"JET BURN!"
Gray easily dodged the fire blast. The flames missed and set several trees on fire. Gray hovered high in the sky, looking down at the smoke. "Phew," he whistled. "Now that's what I call property damage."
Endeavor landed heavily, glaring up at him in anger. "Don't think you'll get away, you villain!"
"Oh, I don't plan to escape anymore," Gray smirked. "Since you guys wanted to fight, I'm going to give you one you'll never forget." Gray looked down. "Besides, I always wanted to beat up a family abuser."
Hearing that, Endeavor got pissed off. His eyes widened as his flames flared violently. "How the hell do you know about that?!" he roared.
Gray simply shrugged his shoulders. "I wonder."
Enraged, Endeavor ignited his fire thrusters and flew up to attack Gray. He threw a heavy, blazing punch, but Gray effortlessly deflected it away. Before Endeavor could recover, Gray countered with a quick punch straight to his stomach. The impact knocked the wind right out of the flame hero.
Gray used the time to taunt him. "You know, it's funny. All of this started because Hawks saw me flying, and all of a sudden he wanted to arrest me for it. But you..." Gray continued, hovering casually. "You abused your family for years, and somehow nobody knows about it. Yet you still get to work as a hero...Rules for thee but not for me, huh?"
Endeavor gritted his teeth and launched a frantic barrage of punches and fire blasts. Gray just swatted them away one by one. In retaliation, Gray landed more and more quick punches and kicks on the hero. Endeavor could feel that the person he was fighting was holding back a massive amount of strength. He knew that if this guy had punched him with the same force used on Hawks, he wouldn't be able to take it. After getting hit a few more times, it became clear to Endeavor that this stranger was simply enjoying injuring him and taking his time.
Gray continuously used Bang's martial arts style to deflect every incoming blow, hitting Endeavor as much as he could. He wanted to make a brutal example out of him.
Gray continued taunting him. "Also, how's Shoto? Is he still refusing to use his fire side because of you?"
Hearing about his youngest son, Endeavor lost control. His internal heat exploded, giving him a massive surge of speed. He closed the gap instantly and unleashed his absolute strongest attack.
"Don't talk about my family!" Endeavor screamed at the top of his lungs. "PROMINENCE BURN!"
A massive column of blinding fire erupted. Gray simply used his instant transmission, disappearing from the sky and appearing on the ground right behind Mandalay. Once the giant wave of fire completely faded, Gray flew right back up into the sky. "That was dramatic."
Down on the ground, Mandalay had been scared shitless when she sensed Gray appear right behind her. She had initially thought Gray just had a flying quirk with some strength enhancement. But after seeing him disappear and pretty much teleport all over the place, she started getting incredibly nervous. If this guy had multiple high-tier quirks, then the situation had just become a much bigger issue.
"I wonder what would happen if the public found out about your family situation," Gray mocked, his voice echoing over the burning forest. "I wonder if you would still be able to hold onto that hero license you all cherish more than anything. What if people knew about your son, Toya? How you pushed him to his limits, only to throw him away the moment Shoto's quirk appeared? Or how you pushed your wife so hard that she ended up in a hospital, completely mind-broken? Or how you neglected the rest of your kids just to chase the number one spot, only to be a complete bum and get outmatched by All Might every single time? You're not a hero. You're just a piece of shit with a strong quirk. Nothing more, nothing less."
Endeavor was shaking with pure, unadulterated fury and exhaustion, his body rapidly overheating as Gray's words cut deeper than any physical blow.
Mandalay ran to Hawks's limp body. She pulled out her communicator, her hands shaking as she opened the channel to the main base.
"We need immediate assistance in the mountain sector!" Mandalay screamed into the radio. "Hawks has been neutralized! He was taken down with a single punch! The suspect is now engaging Endeavor, and the forest is catching fire!"
The dispatcher on the other end froze in shock. "Repeat, Mandalay? Did you say Hawks is down?"
"Yes, he's out cold!" Mandalay yelled over the sound of explosions above. "Send everyone you have! This guy isn't a normal villain!"
Hearing that the Number 3 hero was knocked out so easily and that the Number 2 hero was also struggling to fight this unknown person, the Hero Commission got to work. They quickly pushed a red-alert emergency broadcast out to all the top available heroes in the area.
"All active heroes, this is the Hero Commission," the transmission blared through their earpieces. "We have a threat in the Musutafu mountain district. Backup is required immediately. Sending coordinates now."
Gray continued playing with Endeavor for about five more minutes before he heard noise in the sky. Looking up, he noticed several helicopters arriving at his location. Some belonged to the hero agencies carrying reinforcements, but a few others had the logos of major news stations.
Seeing the media cameras, Gray sighed. "There goes my plan of keeping a low profile..."
A few top heroes started jumping from the helicopters to help Endeavor, while others with water-based quirks immediately got to work putting out the spreading forest fire. Suddenly, the ground rumbled violently. Gray looked down and saw Mt. Lady making her way toward the mountain in her giant form. Eyeballing her from above, Gray nodded after seeing her ASSets. "I think I'll enjoy staying in this world for a while..."
Endeavor, seeing Gray look away, thought he was distracted and lunged to get a clean hit in. But Gray had his attention on him the entire time. The exact moment he sensed the flame hero approach, Gray effortlessly moved out of the way.
He decided he was done playing defense. It was time to stop holding back so much and finally take the offense.
Before Gray started attacking, he saw the pro heroes gather on the ground to map out a plan. Ignoring them completely, Gray turned his full focus to pressing Endeavor. Despite the flame hero's bulk, he was surprisingly fast and managed to dodge the first few hits, having gotten used to his speed from before. Gray reacted by dialing up his speed, making his attacks faster and more aggressive with each passing second. Eventually, he broke through Endeavor's guard and landed a devastating punch that sent the Number 2 hero barreling helplessly down into the ground.
Right after the hit, Gray suddenly felt his own clothes fighting against his movement. Glancing out of the corner of his eye, he spotted Best Jeanist standing on top of a nearby tree. The top hero was actively using his Fiber Master Quirk to seize total control of Gray's attire. Gray felt a wave of heavy resistance as he tried to shift, only for the weighted fabric of his clothes to completely trap him, forcing his arms tightly to his sides and pinning him motionless mid-air.
Seeing the opening, Kamui Woods instantly launched his wood tendrils to bind Gray so the ground teams could move in with heavy body restraints and cuffs. A few of the other approaching heroes stepped closer, completely convinced that the villain was about to be captured.
But Gray was far from done. Even while tightly restrained by the manipulated fibers of his own clothes, he effortlessly swayed his torso to dodge Kamui Woods' incoming branches. Then, he planted his feet in the air and began powering up.
"HAAAAAAAAAA!" Gray roared.
His Saiyan muscles violently bulked up, instantly shredding his top compression shirt into pieces. As his Ki exploded outward, the entire mountain range began to shake and rumble from the sheer density of his energy. After shredding his clothes, Gray went back to his normal state.
The remaining heroes panicked, realizing the restraint had failed, and immediately threw everything they had into the fray to help. Snipe quickly drew his firearm and took a few calculated shots, but Gray simply snapped his bare hands through the air, catching the speeding bullets effortlessly. Getting genuinely excited about fighting multiple opponents with such vastly different powers, Gray decided to introduce some Ki attacks into the mix. He flicked his wrist and sent a small, controlled Ki blast toward Snipe to throw him off balance.
Suddenly, Mt. Lady swung her massive hand through the sky, trying to swat him directly down into the dirt like a fly. Gray didn't even bother to dodge... he simply tanked the colossal hit, remaining perfectly stationary in the air without moving a single inch. Reaching out, he grabbed one of her giant fingers, swung her entire massive body around, and effortlessly launched the giantess, crashing straight into a distant mountain peak far away.
Seeing Gray lift the giant hero and throw her like a rag doll made the entire hero vanguard freeze in serious alarm. This villain possessed catastrophic physical strength and was clearly displaying signs of multiple high-tier quirks. Up in the sky, the news station helicopters were capturing every single second of the carnage on live television, with a frantic commentator trying to explain the chaotic scene to the public.
Crust and Snipe immediately scrambled forward, desperate to offer more defensive and long-range support to the struggling ground heroes. Gray, on the other hand, just let out a wide grin... he was having so much fun.
Meanwhile, back in downtown Musutafu, Toshinori Yagi was walking down a busy street in his frail, skinny form. As he passed a storefront window, a live television broadcast caught his attention. The news anchor was frantically explaining that multiple top pro heroes were currently engaged in a catastrophic battle against a rogue villain displaying an array of powerful quirks. The broadcast screen flashed the breaking updates: Hawks, the Number 3 hero, was officially confirmed down, and Endeavor, the Number 2 hero, had just been violently knocked out of the sky.
All Might stared at the television screen, watching his top-ranking colleagues get brutally picked apart by a shirtless, long-haired man in the mountains. Thankfully, Toshinori hadn't used his muscle form for anything yet that day, meaning his daily limit was full. He still had a solid few hours of hero work left in his tank.
His expression turned serious. All Might stepped into a quiet alleyway. His body violently bulked up into his towering, muscular form as One For All surged through his veins. Cracking the concrete beneath his boots, the Symbol of Peace launched himself high into the sky, rocketing at extreme speeds straight toward the mountains.
Gray was getting annoyed at all the shots Snipe kept taking at him. He speed-blitzed straight toward the hero's direction. Crust tried to intercept Gray by raising his durable shields, but Gray simply punched right through one of them. Crust tried to stand his ground, but the punch carried far more force than he thought possible, sending him flying backward through the air.
Gray arrived at Snipe's location in a fraction of a second. The marksman hero tried to continue taking shots at him at point-blank range, but Gray disappeared completely from everyone's vision. He instantly appeared right behind Snipe and delivered a swift side kick. The impact sent the hero flying through a few trees. Seeing that Snipe was not getting back up, Gray turned back to continue fighting the remaining heroes.
Gray heard a series of massive, booming stomps from far away. Flying high into the sky for a better view, he saw a towering, muscular man making his way toward the battlefield at extreme speeds. Spotting the bright blonde hair with the two distinct hair antennas sticking straight out, Gray's smile widened, and he felt his blood pump with excitement.
"All Might!" Gray said aloud.
Down on the ground, the remaining pro heroes looked up and felt a massive wave of relief wash over them. They had originally come to this mountain with far more high-ranking heroes than they ever thought they would need for a single suspect. Yet, so far, half of their vanguard was already knocked out or down for the count. If the Symbol of Peace hadn't shown up right now, who knows what would have happened to the rest of them.
All Might finally arrived at the battlefield and quickly got a summary of what had happened. Best Jeanist approached him, keeping his eyes locked onto the sky, and immediately started listing the powers the stranger had showcased so far.
"He has flight, enhanced strength, a teleportation ability, and some sort of energy manipulation that allows him to throw energy blasts," Best Jeanist explained quickly. "He took down Hawks with one blow, and Endeavor is injured."
Hearing the long list of vastly different abilities, All Might's face went serious. The thought of his arch-nemesis immediately flashed through his mind. If this mysterious fighter was a hidden agent working directly under All For One, it would perfectly explain the multiple quirks.
"I see," All Might said, his voice tight with tension. "Grab everyone and evacuate the area immediately. This is probably going to get ugly."
Best Jeanist nodded without hesitation. He tapped into his earpiece and used the hero intercom system to coordinate the retreat. "All active units, fall back immediately. Clear the mountain sector and stay on standby for further instructions. All Might is taking over the field."
The remaining pro heroes on the ground quickly grabbed the unconscious bodies of Hawks, Snipe, and Crust, pulling back toward the perimeter as the Symbol of Peace stepped forward to face Gray.