Tengen

They were almost at Jujutsu High.

Okkotsu spoke up. "There's something I don't understand."

"If Kenjaku has an Open-Barriers Domain, why did he choose to seal Gojo?"

Instead of killing him?

He left that last question unspoken.

The other three understood what he meant.

He had asked because he wanted to challenge the idea that a closed-barrier domain truly stood no chance against an Open-Barriers Domain.

He wanted to fight for a slim chance of survival for Kaneki and Choso.

"Because..."

Kaneki explained, "[Tengen], the [star plasma vessel], and the [Six Eyes] are linked by fate."

"The Six Eyes plays the role of guardian."

"For Kenjaku to merge Tengen with all humanity, he first has to stop Tengen from merging with a vessel."

"That means he has to kill both the Six Eyes and the star plasma vessel."

"To that end..."

"Kenjaku once killed both a star plasma vessel and a Six Eyes bearer while they were still infants."

"But..."

"On the day of the merger, both the Six Eyes and a star plasma vessel appeared anyway."

"So..."

"He gave up on killing them and chose sealing instead."

At that explanation...

All three understood.

In other words, even if Kenjaku killed the Six Eyes and the star plasma vessel, he could not stop Tengen's merger.

Sealing was his only option!

As they spoke...

They slipped into Jujutsu High and followed Choso to the Cursed Storage.

They opened the door.

Below them, dense clusters of leafless trees filled both sides.

They jumped down.

Following the path, they reached a place that looked like a forest, with a warehouse standing off to one side.

Once they arrived...

Yuki Tsukumo knew the way from there.

"I'm sorry for your loss."

Kaneki looked at the warehouse, knowing that the remains of Choso's younger brothers lay inside.

"Thank you."

Choso's expression grew heavy, tinged with sorrow.

He gently brushed a hand over the rolling shutter, sensed the lingering traces of his brothers, then continued on.

Before long...

They took a lift down into the Tombs of the Star Corridor.

They reached the place where Toji Fushiguro had killed the star plasma vessel, Riko Amanai. Bloodstains still remained on the ground.

Ahead...

There were three tunnels.

Before entering a tunnel, Kaneki summoned every shikigami he could and concealed them in his shadow.

They passed through the pitch-black tunnel.

Then they entered a boundless white space.

Throughout that space...

Only the tunnel they had just passed through was black. Everything else was an endless expanse of white.

This was the Main Hall.

Yet there was not a single building where they stood.

At the sight...

Yuki Tsukumo's expression darkened. "She's refusing to see us."

Hearing that...

Okkotsu and Choso's expressions darkened as well.

Without meeting Tengen, how could they obtain the Back of the Prison Realm?

"Tengen," Kaneki called into the white expanse before them. "Are you still not coming out?"

As his words fell...

A figure took shape before them and materialized.

She wore plain white robes and had pale skin. With no neck, her head looked like a thumb.

She had four eyes.

She looked a lot like an alien from the sequel.

She was neither as attractive nor as graceful as she had been in her earliest human form.

This body...

Was an outward form maintained through barrier techniques.

Her true body was hidden within the Tombs of the Star Corridor.

"A pleasure to meet you." Tengen greeted them politely in turn. "A descendant of the Michizane Family, one of the cursed womb: death paintings, and... a Chinese-Japanese hybrid new sorcerer."

The term "new sorcerer" was interesting.

It could mean someone who had only recently become a sorcerer.

It also hinted that Kaneki had become a sorcerer through Mahito's alterations.

All he could say was...

She certainly lived up to her reputation as an all-knowing sorcerer.

"Tengen." Yuki Tsukumo held out her hand without preamble. "I want the [Back of the Prison Realm]."

At that...

The other three froze for a moment.

None of them had expected Yuki Tsukumo to simply hold out her hand and demand it.

Tengen gave her a surprised look. "How do you know about the Prison Realm?"

"I told her."

Seeing this, Kaneki had no choice but to be equally direct. "Heaven blessed me. When I was very young, I saw the 'future' with my own eyes."

Tengen nodded slowly. Rather than question him, she asked, "Did I die in that future?"

Tengen could not truly die.

After evolving, she was everywhere.

Even by the end, it was impossible to say for certain whether she was dead or alive.

Kaneki knew that, of course.

So he answered another way. "Yuki Tsukumo died."

Hearing that...

Tengen froze for a moment, then looked at Yuki Tsukumo with a complicated expression.

Those words...

Were something only she and Kaneki understood.

Because...

From the moment she saw them, she had decided to keep two of them here as her guards.

His words also confirmed to her that Ken Kaneki really could see the future!

"Since..."

Tengen looked at Ken Kaneki. "You know the future."

"If we discuss things carefully, we may still be able to change it."

"Can you deal with an Open-Barriers Domain?"

Kaneki asked calmly.

Tengen's expression shifted in surprise. "An Open-Barriers Domain," she murmured.

There was no outer shell for her Emptiness Barrier to dismantle.

Now...

She finally understood how Yuki Tsukumo had died.

After thinking for a moment, Tengen said gravely, "I can deal with an Open-Barriers Domain!"

Okkotsu and the other two brightened.

If that was true, dealing with Kenjaku would be much easier.

"To be honest..." Kaneki dampened their enthusiasm. "I don't really believe you."

At that...

Tengen did not grow angry.

Instead, she asked calmly, "Could you tell me about the future you saw?"

Seeing Kaneki's concerns...

She added, "Although Kenjaku is one of the few barrier technique masters who can rival me, it would still take him some time to invade this place."

"Even if he does come..."

As she spoke, she reached into a patch of black space beside her, took out the [Back of the Prison Realm], and handed it to Yuki Tsukumo. "I will send you out of the Tombs of the Star Corridor."

Whether she was sincere or not...

That move...

Was undeniably impressive.

Yuki Tsukumo took it, then asked in surprise, "Aren't you afraid of dying?"

Tengen nodded with a smile.

She did not answer.

But there was a certain serenity in her smile.

Honestly, after that gesture, even Kaneki felt somewhat inclined to save her.

Then...

Kaneki gave a rough account of the future he had seen.

His explanation was sparse.

But he left out none of the key information.

Only after Kaneki finished did Tengen speak. "The disappearance of Kenjaku's domain was probably my doing."

All four looked at her.

Kaneki genuinely could not remember whether Kenjaku had withdrawn his domain himself or whether Tengen had done it.

Tengen explained, "My original plan must have been to dismantle the outer shell of Kenjaku's domain with the Emptiness Barrier, which is why I had Yuki Tsukumo hold it off with Simple Domain."

"Normally, I would only need her to buy ten seconds to dismantle Kenjaku's domain."

She not only explained, but also supplied a few details.

"But..."

Tengen said gravely, "I misjudged it. Kenjaku's domain had no outer shell."

"So..."

"I chose to dispel the Emptiness Barrier."

"Once the Emptiness Barrier was dispelled, Kenjaku's domain would collapse along with it."

"But my misjudgment cost me a few seconds, leaving Yuki Tsukumo to take the domain's sure-hit effect."

It was only natural that a last-minute change of plans would cause a slight delay.

That also fit the future Kaneki had described better.

Kenjaku would never willingly dispel his domain, abandon an immediate kill, and choose to finish her off afterward.

A mistake with life and death at stake...

Was not something a thousand-year-old fox like Kenjaku would make.

Hearing this...

Kaneki believed her a little more and looked at Yuki Tsukumo beside him.

He didn't know shit about barrier techniques.

He could only leave it to someone who understood them to judge whether Tengen was right.

When Yuki Tsukumo nodded...

Kaneki finally believed her completely.