Freedom

At ten o'clock that night, in an upscale restaurant in Yawata City, Eiji and Satoru Gojo wolfed down food as though they were competing.

"Were you a starving ghost in your past life or something?"

After finishing the last dessert, Satoru Gojo picked up a napkin and wiped the corner of his mouth.

Eiji, seated across from him, was far less particular. After casually wiping his mouth, he ordered another two steaks.

It couldn't be helped. Food portions in the Island Nation were small to begin with, especially in a high-end restaurant like this. Even a Child like him could put away several plates.

"Why don't you try going hungry for a day and then fighting at full strength?"

Eiji rolled his eyes at Satoru Gojo and took two sips of freshly squeezed juice.

"You're from the Zenin Family? How come I've never heard of you before?"

"I'm not one of the Zenin Family's 'people,' and I won't have anything to do with them from now on."

"Oh? With the Ten Shadows Technique, you should be very important to the Zenin Family. Would those old geezers really let you leave?"

He was already calling the higher-ups old geezers this early?

"Heh, don't worry. In the Zenin Family's records, I'm just a servant with no Technique whose parents both died. That bastard who became a Grade 2 Jujutsu Sorcerer through the family's help is dead, so there's no way I could still be alive."

So he had awakened the Ten Shadows Technique at the brink of death.

Satoru Gojo understood.

"Interesting."

Excitement flashed through Satoru Gojo's eyes. As a member of The Three Great Families, he knew some things about the Zenin Family and had already guessed part of Eiji's circumstances.

"But now that you've awakened the Ten Shadows Technique, the moment you go back, you'll become a treasure in those old geezers' eyes."

Satoru Gojo deliberately emphasized the word "treasure," then smiled at Eiji, waiting to hear his answer.

"And then?"

"Huh?"

Eiji's sudden question interrupted Satoru Gojo's train of thought.

"I go back to the Zenin Family and use the Ten Shadows Technique. Then what?"

"Then those old geezers will surround you and make you the heir to the family head. You'll get whatever you want, and you can deal with anyone who bullied you however you please."

Satoru Gojo took a sip of juice, diluting the overpowering sweetness in his throat that ordinary people could scarcely endure.

Because of the strain the Six Eyes placed on his brain, Satoru Gojo had an extreme sweet tooth. Sweetness that ordinary people found impossible to swallow was an everyday thing to him.

"How would that make me any different from them?"

Eiji spread his hands.

"By then, you'll be the Zenin Family's Divine Child. Though you still won't compare to me."

"Forget it. I'm afraid one day I won't be able to hold back and I'll kill all those bastards."

"You really do have the strength for that."

The ancient texts passed down by the Gojo Family contained records of Mahoraga. After all, the Gojo Clan Head of that generation had also possessed the Six Eyes. Though weaker than Satoru Gojo, he had still been one of the strongest figures of his era.

That was why the Gojo Family was one of the few families that knew Mahoraga's abilities.

Out of curiosity, Satoru Gojo had once asked the current Gojo Clan Head whether he could defeat Mahoraga.

The Gojo Clan Head had always been evasive about it, but clever as he was, Satoru Gojo understood what he meant. Even if the entire current Gojo Family joined forces, they might not necessarily win.

The Zenin Family's strength was about on par with the Gojo Family's. In other words, Eiji truly had the power to wipe out the Zenin Family.

If Eiji knew what Satoru Gojo was thinking, he would definitely say he was overthinking it.

He didn't have Gari's supply of magical energy. Relying solely on recovering his own Cursed Energy, who knew when he would replenish all three Command Spells.

Besides, Mahoraga's adaptation to Command Spells was not slow. If he truly had Mahoraga destroy the Zenin Family, the most likely outcome was that before the Zenin Family had been completely wiped out, Mahoraga would adapt to the Binding Vow of the Command Spells and punch him into a little pancake.

"What are you planning to do next?"

"Find somewhere in the countryside to hide for a while. Once this blows over in a few years, I'll go to Tokyo and pursue the life I want."

After saying that, Eiji began wrestling with the steak the waiter had brought to the table.

He simply wasn't used to knives and forks, so they felt a little awkward to use.

"Oh, right. Do you guys take this? A Special Grade Cursed Object. It's useless sitting with me."

It might even bring trouble.

Eiji didn't say the latter half aloud.

"We can."

Clap, clap.

Satoru Gojo casually clapped his hands.

The Bodyguard who had been waiting nearby stepped forward, took Sukuna's Finger, and left the restaurant. Not long after, he returned with a bank card.

Satoru Gojo reached out, took the bank card, and waved for the Bodyguard to leave.

Every member of the Gojo Family was an old-fashioned stick-in-the-mud. They weren't nearly as interesting as people outside.

Still, Satoru Gojo knew why. If they earned the Divine Child's favor, it was one thing. But if they failed to earn the Divine Child's favor and showed him disrespect, then at best, they would be transferred away from his side; at worst, they would face family punishment.

The Three Great Families were all more or less the same in that regard. The Zenin Family was simply the most heartless of them all.

"Is this enough?"

As he spoke, Satoru Gojo handed over the bank card.

"It's enough."

Looking at the string of zeroes on the card's balance and password sticker, then at Satoru Gojo propping up his chin with one hand, utterly unconcerned about money, Eiji suddenly wanted to beat up a rich landlord.

"Thanks for the meal. I'll be going now."

Eiji took the bank card, stood up, and prepared to leave.

"What's the rush?"

Satoru Gojo raised an eyebrow.

"Didn't I say before? There are plenty of Zenin Family dogs in Kyoto. While it's still dark, I should leave Kyoto first."

Yawata City was right on Kyoto's outer edge. Now that he had the Jade Dog as transportation, he could move much faster. Leaving Kyoto under cover of night and finding somewhere in the outskirts or countryside to rest tomorrow morning was the safest option.

"Want me to have someone take you?"

Eiji paused at that, but after considering it for a moment, he still declined Satoru Gojo's offer.

Pulling on his hat, Eiji found a dark alley and summoned the Jade Dog he had long wanted to bring out.

"Hey, don't lick my face."

The Jade Dog seemed to have been pent up for too long. The moment it came out, it pounced forward, planting its front paws on Eiji's shoulders and licking his fair little face over and over. Its tail spun like a windmill.

Eiji did not scold it, only clumsily fended off the Jade Dog's enthusiastic assault.

After all, what boy could refuse a majestic, imposing dog that loved sticking close to him?

It took Eiji quite some effort to calm the Jade Dog, which had wanted to meet its little master ever since the Technique awakened but had spent half the day cooped up in his shadow due to Eiji's command.

Looking at the Jade Dog, which was nearly as tall as he was, Eiji felt somewhat surprised.

Was the Jade Dog he had summoned for the first time already about as large as the one Megumi Fushiguro summoned at the start of the story?

Before leaving, the system had strengthened Eiji's body. The amount of Cursed Energy within him was now extraordinarily high, leaving him nearly unmatched among those his age. That was why the Jade Dog he summoned was much larger as well.

In this world, the upper limit of one's Cursed Energy was determined at birth, but whether one could reach that limit depended on later growth and training.

With the enhancement the system had given him before leaving, as long as Eiji did not slack off, he would at least never lose to anyone in terms of Cursed Energy in the future.

"I remember the Nue Megumi Fushiguro summoned was only the size of one person, but the one Fushiguro Sukuna summoned was as large as an entire building."

As he spoke, Eiji looked at the White Divine Dog, with half its tongue hanging out and an expression remarkably like a husky's.

"Will I get the chance to summon a Jade Dog as big as a skyscraper someday? Hmm, and the Great Serpent too. When the time comes, I can find someone to film a few Norse mythology movies. Something like Fenrir versus Jörmungandr, then arrange for a few people to play Heroic Spirits."

With dreams of the future in his heart, Eiji rode a Jade Dog and vanished into the darkness.