046:吃鸡赛的最后准备

Kana Shizumi finished reading everything and set down the item in his hand, still looking unsatisfied.

If he had never entertained such thoughts before, then now that he had truly seen the words "Domain," Kana Shizumi could not help making certain associations.

A Domain...

As everyone knew.

Within the Jujutsu Kaisen system, a Domain represented a sorcerer's ultimate move.

It was the absolute result of honing one's cursed technique, Barrier Technique, and personal strength to their limits, then using cursed energy to condense all that power into a single form.

It symbolized a sorcerer's ultimate strength and, in a sense, the manifestation of the "pinnacle" of their craft.

To put it simply, it was roughly comparable to the Bankai from the neighboring Bleach series.

It had an extremely high ceiling, absurd power boosts, and was even a key method of shaping certain characters.

All in all... this thing was extraordinary, whether in practical use or significance.

Now that Kana Shizumi had finally transmigrated here, it was only natural that he wanted to learn it.

So then.

Could Crimson Blood Manipulation work with a Domain?

Considering that, in the original work, this technique itself was only around the level of a first-rate low-tier ability, Kana Shizumi had no one to use as a reference.

Besides... this was not something one could learn simply by wanting to.

Fushiguro from the original work was a typical example. As an officially designated Grade 2 Sorcerer, after facing immense external pressure, he had even managed to activate a half-finished Domain.

That alone showed that, in Jujutsu Society, talent was the true prerequisite.

Comparing yourself to others could really make you furious.

If Zi saw this, she would probably start cursing again.

Are all sorcerers in this era freaks like you?

She would definitely tear him apart over it!

Ahem. Back to the point.

All things considered, Kana Shizumi did indeed possess the prerequisites to open a Domain.

First, his proficiency in and understanding of Kenjaku's Barrier Technique.

Second, a total reserve of cursed energy sufficient to support one complete activation.

Third, he possessed a cursed technique capable of attacking...

With all the conditions fulfilled, working backward from the result made Kana Shizumi himself—the main body—the actual problem.

His brain probably just was not good enough. He could not imagine what a Domain was supposed to look like...

After agonizing over it for a while, he ultimately sighed and set the matter aside for the time being.

Rather than hoping for something so intangible, he should collect the Cursed Objects first. After all, Kana Shizumi was greatly looking forward to getting a second cursed technique.

After clearing the table and putting away the washed dishes, Kana Shizumi glanced at the clock beside the living room.

It was already eleven thirty.

It was about time to rest... but before that, he did not forget to take out his phone and check in.

To record the time.

As the plotline gradually approached, this was his way of reminding himself not to forget important points in the timeline.

After all, time passed ridiculously fast in the Jujutsu Kaisen world...

Looking at that long chain of events known as the Shinjuku Incident, the whole thing had only taken a few hours at most.

From an ordinary person's perspective, it was literally a living nightmare.

You could be going to work or school as usual, then suddenly the subway exploded, skyscrapers collapsed, homes were sliced into pieces, and finally a massive fire swept through...

And it was not even over.

Because after the fight, the Culling Game began.

Those lucky enough to survive still had to endure harassment from all kinds of Cursed Spirits... Seriously, were they treating everyone like they were Japanese?

So Kana Shizumi was rather sensitive to changes in time now.

Although today's experience had made him more cautious about changing the plot... that was merely a matter of being careful.

If he had a chance to pull off something big, Kana Shizumi would not mind taking a risk!

At worst, he would come clean to Jail Mom afterward...

As he pondered that, Kana Shizumi's phone suddenly vibrated.

The sound caught him slightly off guard. After all, when he had transmigrated here, Kana Shizumi had used True Person's hand-crafted assistance to replace his phone and other things related to his personal information.

The number of actual people in his contact list was definitely below average...

So who would be messaging him at this hour?

When he opened it, the unread message from Yuji Itadori made his eyes widen slightly.

Without hesitation, Kana Shizumi tapped it open and saw a selfie.

Yuji was holding his phone high in the shot.

—It was easy to see that the kid had no talent for photography, because Yuji had not even considered the backlighting...

Nearly a quarter of the finished photo was occupied by his grinning face.

The rest... was somewhat blurry, but not so bad that it was unrecognizable.

Kana Shizumi quickly realized where it was.

It was the pachinko parlor he had visited with Yuji yesterday.

[Kana-san, the machine where you hit 777 yesterday has been completely booked out now. I heard it paid out two more jackpots afterward... It's been given the title of "winning machine" now. That's amazing!]

Something like that had happened?

Kana Shizumi looked at the long line in the photo and could not hold back a quiet laugh.

Pachinko was pretty interesting—though for Kana Shizumi, that was limited to playing with friends.

[When are you coming by next, Kana-san?]

Looking at Yuji's follow-up message, Kana Shizumi pondered for a moment without replying immediately.

He was considering whether he should continue making contact and "following up."

After all, through Jail Mom's notes, he had roughly understood his current circumstances... If he wanted to survive, it would be better to keep things a little more stable before it began.

So, should he refuse?

Holding his phone, he silently rubbed the screen. A few seconds later, he began typing.

[Next time, maybe... tomorrow, or the day after. I'll contact you when I'm free, okay?]

Yuji replied quickly. The message Kana Shizumi had sent had barely settled before a corresponding notification appeared.

"Read"

At the same time, "Typing..." appeared at the top of the screen almost immediately.

[No problem! Next time, Kana-san can come earlier, and I can treat you to ramen!]

[Aren't you a high school student? Isn't staying up this late a problem?]

[There's no need to worry about grades at all. I'm an athletic scholarship student, so I can get in through special admission.]

Kana Shizumi felt like he was being laughed into anger.

This kid really was an athletic scholarship student...

After chatting briefly, the two naturally settled on a time for their next meeting.

After struggling with it for a while, Kana Shizumi still concluded that they should "meet." On one hand, Yuji was the protagonist. Whatever Kana Shizumi did afterward, he should be able to influence the plot rather easily through him.

There was a great deal of room to maneuver there, and Kana Shizumi did not want to miss that opportunity.

On the other hand, it was for the future.

Just in case... purely just in case.

If this troublemaker somehow failed to make a difference, the plot did not change much, and Sukuna still got beaten into a fool...

Then at least he could tell Yuji, "One day of pachinko, a hundred days of gratitude," shamelessly cling to him to stay alive, and avoid the reckoning first.

Hehe, I want to live.

With that thought, Kana Shizumi put down his phone in high spirits and closed his eyes to rest.

Tomorrow would surely be better!

Then...

The next morning.

"Unblemished, I have a task for you."

Kenjaku, who was taking small sips of hot milk, spoke without looking up.

"Go to Sendai. I'll give you the exact coordinates... then help me bury this thing at the designated location."

As he spoke, Kenjaku placed an object on the table and pushed it toward Kana Shizumi.

A mission already?

Kana Shizumi had thought he would still be collecting fingers... Instead, he was taking a trip to Sendai.

Kana Shizumi reflexively acknowledged him and saw a small wooden box sitting on the table.

It was square, no larger than a fist. Though he had not opened it yet, a single glance was enough to catch that faint, creeping, twisted "aura" clinging to it.

There was no doubt about it. This thing contained cursed energy.

And... not a small amount. It was not outrageous enough to be Special Grade, but it was still considerable.

Kana Shizumi gripped it in his hand and weighed it. It had some heft to it as well...

"This thing, I..."

"You can open it and take a look. I don't mind."

Well, if he put it that way, why would Kana Shizumi stand on ceremony? Open it!

He opened it and glanced inside, only to find an ordinary ring-shaped piece of jade.

Judging by its form, it seemed to be some kind of accessory used by ancient nobles... Kana Shizumi knew nothing about that sort of thing, so he discreetly glanced at Kenjaku.

Jail Mom was cooperatively wiping his mouth after finishing his fried egg. Without raising his head, he said, "It's probably a Grade 1 Cursed Object... I'm not especially clear on the exact classifications either. It was made recently, so I don't care too much."

After all.

"Its main purpose is to partition regions and impose various restrictions... Oh, right, I taught you how to use Barrier Technique before, didn't I? Unblemished, you should understand its purpose."

Why was there a pop quiz now...?

Fortunately, he had learned the material fairly solidly. Kana Shizumi scratched his head and managed to recall some of the relevant details.

"You arrange certain tools imbued with cursed energy and make them resonate according to specific patterns... These Cursed Objects can form boundaries, which then create a medium-to-large barrier?"

"Mm, you got two-thirds of it right. Still, that's not bad. The rest is something I haven't taught you."

Kenjaku waved a hand and spoke as though he did not care.

"To set up a large barrier, the key is defining its scope and determining its effects... It's still only a half-finished product, so we're prioritizing the boundaries first. I won't say more. There's no point when you wouldn't understand it anyway."

He slowly rose to his feet and stretched.

"Go early and come back early. If I have time afterward, I can teach you some other things."

Kenjaku's little classroom was about to begin again.

Considering that Kenjaku really was willing to teach him things, Kana Shizumi was eager to learn.

But before that... all his attention was now focused on the item in his hand.

Honestly, just because Jail Mom did not explain it, did that mean he could not figure it out?

Of course not... Kana Shizumi had almost figured it out halfway through listening.

Defining an area to impose restrictions, reinforcing and limiting it by burying Cursed Objects, with Sendai as the destination...

Weren't you setting up the stage for the Jujutsu battle royale?!

He had thought this should have been arranged years in advance, but apparently it had only been built a few months beforehand?

It felt awfully slapdash...

Still, it was understandable. This job could be as large or small as necessary. Judging from the timeline and workload, in the original plot, Kenjaku and the Cursed Spirits had most likely buried them personally.

And now? They had a free laborer they could use whenever they wanted.

"Understood. I'll head over there, then..."

"Mm, be careful on the road. Try not to use cursed energy, since the Tokyo area is very unsafe. There should still be money on the bank card I gave you, right? Try to be a little frugal... Take the train once in a while. Going out and seeing the world is necessary too."

Kana Shizumi knew that without being told...

As he sighed inwardly, he began packing his luggage and making all the preparations needed before heading out.

And before he began moving.

Almost at the same time...

Inside Tokyo Jujutsu High, a man dozing in the teachers' office suddenly shuddered.

"Hiss..."

White hair, covered eyes, an absurdly perfect build.

With those keywords alone, his identity was obvious.

Satoru Gojo clicked his tongue and lifted his phone to his ear.

"Hello? What is it? A mission? A meeting? Something involving the Kamo Lineage? What a pain... A cursed technique passed down outside the family isn't that unusual, is it? Well~ I get it... I'll head over in a bit."

After hanging up, he had just started to rise when his phone rang again.

Ah...

Wasn't this getting a little too busy?!

But for him, this pace of life seemed to be "within expectations."

With a soft sigh, Satoru Gojo answered it. His tone still carried its usual upward lilt, with no sign of low spirits.

"A Cursed Spirit? What grade is it? Estimated between Grade 2 and Grade 1... I see. That kind of thing really is too difficult for the supervisors."

So what should they do?

"I'll arrange it, so don't worry... Mm, contact me again if anything comes up."

After hanging up, Satoru Gojo stood where he was and tilted his head in thought for a while.

Then he dialed a familiar number.

Beep... beep... beep...

Click.

The call connected.

"What is it?"

"Megumi, there's a Cursed Spirit on my end that needs dealing with... Don't worry, it's nothing too tricky. Contact Inumaki and Panda too. The three of you should head out together; they ought to be free right now."

Huh, what?

"I have a meeting to attend~ Don't be fooled by how I look—I'm actually very busy on normal days."

Satoru Gojo smiled as he walked over to the windowsill. Facing the bright sunlight outside, he tilted his head back slightly and said with a smile,

"And maybe the meeting will end early. When that happens, it wouldn't be impossible for me to meet up with you and join the action, right?"