Chapter 157 - No One is Worth Your Trust!
Kamo Noritoshi, a sorcerer from the Kamo clan over 150 years ago, is known as the most wicked sorcerer in history and the stain on the Big Three Clans.
All normal information about him has long been erased by the Big Three Clans in the river of history, because they absolutely would not allow themselves, as the leaders of the Jujutsu world, to be associated with such infamy.
Caring about one's reputation is indeed a good thing, but their way of preserving face was not to promptly annihilate the Curse User, but to choose to conceal the truth afterward... this behavior inevitably leads to disdain.
If an organization can promptly publicize and eliminate a pest the moment it appears, its credibility can be maintained, and may even become stronger than before.
But if its method of handling the situation is to conceal the truth at all costs, then one can only say that this is no longer just an issue of credibility or a single individual.
When you see one cockroach, it means countless others are lurking in the shadows of the eaves—this reasoning is incredibly fitting in this context.
Unfortunately, no matter how much they try to hide it, the characteristic that Special Grade Cursed Objects cannot be destroyed destined them to be an inerasable 'truth.'
The situation was fine when it was stored in the Cursed Warehouse, unknown to anyone, but once the Cursed Womb: Death Paintings reappeared, wouldn't the exact situation at the time immediately become clear?
Sorcerers who know of the existence of the Cursed Womb: Death Paintings naturally also know Kamo Noritoshi, especially since Kechizu and Eso are still alive and staying at the Technical College.
But Tengen in front of him claims that Kamo Noritoshi, the one who caused all this, is still alive, and has survived for far longer than 150 years?
Is this a case of the good dying young, while the villain lives for a thousand years?
Whether it's Ryomen Sukuna, Kamo Noritoshi... and Tengen right here can almost be counted in.
Emiya doesn't believe that there weren't many righteous Jujutsu Sorcerers who could contend with them in the thousands of years of Jujutsu history; otherwise, humanity wouldn't have developed to this point and would have long been tormented to near destruction by these individuals.
And regarding the description of Tengen, Emiya already has some conjectures...
"By the way, regarding the fellow you mentioned, what is his current name and identity...?"
The name Kamo Noritoshi has long been completely dormant for a century. If that fellow is to maintain influence like Tengen, he must have a plausible identity and reason.
"He is currently occupying a new body. That is a young man who mastered Cursed Spirit Manipulation, named Suguru Geto."
At least Tengen's intelligence network isn't completely outdated; it still knows the current situation of its hidden enemy.
"As expected? That fellow..."
In this way, why the deceased Suguru Geto came back to life, and why the person could wield multiple Cursed Techniques and abilities—all questions can be explained clearly.
The person likely mastered a Cursed Technique or skill that allows for the exchange of soul and body, enabling him to manifest with different appearances and abilities across different eras.
Simply changing forms doesn't explain the change in Cursed Techniques or the reason for his survival to this day, but this suffices.
Seizing the opponent's appearance and Cursed Technique by hijacking their body—as long as the soul can be exchanged, the matter is feasible.
As for why the person can preserve his past Cursed Technique? It might be because that fellow retained a certain amount of the original body's tissues during the body transition, similar in principle to the Incarnation of Special Grade Cursed Objects.
That fellow merely added more subjectivity to the Incarnation process, and only chooses sorcerers as his targets.
Speaking of which, that fellow has a lot of nerve. Even though the Cursed Womb: Death Paintings were the atrocity he committed, he still dared to turn around and make the brothers risk their lives for him. Was he confident that his identity wouldn't be exposed anytime soon?
Had Emiya known this earlier, the process of bringing Kechizu and Eso over wouldn't have needed to be so complicated. Just telling them the truth and making them believe it would have instantly turned them against 'Geto Suguru.'
However, the current situation is not bad; at least it gave the brothers a chance to be human again. Isn't this a good outcome?
But there is still one very important matter—
"You fellow, you must have known the truth all along, as well as the fact that the ancient sorcerer named Kenjaku occupied Suguru Geto's body, right?
So why were you unwilling to publicize this matter early on? Wouldn't the result have been better?"
Given the influence Tengen is displaying now, Emiya doesn't believe anyone would ignore its words.
When all the truth is made open and transparent, that fellow naturally wouldn't have much room left to wait for an opportunity, although this might also lead to him sinking into deeper darkness.
But at the very least, Emiya is well aware that a psychologically prepared Gojo Satoru is definitely several times stronger than him when he is completely ignorant.
"Because it is still the same reason: I cannot trust.
The space occupied by that fellow Kenjaku is absolutely much larger than you imagine. Without a bottom line, he can manipulate those non-sorcerers in countless ways, and I cannot be sure how deeply the Jujutsu world has been infiltrated.
The human heart is the most untrustworthy thing in the human species. I will never place anything on such a vague thing."
Well done. At least Tengen has described his cowardice in such a grand manner; he is simply unwilling to take that kind of risk.
As for whether the human heart can withstand scrutiny... well, let's not discuss such a well-known matter again.
"You can also see that neither my Barrier Technique nor my inherent Cursed Technique has much offensive capability. And Kenjaku's mastery of Barrier Techniques is second only to mine, far exceeding the level of current sorcerers.
Once he tracks down the approximate location of the Star Corridor Temple, the danger won't be just to me, but to the safety of the entire Jujutsu world."
Tying one's own safety to the scope of the entire world?
This would be quite ridiculous if placed on an ordinary person, but it surprisingly lacks any sense of contradiction when Tengen uses it.
First, his superb Barrier Technique is the fundamental condition for the maintenance of safety and stability at the Jujutsu school and various sorcerer strongholds.
Second, if the only insider, Tengen, were to encounter an accident, Kenjaku would truly be free of all constraints. This fellow is not the type to honestly stay in one place for diligent experimentation.
Emiya's concern is not the enemy's strength, but how many people the enemy's actions will harm...
"From your words, it seems you have already encountered Kenjaku in this era, right?
If that is the case, you should understand that what I am saying is..."
Tengen tried to trick Emiya into joining his side, but he didn't expect Emiya's next sentence to completely silence him—
"That's right. That fellow tried to kill me, and then he ran away."
"....What?"
Regarding such a statement that only provides cause and effect without the process, Tengen began to doubt whether it was a normal phrase.
It's like someone saying: 'A hunter took a gun to kill a rabbit, and then the hunter ran away.'
Is this a logically consistent statement?
Unless, to begin with, the hunter wasn't the hunter, but merely the prey being chased, forced to secretly flee.
"Are you implying... that the current Kenjaku is no match for you?"
It's not that Tengen looks down on modern Jujutsu Sorcerers, but the state of the Jujutsu world is indeed on a downward trend. The passing of the chaotic era marked the retreat of cursed spirits, and sorcerers no longer have to live on the brink of life and death every day as they did in the past.
He can confirm that Gojo Satoru is the undisputed Strongest—that is correct, because all past possessors of the Six Eyes have been so. It's just that the current one might be even stronger than his predecessors, which is why the activity of cursed spirits is flourishing in an era that should have been dormant.
Kenjaku, who has lived for a thousand years and possesses multiple unknown Cursed Techniques, is overwhelmingly powerful against ordinary sorcerers. Only two types of people can defeat him.
—A strong person created by the times, and a strong person who transcends the limits of the times.
No matter how strong Gojo Satoru is, he only belongs to the former, but the person in front of him...
One can only say, he truly lives up to being an outsider with a completely unknown background...
"Based on the strength he displayed last time, defeating him again won't be difficult.
He might have hidden means, but my strength has also made significant progress since a few days ago... Since he is the one who needs to hide, what exactly are you afraid of?"
Emiya feels that Kenjaku has already accepted his position of only being able to stay in the dark, while Tengen, despite being the party with all the advantages, completely fails to recognize where its advantage lies.
After learning of Gojo Satoru's power, Tengen could have completely partnered with him to exchange for genuine stability.
But how did this creature act? Being overly cautious against enemies is one thing, but who knew he was the same way towards his own allies?
Considering Gojo Satoru's personality, there is a possibility that he might suddenly, divinely decide to eliminate a completely counterproductive entity like this, but isn't this counter-productivity the entity's own choice?
"....."
"Yes, possessors of the Six Eyes are often the Strongest of an era.
Then, what do people start to consider after they gain the strongest power?
I have encountered such situations. The reason I am unwilling to trust anyone is because I have already been betrayed by various individuals, and you are an outsider I have never seen before.
I can try to form a cooperation with you, provided that you also cannot completely trust anyone.
This is not a request, but advice."
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