Chapter 178: The Final Shikigami
"Ria? What are you doing here?"
Zen'in Kaon froze when she spotted Ria inside a breakfast shop, genuine surprise on her face.
"Weren't you training with your sister? I thought you'd already gone back to the Simurian people's ship. So you're still on Earth?"
Faced with Kaon's confusion, the woman holding the breakfast bags glanced at her calmly.
"You've got the wrong person."
In the next instant, Alice vanished from the spot.
Kaon stood there, completely dumbfounded.
"…Wrong person?"
She scratched her head in disbelief.
"What's Ria pulling this time?"
She was pretty sure she hadn't reached the age where she'd start mistaking people.
Same face. Same figure. And she was told she'd mistaken her for someone else?
Was this some kind of special training method?
Kaon could only shrug and decide to ask Lia about it during the exchange meeting.
---
"After a full week of sparring, I've more or less adapted to quasi–special-grade combat intensity," Kaon muttered to herself.
"Starting today, it's time to focus on the Ten Shadows Technique."
Her cousin had once told her that the Ten Shadows Technique was an ability with the potential to reach the very pinnacle.
If she wanted to stand at the top, she had to push it to its absolute limit.
What's more, she also possessed Star Rage, an incredibly powerful technique that could be combined with the Ten Shadows.
According to her cousin, if she developed both properly, she might even surpass all previous users—and become the strongest sorcerer in history.
Just thinking about it made her heart race.
The strongest sorcerer…
If her parents found out that she'd entered the jujutsu world and, in such a short time, reached that level…
They'd probably be so proud they wouldn't be able to stop smiling.
They'd praise her endlessly, right?
The more she thought about it, the more excited she became.
She quickly finished her breakfast, then hurried off without delay to find Fushiguro Megumi and begin what could only be called her final stage of training.
---
Back at the Fushiguro household, Megumi was in the middle of a discussion with Toji when Kaon arrived.
Noticing her, Megumi raised a hand and beckoned.
"Kaon, come here for a moment."
"…What's up?"
Zen'in Kaon walked over, noticing that her cousin and Uncle seemed to be discussing something, which piqued her curiosity.
"It's like this," Fushiguro Megumi said. "For the upcoming exchange meeting with the Simurian people, uncle and aunt will also be returning to watch. I wanted to let you know in advance so you can be prepared."
Megumi was referring to Zen'in Shinsuke and Yuki Tsukumo returning to the jujutsu world.
Kaon froze for a moment, then her eyes widened in shock.
"What? My dad and mom are coming too?!"
"Tch—those two didn't even tell me beforehand!"
She looked a little annoyed at first, but quickly adjusted her mood.
"Fine, let them come. I'll give them a big surprise. My strength a month from now will definitely shock them."
"…Probably not that much," Megumi muttered under his breath.
"Huh? What did you say, cousin?" Kaon asked.
"Nothing," Megumi replied smoothly, changing the subject.
"Next, you should be focusing on training the Ten Shadows Technique, right? Let's start now. I'll share my experience in subjugating the shikigami and try to help you use more of them in combat before the exchange meeting."
"Alright."
Kaon didn't press the issue. Right now, all she wanted was to grow stronger as fast as possible—and then dazzle her parents.
---
She followed Megumi to an open training ground and began the next phase of her training.
"Which shikigami have you not yet subjugated?" Megumi asked.
After more than a decade of experience, he had an absolute understanding of every shikigami in the Ten Shadows Technique. With his guidance, he was confident his absurdly talented cousin could easily subjugate all nine.
"Oh, at this point, only the final shikigami remains," Kaon replied casually.
"My mom said not to attempt subjugating it unless I was absolutely confident, so I never tried. I heard you're the first person in history to successfully subjugate it—tell me, cousin, is the final shikigami strong?"
She looked at him with sparkling curiosity.
Out of the Ten Shadows' ten shikigami, she had already subjugated nine. The only reason she hadn't used more of them in battle before was her lack of refined cursed energy control.
"…Nine?"
Megumi stared at her in disbelief.
"Other than Mahoraga, you've already subjugated all of them?"
At her age, even he had only managed that with Sukuna's help.
"Eh… I guess?" Kaon scratched her head.
"I didn't think it was that hard. If my mom hadn't stopped me, I would've tried subjugating the final one before even coming to the jujutsu world."
"…That figures," Megumi sighed.
"With two techniques, it makes sense. Compared to past Ten Shadows users, subjugating shikigami would be much easier for you."
After all, she also possessed Star Rage. Using that in combination with already-subjugated shikigami made the process significantly simpler.
"So," Megumi continued, "you want to subjugate the final shikigami—Mahoraga?"
"Yes," Kaon nodded firmly.
"I've heard it's incredibly strong. If I succeed, my strength will increase by a huge margin."
Megumi nodded.
"Mahoraga is extremely powerful. Throughout the history of the Zen'in clan, not a single head ever succeeded in subjugating it. Even I only managed it due to… special circumstances."
Without Sukuna, he would have failed without question.
"What about me?" Kaon asked, blinking.
"Do I have a chance?"
She was different from past clan heads. With two techniques, surely her odds were better.
Megumi thought for a moment, then nodded.
"Not only do you have a chance—you have a very high probability of success."
"I don't know whether shikigami from the same era are somehow linked, so I won't summon Mahoraga to spar with you."
"Mahoraga's abilities are special. It has terrifying regenerative power, but more importantly—it can adapt."
"In other words, Mahoraga can rapidly adapt to an enemy's attack patterns, eventually becoming immune to them."
"If you want to subjugate it, you must defeat it completely before it adapts to your techniques."
"Not even fragments can remain."
Two Ten Shadows users existing in the same era was already extremely rare—like two Six Eyes and Limitless appearing together.
"So it has to be completely destroyed in one decisive strike?" Kaon asked thoughtfully.
"I suggest you first use the Ten Shadows Technique to adapt to its combat rhythm," Megumi said.
"Once you find the right opening, use Star Rage to deliver a single, fatal blow."
"I understand."
Kaon nodded firmly.
No matter what, she had to try.
"Then… can I start now?"
"Wait," Megumi said, stopping her.
"I'll have your Uncle come watch as well. If anything goes wrong, he can intervene with external force."
He wasn't about to let her risk it alone.