At that moment, Natsu Hiraku, sitting atop Shura, did not quite understand what this thing was either. After all, he had raised Shura to be a close-combat tank, yet Shura had suddenly turned into a long-range artillery platform...
"Raku-kun, your pet's pretty smart. How did you raise him? I want to get one too." Kento Nanami's eyes gleamed as though he had imagined something.
"Stop thinking about riding a dog into battle and shooting lasers from your mouth. Innate techniques can't be learned afterward. He can't teach you." Kirara Hoshi naturally knew what Kento Nanami was thinking and cut him off.
Gojo Satoru took off Old Man's Sunglasses and examined Shura. Then, as if he had spotted something interesting, he muttered, "Is this evolution? Or some fun technique? Feels like he'll qualify as a 'person' before long."
Animals were called animals because they were not as intelligent as humans. It was precisely because humans were intelligent enough that they distinguished themselves from animals. But if an animal possessed the same intelligence as a human, could he still be called an animal?
No... Shura seemed to be male. Then Goro it is!
Shura seemed to be undergoing a process of cerebral evolution. Part of his cursed energy was active within his brain, exceptionally active. Like a child's unconstrained fantasies, there was only curiosity and desire.
Feeling that the time was about right, Gojo Satoru took out his phone and checked it. "If there's nothing else, I'll head back to the broadcast room first. I'm looking forward to your performance."
"Okay, goodbye, Teacher Gojo." After everyone waved goodbye, they continued gathering around Shura in curiosity.
11:58.
Gojo Satoru's voice rang out through the broadcast.
"Ahem! Testing, testing! Sound check complete."
"We're about to reach the thrilling 'Maze Mouse Hunt' segment! Both teams are now poised and ready. Which team will emerge as the ultimate victor of this game? Next, your professional commentator, Gojo Satoru, will provide full coverage of this match!"
"..."
The teachers sitting in the principal's office were all speechless. Yoshinobu Gakuganji did not know what to say either. Considering that it was Gojo Satoru, he could only make a mental note to discuss it with Yaga later.
From the broadcast came occasional knocking, along with Utahime Iori's voice. "You bastard, Gojo Satoru! Since when does a match need commentary? Open the door right now! Or I'll kick it down!"
"Is that so? Then it can't be helped." Sitting in the broadcast room, Gojo Satoru continued into the microphone, "Students, please wait a moment. Your gold-medal commentator, Gojo Satoru, needs to negotiate something."
After saying that, he set the microphone on the table, picked up the rope and tape he had prepared in advance, and unlocked the door. Then, catching her off guard, he tied her up and said, "Sorry for the trouble, Utahime-senpai. I'm a gold-medal commentator right now. No one can interrupt my commentary."
"Gojo Satoru! You... mmph, mmph!"
Before Utahime Iori could finish speaking, he sealed her mouth with tape. Once he was done, Gojo Satoru simply carried her into the room and placed her on a chair. He removed Old Man's Sunglasses and held an index finger to his lips, signaling for her to stay quiet.
Picking up the microphone and checking the time, he said, "Sorry, students. Negotiating with Teacher Utahime took a little time. The match countdown begins now!"
"10!"
"9..."
Everyone was speechless. Did he think they had not heard the sounds of someone being tied up? They could still hear the muffled noises.
As the countdown reached zero, the match began.
The eight students from the two schools entered the maze, and the entrance immediately closed behind them.
According to the plan, Noritoshi Kamo and the other two quickly left Todo Aoi behind. Nishinomiya Momo flew above the high walls, surveying the entire maze as she searched for Natsu Hiraku.
Watching the three leave at speed, Todo Aoi roughly guessed what they were planning with his IQ of 530,000.
They were going to ambush Natsu Hiraku, and it was the principal's order.
But he merely glanced at them before leaving as well. Natsu Hiraku alone was enough to crush those three right now. As long as he found enough "mice," his best friend would naturally come looking for him. There was no need to waste effort searching for anyone.
"Is Todo following us?"
Noritoshi Kamo spoke into his phone. After a moment, Nishinomiya Momo's voice came through. "No. He went to look for the 'mice.'"
"Good. Find Natsu Hiraku's exact location and wait until he's alone to test his strength."
"Got it. I'm flying over there now."
After speaking, Nishinomiya Momo slipped her phone into her pocket without hanging up. The maze's paths were intricate and crisscrossing. Some roads were as wide as streets, while certain passages allowed only one person through. It was hard to imagine how this thing had been built in such a short time.
It was also hard to imagine why someone with such an ordinary appearance and background had attracted the principal's attention.
"Woof, woof, woof!"
"Shura smelled the scent of the 'mice'!"
Natsu Hiraku and the others were following behind Shura. He kept his head lowered, sniffing out the cursed spirits' scent and leading the way. Once the scent grew stronger, he knew that the "mice" his master spoke of were nearby. He barked several times and charged off.
"Nice work, Shura. I'll treat you to meat when we get back." Kento Nanami did not treat Shura like an outsider either. He really wanted to raise one himself now, thinking that perhaps, once he got friendly enough with Shura, he could borrow him from Raku-kun for a few days and take him out for a ride.
After following Shura through several turns, they finally saw the so-called "mice."
They had the bodies of mice and three eyes on their bodies. A pair of rat eyes sat on their faces, while another human eye rested on their backs, constantly open as it watched their surroundings. Perhaps to compensate for their lack of ears and inability to hear, their limbs were unusually thick and powerful.
The instant they saw the "mice," everyone noticed in surprise that three of them were gathered together as if discussing something.
The moment the eyes on the "mice's" backs fixed on them, the creatures scattered like startled birds.
They were as fast as arrows loosed from a fully drawn bow, vanishing in an instant. The four exchanged a look and each had already locked onto a target.
As Natsu Hiraku left, he shouted, "Kirara-senpai, ride Shura and follow behind Okkotsu! Keep the enemy from ganging up on him!"
"Okay."
Kirara Hoshi looked at Yuta Okkotsu, who had already left, then at Shura, who was half a person tall. Climbing onto Shura's back, he said, "Catch up to Yuta."
"Woof!"
Shura did not resist having someone else ride on his back. After all, it was his master's instruction.
Watching the "mouse" pull farther and farther away, Natsu Hiraku could not help but marvel at how fast the thing really was!
"Then... I should speed up too!"
Crimson cursed energy covered his entire body. With one step, cracks spread across the ground that had been scorched dry yesterday, and he shot forward like an arrow.
The eye on the "mouse's" back stared fixedly at Natsu Hiraku. Seeing him pursue it and nearly catch up, it spoke in a human voice. "Run, run, don't want to be seen, don't want to be thought of, must... get away..."
"What are you running for? If I weren't forbidden from killing you for points, you'd have been chopped into pieces already!"
Natsu Hiraku sprinted after it, the long sword at his waist clinking, but he discovered that he could not catch up no matter what. Whenever he accelerated, the cursed spirit accelerated too.
"Tch, I didn't expect this thing to be so fast. Let's see whether the Sharingan works."
As Natsu Hiraku thought that, his black pupils turned crimson. Two tomoe spun rapidly in each eye, and as cursed energy erupted from his pupils, he directly cast a genjutsu to crash its brain.
But...
The "mouse" continued fleeing for its life, seemingly unaffected by the genjutsu. The eye on its back merely shut for a few seconds before opening again.
"What the hell?! What kind of cursed spirit is this? Genjutsu doesn't work?"
As Natsu Hiraku stared in shock, Gojo Satoru's voice came through. "Forgot to mention it. The 'mice' have two brains. One controls the eye on their backs, while the other is the main brain."
"...You bastard!! Just a stupid mouse—today, we'll see whose cursed energy runs out first!" It was unclear who Natsu Hiraku was yelling "you bastard" at, but his voice was exceptionally loud and heart-wrenching.
Until... a voice came from the sky. "We've got you cornered, Natsu Hiraku!"
Two people instantly appeared around the corner ahead.
Mech-Maru braced his right arm with his left hand. His right palm was open, and cursed energy within it was being compressed without limit.
Noritoshi Kamo had three arrows nocked on his bowstring, which he had drawn fully taut. Red blood coated the arrowheads.
Natsu Hiraku cried out internally that he was done for. He had not expected that he was the one being surrounded!
Author's Note:
Two chapters combined into one!
The "mouse" ran past the two men's feet, but their attention never once left Natsu Hiraku.
The bloodstained arrows flew from the bowstring. The entire path was barely a meter wide. Ambushed by three people in such a cramped space, Natsu Hiraku had been driven into a dead end!
"Click—"
Natsu Hiraku gripped the scabbard in his left hand and pressed his thumb against the hilt, popping the blade free. His crimson Two-Tomoe Sharingan instantly caught the trajectories of all three arrows.
His right hand precisely seized the hilt, and with one slash, he cleaved apart all three incoming arrows.
"Go down! Great Sacred Cannon!!"
Mech-Maru, having completed his charge, fired a blast. The compressed cursed energy cannon instantly expanded, directly filling the entire narrow passage.
There was no way he could evade this attack!
"Bzz! Boom!!"
The cursed energy cannon instantly blasted Natsu Hiraku away. Even the sturdy wall was smashed into a deep crater. It did not stop until the jet mechanism on Mech-Maru's right hand glowed red from overheating and needed to cool down.
Looking at Natsu Hiraku, who was covered in blood, Mech-Maru said confidently, "Let's go. That move won't kill him, but he won't wake up for days. Let's deal with the others."
"Mm."
Noritoshi Kamo nodded. He himself was not confident that he could take that attack head-on. Although surrounding him like this was somewhat unfair, if Natsu Hiraku lost this way, it only meant that his strength was lacking.
"So he lost just like that? I thought he was on Todo's level."
Riding her broom, Nishinomiya Momo slowly descended. She glanced at Natsu Hiraku, embedded in the wall and already unconscious, and was about to leave with the other two.
"Crack—"
Natsu Hiraku slowly opened his eyes and pulled out his right hand. Looking at his broken sword, he said, "You bastards are pretty good at ambushes. You even blasted my sword in half."
"What?!"
The three turned around and stared in disbelief at Natsu Hiraku on the wall. He slowly pulled his limbs out from where they were lodged. The wounds across his body were rapidly healing, and he tossed the broken sword in his hand to the ground like trash.
"Reverse Cursed Technique!"
The teachers watching from the principal's office were stunned. Yoshinobu Gakuganji's hand gripping his cane was trembling.
The teachers began discussing among themselves.
"No way, he can use Reverse Cursed Technique at this age? He seems to be only fifteen, right?"
"That's right. According to the records, he is indeed fifteen."
"This is troublesome. It feels like we're going to lose."
"Thud—"
Yoshinobu Gakuganji's cane struck the floor. The teachers who had been discussing the match instantly fell silent, waiting for the principal's reaction.
"What disgraceful chattering. Quiet down and keep watching!"
"Yes."
"Mmph! Mmph!"
Watching Gojo Satoru's student use Reverse Cursed Technique on the screen, Utahime Iori began struggling.
"Oh? He learned it this quickly. Not bad talent."
Gojo Satoru was somewhat surprised, but he quickly accepted it. After all, he himself had awakened to Reverse Cursed Technique while on the verge of death. Natsu Hiraku's aptitude was not bad to begin with, so what was strange about having an epiphany? Gojo Satoru then tore the tape off Utahime Iori's mouth and asked.
Utahime Iori said in shock, "What the hell did you teach him, you lunatic? You made a fifteen-year-old use Reverse Cursed Technique!"
"I just taught him normally. And if you keep making noise, I'll seal your mouth with tape again." As Gojo Satoru spoke, he picked at his ear with his pinky.
"You..."
Utahime Iori got halfway through her sentence when she saw Gojo Satoru's hand reaching for the tape on the table. She hurriedly said, "I won't say anything. Let me catch my breath."
Although she said that, she grumbled inwardly, Just wait until I call Shoko. Then you're dead!
Gojo Satoru withdrew his right hand and continued watching the screen.
Mech-Maru and Noritoshi Kamo were shocked, while Nishinomiya Momo said in amazement, "No way. He can even use Reverse Cursed Technique? Are all Tokyo School first-years monsters?"
Natsu Hiraku twisted his neck a few times, producing a series of cracks. He directly drew 200 units of cursed energy from Shura for his own use. After taking that attack head-on and using Reverse Cursed Technique to recover, his cursed energy was running a little low.
A qualified top-tier jujutsu sorcerer needed perfect control over his negative emotions. He was angry right now, but not enough to lose his reason. Instead, he transferred his resentment to his broken blade.
In other words, he was now going to avenge his broken sword. Cursed energy also continued replenishing within his body alongside that negative emotion. The amount was small, but it was enough.
"First, I'll get rid of the nuisance!"
Natsu Hiraku's black pupils turned red. Nishinomiya Momo's surprised expression reflected in his two-tomoe eyes. Then the cursed energy in his eyes erupted.
But... nothing happened.
Before you continue