LADY AOKI || JUJUTSU KAISEN

十四

"What's your name?" Yuta spoke gently, never keeping his eyes off of the cursed spirit threatening to crush her skull in a single blow. He was compliant with Anzu's threat, Rika's presence lay dormant, but she knew full well he could probably kill her on his own.

"K-Kyoka." The little girl responded, finally picking up on the tension between him and Anzu. 

"Kyoka, are those your flowers? They look so pretty, can you show them to me?" He smiled sweetly, and took a step closer. Kyoka seemed hesitant, her gaze ping-ponging between him and Anzu. They were in a complete standstill, sharp eyes seeking an opening for attack or escape. Anzu's gaze slid to the school where more children were playing, unaware of the growing threat not fifty feet away.

"Excuse me! Why are you on school grounds?! This is trespassing!" 

A teacher had spotted them, spotted Yuta more specifically. He was a scrawny middle-aged man with gray streaks in his cropped hair and a shadow of stubble on his jaw, a whistle bounced on his thin chest.

Yuta and Anzu seemed to understand at the same time, but the latter was quicker to strike. On impulse she darted forward and sank her hand wrist-deep into his chest, his body exploded like an overfilled water balloon. Shrieks of terror filled the air as nearby children stumbled over themselves to get away. The school field erupted in chaos, the voices of adults grew nearer with each second, the air reeked of death.

She turned slowly to face Yuta, a crazed, drunken haze in her eyes as the man's blood dripped in thick streams down her face, her hand already reaching for the child. Kyoka shook and trembled, tears streaking her round cheeks as she tripped over her feet, her small hands outstretched to prevent Anzu from getting closer. Police sirens wailed in the distance, a discordant symphony. 

"RIKA!!" Yuta yelled, lunging forward to fend Anzu off with his blade as the curse trickled into view, hands already reaching for Anzu, but they were a fraction of a second too late. Anzu slipped out of Rika's grasp and landed a heavy axe-kick right in the curse's bulging, red-rimmed eye. She twisted, using her free hand and momentum to strike the flat of Yuta's blade with the heel of her palm, forcing him to lower his steel, and reached for the child.

"NO DON'T!!" 

Anzu clamped both hands around Kyoka's waist and bodily tossed her aside.

"Run." She said, hissing angrily when Rika's jagged nails scraped her back.

Rika was extremely powerful, as vengeful spirits were, but so was Anzu. Even weakened, she was faster, more agile, and her innate technique was especially advantageous in the wide open land they tussled in.

And now that Kyoka had scrambled out of range, she could use it.

Anzu dodged and parried Yuta's blade with the her own hands, the exposed hardened bone of her palms and her rapid regeneration aided in countering his flurry of blows, but he was dealing damage nonetheless, slowly chopping away her defences as he forced her to battle both him and Rika at the same time. Dodge and parry, parry and attack, the more they came into contact, the more Anzu understood about him. 

Yuta stood on even ground with her, a special grade sorcerer against a special grade curse, but the bulk of his power came from Rika, it wasn't his own.

Anzu gasped in pain when his sword sliced into the base of her neck, nearly tearing it clean off. She'd kept her defence facing Yuta and focussed on attacking Rika, if she could separate them then the boy would be easier to deal with.

"Yuta!!" 

Crap. His friends had arrived. The spell caster Inumaki, the girl, and the...panda, the cursed corpse.

Now or never. Anzu commanded herself. I would have your assistance.

Her fist sank into Rika's side, making the curse shriek in pain, and forced her down beneath her weight.

YUTA! Rika thrashed and convulsed, unable to shake her off, unable to reach her sorcerer boy as powerful waves of cursed energy began to pulse from the two of them.

Anzu closed her eyes and exhaled deeply. Like a vampire, she leeched Rika's life force, her cursed energy, taking just enough to replenish her own strength and then a little more. Yuta, Inumaki, Maki, and Panda couldn't reach her, they were held back by the force field. It was similar to the Gojo family's Limitless, and in fact it was from Haia herself that Anzu adapted the technique, but unbeknownst to outsiders she could only hold this position for a brief moment.

"Submit." Anzu growled, forcing Rika to look her in the eyes.

The little girl disintegrated in a gurgle of shadow and ash. 

Yuta's infuriated cry pierced her ears.

Blood rushed in Anzu's vision, her fleshless jaw lending her a maniacal, toothy grin. Her body warped grotesquely, jagged grisly bone protruding from her joints swelled in length, and her bloodless skin rippled with light. Still, she couldn't take them all, doing so would be a foolish death wish, even with Rika weakened to the point of no longer being able to manifest. The girl Maki posed as much of a threat as Yuta, Anzu judged, and the cursed corpse would deal a hefty punch should Inumaki recover enough to speak.

"Think!" Anzu commanded herself, frustration edging her tone, she only had a few seconds left before her shield came down.

A boy's voice came up in her memory, coolheaded and serious: Enmei. The youngest Aozora brother was a doctor, not a warrior, he was studying to use his technique for healing, not combat. He should have been spared that day, but Kamo's soldiers had murdered him in his bed.

"Think of it like if you're in a room full of injured patients. Go for the one who's closest to dying, treat the one who's at most risk. Now, in combat, it's probably the same thing, deal with whoever poses the biggest threat to you first."

Anzu clasped her hands together, and planted her feet. It was a high risk, to pull her trump card, but she knew if she succeeded then she would be able to even the playing field between herself and Okkotsu Yuta, who now no longer had the aid of his cursed friend. However, in her storm of thoughts she didn't notice that a new presence had entered the fray, a presence so powerful,  Akinori himself would not have the arrogance to challenge.

"Domain exp—"

"Domain expansion: Infinite Void."

Slightly early update because I'm heading out today. Remember to stay safe and wash your hands and face regularly! Also, this chapter was short because I was going to include a sketch of Anzu but I'm not finished yet so I'll probably add it later in the week.

Words: 1092

Next update: Friday April 23, 2021