Chapter 35 — Thirty-Five Punch
"Ready—three, two, one… let the match begin!"
With Gojo Satoru's announcement, those stationed at the maze entrances dashed inside, each with their own thoughts.
Yuji Itadori had been assigned to Entrance I. The moment the broadcast declared the start of the match, he shot forward like an elite track athlete.
Above the maze, crows circled, accurately transmitting images to the school's surveillance room. Though thirteen students were participating in the team event, only six screens displayed the live feeds. The screen tracking Yuji Itadori was, by mutual understanding between the two schools' principals, the largest.
"Yuji's start speed is really impressive," Gojo Satoru said, leaning casually on the sofa, fingers fidgeting with the edge of his blindfold. His tone was light, almost playful. "He's probably the fastest among everyone right now."
Yoshinobu Gakuganji remained silent, but his gaze slowly shifted to the screen showing Aoi Todo.
Since entering the maze, Todo had been moving around continuously. He didn't appear to be searching for the exit; instead, he seemed to be looking for someone.
…At the secret Kyoto school meeting before the match, Yoshinobu Gakuganji had personally instructed all participating Kyoto students: if they found the opportunity, they must do whatever it took, using any dirty tricks necessary, to completely eliminate both Sukuna vessels—Yuji Itadori included.
At that meeting, Todo had appeared absent-minded among the students, staring blankly into space. Iwajiri had paused several times, watching him. Eventually, Mai Zen'in grew impatient and nudged him with her elbow. "Todo, did you hear that?"
"Huh? …Oh."
Todo had casually replied, yet his expression was full of indifference. His behavior had been unusually strange, leaving Iwajiri to mentally mark a big question about him.
But now, seeing Todo's movements on the surveillance screen, Iwajiri relaxed slightly.
It seemed Todo had indeed absorbed what he had been told back then.
And judging by the direction the Sukuna vessel and Todo were heading, they should encounter each other soon. When that happens, it would be the Sukuna vessel's death sentence.
---
Yuji Itadori sprinted through the maze at full speed.
After discovering the match would take place in a maze, the second-year seniors had shared the key strategies for winning the team event with him.
Against the Kyoto team, who aimed to assassinate him, the methods were: first, for Tokyo students to gather quickly and try to eliminate the dispersed Kyoto participants; second, to solve the maze as fast as possible and defeat the Level 2 Cursed Spirit at the center, thus ending the match.
Therefore, both his teammates and the Level 2 Cursed Spirit were search targets.
Ahead was a cross-shaped intersection. Yuji dashed toward it, slowing slightly as he approached, but then he heard heavy footsteps from the right corridor.
Someone's coming!
Yuji's training with the second-year seniors had familiarized him with the footstep patterns of all Tokyo participants. But these footsteps were unfamiliar—they belonged to the Kyoto school!
As Yuji made this judgment, the approaching footsteps were already close. In that instant, his pupils constricted slightly—
A nearly two-meter-tall, half-naked man, appearing like a small mountain, suddenly flashed from the other side of the intersection. The left side of his face bore a gruesome scar, and his thick, coiled muscles glistened with a thin layer of sweat.
—Aoi Todo!
Time seemed to freeze. Yuji clenched his fists, readying himself for battle. Todo, running from the right side of the intersection to the left, shifted his gaze from straight ahead to Yuji Itadori.
In the surveillance room, Gojo Satoru's smile vanished, while Yoshinobu Gakuganji's deeply sunken eyes shone with the certainty of victory.
—As long as the Sukuna vessel didn't act, Todo could definitely take care of Yuji.
Yet the next second, Todo's gaze withdrew from Yuji.
"Not Saitama, huh."
In an instant, Todo ran past Yuji without slowing, disappearing into the corridor on the other side of the intersection.
"Huh?"
Yuji paused briefly, slightly puzzled, but didn't dwell on it, running along another path instead.
"…Pff."
In the surveillance room, Gojo first froze, then couldn't help but laugh, repeatedly glancing at Yoshinobu Gakuganji.
Reki, shocked, nearly widened his eyes in disbelief. His dry hands, still clutching a teacup, tensed slightly.
A sharp crack ran through the cup—an unmistakable crack appeared.
---
Meanwhile,
"Crap, I'm late, I'm late…"
The Saitama Todo had been searching for arrived hurriedly, following the small orange cat shikigami to his assigned F Entrance. From afar, he saw Genos standing by the entrance, holding a small colored flag.
"Sensei! You're only just here?!" Genos called as soon as he saw Saitama. "Everyone else left five minutes ago!"
"Got lost after using the bathroom!" Saitama groaned. "Don't say anything else, Genos, I'm going in now!"
"Good luck, Sensei!" Genos waved his flag again, like a relentless cheering machine.
Amid Genos' encouragement, Saitama rushed to F Entrance, pausing to ask the cat shikigami, "This is the right way in, yeah?"
"Yes!" The voice of Masamichi Yaga echoed from the cat shikigami.
"All right… let's go."
Saitama bent slightly, took a running stance, eyes sharp, and shot forward like a cannonball.
Genos, still holding the flag, watched Saitama disappear into the maze. After waving for a while, he lowered his hand and walked around the maze perimeter.
"If it's Sensei, he should be able to solve the maze and exit quickly," Genos thought. "Next, I'll just wait for him at the exit…"
Suddenly, Genos' grip tightened on the flag. He whipped his head toward the west, golden eyes rapidly scanning coordinates.
"High-speed approach detected in the west… energy signature is strong… doesn't match anyone I've seen before…" Genos muttered, his expression suddenly grave. "…An enemy?"
---
"Seems like the exchange event has already started."
On a distant hill overlooking the Technical College, a tall, thin figure in a black coat pulled down the hood, revealing black hair tied in a half-bun and a pale, clean face.
---
"So the venue this time is a 'maze'… probably Gojo Satoru's doing. Although Hanami has already infiltrated it, the terrain is too complex; finding the others will take a lot more time."
"Not sure if Mahito can coordinate properly with the timing," Suguru Geto murmured. "This is really troublesome…"
---
On the western side of the maze, Genos stood alone in front of Entrance J, expression cold and resolute.
"What are you? A cursed spirit?" he asked bluntly.
Not far ahead of him stood a humanoid cursed spirit. Over two meters tall, its skin had an unnatural pale hue, etched with vine-like grotesque patterns.
This cursed spirit had only a right arm; its left arm was tightly bound. It had no lips, exposing pale teeth and dark red gums. Its eye sockets were empty, but two sapling-like antlers grew in their place.
A Special Grade Cursed Spirit—Hanami.
Hanami remained perfectly still, facing Genos. Its mouth did not move, yet a strange series of sounds emanated from within it.
The sounds entered Genos' ears, strangely conveying Hanami's meaning—"Who are you? You weren't in the intel."
Despite Hanami's terrifying appearance, Genos remained unfazed. He raised his hand, aiming at it. The nozzle in the palm of his mechanical arm slid open, heating internally, red light flickering within.
"My identity concerns you not," he said calmly. "Sensei Saitama is in the maze competing. I will not allow you to disrupt his match. Therefore, I am here now to exorcise you."
"Burn!"
A massive flame erupted from Genos' palm cannon, instantly engulfing Hanami. The fire blazed as if swallowing sunlight, illuminating everything in a stark white glow.
As the flames subsided, the bright light gradually dimmed. The cannon nozzle still glowed red from the residual heat, with a thin wisp of white smoke rising from its center.
The smoke drifted in the wind, and within it, bizarrely shaped twisted branches appeared.
The tangled branches formed a massive spherical cocoon, wrapping Hanami inside. The branches at the front were mostly burned through by Genos' cannon, revealing Hanami faintly through the gaps.
The residual heat made the air warp, twisting the shadows around it.
"So you can inflict this much damage… didn't expect fire. Seems our compatibility is terrible."
Another incomprehensible sound echoed in Genos' mind, automatically translated into human language. The plant branches surrounding Hanami's body began writhing, suddenly burrowing underground and advancing rapidly toward Genos.
"Approaching you under the protection of soil," Hanami said. "This way, your flames will do less damage."
"No use. I won't let you interfere with Sensei's match."
This time, Genos aimed both arms at Hanami. The mechanical components of his arms clicked and shifted, glowing gold-hot at the joints.
Hanami hesitated for a moment. Its branches were clearly digging underground, preparing an upward strike against Genos—but why was he ignoring the ground?
The answer soon became obvious. A more powerful blast than the previous palm cannon shot straight at Hanami. The force ripped deep into the ground between Genos and Hanami, sending searing heat toward Hanami's face.
The underground branches were scorched by the blast. Hanami had no choice but to dodge. Simultaneously, it tapped the ground with its fingertips, causing sprouts to burst forth beside Genos, rapidly forming a massive, heavy flower bud.
As the petals unfurled, hundreds of cursed energy seeds within the flower shot toward Genos like machine-gun fire. The seeds suddenly transformed mid-air, splitting into giant mouths lined with sharp teeth.
Genos' palm cannon was still targeting Hanami directly, unable to immediately shift focus to the approaching seeds. Yet he remained composed, his shoulder suddenly transforming. The steel outer shell slid aside with a click, revealing a cannon on his shoulder.
"Burn!"
Golden flames shot from the shoulder cannon, incinerating most of the airborne cursed seeds. Still, a few slipped through the firestorm, striking Genos' body.
—Success, Hanami thought.
Its seeds grew by absorbing cursed energy and could root themselves into negative emotions, blooming into flowers of genuine malevolence.
Though this man's cursed energy was ordinary, he could not control his negative emotions—and thus could not control his cursed energy. Its seeds should have found a chance to parasitize him.
In that instant, the seeds struck Genos, only to bounce off with a crisp clang.
—Damn, metal isn't an environment its plants can parasitize. Does this man's entire body consist of steel, with not a trace of human flesh left?
"A new technique? I detect some strange energy on those seeds. But Dr. Kuseno already reinforced my defenses last time. Your attack won't work on me," Genos said, adjusting his firepower to strike Hanami. "You're extremely dangerous. I must eliminate you immediately."
Hanami continuously unleashed branches to disrupt Genos' attacks, forming a judgment in its mind:
This man's firepower and body composition completely countered its plant manipulation. The compatibility was terrible.
If it could activate its domain, perhaps there'd be a chance. But to do so, it would need the left-shoulder "Hanami supply" to absorb enough surrounding plant life and convert it into cursed energy.
At this rate, Genos' firepower would incinerate all surrounding plants, leaving nothing for it to absorb.
Hanami did not want to rely on that, but Genos alone blocked the entrance. The maze walls were reinforced with defensive barriers—impenetrable, impossible to break, and inaccessible from above.
Compared to the plan, everything else naturally seemed less important.
"Jogo!" Hanami suddenly shouted, tilting its head toward the sky.
"Jogo?" Genos paused slightly. "Is it calling for an ally?"
Thinking quickly, Genos' arms transformed again, his firepower instantly doubling. Yet at that moment, his eyes locked onto a high-speed energy reaction—a type of special energy already recorded in his system core.
"Eeya—"
A high-pitched roar rang out as a one-eyed, volcano-headed cursed spirit descended from above, crashing down toward Genos with tremendous impact.
Flames suddenly shot out from behind Genos. Using the thrust to propel himself, he shifted sideways, avoiding Jogo's aim. At the same time, Hanami took the opportunity to dodge Genos' fire and dart into the maze.
"Burn!"
Genos spun around, unleashing another palm-cannon blast. But Hanami had already moved nimbly behind a maze wall. The roaring fire slammed into the outer wall, immediately reflecting as if a torrent struck an unyielding rock. The fire rolled to the sides, yet the wall remained unscathed.
With a deafening crash, Jogo landed where Genos had originally stood. The sturdy ground instantly cracked, spreading wide fissures under its impact.
"Damn it!"
Genos had no choice but to halt his attack on Hanami. He quickly scanned the maze entrance, wanting to intercept Hanami, but had to focus on Jogo instead.
"So it's you blocking Hanami… I didn't expect it to be you, kid," Jogo said, voice dripping with malice. "Back at the 'Ghost City,' I already tore you in two. By rights, you should be dead."
"So it's you, volcano one-eyed (laughs)," Genos replied coldly. "Perfect timing. I can finally test the upgraded components I made for you."
---
The blasts from Genos' cannon echoed through the maze. Three students from Tokyo School, positioned closer to the western J entrance, paused mid-run, instinctively turning toward the sound.
"Has a fight already started over there?" Maki Zen'in speculated. "Not sure who's battling. But judging by the volume, one side could be Toudou."
"Salmon," Toge Inumaki agreed.
"Not sure who's on our side encountering him," Megumi Fushiguro muttered. "We thought with three of us moving together, we'd be leading… need to get there quickly."
"But we're in a maze. Who knows which path leads where," Maki said, tapping the maze wall with her cursed tool spear. "And the walls have been reinforced with Tengen-sama's barriers, just like the cursed energy testing stones. They're indestructible. No choice but to find the right path."
The three strategized while moving forward. Suddenly, Toge Inumaki abruptly stopped.
"Retreat!" he shouted, yanking down his collar and projecting his cursed speech with a volume far beyond his slight frame.
In an instant, the cursed speech force pulled Maki and Megumi backward. They leapt involuntarily three or four meters, not advancing but retreating.
"Toge?" "Senpai Toge?"
Both exclaimed, surprised that Toge would use such a precious opportunity for cursed speech on this. The answer soon became clear.
Around the next corner, about two meters above the ground, a pale, eerie side face slowly appeared, radiating a foreboding aura.
The sinister energy seemed to distort the air itself. All three paled, instantly recognizing—
—A Special Grade. And not just any Special Grade—the very top tier!
---
Meanwhile, Saitama, running aimlessly inside the maze, heard the distant sounds of battle.
—Ever since entering the maze, he had completely lost his sense of direction.
With no specific mission assigned in this team match, Saitama simply followed the rules to find the exit. He sprinted at his maximum speed, eyes bloodshot from wind whipping his face, scanning for cursed spirits.
Suddenly, a thin thread dangled from above. A worm-like cursed spirit slithered down, blocking Saitama's path.
"Chirp… chirp…"
The worm cursed spirit arched its body, attempting to stop him. But in the next moment, Saitama dashed past and delivered a single punch. The cursed spirit, still lunging, was instantly split in two and reduced to ashes.
Almost simultaneously, in the monitoring room, a talisman representing the cursed spirit ignited red on the wall—signifying that the Tokyo School team had gained 20 points.
Saitama ran on and on, leaving behind a trail of dust mixed with the ashes of low-level curses. He had no idea how long he had been wandering the maze. The pathways twisted and turned so intricately that he couldn't tell which routes he had already taken.
"Crap… at this rate, I'll probably be the last to find the exit. Forget experiencing cursed combat, I might not even make it out of the maze," Saitama muttered to himself, sweat streaming down his face.
At that moment, the faint sound of Genos' battle with the cursed spirits reached him. Saitama paused, slightly startled.
"There's a fight over there… someone must be battling," he murmured. "If I head that way, I'll encounter either cursed spirits or people…"
He shifted his gaze toward the source of the sound.
"Better check it out," he muttered, turning to run in that direction.
After following the path for a while, Saitama ran straight into a dead end again.
"…"
Facing the closed wall, Saitama frowned. He was about to turn and find another route when something struck him. He turned back, staring blankly at the wall.
"The rules only forbid flying. They don't say I can't break the wall."
He murmured, clenched his fist, and swung his arm straight through the wall.
With a loud crash, the maze wall crumbled. Bricks and rubble fell around him. Saitama ran through the gap, his cape fluttering behind him, and sprinted onward.