Summer rains always arrive suddenly.
The sky above Tokyo was overcast, and raindrops fell in sheets, forming white lines in the air. From a distance, the whole city looked like it was covered in a fine mist.
During the workplace tour, heavy rain suddenly started to pour, and students from Soubu High began to complain about the weather.
"What's going on? It just started raining out of nowhere."
"Wasn't it sunny just a moment ago?"
"What should we do? I didn't bring an umbrella."
Despite the complaints, the students had already entered the company they were visiting, so they weren't getting wet yet.
Yukinoshita Yukino and Yuigahama Yui were in different classes, and they chose different places for their workplace tours. After getting off the bus, Yukinoshita Yukino's two teammates quickly left her and went on their way.
The black-haired girl gazed absentmindedly through the building's glass curtain wall, looking at the gray sky.
This workplace tour triggered some of her thoughts. According to the normal life path Yukinoshita Yukino envisioned, she should have entered the university where her older sister studied after graduating from high school. Then, she would try to enter politics, step by step, and work towards her ideal of changing the world.
Now, her life had undergone dramatic changes due to the intervention of a certain parasite, and the ideals she pursued had also shifted somewhat.
"Create a world where even the weak can be happy...?"
Yukinoshita Yukino murmured softly.
Her thoughts wandered around the tall buildings of the city, passing through the thick clouds and flying toward her ideal "paradise."
Ding-ling-ling!
The phone's ringtone suddenly sounded, pulling the girl's attention back to reality.
Yukinoshita Yukino looked at her phone in confusion. When she saw the caller's name, her expression turned serious. "Ijichi-san?"
Did they find a lead on the person who killed Ooka?
She didn't think too much and quickly answered the call.
"Yukinoshita-san, we have an urgent task, and we might need your help."
Ijichi Kiyotaka's serious voice came through the phone. "Three hours ago, our 'window' confirmed the existence of a curse embryo."
"A curse embryo?"
The unfamiliar term made the girl frown.
"To put it simply, it's like the cocoon or pupa of an insect. When negative energy accumulates and forms a tangible curse spirit, it occasionally appears in the form of a curse embryo. If the curse embryo fully transforms, it will give birth to a special-grade curse spirit."
"Special-grade!?"
Yukinoshita Yukino was shocked. "Does that mean...?"
Just like Hayashizaki...!?
Her body suddenly stiffened, and her consciousness began to fade, gradually losing control of her body—this was the brief phenomenon that occurred when control of her body switched.
"The difference between special grades is still significant."
Hayashizaki took control of the phone and said, "Where is it? I'll head over now."
"The incident is at the Eiji Juvenile Detention Center in West Tokyo. There are five detainees still in the facility, and they are currently interacting with a cursed womb. This situation is urgent and unusual. We have three sorcerers ready to enter and search for survivors."
"Please get here as soon as you can, Hayashizaki."
"Understood."
After hanging up on Ijichi Kiyotaka, Hayashizaki immediately called Yukinoshita Haruno.
The phone rang a few times before being answered, and Haruno's voice came through. "What's up, Yuki-chan? I'm in class right now."
"Hey, Sister Yukinoshita, can you excuse me from class with Hiratsuka Shizuka? I've got something to do."
Hayashizaki got straight to the point.
"Sister Yukinoshita ... is this Hayashizaki-kun?"
Though Haruno was a bit speechless at the nickname Hayashizaki used, she wasn't about to disrespect the entity inhabiting her younger sister's body. "Got it, where are you now?"
"On a business tour, in Tokyo. Hiratsuka Shizuka is here too."
After giving her the address of the company, Hayashizaki hung up the phone.
"Ugh, you're really good at making people do things."
Listening to the busy signal on the phone, Yukinoshita Haruno helplessly made up an excuse to her university professor and then drove to the address Hayashizaki had sent.
Meanwhile, Hayashizaki looked down at the plaid skirt he was wearing and clicked his tongue.
In the next moment, he vanished from the hallway. A student from Sohbu High turned the corner just in time and rubbed her eyes in confusion. "Wasn't there someone here just now?"
"Thank you for shopping, and we hope to see you again!"
With the shop assistant smiling brightly, a girl in a gray hoodie and black sports pants walked out of a clothing store, carrying a bag with a Sohbu High uniform inside.
Hayashizaki pulled out his phone, used the map to confirm the location of Eiji Juvenile Detention Center, then blended into the crowd. Using the cover of pedestrians, he disappeared again.
...
...
"Did everyone hear that?"
Ijichi Kiyotaka hung up the phone and turned to the three young sorcerers in front of him, his face serious. "Your task is just to confirm the status of those five ordinary people. Don't engage in combat. If you find yourself in a situation where you must fight, prioritize your safety and delay until reinforcements arrive."
"Reinforcements? Are they special grades like Gojo-sensei?" the pink-haired boy, Itadori Yuji, raised his hand, asking curiously.
"Yes, but they're not high school personnel. They are collaborators with the high school."
Ijichi Kiyotaka pushed up his glasses. "And their identity is somewhat special."
"Special?"
"Just like you," Fushiguro Megumi explained with a serious face.
"Oh! The senior Gojo-sensei mentioned!"
Itadori Yuji's eyes lit up. "Is he also a container for Sukuna?"
"No, it's not 'him,' it's 'her.'"
Fushiguro Megumi corrected him.
"A girl!?"
Itadori Yuji was even more surprised.
"Seriously? A girl can eat something as disgusting as a special-grade cursed object!?"
The brown-haired girl, Kugisaki Nobara, immediately made a disgusted face.
"Also, whether the entity inside her is actually Sukuna is still up for debate... Although she doesn't deny the name 'Sukuna,' she also hasn't confirmed it."
Thinking back to Hayashizaki's vague words and the playful smile on his face when he said them, Fushiguro Megumi felt a headache coming on.
The other person's bad temper is on par with Gojo-sensei, and their strength is just as impressive. There's nothing worse than this.
"Oh, what kind of person is that senior?"
Itadori Yuuji asked again.
"…Are you even listening to me!?"
Fushiguro Megumi's forehead twitched, but when he saw the innocent look on the pink-haired boy's face, he sighed in frustration and said, "She's a beauty."
"Eh?"
"Huh?"
Itadori Yuuji and Kugisaki Nobara both gave him an 'Are you joking?' look.
Fushiguro Megumi awkwardly added, "I've only met her once! How could I know that much about her?"
And the one time he met her, he was nearly scared to death by the aura and cursed energy coming from Hayashizaki.
"Alright, let's go in."
The spiky-haired boy rearranged his expression and took the lead, heading toward the juvenile detention center.
...
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