"Piercing Blood!"
Scarlet blood surged from Choso's fingertips, transforming into a blood arrow that shot toward the swaths of cursed spirits in the distance.
SQUELCH!
The sound of the blood arrow piercing through flesh was continuous. Purple blood splattered everywhere. Several low-grade cursed spirits were pierced through before they could even react, ultimately collapsing to the ground and turning into ashes.
Megumi's Divine Dog pounced on a cursed spirit in the corner of the corridor. The shikigami's sharp claws scratched three bloody marks on its arm. Junpei's Moon Dregs seized the opportunity. Its sharp tentacles shot out and accurately pierced through the cursed spirit's head, splattering purple blood all over the floor.
"That should be about it. Most of the cursed spirits in this school have been cleared out. Even if there are some hidden deep away, they won't affect our next moves."
Choso lowered his arm and muttered to himself. Behind him, Megumi nodded.
"Yeah. The cursed energy residues aren't as chaotic as when we first started, but..."
Junpei continued the sentence. "But there's still no sign of that Special Grade curse, nor are there any corresponding cursed energy residues to track."
They had originally thought that by clearing out the surrounding low-grade curses, the Divine Dog would naturally be able to sniff out that guy's exact location.
But the result was a failure.
"That Special Grade curse really is hiding in a special way," Megumi analyzed.
"Didn't Itadori say that if that curse wanted to take Nanami-san away, it would have to break the Curtain? And since the Curtain is fine right now, doesn't that mean the curse is still inside the barrier?" Junpei said.
"It is indeed inside the barrier, but we still can't pinpoint its location."
Megumi had a slight headache over this.
"Yeah..."
Junpei followed behind Choso and Megumi. Right at this moment, Megumi—who was walking in front of him—suddenly stopped.
"What's wrong, Fushiguro?"
"..."
Megumi frowned. He looked down and lifted the hem of his school uniform, discovering that at some unknown point, a pentagram pattern had appeared on his abdomen.
"What is this...?"
"Yoshino, quickly check your own body."
Hearing this, Junpei hurriedly pulled up his clothes to check as well. The mark on his body was in a different place than Megumi's. The young man pulled back his school uniform collar and found the exact same pattern on his collarbone.
"When... did this happen?"
Choso stood to the side, staring at the patterns on the two boys' bodies, and pondered for a moment.
"This shouldn't be caused by ordinary residual cursed energy. It's a cursed technique mark."
"Certain cursed techniques leave a mark on the target after locking onto them. The mark itself is harmless, but it means that the user is highly likely to be able to sense your locations at any time—or even affect your minds."
Inside a hotel room.
Hajime Kashimo leaned against the headboard in sheer boredom, his legs crossed. He was holding a nearly empty bag of potato chips, pouring the last few crumbs into his mouth.
"All gone."
He crumpled the empty bag into a ball and casually tossed it toward the trash can. As a result, the bag bounced exactly on the edge of the trash can and fell to the floor.
Hajime Kashimo raised an eyebrow, then looked at the man in the kasaya beside him.
"Kenjaku, is your crappy camera still not fixed?"
"I had Mechamaru transport another batch to that school, but it will probably take a long time."
Kenjaku let out a long sigh.
He couldn't help but feel that this kid, Yuji Itadori, was far from simple.
"Right. Didn't you say you wanted to see 'that guy'? I've already contacted it."
CLICK—
Just as Kenjaku finished speaking, the door to the room was opened.
A pitch-black tentacle covered in hair wrapped around the door handle and pushed it open. Hajime Kashimo instinctively looked toward the door.
A pitch-black hand reached into the room through the crack in the door, its five fingers pressing against the ground like the forelimb of some reptile, leaving a wet trail on the floor.
A completely pitch-black monster squeezed in through the gap in the door. It was only about half the height of a person, and its appearance was highly... unique.
Its four limbs supported it on the ground, joints twisted at impossible angles. The surface of its body was covered with countless slender tentacles, mouthparts, and eyeballs. The pupils didn't look like normal human eyes, but rather the horizontal slits of a herbivore.
Hajime Kashimo's mouth twitched.
"...What is this thing?"
"It is Shanmei," Kenjaku replied with a smile.
"What's wrong? Didn't you just say you really wanted to see it for yourself?"
"I thought it would be a slightly more normal creature..."
Hajime Kashimo looked as sick as if he had just eaten a fly. After all, he had just eaten.
Because the thing in front of him—which he wasn't even sure could be called a "creature"—was way too sanity-draining to look at.
"Kenjaku, are you trying to make me throw up everything I just ate?"
"You really are a pervert. You can even create such disgusting things?"
Hajime Kashimo looked at Kenjaku with utter disgust.
"Disgusting?"
Kenjaku raised an eyebrow. The corners of his mouth curved slightly upward.
Disgusting was exactly right. He just wanted to see this deflated expression on Hajime Kashimo's face.
"Don't you think this kind of monster looks very strong at first glance?"
"Bullshit... Fine. I admit it—it really does."
Even though he was an ancient person who had existed since 400 years ago and was quite advanced in age, there was no way Hajime Kashimo had ever seen something like this.
Watching the creature crawling gloomily on the floor, Hajime Kashimo covered his mouth.
"Don't underestimate it. Even though Shanmei is currently still in its Cursed Womb state, it already possesses strength no less than Jogo's."
Kenjaku crossed his arms, his tone somewhat proud.
"This 'creature' is a successful experimental subject on par with Yuji Itadori."
"Its cursed technique can control physical flesh and blood in reality. It is different from natural disasters like Hanami or Dagon. Even though Hanami can summon plants, those plants are constructed from cursed energy. Although their properties are the same, they are not truly existing things."
"The flesh created by this creature's cursed technique is genuine, living biological tissue."
"Therefore..."
Kenjaku paused.
Hajime Kashimo narrowed his eyes, carefully examining the monster in front of him. He suddenly felt something was wrong.
The bodies of cursed spirits are made of cursed energy. Even Special Grade curses with physical forms like Mahito and Jogo are essentially just aggregates of cursed energy. But the creature in front of him was different. Hajime Kashimo could feel its pulse.
"This guy... has a physical body?"
This cursed energy... is more tyrannical than any cursed spirit I've ever seen...
This was no longer a normal cursed spirit... No wonder Kenjaku was so proud to show it off to him.
Just as Hajime Kashimo was marveling, Shanmei's eye-covered head slowly turned toward him. The mouthparts on its body began to open and close, emitting an uncomfortable sound.
"Œæãšđłßœŋǥħŧż" This is my offspring.
"Hiss—"
The sound was unlike any known language. Hajime Kashimo instinctively covered his ears.
"What the hell is this guy saying?!"
"You can't understand it?"
Kenjaku tilted his head.
"Even though it sounds strange, you should be able to comprehend its meaning."
"..."
It was true. Even though Hajime Kashimo couldn't understand a single word, when those sounds combined, they inexplicably conveyed a certain meaning.
This is just one of my offspring.
What does this mean?
"Ţṟæŋħlïŋq'ŷẅ..."
"...Hungry?" Hajime Kashimo muttered, repeating Shanmei's meaning.
"It says it's hungry," Kenjaku's mouth stretched open, revealing a meaningful smile. "It seems it's very interested in you, Hajime Kashimo."
"Interested, my ass."
Hajime Kashimo looked at Kenjaku with utter disgust.
"Kenjaku, you're really getting more and more perverted."
"How can you call it perverted? This is an expansion of jujutsu—a revolution for cursed spirits as a life form."
"Bullshit. From what I see, you're no longer a normal human."
"Thank you for the compliment."
"You..."
Meanwhile, on one side of the school.
"What should we do now?"
Junpei wiped the sweat from his forehead and asked the other two.
Because he had only recently come into contact with jujutsu, he couldn't maintain his shikigami for a long time. Furthermore, after clearing out so many curses, his cursed energy was mostly depleted.
The same went for Megumi. After the previous battles, he had consumed half of his cursed energy. Among the three, only Choso still maintained a state of relative ease.
Megumi was about to speak when he caught sight of a hand suddenly resting on Junpei's shoulder from behind out of the corner of his eye.
"Good work."
"Holy crap!"
Junpei was startled. He hurriedly turned his head, and the face of a pink-haired young man filled his vision.
"Itadori?!"
"It's me."
Upon hearing that reassuring voice, Megumi also breathed a sigh of relief.
However, what felt ominous was that Yuji's body was currently covered in wounds, and his school uniform was torn beyond recognition.
"When did you get back?"
"Just now. By the way, that cursed technique mark you guys were just talking about—I have it on my body too. It was probably engraved during the battle just now," Yuji said with a calm expression.
Megumi examined the wounds on Yuji's body.
"You're injured. Do you want me to heal you?"
"I'm fine. I just cleared out a Special Grade curse. It was merely a speed bump. You should save some cursed energy."
Yuji shook his head. As he spoke, the wounds on the young man's body began to heal at a visible rate, returning to normal within a few breaths.
This efficiency... To think he's already trained it to this level.
Megumi narrowed his eyes, marveling inwardly.
What a monster.
"Yuji, did you find that curse that uses illusions?"
Choso asked.
"No. The one I killed was a different one. I just scouted the surrounding area, and as a result, I still couldn't find any clues about the last curse."
"Is that so..."
Junpei was a bit disappointed, but Yuji began to explain again.
"However, I already understand what's going on."
"What?"
"You three—step back a bit first."
Yuji didn't explain, only motioning for the three of them to distance themselves from him. The other three nodded and subsequently cleared an open area for Yuji.
"Phew—"
The pink-haired young man let out a long breath, then raised his right fist, azure cursed energy burning around it.
Exactly ten minutes had passed. No more, no less.
Earlier, when he killed that Special Grade curse that had swallowed Sukuna's finger, he had noticed something.
Through their search just now, the group had already cleared out the school. Since the target couldn't hide inside the buildings, couldn't be found through normal cursed energy residue, and was known to be within the Curtain, then only one possibility remained.
Yuji's target this time was not an enemy, but...
The ground beneath his feet!
"Black Flash!"
BOOM—!
A terrifying shockwave exploded outward with Yuji's fist at the center, forming a circular blast of air that spread in all directions. The ground fractured layer by layer like fragile tofu blocks, and then collapsed.
"Itadori, what are you...?"
Junpei and Megumi took cover in the distance. The black-haired boy's balance was a bit unsteady. He felt the ground of the entire school shaking.
At the same time, a massive hollow cavity was exposed beneath Yuji. Moonlight shone into the chasm below his feet, and a pungent, foul stench billowed up from underground.
"GYAAAAAHHHHH—!"
The curse's shrill howl echoed through the skies.
"Found you."
A smile appeared on Yuji's face. The ground continued to split apart. Not only the ground beneath his feet, but even the adjacent school building began to collapse due to losing its supporting foundation.
"Retreat quickly! The building is going to collapse!"
Choso grabbed the back of Junpei and Megumi's collars, retreating and dragging the two to a safe area.
Yuji leaped onto a nearby tall building, looking down at the continuously expanding sinkhole. It wasn't long before a massive silhouette was revealed amidst the collapsing buildings.
"What... is that thing...?"
Junpei had a sickened expression. Reflected in the young man's pupils was the Special Grade curse lying underground.
The moonlight spilled in through the collapsed opening, illuminating the contour of that cursed mass. The surface of its bloated body was covered in wrinkles and cracks. Its entire body was dozens of meters long, and its head alone accounted for at least a third of its body.
"Is that..."
Megumi's pupils contracted.
"A baby?"
"Urgh... Bleh—!"
The baby maintained a posture with its four limbs facing the sky. Seemingly because of Yuji's punch just now, it began to dry heave, and then—
PLOP—
A blond man was spat out from the baby's mouth, his entire body covered in clear stomach acid. His white suit was torn to shreds, revealing large patches of reddened skin corroded by the acid underneath, covered in blisters and festering wounds.
"Nanami-san!"
Junpei recognized the person spat out by the baby. At the same time, Yuji sprang into action. He leaped into the air, caught Kento Nanami in his arms, and brought him to an unaffected section of the road next to the crater.
"Phew... Thank goodness. He's still alive."
"Nanami-san, are you alright?"
Yuji landed on his feet and gently set Kento Nanami down. The latter stumbled as he stood up.
"I'm... cough cough... alright, Itadori. Ignore me. Prioritize dealing with that curse."
"Don't move. I'll heal you first."
Yuji placed his hand on Kento Nanami's shoulder. The Reverse Cursed Technique activated, and a white glow covered the pink-haired young man's palm. Following that, the wounds on Kento Nanami's body gradually healed.
But even as he diverted his attention to heal Kento Nanami, his mind was not idle.
Just as I suspected. This guy was hiding underground all along.
This cursed energy... Just in terms of total cursed energy, it's at least on par with Jogo.
It's just that, given it has such exaggerated abilities, why did it never make a move before this?
"The cursed technique of the artificial cursed spirit Shanmei, which I created over a hundred years ago, can grant cursed spirits an accelerated growth rate over a short period—squeezing out all of their latent potential. Therefore, even though this cursed spirit's strength has been reinforced layer by layer, it far exceeds the scope of an ordinary Special Grade curse."
"But the price is that these cursed spirits will reach the end of their lives in an instant. Furthermore, cursed spirits affected by Shanmei's cursed technique will completely escape my control, so they can only be used as one-time consumables."
The wounds on Kento Nanami's body slowly healed, and at this moment, Yuji had also guessed the answer.
It was a Binding Vow.
Although he didn't know exactly what kind of Binding Vow it had forged, he could roughly deduce it.
Yuji glanced at the curse in the distance. Even though it had revealed its true form, it was merely flailing its limbs randomly on the ground, destroying the surrounding buildings without the slightest intention of attacking.
This guy's size was abnormally huge—completely beyond the scope of ordinary curses. Therefore, Yuji guessed that it likely used its body turning into a bloated baby as a Binding Vow in exchange for the versatility of its cursed technique abilities. Otherwise, it couldn't have displayed such diverse abilities earlier.
If that was the case, then it might make sense.
Just like Mechamaru's Heavenly Restriction—exchanging physical disabilities for a massive enhancement in cursed energy.
But this didn't mean this guy was just a sitting duck for him to beat up. During the previous battle with Dagon, Yuji still vividly remembered the ability this guy used to plunge him into an illusion.
"Itadori, you..."
Outputting Reverse Cursed Technique energy was much more difficult than simply using the Reverse Cursed Technique on oneself. Kento Nanami looked at Yuji in surprise.
To think he's even learned this kind of skill? How many days has it been?
"It's fine, Nanami-san. I can handle it. You go regroup with Fushiguro and the others first."
The wounds on Kento Nanami's body were mostly healed. Yuji stood up and patted the blond man on the shoulder.
Yuji could feel it. Whether it was the cursed spirit that ate Sukuna's finger earlier, or Dagon—one of the Four Disaster Curses—they were both just "appetizers."
This curse was created by Kenjaku specifically to target him, so it was the true "main course."
The real battle was only just beginning.
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