As Shinji pressed his palms together to form a seal, a colossal Thousand-Armed Buddha, matching the Ten Tails in size, rose from the ground out of thin air.
It stood a full kilometer tall, the same as the Ten Tails, making Boros and the surrounding S-Class heroes look almost like ants in comparison.
Seated atop the Buddha's head was a wooden figure wrapped in a coiling wooden dragon, and Shinji stood on the figure's nose bridge.
Everyone nearby stared in shock at the towering Thousand-Armed Buddha.
"That Kamui fella... what kind of ability is this?"
The toothpick Samurai had in his mouth nearly dropped to the ground. He caught it with his hand and popped it back in.
"Can he really summon creatures of this size over and over? And there's still that big guy over there on standby..."
Child Emperor glanced from the Thousand-Armed Buddha to the similarly massive Ten Tails, unable to hide his curiosity about just how powerful the S-Class Rank 5 hero [Kamui] really was.
"Looks like in terms of size and strength, he's already suppressing that alien, right?" Tanktop Master spoke in awe.
"Not necessarily... I suspect the enemy hasn't gone all out yet." Bang's decades of martial arts experience told him the opponent was far from showing their full strength.
"According to Master's description, this Boros alien should be the said God-level disaster. It's too early to celebrate." Genos's expression was equally grim.
Inside, he couldn't help feeling frustrated. Faced with an enemy of this level, he was powerless, forced to stand on the sidelines and watch. He didn't even have the right to step in and would only drag his teacher down if he tried. His fists clenched tightly. The desire to become stronger burned in him more than ever.
Tatsumaki looked at the Thousand-Armed Buddha and thought about how much Shinji had been hiding.
And that other thing... the Ten Tails, was it? He called it a friend, but it was obviously a summoned creature.
Yeah, she wasn't blind. She had seen Shinji summon the Ten Tails with her own eyes.
It bothered her and irritated her at the same time. She had thought she'd finally found a worthy opponent who could push her to her limits, only to realize it was just one of Shinji's summons.
The thought made her glare at Shinji standing atop the Thousand-Armed Buddha with her trademark dead-fish eyes. If he didn't give her an explanation, she wouldn't let it go. And if he died at the hands of that alien, she'd be even less forgiving.
"It's huge... and it's bald too." Only Saitama was casually chatting with the wooden figure beside him. "Heh."
While everyone else was focused on the fight, his attention was on the fact that the giant Buddha Shinji had summoned was bald.
"Well, it's a Buddha statue. The monks at Shaolin Temple are bald too, aren't they?"
The wood clone replied.
"Oh! Looks like that alien's getting fired up. You'd better watch out." Saitama suddenly called out a warning to Shinji.
"That's how it should be! Let's enjoy a proper fight!"
Boros shouted excitedly before instantly teleporting right in front of Shinji and throwing a punch.
"Top Transforms Into Buddha!"
At the same moment Boros attacked, the thousand fists of the colossal Buddha clenched and swung from all directions toward him.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Boros's body was relentlessly battered by the Buddha's fists. Even with his incredible durability, the constant, concentrated strikes began to inflict visible damage.
Only after Boros was smashed from the air into the ground did the Thousand-Armed Buddha's fists finally stop.
"...Did we win?"
With the air filled with dust and smoke, Atomic Samurai asked the question on everyone's mind.
"No... there's still a life signature." Sensing that Boros's vital signs were still steady, without any sign of weakening, Genos's face darkened.
In his eyes, this attack from Master was without question powerful enough to destroy the world, yet it still hadn't taken down the enemy.
So this was the true terror of a God-level disaster.
"It still couldn't take him down? That thing looks huge. I thought it'd have some crazy strength. Is it just all show and no substance?" Metal Bat said in surprise.
"You, shut up!" Tatsumaki seemed displeased with his words. "You people don't even have the right to join the fight over there. Just watch quietly."
"What did you say?!" Metal Bat's temper flared instantly.
"Calm down, calm down. If you push her too far, Little Tornado might actually kill you," Superalloy Darkshine quickly tried to mediate.
"You're just like us, stuck here watching, aren't you?" But his attempt to calm things down didn't work on Metal Bat, who shot back at Tatsumaki.
"That's because I already used up too much strength before this fight even started. If it weren't for Shinji, you'd all be dead by now, and you're still doubting his power?" Tatsumaki's gaze turned cold as she spoke.
"...Fine." Metal Bat scratched his head in frustration. "Alright, alright, I get it! I'll sit and watch, okay?"
He sat cross-legged, setting his bat beside him. Even though he still felt a little unwilling, what really made him settle down was Tatsumaki mentioning Shinji's name.
Just then, Boros slowly walked out from the smoke and dust.
"My race survived on a planet with a harsh environment, where only the strong live. We evolved one of the greatest natural regeneration abilities in the entire universe, and among my people, my body's functions, regeneration, and latent power are unmatched!"
In an instant, his wounded body healed completely, and he began speaking with a relaxed, confident air. "Even wounds that would be fatal to you can heal in seconds for me. If I focus my power, my regeneration can spike to an explosive level."
Boros then smirked.
"In contrast, your wounds can only pile up, and your stamina keeps wearing down..." The corner of Boros' mouth curled upward. "It's about time to end this fight. I'll release the massive energy within me. For most beings, even touching it would turn them into dust in an instant!"
His body began to charge up, blue energy flowing visibly across his form, converging on the eye in his chest, growing more and more violent.
"Being able to fight me, the great Boros, for this long is already impressive. I just hope you don't die too fast, Shinji!"
As soon as he finished, a terrifying blast cannon, no, an energy cannon, shot straight toward Shinji standing atop the giant Buddha.
BOOM!
With a deafening flash that pierced the sky, the thousand-armed Buddha was obliterated into rubble in an instant.
Chunks of debris crashed to the ground, the sound making Tatsumaki and the others' hearts jolt.
Tatsumaki's eyes trembled, her face stiff. For a moment, she thought Shinji had been blown to pieces along with the Buddha.
Boros stood still, ignoring all the other S-Class heroes, focused only on whether Shinji had survived. If Shinji had died from that blast, Boros would have been disappointed and lost all interest in continuing the fight.
But the next moment, Shinji walked out from the Buddha's remains, completely unscathed.
Seeing him alive and well, Boros' eyes widened, but instead of shock, his face lit up with joy.
"Excellent! Now you have my recognition!" Boros roared with excitement. "You're the first, and the only opponent I, Boros, the ruler of the universe, have ever acknowledged!"
"Neat!" Shinji walked toward Boros step by step, forming hand seals. "Boros, show me your full strength. I'm going all out too."
It was the hand seal for the Six Paths: Ten-Tails Coffin Seal.
Hearing this, Boros froze for a moment. His large eye showed deep confusion.
The others were still stunned that Shinji was unharmed, and now, hearing him say "going all out" made their minds go blank.
So this... still wasn't his full power...?