A few days later, in the mountains outside the Tokyo metropolitan area.
"You're too slow."
The speaker was burly, with a lazy yet somewhat arrogant expression.
"I rushed over as soon as school ended, Toji."
Toji Zen'in, no, he had already changed his name to Toji Fushiguro.
Two years ago, Toji, who had rebelled against the Zen'in Family, was taken in by a beautiful young lady named Fushiguro.
Worried that Toji's personality would not let him survive on his own, the kind and handsome young lady took care of him for a while and ended up getting involved herself.
On one hand, Toji was not famous at this time. He had spared Naobito Zen'in some face, so he did not wipe out the Zen'in Family. In fact, if the old man had not died, Maki Zen'in would not have chosen to exterminate the Zen'in Family.
On the other hand, this young lady was unaware of the Jujutsu World and Cursed Spirits.
Later, when they married, Toji Zen'in changed his name to Toji Fushiguro.
"I married into her family, so now I am Toji Fushiguro."
At the time, the young lady was both touched and helpless.
Unfortunately, the young lady died in an accident not long after Megumi Fushiguro was born.
"Phew, alright, let's begin. My time is very valuable."
Exhaling a smoke ring, Toji stomped out his cigarette and stood up, leading Eichi to an open area.
"Hey, let's start."
Toji clenched his fists, an unruly smile on his face.
Eichi did not dally. He bent his knees slightly, Cursed Energy surging.
"Max Elephant."
The shadow behind him extended in the opposite direction, defying common sense, and a large pink elephant appeared before the two of them.
"Oh? That's a good punching bag."
After Megumi was born, Toji once visited the Zen'in Family, not to return to his roots, but to break into the family library and thoroughly examine all the books related to the Ten Shadows Technique.
The reason was simple. When Eichi was celebrating Megumi's birthday, he said, "This child, like me, also has the Ten Shadows Technique."
At that time, Toji immediately said, "This child is in your care."
"You expect me, a branch family bastard who ran away from the Zen'in Family at seven, to understand the Ten Shadows Technique?"
Under Eichi's scornful gaze, Toji left with a warning, "If you dare to lie to me, I'll kill you."
Then Toji headed straight for the Zen'in Family.
After venting his frustrations on the Zen'in Family, Toji's grief over his beloved wife eased somewhat.
However, because he had not attended school, when Toji recited the Ten Shadows Technique records to Eichi, he often missed a sentence here or swapped a word there.
You ask why Toji did not take pictures?
Allowing you to look was already a concession. Taking pictures would be too much. Planning to sell all the information on the Ten Shadows Technique?
Naobito Zen'in, the old man of the Zen'in Family, knew Toji's extraordinary nature but could not change the family's millennia-old traditions. So he allowed Toji and Maki Zen'in to leave while maintaining some contact to save face, making sure they would not go too far.
This was also why Toji was willing to send Megumi back to the Zen'in Family if he awakened his Technique.
It was the only way Toji, who had never experienced familial affection since childhood, knew how to express paternal love.
It was also why, after Toji was reborn and learned that Megumi's surname was Fushiguro and not Zen'in, he said, "That's great."
Toji knew the Zen'in Family was a den of demons, but he also knew he could not take good care of Megumi.
If his child awakened a Technique, then only in that den of demons could Megumi receive the best upbringing.
Although partially incomplete, the Ten Shadows Technique materials Toji brought back still helped Eichi greatly. Before the System left, it only provided information on the external Technique, the Holy Grail, not the Ten Shadows Technique.
Bang, bang, bang.
The sound of fists meeting flesh rang out. Toji, like a boxing champion in a ring, launched a storm-like assault on Max Elephant, this slow-moving, oversized punching bag.
Every time Max Elephant tried to spray water to force Toji back, Toji punched it in the bridge of the nose, making it choke badly.
Head, nose, front legs, hind legs, back, butt.
When he hit the butt, which felt good to him, Toji even playfully switched to an open palm and patted it a few times.
Fists fell like rain, and Max Elephant's angry roars gradually turned into pathetic wails.
Max Elephant did not understand what was happening.
Toji, completely devoid of Cursed Energy, was like a roadside stone during Max Elephant's and the Ten Shadows Technique's subjugation ritual.
Toji's existence was even more inconspicuous than plants and trees.
Yet this stone was strangely powerful. Before Max Elephant could even test the mettle of this generation's Ten Shadows Technique user, this unidentifiable stone rushed over and beat it to a pulp.
After more than ten minutes, the Max Elephant, whose brain had crashed, was beaten unconscious.
Although the Ten Shadows Technique's subjugation ritual had never seen such a situation, according to the rules, with no outsiders, Cursed Energy from anyone other than the Ten Shadows Technique user, intervening, Max Elephant lost its fighting capability while Eichi still had the strength to fight again, so Eichi was judged to have successfully subjugated it.
Eichi: Subjugating a Shikigami has never been this satisfying.
It was just a bit expensive. Most of the money he had saved went to this commission.
"That was exhilarating. Next one."
Toji rotated his shoulders with satisfaction, then tore his shirt open, revealing a muscular physique that even men could not look away from.
Eichi did not dally either, raising his hand to summon the next Shikigami.
"Tiger Funeral."
Tiger Funeral, a Shikigami capable of wielding strong winds, is one of the strongest attacking Shikigami in the Ten Shadows Technique.
The strongest attacking Shikigami in the Ten Shadows Technique is Piercing Ox. Theoretically, if that thing ran around the Earth once, it could smash even Sukuna. The problem is it is too cumbersome. It can only run in a straight line and requires a long charge-up time. Eichi can kill enemies without it, and those he cannot kill, it cannot hit.
Piercing Ox is like something tasteless to eat but a shame to throw away. Better to keep it for fusion materials.
Max Elephant is the strongest for area-of-effect attacks. With enough Cursed Energy, Max Elephant can even unleash a flood to submerge Tokyo.
Tiger Funeral is the strongest for single-target attacks.
Tiger Funeral possesses the agility of a feline and can harness strong winds to increase its speed.
Its sharp claws can tear Cursed Spirits at close range and unleash wind blades from afar. Its biting force surpasses the Divine Dogs and is not inferior to Hun Dog.
Such a Tiger Funeral has almost no weaknesses in a one-on-one fight.
"Roar."
A black and white tiger, even larger than Piercing Ox, appeared before the two.
The terrifying killing intent made even Eichi tremble slightly.
"Do you need my help?"
"No, go cool off somewhere."
After Tiger Funeral appeared, Eichi noticed that Toji was smiling even more happily.
Whoosh.
Strong winds surged, and Tiger Funeral's form was light, yet its speed was too fast for the naked eye to catch.
Boom.
Toji stomped hard on the ground with both feet, launching himself like a cannonball toward Tiger Funeral.
Claws, fangs, whip-like tail.
Iron fists, elbow strikes, whip kicks.
Unlike Max Elephant, which was too cumbersome and could only serve as a punching bag, the agile and highly aggressive Tiger Funeral was barely an opponent for Toji.
A true battle began.
(To be continued.)
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