A few minutes earlier, on a highway not far from where Shina Etsuha and Hawks were about to clash, a commercial van marked with a broadcast station logo sped forward.
It was the same program crew that had decided to follow Hawks.
They had been chasing him for quite some time now, but still hadn't managed to catch up. The driver was beginning to grow impatient.
"Hawks is flying way too fast. Are we even going to catch him? What if we don't find him before the broadcast starts?"
There were only a few minutes left before their program went live. If they failed to capture anything meaningful, they'd be forced to start the broadcast empty-handed. That kind of opening would ruin their ratings—and their reputation.
"Relax," the director said calmly, eyes glued to his phone. "Even if we miss the main event, we can still get good interview footage. And besides… Hawks' Quirk is extremely visible from the air."
His phone was connected to a drone camera. From that aerial view, Hawks' movements were clearly visible. All they had to do was follow the feed.
"Wait—Hawks has stopped!" the director suddenly exclaimed. His eyes lit up. "He's turned around. He must have found someone!"
He quickly pointed at the screen.
"Open ground area in Hosu City! Ono-kun, you know that undeveloped zone, right?"
The driver nodded immediately and turned the wheel.
"Two kilometers at most—we'll be there in a few minutes!"
The van roared forward.
A few minutes later, the crew arrived at the scene.
They jumped out of the vehicle, cameras already rolling.
The director froze for a moment when he saw what was happening—then his face lit up with excitement.
"Start filming! Now!"
They had arrived at the perfect moment—the exact time their program was going live.
In the open field ahead, Shina Etsuha and Hawks stood facing each other.
They hadn't started fighting yet—but the tension in the air was suffocating.
The reporter stepped in front of the camera, steadied his breathing, and began the live broadcast.
"We are currently at the scene where the Winged Hero, Hawks, is confronting a high-level criminal! The atmosphere is extremely tense—combat could break out at any moment!"
The broadcast wasn't limited to television—it was also streaming online.
At first, only a few viewers tuned in.
But the moment people recognized Hawks on screen, the chat exploded.
"That's Hawks?! He showed up personally?!"
"That Villain is done for!"
"Wait, isn't the opponent an S-rank fugitive?"
"No way he survives this. That's the No. 3 Hero!"
"This is gonna be good—don't miss it!"
More and more viewers began recording the broadcast.
Then—
The fight began.
Hawks moved first.
A barrage of feathers shot forward—but every single one missed.
Before anyone could react—
Etsuha vanished.
In the next instant—
BOOM!
A terrifying impact slammed Hawks straight into the ground.
The earth caved in, forming a crater.
The entire livestream went silent for a moment.
Then—
"??? WHAT JUST HAPPENED???"
"He kicked Hawks into the ground?!"
"That's not human!!"
"That Villain is a monster!!"
The chat exploded.
No one could believe what they had just seen.
Beneath the ground, Hawks felt his entire body tremble.
Even with his feather defense, the force of that kick had nearly shattered through.
His shoulder was numb.
Through the gaps in his feathers, he caught sight of the crater—
He had been kicked straight into it.
"…The intel was wrong."
His expression darkened.
"They said his Quirk was ability-type—ice and ocular powers… but this…"
His eyes sharpened.
"This is clearly a full-body enhancement type."
Only a top-tier enhancement Quirk could produce that level of speed and raw power.
And that meant—
He had made a serious miscalculation.
Hawks immediately adjusted.
His feathers spread outward, bristling like a hedgehog.
Then—
They exploded outward all at once.
"Needle Feather!"
A storm of razor-sharp feathers surged upward like a machine gun, forcing Etsuha back.
Using that opening, Hawks shot into the sky at incredible speed, reclaiming the advantage.
Hovering high above, his expression returned to calm confidence.
"I underestimated you," he admitted. "But from here on… things won't go your way."
The scattered feathers suddenly stopped midair—
Then, as if receiving a command, every single one turned toward Etsuha.
Each feather gleamed with deadly intent.
The cameraman gasped.
"It's that move! Hawks' signature finishing technique!"
The reporter's voice trembled with excitement.
"He controls every feather he releases—once this attack begins, there's nowhere to escape!"
Etsuha descended from the air.
The camera zoomed in.
In his hand, he held an ice shield—several feathers embedded in it, frozen in place.
His expression remained calm.
Unshaken.