Satoru Gojo lifted the black blindfold covering his eyes, keeping his Six Eyes wide open as he intently observed the gigantic crater before him.
The Gojo clan's "Six Eyes" was not an Innate Technique, but a special genetic talent passed down through the Gojo bloodline. It manifested as a visual mutation—essentially a hyper-sensory organ that granted the wielder information processing speeds and Cursed Energy manipulation precision far beyond the limits of an ordinary human.
Right now, Gojo was using these unparalleled eyes to meticulously reconstruct the trajectory of the battle that had leveled the Zen'in estate.
Suddenly, a loud voice called out from afar. "Yo, Satoru. Figure anything out?"
Gojo didn't even need to turn around; the voice alone was enough to tell him who had arrived.
He continued to glare at the Cursed Energy residuals with his Six Eyes, casually replying, "I didn't expect the higher-ups to call in the famous Yuki Tsukumo. Looks like those old geezers are actually terrified this time."
"Makes sense. This is one of the Big Three Sorcerer Families, an institution that has stood for a thousand years. Their foundation and combat power were undeniably at the pinnacle of the Jujutsu world, yet they were wiped completely clean in a single night... Oh, well, not entirely clean. It seems the 'benevolent' King of Curses was kind enough to spare the elderly and the non-combatants."
The newcomer slapped Gojo hard on the back and squatted down beside him.
Yuki Tsukumo was a stunning woman. Tall and statuesque, with blonde hair that cascaded almost down to her hips. Her bangs were parted, revealing a smooth forehead, and a bright, hearty smile graced her face—though her eyes remained as cold as ice.
There were currently only three Special Grade Jujutsu Sorcerers alive in the entire world: Satoru Gojo, Yuta Okkotsu, and... Yuki Tsukumo. And now, two of them were standing in the exact same spot.
Just as Gojo had noted, this only proved how utterly terrified the higher-ups were. They dreaded the prospect of this legendary King of Curses launching another ambush. Aside from the Gojo clan rally point centered around Satoru Gojo, no other faction in Jujutsu society could confidently claim they'd survive a direct hit.
That was the exact reason Yuki Tsukumo had been emergency-recalled from overseas. In fact, the final Special Grade, Yuta Okkotsu, had also been recalled. He just wasn't here at the scene; he was currently acting as a bodyguard for the "VIPs" at the top.
Originally, the higher-ups wanted at least two Special Grades playing bodyguard, leaving only one to investigate the Zen'in massacre. Yuta Okkotsu, being young and obedient, played along. Yuki Tsukumo, on the other hand, immediately flipped them the bird and bolted straight to Gojo's location.
"It gave me a hell of a scare," Yuki said, sitting beside Gojo and sensing the sheer density of the residual Cursed Energy within the massive crater. Her smile faded slightly. "When I got the report that 'The Zen'in Clan of the Big Three was destroyed by the legendary King of Curses,' I thought someone was fucking with me. Once I confirmed it wasn't a joke, I had no choice but to listen to those old men for once and obediently haul my ass back here."
"Feeling the pressure?" Gojo teased.
"Immensely." Yuki's smile finally vanished entirely. "You know my ideal. I've always been searching for a way to eradicate Cursed Spirits entirely. When I realized I couldn't find the answer in Japan, I decisively traveled the world looking for new possibilities."
"I figured with you in Japan, nothing completely disastrous could happen... But a disaster really did happen, didn't it? Even a King of Curses popped out."
"Isn't this moving even further away from my ideal?!" Yuki complained loudly.
"The Lord of Curses." Gojo chewed on the title. He asked, "How much do you know about him?"
"You're the one stationed in Japan, not me, and you're asking the girl who just got off the plane?" Yuki sighed, but answered honestly anyway. "Rumor has it he's a recently manifested Cursed Spirit with terrifying potential. The very first fully intelligent Cursed Spirit since the dawn of curses."
"He possesses human-like social dynamics, knows how to collaborate with Curse Users, and evolves at an incomprehensible speed. He's already rallied a massive army of Curses and Curse Users, including some highly infamous criminals. And..."
Yuki paused, carefully enunciating her final point. "He possesses a method for true immortality without side effects, and he actively sells it. You just have to pay a reasonable price."
"In normal human society, that price is money and connections, maybe territory? But in the Jujutsu world... the Zen'in clan was the only one to make contact, and they got exterminated for it."
"No need to save face for the Zen'in clan," Gojo said coldly. "They condescendingly ordered the King of Curses to surrender his method of immortality, and demanded he swear eternal loyalty to them. So, the King of Curses showed up solo and slaughtered their entire elite force in one breath."
Because Gojo knew the full context, he called the King of Curses 'benevolent'. At the very least, he had spared the elderly and the weak. One had to understand—after suffering such blatant disrespect, forget a Cursed Spirit born from negative human emotion; even a human Jujutsu Sorcerer with that level of power would have butchered the Zen'in clan down to the last distant relative without batting an eye.
In the original timeline, Maki Zen'in faced almost no repercussions for wiping out her clan for this exact reason—it was tradition. It looked cruel to modern society, but in the Jujutsu world, it was perfectly normal.
Compared to the traditional operating methods of Jujutsu society, the King of Curses' approach actually seemed civilized.
What irony.
Yuki sighed. "Sometimes I really envy you. I've been sick of those old geezers for a long time too, but I chose to fly far away. You, on the other hand, stubbornly stayed behind, actively raising students, openly setting the stage for a revolution."
"A new wind is blowing through the Jujutsu world. Exceptional sorcerers are popping up one after another recently. And on the curses' side, a Lord of Curses unseen in a millennium has been born. This massive storm is sweeping through the Jujutsu world at breakneck speed, and it's already bleeding into human society. I honestly believe that sooner or later, this hurricane will swallow the whole world, not just Japan."
Gojo slipped his blindfold back on, his expression showing a rare hint of melancholy.
Yuki raised her hand and smacked Gojo's back again. "That's why I came running, isn't it? Don't shoulder all the pressure yourself. You still have some comrades."
"A few, I suppose," Gojo sighed.
"Just don't expect too much," Yuki laughed. "After all, you've offended a lot of big shots. Those people wish you'd drop dead right now. Unfortunately for them, you're too hard to kill, so they can't manage it. And right now, with a King of Curses actively threatening their lives and glaring down their necks, they have no choice but to rely on you again."
Gojo let out an irritated breath.
"Back to business. What did your Six Eyes see?" Yuki asked.
"A colossal creature soaring through the sky. This serpent-like behemoth lowered its massive head, opened its giant maw, and unleashed some kind of Cursed Energy attack. A single blast shattered the earth. The direct hit radius is, as you can see, over two kilometers, and the shockwave eclipsed ten. If you told me this was a new model of nuclear warhead, I'd believe you," Gojo slowly exhaled.
"How does it compare to your Hollow Technique?"
Normally, unless amplified by a Domain Expansion, Cursed Technique Lapse and Cursed Technique Reversal were two entirely separate methods of activation. Even Mahito couldn't use Lapse and Reversal simultaneously.
But Satoru Gojo broke that established rule. He was the only Jujutsu Sorcerer in history who could deploy a Lapse and a Reversal at the exact same time.
Even Ryomen Sukuna couldn't pull that off!
It was Gojo's signature move. It wasn't that he refused to teach it; it was that no one else could physically comprehend it. By fusing the Lapse and the Reversal, he generated a destructive force far beyond common sense. He called this unique application the Hollow Technique.
"In terms of pure, wide-area destruction, it surpasses my Hollow Technique." Gojo had his pride, and he disdained lying, but he couldn't help but argue a technicality. "However, the core property of my Hollow Technique was never wide-area destruction. It specializes in absolute penetration and single-point breakthrough."
"If I fired a Hollow Technique downward from the sky, it would just leave a perfectly smooth tunnel straight down to the earth's core, not blow out a massive crater like this."
Gojo wasn't lying. His Hollow Technique wasn't known for explosive AOE. In the original timeline, during his 1v1 with Ryomen Sukuna, he fired a Hollow Purple from two kilometers away. That localized bombardment only destroyed half a skyscraper.
But the trade-off was that Ryomen Sukuna, taking it directly, lost nearly half his life in an instant. Sukuna even openly admitted that if he hadn't braced for it at the absolute last second, it would have been a fatal blow.
Keep in mind, that was Ryomen Sukuna at his absolute peak!
Before Sukuna had fully regained his strength, he had fought Jogo. Jogo had dropped a massive meteor with a fifty-meter diameter that generated enough destructive force to nearly wipe the entire Shibuya district off the map. Yet, against that colossal AOE, Sukuna had casually shredded it with a single Dismantle, emerging completely unscathed.
The contrast was stark.
"Looks like the famous 'Strongest of the Modern Era' is feeling the heat. Normally, you wouldn't bother arguing. You'd just scoff contemptuously and not even waste the breath to retort," Yuki teased.
Gojo shrugged, offering no defense.
Yuki shifted gears and began to analyze. "Didn't they say the King of Curses' ability is to grant 'evolution' to humans? Did he modify his own body to become that giant creature you mentioned?"
"That's the most likely scenario," Gojo nodded thoughtfully.
"What do you think it was?"
"A dragon," Gojo said softly. "It was a dragon. The highest tier of Dragon-type Cursed Spirit. Suguru used to have one like it; he called it the Rainbow Dragon. Even though it wasn't a Special Grade, it was still the most durable shield in his arsenal."
"But a Special Grade Dragon-type Cursed Spirit has never been born in this country... because at that point, it ceases to be a Cursed Spirit. It becomes a god. A Dragon God."
Yuki fell silent, an involuntary shiver running down her spine.
"What did you find in the ruins of the Zen'in estate?" Gojo asked.
"Sword cuts. Perfect arcs that only a master swordsman could swing," Yuki reported. "I examined the corpses of the Kukuru Unit. Every single one of them bore flawless slash marks, as if a Sword Saint had casually swung his blade, letting the tip lightly brush across their vitals. The entire Kukuru Unit fell like harvested wheat."
"It felt like I was watching a masterpiece samurai film. A rainy night, kimonos, a katana, and of course, a villain picking a fight with the wolves."
"The King of Curses was brewing his condition," Gojo said slowly. "He was seeking a higher state of Cursed Energy flow... Black Flash. He was trying to enter the Black Flash zone."
Yuki nodded slightly. "I can already picture his mindset."
"He isn't a Cursed Spirit bound by common sense. He possesses his own thoughts, his own ideology, even his own sense of honor. He was insulted. Even knowing the Zen'in clan was one of the Big Three, he still marched right up to their doorstep."
Yuki imagined the battle that night. It was supposed to be a brutal clan extermination, yet in her mind's eye, it felt more like stepping onto an ancient road in the Heian era—one man, one sword, walking alone in the night.
"He announced his name at the front gates of the Zen'in estate, holding a single katana."
"He started by fighting them with just the blade. As the slaughter progressed, his swordsmanship became increasingly refined. At first, he was violently cleaving people in half, brutal and unhinged. But as he grew accustomed to the killing, he abandoned direct bisection. He began deflecting all their weapons, killing solely with the tip of his blade, strolling through the rainy night."
"Then, he stepped through the main gates and faced the furious assault of the Hei. By that point, mere swordplay wasn't enough to secure victory. He began using Cursed Techniques."
"My eyes aren't good enough to discern exactly what techniques were used. He didn't intentionally erase the Cursed Energy residuals, but the clash of sorcery was too chaotic for me to untangle."
"But I can imagine it was a world-shaking sorcery fight. The residual energies are twisted together indistinguishably. The entire Zen'in main estate was reduced to rubble during that clash. He and the Hei went all out."
"He ultimately crushed the Hei, and set foot into the main compound. And waiting for him there was the head of the clan, Naobito Zen'in."
Yuki snapped back to reality, pointing her finger at the massive crater. "Their duel started at the main house and ended right here. This is where the victor was decided."
Gojo visualized the fight. The King of Curses was entirely alone, yet his heart harbored zero fear. He started from outside the gates and fought his way through, maintaining a posture of a frontal assault, carving a path straight to the clan head.
"What a badass," Gojo couldn't help but say. "It's like flashing back to the era of wandering samurai. Back then, samurai valued their honor more than their lives. If someone insulted them, they'd risk everything for vengeance, even if it was just one man and one sword."
"I got the exact same feeling... Whoever taught him must be an ancient sorcerer. A modern person wouldn't act like this." Yuki nodded in agreement, then asked, "Any ideas on sorcerers who've lived from the ancient era to the modern day?"
Gojo shrugged. "I only know of one."
"Tengen?"
"Tengen," Gojo confirmed.
Yuki scratched her head in frustration. "Then that lead is dead in the water. With the clues we have now, there's no way they'll approve an audience with Tengen. If anything, after this incident, the old geezers have probably bumped Tengen's security clearance up another tier."
"Don't you have a 'special relationship' with Tengen? Can't you pull some strings?" Gojo asked.
Yuki sighed deeply. "It's precisely *because* of that special relationship that I can't. The old men always suspect I might pose a threat to Tengen, and annoyingly, I can't really refute it... I *have* acted a bit extreme a few times."
"Then get a little more extreme!" Gojo mocked loudly. "Barge right into Tengen's barrier right now, scream a few curses at her, and I swear Tengen will come out to see you."
Yuki pursed her lips, unable to argue.
She was used to doing whatever the hell she wanted. Before Gojo came along, she had been the only Special Grade Sorcerer in the modern era. Her strength and status were unquestionable. She operated overseas long-term, completely ignoring the Jujutsu Headquarters' orders. If this incident hadn't been so astronomically severe, she wouldn't have even bothered flying back.
Honestly, getting a little more extreme was standard procedure for her.
She took Gojo up on his dare. "No problem. I'll go bother Tengen. Aside from Tengen, do you have any other leads?"
Gojo thought for a moment. "Seeing Tengen is the best-case scenario, but if we can't, we can gather intel elsewhere."
Yuki immediately caught his drift. "You mean that crowd of 'Curse Users'?"
"I have a student who hangs out with Curse Users every single day. Granted, he's not a Curse User himself, he just uses them to make bank." Gojo smiled. "Under normal circumstances, even I couldn't casually hit him up. But things are different now. With an incident this massive, if I use this as an excuse to make contact, those old geezers can't say a damn thing."
Yuki's mouth twitched. "Your networking is terrifying."
Gojo laughed triumphantly. "Hahaha, who the hell do you think I am?!"
"Good. At least we pulled a useful thread out of this tangled mess." Yuki slammed her fists together. "Then hurry up and contact him. We need to deal with this guy as early as possible... Otherwise, we might run out of time."
"Run out of time?" Gojo raised an eyebrow.
"Don't tell me you didn't see it." Yuki's voice grew heavy. "This Lord of Curses is evolving at a breakneck pace, and I don't see a ceiling."
"Before he even entered the Zen'in gates, he was only using a sword. He was clumsy at first, but the more he swung, the sharper he got. By the end, maybe he wasn't a Sword Saint, but calling him a Master Swordsman wouldn't be an exaggeration. How much time passed during that? His learning speed mid-combat is absurd!"
"Then, he entered the compound and engaged in a sorcery duel with the Hei. He practically discarded the swordplay he had just mastered and started exclusively using Cursed Techniques."
"To put it nicely, he was expanding his arsenal. To put it bluntly, he didn't even have a set 'combat style.' He was just brawling blindly."
Yuki's hand moved subconsciously, mimicking the trajectory of a sword swing. "He's still feeling his way through the dark, actively searching for a combat method that suits him."
"By the end, his fight with Naobito Zen'in was entirely straightforward. He transformed into a dragon, soared freely across this land, and simply killed Naobito."
"In that final clash, he barely used any complex techniques, nor did he use a blade. He just obliterated Naobito Zen'in with raw, unadulterated violence!"
Yuki dropped her hand and looked Gojo dead in the eyes, her expression dead serious. "He hasn't finished growing yet, Satoru."
"Because he hasn't integrated all of his abilities. Right now, he's just using his powers in isolation. You can't even call it a cohesive 'Combat System.'"
"But sooner or later, he's going to complete that 'Combat System.' Only then will he truly be fully mature."
"If he can single-handedly exterminate the Zen'in clan *before* he matures—"
"—Once he fully evolves, I genuinely cannot fathom how much monstrous power he'll output."
This wasn't baseless paranoia. Yuki could intensely feel the King of Curses' evolutionary leaps. Just from the remnants of this one battle, she could tell the Lord of Curses had evolved at least three separate times. Each evolution triggered a massive spike in combat power, snowballing until he could effortlessly crush the head of the Zen'in clan like a bug.
Even if you graded him by Jujutsu Sorcerer standards rather than Cursed Spirit standards, the current King of Curses had undeniably earned the title: Special Grade Jujutsu Sorcerer.
He was already in her weight class!
"You're overthinking it," Gojo smiled.
"What? Are you saying my analysis is flawed?" Yuki frowned.
"No, your analysis is dead on. I completely agree," Gojo said calmly. "Just looking at this battlefield, it's obvious the Lord of Curses is still in his growth phase. His potential is far from fully realized. Logically, yes, he needs to be exterminated immediately, before he hits his ceiling."
"Then you...?"
"But all of that relies on one specific premise."
"Which is?"
"The premise that *I* don't exist," Gojo stated.
Yuki was speechless.
Gojo continued breezily. "As long as I'm alive, it doesn't matter how much the King of Curses evolves. I'll step in and handle everything."
"Right now, I couldn't care less about the Lord of Curses, because I've already seen through it. He has absolutely no desire to cause trouble right now. The ones who wanted to start shit were the Zen'in clan. He was just retaliating against an insult. Otherwise, he never would have shown his face."
"If we just leave him alone and don't intentionally provoke him, he's harmless for the time being."
Yuki's mouth twitched again. "Only you could say something that arrogant with a straight face. So, what exactly are you going to do now?"
Gojo suddenly looked ecstatic. "Did you know?! The Kyoto Sister-School Goodwill Event starts in two weeks! Wanna come? Come watch my pride and joy, my students! I guarantee they'll blow your mind!"
Yuki stared at him in utter disbelief. "Are you serious? The Zen'in clan was just wiped off the map! You're ignoring an incident of this magnitude to go micromanage a school sports festival?! Are you honestly telling me a high school event takes priority over a clan extermination?!"
Gojo replied as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "Of course it does? How could a bunch of bastards who have nothing to do with me ever compare to my adorable students?"
"Do you even hear yourself?" Yuki demanded. "I seem to recall you have a student whose last name is Zen'in, right? Is this how much you care about your 'adorable students'?"
"Oh, you mean Maki-chan." Gojo said dismissively. "Do you know what her reaction was to her clan getting massacred? I told her the Zen'in clan was destroyed and only a few elders were left, and she literally just replied, 'Oh.'"
"'Oh'?" Yuki was stunned.
"Yep. 'Oh,'" Gojo confirmed.
Yuki rubbed her temples, feeling a severe migraine coming on. She finally understood why the higher-ups had sounded like they were begging when they called her.
Fuck, Satoru Gojo was completely unreliable! She always knew he was irresponsible, but she never imagined he was *this* catastrophically flaky!
She was truly learning something new today!
Yuki couldn't take it anymore. "Just give me the number of your student who hangs out with Curse Users! If you're too lazy to contact him, I'll do it!"
"I finally understand why Kento Nanami tells everyone, 'I trust Gojo-san, but I absolutely do not respect him.' I feel the exact same way right now. I trust you, Satoru, but I do not respect you in the slightest. You aren't worthy of anyone's respect!"
Gojo wasn't phased in the slightest. He pulled out his phone, ready to dictate the number, when it suddenly started ringing. Gojo flipped it open and held it to his ear.
"Moshi moshi, Satoru Gojo speaking."
"Uh-huh, yeah, that clause does exist. But you've got the premise all wrong. I only agreed to that in the event I die or become incapacitated. Naobito Zen'in made that deal with me directly. I don't think you lackeys have the authority to negotiate on his behalf, do you?"
"What do you mean 'the situation has changed'? I don't follow... What?"
"Say that again? Are you serious? Are you seriously serious?!"
"Alright, I agree! I'm heading over right now!"
"What do you mean 'discuss'? There's nothing to discuss! Megumi was bought and paid for! Do you understand? His ownership rights are entirely in my hands. What does it matter to him how I handle it? Of course I can make the call, I have more say than him or his deadbeat dad!"
"That settles it, I'm on my way!"
*Click.* Gojo hung up.
"What happened?" Yuki asked, genuinely curious.
Gojo tried to keep his face completely stoic, trying to maintain an aura of solemn dignity. But slowly, the corners of his mouth began to twitch upward. He couldn't suppress it. Finally, he threw his head back and burst into maniacal, undignified laughter, laughing so hard tears formed in his eyes.
"Haha! HAHAHAHA! I just... I just picked up a 'Big Three' family for absolutely free!"
"What the hell are you talking about?" Yuki was entirely lost.
"I have a student named Megumi Fushiguro," Gojo wheezed, unable to stop laughing. "He just got invited... to become the Head of the Zen'in Clan!"
"Huh...?!" Yuki's jaw dropped, utterly flabbergasted.
Gojo looked like he was about to start dancing. His fingers flew across his phone's keypad. A moment later, Yuki's phone chimed with a text notification. She opened it to see a message from the man standing in front of her.
Gojo beamed radiantly. "That student I mentioned is named Kinji Hakari. You should know the name, I've bragged about him enough."
"I sent you his number. So, I'm officially delegating the entire 'Lord of Curses' situation to you! I'm off to see my precious student! That's all, Ja ne!"
Yuki had barely finished reading the text. Before she could even look up, Gojo vanished from the spot like a phantom breeze.
Yuki took three deep breaths. Unable to hold it in any longer, she roared at the top of her lungs:
"SA—TO—RU GO—JO!!!"