Author's Note: Kotori's move, Celestial Mandala, is based off of Sailor Mars' attack Burning Mandala. She can only use it as a last resort, and she must have a majority of her ofuda left over to use this cursed technique.
Kotori couldn't be any more relieved, now that Nobara had arrived just when she was at death's doorstep. However, since she had done all she could and was no match for Hisako, all she could do now was hope that her classmate would finish what she wasn't able to: save Kanao.
"So you're the bride of Ryomen Sukuna, Hisako," Nobara said to her. "Nice to meet ya. I'm Nobara Kugisaki, a friend of Kotori and Kanao's."
"After having just called me a derogatory name, I wouldn't be friendly with you… but, because you're a woman, 'tis a pleasure to meet you as well, Nobara," Hisako replied to her.
Kotori was on edge, as she was witnessing the first encounter between Nobara and Hisako. As much as she was relieved to have been spared from death, she was deeply concerned about her best friend, Kanao, and she feared for her safety since Hisako had been in control of her body thanks to Sukuna.
"You may have been incarnated into Kanao Tsukiyama's body and reunited with your king, but the reunion won't last long," the brown-haired female claimed, earning an unamused frown from Hisako.
"Once I'm through with you, I'm going after your red-haired friend and I'll slaughter her," the special grade female said to her, frightening Kotori. "I would love to make a rainfall out of her blood."
"And why would you want to kill Kotori?" Nobara questioned, staring bitterly at her.
A devious smirk plastered on Hisako's face, and her eyes narrowed as she answered:
"Because she poses as a threat to me and Sukuna due to her disapproval of us, and I refuse to let anyone tear us apart again, just like the first time one thousand years ago."
Gojo-sensei was right about Hisako's demise, Nobara thought, as she recalled the students learning briefly of the Beads of Hisako from their mentor back at Tokyo High.
"These beads once belonged to a woman named Hisako, who was said to have died of a broken heart during the golden age of jujutsu sorcery. Her spirit is sealed within these beads, and there is an extremely rare chance that whoever wears these beads will become her new vessel."
Two more flashbacks soon followed, with Kanao wearing the beads as Sukuna ordered her, and the students' encounter with Sukuna and Hisako from earlier.
And now, it's just as we feared. Because she has the beads on, Hisako has now been incarnated into Kanao, making her Hisako's new vessel!
Nobara held out her hammer and nails with her arms crossed over one another, and an overly confident smile plastered on her face as she declared:
"Alright. Now, let's get down to business! I have a score to settle, by exorcising ya!"
"But what about Kanao?!" Kotori cried. "She's still in there, I know it! Just don't kill her, please!"
"Don't worry," Nobara said to her. "I'll do all I can to ensure she will switch back to Kanao. But it's not gonna be easy, because Kanao doesn't know how to control Hisako yet. And we obviously can't destroy them, so the only way to exorcise Hisako is to allow Kanao to become a curse herself, just like Itadori did."
As bleak as it seemed, Kotori knew that Nobara was correct. By wearing the special grade object around her neck, Kanao had opened a door to becoming Hisako's vessel, thus walking down the same path as Yuji when he became Sukuna's vessel. However…
When she does return to normal, that would mean… Kanao could one day be executed! Kotori thought, her gold eyes bulging in sheer terror.
She gazed down at her remaining ofuda in her hands, her hands firmly grasping them with a stare of disbelief.
I wish I can help Nobara, but I can't use Celestial Mandala! I could seriously injure her and Kanao's body! Plus, I don't have much ofuda left to perform that technique, so that's out of the question.
Now out of options, Kotori's only choice now was to observe Nobara charging at Hisako, her nails infused with her cursed energy floating in midair. She gave a strong swing of her hammer and two nails soared directly at Hisako like bullets would from a gun. Hisako evaded them, moving aside as the nails impaled the fence, creating explosions that left holes in them.
"Shit… she evaded two of my nails," Nobara snarled, leering irately at her. "But I still have some left. I will need to use them wisely, because I need one nail to impale into my straw doll."
"That's how you fight as a sorcerer?" Hisako questioned, smirking mockingly at Nobara. "Wielding nothing but a hammer and a set of nails? You can do better than that."
"I don't fight with just my hammer and nails!" Nobara snapped, as she pulled out her straw doll and held it out in front of her. "I use my straw doll as an effigy, and that is sometimes required to perform an exorcism. In order to carry it out successfully, I need to connect my straw doll to you."
"Hmph. I'd like to see you try."
With swift speed, Hisako lunged at Nobara and performed a high kick, striking her underneath her chin. Nobara was sent upward in the air, causing her nails to drop onto the ground as Kotori was watching in horror.
"No! Kugisaki!" she called out to her.
Hisako soon caught up to Nobara, giving her an uppercut to each side of her face before sending her crashing with another high kick. Nobara's body tumbled across the roof and slammed into a fence across from where Kotori was, and she groaned in pain as she recuperated.
"Damn… she's much more powerful than Tsukiyama is…," she growled, brushing the dust off of her uniform. "In fact, she has the exact strength of a special grade spirit!"
"Indeed I do," Hisako said to her, as she approached Nobara. "Sukuna trained me to become stronger as a sorcerer thousands of years ago. I was a mere sorcerer in my family before meeting him. And if it weren't for him, I wouldn't have become this vigorous."
Nobara understood Hisako's explanation, yet she was left in a state of frustration due to Hisako's incredible strength. She refused to quit, and she would rather keep going, even at the cost of her own life.
"Now, shall I finish you off?" Hisako asked Nobara, aiming a finger at her.
"Kugisaki!" Kotori called out to Nobara, racing toward them with a Divine Barrier ofuda on hand. "I'll buy you some time to strategize, by trapping her in my barrier!"
"Stay back, Yamato!" Nobara warned her, as Hisako swiftly charged at Kotori and sent her flying with an incredibly powerful high kick to the abdomen. Kotori cried out as her body crashed against the fence, coughing up a small amount of blood as she collapsed onto the ground.
"You bitch!" Nobara screamed, as the dropped nails levitated once more, clouded in her cursed energy. They soon projected back to her and Nobara gave them a mighty swing with her hammer, sending them flying at Hisako.
"Didn't I tell you that I can easily evade your nails?" Hisako reminded her, gracefully ducking underneath the nails.
"Of course you did, but you forgot one thing that they can do even when I miss," Nobara answered, as the nails struck the ground, surrounding Hisako.
What!? Hisako thought, her eyes bulging in disbelief. She would make her nails miss on purpose, just so she can trap me!?
With a swift snap of her fingers, Nobara incanted, giving Hisako a coldhearted stare:
"Straw Doll Technique: Hairpin!"
The cursed energy infused with her nails imploded one by one, and Kotori could feel the strong wave coming from the explosions before her very eyes. She had to shield herself from the incoming dust that followed from the explosions, the wind blowing through her fiery red hair.
Nobara was observing the smoke rising as a result of the implosions from her nails, waiting for it to clear up. She was certain that victory was in her reach, as she smiled confidently at the damage she had done.
I think I've nailed it, she thought proudly.
Her gratification soon shifted into dismay as her brown eyes widened greatly and a gasp of alarm escaped her lips. The smoke had finally cleared up, revealing that Hisako was largely unscathed. Her plan had sadly backfired on the Grade 3 sorcerer, as she clutched her hammer tightly in her right hand.
"I missed?!" Nobara snapped. "How could that be?! The implosions should have damaged her because I surrounded her with my nails!"
Kotori was just as appalled as Nobara, her golden eyes widening in horror. Even her own classmate was unable to defeat Hisako, the incredibly strong bride of Ryomen Sukuna!
In a flash, Hisako approached Nobara and snatched her by the back of her cropped jacket, hurling her upward. She soon soared up in the air and gave her a storm of barrages to the face, as she said to Nobara:
"You may be a good sorcerer, after all, and I am impressed with your cursed technique, channeling your cursed energy into your nails and make them levitate and project them at any target. However, you lack the same physical strength as I do! And for that reason, I rank superior to you!"
With a cry of fury, Hisako gave Nobara a kick in the back, sending her crashing down into the roof. It had formed a small crack as a result of the impact from the crash, further amplifying Kotori's worries about her classmate.
"Kugisaki!" she cried in fear.
With Nobara down for the count, Hisako approached her and grabbed her by the front of her jacket as she said to her darkly:
"Now, to eliminate you once and for all. Then, Kotori is next."
A gasp escaped Kotori's lips, fearful of her friend's impending doom. She had to act fast and warn Nobara to escape, before it would be too late.
"Kugisaki! Get away while you still can!" she called out to her. "She's about to perform the same move she failed to use on me!"
"I'd rather save that move on you," Hisako snarled, further heightening Kotori's terrified state. "Now, watch closely as I rip out her heart and crush it, ending her life short."
"Go ahead and try…," Nobara snarled, glaring bitterly at her. "If I die, Yamato will finish you off for me. After all, I'd rather be avenged than be left to die alone, rotting on this roof."
"Very well. Your scream of agony and her cries of anguish will be music to my ears, and I will feel your blood oozing in my hand. Now… allow me to take what's rightfully mine, Nobara Kugisaki!"
"NO!" Kotori screamed, her eyes bulging out in horror.
Just as Hisako was inches away from Nobara's chest, she suddenly paused and glanced upward at the sight of a figure hurling down toward them like a meteor. That turned out to be Hinako, using her parasol to drift herself at an accelerating rate. The moment she landed on her feet, another had crack had formed onto the roof due to the strong impact that came from her landing.
"Surprise!" the three-eyed Special Grade spirit chirped, waving warmly to the women.
It's Hinako! Kotori thought, her jaw dropping in alarm.
Nobara was just as shocked as Kotori, her brown eyes widening greatly at the side of the doll-like cursed spirit standing before the two women.
"And just who are you?" Hisako asked her, raising an eyebrow.
"Why, I'm Hinako, one of Mahito's allies," Hinako answered with a devious giggle. "And it's so delightful to meet you, Hisako!"
Her cheerful smile soon shifted into a deviously sinister one, as she removed the handle of her parasol to reveal her blade and aimed it directly at Hisako and Nobara, as she said in a terrifyingly dark tone of voice:
"Now, I'd love to play with you, and I'll slice you up into pieces so I can feed them to the cursed spirits who hunger for you."
How did I do writing this all-female fight? I'm pretty sure both Nobara and Hisako kick some ass! Please let me know what you think, but be gentle when reviewing. Any negative remarks, trolling or spam will not be tolerated.