Chapter 184: The Seed of the Sorcerer Killer
Boom!
A heavy impact echoed through Tokyo Jujutsu High's underground training ground like muffled thunder.
Kento Nanami stood in the center of the arena with both hands wrapped around his cloth covered blunt sword, breathing hard.
Sweat ran through his short blond hair and dripped onto the reinforced floor beneath him, which was already riddled with cracks and deep craters from repeated impacts.
Across from him stood Yami.
He looked almost relaxed, one hand tucked into his pocket. He was not even holding the wooden sword he normally used during training.
At the edge of the training ground, a five year old girl sat on the steps with her knees drawn against her chest.
The Jujutsu High uniform she had been given was slightly too large for her small frame.
Maki Zenin.
Several days had passed since Yami had taken her from the Zenin Clan.
She could not see Cursed Energy, nor could she understand most of the jujutsu theory being discussed.
But she could feel the oppressive tension filling the room.
Every impact made her body tighten.
Every movement drew her attention.
And beneath the nervousness was something she had never experienced before.
Excitement.
This was her first observation session since arriving at Jujutsu High.
Yami had not asked her to participate.
For now, he wanted her to watch.
To see what a human body and an unyielding will could become when pushed to their limits.
"Nanami."
Yami's voice cut through the training ground.
"Your form is falling apart again."
Nanami's breathing remained heavy.
"Your physical conditioning and reaction speed have improved considerably over the past few days."
Yami's gaze shifted toward his weapon.
"But your understanding of the Ratio Technique is still too shallow."
Nanami tightened his grip.
"Being able to divide a target into ten parts and forcibly create a weak point at the seven to three ratio is an excellent Cursed Technique."
Yami stepped forward.
"But creating the weak point is not enough."
His voice sharpened.
"You need to learn how to explode through it."
Nanami gritted his teeth.
His knuckles turned white around the sword hilt.
He knew exactly where his problem lay.
The mission involving the mutated Earth Deity still haunted him.
He remembered finding the target's weak point.
He remembered striking it.
And he remembered how little it had mattered.
Against an enemy overwhelmingly stronger than himself, that feeling of helplessness had burned itself into his mind.
If he could not become stronger, then what would happen next time?
How was he supposed to survive the future Yami kept warning them about?
How could he ever become strong enough to drag Senior Geto back himself?
Nanami raised his head.
"Yami sensei."
His eyes burned behind his goggles.
"Teach me."
Yami remained silent.
"Teach me how to release everything in a single strike."
Nanami's voice hardened.
"The way you do."
Yami studied him for several seconds.
Then he nodded.
"Very well."
Nanami straightened.
"I'm going to teach you a phenomenon that can cause your Cursed Energy to undergo a qualitative change for an instant."
Yami raised one hand.
"Close your eyes."
Nanami obeyed.
"Listen to your heartbeat."
Nanami inhaled.
"Feel your lungs expand and contract."
Another breath.
"Feel the rhythm of your Cursed Energy moving through your body."
Nanami's shoulders gradually relaxed.
"Now imagine that Cursed Energy compressed as tightly as possible."
Yami's voice became slower.
"Your Ratio Technique determines where you need to strike."
"But the instant your sword reaches that weak point, the physical blow and the impact of your Cursed Energy must occur almost simultaneously."
Nanami frowned slightly.
"The difference must be less than one millionth of a second."
His breathing paused.
"One millionth…"
"Yes."
Yami's eyes sharpened.
"When your weapon makes contact, do not hesitate."
"Do not calculate after the strike."
"Do not consciously separate the physical attack from your Cursed Energy."
His voice suddenly rose.
"Strike."
"And release everything with it."
Something clicked inside Nanami's mind.
Less than one millionth of a second.
Physical impact and Cursed Energy.
One moment.
One strike.
Nanami remembered the battle against the Earth Deity.
Yami standing before him and Haibara.
Shiranui cutting through the darkness.
No wasted movement.
No hesitation.
Power, breathing, timing, and intent concentrated into a single point.
Nanami slowly exhaled.
When his eyes opened again, the agitation was gone.
Only focus remained.
He turned toward the test target ahead.
It had been constructed from extremely durable Cursed Corpse material, tough enough that even powerful sorcerers struggled to damage it.
Nanami lowered his stance.
"Ratio Technique."
The target divided within his perception.
Ten sections.
And there it was.
The seven to three point.
A forced weakness.
Nanami's hands tightened around his blunt sword.
His breathing settled.
His muscles tensed.
Cursed Energy surged through his body and gathered toward his arms.
Yami watched silently.
Maki leaned forward from the steps.
Nanami moved.
There was no wild swing this time.
No wasted force.
His foot planted.
His hips rotated.
His shoulders followed.
The blunt blade tore through the air.
Then it struck the seven to three point.
At that exact instant, Nanami remembered Yami's instruction.
No hesitation.
The physical blow landed.
His Cursed Energy followed within less than one millionth of a second.
Boom!
For the briefest instant, the entire training ground seemed to stop.
Space distorted around the point of impact.
Then black lightning erupted.
Crack!
The reinforced target shattered.
Fragments exploded across the training ground, scattering in every direction and striking the walls.
Nanami remained frozen at the end of his swing.
His hands trembled around the sword.
His eyes widened.
He could still feel it.
That strange sensation lingering through his entire body.
For one impossible instant, his body, technique, and Cursed Energy had aligned perfectly.
"What…"
Nanami stared at the destroyed target.
"What was that?"
"Black Flash."
Yami was already standing beside him.
Approval showed clearly in his eyes.
"Well done, Nanami."
He looked at the shattered remains scattered across the floor.
"You've touched that door."
Nanami stared at his weapon.
Black Flash.
A phenomenon every Jujutsu Sorcerer knew about, yet almost none could deliberately reproduce.
His usually stern expression finally cracked.
A rare smile appeared.
He had done it.
Yami gave a satisfied nod.
This strike would become an important foundation for Nanami's future.
The original Nanami would eventually achieve the remarkable feat of landing four consecutive Black Flashes during the Night Parade of a Hundred Demons.
Now, he had reached that state far earlier.
Having personally experienced the timing and sensation of Black Flash, Nanami had already taken a massive step beyond his previous limits.
Yami then turned toward the edge of the training ground.
"Maki."
The girl was still staring at the shattered target.
Her mouth hung slightly open.
She had not seen the black lightning.
She had not sensed the burst of Cursed Energy.
But when Nanami's sword struck, she had felt something.
For that single instant, it had seemed as though all the force in the room had been compressed into one point.
Then everything exploded.
That sensation had engraved itself into her mind.
Yami walked over.
"Did you see that?"
Maki frowned.
"I couldn't see whatever you two were talking about."
"I know."
Yami crouched in front of her.
"But you saw how Nanami moved."
Maki looked back toward him.
"The way he swung…"
"Exactly."
Yami pointed toward the shattered target.
"He used Cursed Energy, but the principle behind the strike applies to you as well."
"Control."
"Timing."
"Breathing."
He tapped his arm.
"Every muscle moving exactly when it should."
Then his chest.
"Every breath supporting the motion."
Then he pointed toward Maki's stance.
"Every bone, every joint, every shift in balance working together."
Maki listened without blinking.
"If you can control your body to that degree, then having almost no Cursed Energy will never stop you from becoming strong."
Her scarred hands slowly clenched.
Yami's gaze sharpened.
"You can turn your body itself into a weapon."
Maki stared at him.
"One powerful enough to kill Cursed Spirits."
He paused.
"And if you go far enough…"
His voice lowered.
"Powerful enough to slay even those people call gods."
Maki's pupils contracted.
She looked toward the shattered training target.
Then at Nanami.
Then down at her own small hands.
For years, the Zenin Clan had taught her only one truth.
Without Cursed Energy, she was worthless.
Without an inherited Cursed Technique, she would never amount to anything.
But Yami had entered the Zenin estate without Cursed Energy and crushed its fighters.
Now he was telling her that the very body her family despised could become her greatest weapon.
Something ignited inside her.
Maki clenched her fists tighter.
A seed had taken root.
The seed of a warrior who would one day stand outside the rules of the Jujutsu World entirely.
A monster of pure physical ability.
A Sorcerer Killer.
Yami watched the fire growing in the girl's eyes.
That was enough.
Even if he disappeared from this era, the seed had already been planted.
Nanami was becoming stronger.
Haibara was alive.
Geto had entered the darkness by choice.
Maki had been freed from the Zenin Clan.
Piece by piece, the future was changing.
Yami slowly closed his eyes.
Then he felt it.
A faint vibration passed through the surrounding space.
Far away.
Across the ocean.
An enormous fluctuation of Cursed Energy was beginning to rise.
At the same time, the invisible pressure rejecting Yami's existence had become stronger than ever.
His time in this era was almost over.
And somewhere beyond Japan, another transformation was taking place.
Satoru Gojo.
The strongest had yet to reach his true peak.
But that moment was approaching.
Yami opened his dark red eyes.
Gojo's era was about to truly begin.
And before Yami was forced out of this world, one final trial still awaited him.
…..
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