*****
Back at Kyoto District 6
The Investigation continues.
The heavy downpour of rain in the area had stopped hours ago.
Yet the neighborhood still smelled faintly of iron.
Police lights washed the quiet residential street of Kyoto District 6, in slow pulses of red and blue. The flashing reflections slid across rain-soaked asphalt, broken windows, and the faces of exhausted investigators moving through the cordoned area.
Yellow barricade tape fluttered weakly in the damp wind.
Kyoto police officers combed through the houses with disciplined precision.
But the individuals moving alongside them were searching for something far less ordinary.
Members of the Kyoto Jujutsu Support Team.
Unlike the police, they weren't dusting for fingerprints.
They were scanning the entire area for cursed energy traces.
One of the Jujutsu Support Team technicians crouched beside the splintered doorway of the third house, adjusting the scanner wrapped around his wrist. The small screen flickered violently.
"Cursed energy traces remain unstable," he muttered in frustration.
A police officer examined the blackened streaks clawed into the wall.
The marks look almost burned into the wood.
He frowned.
"…Same pattern again."
A third officer grimaced while scanning a blood-stained living room.
"Parents killed," he said quietly.
Someone else finished the sentence.
"And the children are missing."
No one spoke for several seconds after that.
The silence weighed more heavily.
Then —
The distant growl of an engine broke the stillness.
A black sedan rolled slowly toward the barricade and stopped just outside the perimeter.
A Kyoto police inspector stepped out first, adjusting his coat before opening the rear door.
Two passengers emerged.
One was instantly recognizable: a member of the Kyoto Jujutsu Support Team.
The other…
Was not.
Deputy Head Kaori Atazawa stepped forward from the scene, her sharp eyes narrowing as she approached the newcomers.
Standing beside the inspector was a tall man wearing a long coat, a leather notebook tucked casually beneath his arm. His expression was relaxed—almost curious—as his gaze drifted across the crime scene.
Several officers whispered among themselves.
"Wait… is that him?"
"The supernatural crime analyst?"
"The one who consults on international supernatural incidents?"
Recognition spread quickly.
The man offered a polite smile.
Mr. Genji had arrived.
⸻
Kaori Atazawa's patience was already thinning.
She stopped directly in front of him.
"Mr. Genji," she said curtly, "this area is under restricted investigation. Civilians are not allowed inside."
Genji slid his hands into his coat pockets.
His smile widened slightly.
"Civilian?" he repeated lightly. "That sounds a bit harsh, Deputy Head."
Kaori crossed her arms.
"You're not a registered jujutsu sorcerer."
"Correct."
"You're not part of the Kyoto support division."
"Also correct."
"Then by definition," she concluded bluntly, "you are a civilian."
The Kyoto police inspector cleared his throat awkwardly.
"Madam Kaori, He's here under special consultation orders…"
But Kaori remained unimpressed.
"This investigation involves supernatural threats," she said firmly. "Ordinary people shouldn't be involved."
Genji tilted his head thoughtfully.
"Ah," he murmured.
"So you are acknowledging something supernatural."
Kaori immediately regretted her wording.
"That's not what I—"
Too late.
Genji had already stepped past her.
He wandered toward the damaged house with the relaxed curiosity of someone strolling through a museum exhibit.
Kaori pinched the bridge of her nose.
Unbelievable.
The man stopped in the middle of the room.
His eyes slowly scanned the damage.
Broken furniture.
Blackened claw marks gouged deep into the floor.
Walls stained with something darker than blood.
He crouched.
Two fingers brushed against the strange residue.
Then he spoke quietly.
"This wasn't done by a human."
Several officers stiffened.
Kaori sighed loudly.
"You're jumping to conclusions," she replied. "Serial killers exist. Psychopaths exist."
She gestured toward the destruction.
"Those wounds could be caused by tools."
"The children could've been kidnapped."
"The damage could simply be—"
She paused briefly.
"Human brutality."
Genji remained crouched.
His fingers still rested on the darkened mark.
Then he closed his eyes.
A faint ripple passed through the air.
It was subtle—barely noticeable.
But it was unmistakable.
A glimmer of cursed energy.
Kaori's eyes widened.
"…You have cursed energy?"
Genji opened one eye.
"Barely," he admitted.
He stood slowly.
"Just enough to notice patterns."
He gestured toward the room.
"The residue of the cursed energy I sensed earlier isn't chaotic."
"But Its strangely controlled."
He stepped toward the doorway.
"A group of weak cursed spirits might have done this."
Then he turned to Kaori.
"But it didn't act alone."
The room suddenly felt colder.
⸻
Genji's Story
The police investigators and members from the Kyoto Support Division watched silently in awe of the brilliance of the fascinating Genji, as Genji surveyed the house for more clues.
"When I was a child," he began out of nowhere, "I could see things other people couldn't."
Kaori folded her arms again—but this time she listened.
"Strange things spawning out of nowhere and stuff."
"Strange shapes of creatures lingering near places where tragedies occurred."
He gave a small chuckle.
"At first I thought they were ghosts."
His expression hardened.
"But ghosts don't leave patterns."
Kaori narrowed her eyes.
"What kind of patterns?"
Genji tapped his notebook.
"Patterns such as cursed energy residues and stuff."
"I've spent years studying incidents across different countries."
"Japan. Korea. Thailand."
"Even parts of Europe."
Everywhere he went, the same phenomena appeared.
These creatures are somehow born from human negative emotions such as; fear, hatred, despair, and so on.
So I decided to call and tag these creatures as Cursed spirits.
"But in this case," he said softly, gesturing toward the houses, "it's different."
He pointed down the street.
"These killings were strategic."
"Parents eliminated first."
"Children taken."
He looked back at Kaori.
"A weak cursed spirit doesn't have the luxury of planning its attacks, that I'm sure of ."
Silence rippled across the room once again.
⸻
Suddenly— the brief suspense that filled the room was disrupted
A sharp alarm exploded from one of the support team communication devices.
Everyone jumped.
The small screen flashed violently.
CODE BLACK ALERT
The officer holding the device fumbled to answer.
"What's happening?!"
The transmission crackled.
Then a voice screamed through the speaker.
"THIS IS DISTRICT FIVE KYOTO SUPPORT DIVISION! I REPEAT! THIS IS DISTRICT FIVE KYOTO SUPPORT DIVISION!!"
Heavy breathing filled the line.
Behind it —
Distant chaos.
"We've encountered a high-grade cursed spirit!"
The signal distorted.
"Multiple casualties...!"
"Requesting immediate sorcerer reinforcements!"
Static swallowed the channel.
Then one final message broke through.
"CODE BLACK IN KYOTO DISTRICT FIVE!"
The transmission died.
The entire room fell silent for a moment.
Kaori stared at the screen, lost in thought for a sec
"That escalation… shouldn't be possible."
"All members from the Kyoto Support Division...we're heading back to Kyoto Jujutsu High to report this incident, and as well arm ourselves with cursed weapons to fight against this high-grade cursed spirit in Kyoto District Five" Kaori's unwavering and firm voice echoed through the area
"Understood!" members of the Kyoto Support Division responded in unison, as they prepared to exit the crime scene and make preparations to deal with the threat at hand.
*****
Meanwhile
Across the city, inside a moving car, Utahime Iori sat in the back seat reviewing the report from her students,
A single name was written across the page.
Shinji Ino.
Her students' testimony replayed in her mind.
An ordinary boy.
Sudden awakening of powerful cursed energy.
A mysterious translucent-like creature manifesting behind him.
She guesses that this translucent creature that was summoned by Shinji could be a shikigami.
Utahime tapped the paper thoughtfully.
"A natural shikigami user…"
"That's rare, as opposed to the only shikigami user I know is that kid from Tokyo Jujutsu High"
Then —
An alarm blared from the vehicle's console.
CODE BLACK ALERT — KYOTO DISTRICT 5
The driver glanced nervously into the mirror.
"Miss Iori?"
Utahime folded the report.
Her expression hardened instantly.
"Change of plans."
Her voice remained calm.
But there was no hesitation in it.
"We're heading to Kyoto District Five to deal with this."
*****
Elsewhere
Earlier that morning.
Shinji had just walked his sister to school.
Akane waved enthusiastically before disappearing through the school gates.
"Onii-chan, don't forget dinner!" she called.
Shinji raised a hand with a small smile.
"Got it."
He turned and began the walk home.
For a while, everything felt normal.
Ordinary.
Peaceful.
Then he turned the next corner,
And froze.
Police barricades blocked the street ahead.
Emergency vehicles lined the road.
Members of the Kyoto Jujutsu Support Team rushed to set up containment barriers.
Civilians argued loudly with officers trying to push them back.
The atmosphere buzzed with panic.
Shinji stopped walking.
"…What happened here?"
Then, He felt it.
A faint chill crawled slowly up his spine.
Like icy fingers brushing against his soul.
Cursed energy.
Nearby.
Powerful.
Unstable.
His eyes lifted toward the barricades.
Somewhere beyond them
Something had just awakened