This was the second time Satoshi 'died' in the tournament and at this point, no one should've been surprised that he wasn't breathing.
Alas, such was not the case at all.
The first one to panic was none other than Aljier who had used all his strength to knock Satoshi so he could win the Third Round of the Three-Way Fight. However, he didn't expect Satoshi to die just like that. He clearly overestimated his physical capabilities and totally forgot that his summons is what made him strong. His physical strength, at most, should only be slightly above average compared to most humans.
'But there's that... he was able to survive a pierce through the heart during the second round, right? Wait, what if he can only use that once and there's a specified time for its cooldown? Then... does that mean I killed Satoshi? No... no way!' Aljier grabbed his head with both his arms as he knelt on the ground. He didn't know what to do.
"MASTER!" The Ice Empress screamed, rushing towards Satoshi's aid and examining his wound. "Master, don't die!" She continued.
Once again, the entire audience and everyone watching at the leisure of their homes was speechless at the brutal sight of Satoshi. Even Tuxedo froze, he didn't know what to do. The scene was straight out of a superhero versus villain fight where the superhero had died a glorious death.
Cough!
Cough!
Suddenly, Satoshi gasped and blood spurted out of his mouth. He forced a smile on his face as he saw the ever-worried Ice Empress. 'Who would've thought that she would be this worried.' Satoshi smiled to himself. "Don't worry... I don't die when I'm killed, remember?" He continued.
A bright glow erupted from the top part of the Coliseum. There, Sera was quietly waiting for her master's orders. As soon as she received it, she integrated with Satoshi once again and fixed him. His nonexistent heart regeneration and the gaping hole on his chest disappeared in an instant. Compared to before, the Integration didn't deplete Satoshi's energy that much since he had gained more insight into how to control the usage of his energy.
And since Aljier and Saturn had already used their final moves, there was nothing they could do against Satoshi. Satoshi was still standing, still raring to go. It was obvious who won the Third Round.
With a total of seven hundred fifty points, the United Superheroes Academy once again continued its winning streak at the Inter-High Tournament.
"Let's give another round of applause to all our participants in the Inter-High Tournament!" Tuxedo screamed.
While everyone was cheering and congratulating each other, Aljier and Saturn walked toward Satoshi, wearing satisfied smiles on their faces. "That was a great match," Aljier said, extending his hand for Satoshi to shake.
"Sorry for scaring you like that. That was an incredible move... but I don't think you can use it in actual combat. It's quite deadly. If it had been anyone else, he or she would've been dead by now." Satoshi returned the handshake. He also shook Saturn's hand.
"I got a bit carried away, sorry. And... that was the only thing we could think of so we could defeat you. We still couldn't hold a candle to you though. You're strong." Aljier said with a sigh.
"NOW! NOW THAT THE FIRST PLACE HAD BEEN DECIDED, WE WILL NOW CONTINUE THE LAST THREE ROUNDS TO SEE WHO WILL GET SECOND PLACE!" Tuxedo screamed.
Turns out, the Inter-High Tournament wasn't over yet.
"I forgot about that." Saturn smiled to himself. "Prepare yourself, Aljier, the ones who're going to snag that second place would be the Flowing Wave Academy."
"Don't underestimate us." Aljier continued. "Oh, and also, Satoshi, mind if we exchange mail? I figured it would help me in the long run if I have a connection with you."
"Come on dude, just tell him you want to be friends." Saturn nudged him on the side. "In that case, I'd like to ask for your mail as well, Satoshi."
"Sure, why not." Satoshi smiled.
.....
Once again, Satoshi found himself in the Nurse's clinic, lying down on one of the beds there. He was wearing a hospital gown and the top part of it was unbuttoned. Meanwhile, the Nurse carefully checked his chest and his stomach, to see if there were any scars. "I still can't figure out how you could do that. Then again, I'm just glad that you didn't die back there. It would be quite troublesome if someone died during the Inter-High Tournament. That would be quite catastrophic and the annual event might even be discontinued next year."
"Judging from this year's Inter-High though, I think they'll reconsider the rules set in place for the competition. After all, it had gotten much more dangerous with all the powerful superpowers appearing out of nowhere. The next generation is sure to surpass the previous one. That's for sure."
Satoshi just nodded, enjoying the airconditioned room where he was in. After the check-up, the Nurse told him that he could exit the clinic any time he wants. He stayed for a little longer though, taking a nap.
He woke up when he heard the door to the clinic slide open. When he glanced to the side, he realized that it was Emma who entered. She was smiling, and there was a bounce in her steps as she approached the bed where Satoshi was lying down. "Congratulations on your win! That was a nice match."
"Thanks, how was it? Did you enjoy watching from afar? I forgot to give you some money. Sorry, you couldn't buy any food while watching."
"That's all right, we ate quite a lot in Lloyd's headquarters. I'm not hungry." Emma continued. "What happened back there, though... I thought you were dead." Emma wore a serious expression on her face as she whispered, leaning in closer towards Satoshi as if she was saying something important.
"Oh, that? Yeah, I thought I was dead too. Fortunately, I wasn't. That attack was really powerful. They really fully intended to win. I feel bad holding back for them." Satoshi continued.
"Isn't that a good thing? You should be more proud of yourself, you know. You were able to hold two of the best high schooler superheroes in Japan. The fact that you could hold back against them just goes to show how strong you are."
"I guess," Satoshi mumbled. "What are you doing here though? How did you know I was here?"
"I followed you. Come on, Satoshi, you know how my superpower works." Emma answered without a shred of untruth in her voice.
Meanwhile, the Nurse couldn't help but smile at the girl who seemed close to Satoshi. She doesn't know who she was but based on how they are comfortable with each other, she assumed that they have a special relationship. 'Ah, this is youth~' the Nurse said to herself, inwardly chuckling. "I have some lunch here if you want to eat, Satoshi and um, Emma, right?"
Emma nodded.
"I don't know if they still taste good though. They're karaages, but I've cooked them this morning so they've already gone cold." The Nurse said.
"That would be nice!" In an instant, Satoshi's eyes lit up. He felt rather hungry but he didn't want to bring it up.
With Satoshi's approval laid before her, the Nurse smiled and rummaged through her bag. She then handed Satoshi and Emma the two bentos she had. She was actually saving the food for later but she decided to just buy some food from the stalls outside. Furthermore, she'd been eating only karaage for at least a week now. A change in her meals is probably for the better.
"It looks delicious! It smells nice as well. What is this, Satoshi?" Emma excitedly asked.
"That's karaage, deep-fried chicken meat." Satoshi shortly explained, holding his chopstick and getting a piece before offering it to Emma. "Here, ahh," He said.
"Let's eat!" Emma continued, opening her mouth. She then grabbed a pair of chopsticks as well and offered a piece to Satoshi. She thought that she should return the favor since Satoshi went out of her way to feed her.
It should be mentioned that Emma doesn't actually know much about Earth's culture so she didn't mind feeding Satoshi and vice versa. She also didn't bother asking Satoshi about it since she didn't know anything about it. In the first place, she just assumed that the culture in her world is pretty much the same as that on earth. "Here, ahh, " She gestured, offering a bite of karaage and prompting Satoshi to open his mouth.
"Thanks!" Satoshi said, opening his mouth.
Slide.
In that instant, the door to the clinic slid open, and in came the rest of the United Superheroes Academy Candidates, along with Shiroi and Kuroe who visited for the final round. After having lunch, they decided to quickly stop by and visit Satoshi at the clinic. They even brought lunch, thinking that he hasn't eaten yet.
But what they saw made their jaws drop to the ground. Not only was Satoshi having lunch, but a beautiful girl was also feeding him!
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