Afternoon. The Beach (Domain Expansion: Horizon of the Captivating Skandha).
"SUGURU GETO!!!"
Jogo—the Volcano Cursed Spirit—stared intently at the man in the kasaya. The flames on his head boiled with rage, and his single eye was bloodshot.
"Aren't you going to say anything about Hanami's death?!"
"Jogo~"
Mahito leaned back in his beach chair, hands behind his head. He looked nonchalant, fanning himself against the heat, but his soul was secretly guarded.
"Calm down."
The sea surface sparkled. Dagon (in his womb form) peeked out of the water, staring with large, sad eyes. Hanami...
"Hanami's death was an accident," Kenjaku (Pseudo-Geto) said calmly, the sea breeze ruffling his long hair. "I underestimated Zenin Mirai's strength."
"You think 'accident' is enough?!" Jogo stepped forward, grabbing Kenjaku's collar. "We are companions! You treated him like a pawn!"
"Mahito is right," Kenjaku didn't flinch. "Now is not the time for infighting. Whether it is the Prison Realm to seal Gojo Satoru... or the plan to awaken Sukuna within Yuji Itadori... you need my brain to succeed."
Kenjaku looked Jogo in the eye. "Don't you want Cursed Spirits to walk openly as the new humans?"
Suppressed anger churned in Jogo's chest. Hanami's death felt like a long needle embedded deep in his heart. But reason clashed with emotion. To defeat the two insurmountable mountains—Gojo Satoru and Zenin Mirai—they needed Kenjaku's plan.
Jogo slowly released the collar. His expression was gloomy. "Fine."
Hanami... I'm sorry.
...
Night. The Kamo Estate (Kyoto).
9:00 PM. The stars were hidden by clouds. Three figures stood outside the traditional gate of one of the Three Great Families. White Zetsu (Number One), dressed in a black robe with a short sword slung across his waist. Behind him stood Naobito Zenin and Jinichi Zenin.
"Naobito. Jinichi," Zetsu spoke confidentially. "You two guard the door. Kill anyone who tries to escape. Master Zetsu will wipe out the sorcerers inside alone."
A hint of doubt flashed in Naobito's eyes. The Kamo clan has declined, but they still have Semi-Grade 1 Sorcerers and private armed forces. Can this Cursed Spirit really do it alone?
But they obeyed Mirai's orders. "Understood."
Jinichi formed a hand seal. "Emerge from darkness, blacker than darkness. Purify that which is impure."
WHOOSH.
A Curtain (Barrier) descended, shrouding the estate in inky blackness. Inside, sound and light were cut off from the outside world.
"Let's go." Zetsu vanished instantly.
Naobito's eyes widened under his glasses. Where did he go? I didn't sense any Cursed Energy activation... he just moved.
Far away in Shinjuku, Mirai put away his phone. Kamui. He teleported to a rooftop overlooking the Kamo Estate. He trusted Number One's capabilities—after all, it was a special body—but he came to ensure Kenjaku didn't interfere.
He stayed in the shadows to protect Zetsu's pitiful pride.
...
Inside the mansion, dim candlelight flickered. The sudden darkness of the Curtain alerted the guards. The old butler hurried down the corridor toward the Master's chambers.
"Who—" SQUELCH.
A black blade pierced his throat before he could finish. There was no time for shock. The butler looked up, meeting cold, dead eyes that looked down on him like an insect.
A Cursed Spirit... without any Cursed Energy?
White Zetsu (Number One) flicked the warm blood off his black robe and vanished into the shadows.
"Who is it?!"
The wooden door to the Master's chambers swung open. Kamo Dōran, the 24th Head of the Kamo Family, stared at the butler lying in a pool of blood. His pupils trembled.
Crimson Blood Manipulation: Flowing Red Scale.
CLANG!
Dōran spun around, using a net of hardened blood to barely block a deadly strike from behind! Cold sweat trickled down Dōran's forehead. Only those who awaken Blood Manipulation can become the head of the Kamo family. He was extremely sensitive to the smell of iron. That was the only reason he survived.
He hadn't sensed Cursed Energy. He had smelled the blood.
"Tsk," Zetsu grinned, holding the black blade. "You've got a few moves, human!"
Zetsu ripped off his blood-stained black robe. Underneath was a pale, muscular body. A terrifying crescent-shaped suture scar ran across his left upper arm and chest.
Dōran stared at the creature. I can't detect Cursed Energy. I can't sense a Grade. But this physical pressure...
"A Heavenly Restriction?!" Dōran gasped. He suddenly remembered the freak from the Zenin family ten years ago. Toji Zenin.
"You're daydreaming, Master!" BOOM!
The floorboards exploded into splinters. Zetsu launched himself forward, moving faster than the eye could track.
Crimson Blood Manipulation: Slicing Exorcism!
Dōran fired a rotating wheel of blood blades. Zetsu didn't even slow down. He weaved through the attack with terrifying agility. The cold glint of the blade and the wicked smile on Zetsu's face grew larger.
CRASH!
The main house, located in the center of the estate, collapsed completely. The gathered Kamo sorcerers looked up in disbelief. In the dim moonlight, Kamo Dōran, covered in blood, was launched into the sky from the ruins.
A black blade was driven squarely through his heart.
....
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