"Todo Aoi, I have something to tell you," Hayashi calmly looked up at the much taller man and said, "You can't beat me."
At that moment, everything seemed to go quiet, and the sound of cicadas could be heard in the background.
Zen'in Mai and Miwa Kasumi were both taken aback, thinking Hayashi was going to say something serious, but this?
Did he hit his head on a door or something? Todo was already a first-grade jujutsu sorcerer, and Hayashi, a third-grade jujutsu sorcerer, thought he could beat him?
"You should at least think before talking, Hayashi. We at Kyoto don't even bother investigating your strength because, in our eyes, you rank below our first and second years. Are you saying this just to get our attention? There's no one else around, so what's your goal? To provoke Todo into hitting you even harder?" Mai's words were laced with mockery, finding Hayashi's claim so absurd it was laughable.
Even Miwa Kasumi was surprised by how bold this first-year from Tokyo was. Sure, Hayashi was good-looking, but the things coming out of his mouth didn't seem to be connected to his brain.
Hayashi turned to Mai and said, "Zen'in Mai, if Kyoto doesn't bother investigating me, that's your issue, not mine. However, I didn't realize you all thought I was so insignificant. That's fine. Today, I'll show you who the strongest first-year in Tokyo really is."
Seeing Hayashi's calm demeanor, it didn't seem like he was lying, but his words certainly reflected his arrogance and ignorance.
"You really have the nerve to say that, strongest first-year?" Mai scoffed, thinking Hayashi's statement was either an act of arrogance or a result of pure delusion.
If all jujutsu sorcerers were as strong as Hayashi claimed, what would curses and curse users even be for?
"Mai, stop talking," Todo Aoi suddenly grinned broadly, turning his gaze back to Hayashi. "A man should show his resolve. I don't care what you say, but if you lose after this, I'm going to pin you down and punch you to death, one punch at a time. Understand?"
"Let's get this over with," Hayashi cracked his neck and gestured for Todo to come at him. "I don't want to waste time; it'll be dark soon."
"Not bad!"
Todo's aura exploded, even more intense than before. In a single step, he rushed at Hayashi, his right fist covered in powerful cursed energy, launching a punch.
Hayashi didn't dodge. Leaning forward, he threw his own punch.
"Azure Black Flash!"
"Black Flash!"
BANG!!
The two punches collided fiercely, their cursed energy creating a shockwave that blew the fallen leaves in all directions.
Todo's expression shifted slightly. His sturdy wrist felt like it had been fractured. Was Hayashi also using Black Flash? No… it was stronger than that!
Hayashi felt intense pain in his wrist. Todo's punch was incredibly powerful, but fortunately, his wrist wasn't broken.
This was a clash of Black Flash and cursed energy. Hayashi wasn't afraid of Black Flash. In some ways, Blue Black Flash was slightly stronger, but only marginally so.
If he could evolve it into Azure Black Flash, it would be exponentially more powerful than a regular Black Flash.
But Todo's punch was a Black Flash. Had he not considered that if Hayashi couldn't block it, his arm would be ruined?
Todo wasn't trying to kill Hayashi; he had thought it through. Since Hayashi boasted so much, Todo wanted to test him with Black Flash to see if he could withstand it.
If Hayashi couldn't, his arm would have been ruined, but it wouldn't have mattered much. Tokyo's Shoko Ieiri could have fully healed his injury as long as it wasn't too severe.
"No need to boast. Let's go again!" Todo laughed heartily, launching another punch at Hayashi, even more powerful than the last.
Hayashi blinked, surprised. Was Todo not injured at all? His Blue Black Flash didn't hurt him? How could Todo still use that same arm to attack?
There wasn't time to dwell on it. Since Todo could still use his arm, so would Hayashi.
"Azure Black Flash!"
"Black Flash!"
BANG!!
This impact was even stronger than the first. Mai and Miwa, watching from the side, were stunned. Hayashi had just managed to withstand two of Todo Aoi's full-force attacks.
Crack!
Crack!
The sound of bones breaking echoed through the air. Todo's wrist cracked, and Hayashi's wrist did the same.
While Blue Black Flash was slightly stronger than Black Flash, Todo's physical strength gave him an advantage. In terms of raw power, Hayashi still had a slight disadvantage.
As a result, both of their wrists were broken, but Hayashi had learned something about Todo. He was definitely a maniac, but one who fit Hayashi's style.
Todo was the kind of person who wouldn't scheme against his friends. He was straightforward and expressed exactly what he was thinking. You could tell what kind of person he was just by fighting him.
On the other hand, if Hayashi were fighting someone like Mahito, that guy would never go for a direct confrontation.
Mahito would be a master at using underhanded tactics, a true trickster.
That's why Mahito needed to die!
At that moment, the intensity in Todo's eyes grew even stronger. His aura surged, and despite his injured arm, he raised it once again, pouring cursed energy into it for another punch. "Let's go again!"
"Is this never going to end?" Hayashi was genuinely impressed. His own arm was already broken, and Todo's should have been too. How could he still be attacking?
But this couldn't go on. If they kept at it, both of them would suffer. Hayashi gritted his teeth and raised his fist to meet Todo's.
"Black Flash!"
This was Todo's third Black Flash. While it wasn't difficult for him to trigger Black Flash, triggering it consecutively was a different story. Three consecutive Black Flashes were enough to declare victory. His opponent wouldn't be able to handle more than that.
With this final punch, the battle would be over. A fight between men was straightforward and pure—no dodging, just fists clashing head-on.
"Azure Black Flash!"
"Power Multiplier!"
[Random Power Multiplier Activated]
[Power Multiplier ×10]
"Crap!"
Hayashi's face changed drastically. He had expected the power multiplier to be low, maybe 1-3 times, which Todo could withstand. After that hit, Todo wouldn't be able to continue fighting.
But the multiplier had shot up to ×10, completely beyond Hayashi's expectations.
Of course, it was a random multiplier, but this was too much! ×10?
Now there was no way to pull back. Todo's punch was coming at him, and Hayashi could only go through with it.
BOOM!!
This time, their fists collided, and Todo's confident expression turned pale instantly. His right arm lost all feeling, and before his eyes, it exploded into a shower of blood.
Todo stood there, stunned, unable to even feel the pain yet.