"By the way, are we sure Morishita-san's death has nothing to do with Yasohachi Bridge?"
"Nope, no connection at all."
Inside the Fujinuma family's specialty shop, Kugisaki Nobara was chatting idly with Fujinuma Shiori, her tone full of disinterest.
All her focus was actually on sensing the surroundings.
There were different ways a curse could activate. Usually, when a curse was triggered, the cursed spirit responsible for it would appear near the target and attack them.
If that happened, it would be Kugisaki Nobara's job to exorcise it. That was exactly why she was staying close to Fujinuma Shiori.
But if the curse was the kind that activated from inside the body, unless someone with a reverse cursed technique was around to heal the person, even Gojo Satoru himself wouldn't be able to help.
Yukinoshita Yukino had stationed Kugisaki Nobara here just to prevent the first scenario.
"Speaking of which, Fushiguro-kun really hasn't changed at all. He looks just like he did in middle school," Fujinuma Shiori said, shifting the conversation to an old classmate.
Now that got Kugisaki Nobara interested.
Fushiguro Megumi never talked much about himself to her or Itadori. All they knew was that Gojo Satoru had taken him in when he was young. Beyond that, they didn't really know much about him.
Now we're talking.
Her eyes lit up with curiosity. "What was Fushiguro like in middle school?"
Fujinuma Shiori smiled as she reminisced. "He was just like he is now. Always had a cold, emotionless face, like he didn't care about anything."
"Yeah, I can totally picture that."
In her mind, she imagined a slightly shorter version of Fushiguro, always scowling like he had something bitter in his mouth. The thought made her grin.
"Wait, wait! Were there any juicy stories? You know, like those kinds of stories?" Kugisaki wiggled her eyebrows at Fujinuma Shiori, giving her a knowing look.
"You mean love stories, right?" Fujinuma Shiori chuckled knowingly. "Actually, back in middle school, quite a few girls had a crush on Fushiguro-kun."
"Eh!?" Kugisaki Nobara made a face like she had just swallowed a bug. "On him? Seriously?"
"Even though Fushiguro Megumi always acted cold and distant, some girls were into that. And let's be honest, he's pretty handsome." Fujinuma Shiori said as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.
Then, as if remembering something, she added, "Oh, speaking of Fushiguro-kun… That night I went under Yasohachi Bridge, Tsumiki was there too. I wonder how she's doing now?"
"Tsumiki? Who's that?" Kugisaki Nobara's heart skipped a beat.
"Huh? You don't know Tsumiki? She's Fushiguro-kun's older sister." Fujinuma Shiori looked at her in surprise.
"Oh, that… Well, he doesn't really talk about himself much," Nobara laughed awkwardly. "Fushiguro's definitely gonna want to hear about this. I'll give him a call."
Tsumiki? Fushiguro's sister?
That means she's cursed too… and she might be in danger.
Without wasting any more time, Kugisaki Nobara stepped outside, took out her phone, and called Fushiguro Megumi.
…
"If jumping off the bridge isn't what triggers the curse, then how the hell are we supposed to find that cursed spirit?" Itadori Yuji scratched his head in frustration.
"A curse can't just be placed on someone so easily. In the end, a curse is still a type of technique, and it needs some kind of medium or method to be applied," Fushiguro Megumi explained.
Just then, his phone rang. He took it out of his pocket and frowned when he saw the caller ID. "Kugisaki?"
He answered the call.
"Kugisaki, what's wrong? Is there something unusual on your end?"
"Everything's fine here. What about you guys?"
Kugisaki's voice came through the phone, sounding a bit anxious.
"No luck. Having Itadori jump off the bridge wasn't the trigger for the curse. Did you get any useful info from Fujinuma?"
"Bungee jumping didn't work?" Kugisaki Nobara frowned, then suddenly said, "Maybe it's under the bridge. Fujinuma's brother said the test of courage was held under the bridge, and she's been down there before too."
"Under the bridge…? We're under the bridge right now."
"Forget that for a second. Tsumiya is your sister, right?"
Hearing Kugisaki Nobara suddenly mention Tsumiya's name, Fushiguro Megumi froze for a moment and instinctively asked, "How do you know that?"
"Fujinuma told me. She said that on the night she went to the base of the Eighty-Eight Bridge, Tsumiya went with her."
"What!?"
His black pupils shrank sharply, and his hand holding the phone began to tremble slightly.
"This is really bad, isn't it? Your sister could be in danger at any moment!" Kugisaki Nobara said, clearly worried.
"…Don't worry. I'll contact Ijichi-san and have him send any available sorcerers to check on her," Fushiguro Megumi took a deep breath, forcing himself to stay calm.
"Alright, go call him now. I'll be fine on my end." With that, Kugisaki Nobara hung up.
Seeing the serious expression on Fushiguro Megumi's face, along with the cold sweat on his forehead, Itadori Yuji asked, concerned, "What's wrong? Did something happen with Kugisaki?"
"…No, it's nothing." Fushiguro Megumi shook his head. "I'm calling Ijichi-san first."
—
"I understand the situation. You need someone to protect Tsumiya-san, right? But right now, the only available sorcerers are second-grade. If the number of cursed victims turns out to be much higher than expected, then we'll have to reassess the curse's level," Ijichi Kiyotaka said, holding his phone between his shoulder and head while scanning the list of currently unassigned sorcerers.
"The danger level of the mission has increased, but you have Yukinoshita-san leading your team, so it shouldn't be a problem. As for Tsumiya-san, I'll send a second-grade sorcerer to keep watch over her. Try not to worry too much."
"No matter what kind of curse it is, once the caster is exorcised, the curse will be lifted," Ijichi Kiyotaka reassured him. "Right now, focus on the mission and eliminate the target as soon as possible. That way, Tsumiya-san's safety will also be ensured."
Hearing the calm and reliable voice on the other end of the phone, Fushiguro Megumi glanced at the black-haired girl silently watching him. Finally, he steadied himself.
"Got it. I'll leave Tsumiya in your hands."
"No problem. That's my job."
After the call ended, Itadori Yuji, who had been the first to notice his friend's mood shift, couldn't hold back anymore.
"Fushiguro, what the hell is going on?"
The spiky-haired boy took a deep breath, then slowly spoke.
"I have a sister. Her name is Tsumiya. Kugisaki just called to say that it wasn't just Fujinuma who went to the Eighty-Eight Bridge and got cursed. Tsumiya was with her at the time."
"What!?" Itadori Yuji's eyes widened. "Then your sister—"
"… she's already fallen into a deep sleep. She hasn't woken up since," Fushiguro Megumi lowered his head. "The curse at the Eighty-Eight Bridge only appears in front of the cursed victims. But the victims can't speak, and we don't know when the curse might kill them."
"That's why I want to get rid of this curse as soon as possible." He looked up at Yukinoshita Yukino. "Please help me, Yukinoshita-senpai."
Yukinoshita Yukino smiled faintly.
"That's what we're here for, isn't it?"
"Oh, right," Itadori Yuji suddenly realized. Then he turned to Fushiguro Megumi with a look of disapproval.
"Why are you acting like this is only your problem? Rely on your teammates more, will you? Aren't we friends?"
Fushiguro Megumi was caught off guard. Then, slowly, he loosened his clenched fists and his body relaxed.
He smiled slightly at Itadori Yuji.
"Because you're not as strong as Yukinoshita-senpai."
"I can't really argue with that! But I can still be useful! Like for bungee jumping or something!" Itadori Yuji grumbled.
"Alright, now that we have no more distractions, let's focus on the task at hand." Yukinoshita Yukino brought the conversation back on track.
Their top priority was to locate the target cursed spirit.
"A curse requires a medium, and since the number of cursed individuals is far beyond what we expected, the method of casting the curse is pretty clear," Yukinoshita Yukino said.
"Oh? What is it? What is it?" Itadori Yuji was completely lost.
"It's a barrier, idiot," Fushiguro Megumi, now back to his usual calm self, quickly understood what Yukinoshita Yukino was implying. "A barrier with a technique embedded in it can't stay up forever. Just like in the juvenile detention center, it's an incomplete domain."
Hearing this, Itadori Yuji immediately caught on. "Oh! I get it! The cursed spirit is hiding inside its own domain, right? But how do we get in?"
At this point, the experienced auxiliary supervisor stepped in.
After thinking for a moment, Nitta Akari quickly provided an answer. "It's about the order of things."
"If the cursed spirit is inside the barrier, then the sequence matters. At night, enter from under the bridge. And one more thing..."
She walked toward the lower part of the canyon, where a winding stream soon came into view.
Nitta Akari smiled knowingly. "I knew it. There's a river here."
"Crossing a river or a boundary to reach the other side holds significant meaning in jujutsu."
"If the cursed spirit is already inside the barrier, there's no need to set up a curtain. I'll wait for you on the bridge. Do your best~"
Nitta Akari waved at them with a smile before turning around and heading back up the path to the black sedan parked on the bridge.
Since auxiliary supervisors had no real combat ability, she couldn't enter the barrier with the students. All she could do was wait outside.
Sometimes, she felt helpless in these situations—just standing there while kids younger than her went into battle. It didn't sit right with her.
But then she'd remember that these kids could probably take on ten of her with one hand tied behind their back, and she'd quickly get over it.
"Alright, let's go." Yukinoshita Yukino said calmly.
"Osu!"
Though they called it a river, it was really just a shallow stream, barely deep enough to cover their ankles.
The three of them stood at the edge of the stream and stepped forward together.
The moment their feet touched the water, the entire scene around them changed in the blink of an eye.
The quiet, empty canyon under the bridge transformed into a dark cave.
With a violent tremor, blood-stained bone spikes shot up from the ground and ceiling, sealing the space.
The three of them swiftly dodged the spikes, watching as cursed spirits emerged from the pits in the floor and ceiling, like moles popping out of holes.
Finally, they grinned.
"There they are!" Itadori Yuji said, cracking his knuckles.
A shadow spread beneath Fushiguro Megumi's feet. He crouched down, reaching into the darkness and pulling out a curved black blade.
Yukinoshita Yukino stood motionless, completely at ease. She didn't even take a combat stance.
Yet the cursed spirit that had just emerged in front of them was suddenly sliced clean in half.
"That was fast!" Itadori Yuji gasped at how effortlessly the curse had been cut apart.
So this is what a Grade 1 sorcerer is like?
Maybe Yukinoshita-senpai was already at special grade level...
Fushiguro Megumi was just as shocked, but he kept his composure. He only widened his eyes slightly, making sure he didn't look as clueless as the pink-haired guy next to him.
Just then, another violent tremor shook the cave.
But this time, it wasn't caused by the barrier itself.
Something from outside had struck it.
Yukinoshita Yukino was the first to notice. She spun around sharply.
Behind them, a dark green figure charged through the bone spikes like a wild beast.
Then, in one swift motion, it leaped onto the ceiling, circled over their heads, and landed heavily in front of them.
"What? Someone got here before me?"
The cursed spirit had a bizarre appearance—no neck, with a massive, grinning mouth taking up most of its head. Above that mouth, a smaller head extended out, its hollow facial features dripping with blood, making it look terrifying.
"Fushiguro, this thing has nothing to do with the curses here, right?" Itadori Yuji asked.
"That's right."
After getting confirmation from Fushiguro Megumi, the pink-haired boy's hands ignited with a blue flame-like cursed energy. "Then you and Yukinoshita-senpai focus on dealing with the ones over there. I'll take care of this one!"
Itadori Yuji's judgment was sound—the cursed spirits inside the barrier weren't very strong, making them easy to exorcise. Meanwhile, Yukinoshita Yukino and Fushiguro Megumi were far more efficient than him, who could only rely on brute strength.
However, the black-haired girl frowned slightly. Her focus was on something else.
Another curse that can talk fluently... Is it connected to the ones that attacked Shinjuku last time?
"Itadori, if possible, I want you to capture this cursed spirit. I have some questions for it," Yukinoshita Yukino suddenly said.
"Huh?" Itadori Yuji was momentarily surprised but quickly nodded. "Oh, got it!"
Without wasting any more time, the three of them charged toward their respective targets.
…
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