Chapter 26: The Comet and the Cat.
The Minefield. Final Stretch.
The air was thick with the acrid scent of sulfur and overturned earth. Todoroki Shoto moved with the cold, calculated precision of a machine. Every step was a tactical decision, his eyes scanning the dirt for the tell-tale signs of buried triggers. Even with his overwhelming lead, the mines forced him to decelerate, his breath hitching in the frigid air he radiated.
BOOM!
Behind him, the earth screamed. Bakugo Katsuki was a blur of orange and black, propelling himself through the sky with a series of rhythmic, violent explosions. He wasn't touching the ground, but the shockwaves from the larger mines below forced him to constantly correct his trajectory. Every correction cost him a millisecond. Every millisecond was a debt he couldn't afford.
"Get out of my way, Icy-Hot!" Bakugo roared, his voice cracking with the strain of his own heat. He swung his right arm, sending a concussive blast toward Todoroki's back.
Todoroki didn't look back. He tilted his body, sliding on a sudden patch of ice to dodge the explosion. "Persistent," he muttered, his jaw set in stone.
They were neck and neck, two kings fighting for a throne of dirt and gunpowder. They believed the race was a duel. They believed the world ended at their shoulders.
They were wrong.
"MAX SPEED!"
A high-pitched, melodic voice pierced through the thunder of the explosions.
ZOOM.
A streak of pink and blue tore through the air, bypassing the two leaders as if they were standing still. It wasn't a run; it was a low-altitude flight. Happy the Cat was flapping his white wings with such intensity they became a blur, his small paws white-knuckled as he gripped the back of Natsu's vest.
Because they were hovering mere centimeters above the soil, the pressure-sensitive mines remained dormant. It was a straight, lethal line to the finish.
"See ya, slowpokes!" Natsu laughed, his head tilted back as the wind whipped his scarf into a frenzy. He shot a thumb-up at a stunned Bakugo as he flew past.
"WHAT?!" Bakugo's pupils shrunk to pinpricks. "GET BACK HERE, SALAMANDER!"
"So fast!" Todoroki gasped, his composure finally shattering. He tried to freeze the air to catch them, but the distance was growing too quickly.
"AND WOULD YOU LOOK AT THAT!" Present Mic's voice cracked in the commentary booth as he stood on his desk, pointing wildly. "Class A's pet and the Dragon are ignoring the obstacle entirely! They aren't fighting the course; they are mocking it! It's an aerial assault on the leaderboard!"
The gap widened with terrifying speed. Ten meters. Fifty. A hundred. Natsu and Happy became a shimmering dot on the horizon, leaving the two most powerful students in the grade in a cloud of dust and frustration.
They reached the darkness of the final tunnel—the long, concrete throat leading back into the light of the stadium.
"I... I can't..." Happy's wings suddenly flickered like a dying candle and vanished into sparkles. "Out of... magic..."
Their momentum died. They began to plummet toward the hard concrete floor of the tunnel entrance.
"You did great, partner! I'll take it from here!" Natsu grinned.
In mid-fall, Natsu reached out and snatched Happy from the air, tucking the exhausted cat under his arm like a precious trophy.
His boots hit the ground. He didn't break into a sprint. He ignited.
FOOOOOOSH!
Massive, concentrated jets of crimson fire erupted from the soles of his boots and the points of his elbows. The air in the tunnel expanded instantly, creating a sonic boom that shattered the overhead lights.
"Fire Dragon's... JET DRIVE!"
Natsu didn't just accelerate; he transformed into a projectile. He moved so fast that the human eye could barely track him. He left behind long, glowing streaks of orange and red fire that clung to the floor and scorched the air, lingering like the tail of a dying comet.
The heat was so intense it glazed the concrete walls into glass.
The crowd was leaning over the railings, eyes glued to the massive overhead screens. They were waiting for the flicker of white ice or the flash of orange explosions.
"Who will it be?!" Present Mic yelled, his voice hushed with anticipation. "The Ice Prince? Or the King of Explosions?"
Suddenly, the camera feed at the tunnel exit distorted. A wall of heat hit the stadium floor, followed by a thunderous crack that signaled the breaking of the sound barrier.
SNAP!
The finish line tape didn't just break; it disintegrated into white confetti before it could even touch Natsu's chest.
Natsu Dragneel skidded to a halt in the dead center of the field. The friction from his boots had carved deep, glowing red-hot ruts into the ground, smoke billowing from his uniform. He stood tall, his lungs pumping, and thrust Happy high into the air with a grin that could outshine the sun.
"FIRST PLACE!"
The massive scoreboard flickered and changed. The "1st" slot was filled with a high-definition close-up of Natsu's wide, toothy grin and Happy making a tired but proud peace sign.
Winner: Natsu Dragneel.
The stadium fell into a stunned, breathless silence for a single heartbeat. Then, the noise returned—a physical force of cheers so loud it felt like the sky was falling.
"HE DID IT!"
"THAT SPEED... IT WASN'T HUMAN!"
"THE DRAGON HAS ARRIVED!"
Far behind them, a massive pink explosion rocked the minefield. Midoriya Izuku came flying through the air on a piece of scrap metal, followed by a murderous Bakugo and a grim Todoroki. They crossed the line in a desperate, chaotic cluster—but the crown had already been claimed.
Natsu stood in the center of the arena, his scarf fluttering in the breeze created by the roaring crowd. He looked at the screen, then at his rivals who were just now catching their breath.
"Too slow!" Natsu laughed, giving a triumphant thumbs-up to the camera. "The Dragon is Number One!"
.
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