Chapter 174: Dragon Hunt? (2)
—
It was midday so villains were starting their hunts again.
Now that Japan had collapsed, these villains took it for granted that any region conquered by them would stay theirs until the end. That's the main reason villains weren't just fighting with heroes, hurting civilians. They were also, at the same time, fighting amongst themselves.
Eusha city was facing this fate as well.
Until yesterday.
Yesterday, a young boy hunted a lot of villains quite easily. Most didn't see the incident with their eyes, but words spread fast and people came to learn about the "Quirk Robber". Some old villains assumed it was AFO taking the form of a child, while some simply assumed it's just a similar quirk.
There was a group of people who discarded all this as 'rumours', too.
A rumour spread to hold them back from making moves. That seemed like a good plan from their competitors' side, so they were down to believe that.
Until now.
-Vroong~
-Ka- Bang!!
The sound barrier was shattered as they saw a red meteorite rush from inside the city to go towards the Eusha city's bay, falling onto the sea like a plane crash.
That single action caused the whole city to shake as water jumped out of the sea, creating huge waves like tsunamis as they plunged down onto the city.
People ran.
"R-run!"
They escaped.
"I-it's probably the foreign heroes!!"
And they fled.
However, as the saying went, "Time and tide wait for none." The tide didn't wait for them to leave, it moved fast, raging like a lion's roar as it washed over the shore of Eusha city. Killing and crippling many heroes, villains and civilians alike.
—
[You have killed a Tier-3 individual!]
[You have killed a Tier-4 individual!]
[You have killed a Tier-2 individual!]
[You have killed a Tier-3…!]
[You have killed a…!]
[You have killed…!]
[Since it's indirect kill, exp will be halved!]
[34,00 exp gained!]
[10 levels gained]
[You have reached level 179!]
"..."
'At this point, I am just cheating.'
The same thing happened in USJ when he released his shockwave which broke the glass roof into pieces and killed many.
Not that he was complaining.
Though he wouldn't want to keep doing this again since exp was getting halved. It didn't happen in USJ, because it wasn't exactly "indirect" since his shockwave burst was what made the glasses fly. But this time it was just like throwing a pebble, which made a tsunami, which in turn killed the civilians.
Either way, this was great.
Neji flew behind Hisashi, his flight speed dramatically increased as he used One-for-All with his Float and Surge quirks.
Even so, One-for-All could only boost his flight speed so much. Hisashi jumped out from the water the moment Neji reached above the sea surface.
"I have to say," Hisashi ran a hand through his long wet hair, spitting out a tooth as water dipped down his chin. "I didn't expect that. That was One for All, wasn't it?"
Neji could see the century-old villain's well-hidden confusion, which would have usually been impossible for him to see if not for his «Body Reader» (that was mixed with «EL» but worked like a passive skill).
"Hm? How can you tell?" Neji asked as he tilted his head.
He didn't want to waste time talking to him, but he wanted to see his stats.
[Name: Hisashi Midodiya
Age: 167
Tier- Low-8
Race: Dragon - Human
Likings: Dragons, Snakes, Reptiles, Inko Midoriya.
Dislikes: Neji, Star-and-Stripe, Non-Dragons, All-Might, Shigaraki.
Status: Confusion, Anger, Fury, Bewilderment, Rage.
Quirk: Dragon Monarch -(click to expand)-]
[Dragon Monarch - Level 10 (max): Allows the user the power of a true Ruler Dragon. Every other dragon, snake, and other types of reptiles–considering they're weaker than the user–would instinctively feel inferior and submissive towards the user.
–Dragon Transformation
–Dragon Physiology
–Allows all basic clìche powers that a dragon should have
–The user's defence is higher than his tier.
–This quirk has awakened and the user isn't a "Human Dragon Hybrid". Rather, he has become a "True Dragon" who has the ability to turn into a human.
–The Strongest Dragon Quirk in the world.]
That's an interesting quirk…
Very interesting.
Neji might actually give up his High-Human race for this…
But that's for later, first, he had to kill this villain who ruined his plans. He was supposed to take things easy for two more months.
It's only been a few mere seconds since Neji discovered Hisashi's status. With all his current eye abilities, he could read things fast.
So now, he was going to finish this monster.
—
"Of course, I can tell." Said Hisashi, answering Neji's question. "In his early adulthood, All Might fled from Japan, from AFO, and went to America. I-"
"So you took that as an insult since he assumed America is safer than the place where AFO resided?"
"..." Hisashi was annoyed at being interrupted, but he continued. "Yes. I fought him once… and the result was a draw."
This made the boy chuckle, which in turn made Hisashi growl.
Did he think it'd be easy to win just because he has a bunch of quirks besides One-for-All?
Foolish.
"Draw? I see. Then I guess I have to succeed my predecessor." The brat said, smiling. "Now, enough chit-chat."
Foolish indeed.
Then he moved, kicking the air as he launched himself in front of Hisashi.
This time Hisashi was prepared for the boy's speed, so he wasn't caught off guard, more so since the boy didn't use his full speed.
The boy simply smiled at that, watching as Hisashi swiftly redirected his arm to the side.
Hisashi wasn't someone who'd lose to a person on a similar level.
He wasn't just lucky to be born with a powerful quirk.
He trained for his powers.
He knew martial arts. He knew taekwondo, he knew May Thai and even Kung-Fu. He knew fighting styles that the world had already forgotten long time ago.
He worked hard to be where he's now. He won't lose just because the brat is AFO's illegitimate child.
Hisashi took a few steps back in the air. His flight wasn't as versatile as Neji's because he was using his wings to fly, even though they didn't need to flap every second. But even so, his sheer experience made his moves look perfect.
"Indeed, enough chit-chat. After all, I have to destroy Shigaraki after finishing you." Said Hisashi, his eyes narrowing as he looked at Neji like a predator.
"Heh. Sure. Then let us end this."
Hearing this, Hisashi moved, his wings flapping once as he was propelled forward, rushing at Neji while the sound barrier broke behind him.
—
-Bang!
If pre-adult All Might fought a draw with him, Neji wouldn't lose even if he wished. He had too many quirks for that.
Exactly 30 of them.
Neji's full power punch hit Hisashi like a truck, sending him flying like a meteorite again.
This time he landed in another city as a whole, but this time he didn't crash down. He managed to get hold of himself just before the crash with his strong wings.
Neji flew after him, not allowing him any chance to take a breather, yet he was surprised when he saw Hisashi's body growing at an excessive rate, his humanoid form changing into that of a huge red dragon.
Then.
In a matter of seconds.
He was almost as large as the city.
The City.
Neji was relieved that he sent the dragon flying to this city, or even his mansion would have gotten destroyed, crushed under the dragon's feet–just as what happened with all the buildings in this city.
"Holy shit…."
There were a lot of dragon quirks in this world. A lot. Neji knew that.
However, floating in the sky and looking down, Neji realised why this quirk was called the strongest amongst them.
Hisashi was huge.
He looked like he was sculpted by gods, his shining red exoskeleton was highly detailed and gorgeous as it gleamed under the sun, his form reaching up to 50-story buildings in height, and covering almost the entirety of the city in width.
Neji wanted this power.
Even as people screamed, dying under Hisashi and those screams gradually started to fade, Neji kept staring at the gorgeous red form of the dragon.
He really really wanted this power.
So he launched himself down, in awe or not.
His feet blasted behind him, propelling his body in a speed that was faster than any bullet in the world, watching as Hisashi released a huge dragon's breath that could probably take out a few dozen skyscrapers, but Neji simply phased through it.
Permeation - Activated.
The sky was bright like the sun had come down as the beam went upwards, leaving the atmosphere and dissipating. Then, the sky turned dark as clouds gathered in a matter of seconds.
Weather Manipulation - Activated.
Then, blue and white energy started to surround Neji like a heavy aura, coming out from within his body.
Fa Jin - Activated.
He utilised the sheer amount of kinetic energy he absorbed by phrasing through the beam to empower his arms, or he was sure they'd break.
His body then started to enlarge, becoming big and big before it stopped as he became a tall, but well built, truck.
Big Show - Activated.
He coated his arms with Tremor, concentrating it on his fists, and also added repelling gravity to them.
All this happened in a matter of seconds as he was finally in front of Hisashi's huge draconic face, which could gulp down a few of his currently large bodies.
Neji pulled his right arm back.
His elbow blasted with shockwaves that were then empowered with One-for-All.
His arm broke, he could hear it happen, but it was healed at the same time it was broken because of Hyper Regeneration.
The sound barrier broke again, but as his right fist hit Hisashi's draconic face, breaking his incredibly high defence powers, the sound barrier didn't just break, it blasted out in a huge shockwave across the city.
Unfortunately, there was nobody else left to die in this city anymore, so Neji didn't get any exp.
-Baamm!
However, he was satisfied with the chunk of dragon armour that fell from Hisashi's face.
Hisashi's face was shaken, his eyes wide, as he failed to react in time.
Just enough for Neji to swing his other arm in the same way.
Fa Jin was a dangerously versatile quirk. The more you use it, the more power you'd gain since it's kinetic energy. So, each punch of Neji's kept getting stronger and stronger, Hisashi's face losing exoskeleton similarly.
The world kept shaking.
Not just the city.
The whole world.
Earthquakes echoed throughout Japan and its neighbours, and tsunamis formed with every punch.
The sky was dark, tornadoes were leaving Neji's every punch.
A thunderstorm was happening behind Neji, a hurricane building up.
But Neji didn't stop.
"Keugh!!"
Hisashi could only groan.
He was huge, he was durable. But he was also slow and he was weak. The fight with Mirio happened just yesterday, he hadn't recovered.
-Bang!
So, as each of Neji's punch sounded like thunderclaps–
–Bang!
Hisashi could only lament his foolish decision to not have brought any companions.
-Crack!
The air was cracking too, shattering with white lines as Neji's tremor coated blows hit the dragon.
It looked like a thunderstorm of its own, a white web of tremor spread onto Hisashi's body, slowly ignoring shattering defence as even the space kept breaking like glasses.
This was the feeling of power Neji wanted to feel for so many years.
-Crack~Rumble!
The sky roared as if to support him, the wetness of the rain doing nothing but making Hisashi's blood spread to the city, entering the sea.
-Bam!
Neji landed an ultimatum, watching as Hisashi's city-sized body rose in the air at the uppercut.
But he didn't stop.
He raised his arm towards the sky, calling down lightning using his Weather Manipulation.
"You brat-!!!"
The dragon could only yell that as the lightning fell on Neji's palm, unable to escape from the orb of gravity around his fist.
"This brat is going to take your life, old man."
That was Neji's only response to every insult Hisashi had said until now, jumping forward and charging all his physical quirks to boost his speed as he raised his palm straight, pointing at Hisashi's neck.
"You think a mere lightning can-"
"Concentrated lighting."
Neji corrected him.
Concentrated lighting mixed with the energy of Bullet Laser, therefore allowing him to boost it with One-for-All.
"I have been charging it since the start of our fight. This is most certainly the strongest lightning in the history of the modern world."
Neji drew his palm back, watching Hisashi open his mouth, giving his last breath to try and somehow, hoping to get lucky, hit Neji's mansion in the other city.
He even succeeded to fire the beam, but the beam couldn't even pass 100 metres before Neji drove his palm forward into Hisashi's huge neck, controlling the lightning to become a slim long blade.
-Bzzt~
The lighting hummed.
The sound collided with the sound of the dragon's exoskeleton brushing against each other, as Hisashi's huge head slid down from his neck.
Just like that.
-Boom!
Hisashi's beam dissipated, as his head fell, creating a crater in the city's ground.
[The Quest, "Dragon Hunt" has been completed.]
Neji dropped to the ground too–
[Calculating Rewards…]
As the sky started to clear up, sunlight peeked down and coincidentally fell onto Neji as if he was the actor on this stage.
Neji only looked up at the sun, covering his eyes as he muttered softly.
"This is kinda beautiful."
It was indeed a beautiful scene to watch the beautiful sun peek out of the clouds, illuminating the apocalyptic city.
With that, Hisashi Midoriya, the world's 4th most dangerous villain, was gone.
The Catastrophic Dragon had died.
**
**
**
If you want to read 17+ chapters ahead or support me, visit here: patreon.com/Master4thWall