"Clang!"
A long blade swung toward Kasumi, crashing against her katana.The sheer force sent a numb shock through her arms and pushed her back step after step.
Kasumi's expression tightened. She gritted her teeth, swinging her sword repeatedly to block the relentless storm of strikes from Maki's polearm.
"Clang!"
"That idiot Mai!"
Even someone as gentle as Kasumi couldn't help cursing.
"This—this is the so-called big-sis-who-can't-use-curse-energy, only-has-brute-strength, forever-Grade-4 failure that Mai described?!"
Facing Maki—who was practically toying with her—Kasumi mentally cursed Mai a thousand times over.
This person was incredibly strong! She should never have believed Mai. How could the disciple of her idol possibly be weak?!
Maki's polearm had superior reach, while Kasumi used a katana. One inch longer, one inch stronger. Kasumi needed to close the distance.
But Maki's fierce onslaught made even dodging and defending a full-time struggle.
And this was with Maki's blade wrapped to not cut.
If she were using the real edge… Kasumi wasn't sure how many times she'd have died already.
"This is a Grade 4 sorcerer?! Mai, you idiot!!"
Kasumi cursed again—just in time to get kicked by Maki, who seized an opening and sent her flying. She tumbled into the river, completely soaked.
"You're already giving up?"
From above, Maki descended, blade swinging. Kasumi rolled desperately to dodge.
She sheathed her katana and grabbed the hilt—
"New Shadow Style: Simple Domain!"
Against someone like Maki, she had no choice but to use her trump card.
Within the radius of 2.21 meters, anyone who stepped inside would trigger an automatic counter-attack. But if the opponent reacted fast enough and leapt out before the draw, the technique would break.
"Iai, huh?"
Maki stared at Kasumi's battle-ready posture, a smile forming.
"So you want me to expose a weakness."
"Here I come!"
Maki grabbed her polearm—then threw it like a spear. At the same time, she exploded forward, kicking up a wave of water, switching weapons mid-charge.
"What?!"
Kasumi quickly drew her katana to deflect the incoming weapon.
Clack! Clang!
The moment the weapon bounced off—
Maki was already in front of her.
"You lose."
Maki blocked Kasumi's slash, grabbed her by the neck with one hand, and slammed her into the water several meters away.
But Kasumi was agile—she rolled in the river and regained her stance instantly.
"What was that technique?!"
She reached for her katana out of pure instinct — then froze.
Where was her sword?!
"Not bad. This blade is great."Maki pointed Kasumi's katana at her.
"Ah… my katana… give it back…"
Kasumi wilted immediately. As a swordswoman, failing to protect her own sword left her completely demoralized.
In the observation room, Mei Mei watched with interest.
"That girl from the Zenin clan — she's your disciple, right?"
The little brat from back then had grown frighteningly strong.
"Yeah, I guess." Jinsuke nodded casually.
"Why not promote her to Grade 2 already?" Mei Mei asked.
"I also think she should be Grade 2," Gojo immediately chimed in, "but… apparently the Zenin clan has been blocking it."
"..." Jinsuke.
"Is that rank really important?" Jinsuke scratched his head. He had never thought about it.
"Of course," Gojo explained."It's an official acknowledgement of her skill, determines what missions she can take, and what rewards she can get."
"You're a Zenin, aren't you? You can't even settle something like that?" Gojo teased.
Jinsuke's mouth twitched. Like he ever handled clan politics.
"Well, you're right. She can't stay Grade 4 forever — sounds terrible. After this, let's bump Maki straight to Grade 1."
He turned toward Yaga.
"Principal Yaga, any issues?"
Yaga looked troubled.
"Well… promotion to Grade 1 requires recommendations from two Grade 1 sorcerers. And the Zenin clan has been actively resisting… Zenin-sensei, perhaps you could—"
"Recommendations are easy. As for the Zenin clan, ignore them. If they have a problem, they can come find me." Jinsuke waved dismissively.
"It's decided."
When Maki became Grade 1, her pay and benefits would skyrocket. As her master, she would certainly give him some filial appreciation.
Yaga could only nod—he was a mere principal. And between Gojo and Jinsuke, he had absolutely no power.
"Tch tch. Acting like you're the head of the Zenin clan." Gojo snarked, then switched topics. "By the way, ever since the match started, the footage near Yuji keeps cutting out."
Mei Mei replied calmly, "They're animals. They follow their own instincts. And sharing vision is tiring."
Her crows were livestreaming the event. If something was wrong with the footage, it could only be her fault.
"Really…?"
"So, Mei Mei, who are you supporting?" Gojo asked.
He knew Yuji would be targeted, but he wasn't too worried. The boy wouldn't die easily anymore.
"I stand on the side of money. Anything unrelated to money doesn't interest me." Mei Mei rested her chin on her hand lazily.
"Got it."
Back on the battlefield—
Mai, hiding in a tree several hundred meters away, stood up and spun her pistol on her finger.
"Good. Still in range. One down."
"Hey, sneaking up on a first-year isn't very nice."
Maki appeared on a nearby branch, holding Kasumi's katana. Short hair fluttering in the wind, she looked sharp and fierce.
"But I'll give you time to call your teammates. You can make it a two-on-one."
"Heh. Finally." Mai smiled."Don't act all cocky just because you're our cousin's disciple."
"I don't want the others to gang up on you. I want to beat you myself, make you bow your head and apologize for everything from the past."
"Are you ready to lose, sis?"
Her eyes sharpened instantly as she aimed her pistol at Maki. She had waited for this day for so long. This time, she would defeat her sister and prove she wasn't deadweight.
"You really are a troublesome little sister."
Maki smirked, gripping the katana. She could lose to anyone—but she would never lose to her own little sister.