Chapter Thirty-Three: Ren? No—Ron!
『ＲＹＯＮ』
Enjoy~~~
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[Tokyo – Tokyo Jujutsu High – Training Grounds]
Dust rose thickly across the training field, while the sound of violent impacts echoed between the old wooden buildings.
"Haaaaaa!"
Yuji Itadori shouted as he leapt high into the air, exploiting his superhuman physical strength that far exceeded human logic. He looked like a human missile preparing to descend.
"Meteor Kick!" he shouted, inventing a random name as he attacked Ren with a grin.
Yuji's right leg came crashing down at terrifying speed, aiming directly for his opponent's head. The air pressure alone was enough to tear the face off an ordinary person.
Below, Zenin Ren stood with an expression full of boredom, his hand fiddling with the heavy crimson necklace around his neck.
"My god, does this kid not know the meaning of the word 'restraint'?" Ren muttered. A fraction of a second before impact, he jumped back lightly, in a way completely mismatched with the weight he was carrying.
Booooom!
The rocky ground where Ren had been standing shattered, gravel and dust exploding in every direction as if a grenade had gone off.
From within the dust cloud, Yuji charged again like a raging beast, his fist clenched and his eyes shining with battle excitement.
"I'm not done yet, Ren!"
The punch came straight for Ren's face. The distance was short. There was no room for a normal dodge.
Ren smiled, and the aura around his body suddenly changed. He didn't use cursed energy—he used something older.
He muttered softly, only loud enough for himself to hear.
"Breath of the Storm: Enhancement!"
In that instant, something went wrong with Yuji's perception. The hand meant to strike Ren's face hit nothing but empty air. Ren vanished completely, like a ghost.
"Huh?" Yuji froze, his momentum making him stumble forward as his eyes searched the void.
He felt a cold metallic sensation brush against the back of his neck.
"Checkmate, rookie."
Ren whispered into Yuji's ear, placing the katana's blade against his carotid artery.
Ren stepped back, then with an overly dramatic flourish, waved the sword through the air as if clearing imaginary dust, before sheathing it with a satisfying shing.
"I win. Again," Ren said with a wide, narcissistic grin as he brushed his hair back. "Speed isn't just running, Yuji. It's an art."
Yuji turned with a scowl, puffing out his cheeks like a child. "That's cheating! You disappeared all of a sudden! How did you do that while wearing that heavy necklace?! You're not human!"
"Thanks for the compliment," Ren replied coolly, then looked toward the spectator seats.
Fushiguro Megumi was sitting there, watching the fight in silence with an expression that screamed I want to go back to my room. Beside him, Nobara Kugisaki was absorbed in her phone, completely uninterested in what was happening.
"Hey, Kugisaki!" Ren called out. "Didn't you see my amazing move just now? That deserved applause!"
Nobara slowly raised her head and looked at him with disdain. "Huh? Are you done already? I was busy. There's a 50% discount on summer dresses in Shinjuku. That's more important than a fight between a gorilla and a narcissist."
"Gorilla?!" Yuji shouted.
"Narcissist?!" Ren protested. "I'm better than that description! …Probably."
At that moment, everyone felt sudden pressure, followed by a very familiar and cheerful voice.
"Yahoooo! My dear students!"
Gojo Satoru appeared in the middle of the field as if he'd grown out of the ground, waving with a wide smile.
Ren narrowed his eyes. "Finally… is the real training starting? Are you going to teach us Domain Expansion?"
But Gojo shattered expectations as usual. He put his hands in his pockets and said cheerfully:
"Well, I have news! The great teacher Gojo has a very special mission outside!"
"A mission?" Megumi asked suspiciously.
"Yes! I'll be gone for a few days. So be good kids and don't destroy the school, okay?"
Yuji raised his hand excitedly. "Sensei! Will you bring us souvenirs?"
Gojo's smile froze for a moment, then he said with fake seriousness: "No."
"Cheapskate!" Nobara shouted.
"See you later!" Gojo waved and vanished as quickly as he'd appeared, leaving behind a group of disappointed students.
Megumi sighed in irritation. "That guy… always does whatever he wants."
As for Ren, he kept staring at the empty space Gojo had left behind. He wasn't bothered about the lack of souvenirs—his mind was on something far more important.
"Gojo's absence…" Ren thought, his face darkening slightly. "That means events are about to start. The detention center mission… the Cursed Womb… Yuji's first death."
Rina floated beside him, invisible to the others, lazily lying on her back in midair.
[Question: Host anxiety level has increased by 40%. Are you afraid of the upcoming scenario?]
Ren looked at Yuji laughing with Nobara, then whispered inwardly, "Let's hope what I'm thinking doesn't happen… or at least, that I'm ready to change it."
[It seems the host's copy is struggling slightly in the 'Yoriichi Life Simulation.']
Rina suddenly said, her eyes looking hazy, as if she were gazing at something else. This made Ren look at her and close his eyes, recalling 'Zenin Ren', the version he had sent into the Yoriichi life simulation instead of himself.
It wasn't that he didn't want to live the life of a gloomy person with a masochistic existence like Yoriichi. Of course not. Who do you take him for?
"Hey, Ren… come on, move. Did you forget we have a mission today?" Yuji suddenly said, starting to push Ren from behind.
"How about I carry you there, Yuji?" Ren said with a gentle smile.
"Huh? Absolutely not! Do you know how heavy you are with that damn necklace?!" Yuji said, letting go of Ren and running off with Megumi and Nobara.
Left behind, Ren watched them silently, then sighed and started moving while thinking, Maybe I shouldn't have trained with Yuji when we have a mission…
….
[Some Time Ago – Mental Void]
The void was dark and silent, nothing but eternal stillness.
Ren stood before Rina, who had taken the form of his female counterpart, her expression completely devoid of emotion.
"Did it work?" Ren asked with anticipation.
Rina nodded with mechanical coldness.
[Confirmed. Ability 'Reincarnated Souls' has been activated. The spiritual vessel has been successfully created. You may now interact with your copy, share memories, and activate the 'Time Skip' feature up to a maximum of 20 years to match the timeline of the target world.]
Ren smiled in relief. "Excellent. I synchronized the memories. It seems my version in that world was born 15 years before the start of the original story. That means I need to use the skip now to match Yuji's age."
Ren closed his eyes and focused his mental energy.
"Skip… 15 years."
The void rippled, as if time itself were rearranging its pages. When Ren opened his eyes, he was no longer alone.
Before him stood an identical copy. Same face, same sharp emerald eyes, same handsome features.
But the difference was obvious in aura and appearance.
The copy wore a tight black outfit that highlighted precisely sculpted muscles, with loose white pants (similar to Toji Fushiguro's attire).
And most importantly—his hair.
While Ren's hair was long and flowing, the copy's hair was short and sharp, barely reaching his neck, giving him a more ferocious and serious look.
Ren whistled in admiration as he circled his copy. "Wow… I really am handsome, even with short hair. Are those real abs? You're quite the show-off."
The copy remained silent, calmly looking at Ren, then placed a hand on his hip and spoke in the exact same voice—but with a more mature tone.
"Where were you? For me, 15 years of training in the hell of the Zenin clan have passed, and you show up now like you were on a picnic?"
Ren laughed awkwardly. "Oh, welcome to reality. For me, only minutes passed. But once I share my memories with you, you'll understand everything."
Ren transferred a bundle of data and memories to the copy. The copy closed his eyes for a moment, then opened them in understanding.
"I see… So I'm 'Zenin Ren' now. And you're the original."
"Correct," Ren nodded, then raised a finger. "And since having two 'Ren' would cause a headache, I'll name you… Ron. Ren and Ron. Easy to remember, right?"
"Ron?" Ron raised an eyebrow in disbelief. "Is that the best you've got? Whatever."
Ron looked around the void, which had now transformed to resemble Ren's messy room from his previous life (the otaku apartment).
"You really don't plan on staying here, do you?" Ron asked, kicking an empty pizza box.
Ren sighed and sat on the imaginary couch. "Of course not. Staying here means madness. I'd finish reading all the manga in my memory within a week, and then what? Start talking to walls?"
Ron sat beside him. The resemblance was uncanny, yet the contrast was clear—Ren the careless one, Ron the serious one.
"So, the plan?" Ron asked.
"The plan is simple," Ren said seriously. "I'll take control of the physical body in the Jujutsu world. There's a lot of work to do, people to save… and food to eat."
He pointed at Ron. "As for you, my dear friend… you've got the harder job."
Ren pulled a glowing item from the system inventory. It was 'Yoriichi Life Simulation.'
"You'll enter the simulation. You'll live Yoriichi Tsugikuni's life from beginning to end. You'll learn from him, understand Sun Breathing at its source, and try to merge cursed energy with breathing."
Ron took the item and examined it closely. "You want me to live the life of the most depressed and tragic person in history? Thank you very much."
"Sorry about that…" Ren said, looking at Ron with strange, cautious eyes.
Ron looked at Ren for a moment, then sighed, stood up, walked over, placed his hand on the original's head, and patted it firmly.
"Listen, Ren. We're the same person. We share the soul and the goal. I won't betray you, and I won't slack off."
Ron tightened his grip on Ren's shoulder, his emerald eyes shining with frightening seriousness.
"But don't be arrogant out there. Don't repeat our mistake with Doma. Don't underestimate any enemy, and train seriously. If you die out there… all this effort will be wasted."
Ren smiled, but his eyes were just as serious. "I know. I'll never forget that ice spear. I promise."
The two raised their fists and tapped them together in the air—a silent salute between soul and copy.
"Good luck, Ron."
"And don't die stupidly, Ren."
Ren's body began to fade as he transferred control to the physical body in the Jujutsu world.
Ron remained alone with Rina in the void.
For a brief moment, Rina's expressionless face showed something like concern, before returning to its mechanical calm.
[Shall we begin the simulation, Copy Ron?]
Ron sighed and shook out his hands as if preparing for a long battle.
"Yes… let's begin."
A system window appeared before him:
[Do you wish to start simulation: Life of Yoriichi Tsugikuni?]
Ron pressed "Yes" without hesitation.
Before the white light swallowed him, he muttered with a sarcastic smile:
"I just hope I don't end up writing sad poetry on mountains like Yoriichi… I prefer action."
"…"
[Very well.]
[Starting simulation…]
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End of Chapter 33.
Coming soon: another adventure in the Demon Slayer world.
(Ahem… I know he hasn't finished the first one yet. Ignore that for now.)