"Hey, that's just cheating."
Gojo adjusted his sunglasses, glancing at the unconscious bodies scattered across the ground as he clicked his tongue.
"Skipping technique clashes and going straight for mental domination? How is anyone supposed to fight that?"
"People without the brains for it were never going to block it anyway."
Rin stepped over the fallen guards and kicked forward, shattering the vermilion gate that symbolized absolute authority.
The doors exploded inward, fragments of wood scattering across the hall.
Inside the dim, spacious chamber, several elderly figures sat cross-legged behind paper screens.
These were the "old men" who ruled the jujutsu world, the ones who set the rules for the Star Plasma Vessel's assimilation.
"Insolence!"
An aged, authoritative voice roared from behind the screens.
"Gojo Satoru! Geto Suguru! How dare you collude with an outsider and storm Headquarters with the Star Plasma Vessel! Do you have any idea what you're doing? This is rebellion! You are making enemies of the entire jujutsu world!"
Another sharp voice immediately followed.
"Hand over the Star Plasma Vessel at once! Lord Tengen's assimilation deadline has arrived! If the barriers collapse, can you bear responsibility for such a catastrophe?!"
Faced with the furious accusations, Gojo Satoru casually picked at his ear and replied without restraint.
"Old men, times have changed. We're not the ones here to pick a fight today."
He stepped aside, revealing Rin standing at the center.
Rin walked into the hall, the dull thud of his leather boots echoing across the wooden floor.
He paid no attention to the higher-ups hiding behind their screens. Instead, he strode straight to the center, pulled over a chair, and sat down with complete disregard.
"Let me introduce myself, so you don't die without knowing why."
Rin rested his hands on his knees, his gaze filled with disdain.
"My name is Rin. That girl, Riko Amanai, is now under my protection."
A series of furious slams echoed from behind the screens.
"Arrogant! A stray with no Cursed Energy dares to run wild in Headquarters! Guards, seize him and execute him!"
At the command, several Grade 1 sorcerer assassins hidden within the shadows lunged out, blades flashing as they attacked Rin from his blind spots.
Rin remained seated, unmoving.
Toji Fushiguro, standing at his side, let out a cruel laugh. The Chain of a Thousand Miles in his hand snapped outward with a piercing whistle.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The Grade 1 sorcerers could not even get within three meters. Their bones shattered under the impact of the chain, and they were sent flying, coughing up blood as they slammed into the wooden pillars, completely incapacitated.
"Monster of the Heavenly Restriction?!"
The figures behind the screens finally recognized him, their voices trembling with alarm.
"That Zen'in Clan reject… why is he with you?!"
"Already scared?"
Rin looked at the silhouettes behind the screens, the three tomoe in his eyes slowly spinning.
"I didn't come here to negotiate."
"The assimilation is canceled. The Star Plasma Vessel is free."
"From today on, I don't want to hear a single order about harming her."
His tone was casual, as if stating something trivial, yet every word carried absolute authority.
"Who's in favor, and who's opposed?"
The hall fell into a deathly silence.
"Impossible!" one of the higher-ups roared hysterically. "If Lord Tengen does not assimilate, once the barriers collapse, curses across all of Japan will run rampant! This concerns the survival of the entire jujutsu world. It cannot be overturned by a single sentence from some unknown outsider like you!"
"So, you oppose it."
Rin nodded, raising his right hand. A black flame flickered at his fingertip.
Amaterasu.
With a slight flick of his finger, the flame shot forward as a streak of light, piercing through the paper screen and landing directly on the speaker.
"AAAAAAAH!"
A shrill scream tore through the hall.
Pitch-black flames erupted behind the screen, burning fiercely. The agony, as if even the soul itself were being scorched, drove the man into frantic convulsions.
After barely ten seconds, the screams stopped.
Behind the screen, nothing remained but a pile of black ash.
The remaining higher-ups were terrified out of their wits. They stumbled out from behind the screens, retreating into a corner, trembling uncontrollably.
Accustomed to authority, they had never faced such a merciless executioner, one who reduced a person to ash at the slightest disagreement.
Rin lowered his hand and leaned forward slightly, his gaze sweeping over the cowering figures.
"Now… does anyone else object?"
...
30 seconds passed, and the nauseating stench of burnt flesh lingered in the air.
The mass of black flames known as Amaterasu vanished at Rin's will after consuming its target.
A large, charred hole had been burned through the once magnificent paper screen. Through it, the remaining higher-ups could be seen sprawled on the tatami, trembling in terror.
In their daily lives, they stood above all others, holding the power of life and death over the entire Japanese jujutsu world. A single word from them could determine the fate of countless sorcerers.
But now, in the face of those flames that could burn even the soul, all their authority and arrogance had been reduced to nothing.
Rin sat in his chair, lightly tapping his fingers against the wooden armrest.
The crisp sound echoed through the silent hall like the ticking of a death sentence.
"I don't have the patience to wait for you to hold a meeting."
He leaned forward slightly, his dark eyes fixed on the trembling elders.
"I'll ask one last time."
"Cancel the Star Plasma Vessel assimilation and give her back her freedom. Does anyone still object?"
"No… no objections!"
The eldest among them, seated at the center with the highest authority, finally broke under the pressure and cried out hoarsely.
He scrambled forward, pressing his forehead against the cold floor, completely abandoning any pretense of dignity.
"Lord Tengen's assimilation… will be canceled. We will immediately withdraw all surveillance and protection targeting Riko Amanai. We will also announce publicly that the Star Plasma Vessel died in an accident. From now on, no one will interfere with her life again!"
His words came out in a rush, afraid that even the slightest delay would cost him his life.
"Words alone mean nothing."
Rin lifted his chin, gesturing toward Toji.
Toji Fushiguro grinned, his expression turning vicious.
He strode forward, kicked aside the remaining screen, and pulled out a blank scroll along with a brush, tossing them in front of the old man.
"Write it down. Stamp it with the Director's Special Grade Cursed Seal."
Toji crossed his arms, looking down at them with clear amusement.
"If you try anything funny with the wording, I'll break every bone in your body and feed them to cursed spirits."
Faced with such pressure, how could the higher-ups dare resist?
With trembling hands, they hurriedly wrote the official decree abolishing the Star Plasma Vessel project onto the scroll. Biting their fingers, they pressed down blood-stained thumbprints infused with Cursed Energy.
Once they violated a document bound by such energy, their own Cursed Energy would go berserk and turn against them.
Toji picked up the scroll, glanced over it briefly, and after confirming there were no issues, handed it to Rin.
Rin didn't even bother to read it. He casually tossed the scroll toward Geto Suguru behind him.
"Keep it. This is your proof for reporting back to Yaga Masamichi. From now on, that girl is free."
Geto scrambled to catch the heavy scroll.
Looking down at the blood-red seals, something deep within him cracked and reshaped.
He had always believed in the principle that jujutsu sorcerers existed to protect non-sorcerers.
Yet only hours ago, that same belief had nearly forced him to sacrifice the life of a fourteen-year-old girl in the name of so-called stability.
He had wavered, torn between conviction and doubt.
Now, Rin had crushed that hypocritical system with nothing but raw, undeniable force.
It turned out that rules and fate were as fragile as paper in the face of absolute power.
As long as one was strong enough, they could define their own justice and protect whoever they wished.
No compromise. No sacrifice.
Is this… what true strength looks like?
Geto tightened his grip on the scroll, a new light flickering in his eyes.
...
Riko Amanai clung tightly to Kuroi Misato's hand. As she looked at the document that granted her freedom, tears streamed down her face.
She didn't have to die anymore.
She could go to school, hang out with friends, eat crepes in Harajuku, and live an ordinary life.
"Thank you… thank you so much!"
Riko bowed deeply toward Rin's back, sobbing uncontrollably.
Gojo slipped his hands into his pockets and let out a loud whistle.
"Old man, you're way more efficient than those fossils who sit around arguing all day. From now on, I'm officially declaring you my idol!"
___
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