In the car heading to the mission site, Kugisaki rested her chin on one hand, gazing out the window at the passing scenery while complaining.
"I didn't expect Itadori to still be alive. Gojo-sensei kept us in the dark all this time."
Megumi Fushiguro tried to rationalize Satoru Gojo's decision, attempting an explanation.
"After all, the Higher-Ups have always insisted that Itadori should be executed immediately. Hiding the fact that he's still alive avoids a lot of trouble."
"Maybe that was the original plan," Kugisaki replied, taking out her phone and refreshing new posts on X. Occasionally, she saw posts that hadn't been deleted yet—the ones that slipped through the cracks—showing short videos of Itadori leaping into the sky. "He's completely famous now, isn't he? They can't delete the posts fast enough. I'm afraid he'll soon become some kind of urban legend. Could that even give rise to a Cursed Spirit?"
But aside from posts about Itadori, in an inconspicuous spot on the rankings, there was also a news article titled: "Signs of Activity Detected at Mount Miharayama for the First Time in Thirty Years."
Even though Megumi Fushiguro wasn't looking at his phone, he had already known about this before Satoru Gojo brought Itadori back, which showed just how significant the situation was.
"Gojo-sensei said the Higher-Ups are extremely furious about this. More than hiding Itadori's survival, they're even more dissatisfied with the public display of supernatural power. It attracted too much attention at once. Plus, the mission involved a Cursed Spirit that ordinary people could see. The cinema surveillance footage was posted online and went viral, causing negative emotions to spiral out of control. It's already considered a major incident."
After all, this was the world of jujutsu. Minimizing the impact of incidents on ordinary people and preventing the spread of curses was the top priority for any Jujutsu Sorcerer. Otherwise, curses would only grow stronger. That was why it was crucial for Jujutsu Sorcerers to cast a Veil when on a mission, in order to limit the incident's influence.
Kugisaki paused for a moment before asking Megumi Fushiguro, "That Jujutsu Sorcerer who went on the mission with Itadori… I heard he died a gruesome death. But he was a Grade 1 Jujutsu Sorcerer, right? Even a Grade 1 couldn't handle it?"
"You mean Senior Nanami. He was Gojo-sensei's junior. I've been on a mission with him before. He was very strong, so I didn't expect something like this to happen."
Akira Nitta, who had been focused on driving, spoke up at this point.
"There have been quite a few casualties lately. Not long ago, Senior Ijichi went missing, and now Mr. Nanami has been sacrificed. It hasn't even been a month between the two."
Although they usually talked about how dangerous a Jujutsu Sorcerer's work was, situations like this made it feel real.
From Megumi Fushiguro's perspective, though, it went even further back. It should be counted from when Itadori swallowed Sukuna's Finger, or even the incident with the Special Grade Cursed Spirit at the Juvenile Detention Center.
This year had been particularly restless. Last year, it had been just the usual shortage of manpower—without the extreme situations they were facing now.
After Akira Nitta finished speaking, a long silence fell over the car.
On the way, they passed the stretch of road where Jogo and Satoru Gojo had fought their massive battle. Even now, it hadn't been fully repaired, with only half the lanes open for single-lane traffic.
Finally, the three of them arrived at the mission destination: a detached building located in the suburbs.
After parking the car, Akira Nitta repeated the known intelligence about the mission to Megumi Fushiguro and Kugisaki once more.
"From what we know, this was originally a small hotel-style guesthouse. A staff member who doesn't live on-site noticed yesterday afternoon that the owner and the colleagues who were supposed to be on shift had disappeared. After the police investigation yielded no results, it was handed over to the 'Window' for investigation. The two 'Window' members responsible for the investigation also vanished mysteriously. However, the Cursed Energy and Residue emitted from the building are abnormally low, almost as if the building is insulated from Cursed Energy."
But what Akira Nitta described was less like intelligence and more like practically zero current information.
Aside from the target causing mysterious disappearances and the abnormal Cursed Energy readings—leading to speculation that it might be a space-related issue—there was no other useful information.
Akira Nitta sighed. "It seems that because of that incident with Itadori earlier, the number of curse incidents near Tokyo has been skyrocketing. Currently, you are the only ones at Jujutsu High with time to handle new incidents. For now, this mission is tentatively Grade 2, but since the intelligence is incomplete, we can't rule out the possibility of Grade 1 danger. So your primary focus is investigation. Only proceed with exorcism once you've confirmed the danger level is low. Understood?"
Despite the sigh, Akira Nitta's tone was serious. A shortage of Jujutsu Sorcerers was normal, but if even first-years like them were sacrificed, the cost would be unbearable.
"Understood."
"Got it."
Hearing their serious replies, Akira Nitta began the incantation.
"Emerge from darkness, blacker than black; purify all that is wretched and cursed."
A black Veil instantly enveloped the entire building.
"Divine Dog: Totality."
Megumi Fushiguro immediately summoned the Divine Dog and entered the Veil with Kugisaki.
He had the Divine Dog investigate first, using its extraordinary sense of smell. After sniffing the main door for a few seconds, the Divine Dog turned to Megumi Fushiguro, indicating it hadn't found anything unusual.
Then, Megumi Fushiguro and Kugisaki stepped inside together. The two humans and the dog exchanged glances, pulled open the door, and entered simultaneously.
Before Megumi Fushiguro's eyes was a very normal, minimalist interior. Everything was neatly arranged, showing no signs of abnormality.
But once inside, Megumi Fushiguro could clearly sense the concentration of Cursed Energy increasing.
"You investigate further using your sense of smell. Kugisaki, come with me to check the other side of the room," Megumi Fushiguro said—then suddenly noticed something wrong and turned his head to the right.
"Kugisaki…?"
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