The Story Had Yet to Begin

"We are willing to worship you as a god, that we might receive your protection and mercy."

"Hiss... my head hurts." Before Lin Mu could figure out what world he had transmigrated into, wave after wave of fragmented memories flooded his mind.

"I... I've come to the world of Jujutsu Kaisen?" He had absorbed a portion of the fragmented memories.

Lin Mu finally knew where he had ended up. "Fate really does love playing tricks on people. I died because I got too worked up watching Satoru Gojo get cut in half, but I never imagined I'd end up right here. Am I supposed to witness that scene in person? Or am I supposed to kill him myself?"

His mind a tangled mess, Lin Mu opened his four weary eyes. The scene before him was nothing short of horrific. All four eyes saw nothing but mutilated corpses and severed limbs. A dense crowd knelt before him, led by a bald old man leaning on a cane, whose forehead wrinkles were deep enough to trap flies.

"I never thought I'd become the biggest villain in Jujutsu Kaisen."

Lin Mu gave a bitter chuckle, but accepted the truth nonetheless. After all, Sukuna possessed some of the greatest power in this world, while in his previous life, he had been nothing more than an insignificant shut-in.

"My lord, your injuries?"

Sukuna glanced back and noticed a short-haired woman standing behind him. The only person who could be at his side was Uraume. Indeed, wounds of varying severity covered his terrifyingly powerful body. He had sustained considerable injuries while wiping out the Sun, Moon, and Stars Squad and the Five Void Generals.

But none of that really mattered to him. A single use of Reverse Cursed Technique could heal everything. In this era, he had no opponent who could match him. Even those fearless sorcerers from earlier had only managed to severely wound him by joining forces.

"It is nothing. Merely a few minor wounds." His four eyes surveyed his surroundings. Those kneeling before him were presumably the great clans led by the Fujiwara Northern House.

After carefully considering the plot, he realized that Sukuna was still in his state from a thousand years ago. In other words, the main story of Jujutsu Kaisen had yet to begin. The only downside was that he knew nothing about what would happen next. Though his invincible strength meant he hardly needed to think, his inability to predict the coming events might still lead to unforeseen deviations.

Seeing that he had remained silent for so long, the head of the Fujiwara Northern House, kneeling on the ground, forced himself to speak. "His Majesty the Emperor invites you to Heian-kyo, where we will make offerings to you and worship you." As he finished speaking, beads of cold sweat streamed down his bald forehead. This four-eyed monster had slaughtered every elite member of his clan right before their eyes, yet he dared not show the slightest displeasure. Otherwise, he and everyone behind him might die here.

"Very well." Sukuna recalled that people really had worshipped him as a god a thousand years ago. This was also the perfect opportunity to continue absorbing the fragmented memories. Once he entered Heian-kyo, those foolish sorcerers would stop coming to challenge him, giving him time to gain better control over this body and all its power.

Upon hearing Sukuna agree, the kneeling crowd immediately cleared a path, revealing an enormous palanquin behind them.

The pitch-black palanquin, crafted from some unknown wood, happened to be Sukuna's favorite color. The powerful aura radiating from it also pleased him immensely. Bracing his body with his four arms, he leaped straight onto the palanquin and sat down. Uraume followed close behind and stood on it.

Seeing this, the head of the Fujiwara Northern House hurriedly waved for the servants to carry the palanquin into Heian-kyo. They needed to hurry through the night. Someone else would naturally clean up the scattered corpses behind them. He only needed to deliver Sukuna safely to Heian-kyo, and then he could extricate himself from this mess.

Once seated on the palanquin, Sukuna closed all four eyes. Although he had not personally participated in the earlier battle, the body's exhaustion acted directly upon his soul, leaving him feeling utterly drained.

Behind him, Uraume stood with her eyes closed, completely unaware that her lord had become someone else. Sukuna had always been mercurial. Despite following him for so many years, she had never truly understood his feelings. Or perhaps Sukuna had no human emotions at all, finding brief moments of pleasure only after tasting fine food or indulging in wholesale slaughter. Those moments pleased her as well.

"Great Ryomen Sukuna, we have arrived at Heian-kyo. Please enter the altar. We will hold the worship ceremony in the coming days." The head of the Fujiwara Northern House spoke each word with care, terrified of displeasing the two-faced monster inside the palanquin.

"Good."

Sukuna had spoken only one word, yet it lifted the enormous weight from the clan head's heart. Whatever happened next would have nothing to do with him. After all, he did not live in Heian-kyo. He would leave the remaining troubles to the sorcerers who did.

After watching Sukuna and Uraume enter the vast altar, he hurriedly gathered his clan's people and left Heian-kyo without daring to linger for even a moment.

"Uraume, what year in the ten hundreds is it now?" His original body had been sealed as twenty fingers in 1018. As long as he could calculate how many years remained before the sealing, he would know how much time he still had to enjoy life.

"My lord, it is now the thirteenth year of the Emperor's Reign." Uraume was a little surprised that Sukuna had suddenly taken an interest in the date, but as a loyal subordinate, she would not question him.

"The thirteenth year of the Emperor's Reign?" Sukuna quickly began calculating the ancient Japanese dates in his head.

"Wouldn't that make it 1016? Looks like I only have two years left." After some mental calculations, he finally arrived at the exact year. Though only two years remained, that would just about suffice for him. He did not know the plot anyway.

He would spend these two years living as he pleased, then get to trade blows with Satoru Gojo. The thought of fighting his former idol a thousand years later stirred a flicker of excitement in his heart.

That left Uraume beside him in a difficult position. The old Sukuna would certainly have bared a mouthful of fangs and roared with laughter. A slight upward curl of his lips like this was something she had never seen before. She could not even judge his mood from his expression, so she could only stand cautiously behind him, making as little noise as possible.

The atmosphere grew tense for a moment. Just as master and servant closed their eyes to rest, a sudden rumbling broke the silence.

Uraume glanced in surprise at Sukuna, who was still sitting cross-legged on the floor, and discovered that the enormous mouth on his abdomen was making strange noises nonstop.

"My lord, shall I find you something to eat?"

Having served Sukuna for so many years, she knew there was only one possible explanation: he wanted to taste fine food. After all, Sukuna was still human at this point, and humans naturally grew hungry.

"I really haven't gained complete control over this body yet. I even let this big mouth make noise." Sukuna glanced at the enormous mouth on his abdomen and sighed helplessly. It seemed he would still need some time to master it completely.

"Go find me the finest food in Heian-kyo."

"Yes, my lord." With that, she lowered her head and left the altar without making a single audible footstep. Her objective was perfectly clear. Sukuna loved fine food above all, and he was always in a remarkably good mood after eating it.