After that little interruption, Yuta Okkotsu quickly got to know the others.
Soon, led by Gojo Sawa and the others, the new students hurried into Jujutsu High to register in the directory.
Nanako Hasaba, Grade 2 Jujutsu Sorcerer, innate technique "Focal Shadow Capture." Using a phone camera as a medium, she could force a target in the frame to stay still for one second. The technique had a one-minute cooldown.
Mimiko Hasaba, Grade 2 Jujutsu Sorcerer, innate technique "Rope-Bound Doll." She could control a doll's flight and use the rope connecting it to her hand to bind and strangle targets.
It was worth mentioning that Suguru Geto had made a special trip to South Africa for Mimiko and bought a special Cursed Tool there—the Black Rope.
Rikyu Negi, Grade 2 Jujutsu Sorcerer, innate technique "Explosive Firefly." He could create several fireflies and make them explode to inflict damage.
Though none of the three children Suguru Geto had raised were top-tier, they were all quite talented.
Toge Inumaki, Grade 2 Jujutsu Sorcerer, a descendant of the Cursed Speech User clan. He could produce curses through language.
For that reason, he couldn't speak freely, lest he accidentally hurt his companions. He could only use sushi ingredients to express what he meant.
Panda, Grade 2 Jujutsu Sorcerer, a Cursed Corpse. It seemed the higher-ups had deliberately covered up information about him, since very little was known.
However, the next two students' grades were quite unexpected.
Maki Zenin, Grade 4 Sorcerer, a Cursed Tool user. She had almost no Cursed Energy, and could only see Cursed Spirits through special glasses. She fought using martial arts.
"Grade 4?"
Suguru Geto looked surprised.
Judging by Maki's stance and breathing, her martial arts had reached at least the level of a Kaiden.
To achieve that at her age made her a martial arts prodigy. How could she possibly be only Grade 4?
Gojo Satoru made a gagging face. "Those old geezers are as rotten and disgusting as ever!"
Yet Maki didn't look upset at all when she saw "Grade 4."
On the contrary, she'd expected this.
As for whether she really was only Grade 4, that would become clear once she was on the battlefield. Actions spoke louder than words!
"And last..."
Gojo Satoru looked at Yuta Okkotsu, a bad feeling rising in his heart.
Yuta scratched his head, then bashfully pulled out his student ID.
Everyone took one look and their eyes widened.
"S-Special Grade?!"
Looking at Yuta Okkotsu's harmless face, everyone's mouths twitched.
Megumi Fushiguro turned to look at Gojo Satoru, who seemed utterly dejected.
So this is the person you want me to defeat a year from now?
Warm sunlight fell across the beach. As far as the eye could see stretched an endless blue sky and sea.
A woman wearing sunglasses lay on a deck chair, enjoying the sun. The conspicuous stitches across her forehead looked rather eerie.
Beside her were a one-eyed Cursed Spirit with a head like a chimney, a red octopus, and a handsome man covered in stitches.
Suddenly, the space warped, and two figures stepped out.
"Hey! Hanami and Uraume are back!"
The woman with stitches on her forehead stood up, wearing a kind smile that seemed fake on closer inspection.
The woman was named Kaori Itadori. Of course, the one occupying her body at that moment was a thousand-year-old Curse User named Kenjaku.
The one-eyed Cursed Spirit—Jogo—took a drag from his pipe. "Hanami, how did it go?"
Hanami shook her head. "The Cursed Spirit beneath Yasohachi Bridge was exorcised. Yorozu has disappeared too. She's most likely dead."
Kenjaku furrowed her brow. "Do you know who did it?"
"No. The other party seemed experienced and erased every trace of the battle. They left nothing behind."
"Damn it!"
Jogo's volcanic head began to smoke as his temper flared.
"Now we've lost not only an ally like Yorozu, but a Sukuna's Finger as well!"
Uraume gave a displeased snort. "That madwoman's absence makes no difference!"
A thousand years ago, Yorozu had confessed her feelings to Sukuna and brazenly declared that she would take Uraume's place.
Uraume had never forgotten that, and had never liked Yorozu.
If Kenjaku hadn't said Yorozu could become a useful tool to help them, Uraume wouldn't have minded roasting the madwoman alive.
(Uraume was Sukuna's chef. Sukuna liked eating people.)
Hearing Hanami's report, Kenjaku sank into thought.
Scenes from the past thousand years flashed through her mind.
A thousand years of lying low and enduring hardship, and at last the crucial moment had arrived—only for a bolt from the blue to strike.
The Gojo Clan had produced another Six Eyes user, and they were twins!
At first, Kenjaku hadn't thought much of it. Because of the curse surrounding twins, one of them was bound to be useless.
And based on past experience, attempts to assassinate a Six Eyes user either failed or resulted in another pair of Six Eyes appearing to oppose her, as if it were an inescapable fate.
So Kenjaku had simply left the Six Eyes Twins alone and spent all these years painstakingly gathering Sukuna's Fingers.
But reality had slapped her in the face.
Neither of the Six Eyes users was useless. In fact, they were already so powerful they were beyond control.
The elder twin, Gojo Sawa, was especially dangerous. Several times, Kenjaku had used every means at her disposal to spy on him, and had nearly been discovered and killed in retaliation!
And as if the Six Eyes Twins weren't enough, someone else with Cursed Spirit Manipulation had appeared—and they were absurdly powerful too.
The pressure was immense!
For the first time in a thousand years, Kenjaku was playing on hell difficulty. It felt like the matchmaking system was rigged.
So she'd activated some of her hidden trump cards early, such as unsealing a portion of the Incarnation Cursed Objects to give her side more manpower.
Uraume and Yorozu had been chosen to incarnate early.
Both were absolutely loyal to Sukuna, and Kenjaku's next move was to revive him. They would surely help her with everything they had.
But now, Uraume had been revived...
And only minutes after Yorozu had incarnated, Kenjaku sensed her presence vanish from the sealed Cursed Object.
Damn it!
She'd just summoned a teammate, and before they'd even taken a step out of the fountain, they were gone.
What kind of useless teammate was that? Did they even know how to play?
Kenjaku rubbed her cheek, feeling an inexplicable anxiety well up inside her.
She had the feeling that a pair of eyes watched her from behind, observing her every move, as if someone were deliberately thwarting whatever she did next.
That feeling was especially strong whenever she watched Gojo Sawa.
"Hey! What are you spacing out for?"
Jogo snarled. "What exactly is this vessel for Sukuna you mentioned? When are we making our move?"
"If you keep dragging your feet, I'll burn you to a crisp!"
Jogo was the strongest of the Four Great Disaster Curses—and the most hot-tempered.
Kenjaku glanced at Jogo out of the corner of her eye and cursed inwardly. You're just a Cursed Spirit! Don't get so full of yourself!
But on the surface, she wore a false smile. "In that case, let's get started!"
Though she was extremely wary of the Six Eyes Twins and Cursed Spirit Manipulation, Kenjaku had no intention of backing down.
"My informant at Jujutsu High says that one of Sukuna's Fingers will soon be temporarily stored at..."
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