Thor, provoked by the Hulk's roar, slipped instinctively into battle-mode.
His body dipped just enough for the incoming blow to howl past him.
Behind him, a deafening clang split the arena as a massive war hammer… one the Hulk had swung like a toy buried itself into a thick iron plate all the way to the handle.
The crowd gasped with that casual strike alone was enough to terrify anyone who understood force.
Thor only grinned.
The Hulk thundered toward him, each step shaking the ground. Thor's fighting spirit surged as he sprang backward, twisted mid-air, and landed beside the embedded hammer.
With a shouted exhale, he grabbed the handle, braced his whole body, and wrenched it free. The inertia alone sent the weapon spinning upward, and he hurled it forward.
The throw carried far more power than the Hulk's earlier casual toss, several times more.
They collided in a blink.
The Hulk barely had time to register the blur before the weapon slammed into his chest. The impact rang throughout the arena, carving a deep scar across Hulk's skin and forcing a rare grunt of pain from the green titan.
"…"
The cheers died instantly.
Even the ever-entertained Grandmaster leaned forward in disbelief. "That kind of force…?"
Beside him lounged Loki unchained, and somehow promoted to an honored guest rather than a prisoner. Typical Loki.
High above the arena, Freyja's hand squeezed Soren's so tightly. When the Hulk's earlier blow sent Thor crashing into a steel wall, her heart nearly stopped.
But Thor's counterattack allowed her at last to breathe again. Hope stirred in her chest.
Soren, too, watched with interest. The clash before them was pure physical might, no tricks or no magic… just fists and raw power.
Neither Thor nor Hulk seemed fragile enough for ordinary weapons to matter in the slightest. There was no need to intervene.
"This is just the warm-up." Soren said, sipping his champagne. "Enjoy the show."
His mental senses finally pinpointed the Grandmaster's exact location.
He also noticed Loki sitting smugly beside him, and a amused smirk tugged at Soren's lips. "Of course Loki would land himself a seat of privilege in a place like this,"
"Some things never change."
Back on the battlefield, dust still swirled around where the Hulk lay. Thor approached carefully, ready for anything.
He didn't have to wait long.
A monstrous roar erupted, more bestial than any human sound. The ground bucked violently. Then a blur of green shot forward.
The Hulk soared nearly a hundred meters, muscles swelling as rage fueled his transformation even further.
For a moment he hung at the apex of the arena's open sky.
Then gravity reclaimed him.
The Hulk dropped like an emerald meteor, plummeting toward Thor. As he descended, he raised both fists overhead, an avalanche of rage packed into a single devastating strike aimed straight at the God of Thunder.
As he descended, shock flashed across Thor's face a split second before impact.
BOOM!
Earth and metal fragments blasted skyward like shrapnel. For an instant, the entire arena disappeared behind a curtain of dust and flying debris.
Massive chunks of stone crashed toward the stands… only to slam against the arena's protective barrier with crackling bursts of light.
The crowd screamed, without the barrier, hundreds would have died.
The sheer destructive power of the Hulk made every spectator suddenly realize… if that monster broke free, the entire city would be in danger.
But the Hulk cared nothing for them.
His enraged eyes were locked solely on Thor. To him, the god before him… this puny, stubborn warrior had dared to wound his pride.
And for that, Hulk wanted nothing less than to SMASH him.
Bigger and stronger than moments before, the Hulk lunged. His speed had grown too disturbingly so. Abandoning any pretense of weaponry, he attacked with bare fists, each punch a cannon blast.
Thor staggered under the sudden storm of blows.
The Hulk's enhanced strength threw off his rhythm entirely, he barely had time to raise his arms in defense.
Puff! A powerful uppercut slammed into Thor's ribs.
Pain exploded through him as the strike launched him backward, every bone in his body screaming as if he were being torn apart.
Thor hit the ground hard… only for the Hulk to already be there, descending on him.
There was no mercy.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Each punch strike made the sound of flesh meeting flesh reverberated across the arena. Even the audience, shielded behind barriers, winced with every blow.
The Hulk's fists were coming too fast to track.
Thor could only guard with his forearms shaking violently, barely absorbing the impact.
If this had been an ordinary warrior or if this had even been a boulder the barrage would have reduced it to dust.
And still, the Hulk kept smashing.