Chapter 48 — A Rapidly Evolving Enemy
"There's no need to panic about that just yet," Ren said with a faint, reassuring smile after understanding Itadori's concern.
"Even if it can freely create Polymorphic Soul Isomer bodies, what it produces would still be very different from me."
Having once been an experimental subject of that very technique—and having survived through the Limitless Probability technique—Ren understood better than anyone how difficult it was to create a "perfect" multi-soul body like himself.
In a sense, his current existence was the result of an unintended collaboration between him and that blue-haired, stitched-face curse.
"First," Ren continued, "soul rejection will always exist. That means any multi-soul construct it creates would still have a very short lifespan. They'd have to be used immediately—there's no way it could build an army in advance."
"And their structure is inherently unstable. Their offensive power may be high, but their durability would be extremely low. Even ordinary attacks should be enough to break them apart."
"Second, those multi-soul constructs likely possess only raw physical strength. They shouldn't be able to use cursed energy."
"Can't use cursed energy?" Itadori blinked in surprise.
Ren nodded.
"Modified humans are still human—not curses."
"For curses, using cursed energy is instinctual. For humans, it isn't."
"Humans need long-term training to manipulate cursed energy properly—"
"Oh!" Itadori suddenly smacked his palm against his head, eyes lighting up. "Gojo-sensei mentioned something like that when he was teaching me!"
Ren gave another nod.
"Exactly. If modified humans want to use cursed energy, they'd have to learn how."
"But their short lifespans wouldn't allow that."
"And Polymorphic Soul Isomer bodies are just crude fusions of multiple souls. They haven't integrated into a unified, complete soul like mine." He tapped his temple lightly. "Their cognition would be chaotic. Their intelligence extremely low. That alone disqualifies them from being capable of learning."
"Because of that, they wouldn't even be able to fully utilize their raw physical strength. They couldn't perform refined martial arts like humans. At best, they'd move on instinct—like wild beasts."
"They wouldn't be able to assess situations rationally or execute tactics."
As he spoke, the tension on Itadori and Nanami's faces gradually eased.
"But," Ren added after a brief pause, "that only applies to now—to the near future."
"You've both said this curse is growing at a terrifying rate. We have no idea how far it might evolve given enough time."
"It's entirely possible that one day… it could produce 'perfect' multi-soul bodies like me."
Silence fell for a moment.
"So we have to move fast," Ren concluded, his eyes sharpening. "We must eliminate it as soon as possible. Crush this threat while it's still in its cradle."
The three exchanged looks and nodded.
A curse with such a terrifying technique—and such monstrous growth potential—was an undeniable threat.
"We need to exorcise that thing. Immediately." Itadori raised a clenched fist, his voice firm.
Ren glanced at him and offered a small smile of agreement.
But beneath that smile, unease stirred.
Yes—everyone agreed it had to be eliminated as soon as possible.
But could they really do it?
Domain Expansion…
That was the problem.
The enemy had already mastered it.
If they encountered it again, he could no longer rely on Limitless Probability to escape.
Because a Domain nullifies techniques.
Which meant the real problem was the opposite of what it first appeared to be.
If they met again, the first question wouldn't be how to defeat it—
It would be how to survive.
A Domain.
He had to master Domain Expansion.
Because only a Domain could counter another Domain.
If he wanted to defeat that curse, he needed one of his own.
The urgency burning in Ren's chest grew stronger by the second.
---
A Few Days Earlier — Shortly After the Attack on Tokyo Jujutsu High
Deep within a vast underground cavern, a man wearing a single-strap overall—bare chest exposed—strolled along casually.
"So in the end, I didn't even do anything. Think they'll yell at me?" Shigemo Haruta muttered to himself in a teasing tone.
Suddenly—
The rock ceiling above shattered.
A pale-skinned humanoid curse, its body etched with black markings and branches sprouting from where its eyes should be, crawled out of the fissure.
Compared to you, I'd call that overworking yourself, Haruta thought with a grin as he looked at Hanami—half its body blown apart.
Hanami collapsed to the ground with a heavy thud.
"How pitiful," Haruta said in mock sympathy.
Then he licked his lips, eyes flashing with excitement, and drew the sword strapped to his back—the hilt grotesquely shaped like a human hand.
During today's operation, his blade hadn't tasted blood even once.
"Let me put you out of your misery," he said, raising the sword as he approached.
And then—
He froze.
All at once, the glowing moss lining the cavern walls dimmed.
Above them, dozens of meters overhead, the vegetation covering hundreds of meters of land withered in an instant.
On the cavern floor, Hanami's shattered half-body began regenerating at a visible speed.
Within moments, it was fully restored.
Hanami rose to its feet.
On its shoulder, the crimson sacrificial flower bloomed fully open—within its core, a massive eye stared coldly at him.
Haruta instinctively took a step back, about to stammer out an explanation—
A hand suddenly landed on his shoulder from behind and shoved him forward.
"Go on," a carefree voice said lightly. "Do what you were thinking."
"I—I was just trying to help it, Mahito!" Haruta stammered, cold sweat pouring down his face.
"Filthy human. Try that again and I'll kill you," the blue-haired, stitched-face curse replied, his tone abruptly turning icy.
Then he burst into laughter, casually pushing Haruta aside as though he were trash.
He spread his arms wide in a gesture of welcome and walked toward Hanami.
"Hanami," Mahito said cheerfully, eyes gleaming, "you've grown stronger."
His gaze settled on the flower blooming at Hanami's shoulder.
"That 'offering flower' of yours—wasn't the cursed energy it absorbed only usable for attacks?"
Hanami's flower could siphon life force from surrounding vegetation and convert it into cursed energy.
Originally, that energy could only be channeled into specific offensive techniques through the flower itself.
It couldn't be used freely in any other way.
But now—
Mahito could clearly see that the energy drawn from the environment was coursing throughout Hanami's entire body.
Just moments ago, it had been gravely wounded—on the brink of death.
Now, in Mahito's eyes, Hanami was stronger than it had ever been.
"Looks like you found a worthy opponent?" Mahito asked with keen interest.
"Yes," Hanami's deep, resonant voice echoed through the cavern in its peculiar cadence. "But more importantly… I must thank you, Mahito."
"It was because of your advice that I accepted the part of myself I once rejected."
"I have finally learned to enjoy battle. To enjoy slaughter."
"Right now… I feel stronger than ever before."
"And happier than ever before."