38 Chapter 38 - New Challenger!

'Hmmm???' Even Mai herself couldn't comprehend how her knives broke. But then, without the system telling her... *Ahem!* Yeah, heard that right, without the system telling her, she found out about the reason why...

It turns out that because the knives were supposed to be thrown, they're not suitable for melee use. That's why they're easily broken. The weapons were literally named Sakuya's Throwing Knife.

'So that's how it is...' Mai finally understood.

[Y-Yes!]

Make sense.

"Vigilant Yaksha-san!!!" As per Mai's action of falling to her knees, the first one to react is Izuku as he was the closest student in the vicinity. He ran toward Mai's location as fast as he could.

Not only him, but Shigaraki also did the same thing. He noticed that Mai was only injured and still had her awareness intact, proven by the way that she could still stand on her knees. He wondered why Nomu just stood there motionlessly and hasn't finished her off yet, but he didn't want to waste time and miss this chance to launch a sneak attack by telling it to move.

However, what happened next made both of them halted on their dash. They saw Nomu's body getting severed. The slashes that Mai made from before went through both vertically and horizontally, shredding Nomu's meaty body into 4 different portions.

As it happened, Mai suddenly stood up as if nothing ever happened to her. Looking closely, no one could spot any injury on her at all. Her clothes also looked clean with zero amount of dust, as if they were just newly bought from a nearby supermarket.

The Vigilant Yaksha from everyone's view suddenly raised one of her hands while clenching it hard. She then gazes at the sky (ceiling), as if she was looking at the world's truth. However, because she was wearing a mask, everyone imagines her currently having a proud look on her face.

'We've been tricked, we've been backstabbed, and we've been quite possibly, bamboozled!' Most of them thought to themselves. They were also filled with a huge amount of gloom.

'Give us back our feelings!!!' Retorted them in their mind. Yet, no one dares to shout it out loud, the girl was a vigilante, not a hero. They didn't know what she would do to them if she ever heard someone say it. Some thought that they might even get kidnapped.

"YOU! YOOOUUUUUU!!! AARRGGHHH!!!!!" Shigaraki screeched as he pointed out his index finger in Mai's direction. He looked really mad, but in fact, he's not that much angry. He was just trying to delay Mai's action with his random utterances so that Nomu could start regenerating while also attracting everyone's attention towards him.

He realized that he would be screwed if Mai were to decide to end him immediately, now that he lost his way to escape through Kurogiri's portal.

"CHIKUSOU! CHIKUSOU, CHIKUSOUUUU!!! BAKAYARO!!! KONOYARO!!!"

{translate: f*ck you!}

"..." With Mai, or Vigilant Yaksha, who for some unknown reason just stayed still in her position, and Shigaraki who cried out numerous amounts of curses, the situation inside the renowned U.S.J. building became awkward real fast for both the students and the remaining villains.

Tima passed and Shigaraki suddenly stopped swearing. People were wondering what happened until someone shouted, "Vigilant Yaksha! Watch out!!!"

The bystanders finally realized that both Shigaraki and the fully healed strange bird creature who became pieces of meat earlier were charging at Vigilant Yaksha from two different directions. It was a sudden pincer attack. Shigaraki didn't need to utter any command toward Nomu this time as the last command still exists.

'It took them so long, huh?' Mai reckoned to herself. Yup, she had been patiently waiting all this time.

Shigaraki might have felt that he had the upper hand currently, as he had understood how fast she could move from her battle with Nomu earlier. Now that both he and Nomu were already really close to the infamous vigilante, and her still not moving at all from her position, he knew that these combo strikes would land.

But what he didn't know, is that, from the entire fight against Nomu, Mai-

-hasn't even used her full speed yet...

*swoosh!*

When both Nomu's punch and Shigaraki's five fingers were just an inch away from reaching Mai, she abruptly vanished from their vision.

"Wha- NOMU STO- AAACKK!!!"

Shigaraki wanted to halt both of their attacks, but he was a tad bit too late. Nomu's gigantic fist had already reached his fingers, but with the force that had been built up, it easily went through them. After that, the fist came to his hand-shaped mask, cracking it, and cleanly settled its final destination right into his pale face.

A sonic BOOM was vertebrated near the area as Shigaraki figure flew for tens of meters with blood trailing him in the air before he finally smashed the ground and rebounded, and then rebounded again a few more times before he finally stopped. He thus fainted right on the spot.

As for Nomu, the creature slowly started to disintegrate, starting from the hand that touched all of Shigaraki's fingers. But even then, he kept on assaulting Mai with whatever body part that could still be used, and of course, none of them hit their mark, even until its last portion completely turns to a tiny spec of dust.

"..."

'Ai-chan, your plan is too brutal. Even I felt sorry for Nomu because of it.' Mai said telepathically toward the system.

[H-Host! Please don't blame it entirely on me! Wuuuu...]

'Fufufu~! Alright, alright! I'm the one who agreed with it in the first place.' Previously, when Mai was already used to Nomu's pace in her lengthy fight, she had a conversation with the system about this plan while she half assertedly dodge Nomu's vicious onslaughts.

'But still, to think that it succeeded...' Seeing Shigaraki's fainted state, Mai unhurriedly strode towards him.

As for Nomu, the real person was already deceased in the first place. It was like killing an undead for Mai. Wait, is that even possible? Anyway, as for how did she know this. Of course, it's not from her past life's memory, but from the appraisal's outcome.

Another important thing that hasn't been told yet is that Mai didn't equip Koishi's Third Eye which could increase her Agility by yet another +100% when she fought against Nomu. Why did she take it off right before the fight begin? That's because she thinks that any amazingly strong person should have at least a second form in their arsenal for a last resort.

Ehe~!

Meanwhile, the students and the remaining villains who watched the scene were still agape. It's all ended too instantly in their perspective for them to even react. Yet, all their eyes unconsciously focused on the Vigilant Yaksha.

While Mai was on her way toward Shigaraki, she suddenly halted in place. Many wondered why she does that, until suddenly...

"...Come out, now. This strange atmosphere is giving me chills. Why do the strong ones always hide?" Mai spoke as loud as she can while still having a flat tone.

[H-Host! I don't think this is the right time to-]

"Oh! You've realized? Kukuku~! A skillful hawk does not show its claws..." A deep muffled voice can be heard from behind. Mai, ignoring the system, looks back to see a black dot getting bigger and bigger, transforming into a black portal right beside Kurogiri who's still fainted. From inside the portal, came a man wearing a dark suit over a white shirt with black-colored jeans and donned an industrial skull-like gas mask.

The man then grabs Kurogiri from his back and threw him up towards the portal.

The students and the remaining villains were all became stiff as the man's ominous aura engulfed all of them.

But for Mai, she ignores it altogether. Hearing the man's reply to her question just now made her very pleased. If she could smile, she would've done it brightly.

"Then, you're that infamous guy, right? You know, the master of the villains with tons of old injuries for some reason..." Of course Mai knew who he is. All for One, her Ascension Quest's target with Lunatic Difficulty.

"Oh! Where did you get that information from? Yes, I've always been a sickly man." All for One was surprised. But then he remembered who's the cause of his injuries and he clenched his fist thinking of All Might.

"How neat! Do you really steal them? You know, that..." Mai kept on asking even though she knew the answer already.

"*Sigh!* So you've already known that too. Of course, I do." This time, he didn't even be surprised anymore.

"Then, how many people's quirk have you taken until now?" Mai inquired.

"Can you remember the number of times you've eaten bread?" Responded All for One, with a smug tone.

"13 times. I prefer Japanese food," Mai admitted.

"..." -All for One

"..." -Mai

"*Cough!* *Cough!* Anyway, strong quirk users are fun. Or maybe, you're not one yourself?" All for One suddenly change the subject.

"...I'm a fun *Ahem!* quirk *Ahem!* user..." Mai tried her best to hide the fact that her powers are not quirks.

"I've observed your fight before, and from what I know, there's no reason for you to deliberately targeted Shigaraki, my disciples, and his crew. So, as you already know so many facts about me, I'm assuming that I'm your real target?"

"..." Mai didn't leave any answer, but the fighting stance that she currently brought said it all.

"Kukuku~ Then you won't mind if I take him away, do you? You didn't need him to bait me out anymore, I would gladly settle the score with you..." Another black portal opened up under Shigaraki's body, sucking him up before it disappeared. "Anyway, we do seem to have an interest in each other. Me with your so-called quirk, and you with whatever the heck that is that's interesting within me.

"..." Mai kept her silence, but... 'Bleugh!'

All for One thus also prepared his fighting stance. Not only to steal her power, but he's also interested to check how strong she is in the first place. "This opportunity is quite hard to come by. Well then, amuse me!" He then tries to entice Mai for one last time, "Surrender is also a valid option. I promise I'll be gentle!"

"...But I refuse." Mai solemnly said with a monotonous tone as she took one step closer towards the Symbol of Fear so that she can beat him up.

"...Heh! Is that so? This is why I never make promises..." All for One just shrugged lightly, and then, one of his arms suddenly turned massive. It was one of his many quirks, (Hypertrophy).

"COME! OUR BATTLE WILL BE LEGENDARY!!!"

"Ok..."

They both thus slowly walk toward one another.

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