Individual Battles (1)

The team battle came to a hasty end. That Semi-Grade 1 Cursed Spirit had not even been exorcised yet. The final score was ten to four, with Tokyo Jujutsu High emerging victorious. Some of those ten points had even come from Rika tearing opponents apart with her bare hands after losing control.

Momo Nishimiya, Kamo Noritoshi, and Todo Aoi from Kyoto had been eliminated midway through, while Panda and Okkotsu Yuta had been taken out on Tokyo's side. No one knew how Gojo Satoru had handled things, but it was as though Rika's temporary loss of control had never affected anything.

By the time Panda returned from Principal Yaga, his body had mostly been repaired. With Ieiri Shoko around, the others were soon back on their feet as well.

Todo Aoi, meanwhile, did not seem to have been frightened off by Rika. Still brimming with fighting spirit, he told Okkotsu Yuta that their previous battle had been interrupted by an accident and that he was looking forward to another match. He also acknowledged Okkotsu Yuta's strength.

I'd rather not have that kind of acknowledgment... Okkotsu Yuta thought.

But Todo then turned to Shen Yuanyi. Though he had not been present for the final battle, he still knew roughly what had happened.

"I thought this Exchange Event would be boring, but then I met Okkotsu and you. I'm already looking forward to tomorrow's individual battles!"

Todo Aoi tilted his head back as though imagining something, then asked Shen Yuanyi that question again. "Shen Yuanyi... what kind of woman do you like?"

Shen Yuanyi had come to see Okkotsu Yuta, and he had even brought two popsicles. Yet Todo, who had appeared here out of nowhere, had asked him that question. Thinking of Okkotsu and the future Itadori...

Gripping the remaining popsicle stick, Shen Yuanyi solemnly said to Todo, "The type I like... is a white-haired beast-eared girl! At least, for now."

Todo froze for a moment, his expression becoming somewhat indescribable. "Ah... what a shame. Still, I respect your preferences. I hope to see your strength tomorrow, Shen Yuanyi!"

Just then, Maki walked in through the doorway. She had clearly heard the conversation inside, judging by the look in her eyes—as if she were looking at garbage.

"Principal Yaga has called everyone over to decide tomorrow's individual battles. You... forget it." With that, Maki turned and left.

Shen Yuanyi scratched his head. "What's wrong with Maki? Never mind. Okkotsu, let's go."

Without sensing anything wrong at all, Shen Yuanyi and Okkotsu Yuta headed to the meeting place, while Todo returned to Kyoto Jujutsu High's side.

The students and teachers from both sides were already there. Shen Yuanyi and the others were the last to arrive. Once everyone had gathered, Yaga Masamichi began, "As for tomorrow's individual battles, we have tentatively decided on two formats. Now, I want to hear your opinions."

"The first is a straightforward gauntlet match. Both sides send out combatants, and the winner continues fighting until one final victor remains."

"The second is one-on-one matches. Both sides take turns choosing opponents. The winner earns one point, and the outcome is decided by the score."

"Principal Yaga."

Maki raised her hand with a question. "But we only have five people. How do we deal with the unequal numbers?"

Yaga Masamichi seemed to have anticipated this. "If the second format is chosen, Tokyo Jujutsu High may have one student fight twice. In exchange, Kyoto will make the first selection. If the score is tied three to three, the individual battles will be considered a draw, and Tokyo Jujutsu High, the winner of the team battle, will win overall."

"What if we win the individual battles? If each side has one victory, how will the final winner be decided?"

Kamo Noritoshi asked this, and Gojo Satoru immediately jumped out and said excitedly, "Then we'll enter the final showdown!"

Everyone instinctively felt that this so-called "final showdown" was probably problematic, so they tacitly ignored the grinning Gojo Satoru, who was talking to himself.

Instead, both sides formed circles and began discussing. Panda stroked his chin with an expression that suggested he had seen through everything. "Say... isn't the first format actually better for us? Yuanyi might be able to sweep their entire side by himself!"

Maki adjusted her glasses. "The second is like Tian Ji's horse-racing strategy. If Yuanyi fights twice, we're guaranteed to win at least once, maybe even twice. Looking at it that way, our chances are pretty high!"

Kyoto's side, by contrast, had a slightly heavier atmosphere. The two sides had fought before. Some matches had produced clear winners, like Shen Yuanyi and Kamo Noritoshi, while others, such as Maki's side, had yet to be decided.

But at the very least, they had some understanding of each other's strength. Kasumi Miwa rested her cheek on her hand, looking somewhat dejected. "From what everyone's saying, if we choose the second format, they'll definitely send Shen Yuanyi out twice... How are we supposed to deal with that?"

Kamo Noritoshi spoke up. "Their strongest fighter is likely Shen Yuanyi. My battle with him ended quickly. His speed was abnormally fast, probably due to his cursed technique."

"We have two ways to deal with him. One is to have our two weakest members use up his two battles, though they probably won't let us get away with that."

"The second is for us to choose someone to fight him first. They would probably use their strongest horse against our middle horse. Aside from that, we would have to win all our other matches. It's difficult..."

Todo Aoi continued, "Those First-years are all monsters. But don't worry too much. They definitely won't choose that tactic. They'll only go king against king, general against general, and wage the fiercest, most wholehearted battles!"

Maki Zenin beside him naturally looked utterly confused. Had Todo overheard the other side discussing their strategy? But all she had heard was indistinct mumbling!

"Todo, why do you say that?"

Hearing Maki Zenin's question, Todo Aoi flashed his white teeth. "Great minds think alike!"

"..."

Everyone was speechless. Then they tacitly skipped over Todo again and continued discussing the details. Todo did not seem to care much either. That was why these people were not qualified to become his best friends! How lonely...

"I don't care. Whether it's Okkotsu or Shen Yuanyi, as long as they're my opponents, that'll be enough to make me look forward to it!"

On Tokyo Jujutsu High's side, everyone had also unanimously chosen the second format. The team battle had ended so quickly that most of them had not settled matters with their opponents. Only Shen Yuanyi had swiftly eliminated two people.

"So what if they're First-years? So what if their Jujutsu Sorcerer ranks are low? I'll beat them until they're begging for mercy!" Maki's face was filled with fighting spirit.

Panda was fired up as well. Inumaki and Okkotsu both nodded in agreement. When everyone looked at him, Shen Yuanyi scratched his head and yawned. He had stayed up all night playing games. His stamina could handle it, but some natural reactions were unavoidable.

"Wouldn't the first format guarantee our victory? But if you all agree, I don't mind. I'm probably supposed to fight twice, right?"

Maki said indifferently, "We already have a huge advantage. They'll definitely send out their weakest fighter first to use up one of your battles. We just need to roughly decide the order."

In the end, both sides agreed on the individual battle format. The individual battles would begin tomorrow morning at ten in the school dojo.

Yaga Masamichi announced, "Then let's determine the order of the matches. Kyoto will choose first."

Kamo Noritoshi stepped forward as their representative. "Kasumi Miwa from our side will challenge Shen Yuanyi."

Neither side seemed surprised. Kasumi Miwa, however, looked slightly nervous. Then it was Tokyo's turn.

Okkotsu Yuta stepped forward. "I choose to fight Kamo Noritoshi-senpai."

When it was Kyoto's turn again, Todo Aoi stepped forward. "I want to fight Shen Yuanyi."

Kamo Noritoshi's expression did not change, but the others looked more or less regretful. In their view, it would have been best to have another person challenge Shen Yuanyi, then let Todo fight Okkotsu Yuta. If that was not possible, they could choose the Cursed Speech User, Inumaki Toge. That might have given them a better chance.

Shen Yuanyi was even less bothered by it. This was actually better for him—at least it would not be so boring. Though he had not seen Kamo Noritoshi's trump card, the outcome would not change anyway. If he remembered correctly, Todo seemed quite strong in hand-to-hand combat. Tomorrow, they could start with a martial arts showdown.

Over on the Kyoto side, Todo had always done whatever he pleased, and no one could stop him from getting his way. Then it was Tokyo's turn. Panda spoke on behalf of the not-so-talkative Inumaki Toge. "Inumaki Toge chooses to fight Mechamaru."

"Salmon mayo!"

Kyoto then made another selection. This time, Momo Nishimiya chose Maki, leaving Panda to face Maki Zenin.

With that settled, there was nothing else to do today. Yaga gave the order to dismiss, and Shen Yuanyi 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 absolutely crush everyone!"

Just as she was about to leave, Maki spoke up after hearing that. "Hey... you two better not pull another all-nighter gaming. We have the individual matches tomorrow!"

Shen Yuanyi laughed it off. "Maki, you know staying up late is nothing to me. We definitely won't stay up all night."

Panda put on an honest, guileless 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. On her way out, she tilted her head toward Okkotsu Yuta and said, "Don't be like those two. You'll end up unlucky."

"Uh..." Okkotsu Yuta did not know what to say, but Maki had already left. Inumaki Toge even gave him a "Salmon mayo." Was that supposed to be encouragement, or...

As for Shen Yuanyi, he had long since slung an arm around Panda's shoulders. Seeing that Maki had left as well, the two of them dragged Inumaki Toge along too.

Shen Yuanyi's voice drifted down the hallway. "I bought Breath of the Wild at launch, and I still haven't played much of it. But I still have to say: Zelda is the GOAT!"

Not long after the voices vanished around the corner, Panda's head poked out from that same corner. "Okkotsu, come too."

"But... um..."

Panda nimbly slipped over and put an arm around Okkotsu's shoulders. "Training hard is something you build up day by day. When it's almost exam time like this, you naturally have to spend it playing. Mindset and emotions can affect victory too."

Before he knew it, Okkotsu had been pulled into the group of three, and the four of them marched off in grand fashion toward the battlefield.