Chapter 48

While retreating with the knocked-out Toge and Noritoshi loaded onto her broom, Momo grumbles about their unexpected weight and her own shock that two strong fighters wound up like this, then settles on trusting Aoi for the simple reason that he hits hard. On the riverbank, Aoi and Yuji crash in to relieve Maki and Megumi. Aoi waves over Panda to carry the wounded pair to safety so the two newcomers can hold Hanami. Megumi protests, but Yuji promises he has it handled, and before being pulled away Megumi warns that he will kill Yuji himself if he dies a second time.

Aoi sets a brutal condition: he stays out of the fight entirely until Yuji produces a Black Flash, and if Yuji cannot manage it, Aoi is willing to let him be killed. Hanami sizes Aoi up as formidable yet still beneath himself. Goaded by a hint that the patch-faced spirit might be among Hanami's allies, Yuji erupts, smashing the river into a spray of water and hurling stones through it before closing in with a rapid barrage of kicks that prove faster than Maki but lacking in punch. His first attempt at the technique fails when fury over his injured friends breaks his concentration, earning a sharp rebuke from Aoi to bury his anger and silence every distraction.

The chapter lays out the rule behind Black Flash: it occurs when a sorcerer stacks cursed energy onto a strike inside a one-millionth-of-a-second window, something no one can do on command, and those who achieve it grasp cursed energy on a far deeper level than anyone who has not. Locking in with such focus that he drools, Yuji bolts forward the instant his saliva strikes the ground and lands a hit that flashes black, stunning Hanami with its force while a delighted Aoi watches his protege succeed. The story belongs to the Kyoto Goodwill Event Arc and adapts into Episode 19.