The team battle came to a hasty end. The Grade 2 Cursed Spirit had not even been exorcised yet, but Tokyo Jujutsu High won with a final score of ten to four. Some of those ten points had come from Rika tearing people apart with her bare hands after losing control.
On Kyoto’s side, Momo Nishimiya, Noritoshi Kamo, and Aoi Todo had been eliminated midway through the match. Tokyo had lost Panda and Yuta Okkotsu. No one knew exactly how Satoru Gojo had settled things, but Rika’s temporary loss of control seemed not to have affected anything at all.
After Panda returned from Principal Masamichi Yaga, his body had been almost completely repaired. With Shoko Ieiri around, everyone else was soon back on their feet as well.
Aoi Todo, meanwhile, did not seem to have been frightened off by Rika in the slightest. Still brimming with fighting spirit, he told Yuta that their last fight had been interrupted by an unexpected incident, that he looked forward to facing him again, and that he acknowledged Yuta’s strength.
Yuta thought, I’d really rather not have that kind of acknowledgment...
But then Todo turned his attention to Kaito Kamishiro. He had not been present for the final battle, but he generally knew what had happened.
"I thought this Goodwill Event was going to be boring, but then I met Yuta and you. I’m already looking forward to tomorrow’s individual matches!"
Todo tilted his head back as though imagining something, then asked Kaito that same question.
"Kaito Kamishiro... what kind of woman is your type?"
Kaito had only come to check on Yuta. He had even brought two ice cream bars, but Todo had appeared out of nowhere and asked him that question. Thinking of Yuta—and the Yuji of the future...
So, gripping the remaining wooden stick, Kaito answered Todo with a completely serious expression.
"My type... is a white-haired beastgirl! At least for now."
Todo froze for a moment, then wore an oddly complicated expression.
"Ah... what a shame. Still, I respect your preferences. I hope I can witness your strength tomorrow, Kaito Kamishiro!"
At that moment, Maki Zen'in entered through the door. She had clearly heard the conversation inside, judging by the way she looked at Kaito as though he were garbage.
"Principal Yaga has called everyone over. We need to decide the details of tomorrow’s individual matches. You... never mind."
After saying that, Maki turned and left.
Kaito scratched his head. "What’s with Maki? Whatever. Come on, Yuta, let’s go."
Without feeling that he had said anything wrong, Kaito headed to the gathering point with Yuta. Todo returned to the Kyoto Jujutsu High group.
Students and teachers from both sides were already there. Kaito and Yuta were among the last to arrive. Once everyone had gathered, Masamichi Yaga began speaking.
"Regarding tomorrow’s individual matches, we have tentatively decided on two possible formats. We would like to hear your opinions."
"The first is a straightforward gauntlet. Both sides send out a participant; the winner continues fighting until there is one final victor."
"The second is a series of one-on-one matches. Both sides take turns choosing opponents. The winner of each match earns one point, and the result is determined by the final score."
"Principal Yaga."
Maki raised her hand, looking puzzled. "But we only have five people. How does this work when the numbers aren’t even?"
Yaga seemed to have expected the question. "If the second format is chosen, Tokyo Jujutsu High may have one student fight twice. In return, Kyoto will choose first. If the final score is tied at three to three, the individual matches will count as a draw, and Tokyo Jujutsu High will be declared the overall winner due to its victory in the team battle."
"And if we win the individual matches?" Noritoshi Kamo asked. "If each side wins one event, how will the ultimate winner be decided?"
Satoru Gojo immediately jumped in, saying excitedly, "Then we’ll enter the final showdown!"
Everyone instinctively felt there was probably something wrong with this so-called final showdown. With perfect unspoken agreement, they ignored the smiling Gojo as he continued talking to himself.
Instead, both sides formed circles and began discussing their options. Panda stroked his chin with an expression like he had seen through everything.
"I’m just saying... doesn’t the first format favor us more? Kaito might be able to run through their entire side by himself!"
Maki adjusted her glasses. "The second format is basically the Tian Ji horse-racing strategy. If Kaito fights twice, we are guaranteed to win at least one match—maybe even both. That gives us a very high chance of victory."
Kyoto’s atmosphere, by contrast, was somewhat heavier. Both sides had exchanged blows already. Some fights had produced a clear winner, such as Kaito’s battle with Noritoshi Kamo, while others, like Maki’s group, had ended without a result.
Still, they had at least gained some understanding of each other’s strengths. Kasumi Miwa rested her cheek in her hand, looking a little dejected.
"Going by what everyone says, if we pick the second format, they’ll definitely send that Kaito Kamishiro out twice... How are we supposed to deal with that?"
Noritoshi Kamo spoke up. "Their strongest fighter is likely Kaito Kamishiro. My battle with him ended very quickly. His speed was abnormally fast; it was probably the effect of his Cursed Technique."
"We have two ways to deal with him. Either we send our two weakest members to burn through his two matches, though I doubt they will let us get away with that."
"The second is for us to choose someone to face him first. They will probably use their strongest horse against our middle horse. Beyond that, we would need to win every other match. It will be difficult..."
Todo continued, "Those first-years are all monsters. But don’t worry too much. They definitely won’t use that kind of strategy. They’ll match king against king, general against general, and throw themselves into the fiercest, most committed battles possible!"
Mai Zen'in, standing nearby, looked thoroughly confused. Had Todo somehow overheard the other side’s tactical discussion? But all she could hear had been indistinct mumbling!
"Todo, why do you say that?"
At Mai’s question, Todo flashed a row of white teeth.
"Because our hearts are in sync!"
"..."
Everyone was speechless. Then, in another display of unspoken coordination, they skipped right over Todo and began discussing the specifics. Todo did not seem to care. That was why these people had no right to become his best friends. How lonely...
"I don’t care either way. So long as my opponent is Yuta or Kaito Kamishiro, it’ll be worth looking forward to!"
On Tokyo Jujutsu High’s side, everyone unanimously chose the second option as well. The team battle had ended too quickly, and most of them had not been able to determine a winner against their opponents. Only Kaito had quickly eliminated two people.
"So what if we’re first-years? So what if our sorcerer grades are lower? I’ll beat them until they’re crawling around looking for their teeth!"
Maki’s eyes and brows were filled with fierce fighting spirit.
Panda was fired up too, while Toge Inumaki and Yuta nodded in agreement. When everyone looked toward him, Kaito scratched his head and yawned. He had stayed up all night gaming. His energy could handle it, but certain natural reactions were unavoidable.
"Wouldn’t the first option guarantee our win? But if you all agree, I don’t care. I’m probably the one who’ll be fighting twice, right?"
Maki replied casually, "Our advantage is already huge. They’ll definitely send their weakest fighter out first to use up one of your matches. We just need to roughly decide the order."
In the end, both sides agreed on the format for the individual matches. At ten tomorrow morning, the individual battles would begin in the school dojo.
Masamichi Yaga announced, "Then let’s determine the match order. Kyoto will choose first."
Noritoshi Kamo stepped forward as Kyoto’s representative.
"Kasumi Miwa will challenge Kaito Kamishiro."
No one on either side looked particularly surprised. Miwa herself looked slightly nervous, however. Then it was Tokyo’s turn.
Yuta stepped forward. "I choose to fight Noritoshi Kamo."
On Kyoto’s side, Todo came forward next.
"I want to fight Kaito Kamishiro."
Noritoshi Kamo’s expression did not change, but the others showed varying degrees of regret. In their view, it would have been best to send someone else against Kaito, then have Todo face Yuta. If that was not possible, Todo could fight Toge Inumaki, the Cursed Speech user. That might have given them a better chance.
Kaito himself did not care. This was better for him, at least—it would not be quite so boring. He had not seen Noritoshi Kamo’s trump card, but it would not have changed the outcome. If he remembered correctly, Todo was exceptionally strong in hand-to-hand combat. Tomorrow, they could start with a proper close-quarters showdown.
Todo had always done things his own way, and no one on Kyoto’s side could stop him from following his will. Next, Panda spoke on behalf of the less talkative Toge.
"Toge Inumaki chooses Mechamaru."
"Tuna mayo!"
Kyoto made its next selection. This time, Momo Nishimiya chose Maki, leaving Panda to face Mai Zen'in in the final match.
With everything decided, there was nothing else to do that day. Yaga dismissed them, and Kaito threw an arm around Panda’s shoulders.
"Panda, come play games at my place today! I need a teammate for PUBG. The two of us will slaughter everyone!"
Maki, who was preparing to leave, heard him and spoke up.
"Seriously... don’t you two pull another all-nighter gaming. You have individual matches tomorrow!"
Kaito laughed awkwardly. "Maki, you know staying up late doesn’t affect me. We definitely won’t stay up all night."
Panda put on an honest-looking expression. "I’m just a panda. I don’t need that much sleep."
"Tch..."
Too lazy to bother with the two of them, Maki turned and left. As she passed Yuta, she tilted her head toward him.
"Don’t you become like those two. You’ll end up miserable."
"Uh..."
Yuta did not know what to say, but Maki had already left. Toge then told him, "Tuna mayo." Was that encouragement, or...?
As for Kaito, he and Panda had long since linked arms. Once Maki left, they dragged Toge away with them too.
Kaito’s voice drifted through the hallway. "I bought Breath of the Wild at launch, and I still haven’t really played it. But I have to say it: Zelda is god-tier!"
Not long after the voices faded around the corner, Panda’s head poked back around it.
"Yuta, come too."
"But... um..."
Panda nimbly slipped over and draped an arm around Yuta’s shoulders.
"Hard training is something you build up in ordinary times. When an exam is right around the corner, naturally you should spend your time playing. Your mindset and emotions can affect victory too."
Before he knew it, Yuta had been pulled into the middle of the group. The four of them marched grandly toward the battlefield.
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