"Um... what's going on?" Yuji whispered loudly, leaning toward Nanami.
"I'd like to know too." Yuki's eyes narrowed slightly. "This isn't like you."
Only then did Tengen finally speak.
"I have already greeted those I recognize." His voice carried effortlessly through the empty chamber. "But there is one among you who defies the very foundation of this world."
Nobody needed to ask who he meant. His four unblinking eyes hadn't left Ren since the moment he appeared.
Megumi's frown deepened. "Defies the foundation? What do you mean?"
"When I look upon a sorcerer, I see the flow of their cursed energy and the shape of their soul." Tengen folded his hands inside his white sleeves. "In him, I see an absolute void. A Complete Heavenly Restriction. His body is entirely severed from cursed energy."
Yuta and Megumi exchanged a quick, sharp glance. They knew that much.
"And yet..." Tengen leaned forward slightly on his platform, the wrinkles around his eyes deepening. "I can see the distinct shape of an innate technique engraved into his existence. The ability to pull matter from nowhere."
Yuki crossed her arms, her easygoing expression completely gone.
"I saw it myself in Shibuya," Yuki said, tilting her head with a faint, curious smile as her gaze slid over to Ren. "Watching him manifest weapons out of thin air while moving like a ghost with zero cursed energy was a real treat. But even after all that, I'm still stumped. The binding vow for a Complete Heavenly Restriction is supposed to be absolute. Zero energy for peak physical specs. Adding a technique on top of that shouldn't even be grammatically correct in the language of Jujutsu."
"Exactly," Tengen agreed, his tone unwavering. "The laws of this world dictate that the two cannot coexist. To gain the flesh of a god is to sacrifice the spark of a sorcerer. Yet he stands before me, holding both."
His many eyes stayed locked on Ren.
"A Heavenly Restriction of absolute physical strength, paired with an active cursed technique." Tengen tilted his head. "You are a walking contradiction. Tell me — how is such a thing even possible?"
Maki's grip shifted on Playful Cloud, the staff angling into a defensive coil.
Ren slipped his hands into his pockets. "I guess the universe made a rounding error."
Tengen studied him for a long moment, then leaned back into his robes.
"I have lived over a thousand years." His voice stayed even. "Not once have the rules of this reality been broken so casually."
Nanami stepped forward before the silence could stretch any further.
"Master Tengen." Nanami adjusted his glasses, meeting the immortal's gaze to anchor the conversation back to reality. "Fascinating as this kid may be, our reason for coming here is to uncover the true objective of the man wearing Suguru Geto's body, the rules of this Culling Game, and how to unseal Satoru Gojo."
Tengen's four eyes blinked once, his absolute focus finally detaching from Ren.
"The man wearing Suguru Geto's body." Tengen said it plainly, accepting the pivot in conversation. "His true name is Kenjaku."
"Kenjaku?" Megumi's brow furrowed.
"A sorcerer who has lived over a thousand years, passing from body to body." Tengen's hands stayed folded inside his sleeves. "Once he was Noritoshi Kamo. Now he is Suguru Geto."
Far above the Tombs of the Star, the wind howled across the empty courtyard of Tokyo Jujutsu High.
The only sound across campus was the barrier — a low, heavy hum pushed to its absolute limit, vibrating up through the stone steps.
Nobara Kugisaki sat at the base of the main hall, spinning a long metal nail between her fingers, catching it flawlessly every time.
"How long does it take to talk to a hermit in a basement?" She flicked the nail up again, watching it spin.
"Master Tengen isn't just some hermit," Panda replied. He walked up the steps and dropped a massive wooden crate of cursed tools onto the stone with a heavy thud.
Beside him, Toge Inumaki adjusted his high collar with his remaining hand. The empty left sleeve of his jacket was pinned neatly to his side. He stared up at the shimmering sky, his eyes narrowed. "Kelp."
"I know," Nobara sighed, catching her nail. "I just hate sitting on the bench while they get to do the secret-mission stuff."
"Then go polish your hammer, first-year. Complaining is just wasting oxygen."
Mai Zen'in leaned against a wooden pillar near the courtyard entrance. She looked entirely out of place in her Kyoto uniform, her thumb absentmindedly tracing the heavy metal pendant resting against her collarbone. With her other hand, she smoothly flicked open the cylinder of her revolver, checking the brass cartridges.
Nobara's visible eye twitched. "Nobody asked you. Shouldn't you be hiding behind your sister right now?"
Mai snapped the cylinder shut with a sharp click. Her eyes flashed dangerously. "I'm only up here because Maki didn't want me tripping over the trash in the basement. Keep running your mouth, and I'll use you for target practice."
Nobara stood up, gripping her hammer. "Try it, Kyoto."
"Tuna mayo," Toge warned, stepping between them.
Before either girl could escalate, the floorboards trembled under a low hum building beneath them.
The main hall's doors swung open. Principal Masamichi Yaga stepped through, gaze fixed on the sky above campus, shoulders locked rigid.
"Save it."