Chapter Fourteen
There he was. All Might stood before the oni's face in a magnificent, unrivaled posture, chest thrust forward. That smile and that aura created an impression of pride—not arrogance. His blue eyes were filled with a mystical gleam that inspired dread in every evildoer.
Doma was one of the exceptions.
The fearless demon who had not even been frightened by Kibutsuji Muzan—who had held no particular reverence for the owner of those rainbow eyes, and had in fact openly disliked him. The progenitor's wrath had been terrible for everyone, for he was capable of the absurd: killing a demon without even absorbing it. One command, and the cursed blood would obliterate any immortal creature. It was for exactly this reason that even three of the Upper Moons had been wary of him—Hantengu, Gyutaro, and Kaigaku among them.
Nevertheless, fear had never been in the habit of visiting the former Second Upper Moon. Even death had not frightened him, never allowing the will to survive to emerge—the drive to overcome an inevitable end. That was precisely why Akaza, who was weaker, had managed to regenerate his severed head while Doma had not.
Excitement stirred the demon's cold heart for only the second time, meeting a worthy opponent. Or rather, one who surpassed him by a head—perhaps even two. He could feel a very real threat, and a smile was crawling onto his face of its own accord. He could feel his own ardor. He was hungry for this.
"Why such hostility?" In contrast to his own inner state, the cannibal arranged his face into sorrow. "We do the same work—we cleanse this world of villains. We should be friends!"
Switching his expression with instant ease, the former cult leader spoke with bright and cheerful enthusiasm, pressing his palms together and holding them against his chest in supplication. His teal eyes closed sweetly, and a blissful smile bloomed on his lips. The veins swelling across every part of that deathly pale face, however, foretold nothing good. Doma knew which notes to play.
"A villain will never be my companion or my friend!"
The large man darkened further and lunged forward at staggering speed. The demon only managed to widen his eyes, shift his arms slightly, and pull back a fraction. His mouth formed the shape of the letter O, as though gazing at some rare curiosity. The impact of the wild punch that followed wrenched both arms backward, catching them only at the very edge, then drove through its target nearly all the way through—stopping only at the level of the "clothing."
The Symbol of Peace had not held back his astonishing power, having been informed of the oni's regeneration. Crimson blood was coughed up from one almost-intact lung during the wild flight that followed. Crashing into a thick cobblestone wall, he nearly demolished it entirely before the inertia deposited him on the sidewalk beside it, raising a cloud of dust and splitting the stone beneath.
Not a single particle of it remained on the old costume, however, when "Enmu" rose to his feet with considerable speed and performed a theatrical brush-down regardless. Straightening a disheveled collar, the demon bared his fangs in a grin. The kanji and the dash in those unsettling eyes stared out at the demolished road—the consequence of their collision. The shockwave was still rattling windows and bending the small trees around them. Absurd power.
The smile on the number one hero's lips barely flickered when he saw the "cannibal" completely whole and uninjured. He had believed Endeavor, of course. Had tried to. The ability to restore a head had sounded incredible even as a concept, and so he had attempted to punch through the chest while avoiding the heart, so as not to accidentally kill. Though the demon had emerged from the rubble with remarkable speed, Toshinori could not observe the healing process—the work was already done. Surprising as it was, it still fell short of the hero's signature super-strikes.
The heat surged again, and the creature's whitest teeth were covered in soot and char, as was its entire body. A powerful torrent of wild, raging flame greedily consumed flesh that bubbled and restored itself in plain sight even as the damage was being dealt. The established parity passed, and the advantage tipped to the oni's side when the fire finally died.
It was unclear whether Endeavor's vicious snarl was directed at All Might or the cannibal—but it showed no signs of disappearing. He was not pleased that the one he considered his rival and stepping stone had so easily dispatched what had been, for him, a very serious problem. An impressive degree of sensitivity allowed him to set aside any possible advantage the demon might hold.
"Oh, forgive me." Doma turned a guilty look on the fiery hero and addressed him with an apology the moment he had fully regenerated and recovered from the mild concussion. "I forgot all about you~."
"You inso—!"
Toshinori, who had begun raising his hand, was cut off by the furious roar with which Todoroki launched himself at the sorrowful villain, whose smile stretched even wider. Spinning his body in a wide arc, Doma landed a kick directly on the man's head in a manner that was mockingly casual in its execution, sending him flying in a specific direction and demolishing everything in his path. The residential buildings were unharmed.
The concerned and agitated gaze of the number one ranked hero caught on the unconscious body, from which every trace of fiery flame had been extinguished. He seemed to hang suspended, bracing for the worst—but when he saw the chest rising and falling, he steadied himself.
Doma waited with noble patience.
"You bastard… you'll pay for this!"
Having apparently resolved on something and settled on a plan, Toshinori Yagi advanced on his current opponent. The latter, being neither a fool nor an amateur, was already prepared for the man's speed and had readied himself to respond. It was useless regardless—the difference was absolutely overwhelming. Both arms were wrenched behind his back with a single powerful effort, and the cannibal's seemingly fragile body was pressed flat against the ground, the backs of his knees pinned beneath a powerful boot. His barely-resisting head was driven into the asphalt under the force of an enormous palm.
"That's that." The affirming, condemning tone filled the air as the Symbol of Peace spoke.
"Wow, you're extraordinary, All Might-dono!" The honorific Doma added said everything about his regard—he had used it only for Akaza and Kokushibo.
The man gave no reply and ignored the irritating exclamation. The growing noise of an approaching helicopter and the wailing of sirens were quite threatening, yet Doma's eyes were filled with nothing but interest. Unfortunately, remembering something, he exhaled with a tone of resignation.
"I'm sorry, All Might-dono, but I still have things to attend to!"
Toshinori looked down with a bewildered and skeptical expression into those apologetic teal "lanterns"—and their owner simply exploded into a mass of flesh, the pieces hurtling away in every direction at tremendous speed. The shocked hero didn't know what to reach for, his eyes darting uselessly across every side at once.
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