Fists collided with explosive force, each impact producing a dull boom that echoed through the forest. The battle between Itadori Yuji and Aoi Todo had reached its peak, every exchange sending dust and broken leaves flying into the air.
Itadori's breathing had grown heavy, yet his eyes shone brighter than ever. Todo's relentless attacks were like a blazing furnace, continuously drawing out his hidden potential.
Then, without warning, something changed.
A dark figure shot out from the dense woods at astonishing speed, heading straight for Itadori's back.
It was a black short arrow infused with dense cursed energy. Its chilling malice was unmistakable. This was clearly not an attack launched by a student.
"Watch out!" Megumi Fushiguro shouted.
His Ten Shadows Technique surged into action, but he was too far away.
Nobara Kugisaki had already thrown her nails in an attempt to intercept, yet she was a fraction too late.
Aoi Todo roared and moved to intervene, but the arrow's trajectory was exceptionally precise, slipping through the brief opening in his attack.
Everyone believed Itadori had no way to avoid it.
Then the impossible happened.
The cursed arrow stopped less than half a foot from Itadori's back, as though it had struck an invisible barrier.
Crack.
The arrow shattered instantly.
Its fragments disintegrated into black powder that drifted harmlessly through the air.
There were no visible cursed energy fluctuations.
No sign of a cursed technique.
It simply broke apart.
The battlefield fell silent.
Itadori turned around in confusion, only to find black specks floating to the ground.
Aoi Todo halted his attack and scanned the surroundings sharply. His gaze eventually crossed the battlefield and settled on the lone figure standing atop the distant high ground.
At some point, Sol had turned around and was now facing the battlefield.
The mountain wind stirred his hair as his dark red eyes calmly overlooked the scene below.
The dangerous attack seemed incapable of disturbing his composure.
Yet Todo's instincts told him the interception had not been an accident.
"Hey! You over there, referee!" Todo suddenly shouted, his booming voice cutting through the battlefield. "Was that you?"
Every eye turned toward Sol.
Maki, Panda, Inumaki Toge, and even Kamo Noritoshi and Kasumi Miwa instinctively looked in his direction.
Sol neither confirmed nor denied anything.
He merely glanced at Todo.
"Focus on your battle."
His voice was steady, carrying clearly across the battlefield.
The words seemed directed at Todo, yet somehow addressed everyone present.
Todo paused briefly before bursting into laughter.
"Hahaha! You're right! Brother! It seems we have an incredible referee!"
He chose not to pursue the matter further.
Instead, his fighting spirit surged even higher.
"Continue! Don't disappoint the audience!"
He charged toward Itadori once again.
Though confused, Itadori suppressed his doubts and met him head-on.
The Kyoto students exchanged uneasy glances.
Elsewhere, Gakuganji Yoshinobu's expression darkened.
The cursed arrow had been launched by Mechamaru under his secret orders. The objective had been simple: find an opportunity to seriously injure or eliminate Itadori Yuji.
The specially crafted cursed tool possessed concentrated power and was notoriously difficult to defend against.
Yet it had been neutralized in such a bizarre fashion.
Gakuganji cast a long look toward Sol.
The first-year student was far more dangerous than the reports describing him as merely physically enhanced.
"Unable to analyze interception method," Mechamaru's electronic voice reported. "No cursed energy residue detected. No cursed technique trajectory found."
Kamo pressed his lips together before raising a hand.
"Suspend the operation. Prioritize eliminating cursed spirits."
Until Sol's true capabilities were understood, acting recklessly would be foolish.
Momo Nishimiya and Kasumi Miwa quietly relaxed. Neither had been particularly comfortable with the sneak attack to begin with.
The battlefield's focus gradually shifted back toward exterminating cursed spirits, but the atmosphere had changed completely.
The Tokyo students felt noticeably more confident.
The Kyoto students, meanwhile, were now burdened by uncertainty.
Sol redirected his attention to the battle between Itadori and Todo, treating the entire incident as though it were insignificant.
The fight continued.
With Sol's silent deterrence looming over the battlefield, Kyoto no longer dared openly target Itadori.
The exchange event appeared to return to normal.
Shouts and bursts of cursed energy echoed throughout the forest as both teams continued fighting.
Then a strange stillness descended.
It was not silence.
Rather, something deeper and more unsettling settled over the area.
Students from both schools instinctively slowed down, a primal sense of danger sending chills down their spines.
"What's going on?" Nobara asked as she knocked back a cursed spirit and scanned her surroundings warily.
The cursed energy in the air had become heavy and murky.
Megumi's expression darkened.
Above them, Nue let out an uneasy cry.
"A Curtain," he said. "Another Curtain has been deployed."
Almost the moment he finished speaking, a cold, inhuman voice echoed through the area.
It felt less like sound and more like a declaration directly imposed upon reality.
"Hereby declared..."
"Gojo Satoru is not permitted entry."
At the edge of the forest, Gojo Satoru, who had been casually observing the exchange event from outside, paused.
The carefree smile on his face vanished instantly.
A rare sharpness emerged in its place.
He stepped forward, only to encounter an invisible barrier.
The Curtain blocked him completely.
"Oh?"
Behind his blindfold, the Six Eyes rapidly analyzed the specially designed barrier.
"I've really been played."
Despite his words, Gojo was not overly concerned.
After all, Sol was still inside.
The students should be safe.
If anything, this might become an unexpectedly valuable training opportunity.
Within the Curtain, every student sensed the same thing.
Gojo's overwhelming presence had been completely cut off.
"Teacher Gojo's trapped outside!" Itadori exclaimed after blocking another of Todo's punches.
Todo also stopped attacking and surveyed the increasingly ominous surroundings.
"Tch. Looks like some short-sighted pests have slipped in."
Among the Kyoto students, Kamo reacted immediately.
"Everyone gather together!" he shouted. "Prioritize defense! We've got outside intruders!"
No further explanation was necessary.
Students who had been fighting one another moments ago immediately converged by instinct, forming a defensive perimeter as they stared into the depths of the forest.
Rustling sounds emerged from every direction.
Figures slowly stepped from the shadows.
They were not cursed spirits.
They were cursed users.
Their clothing varied wildly, and their eyes ranged from fanatical to completely lifeless.
There were many of them.
And they had clearly come prepared.
At the front stood a towering Special Grade Cursed Spirit.
Hanami.
Its pale body was marked by intricate patterns, while branch-like horns extended from its head.
It remained silent.
Its large eye slowly swept across the gathered students.
An overwhelming aura of resentment and destruction filled the forest, making it difficult to breathe.
"Special Grade..." Maki muttered, tightening her grip on her staff.
Panda and Inumaki moved closer together, their expressions grim.
The enemy before them was far beyond anything expected during an exchange event.
"What's their objective?" Megumi asked quietly, his Ten Shadows Technique already prepared.
The answer came almost immediately.
Hanami's gaze moved across the assembled students before stopping on Itadori Yuji.
The intent was unmistakable.
They had come for Sukuna's vessel.
"Protect Itadori!" Megumi shouted.
The Tokyo students immediately tightened their formation and placed Itadori at the center.
Even Todo snorted and took position beside him, making his stance perfectly clear.
The cursed users began laughing eerily as they advanced.
Hanami slowly raised a hand.
The ground trembled violently.
Countless thick, spiked vines erupted from beneath the earth.
Like enormous serpents, they lashed out in every direction, indiscriminately coiling toward the gathered students.
The battle erupted instantly.