Azuki Sakata. A Grade 1 sorcerer known for her down-to-earth, eighteen-year-old personality—being both a member of the Naoya Zen'in Fan Club and a reliable "big sister" figure for the Kyoto School.
While those are the traits she is primarily known for, any individual with deep roots in the jujutsu world would recognize her family name: the Sakata Clan.
Their ancestors were originally part of the Shimotsuke noble family. Their progenitor was Shimotsuke no Tokimitsu, a sorcerer who served Fujiwara no Michinaga. It is said that while he served Michinaga publicly until the age of eighteen, he later faked his death and withdrew from the public eye to dedicate himself to his activities as a sorcerer.
To live as a "different person," he took the name Sakata Kintoki. If one considers that his legendary exploits eventually evolved into the "Kintaro Legend" within the non-sorcerer world, the sheer extent of his strength as a sorcerer becomes clear.
The inherited technique of the Sakata family, passed down from Kintoki, is the Translucent Core Sorcery. It is an incredibly simple technique that uses cursed energy to perform bodily reinforcement. However, the efficiency of this reinforcement is on an entirely different level compared to standard cursed energy enhancement; the resulting Herculean strength is the very embodiment of "Kintaro" itself. So great is the multiplier that a child who inherits the technique could truly wrestle a bear, granting physical capabilities that are, in many ways, more powerful than those of a person with a Physical Heavenly Restriction.
If there is a flaw, it is that because the technique is ultimately just physical reinforcement, no matter how much one masters it, they simply become an "absurdly strong sorcerer."
Records exist of sorcerers specialized in sumo during the Heian era, but even by those standards, it is a remarkably simple technique.
So, why was Sakata Kintoki a sorcerer whose name echoed through history?
It was due to a perfect "alignment of talent"—an incredibly powerful combination that occurs when the Translucent Core Sorcery syncs with a "unique constitution" rarely born into the Sakata line.
That unique constitution is "cursed energy with the properties of electricity." By using electricity to stimulate the flesh, the body is activated far beyond the limits of normal Translucent Core Sorcery. A muscle-bound powerhouse who wreaths every movement in high-voltage current—that was Sakata Kintoki, and that is Azuki Sakata.
Conversely, it was because of these electrical properties that she nearly lost to a Kamaitachi cursed spirit last year, but given that she managed to beat one of the three to death with pure physical force, she is by no means weak.
Of course, the fact that Naoya—who was stronger, faster, and cooler than her—came to her rescue during that crisis is what led to her becoming his follower. For Azuki, the Kamaitachi incident ended up being a "fond memory."
Digression aside. Immediately after completing a separate mission to exorcise a Grade 1 cursed spirit, Azuki received an urgent report that her acquaintances Nanami and Haibara were in danger. She rushed to the scene at once, partly to repay her debt to Naoya, but mostly out of her pride as a jujutsu sorcerer.
"Emerge from darkness, blacker than black. Purify that which is unclean. There, the Curtain is set. The spirit's barrier kept the non-sorcerers from seeing anything, but it's best to be sure. By the way—I know it's useless saying this to a curse, but don't think you can kill my cute juniors while I'm watching."
Azuki finished deploying the Curtain and shouted her defiance at the cursed spirit rolling across the ground. To her, juniors were precious things to be protected and nurtured. That protection was the spiritual compass she set for herself.
Azuki had struck a cool pose, but Nanami, the very junior in question, shouted a sharp warning.
"Sakata-senpai! That curse has high regenerative abilities! It's still alive!"
"I see. I did stomp and kick it with everything I had, but it hasn't started dissipating yet. I guess I'll just have to kick it again! Translucent Core Sorcery: Full Output! Oraaa!"
With a roar of spirit, Azuki delivered a soccer-ball kick to the writhing spirit. The sheer physical power she displayed—literally kicking the cursed spirit across the river and into the mountainside on the opposite bank—left Nanami and Haibara standing with their eyes wide and mouths agape.
"Sakata-senpai... was she always this strong during the Goodwill Event last year?"
"Nah, I'm a bad match for Gojo-kun's Infinity and Naoya-kun's Projection Sorcery. Plus, since I'm a solo fighter, I don't mesh well with Geto-kun's Cursed Spirit Manipulation. I didn't stand a chance."
"Aren't you essentially saying you could have beaten Haibara and me? Well, I suppose that's just the truth. Regardless... thank you for the help, Sakata-senpai."
"Don't mention it! Now, while we have a second, can you tell me what this curse can do?"
"It... it has an Evil Eye technique, poisonous breath, the strength of an ogre, and extremely high regeneration..."
"Oh, thanks for the summary. And you are...?"
"This is the first-year, Ijichi-kun!"
"I see. Thanks, Ijichi-kun. Alright, I'll take out its eyes. Once that's done, Nanami-kun and I will jump it while being careful of the breath! Ijichi-kun, Haibara-kun, you two handle backup!"
"Understood."
"Roger!"
"Y-Yes, ma'am!"
Immediately after organizing the plan, Azuki gave one final warning.
"Now, keep your eyes closed until you hear a loud noise. I'm going to blind it with light."
The three obeyed and shut their eyes. Azuki dashed forward toward the Ushi-oni, which hadn't yet recovered from the damage. As she charged, she generated a violent "lightning flash" from her entire body.
The Ushi-oni, unable to bear the intense, cursed-energy-laden light charging toward it, instinctively closed its eyes. Azuki slammed a massive flying kick into its head, using the electric heat to sear the creature's face and truly "blind" its eyes.
At that moment, hearing the thunderous roar of the kick that served as the signal, Nanami lunged forward. He drove a strike imbued with the maximum amount of cursed energy into the spirit's heart—located at the point seven-tenths of the way down its body.
With its body split into upper and lower halves, Nanami minced the remains while Azuki incinerated them with electric heat. Deprived of its life force, the cursed spirit finally turned into black ash and dissipated.
And so, the incident in the mountains of Wakayama—where a cursed spirit that was clearly Grade 1 or higher had been nesting—was successfully resolved, with the damage being officially attributed to a mountain landslide.
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