Chapter 67: The Fight Has Finally Begun
Aoi fixed his gaze on Shigaraki and launched himself at high speed toward him, the ground cracking beneath his feet from the explosive takeoff. He knew the chaos this bastard would cause if left unchecked—eliminating the leader here and now would remove one massive headache from the equation.
His fist, enveloped in roaring blue flames, cut through the air like a comet, aimed straight at Shigaraki's head with lethal precision. But at the last possible instant, the bulkier Nomu interposed itself, taking the full brunt of the punch directly to its chest. The impact detonated like a bomb—the force unleashing a massive shockwave that ripped through the central plaza, sending lesser villains tumbling backward, kicking up clouds of dust, and fracturing the concrete in spiderweb patterns radiating outward.
Shigaraki, staggering from the near-miss and the resulting blast, recovered just enough to screech in fury:
—Nomu! Kill him!
The second Nomu—the slimmer, more agile one—blurred into motion, closing the distance in a fraction of a second. It unleashed a brutal kick to Aoi's midsection, the strike landing with bone-shattering force. The air compressed and exploded outward from the point of impact, propelling Aoi backward like a cannonball, crashing through debris and skidding across the ground before rolling to a stop dozens of meters away.
Aizawa, seeing the opening, attempted to intervene, his eyes glowing red as he activated his quirk to erase the Nomu's abilities. But the agile Nomu was faster—it spun and delivered a devastating overhead punch straight to Aizawa's face. The blow connected with a sickening crack, sending the professor flying, blood spraying from his mouth as he tumbled across the plaza, his face battered and swelling instantly.
Shigaraki approached the downed teacher slowly, scratching at his neck obsessively.
—It's hard to tell with those eyes covered all the time... But there's always a moment when your hair falls over your eyes, isn't there?
He reached out and touched Aizawa's elbow, activating his Decay quirk. The skin and muscle began to crumble away layer by layer in a horrifying, agonizing process.
Aizawa gritted his teeth against the excruciating pain, glaring up at the villain.
—So you're the leader of these villains.
Shigaraki let out a raspy chuckle.
—You really aren't good at prolonged fights, Eraser Head.
Seeing no further response coming, Aizawa exploded forward with a desperate punch to Shigaraki's face, the impact forcing the villain's hand away and finally allowing him to break free.
Breathing heavily, Aizawa glanced at his partially decayed arm and thought grimly: "This is his individuality... Really dangerous. If I'd hesitated even a second longer, my entire arm would be gone by now."
His thoughts were abruptly cut off as more low-level villains swarmed in, surrounding him and closing off any escape.
On the opposite side of the plaza, Aoi was locked in a furious, high-speed exchange with both Nomus. The battlefield became a blur of motion—punches and kicks landing with thunderous booms, the air itself seeming to vibrate from the sheer velocity. Aoi laughed madly, a wild, exhilarated edge to his voice, as his blue fire blazed intensely across his entire body like a living armor. It constantly regenerated his injuries in real time: deep gashes sealing shut with sizzling heat, cracked bones knitting back together with audible pops, dark bruises fading away almost as soon as they formed.
With a spinning maneuver, he drove a powerful kick straight into the bulky Nomu's face, the impact echoing like an explosion and launching the massive creature flying far across the zone, carving a trench in the ground from the force.
It was perfectly timed—the flying Nomu dove from the sky at blinding speed, claws extended to shred him mid-air.
Aoi glanced at the bulky Nomu already beginning to regenerate—flesh bubbling and reforming, bones resetting—and then at the airborne one streaking down like a predator.
He thought quickly: "If I remember right, this big one has super regeneration, shock absorption, and overwhelming super strength."
Turning his grin to the diving Nomu, he said:
—Well, you... I think you have extreme speed and body reinforcement, like Kirishima's, right?
Aoi looked at both and said, his smile widening with genuine excitement:
—Well, I'm not complaining at all. After all, thanks to you two, I'm finally feeling the limits of my body disappearing after being stuck at this current level for so long. Time to push further!
Aoi erupted forward at even higher speed, channeling his flames as thrusters for explosive propulsion. He rocketed upward, meeting the diving Nomu head-on, and delivered a flaming kick that connected with devastating precision. The strike boomed like thunder, sending the flying Nomu hurtling downward.
—What was that, you ugly bird? Did you really think I couldn't fly?
The airborne Nomu slammed into the bulky one below, the collision creating a massive crater as they were driven together with unstoppable momentum, ending up at the exact spot where Aoi had been sent flying earlier from the initial punch.
Aoi then descended gracefully, landing softly beside the exhausted Aizawa, who was struggling to stand.
—How's the situation holding up, professor?
Aizawa wiped blood from his mouth.
—Aoi, be careful. That guy with hands all over his face has a dangerous quirk. He can make anything he touches crumble to dust.
Aoi replied thoughtfully.
—Well, then I don't know if our quirks are so evenly matched against each other. After all, if his crumbling can't keep up with or surpass my regeneration rate, I'm actually the worst possible enemy for him.
Aizawa warned.
—Even so, you should still be extremely careful with him—he's unpredictable.
Aoi nodded.
—Understood.
Aoi then looked at the two Nomus slowly rising again, their bodies grotesquely reforming.
—13, professor, can I ask a favor from you two? I need you to hold off the big one while I take care of that hideous bird. Because the big one has regeneration—a direct fight between us would drag on forever. And that damn bird keeps interfering constantly. So I need to finish him off first. Can I count on you both?
Aizawa managed a tired but resolute smile.
—You shouldn't even have to fight villains at all, Aoi. You're a student—it's supposed to be us teachers taking this responsibility. So leave it to us. We'll hold the bigger one while you deal with the other. If as teachers we can't even buy time to help our student, then we've failed too much.
13 said firmly.
—Go ahead, Aoi. We can handle it.
Shigaraki, observing the exchange, snarled in disgust.
—How disgusting. This fake heroism is so irritating. Nomu! Kill them quickly!
The two Nomus charged forward like unleashed beasts, the ground shaking under their steps.
Aoi just sighed, ignited his flames brighter, launched into high-speed flight, and delivered a precise, flaming kick to the flying Nomu. The strike connected perfectly, removing it from the immediate scene and hurling it far away into another disaster simulation field across the USJ.
Aoi glanced one last time at Aizawa and 13, who were already positioning themselves against the remaining threat, and said:
—I'm counting on you, professors. Just hold out until I finish here. I'll come save you both.
He then rocketed off like a blue comet toward the area where the flying Nomu had crashed.
Aizawa, watching him go, sighed softly.
—And we were the ones supposed to say that, kid. Well...
He then turned to face the approaching bulky Nomu and said:
—13, let's go.
13 replied determinedly:
—Yes.
They then dove into a fierce, desperate fight against the remaining Nomu and Shigaraki.