Nanami did not dislike business trips.
After all, this could be considered an all-expenses paid vacation and he was able to openly visit places that he had no chance to visit.
Furthermore, the destination this time was Hokkaido.
Whether as a Jujutsu sorcerer or as a person who had stepped out into society, it was great chance to be able to be apart from his colleagues, to be alone, to relax himself, to create a space that allowed his soul to breathe in fresh air.
If the air that one breathed never changed, they would become depressed.
The key to being able to work for long hours laid in whether one was able to take a breather at appropriate moments.
For Nanami who had such a mentality, the company of a senior Jujutsu sorcerer had already made him lose all his enjoyment—in addition, as the person who came along was also Gojou Satoru, the situation had evolved into a painful errand that gave him a migraine.
"Nanami, let's play a trivia game about Hokkaido."
"Do it yourself."
"Alright, first question. What is my favourite flavour of the local Hokkaido dessert "Sanporoku*"?
(T/N: A kind of Baumkuchen cake that has chocolate drizzled onto its exterior.)
"Please go and check what is the meaning of trivia ten times before you play this game."
"Then let's play a game about potatoes with butter. The rules are simple. Whoever likes eating potatoes with butter more wins. Alright I win. Because I'm number two in Japan when it comes to liking potatoes with butter."
"Then who is number one?"
"Matsuyama Chiharu*."
(T/N: A Japanese folksinger who was born in Hokkaido.)
"The number of times you spout lies is more than the number of times you breathe, isn't it?"
"If that's the case, I can reduce carbon emission."
"The amount of carbon dioxide generated from my sighs probably offset that. After all, what situation in this world could be more tragic that two adult men, on top of that, two Jujutsu sorcerers having to come all the way to Hokkaido."
"It's not bad. It's like we're recording one of those variety shows."
"Since when is there a variety show that is this boring."
Nanami and Gojou were walking along the bustling road with clearly different expressions.
The roads of Sapporo were like that of Kyoto, designed in a grid pattern.
As long as one looked at the road signs, it was basically hard to get lost.
If they were just sightseeing, it would be troublesome to judge whether they were going down a one-way street, but as long as they leave the central district, it was pretty much a piece of cake. They could also find a location to get their bearings on their map pretty quickly.
"Even though the roads here aren't all in the shape of a grid, it is quite easy to plan your route for sightseeing."
Gojou held a small booklet.
After opening it, it was clear that the image that was in it was a simplified map of the central district and there were several red circles drawn onto it.
"What's that map for?"
"Hey hey hey Nanami, hey hey hey, hey-"
"Your way of speaking is strangely irritating."
"Will you get a grip on yourself? Of course the only thing I will pull out at this time can only be a map of Gojou Satoru's chosen desserts."
"Didn't I say earlier to do these things yourself?"
"Even though I'm your senior, I'm not able to show my greatness in front of someone like you."
"You aren't any kind of respectable senior in the first place."
Nanami had sighed so much that he felt that his own lungs were going to collapse.
When Gojou was having a private conversation with someone, ninety percent of the words are just nonsense.
Essentially, he would just care about what he wanted to say, so those who were listening would only tire themselves out if they tried to give a serious answer. But even just listening with the words in one ear and out the other was also annoying.
This may be difficult to understand for people who never worked with Gojou Satoru before, but once someone like him was your own boss, senior and a powerful individual who was considered invincible, it would cause an immense amount of stress. For people such as Ichiji, the problem just multiplied by many folds.
"….speaking of which, can you tell me honestly why you are on this trip with me? This case should not require the mobilisation of two Jujutsu sorcerers. On top of that—"
"On top of that there's no need to mobilise the handsome and the strongest Jujutsu Sorcerer Gojou Satoru, right?"
Nanami was really tired of responding to such a conversation so he chose to ignore it. Even though Gojou did not receive a reply, he still continued to speak.
"I honestly am not worried about the case. Even though the upper echelons only sent one person to investigate, since the person handling it is you, you probably can complete it even if you are working solo."
"Then why are you here.
"Probably because I want to transform a case that one did not have to be concerned about to a case that one "absolutely" did not have to be concerned about. Though it's enough to just leave this mission to one person, they actually sent a first grade sorcerer out to do it. Also I heard that the situation this time had to do with a "vicious" curse user."
"...You're saying that the opponent could be a curse user whose abilities are on par with a first grade or special grade?"
"Right now, it's still merely a "possibility"."
"You can't be the type that would specially make a trip here just for a matter that has such a high degree of uncertainty."
"You know me so well, you have completely grasped every single part of me. Anyway, just treat the matter as such for now. Perhaps I'm just too tired from my hectic work and just wanted to come to the north for a vacation."
"When you put it this way, it means you have something to hide…."
"Ah, Nanami, look at that, look at that."
"Can you please listen to other people when they're talking? Forget it, there's no point telling you."
Looking in the direction where Gojou was pointing, there was an exquisite roadside store.
Large red words, "Potatoes with Butter", that stood out were written on the orange gold sign board.
"Now that I think about it properly, people who set up stores to sell potatoes with butter much be super confident about their own dish. Because they are just selling a baked potato with some butter on it. This kind of dish is not that problematic to make at home."
"This is probably the beauty of achieving the same dish through different means, that is, roasting potatoes over stone."
"Now that you mention it, that's probably the case. As expected of Nanami, your focus is under your shades."
"You just talking about the location of my eyeballs, aren't you?"
"Anyway, do you know what the Jagaimo in Jagaimo means?"
(T/N:ジャガイモ (Jagaimo) means potato in Japanese)
"There's a saying that potatoes were imported into Japan from the harbour of Tanjung Priok which is why it's named as such."
(T/N: Tanjung Priok is a district in North Jakarta, Indonesia. So potatoes became termed as Jakarta-imo (root vegetable of Jakarta) and therefore Jaga-imo.)
"You're really scary, why are you able to answer such a question without missing a beat?"
"I'm the one who wants to ask why the person who's second in place in terms of loving potatoes with butter does not know the origin of the word Jagaimo."
"Anyway, being second place in terms of liking something means I'm only second place. If I had to set a goal, I should set my eyes on the first place….so, boss, one portion of potatoes with butter please."
While they were chatting, Gojou headed towards the roadside store far too naturally so Nanami was not able to react to the situation quickly.
"You want to eat that?"
"Of course. I am the man who takes the second place of loving potatoes in Japan."
"We are here to work."
"Then you don't have to eat. I shall enjoy the delicacies of Hokkaido myself."
"I intend to eat them."
"So do you want to eat or not?"
There were two men seated on a bench in Sapporo Oodori Park. One was in a dress suit while the other dressed casually in black. The two of them were wearing sunglasses and they sat next to each other, eating potatoes with butter.
As this was the big city of Sapporo, even if there were performers or cosplayers on the street, most pedestrians would not find it strange, but these people were still pretty attention grabbing in this city.
"Wah, this is really good. It's piping hot too, piping hot."
"Even if I made this at home, I won't be able to bake it to such a flavour."
"Really, I have looked down on potatoes with butter. No wonder the store owner dares to sell this when all they do is bake it."
"I feel like drinking beer. Looks like it's better to wait till after work before eating something like this."
"Beer….actually I don't get it, this is already pretty good by itself so why must you drink beer with it? Eh, what's this?"
"What is it?"
"Nanami, why is your potato with butter different from mine?"
"I added Shio-kara, it's delicious. But I won't give you any."
(T/N: Seasoned seafood viscera)
"I don't want it. And the appearance looks a lot like the cursed spirit that I exorcised a while back."
"...…"
Nanami had looked forward to taking a relaxing break if the job in Hokkaido went smoothly.
Who knew that he ended up accumulating some stress.
*
As law abiding adults, after enjoying the steaming potatoes with butter, of course they took care of the trash properly. They went towards the Sapporo TV tower and headed for the east side of Oodori Park.
After they left Oodori park from there, there was a road that headed south east near the bus interchange.
This large road could be considered the artery of the city but unexpectedly, there was only a sparse number of pedestrians.
However, this had to do with the structure of this city known as Sapporo.
"Oh yeah, what kind of ambitious curse user are we investigating this time? Wait, actually we aren't even sure if the other party is a curse user."
"You came along without even finding out what's going on?"
"The person in charge is you anyway, Nanami."
"If that's the case, can I request that you not follow...Also, you just ate a potato that requires some time to digest and now you're actually eating a soft serve.
"Aren't you eating as well?"
Gojou skillfully licked his cheese and milk flavoured soft serve while not letting the soft serve melt and drip everywhere. At the same time, he naturally walked in front of Nanami.
Nanami was rather puzzled at where the other man wanted to go. A person who did not grasp the contents of the mission fully should not be walking in front like this.
What Gojou said was that they have come all the way to Hokkaido, yet the soft serve that Nanami ordered was not chocolate flavoured but cookie flavoured. Because he could not bear to watch, he walked in front. However, Nanami felt that this should not be the words of someone wearing sunglasses upon his face.
Nanami wanted to tell Gojou "Don't walk the wrong way" but when he thought about it afterwards, he might as well tell him about the mission first.
And logically speaking, if it were the usual Gojou, even if Nanami did not ask, he should have known the details of the mission already.
However, Gojou just intentionally questioned Nanami which would mean he completely had not received any information related to the task at hand. In other words, Gojou was very sure that this case did not require his intervention to get it done.
However, he still followed Nanami to Hokkaido.
Now, it was Nanami who wanted to know Gojou's motive for coming on this trip. After all, he knew that Gojou could not possible be so free that he could make a long trip to the north for a vacation to kill his free time.
At any rate, he can only quickly finish this "Disturbance caused by puppets" before he could get Gojou to reveal his true motive.
With the consideration of work efficiency in mind, Nanami decided to briefly explain the contents of the mission.
"The incident seemed to have originated from a website called "Yomotsuhirasaka*".
(T/N: The road to Yomotsu – the afterlife)
"What an amazing naming sense."
"That website seems to be fixed to an independent server so it's not possible to find it using the usual search engines….Ichiji managed to dig it out using whatever information he had."
"That guy is really great."
Based on Gojou's tone that did not have a shred of surprise, it felt like he was saying "Of course I know he was the one who found it."
Once Nanami heard that statement, it dawned to him "Ah, seems like this guy placed Ichiji's neck in a chokehold and forced him to reveal my whereabouts."
Ichiji Kiyotaka was by no means some super hacker.
However, as long as this man had a clear idea of the target he was searching for, he would be able to find a "Method of locating the target".
In this modern society where there is an explosion of information, sometimes the ability to look for information is more important than having knowledge of the profession.
When it comes to this point, Ichiji was a valuable asset.
Even though he was a valuable asset, it was another matter on whether he should use a kind attitude to show his gratitude to this person who had leaked information. Nanami planned to find Ichiji and get him to confess after they go back.
"Anyway, what's the point of setting up that kind of vulgar website? There shouldn't be some hilarious video clips that's posted on there, right?"
"That website's design is extremely simple, so simple that it's nostalgic."
"So there is a visitor counter and once they reach a certain number of visitors, it would be announced on the site?
"How annoying, I actually feel nostalgia."
"We aren't exactly young."
Nanami noticed that he had eaten his soft serve to the point that it was a flat top so he ate a mouthful of the waffle. And after taking a breath, he continued to talk:
"In the end, it seems like that website is a window to contact a certain curse user."
"Window?"
"There's a simple text entry box on the website. You just have to input your request and submit it and then there will be a pop up of the address on where to send the cash to, then you can buy their products."
"A mail order where you have mail your payment, how old fashioned."
"The address that was indicated on the website is a property owned by a small real estate management agency in Hokkaido. I heard that it's a shared house that's about one tsubo* in size.
(T/N: Approximately 3.3 sqm)
"What kind of shared house is only one tsubo?"
"There are twenty mailboxes there and it seems like they become the personal mailboxes of the Yakuza to make their dealings."
"Isn't this method completely like what someone from the Yakuza would do? It doesn't seem like an idea coming from a curse user."
"Furthermore, you could count it as a good or a bad thing, a jujutsu sorcerer with a certain history or lineage would never come up with the motivation to set up such a business model."
"...In the end, what is that website even selling? Is it some curse user who went astray scamming people by selling cursed tool that can only exorcise cursed spirits that are at the level of fly heads or are they earning some spare change by cursing others...But if the opponent is only at this kind of level, the upper echelons don't need to send you to handle it, Nanami."
"Your observation is ever so astute."
"Who do you think you're talking to now. The people up there have sent you on this mission yet they didn't inform me of the details of this mission, so I suppose the old geezers at the top want to hide this case."
"If the situation is as how you put it, then have you thought that I might have received orders that "forbade me from revealing anything details about the mission"?"
"It doesn't matter if it's forbidden or not. Even if I want to know, I can't force you to spill the beans. Anyway, at the very most they can only "not let me know what had happened". In other words, my appearance here has ruined all their efforts."
"I keep thinking, since you're so smart, why do you still need me to explain what's going on? You would know if you just went to investigate."
"For a problem like this where I can understand as long as I put my mind to it but the process is troublesome, it would be settled the fastest if I just order my junior around."
"...sigh..."
Nanami let out a long sigh.
It was not as though he was hesitant to divulge the information, it was simply because he wanted to sigh at this Jujutsu sorcerer senior of his who did things in a tyrannical manner.
Nanami took in another breath forcefully. Finally, he was going to mention the crux of the matter.
"—resurrection of the dead."
"…What did you say?"
This was a rare moment when Gojou doubted his own ears.
The matter that Nanami spoke about was that ridiculous. Nanami also felt the same way himself so his tone started to show signs of exhaustion.
"The object sold on that website is a "new vessel" that could call back the souls of the dead...the seller seems to call them "Resurrection Puppets"."
"….why are you telling a joke that isn't funny again?"
"Most likely it's just some scam. Except…"
"Never mind, I get it."
Gojou lightly waved his hands.
In this summarized conversation, he has already understood the case to a point that it could not be any clearer.
"Even if it's most likely, even if there's a ninety nine percent chance that it's a scam….but if by the slightest minute chance it's real, we can't leave it alone. That's what you wanted to express, right?"
In this world, there are several truths that do not need to be doubted.
Such as: The sky will turn bright after the night has passed, ice is cold and apples will fall from trees.
Because of the existence of these laws which were so simple that they brought smiles to people's faces, this world could function.
On the other hand, if these laws got flipped on their head, this world would fall into chaos.
One plus one did not equal to two, all the concepts of mathematics will be crushed in a go; just the absence of light after night had passed was enough to destroy this planet.
If there were changes to this matters that were simple to the point that it made people smile, no one would be able to smile.
Time could not turn back. That was one of those laws of truth.
Just as how one cannot put split water back in a basin, it was the same logic that there was no treatment for regret. Once time had passed, it could not come back.
The easiest to understand representative phenomenon would be "death".
"No wonder the upper echelons did not want me to know. After all, they intend to completely bring the life of Sukuna's vessel to an end."
"Seems like you figured things out."
"Aren't they looking down on me? They actually believe I will use such unorthodox methods?"
"Even though it's less than a one percent chance, those individuals with power are still cautious and fearful and plan to eliminate all possibilities. No wonder they can still hold onto their absolute power and stay on their ivory towers."
"Though I feel that this is hundred percent a scam."
"I think so too. After all, if the dead can return to life—"
"If the dead can really return to life, this world would have been doomed."
The dead could not return to life. Because resurrection was not possible, people could give up on the past. Because resurrection was not possible, they would at least want a meaningful death.
If the dead could come back to life, then to this world, that would probably be a curse that is so large that it had no equal.
It probably can be called the King of Curses, a curse that stood above all others.
"However, this suspicious product seems to be limited to "reviving infants"….If it's like that, that raises another vague possibility."
"Only for reviving infants? Now what's this about?"
"Right now, I only know that's how the website limits its clientele. My job this time also involves investigating this matter."
"We can't even be sure if the dead will really get revived and you still have to investigate this matter?"
"It's not as if I can leave it alone. I still have to do my job after all."
Gojou raised his head and bit the sweet waffle of his soft serve with a crunch.
After licking off the soft serve that had melted and dripped onto his thumb, an expression of complete exhaustion appeared as he looked at Nanami through his sunglasses.
"Nanami, do you think the job of a salaryman is lousier than being a Jujutsu Sorcerer?"
"Putting aside the suitability for the job, I feel that this is just a pot calling a kettle black."
"Looks like this society is going to get cursed."
"It can't be helped that something like that is said."
"Nanami….that person who's selling the puppets...let's just call him the "Puppeteer". You should have an idea of where that guy is already, right? Where should we go from here?"
"We already went past our destination because a certain someone decided to lead the way wrongly."
"Eh? It's my fault?"
"Please do not make me think that because a salaryman like you doesn't exist, the world is in a slightly better place."
For a while, Nanami quietly thought about whether he wanted to stay in this profession in future.
*
A city was not something that only expanded horizontally.
In a city where the density of development on its surface had been pushed to the limit, it will basically stop expanding horizontally and start expanding vertically.
All in all, the heights of buildings would keep growing or more spaces would keep getting dug out.
"I see, an underground street."
"There are a lot of entrances on the surface that lead to underground so it's pretty convenient to come down here but we have already gone in a huge circle."
The completeness of the underground transport network that held various railway lines was one sign whether a place could be considered a city.
In comparison, the underground passageway in front of Sapporo station was more modern and so, the tunnels were also wider. From there, one could access almost all the major facilities between the front of the station to Susukino.
It was because of these underground pedestrian paths that led to the roads on the surfaces having very few pedestrians. This space that was affected by traffic signals or weather had become a city beneath a city.
"The space here is pretty modern. It's underground but there are still skylights."
"Whether it's supermarkets, bookstores, terraces or library teller windows, they are all available here. You can even find beauticians and fortune tellers. Many kinds of occupations are gathered in this place so most likely the "Puppeteer" is among them as well."
"By the way, why didn't we just come directly to the underground street from the start?"
"I had intended to come here immediately. But someone did not listen to me and went to eat potatoes with butter on a whim."
"Are you serious? If I see that person, I'm gonna tell him off for you."
"If you want to look at a mirror, they're available in the toilets."
"Anyway…this place really is trendy. Not only is there an exhibition area, but there are also events and even performances. The liveliness is even more vigorous than that on the surface. But because that is the case, I have a bad feeling."
Gojou had reason to cause deeper creases to form on his brow.
Sapporo is a unique city.
Humans are living creatures where ten people have ten different manners. Different kinds of personalities existed in this world.
For places like Tokyo, Shibuya, Asakusa, Shinjuku, Akihabara and so on, each district has their own distinct traits and people would gather at these different districts based on their own personalities. Once a person was referred to with vocabulary such as the Shibuya-type or Akihabara-type, it was clear what their personality trait was.
However, they were all jumbled together in Sapporo.
Trendy shopping areas where youths gathered at, anime and manga merchandise stores where nerds navigated towards, shopping streets that contained old brand stores with long histories and areas that held the desires of adults.
These districts were probably only separated by a distance of one street and were all mixed into one.
Of course, all the "thoughts" that gathered in these areas also get thrown together.
Resentment, jealousy, anger, partiality, stubbornness, envy, disgust, selfishness.
The negative feelings of humans were supposed to drift apart naturally based on the area's specialty, but this city was not divided based on special characteristics.
After that, it would be the space that became an underground pedestrian pathway.
The underground street that had wide paths and took up a lot of space.
Various kinds of people go through these round tunnels that were carefully designed for convenience and connected almost all the city's major facilities and head for the stations. At the same time, all the negative feelings they were carrying were brought into the same space with the people who held them.
At the first glance, this underground artery was magnificent and lively, but in the eyes of a Jujutsu sorcerer, this was a huge cauldron of human thoughts.
"Because of somewhere like this, we can easily stiff out where the stink comes from."
"Yeah, I can feel some sort of evil aura just from looking."
In the first place, the air in this underground street where large groups of people came and went was stagnant
However, there was definitely some sort of peculiar air of gloom in this kind of environment.
For Jujutsu sorcerers who could find cursed spirits based on the remnants of the cursed technique, finding the source of this aura was easier than finding the source of a gas leak.
Nanami and Gojou followed the source of the aura, weaving through the crowds of people who were coming and going and continued to move south down the underground space.
After walking for about ten minutes, the two came to the end of district that had been replanned and refurbished and entered the older district that had a distinctly different atmosphere.
Compared to the refurbished area, the old district's structure was more complex, with more branching paths or roads that went towards the metro.
Even so, the amount of human traffic did not decrease and instead became even more congested.
The flow of humans was like a river that was close to breaking its embankment.
However in this kind bustling crowd of people….two people felt a kind of "stagnancy".
"Nanami."
"Yes—–that should be a clue."
At the end of the line of sight of these two Jujutsu sorcerers was a mother with children.
The mother carried an infant while a boy of about five or six years old stood next to her.
Gojou and Nanami pricked up their ears to listen to the conversation between the mother and child as they carefully got closer.
"—Akito, why aren't you listening to me?"
"No! Mommy, don't carry that kind of thing and walk around! I hate it! I hate it!"
"You are the big brother, so stop being willful for no reason. Look….Natsuki is crying again."
"I hate it! I hate it! I'm not an older brother!"
After the mother shifted the position of the baby called Natsuki in her arms, she made a face like she was at a loss of what to do.
She probably treasured that child who was called Akito as well.
Of course, people who were parents would not be able win against babies. That mother's attention did not leave her youngest and she carried his tiny body while swaying continuously. From her expression , one could tell that the love she had for her youngest was close to insanity.
The woman, on one side, was feeling troubled by the boy who was throwing a tantrum while on the other side, she was coaxing the small baby in her arms.
In the eyes of normal people, this was a heartwarming scene that was extremely normal.
When a younger sibling was born, children who became older siblings would lose their temper once in a while because they feel that their mother suddenly got snatched away. Adults could only say "This happens all the time" and smile to brush it off.
However, from the degree of protests from this boy by the name of Akito, it was too fierce to say that the child was just throwing a tantrum.
He was indeed unwilling to let his mother get snatched away by his younger brother.
However, the amount of animosity he felt towards his brother was far too intense.
The woman, as a mother, should have realized it as well. Her expression that started off as a wry smile slowly morphed into one of being bothered and finally it became languish and anger.
"Why do you say such a thing?!"
"Because, because!"
"He is your little brother, isn't he? Don't you feel bad for him?"
"That thing is not my little brother!"
"Aki, Akito!"
The furious mother lost her sense of reason and raised her palm up high.
But when she swung her hand down, there was no heart wrenching sound of the boy's face getting slapped.
Because Nanami had grabbed the woman's arm.
"This…wh, why did you grab my arm for?!"
Obviously, the mother became panicked.
After all, to her, Nanami and Gojou were suspicious strangers who have barged into the daily lives of her family.
Even though the mother understood that she ought to get chided for using violence, she still had to properly discipline the boy who made harsh remarks towards her baby. Therefore, she found it hard to accept that outsiders were sticking their nose into her domestic affairs.
However, Nanami and Gojou had sufficient reason to reproach this mother.
Aside from being adults like her, they were Jujutsu sorcerers.
"Please let go of me! This is a problem between me and my child!"
"Sorry, I cannot allow that. May I ask if you know what is it that you are holding?"
"What are you saying…."
"I see, so this is that so called puppet."
"Eh!"
Gojou stuck his face closer from opposite Nanami, looking up and down at the baby that the woman held.
"And there I was thinking what kind of object the so-called puppet was….so it's only this. Taking out such a thing to sell and saying something like reviving the dead, a scam which has no qualms about ruining people's lives!"
"Pl, please don't be like this! Don't touch Natsuki!"
"Oh, you care about "that thing" that much? More than that child who is crying and screaming next to you?"
"What nonsense are you spouting! For the sake of this child, I endured intense pain to—"
"Buy it?"
After the woman heard Nanami's words, her movements stopped as though she had frozen.
She felt a sense of chill and despair run up her body, as though someone had directly stuck their arm into her intestine and squeezed her spine.
The woman understood that only the people who understood the inner workings of the matter would be able to say such a thing.
*
"—Cursed corpse?"
This mother ruminated, repeating the noun that Nanami said.
Perhaps she was not familiar with such a noun so it sounded forced when she pronounced it.
"Yes, simply put….let me think….It should be easy to understand if I say it's a puppet that was made with curses."
From the way Nanami explained it, one would realise that he had considered that normal people know absolutely nothing about curses.
Gojou had actually secretly praised Nanami by saying "Nanami used to be part of the workforce, so he can communicate with others better on such matters."
"You say that this is a puppet….but this child looks like a real person."
"This puppet is so intricately made that it leaves people in awe. If a normal person sees it, they probably can't tell whether it's a real baby or not."
"This child is real."
"That child is not real. You made the purchase so you should be clear about this more than anyone else, right?"
"….."
"Reasonably speaking, the number of Jujutsu sorcerers who can make cursed corpses so human-like are few and far between….If I deduce from there, when you requested for this puppet to be made, the other party should have asked for something else other than money, am I correct?"
"Yes…."
The baby in the woman's arms was really wondrous.
He would move his arms and legs like he was grabbing air and even puff up his tiny cheeks that had a bit of pink, these were all prime textbook examples of standard baby movements that would stimulate maternal instinct.
Even so, these were only superficial.
In the eyes of a Jujutsu sorcerer, it was only spine chilling.
It was only normal for someone to feel like that because—
"I suppose the other party—"
"Wanted you to hand over the corpse of the baby you wanted to revive."
"….Gojou-san."
Because a normal person could not possibility move the body of an adult, that's why he only limited the resurrection to infants."
Nanami had originally wanted to get the truth out innocuously, however once he heard Gojou reveal his own deduction in a blunt manner, he weakly slumped his shoulders.
Seeing how the woman looked uneasy, Gojou's deduction was probably spot on.
This cursed corpse that moved like a living person was made using corpses as its material.
If one had a certain degree of understanding of cursed techniques, they would know that how nefarious and profane this cursed technique was and a matter that depraved people.
However, this puppet was enough to let normal people live the sweet dream of "resurrecting the dead".
To wake people from such a nightmare, they definitely needed the truth to be thrown on them like cold water just like Gojou had done. Gojou might have proactively said such words as a show of consideration to Nanami, but whether he really thought about such a thing was unknown.
No matter what his original intention was, Gojou continued to speak to the woman:
"That thing might look like a living person, but it's actually no different from a robotic pet that follows pre-programmed actions."
"You're lying! I confirmed over and over again….the other party promised that Natsuki would return to my side, that's why I paid him."
"A mother should be able to know better than anyone else what kind of small actions, what kind of small expressions that are full of emotions that their own child would have...however, that baby in your arms now does not even have the air of a person with a living soul, right?"
"...."
"Furthermore—"
Nanami's eyes which were under his sunglasses threw a glance at the child who was called Akito.
A boy who was only around five years old pressed himself against the woman's leg as he raised his head to look at his own mother with an uneasy yet determined expression.
"—that child seems to be very clear about what's happening. He knows that his mother's mind was about to be taken away by some unknown object."
"That…."
"Every person has a different definition of what is reality. If what you want is "A reality where you did not lose any of your children", I have no right to lecture you…."
Nanami used his middle finger to push up his sunglasses and then paused.
Sometimes children were stronger and had more resolve than adults could imagine.
This boy called Akito should know that "I have to hang on to my mother with all I have". His actions might be touching, but seeing that a child was forced to face a matter because of how cruel the truth was, it only made one inevitably let out a sigh.
So Nanami could only quietly pray while giving a reminder.
"But the matter that you are turning a blind eye to, "The child who worries about you is still alive" is also reality, correct?"
"...Uu…."
This mother's heart had understood everything.
She understood that what Nanami said was correct; she understood that what she had done was merely an escape from reality.
Even so, Nanami also knew well that he could not end everything by saying "It's good you understand".
He could also understand how cruel it was to lose someone you have gotten back once more.
So he did not force this mother to make a decision.
*
"Eliminating a human's attachment to the past is more difficult than exorcising a curse."
The mother of the baby was described aptly with the words that Gojou muttered. The two finally retrieved the cursed corpse among her tears and the sound of her sobs.
They were underground so they were not too sure about the situation outside, but at this moment, the sun should already be setting. If they forcefully took away the cursed corpse, the wound in the woman's heart would never heal for the rest of her life, so the two could only wait till this mother was ready to let go on her own.
Nanami kept telling Gojou "If you aren't working, at least help to carry this", Gojou excused himself three times but in the end, he was forced to carry Nanami's bag.
The bag contained the cursed corpse which they took from the woman.
"Nanami, you placed this object in your hand carry bag, it's kinda heavy to hold."
"It's not as though we can just chuck it somewhere. Furthermore, it's an important clue. Use the cursed energy that's placed inside the puppet and then rely on some of the remnants so we can go straight for the other party's base."
"That's true. Anyway, it seems the "Puppeteer" who is selling this thing had covered his tracks intentionally….but this guy is just some trash amateur, his methods are really crude."
"Yeah, seriously."
In the end, the two of them easily and with no trouble at all, found the perpetrator's stronghold.
They came to a district that could be considered especially old fashioned in the underground street.
A wide space that was connected to many paths, and after going through one, they made it to the basement of some tall building. After that, they went to the back of some stairs that went to the upper floors and then entered a complex zig-zagging road.
Originally, this place should have been rented to run an Izakaya.
However, as the location was terrible, it felt like it was not fit for running respectable businesses. However, it was perfect for fishy activities.
Even though the other party used a technique with the same principle as a "curtain" to hide from people.
But all in all, the method to conceal himself could only be called crude.
Nanami and Gojou chased after the remnants of the cursed technique and even when they reached this place, they could see the traces clearly as though the path taken by the other party had never been cut off.
"This really makes me feel that we are really short on Jujutsu sorcerers. This kind of third-rate sorcerer built his stronghold so openly and he's actually allowed to continue his crimes."
"All the strong cursed spirits are gathered in the city center, so the movements of Jujutsu sorcerers are limited to the big city. Naturally they will overlook the situation at places that are more underdeveloped."
"Though it won't cause a huge problem even if we left a rogue sorcerer of this kind of skill level alone."
The two did not care who went first.
But they did not make any particular signal to each other either. They only just happened to both step forward.
"But now there are victims such as that mother…"
"We should crush them as soon as we can."
The two Jujutsu sorcerers kicked down the door at almost the same time.
The fallen door clattered, ringing out on the scene and dust flew everywhere. After the owner of the house—the "Puppeteer" saw the two Jujutsu sorcerers appear in an imposing manner like characters in a yakuza movie making a furious debut, he got so scared that his knees gave way.
"….wh, who the hell are you…."
"Hey trash, if you think we are guests, go see an eye doctor."
"We are bona fide Jujutsu sorcerers."
"Not some inferior bastard like you."
Gojou's voice was full of contempt.
The inside of the house that the two barged into was crude and haphazard.
It was not known if they were going for an interior décor that was Japanese, Chinese or Korean, but it seemed like the owner just wanted to create a mysterious ambience.
There were display pieces that looks like lions, something that should be an imitation mummy, pit viper preserved in formaldehyde and masks that were painted with a single colour, looking like it came out of a souvenir shop—
Among them, the worst was the owner's –the "Puppeteer's" clothing.
He was wearing something that could either be the clothing worn by an onmyouji or a priest and from the crude fabric, it might be rented from some prop and costume shop.
And on those clothes, he even wrapped some crudely made talismans that could barely release cursed energy around himself like bandages.
In the eyes of Jujutsu sorcerers, that appearance could only be considered role-playing.
Even if his targets were the general normal population, if he thought he could lie to everyone with such a get up, then it was too foolish of him.
Actually, he had succeeded in his scam and someone was hurt because of it, so he was even more unforgivable.
His entire existence could be said to be an insult to Jujutsu sorcerers.
"Jujutsu sorcerers...…? I, I I, I see….so yo, you are Jujutsu sorcerers as well..."
"What do you mean "as well"? Don't tell me you consider yourself a Jujutsu sorcerer?"
"Please cooperate with us and stop this meaningless struggle. It's actually quite tiring having to hold back."
Nanami's thoughts should be the same as Gojou's.
A deep crease had already formed on the brow that was beneath his sunglasses.
This deep crease revealed the biological disgust Nanami had for this puppeteer's existence and his utter lack of humanity.
Even though he had not held his weapon in his hands, he put up an offensive pose, ready to strike anytime.
The puppeteer was just some fake Jujutsu sorcerer but even a normal person would be able to feel how oppressive the aura that was coming out of a first grade Jujutsu sorcerer such as Nanami was.
On the other hand, if the puppeteer was still able to view his own situation in an optimistic manner then he was either stupid beyond words or...
Unable to think normally anymore.
"Ah, ah, ahhhhh….why are you here?"
"We already reached this point so if you still don't know why we're here then just shut up. A person who is too stupid is not cute."
"I, I, I don't have much ti, much time left!"
"I'm the one who wants to say that I don't have much time left. It's almost four. Even though I'm on a business trip, I do not wish to work overtime."
Nanami and Gojou stood side by side and walked towards the puppeteer at the same time.
In the small room, the two of them standing side by side would block the entrance so the other party had nowhere to run.
One could say that the puppeteer was at a dead end.
The number of options he could take was limited.
He could dance with death and push Nanami and Gojou aside to escape out of the room or he could wave some blunt tool and try to resist meaninglessly. If not, he could obediently surrender.
–In the end.
The option taken by the puppeteer was completely out of their expectations.
"He, he, he, he—help me!"
"What?"
"I, I'm, I'm so glad….I'm so glad. I was going to look for you. Actual Jujutsu sorcerers! He, help me, I have lots of money! So, so..."
The person who should be the puppeteer actually crawled next to Nanami's leg—and begged him for help.
At that moment, both Nanami and Gojou felt that something was off.
The puppeteer definitely could not be considered a Jujutsu sorcerer.
However—he was ridiculously weak.
The curse inserted into the cursed corpse could not be considered strong.
Even so, he was way too weak.
This man who was at Nanami's feet should not even be able to use that level of cursed technique.
With that being the case, the same cursed energy from the cursed corpse still seeped out continuously from this man's body.
To sum it up, there was only one truth.
"—Nanami."
"There's no mistake. We had believed that you were cursing people all over the place thinking that it was fun—but it looks like the one who got cursed is you."
The conversation between the two felt like some kind of signal and the puppeteer's body started to become strange.
Many of the countless talismans that were originally wrapped around the puppeteer's clothes had torn apart—several "arms" flew out from underneath the clothing like whips.
"Tch."
Nanami wanted to use the smallest amount of movement to dodge the attack but he changed his course of action in an instant.
Because in front of the "arms" that swung over were several lifeforms that resembled small insects. Nanami dodged the attacking arms and at the same time, roughly took off the blazer of his suit and swept it at those insect-like things.
"….that's…."
The puppeteer's body had become a fleshy puppet.
It was a combination of a human and a puppet, an appearance that looked grotesque. The puppeteer managed to barely maintain his own head and left arm but anything below his left chest was too disgusting to look at.
A puppet's face that felt like it became fierce and contorted because of a grudge was fixed at where the heart should be.
Several sharpened wooden skeletal structures that seemed to be made of bamboo stuck out of the combination of fleshy masses and humans and more than seventy percent of the puppeteer's body was replaced by a puppet, making him look like a spider.
"Ah, ahhhhhhhhh, help me, help me. Money, money, I have money, quickly help me exorcise, exorcise this thing! Help me get rid, help me get rid, help me get rid of this monster!"
Because of pain and terror, the puppeteer lost control and made huge movements of his countless arms like his was swinging multiple whips.
The power from the dancing arms were like a storm. If humans got hit by them, they are sure to have their bones broken but the real power was from another attack.
The fiercest were actually the countless small bugs that gushed out of the puppet's stomach, landed on the man's skin and squirmed around.
No…if one looked carefully, they would know that those small insects were actually tiny swarms of cursed corpses.
These worms were feeding on the puppeteer's body from the start and together with the "infant corpse" that he hid under his clothes, they were multiplying and growing.
"….Seems like these are cursed corpses that use the body as a cursed corpse production plants and at the same time, are able to reproduce on their own."
There were several cursed corpses that were slowly becoming a form by building tissue structures and hair.
The man was already able to talk, probably because his body had been severely corroded.
Finally the last doubt that Nanami and Gojou had in their minds had an answer.
"And I was wondering "If he only used the body's skin provided by the parents to make a cursed corpse, then where did the rest of the flesh go?"….so it was used to replace his own flesh that had been eaten.
"What I was puzzled about was even though he used the corpse, how in the world was he able to make such an intricate cursed corpse…?"
"Modern Jujutsu sorcerers are not able to make such cursed corpses easily. He should be a descendent of some Jujutsu family with a long history and because he became poor and desperate, he dug up some cursed tool from his family's warehouse...a cursed object that had gone out of control."
"Seeing how he made the payment so complicated, in the beginning, he probably just wanted to earn money, In any case, there's conclusive evidence for this man's sins, not that he had any leeway for us to make light of his crimes."
Nanami let out a sigh, as though he felt helpless from the bottom of his heart.
"Never mind corpses, this puppet even eats the flesh of the living, we shouldn't let it hang around for long."
A puppet that ate human flesh and turned them into puppets.
He collected dead bodies to provide the puppet with the human flesh it required, but because the puppeteer could not keep up with the demand, he became possessed by the puppet instead.
Those two should not exist in this world.
Nanami and Gojou seemed to have expressions that said that.
They planned to handle the situation calmly.
They already looked like they have accepted the reality.
However—to the puppeteer who was looking to be saved, this was not something to be delighted about.
"Eh, ah, ah, you're….no, not going to save me….?"
"You can't be saved, probably, you should know that as well right?"
"If you weren't infected so badly, Ieiri-san might have a way to cut it off."
Nanami reached his arm to his back.
He carried a weapon that had a wide blade, perhaps the most apt term for it was a hatchet, on his back.
Nanami always carried that hatchet.
He, who had forgone his job as a working class and chose to walk the path of a Jujutsu sorcerer, always carried this hatchet which he could take out to use at any time.
"Wa, wait, what do you mean?"
"Seven to three."
Nanami used his hatchet to gesture in the air.
"My cursed technique allows me to split my opponent in a line…on the point where the ratio is seven to three and forcefully create a weak point. It works regardless of my target being living or non-living. For something like you who have merged into a living and non-living creature, it is appropriate as you would still be seen as a body."
"….wh, what the hell are you talking about…."
Nanami revealed his technique.
The effect of "binding" to increase strength of a technique involves the disadvantage of publicly revealing information about one's technique to increase their attack power.
To Nanami, this was the same as declaring that he would definitely annihilate the enemy.
"Even though I feel bad for you ending up in this state, the cause of this entire situation was because you used some dangerous cursed technique to earn money."
"….hey, hey hey, hey? Are you kidding? I, I I I I am a human, you know? Even if you are a Jujutsu sorcerer, you, you….want to, want to use th, that blade….against a human and?"
"Your body can no longer be saved."
"No, no, no no no. Eh…why do I have to be treated like this?! I revived the dead! I saved people! I saved people's hearts! Why am I the only one! Who, who gets this kind of treatment….ke, ke, ke, ke ke ke ,k eke ugh! Ugh, ugh! Kugh! Kagh! Kagh, ka ka!"
"His ability to speak and self-awareness has reached an end. Most importantly—"
Nanami deftly raised in hatchet in the small space.
Just using his naked eye, the puppeteer knows that the action of Nanami raising his hatchet was full of an intent to kill. When a person is forced to a dead end there were only a number of actions he could take.
Fear and anxiety controlled the puppeteer.
Then….what Nanami said completely tore apart the tension that had been stretched thin.
"—you, who went around cursing people, have become a curse yourself."
"I'll kill youuuuuuuuuu!"
The puppeteer screamed and lunged towards Nanami.
He raised the human arm that he barely managed to retain and the countless puppet arms.
Nanami did not budge an inch.
He only used the flexibility of his own body and swiftly swung the blade that he had raised up high.
"You're already an adult so take responsibility for your own deeds."
One cut.
"—-Ah."
There was not a peep of a wail of pain.
Nanami used his technique that had been reinforced by revealing details about it and accurately cut open the puppeteer's body in a seven to three ratio.
The puppeteer's body was cut diagonally and it perfectly separated the puppet portion and human portion and each part collapsed onto the ground.
The puppet should originally be able to move because it absorbed the puppeteer's soul as nutrition so now the part that had been cut apart made a "rattle rattle" mechanical sound and not soon after, it stopped moving.
"….ah…..ah…..ah, ah....ahhh..."
The puppeteer softly groaned with a voice that did not become words and finally became motionless, like a puppet with its strings cut. In a while, the small cursed corpses that looked like small insects also stopped moving one after another like infants that were cut off their source of nutrition when their umbilical cords were cut.
What was ironic was that at the point of death, the puppeteer was able to leave the puppet and one could say he went to the afterlife as a human.
Even though this incident was not able to eliminate the gloom in anyone's heart…this attack from Nanami was able to change to puppeteer back to a human. That was an undisputable fact.
"Good job, Nanami."
After Gojou patted Nanami's shoulders, the latter rotated his arms to relax his shoulders.
"If you intervened, I won't have to be this tired."
"Even though this person is a piece of shit, in order to let him die as a human, it's still more suitable to use your technique."
"I don't want to be suitable for such a thing."
"Let's remove the curtain first and leave the rest to the pros. I really don't know how to handle corpses."
"You did not do anything at all."
After Nanami let out a huge sigh, the room returned to silence.
The lion decors, the imitation mummy and the pit viper soaked in formalin were still quietly sitting in the house that lost its owner.
Was the owner of this house a human or a puppet.
Even with these two Jujutsu sorcerers around, one was not able to give the right answer.
However, right now the floor had a pool of blood, clearly proving that he was a human.
But not long after, the blood would be cleaned up completely as though nothing had happened before.
And the only thing left in the end would be the silence of underground.
*
"Some people would say that doctors are the ones, on the contrary, who do not take care of their own health."
Gojou suddenly mumbled such a thing as he swayed the wine glass at the bar counter of a bar.
Because this sentence came out of the blue, for an instant, Nanami did not realise that Gojou was talking to him.
"…Are you talking about the puppeteer?"
"I'm talking about all the Jujutsu sorcerers. Because handling curses is akin to handling the negative emotions of people who have sunk into despair. Also, the number of jobs that make you feel unhappy after completing them would far outweigh the other result."
"Are you talking about the risk of sorcerers accumulating curses on themselves?"
"Even though I'm used to the way of this job, my mood will still be bad and I even want to get myself piss drunk."
"Didn't you order a "Florida"? There's no alcohol inside, is there?"
"Because I didn't do anything this time, so I don't have to get myself piss drunk."
"Can you not say that in such a frank manner?"
Gojou watched as Nanami downed his "Gimlet" and smile to himself.
"Nanami, you sure show a lot of emotions."
"Why are you suddenly talking about this."
"Because you can discern between personal and job-related matters but your heart doesn't get affected at all right? However, when one becomes an adult, they would have a few methods here and there to get rid of feelings of conflict and condemnation. Because of this, alcohol becomes an efficient medicine for the soul.
"What a boring topic, are you planning to continue?"
"I'm not planning to ridicule you."
Through his sunglasses, Nanami showed a doubtful gaze but after being sure that Gojou did not have his usual frivolous smile plastered on his face, he went to back to listening quietly.
Gojou realised it as well and continued to speak
"As long as one is human, there would be one day when they develop curses. And the students that I am in charge of teaching will one day have to face the evil deeds of those scum."
"…Because they are Jujutsu sorcerers."
There were countless things in this world that were unreasonable.
Not only Jujutsu sorcerers, normal people would also have to deeply experience the evil intentions of humans and after humans generate curses, they would get a taste of suffering, learn to give up and grow up to become adults amidst the despair they have accumulated.
Nanami knew this very well.
And Gojou knew that that Nanami became an adult after experiencing such realities.
Which was why he decided to talk about such a topic with Nanami.
"For people like us, we naturally know how to get rid of the poisons within their heart. But for youths who hold onto a lot of sentimental feelings, it's another matter altogether. Their heart might collapse just from getting struck by poison once."
"Isn't it an adult's duties to rid poison from a child's heart? As a teacher, you should know this better than me, right?"
"Of course I know that's my duty, which is why I'm talking about this with you here."
After Gojou finished his drink, he ordered more drinks from the bartender.
"Two glasses of "Cinderella". Thank you."
"Are you kidding?"
Gojou ordered a cocktail that was even sweeter than the one he had before and after Nanami heard Gojou ordering his share as well, he narrowed his eyes.
Of course, this was also a non-alcoholic cocktail and tasted a lot like fruit punch.
Gojou ignored Nanami who looked like he was going to protest and while looking at the shelves of alcohol behind the bar counter, he continued to talk.
"There is a child who I want you to help me take of."
"It's not Fushiguro, is it?"
"I'm talking about Itadori Yuuji, you know him, correct?"
"......I heard that he had already died."
"His body contains the King of curses, you can't even put him in the same page as that "Resurrection puppet" scam."
The bartender lightly placed two glasses on the bar counter.
In the glasses were amber liquids that resembled the setting sun.
From the name of the drink, perhaps it was supposed to be the colour of the full moon, but it might even be the colour of the hair of the youth they spoke about just now.
This cocktail tasted very sweet just like a fairy tale full of romance and welcomed a happy ending.
Gojou grasped his own glass and continued to talk while swaying it.
"Because I'm busy with work, it feels like it's a rare chance for me to talk to you without any disturbance."
"I know you hate the current Jujutsu world but I still stand on the side where there are rules. However, I am not sure what kind of opinion you have about Sukuna's vessel."
"I'm not talking about Sukuna's vessel, but a human by the name of Itadori Yuuji,"
"I believe his situation is not so optimistic that one can discuss those two identities separately."
"Yuuji is a very straightforward child."
Gojou ran his fingertip lightly over the edge of the glass.
The glass made a soft high pitch sound like a string instrument.
"He has determination, courage as well as the decisiveness needed in a battle. Even so, there are some things which he's too straightforward about. I worry about what would happen if a child such as him should have his heart broken."
"What do you expect me to do after telling me all this?"
"Didn't I say so just now? I'm busy with work so I am unable to take care of his growth at a mental level. If you can take care of him for a while, I would be very grateful."
"You want me to help you with this?"
"That's why I'm asking you to help. Let's put aside the matter of him being a Jujutsu sorcerer or Sukuna's vessel….Please take this as a request from an adult who just wants a young person to grow up stably."
Gojou Satoru usually spoke in a frivolous, casual manner that made it difficult for people to tell if he was joking or not. Because of that, if he was being serious, he was definitely being serious.
"I want an adult such as yourself, who understands the scars of humans to take care of him for a while."
"….You specially came to Hokkaido just to talk about such naïve things?"
"You know me. I love sweets more than my life."
(T/N: The Japanese word for naïve sounds like the Japanese word for sweet.)
Gojou smiled and touched the edge of his glass to Nanami's.
The amber-coloured cocktail had a sweet and tart flavour.
Nanami stared at his drink that seemed to contain the slightly sour taste of youth for a while.
"I don't like sweet stuff."
The two did not coordinate beforehand and just happened to down their drinks at the same time.
"It's really sweet."
"It tastes great, doesn't it?"
Contrasting bright voices rang out in the quiet bar.
The night of the Jujutsu sorcerers wore on.
Their hearts carried numerous intense fluctuating feelings of bitterness as well as a bit of sweetness, like that left on the tips on their tongues.