Kisei Gin's breath hitched. Her silver sword and chains completely collapsed, turning into liquid metal, then quickly reformed into their original shapes.
"Did I take a hit...? Damn it!" She looked toward the spot where Kurogiri had been trapped—sure enough, he had already slipped through a gap and escaped via teleportation.
"Tch." Kisei Gin scowled and turned her anger toward the Nomu.
Even with its right arm severed, the Nomu still wore that same dopey expression. In just two or three seconds, its arm regenerated completely—no sign of injury remained.
"Miscalculation." Kisei Gin put Midoriya down and locked her eyes on the Nomu. "I thought they brought so many people to cover the one supporting this guy. But they never planned on any support. They came to confront All Might head-on with brute force. If that's the case... this might get ugly. Everyone else, get out of here."
"Wh-what do you mean, 'get out of here' all of a sudden?" Kaminari stammered, clearly frightened.
"Don't you get it yet? That Nomu can go toe-to-toe with All Might without backup. So what are all these other villains for? Just spectators? No. They knew All Might would be here teaching our class—they have our class schedule. That means—"
"—the rest of the villains were brought to kill us while they try to take down All Might," Aizawa finished her sentence grimly. "They likely had a plan to separate us all initially. Now that plan's failed. So the villains hidden in other parts of the USJ are regrouping."
Midoriya followed Aizawa-sensei's gaze and saw crowds of villains emerging from different disaster zones in the USJ. Including those already in the plaza, the number of enemies was now overwhelming.
The entire class gasped.
"Trash is still trash, no matter how much of it you bring," Bakugou scoffed.
Todoroki spoke up. "Iida, how long would it take you to run back to campus and call for help? We'll buy you time—go now."
"Todoroki! I can't just leave while everyone's fighting—"
"I said I'd handle it, didn't I?" Aizawa cut in, annoyed. "You all just need to follow orders and leave."
"Iida!" Yaoyorozu stepped forward. "You're our last hope. Please."
"Don't worry. We'll still be here—alive and kicking—when you get back with help."
"Run like the wind, Iida-kun!"
"Do your best, class rep!"
"Everyone..." Iida clenched his fists, then dashed for the exit.
"You're not going anywhere!" Kurogiri, wounded but still operational, tried to block his path again.
"Not happening!" Thirteen activated her Quirk, and her black hole began sucking in Kurogiri.
"Behind you, Thirteen!" Aizawa deactivated her Quirk just in time to prevent her from being injured by her own ability when Kurogiri attempted to ambush her from behind.
"Not on our watch!" Uraraka activated her zero-gravity on Kurogiri's injury, and Sero used his tape to pull him away from Iida.
With engines roaring, Iida burst through the USJ doors and ran off.
"Nice one, Class Rep! Now then…" Kirishima hardened his body, ready for battle.
"No. You're not allowed to fight," Aizawa stopped them. "Now that the door's open, get out. Thirteen and I will handle the rest. Any enemy that slips through, you're allowed to restrain—but don't initiate a fight."
"I'm not sitting back like a damn damsel in distress!" Bakugou shouted from above.
His sudden explosion caught Aizawa off guard. Aizawa managed to cancel his Quirk, but Bakugou had already dropped down near the plaza. At the same moment, Todoroki used the distraction to sneak past.
Aizawa felt like his stomach was about to burst from stress.
He shot Midoriya a warning glare—before leaping into the enemy crowd below.
Midoriya: ...Why me?
Thirteen addressed the students still nearby. "My Quirk is dangerous. Stay behind me. If enemies get through, focus on restraining them until I finish them off."
Despite being surrounded, Kisei Gin only had eyes for the Nomu. "You reek," she muttered. Her right hand trembled slightly, which she hid. "I really don't want to let you go... Not that I'd survive five minutes against you at full power."
But what's a fight worth, if not risking your life?
"You're quite the enemy. Though I'm not convinced you're even sentient."
Nomu gave no response, blank and silent.
Kisei Gin's expression darkened. No self-awareness, then.
"Oi, Flat-chest, stop staring at that skull-less freak," Bakugou yelled, blowing up more enemies. "Watch your damn back!"
"You should be saying that to yourself," Todoroki said, freezing a group of enemies.
"Think about your teacher evaluation first," Aizawa snapped. "Disobey again and I'll personally make your finals hell."
"Like I give a damn!" Bakugou roared. "And you, half-and-half bastard, stay out of my way!"
"So noisy." A new voice chimed in—Shigaraki.
The three dodged his sudden sneak attack.
While enemies focused on the loud trio, Kisei Gin summoned her twin daggers instead of her katana.
"Haven't used daggers in ages," she smirked. "Last time was that fight with Stain."
Shigaraki sighed. "Must we do this? I don't want you getting hurt... Nomu, use 30% power. Play with her a bit, but don't hurt her."
"You're seriously underestimating me," she replied coldly.
Kisei Gin unleashed all her metal. Instead of coating the ground, it formed spikes that shot toward the Nomu. It dodged midair, but she followed, riding her metal upward. A dagger flashed—slashing the Nomu's neck.
A deep wound split its throat, but no blood spilled, and the injury healed in seconds.
Kisei Gin laughed softly. "Ah... as expected, you're quite the powerhouse."
Bakugou scanned the battlefield—Todoroki had nearly cleared his zone. "I'M THE STRONGEST! GO SELL ICE CREAM, FROSTFACE!"
But his opponent was suddenly tied up—Aizawa's scarf struck again.
"Enough. You've done your part. Go back now," Aizawa said, but his eyes remained fixed on Kisei Gin's battle.
"Damn..." Bakugou growled. Even though his and Todoroki's defeated enemies were roughly equal in number, the KO'd enemies clearly outnumbered the ones blown up or frozen.
"Amazing... that must all be Aizawa-sensei," Todoroki murmured.
"You kidding me?!" Bakugou fumed.
They both looked toward Kisei Gin's fight. Her battlefield was covered in liquid silver, moving dynamically as she weaved between the Nomu's attacks, striking precisely and efficiently. Her use of her Quirk, combined with real combat experience, clearly marked her as a skilled mercenary.
Definitely a mercenary, Aizawa thought grimly.
"You're slowing down," Kisei Gin taunted. "At first, you regrew limbs in two seconds. Now it takes seven or eight. Reaching your regeneration limit?"
"If you keep playing around at 30% power, I'll whittle you down bit by bit."
"Can you afford that, Mr. Shigaraki?"
Shigaraki narrowed his eyes, then smirked. "As expected of you... Nomu, 50% power. Break her."