Boogie Woogie

The instant Dai Li finished speaking, the ground beneath his feet exploded.

A towering figure shot out of the woods like a cannonball, charging straight toward the Tokyo Jujutsu High group with an overwhelming presence.

"Here he comes."

Dai Li narrowed his eyes.

Aoi Todo had no intention of concealing his presence. He unleashed the cursed energy of a Semi-Grade 1 Sorcerer without restraint, frightening even the nearby low-level cursed spirits into scattering.

"He's so fast!"

Yuta Okkotsu tightened his grip on his sword, instinctively preparing to fight.

But a figure stepped in front of him the next second.

"I'm your opponent, Aoi Todo."

Dai Li raised a hand, signaling for Okkotsu to step back.

"But..."

Yuta Okkotsu hesitated.

He wasn't afraid of Aoi Todo. He simply didn't want Dai Li to face Kyoto Jujutsu High's strongest fighter alone.

"Don't worry."

Dai Li rolled his shoulders.

"If I can't even handle this much, wouldn't killing that special grade cursed spirit have been pointless?"

As his words fell,

Aoi Todo's fist was already upon him.

Dai Li chose not to block it head-on. Instead, he turned sideways and dodged. The gust from the punch swept past his cheek and blasted apart a tree behind him.

"Not bad."

Dai Li glanced at the trunk split by the force of the punch.

"Hahahaha!"

Aoi Todo roared with laughter.

"All you're going to do is dodge?"

Without pausing, he twisted with his momentum and drove his other fist in from the side.

"I'd rather not take one of your punches head-on."

Dai Li stepped back as red cursed energy flickered in his hand.

"Projection, begin."

A short blade instantly appeared in his palm.

The blade struck Aoi Todo's fist with a sharp metallic clang. A second later, cracks appeared across its surface.

Dai Li's brow twitched.

"That body's ridiculously tough. What did you grow up eating?"

He immediately released the projected cursed tool and pulled back to create distance.

Watching the shattered blade slowly disappear on the ground, Aoi Todo grew even more excited.

"Interesting."

"Your cursed technique doesn't just create weapons."

"You reproduce cursed tools with cursed energy, making them closer to the originals than ordinary copies."

Dai Li's gaze shifted slightly.

This guy...

He looked like all brawn and no brains, but his combat instincts were far too sharp.

After just one exchange, he had already identified the characteristics of the Projection Cursed Technique.

Still, Dai Li didn't dwell on it.

After all, the Projection Cursed Technique was simple but powerful.

"Todo."

Dai Li gripped another long blade he had projected.

"You didn't come looking for me just to finish the match, did you?"

"Of course not."

Aoi Todo grinned.

"Winning or losing can wait. Right now, what I really want to know is..."

He lowered his stance slightly and held his open right hand in front of his chest, striking a questioning pose.

"What kind of woman is your type?"

"..."

The next instant,

both figures vanished at once.

The sounds of clashing weapons and colliding fists and feet rang through the woods in rapid succession.

Elsewhere,

Yuta Okkotsu watched the two fighting in the distance with a complicated expression.

"This Dai Li...

Is he always like this?"

"He's really getting me fired up, too."

Kinji Hakari folded his arms and chuckled.

Watching the two exchange blows in the distance, Kirara Hoshi said softly:

"That Todo is no pushover either. He genuinely enjoys fighting."

Yuta Okkotsu fell silent for a moment, then tightened his grip on his sword.

"Then I can't stop either. I have to get stronger."

"At the very least, I can't stand behind other people forever."

Meanwhile, deep in the woods,

Aoi Todo was forced back once more by a spear Dai Li had projected, and the grin on his face grew wider.

"Good."

"This Goodwill Event hasn't disappointed me after all."

Yuta Okkotsu, Kinji Hakari, and the others continued onward, exorcising plenty of cursed spirits along the way. Tokyo Jujutsu High's current score far outstripped Kyoto Jujutsu High's.

The Kyoto Jujutsu High students continued carrying out their plan.

Momo Nishimiya was flying above the woods on her broom, searching for something. Her cursed technique, "Tool Manipulation," was invaluable for gathering intelligence to carry out their plan.

"Found them."

Momo Nishimiya quickly located Noritoshi Kamo and the others and told them where the remaining Tokyo Jujutsu High students were.

"Good. I'll handle Kinji Hakari.

Noritoshi Kamo, Yuta Okkotsu is yours. Just make sure you don't overwhelm him too badly."

Mechamaru knew nothing about Kinji Hakari's abilities, but this mission could not fail. He was confident on that front: no one could match the power of his "Ultra Cannon."

"Hey, what kind of woman is your type?"

"Men are fine too. Hurry up and tell me!"

His Tokyo Jujutsu High companions hadn't left earlier, and Dai Li had felt a little embarrassed discussing his tastes in front of a whole crowd.

"Fine, I'll tell you."

"If I had to say:

A blonde, twin-tailed, tsundere rich-girl loli."

Upon hearing Dai Li's answer, Aoi Todo's expression instantly turned cold. The enthusiasm he had shown during their sparring cooled.

"It seems we're destined to be enemies."

Aoi Todo's voice deepened.

The excitement that had filled his face vanished the instant he heard Dai Li's answer, as though something had abruptly doused the passion for battle between them.

"Wait, why?"

Dai Li froze for a moment.

Although he knew Aoi Todo had extremely strict standards when it came to tastes in women, he hadn't expected his answer to provoke that expression.

"Blonde twin tails. A tsundere rich girl. A loli."

Aoi Todo closed his eyes and slowly shook his head.

"Too shallow."

"Your soul hasn't reached my level."

"..."

The corner of Dai Li's mouth twitched.

Sure enough, this guy's thought process couldn't be understood through normal human logic.

"So you're saying my taste is no good?"

"Not at all. I don't dislike a man who boldly declares his preferences."

Aoi Todo opened his eyes, his gaze sharpening once more.

"It's just that I can't feel any connection with you."

The next instant, he charged again.

"In that case, let me test your soul with my fists!"

"You really do start swinging without warning."

Dai Li sighed helplessly, but he didn't back down.

Trading blows with a close-combat expert of Aoi Todo's caliber was an excellent opportunity for him to hone his skills.

"Projection, begin."

Several short blades appeared behind Dai Li at once.

With a thought, he sent them shooting toward Aoi Todo like a torrential downpour.

Aoi Todo showed no sign of panic. He abruptly brought his hands together.

Clap!

A crisp clap rang through the forest.

"What?"

In an instant, Aoi Todo vanished from the spot where the short blades should have surrounded him.

Instead, he appeared where Dai Li had been standing.

"This is my Boogie Woogie."

Dai Li immediately reacted. He had been so focused on observing Todo's close-combat skills that he had forgotten Todo hadn't used his cursed technique yet. His Boogie Woogie was troublesome too.

He had thought Todo was fighting purely with his physical abilities, but the man had been waiting for an opening all along.

"That was close."

Dai Li forcibly redirected the cursed tools' attacks.

The short blades he had launched halted in midair, then changed direction and plunged into a nearby tree trunk.

Had he failed to control them in time, every one of those attacks might have struck him instead.

"Not bad."

Watching this, Aoi Todo looked even more pleased.

"You stopped your attack instantly without knowing what my cursed technique does."

"Your reaction speed is excellent."

Dai Li looked at Aoi Todo, his expression growing more serious.

"You held off on using your cursed technique to deliberately keep your trump card hidden."

"Your combat experience really is something else."

Aoi Todo flashed a grin.

"Only getting serious now?"

"Good."

"Now you're looking like a man worth fighting with everything I've got."

Dai Li tightened his grip on the silver longsword he had projected, his gaze gradually sharpening.

"Then let's keep going."

"I'm starting to get used to your Boogie Woogie."

The two collided again: fist against blade, cursed energy against flesh.

Trees toppled one after another, and the sounds of their fierce battle carried into the distance.

Not long after this Goodwill Event began, everyone gradually came to realize one thing.

The new students Tokyo Jujutsu High had brought this year were far more dangerous than they had imagined.