At that time, Shibuya was still immersed in a strange, almost unreal silence and peace.
The warm sunlight softly spread over the high-rise buildings and empty streets. The wind was light, like a layer of tulle. The hustle and bustle of the market had disappeared. Pedestrians were few, and the flow of traffic seemed to have sunk into a light sleep. The entire city was immersed in the stability of defenseless years.
At that time, Shibuya was still immersed in the most brilliant and ordinary fireworks of the city.
Office workers in straight suits carried briefcases, hurrying between buildings, occasionally glancing at their watches. In front of the characteristic shops and trendy stores on the corners, young men and women strolled together, their fingertips touching the window glass, whispering and laughing.
The crowd at the subway entrance was gradually building up: commuting white-collar workers, students after school, and tourists dragging suitcases to check out landmarks, merging into a stream of people in pairs and threes. The sound of footsteps, conversations, and the ringing of store doorbells created a soft, lively daily commotion.
The warm light of the setting sun softly spread over the intersection. The wind was wrapped in the city's unique festive atmosphere. Everything was as stable as countless ordinary days.
But at the highest point in Shibuya, a demon in a funny costume was chatting with Kenjaku, who sat beside him cross-legged.
"This era is truly incredible. Although I've seen it countless times, I always feel that this time is worthy of my rule."
After Sukuna, leaning against the wall, ate the fingers brought by Kenjaku, he touched his mouth and said:
"Rule? You're very boring. But I'm still curious—what are you going to do about Nishida Kagetatsu?"
Demon Head Kijuro, who had been rebuked, subconsciously looked at the eye in his palm after lowering his hand. The wounds on it could not recover no matter how much cursed spirit blood he washed them with.
Whenever he tried to predict Nishida Kagetatsu's future, he would be slashed during that period.
"Hmph! Kagetatsu, in your past life, you wanted to stop me. Even if you're resurrected, you won't let me go. Since you want to protect these people, then I won't let you have your way!"
With that, Demon Head Kijuro laughed and said to Kenjaku beside him:
"Go, my servant. Let Shibuya burn!!"
And Kenjaku, still pondering what Tengen had said earlier, after a short pause, began to create an account with restrictive conditions:
"Born from darkness, darkness into darkness, mud and filth—may it all be purified."
---
On the training ground of Tokyo Jujutsu High School, Locke confronted the special-grade cursed spirit—majestic and motionless. The giant antelope behind him spread its wings to cover the sky, and a fierce, majestic aura spread out, suppressing all the surrounding cursed spirits, making them freeze in place, not daring to move an inch.
The innate aura of the enemy alone had scattered and frightened the cursed spirits.
Cursed Blue had never seen Nishida Kagetatsu's curse before. His gaze fell on Locke, and he asked deeply:
"You... are you Kagetatsu?"
"Nishida Kagetatsu? I can be him, but I'm not him. Why, do you really want to meet him?" Locke's tone was frivolous, with a hint of mockery.
Cursed Blue frowned slightly and asked: "Why did you come so quickly? What about Jogo and Hanami?"
In response to the question, Locke sneered, his tone playful:
"Those two? I already figured out they were here to buy time, so I left a shadow clone to play with them."
Before the words fell, a memory from the shadow clone suddenly flooded into Locke's mind—the image of Jogo and Hanami being slain by Mahoraga's sword clearly reflected in his consciousness.
He laughed softly, his voice carrying indifference and mockery:
"Ha, that's really perfect. I have to say, the way they looked before they died was very..."
"Extremely ugly."
"You bastard! Human! I'll kill you!"
Faced with Locke's mockery, Jōso's mind instantly went blank. Cursed Blue didn't even have time to stop him; he could only reach out his hand and shout:
"Don't!"
Before Locke could make a move, Mahoraga, who had been standing by, leaped out from the shadows and severed Jōso's right arm with its sword.
Before Jōso could react, Cursed Blue immediately used a gravity technique to pull Jōso back. Mahoraga, which had already adapted to the Limitless, was no longer affected by gravity, so it didn't pursue to finish him off.
But soon, Locke looked on in surprise, seeing that the other party was alive and had used cursed energy to restore his arm—Mahoraga's demon-sealing sword, the only product close to Nishida Kagetatsu's spiritual power.
And Jōso was now very afraid. If it weren't for these special-grade cursed spirits, born later with an innate resistance to positive energy, he might have just died.
Facing the former and current strongest of humanity, Cursed Blue knew deep down that they had no chance of defeating even Nishida Kagetatsu's current body, let alone with Gojo Satoru standing by.
What angered him even more was that Jogo and Hanami's delay, at the cost of their lives, had not only been useless but had become a laughingstock in the other party's mouth.
Although he was now full of resentment, Cursed Blue could only suppress his anger because he clearly understood that he wanted to save everyone's lives, not let them die in vain.
Therefore, after a moment of silence, he resolutely decided to sell out Kenjaku in advance:
"Hey, you humans over there, let me tell you something. There's a guy named Geto Suguru. He had us break your barriers, and now he's planning to go where you humans gather most often, set up traps, and threaten you with human lives."
As soon as he heard the three words "Geto Suguru," Gojo Satoru reacted almost instinctively and shouted loudly, his voice full of heart-wrenching disbelief:
"Impossible—Geto is dead!"
Locke raised his hand to stop him from losing control and calmly explained:
"Sorry, I was afraid you'd do something impulsive earlier, so Tengen and I hid it from you. Geto Suguru's body has been taken over by Kenjaku's technique. We've already been searching for his traces."
The truth was like thunder. Gojo Satoru's eyes nearly burst. He couldn't stand someone desecrating Geto's body, and he gritted his teeth at Locke's deliberate concealment.
But in the end, he suppressed his surging emotions with great determination, took a deep breath, and said in a deep voice full of anger:
"Old man, I'll settle this with you later. Someone needs to go to Shibuya to help right now. If the other side set this up early, the safest way is for you to go there... We'll have to let these guys go for now."
Hearing Gojo Satoru's words, Cursed Blue immediately said:
"That's right. It's very hard for you to kill us in a short time. Why don't we both take a step back? I won't stop you, and I promise we'll never appear before you again. You go to Shibuya to save people. What do you say?"
Faced with this proposal, Gojo Satoru's face turned cold, and he was about to nod in agreement. But when his gaze swept to Locke, he saw that the old man's face had suddenly become very dark, and he raised his hand to stop him directly.
"That's right. In this situation, I really can't kill you in a minute." Locke's tone was calm, but a terrifying hostility could be seen in his eyes. "But what if it's not me making the move?"
In an instant, alarm bells rang in the hearts of all the cursed spirits. Their survival instinct made them subconsciously want to flee. As a cursed spirit, their intuition frantically roared in their heads—run! Run!
Under Gojo Satoru's puzzled gaze, Locke's face was cold, his tone icy, as he spoke word by word:
"Don't you want to see Nishida Kagetatsu? As you wish. Next—"
"Substitution."
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