Panel Improvements

Kana Shizumi felt a slight headache.

The memories churning through his mind were shapeless, like glass dropped onto the ground and shattered into scattered fragments.

So I have to piece them together myself after all...

Fortunately, with no outside interference, Kana Shizumi quickly sorted through this part of his thoughts.

He did not know the man's name from those memories. Even his face and other details were extremely vague and muddled...

It was as though a voice by his ear kept repeating, "Those aren't important." Kana Shizumi's attention naturally fell on the other contents.

First...

This thing was a Cursed Object.

Then what exactly could it do, and what effects did it have?

The instant the thought settled, Kana Shizumi watched the jade slowly sink beneath his flesh... Like water blending with milk, the Cursed Tool naturally embedded itself into his body.

"...???"

Still shaken, he searched himself up and down. In the end, through his ability to sense blood, he roughly pinpointed the abnormal sensation inside his body at his "chest."

The Sky-Covering Jade had sunk deep into his heart, as though it had become part of his body.

At the same time, familiar prompts appeared before Kana Shizumi's eyes.

[Obtained Six Paths Crossroads—Heavenly Canopy Jade]

[Fusion conditions met. Total cursed energy +5]

[Preset Cursed Tool special effect activated...]

As he watched the string of messages appear, Kana Shizumi's initially complicated expression turned excited.

So that was it. No wonder!

Jail Mom really had handed him a gun.

Moreover, after observing and piecing things together, he readily arrived at a further conclusion.

"This thing is activated through blood..."

Kana Shizumi recalled the suffix attached to his Innate Technique on the panel.

Modified Blood Manipulation.

He had reason to suspect that Kenjaku had mixed something strange into his inheritance—something like a key that could directly activate these Cursed Tools and unlock the restrictions they had originally retained.

There was too little information at the moment to uncover anything deeper. But none of that was particularly important anyway. He could slowly explore it later.

And judging by the results... the gains were considerable.

After all, through Hanami's rampage at the hospital, Kana Shizumi had received some other "rewards" as well.

[Completed the "Brush with Death" trial]

[Received special reward: "Cursed Energy Efficiency" +2]

Huh!

From the looks of it, completing his troublemaker duties was far from the only way to earn rewards.

"Insights gained through PvP, or breakthroughs in the middle of battle... should probably grant corresponding special rewards too."

In theory, when a fight got intense enough, it should be easy to land a Black Flash.

Considering what had happened before, Kana Shizumi had reason to believe that... if he had possessed the strength of a Grade 1 Sorcerer back then, he probably could have landed that black flash.

Damn! He could have elbowed them as hard as he wanted!

At this point, aside from lamenting how pathetically weak he was, Kana Shizumi had no other thoughts.

"My stats went up again."

After his sigh, Kana Shizumi took a moment to quickly inspect his current panel.

[Kana Shizumi]

[Total Cursed Energy: 44 (+5 provided by Cursed Tool)]

[Cursed Energy Efficiency: 24]

[Cursed Energy Output: 22]

[Innate Technique: Modified Blood Manipulation]

[Hand-to-Hand Combat and Cursed Energy Control: 33]

[Derived Abilities: None]

After a brief moment of thought, Kana Shizumi assigned the two free stat points he had obtained earlier to "Cursed Energy Efficiency" once more.

Only after seeing the number rise to [26] did Kana Shizumi feel somewhat relieved.

In fact, this battle had given him a rather profound realization.

—For his current level, cursed energy circulation efficiency was an absolutely crucial factor.

"Faster circulation, more power packed into each technique, and lower consumption at the same time..."

He could fight, endure, and run.

Improving the overall efficiency of his cursed techniques was literally the best possible stat for Crimson Blood Manipulation, a technique with such a wide range of applications.

Of course, the main reason was that Kana Shizumi had really started craving Piercing Blood after seeing it.

After all, what man did not want to have an actual sniper rifle?

Blood compressed through Convergence could be activated and fired with a specific technique... reaching speeds that broke the sound barrier in a short time.

He could make a sniper rifle with his bare hands.

But looking at it this way, the Six Eyes were still absurdly overpowered.

Satoru Gojo could make his cursed energy consumption fail to keep up with his recovery rate, firing Blue Fists with his left hand and Red Fists with his right, then bringing his hands together for a heaven-shaking explosion.

And if that still did not kill you, he would open his Domain and stuff all sorts of garbage into your brain. With that one-meter-ninety absurdly optimized body, even his fists had an absolute advantage...

The more Kana Shizumi thought about it, the more he laughed.

How was he supposed to fight a bullshit monster boss like that? From the villains' perspective, Sukuna absolutely had to show up.

Otherwise, Jail Mom would have to lead everyone in attacking Gojo's shoe soles with their heads...

With that thought in mind,

Kana Shizumi let out a soft breath and looked around.

It was still early, not yet time for the temple to open. But if he kept lingering, he would most likely run into unnecessary trouble.

Tightening the brand-new Mammut shell jacket he had acquired for zero yen, Kana Shizumi hurriedly left.

One day later.

"Welcome back."

Kenjaku warmly welcomed Kana Shizumi, who had returned to their hideout looking travel-worn.

He even stood up to pull out a chair for him.

"Sit."

Faced with an elder, Kana Shizumi displayed the proper restraint of a young man.

"These are pickled persimmons I brought from Kyoto. Please enjoy..."

Seeing the exquisitely packaged gift box, even Kenjaku could not help choking up.

"So you delayed your return by a day just to buy souvenirs?"

"Huh? No... I ran out of money. The Shinkansen was too expensive, so after running a third of the way, I took a night bus back."

Kana Shizumi pulled out the last 126 yen in his pocket, his face full of melancholy.

"Give me another two days on my own, and I'll probably have to start surviving off trash cans. Honestly, Tokyo's crows are pretty fierce. I might not even be able to compete with them for food... so."

Jail Mom.

"Do I really not get paid for missions?"

Kenjaku raised his right hand and rubbed his cheek expressionlessly, his tone carrying an awkwardness too subtle to describe.

"I'll give you a bank card later. The money on it can be withdrawn and used as you please..."