They watched in frustration as Nanami and Mei Mei shattered the Three Tengu's domain. Mahito muttered under his breath, "Useless trash."
Seeing the group close in on him, Mahito stuck his tongue out with a grin. "I'm done playing, I'm out of here~" His arms twisted into massive black wings, and with a powerful leap he took to the sky.
"Don't think you can escape!" Momo Nishimiya breathed out, sweeping forward on her flying broom and launching an attack. Mahito barely moved; he dodged with ease.
The moment Mahito revealed an opening, a crow rocketed at him like a cannonball, burying itself deep in his side.
Nanami and Aoi Todo seized the opportunity. With Mahito knocked off balance, they rushed in to end it on the spot… but something unexpected happened.
Mahito's shattered body began to contract. Flesh and bone writhed, twisting into a rat‑like form that slipped into a narrow sewer grate, vanishing instantly.
"Damn it!" Todo slammed his fists into the ground. "This ability is such a cheat!"
Nanami exhaled wearily, watching the sewer grate clatter shut. "Forget it. At least nobody died."
"Our assigned area is clear," Todo said, patting his chest with satisfaction.
"Same here," Nanami confirmed.
"Then let's go support the other teams!" Todo grinned.
Nanami nodded. In this situation, a little extra work was fine.
Mei Mei stretched her shoulders with a crack. "In that case, I'll be coming along too."
"Um… sister?" Ui Ui hesitated.
Mei Mei smiled faintly. "Don't misunderstand. Shion paid far too much. I owe him more than this much effort."
Senso‑ji Temple, Asakusa, Tokyo.
The monks inside had been transfigured into hideous monsters by Mahito's influence long ago. Limbs and torsos melded together into an unnatural mass, disgusting to behold and mentally destabilizing for anyone who looked at it too long.
"Don't move!" Inumaki Toge's voice surged with pressure. The transfigured abomination instantly stiffened.
Panda descended from above in his Gorilla Mode and drove his fist into the creature's head with brutal force. It collapsed backward, right where Maki Zen'in had been waiting.
She held not her usual naginata, but a two‑meter jumonji spear. With a rapid spin of the shaft, the spearhead shrieked through the air like a drill, piercing the transfigured monstrosity from side to side.
When the assault ended, Maki flicked the blood off the spear tip with a proud, steady stance.
Panda returned to his small form, stretching with a satisfied chuckle. "Finally cleared it out!"
"Inumaki, can we rest now?" Panda teased.
Maki face‑palmed. "I told you not to call me Captain. It's embarrassing. I still don't know what Shion was thinking."
"Exactly! I really don't know what Shion-senpai was thinking," Inumaki agreed.
Just then, Naoya Zen'in arrived with the Zen'in guard unit called the Hei. Without hesitation he sneered at Maki.
"Maki, oh Maki," Naoya drawled. "As trash Grade 4 Sorcerer, how do you have the nerve to be Captain of the 6th Division?"
"Hey! Watch your mouth!" Maki snapped, but Naoya wasn't finished.
"Born with a Heavenly Restriction, unable to see Cursed Spirits or use a Cursed Technique, a mere Grade 4… I get it now. Making you Captain is just padding the resume so Shion's reputation doesn't dip, right?"
Maki stopped. She looked at him calmly before saying, without irritation but with clear confidence, "You're jealous."
Naoya's eye twitched. His smile hardened.
"Jealous of what? Me? Jealous of trash like you?" he scoffed.
Maki lifted a brow in mockery. "Of course you're jealous. You're jealous I became Toji's disciple. You're jealous I serve under Shion. You're jealous I can train with powerhouses like Satoru Gojo and Suguru Geto whenever I want. While you cling to legacy, facing nobodies every day, trapped in stagnation with no real strength…"
"Enough!" Naoya snapped, veins bulging with resentment.
Panda leaned to Inumaki. "Maki really is Shion's disciple. Every word cuts deep."
"salmon! salmon!"
Naoya gritted his teeth, venom in every word. "Whatever, you are not Toji. You are not Shion! The only thing you share is a Heavenly Restriction! But you'll never reach their heights!"
Suddenly he charged.
Using the Projection Sorcery technique, Naoya's palm connected mid‑air, initiating his deliberate preset of 24 frames per second. Rocks crumbled under the echo of his subsonic acceleration.
"Maki!" Panda and Inumaki readied to jump in, but Maki stopped them.
"No need. This is a Zen'in matter."
Naoya laughed as he circled. "This isn't family business — it's personal!"
When his speed hit subsonic, he changed direction and struck toward Maki, palm out. He shut his eyes in satisfaction — his Projection Sorcery was locked on.
But Maki wasn't phased. Calm and composed, she met his technique with quiet confidence.
"When Shion-senpai and Toji trained me, they demanded I cut through concrete in less than 1/48 of a second," she said with a low smile.
In the first frame, Naoya's punch grazed her cheek — complete. But Maki had already evaded it before the impact could matter.
Frame after frame, Naoya's worst presets failed to land. His strikes were like wind against steel — sharp in sound, empty in effect.
By the 24th frame, Maki was untouched. Naoya stared at her in speechless shock.
"You… how did you do that?"
Maki didn't hide her smirk. "Living in decay like a king makes one ignorant. Learning from Shion and Toji gave me real speed. 1/24 of a second is more than enough to finish your frames and return a slash."
===
If you want to read more, there are up to 80 chapters available on patreon.
Patreon.com/ _Zeph