Tokusatsu Academy: From Apprentice to God - Heroic Tales

Zariani, at that exact moment, was genuinely serious as he observed the man in the insect-like suit standing before him. Rising clumsily and injured, the man allowed a small smile to cross his face.

(Just three minutes, I need three more minutes to readapt, and it's over.) The bodybuilder assumed a fighting stance. (Time to get moving.)

Rushing toward his opponent without much thought, Zariani aimed a downward punch at the Japanese man's forehead. However, with the snap of a finger, the transmuted man vanished, and a spinning kick to the head sent Zariani flying.

The kick propelled him about a meter and a half back, but Zariani quickly recovered, landing on his feet with some difficulty. He spat a bit of blood onto the ground.

(I knew it would be tough, but not this level of difficulty. How did he even manage to hit me? I... didn't even see him move.) Augusto thought.

"Honestly, I'm impressed you're still standing after one of my kicks," Naobito remarked, genuinely surprised rather than sarcastic. "Looks like I'll have to try a little harder..." He stretched his arms, keeping his eyes locked on his enemy.

With another snap, Hirofumi appeared with an uppercut aimed at Zariani's chin. Zariani narrowly dodged, reacting just in time. Another snap followed, and this time the hero appeared behind him, driving a knee into Zariani's spine while pulling his arms to amplify the impact.

To Augusto's shock, he was hit with a downward punch straight to the face, even as the man seemed to be executing another attack behind him.

"ARGH!" The clown let out a pained groan, confused by what was happening.

The attack Hirofumi had been about to execute hit Zariani's nape, leaving his neck limp. Before Zariani could react, Naobito began an unrelenting barrage of strikes.

"BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE! BE BEEEEEEEEE!"

As with Merkana, each syllable of his cries made his attacks more powerful. "BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE BE! BENEVOLENT BELZEBUB!!"

A final punch struck what remained of Zariani's ribcage, rupturing many internal organs. Hirofumi stopped him from being thrown away, however, slamming the Brazilian into the ground and effectively shattering his spine.

Zariani managed to stand, but Hirofumi instantly teleported to his side. Simultaneously, another blow struck Zariani's leg tendons, immobilizing him.

Zariani fell to the ground in pain, only to receive a high kick to his jaw that sent him flying toward the ceiling.

"Zoooooooom..." Naobito mocked, imitating the sound of a falling plane like in old cartoons.

When Zariani landed, his body bounced once, limp and battered. For a moment, he seemed unconscious or defeated, but within seconds, he began rising slowly. Despite his crushed organs and a spine reduced to literal dust, he now wore a deeply irritated expression.

(If not for that last-second pact, I'd be bedridden for the rest of my pathetic life!) He growled, roaring skyward. (You know what? This isn't just about delaying whoever comes close anymore—now it's personal.)

Zariani stood still for about five seconds, staring intently at Naobito. (I'll lose two days of my life for activating this ability now, but in return, I'll amplify my adaptation power to five times its maximum capacity without recording the damage in my soul.)

(He's still fighting? Does he not realize I can beat him easily? Unless...) Naobito began to consider the worst, and it happened: Augusto's adaptation activated.

Zariani's skin turned into a polished metallic hue, his muscles vibrating with raw physical power, now more compressed to enhance agility. His eyes darkened, with veins coursing with what seemed like pure electricity. His irises turned violet, with blue pupils.

His hair transformed into a mass of condensed purple and light-blue electricity, growing until it brushed against his lower back. The gaping hole in his chest surged with energy, adorned by small metallic patterns encircled by arcs of purple lightning.

"What a broken ability—to adapt so quickly. If you were a hero, you'd be one of the most promising... too bad that's not the case," Hirofumi muttered solemnly under his helmet, his expression now serious.

"I could say the same about your power—erasing hypothetical scenarios from your mind and bringing their time into reality? I stood no chance against you before. But now? You're no match!" Augusto smirked confidently, his voice distorted by the electricity coursing through his body.

(Great. Adaptation that grants knowledge as well?!) Naobito thought, growing increasingly frustrated. (And now I feel incredibly weakened... What the hell is happening?)

Without further words, both men assumed fighting stances, waiting for the first move. Seconds passed as neither wanted to take the initiative, but they began to inch closer, keeping their guards high.

Once close enough, the Japanese man struck first, snapping his left fingers and teleporting in front of his enemy with a punch nearly landing on Zariani's face. At the last millisecond, Zariani dodged and grabbed Hirofumi's arm, throwing him with a judo toss.

A groan of pain escaped Hirofumi, who hadn't expected such strength. Forcing himself to ignore the pain, he used his free arm to propel his body and delivered a kick to Zariani's face.

Yet the Japanese man remained held by the arm, prompting him to snap his fingers and reappear standing in front of Augusto.

Zariani, falling backward, immediately noticed the absence of the hero. Using his hand, he created another electric pillar in milliseconds, sending bolts of lightning at both fighters. While they didn't faze Zariani, Hirofumi was hurled three meters away.

The pillar began disintegrating into dust as Augusto used the moment to regroup.

(In hand-to-hand combat, this'll be tough... I know. Another pact.) He decided, watching Hirofumi with a serious expression.

Naobito snapped the fingers of both hands. At that moment, all the actions he'd scattered fused into a single point, forming a straight line. He kicked the line, sending it hurtling toward Zariani, who dodged with an acrobatic leap.

"Fighting at range, huh? Then try mine!" The hole in his chest fired a blast of electricity.

(Wait, that was slow, and now it's—) He evaded with a spin. (Mach 7?!) He mentally calculated based on the shock cones forming behind the projectile.

There was no time to think further as a barrage of similarly fast shots followed. Naobito began running in a curve, surpassing the speed of the projectiles' aim. The sheer velocity shattered all surrounding glass.

(Finally!) Augusto transformed part of the ground into a pillar. Even though Naobito was running faster than sound (Mach 3), he was struck nonetheless.

"Your mistake was not teleporting; maybe then you'd reach Mach 32," Augusto boasted proudly.

(What an unnecessary comment!) Naobito thought, irritated. (Seriously, who says that in a fight?)

"Because now…" - Naobito is struck by several lightning bolts, making him roll across the ground. When he looks around, he notices that every object is targeting him, including lampposts far out of reach. - "You're the only target."

Augusto begins walking toward Hirofumi, who is struggling to avoid being hit at that exact moment.

Naobito runs in all directions, leaps to avoid one projectile, and starts accelerating as he runs along the walls. With an acrobatic maneuver, he jumps into the air to dodge five lightning bolts.

While mid-air, he performs another acrobatic leap to avoid three more bolts, kicking a compressed air bullet toward Zariani, who deflects it with his arm.

Naobito then uses his wings to take flight, dodging every lightning bolt he can.

Zariani grows tired of this and opens his mouth, a ball of purple and blue electricity condensing in front of him. A bi-colored laser bolt made of lightning is unleashed at Hirofumi.

The laser hits its target, piercing through his abdomen and destroying the ceiling of the shopping mall within a 12-meter radius.

Hirofumi crashes through a wall, landing in an electronics store. Once on the ground, all the electricity from the coils floods into the store, drawn directly to him, with small sparks diverting toward the devices.

The result? A massive explosion collapses the entire building on top of Hirofumi.

The explosion is deafening, echoing throughout the entire mall and creating shockwaves that reverberate up to 60 meters, shaking the very foundation of the place.

Hirofumi… isn't getting up. A pool of blood seeps out from the rubble.

Zariani slowly approaches the area, searching for his opponent and trying to locate what remains of him.

He has a triumphant smile on his face, fully confident he has killed the Asian man.

But upon checking the rubble, he can't find the body, no matter how hard he tries.

At that exact moment, he's struck by a kick to the back of the neck from behind, causing him to stagger.

He quickly turns with a spinning kick, which is dodged by his opponent's crouch, only for Hirofumi to land an uppercut.

As Augusto stumbles, he smiles at the sight of electricity being drawn toward Naobito. But he freezes in shock as the lightning bolts ignore Hirofumi and instead head straight for him!

Hirofumi smiles under his helmet and, in the blink of an eye, vanishes.

(What?!) - At that exact moment, all the electricity from the lampposts is redirected at Zariani.

At first, it doesn't affect him, but as time passes, he begins to experience an overload.

(W-what?!) - Zariani starts bleeding profusely - (I've become the target of… my own power!?)

A piercing scream shakes the foundations of the area—Augusto Zariani's agony and pain as he suffers immense energy overload at this moment.

Meanwhile, Hirofumi reappears far from his opponent, quickly kneeling on the ground in extreme exhaustion and excruciating pain.

Cracks begin spreading across his body, glowing a sickly cyan that radiates a sense that something is deeply wrong, as if he might explode from the inside out at any moment.

(Heh… I didn't expect this to cost me so much. Looks like this weakening hit me harder than I thought…) - He reflects and continues - (I used a double snap to align a hypothetical scenario with reality and then erased it. This caused reality to be overwritten by a random scenario. I got really lucky to make him the target of his own ability...)

[AN: Classic expository dialogue!]

He removes his helmet and vomits blood, revealing that his face is covered in those blue cracks, with small drops of red liquid dripping from his nose.

"Blegh! Haaaargh… Haaaaaah…" - He stands up after vomiting more blood, not bothering to retrieve the missing part of his suit - "Damn it… no more time jumps for the rest of the battle. I don't want to get erased from the timeline."

Meanwhile, Zariani realizes that, despite the attacks lasting only a few seconds, no matter how short the remaining time was, the sensation is still horrifying.

He could explode at any moment, electricity literally streaming out as lightning from his eyes, mouth, nose, and ears.

He can't cancel the pact he made, as he has no strength left to think. All he can do is scream.

Then, one of his arms finally gives out—the left one explodes in a burst of blood that is instantly vaporized by the electricity. Multiple "cuts" appear all over his flesh, destroying his internal organs again, leaving not even a "pudding" behind. These wounds also carve small trenches across his body due to the damage.

But before anything else can kill him… the 50-second time limit finally ends.

[AN: For the curious out there, he lasted 25 seconds, or more specifically, 24.6 seconds.]

[CA: 24 seconds?! What a machine!]

"Haaaaaaaah! Haaaaaaaah! Haaaaah!" - The bodybuilder struggles to catch his breath.

Soon after, a look of rage appears on his face, and he growls animalistically as he drops into a quadrupedal stance, releasing a guttural roar.

"GRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAARGH!!!" - The bodybuilder screams.

"And it looks like someone's getting cranky…" - Naobito comments, sounding slightly frightened but mostly humorous.

(I'll kill you, I'll kill you, I'll kill you!!!) - Augusto rushes toward Naobito, covered in electricity.

Hirofumi doesn't have enough time to dodge, so he can only defend with crossed arms.

Big mistake, as the enemy's strike is a spin fast enough to turn him into an electric drill.

A shower of sparks ensues, Hirofumi's attempt to use a function of his suit that he's unaccustomed to.

(Damn it! Damn it!!) - Unlike Merkana, it fails to work properly, and the damage that should have been mitigated through the sparks is inflicted anyway.

He still has the armor's resistance, but he watches in shock as it is slowly pierced by the drill.

Thinking quickly, Naobito remembers that his time jump isn't his only power.

Activating his adhesion ability, changing the condition from "touch" to "come into contact," he begins to absorb all the centrifugal force from his opponent's movements into his arms, as if an invisible force is being drained into him.

Augusto becomes dizzy as he stops spinning, and as he starts to fall to the ground, he takes a knee to the face.

Before he can even react, Hirofumi uses the centrifugal force he absorbed to land two slaps on the sides of the philanthropist's head, sandwiching it like bread.

Blood trickles from Augusto's eyes and ears, his dizziness reaching a point where even his thoughts are spinning.

Unable to take it anymore, the man vomits blood and bile on the ground, only to have some teeth knocked out with a kick to the stomach.

A knee strike is delivered to his chin, followed by an upward spinning kick with the other leg.

The kick sends Augusto slightly upward, just enough for his feet to be above Hirofumi, who grabs his left leg and slams him into the ground.

He then repeats the move several times before launching him straight into the air.

"And now…" - Hirofumi activates his adhesion ability again, attempting to grab the air, but…

Before he can, he notices Augusto jumping mid-air. But this doesn't surprise him; it's quite common.

What surprises him?

Simple! When Augusto lands on a surface Hirofumi doesn't directly recognize, a massive electric discharge strikes him, and electricity begins to circulate through the environment, with lightning bolts appearing in the wind.

Naobito coughs up blood, his ears bleeding as he collapses to the ground without kneeling, his back slamming down while feeling the pain of 120,000 volts and 5,000 amperes burning him.

Explosions erupt around the area, reaching 18 meters and creating shockwaves that spread up to 150 meters.

Hirofumi slowly rises amidst the pain as electricity surrounds him, and after a few seconds, the effect stops.

His blood feels like it's boiling, and the metallic taste in his mouth is overwhelming, alongside an inability to feel his teeth.

He cries blood but wipes his tears with his finger and returns to a fighting stance.

He looks at Zariani, who appears to have emerged unscathed from all this, unlike the surroundings, which were completely obliterated.

"Ah, of course. Obviously, you'd survive that. Tch." - The Brazilian mutters, clicking his tongue in frustration.

(Haaaaaaaah… I don't feel anyone around the area. I don't know if this means everyone died or…) - He pauses, noticing a detail.

(His hair… it's shorter, so… he made a pact to use the electrical energy in it as an exchange for activating one of those posts that… was made using air?) - He stops to think for a moment - (No, not air. He used the debris in the air! Because he needs matter!)

Hirofumi continues his reasoning: (And considering that this is a… a… I don't know what, something I can't see, it means he can make possibly weaker 'things,' though this one was much stronger. So… there must be another condition in that pact that I don't know.)

Observing Augusto, he notices that he's stepping with both feet specifically on one of his posts, for some reason unharmed.

(First of all, it makes sense since this thing is made of metal, and metal conducts electricity. Therefore, the final condition, besides possibly only activating on a double jump, is when landing, stepping on something conduc-) - His reasoning is interrupted by a headbutt from Augusto that sends him flying.

"Bastardooooooo!!" - He crashes through the mall ceiling.

"Heh, now I just-" - Zariani is interrupted by a kick to the face, distracting him.

"OW, OW, OW, MY FOOT! HOW ARE YOU SO HARD?!" - Sirius, the kicker, exclaims, but quickly stops complaining and adopts a lazy expression - "Oh man, what a pain. Honestly, I don't care."

Sirius Renovas…

Has arrived at the battle!

[AN: Uh… I don't think this is a good sign.]

[CA: Tch.]

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To be continued...