Defeat me

The Kyoto Sister-School Goodwill Event.

The first day began with the thrilling Cursed Spirit Extermination Race.

"Many grade 3 cursed spirits will be placed throughout the competition area, along with one terrifyingly powerful grade 2 cursed spirit. The first team to exorcise the grade 2 cursed spirit wins."

"Of course, since this is a competition, you are allowed to obstruct your opponents and interfere with their actions. But the purpose of the Goodwill Event is still to understand your companions and yourselves."

"If neither team manages to exorcise the grade 2 cursed spirit before nightfall, the team that exterminates the most grade 3 cursed spirits wins."

Masamichi Yaga glanced at the listless Araki Itsuki and the other team members below, his voice growing quieter as he spoke.

He shook his head. He ought to worry about the opposing team's safety instead. "Remember not to kill your opponents or inflict irreversible injuries. You are still comrades who will fight side by side."

"That is all. You're dismissed until the competition begins at noon."

After they were dismissed, Araki Itsuki stood beside Inumaki and asked curiously:

"Inumaki, your ability is incredible. You can amplify words or give them a powerful influence, forcing your target to obey."

"Too bad your mind is so innocent."

Inumaki looked puzzled. "Salmon, salmon?"

Yuji Itadori asked curiously, "What's Inumaki saying?"

"And from what Araki said, does that mean if Inumaki tells someone to die, they'll die right away?"

Araki Itsuki shook his head. "If it were that convenient, Inumaki would already be a special grade sorcerer."

"His ability depends on the difference in strength. Powerful words come with powerful backlash. In the worst case, they could very well rebound on him."

Panda nodded, looking at Araki Itsuki as he added, "If Inumaki used cursed speech on Mr. Gojo or Araki, he'd most likely suffer backlash."

While they chatted, Satoru Gojo had also found Utahime Iori.

"What is it?"

Yet the sight of Satoru Gojo alone irritated Utahime Iori. Although she hadn't had the scar on her face back in her student days, he had been mocking her since their teens.

That had made her dislike Satoru Gojo, leaving her unable to get along with him.

Satoru Gojo looked puzzled. "What are you angry about?"

"I'm not angry."

Satoru Gojo nodded confidently. "Right. I haven't done anything, after all."

Then he explained why he had come.

"Someone at Jujutsu High is colluding with curses or curse users."

Utahime Iori immediately rejected the idea. "Impossible! Curse users are one thing, but why would anyone collude with cursed spirits?"

Satoru Gojo picked up the cup Utahime Iori had handed him and took a sip of hot water before saying with certainty:

"Special grade cursed spirits have been appearing one after another lately. The culprit might only be associating with curse users, but there's still a potential threat."

"I'll leave the Kyoto side of the investigation to you, Utahime."

Utahime Iori looked awkward. She hadn't expected Satoru Gojo to trust her so much.

"Um... what if I'm the mole?"

Satoru Gojo immediately relaxed. "No, no. You're too weak, and you don't have the guts."

Utahime was so furious that she flipped the table. "Aaaah! I'm your senior!"

Satoru Gojo turned and fled in fright.

"Scary! Nobody likes a hysterical woman, you know! I'm leaving!"

Soon, the Goodwill Event officially began.

Satoru Gojo and Utahime Iori sat in the Broadcast Room.

"There's one minute left before the competition begins. Now, let's have Ms. Utahime give us an inspiring speech."

Utahime looked bewildered and surprised at the microphone Satoru Gojo offered her. No one had mentioned this beforehand.

"Huh?!"

Left with no choice, she had to wing it.

"S-since this is a competition, some injuries are inevitable. Um... sometimes you all need to help one another, too..."

"Time's up!"

"Satoru Gojo, you bastard!"

Outside, Fushiguro listened to the broadcast with a helpless expression. "Mr. Gojo..."

Araki Itsuki laughed. "He used to be a problem child, too. Always calling people monkeys."

Fushiguro hadn't expected the kind, gentle Satoru Gojo to have such an embarrassing past, but Araki Itsuki had no intention of saying any more.

He headed into the competition area first, with Maki and the others following.

"So, are we splitting up to hunt those cursed spirits?"

An amused smile tugged at Araki Itsuki's lips as he stopped in the forest.

"I don't want to run around. Too much trouble. Itadori, everyone, stand back."

Maki and Panda were still puzzled, but Kugisaki had already remembered what had happened when she first enrolled.

She hurriedly took two steps back, putting distance between herself and Araki Itsuki.

Seeing that, the others quickly scattered as well, hiding behind trees.

Once Araki Itsuki saw that they were safely hidden, he gave them a reassuring smile.

Then his Death Omen Star energy effortlessly mimicked the fluctuations of cursed energy.

Itadori, Inumaki, and the others stared at Araki Itsuki in shock.

Terrifying cursed energy rose from his body, so dense it almost became tangible. There was so much of it that even his surroundings began to dim.

Boom!

An enormous torrent of terrifying cursed energy erupted.

The wind pressure sent Yuji Itadori's uniform and those of the others flapping loudly as they raised their arms to brace against the oppressive force.

Somewhere in the forest, a grade 3 cursed spirit felt the cursed energy in the air seem to come alive, suddenly crushing and battering it with wild force.

Splat.

Before it could even understand what had happened, the raging cursed energy crushed it until it burst.

Splat, splat, splat, splat, splat!

An unbroken series of crushing explosions sounded through the forest. Every grade 3 cursed spirit burst apart and died in an instant.

At the spectator stands.

Boom, boom, boom, boom!

The talismans neatly arranged on the wall ignited with red flames all at once, lighting up the spectators' varied expressions.

Every cursed spirit placed in the competition area had been tagged with a cursed talisman beforehand. Once a cursed spirit disappeared, its corresponding cursed talisman at the spectator stands would burn away.

Cursed spirits exorcised by Tokyo Jujutsu High produced red flames, while those exorcised by Kyoto produced blue flames.

A delighted, amused expression appeared on Satoru Gojo's handsome face. "Araki really does whatever he wants."

Mei Mei, a grade 1 jujutsu sorcerer, lounged on the sofa, toying with the thick braid covering half her face. "Looks like we have a winner?"

Masamichi Yaga remained expressionless. "No. Araki Itsuki deliberately left the grade 2 cursed spirit alive. It takes priority over the grade 3 cursed spirits. It seems he has something else in mind."

"Hehe. I simply can't understand anything that doesn't involve money."

"That's why I call you a miser, Mei Mei."

Yoshinobu Gakuganji looked displeased. "Surely this breaks the rules?"

Satoru Gojo stretched, showing him no regard whatsoever. "In that case, would you mind going to teach Araki a lesson?"

Yoshinobu Gakuganji fell silent.

At that, Satoru Gojo leaned back against the sofa and tilted his head to look at Mei Mei behind him. "Be honest, Ms. Mei. Whose side are you on?"

There were only four special grade sorcerers in total. These grade 1 jujutsu sorcerers were the true backbone of Jujutsu High.

Mei Mei made a money gesture with her fingers. "Whose side? I'm on money's side. Anything that can't be converted into money has no value. Because you can't turn it into money."

Satoru Gojo stared at Mei Mei curiously. "I wonder how much you've saved."

Meanwhile.

After unleashing his cursed energy, Araki Itsuki turned to explain to the shocked, bewildered group behind him.

"I've selectively crushed all the grade 3 cursed spirits in the forest. As for the grade 2 cursed spirit, I buried it deep underground. There's no way to find it."

"So their condition for winning has changed."

"If they want to win, they'll have to defeat me."