Elsewhere, in the dense thickets of the cursed forest, the air had grown quiet—too quiet. Every tree bent slightly inward, like nature itself was leaning in to listen.
Megumi Fushiguro stood alone, his breathing steady but sharp. The silence was a little too familiar, like the calm before a thunderclap. His eyes narrowed.
That's when he felt it.
A pulsing wave of cursed energy rippled through the ground beneath his feet—unnatural, ancient, heavy.
From behind the trees emerged a figure whose very presence warped the environment. Hanami.
This Curse didn't resemble a monster, but a twisted spirit of nature—flowers bloomed on his shoulders, vines slithered around his arms, and a black bark-like armor wrapped his body. His face was emotionless, but his eyes radiated fury… not of hate, but of grief.
"You Jujutsu Sorcerers," Hanami spoke in a deep, echoing voice. "You bring ruin to the earth. I shall bring balance by erasing your existence."
Megumi clicked his knuckles and summoned his shikigami.
"Nue."
With a loud screech, the winged divine beast soared into the sky and fired a bolt of electricity toward Hanami—but the curse didn't move. Instead, roots shot up from the ground and formed a shield. The blast crackled and fizzled into smoke.
Without warning, Hanami lunged forward.
BOOM!
Megumi barely blocked the punch, but the force sent him tumbling across the forest floor.
Hanami stepped forward slowly, letting nature fight for him—vines snapped at Megumi's feet, thorns grazed his skin, and the trees themselves bent toward him with malice.
Then—
CRACK!
A red pole slammed across Hanami's jaw, forcing him back a step.
"Looks like I made it just in time," Maki Zenin said, spinning her cursed weapon into a ready stance. "You good, Fushiguro?"
Megumi wiped blood from his lip. "Just in time to get stomped with me, yeah."
"Great. Let's go down swinging then."
Together, they charged.
Maki sliced through vines like they were paper, moving with deadly precision. Megumi launched shikigami after shikigami, using distractions to create narrow openings. Hanami didn't flinch—his cursed energy formed a barrier around him, each strike barely landing, if at all.
Then—
WHAM!
Hanami punched Maki in the stomach so hard she flew into a tree, cracking it in half. Her body crumpled to the ground.
"MAKI!" Megumi screamed, turning to run to her.
Too late.
CRASH!
A thick root slammed into his side, launching him through the air. He hit the ground hard, rolling over gravel and bark, gasping for breath.
Blood dripped from his nose and mouth as he tried to stand—only to fall again.
Hanami stepped into the clearing where both young sorcerers lay unconscious, vines swaying around his body like the limbs of a god.
He didn't leave.
He waited.
Waited for the next ones to come.