Next Target, 200PS!
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New week. Let's Push!!
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Everyone in the Jujutsu world knew how important Tokyo Jujutsu High was.
The higher-ups of the Jujutsu world had always wanted to keep a tight grip on Jujutsu High. That was how they made sure everyone knew they were in charge.
Everything was fine at first—but then something unexpected happened. Satoru Gojo showed up. He was strong, independent, and no one could stop him.
Gojo's utter disgust for the Jujutsu higher-ups was an open secret. He never even tried to hide it.
In fact, the higher-ups themselves were fully aware of his disdain.
But they couldn't do a thing about it... Gojo was just too powerful. Even if they were angry, they had to keep quiet and put up with it.
To be clear, Gojo spent the last few years finding and training strong young Sorcerers for one reason.
He wanted them to replace the current higher-ups.
If Gojo really wanted to, he had enough power to wipe out every member of the Jujutsu higher-ups without any effort.
But the real issue was the system they controlled. Their authority was connected to the fate of the whole Jujutsu world. If they were all wiped out at once, everything could fall into chaos.
That was the only reason Gojo hadn't gone on a rampage...
Over the years, while those people didn't dare pick a fight with Gojo directly, they certainly didn't hold back from targeting the other members of Jujutsu High.
That's exactly what was happening now.
The Jujutsu higher-ups had previously assigned near-suicidal missions to certain students, indirectly causing the deaths of many young, talented Sorcerers.
The fact that they were pulling the exact same stunt right now... It was obvious they knew exactly who these students were.
These were Satoru Gojo's students. They all carried Gojo's invisible brand.
If these kids reached their full potential, they'd be a huge threat to the higher-ups. So, from their point of view, it was better to deal with the problem now.
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"These rotten oranges... I really should have just gotten rid of them sooner!"
"Hey, hey, hey!"
If anyone else had said that, it would have been dismissed as a dark joke.
But Shoko Ieiri knew Gojo was actually bold enough to go through with it. "You can't just go around saying things like that! At the very least, don't say it to me!"
Unlike Gojo, Shoko didn't have the kind of invincible power that allowed her to do whatever she wanted.
Besides, for Shoko Ieiri, there was nothing wrong with her current life. Healing people and saving lives had always been her true calling anyway.
The only problem was that she had a lot more patients lately. She found herself treating more people than usual.
"So, are you heading out to save them now?"
"Nah, no need. I already asked someone else for help."
"Hmm?"
Someone else...
That answer caught Shoko off guard.
If a mission was capable of trapping Maki Zen'in and her team, it definitely involved a Special Grade Cursed Spirit—and within their ranks, the number of people actually capable of dealing with a Special Grade could be counted on one hand.
All of them were currently bogged down with their own exorcism missions. They simply didn't have the time.
"Don't tell me... it's that Kai guy? The one who possesses the same Cursed Spirit Manipulation as Suguru?"
The name Kai... Shoko Ieiri had heard that name a lot lately, especially after Mei Mei came back and reported that Kai's Innate Technique was the same as Suguru Geto's Cursed Spirit Manipulation.
From that moment on, the name was permanently etched into her memory.
"Exactly! Hahahaha!"
Just mentioning him, Gojo suddenly burst out laughing and couldn't stop himself.
"???"
'Is this really that funny?' Shoko gave him an exasperated look.
However, considering Gojo's erratic, almost psychotic personality, having him randomly burst into a fit of laughter wasn't exactly out of character.
"Ahem! It's not about that!"
Gojo and Shoko had been comrades for a long time, ever since they joined Jujutsu High together.
It only took a single glance for Gojo to figure out what Shoko was thinking. He waved a hand with a laugh. "I was just wondering... if Suguru ever found out that when Kai uses Cursed Spirit Manipulation, the Cursed Spirits actually have no taste... would he suffer a mental breakdown?"
"No taste at all?" Hearing that, Shoko's eyes widened in sheer disbelief.
As a former friend, Shoko also knew the truth. She knew how much Suguru Geto suffered when he had to eat Cursed Spirits—yet, when Kai used Cursed Spirit Manipulation, he felt absolutely nothing.
'Tsk, tsk, tsk!'
If Suguru actually knew that, his mindset truly would shatter into a million pieces. Perhaps visualizing that exact scenario, Shoko couldn't hold it in either and burst into laughter.
"Ahem!"
'I'm totally not mocking my friend right now.'
Realizing her slip, Shoko immediately cleared her throat and put on a dead-serious expression: "Alright, alright. I just stepped out for a quick break. I'm heading back in!"
She still had a mountain of work waiting for her.
With a brief farewell, Shoko turned and walked away.
As for Gojo, he turned to leave too, ready for more exorcism missions. But now, he was clearly in a great mood and even started humming as he walked.
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Ding!
Meanwhile, on Kai's side.
Checking the address Gojo had just texted him, Kai raised an eyebrow. The location was quite remote.
Turning his head, he saw that Soyo Nagasaki and Haruno Yukinoshita had finally stopped bickering. Both pairs of eyes were currently locked onto him.
"A friend of yours called you for help?" Haruno asked, forcing a fake smile.
Based on what she had overheard, Haruno had already built an entire scenario in her head: Kai knew people from the Yakuza, and he was very close to them. In fact, he might even be a Yakuza member himself.
And when Yakuza members run into trouble, calling a buddy for backup is perfectly normal, right?
It wasn't that Haruno looked down on the Yakuza.
Strictly speaking—Shizuka Hiratsuka—the young heiress of the Hiratsuka group, was also connected to a Yakuza syndicate.
But as always, humans are creatures of double standards.
The moment she thought Kai had ties to the underworld, Haruno's mind became entirely consumed with figuring out how to keep this man as far away from her little sister as possible.
"Pretty much!" Meeting Haruno's gaze, Kai shrugged and didn't bother trying to deny anything.
Gojo really had called him for help. However, whether he and Gojo could actually be considered "friends" was highly debatable.
"So, since I have things to do now, I guess it's time for you two to head home!"
He had originally wanted to sit back and enjoy the show. But it looked like that wasn't going to happen...
"What's the rush? Is it far? Do you need me to give you a lift?" Haruno spoke with feigned concern.
She put on the perfect act of an older sister offering a helpful ride.
"Sure, I'll take you up on that!"
Thinking about it, the location actually was quite far. As for why he didn't just use Kamui to teleport there instantly?
If Gojo's students had just gone missing, Kai might have considered it. But they had been missing for three days.
If they were dead... Then their corpses were already rotting anyway. Arriving an hour early or an hour late wouldn't make the slightest difference.
With that, Kai walked straight over to the passenger side, opened the door, and got in.
'Seriously? You're not even going to pretend to be polite?'
Haruno had only wanted to use the car ride as an excuse to drop some heavy-handed hints, forcing Kai to face reality and stay away from Yukino. Instead, Kai just hopped right into her car without a second thought.
"..."
No matter how sharp and cunning Haruno was, she was genuinely at a loss for words. She couldn't exactly kick him out of the car now.
"What's wrong? Weren't you the one offering to help? Surely the dignified eldest daughter of the Yukinoshita family wouldn't go back on her word, right?"
'Did you really just elevate this to a matter of family honor?'
"No, of course not!" Her expression grew even stiffer.
"Well then, Nagasaki-san, it looks like it's just going to be a private drive for Kai-kun and me. You should head on home now!"
Making things difficult for Soyo Nagasaki... At least, it might ease some of the frustration choking Haruno's chest.
However—
"Come to think of it, I don't really have anything to do right now either!" Soyo Nagasaki, who had been preparing to leave, suddenly let out a tight smile. She walked right over and slid into the back seat.
"If you don't mind, could I tag along? If you need backup, I actually took women's self-defense classes for a while!"
Tsukinomori Girls' Academy was an elite, high-class school. Aside from regular academics, they offered a variety of specialized courses. Women's self-defense was practically mandatory.
"Tsk!"
'I didn't realize this girl was going to be so stubborn.'
Even Kai hadn't expected these two to escalate their petty rivalry this far.
But whatever, he didn't have the time to care about that right now. He just held up his phone and showed Haruno the address.
"Take us here."
"Hmm?" Haruno, who had been about to start the engine, clearly froze the moment she saw the address. "This address..."
"What's wrong?" Noticing Haruno's strange reaction, Kai looked back at her with curiosity.
Was there something wrong with the location?
"Are you sure you didn't get the wrong address?" Haruno Yukinoshita looked at him, her eyes filled with deep confusion. "This address... I'm pretty sure it's a property owned by our Yukinoshita family!"
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