Ten Shadows Sorcerer - Vol. 2 - 7 (Patreon)

Chapter 7: Crossing Time And Space

“Kenjaku, what are you up to?”

Ryomen Sukuna slapped his phone down on Jiku’s desk. After endlessly scrolling through the internet, even he was starting to feel exhausted.

Of course, it was entirely because of certain people who seemed determined to argue about everything. At this point, he had even been crowned the biggest “Uraume” on all of Twitter.

When Sukuna first heard other people using “Uraume” as a label, he had been thoroughly confused. It took quite a while searching through Twitter before he finally understood what they meant by it.

Meanwhile, Kenjaku was staring solemnly at the glass cage.

Sukuna walked over and followed Kenjaku’s gaze. A violent flash of blue Cursed Energy erupted inside the cage, followed immediately by a sharp cracking sound, and a small white mouse appeared within it.

The mouse looked around in confusion. After searching for a while, it seemed to give up and reluctantly crawled back into the nest Kenjaku had prepared for it.

Kenjaku moved the glass cage aside and pressed a finger against the mouse’s head. Fragments of memory flooded into his mind, and from the mouse’s brief recollections, Kenjaku confirmed one thing.

This little white mouse had died.

At the very least, it had died once.

A smile appeared on Kenjaku’s face as he reached that conclusion.

It proved that Mamoru Ito’s Cursed Technique could interact with the Cursed Technique known as “Future Observation.”

It could send whatever was touched into an observed future.

Unfortunately...

Even if an object was sent into the future, it could not die because of something that happened there.

Of course, that also gave Kenjaku another way to use it.

He had prepared two plans, and now it was time to put the second one into action.

“I saw several extremely useful Cursed Techniques during the Culling Game...”

“Including that Takaba guy?”

“No. His Cursed Technique consumes an absurd amount of energy. Even with Gen’s total Cursed Energy reserves, or even yours, you’d run completely dry around the fortieth second, just like when Takaba fought you.”

“The Cursed Energy from one finger would only last two seconds?”

Sukuna raised one finger in genuine surprise. Kenjaku nodded.

“...Fumihiko Takaba’s Cursed Technique is called Superhuman.”

Tengen, who had been standing nearby in silence for quite some time, finally spoke.

“That Cursed Technique can only display its full potential as long as he himself remains unaware of what it does.”

“...So conversely, the moment he learns how his own Cursed Technique works, it stops functioning?”

“I believe so.”

Kenjaku fell silent in thought.

He had previously tried accessing Takaba’s Cursed Technique himself, but he had been completely unable to use it. He could not make sense of it at all. After briefly watching one of Takaba’s battles, Kenjaku had actually found himself questioning his entire long career as a sorcerer.

“...Are you planning to combine the Cursed Technique Reversal of Time Disturbance with Future Observation next, Little Kenjaku?”

“Stop acting like you already know everything, Tengen.”

“Something completely outside your expectations may happen. Are you still going to try it?”

“...I’ve already seen it. What do you think?”

Kenjaku did not let Tengen continue. He simply grabbed him.

He had originally released Tengen only to manage the Culling Game. Under the current circumstances, there was no longer any need to add more Players to it.

So Kenjaku had designed a rule that would immediately begin the assimilation of Japan upon his death. It was also a hidden rule established through both threats and incentives.

As for now?

“Sukuna, I’m about to send you to the world Satoru Gojo saw inside the Prison Realm.”

Sukuna froze for a moment and turned toward him.

“The entire process should last around half an hour. With my Cursed Energy reserves, I should be able to maintain it. You’ll receive the memories of your counterpart in that world and more or less integrate into his place there.”

“You can send people to other worlds now?”

“Stop asking questions. Get ready to leave.”

Sukuna still had countless questions, but he immediately realized that the little white mouse from earlier had been the test subject.

At this point, he and Kenjaku were essentially in the same boat. If Kenjaku did anything to harm him, Kenjaku himself would end up in serious trouble as well.

So there was really nothing to worry about.

“Fine. Let’s do it.”

Once Sukuna gave his permission, Kenjaku placed a hand against his back.

As Sukuna gradually began to disappear, Kenjaku slowly exhaled.

“Whether in the past or the present... the people of this country are always telling themselves the same thing.”

“This is enough. Getting this far is enough. All that matters is being prepared.”

Sukuna’s eyes rolled white, and his entire body disappeared within Kenjaku’s Cursed Energy.

Kenjaku dropped heavily into his seat.

“Reality doesn’t remain unchanged forever. Once you disturb one point, what happens to the points that follow? And after that, what else will happen?”

“...Even so, not everyone has the courage to face death.”

Kenjaku carefully sifted through Gen’s memories.

A full week had passed since he obtained them, and only now had he completely digested everything and begun preparing the next lesson. His resentment toward his clan, his carefree disposition, all of it came together inside Kenjaku’s mind to form an image of Gen.

“Even without any expectations for the present, even without anything to look forward to in the near future...”

As Kenjaku experienced the anticipation and sense of release Gen had felt shortly before his death, he could not help sinking into contemplation.

What did it feel like to be the strongest?

Kenjaku could not fully understand it.

All he could find within those fragmented memories was Gen’s past. A child extraordinary from the moment he was born, who stubbornly survived the Zenin Clan’s attempts to hunt him down and relied on his exceptional talent to make it all the way to the end.

Then, right before her eyes, he took his own life.

And yet, if Kenjaku had never sought him out, everything would have turned out completely differently.

“Gen Zenin... When there’s nowhere left to retreat, you really do choose to keep moving forward.”

...

December 24, Tokyo, Shinjuku.

With Kenjaku’s help, the prematurely unsealed Satoru Gojo and Sukuna had managed to resist Gen Zenin.

Beneath the Black King’s throne, millions of people had been reduced to withered bones within the mobile Shadow Realm. The black shadows were not officially withdrawn until December 1, leaving behind nothing but a shattered Tokyo and a Shinjuku that had practically been transformed into a massive arena.

Angel made a Binding Vow. At the cost of her life, a Jacob’s Ladder at ten times its normal output descended upon Gen Zenin.

Yet Gen moved through it as casually as if he were strolling through the rain, making it clear that Angel’s plan had failed completely.

Fortunately, Gen Zenin did not immediately take Sukuna and Satoru Gojo’s heads.

Instead, he “gave them a chance.”

“If one of you can entertain me, I’ll stop resisting and let you do whatever you want with me.”

With their plan already ruined, Sukuna and Gojo could only kneel on one knee and glare at the “King of Curses” standing before them.

Bandages soaked in black blood covered his entire body, leaving only his dark golden eyes exposed. The patterns of the Ten Shadows Shikigami covered those bandages.

Even after giving everything they had, the two had barely managed to make Gen bleed.

His strength was overwhelming.

He had not even manifested the golden Dharma Wheel above his head.

With Yuki Tsukumo’s research and Yuyu’s Cursed Technique, the two had swapped bodies and completed their “special training.”

...

December 24, afternoon.

The atmosphere of an approaching final battle weighed heavily on everyone at Jujutsu High. The deaths of millions had left them terrified of the coming battle against the “King of Curses.”

And it was not only fear.

Anger burned among them as well. Naturally, under circumstances like these, none of them wanted the two fighters representing their side to lose.

Yuki Tsukumo, Yuji Itadori, Yuta Okkotsu, Toge Inumaki, Hajime Kashimo...

Every surviving member of Jujutsu High was on edge, waiting for the two strongest to finish their preparations.

“Everyone, stop looking so tense.”

Kenjaku appeared in the middle of the group as he spoke.

The fact that everyone there was still alive was largely thanks to Kenjaku’s planning and his ability to talk his way through impossible situations. Gen Zenin’s overwhelming threat was certainly one reason Satoru Gojo and Sukuna had agreed to fight together, but Kenjaku’s silver tongue had played just as important a role.

“Our chances aren’t great, but we should at least cheer on our two strongest fighters, shouldn’t we?”

At the sound of Kenjaku’s voice, Tsukumo and Todo both turned their heads away, refusing to look at him.

Okkotsu, however, raised her head and looked directly at Kenjaku.

“What are our chances?”

“With the current plan, we still have about a thirty percent chance of winning.”

Kenjaku nodded.

“...”

Okkotsu said nothing. She simply sat back down in her chair.

Step. Step.

Clear footsteps sounded from the stairs under everyone’s watchful gaze.

Satoru Gojo and Sukuna descended the steps with Utahime Iori and Gakuganji following behind them, all four wearing solemn expressions.

The warm yellow lighting did nothing to soften the mood. If anything, it only made their expressions seem colder.

Sukuna had only just figured out what was happening through the memories he had inherited.

Through Kenjaku’s Cursed Technique, he had been sent into this world.

And in this world, Gen Zenin had somehow avoided death and survived for nearly six hundred years.

Then there was this.

Sukuna’s two left eyes shifted toward the grim-faced Satoru Gojo.

He was supposed to fight alongside this guy?

According to the memories of his counterpart in this world, he had already fought Gen Zenin together with Gojo once before.

His fifteen-finger self and a Satoru Gojo who had only just been released from his seal had both been utterly defeated by that man.

“Do you really think killing two people who are practically crippled proves how strong you are?”

When Kenjaku had made that argument, Satoru Gojo and Sukuna had both clicked their tongues.

Neither of them, however, could deny his point.

As for Gen Zenin, who held the lives of everyone present in his hands, he had simply grinned.

Kenjaku and Gen had agreed on a date for their rematch.

December 24, Christmas Eve.

It was also the anniversary of Suguru Geto’s death.

The reason was a condition Satoru Gojo had提出 after being forced to cooperate with Sukuna. He wanted to “bury Suguru’s body on December 24.”

Sukuna’s gaze swept across everyone from Jujutsu High.

Aside from those gathered beneath the stairs, there were also several “reserve fighters.”

Takaba, Hiromi Higuruma, Kusakabe, Mei Mei, Ui Ui...

It looked like everyone he remembered seeing was here.

In other words, this was all that remained of Jujutsu High’s forces.

The oppressive atmosphere weighed on everyone around them.

At that moment, Megumi Fushiguro, Sukuna’s vessel, spoke to him from within.

Hey, Sukuna.

What is it, kid?

During the battle, I’ll help you chant the incantations. You can focus entirely on fighting. My Cursed Technique isn’t anything impressive, but I can still chant for you this way.

Fine by me, kid.

In exchange... you have to kill that demon named Gen Zenin with your own hands. The one who killed my sister.

In this world, Gen had not been resurrected. He had simply lived in seclusion.

Only after learning that the Culling Game had begun did he emerge from some remote mountain wilderness.

After that, he moved like a walking natural disaster, destroying every building in his path without the slightest concern.

Yorozu had not even had time to “leave the hospital” before she was obliterated by purple lightning amid black clouds.

Yeah. I will.

I’ll cut his head off myself.

Sukuna happily agreed to Megumi Fushiguro’s request.

The Ten Shadows Technique housed within him only made him feel even more exhilarated. On top of that, the secret method Gen Zenin used to equip Shikigami with Cursed Techniques, which Sukuna had picked up while previously incarnated in Megumi Fushiguro, gave him far more confidence than the Sukuna of this world had possessed.

Compared to Sukuna, however, Satoru Gojo’s grim expression spread tension through everyone around him.

Several people who had originally planned to encourage him suddenly found themselves hesitating.

At a time like this, Itadori had to step in.

“Gojo-sensei, your Cursed Technique is getting in the way!”

Surprise flashed across Gojo’s face.

Then he grinned.

He abruptly pulled off his white coat and laughed as he called out.

“Haha! Bring it on!”

Itadori laughed just as loudly and slapped Gojo on the shoulder.

“You’d better win, Gojo-sensei.”

“Don’t you dare die to someone like that, Strongest.”

“If you can’t handle it, just call me, Satoru Gojo.”

One after another, the tense crowd stepped forward.

Okkotsu went first, followed by Tsukumo, then Hajime Kashimo...

Gradually, everyone present gave Gojo, who had deactivated his Cursed Technique, a slap on the back.

Sukuna glanced at the lively crowd gathered around Satoru Gojo, curled his lip, then reluctantly joined them.

Smack!

“We’re going to win.”

A mouth opened beneath Sukuna’s eyes, and Megumi Fushiguro’s voice came from it.

Then Sukuna slapped Gojo on the back again.

“Let’s do this together, kid.”

Seeing that even Sukuna was encouraging him, Satoru Gojo laughed and answered the support from Sukuna and everyone else.

“Alright!”

With Gojo’s spirited response, Sukuna followed after him.

The tension that had filled the room had eased considerably, and everyone was already starting to imagine the two of them returning victorious.

But behind Sukuna stood almost no one.

Then Kenjaku suddenly slapped him hard on the back.

“Looks like you’re as unpopular as ever, Sukuna.”

“Yeah. I’ve never bothered denying it, and I certainly never expected anyone to cheer me on.”

Sukuna merely smiled at Kenjaku as he looked at the lively group from Jujutsu High.

Then, just as Sukuna was about to walk past Satoru Gojo, Itadori slapped him on the back as well.

Smack. Smack. Smack...

More and more hands followed, landing on Sukuna’s back.

The corners of his mouth, which had been turned downward, slowly curled upward without him even realizing it.