The domains clashed with dramatic flair. Suguru Geto's domain manifested as a thick fog, swirling with eerie ghost fires that floated ominously. The backdrop featured a blood-red moon, under which the night echoed with the maniacal laughter of spirits. Shadows of various cursed spirits lingered in the air, accompanied by the rhythmic pounding of drums, capturing the chaotic nature of the Night Parade of One Hundred Demons. In stark contrast, Kenjaku's domain manifested as an expansive realm, taking the form of a towering pillar comprised entirely of cursed spirits.
"Let the Night Parade commence," Suguru announced, his voice melding with the cackling of cursed spirits that filled the air.
The sure-hit effects of both Suguru Geto and Kenjaku clashed within their respective domains.
"Kenjaku, listen well," Suguru declared. "The Night Parade of One Hundred Demons begins with my cursed spirits at Grade 4, but as time progresses, they grow stronger. When the moon reaches its zenith, all cursed spirits will ascend to Special Grade."
Kenjaku, attentively listening, noticed that all of Suguru Geto's cursed spirits within his domain had suddenly advanced to Grade 3. "Revealing one's hand," Kenjaku mused internally, recognizing that the moment Suguru disclosed the workings of his domain, it had grown stronger. Despite this realization, Kenjaku noted that his own domain, although open and expansive, had only been striking at the outer shell of Suguru's domain, which remained unbroken.
Suguru, aware of Kenjaku's observation, concealed himself within the thick fog.
"Thanks to Satoru, I conceived the idea of inverting the strength of a domain," Suguru thought to himself. "To prevent my domain from being destroyed from the outside, I strengthened the outer shell and weakened the inner one. Since the inner barrier is nearly impossible to locate, we'll be locked in a stalemate, but ultimately, I will prevail."
As he strategized, Suguru watched the blood-red moon slowly ascend towards its zenith, his confidence bolstered by the anticipated escalation in power of his cursed spirits.
"He disappeared," Kenjaku thought. Within minutes, he was attacked by hordes of cursed spirits. He easily dismantled them, but as he did, Kenjaku picked up on the nuances of Suguru Geto's domain. "It appears that the cursed spirits aren't the sure-hit effect," he mused as he tore apart another cursed spirit while searching for Suguru.
"Is it the fog?" Kenjaku analyzed the situation. Then, he suddenly and briefly turned off the sure-hit effect of his own domain. Immediately, the fog clouded his vision and began to restrict his senses. He quickly reactivated it, and the effects dissipated. "It's the fog. Suguru Geto is sneaking around in it. Theoretically, it's a non-lethal domain, but with the cursed spirits constantly reviving, it becomes a mixture of both. And Suguru Geto is the epicenter of all this," Kenjaku continued to analyze as he tore through the multitude of cursed spirits.
Suguru, from a distance, watched Kenjaku closely, waiting for an opportunity.
"My domain enables me to use the fog to cloud and confuse enemies as a sure-hit effect. The cursed spirits continue to become stronger as time passes and will never die, at the expense of the domain strengthening my overall physical capabilities. This means that I will not receive the stat boosts, in Hiroshi's terms," Suguru thought as he kept moving and changing positions within the fog.
Meanwhile, on Okkotsu Yuta's side, Rika had finally calmed down and was released from the chains. Hiroshi and Yuta conversed, while Uraume looked for a way to distance herself from the God of Sorcerers. She did not know how he had arrived, but as an incarnated sorcerer who had witnessed the battle for the title of the strongest a few years ago, she knew that Hiroshi Senju was far beyond her caliber.
"Listen, Yuta Okkotsu, my Cursed Technique operates in two ways: the acceleration of plant growth in the vicinity, and the summoning of plants from your body or the ground through visualization and application of Cursed Energy," Hiroshi began to explain the basics of Shinboku no Jumon.
"I see," Yuta noted. In order to copy a technique, Yuta Okkotsu must understand how the Cursed Technique works, and in some cases, have Rika consume part of a sorcerer.
But as she looked around, she spotted the outer shell of Suguru Geto's Domain Expansion in the distance.
"Kenjaku is stuck with Suguru Geto, Hiroshi Senju is already present, and Satoru Gojo is perhaps already on his way. Damn, Kenjaku, what a masterplan you had; it has completely backfired," she thought. Then, she realized there had been a hand on her shoulder the entire time. The Sukuna Meat Rider felt true fear for the first time.
"Hey there, lady, you look a little lost," Hiroshi jokingly said as Uraume finally realized that Hiroshi had always been behind her.
Startled, Uraume quickly distanced herself from Hiroshi, but as she did, Yuta was already behind her. "Shinboku no Jumon: Great Forest Technique!" Yuta's arm transformed into sharp wooden spikes, attempting to impale Uraume. In response, Uraume hurriedly blew a breeze of ice, just enough to immobilize Yuta and create distance.
The fight between Yuta and Uraume intensified, where Uraume could not fight at full power simply because Hiroshi was present; she began to reserve it as a last resort to escape.
Outside the curtain, a multitude of sorcerers had already begun securing the area, ensuring that no perpetrators could escape. Hiroshi and Satoru arrived on the scene. When Hiroshi touched the barrier, it repelled his hand. "It's a specialized barrier," he noted. "How about you, Satoru?"
Satoru touched the barrier, and his hand was similarly repelled. "Well, it's keeping both of us out," he confirmed.
Hiroshi turned to a Senju sorcerer and inquired, "How is the analysis of the curtain coming along?"
"Patriarch, the curtain is locked from the inside. Only you and Gojo Satoru are hindered from entering; the rest of the sorcerers can pass through," the Senju sorcerer explained.
Back to the domain battle:
Kenjaku gazed at the blood-red moon in the sky at its zenith. "What a tricky domain," he remarked, sensing that the cursed spirits within the domain had begun to ascend in power.
Kenjaku realized that the timeframe for his plan had gone awry.
"Suguru Geto's domain is a hybrid, but its sure-hit effect is non-lethal," he noted. Then, Kenjaku disabled his domain's sure-hit effect and applied a binding vow to strengthen the attacks from the outside.
As he did, he was navigating the fog blind, counter-attacking against any and all special-grade cursed spirits.
Suguru Geto saw this and was briefly confused. "Even if you turn off the sure-hit effect of your domain, it will only disable the suppressing effect of the fog on your senses; you still have to wade through the fog," Suguru thought, realizing that Kenjaku had turned off the sure-hit effect on his domain.
But his thoughts were cut short as his domain was suddenly destroyed from the outside. "What?" he exclaimed, hit by the sure-hit effect from Kenjaku's domain expansion directly.
Suguru Geto was heavily injured, battered and bruised.
From outside, Uraume watched all this unfold while still being attacked by Yuta.
Suguru immediately used Falling Blossom Emotion to mitigate the damage, as he ran a Reverse Cursed Technique to heal himself.
"That's not good," Hiroshi's clone said as he rushed towards Suguru Geto and launched Simple Domain to further protect him.
Suguru nodded thankfully as he focused on healing himself.
Hiroshi ordered the sorcerers to enter the barrier just in time for Kenjaku to see numerous Senju sorcerers entering the curtain.
Kenjaku canceled his domain and ran directly towards Uraume. "Piercing Blood!" he launched an attack on Okkotsu Yuta, stopping him in his tracks, and used anti-gravity to fly away with Uraume while exiting the curtain, simultaneously disabling it.
"Change of plans. Jujutsu sorcerers have surrounded the curtain. Gojo Satoru and Hiroshi Senju are also outside. We have lost our opportunity," Kenjaku said to Uraume as he glanced at the people below him.
Yuta Okkotsu and Suguru Geto— at this point, Kenjaku realized that Suguru Geto was far stronger than he imagined. And the fact that Senju Hiroshi and Gojo Satoru were always beside him made it impossible to take his body.
Upon the curtain's disappearance, Hiroshi and Satoru Gojo found Suguru Geto still healing himself.
"You good?" Hiroshi asked. "Couldn't be better," Suguru replied, chuckling as his mind raced. He had underestimated Kenjaku. Without Hiroshi's clone, he would've died.
"He's far stronger than I thought. I thought I was above him in our fight, but I never realized that he was simply waiting for the opportunity for me to reveal my cards," Suguru analyzed.
Hiroshi nodded. "It's Kenjaku. He has lived for a millennia, the battle experience he has during those years."
"Does that mean Kenjaku will return?" Satoru asked.
"Perhaps, or perhaps not. I find it unlikely for Kenjaku to attack again. He knows that you are strong and we are always nearby, but always be ready; he might do something unexpected," Hiroshi said.
Suguru nodded. He had his friends, and they were the strongest.
Little did Hiroshi know that Kenjaku would really do the unexpected.
-----------------
"On a side note, Yuta Okkotsu is able to copy cursed techniques. I was able to let him copy mine. Perhaps he can copy yours as well, Suguru, but I find it hard for him to copy the Limitless of Satoru," Hiroshi said.
"If we include Megumi, then we probably have 6 Special Grade Sorcerers," Satoru said.
"No, he is still Grade 1. He does not yet have a sure-hit effect for his Domain Expansion," Suguru replied.
"5 and a half then. But honestly, with Mahoraga, Megumi can only be dealt with by us at this point," Hiroshi said.
Hiroshi looked at the sky where Kenjaku and Uraume escaped and turned to Satoru. "You can teleport, right?"
"Yes, I can. But at that speed, I can't catch up. Besides, as long as we are around, Kenjaku cannot do anything," Satoru said, brushing off Kenjaku's threat.
Hearing this, Hiroshi nodded. "In the future, the King of Curses will come back. Kenjaku will make moves behind the scenes. Just be ready," Hiroshi said.
Suguru and Satoru nodded.
Suguru Geto had survived, and Kenjaku had failed.
The future of the sorcerer world was unknown, but one thing was for sure: if the strongest did not fall, the sorcerer world would not fall.
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Kyoto
Hiroshi stood in front of a man in a bathtub, covered in bandages.
"Kokichi," Hiroshi said.
"Sensei," Kokichi Muta, aka Mechamaru.
"Your Heavenly Restriction. I can only heal it temporarily. I know of a solution for it to be permanent, but it will be dangerous," Hiroshi said.
"That's fine, Sensei. But I'd like the temporary one first. What do I need to do?" Mechamaru asked.
"It's relatively simple. I know you are an inventor, and I know of the existence of this giant robot underneath us," Hiroshi said, tapping his foot on the ground.
"So, I can help you ease the pain temporarily. In exchange, you help the Senju Clan in modernizing cursed energy generators and be my nationwide surveillance," Hiroshi said.
Mechamaru nodded. "It is done." Mechamaru was sick of this body, and of course, he would do anything to ease the pain.
Hiroshi then gave Mechamaru a seed. "Swallow this seed. It will heal your fragile skin and ease the pain for at least a day. Then you have to eat it again. This seed contains a large amount of positive energy, or reverse cursed energy. It may not be able to heal your missing arm and useless legs, but this is entirely because of the shape of your soul," Hiroshi explained.
"The shape of the soul?" Mechamaru asked as he swallowed the seed. Immediately, his skin began to stop bleeding. "That feels much better... Sensei, can you help me onto the chair?" he asked, gesturing to the wheelchair Hiroshi brought.
Hiroshi produced two clones to gently lift Mechamaru from the tub and onto the chair as he began to push the chair outside. "The shape of the soul dictates the shape of the body. Let's say that the body and the soul are one. Once we are able to change the shape of your soul, we can actually fix your Heavenly Restricted Body," Hiroshi said.
As Hiroshi and Mechamaru conversed, they arrived outside, where the gentle rays of the sun and whispers of the wind caressed Mechamaru's skin. "I never knew life could be so beautiful," he remarked, having lived with pain all this time. Sadly, he realized this beauty was still temporary.
Mechamaru looked at Hiroshi, who stood beside him. "Sensei, the permanent solution—what is it?" he asked.
Hiroshi then explained, "You see, we have a dangerous enemy whose sole objective is to return Japan to the Heian Era. But we will not let him. And this particular enemy has just been recently thwarted. They might try to conduct espionage on Jujutsu High to find a way around us. That's where you come in. You will act as a double agent. In the future, there will be a Special Grade Cursed Spirit that can manipulate the shape of the soul. You will use a binding vow to make him help you and to avoid him killing you."
"Dangerous, but if I can do it, I must," Mechamaru said, his thoughts floating back to Miwa.
"That's great. Now, if you really need my help in the future, keep a plant or vegetation hidden, since this particular enemy has the tendency to burn all vegetation to keep me out," Hiroshi explained.
Mechamaru nodded.
"But can't you manipulate the shape of the soul, Sensei? You are the God of Sorcerers, after all," Mechamaru asked.
"I can, but only my own. To manipulate others', one must have a specific cursed technique tailored for it," Hiroshi said.
In a few days, at Kyoto Jujutsu Tech, daily training continued for the young sorcerers under Hiroshi's supervision. However, Hiroshi couldn't help but notice that Mai Zenin didn't seem to have the resolve to be a sorcerer. He wondered if she had been forced into it.
"Mai, I can't help but notice that you don't seem to have the resolve to be a sorcerer. Were you forced into this?" Hiroshi asked, his memories of the Kyoto students somewhat blurry. Except for Todo Aoi and Mechamaru, the rest seemed lacking. Moreover, he recalled seeing glimpses of Maki and Mai during their visit to the Zenin Clan with Megumi, making it more believable that this was influenced by the Zenin clan's family values, or perhaps by her twin sister Maki.
Mai refused to answer, but her small movements indicated that Hiroshi was right. She had indeed been forced to become a sorcerer. "Is this about your twin sister Maki?" he asked.
"Tch, why can't she just be happy being a normal person with me?" Mai murmured as she turned her back on Hiroshi.
Hiroshi heard her murmurs and thought to himself, "I was never good at handling other people's personal issues." He then looked at Mai. "Listen, Zenin Mai, I'll only say this once. You have a cursed technique with the potential to create anything, yet you only use it to make one useless bullet due to cursed energy restrictions. But I can help you solve that, at least enough to become a Grade 1 Sorcerer. The question is, will you remain here in the shadows, silently resenting your sister and life's unfairness, or will you strive to surpass her and show her that you're a far better twin?" Hiroshi asked.
Mai remained silent. "Tell me your answer later, once you've decided. I won't allow my students to be mediocre. You must be able to save yourself at the very least. Looking at you now, you can barely handle a Grade 3 Cursed Spirit," Hiroshi concluded.
Tokyo Jujutsu High, three months later.
Yuta successfully lifted the curse on Rika.
Suguru Geto and Gojo Satoru watched as Yuta and Rika exchanged words, with Rika leaving a few parting words for Yuta Okkotsu. "Don't come over too soon, okay?" she said.
Satoru Gojo whispered to Suguru, "This love curse is really scary. What if a woman suddenly became cursed while dating me?"
Suguru replied, "That's stupid. There have been no cases like what you said. Just admit that you don't know how to handle relationships. Get some love lessons from Hiroshi. He and Shoko have been together for years. You, on the other hand, are a disappointment," he teased.
"You talk as if you have girls," Satoru fired back.
This struck a chord with Suguru, making him realize that he had been a single father to Mimiko and Nanako. "Well, I am a single father," Suguru admitted.
A few days later, Okkotsu Yuta was assigned a mission.
As Satoru and Suguru walked up the steps to Jujutsu Tech, returning from the mission, Suguru observed the trees with leaves falling off them. "Winter is coming," he remarked.
A/N: What Do you Think Yuji's Domain will be?