The swarm of cursed spirits closed in and flooded the scene where Miwa and Mai were.
Teeth clicked together in jagged rhythms. Limbs bent at impossible angles. The earth trembled beneath the sheer number of cursed spirits pressing forward.
Mai didn't wait.
A gunshot cracked through the air towards the overwhelming hordes of cursed spirits approaching
A rubber bullet, heavy with cursed energy, tore through the nearest spirit's skull. It burst apart in a spray of black mist that hung in the air like smoke.
Mai steadied her breathing.
Her eyes fixed towards the cursed spirits ahead of her, instinctively chambers the next round. "If we carve a path fast enough, we might actually make it out."
Miwa said nothing in response.
She stepped forward.
Then, unexpectedly—
She slid her katana back into its sheath.
The curses reacted instantly, all rushing in towards her, their screeches sharpening as if they sensed the shift.
Miwa lowered her center of gravity. Her feet pressed firmly into the dirt beneath her. Her breathing slowed — in, out, in, out — until the noise of the battlefield dulled at the edges.
Cursed energy gathered around her blade, spiraling tightly around the sheath like a coiling storm.
The air itself seemed to tense.
She activated her cursed technique [New Shadow Style Technique]
The energy compressed, tightening like a drawn bowstring.
And, unleashes the base form of her cursed technique
[Batto Sword Drawing]
[Description: The base form of The New Shadow Style technique that uses cursed energy to envelope Kasumi's blade when sheathed and rotates it to create an incredible burst of speed when she draws out her blade. It is the fastest sword-drawing technique of the New Shadow Style.
In the blink of an eye—
She moved.
To the untrained eye, it would've looked like she barely stepped forward.
To the curses—
It was the last thing they saw.
Steel flashed in a clean horizontal arc.
For half a second, everything went quiet.
Then a row of curses split neatly across their torsos, their bodies dissolving before they even hit the ground.
Miwa re-sheathed her blade in one smooth motion.
And moved again.
Another flash.
Another precise cut.
No wasted movement. No hesitation.
She didn't fight wildly.
She cut only what needed cutting.
Behind her, Mai adjusted without a word.
Her rifle barked again and again, cursed energy pulsing with each shot. She fired at close range, stepping back methodically to maintain distance.
A cursed spirit lunged low.
She pivoted and shot downward — the bullet pierced its skull and embedded into the pavement beneath. It evaporated instantly.
Shot.
Gone.
Reload.
Click.
Fire.
Exorcise.
They fell into the calculated rhythm of Mia's movements
Dust and black mist churned through the clearing, clinging to their uniforms and stinging their lungs.
— Then something changed.
Mai felt it first — a pressure from above.
Another cursed spirit lunged from above.
She didn't think. She reacted and quickly ducked, avoiding the cursed spirit attack, but was unable to shoot down the cursed spirit
Sliding backward as she ejected her empty magazine and made a last desperate effort to reload, she shouted, "Miwa! I'm out of ammo — above you!"
A massive claw tore down from the canopy, slicing through the air where Miwa's head had been a heartbeat earlier.
Miwa didn't look up.
Her body moved before her mind caught up.
She twisted, drawing her blade in a reverse grip, and slashed diagonally upward.
The cursed spirit froze mid-descent.
Then split apart, crumbling into black mist that rained down on her boots.
Miwa landed lightly.
Only then did she register how close it had been.
Behind her— A presence.
Mai had already reloaded.
She raised the rifle without hesitation and fired.
The bullet screamed past Miwa's ear — close enough to stir loose strands of her hair — and struck the cursed spirit creeping up behind her.
It detonated into mist.
Silence lingered for half a breath.
Miwa exhaled and said,
"…You almost shot me."
"Next time, watch your blind spot" Mai responded
They shifted instinctively, backs touching.
Breathing controlled.
Formation tight. They continued the assault
A few minutes into the continued assault
The number of cursed spits around them had dropped significantly.
But they weren't retreating.
If anything—
They continued pressing on, surging forward
*****
High above the battlefield, Momo flew.
The wind whipped against her face and tugged at her uniform. Shinji clung to her tightly, his fingers digging into the fabric at her waist.
She could feel him shaking.
And it cracked something inside her.
Why did I freeze? Why did I hesitate?
The image replayed in her mind — her standing still while Miwa and Mai fought.
A memory surfaced without permission.
A dark closet.
A thin line of light cuts through the door.
Her tiny hands pressed over her mouth to stop the sound of her own breathing.
Her mother screaming.
Blood spreading across the floor.
And something crouched over her mother.
Something only Momo could see.
Tearing.
Feeding.
And she had done nothing but watch in the gruesome attack unfolding.
She blinked hard.
The present snapped back into focus.
Shinji's grip tightened.
That was me, ten years ago.
Feeling Helpless, yet watching.
Forced to survive it.
Not again.
Never again.
Below them, an abandoned park building came into view — broken windows, a door barely hanging from its hinges.
She scanned carefully.
No cursed spirits presence detected nearby.
Clear.
She descended.
Landing lightly near the entrance, she helped Shinji down.
He swayed slightly before steadying himself.
Momo knelt so they were eye level.
"Listen to me," she said gently but firmly. "Go inside this building, Hide somewhere you can't be seen. Don't come out unless I come back for you. No matter what you hear or see."
He swallowed hard.
"Are they… all going to die because of me?"
The question hits harder
"No, No this isn't your fault, Shinji. They're strong," she answered after a brief pause. "Stronger than they look."
She stood.
"I have to go back to help them in any way I can"
She turned—
And felt a hand wrap around hers.
Shinji looked up at her. His fear was obvious. His hands still trembled.
But his eyes held onto something fragile.
Hope.
"Be safe," he said quietly.
For a moment, she saw herself standing there instead.
Small. Afraid. Waiting for someone to return.
Momo squeezed his hand.
"…I will."
She mounted her broom and launched into the sky, accelerating quickly back toward the battlefield.
Below, Shinji stepped into the abandoned building.
The door creaked shut behind him.
Inside, darkness swallowed the space.
And somewhere deeper within—
A faint pulse of cursed energy flickered once.