocked into the air.
Two seconds later, the sound of heavy objects falling echoed twice.
The two competitors fell less than a second apart.
"Yoarashi Inasa, off the field!"
"Todoroki Shoto, still in the field!"
Midnight whipped her announcement with decisiveness. "Todoroki Shoto advances to the finals!"
"In the last step, you actually resorted to close combat, which you're least skilled at, to decide the outcome. You're truly bold… Mr. Todoroki," Present Mic remarked, amazed.
Everyone in Class 1-A knew Shoto's close combat skills were not his forte. However, few ever managed to get close enough to test him.
Outside the ring, Yoarashi Inasa struggled to rise, punching the ground before falling again. "Damn it… just a little more."
What Yoarashi Inasa didn't expect was Todoroki Shoto walking over and extending his hand.
In that moment, the fiery competitor didn't seem so detestable. Inasa grinned and clasped the offered hand.
The two walked toward the contestant hallway amidst the roaring cheers of the audience.
Meanwhile, Cementoss sighed and began repairing the damaged arena.
At the same time, Present Mic announced, "Next up, the semi-final match! Class A's Itadori Muzan versus Bakugo Katsuki! Contestants, please prepare to enter!"
Bakugo Katsuki suddenly stood up, his demeanor screaming "stay away." Without bothering to use the stairs, he leaped straight into the arena.
Midoriya had a complicated expression.
"Oh wow, Bakugo-san seems really fired up! He didn't even bother with the proper entrance!" Present Mic hyped up the crowd.
"Where's that idiot!?"
Bakugo strained his neck, scanning for his opponent.
"Didn't you hear it?" Ochako asked curiously.
"I'll go check," Momo offered, standing.
Just then, Itadori walked in from the right passage, calmly wiping his mouth with a tissue in one hand and holding a glass of iced Coke in the other.
He tossed the tissue into a trash can and popped the bottle cap off with ease, taking two sips before tossing the empty bottle into the trash as well.
"This… this guy!"
Bakugo's teeth ground together.
"Now that both contestants are in position, we can begin! Both have shown outstanding performances thus far, and this match is bound to be explosive!"
Present Mic's excitement echoed across the stadium as Aizawa tugged him back slightly.
"Move aside. You're blocking my view."
As Present Mic regained his footing, his commentary continued, "This will be the third opponent to challenge Itadori from Class A! Can Bakugo-san unveil the mystery of Itadori's abilities?"
"Shut up and start the match already!!!"
Bakugo's explosive temper boiled over, drawing mixed reactions from the crowd.
'To deal with this guy, I don't even need to use [The World],' Itadori thought, unconsciously exuding disdain from his eyes.
That contempt ignited Bakugo's fury even more than words ever could.
"You're looking down on me, aren't you?! You bastard!" Bakugo roared.
"Ah? No," Itadori replied flatly. "I never took you seriously from the start."
'Oops,' Midoriya thought, 'This is bad.'
As expected, Bakugo's whole body tensed. His mouth twitched, veins bulged on his forehead, and his bloodshot eyes glared daggers.
"You… what did you say?"
"I hate repeating myself," Itadori replied with a smirk. "Now hurry up. I don't expect this fight to help me improve at all."
"Die!!!"
Bakugo launched forward, explosive energy propelling him at high speed as he swiped at Itadori's face with his clawed hand.