Toji Fushiguro had been born into the Zenin Clan, the most feudal family in Jujutsu Society. Because of his innate binding vow, Heavenly Restriction, he had suffered all kinds of discrimination within the family since childhood.
Born without cursed energy, Toji Fushiguro could not even see cursed spirits, but the heightened senses granted by humanity's strongest body allowed him to perceive their presence, vaguely yet distinctly.
After leaving Jujutsu High, Toji Fushiguro walked back to the home of the family he had married into, both hands in his pockets. When he reached the door and went to take out his keys, he realized he had been away so long that he no longer knew where he had put them.
He scratched his head helplessly. After thinking for a moment, he had no choice but to raise his hand and knock on the door.
Knock! Knock! Knock!
Footsteps immediately sounded inside. After checking through the peephole and seeing that the visitor was Toji Fushiguro, the person inside hesitated for a moment before opening the door.
"D-Dad?"
The girl who opened the door was his daughter, Tsumiki Fushiguro. She and Megumi Fushiguro were not related by blood, however, because theirs was a blended family.
Toji Fushiguro had brought his son from his previous marriage, while his wife had brought her daughter from hers, and together they had formed this family.
Now, Tsumiki Fushiguro looked at her stepfather with some trepidation. Though he was her stepfather, they had never built a warm father-daughter relationship.
On top of that, he stayed away for long stretches, and her mother often complained about it. In short, her opinion of this stepfather of hers was not particularly high.
Toji Fushiguro knew this himself, so he took no offense at Tsumiki Fushiguro's attitude. He simply reached out to pat Tsumiki's head before walking straight inside.
Four-year-old Megumi Fushiguro soon came into view. The instant Megumi Fushiguro saw his father, a look of disgust flashed across his face.
"So you finally remembered to come home."
Faced with his son's sharp tongue, Toji Fushiguro could not help clicking his tongue. His authority as a father might have been hanging by a thread, but on this point, he really had no right to talk back.
At that moment, Chinatsu's words involuntarily resurfaced in his mind.
Reform this corrupt Jujutsu Society, huh...
Toji Fushiguro suddenly chuckled in front of Megumi Fushiguro. Seeing this, Megumi Fushiguro immediately began wondering whether something had gone wrong with his old man's head.
Toji walked up to Megumi Fushiguro, planted a hand on his head, and vigorously ruffled his hair.
Megumi Fushiguro already had spiky hair, and after that vigorous ruffling, it stuck out even more wildly.
"What are you doing?!"
Megumi Fushiguro grabbed at Toji Fushiguro's hand with both of his own and tried with all his might to pull it away, but the difference in their strength was far too great.
When Toji Fushiguro finally lifted his hand from Megumi Fushiguro's head on his own, Megumi Fushiguro was about to complain, only to hear Toji Fushiguro murmur something softly.
Megumi Fushiguro could not make out what Toji Fushiguro had muttered. All he knew was that his tone was incredibly gentle-so gentle that it hardly sounded as though it could have come from him.
Then Toji Fushiguro waved to Megumi Fushiguro and Tsumiki Fushiguro, indicating that he still had something to take care of, before turning and entering his bedroom.
He sat on the bed, pulled his switched-off phone from his pocket, and turned it back on.
As soon as it powered up, a flood of missed calls appeared, all from that executive of the Time Vessel Association. Clearly, after going so long without any report from Toji Fushiguro on whether he had completed the job, they were getting desperate.
The Time Vessel Association's followers were all devoted to a pure Tengen. Once Tengen merged with the Star Plasma Vessel and became something impure, the Time Vessel Association would undoubtedly face the risk of falling apart.
Toji Fushiguro had no intention of answering those frantic calls. He simply opened his contacts and found a number he had not called in a long time.
With a tap of Toji Fushiguro's finger, the phone began dialing. After a brief series of rings, the call connected.
The person on the other end was none other than the Zenin Clan's current clan head, Naobito Zenin.
"Toji? You actually called me first? Has your son awakened his cursed technique? Then we'll go with what we agreed on before. One billion for an ordinary cursed technique, an inherited-"
"My son hasn't awakened his cursed technique yet. I just changed my mind about selling him, so I'm letting you know."
"What?!"
An angry shout from Naobito Zenin rang through the Zenin Clan's main residence. It never reached Toji Fushiguro's ears, however, because he had already hung up and even switched his phone off again.
After smoothly finishing all of that, Toji Fushiguro tilted his head back slightly, looked up at the ceiling, and let out a breath.
"I think I made the right choice."
Meanwhile, as Suguru Geto escorted Riko Amanai and Misato Kuroi home, Chinatsu and Satoru Gojo turned and headed deeper into Jujutsu High, toward the Tombs of the Star Corridor where Tengen lived.
As the one who had set up the barriers within Jujutsu High, Tengen had naturally seen everything that had just happened, but she had not intervened.
Every five hundred years, she needed a Star Plasma Vessel girl to sacrifice herself so that she could reset her body's information and restore it to its youthful state.
Though she could justify this in the name of the greater good of Jujutsu Society, Tengen still felt deeply guilty about it.
Chinatsu and Satoru Gojo passed through the tunnel deep inside and reached the outskirts of the Tombs of the Star Corridor. Since a special barrier prevented anyone uninvited from entering, the two stopped there.
Tengen was no fool. As soon as she saw the pair arrive unexpectedly, she understood what they meant.
Without a Star Plasma Vessel, her cursed technique would soon force her body to evolve.
If the evolution succeeded, all would be well. If it failed, however, she was very likely to become a being that could not distinguish friend from foe and posed a danger to Jujutsu Society.
The two, who had now both awakened and become the strongest, had appeared here to put Tengen at ease and let her prepare for the evolution ritual without worry.
No one would disturb her until the evolution ritual was complete. If the evolution succeeded, everyone would be happy. But if it failed and she became a monster that threatened the world, the two strongest would do everything in their power to intercept and kill her right here!
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