Hearing someone call his name and challenge his spirit, Sogiita Gunha turned around with his hands on his hips, flashing a bright and enthusiastic smile.
"Hahaha! Someone saw my guts and couldn't help but want to compete with me. That's great. Your spirit must be incredible!"
Arata walked over, observing Sogiita Gunha's overwhelming presence, and said calmly, "Nice to meet you, you hot-blooded idiot. I'm the eighth Level 5, Arata."
"Ah! He's the seventh Level 5, the strongest gemstone esper in Academy City!" Misaka Mikoto exclaimed in surprise, not expecting to run into another Level 5 today.
"Level 5… Sogiita Gunha…" Shirai Kuroko froze. How was she supposed to arrest someone like him? Even if he violated regulations, she had no way to stop him if he chose to leave.
"The seventh one…" Uiharu Kazari murmured in shock. It felt familiar before, but now she remembered. Back when she browsed forums, there were always posts about the seventh Level 5 causing large scale damage.
Even though he was technically helping people, he completely ignored collateral damage, resulting in countless buildings being destroyed in the process. Just like Misaka-senpai, he unintentionally caused destruction while trying to do good.
"Hmm? Level 5?" Index blinked in confusion. She had heard that Level 5 espers were extremely powerful, but she had no idea what made them so strong. Science was completely beyond her understanding. She stepped closer and asked, "Toma, are you going to fight him?"
"It's not a fight, just a friendly spar," Arata said with a shrug.
When Sogiita Gunha heard that the person challenging him was another Level 5, he became even more excited.
"Great! I've heard that a new Level 5 with telekinetic abilities appeared. Since we both have similar powers, let's test our guts against each other!"
As he spoke, powerful gusts of wind surged from his body, lifting the school uniform draped over his shoulders. A reddish aura began to swirl around him, forming a vortex.
"I also want to test your Gemstone ability," Arata replied with a faint smile. "But this isn't the right place. Let's go somewhere more suitable."
"You've got guts. I've wanted to find you for a while. It's not easy to track down a Level 5, especially one like you." Sogiita Gunha spoke as if they were already close acquaintances. Perhaps this was simply his nature, a man who would never reject a challenge.
"I know a good place. The stadium is perfect for testing our spirit. How about we go there?" he suggested, wiping his nose with his thumb.
"Sure," Arata agreed. Although he was interested in analyzing Sogiita's ability, Void Star: Tai suu couldn't directly replicate it.
"Follow me! This way!" Sogiita said excitedly as he strode forward.
"Even if someone has superpowers, they'll still be punished for damaging property or breaking regulations," Shirai Kuroko muttered, her sense of justice flaring. Even if they got away temporarily, an official penalty notice would be sent to their school, and the compensation would be deducted from their funding.
"Are you all coming to watch our clash of spirit?" Sogiita asked, glancing back at the group.
"Uh…" Uiharu Kazari hesitated, then sighed. What was going on today? First Misaka-senpai wanted to spar with Arata, and now Arata wanted to spar with the seventh Level 5. Everything felt strangely chaotic.
"Wait a second!" Misaka Mikoto suddenly shouted, unable to hold back her frustration. She quickly ran up to Arata, sparks crackling from her forehead as she clenched her teeth.
"I'm seriously pissed! We agreed to fight, and now you're going off to fight someone else? Are you looking down on me?!"
Her pride flared instantly. She had absolute confidence in her power and would never tolerate being dismissed, especially by another Level 5 she had already challenged.
"Ah, no, that's not it," Arata said, raising his hands slightly. "Think about it. Wouldn't it be better if all three Level 5s sparred together? It's also a good chance to understand each other's abilities."
Slap! Shirai Kuroko smacked her own face in exasperation.
"Onee-sama, honestly! It would be fine if you taught this shameless ape a lesson, but all he thinks about is fighting. He has no awareness of being Tokiwadai's ace, a respected Level 5!"
"You… your presence is incredible," Sogiita Gunha said as he looked at Misaka Mikoto. "I can feel your spirit. It's been a long time since I've felt something like this."
Misaka Mikoto crossed her arms and replied confidently, "My name is Misaka Mikoto. You've heard of Railgun, right?"
Sogiita laughed loudly, his excitement surging.
"The third Level 5! What amazing luck! As expected, Level 5s are all full of spirit. Let's test our guts properly, hahaha!"
"...This guy is way too intense…" Misaka thought, slightly taken aback by his overwhelming enthusiasm.
Before long, the group arrived at the stadium. It was usually only opened during major events like the Daihasei Festival, so it was nearly empty most of the time.
"Haha! This place is perfect!" Sogiita declared, hands on his hips. "I usually train here, so I can use my powers without holding back!"
"Yeah, this works," Misaka said, clenching her fist as electricity crackled around her. "No one will get in the way here."
"It's suitable for sparring," Arata added, glancing around at the vast stands. "But if we were to go all out, it would barely be enough."
If this were a real battlefield involving people like the Number One or the Number Two, a place of this size wouldn't even come close to containing the destruction.
"Sogiita, Mikoto and I will spar first. You can judge," Arata suggested.
"Alright! Let me witness your spirit!" Sogiita leapt into the spectator stands, crossing his arms with a grin.
Arata turned to Misaka Mikoto, who was already brimming with fighting spirit, and smiled slightly.
"Since this is a spar, I won't go all out. Come at me."
Electric arcs danced across Misaka's forehead as blinding blue lightning erupted from her body.
"You don't need to tell me. I'll take this seriously. After all, you're a Level 5."
Her eyes sharpened as she locked onto him.
"Just don't get knocked out too quickly."
...
Re@d adv@nce ch@pters on p@t
guilt_free_daoist
Jo!n d!sc0rd I!nk in synops!s.
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