Chapter 71 (Patreon)

February 2018.

Rika Orimoto had been newly promoted to Special Grade Sorcerer of Tokyo Jujutsu High.

Yuta Okkotsu had been promoted to Grade 1. Toge Inumaki had risen to Semi-Grade 1, and Maki Zen’in had finally reached Grade 2.

As for Panda, since he was a mutated Cursed Corpse, his strength was difficult to measure through ordinary standards. For the time being, he had been placed at Semi-Grade 2.

Meanwhile—

Suguru Geto, who had lost his cursed energy, spent an entire month drowning in decadence before he finally began trying to experience the life of the so-called “monkeys” he once despised.

At first, there was only resistance.

Disgust.

Rejection.

But little by little, even those emotions began to dull.

Without cursed energy, without the power that once placed him above ordinary people, Suguru Geto found himself no different from them in essence.

Knock, knock.

A knock sounded at the door.

Geto slowly lifted his gaze.

Only one person should have known he was still alive.

Ragnar Kagenou.

“Who is it?”

Click.

The door opened.

A figure dressed in black stood outside.

The instant Geto saw that face, his eyes widened.

“You are…”

His voice sank.

“Kamo Noritoshi.”

The man standing there wore the body Kenjaku had taken over through his cursed technique more than one hundred and fifty years ago.

Kenjaku looked at him calmly.

“You failed, Suguru Geto.”

Geto’s expression twisted.

“Failed…?”

A dry laugh escaped his throat.

“No. No one could defeat him with that kind of power. Not even a Special Grade Cursed Spirit.”

Kenjaku’s gaze remained unmoved.

“Even after I handed you Susanoo, Yamata no Orochi, and the Serbian Dancer—three top-class Special Grade Cursed Spirits—you still failed to kill him.”

Geto’s fingers tightened.

“You know Ragnar Kagenou’s strength better than anyone. Depending on Special Grade Cursed Spirits alone was never going to work.”

Kenjaku sighed.

Then he moved.

“Bastard…!”

Geto tried to react, but his body no longer possessed cursed energy.

Kenjaku’s hand seized his head without resistance.

“What are you doing?!”

Kenjaku’s expression flickered faintly, as if he had already reached a conclusion.

“Cursed Spirit Manipulation is far too useful to leave in your hands.”

Geto’s pupils trembled.

But without cursed energy, there was nothing he could do.

Kenjaku quietly extracted the technique from him.

Then he looked down at Geto’s body with faint disappointment.

“A body without cursed energy is nothing more than a sack of meat, even if I take it.”

In the end, Kenjaku did not take over Suguru Geto’s body.

From his point of view, Geto’s cursed energy had been completely erased. Possessing him now would bring almost no value.

Thud.

Before leaving, Kenjaku even closed the door behind him.

Politely.

Almost considerately.

A cruel joke, more than kindness.

Kenjaku walked away, his gaze darkening.

“Even Suguru Geto, another Special Grade Sorcerer, couldn’t defeat him…”

His eyes slowly turned toward Tokyo Jujutsu High.

“As expected, I have no choice but to meet him myself.”

Downstairs, Uraume was already waiting.

Kenjaku glanced at them.

“How is Sukuna’s vessel?”

Uraume answered calmly.

“There are no issues. He can begin absorbing the fingers at any time.”

Kenjaku fell silent for a moment.

Then he said, “No need to rush. We’ll begin Sukuna’s resurrection in four months.”

Uraume’s usually cold expression shifted slightly.

A trace of excitement appeared in their eyes.

“Lord Sukuna…”

——————

Kenjaku stood inside the White House, facing America’s higher-ups.

Several congressmen were present.

So was the President of the United States.

Kenjaku spoke without hurry.

“Negative emotions—stress, fear, hatred, regret—are converted into energy known as cursed energy.”

“The people of Japan naturally release small amounts of cursed energy every day.”

“When that cursed energy gathers and stagnates, cursed spirits are born.”

He smiled faintly.

“You would call them monsters. Or supernatural phenomena.”

The room remained silent.

Kenjaku continued.

“Humans who can control cursed energy and use it consciously are called jujutsu sorcerers.”

His eyes passed over the people before him.

“This phenomenon is largely concentrated in Japan.”

“Of course, there are exceptions.”

At that moment, Uraume stepped forward and placed several pairs of glasses on the table.

Kenjaku gestured slightly.

“Please. Try them.”

One of the officials picked up a pair.

“What are these?”

Uraume answered flatly.

“Cursed tool glasses. They allow non-sorcerers to perceive curses.”

The President put them on.

And then he saw it.

Blood.

Remains.

The traces of cursed spirits that had been invisible only moments earlier.

His face stiffened.

Kenjaku said, “Normally, cursed spirits cannot be recognized by the naked eye.”

“Even if they exist within the visible spectrum, the human brain cannot properly perceive them. Cameras also struggle to record them. You could call it another form of light—or something close to it.”

The President removed the glasses, forcing a laugh.

“So this is what? Augmented reality?”

His attempt at humor did not reach the room.

Silas Weir, Deputy Secretary of the Department of Energy, adjusted his glasses and stared at the scene before him.

“No.”

His voice was low.

“This is a negotiation over resources.”

The atmosphere changed.

Silas looked toward the others.

“If we miss this opportunity, we fall behind the rest of the world.”

One by one, the others put on the glasses.

And one by one, they saw what waited before them.

Fear spread quickly.

Some paled.

Some instinctively leaned back in their seats.

Uraume looked at them coldly.

“We have no hostile intent. Please sit down.”

After that, Kenjaku presented a video recorded through the visual-sharing technique of a jujutsu sorcerer who controlled puppets through Puppet Manipulation.

The footage showed a jujutsu sorcerer in battle.

Cursed energy moved like an invisible engine.

Bodies moved beyond human limits.

Techniques ignored conventional physics.

By the end of the recording, the President and his Black female aide were both silent.

Silas, however, looked exhilarated.

“This is the cleanest energy source in human history.”

He leaned forward.

“Oil. Natural gas. Solar. Wind. Nuclear. All of it could be replaced.”

Then his gaze sharpened.

“Especially that white-haired man.”

He tapped the screen.

“Alone, he may be capable of supplying enough power for an entire nation.”

The President’s expression changed.

“You’re serious?”

Kenjaku smiled.

“In November, Tokyo will cease to function as a normal city.”

The room went quiet.

“It will become an extraterritorial zone. In practice, it will no longer be bound by Japanese law.”

Kenjaku looked directly at the President.

“I will conduct a ritual there and gather a large number of jujutsu sorcerers.”

Then he asked softly, “What do you think, Mr. President?”

The President’s face darkened.

“You’re suggesting I use my authority…”

His voice grew heavier.

“…to abduct jujutsu sorcerers and Japanese civilians for research?”

The words struck the room like a blade.

Silas answered before anyone else could.

“We’ll need a large number of samples.”

The President stared at him.

“Samples? You mean kidnapping. Human experimentation.”

Silas did not flinch.

“If we hesitate, we lose.”

He looked around the room.

“We cannot afford to fall behind the Chinese Federation or Russia in the field of alternative energy.”

“No…”

His tone became sharper.

“It isn’t only those two.”

“To protect our current energy privileges, we’ll also have to consider the oil-producing nations of the Middle East, led by Saudi Arabia.”

“Germany, with its aggressive denuclearization policy.”

“India, France, Turkey, South Korea…”

He paused.

“Every nation with military ambition, industrial ambition, or energy anxiety will move the moment they learn about this.”

The room fell into a tense silence.

The President said nothing for a long while.

In the end, morality lost to national interest.

The operation to capture jujutsu sorcerers in Japan was handed over to Lieutenant General Gary K. Johnson of the United States Army.

As part of the negotiations, both sides also agreed to conduct a test.

Jujutsu sorcerers against a regular army.

Kenjaku looked at Gary calmly.

“To deal with a single jujutsu sorcerer, you should prepare at least eight hundred soldiers.”

Gary stared at him.

Then he laughed.

“As expected. The Japanese really are as neurotic as people say.”

His smile carried open contempt.

“Still stuck in fear from seventy-three years ago?”

His tone became uglier.

“They should have just stayed with cars and anime.”

Kenjaku only smiled faintly.

The test began.

And then ended almost immediately.

The regular troops were crushed.

Without exception.

Gary stared at the scene in disbelief.

“How is this possible…”

The President was equally shaken.

Kenjaku looked at them as if the result had been obvious from the beginning.

“Now you understand.”

He turned his gaze across the room.

“Then let us summarize today’s discussion.”

His smile deepened.

“It is time to begin hunting jujutsu sorcerers.”