The notoriously vain hero Sweet Mask has suffered some major injuries in the latest chapter of One-Punch Man, and whether he can come back from it is far from certain. As an A-Class Rank 1 Hero, Sweet Mask was one of the few heroes involved in the Monster Association raid below S-Class, aside from Saitama and Fubuki. He even chided the assembled S-Class heroes over their lack of cohesion, despite his own sometimes questionable behavior in the past. But Sweet Mask suffered a harsh reminder of just how big the gap between A-Class and S-Class can be in his confrontation with Fuhrer Ugly.
Fuhrer Ugly, one of the Threat Level Dragon monsters that managed to survive Tatsumaki's devastating attack in the previous chapter, is a grotesque-looking humanoid with a chip on his shoulder. Needless to say, Fuhrer Ugly was only enraged by Sweet Mask's famed good looks and dedication to beauty and quickly turned his attention to the hero. As it turns out, Sweet Mask's dedication to beauty runs both ways: he's just as repulsed by ugliness as he is drawn to beauty. Paralyzed with horror at the sight of Fuhrer Ugly, Sweet Mask made an easy target for his signature move, the Face Crushing Punch. The attack lived up to its name, and Sweet Mask's head caved in. Then he was nearly ripped in half, all while Child Emperor and a badly injured Zombieman, two S-Class heroes, were forced to watch. Fortunately for the latter two, a squabble between monsters broke out before any torture could be directed their way, but their safety is still far from assured.
While such brutal injuries would undoubtedly kill an ordinary human, Sweet Mask has demonstrated some regenerative abilities in the past, as he rapidly healed from the damage Do-S dealt to his face during his fight with her. It's hard to imagine he'll be up on his feet any time soon, however, as even Zombieman's incredible regeneration (a result of experiments at the House of Evolution) hasn't been able to keep up with the damage these monsters have inflicted. The full extent of Sweet Mask's regeneration isn't known; even if he can survive this kind of massive damage, there's no way to be sure that he'll make a complete recovery. Given the horrific nature of the attack, he should consider himself lucky to make it out at all, even if he's crippled or disfigured as a result.
Of course, Sweet Mask's looks are a key part of his public persona, so even in the unlikely event that he escapes with only superficial damage, he may not be willing to resume his hero work. This could mark a major shift in his character, as the celebrity hero is forced to contend with the loss of his beautiful appearance. And if he somehow does recover completely, he'll definitely have to face some tough questions as to the origins and limits of his regenerative abilities, as other heroes witnessed his apparent death with their own eyes.
New chapters of One-Punch Man are released on an irregular basis, but as the next chapter is out in Japan already, fans may not have much longer to wait for the next installment.