Hayashi stepped forward. "I'm Hayashi."
One-Eyed Dong was mildly surprised but didn't comment. He gestured invitingly. "Please, both of you. Longyuan's had a big mess today—you've come at quite a time. Forgive us if we're not the best hosts."
Hayashi frowned. "Mind telling me what's happened at Longyuan?"
Dong hesitated. "Sorry, it's an internal matter. Not something we can share with outsiders."
"Fine," Hayashi dropped it.
Soon, Hayashi and Todo Aoi entered the main courtyard. Inside, a group clustered around, clearly rattled by something.
"Patriarch, they're here," Dong announced, stepping aside after escorting them in.
All eyes in the room turned to Hayashi and Todo, sizing them up.
Long Qiannian's perception was sharp. He glanced at Todo briefly before locking onto Hayashi. "You're Hayashi?"
At that, everyone who knew the stakes shifted their gaze to Hayashi—eyes filled with a mix of curiosity and disbelief.
The guy from Dream Granny's prophecy had waltzed into Longyuan on his own. Absurd.
They'd sent people to hunt for him, coming up empty-handed. And now, here he was, strolling in.
"Yep, I'm the Hayashi you're after. And I know everyone here. You're Su Xia, you're Shangguan Xuemeng, you're Xiahou Zhiwen, you're One-Eyed Dong, and you're the patriarch of Longyuan, Long Qiannian," Hayashi said breezily. He'd chatted with them plenty before—familiar faces all around.
They didn't flinch at his recognition. Simple reason: Longyuan held serious clout in China, a titan in Beijing.
It'd be weirder if someone didn't know their names.
Xiahou Zhiwen and Shangguan Xuemeng weren't technically Longyuan members, just close allies—half-in, you could say.
This Hayashi, a figure of immense future weight, showing up here—did it hint at things to come?
"Everyone else, out," Dong ordered, shooing the extras away. Only the five of them, plus Hayashi and Todo, remained.
Su Xia shut the door and posted up there, eyeing Hayashi. He was sizing himself against the guy—how long would it take to put him down? A self-assessment.
Beyond strength, there was looks. Hayashi's face was a direct threat to his own—a dangerous rival!
"Please, sit, young friend," Long Qiannian said. Old as he was, he respected Hayashi's heft in the grand scheme.
From the moment he'd laid eyes on him—knowing this kid was a future linchpin—he'd vowed to protect him. But right now, they could barely protect themselves.
Todo didn't sit. Arms crossed, he stood behind Hayashi like a bodyguard. Who'd guess they were best buds?
No one forced him to sit. The rest took their seats, eyes still probing Hayashi.
Knowing his value to them, Hayashi cut the coy act. "I know you've been looking for me, so I came. No fluff—I'm here to help with that imaginary cursed spirit."
Todo's face twitched behind him. Imaginary cursed spirit?
A legendary curse—here in China?
The others' expressions darkened. Shangguan Xuemeng stared at Hayashi. "The imaginary cursed spirit's under tight lock and key. How'd you know about it? And your timing's impeccable, handsome. It went down at dawn, and you're already here?"
"How I know's not your concern. Same reason you're after me—I'm special, so I pick up on things. Wait… dawn? Something happened with the imaginary cursed spirit?" Hayashi's gut churned.
"At 3 a.m., the seal on the imaginary cursed spirit's barrier weakened. Someone broke in and took it," Dong said, his face grim. He suspected Hayashi was tied to this somehow.
Hayashi's expression soured too. The imaginary cursed spirit—stolen? If it got revived, the fallout would be catastrophic. Not every spirit was as tame as Shuten-doji.
Each one was a terror, rivaling a twenty-fingered Ryomen Sukuna. Speculation, sure, but the situation was dire.
He'd come to warn them about the seal's flaws—get them to reinforce it or let him dismantle it himself.
Too late. Just days, and this disaster struck. No wonder they all looked like hell. Who wouldn't, with this on their plate?
Unleashing a city-destroying curse wasn't something Longyuan could shoulder alone. They might sink with it.
With the curse's medium gone, Hayashi had no reason to linger. His goal was that fox tail—now stolen. Why stay?
He'd learned some jujutsu, but his points were too low for more. And now wasn't the time to worry about that—he had to track down that tail.
But where?
Whoever took it had planned it out—probably long gone from Beijing by now.
Yet Hayashi couldn't just leave. He was Longyuan's target, and after prying into this sensitive mess, only an idiot would let him walk.
So he stayed, chatting them up for details.
The talk stretched into the afternoon. Dinner was on Longyuan.
After hours of back-and-forth, they finally eased up on him.
They'd also gauged his rough strength—enough to not fret over his safety. Sideways logic: if Hayashi died that easily, he'd have no future role. Some things didn't need forced "protection."
Everything had its own rules.
Post-dinner, Hayashi wanted out. Sticking around was pointless.
But then, a group rolled up outside.
Two factions, split into teams.
A casual-dressed guy from one strode in, scanning the room. "Messenger from Daxia Longque. I'm here to inform you all—tomorrow, 9 a.m., meeting at XXX. Don't be late."
"Messenger from Panlong. Same deal. Message delivered, we're out," said another.
They came fast, left faster—just dropping the word.
Hayashi knew Longyuan was in deep. Beijing's two biggest factions demanding a meeting? This was bad—likely part blame, part strategy session.
He swapped numbers with everyone and took Todo out. Staying wouldn't help—Longyuan was already a mess.
"Looks like big trouble's brewing here," Todo said on the way to the hotel. It was China's problem, but his face was heavy. Fighting curses was a global gig, not just national. One screw-up, and the whole world paid.
Longyuan was toast. This screw-up pinned them hard.
Still, as fellow jujutsu sorcerers—especially now—the higher-ups probably wouldn't go for executions. Maybe a delay.
Hayashi didn't want them dying over some sloppy mess either. Too unfair.
"Ugh, should've come sooner. Too bad there's no 'sooner,'" he sighed. Done was done—time to fix it.
But he had no bandwidth for this now. The exchange meeting was days away, and he had other foes to face first.