Her hair fell onto his cheek, caressing his skin like a dark curtain as she held herself above him. He blinked, faltering for a moment, as its floral scent, a soft blend of gardenia and bergamot, flooded his senses. His eyes fluttered to her lips, which was visibly red from her anxious chewing. Satoru couldn't help but swallow, an unknown feeling beginning to burn in his chest.
Qian, however, was livid. What in the world is his problem?! As she opened her mouth to refute, there was suddenly a soft gasp and they both turned to see a small child standing right in the middle of the path, carrying a Mickey Mouse balloon, staring at them with wide eyes.
"Are you guys fighting?" The little girl asked, her fingers gripping the balloon strings tightly, her eyes welling up. "W-Why are you fighting?"
Qian finally managed to pry herself away from Satoru's grip and rushed over, kneeling in front of her as she placed her hands on her shoulder. "O-Oh, no sweetie, of course not! We were just talking about something important, don't worry!" She peered around. "W-Where's your mommy?"
The little girl shook her head, her pigtails waving wildly from the gesture. "I dunno. Mommy told me to wait by the cotton candy cart, but then the cotton candy cart left and so I followed Mr. Cotton Candy because she told me to wait next to him… but…" She sniffled and pouted, tears beginning to stream down her cheeks. "But… but then she never came back!"
"I-It's okay!" Qian smiled and wiped her cheeks with her thumb. "D-Don't cry! How about we go find her together?"
The girl peered up at her, wiping her nose with the back of her hand. "O-Okay…"
"Hey." She bit back a sigh as she looked up to face the sorcerer, who approached them with a scowl on his face. He pulled his mask back over his eyes as he towered over the pair. "This isn't part of the mission."
"N-No, it's not." She replied hotly, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "B-But I can't just leave her here."
Satoru sighed, rubbing his temples in frustration. "Let's just bring her to the help desk, they'll be able to find her mom faster than we can."
Qian shook her head. "A-Absolutely not. There's so many people, what if someone tries to take her?"
Satoru rolled his eyes, placing a hand on his hip. "That's why the help desk has people there, to watch over her."
But she rose to her feet, holding the little girl's hand firmly. "N-No. I'll take care of her."
He narrowed his eyes. "But the mission-"
"W-We can split up." She held her chin high as she regarded him. "I-I'll keep asking around, and you do the same."
He glowered at her, his jaw tightening. "Wasn't it your idea to stick together in the first place?"
"W-Well you made it very clear that I was disturbing you." She averted her eyes and adjusted the strap of her backpack. "S-so maybe it will be better to work separately."
"...Fine. Have it your way." Without waiting for her reply, he turned his heel and stalked off.
"Did I make Onii-san angry?" Qian peered down back at the girl and shook her head.
"N-No, he's just tired." She gave a soft smile, squeezing her hand affectionately. "C-Come on, let's go find your mom."
—-
Satoru angrily paced through the crowd, his hands deep in his pockets as a frown marred his features. Who the hell did she think she was? He released an angry breath, glaring up at the sky.
He paused in his step, recalling her furious gaze, the floral scent of her hair… Once again, he felt that weird burning sensation in his chest. Why is it so fucking hot? He ripped open his collar, rubbing his neck in an attempt to soothe his taut muscles. Wait, why am I even upset? He inhaled deeply, running a hand along his face. What is wrong with me?
He internally groaned, he knew his behavior was immature but he couldn't help it. This girl was constantly driving him to the edge, bringing these… unknown feelings… that he doesn't want to name.
Suddenly, his phone started buzzing and he barely registered Megumi's name on the screen before pressing the green button. "Megumi, what's up?"
"Sensei! One of those plant-like spirits showed up here!" There was a loud explosion heard from the background.
Satoru knitted his brow. "Are you okay? Do you need me to-"
"No, we're fine. Inumaki-senpai and I took care of it already, but I'm worried there will be others. Have you heard from Maki-senpai?"
"No, not yet." However, as soon as he spoke, a buzz emitted from his phone and he looked at the screen to see a text pop up. "Nevermind, she just texted me. Looks like two spirits showed up- they ran into Yuji and Nobara so they'll be fine."
"Okay sounds good. And Qian is with you right? They seem to be popping up everywhere, authorities have already begun evacuating Adventureland and Fantasyland."
Satoru's eyes widened and he frantically turned around.
"...sensei? Are you still there?"
"Sorry, Megumi. I'll call you back." Without hesitation, he raced back down the street.
—-
"Mommy!" The little girl raced towards the center of an open plaza, where a tall woman was frantically arguing with a security officer.
"Hinako!" She immediately dashed forward, her purse narrowly falling off her shoulder as she threw herself onto the little girl. "Thank god, you're okay! Why did you run off?"
Qian sighed in relief upon seeing the reunion. They had been walking all over the park, asking around to see if anyone had seen the girl's mother. They finally had some luck when one of the merchandise employees mentioned a crazed woman asking around for her lost child.
"You told me to wait by Mr. Cotton Candy and… and he went that way so I stayed by him and- and then this nice Onee-chan helped me find you!" The little girl explained, turning around to point at Qian.
She bowed her head politely in greeting and the woman practically cried in relief. "Thank you so much!" She sobbed gratefully to Qian, clasping her hands in her own. "How can I ever repay you?"
"O-Oh, don't worry about it! I'm just glad you were able to find her!" Qian pushed her glasses up sheepishly. "H-Hope you have a good rest of your day!"
The mother bowed deeply in gratitude. "Thank you, thank you! And I hope you have a good day as well!"
Once the two of them walked off. Qian took in a deep breath, seating herself on a nearby bench in exhaustion. She cradled her face in her hands as she recalled her previous argument with the man.
What the hell was up with him? She chewed her lip absently before she immediately stopped, her face reddening from her inadvertent gesture. Great. Now I'm so self-conscious.
She sighed and buried her face inside her palms once more, feeling remorse. He was right; it was her idea to stick together, but she couldn't help needing to get away from him and just having space. He was being so rude and condescending!
But what if something happens to him? It'd be all my fault. She sighed dejectedly, pushing herself back up to her feet. She peered up at the sky and noticed it had turned into pink and orange.
Suddenly, she heard buzzing and she reached into the side pouch of her backpack to pull out her phone. She saw Miyano's name and she raised the device to her ear. "H-Hello?"
"Qi! Where are you?!" Her friend's voice was frantic, screams being heard in the background.
"M-Miyano-chan, are you okay?" Qian urgently stood up. "W-What's going on?"
"I-I'm fine- where are you?!"
She looked around, noting that the plaza was practically empty, with only the security guard pacing by a porcelain water fountain erected by a grove of trees. "I-I'm not sure, I'm in an open area, there's a fountain-"
"You need to get out of there! They're evacuating the entire park! I don't know why but-"
Suddenly, there was a loud crash and Qian yelped, dropping her phone in shock. She whipped her head around to see the fountain shatter into white dust as a monstrous, snake-like being burst forth from underground. It hissed, flaring its hood as it reared its head back. She blanched and stumbled back, recognizing it as a cursed spirit.
She gravely noticed its familiar blood-red eyes and dark-green skin. Another plant spirit.
However, to the officer, it simply appears as though the fountain exploded. Its irises flickered and locked onto him as he fell onto his back.
"Whoa!" He shielded his face as the marble crumbled around him.
Qian's eyes widened fearfully, reaching her hand out towards him. "S-Sir! You have to get away!"
He pushed himself to his feet, dusting his clothes. "Whew, a pipe burst?! Guess I better call Facilities to get that piping fixed." He lifted his gaze. "Miss, are you alri-"
Suddenly, a bladed edge protruded from his throat. Qian gasped in horror as he made a sickening gargled noise before collapsing, the blade retracting back to the tail of the serpent. It screeched as it snapped its head towards the girl, who slowly began to bend down to try to reach her phone.
However, a vine shot out from the ground, twisting around her wrist and dragging her to the ground, causing the device to fall out of her hands and clatter onto the pavement.
"Finally, I found you." She turned to see the auburn-haired cursed user, who raised an arm to wrap another vine around her limbs.
"Y-You're… the cursed user from before." Qian realized, struggling to pull away from the tendrils. Her eyes darted around her, grimly noting that not a single person was in sight. "W-What do you want from me?"
"That's for Kurofiru-sama to decide." She held her hand up, a large flower appearing from the shadows. Beside her, the snake flickered its tongue out, slithering slowly towards her. Qian recognized the blossom as the same flower that had snatched Megumi before in their previous encounter. As its approaching petals snapped open and shut, she frantically tried to free herself, digging and scraping her forearms into the cement from the movement.
Suddenly, the petals erupted into flames and a shadowy figure flew in front of her, digging a fist into her gut. She croaked, choking out blood, before the impact threw her into a carousel on the opposite side of the plaza.
The spirit hissed and snarled at the intruder, but before it could attack, the man pummeled its face into the ground in a dark blur. Qian shut her eyes as a gust of debris surged around her. She blinked as she squinted through the dust, instantly recognizing his silver-hair, as he stood in front of her.
"G-Gojo-sensei?" She exclaimed. "W-What are you doing here?"
"Are you alright?" He peered down at her and she nodded hesitantly. The vines loosened around Qian and she ripped them off her wrist.
"Y-You shouldn't be here." She scrambled to her feet. "I-It's the same cursed user as before and this spirit seems more powerful than the others. You're outnumbered."
He grinned as he turned away, facing the woman as she climbed out of the rubble. "I said it before, and I'll say it again. You have no idea what I'm capable of."
"YOU. AGAIN!" Hinamori screeched, throwing her arms out, a torpedo of vines charging towards them. "STAY THE FUCK OUT OF MY WAY!"
Satoru's smirk widened. "That trick won't work on me twice." He held two fingers up and they instantly stopped their trajectory, frozen in place.
However, the ground beneath them suddenly shook, and Qian glanced over to see the serpent had disappeared into the earth.
"S-Sensei!" Before she could think twice, her body moved on its own and she shoved the sorcerer out of the way as the spirit burst from the ground, gripping her in its jaws. It crashed into a rollercoaster, slithering its way up the metal infrastructure.
"Qian!" He shouted, before a vine twisted around his ankle, dropping him to the ground.
"Gotcha!" He glared at the woman, who laughed maniacally. "You're mine now!"
He could feel his cursed energy start to weaken and he quickly raised a finger, a flurry of red light clustering together into a glowing orb. "Cursed Technique Reversal: Red."
The beam shot forward, breaking into the ground and destroying everything in its path. She froze in fear, unable to dodge the blast in time.
However, a body tackled her and threw the two of them out of the line of fire. As they rolled across the pavement, she coughed and pushed herself onto her elbows with a painful groan, craning her neck to face her savior.
"Rozu!" She crawled into her knees. "What the hell are you doing here?"
"Fulfilling the mission that I knew you were gonna fail." The teen grimaced as he climbed to his feet. "You're welcome, Hinamori."
"I had her! But then he intervened AGAIN." She spat, brushing the burnt strands of her hair out of her face. "I don't need your help."
"Then get out of here and bring her to Kurofiru-sama!" He shouted, turning back to face Satoru, who cracked his knuckles in anticipation as he glanced between the two. Rozu raised his hand and shifted his stance. "I'll keep him out of your way."
Hinamori gritted her teeth. "Fine. But this doesn't mean I owe you anything!"
"Yeah, yeah. Get out of here!" He yelled, raising his arms. Sharp, silver needle-like spines shot out from his palm and flew towards the sorcerer.
Satoru grinned and easily leapt to the side, dodging the onslaught. He held up his hands, closing his fingers while keeping one hand open. "Bold of you to assume you can escape me." He took a deep breath. "Cursed Technique Reversa-"
All of a sudden, his trachea tightened. He choked, erupting into a fit of coughs, wheezing for air as he doubled over.
Rozu laughed maniacally, his magenta-irises shining with bloodlust. "Bold of you to assume you can stop me!" He closed the gap between them, throwing a punch, and Satoru gritted his teeth, tilting his head back to dodge the blow.
However, the same needles burst out from his forearm, narrowly piercing Satoru's face as he managed to throw himself backwards completely onto the ground.
He twisted his body to roll himself onto his knees, unable to stop himself from his rasping.
"What did you do to me…?" He croaked, clutching his throat. Did he get hit with poison? He's had Infinity activated, nothing could have possibly pierced him… unless-
"Oh didn't you know? Allergy season isn't over yet." Rozu replied ominously, his spines retracting back into his skin. He scratched his shaven head thoughtfully. "I guess you can call it…" He smiled darkly as he opened his arms. "My special pollen."
Using his Six-Eyes, Satoru began to see miniscule particles emitting from the cursed user's limbs. He couldn't stop, his throat felt like it was closing up on him and his sight grew hazy. He tried to pull his collar over his mouth, but the cloth was unable to filter out the contaminated air.
"It's useless, it's everywhere and practically microscopic, you can't stop it." The teen goaded, slowly walking towards his collapsed body.
From the corner of his eye, he saw the woman leap over the rubble and disappear behind the buildings.
Think, Satoru. He clenched his jaw. He strained his eyes to the enemy in front of him before suddenly he blinked.
If it's everywhere, in the air….then. With the last bit of his strength, he palmed his hands together.
"Cursed Technique Lapse: Blue." He muttered. The empty space between them soon twisted into a swirling vortex, sucking in the air around them.
"The fuck?!" Rozu shouted, barely managing to grapple onto a nearby light pole to avoid becoming sucked in by the rapid winds.
Satoru finally gasped in relief, breathing in fresh air as the contamination was drawn into the dark vacuum before him. Violent winds surged around them in a wild tornado.
"Now, your stupid pollen has no effect. It will forever be drawn into this negative space, never to escape." He ripped off his mask, his eyes glaring at the teen in fury.
"I don't have time for any more games." He raised his other hand, crossing his two fingers over each other. "Domain Expansion: Unlimited Void."