Small Head Controls the Big Head

The moment those words left his mouth, Kana Shizumi noticed a distinct pause among the figures before him.

It was like that subtle sensation in an FPS game when you're in the middle of a heated firefight and the computer suddenly hitches... you just know that some piece of junk is scanning the disk again!

Then.

Kana Shizumi watched as these red-eyed puppets all retreated in unison, finally letting some nondescript guy walk to the front.

By the moonlight, Kana Shizumi finally saw the other's face clearly.

He stood about one meter seventy-five, wearing the standard Kyoto Jujutsu High uniform. From the outside, he looked no different from a normal person, but the exposed, rounded head highlighted a clear sense of inhumanity...

Just as mentioned, this thing was a mechanical puppet.

A wooden structure, reflecting a dim and restrained dark yellow outline under the moonlight... overall, it looked like it had been coated with a layer of paint.

It would be fine if he saw it during the day, but seeing it in the middle of the night, he would have really thought it was a haunting.

As for the other's true identity...

At Kyoto Jujutsu High, he went by the name Mechamaru, his real name being Kokichi Muta.

As one of the "victims" of Heavenly Restriction, the Monkey King traded cursed energy for a supreme physique, while Kokichi Muta traded his physique for cursed energy.

His true body was extremely fragile and unable to move in the outside world; he was born without a right arm and had no sensation below the waist.

He even relied on life-support equipment just to stay conscious in his daily life, so in a sense, he was "paralyzed."

His body was limp, but his technique more than made up for it.

Puppet Manipulation.

This was a technique that allowed for the distribution and infusion of cursed energy, using specific methods to control various objects.

Thanks to the buffs provided by his Heavenly Restriction, this guy's Puppet Manipulation was also greatly enhanced.

With a technique range that could almost cover the entire local area, and a primary attack method consisting of refined and explosive cursed energy output... under the right conditions, Kokichi Muta's sorcery had quite a wealth of utility.

Whether it was gathering intelligence or launching a suicide charge, there were no issues.

Back when he was reading the original work, Kana Shizumi had sighed.

This idiot could have easily stayed in the back, using remote control to harass his opponents... even if his attack power couldn't keep up in the later stages, it was at least a decent means of gathering intelligence.

And yet?

His small head controlled his big head; for the sake of a romance, he made a deal with Kenjaku and Mahito, then turned around and sold out all of Jujutsu High's intelligence.

Although speculating like this might be a bit harsh, since the original work did show this kid cared for his other classmates... but that was all it amounted to.

None of the scenes where everyone else got hurt were as "spectacular" as a single glance from Miwa.

And what Kana Shizumi couldn't wrap his head around most was this guy's way of thinking.

—What on earth was this guy thinking?

Theoretically, a barrier technique master like Kenjaku would definitely set up a two-way Binding Vow, preventing Kokichi Muta from actively exposing information about their side.

But again... before deciding to make a deal with the Cursed Spirits, couldn't he have considered setting up some contingencies?

For example, before making his decision, he could have prepared a puppet machine in advance, so that after becoming a traitor, he could directly contact Gojo.

"Big Boss, I'm turning traitor to date someone, remember to come fish me out later!"

If nothing else, given Jail-sensei's personality, he really might have agreed... of course, if you say you aren't close with Gojo, then at least you could have leveled with Utahime?

The result was that he didn't set up any contingencies, just hand-crafted an EVA Unit and buried it in the mountains, waiting to play a mecha battle with Kenjaku and Mahito.

Bro really seemed to think he could solo two Special Grade units...

In the end, he died, and he didn't get the job done either.

His crush became a mascot, nearly sent away by Jail Mom with a single Spiral.

From the perspective of the original work, he basically made no contribution, instead giving Mahito another piece of close-up nightmare fuel.

One can only say that his decision-making was completely trash.

While Kana Shizumi was still thinking about all this messy stuff, the mechanical puppet spoke first.

"Who are you?"

The voice was layered and stacked, like a distorted microphone, making one's ears itch.

"Just a passerby, a small fry of no consequence. My business isn't important; the main thing is that I can solve your problem."

As soon as these words were spoken, the other's eyes flickered slightly, and he continued on his own.

"No... I could feel the fluctuation of cursed energy just now, and you still have the outline of bloodlust crawling on you. I remember now, you're that 'anomaly' Kamo keeps muttering about."

He raised his right hand and pointed it into the air toward Kana Shizumi.

"The enemy who isn't recorded in the Kamo family tree, but is capable of using Crimson Blood Manipulation."

—The intelligence had been shared.

But that wasn't surprising; after all, there must be information exchange within Kyoto Jujutsu High.

"It's not necessarily a good thing for a technique itself to have memory points..."

With a sigh of lingering emotion, Kana Shizumi stepped back half a pace and spoke in a steady tone.

"Although I'd like to say there's some misunderstanding here... it's useless to explain now, isn't it? So, what do you want to do?"

The mechanical puppet remained silent for a moment before raising its right hand.

Its five fingers splayed slightly, revealing the hollow shape within its palm... and upon seeing this, Kana Shizumi tensed his body ever so slightly.

The guy's attack method was simple: it was either flames converted directly from cursed energy or some other form of impact cannon.

Because he used mechanical puppets, there were basically no issues with reloading or recharging... in a pinch, he could even treat the mechanical puppets as expendable, somewhat similar to Mei Mei's Bird Strike.

Honestly, without a gap in strength so wide it created a tier difference, the guy's Puppet Manipulation was a rather troublesome technique in its own right.

After all, even an elephant could be swarmed to death by ants.

"You hurt Zenin, so I won't let you go. But before that... what exactly did you come to me for?"

After a brief pause, the mechanical puppet's red eyes began to flicker slightly.

"I don't remember ever revealing my real name to the outside world. How do you know it?"

Although he hadn't dropped his attack stance, this change in attitude was a form of "compromise" in itself.

Provoking the other party's desire to communicate was merely a means; being able to hold a normal conversation was the prerequisite.

Only then would come the "fatal blow."

Kana Shizumi smiled and said.

"None of that matters. What I want to say is... I can help you stand up and experience life with your own body. How about it? Do you want to escape your current predicament of being paralyzed?"

"...!"

The mechanical puppet before him remained silent for a long time before lowering its right hand.

"Who exactly are you?"

Hearing those words, Kana Shizumi understood.

This kid.

The little head was starting to control the big head...