“I’ll say this one more time,” Utahime said, crossing her arms.
“This is a t-r-a-i-n-i-n-g match,” she emphasized each syllable.
“Absolutely no lethal attacks.
You’ll each go against Nagi one at a time.
Nagi, your classmates want to see what you’re made of.”
I grinned and cracked my neck from side to side.
“Bring it on.”
She turned to Miwa first.
“Miwa, you’ll use a wooden katana.
Mai, empty your revolver and load it with these rubber rounds,” she said, holding out a box to her.
Finally, Utahime fixed her gaze on Mechamaru.
“And you already know what I’m going to say.
No blades, armor-piercing projectiles, or explosive beams.”
Utahime stepped several meters back, out of the fighting area, and tucked her hands beneath the sleeves of her kimono.
“Other than that, fight however you want.
Anything goes.”
I nodded and activated the Shinkeigan.
The change was immediate: both of my eyes, sclera included, turned a deep purple.
The cursed energy from those two girls feels quite a bit weaker than the robot’s.
I’ll try to beat them without using Chronostasis.
That way, I can see if I’m actually getting any better.
Miwa and Mai exchanged a glance.
Miwa tightened both hands around the hilt of her katana, while Mai spun the cylinder of her revolver before snapping it shut.
Mechamaru remained completely still.
“From what he told us, those eyes let him anticipate our movements,” Mai muttered, keeping her gaze fixed on me.
“Try not to think too much, Miwa.”
“That’s impossible,” Miwa replied, unconvinced.
“That’s not how it works…”
“Fight the way you normally would,” Utahime said.
“If you force yourselves not to think, you’ll only fight worse.
Act fast.”
I smiled as I settled into the stance Hayama had spent the entire weekend drilling into my head.
“Whenever you’re ready.”
And just like that, the first fight began.
Nagi vs.
Miwa
Miwa stepped forward with her wooden katana raised.
She tightened her grip, took a deep breath, and reinforced both her body and weapon with cursed energy before charging at me.
I did the same, letting cursed energy flow across my body and trying to control it better this time.
With the Shinkeigan, I can anticipate her movements.
The difference when I fight with these eyes active is insane.
Miwa came at me with a fast horizontal slash from the right, only to cancel it halfway through and feint low, aiming for my legs.
I flipped sideways over the strike and hit her in the shoulder before retreating several steps.
We began circling each other at high speed, both looking for an opening.
Miwa gritted her teeth.
If I were faster, I could get past those eyes.
It’s like trying to hit a fly, Miwa thought.
She rushed me again, pouring more cursed energy into the wooden katana before thrusting it straight toward me.
I struck the side of the blade with the back of my reinforced forearm, knocking it aside so it passed harmlessly beside my body.
I ducked and swept her legs out from under her.
Miwa hit the ground and the katana went flying, but she recovered quickly.
We both jumped for it at the same time, fighting over the weapon like it was a basketball tip-off.
The katana had flown toward her side, so Miwa was going to reach it first.
She was directly in front of me, one arm stretched upward.
I wasn’t going to reach the sword.
So I changed targets.
I drove my elbow into her stomach in midair, holding back enough that I wouldn’t seriously hurt her.
“Ugh!”
The impact forced the air from Miwa’s lungs.
“Hey!” she protested.
“That was kind of dirty!”
“You left yourself open.
You should’ve tried to push me away while you were recovering your weapon.”
I looked toward Utahime, expecting her to call the fight, but she shook her head.
Miwa wasn’t giving up.
I advanced toward her.
Miwa lowered her stance, bending her knees as she held the katana behind her, close to her hip in a sheathed position.
The atmosphere around her changed.
“New Shadow Style: Simple Domain,” she said.
“Quick Draw.”
A blue circle appeared on the ground around Miwa.
The instant I stepped inside, the Shinkeigan warned me and I immediately rolled backward, narrowly avoiding a slash aimed straight at my face.
I stopped just outside the circle.
Miwa stared at me.
A bead of sweat rolled down her temple.
Is he waiting for me to cancel it?
He realized all he has to do is keep his distance, Miwa thought.
“Nagi-kun…” she said desperately.
“Please come a little closer.
Just a tiny bit.”
“No.”
Eventually, Miwa dismissed the blue circle and tried again with a frontal attack.
I knocked the katana aside with my fist, grabbed her wrist with my other hand, and ripped the weapon from her grip.
Bonk.
I lightly tapped her on the head with her own katana.
Miwa’s shoulders slumped as she sighed.
“I give up…
I’m useless,” she muttered, completely dejected.
“You fought really well, Miwa-chan,” I replied.
“By the way, what was that circle?”
Miwa puffed out her cheeks.
“I’m not telling you.”
Nagi vs.
Mai
“My turn,” Mai said.
She opened the cylinder of her revolver and quickly loaded all six rubber rounds.
Then she raised the weapon and looked me directly in the eyes, clearly somewhat intimidated by the Shinkeigan’s monochromatic purple glow.
Tch…
Whatever.
If I shoot fast enough, he won’t have time to dodge, Mai thought.
She started running, putting distance between us, and I could see her body adjusting to aim, holding the weapon at an angle directed toward my right leg.
I reinforced the area with cursed energy.
BANG!
The bullet struck my leg and barely managed to leave a light mark.
I charged toward her while tracking the next projectile with my eyes.
With the Shinkeigan’s precision, I could clearly follow its trajectory.
I could shoot Chronostasis at the bullets.
With my eyes, hitting something that small and fast shouldn’t be impossible.
But I’d already decided I was going to win without using my spheres.
Mai took another step back, trying to maintain the distance, and raised her revolver again.
Left arm this time.
I won’t miss, Mai thought.
She never got the chance to fire.
I reinforced my legs and launched myself toward her, driving a kick straight into her side.
Mai was knocked off her feet and hit the ground.
She rolled and tried to recover, raising the revolver toward me again.
I pivoted on my supporting leg and kicked her wrist, courtesy of Hayama’s taekwondo lessons.
The gun went flying, and Mai grabbed her wrist with her other hand, wincing from the impact.
“Checkmate.”
Mai remained on the ground for a few seconds, staring up at the sky with a defeated expression.
“This is humiliating…
You didn’t even use your other technique.”
I decided to mess with her a little.
“Well, my leg does sting a bit now.”
Mai turned her head toward me.
“Shut up.”
Nagi vs.
Mechamaru
I’m going all out against him.
Mechamaru stepped forward and, without wasting a second—
“Boost On!”
Something resembling thrusters opened from his back and shoulders.
The roar of the engines made the ground tremble slightly, sending blades of grass fluttering around him.
He began circling me at breakneck speed, propelled by the thrusters as he constantly changed direction and altitude, even rising several meters into the air.
I can’t anticipate him.
He doesn’t have nerves.
Still, I’ll keep my eyes active for the boost to my reflexes.
Mechamaru suddenly changed direction.
He stopped circling me and shot forward in a straight line, his mechanical hand clenched into a fist aimed directly at my face.
I waited until he was practically on top of me.
“Freeze.”
I fired a Chronostasis sphere at point-blank range.
Mechamaru froze instantly, suspended in time with his fist only a few centimeters from my face.
Even his thrusters were frozen.
Miwa’s eyes widened from the sidelines.
“Is that his other technique?
Do you think he can actually beat Mechamaru, Mai?”
Mai leaned forward slightly, now watching the fight closely.
“I don’t know exactly how that sphere works, but…
maybe.
Though Mechamaru isn’t using most of his arsenal.”
Kokichi Muta’s POV — Lying in the bathtub
The image being transmitted by the puppet suddenly froze, leaving Nagi stuck on the screen in the middle of firing.
“What happened to the feed?
Why did the image suddenly freeze?”
End POV
I struck Mechamaru square in the metal chest, breaking Chronostasis.
The force sent him flying several meters backward and left a dent in his torso, but his thrusters activated immediately, allowing him to stabilize himself before landing on his feet.
I need to work on the flow of my cursed energy.
I should’ve been able to take him down with that.
Mechamaru brought a hand to his visor, slightly disoriented by the sudden jump in his perception.
“Must feel pretty weird getting caught in Chronostasis,” I said with a grin.
“Though I guess it isn’t quite the same for you.
You’re not actually in there, are you?”
Mechamaru didn’t answer.
He propelled himself backward, clearly more irritated than before, and this time kept a safe distance between us.
An opening appeared in one of his hands as cursed energy began gathering inside it.
“Ultra Cannon.”
…
That would hurt a lot, wouldn’t it?
“Enough!” Utahime interrupted before he could fire.
“We’re stopping here.
I made it perfectly clear: no powerful attacks.”
Mechamaru lowered his arm, and I relaxed my stance.
“All four of you did well,” Utahime continued, “but you also have plenty of things you need to improve.”
The purple faded from my eyes, returning them to normal.
I could’ve kept going, but now he knows about Chronostasis and knows he needs to try to dodge the spheres.
I’d probably end up losing.
Mechamaru stared at me for a few seconds.
“Good fight,” he finally said.
“You think quickly, and your technique is formidable, but you lack destructive power.”
“I know.”
Miwa walked over to us.
“Even so, that was incredible.
You’ve barely been a sorcerer for any time at all, Nagi-kun.”
Mai let out a small huff, though she didn’t say anything to disagree.
Mechamaru nodded as well.
I looked at the three of them.
I still have so much to improve, but hey…
we’re only first-years, this is just the beginning.
Chronostasis and help more people find it!