Chapter 121: Quirk-enhancing devices

"Please… don't kill me! I was just following orders!" the man begged. 

Ezaki Kitazawa smirked. "Alright, I was just forced to fight back. Whether you live or die is up to fate now." 

With that, he clenched his other hand into a fist. A surge of air swirled around it. 

"Haaah!" 

He threw a punch straight into the man's stomach. Instantly, the invisible effect wore off, and the man was sent flying into the wall with a loud crash. Cracks spread across the surface as he hung there, unmoving. No one could tell if he was dead or alive. 

The remaining enemies were frozen in shock. 

"The boss just sent us intel. This guy is a U.A. hero course first-year student. Looks like we're in trouble." 

"A U.A. student?" 

"Yeah, and you saw it too—he's strong. We need to be careful." 

While they were discussing, Ezaki Kitazawa suddenly spoke. 

"I don't have time for this, so I'm not playing with you guys." 

He stomped his foot, and his right leg turned into lava. The ground around them instantly began to change. 

"What's happening?! His Quirk is so weird!" 

"It's burning! I'm sinking! Help!" 

"Damn it, I've never seen a Quirk that can change the ground itself!" 

The leader frowned and grabbed one of his men, using him as a stepping stone to jump into the air, trying to escape. 

Just as he was about to take off, a voice suddenly appeared beside him. 

"Going somewhere? We still need one more person down there." 

The leader's face stiffened as he turned his head. Ezaki Kitazawa kicked him straight back down. As he hit the ground, lava bubbled and hissed around him. 

Ezaki Kitazawa landed smoothly. 

"Done. But man, this is only the 80th floor… That means there are still 120 more to go. Great." 

He shook his head in frustration. 

"Boom!" 

Suddenly, an explosion went off to his side. He turned toward the sound, surprised to see that it wasn't an enemy, but Bakugo Katsuki and Kirishima Eijiro. 

"Bakugo? Kirishima? What are you guys doing here?" 

Ezaki Kitazawa asked curiously. 

"Ezaki? What the hell is going on? We're being chased for no reason!" Kirishima shouted as he ran over. 

"Huh? Didn't you hear the announcement?" 

"We heard it, but we didn't get what's happening," Kirishima replied, still confused. 

"This building is under enemy control. Everyone on the island has been taken hostage. Midoriya and the others are heading to the top floor to free them," Ezaki Kitazawa explained. 

"Then why are you here?" Bakugo asked. 

"Covering the rear. Just finished taking down a wave of enemies." 

"Perfect! There's another wave coming behind us!" Kirishima said excitedly. 

Ezaki Kitazawa didn't respond. Instead, he turned and started sprinting. 

No way. If he had known there'd be this much fighting, he would've eaten more beforehand. He had only had a few pieces of bread earlier, and now he was getting hungry again. 

"Hey, Ezaki Kitazawa! A little help here?!"

"Tch, bird's nest head, let's not worry about it and just follow him." 

Bakugo Katsuki muttered, "Got it." 

Ezaki Kitazawa was moving fast, but since he wasn't familiar with this place, he was basically running around blindly, crashing through whatever was in his way. He was forcing a path forward no matter what. 

"Booom!" 

Ezaki Kitazawa smashed through another wall and charged straight ahead. But the next second, some tree branches caught onto him. Climbing up, he took a glance outside and swallowed hard. 

"Damn, I almost fell from the 80th floor." 

Meanwhile, at the top floor— 

"We did it! Professor, everything is here." 

A slightly chubby man said to David. 

David let out a deep sigh. 

"Finally, we got the device and all the research data back. We can't let it fall into anyone else's hands." 

"Everything is going according to plan. The enemy's side is also progressing smoothly," the chubby man added. 

"Thanks to you for arranging all of this," David said while quickly running towards him. 

But at that moment, a soft voice came from not far away. 

"Dad… you mean everything was planned by you?" 

Melissa walked out, looking dazed, her eyes filled with confusion. 

"Me… Melissa?" 

"Miss, why are you here?" 

David and the other man froze on the spot. 

"You were behind all of this? You did all this just to get that device?" 

Melissa bit her lip and asked softly. She already knew the truth, but she still didn't want to believe it. She wanted to hear it straight from her father. 

"Yes," David said in a low voice. 

"Why? Why?!" 

"The professor just wanted to take back what was stolen. This is a revolutionary invention. With it, we can greatly enhance Quirks. 

Even though it's still in the testing phase, this device works differently from drugs," the chubby man explained. 

"It can boost Quirks significantly using machinery without any side effects. But the sponsors found an excuse to confiscate both the device and the research data, forcing the project to shut down. 

If this invention is made public, it will shake up the entire hero society. Governments around the world feared losing control, so they pressured the professor nonstop. That's why he had no choice but to do this." 

The chubby man spoke slowly. 

Melissa shook her head. 

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