Reports that Naoya had gained another fiancée inevitably caused Mai to snap. For several days, the sight of Naoya being chased around by Magical Mai-chan Pilums—which homed in on him with terrifying precision—became a common occurrence. This lasted until Toji interjected with a casual observation.
"Wasn't there some talk about her being the third wife?"
That single sentence somehow managed to restore Mai's good mood, leaving Naoya to deal with the utter absurdity of the situation alone.
Some time had passed since then.
It was now the third summer since Naoya had enrolled at Jujutsu High, and the students were once again spending their days exorcising curses in the sweltering heat.
"It is incredibly hot, isn't it?"
"It's summer, after all! But yeah, it definitely feels like it's getting hotter every year."
"At this rate, do you think the temperature will be around 40 degrees in ten years? I really hope global warming stops. It just makes the number of cursed spirits increase."
"Probably. We'll likely see cursed spirits born from heatstroke soon."
"They'll definitely appear. If things keep going this way, ordinary people are going to start dying in droves every time summer rolls around."
Walking and chatting were the third-year trio: Naoya, Nanami, and Haibara. Respectively a Special Grade and two Grade 1s, they were a highly talented group. Compared to the 'Strongest Generation'—the trio one year above them—they were increasingly being referred to as the 'Most Excellent Generation.'
Because of their high grades, they rarely performed missions together anymore, but this particular case was an exception that required all three of them.
"Still, I don't know if it's a good or bad thing that we're investigating because a place is 'too peaceful.'"
"Being peaceful is great! But apparently, Sendai hasn't had a single report of curse damage since last year."
"That seems to be the case. There are remnants, but no spirits to be found. They're being hunted before the Window or anyone else can spot them."
"The situation came to light last month when Ijichi was organizing files. When multiple assistant directors were dispatched to Sendai, they detected trace amounts of a common remnant at every site where a curse was presumed to have been hunted. The higher-ups estimate this is the work of a Special Grade-equivalent curse user or an undiscovered sorcerer. If it's the former, we eliminate them. If it's the latter, we secure them for protection. That is why we've been sent... though how are we supposed to find them?"
"I guess we just have to pound the pavement and search. It's a pain, but what else can we do?"
"We managed to make one tracking shikigami from the collected remnants, but without a fresh trail, there's nothing for it to follow! Do your best, Pochi!"
As they discussed, the mission was quite serious: the elimination or capture of a mysterious sorcerer estimated to be Special Grade. Sending Naoya and two Grade 1s was a testament to the perceived danger.
However, in truth, there was very little urgency to this mission.
"But seriously, there are no cursed spirits at all. I haven't even seen a Fly Head."
"Those lower-level ones are usually everywhere because they manifest so easily. This might be the world as non-sorcerers see it, but it feels distinctly off."
"We've been able to see curses since we were born. I wonder if this is how normal people feel? It's... actually really peaceful."
Exactly. This matter had only come to light because things were 'too peaceful.' Nothing was happening.
Yet, that was proof that their target possessed incredible stealth and was currently maintaining a total massacre of cursed spirits across the vast area of Sendai.
Finding them felt like trying to catch smoke with bare hands. The Most Excellent trio was left scratching their heads at a mission that offered zero feedback.
---
Meanwhile.
The 'Special Grade-equivalent sorcerer' being hunted—five-year-old Yuji Itadori of the Sugisawa Kindergarten senior class—had already clearly detected the three sorcerers who had arrived in Sendai.
'Those people are amazing. Especially the one in the traditional-looking uniform.'
'Given that there's a trio in uniforms who don't seem to be related by blood, they are likely sorcerers from Jujutsu High. As you said, Yuji, the man in the traditional clothes is clearly on another level. He is undoubtedly Special Grade, and the other two are likely Grade 1 equivalent.'
'Will it be bad if they find us?'
'We have only been exorcising cursed spirits, so there is no reason for them to reprimand us. In fact, this is the situation we hoped for. Two years ago, the High School was in a massive conflict with the organization led by Noritoshi Kamo. The enemy of our enemy can be our ally.'
'Those guys definitely aren't Kamo! No stitches on their heads!'
'The whole point of clearing every curse in Sendai was to set the stage for a contact with the High School that favors us.'
"I see. Should I go talk to them?"
'No, that wouldn't be wise. You're still a child, Yuji. It would only make them suspicious. We need those Jujutsu High people to reach us on their own.'
'Humans—well, most intelligent beings, including cursed spirits—obsess over things they have won or achieved for themselves. If they struggle to find you, they will treat you with much more care once they do. We shall continue to exorcise the curses.'
"Okay. If my brothers say so, I'll keep doing my best as a hero like always!"
'That's the spirit, Yuji. Your big brothers are right here with you!'
The ten brothers conversed within Yuji's heart. The secret behind their ability to eradicate cursed spirits was a combined technique utilizing the multiple innate techniques Yuji now possessed.
The core was the Meat Flies generated by Kansho's Cursed Insect Swarm. These flies, birthed by consuming Yuji's own blood and flesh, would bite into a cursed spirit and lay eggs. Those eggs would hatch into a massive swarm of maggots that feasted on the curse's energy. These flies were now hidden in the shadows and grass all over Sendai, flying out at night to consume curses and multiply.
Under normal circumstances, such a technique would only be effective against low-level spirits. The flies from Cursed Insect Swarm didn't naturally possess enough lethality to wipe out every curse in a city.
However, because Yuji had absorbed all nine Death Painting Wombs, he was capable of 'stacking' techniques. The Meat Flies he produced were infused with several techniques during their growth.
Specifically: Rot Technique, White Blood Gluttony, and Blood Manipulation. Because the flies' bodily fluids carried these effects, any cursed spirit that 'consumed' or was bitten by Yuji's Meat Flies suffered from the anti-curse poison of Blood Manipulation, the decomposition of the Rot Technique, and the intense cursed energy depletion caused by the pus of White Blood Gluttony from the inside out. Weakened and rotting, they would then be overwhelmed by the sheer volume of the swarm and turned into a pile of maggots.
Of course, it wasn't perfectly convenient. Since the flies had to be birthed using Yuji's blood and flesh to carry these traits, the 'offspring' produced after the flies consumed a curse did not inherit the specialized techniques.
Even so, the number of flies Yuji produced daily as part of his training was substantial. For now, within Sendai, normal offspring handled the weaklings while Yuji's 'handmade' reinforced flies took care of the stronger spirits, allowing for a highly efficient extermination process.
One might worry that Naoya and the others would find the flies, but the insects from Cursed Insect Swarm looked exactly like common flesh flies and were only about a centimeter long. Each individual fly held so little cursed energy that it was nearly impossible to recognize them as the product of a technique unless one possessed something like Gojo's Six Eyes.
Therefore, if anyone was going to be found, it would be Yuji himself. If they searched the city thoroughly, it was only natural they would eventually stumble upon a child with Yuji's abnormal levels of cursed energy.
'For now, we just prepare for that moment. You just spend your days as you normally do, Yuji.'
"Yeah, I understand."
And so, in the middle of a Sendai devoid of cursed spirits, Yuji quietly waited for Jujutsu High to make contact.
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