The Tokyo-Kyoto Sister School Exchange Event, spanning two days.
Day one: a thrilling group battle—cursed spirit extermination showdown.
The rules were simple: the team that exorcised the designated second-grade cursed spirit in the assigned area first would win.
The zone was also crawling with third-grade-and-below spirits. If no victor emerged by sunset, the team with the higher kill count took it.
"No other rules apply. Hindering your opponents is fair game, but remember—you're all comrades against curses," Yaga Masamichi said, throttling Gojo Satoru with both hands. The guy's sass to Kyoto's principal was too much. "Just don't kill or gravely injure each other."
"Heh heh heh," An Gogeji snickered from the sidelines, delighted to see Gojo "tamed"—even if it was fake.
"That's it! Match starts at noon. Disperse for now," Yaga released Gojo. Everyone scattered to their camps.
Tokyo School side.
Meeting time.
The crew piled into a room.
Hayashi plopped down in a corner, his lips still stinging like fire. No clue when they'd heal.
He'd meant to learn healing jujutsu, but hadn't yet. Asking Ieiri Shoko to fix his mouth felt too awkward—caught between a rock and a hard place.
"Here, take this and kneel over there," Nobara Kugisaki said, tossing Yuji Itadori a framed photo stand—meant for the deceased.
Yuji, unable to argue, took it without a fight, shuffled forward, and knelt, holding it up.
"Raise it—to your face," Nobara instructed.
Yuji obeyed, positioning the frame at his head. Perfect—a mock memorial portrait.
Panda and Toge Inumaki glanced at the ridiculous Yuji, then settled on the tatami edge.
Maki, arms crossed, sized up this new kid she'd never met. He seemed… ordinary.
Yuji shot a pleading look at Hayashi in the corner, hoping for a bailout. Hayashi ignored him.
A few minutes later—
"Uh… this is borderline serious bullying," Yuji said, giving up on rescue, turning to Nobara.
Nobara faced away, pouting. "Shut it. Stay like that for now."
Panda couldn't take it anymore. "C'mon, he explained himself—forgive him already."
"The panda's talking," Yuji said, eyeing Panda curiously.
"Salmon, salmon," Toge chimed in.
"What's he saying?" Yuji glanced at Toge.
Fushiguro explained, "Senior Toge's a cursed speech user. His technique amps words with binding force. For safety, he sticks to set phrases."
Yuji nodded. "So if he says 'die,' they die? That's OP."
Hayashi, off in the corner, perked up. Cursed speech?
He'd never paid it much mind, but Yuji's offhand comment sparked something.
If he could tap into cursed speech's lineage—find a jujutsu manual for it—and offset the backlash with other means, he'd just speak, and bam—foes obliterated. Like Yuji said: strongest ever.
"Not that simple. It depends on the power gap. Strong words have big recoil—worst case, it backfires," Panda clarified. "Fixed phrases protect Toge too."
"Oh… then why can you talk, Senior?" Yuji asked Panda. "New panda breed?"
Nobara cut in, "Spilling others' techniques like that—"
"It's fine. Toge's deal isn't that kind of issue. More importantly, Yuji," Maki stepped up, extending a slender hand. "Give me back Tozama. Gojo lent it to you, right?"
Yuji's face fell. That cursed tool—he'd broken it, hadn't he?
Still, he kept cool, head down. "It's with Gojo-sensei."
Hearing that, Maki clicked her tongue, arms crossing. "That idiot blindfold guy."
Fushiguro's mouth twitched. Only Maki dared trash-talk Gojo behind his back.
Meanwhile, Gojo lounged in a spacious room, screens lining the front—likely for monitoring the match area.
"Achoo!"
He sneezed, spraying into his green tea cup.
"Gross!" An Gogeji recoiled.
Back in the corner, Hayashi stood, clapping his hands. "Alright, enough chit-chat. Let me say something."
"No one's stopping you, y'know?" Fushiguro deadpanned, a vein pulsing on his forehead. This guy—silent as a statue earlier, now piping up.
"Sorry, was lost in thought," Hayashi said, hands in pockets as he stepped forward.
"Seriously, can you ditch that obnoxious mask? Don't copy Gojo's dumbass vibe," Maki snapped.
Her words nearly tripped Hayashi. He stumbled, barely catching himself. This wasn't a Gojo knockoff—he had no choice!
"Leave it, Senpai. Personal reasons—not tied to Gojo-sensei," Hayashi waved it off, getting to the point. "Here's the deal: this group match isn't the priority. Our real target isn't Kyoto School."
"What's that mean?" Maki frowned. Not Kyoto? Then who—those weak cursed spirits in the zone? No threat there.
All eyes locked on Hayashi, waiting for his next words.
"Yuji, remember that volcano head?" Hayashi asked.
"Yeah—Fuji-top guy. Didn't Gojo-sensei take him out?" Yuji nodded. That lava dome was unforgettable.
"No, no, no," Hayashi wagged a finger. Everyone stared, puzzled, unsure what he was on about.
Only Yuji had a clue.
Hayashi faced the group, launching into an explanation. "Listen up—this is life-or-death. There's a massive cursed spirit faction gunning for us. Hold your questions—let me finish. This group's been around forever—a coalition of special-grade cursed spirits."
Hayashi rattled on, the room's mood shifting from confusion to surprise, then full-on shock.