I Play Ninjutsu in Jujutsu Kaisen!

The moment the words were spoken, the clustered Cursed Spirits seemed to suffer an invisible blow. Their pupils were filled with pain, their mouths opened as if to speak, their bodies trembled mechanically, and a red light pulsed on their foreheads.

"Boom! Boom! Boom...!!"

Violent explosions echoed one after another. In just a moment, all the Cursed Spirits were annihilated, falling from the sky. Before they could even touch the ground, they turned to ash and vanished into the heavens and earth.

Watching the Cursed Spirits being completely eliminated, Yuta Okkotsu seemed to understand why Toge spoke so unnaturally – he was afraid of hurting others with his words.

Toge Inumaki, having dealt with the Cursed Spirits, was also feeling terrible. His throat felt so dry it was about to smoke. He said in a hoarse voice, "Tuna, mayonnaise. (I feel awful, my throat is so sore)."

"Are you okay?"

Yuta Okkotsu asked with concern.

"Bonito flakes..."

Toge Inumaki shook his head and took out a throat lozenge from his bag, indicating he was fine.

Meanwhile, Natsu Hiraku, who was preparing to leave, noticed that the Curtain had not disappeared and reminded them, "It's not over yet. For some reason, the Curtain hasn't vanished."

"What?"

"Salmon?"

The two walked over to Natsu Hiraku and looked at the still-present Curtain. Yuta Okkotsu reached out his right hand and touched it, finding that they couldn't get out. He said, "Huh! We already exorcised them, so why hasn't the Curtain disappeared?"

At this moment, Asura seemed to sense something. He bared his teeth and barked at the air, while in his mind, he spoke to Natsu Hiraku, "Master, something is approaching."

"Raku, what's wrong with Asura?"

Yuta Okkotsu asked, confused.

"Him..." Natsu Hiraku took off the black backpack from his shoulder, unhurriedly unzipped it, and pulled out a Cursed Tool stored inside. He said, "He just senses an enemy is coming."

"An enemy!?"

As soon as Yuta finished speaking, a Cursed Spirit fell from the sky, landing before the three in an instant. It sat with its legs crossed, hands resting on its knees, while it floated in the air. A large, long nose extended to its abdomen, and below its bell-sized eyes were a pair of tusks, giving it an appearance somewhat similar to a wild boar.

However, the powerful Cursed Energy emanating from it gave Natsu Hiraku the same feeling he had when facing Mitsuchi Mi's mother. This one was slightly weaker, but it was still Quasi Grade 1!

"Click—"

A blue system panel popped up. Natsu Hiraku glanced at it, then forced a bitter smile, cursing the System internally as an idiot. He then shouted to Asura beside him, "Let's take care of him together!"

[Mission: Defeat the Quasi Grade 1 Cursed Spirit, and find Suguru Geto hiding in the dark to engage him (regardless of victory or defeat). Mission Reward: 20 points, 150 permanent Cursed Energy increase.]

Damn it, it really wants me to court death relentlessly, and then have someone dance on my grave?

Does this stupid system think I haven't read the Jujutsu Kaisen manga? Even though I haven't read much and have forgotten most of the plot, I still know Suguru Geto is a "Special Grade"!

Me, a Grade 3, going up against a Special Grade?

If it goes well, I'll walk away unscathed. If it goes poorly, my ashes will be scattered, and everyone will be attending my funeral.

Even Gojo Satoru wouldn't be able to keep up with my suicidal pace.

Before Toge Inumaki and Yuta Okkotsu could react, Natsu Hiraku, brandishing his sword, charged forward with Asura.

"Sōba!"

The boar-like Cursed Spirit looked at the attacking man and dog, raised its left hand, and formed a hand seal.

"Hum..."

A white light appeared in front of them, anticipating their path, and then a beam of light struck down fiercely.

"Asura!"

Seeing his dog unable to dodge in mid-air, Natsu Hiraku punched it hard, using the recoil to push himself back.

"Whoosh!"

A white light flashed, and a deep pit appeared on the ground.

Toge Inumaki also reacted. He took a deep breath, pulled down his scarf, and shouted, "Crush... cough, cough, cough!"

Before he could finish, he suffered a backlash from the power and spat out a mouthful of blood. His throat was already hoarse, and speaking was incredibly difficult.

Furthermore, this Cursed Spirit had more Cursed Energy than him. If one's Cursed Energy is not as strong as the target's, their words will suffer varying degrees of backlash. This is the side effect of "Cursed Speech," where words become reality.

Toge Inumaki knelt on the ground, coughing blood, his left hand clutching his throat.

The boar-like Cursed Spirit looked at the boy kneeling and coughing blood, and without hesitation, it activated its unique Cursed Technique again.

As a bright light illuminated Toge Inumaki, Yuta Okkotsu, who had reacted, immediately lunged forward with a sliding tackle, saving him.

"Whoosh!"

The white light flashed, and another large pit appeared on the ground.

The boar-like Cursed Spirit, realizing its attack had missed again, prepared to finish off the dog whose mind was currently a bit hazy.

Natsu Hiraku's punch had been too hasty, hitting Asura directly on the forehead. Despite its resilience, it was still somewhat dazed.

Just as it was about to activate its Cursed Technique, a voice rang out from the side:

"Fire Style: Great Fire Annihilation!!"

This Cursed Spirit is way smarter than Mitsuchi Mi's mother, it even predicts attacks!

This was Natsu Hiraku's thought as he sent Asura flying. While he felt a bit apologetic for hitting its head, that was all. After all, it was his own son, so he knew how much punishment he could take.

This punch would at most stun it for a few seconds before it sprang back to life, good as new.

Sensing the Cursed Spirit's power, Natsu Hiraku decided against further close combat. He thrust his right hand's sword into the ground and quickly formed hand seals, preparing for a surprise Ninjutsu attack!

"Fire Style: Great Fire Annihilation!!"

His Cursed Energy dropped by 200 points. A torrent of flames, like a sea of fire, surged towards the Cursed Spirit hovering in mid-air. The intense heat instantly shattered the glass of the shopping street, and the five-meter gap was swallowed by the flames in an instant.

"Boom!!"

The Cursed Spirit swiped its large hand, extinguishing the flames. Although there were burn marks on its body, it paid them no mind. It raised both hands simultaneously, its index and middle fingers circling.

Two beams of light appeared in the sky, descending faster than before. The moment they lit up, the beams fell instantly.

Natsu Hiraku's expression wasn't overly panicked. After all, he was a man who dared to spar with a Quasi Grade 1 Cursed Spirit. Even if his victory had a touch of coincidence, he still won!

His Sharingan activated instantly. He picked up the sword stuck in the ground and dodged, while simultaneously issuing attack commands to Asura. The two beams were falling too fast, and he couldn't possibly dodge them. Without a surprise attack, he really wouldn't be able to win.

Asura shook its slightly dazed head. Just as it was about to attack, its feet slipped, and it crashed headfirst into a wall.

"Awoooo~"

"..."

Natsu Hiraku was utterly speechless but said nothing. After all, it was just a three-month-old child; he couldn't expect too much. At this moment, he could only place his hope on Yuta and Toge. Facing a battle-hardened Quasi Grade 1 Cursed Spirit, his own abilities were no match.

But he could stall for time. As for that stupid dog, there was no need to worry about it; he'd give it a simple task.

"Asura, go sniff around and see if there are any other unfamiliar scents here."

"Woo (My head hurts QAQ)"

Asura lay on the ground, holding its head with its paws, tears welling up in its eyes.

"..."

Natsu Hiraku felt like cursing, but then he remembered it was still just a child. He helplessly soothed it, "Good boy, I'll make you big beef bones tonight, and double the beef leg meat."

"Master, if you'd said it was food earlier, I wouldn't have pretended to be in pain!"

Asura immediately got up and sniffed the mixed scents in the air. Although there were many lingering smells, their owners had already left. To get the double beef leg meat and big beef bones tonight, it had to try even harder to discern them!

"..."

"This gluttonous stupid dog... aren't you afraid I'll disown you and chop you up one day?"

Natsu Hiraku grumbled inwardly. Then, he stopped being distracted. After all, he had raised the kid himself, and he was still quite confident in him. What he needed to do now was figure out how to kill this troublesome Cursed Spirit!

"Are you okay?" Yuta Okkotsu, knowing he was outmatched, helped Toge Inumaki behind a stone pillar. He looked at Natsu Hiraku, who was entangled with the Cursed Spirit, and said in a low voice:

"Hiraku-kun is really amazing. His decisions are always so firm, charging in without a second thought."

"Cough... Bonito Flakes..."

Toge Inumaki shook his head, signaling he was fine, then took out throat lozenges from his bag, unscrewed the cap, and drank them directly. Although the backlash he suffered couldn't be cured, at least he could speak now.

"That's good. However, I need to go help Hiraku-kun. Toge-kun, you rest here for a while."

After speaking, Yuta Okkotsu prepared to rush out, but Toge Inumaki grabbed him, shaking his head to signal him not to go out. Toge then stood up, pulled down his scarf with his left hand, stepped out from behind the stone pillar, took a deep breath, and shouted at the Cursed Spirit currently fighting Natsu Hiraku:

"Be... crushed!!"

This sentence was successfully uttered, and the wild boar Cursed Spirit was instantly crushed as if by some irresistible force from both sides, its obese body exploding.

Red blood splattered all over Natsu Hiraku, but he didn't pay it much mind, calmly wiping the blood from his face. After all, he couldn't defeat this thing; it was just a matter of Toge Inumaki saying a word to destroy it.

He shouted, "Thanks!!"

"Cough, cough, cough!!!"

Toge Inumaki knelt on the ground and vomited another mouthful of blood, slowly raising his right hand to give Natsu Hiraku an OK sign.

"Toge-kun! Why are you like this again? Your body can't take it."

Yuta Okkotsu guiltily carried Toge Inumaki. After all, in this battle, he felt like the one who had been slacking off the entire time, completely useless.

As the Quasi Grade 1 Cursed Spirit dissipated, the Curtain was also lifted.

Asura, who had been sniffing for a long time, finally found another person hiding in the area and barked furiously at the elevator on the high platform.

"Well done, extra meal tonight!"

Having learned the exact location, Natsu Hiraku charged towards the high platform. It's just a hit-and-run, right?

He was familiar with that.

No matter if he lived or died, he had to go for it. Otherwise, the System's quest would get stuck, and his lack of strength growth would make him uneasy. Compared to this unease, he'd rather go crazy!

"Hiraku-kun! What are you doing?"

Facing Yuta Okkotsu's concern, Natsu Hiraku simply replied, "I'm going to the restroom," and left. After all, he couldn't bring his friends along to die alone.

Crossing the complex path, he finally saw Suguru Geto sitting on the stopped elevator, waiting.

As if he knew Natsu Hiraku was coming, he sat calmly in place, smiling at him. His words were filled with care, like an older brother.

"Hello, my name is Suguru Geto. The last time I saw you, you were still very weak. It's only been a little over two months, and you've grown so fast.

"How did you find me here? Could it be because of that dog? That's truly amazing. You have special eyes, and shikigami, your physical prowess is passable, and your cursed technique is decent. If you learned a reverse cursed technique, you'd be well-rounded. Has that guy Gojo not taught you yet?"

"..."

Why do I suddenly feel like defecting...

I feel like under Suguru Geto's tutelage, my growth rate would be even faster than with Gojo Satoru.

At the very least, he's laid out my entire current situation in one go.

"N-no."

"No? That's a shame," Suguru Geto said with some regret. "That's right, that guy Gojo is always slacking off. Do you want to come over to my side? I believe you'll be very interested in my plan."

"Uh..."

This plot is developing a bit strangely. I'll ignore that for now and focus on completing the system's mission first.

Natsu Hiraku swallowed and slowly extended his right hand, saying, "My name is Natsu Hiraku. How about we shake hands first? To increase our friendship?"

"Of course."

Suguru Geto readily stood up and extended his right hand to shake.

But Natsu Hiraku couldn't stay calm, his inner thoughts urging, 'Damn System, this counts as an engagement, doesn't it? Didn't you see our hands are already clasped? Hurry up and settle the mission rewards, don't go back on your word!'

A blue system panel popped up.

[...]