Fushiguro was sat on a set of stone steps that lead down to a dirt expanse in the school compound. The sun was bright and hot as it bore down onto his clothed back. Since a couple days ago, Noriko had come back to her usual self. She never attended lessons and spent most of her time doing... something (either in the library or in her room), but she joined them for mealtimes, which was enough to repair the bond between them.

All three hadn't quite healed yet from the ordeal that was Itadori Yuji, but they were getting there. He'd caught a glimpse inside of Noriko's room once or twice and seen that the blood-stained hoodie had been taken down and dealt with - which he guessed was a positive sign (though he wasn't sure about the thousands of sheets of paper pinned to her walls in it's place).

"You're free to go all out Nobara," the dark-haired girl called from the middle of the arena. Noriko was dressed in her usual colourful hooded sweatshirt, however, her signature brush holster was missing from her right leg. Her chosen weapon was clasped loosely in her right hand. After many sparring sessions with Maki Zenin, Fushiguro recognised it as some kind of naginata, but with a curved blade? There were a few talismans tied to the hilt with a red cord and he could feel a steady flow of energy from the blade.

Nobara spun her hammer in her hand as the two stood in still silence for a second. That was, until the brunette raised her arm and nails levitated in the vague area she gestured to. The pouch around her waist emitted a few quiet 'clinks' as the nails flew out of it - each surrounded with a fiery, blue glow. Noriko dropped down into a crouch, spinning the long pole in her hand as she held it behind herself. The muscles in her legs twitched as her dark eyes remained trained on her classmate, waiting for her to make a move.

It really could've gone either way, Fushiguro mused to himself.

Noriko was fast - a lot more so than he expected - but her physical strength was lacking and without the help of her brush, her ability to manipulate cursed energy was surprisingly weak. The blade of the bisento* only produced a vague, golden aura, nowhere near the roaring glow around Nobara's tools. However, like with Maki, Nobara's long-distance combat was at a disadvantage against Noriko, who dodged the majority of her nails with ease and forced her back with close-combat... only to find Nobara hit harder than she thought.

While Noriko could launch perhaps thousands of quick jabs (either with her free hand or the butt of her weapon) at her opponent in a very short space of time, as long as Nobara landed one heavy hit, she could force the girl away. However, this tactic didn't last long, and both girls ended up resuming their original positions - a few yards away from each other in the centre of the pitch. Having shed her hoodie, Noriko's forehead was glistening in a sheen of sweat and her lips were parted.

Her classmate - while still also exhausted - was mostly fatigued by her energy usage. Nobara couldn't help but wonder how quickly she would've gone down if Noriko had used her technique. Could she even use 'resonance' on the ink creatures? Or would it be doubly effective and hit Noriko as well if she created a bond through the ink? She brushed those thoughts from her head - it wasn't the time. She was running out of stamina; she had to end it soon.

Her grip tightened around a single black strand her hand before dropping it onto the dust and reaching into her uniform top. Grasping a straw doll, she pulled it out into the sunlight, throwing it to the ground as she readied another couple nails. Her pouch was nearly depleted.

She was confident it wouldn't hurt Noriko too bad - beside there wasn't really anything the nurse couldn't fix.

"Resonance: Straw Doll Technique!"

'Ah, that's going to sting like a bitch,' Noriko hummed internally as she tried to supress the smirk that crawled onto her face. 'Took her long enough'.

That's what Noriko had been aiming for since she'd asked Nobara to spar with her. Her 'Resonance' still affected the target's soul and as much as it was going to be painful, Noriko was practically dying to know what would happen. Call it morbid curiosity, but she couldn't help wonder whose soul took the damage? She'd already established with Gojo that her condition wasn't like Yuji's (who was entirely separate from Sukuna), so did they both take damage? Or would it actually have any effect? If she could work out the weaknesses of her bond with Shikishi, then maybe it'd get her closer to figuring out what was going on... or whatever the 'curse' element was.

Nobara swung her hammer, the back colliding with the glowing nail - which shot into the straw doll with jet like speed.

The pain wasn't immediate and even though the nail had struck the arm (which was holding her bisento) of the doll, the pain blossomed in her heart. It slowly spread throughout her chest cavity. The energy of Shikishi pulsed in her temple, but Noriko pushed it into submission with her own energy - the taste of static running over her tongue.

Nobara watched in curiosity as her opponent's arm remained clutching the weapon - her fist twitching around it once before regaining complete control, however, her other arm lifted to clutch at the fabric of her chest as her pupils dilated. Her curiosity didn't last long as she felt the 'connection' she'd made between Noriko and her snap with an electric current that shot up the hand holding her hammer. It dropped to the floor with a thud.

"Oh? My students are sparring," Satoru Gojo mused in his usual carefree tone, scaring Fushiguro who had no idea he was standing behind him. The dark-haired boy shot up, but his shoulders relaxed when he saw it was his teacher. "Aw~! You're all so diligent."

Noriko pushed herself up from her crouched position, pressing her palm firmly over the space on her chest. Her breathing was laboured and she almost stumbled, but stepped a foot backwards to steady herself.

"Noriko? Are you okay?" A wide-eyed Nobara called. In the few milliseconds before her connection snapped, she'd seen the wild outline of Noriko's soul. It didn't fit her figure - or any particular shape - and was a murky mix of colours that sparked uncontrollably around her silhouette. She was sure she'd hit the arm of the straw doll (and she looked down at it to confirm she did), but... Noriko's soul had no discernible 'arms'. Just a mass. "Is it your heart? Should we call it quits?"

Her opponent coughed weakly, finally raising her head.

"Ah, that might be best," the pain subsided as she rubbed the space above her heart a final time and let her hand go limp at her side. Both girls dropped out of their combat stances and Nobara began to collect her nails from the ground. "That's a useful technique - if you weren't going easy on me, I think I'd have to surrender."

The sharp electric feeling in Nobara's hand made her doubtful of that, but the pain Noriko had experienced wasn't exactly hidden.

"I hope I didn't aggravate your condition," she pursed her eyebrows together as she clipped the pouch shut. Noriko shook her head lightly, reaching down to pick up her hoodie and pull it over her head - temporarily placing her weapon down.

"It'll be fine~!" The black-haired girl shrugged in a carefree manner. "I'll just drop by the infirmary if I feel any pain later."

Nobara nodded nervously as the two made their way back to where Fushiguro was sitting. Snatching up her water bottle, Noriko took a big gulp, ignoring the presence of her teacher.

"Oh, Gojo-sensei," Nobara greeted politely, "I didn't realise you were back."

"I only got back just now," he grinned at them, rubbing the back of his neck as he ignored the cold attitude of his newest student. "You aren't in too much pain, Noriko? I need to borrow you for just a second."

"Mmm, I'm fine for now," the girl shrugged bluntly, attaching her brush holster back around her leg. She tightened the straps and checked her tools before looking up to her teacher and giving him a brief nod. "I'll drop by the infirmary after dinner."

"Good, follow me then," he turned and lifted a lazy hand over his shoulder, beckoning her to follow him - which she did, leaving Nobara and Fushiguro behind on the steps.

"Do you think she's actually okay?" Nobara queried quietly as she watched their backs leave and turn down a path in the courtyard. Fushiguro glanced at her, mulling over his own thoughts. Nobara's attack targeted the soul - something he knew was the core of Noriko's issue - but he wasn't aware enough of the situation to predict what damage she could've done.

"She's not very good at hiding her emotions, so I don't think she's in too much pain," he reassured her, beginning to wander off towards the direction of his next class. "Besides, Gojo-sensei will handle it."

A bisentō (眉尖刀, brow blade) was a used in feudal Japan. The bisentō has various descriptions, "a double-edged long sword with a thick truncated blade", "a spear-like weapon with a blade at the end that resembles a ", "a polearm resembling a , with a long, heavy haft and a heavy, curved blade".