My Hero Academia: Thunder God

Standing atop the small cluster of floating "golden sand," Kaminari narrowed his golden eyes as he watched Snatch steadily retreat under pressure.

"So, his limit is at 500 kilograms…"

To be fair, Kaminari thought, handling such weight would also be difficult for him. Most of his power came from his Quirk, and when it came to pure physical strength, he wasn't exactly on Snatch's level. That wasn't just a matter of training but also of age.

After all, Kaminari was only fifteen years old. His body hadn't even finished growing yet.

"'Pikachu,' tell 'Crocodile' and the others to pull back," Kaminari commanded calmly.

At that moment, Snatch was in bad shape. His khaki-colored "sand sea" was completely surrounded by Crocodile's golden sand, and the pressure was mounting from all sides.

By normal standards, the fight was already over.

Kaminari still had nearly 200 kilograms of golden sand left in reserve. If he unleashed it, the fragile balance of Snatch's defenses would collapse in an instant.

If Kaminari had harbored any ill intent toward Snatch, the pro-Hero would have been finished—a victim of a crushing combination of sand-based techniques. Not even Aizawa or Midnight would've been able to stop it in time.

"Haah… haah… What's going on?"

Snatch bent forward slightly, breathing heavily as he eyed the retreating golden sand with a mixture of confusion and relief.

But Kaminari, standing high above, made no move to explain. He remained silent, his golden armor glinting under the light, giving him an almost divine or demonic presence.

Roughly thirty meters ahead of Snatch, a cluster of golden sand gathered rapidly.

In no time, the towering figure of "Golden Crocodile" reappeared, its sneering expression almost mocking. It seemed to say: What are you looking at, weakling?

Before Snatch could react, Crocodile's body shimmered, "elementalizing" into a golden mist and disappearing from sight.

"Huh?!"

Snatch's eyes widened in alarm, his instincts screaming at him as his body tensed.

The next instant, his pupils shrank as the hair on the back of his neck stood on end.

"Behind me!"

Boom!!!

A massive golden scorpion hook slammed into Snatch's head with explosive force.

Bang!

With a grunt of pain, Snatch was sent flying. But while still mid-air, he gritted his teeth and adjusted his posture, using precise movements to stabilize himself before landing steadily on the ground, one hand clutching his stomach.

The display piqued Kaminari's interest.

"Suppressing the pain and avoiding further injury with controlled movements? Not bad. Definitely a step above the average pro-Hero," Kaminari remarked to himself.

But as his gaze lingered on Snatch, he noted something else.

"…However, his Quirk has significant weaknesses. At the moment of the attack, he only had time to turn his head into sand."

That realization led Kaminari to one chilling conclusion: If someone attacked him unprepared and fast enough, he'd be finished in an instant.

Meanwhile, in the viewing area, Aizawa and Momo were deep in discussion about Crocodile's sudden disappearance.

"That golden sand probably doesn't have stealth capabilities," Aizawa speculated. "It could be something like optical camouflage."

But Momo shook her head slightly, not fully convinced.

"For that to work, every grain of sand would need to have sensors to gather environmental data. While it's possible in theory, the process would be extremely complicated and inefficient," she explained.

After pausing to think for a moment, she continued, "I believe the effect comes from diffusing the golden sand particles into the air. Once dispersed, they reassemble behind the target, creating the illusion of disappearance and teleportation."

"Ah, I see!" Aizawa's eyes lit up as he considered her explanation. The logic was sound, and he immediately began brainstorming ways to counter such an ability.

Back on the battlefield, Kaminari observed the situation silently. Like many in the audience, he was content to watch as Snatch and Crocodile engaged in close combat.

Clang! Clang! Clang!

The metallic clash of the golden hook against Snatch's sand blade rang out repeatedly. Despite Crocodile's significant height advantage, its attacks resembled wide, sweeping strikes that were almost like sword slashes.

Adding to the bizarre scene, Crocodile continued to "smoke" its golden cigar, its sneering expression making it appear even more arrogant.

"If only it could talk," Kaminari thought wistfully. He imagined the figure laughing with Crocodile's signature "Guhahaha!" and made a mental note to consult Dr. Tenma about adding sound capabilities to the battle suit.

"I'll have to solve the color issue too…" Kaminari muttered under his breath, determined to make future iterations even more lifelike.

Shing!

Crocodile's broad sand blade sliced cleanly through the air, severing its own body in half in front of Snatch's eyes.

But just as Snatch thought he had landed a decisive blow, Crocodile's upper body reformed instantly. Without hesitation, it drove its golden hook toward Snatch's neck, forcing the pro-Hero to "sand-elementalize" and scatter into gravel to avoid the attack.

Their exchange was both dazzling and dull at the same time—visually stunning due to the golden special effects but repetitive in the sense that neither combatant could inflict real damage on the other.

After all, this was essentially a battle between two users of sand-based abilities. Technically speaking, Snatch was only a "half" sand user, which put him at a disadvantage.

Snatch's cautious fighting style reflected this limitation. He had to carefully protect his lower body to avoid any critical damage.

Clang!

With a final, deafening clash, Snatch and Crocodile were forced apart, creating some distance between them.

Compared to the towering Crocodile, Snatch looked noticeably worse for wear. Beads of sweat rolled down his face and dripped onto the ground.

"Haah… I can't keep this up," Snatch muttered, his breathing labored. "If this drags on, I'll be completely exhausted… and this guy is way too strong."

His eyes flickered toward Kaminari, who hovered in the air, observing the fight with an almost detached expression.

Snatch hadn't expected things to turn out this way. Being pushed to his limits by a first-year student—no, by the student's battle suit was a humbling experience, to say the least.

It reminded him of his early days training under Endeavor, when every sparring session had felt like a one-sided beatdown.

"But no matter how strong this kid is… he's not Endeavor!"

With that thought fueling him, Snatch made his move. He leapt into the air, propelled by a swirling mass of khaki sand beneath his feet. His gaze locked onto Kaminari.

"Hey, kid!"

"Had enough fun watching? Why don't you come down and fight me yourself?"

As he shouted, Snatch's arms transformed into two massive sand palms, stretching out toward the golden figure in mid-air.

***

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