What type of woman do you like?

Aoi Todo's eyes widened as he stared at the black-haired boy who had suddenly appeared between him and Megumi Fushiguro.

He had not noticed when the other boy had appeared at all.

One second, there had been only four people in the hallway: Megumi Fushiguro, Nobara Kugisaki, Mai Zenin, and himself.

The next, the boy named Madara Uchiha stood there, as though he had "grown" out of thin air.

A cursed technique?

That was the first thought that flashed through Aoi Todo's mind.

Otherwise, there was no explaining that almost instantaneous speed.

With his dynamic vision, he should at least have caught a trace of an afterimage.

But the boy before him had appeared without any warning.

In reality, however, this was no special cursed technique.

It was simply the raw speed Madara possessed after reinforcing his body with cursed energy.

The result of combining cursed energy reinforcement with over half a year of grueling, almost self-abusive training.

Physical conditioning taken to the extreme.

The next second, Madara's movement interrupted Todo's thoughts.

His left fist had already swung out before Todo could fully recover from his shock.

It was faster than Todo's attack on Fushiguro had been!

Bam-!!!

His fist slammed squarely into Aoi Todo's left cheek.

Aoi Todo did not even have time to block. All he felt was a burst of searing pain in his cheek.

His vision blurred instantly, and that terrifying force lifted his entire body off the ground, sending him flying backward.

His burly body traced an arc through the air and crashed heavily into the wall on the other side of the hallway, leaving a web of cracks across its surface before he slid to the floor.

Nobara Kugisaki, Mai Zenin, Megumi Fushiguro-all three gaped in unison.

Megumi Fushiguro even forgot the pain in his arm. Watching Madara's back as he calmly withdrew his fist, he swallowed before managing to speak.

"Madara... Senpai?!"

After all, Aoi Todo was much bigger than Madara.

Madara stood around 175 centimeters tall and looked rather slender beside Todo's hulking, muscle-bound frame.

Yet this slender Madara had actually sent Todo flying with a single punch?

And judging by the force with which Todo had struck the wall, that punch had definitely packed considerable power.

Mai Zenin's pupils contracted slightly.

Without realizing it, she eased the pressure of the handgun at Kugisaki's waist, her gaze fixed firmly on Madara.

"Hey." She nudged Kugisaki lightly with the muzzle, a barely perceptible trace of tension in her voice. "Who's that guy?"

Nobara Kugisaki snapped out of her shock.

Feeling the gun at her waist ease away, she immediately seized the opportunity, twisting sharply out of Mai's hold and quickly retreating to Madara and Fushiguro's side.

Then she looked at Mai, her lips spreading into a mocking grin.

"You don't know him?" Kugisaki sounded smug. "Madara Uchiha, our second-year senpai at Tokyo Jujutsu High. Our very. Very. Powerful. Senpai~"

She deliberately stressed "very, very powerful," making Mai Zenin frown.

"Madara Uchiha..."

She repeated the name under her breath, rapidly searching her memory for anything about him.

Although Kyoto Jujutsu High and Tokyo Jujutsu High were rivals, they did not exchange information often.

She only knew that Tokyo Jujutsu High had a few promising newcomers this year: the first-year Megumi Fushiguro was Grade 2, and there was a girl named Nobara Kugisaki, as well as the deceased Yuji Itadori.

But Madara Uchiha... She seemed to have heard that name somewhere, though it had left little impression.

He injured Todo with just one punch...

Mai's gaze fell on the face of Aoi Todo as he climbed off the floor some distance away-there was a visible bruise on his left cheek, and blood was seeping from the corner of his mouth.

This guy...

Aoi Todo spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva and wiped the corner of his mouth with his thumb.

Rather than immediately flying into a rage, he grinned, revealing an... excited smile.

"That punch really packed some force." Todo touched the cheek that had been struck. It still hurt, but he felt more surprise and curiosity than anything else.

"You look pretty scrawny. Who would've thought you'd have that much strength?"

He rolled his neck with a series of cracks, then looked at Madara, his large, round eyes blazing with fighting spirit.

Madara stood where he was, his hands back in his uniform pockets and his expression calm.

"As their senpai," he began, a faint note of reproach in his voice, "how could you bully your juniors?"

His gaze shifted to Mai Zenin farther away, settling on the handgun in her hand.

"Wouldn't you agree?"

His gaze was calm, yet Mai felt an inexplicable pressure.

Her grip on the gun tightened involuntarily.

Seeing this, Nobara Kugisaki immediately puffed out her chest, as though she had gained the upper hand.

"Looks like our senpai's a little stronger after all~" She pulled a face at Mai.

"And I've experienced Madara's punches myself. They hurt very, very much."

She was telling the truth.

During their earlier training with Maki and the others, Madara would occasionally step in to offer guidance as their senpai.

The force of those punches landing on their bodies still left Kugisaki and Fushiguro shaken.

That was not the kind of strength an ordinary jujutsu sorcerer should possess.

Even without cursed energy reinforcement, Madara's punches were frighteningly heavy.

Kugisaki had once asked Maki about it privately, but Maki had only said, "That guy's physical toughness isn't much below mine," and left it at that.

"Well, what do you think~?" Kugisaki called to Mai. She had already been thoroughly annoyed with her.

Now that Madara was standing up for her, she wanted to rile the other girl up.

Mai's expression darkened.

She glanced at Madara, then at Aoi Todo, who was loosening his shoulders, and gritted her teeth.

"You! Tch!"

She gave a resentful snort, but still put away her handgun and took several steps back, putting some distance between herself and the three of them.

It was now three against two.

With Todo there, three against two had originally been no big deal-she knew his strength very well. He was a monster who could exorcise a special grade cursed spirit alone.

But now, the other side had Madara Uchiha.

Someone who could injure Todo with a single punch.

"I only sent my juniors out to run a few errands," Madara spoke again, looking at Todo and Mai with a hint of resignation in his voice.

"I didn't expect students from Kyoto Jujutsu High to target them... Does your school not teach basic manners?"

Aoi Todo twisted his neck, then grinned.

"That doesn't matter at all," he said, utterly unapologetic.

"The strong have their own rules. I didn't like the look of them and wanted to test their strength. What's wrong with that?"

Just then, Nobara Kugisaki quietly leaned toward Megumi Fushiguro's ear and asked in a low voice.

"Is Madara not taking part in the Goodwill Event?"

Megumi Fushiguro nodded and answered just as quietly, "Yeah. He said he wasn't participating."

"Why?"

"I think it's because..." Fushiguro thought for a moment. "He doesn't want the hassle."

"That's it?" Kugisaki's eyes widened before she adopted an "I knew it" expression. "Wow... So Madara really is someone who does things his own way?"

She looked at Madara's back with a little more admiration in her eyes.

Meanwhile, Aoi Todo finished loosening his shoulders and neck and straightened up again.

Rather than immediately attacking Madara, he looked the black-haired boy up and down, his eyes brimming with interest.

"Ah, I've heard of you," Todo suddenly said, his voice booming.

"A second-year who voluntarily gave up participating in the Goodwill Event. One of the first-year newcomers died, and the strongest second-year isn't participating-at first, I thought Tokyo Jujutsu High had no one left this year and was only sending out timid little brats."

He paused, his lips spreading into a wild grin.

"But now, it looks like things might be a little different?"

Madara tilted his head, his expression still calm.

"It can't be helped," he said, a hint of languor in his voice. "If I participated in the Goodwill Event, what would be the point? Besides..."

He paused and gave a helpless smile.

"It's just too much trouble."

At those words, Aoi Todo froze for a moment, then burst into laughter.

"Interesting... Far too interesting!" His shoulders shook with laughter. "I'm Aoi Todo, a third-year at the Kyoto branch!"

"Madara Uchiha. Second year," Madara replied simply.

Aoi Todo nodded, then made a move that left everyone present stunned-

He abruptly thrust out his chest and fixed his large, round eyes on Madara, his voice so loud it almost shattered the hallway windows.

"Now that we've introduced ourselves, that makes us friends, right?!"

He paused, then asked the question that still baffled Fushiguro and Kugisaki.

"Madara Uchiha-!"

Aoi Todo's voice echoed through the hallway, carrying an unquestionable seriousness and fervor.

"What type of woman do you like?!"