"I'm gettin' impatient! Let's get this started!" Three yelled again. In an instant, he blasted in Luke's direction and plowed his fist into where Luke was standing. A huge blast of brick and other debris filled the courtyard.

"Luke!" I screamed.

『No. 9 - Three』

The dust and debris filled the air in the dorm courtyard. Luke and Three were nowhere to be seen in the dense fog. As for me, I still hadn't moved an inch from the dorm building entrance. My mind was racing. Thoughts like, "Is Luke okay?", "Who is this guy?", or "Are there others here too?" went through my head.

Then, I noticed a green transparent box cover the sky. "What the..? What is happening?" I questioned.

After a few more seconds, the dust cleared. Luke took the hit, but not in the way I expected. I saw Luke holding Three's fist in place with his bright blue hands. A crater formed in the ground where Luke stood, probably from the impact of Three's punch.

"Luke-!" I shouted.

"Heh, yer a strong one, eh?" Three muttered.

"Nnggg!" Luke groaned. "Tucker, get out of here..! This guy's bad news!"

I took a step forward. "B-but, Elizabeth is out on campus somewhere! I need to make sure she's alright!" I yelled.

Luke's expression changed from determination to distress in an instant. "She is..?" he whispered.

Right after Luke's statement, Three launched his leg up and slammed his foot into Luke's chin. "You might be strong, but I ain't losin' to a little kid!" Three shouted.

Luke stumbled back a few feet from the kick and almost lost his balance, but he was able to stay up.

"Luke, are you alright?!" I said.

Luke placed his hand on his chin to cover the spot where Three struck. "I'm... I'm fine! Just go and find Elizabeth!"

I nodded and began to run passed Three and Luke. As I passed Three, he focused his view on me and smiled.

"I'm not lettin' you leave that easily," he muttered. Then, his legs bulked up and he shot straight towards me. "I still have a job to do!" he screamed.

"Shit-!" I blurted out as Three neared closer. I lifted my arm up to block the incoming attack, but Three didn't give me enough time to activate my Quirk. Right before his fist was about to collide with me, Luke appeared in the way of the punch, seemingly out of nowhere. "Luke-!?" I shouted.

The hit plowed into Luke's right shoulder and sent him flying towards the dorm building. Luke was inches away from slamming into the wall until a portal opened and sucked him up.

Three stopped in place and stared at the portal. "What the hell..?" he asked. Not even a second after Three finished his sentence, another portal opened up behind Three and Luke launched out of it at a high speed. So fast, in fact, that Three couldn't even react. Luke pulled back his left fist, activated his Quirk, and took a deep breath.

Luke's fist plowed into Three's face, launching him down the courtyard. Luke, however, didn't have a landing plan, so he fell onto the ground after landing his punch. I gasped and took a step towards Luke. But, he picked himself up and stared at me with a smile. "Go find Elizabeth. We'll take care of this guy," he said. Then, a portal opened up next to him and Chris stepped out.

"Chris..!" I whispered, feeling a bit more relieved.

He instantly turned to me. "I heard the commotion from our room and I had a bad feeling. I'm glad I noticed when I did," he said. "Now go, Elizabeth is somewhere on campus, right?"

"Yeah, thanks. You guys better be careful, alright?" I said.

Luke flashed a thumbs up. "My shoulder stings from that hit, but I'm still in no condition to back down! Don't worry about us, Tucker!" he said, full of charisma.

I nodded and ran away.

"So, Chris, I've got an idea that'll help us against this guy," Luke mentioned.

"I think we've got the same idea," Chris said.

Three slowly rose up, rubbing the place Luke struck. "God, you kids sure are annoyin', y'know? You just keep showin' up outta nowhere..."

"Well, what did you expect from attacking a school that houses heroes in training?" Chris said. Chris' statement seemed pretty obvious, but the way he said it pissed off Three even more.

"Don't mock me, brat! I'll destroy your future in a single punch!" he yelled.

Chris sighed and rubbed his ear. "Jeez, this guy's so loud. Luke, let's shut him up," he said.

Three smiled widely. "You've got a lotta confidence for a kid who's 'bout to die..!" he scoffed.

"And you talk too much," Chris remarked.

"Rrrgghh..." Three groaned in anger.

Luke looked at Chris with a nervous smile. "You're really good at riling people up, huh?" he asked.

"I guess so," Chris said.

Three's legs suddenly bulked up as the rest of his body weakened. "Arrghh!" he screamed. Then, he started running extremely fast towards Chris and Luke.

"You nervous?" Chris asked.

Luke scoffed. "Why are you asking this now? It's a bit too late to back down,"

Chris smiled in response. "Yeah, you're right. Then, let's see what you're made of, Mr. Future No. 1,"

『No. 9 - END』