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CHAPTER START---
---Tuesday, March 16th, 2015…
Standing in a massive cave located deep beneath Mt. Shiretoko, Taiyo looks into the cavern below to see thousands of Cursed Spirits wandering about aimlessly.
But amongst them are four of absurd size, larger than a bus and constantly sprouting more body parts before absorbing them back into the blob of blood and flesh.
One of them periodically releases puddles of lava and plumes of smoke, while another secretes saltwater. The third grows branches from its body before they break apart, and the process restarts.
But the final Cursed Spirit interests Taiyo the most. An amalgamation of hundreds of screaming faces. Men, women, children, babies, all seemingly meshed together to form a giant tumor that's constantly screaming in agony.
"Why do they look like that?" Taiyo asks, turning to Kenjaku, who is wrapped in a large winter jacket beside him. "You said this place collects all the excess Cursed Energy you can harvest in Japan, but those four seem…different."
"Those are the four Special Grades," she says. "The other Cursed Spirits are sorted out by Jujutsu, but these four are different.
I intentionally portioned off specific streams of negative energy from humanity into them. Fear of fire and natural disasters of the Earth. Fear of water and the ocean. Fear of the forests and nature's retribution—"
"And a fear of humans," Taiyo nods toward the most grotesque of the four. "That one should be able to manipulate souls, right?"
"I've been cultivating them for almost three hundred years. They will be exactly what we need."
"And you're sure this Barrier can't be found, right?"
"Even the Six Eyes can't find it. We're beneath the mountain, and the Cursed Energy of an Empty Barrier blends with nature. Trying to see it is like trying to see the air around you, impossible. Anything less, and Tengen would have surely noticed ages ago."
"Well. This part of the plan is on schedule. The political portion is growing too. But it's really damn annoying."
"I've conspired to get Geto's known associates to attack weaker clans, is that not enough?"
"From the looks of it, all we've done is split the Jujutsu Society between the higher-ups and Gojo. We need something bigger to happen to force his hand. If we can't do that, this is all pointless."
"Manipulating his weaker members is already too risky. I will think of something to push them over the edge. For now, you focus on becoming stronger and training with the Barriers. I'll need your help to set up the others."
"We need someone who everyone trusts, or at least trusts enough."
"That woman of yours?"
Taiyo shakes his head. "Mei Mei won't join unless she's confident we can win. She never makes losing bets. After I beat Gojo, then we can bring her in."
"She's the perfect person to help manage the chaos that 'Kogane' will unleash. And a good middleman for us since everyone knows she can be trusted when she's paid."
"What about those children of yours?" Taiyo turns and begins walking out of the cave. "Having numbers could help move this along."
"Even if they weren't dormant, the Barriers are too advanced and require vast Cursed Energy, they'd be useless."
Kenjaku falls into step behind him as they exit the Barrier, suddenly appearing at the back of a shallow cave in the side of a snowy mountain.
"What role do you have planned for them?"
"Most of them are useless since they're Human-Cursed Spirit hybrids. The whole humanity vs curses idea falls apart when such things exist."
"How do they even exist?" Taiyo asks as they stand at the edge of the cave, feeling the blistering wind on their faces, before he begins exuding warmth.
"A few centuries ago when I was Noritoshi Kamo, I found a woman who was born with a genetic makeup that made her compatible with Cursed Spirits. I thought she was the next step in Jujutsu and evolution, so when she came to my shrine after being shunned by everyone, I used her.
Nine pregnancies by a somewhat humanoid Cursed Spirit, using Blood Manipulation from my Kamo body to mix and manipulate my DNA and Cursed Energy as a parent as well. Then nine abortions to provide a catalyst."
"What happened?"
"Nine Cursed Wombs were born. Each is strangely connected thanks to my Blood Manipulation. Some are more human than curse, others the opposite. Choso did turn out to be a perfect blend. Ironically, he was the first. I believe it's because her mind and spirit became tainted after I tore him from her, then patched her back up with RCT.
But I deemed the entire thing a failure, so after she killed herself during the tenth impregnation cycle, I placed them all in a dormant state for later. But at least the information was useful for my youngest son."
"Sukuna's new vessel?"
"Yes. I used this body to breed with a man who is somewhat of a descendant of Sukuna's sibling. I watched them for generations and finally found a compatible one, and before abandoning them, I placed one of Sukuna's fingers in Yuji as a baby.
It will bring great misfortune to everyone around him and make his life miserable. Hopefully, that allows his Cursed Energy to fester into a body capable of handling Ryomen Sukuna's incarnation without burning out."
"Yuji is out in the world, but the others?"
"Tengen seized them decades ago and holds them in her warehouse. It's on campus and heavily fortified with Barriers. We'd need a distraction, numbers, or to wait until after Gojo is sealed."
They stare out at the snowscape before them, enjoying the silence as the sun continues its ascent into the sky while considering all their new information. Both concluded that the only way to move forward, would be to take a loud and dangerous risk.
"I have an idea," Taiyo says. "It will give us a new ally, but one that we definitely can't trust."
"Not much of an ally then."
"He's useful enough. And more importantly, he gives us access to the Zen'In Clan. That's the one piece that could bring all of this together. But for it to work, I'll need the Prison Realm."
Kenjaku frowns, slumping her shoulders. "Well, if I lose it, what's a thousand more years, right?"
"If we really lose it, I'll just stop playing nice with them and take it back by force."
"Assuming you can get past Satoru Gojo."
"That's an eventuality…"
---Meanwhile, elsewhere in Japan…
In the private training field behind Yuki Tsukumo's countryside home, the woman stands across from a shirtless boy with visible bruises and cuts all over his body.
He has a scar over his right eye and a look of determination and focus on his face.
Wearing casual shorts and a tank top, she casts a bored expression his way, causing him to rush forward once more.
As he's rushing forward, he claps his hands.
They both swap places, causing him to suddenly be behind her.
He pivots and punches behind him, into her back, but by the time he spins to strike, she's already facing him, holding out a single finger.
She overpowers his strike with a single flick, sending him tumbling through the grass and resetting the distance between them.
"No, Aoi," she says. "How many times must I tell you? After using Boogie Woogie, your opponent will need a moment to understand where they are in the space. If you do the same, then you lose a major advantage.
Information is your advantage, so predict where you'll both be and begin moving to strike before you clap your hands. Keep your momentum at all times."
After another hour of training, they stop for lunch, with Aoi still bruised and battered after a shower, now focusing on his homework on the back porch.
Yuki sits across the table from him, writing in her journal, until she looks up and sees a crow circling above.
"Don't get up until you finish your work," she says before closing her book and leaving it on the table, walking inside her home.
She quickly makes her way to the front door and opens it to see a smiling Mei Mei waiting for her.
"You're late," Yuki says.
"Last-minute job. The pay was just too good to refuse."
Yuki steps aside, allowing Mei Mei to enter before closing the door behind her.
Mei Mei walks over to the living room and sits on the couch, not waiting for an invitation. "Alright, I'm here. So what's so serious you didn't want to talk about it over the phone?"
Yuki sits opposite her, expression serious as she extends her hand, cloaked in Cursed Energy.
Mei Mei nods and shakes her hand, and they both feel that the Binding Vow of secrecy is complete.
"Now, what's the big deal?"
"Suguru Geto," Yuki says.
"That's all anyone talks about lately, but what does it have to do with you?"
"Well, my conversation with him years ago opened his eyes to the reality of our situation. Either teach everyone who releases Cursed Energy how to control it, or kill them all. Those are the only two ways to rid the world of Cursed Spirits."
"And thus, an aspiring genocidal cult leader was born."
"I didn't tell him which to choose, or how to go about it. His actions are his own."
"Gojo says otherwise."
"Gojo's only blind spot is Geto. He'll do anything short of admitting his friend is too far gone."
"True, but what does that have to do with us? Fighting Special Grades isn't worth the money, and Geto knows better than to start a more direct conflict with a Special Grade."
"That's the thing. This isn't about Suguru Geto," Yuki says. "It's about someone far worse."
"Worse than a genocidal cult leader?"
Yuki nods. "I can feel it. He's up to something, and it's going to make everything Geto has done, or will do, seem like a joke. But I just can't prove it."
Mei Mei narrows her eyes at the woman, already hating where this is going.
"For the safety of the world, I have to kill Taiyo Daburu, and you're the only person connected enough to make this happen, and willing to accept this job."
Mei Mei thinks about it for a moment, then, with absolute faith in Taiyo, she smiles. "Alright, but let's talk about how this is going to go down, because I'm not stepping into a battle between you two."
"I never expected you to. Just get me close to him without anyone interrupting."
"Difficult, but not impossible. And about my fee…"
END CHAPTER---
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