Yami's eyes were sharp and steady as he stared down the last remaining Grade 3 curse.
All around him, dozens of cursed corpses slowly dissolved into the air, their forms fading after being exorcised. The battlefield reeked of ozone and blood.
"Last one, huh," he muttered, stretching his arms, his skin was raw, burnt and blistered from prolonged exposure to Nue's electricity.
Lightning crackled violently around his body as he burst forward in a flash. In an instant, the curse was torn apart and exorcised.
Yami exhaled slowly. "Nice. My proficiency is improving."
He swept his gaze across the devastated field. In just two years, his muscle density had risen to an absurd level with proper cursed energy reinforcement, he could now maintain Nue's electricity mode for a full eight minutes straight.
'Still…' he clicked his tongue in irritation.
'I still haven't found a way to use more than one shikigami ability at the same time.'
He had considered Totality as a possible solution, but the idea of sacrificing his shikigami didn't sit well with him.
'At least not until I awaken Reverse Cursed Technique. The old records mentioned the possibility of creating an artificial Totality through RCT.'
A gleam of ambition flashed in his eyes, and then a firm hand patted him on the back.
Yami turned to find John Mojoru standing behind him, his attendant and Window, who had joined him a year ago. Since then, John had taken over the majority of his mundane duties, making Yami's life significantly easier.
"This is fifty-four percent higher than last month," John said with a light chuckle. "Your efficiency keeps climbing."
Yami simply shrugged.
"How's the situation with my bounty?" he asked.
John's expression immediately turned serious. He glanced around cautiously, prompting Yami to sigh.
"We're inside a curtain, idiot."
John blinked, then let out an awkward laugh. "Oh, right. My bad."
He lowered his voice anyway. "Naobito-san has been suppressing the bounty for now, but I doubt he can hold it back much longer. Even the Gojo clan eventually gave up trying to maintain the one on Satori Gojo."
Yami nodded slowly, a faint, unreadable smile forming on his lips.
"I see… That's quite an interesting prospect."
****
Inside the Zenin clan's dimly lit reception hall, Naobito lounged on a cushion, steadily draining his gourd of sake. Yami sat cross-legged on the tatami directly before him, while John knelt silently at his side.
'That's his fourth bottle,' John thought, visibly exasperated.
'Fifth,' Yami corrected mentally, not even glancing at his attendant.
'My bad.'
'Pay attention, idiot.'
'Both of you shut the hell up,' Naobito's irritated voice rang in their heads.
Naobito allowed a moment of silence before finally speaking, his tone measured.
"Three years from now, the 'Supreme Battle Royale of Five Nights Withholding Glory' will be held."
John froze while Yami simply stared at the clan head with a blank, unimpressed expression.
"Excuse me?"
"You heard me," Naobito grunted. "The Supreme Battle Royale of—"
"Are you serious?" Yami cut in, his gaze sharpening.
"No, I'm Naobito. Sirius is from Harry Potter."
Yami's eyes narrowed with cold disdain. "A seven-year-old could come up with a better joke. That joke is genuinely embarrassing. Even for you."
Naobito shrugged. "Well, you are seven."
"I'm a seven-year-old Zenin," Yami replied flatly. "There's a difference."
"Fair point."
The playful atmosphere vanished as Naobito's expression turned grave. He set the gourd down.
"You will be participating as the Zenin clan's representative. Several other clans are sending their own prodigies. It's a stage for you. Your goal is to demonstrate the supremacy of the Ten Shadows Technique. In the eyes of the jujutsu world, this will be Zenin versus Gojo."
His grip tightened on the gourd.
"You are not allowed to lose."
Naobito continued, "The clan will provide you with every resource you need. Your Predator Eye, Merged Soul Mode… they're impressive extension techniques, but we both know they aren't enough to bridge the infinite gap between you and Satori Gojo."
Yami's pulse quickened. 'Wait… is he about to—?'
He waited and waited.
When Naobito said nothing more, Yami clicked his tongue internally. 'So no Inverted Spear of Heaven. Predictable.'
Naobito noticed his expression and sighed. "If I could give you something that bypasses Infinity, I would have done it years ago. Since we can't do that, we make you durable, outlast her. Simple."
Yami let the silence stretch for two full seconds, then spoke with deliberate contempt.
"Anyone with half a brain could come up with such a pathetic plan. How exactly does that showcase the might of the Zenin clan? It's beneath us."
Naobito scratched his chin. "Then tame Mahoraga, you dunce."
"Hmm," Yami said, pretending to consider it. "Outlasting her is an excellent strategy."
John stared at both of them in quiet disbelief. 'Am I the only sane person here?'
Yami smoothly changed direction, as if the thought had just occurred to him.
"Should I simply learn Domain Expansion instead?"
Naobito exhaled through his nose. "Yeah, yeah. We'll assign you an instructor."
Yami leaned forward slightly, his voice calm but insistent.
"The instructor must possess mastery in Simple Domain, New Shadow Style, Barrier Arts, Falling Blossom Emotion, and at minimum advanced—"
"Hold your damn horses," Naobito snapped, his face twisting in irritation. "I can't just summon fucking Tengen to teach you barrier techniques. You think I can pull that off?"
Yami shrugged, completely unfazed. "Well, you could—"
"Shut the fuck up. I'm not doing all that."
Naobito looked away, visibly uncomfortable. After a long pause, he muttered, "I'll get you the best instructor available… but I can't manage everything."
A slow, cold smirk crept across Yami's lips.
'There it is.'
'You fell right into my trap.'
John, completely lost, could only think: 'Can someone please explain what the hell is going on?'