Not pulling petty tricks was impossible. Mahito's killing intent was entirely genuine. If it weren't for the Binding Vow shielding him, Kenjaku was certain he would already be dead. And even with the Vow in place, there was no guarantee Mahito wouldn't rip his head off the absolute millisecond the Jujutsu world was officially overthrown.
Kenjaku was positive this was exactly the kind of thing Mahito would do.
*As for why he treats me like this when I poured my heart and soul into nurturing him?*
*Ahem. Probably, maybe, perhaps... I dug too many pitfalls and he noticed them? Hey, you can't blame me! Faced with this unprecedented King of Curses, what dedicated researcher wouldn't feel their heart skip a beat? I swear, no scientist could resist!*
And it wasn't that he wanted the King of Curses to die. On the contrary, he desperately wanted the King of Curses to live an even more spectacular life. The problem was, compared to the King of Curses, he cared far more about the Great Cursed Spirit. So, with a heavy heart, he had chosen the Great Cursed Spirit and abandoned the King of Curses.
"So that's how it is. I need you to endure for a bit and stay out of Mahito's sight," Kenjaku said solemnly. "After all, you don't want any complications to arise during Sukuna's resurrection, do you?"
Uraume wore a white inner lining beneath a black, wide-sleeved monastic robe. She was an incredibly cute girl. Her perfectly trimmed, white bob cut made her look exceptionally docile, but the glacial frost on her face completely eradicated that cuteness, replacing it with coldness and cruelty.
She dusted off her robes, nodding with great satisfaction. "So, Kenjaku. When will Lord Sukuna be resurrected?"
Kenjaku's face darkened with metaphorical lines. "I just told you, we are currently operating underground. We absolutely cannot let Mahito catch us slipping."
"Oh," Uraume replied, before frowning. "Why is my body female? Obviously, one look at this face and I can tell this Incarnation vessel is highly synchronized with my soul, but I am male. If this is a perfect resurrection, I should be male."
Kenjaku sighed inwardly. *This person isn't listening to a word I say.*
Originally, he had planned to resurrect Uraume much earlier. In fact, roughly a year ago, he had intended to bring Uraume back. At that time, he had already acquired this body. Having obtained both this vessel and Cursed Spirit Manipulation, he was fully prepared for the final, decisive war against Tengen.
But an anomaly occurred. He couldn't find Mahito.
More accurately, he couldn't find a sapient Cursed Spirit capable of perfectly awakening the players of the Culling Game via precise physical modification. Kenjaku was a sorcerer who frequently peered into the mechanics of the world; he knew with absolute certainty that sapient Cursed Spirits would be born, and that a spirit capable of precise flesh modification *had* to appear.
The world was destined to change. Kenjaku firmly believed this.
But he misjudged the situation. Sapient Cursed Spirits *were* found, but the flesh-modifying Cursed Spirit that should have appeared early on was completely missing. The earth, the forests, the oceans—they indeed bore the brunt of humanity's curses. Kenjaku had anticipated this long ago, so the existence of Jogo and the others didn't surprise him in the slightest. What surprised him was that if the earth, forests, and oceans had manifested... why hadn't humanity's curse manifested?
The curse born from humans hating humans should have been the very first sapient curse to emerge!
This caused Kenjaku to immediately abandon reviving Uraume, opting instead to convince Jogo and the others to join him in searching for the inevitable human-origin curse. This search lasted for half a year...
And after finding him, Kenjaku no longer wanted to revive Uraume.
Compared to Ryomen Sukuna, Mahito was obviously far more controllable and genuinely held the potential to defeat Satoru Gojo. Since he had a far superior option, why on earth would he go out of his way to revive the utterly uncontrollable Ryomen Sukuna? As for the Binding Vows, he could just fulfill them by resurrecting Sukuna during the Culling Game. There was no need to revive him early and invite a nightmare to his own doorstep.
That was his logic.
Unfortunately for him, while he thought that way, Mahito utterly refused to play along.
The reversal of their roles made Kenjaku acutely aware that his endless stream of petty tricks had finally pushed Mahito over the edge. Now, it was time for him to prioritize his own survival. In this exact moment, Ryomen Sukuna re-entered his line of sight, and he reverted to his original plan. Naturally, this required Uraume.
"That wasn't up to me." Kenjaku initially wanted to hide the truth, but realizing Mahito already knew all his secrets, telling one more person didn't matter. So he spoke candidly. "The body you are currently inhabiting is actually your own. I woke you from the cycle of reincarnation. Do you understand? The reason I achieved a perfect resurrection was because I found your reincarnated self. Through soul manipulation, I awakened your ancient memories. Therefore, your body perfectly adapts to you, and your Cursed Technique flows without the slightest obstruction—because it *is* you! You have simply reawakened from ancient times."
Uraume expressionlessly rubbed her hands together, opening and closing them twice. Realization dawned on her. "I see. No wonder I didn't feel a single stutter in my output. This was my body and my soul to begin with. You submerged the modern memories and forced my ancient memories to the surface, achieving the effect of traversing time. Thus, I was perfectly resurrected in the modern era."
She praised, "An incredible method. Incredible imagination. Kenjaku, you are quite useful after all."
Kenjaku smiled and nodded.
"My physical specs have mostly recovered as well." Uraume formed a hand sign. Even though she didn't activate her technique, a faint, biting frost began radiating from deep within her body. "Yes. Combat won't be an issue."
Kenjaku got a very bad feeling. "Uraume, what exactly are you planning to do?"
"Kenjaku." Uraume's tone left no room for argument. "Take me to Mahito. I am going to teach this modern Lord of Curses exactly who he should be taking orders from."
Kenjaku was dumbfounded.
He asked in disbelief, "Did you not hear a single word I just said? The current Mahito is terrifyingly close to a genuine god. His physical specs, his Limitless technique, his soul architecture—all of it. The only thing he lacks right now is foundational accumulation, and he is currently growing at breakneck speed! What exactly are you planning to do to a god candidate?"
Uraume said coldly, "How does he compare to the Enma of the past?"
Kenjaku froze.
"I'll spell it out for you." Uraume's voice turned absolutely freezing, her pupils brewing with absolute tyranny and cruelty. She said flatly, "Lord Sukuna is the strongest man in the world. Every living creature should serve Lord Sukuna, even if that creature resembles a god. Enma was slain by Lord Sukuna. If another Enma rises, we will simply slaughter him too."
In canon, within Ryomen Sukuna's Innate Domain, there was a gargantuan skull adorned with massive ox horns. That was the corpse of Enma. The so-called Enma was the traditional symbol of Japanese Hell, a true god.
Sukuna was a genuine god-slayer!
A thousand years ago, during the era of Sukuna's rampage, his enemies weren't just humans. He fought countless Cursed Spirits and actual gods. Sukuna's whims shattered the order of the time, and he slaughtered his way through all opposition across the world, virtually single-handedly.
Even when the Angel descended before him, she was forced to bow her head!
Uraume certainly knew the terror of gods, but more than any so-called god, Uraume believed that Lord Sukuna stood unconditionally at the absolute pinnacle. No entity could ever be compared to Lord Sukuna. Uraume firmly believed this wasn't mere arrogance, but the supreme truth of the universe—a truth that should be carved into the genetic memory of every sapient species.
Mahito? He was nothing but a mere Cursed Spirit. So what if he was a god candidate? What right did he have to make Lord Sukuna's resurrection step aside?
"Do not make me repeat myself, Kenjaku," Uraume said coldly. "Take me to the King of Curses. I will personally 'persuade' him. He will be very obedient, I guarantee it."
Kenjaku licked his lips. Looking at Uraume's expressionless face, he barely swallowed the words: *'Mahito's current strength might actually be higher than Sukuna's.'* He was terrified that if he said it out loud, this situation would end in immediate bloodshed.
To a true fanatic like Uraume, it was completely unacceptable for anyone stronger than Sukuna to exist. Nor would she allow anyone to question Sukuna's absolute supremacy. To her, Ryomen Sukuna was a literal god.
And as a believer, giving absolutely everything for her god was the sole meaning of her existence.
And now, this fanatic was staring blankly, expressionlessly, right at Kenjaku.
What could Kenjaku do?
He sighed internally. *This is a disaster. These people just keep getting harder to manage!*
"I understand. I'll take you to see Mahito."
Uraume nodded. "Good. Let us leave immediately."
"Right now?!" Kenjaku's voice pitched upwards.
Uraume said impatiently, "How many times do I have to tell you before you understand? I do not care if this Mahito is a King of Curses or a god candidate. I don't care! The only thing I care about is Lord Sukuna. Every single plan must yield to the resurrection of Lord Sukuna. There is no 'bigger picture' besides that! Since you are incapable of persuading the King of Curses, I will do it myself!"
*You motherfucker!* Kenjaku took a deep breath, swallowing a tidal wave of curses.
He forced his smile back into place and said, "How about this... why don't we make a Binding Vow?"
Uraume frowned. "What?"
"Mahito is the strongest Cursed Spirit, capable of genuinely resurrecting the dead. With just a single finger, he can read Lord Sukuna's cursed energy and instantly revive him." Kenjaku smiled warmly. "And I guarantee it would be a resurrection without any side effects. Absolute perfection. It wouldn't even be a reincarnation like yours, but a true, physical resurrection."
Uraume's pupils shrank in shock.
She immediately grasped Kenjaku's underlying meaning: if he could resurrect others, he could certainly resurrect himself. Mahito was an unkillable Cursed Spirit. No matter how many times he was truly killed, he could always claw his way back from the underworld.
The title 'Strongest Cursed Spirit' might actually be well-deserved.
Such a Cursed Spirit could never fear death. On the contrary, death might be as casual as eating a meal to him.
"His Cursed Technique is unique?" Uraume asked.
"He possesses a soul-modifying ability completely unprecedented in the last thousand years, and he constructed a brand new body based on that foundation." Kenjaku said meaningfully, "The Incarnation vessel he currently inhabits is 100% synchronized with him. Because of this, he can also use Cursed Technique Reversal... Can you guess what the Reversal of a soul-modifying technique is?"
Uraume knew this question was a warning. He was warning her that she was absolutely no match for Mahito right now. If she actually picked a fight, she would likely be casually slaughtered.
She understood the subtext. It was a tactful dissuasion.
Uraume sneered. "You're still as roundabout as ever, Kenjaku. The Reversal of soul modification... I assume it targets the flesh. Does he possess the ability to adapt and evolve? Or perhaps a deeper level of flesh interference? In other words, his current physical specs must be astronomically high, to the point where I might be killed before I can even activate my technique?"
Uraume declared with absolute confidence, "You underestimate me, I—"
"It's Soul Creation," Kenjaku interrupted.
Uraume froze, staring at Kenjaku in sheer disbelief.
Kenjaku nodded slightly. "I'm not joking. The Cursed Technique Reversal of soul modification is Soul Creation. This is the domain of gods."
Uraume finally snapped out of her fanatic arrogance.
Even with the vast experience Uraume gained by following Ryomen Sukuna, the ability to *create* souls was simply too absurd. Let's put it this way: the Enma that Ryomen Sukuna slaughtered was a true god, the symbol of Hell, commanding the cycle of life and death. When Enma was alive, he could accurately seize souls and cast them into their proper destinations.
But even Enma could not *create* souls. In fact, Uraume had never even heard of anyone capable of creating a soul. This completely shattered her common sense.
Now, Uraume genuinely began to believe she wasn't Mahito's match.
"How does he utilize this Soul Creation ability?" Uraume asked.
Kenjaku let out a mental sigh of relief. *Excellent. Finally managed to talk this lunatic down.*
"By creating simulated souls inside his own body, he can utilize the cursed techniques of recorded souls," Kenjaku explained slowly. "Moreover, there is absolutely zero lag or stutter when he uses them. He can steadily amplify them through refinement and observation... You should understand what I'm implying."
"Limitless... I see." Uraume exhaled.
"It's far more complex than standard Limitless," Kenjaku corrected. "Traditional Limitless ultimately requires immense preparation. My brain-swapping technique and the Copy techniques that have appeared in the past operate on similar principles—the more preparation, the better the execution. But Mahito's Limitless requires zero preparation. He merely needs his hand to lightly brush a sorcerer's skin, and he can instantly wield their technique with absolute mastery."
Just how terrifying that truly was, only the most powerful sorcerers could fully comprehend.
Normally, a sorcerer only possessed a single technique. Because of this, no matter how strong the sorcerer was, there would always be blind spots and loopholes. The most exceptional sorcerers excelled at exploiting these exact loopholes to find openings and defeat their adversaries.
But Mahito's Limitless possessed no such loopholes.
By bearing an endless arsenal of cursed techniques, it was incredibly easy to become an apex predator with zero blind spots. The current Lord of Curses was unequivocally such an entity.
Uraume processed this rapidly and asked, "Is his body something he made himself using the Construction technique?"
"Exactly," Kenjaku nodded.
Being able to construct a body perfectly tailored to his own soul meant his usage of Construction was entirely seamless, just like using his innate technique. This proved his Limitless was genuine. Uraume completely understood the message Kenjaku was conveying.
So, charging in blindly was out of the question.
Reaching this conclusion, Uraume immediately followed up: "How many techniques has he recorded right now?"
Kenjaku said meaningfully, "Many."
"I am telling you to give me an exact number." Uraume stopped mid-sentence, nodding thoughtfully. "Have you already formed a Binding Vow with him?"
"We are the staunchest of allies." Kenjaku shrugged. "Until we overthrow the current Jujutsu world, at least."
Uraume sneered without an ounce of sympathy. "I bet you pulled too many of your little tricks and infuriated the King of Curses, didn't you?"
Kenjaku laughed jovially. "Everything I do is for the birth of the Great Cursed Spirit. I believe Lord Sukuna would approve of my little tricks."
A flash of white light tore through the air, accompanied by a sharp, cutting sound.
Kenjaku shifted his eyes, glancing right beside his cheek. A streak of frost lingered in the air.
Uraume held out a single finger. She hadn't chanted any incantations or formed any hand signs, yet frost-like crystalline structures blossomed from her fingertip. She aimed this frost-covered finger straight at Kenjaku, the freezing air aggressively vaporizing into the atmosphere, producing plumes of white mist.
Uraume glared at Kenjaku with the sharp intensity of a hawk. "Watch your tone, Kenjaku. Lord Sukuna slaughters those who stand in his way openly and directly. These 'little tricks' are tools for gutter trash like you. Do not dare use your dark, pathetic shadows to climb up to Lord Sukuna's divinity. If there is a next time, my finger will be pointed at your brain."
*Fanatics really are a massive pain in the ass!* Kenjaku raised his hands in surrender, his smile completely unchanged.
Right now, he genuinely wished he could pull a 'Revival of Ancient Sorcerers' on himself. These ancient relics were completely out of touch with the modern era. He should have just let their ancient memories surface while keeping their modern memories intact, fusing the two!
"I understand completely. It was my arrogance," Kenjaku said with a beaming smile.
Uraume glared at him for a few seconds before finally lowering her hand.
"I understand. I won't cause trouble for Mahito for now. So, why did you summon me? What task do you have for me?"
Kenjaku lowered his hands, tucking them back into his wide sleeves.
"First, naturally, is to collect Lord Sukuna's fingers. Because of Mahito, I cannot move freely. And Mahito currently has absolutely zero intention of gathering Lord Sukuna's fingers because he firmly believes he can take on Satoru Gojo entirely on his own. In fact, he's very close to achieving that."
"Who is Satoru Gojo?" Uraume frowned again. "Sounds like the strongest of this era?"
"He is the strongest of the modern era, yes," Kenjaku replied.
"Hmph, another 'strongest'." Uraume scoffed coldly. "The title of 'strongest' is incredibly cheap in this era."
*Actually, it's incredibly expensive. Both Mahito and Satoru Gojo are monstrously expensive!* Kenjaku thought to himself, though he dared not say it to Uraume's face.
After all, Ryomen Sukuna was hailed as the 'Strongest in History'.
Uraume nodded. "I understand. I will go collect Lord Sukuna's fingers first, then sit back and watch the King of Curses and the modern Strongest butcher each other. I will seize the perfect opening to resurrect Lord Sukuna. How have you prepared Lord Sukuna's vessel? Is it another soul reincarnation like mine?"
"In a certain sense, yes," Kenjaku chuckled.
"'In a certain sense'..." Uraume's brow furrowed tightly. "Kenjaku, if you weren't vital to the plan, I would slaughter you right now. You truly are too dangerous. Back then, Yorozu shouldn't have been so eager to drag you before Lord Sukuna the moment she heard there was a possibility of granting him eternal life. She failed in her duties."
"Don't be like that. Look at yourself—didn't you get a perfect resurrection?" Kenjaku held up his fingers, making a 'tiny bit' gesture. "The plan just encountered a *tiny* little hiccup. Aren't I rushing to patch it up as we speak?"
Uraume ignored Kenjaku's nonsense and asked bluntly, "And then, after the fingers are collected?"
"I will incite Mahito to ascend to godhood." Kenjaku smiled. "At that exact moment, I will find a way to make Mahito voluntarily initiate the apotheosis ritual. That ritual... will be the day of Lord Sukuna's revival."
"And then we butcher the King of Curses and the modern Strongest, correct?" Uraume nodded. "I understand."
*No, you don't understand at all.*
Kenjaku thought cheerfully: *As long as the Culling Game begins, my objective is complete. As for Sukuna, Mahito, and Satoru Gojo... whoever ends up becoming the will of the Great Cursed Spirit, I... take absolutely no responsibility for.*