So useless

The banquet ended.

Zenin Sawa led his sizable entourage back to the Zenin Clan estate. The carriage rattled through the streets, its wheels rumbling, as he leaned against the wall with a faint smile still on his lips.

He'd certainly put that Gojo Clan brat in his place tonight.

Most of the sorcerer factions had declared their support for him. The reason? Simple. The Zenin Clan had strength in numbers, and both the Kuguri Unit and Hei were genuine fighting forces. Strong as the Gojo Clan might be, it all rested on one man. How long could one man hold everything up? He might manage for a while, but not forever. Those people were shrewd. They knew perfectly well which clan was more dependable.

The carriage stopped outside the main gate.

Zenin Sawa stepped down, rubbed his neck, then suddenly frowned.

"Strange. Why is it so quiet?" He glanced at the tightly shut gates, displeasure flashing across his face. "Are those idiots not even coming out to greet us? What the hell is Taichi doing?"

He waved a hand.

"Someone open the gates."

The heavy wooden gates slowly creaked open.

The laughter and chatter outside vanished in an instant.

Sharp gasps rose one after another.

Zenin Sawa stood rooted to the spot, his hands beginning to tremble.

Corpses.

In the courtyard, beside the well, outside the rooms, inside them-corpses lay everywhere. Some lay in pools of blood, some hung from the corridor pillars, and others had been torn into so many pieces they barely resembled human bodies. Blood snaked across the dirt, gathering into narrow streams that gleamed darkly in the moonlight.

"...Someone." Zenin Sawa's voice sounded as though he had forced it through his throat.

"Go see if anyone is still alive."

Zenin Yuichi of the personal guard snapped out of his daze and hurriedly waved his men inside to investigate.

Time seemed to stretch. No one spoke. Only occasional footsteps and stifled cries broke the silence.

Several dozen minutes later, a man jogged back.

"Lord Yuichi..." His head was lowered, his voice trembling. "The Kuguri Unit has been wiped out. Hei, too-"

He stopped there.

There was no need to finish. Everyone had already guessed.

Without looking back, Zenin Sawa walked inside.

"Come with me to the Forbidden Vault."

The Forbidden Vault's doors stood open.

Moonlight spilled inside, illuminating the wreckage.

"The doors were opened?" Zenin Yuichi followed behind him, his voice full of disbelief. "How could that be... the barrier-"

"They weren't opened."

Zenin Sawa crouched and ran his fingers over a fragment beside the doorway. It was a piece of the doors, its edges jagged, as though some savage force had blasted them apart from within.

"They were shattered by cursed energy."

He fell silent for a long time, gently rubbing the fragment with his fingertips.

"...How violent must that cursed energy have been?"

Zenin Sawa stood and turned to face everyone.

Moonlight fell across his face. That same face, so full of laughter and easy conversation at the banquet, was now dark as a thundercloud.

"Everyone here, listen carefully." His voice was quiet, but every word drove itself into their ears like a nail. "Not a word of tonight's events is to leave this estate. From this day forward, the Zenin Clan will shut its gates and withdraw."

His gaze swept over the crowd, lingering on a few faces.

"Yuichi, take some men and get to the bottom of this."

"Yes, sir!" Zenin Yuichi bowed, his voice firm.

"If anyone leaks this news-"

Zenin Sawa raised a hand and slowly drew it across his throat.

"Kill them without exception."

No one spoke. The night wind swept past, carrying a faint scent of blood.

Zenin Sawa stood still, staring at the deathly silent estate before him, his nails nearly digging into his palms.

He had only just secured the support of those sorcerer factions. Only just put Gojo Arashi in his place. If word got out now that bodies littered the Zenin Clan estate, that its fighting strength had been all but eradicated, that the Forbidden Vault had been blasted open and its cursed tools looted...

What would those people think?

Laugh at him? That would be the least of it.

Every sorcerer faction that had just sided with him would defect to the Gojo Clan overnight. Those powers already eyeing them hungrily would descend like wild dogs catching the scent of blood. If the Zenin Clan came under siege then...

He closed his eyes.

What would it mean if the clan's line ended with his generation?

That he, Zenin Sawa, was incompetent?

When he opened his eyes again, all unnecessary emotion had drained from them.

If it could be concealed, he would conceal it at any cost.

Even if they had to shut themselves away, even if he killed the innocent by mistake, even if everyone had to take tonight's events to their graves, the news must never get out.

Meanwhile, the man responsible for it all was strolling toward the outskirts, a staff over his shoulder and a bundle on his back.

The moonlight was lovely, the night breeze cool, and Kashimo was in a good mood. As he walked, he pondered the two cursed tools he had just acquired, occasionally twirling his staff while humming a tuneless little song.

"Achoo!"

The sneeze nearly sent him pitching forward.

"What the hell? Who's thinking about me?"

He rubbed his nose, looking baffled. In the seventeen years since he had crossed into this world, he had kept his nose clean. He had never gone chasing women, mainly because he had no time. He had been too busy fighting.

Still, over this short walk, he had more or less figured out how both cursed tools worked.

The Thunder Ring.

This thing was pretty interesting. Feed his lightning cursed energy into it, and it would store it automatically. If he ever ran out of juice, it would serve as a power bank. Of course, he could also release everything at once for a hefty blast, though that would hurt a little. All that electricity he had saved would be gone.

Kashimo raised his hand to inspect the ring, suddenly recalling that kid, Yuta Okkotsu. He seemed to have a similar ring for storing cursed energy. Except after storing his energy, the guy had also gone ahead and made a Rika to stuff inside. He was much better at making the most of things.

He hefted the staff in his hand.

He had named it the Ruyi Staff, inspired by a certain golden-banded staff that could grow and shrink. Unfortunately, the resemblance ended with the name. That one could grow longer or shorter, thicker or thinner. His... couldn't do any of that. So useless.

Still, he could pour cursed energy into it. The more he put in, the harder it hit.

Kashimo tried feeding a little cursed energy into it, then casually tapped a tree by the roadside.

The trunk snapped on impact, crashing to the ground.

...Still so useless.

He pursed his lips, slung the staff back over his shoulder, and continued out of town.

"Come to think of it, they don't fine people for damaging public property in this era, do they...?"

Muttering to himself, he made his way beyond the town. The night was deep, and no one was around. Just the place to get some real work done.

Kashimo stopped and held the Ruyi Staff horizontally in front of him.

He had an idea.

He fed in cursed energy, but not in the usual way. He separated the positive charge from his cursed energy and injected it into the staff, strand by strand. A faint glow spread over the Ruyi Staff.

Then he took a deep breath and hurled the staff with all his strength.

Whoosh-

The staff sliced through the night sky, instantly vanishing beyond the limits of his vision. Kashimo squinted after it for a while but saw nothing.

Fine, then.

Next came the second step.

He separated the negative charge from his cursed energy and gradually channeled it into his own body.

The principle was simple: opposite charges attracted. If it worked, he would be able to teleport straight to the staff's location, like Flying Thunder God.

The moment the negative charge entered his body, his vision suddenly lit up.

An electrical circuit materialized out of thin air. Blue-white arcs danced and wove together before him, forming a clear path. It was just like the connection he had created when blowing up Hanami's head, except this time it connected to him.

Then he vanished.

Outside town, a carriage driver rubbed his eyes.

He thought he had just seen a young man standing beside the road with a staff over his shoulder, muttering something to himself. Then, in the blink of an eye, the young man was gone.

"What the..." The driver yawned and flicked the reins. "I really ought to get to bed earlier. I'm seeing things..."

On a hilltop.

Kashimo appeared out of thin air, stumbling a step before steadying himself. The Ruyi Staff lay at his feet, its emerald-green shaft gleaming softly in the moonlight.

He stared blankly for two seconds.

Then he burst out laughing.

"Well, well-" He bent to pick up the staff and spun it in his hand, unable to suppress his grin. "Those physics lessons weren't wasted after all! Hahaha!"