A full moon hung high in the sky.
The soft moonlight spilled onto the earth, and an invisible night wind stirred.
High in the sky, a loose white robe fluttered.
Mirai had agreed to handle Yuta Okkotsu and Kinji Hakari. But first, he took a detour from Shibuya to Tokyo.
He floated in the air above Tokyo Prefectural Jujutsu High School.
The body of White Zetsu, still under house arrest at the academy, served as a perfect spatial coordinate for Kamui.
Mirai coldly surveyed the massive complex of buildings a thousand meters below.
A terrifying crimson Cursed Energy surged forth. The void beneath Mirai's feet visibly writhed and deformed.
The Kamui Dimension opened beside him. The rudimentary form of the Gedo Mazo (Outer Path Statue) extended a giant, blood-red tail from the rift. The giant tail pulsed with apocalyptic energy.
"Return to the Source."
"Flowers in Disarray."
"The Boundary of Life and Death."
"Between Life and Death."
As the last word of the incantation fell, a dazzling crimson light burst forth in Mirai's pupils!
"Virtual Unlocking: Trap!"
BOOM!!!
A deafening roar, like a nuclear explosion!
The void above the school was suddenly torn open, creating a gaping abyss nearly a hundred meters wide!
Deep within the cracked void lay an ultimate darkness, more profound than the night itself.
The giant maw slowly spread downwards. Countless void rifts, each several meters wide, opened up one after another.
A terrifying suction force, like a black hole, descended.
The buildings on the ground began to collapse and rise into the sky, sucked into the rifts. The roar continued unabated. An apocalyptic scene was unfolding at Jujutsu High!
BOOM!!!
Simultaneously, a crimson beam of light, imbued with a massive amount of Cursed Energy, erupted from the giant tail of the Gedo Mazo!
It looked like a world-ending laser from a science fiction movie, or a volcanic eruption bursting forth after countless years of silence.
But instead of targeting the high school... Mirai aimed the attack diagonally.
The crimson light disappeared into the night sky, trailing a long tail of flame.
It was aimed directly at the secret headquarters of the Jujutsu Higher-ups.
...
Outside the Shibuya Barrier.
The massive Curtain had imprisoned tens of thousands of people.
Besides the large number of transfigured humans released by Mahito on B4F, Curse Users hidden in the shadows were also eager to make their move.
It wasn't just ordinary humans losing their lives; a large number of lower-grade Sorcerers who had entered the barrier were already dead.
Principal Masamichi Yaga and Shoko Ieiri had arrived at the front lines shortly after Gojo's team.
In the makeshift open-air medical tent, Shoko and several Assistant Supervisors were frantically treating the wounded.
Ring ring. Ring ring.
Yaga frowned and took out his phone.
Looking at the specially marked number, a sense of foreboding welled up inside him.
"Hello..."
As the terrified voice on the other end spoke, Yaga's grim face became even darker.
The call was from the guards of the Star Religious Group's vault. They were under attack by Mirai's forces.
Just as he hung up, the phone rang again.
"Director's Office..."
The latest orders reached Yaga in a harsh, panicked tone from the Higher-ups.
The academy was under a spatial attack.
And the Director's Office—located far away—had just been hit by a devastating energy beam.
...
Shibuya Station. B3F (3rd Basement Level).
Unlike the absolute ruins of the fifth floor, the third-floor corridor was still intact and brightly lit. Occasionally, groups of panicked civilians would dart past.
Beneath a massive hole in the floor lay the endless darkness of the lower levels.
At the edge of the hole, pushing aside a pile of rubble, Kinji Hakari shook his dazed head.
He stood up and dusted the concrete off his bare chest.
Hakari's memory was still stuck on fighting the androgynous Curse User with the bob haircut (Uraume).
Then, he was blasted away by a terrifying spatial attack from Zenin Mirai, sent flying all the way up from B5F to B3F.
Apart from feeling a little dizzy, there were no obvious injuries on Hakari's body.
This was thanks to his Domain Expansion: Idle Death Gamble.
He had hit the jackpot. For exactly 4 minutes and 11 seconds, he possessed infinite Cursed Energy and automatic Reverse Cursed Technique. The moment he sustained the spatial damage, his body healed it instantly.
Hakari spat out saliva mixed with blood.
His gaze darkened as he looked down into the pit. "That monster underground..."
"The odds of winning are pitifully low."
Even without witnessing the exact moment Gojo Satoru was sealed, the bottom of the pit was now quiet.
The immense, unmistakable Cursed Energy of Gojo Satoru had completely vanished.
Hakari easily analyzed the outcome. The strongest piece on their board was gone.
Hakari hesitated, wondering if he should just leave the barrier now.
"Hakari-senpai."
Yuta Okkotsu's weak voice came from behind.
Hakari turned around abruptly. "You scared me! I almost thought you brought that monster up with you."
With lingering fear, Hakari patted his chest and strode toward the exit. He didn't want to get involved in a bet he couldn't win.
"Hakari-senpai, please help me!"
A line of blood hung from the corner of Yuta's mouth. His pure white uniform was stained red.
Yuta looked at Hakari's back, his gaze resolute yet tinged with a hint of pleading.
Without Hakari's help... Yuta's idea of reclaiming the Prison Realm was completely hopeless.
Hakari stopped in his tracks.
"My whole life has been driven by a passion for gambling and the fever of the risk," Hakari said, his deep voice echoing in the corridor. He brushed his disheveled hair back with both hands.
"I wouldn't mind risking my life on a game with almost no chance of winning!"
"But what kind of bargaining chips can you offer me now?"
Hakari looked over his shoulder. "The deal that let me run my fight club was backed by Gojo Satoru. With him gone, the Higher-ups will come after me anyway."
"Also, I was expelled from Jujutsu High a long time ago. Don't call me 'senpai' anymore."
Without turning around, Hakari stepped toward the stairs leading up.
"Yuta, go back. That monster is not something you can handle."
With a final, well-intentioned word of advice, Hakari disappeared onto the second basement level.
Hakari didn't want to risk his life for a gamble that yielded no profit.
...
Yuta stared blankly at the empty stairwell. He opened his mouth but was unable to utter a word.
Leaning against the cold wall, Yuta's expression darkened.
He understood.
Hakari already despised the Higher-ups and had been expelled because of them. Asking him to risk his life to fight for the establishment that ruined his life... Yuta couldn't bring himself to force him.
Ring ring.
Slightly bewildered, Yuta pulled his phone from his pocket.
"Ijichi-san?"
Signals from the outside couldn't easily reach the lower levels, but Kiyotaka Ijichi had entered the barrier specifically to convey messages to the Grade 1s and Special Grades.
"Okkotsu-kun, these are the latest orders from the Higher-ups," Ijichi's voice trembled slightly over the line.
"Jujutsu High is being extensively destroyed by a spatial attack. The area around the Higher-ups' headquarters was also subjected to a devastating terrorist attack."
"The Higher-ups want you to abandon the Shibuya operation and return to the academy immediately to ensure Master Tengen's safety."
Yuta's expression changed. "But what about Gojo-sensei...?"
"Itadori-kun has already delivered the information that Gojo-san is sealed," Ijichi replied, conveying Yaga's words. "Principal Yaga wants you to go and protect Master Tengen first."
"Master Tengen maintains the protective barriers for the school and all of Japan. Their safety must be the top priority now."
"Besides..." Ijichi hesitated, his voice filled with shame and guilt.
"If possible..."
"The Higher-ups request that you send Kinji Hakari to the Director's Office... to protect them."
It was an outrageous, shameless act. To demand that the student they had expelled return to act as their personal meat shield while they hid in terror.
Crack.
Yuta gripped his phone so hard the screen shattered.
For the first time in his life, the gentle and kind Yuta Okkotsu uttered a low, venomous curse.
"Damn cowards!"
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