Chapter Twenty-Six: Ren Zenin!
『ＲＹＯＮ』
Enjoy~~
I hope I didn't disappoint you in this chapter 😊😅
Ren slowly opened his eyes, blinking several times as he tried to shake off the heavy haze of sleep that wrapped around his consciousness.
The ceiling wasn't dark like the void he had been in moments ago, nor was it the old wooden ceiling of the Butterfly Mansion. It was a modern ceiling, fitted with a simple LED light, and the walls were covered in calm beige wallpaper.
Ren sat up on the bed, feeling a strange sensation. The body he was moving now felt light, powerful, and filled with an energy completely different from "Total Concentration Breathing." It was darker, denser… cursed energy.
"Ah… it really worked." Ren muttered, his voice still carrying the hoarseness of sleep, yet clearly the voice of a young teenager.
He walked toward the tall mirror in the corner of the room.
What he saw made him release a long sigh. The boy in the mirror had his familiar handsome features, but with short, sharp black hair and green eyes that carried a cold, cat-like sharpness. He wore a simple black shirt that clearly showed his well-toned muscles.
"Zenin Ren… fifteen years old…" Ren whispered as information suddenly flooded his mind like a torrent. "The younger brother of the twins Maki and Mai… the rejected yet talented son of Ogi Zenin."
Just minutes ago—or what felt like minutes—Ren had been in the void, using the ability "Reincarnating Souls." He discovered that the ability allowed a "time-skip" option, letting him merge his consciousness with the copy after it reached a certain age (up to a maximum of twenty years).
Ren chose to merge now, at age fifteen, to coincide with the start of the main events of Jujutsu Kaisen, after learning the details of his reincarnation.
"What a bastard…" Ren muttered as he rubbed his temples, recalling the memories of his copy over the past fifteen years. "This version was obsessed with training to a sick degree."
Ren realized that his spiritual copy possessed a slightly different personality from his own.
Somehow, this version became completely obsessed with training and gaining power, spending its entire life undergoing brutal training within the Zenin clan estate.
He didn't care about politics. He didn't care about the bullying Maki endured for having no cursed energy. He didn't care about Mai's weakness. He was simply a training machine aimed at reaching the top.
At first, his father, Ogi Zenin, was proud of Ren's immense talent and massive cursed energy, seeing him as the trump card to become the next clan head.
But Ren (the copy) rejected every attempt by his father to control him or use him as a political tool, completely ignoring him. That pride eventually turned into deep-seated hatred.
"Well, I can't entirely blame the copy. Living in the Zenin clan requires strength and a lack of emotions…" Ren thought, then smirked. "Now, let's see the harvest of all that effort."
"Status."
The familiar blue window appeared—but the numbers were shocking.
[Name: Zenin Ren]
[Age: 15]
[Level: 83]
[Rank: Grade 1 Jujutsu Sorcerer (Not officially registered yet)]
[Cursed Energy: Massive (Comparable to Yuta Okkotsu before fully releasing Rika)]
[Cursed Technique: ??? (Sealed / Not fully awakened)]
Ren whistled in admiration. "Level 83? That's higher than my original level in the Demon Slayer world! Looks like fifteen years of insane training didn't go to waste."
However, Ren felt confused when he saw that his cursed technique was "sealed." He wondered who could have sealed his cursed technique for a period of time.
At that moment, the air beside him rippled.
"Good morning, Original."
Ren jumped back in alarm and took a combat stance, his hand wrapped in blue cursed energy. He stopped when he saw who was speaking.
It was Rena.
But she wasn't standing on the ground. She was floating in the air like a ghost, slightly transparent, her black hair swaying as if underwater.
"Rena?!" Ren lowered his hand and exhaled in relief. "Seriously, are you trying to give me a heart attack? And why are you floating like that? Did you turn into a curse?"
Rena looked at herself calmly. "Analysis: In this world filled with spirits and curses, my system manifestation has adopted a form compatible with the world's laws. I am now a 'Shikigami' (subordinate spirit) bound to your soul. No one can see or sense me except you."
Ren stepped closer and waved his hand in front of her face. "No one? You sure? Gojo Satoru has the Six Eyes—he can see the flow of energy at an atomic level."
"Confirmation: I am not composed of cursed energy. I am composed of 'system data.' To Gojo's eyes, I am simply nonexistent—an empty void."
"Good…" Ren sighed in relief. "So, how's my original body?"
"The original body is in a stable dormant state. Additionally, after swapping positions with you, your spiritual copy is now experiencing the first memory of Yoriichi Tsugikuni. You are the original here, but you retain full awareness and control over the decisions the copy makes."
"Excellent. I still don't fully get it… but the 'Reincarnating Souls' ability is really useful." Ren said with a smile as he gently patted Rena's head.
She might as well be mistaken for some kind of pet.
Ren put on the Jujutsu High uniform jacket (modified with a black hood) and slung his bag over his shoulder.
"All right, Rena. Let's start school life. I'm sick of the gloomy walls of the Zenin house."
"Does Jujutsu High really offer a normal school life?" Rena asked curiously.
Ren answered with a sarcastic smile. "Of course not. If it were a normal school, I wouldn't join. I hate studying."
Ren left his room and walked through the long wooden corridors. The servants bowed to him in fear and respect, while other clan members glared at him with envy and hatred. He ignored them all, just as his copy had done for years.
When he reached the massive front gate, a luxurious black car was waiting. Beside it stood a girl with dark green hair tied in a ponytail, carrying a long weapon wrapped in cloth—a cursed tool.
It was Maki Zenin. His older sister.
"You're late, idiot." Maki said sharply, glancing at her watch. "I thought you decided to stay and become the clan's obedient dog at the last second."
Ren smiled and walked closer. "Good morning to you too, Nee-san. How nice of you to wait for me. Were you worried about me?"
"In your dreams." Maki opened the back door and got in. "I just don't want Gojo to yell at me because you're late. Get in."
Ren got in beside her, and the car moved smoothly and silently toward Tokyo.
Ren relaxed in his seat, looking out the window as the scenery shifted from traditional countryside to a modern cityscape.
"So…" Maki suddenly said without looking at him. "Have you decided to officially become a Jujutsu sorcerer?"
"Huh? Of course not! …Gojo threatened me a year ago. He said he'd come personally if I didn't join Jujutsu High."
"A year ago, huh…" Maki sighed, closing her eyes as if recalling old memories.
Ren looked at her. In the copy's memories, their relationship was… complicated. He didn't hate her, but he never defended her against their father. He was passive. But something had changed last year.
"Things changed a bit since 'that night,' didn't they?" Ren said quietly.
Maki's body stiffened slightly.
Ren recalled the memories of last year's "disaster."
One year ago, when Suguru Geto launched the infamous "Night Parade of a Hundred Demons" in Shinjuku and Kyoto, his true objective was to isolate Yuta Okkotsu at the school and obtain Rika.
In the original story, Maki fought Geto alone and suffered a crushing defeat, sustaining severe injuries that nearly killed her.
But in this timeline, Ren intervened.
His spiritual copy, despite its coldness, moved on a strange impulse that night. Ren was in Shinjuku "hunting" curses to raise his level, when he encountered a strange man.
"Hey, kid! What kind of women do you like?!"
Ren remembered that loud voice clearly. He had met Aoi Todo from Kyoto during the chaos. Ren (the copy) answered indifferently: "Strong women who don't need my protection… and who are also beautiful and attractive."
Todo burst into tears on the spot and immediately declared him "My Best Friend." They fought together for a long time before Ren realized that Maki was in danger at the school.
Ren used his maximum speed to reach Jujutsu High, arriving just as Geto was about to crush Maki's leg.
Ren intervened with a swift strike, forcing Geto back.
"Oh? Another Zenin monkey?" Geto sneered.
What followed was a fierce battle. Ren, at his high level (around 75 at the time), managed to hold his own against Geto with terrifying physical abilities and techniques, but he wasn't a complete match for Geto, who commanded thousands of curses.
Still, it was enough to buy time until Yuta arrived.
When Yuta released Rika, Ren joined him. The fight became one-sided. Yuta's limitless power combined with Ren's speed, physical strength, and combat intelligence pushed Geto into a desperate defensive position.
In the end, Geto didn't escape as he did in the original story to later die at Gojo's hands.
Instead, Ren delivered a brutal finishing blow using a special cursed tool, shattering Geto's spine and completely immobilizing him before he could flee.
"You know I wouldn't have let you die there," Ren said, cutting off his thoughts.
Maki looked at him through her glasses, her gaze softer than usual. "You're just bragging because you got praised by Gojo and Yuta after that."
"Haha, maybe." Ren laughed, then asked seriously, "By the way, what happened to Geto? I didn't follow the news after that."
"..."
Maki looked at him like he was an idiot, wondering how he could not know something so important.
She sighed. "He's still in the special prison beneath Jujutsu Headquarters. The conservative higher-ups want him executed immediately, but Gojo-sensei insisted on keeping him alive under heavy cursed restraints. He says he's a 'valuable source of information' and that he doesn't want to lose his old friend if there's a way to bring him back."
Ren smiled inwardly. Excellent. Geto is alive. That means Kenjaku couldn't steal his body. This changes everything. The Shibuya Incident won't happen the same way… but Kenjaku won't stay idle. He must have found another body.
"That's good," Ren said aloud. "Someone as strong as Geto could be useful in the future."
Maki looked at him strangely. "You talk like you know the future."
"Just a hunch." Ren smiled mockingly.
The car stopped in front of a massive wooden gate deep in the mountains.
Jujutsu High.
Ren stepped out of the car and looked at the old traditional buildings. He felt Rena floating beside him and saying, "Warning: High concentration of cursed energy detected. Gojo Satoru is approaching at 300 kilometers per hour."
"What?"
Before Ren could process it, a tall man with white hair and a black blindfold landed directly in front of him like a whirlwind.
"Yahoooo!" Gojo Satoru shouted cheerfully. "Welcome, my favorite Zenin students! And finally, the little prince Ren has decided to leave his castle!"
Gojo bent down until his face was extremely close to Ren's, his grin widening.
"I've been waiting for you, kid… after what you did to Geto last year, I'm expecting great things!"
Ren looked at the strongest Jujutsu sorcerer of the modern era and smiled with confidence equal to Gojo's.
"Don't worry, Sensei… I didn't come here to be an ordinary student."
He pointed his thumb at himself.
"I'm here to take your place as the strongest."
Silence fell for a second.
Then Gojo burst out laughing. "Hahahaha! I like that! A bold Zenin! All right, welcome to hell—uh, I mean, to school!"
"Why do I feel like he wants to torture me for the next three years at Jujutsu High?" Ren thought, feeling a bad premonition.
While Gojo kept talking, Ren thought: first mission—find Itadori Yuji before he swallows that damn finger. Or… maybe I'll make him swallow it under my supervision?
"Are you stupid… what difference does it make if he eats it under your supervision?"
Ren froze when he heard Rena's sarcastic comment.
Does she only have emotions when she's mocking me? Ren almost cried, if Gojo Satoru and Maki weren't nearby.
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End of Chapter Twenty-Six.