Hanami held Maki up by a vine as Megumi made a hand sign, thinking, 'I have to fight.'
Maki shouted, "Megumi, stop! Our job is done. It's time to tag out."
That's when Kiyotaka and Todo landed between Hanami and Maki, breaking the vines as Todo freed Maki.
He then asked Kiyotaka, "Are you ready, my Besto Friendo?"
Kiyotaka looked at Todo and said, "Let me give us some time."
Kiyotaka cracked his knuckles before saying, "Shift", as the ring on his finger turned into a staff, hitting Hanami and pushing her back through several trees and then chanting "Shift" again to turn it back into a ring.
Megumi looked to Kiyotaka, shouting, "This Special-Grade! It's on a different level from the one we fought at the detention centre! You can't fight it!"
Kiyotaka looked to him and said, "I'm on a different level compared to the version of me back then."
Megumi looked shocked, thinking, 'He's... grown that much stronger already? How?'
Panda arrived from behind Megumi as Todo called out to him, handing Maki over to him. Todo looked to Panda and said, "Take those two and exit the veil. According to Nishimiya, this is an anti-Gojo Satoru veil."
Kiyotaka turned to Panda and said, "And tell Gojo not to get too caught up with this area and that this event might be a distraction meant to draw his attention."
Panda nodded as he left, shouting, "Pandash!"
Kiyotaka looked to Todo and said, "Get ready. It's coming back."
Hanami arrived as Todo stepped out of the water, saying, "I won't lift a finger to help you. Not until you land a Black Flash. If you can't land a Black Flash, then I'll just watch you die, no matter what happens to you."
Kiyotaka sighed, thinking, 'Black Flash. He told me what it is already. An strike where Cursed Energy hits the target a trillionth of a second before contact. I'm not sure if even I can make the calculations necessary and control my Cursed Energy well enough to land one consistently.'
Hanami looked to Kiyotaka and Todo, thinking, 'Sukuna's vessel and... who is that man? He has a certain presence, but the amount of Cursed Energy he possesses is most definitely less than mine. However, he has that mysterious brazenness. And what is this [Black Flash]?'
She contemplated it for a second but found no answers as she then wondered, 'So, how will they attack?' as she formed a ball of vines.
Kiyotaka chanted, "Manifest", as smoke flowed out of his mouth, covering the area.
Hanami looked to the smoke, thinking, 'He used that move against Mahito! He'll come up from behind!'
Hanami struck the area behind herself, but nothing was there as Kiyotaka slammed his fist into her back, making her spit out blood as she thrashed her arm back at him, only for Kiyotaka to simultaneously jump over it and kick her in the face, sending her further back.
There were indentations in Hanami's skin as she thought, 'Every hit is focused at a single point. Is there anyone who wouldn't take damage from this kind of attack? I can't imagine it.'
Kiyotaka clenched his hand, thinking, 'Black Flash is either impossible or extremely difficult to pull off while using a Cursed Technique.'
Suddenly, vines whipped out at Kiyotaka, who rushed in, cutting apart the vines with chopping motions. He did this by creating a sharp mass around his hands that could cut like blades, as Hanami thought, 'He can cut through the vines?!'
Kiyotaka closed the distance, charged up Cursed Energy in his fist and slammed it into Hanami's gut as Black Sparks flew from the attack, blowing a chunk of Hanami's arm off as she coughed up more blood, thinking, 'Wha-?!'
Todo smiled, thinking, 'He's already a Grade 1 Sorcerer. He'll catch up to me soon, too. After that... maybe even Special Grade is possible too.'
Kiyotaka's eyes widened, thinking, 'My head... it feels so light. Usually, my head is stuffed with calculations from constantly observing my surroundings. But right now, it feels like everything is being done for me. This feels... amazing!'
Todo stepped up, saying, "It seems like you've had a taste. You understand now, don't you? About Cursed Energy. Up until now, you've just been throwing an ingredient you've never tasted before into a pot and boiling it without knowing why. But after experiencing Black Flash and understanding the taste of your ingredient, your Cursed Energy, you stand on a completely different level as a chef than you did three seconds ago. Congratulations, Besto Friendo. You can become even stronger."
Kiyotaka smiled before rushing in at a much faster pace than he had ever shown previously, making Hanami think, 'He's faster?!' as she unleashed vines at Kiyotaka, who dodged them.
Kiyotaka was making mass and using it at footholds via his Cursed Technique, accelerating them forward, bending his knees, and pushing off them to maximise his speed, thinking, 'One wrong move and I'll get sliced to bits by those vines, but...'
Kiyotaka slammed his leg down on Hanami's neck as her body hit the ground, and she looked completely stunned for a second as Kiyotaka thought, '... I can do it in this state!'
Kiyotaka landed on the ground, looking at himself smiling in his reflection as he thought, 'This feeling is... exhilarating... I never thought I'd feel this kind of emotion again.'
Hanami let out more vines, stabbing at Kiyotaka, but again, he conjured mass, bending his legs, forcing the mass forward and jumping to propel himself as he avoided her vine attacks, zigzagging behind Hanami and landing a crushing kick to her back as she was propelled forward, thinking, 'Not good!'
Todo rushed in saying, "Don't leave me out of this, Besto Friendo!' as he landed a 3-hit combo with his fists, starting with two hits to the abdomen, followed by an uppercut to the chin. Kiyotaka kicked the back of Hanami's leg, forcing her to her knee as Todo swung his leg, with Kiyotaka dodging under it, causing Hanami to take a full force hit to the face, being flung through 3 trees.
Kiyotaka got up from his ducked position, saying, "It's still alive."
Todo nodded, saying, "It's tough, but together we can exorcise it, my Besto Friendo."
Hanami stood up, healing from her injuries slowly, thinking, 'He's even stronger than when he fought Mahito, and he hasn't used that sword or cloak yet.'
Hanami tore off the cloth that was on her other arm, saying, "It would seem that I should take you two seriously", revealing a red bud and a black arm.
She then unleashed a huge swarm of vines as Kiyotaka and Todo's eyes widened. They began running on the vines, dodging the strikes of the vines and helping each other as they did so, until the vines stopped in mid-air.
Hanami fired pellets at them, which Kiyotaka and Todo dodged, rushing in as Kiyotaka grabbed Hanami, pulling her into his fist and then shoving her towards Todo's kick as she stumbled back, thinking, 'The force of those sharp punches is even worse now' as she healed the indentation made from Kiyotaka's fist.
She looked to them, thinking, 'Though the strike isn't as bad as the flashy black one, they both have the ability to damage and kill me.'
Suddenly, the vines beneath vanished as Todo thought, 'I messed up! I thought it was passing Cursed Energy through real objects to manipulate that much mass! But it's all the embodiment- the manifestation of its Cursed Energy! That's a Special-Grade for you!'
Hanami stood on a ball made of vines as she then said, "Learn how great the land is!"
Hanami attacked as Kiyotaka propelled both himself and Todo clear of the attack as Hanami looked shocked, thinking, 'They dodged that?! But what... What is this amazing feeling?!'
Kiyotaka then chanted, "Manifest!" forming a steel ball, reinforcing his foot with Cursed Energy and kicking it down to the floor. As it got close enough, he slowed its momentum and shouted, "Use it, Todo!"
Todo clapped his hands as he swapped with the ball just before it landed, letting himself land safely as the Ball reappeared where Todo was leading Hanami to think, 'Why is it there? Where did the other man go?'
Kiyotaka propelled himself towards it and then kicked the ball as it slammed into Hanami, knocking her off her platform and into the foliage below.
Kiyotaka continued to fall as he shouted, "Shift!"
Fluid Staff shot towards the ground, embedding itself as a landing area branched off from it. Kiyotaka braced for impact and landed as he then steadied himself after the impact, before chanting, "Shift."
Kiyotaka slowly lowered himself to the ground by shortening Fluid Staff.
Todo smiled and said, "Thank you for the assist! My Besto Friendo!"
Kiyotaka nodded, saying, "Your Cursed Technique has been partially revealed, so it'll catch on to your Cursed Technique sooner. Don't lower your guard."
Todo smiled and said, "You know just as well as I that it'll prove advantageous to us."
Kiyotaka looked at Todo and smiled, thinking, 'There's actually someone who can keep up with me in things like this. No... he might actually be faster in the uptake.'
Kiyotaka cracked his knuckles before checking himself and thinking, 'My body is in good condition. I can keep up with Todo.'
Hanami walked into a clearing as Kiyotaka rushed in, causing Hanami to think, 'I still can't keep up with that speed.'
Kiyotaka went into an exchange of punches with Hanami, blocking the blows as Todo ran up from behind into a jumping kick, but Hanami blocked it as Kiyotaka thought, 'Is it... starting to enjoy battle? Not good!'
Todo felt the feedback as he thought, 'You monster!' and jumped back.
Hanami unleashed a field of flowers to lull their senses, but they both quickly snapped out of it and dodged the following tree spikes that spouted near them as Hanami thought, 'Mahito, right now... I'm enjoying a fight!'
Todo looked to Kiyotaka and asked, "You okay? Besto Friendo?"
Kiyotaka took a second to check himself before saying, "I'm fine. No injuries. Not even a scratch yet."
Todo nodded and said, "Excellent! Then it's time to unleash my technique!"
Kiyotaka nodded before thinking, 'My head's starting to feel heavy again. Are the effects of my earlier Black Flash wearing off?'
Todo looked to Kiyotaka and said, "There's only one more thing I can say to you. Don't stop! Believe in me!'
Kiyotaka nodded, saying, "Got it."
Todo held his chin, analysing the Curse's different shown techniques, thinking, 'Let's analyse our opponent's cards. One is roots that emerge from the ground. That one probably gains power and speed the more it limits quantity and range. Then there's Wooden Ball. Each ball can attack once or twice, and then it's expended. They can remain airborne, and I have to watch for delayed activation. Then there's Cursed Bud. That's probably what Fushiguro got hit with. Guess you're out if even one of those hits. Though I want to believe that means it can't fire too many. Then there's Flower Field. It looks like it relaxes you, but its earlier wounds are throwing it off. No need to be too wary of it. Then there's that unleashed left arm... And the possibility that all of those are bluffs! However, it doesn't matter what a technique is if you don't let them activate it! Even accounting for unexpected situations, my 530,000 IQ mental CPU produces only one conclusion! Victory!'
Kiyotaka turned to Todo and said, "Let's do it" before charging up Cursed Energy and then throwing a punch at Todo, who clapped his hands, swapping with Hanami as Kiyotaka nailed Hanami in the gut as Black Sparks flew from the strike.
Hanami staggered back, thinking, 'Not another one!'
Kiyotaka jumped back as he smiled, tapping his head with his pointing finger and saying, "My head's feeling light again. This feels great."
Todo smiled, thinking, 'He's gotten the hang of it. As expected of my Besto Friendo.'
Hanami regenerated as Todo smiled, saying, "My Cursed Technique is Boogie Woogie! It lets me swap my position with my opponent's. By the way, clapping my hands is necessary to activate it!" as the two rushed in, attacking Hanami from the front and behind, as Todo clapped to swap positions with Kiyotaka, keeping Hanami disoriented.
Hanami spat out blood, thinking, 'Their builds are too different! There's a big difference after they swap! Is he swapping with me? Or is he swapping with Sukuna's vessel? Every time he claps, that split decision makes my thoughts falter!''
Kiyotaka rushed in for a jab as Hanami prepared to attack, but then heard a clap as Todo was there kicking her, and then Kiyotaka landed his jab to her back. She could feel her skin get indented with each attack Kiyotaka landed on her, thinking, 'Oh no! I can't... keep up with these two!'
As Kiyotaka landed an uppercut, caving in part of her skull, she quickly healed herself, only to hear a clap and for Todo to land a kick to the face. Then an elbow hit her as Todo began to revel in the beauty of his teamwork with Kiyotaka.
Kiyotaka charged up an attack as he slammed his fist where the Curse's liver would be if it were human, as Hanami jumped back using Vine attacks as cover fire.
Kiyotaka didn't even attempt to dodge the vines. He turned his back to the vines and charged Cursed Energy as Todo clapped his hand, swapping Kiyotaka with Hanami as she was hit by her own vine attacks, followed by a blow from Kiyotaka straight to the face, who thought, 'No Black Sparks. It's harder to pull off than I thought,' as Hanami was propelled forward.
Hanami got up slowly, thinking, 'If Sukuna's vessel had landed a Black Flash, I'd be dead', as her face was crumbling from the force of the strike. She healed herself, knowing she wouldn't be able to fight for much longer. Even if Special-Grade Curses had enormous reserves of Cursed Energy, those reserves were still finite.
Hanami took a stance, thinking, 'This is the first time I've been hurt this badly. I've never felt close to death before... and despite that...'
She summoned a huge flower bud, thinking, '... my delight in this battle isn't waning!'
The flower bud had many small buds with teeth as she launched them at the duo. Todo swapped Kiyotaka and Hanami as the Buds raced towards him and Hanami, who thought, 'His Technique Reveal was full of lies. He's able to swap two other people as well?! Back then, when I tried to use gravity against them, he swapped with the ball, meaning he can swap with objects too!'
Kiyotaka watched as Todo silenced his Cursed Energy, and most of the buds tapped against him harmlessly, thinking, 'They absorb Cursed Energy. I see. That's quite the unpleasant surprise for anyone who tries to use Cursed Energy to defend themselves.'
One had landed as Todo pulled it off, saying, "Her next one's the national? I'll have to thank her then, won't I?" referring to Takada, as he had just had a schizophrenic episode where Takada had helped him figure out the truth about the Cursed Buds.
Kiyotaka deadpanned, thinking, 'What are you talking about?'
Kiyotaka sighed as Hanami thought, 'I'll die if I keep fighting, but... but!!!'
Hanami touched the ground, absorbing the lifeforce from the plants around them and saying, "Plants don't generate Cursed Energy. So my left arm steals the life from plants and converts it to Cursed Energy."
The bud on her arm bloomed, and there was an eye in the middle as she continued saying, "But that never gets returned to me. It all goes to this flower offering. I didn't want to use this if I didn't have to."
She smiled, saying, "But it'll be easy for either of you to avoid this, so what should I do? Domain Expan..."
Kiyotaka rushed in, slamming both his fists into Hanami's gut as Black Sparks flew from the hit, causing Hanami to spit up blood as Kiyotaka thought, 'I won't let you use it!'
Todo's eyes widened, thinking, 'They might not have been consecutive, but three Black Flashes? Incredible!'
Hanami staggers back as Kiyotaka says, "My Cursed Technique is Mass Sorcery. It allows me to create and manipulate generic mass in any way that I wish, including density, weight and state of matter" while thinking, 'After that Black Flash, I can feel my technique is working better, but... I'll enhance the effectiveness of my technique even further with this!'
Hanami realised what he was up to, thinking, 'He's revealed his hand to increase the potency of his technique?!'
Todo claps his hands, swapping with Kiyotaka, and landing a combo of attacks, thinking, 'Do what you need to do, Besto Friendo! I'll buy you time!'
Kiyotaka chants, "Manifest", as he summons his sheathed sword, thinking, 'I'll name you Patient Edge.'
Hanami blocks Todo's next combo, thinking, 'Sukuna's vessel is preparing something. I must deal with this man quickly!'
She moves to block the next combo of attacks from Todo, but instead of a punch, Todo claps his hands, switching with Kiyotaka, who unsheathes his blade, slicing through Hanami's arms and slicing her face in half before flicking the blood of the blade on the ground beside him as Hanami collapses and her body begins to evaporate.
Todo smiles, saying, "That was excellent! My Besto Friendo!"
Todo holds out his fist as Kiyotaka bumps fists with him, thinking, 'It's over.'
The veil shatters as Gojo stands in the sky thinking, 'I know what Kiyotaka said to me, but... I will prioritise the students.'
He looked around and saw Kiyotaka standing next to Hanami's body, which was evaporating as Gojo's eyes widened, and he thought, 'Oh? Did he exorcise that Curse?!'
Gojo's gaze shifted to Todo, thinking, 'Aoi? I see. They worked together. So, Kiyotaka and Aoi are actually a good match-up? That's unexpected but...'
Gojo smirked, thinking, '... what an amazing result!'
Gojo then looked elsewhere, thinking, 'I guess I don't have to worry about Kiyotaka and Aoi for now', as he teleported away to another location.
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Mahito clicked his tongue, saying, "Hanami hasn't gotten back."
[Geto] sighed and said, "She's been exorcised by Ayanokoji Kiyotaka. It's unfortunate, but thanks to her, we've achieved our goal."
Mahito looked surprised, thinking, 'Did you die enjoying battle like a Curse, Hanami?' as they moved away from Jujutsu High.
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To Be Continued
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Rating Out Of 10 For This Chapter?
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