Jujutsu Kaisen: Yearning to Become an Immortal God

Kenjaku was amused and said with a chuckle, "Since you know what you're doing, old friend, I won't say more." Then he turned to Mahito and added:

"Ashiya also participated in the campaign against Ryomen Sukuna back then. He faked his death to escape, hoping to preserve himself and continue his revenge. But he never expected Jujutsu Headquarters to betray them after that battle.

"They took the initiative to make peace with Ryomen Sukuna and offered him tributes, practically treating him as a living god. From then on, Ashiya resolved to rule Jujutsu Society, and he has persisted in that ambition to this day."

So it wasn't just jealousy. There was also the hatred of having all his comrades die. Mahito nodded lightly.

Ashiya Sadatsuna, however, said in despair, "Kenjaku, I appreciate you saving me some face, but there's no need for that. After all these years, I've come to understand it. I'm just jealous of monkeys!

"My Cursed Technique was utterly unremarkable. To keep moving forward, I had no choice but to embrace swordsmanship. Swordsmanship was everything to me.

"But that battle shattered my pride completely. The swordsmanship I devoted everything to couldn't compare to the Innate Techniques others possessed from birth as naturally as breathing. How could I not despair?

"If I had been defeated by another technique, I would've had a reason to keep progressing. But Ryomen Sukuna's technique was Slash... Ten years of human effort couldn't compare to a moment of heavenly favor...

"How could I not despair?"

What a relatable working man's hatred of the rich!

Mahito's heart stirred slightly. "Can you still use Simple Domain?"

Ashiya Sadatsuna stared at him in shock, then suddenly laughed. "You really are incredibly perceptive."

Mahito sighed and said with rare sincerity, "Ashiya-sensei, if you could face Ryomen Sukuna again, even if you only broke through his skin, you'd soar into the sky and leap over the Dragon Gate.

"Simple Domain is an extension of one's will. Its core is having no choice but to press forward. It requires an overwhelmingly powerful will to sustain it. But this old man now blames others and harbors hatred. How could he possibly support such powerful willpower?

"He could even say that if he truly faced Ryomen Sukuna, he'd be as loyal as a dog. Of all those who can learn Simple Domain, who would be so pathetic when facing certain death?

"Kasumi Miwa, Atsuya Kusakabe, Kokichi Muta, Yuki Tsukumo, Todo, even Ui Ui—none of them would. With Ashiya Sadatsuna's current mindset, even if he can use Simple Domain, he'll never improve it again. His heart on the path has shattered."

"If I were still the person I was yesterday when I first met you, I would've been unmoved by those words. Back then, I relied on draining my disciples' lifespans to survive. My frail body made living itself painful. I lived only through ambition, my heart as still as dead water."

Ashiya Sadatsuna looked deeply at Mahito. "But now, though I'm still old and decayed, I no longer need to worry about my lifespan. I may not be strong and vigorous, but I can still swing a sword."

Mahito twitched at the corner of his mouth. Good. This old man understood things better than anyone. No wonder he was another ancient monster who had lived for a thousand years, just like Kenjaku. It seemed he could not only use Simple Domain—he even wanted to use it to challenge Ryomen Sukuna again!

Ashiya impatiently said, "How long have we been off-topic? Hurry, hurry! Tell me how you did it! Could it be that your 'evolution' doesn't just affect the body, but focus and mental faculties as well? How is that possible?!"

Just as Mahito was about to speak, someone hurried over.

"Mahito! We have a problem." The newcomer was Kinji Hakari. His expression was grave and his steps hurried.

Ashiya Sadatsuna said unhappily, "I believe I said training should take place in absolute quiet. Instruction requires absolute concentration. During this period, no one should interrupt us unless Satoru Gojo is launching an attack."

Kinji Hakari glanced at the old man, his voice turning cold. "Fortunately, the one coming isn't Gojo-sensei." Ashiya Sadatsuna froze.

Kenjaku became tense as well and hurriedly asked, "What happened?"

"Yuki Tsukumo called me personally." Kinji Hakari took a deep breath. "She... wants to meet Mahito." Ashiya Sadatsuna and Kenjaku said in unison, "Reject her!"

Kenjaku spoke clearly, but urgently. "Mahito, I know your pride. You refuse no one who tracks you down and asks to meet you. You didn't even reject the Zenin Clan.

"But Yuki Tsukumo is different. She's a Special Grade Sorcerer!

"If no other Special Grade Sorcerer stops her, she alone can sweep through the entire Jujutsu Society if she wants to! You haven't even figured out your combat system yet. Fighting her means certain death!

"Unless you use Multiple Soul Fusion.

"But that's a trump card meant to rival Satoru Gojo. You absolutely cannot use it now!

"Because you can't guarantee that you'll kill Yuki Tsukumo. She might expose your trump card to Satoru Gojo! Jujutsu battles are information wars. Once all your information is exposed, you won't be far from death!"

"Everyone knows Satoru Gojo's information—his Six Eyes, his Limitless Technique, his Unlimited Void." Mahito asked with a smile, "But who would dare say they can defeat him?"

"Which is why he isn't far from death," Kenjaku said seriously. "He can't maintain his suppression forever. He'll grow old, and his luck will eventually fail... Just like now. Aren't we plotting against him? The unknown breeds fear, while the known only provokes greed."

Mahito flicked his bamboo sword in a flourish, then slowly returned it to his waist, as though sheathing a blade after Iai. "What time? Where?" he asked.

Deciding to Face Her

Ashiya Sadatsuna roared, "Are you insane?!"

Mahito asked curiously, "Do you know Yuki Tsukumo?"

"I don't know Yuki Tsukumo. Ever since she became a Special Grade Sorcerer, all her information has been classified." Ashiya Sadatsuna slowly said, "But I understand the weight behind the title of Special Grade Sorcerer. Every one of them is a genuine monster. Looking at the current Special Grade Sorcerers, which one can be judged by common sense?

"Just as Kenjaku said, if no other Special Grade Sorcerer stops them, every Special Grade Sorcerer can sweep through the entire Jujutsu Society without exception. Yuki Tsukumo must be the same."

"Even though you don't know even her basic information?" Mahito asked.

Ashiya Sadatsuna became irritated. "Look at this brat beside you. He has Infinite Cursed Energy. In terms of explosive power, he even surpasses Special Grade Sorcerer Yuta Okkotsu. In fact, Yuta Okkotsu has said more than once that if Kinji Hakari is in good condition, he can beat him."

"But why is Yuta Okkotsu a Special Grade Sorcerer, while this cursed sorcerer who can defeat him in good condition isn't a Special Grade?" Kinji Hakari couldn't take it anymore. "I'm not a curse user! I was just expelled!"

"I was wondering about that too," Mahito said. "I've fought Kinji, and I understand just how terrifying Infinite Cursed Energy is. I don't think he's inferior to other Special Grade Sorcerers at all. Why isn't he one? Especially when he clearly has Yuta Okkotsu's endorsement."

Ashiya Sadatsuna looked puzzled. "That's strange. Didn't Kenjaku tell you?"

"There was no need," Kenjaku said casually. "Extend the timeline over a thousand years, and you'll find that so-called Special Grade Sorcerers aren't actually that rare. Mahito doesn't need this knowledge, because his future will inevitably surpass the so-called Special Grade. Take Ryomen Sukuna, for instance—do you think Ryomen Sukuna needed to know what Special Grade meant?"

Kenjaku said to Mahito, "Special Grades are easy enough to find, but sorcerers on Ryomen Sukuna's level have only appeared twice in all the history I know. One was Ryomen Sukuna himself. The other was..."

"Satoru Gojo." Mahito understood.

Ashiya Sadatsuna furrowed his brow. "Kenjaku has neglected his duty."

Kenjaku waved a hand. "I have my own teaching plan. You're a swordsman. No matter what, you have no place criticizing me."

Ashiya Sadatsuna pointed at Kenjaku and said to Mahito, "This is why I care so much about you! Damn it! I'm telling you, Kenjaku's attitude toward swordsmen isn't an exception—it's the norm! These bastards all look down on swordsmen. Every last one thinks that once they're sorcerers, they shouldn't use swords, as though swords are some filthy thing not worth caring about.

"I'm going to break that shitty norm. I'm going to restore swords to greatness. I'm going to make New Shadow Style the only path in Jujutsu Society! I'm going to cut down all of the Big Three Families! I'll cut down Jujutsu Headquarters too!"

Now Mahito understood the old man's thought process a little better.

He remembered that Naoya Zenin had seemingly been the same in the original work. Naoya Zenin had bluntly stated that it was disgraceful for sorcerers to use weapons. Even though carrying a short blade could reliably improve one's strength, sorcerers refused to do so and considered it humiliating.

The Zenin Clan's Kukuru Unit was made entirely of sorcerers without Innate Techniques, and they all carried swords. Yet among the elite sorcerer group Hei, everyone except Ogi Zenin fought barehanded.

Ogi Zenin's technique was ordinary, which was why he used swordsmanship to complete his combat system. If his technique had been as flashy as the others', he probably wouldn't have studied swordsmanship either. For sorcerers, using swordsmanship really was something shameful.

The old man had finally encountered a disciple like Mahito—someone who was both a jujutsu genius and sincerely willing to learn swordsmanship. Of course he treasured him. That was why he cared about Mahito's safety even more than Mahito himself did.

Kenjaku said cheerfully, "Old friend, though I've always been mindful of your pride and was willing to speak for you in the past, I must refute you now.

"I must say, since you founded New Shadow Style, there have been many extraordinarily talented people among its practitioners, and some were indeed born with Innate Techniques. But search your conscience—what did their achievements have to do with your New Shadow Style?

"Your New Shadow Style has always merely added flowers to brocade. It has never sent charcoal in the snow!

"Over a thousand years, the proper path for sorcerers has become perfectly clear to everyone. Delving into one's own Innate Technique, studying shikigami, Barrier Technique, or Cursed Energy reinforcement are all easier ways to become stronger than studying swordsmanship.

"I recall that the greatest New Shadow Style user of this era is Atsuya Kusakabe, right? He has no Innate Technique. If he wanted to survive in Jujutsu Society, he had no choice but to embrace your New Shadow Style and rely on Simple Domain for survival.

"Guess this: if he had his own Innate Technique, would he even spare your New Shadow Style a glance?" That struck straight at the heart. Ashiya Sadatsuna flew into a rage. "You fucking—!"

Mahito comforted him from the side. "Teacher Ashiya, aren't I still asking you to teach me? Swordsmanship isn't completely useless."

Kenjaku coolly said, "Are you really learning swordsmanship? No. You're doing it to better wield Mirokuji Kirigiri. You don't love swordsmanship—you love your Tsukumogami. If you hadn't happened to cultivate a Tsukumogami, I'd wager you wouldn't have spared my old friend a second glance."

Ashiya Sadatsuna finally lost it. He violently swung the bamboo sword in his hand, producing a booming crack in the air like thunder striking level ground. Yet the bamboo sword remained completely intact, wrapped in a faint layer of blue Cursed Energy like a perfectly fitted formal suit.

"Kenjaku, since I can remember, I don't think I've ever fought you, have I? Come, come! Let this old man see what you're made of!" The old man roared furiously. A visible ring of soundwaves spread from his voice, making everyone nearby's eardrums ache.

Kenjaku raised both hands without any dignity. "Yes, yes, yes. I was wrong. I shouldn't have insulted the swordsmanship you love so much.

"I must admit that New Shadow Style is already the best way out for sorcerers without Innate Techniques. And I also believe that if the Big Three Families of Jujutsu Society all decline at once, your New Shadow Style might really unify Jujutsu Society, just as Tokugawa Ieyasu eventually unified the Warring States Period."

"You're calling me a turtle?!" Ashiya Sadatsuna raged.

"I'm complimenting you. Tokugawa Ieyasu was the man who ultimately unified the Warring States Period," Kenjaku emphasized.

Kinji Hakari held his head and asked Mahito, "Is this your daily life? Keeping two thousand-year-old lunatics company while they go crazy?"

Mahito laughed. "Isn't it interesting? Both Kenjaku and Ashiya are immortal senior figures. We'll have to follow in their footsteps in the future.

"You see how modern works often have these so-called curses of longevity, as though immortality is some unbearable punishment. But look at these seniors. Is there even a trace of 'curse' about them?

"Kinji, you should watch and learn properly too. This is the mindset an immortal should have."

"Is now really the time to care about the mindset of immortality?!" Kinji Hakari roared. "Yuki Tsukumo is about to come after us! And you're still talking nonsense here!"

Ashiya Sadatsuna suddenly came back to his senses. "Right, right, right, we went off-topic again! Mahito, don't go meet Yuki Tsukumo." Mahito didn't answer immediately. Instead, he carefully asked Kenjaku, "Does Yuki Tsukumo have the ability to find this place?"

Kenjaku confidently replied, "Even Tengen can't! Of course, that means Tengen as she is now. If Tengen becomes a god, then I can't guarantee it." "So this place is safe for the time being, right?" Mahito asked.

"Yes." Kenjaku looked at Mahito thoughtfully. "I think I understand what you mean. You have 'teleportation.' If a fight really breaks out, you can return at any time? You want to test Yuki Tsukumo?"

"You can teleport?" Ashiya Sadatsuna stared at Mahito in disbelief.

Kenjaku ignored Ashiya Sadatsuna completely and simply advised Mahito, "If you plan to rely on teleportation to save your life, then you're underestimating Special Grade Sorcerers far too much.

"Yuki Tsukumo's information is tightly guarded. Even I haven't uncovered any specific intelligence on her. I haven't even learned her Innate Technique. That is extremely rare in Jujutsu Society, because any sorcerer must fight, and as long as they fight, they can't avoid exposing their Innate Technique.

"But Yuki Tsukumo has never revealed hers. Do you know what that means?

"It doesn't just mean she values information secrecy. It also proves that aside from her Innate Technique, she must be exceptionally skilled in universal jujutsu. She can defeat everyone under heaven using universal jujutsu alone, without ever needing her Innate Technique.

"And among universal jujutsu, the most useful is Barrier Technique... Barrier Technique is the foundation of Domain Expansion."

Mahito understood the deeper meaning in Kenjaku's words.

Not every Special Grade Sorcerer could use Domain Expansion. Take the dead Suguru Geto, whose body Kenjaku currently occupied—he couldn't use Domain Expansion. His strongest offensive method was Maximum Technique.

Yuki Tsukumo, however, could use it.

For sorcerers, whether one could use Domain Expansion represented a qualitative difference. A sorcerer with Domain Expansion naturally crushed one without it. It could even be said that without special means, one who had it could kill the other directly within their line of sight.

Kenjaku slowly said, "If you had already learned Simple Domain, I naturally wouldn't stop you. I'd even suggest you test Yuki Tsukumo's mettle.

"But you haven't. Going to meet Yuki Tsukumo now is too dangerous. The moment she sees you, she may directly use Domain Expansion. I don't know what Yuki Tsukumo's Domain Expansion is, but no matter what it is, Mahito, I don't believe you'll escape unscathed."

Mahito smiled and pointed at Kenjaku as he said to Ashiya Sadatsuna, "This is the benefit of learning swordsmanship." Ashiya Sadatsuna was bewildered. He stared blankly at Kenjaku, unable to understand.

Kenjaku understood, though. He frowned slightly. "Mahito, I thought you could distinguish recklessness from courage."

Mahito smiled. "Do you think I'm going to meet Yuki Tsukumo just like this?" Kenjaku stroked his chin, looking confused. "What exactly do you mean?"

Mahito calmly said, "I'll be blunt. I've never been worried about Yuki Tsukumo, even if, in your eyes, she possesses the ability to destroy Jujutsu Society alone. What I'm worried about is the person behind Yuki Tsukumo. Why can Yuki Tsukumo find Kinji's phone number?"

The question was directed at Kinji Hakari. He thought for a moment. "Could Mei Mei have given it to her?"

"If Mei Mei dares to appear before me, she'll die." Mahito shook his head. "Mei Mei understands my terror better than anyone. She must have guessed some of my abilities too. When I made that agreement with her, I was actually testing her credibility... Unfortunately, she failed. Maybe my hand touching Ui Ui made her feel offended?"

Mahito shrugged. "I don't know. But the one thing I know for certain is that she isn't in Japan at all right now."

Kinji Hakari suddenly understood. "She ran away! I remember she has businesses all over the world. She could be anywhere in the world right now, but the one place she absolutely can't be is Japan, because she broke her word!

"Even without a Binding Vow, she can't withstand your personal retaliation, Mahito. She must have gone into hiding. While in hiding, she can't contact anyone in Jujutsu Society. She didn't leak my number."

Kinji Hakari wasn't talking nonsense. Mei Mei really was that kind of person.

There had been such a scene in the original work as well. Once she confirmed that Ryomen Sukuna had emerged and Satoru Gojo had been sealed, Mei Mei's first instinct wasn't to unite with everyone and fight Ryomen Sukuna. Instead, she took Ui Ui and ran away, fleeing to the United States to become a bystander.

Ryomen Sukuna was naturally more terrifying than Mahito, and Satoru Gojo was indeed still in Japan. But Ryomen Sukuna wasn't targeting Mei Mei, and Satoru Gojo couldn't remain around her twenty-four hours a day. Being targeted and not being targeted were entirely different things. With Mei Mei's personality, she would never stay in Japan and wait to die.

After saying that, Kinji Hakari's expression changed drastically. "Other than her, no one should clearly know about my relationship with you. That means... Tengen made a move?"

Kenjaku denied it. "No, it wasn't Tengen. I understand Tengen. Unless her safety is threatened, she won't interfere with Jujutsu Society. We don't yet have the ability to strike at Tengen's territory, and my existence hasn't been exposed. Tengen wouldn't act."

Kinji Hakari was baffled. "Then who was it?"

Mahito spoke a name. "Satoru Gojo." Everyone was horrified.

Kenjaku's expression darkened. "Where exactly did we get exposed? With Satoru Gojo's personality, he should still be in the stage of looking down on us, even if we did wipe out the entire Zenin Clan... Who was it? Could it have been Kokichi Muta? But we made a Binding Vow with him. He shouldn't...?"

"If it really were Satoru Gojo, then he would call Kinji directly. I'm willing to believe this is merely a coincidence." Mahito exhaled. "But I can't be sure... So I have to meet her. Of course it's dangerous, but it's better than Satoru Gojo coming straight to our door. We aren't ready to fight Satoru Gojo yet, are we?"

Kenjaku suddenly understood. "So this is what is meant by pressing forward without hesitation." Ashiya Sadatsuna interrupted them. "Wait, how did we get to pressing forward without hesitation?"

Kenjaku glanced at him and smiled. "Your own theory, yet you don't even understand it properly?" Ashiya Sadatsuna's mouth twitched, and the bamboo sword in his hand began to glow with Cursed Energy again.

"When there is no other way, one must press forward without hesitation. That is the domain of the weak," Mahito slowly said. "Swordsmanship has never been merely a skill for killing. It is also a way of conducting oneself.

"Miyamoto Musashi once wrote The Book of Five Rings. It is a textbook on swordsmanship, a work of military strategy, and a philosophy for living. That is true swordsmanship.

"Ashiya may never have written such a book, but his words and actions reveal this principle everywhere." Ashiya Sadatsuna was speechless. "Do I?"

"Why does Ashiya hate the current Jujutsu Headquarters so much?" Mahito asked.

"Because they are unworthy of their positions!" Ashiya Sadatsuna spat, his face full of disgust. "I thought you'd say it was because of the ambition in your heart." Mahito smiled.

Ashiya Sadatsuna paused for several seconds before speaking in a complicated tone. "I've never concealed the ambition in my heart. In fact, I've said similar things to nearly everyone under me. I even required every disciple who learned Simple Domain from me to abide by a Binding Vow: whenever I need them, they must fight for me unconditionally. Of course, I won't use that Binding Vow casually."

In fact, even when Ashiya Sadatsuna died in the original work, he never used that clause. He really set it up for nothing. Mahito casually waved a hand. "Does Ashiya think I'm praising you?

"To hide, Ashiya lowered himself to living in a cramped grocery store. He ate rotten potatoes others had discarded, drank water no one wanted, wore an old man's apron, and the wrinkles on his skin could trap flies.

"Though you are immortal, you don't dare take too much lifespan from your disciples. Your strength has regressed to the point where you can't even lift a sword,