Please Read : Please support me by finding akadaka on patre0n. And sorry for the grammatical errors because I am not a native speaker. I'll try to improve it with all my might.
A big thanks to:
- Alexis Chagoya
- NakaOwO
- DPD
- Danna Compos
- Deadlock TV
- Sengoku's Apprentice
- Rust
- Hodunk
- Kuro
- Brandon Mannella
- Diablo75009
- Abyss
- Stephen Ford
- Jennifer Price.
- Mark Christoper Somera, and
- DekuWithaShotgun.
Thank you so much for supporting me, guys.
—OoOoO—
Jujutsu Kaisen by Gege Akutami
Oregairu by Wataru Watari & Ponkan8
Genre : Supernatural, Action, Friendship, Slice of Life, and Little Bit Romance
Summary: Not the romantic comedy of youth that he experienced, not the quiet and normal life of youth he had. He never missed his day-to-day cursing his strange and annoying life. He is Hikigaya Hachiman and this is all his complaints as a jujutsu sorcerer.
Chapter 34: The One Who is Ten Steps Ahead.
—OoOoO—
"Naoya-sama, you can't go any further from here," said a man with a frightened face.
"And I told you, why should I care?"
Zen'in Naoya, a 27 years man and the youngest son of the current head of the Zen'in clan. He was a sturdy man with a beautiful face and hair dyed blonde, which only left black streaks at the ends. Naoya wore a white shirt covered with a dark blue kimono. He completed his outfit with light-coloured hakama bottoms and sandals.
Naoya was often referred to as the genius of the Zen'in clan. His abilities were at the peak of first grade, and only a few people in the same tier could match his worth.
"W-well, as I explained, Hiratsuka-san doesn't want any strangers entering the school area before the investigation is complete," replied another man.
"Then, do you think I, who will be the next head of the Zen'in clan, is a stranger?"
The ones holding Naoya up right now were three local sorcerers whose names and faces weren't worth remembering. The two very opinionated people constantly tried to explain why he wasn't allowed to enter the scene. Meanwhile, another person tried contacting other people after he finished talking to Hiratsuka on the phone a few moments ago.
In fact, if Naoya wanted, he could just barge into the school that caught his attention without heeding the warnings. However, he still had the consideration not to be reckless.
"Naoya-san, please calm down. They're Hiratsuka-san's men. We've had a bad relationship with the Gojo Clan all along. We can't muddy the waters any more than they already are."
Zen'in Ranta was the person accompanying Naoya today. He was a young man in his mid-20s. Technically, He had a friendly face and a kind aura. His long, spiky black hair tied back was a bit of an attraction.
Ranta could be said to be Naoya's aide. Among the Zen'in clan members, Ranta was among the few good-hearted, non-discriminating people. Although he also held the clan in high regard, just like the other members, he didn't forget to stay humble. That rationality often made other members consider him a group advisor.
However, even with all his kindness, he couldn't go against orders from his superior due to the significant difference in status. He could provide advice, but it would be up to Naoya to decide. Because of that, Ranta couldn't stop worrying if Naoya did something stupid in someone else's territory.
'It's moments like this that I prefer working with Jinichi-san rather than Naoya-san.'
Ranta sighed. He wanted to immediately return to Kyoto and leave Naoya's nonsense about wanting to see the location of Hikigaya Komachi's assassination. However, he couldn't give up on his duties. Moreover, he also worried about someone coming here on Hiratsuka's behalf.
"Naoya-san, we can't stay here for long. We must immediately report to Naobito-sama or he'll scold us."
Naoya was about to reply to that. However, before he did, he and everyone present felt a presence that had just entered the curtain. And at the same time, a cold, foreign voice sounded.
"It would be good if you guys just go. However, isn't there something you still need to explain?"
All heads turned to the source of the sound. They found two teenagers, a black-haired boy with a wrinkled face and a girl with short brown hair. They wore the same uniform, indicating they were from the same school.
"Ah, Hikigaya-san, you've finally arrived," said one of the sorcerers.
Ranta, hearing that name, couldn't help but widen his eyes.
'Hikigaya? Is he Hikigaya Hachiman who was recently named the special grade? It's no wonder that the aura around him shows that he's a real deal.'
Special-grade sorcerers were very dangerous people. Even if you ignored Gojo Satoru who was a world anomaly and a true genius, you couldn't avoid the fact that the others were people who shouldn't be messed with,
Hachiman stared at Naoya sharply. Even though he tried his best not to spill out all his anger, the look of hatred burning in his eyes couldn't deceive them. Meanwhile, Iroha, standing on the right side behind him, continued wearing a worried face for fear of bloodshed.
"Senpai, he's Zen'in Naoya," said Iroha softly.
"I know."
It was the first time he saw Naoya's figure in person. Even though his family had a bad history with the Zen'in clan, Hachiman had never seen important people from the clan.
"Well, well, is this the Hikigaya Hachiman whose name has recently skyrocketed?" Naoya said with a haughty smile. "That makes things easier then."
The man walked closer to Hachiman as if he didn't care, even though the boy before him was a special grade. Meanwhile, Hachiman narrowed his eyes when he saw Naoya approaching him.
"You've business with me?"
Hachiman asked coldly and only got a grin from Naoya in response.
"Isn't it time you handed over Komachi-chan to us?"
Forget about everyone else. Even Ranta widened his eyes when he heard Naoya's words. Their arrival in Chiba was completely unplanned. They had just completed a transaction in Ibaraki. However, they heard that an assassination attempt had occurred on Hikigaya Komachi. Because Ibaraki and Chiba Prefectures were close, Naoya decided to visit that location to negotiate.
"Is this all you doing?" Hachiman asked for something unrelated to Naoya's request.
"What? Of course not, man."
Naoya responded with a shrug of his shoulders and a condescending smile still plastered on his face.
"But you know, incidents like this only happen because your stubbornness," the Zen'in continued, "If you had handed that girl over to the Zen'in clan in the first place instead of asking Satoru-kun for help, she would have lived safely. All she needs to do just have to serve me at home."
Not satisfied with that, Naoya added.
"If you think logically, what Satoru-kun did is actually not that different from us. However, instead of taking your little sister, he was more interested in your mother. Well, I won't judge his taste in women, though."
Hachiman felt angry with these ignorant words. A red tint appeared in his ears, indicating that the blood in his head was currently boiling. Even faced with those facts, Naoya's indifferent attitude didn't change.
'Hikigaya Hachiman, I wonder why someone like him is a special grade? He doesn't look special like Toji-kun and Satoru-kun, though?'
Naoya looked at Hachiman with a probing look. He did come to Chiba to pressure the Hikigaya family to hand over Komachi to him after what happened. Even though the incident this time wasn't his clan's doing, he couldn't miss this opportunity.
Naoya forgot the boy's name but knew someone outside the clan had the Zen'in clan's inherited technique. The person who inherited the technique was the main competitor for the seat of the next head of the family. That was why, to strengthen his position, he planned to rope in Komachi as his woman. After all, the girl possessed the cursed technique inherited from Abe no Seimei, which would increase his value as a potential clan head, considering that the Zen'in clan was obsessed with powerful techniques.
However, more than that, Naoya threw dirt at the guy because he felt that Hachiman didn't have the qualifications to rise to the same level as Satoru and Toji.
Hachiman took a deep breath to regulate his emotions. Just yesterday, he returned from Kyoto with a headache from the higher-ups. And today, he felt like exploding after hearing an assassin had attacked Komachi. Honestly, he didn't want to waste his energy on someone like Naoya because there were more important things he had to take care of.
"You know what, Hiratsuka-sensei asked me to investigate this place, exorcise the cursed spirit that just came in, and deal with the intruding rats."
Naoya made an offended face when Hachiman called him a rat. However, the boy ignored him and touched Naoya's chest with his palm. With enough power, Naoya was pushed two steps back.
"But to hell with all that," continued Hachiman in a calm and cold intonation.
Hachiman formed a hand seal, and a vast surge of cursed energy from him was felt.
"Domain Expansion: Spooky Action at a Distance."
—OoOoO—
A significant surge of cursed energy and the expansion of the black barrier hit the people around him. It took them by surprise. The hitting barrier gave a sensation similar to being hit by a truck. However, that barrier only rejected people whom Hachiman didn't want. In other words, only Naoya, the first-grade cursed womb, and a few other small cursed spirits were trapped inside Hachiman's domain.
Naoya was astonished when Hachiman suddenly released his domain.
It was a dark and empty space, containing only tiny dots on the horizon. However, what was most striking was the presence of a giant orb that glowed brightly with a blue spectrum around it. Apart from that, Naoya could see a belt of orange mist orbiting the orb at a great distance. He couldn't observe it, but the man felt the presence of particles moving close to the speed of light in the thin mist.
Naoya wasn't lulled by the sight presented before him. On the contrary, the alarm bells in his head were screaming loudly, telling him that it was a frightening and dangerous place that could kill him easily.
With a quick reflex, Naoya made a distinctive stance.
"Falling Blossom Emotion."
Right after Naoya chanted the spell, his body was enveloped in cursed energy that danced wildly. The terrible burden he previously felt now gradually disappeared. However, that didn't mean the real threat from the domain had utterly disappeared.
Falling Blossom Emotion was a hereditary technique taught in the three great Japanese jujutsu clans. It was an effective technique for defending and attacking simultaneously. Every attack based on cursed energy would automatically be blocked by this move. In fact, if the user was skilled enough, it could be used in auto-attack mode.
However, that effectiveness could only be applied outside the domain. Meanwhile, in the domain where the sure-hit attack could come from all sides with high intensity, Falling Blossom Emotion overwhelmed and only focused on blocking the sure-hit effect. In other words, the user would be placed at a disadvantage if his opponent used a direct attack approach.
Less than a second after Naoya used the anti-domain, Hachiman blitzed him and struck the man in the face.
"Ugh…."
The blow caused Naoya to be thrown several metres back and fell headlong. And to make matters worse, because the stance was interrupted, the effects of Falling Blossom Emotion were automatically cancelled.
A feeling of horror immediately crept up his neck and stabbed down his spine. If he didn't do something, he would definitely be finished off by the sure-hit effect. However, even after several seconds passed, the attack didn't land on him.
'That bastard didn't activate his sure-hit?' Naoya thought.
Hachiman walked closer to Naoya and not long after, he was in front of the slumped man. He grabbed the blonde's hair, lifted it and grabbed it roughly to direct it towards the object he wanted to show Naoya.
"You see that firs-grade cursed womb and those damned short-sighted cured spirits?" said the boy with the dead fish eyes.
Without explaining further, Hachiman formed a hand seal with his left hand. At that moment, the sure-hit effect was activated.
All the cursed spirits trapped in Hachiman's domain seemed to scream in pain. However, their voices couldn't come out. They seemed to be experiencing excruciating pain, which was difficult to describe using words. Their bodies immediately dried up and shrivelled as if exposed to extraordinary heat radiation. It only took one second for the low-level cursed spirits to be completely exorcised.
However, that first-grade cursed womb hadn't been destroyed until it entered the 2nd second. The creature had withered, and the fluids in its body had evaporated. And in the third second, the cursed spirit had completely dissolved.
"Thank me because I touched you while my sure-hit was on. Or if not, your fate will be the same as theirs."
Hachiman then deactivated the sure-hit and let go of Naoya's hair. His desire to immediately finish off that man was at its peak. However, the image of an extremely annoying glasses girl flashed through his mind.
"You've insulted my mother and sister. I really wanted to kill you right now. However, if it's about humiliation, there's one person who has more right to finish you off than me. Yeah, it should be her. The person who'll become your god of death, the person who'll end the curse of the Zen'in clan, you should know her well, right?"
Naoya could only stare fiercely at Hachiman. His mouth felt so stiff that he couldn't utter any words. However, those useless pieces of his guts gave him some courage.
"You must be hallucinating if you think she can beat me."
A soft sigh escaped Hachiman's mouth when he heard Naoya joke.
"That being said…."
Hachiman said that while roughly pulling Naoya's collar up, forcing him to stand up.
"That doesn't mean I'll just let you go."
At the same time, Hachiman threw a heavy fist at Naoya's face. Black flashes appeared and danced as his punch landed on the man's nose.
It wasn't a maximum output punch. However, enhanced by the black flash, the blow was enough to kill an average sorcerer. Hachiman didn't give maximum output to his punch because he wasn't sure how strong it would be if he hit Naoya as hard as he could and added black flash.
Even though Hachiman knew that a first-grade sorcerer should have powerful cursed energy reinforcement, he didn't want to take any risk. It wasn't that he was afraid of killing Naoya, but he truly valued Maki and thought that she was the one with the most right to determine the fate of the Zen'in Clan.
—OoOoO—
Ranta glared at the four sorcerers who were blocking him from breaking into the domain. He knew that what Naoya said had gone too far. However, Naoya was the leader, and Ranta couldn't abandon him.
"Please step aside," Ranta said.
"You can't. Hiratsuka-sensei has left all the decisions to senpai."
The one who said that was Iroha. Despite being the youngest and least experienced among the four people guarding outside Hachiman's domain, Iroha was indirectly considered their leader.
It weighed a lot on her, and she didn't expect such treatment. However, the fact that her master and senior were Chiba's most essential and strongest figures made people start to see that Iroha was no less remarkable than the two. Even though, in reality, her abilities were only crumbs compared to those two.
"This unfortunate event is the result of your own arrogance," Iroha said again, "You have ignored Hiratsuka-sensei's warning not to enter the scene. Coupled with the provocation from Naoya-san, we feel that there will be no more tolerance unless sensei or senpai wants it."
"I know. I also realised that Naoya-san had gone too far. But please let me come in and talk to Hikigaya-san," Ranta replied.
"So what? Even after you enter his domain, you might die before you can speak."
What the girl said made perfect sense, and Ranta understood it. Breaking the domain barrier from the outside was relatively easy. However, the difficulties only started at that time. Even if the barrier had been breached from the outside, that didn't mean the sure-hit effect would disappear. On the contrary, that deadly attack would immediately hit people who entered the domain.
However, Ranta's determination remained unchanged. But when he wanted to argue with Iroha, cracks in the barrier began to appear. The wall separating the original world from the artificial world was destroyed in less than a second.
Ranta had prayed that his leader would escape and somehow destroy the barrier from within. However, that hope was dashed after seeing Naoya lying on his stomach with his nose and mouth almost out of shape.
"Naoya-san!"
Ranta ran towards Naoya quickly. He immediately turned Naoya's body around and put the man in a more comfortable position.
"Damn it…," cursed Ranta under his breath.
After seeing Naoya's badly damaged nose and mouth, it was difficult to control himself.
"I didn't attack him using the sure-hit, so he should be fine."
Ranta turned his head after hearing the confession from the person in charge. He stared at Hachiman fiercely, but he could do nothing to return the insult. On the contrary, he understood that he could do nothing. However, Naoya thought differently than the young man.
"This bastard...," said the blonde man with difficulty, "You only damaged my mouth and nose. I still have my technique to finish you off. Meanwhile you have lost your main card. Without a domain, your abilities are nothing before my speed."
Hachiman looked down on the ignorant man.
"To be honest, I don't even need my domain to crush you. Besides, do you think I can only use the domain once a day?"
The cold air seemed to blow and penetrate their spines, along with Hachiman increased his intensity. Both Naoya and Ranta suddenly felt an unpleasant and disgusting pressure from him. However, more than that, what gave him the creeps the most was the boy's statement.
'Seriously?!' Ranta cursed in his mind.
Using a domain more than once a day was theoretically not impossible. Old-school domains could be used many times. However, the modern style domain was a different case. You need very, very good control and energy efficiency to do that. Unfortunately, no one could do it in this modern era except Gojo Satoru, so the minimum standard for doing so wasn't available.
'Those who hold special grades all have their own unique qualities. Putting aside Gojo-san who is an anomaly and Tsukumo-san who is full of mystery, Okkotsu-kun is a monster with an unreasonable reserve of cursed energy. So, it's possible that Hikigaya-kun turns out to have high efficiency even though it's not at Gojo-san's level.'
That was what Ranta thought. Unfortunately, what Hachiman said earlier was just bullshit. Never mind issuing domains twice a day, he was still in training to increase the effectiveness of his domains. Saying he could perform such a feat was simply a bluff undermining their morale.
Meanwhile, Iroha, who heard that, knew the fact very well. Therefore, to help her senior, she added some spice to the lie that Hachiamn had composed.
"Not only today, but recently there have been several incidents in Chiba and that made Hiratsuka-sensei decide to conduct a thorough investigation. You who suddenly came here and said you wanted to take Komachi-chan, made us unable to help but assume that you were part of the conspirators behind everything."
Iroha told the lie so fluently, which even amazed Hachiman.
"Hiratsuka-sensei will be here soon. However, the fact that senpai let Naoya-san live means that Hiratsuka-sensei might also spare you for now. So, leave before she changes her mind."
Even though the two stared at Hachiman and Co fiercely, no more words came out of their mouths. They were self-aware enough not to pour oil on the fire after witnessing how Hachiman didn't hold back.
Naoya stood up with Ranta's help.
"Don't get cocky yet, bastard."
Without waiting for a reply from Hachiman, Naoya walked away from them. The dull-faced guy said nothing until Naoya came out of the curtain.
"I really want to kill him," Hachiman muttered.
"Then why don't you just do it? It was even more surprising that you didn't kill him even though he insulted Rice-chan."
Hachiman was silent for a moment at Iroha's words.
"Well, if that's the case, wouldn't Maki have a lot more right to kill Naoya? I just kept them as an appetiser for that gorilla if one day she decides to go on a rampage."
"Ah, well…."
Iroha was actually a little doubtful about Hachiman's words.
'It's not like I'm looking down on Maki-senpai or something. She's strong, but I don't see she could beat Naoya-san.'
But that could just be because she didn't know Maki that well. However, because of the special assistant manager program she was in, she was forced to be sent to Chiba, considering that Hiratsuka was the one who initiated the program and could only come once a week to Tokyo Jujutsu High. As such, Iroha wasn't very close to her seniors and only knew them from some rumours. Iroha even could speak directly after doing joint training in preparation for the Goodwill Event, and even then, she could only attend on weekends.
'But well, if people like Gojo-sensei, Hiratsuka-sensei, and senpai believed that….'
—OoOoO—
Rewind a few hours before the brief feud between Hachiman and Naoya. Somewhere in the city in Fukushima Prefecture, which had been abandoned due to a nuclear reactor leak, several people were relaxing in an old hut,
"It looks like Nanako and Mimiko have succeeded in carrying out their duties. That's a bit of a shame because it doesn't seem like they have what it takes to kill Komachi-chan. But well, it doesn't matter as long as objectivity is met."
Geto Suguru was the one who said that. He looked at the message displayed on his smartphone with a satisfied smile. Sitting before him was an old woman named Ogami, with her grandson in his late 20s standing behind her.
"And as I explained before. We'll enter the next phase of the plan to get rid of Shizuka," Geto said as he took out a bottle of water and put it on the table.
"Are you sure this will work? The one we're targeting is Hiratsuka, you know?"
Geto laughed amusedly at the doubts expressed by Ogami.
"If we weren't sure of this, we wouldn't be worthy to carry out the plan to seal Satoru."
Granny Ogami was pensive when she heard that statement.
"Alright then."
Geto smiled satisfactorily and pushed a bottle of water on the table closer to her side. Then, he took out something shaped like a pill under his monk robe.
"This is kinda a cursed tool."
While saying that, Geto opened the bottle cap and put the pill inside. Foreign substances mixed with the water change its colour from clear to cloudy.
"Make the target drink this then it will work by itself. It should take a day to react, and then our target will start to adapt slowly until it turns into a full-fledged sorcerer."
"The Yukinoshita Haruno case that has been the topic of discussion recently was apparently also your doing, right?" commented the granny.
Geto smiled faintly. In practice, it wasn't him who did it, and the method used to transform Haruno was also different. He taught Mahito a few things and incited the cursed spirit to do some experiments in Chiba to attract Hiratsuka's attention. However, he didn't expect Haruno to become a successful guinea pig and attract Hiratsuka's attention.
Granny Ogami looked at the bottle curiously.
"How could you make something like this in the first place?"
Geto was silent when Ogami thought the incident involving Haruno was his own doing. By remaining silent and allowing her to imagine, it would only increase his partner's confidence in him that this operation would be successful. However, there were also times when he had to be open about some information to maintain that trust so he could manipulate them more smoothly.
"The pill I put in was an extract from the brain of a powerful sorcerer that was soaked for several months in a liquid containing 1000 hearts of first grade sorcerers that were ground and filtered. By containing a high concentration of cursed energy, it will stimulate the drinker's brain to adapt and process the foreign substance. I'll explain the details later."
Grandma Ogami frowned at that explanation.
"Putting that aside, isn't that manufacturing method the same as making special-grade cursed tools? Besides, how did you manage to get 1000 sorcerer hearts of the same level as the first grade?"
"Yeah, it's almost the same method. That's why I call it 'kinda a cursed tool'. And how do I get the ingredients? Well, I've been traveling to various corners of the world even before Satoru defeated me. Getting 1000 first-grade sorcerer hearts wasn't that difficult. Moreover, the jujutsu sorcerer community in China, India and England is also large, although not as large as Japan."
It was an explanation consisting of facts mixed with lies. He said he had only been working ten years ago even though, in reality, he had been preparing for it all for hundreds of years. It was a fact that Geto, or the person possessing his body, wanted to hide.
Granny Ogami looked at Geto with a probing gaze. She already knew the prestige of Geto Suguru since the man was still young. As a jujutsu sorcerer who had lived in hiding since Gojo Satoru came to this world, she knew about Geto's crushing defeat last year.
"You don't think I'm just a fool who would challenge Satoru without preparation, do you, Ogami-san?"
"You're an idiot who was defeated by a damn 16-year-old brat. Moreover, your huge army couldn't scratch Gojo at all and even failed to take over Kyoto."
The man exhaled as he shrugged his shoulders and smiled lightly. As the person possessing Geto's body, he had no business regarding that fact. However, as the person who took over his body and played his role, he had to be able to construct lies here and there to convince the people around him.
"Did you think I was just mindlessly attacking Tokyo and Kyoto? If you think Hyakki Yakou is a failure, you're very wrong because I succeeded in achieving my goal. I did fail to get Orimoto Rikka to her highest potential, but my main goal has been fulfilled."
Geto paused his words before starting a further explanation session.
"Okkotsu-kun is one of the people whose presence must be eliminated. That's why I divided my troops into two and attacked Okkotsu-kun alone. Because only then, the surrounding defence will be reduced. And it worked. Satoru and Yaga-sensei sending Okkotsu-kun abroad indefinitely is in line with the output I want."
Actually, it was pretty difficult for Ogami to believe that. Never mind the story; the fact that Geto could safely escape such a hopeless situation was tough for her to accept. But she would drop that story and focus on the goal of removing Gojo Satoru from the fabric of this world.
"Whatever. But there's something that bothers me a little. Why did you choose today? If you're afraid of being discovered by Hiratsuka to the point of making a conspiracy to divert her attention, why don't you just do it on holidays, when our target doesn't go to school?"
Grandma Ogami didn't seem finished with her words, and Geto waited quietly for her.
"You said it would take a day for this kinda a cursed tool to show results. Those were crucial moments because a sorcerer of Hiratsuka's calibre could sense it when she was near the target. Wouldn't it be safer to do it on holidays?"
"It's a binding vow, Ogami-san, a binding vow," Geto said casually, "From the start, the chances of success in awakening the cursed technique by force using this method are very small. It even only works on those with jujutsu sorcerer bloodlines. To increase the chances, I chose weekdays where the frequency of Shizuka interacting with the target was higher even though the risk of Shizuka realising the change also increased."
"And how can you be sure this plan will be enough to distract Hiratsuka and her student, Hikigaya Hachiman? You're betting too much on this, Geto."
"I'm not betting. I've gotten to know Shizuka well. She's my junior, after all. She's a pacifist. That's why she'll intervene directly if too many incidents occur in Chiba. It's at that time that I'm sure Shizuka would leave Sobu High for a while and inspect all of Chiba. According to my estimates, she might need two days at most."
"And you think that will prevent Hiratsuka from knowing our target's situation even though it's a weekday?"
Geto nodded in confirmation.
In short, the plan was quite simple. Komachi's attempted murder was intended to spark conflict between the Hiratsuka group and the association, considering they didn't like the girl's cursed technique, which was similar to Geto's. However, apart from that, the events that had occurred in Chiba so far had also raised the alarm that Chiba City in particular and Chiba Prefecture in general weren't doing well.
That way, it would force Hiratsuka to conduct a thorough inspection if she didn't want a bigger incident to occur. The gap in time and emptiness that Hiratsuka left during the inspection was what Geto wanted to exploit.
His "the kind of a cursed tool" could awaken his target's cursed technique, but it required a process. At least, it took a day, which Geto called a crisis period. That was when the brain experienced a radical adaptation that would force the neurons that store cursed energy information and cursed technique to connect with other parts of the brain. The increased unnatural activity of the cursed energy could certainly be felt easily by a sorcerer of Hiratsuka's calibre.
That was why Geto devised a plan, so Hiratsuka wouldn't be in her lair, Sobu High, during that process. Apart from that, this method wouldn't break the binding vow that Geto made because the vow was only binding on the chosen day.
Geto saw Ogami's reaction as she wanted to say something. As if he knew what she wanted to say, Geto interrupted the old woman before she even said a word.
"What about Hikigaya-kun, right?" Guess Geto, "Don't worry. That siscon will likely stay by Komachi-chan's side to provide her with extra protection. I'll bet he won't leave his sister until Shizuka finishes her investigation."
Grandma Ogami didn't give any other response after hearing this explanation. He stood up while taking a bottle of water mixed with a substance to awaken someone's cursed technique.
"Then I'll drop it here. The journey from Fukushima to Chiba is a long one and I'll get ready soon."
Ogami handed the bottle to her grandson, who had just been standing and silent. Before she really left, she stared at Geto for a few moments.
"The target is a girl named Miura Yumiko, right?"
—OoOoO—
Miura Yumiko was a second year Sobu High student. The blonde girl was one of the most popular girls in her school. It wasn't uncommon for her to be compared to the Ice Queen, Yukinoshita Yukino. Constantly being compared to someone as brilliant as Yukinoshita Yukino, others would probably lose their confidence. However, even though she wasn't on the same level as the Ice Queen, Miura Yumiko still had a quality that made her never feel intimidated by anyone.
Monday was always a long day for her. Moreover, many things happened today, such as extra lessons to prepare for the final semester exam because some of her grades didn't meet the standards. That's what made her come home later than usual. However, if she had to pick one unusual sight today, it would be Hachiman's panicked, angry, and worried expression.
'Hikio isn't someone who usually shows a face like that openly,' thought Yumiko.
It wasn't like the blonde girl knew the gloomy-eyed boy that well. She only interacted with him directly a few times. She didn't think about Hachiman's condition without reason. However, Miura had considered Hachiman one of her friends even though they rarely spoke.
The journey from school to her house was pretty close. She didn't need a train and just took a bus one stop away. Crowded public transportation, sidewalks, and roads filled with pedestrians and motorists were common sights at this time of day. However, when it came to her residential areas, the atmosphere was almost entirely different from the main streets.
Because the streets in her housing area were quiet, Yumiko often walked while using her smartphone as she was doing now. Yumiko walked without looking ahead because she was familiar with the roads and terrain leading to her house. And because of her carelessness, she hit someone who had just come out of the grocery store.
"Ouch!"
It wasn't Yumiko's voice, but the girl's voice she bumped into. Meanwhile, the blonde girl took a few steps back and lamented that her phone had fallen. It annoyed her to see one of her most precious things lying on the asphalt, but she couldn't blame anyone but herself because she knew that walking while looking at smartphone was a bad habit,
"Ah, I'm sorry!"
The girl whom Yumiko hit exclaimed with a facial expression full of worry and regret. She was a girl her age in a dark blue sailor uniform.
"Ah, no, no. It's my fault for not paying attention to my surroundings," Yumiko replied.
The Sobu High student immediately picked up her phone. She turned the smartphone around to ensure nothing was wrong with the body. Unfortunately, today's phones tend to have fragile bodies, which was proven by a small crack in the corner of her screen.
Yumiko tried to suppress her sigh of regret, but she couldn't condition her expression.
"Is that okay? Sorry, I'm really sorry," said the girl while bowing.
"It's just small cracks, nothing at all."
The girl raised her head to look Yumiko directly in the eye. However, after a few seconds of looking at each other, the girl made a confused face and tilted her head.
"Sorry, but are you okay? Your face looks pale."
"Eh? Really?"
Yumiko was quite surprised by the sudden statement. If she was with Ebina or Yui, she would definitely take a small mirror from her bag and see the condition of her face. However, she couldn't do that in front of people she didn't know. Or rather, she didn't want others to label her as narcissistic.
"Yeah, it's not very visible. But when I looked closely, you looked a little pale," replied the girl.
Yumiko didn't answer right away. She felt that her body was in good health even though her head was a little tired from taking additional lessons to prepare for the exam. However, other than that, she was as fit as a fiddle.
'Is my face really that pale? I don't know because I can't see it myself.
Yumiko smiled kindly at the girl. She wanted to give reassurance that she was okay. However, the evening sky, which shouldn't have been too dark, suddenly became darker. Before Yumiko looked up to the sky to confirm the situation, her body and eyelids felt weak.
In just a matter of seconds, the yellow-haired girl lost consciousness and lay helpless on the asphalt.
"Tsk. That stupid grandson lowered the curtains too early." The girl who was Yumiko's interlocutor cursed.
The girl looked at the unconscious Yumiko, but she didn't take any action. She remained silent for several minutes until she raised her right hand to give a signal. Following the sign, the curtain covering the area was lifted. And automatically, Yumiko woke up from her unconscious state. At the same time, the suspicious girl changed her expression to worry.
"Hey, are you okay? I don't know what to do because you suddenly fainted, you know?" asked the girl in a fake worried tone.
Yumiko got up. She sat on the asphalt and was pensive while holding her head with her right hand. Her brain worked to analyse what actually happened. She was sure she was okay but didn't understand how she could be unconscious.
The mysterious girl squatted before Yumiko with a bottle filled with brownish water.
"Here, I bought you a bottle of tea," she said as she opened the bottle cap, "I wanted to call an ambulance, but you woke up first."
Yumiko hesitated to accept the bottle the girl handed her. However, she wasn't stupid enough to take something from a stranger.
Realising that, the mysterious girl drank the brown water in the bottle without touching the tip.
"Sorry, you must be worried about the tea that this person you just met gave you, right?" said the girl after taking a sip, "But it's okay. That's understandable. Do you want me to call an ambulance?"
"Ah, no, thank you," Yumiko replied.
The girl smiled kindly with her eyes closed. She stretched out her hand to help Yumiko up. The blonde girl accepted the help even though she felt reluctant. More than that, she started feeling wrong for refusing a drink from someone who had just helped.
"Can I still have the tea?" Yumiko asked.
The girl made a surprised face. However, it was replaced by a broad smile in the next second.
"Sure thing."
The bottle containing brown water was handed over to Yumiko. The blonde girl opened the lid quickly. At first, she was still a little hesitant, but then she pressed her lips to the tip of the bottle and drank the contents.
Yumiko's eyes opened. It tasted exactly the same as similar brands. It was fresh, plain tea, nothing more and nothing less. Yumiko had already finished four sips, something she never thought would be that thirsty. Meanwhile, the girl just smiled at her.
"You can have it, uhm…."
"It's Miura," Yumiko replied.
"Ah, I'm Himemori. Nice to meet you, Miura-san."
Yumiko just nodded. She was a person who could be said to be active in talking. She was even aware that some people like Hachiman consider her to be fussy. However, meeting a random girl on her way home from school and suddenly fainting in front of her, Yumiko's shyness overshadowed her talent for starting a conversation.
"Are you really okay? I can call an ambulance if you want," said the mysterious girl, breaking the awkwardness.
Yumiko shook her head slowly, "Thanks, but it's okay. Besides, my house is nearby."
"Well, I'll take my leave then. Next time pay more attention to your body, okay?"
The girl walked past Yumiko. She walked happily while humming softly. However, that was only when she turned at an intersection about 50 meters from where she met Yumiko.
Her friendly and energetic expression turned flat and cold. The soothing humming disappeared, replaced by heavy breathing. Gradually, the tight skin began to fade and was replaced with skin eaten away by wrinkles. Her shiny black hair also disappeared as if she was ageing incredibly fast.
However, the woman didn't mind it as if it was her true form that she had always been proud of.
"There's nothing easier than tricking stupid girls," she said.
The granny took out her phone. She quickly opened the contact menu and typed in the name of the person she wanted to call,
"Geto, it's me. Everything went smoothly," she said.
"Thank you for your hard work, Ogami-san. Even though it wasn't a difficult task in the first place."
Right, the granny disguised as a young girl was Ogami. She was a veteran sorcerer who specialised in disguise. Her cursed technique allowed her to summon a dead person as long as she had their DNA. In other words, it was like a necromancy technique.
The scheme to trap Yumiko was actually very simple. A drink mixed with "kinda a cursed tool" had been prepared beforehand to evoke the cursed technique. All that remained was how to get Yumiko to drink it and how to prevent Hiratsuka Shizuka and Hikigaya Hachiman from realising it the next day when the potion started to take effect on Yumiko's body.
The matter regarding Hiratsuka and Hachiman had been resolved. And that made everything run smoothly.
Meanwhile, Ogami disguised herself as an ordinary girl, as if she met Yumiko by chance. The idea was to make Yumiko faint without leaving any suspicion behind. Because of that, Ogami previously said that Yumiko's face looked pale. It also conveyed to her grandson, who was watching them, to immediately lower the curtain.
The effect of the curtain spell was simple, making all non-sorcerers unconscious. That way, there would be a suitable alibi for Ogami to give the concoction that looked similar to black tea to Yumiko.
"Are you sure it's okay just like this?" asked the granny over the phone.
"It's fine. From here on it's a gamble as to whether the potion works or not. If the universe really wanted Satoru to be sealed, it should have worked."
"So, we're back to luck again, huh?"
"That's how it is, but I've confidence in this. I received information that Naoya-kun stopped by Chiba after returning from Ibaraki. Moreover, there was a small clash between him and Hikigaya-kun. That made my job even easier because I didn't need to create some chaos in Chiba to distract Shizuka. It was as if a sign from heaven that our plan would succeed, wasn't it?"
Grandma Ogami seemed silent for a moment.
"Naoya? Is that also part of your plan?"
Geto's voice was heard laughing softly from the other end.
"Of course not. How could I possibly do that? Besides, I've learned to remain humble, you know?"
"What does it even mean?"
Geto smiled at the question. Unfortunately, it couldn't be seen through the phone call.
"Beat me. It's just a life experience."
Not many people know, or perhaps, in this modern era, almost no one knew who was behind Geto Suguru's body. The creature that possessed him had lived for more than a thousand years. He had been trying to realise his grand plan all that time too. He had been through a lot. Manipulation, sabotage, betrayal, rebellion, and even war were just a playground for him.
This creature had tried to control destiny so that the flow of the world was always on his side. However, he was always humiliatingly defeated by two Six Eyes users before Gojo Satoru in different eras.
That was why, on his third try, he acted more humbly. Instead of getting rid of the Six Eyes user of this generation, Gojo Satoru, he actually intended to slowly weaken the Gojo clan until the next Six Eyes user appeared. That way, when the Gojo clan lost their footing, the next Six Eyes user couldn't develop as strong as Gojo Satoru. Essentially, he focused more on what he could do rather than being greedy to execute everything in one period.
However, tit for tat, a breath of fresh air blew at him. An anomaly of the world's common sense, a person with extraordinary intensity, Zen'in Toji, undertook a job that he had been unable to complete for the past 800 years. And from there, good things always came to him.
"Whatever," Ogami said over the phone, "What's next?"
"If Miura Yumiko's cursed technique is successfully awakened, it will only be a matter of time until the association finds out. After Yukinoshita Haruno, then Miura Yumiko. That would make them suspect Shizuka's motive even though it never actually existed."
"Then it won't do anything if no one gives the expected response, right? But since it's you, I bet you must have a plan," Ogami said.
There was no answer from Geto for the next few seconds.
"Yeah, sort of. There are still some more preparations and we also need a final blow to get rid of Hiratsuka. At least so she can't participate in Shibuya."
Geto paused his sentence, deliberately to create a tense atmosphere,
"On September 23, at the Sobu High cultural festival. That will be the day that Hiratsuka Shizuka will lose all the foundations she has built all these years."
—To Be Continued—
Author Note: Hello, we meet again. However, there is not much I want to say. Please enjoy this chapter.
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