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"Heh heh heh!~"
Ryomen Sukuna couldn't help but laugh when he heard Kenjaku's words. He was about to tell Kenjaku that he had his own plans and didn't need anyone's help, but as the words reached his lips, another thought crossed his mind. He stared at Kenjaku with playful eyes and asked, "Tell me, what exactly do you want me to help you with?"
Kenjaku looked at Ryomen Sukuna and replied seriously, "To achieve the 'Cursed Energy Optimization' plan, I have orchestrated a grand game. But to begin this game, I need a very special key."
"A special key?"
Ryomen Sukuna looked at Kenjaku with growing interest, clearly intrigued by what he meant.
"That's right, a special key."
Kenjaku nodded and continued, "The key I need is Tengen himself. But Tengen's status in the current Jujutsu World is extremely special. Capturing him would be equivalent to declaring war against the entire Jujutsu World. I still don't possess that kind of strength, so I need your power."
"Going to war with the entire Jujutsu World of this era? That sounds interesting."
After hearing Kenjaku's words, Ryomen Sukuna smiled faintly. He had already fought against the entire Jujutsu World once before, and he never expected that after a thousand years, he would get another chance to do so. Just the thought of it amused him.
However, he also had things he needed Kenjaku to do for him, so he had no intention of agreeing so easily.
Thinking this, Ryomen Sukuna pretended to ponder for a moment before saying, "It's not impossible for me to help you, but there are also a few things I need you to do for me."
Kenjaku narrowed his eyes slightly upon hearing this, then asked, "What do you need?"
"Two things."
Ryomen Sukuna raised two fingers toward Kenjaku, then pointed at himself with his other hand.
"First, this brat's body is somewhat special, and I can't fully control it. You need to find a way to get me out of his body.
Second, I recently encountered a very interesting kid, and I want his body to become my incarnated vessel."
Kenjaku's eyes flickered slightly after hearing Sukuna's request. Then he said, "As for the first matter, I've already made arrangements for it. I have found eighteen of your fingers. Including the one this body has already swallowed, that makes nineteen. The last finger is still missing; I don't know where those people from Jujutsu High have hidden it.
However, even if one finger is missing, I've already prepared a substitute that will allow you to revive in your complete form."
"My physical body—"
Ryomen Sukuna frowned slightly after hearing Kenjaku's words, then smiled coldly and said, "It seems you've put quite a bit of effort into reviving me."
As he spoke, his gaze sharpened.
"I say, this kid named Itadori Yuji swallowing my finger and becoming my vessel… that wouldn't happen to be your doing as well, would it?"
Ryomen Sukuna possessed twenty fingers, but only one soul. His soul would revive only within the first finger that was "used."
Although he still couldn't understand why Itadori Yuji could suppress him so easily, he had long realized that his first finger ending up inside a brat like this was definitely no coincidence. And now, the person most likely to have arranged all of this was clearly the scheming man standing before him.
"Hehe, you're overthinking things."
Kenjaku casually denied Sukuna's accusation and smiled.
"Your first finger being swallowed by Itadori Yuji was purely an accident and had nothing to do with me."
Then, without waiting for Sukuna to respond, he smoothly changed the topic.
"However, the child you just mentioned—the one you're interested in and want as your incarnated vessel—he actually does have some connection to me."
"Hm?"
The smile on Ryomen Sukuna's face immediately disappeared.
His four eyes narrowed coldly as he stared directly at Kenjaku.
Kenjaku merely smiled calmly under Sukuna's oppressive gaze and said, "That child's name is Naruto. He is my 'son.'"
The moment Sukuna mentioned "a very interesting kid," Kenjaku had already guessed that he was most likely referring to Naruto.
After all, no one in this world understood Naruto's "specialness" more clearly than Kenjaku himself.
Sukuna taking an interest in Naruto's body surprised him slightly, but it certainly wasn't beyond his expectations.
"Son?"
Ryomen Sukuna's expression instantly darkened after hearing Kenjaku's answer.
The moment Kenjaku mentioned Naruto's name, Sukuna already knew he probably wasn't lying.
Itadori Yuji, who could suppress his soul so easily, was definitely connected to Kenjaku somehow. Yet now, the other child Sukuna had taken a liking to was also connected to him—and was even his "son."
For the first time, Ryomen Sukuna began to suspect that Kenjaku had deliberately created both Itadori Yuji and Naruto specifically to scheme against him.
"That's right."
Kenjaku looked at Sukuna and smiled.
"Naruto is special. I'm not surprised that you would take an interest in his body. But what I want to tell you is that you're not the only one who has set your sights on him."
"Hm?"
Sukuna's four eyes narrowed dangerously.
"Someone else wants that brat's body too? Who?"
"It's Tengen."
Kenjaku smiled faintly and continued, "That guy noticed Naruto even earlier than you did. In order to obtain Naruto's body, he even helped me seal Satoru Gojo not long ago.
If nothing unexpected happens, he has probably already gone to find Naruto by now."
"Tengen…"
Ryomen Sukuna frowned slightly after hearing this, then asked, "You just said Tengen helped you seal Satoru Gojo. What exactly happened?"
In this era, the only Jujutsu Sorcerer Ryomen Sukuna truly acknowledged was Satoru Gojo, the so-called Strongest Jujutsu Sorcerer of the Modern Era.
He had even planned to fight Satoru Gojo personally after fully reviving.
Yet now, that man had apparently been sealed.
This inevitably caused Sukuna's opinion of Gojo to drop slightly.
"Of course, because Satoru Gojo was an obstacle."
Kenjaku smiled lightly and explained, "Naruto is Satoru Gojo's student, and Gojo is extremely protective of his own people. If Tengen wants Naruto's body, then he naturally has to deal with Satoru Gojo first."
"I see."
Sukuna nodded slightly before asking again, "Then how exactly did you seal Satoru Gojo?"
Or rather, what he truly wanted to ask was:
Can Satoru Gojo still come back?
For Ryomen Sukuna, revival meant fighting powerful opponents.
And in this era, Satoru Gojo was undoubtedly the strongest.
If Gojo disappeared just like that, then half the enjoyment of Sukuna's revival would disappear as well.
"It was the Prison Realm."
Kenjaku seemed to see through Sukuna's thoughts and chuckled softly.
"Given Satoru Gojo's importance to the Jujutsu World, once those people learn he's been sealed, they'll definitely do everything they can to release him.
And after finally escaping the Prison Realm, I doubt Satoru Gojo will be in a very good mood."
Kenjaku smiled meaningfully.
"So if an opponent like you appears before him at that time, I think he'll be very pleased."
"Hehe!~"
Ryomen Sukuna let out a low laugh upon hearing this.
However, the way he looked at Kenjaku now carried an obvious trace of mockery.
Still, he said nothing more.
Kenjaku pretended not to notice Sukuna's gaze. He simply took out two of Sukuna's fingers and continued calmly, "These are two of your fingers. The remaining sixteen have been placed inside the nine Cursed Spirits currently causing destruction throughout the nearby cities.
With your abilities, if Itadori Yuji swallows these two fingers at once, you should be able to temporarily seize control of his body, correct?"
Kenjaku had obtained a total of eight of Sukuna's fingers.
Previously, he had given six to Mahito and deliberately kept these final two for himself.
And all of it had been for this very moment.
"Hehe…"
After hearing Kenjaku's words, Ryomen Sukuna became even more convinced that Itadori Yuji had been created—or at least arranged—by Kenjaku.
Otherwise, there was no way Kenjaku could understand Itadori Yuji's body so thoroughly.
He even knew exactly how many fingers Sukuna needed to temporarily seize control.
But despite understanding all this, Ryomen Sukuna currently had no better option than cooperating with Kenjaku.
Thus, the King of Curses from a thousand years ago, Ryomen Sukuna, and the thousand-year-old Jujutsu Sorcerer, Kenjaku, formed a temporary alliance despite their complete lack of trust in one another.
----
On the other side;
After Tengen spread the news that Satoru Gojo had been sealed, the entire Jujutsu World immediately fell into chaos.
Especially the higher-ups of Jujutsu High.
While issuing emergency orders for all Jujutsu Sorcerers to prioritize rescuing Satoru Gojo, they also secretly made another decision.
That was to use Satoru Gojo's absence as an opportunity to obtain the things they had long desired but could never touch because of his protection.
Among those targets, the most important was the method used by the principal of Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical High School, Yaga Masamichi, to create Special Grade Cursed Corpses.
Shinjuku;
"Damn it!"
Megumi Fushiguro and the others had only just managed to defeat the Special Grade Cursed Spirit, Smallpox Deity, through difficult teamwork and heavy sacrifices.
Yet before they could even catch their breath, news arrived that Satoru Gojo had been sealed.
Immediately, everyone fell into shock, anger, and confusion.
"Could this be some kind of mistake?"
Nobara Kugisaki covered her injured eye and asked hesitantly, "Isn't Gojo-sensei the strongest? How could someone like him get sealed?"
"Probably not."
Nanami Kento calmly bandaged his wounds while replying, "Those people may not be reliable, but they would never joke about something like this."
After speaking, he slowly stood up and swept his gaze across the group before saying in a deep voice, "Given the situation, I need to personally confirm exactly what happened. Those of you who can still move should take the unconscious ones back to the school."
The condition of the group was terrible.
Toge Inumaki had repeatedly used Cursed Speech against the overwhelmingly powerful Smallpox Deity and suffered severe backlash. He was barely conscious now.
Megumi Fushiguro had exhausted nearly all of his Cursed Energy resisting the enemy Domain and had already collapsed unconscious.
Nobara Kugisaki had lost one eye.
Panda had been beaten so badly that stuffing was sticking out of his body.
Among them, Maki Zenin had suffered the lightest injuries. Aside from several cuts and bruises, her main loss was the destruction of most of her cursed tools.
Nanami Kento understood very clearly that these young sorcerers were no longer in any condition to continue fighting.
And whatever came next was no longer suitable for them.
As for Nanami himself, his condition was hardly better.
More than a dozen wounds covered his body, and the left side of his face had already become a bloody mess.
Yet even so, he still needed to personally confirm Satoru Gojo's situation.
And this wasn't happening only in Shinjuku.
Across other battlefields, the Jujutsu Sorcerers fighting the remaining Cursed Womb: Death Paintings also reacted differently after hearing the news of Satoru Gojo's sealing.
Some, like Nanami Kento, immediately withdrew from battle to investigate the situation themselves.
Others remained indifferent and continued fighting the Cursed Spirits without hesitation.
And some…
Some directly turned against their comrades.
The most shocking among them was none other than the principal of Kyoto Prefectural Jujutsu High School, Yoshinobu Gakuganji.
And the person he attacked was the principal of Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical High School—Yaga Masamichi.
"I'm sorry, Yaga."
Yoshinobu Gakuganji, with his white hair and beard, fashionable clothes, and electric guitar slung behind him, stood before the severely injured Yaga Masamichi and spoke in a low voice.
"Your ability is too dangerous. If you refuse to hand it over, then I can only kill you."
"Heh… cough, cough!~"
Yaga Masamichi let out a mocking laugh, coughing up blood as he did.
Then he looked at Gakuganji and said sarcastically, "Those old bastards really are impatient. Gojo just got sealed, and they already ordered you to come after me."
Not long ago, the two of them had fought side by side against the third Death Painting, Kichirou, a monster strengthened by three of Sukuna's fingers.
Yaga never expected that immediately after the battle ended, Gakuganji would ambush him without hesitation and leave him gravely injured.
The irony of it all was almost laughable.
Even more ironic was the fact that his old friend had carried out the order without the slightest hesitation.
That decisiveness no longer looked like mere obedience.
"Yaga, tell me the secret behind your technique."
Gakuganji crouched down beside him and placed a hand against Yaga's chest, using Cursed Energy to stabilize his injuries while speaking in a gentler tone.
"As long as you tell me the secret behind creating those special Cursed Corpses, I can guarantee that even if Satoru Gojo dies…
You'll still live."
"Hehe…"
Yaga Masamichi laughed again.
This time, his laughter was filled with even greater ridicule.
Then he stared directly at Gakuganji and said weakly but firmly, "Gojo won't die. Absolutely not.
As for the secret behind the Cursed Corpses… if you really want to know, then I can tell you—"
Whoosh!~
Just as Yaga Masamichi was about to reveal the secret behind his technique, a slender figure carrying a long sword suddenly descended from the sky and landed directly between the two men.