"You've heard of invasive species, right? Huge numbers of millipedes suddenly appeared across the country, and they're the cause of the cursed spirits this time. These cursed spirits arose from people's disgust and hatred of bugs."
In the car, Assistant Supervisor Ijichi patiently explained the mission background to the two jujutsu sorcerers.
"Although these bugs aren't particularly dangerous, there are just too many of them. They also give off a foul stench, and they're slimy and disgusting. Everyone hates them..."
"That makes sense. Bugs probably don't appeal to most people's aesthetic tastes, do they?"
Since Toge Inumaki couldn't communicate normally, Aikawa Kaze took the lead on the mission, asking questions as he flipped through the mission report.
"So there are probably lots of related cursed spirits wherever the infestations are severe? This mission sounds like a hassle..."
"Exactly. The cursed spirits formed from hatred of millipedes are very weak, mostly Grade 3 or Grade 4, but there are a lot of them, spread across numerous infested areas. That's why the higher-ups specifically requested Inumaki."
After all, a cursed speech user would suffer backlash against enemies stronger than himself, but against weaker small fry, no matter how many there were, they were easy pickings.
"I see. Against large numbers of low-level enemies, Inumaki's Cursed Speech can finish this mission quickly and efficiently... I might not even get a chance to help!"
"Your main role on this mission is to support Inumaki, Aikawa."
As Assistant Supervisor Ijichi watched Aikawa Kaze listening attentively to the background and carefully reviewing the materials he had prepared, an inexplicable surge of emotion welled up in his heart.
How many years had it been since he'd seen a jujutsu sorcerer so diligently read the fruits of their labor?
What a good kid.
Ijichi couldn't help adding a few more words. Aikawa sounded upset about being unable to help, so he offered some reassurance, too.
"Thank you for your efforts. This cleanup won't be difficult, but it will be tiring. Inumaki will primarily handle the cursed spirits, while you'll stay alert and protect him. That's an important task, too."
"Right, understood. I will."
Aikawa Kaze nodded with a smile. Looking at the detailed, well-organized investigation in the assistant supervisor's report, an idea struck him.
"Supervisor Ijichi, may I take pictures of the materials you prepared? Having them on my phone will make them easier to consult than paper copies. If anything happens, I can check them right away."
"Of course! No problem! Take as many as you like!"
"Thank you!"
"No, no, it's what we're supposed to do!"
Ijichi kept driving without looking back, but inwardly, great noodle-like streams of touched tears flowed down his face.
After all these years, here was the first jujutsu sorcerer who not only read his report carefully, but sincerely said it was useful and diligently photographed it, respecting the fruits of their labor!
If affection points could take visible form, everyone would have seen +1, +1, +1... popping up over Assistant Supervisor Ijichi's head.
"Kelp?"
Toge Inumaki tilted his head in puzzlement.
Although he admittedly wasn't very familiar with Aikawa Kaze, who was even the only first-year still unable to understand "rice ball language," he had a feeling Aikawa's intentions weren't quite what the assistant supervisor imagined.
Noticing Toge Inumaki's gaze, Aikawa Kaze gave a mysterious smile without explaining.
He couldn't exactly announce in front of the assistant supervisor that he was doing this to "borrow" the man's intelligence as a foundation for his own mission report later, could he?
This was a high-tech society now. A quick OCR scan could easily convert the text in these images into a digital version. Then he only needed to make a few edits, copy and paste it into his template, and pad it out with a sentence or two.
Saying that to his face would be far too hurtful. Better to leave it as a beautiful misunderstanding.
As for the truth...
Aikawa figured Inumaki would understand sooner or later once the mission ended. After all, this was something he would have to grasp through "insight"!
In a good mood, Aikawa Kaze saved the assistant supervisor's report, then searched for news online.
"Things don't look promising. There are that many areas affected by the infestations?"
"Ahem, there's nothing we can do about that... We're already short on jujutsu sorcerers, and Inumaki is the best person to deal with them."
"..."
Looking at the downright disastrous photos his search turned up, Aikawa Kaze silently closed his phone, turned, and studied Toge Inumaki carefully.
Although Toge Inumaki looked as though half his face was covered, he wasn't wearing a mask. His collar was simply rather high.
"Assistant Supervisor Ijichi, I think we need to pick up some supplies first."
"Throat medicine?"
Having partnered with Toge Inumaki many times, the assistant supervisor readily understood what Aikawa Kaze meant. After all, Inumaki had to speak to activate his Cursed Speech, and it would be a problem if overuse left his voice hoarse.
"Bonito flakes!"
Toge Inumaki shook his head, took a bottle of throat medicine from his pocket, and waved it to show he was already prepared.
Aikawa Kaze glanced at the other person's pocket and shook his head.
"One bottle probably won't be enough. What if there's an emergency?"
As he spoke, Aikawa Kaze couldn't help examining Toge Inumaki's clothes.
"Besides, your pocket doesn't have a zipper. Wouldn't it be a problem if it accidentally fell out during a fight?"
After all, there was plenty of hand-to-hand combat in the world of Jujutsu Kaisen. Aikawa Kaze didn't think it was very secure; the best place to store it would be the four-dimensional pocket already bound to him.
Still, simply taking Toge Inumaki's belongings to store them would be a little odd, so Aikawa Kaze decided to buy more as backup.
"Ke... kelp!"
Toge Inumaki lowered his head guiltily. On a previous mission with Yuta Okkotsu, he had actually encountered exactly the situation Aikawa Kaze described. He hadn't expected that, as the "senior" who had become a jujutsu sorcerer first, he would need a reminder from a newcomer.
But this time, he had secured it properly!
That's right! I, Toge Inumaki, am reliable!
Aikawa Kaze didn't quite understand what Toge Inumaki meant, but following the direction of his finger, he discovered a little modification.
Although the pocket looked open and indeed had no zipper, someone seemed to have sewn a dark clasp onto it. With that there, the throat medicine wouldn't fall out so easily.
The stitches looked rather ugly and loose, probably Inumaki's own handiwork. The clasp had been sewn inside, making it invisible from the outside.
"I see. Looks like I spoke out of turn," Aikawa Kaze said with a nod. "Still, I think we should buy more throat medicine to keep in reserve. Most importantly, we need masks... And Assistant Supervisor Ijichi, I recommend you get one, too!"
"Huh?!"
In the end, at Aikawa Kaze's insistence, the other two went along to a convenience store to buy all the supplies. It wouldn't take much time anyway, so neither objected.
Then, an hour later, they finally appreciated Aikawa Kaze's thoughtful intentions and foresight.
"Urgh~~ Th-thank you for... urgh~~~"
"Tuna, ma, yo!"
"Yes, yes, Inumaki really did work hard."
The only person present who remained perfectly calm was Aikawa Kaze, because he had put on the N95 Mask the other two had rejected, accepting its stuffiness to give his sense of smell the greatest possible protection.
These cursed spirits were exactly as the intelligence had described: only Grade 3 or Grade 4, and extremely weak. But weaker curses were more prone to gathering, and their numbers were immense-if anyone other than Inumaki had come, it would have been an incredibly troublesome and disgusting ordeal.
These curses had little offensive power, but like millipedes, they were slimy and wet, with countless writhing tentacles on their bodies and a foul stench a hundred times stronger.
When they gathered together and surged toward them in a dense mass, Aikawa Kaze even felt that facing them was more terrifying than facing Ryomen Sukuna's finger.
Clearly, Aikawa Kaze wasn't the only one whose scalp prickled. Toge Inumaki used Cursed Speech the instant he spotted the cursed spirits. Even so, the disgusting, foul-smelling sludge that burst out of the exploding spirits nearly overwhelmed them with its stench.
If Aikawa Kaze hadn't suggested wearing masks, filtering out at least some of the unpleasant odor, they might have suffered even more.
"Doesn't it bother you at all, Aikawa? When I wear an N95 Mask, I feel like I can't breathe..."
"Ah, probably because I have plenty of experience."
"???"
"Anyway, now that this place is taken care of, can we go take a shower?"
"Sorry, according to our itinerary, we still have another location to get to today... We can wash up after we finish there."
"So we have to keep going tomorrow, too?"
"That's right. We have three more places to visit tomorrow."
"!!!"
Before Aikawa Kaze could say anything, Toge Inumaki looked as though he had been struck by lightning. Bound by his duties as a jujutsu sorcerer, however, he could only nod listlessly.
"Salmon..."
"Sorry, I feel like I can't help much this time."
After all, Aikawa Kaze couldn't possibly use a "beam cannon" to shoot "bugs," and he couldn't think of any way to use this opportunity to summon a Heroic Spirit, either.
Bugs really were humanity's lifelong enemy. No wonder even Saiki Kusuo and One-Punch Man were helpless against certain bugs!
"Mustard greens."
"Are you comforting me? You're really kind, Inumaki."
Aikawa Kaze guessed at Toge Inumaki's meaning. When he saw him nod, he couldn't help breathing a sigh of relief.
Although overly complicated conversations were still impossible, he seemed able to understand relatively simple everyday exchanges now.
"I'll work hard and try to make a translator as soon as possible, Inumaki."
"Salmon, salmon!"
"Thank you for your trust and encouragement."
Aikawa Kaze considered it. Since Ijichi was driving and there was nothing else to do in the car, he might as well start building a basic framework.
He could draw on human emotion recognition and analysis, voice assistant programs, and knowledge of creating objects through Magecraft...
There was no denying that these had given Aikawa Kaze considerable inspiration.
But what inspired him most was something he thought Inumaki had better not learn about, for the sake of their friendship-the voiceprint technology used in cat-and-dog translators.
Perhaps it was because Toge Inumaki had "inu," as in "dog," in his name?
Before you continue