Chapter 38. Cicada (Part 5)

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"What a cheap villainous mannerisms," I thought, watching Kenjaku's dramatic pose. His stance, his expression — it was all like something out of a movie... Hmph, I wasn't jealous at all, and I certainly didn't think it was cool! Of course not! On the contrary, it looked ridiculous...

Maybe I should try it the next time we meet…

Within seconds, the massive sign of the cursed technique's activation in the sky began to dissipate. Kenjaku, clearly satisfied with the events, took a deep breath to calm himself and looked at us, donning that same indifferent smile.

"I am sincerely grateful to you," he began, his gaze sweeping over the people behind me. His voice carried a strange blend of gratitude and irony. "Cursed spirits absorbed by the technique of curse manipulation can't become stronger than they were before absorption. Mahito evolved only because of his hatred for humanity and his battle with you... Of course, I would have liked Jogo to evolve too, but..." Kenjaku's eyes flickered with cold interest as he looked at me. "Someone turned him to ash before he could realize his potential."

"If he had survived that attack, he surely would have become something else," I shrugged, trying to maintain my composure.

It was true. If Jogo had survived that last attack, he would have become a true monster, worthy of a special grade. Not a special grade cursed spirit, but a special grade, like the Sorcerers. I say this based on my own feelings during the battle against him.

That guy managed to activate his domain expansion twice, when even doing it once almost completely depletes cursed energy for strong Sorcerers and curses. And Jogo survived an attack that should have killed him or at least completely taken him out of the fight. However, it was then that he began to break his limits. Unfortunately or fortunately, he eventually faced not just a bunch of first-grade Sorcerers, but a Sorcerer who could burn down a city and the King of Curses, the true scourge and terror of the Heian era Sorcerers.

"What did you do?" Yuki's gaze bored into Kenjaku, ignoring everyone else. She stopped holding back her cursed energy, and her "aura" burst forth, pressing down on the people nearby. However, only Yuta, Kenjaku, Uraume, and I were within the range of her energy.

Oh, right, Yuji… I remembered the guy almost instantly when I heard his heart beat several times faster for a moment — an instinctive reaction to danger. But his heartbeat quickly returned to normal. "I guess after more than six months of living with the greatest monster in the history of Japanese Sorcerers, this kind of pressure from an 'ordinary' woman doesn't seem truly terrifying to you."

"I remotely activated inert transformation on two types of non-Sorcerers that were marked earlier," Kenjaku admitted honestly, as if boasting. "One of them, like Yuji Itadori, swallowed a cursed object. The others, like Junpei Yoshino, possess a cursed technique but have the consciousness of a non-Sorcerer."

Junpei... I haven't seen that guy in a while. I remember, after he enrolled in the Tokyo school, he was initially trained with the first years. At some point, he began going on missions alone... Of course, due to the situation with Mahito, they wouldn't have let him out of school, let alone on solo missions. This was definitely Satoru's doing. I wonder what for?

"I made their brain structure similar to that of Sorcerers. To the first group, I gave the power that belongs to vessels, and to the second, the ability to use cursed techniques. And…" In the next moment, a strange ribbon appeared in Kenjaku's hand, tied in a knot, which he immediately untied, straightening it. "Right now, I have removed the seals from the cursed objects. Some of them have been dormant since I marked them, but they will awaken soon. And to deepen their understanding of cursed energy, I will make them fight each other… I carefully selected these people and cursed objects, so you could say I've instantly released thousands of malevolent Yuji Itadoris into the world."

"A thousand? That's not very many," Yuki finally spoke, staring intently at Kenjaku. "You underestimate the human mind. Do you think people will start killing each other just because they have power?"

"Everything is going according to plan," Kenjaku shook his head as if scolding a disobedient child. "Of course, I've prepared for everything… Your questions are becoming more and more banal. Are you trying to entertain me?" he addressed me with a slight hint of mockery.

Before I could respond, Yuki interrupted me:

"I know you don't like me very much, but how about we beat him up first and then solve our issues?"

I merely glanced mockingly at this woman. Honestly, I wouldn't say I had any problems with her. We had met only once and that was by chance. However, her lifestyle as a Sorcerer didn't sit well with me.

There were times when I spent days, weeks, or even months on end running across Japan exorcising curses. Mostly first-grade, occasionally groups of second-grade small fries, and even more rarely, special-grade. However, the rarity of encounters with special-grade curses didn't mean there were fewer problems.

In Japan, the number of mysterious deaths or people missing annually exceeds ten thousand. This is all due to the fact that every year in Japan, ten to fifteen special-grade curses appear, a hundred to five hundred first-grade curses, five hundred to three to five thousand second-grade curses. The dregs of third and fourth grades in the worst years can number several tens of thousands.

My issue with Yuki Tsukumo? It's the same as with Yuta — negligence at work and indifference to the exhaustion and pressure their colleagues face. In fact, over the past year, there have been only two special-grade Sorcerers in Japan. And given how "responsible" Satoru is, you could say just one. Yes, it's true that he has exorcised more special-grade curses than I have, simply because that's his specialty — exorcising extremely dangerous curses that ordinary Sorcerers can't handle. Because of this, he's often assigned all missions related to exorcising such cursed spirits. However, first-grade cursed spirits pose the greatest threat since they appear much more frequently, and there are no more than twenty Sorcerers in all of Japan who can fight them one-on-one. Statistically, this means there are seven and a half special-grade curses per active special-grade Sorcerer, and fifteen first-grade curses per first-grade Sorcerer. But statistics don't tell the whole story; the situation is much worse because many first-grade Sorcerers come from the three great families, who aren't exactly eager to fulfill their Sorcerer duties.

Summing it all up, we end up with more than ten thousand civilian casualties and dozens of Sorcerer deaths each year, while Yuki Tsukumo runs off to who knows where searching for a cure for curses, and Yuta Okkotsu has been roasting under the African sun for over a year, looking for who knows what!

So, do I dislike Yuki Tsukumo? No, I don't care about her. And that's why I just gave her a brief glance before looking back at Kenjaku, waiting for his next words.

Besides… At that moment, I felt that my "Enhancement" was almost over and I didn't plan on engaging in a fight where I could collapse at any second.

"Unfortunately, I've only smoked five cigarettes during this time, which means I can't recover even half of my cursed energy. However, I think it will be enough to use reverse cursed technique to slightly alleviate the pain and consequences of 'overstepping my limits,'" I thought just before a sudden change occurred in the surroundings.

At that moment, all the ice that hadn't been blown away by the shockwave of my landing shattered, causing a loud crash and tremors in the ground around us.

"What is it, Uraume?" Kenjaku asked with a sly smile.

"Poison!" the monk growled furiously, finally realizing the trick.

"Piercing Blood mixed with my own blood, naturally, it's poisonous," Choso explained nonchalantly, standing nearby.

"Wait, Mei isn't protecting us," Momo spoke up, supporting herself with a trembling hand. "There could still be more of them."

"All Sorcerers below first grade will be useless in direct confrontation right now," Yuki waved dismissively at the exhausted girl, implying she shouldn't overexert herself or worry too much. "Besides, there are three special-grade Sorcerers here. Do you think we need anyone else to…"

In the next moment, I collapsed to the floor. My trembling muscles made my body shake as if I were having a seizure. However, I immediately began using the reverse cursed technique, employing the cursed energy that had recovered to about forty percent of its maximum capacity. This made the pain less excruciating, and the damage to my bones and joints was mending. Even my muscles started to relax due to the slow but steady regeneration. My muscles weren't damaged but worn out. And I hadn't yet learned to restore wear and tear with reverse cursed techniques, though the positive cursed energy did help reduce the "inflammation" and tension a bit.

Having applied the "first aid" from the Sorcerer world to myself, I quickly assessed my situation.

Slightly less than half of my cursed energy left and my body in a bad state… It should be enough to escape or land a few desperate blows against someone of Kenjaku or Uraume's level if needed. Moreover, I noticed that the "thermal energy" that granted me all this insane power hadn't completely dissipated. Some of it still circulated through my bloodstream, settling in my liver, kidneys, lungs, and heart.

"I don't know if this is good or bad, but… Right now, I just want to get some good sleep!"

Before anyone could react, a worried Maki was already kneeling beside me, placing a hand on my forehead.

"You have a fever," she had to withdraw her hand due to the incredible heat of my body. "How are you still alive?"

Honestly, I don't know. But I have a theory — it's because I'm an outsider who follows the path of the "Red Priest." And it's clearly related to how my "Enhancement" works; after all, a part of my being can't kill me… Right?

"Sempai, are you okay?!" Yuji rushed to me right after Maki.

"I'll be fine," I smiled at the girl and the boy. "Just need a bit of rest and I'll be as good as new."

"What a pity," Kenjaku drew everyone's attention again. "But I still haven't finished talking."

Yuta, visibly tired of all this conversation, tightened his grip on his katana and prepared to attack. Noticing this, Kenjaku merely smirked mockingly.

"Boy, do you know what's special about all the cursed objects I've bestowed upon vessels?" Kenjaku began provocatively. "No? Well then, listen carefully. I think you and your friends will need this information if you want to get your teacher back. All these cursed objects are what's left of the Sorcerers with whom I made vows over the past thousand years. Actually, I didn't make vows only with Sorcerers. But all those vows… became invalid as soon as I acquired this body…"

"That can't be!" For the first time this evening, fear was reflected on Yuki's face.

"So I'll repeat! Witness the beginning of a new era!"

In the next moment, a whole horde of cursed spirits burst out from behind Kenjaku.

"Goodbye, Yuji Itadori… Until we meet again, Sukehiro Yami. Don't disappoint me."

"Gojo-sensei!" Yuji yelled furiously, rushing towards Kenjaku.

However, a certain black shadow was faster than him. Yuta almost instantly appeared beside Kenjaku, but was immediately blocked by an endless stream of curses, which he slashed through relentlessly. Yuta was already reaching for his ring when Kenjaku's final words echoed around:

"Sukuna, do you hear me? It is near. The golden age of cursed techniques… the Heian Era!"

"This bastard probably hears you, but he couldn't care less as long as people like me and Satoru Gojo are alive," I thought mockingly, watching Yuji's back, over which I could see the image of the King of Curses. "The main thing is not to lose consciousness, because those bastards from the council are just waiting for that… to untie their hands."

"Maki," I addressed the girl. Due to the spasms even in my throat muscles, my voice was quiet and strained. "Take me… to… Shoko."