How should a person grow stronger?
In many modern films and television shows, the usual approach was to pit two mortal enemies of roughly equal strength against each other in a fight to the death, until they grasped a new skill in desperation and reached a higher level.
In the world of jujutsu sorcerers, this principle also applied to most sorcerers.
Most, because powerhouses like Satoru Gojo were not included.
Grade 4, Grade 3, Grade 2, and finally Grade 1 Sorcerers.
Climbing from Grade 4 to Grade 1, one step at a time-any jujutsu sorcerer who reached that point could already be considered exceptionally gifted and individually powerful.
But...
Individual strength could ultimately be offset by superior numbers.
A Grade 1 Sorcerer did indeed possess the ability to exorcise a Grade 1 Cursed Spirit alone.
But in everyday missions, one-on-one encounters between jujutsu sorcerers and cursed spirits were exceedingly rare.
Most of the time, a high-grade cursed spirit would have plenty of low-grade cursed spirits around it.
Just two Grade 2 Cursed Spirits working together with one Grade 1 Cursed Spirit were enough to force an ordinary Grade 1 Sorcerer into a bitter struggle...
And the number of cursed spirits lurking around a Grade 1 Cursed Spirit usually far exceeded that...
Grade 3... Grade 4 Cursed Spirits...
Even with the difference in grade, given sufficient numbers, Grade 3 or even Grade 4 Cursed Spirits could unleash combat power rivaling that of Grade 2 or even Grade 1 Cursed Spirits.
This held true for cursed spirits.
The same went for jujutsu sorcerers.
Once a Grade 1 Sorcerer was surrounded by more low-grade sorcerers than he could handle, only "death" awaited him.
This rule was regarded as an iron law in the Jujutsu Society, both reminding the newly promoted not to grow complacent and warning those harboring ill intentions not to act rashly...
Yet this iron law was completely ineffective against Special Grades.
Because to a Special Grade, the numerical advantage of those of lower grades was not worth mentioning.
The gap between Special Grade and Grade 1 had never been a matter of simple addition, but exponential multiplication that sent the numbers soaring.
A Special Grade Cursed Spirit that had awakened a cursed technique could easily kill any Grade 1 Sorcerer whose strength was unremarkable or whose defenses were weak.
Under normal circumstances, several Grade 1 Sorcerers had to join forces just to barely exterminate a Special Grade Cursed Spirit that lacked intelligence and had yet to fully mature...
But those were merely normal circumstances.
Whether Special Grade Sorcerers or Special Grade Cursed Spirits, there were differences even between Special Grades.
[Cursed Womb Must Die] [special grade cursed spirit]
[Satoru Gojo] [Special Grade Sorcerer]
But could anyone say those two were opponents on the same level?
If the gap between Grade 1 and Special Grade was a chasm, then the gap between one Special Grade and another...
Was an "unbridgeable gulf."
His fingertips rested on a black leather-bound book.
After a long search, Hajime Kashimo finally found the first book he wanted-
"Advanced Principles of Cursed Techniques: Reverse Cursed Technique"
Of the three strongest, both Satoru Gojo, the Strongest of the Modern Era, and Sukuna, the strongest in history, possessed [Reverse Cursed Technique].
As a sorcerer's most powerful means of survival and endurance, learning Reverse Cursed Technique meant nothing short of a qualitative leap in combat strength.
Combining its powerful healing capabilities with techniques that required damaging one's own body could usually produce results between 200% and 400% of their original effectiveness.
The best examples were Satoru Gojo's [Six Eyes] and [Limitless].
With Reverse Cursed Technique, Satoru Gojo could truly turn the active Limitless technique into a passive skill. Combined with the near-zero loss of cursed energy afforded by the Six Eyes, he brought fully automatic, all-angle absolute defense to its fullest potential.
And Satoru Gojo had grasped Reverse Cursed Technique precisely when he was on the verge of death:
"It is most likely to be mastered on the brink of death and in desperate circumstances, but places extremely high demands on one's fundamentals and talent..."
Hajime Kashimo stared at the words in the book, lost in thought. Looking back on all his battles during the Edo period, even those powerful Special Grade Cursed Spirits had never made him experience the feeling of approaching death or utter desperation...
The only battle that seemed to have brought him to the heart of Reverse Cursed Technique was that one-
[Shinjuku Showdown].
In his fight against Sukuna, which began immediately after Satoru Gojo's death, Hajime Kashimo had already fought with everything he had.
Indeed, in those final moments, he had felt a glimmer of understanding of the true essence of Reverse Cursed Technique, but death had arrived first, stopping him from becoming a "miracle."
For [the strong], aside from the [loneliness] of having no worthy opponent, their greatest disappointment was the gap between their strength and their opponents'...
Battles between ordinary sorcerers and cursed spirits that lasted half an hour or longer could indeed let them grasp new ultimate techniques and moves.
But the central problem was that supreme fighters like Hajime Kashimo, Satoru Gojo, and Sukuna simply never had that much time in combat.
Two minutes, three minutes...
Even a brief lapse in concentration, or the mere 0.1-second delay or adverse effect of opening and closing a domain.
Too many factors could influence a clash between the strong. Trying to grasp Reverse Cursed Technique in a battle of that caliber was simply impossible...
Thus, Hajime Kashimo, who had always challenged his opponents openly and honorably, would have to resort to a few "underhanded tricks" to grow stronger.
He needed to fight a powerful enemy who could push his current self into desperation without endangering his life, then rely on his talent to grasp the technique that had once been within his reach...
And this powerful enemy had to intend to kill him, unlike the people at Jujutsu High, who would hold back...
With that in mind, only one group seemed to remain as Hajime Kashimo's target...
[Special grade cursed spirits]
[Jogo], [Hanami], [Dagon], [Mahito]
Four intelligent Special Grade Cursed Spirits, paired with the strategic mind of [Kenjaku], an old monster who had lived for a thousand years...
The people at Jujutsu High had suffered devastating casualties in their struggle against them...
"Idle Transfiguration... not interested."
"Summoning marine creatures? If he opens his domain, the battle will turn against me..."
"Extreme heat and volcanic eruptions... not much help for learning Reverse Cursed Technique..."
After weighing his options, Hajime Kashimo finally settled on [Hanami] as the target of his challenge.
As a Special Grade Cursed Spirit born from humanity's fear of "forests,"
Hanami's primary cursed techniques involved controlling plants and disrupting opponents with illusions.
An iron-hard body, combined with considerable physical power and mental manipulation-although Hanami's explosive power and technique mechanics fell short of Mahito's and Jogo's, Hanami was just right as a sparring opponent for Hajime Kashimo.
"Let's see..."
Spreading out the mission map he had obtained from Jujutsu High, Hajime Kashimo caught a glimpse of its powerful intelligence network through this map of Tokyo, which extended out to the remote suburbs.
"Born from the fear of forests, so the preferred area of activity must be marshes, wetlands, or dense woodland."
"Remove the locations already under surveillance, or where cursed spirits have already been exorcised..."
Hajime Kashimo's mind raced. The map of Tokyo before him broke into countless sections in his head, and the many areas he ruled out were deleted and set aside one by one...
In the end, he arrived at three locations-
Tokyo's largest primeval forest, far from the city and a perfect hiding place-Mount Takao.
A sparsely populated outlying area near an old shrine, perpetually "haunted" and thick with vegetation-Aoyama Cemetery.
And the large forest park located within Kyoto-
Yoyogi Park.
Ordinary cursed spirits would have chosen the first two locations to lie low without hesitation.
For one thing, Mount Takao covered a vast area and had virtually no barriers for detecting cursed spirits. Even spirits with enormous bodies or poor concealment abilities could live there in peace, occasionally attacking hiking enthusiasts.
But Hanami was a Special Grade Cursed Spirit, not only intelligent but also needing to meet frequently with the other Special Grade Cursed Spirits to exchange information.
Thus, Hajime Kashimo ruled out Mount Takao.
As for the second option, Aoyama Cemetery, such remote, abandoned shrines and graveyards were usually unattended, and occasionally spawned low-grade cursed spirits that could not threaten human lives.
With a few means of concealment to evade the regular inspections and detection efforts of low-grade jujutsu sorcerers, high-grade cursed spirits settling there generally faced no danger to their lives. Once strong enough, they would naturally leave the deserted cemetery to attack densely populated areas...
For a Special Grade Cursed Spirit like Hanami, Aoyama Cemetery was therefore clearly more of a "way station."
Settling there long-term would not only risk exposure, but although the cemetery had abundant trees and plants, it did not provide the habitat or battlefield Hanami most desired...
That left Hanami with only one choice-
[Yoyogi Park].
It had not only seas of flowers and large stretches of lush trees, but also wetlands, marshes, and all sorts of forest environments within the city park.
A perfect living environment, combined with Hanami's ability to slip in silently and evade barrier detection...
Without a doubt, as long as Hajime Kashimo went to investigate Yoyogi Park, he would find traces of Hanami's presence...
"A Special Grade Cursed Spirit..."
"I'd like to see how you differ from those creatures..."
"From our era."
Before you continue