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CHAPTER START---
"What do you mean?" Kenjaku asks, throwing her hands in the air. "This plan is optimal."
Taiyo snickers. "Unless you want to win, or accomplish your goals."
"Then do better."
"Watch me," Taiyo thinks for a while, and they sit in silence watching the baseball game before he snaps his fingers. "Got it."
"Already?"
"You set a good foundation. But, honestly. Killing a hundred million Japanese people to make a Cursed Energy kaiju and have Sukuna fight it is still stupid.
The problem is that you aren't thinking big enough. Jujutsu requires people to be selfish. But your plan requires a large community. That's the only way this will ever give you a satisfying result."
Kenjaku gives him a bored look. "You want me to unite the Jujutsu world against Tengen?"
"The opposite. Think about it like this. Cursed Energy is like having a knife, right?"
"Ok."
"And eventually, people put knives on sticks. Then they threw those sticks. Then made bows to throw them farther. Then—"
"I get the point. Humanity took time to evolve technology."
"Yes. But when did the most advancement happen?"
"During wars. The same was true back in my era. That's why I want the Culling Game to happen, to force the greatest of each era to fight."
"Ugh, you're still missing the point. During the two World Wars, humanity leaped forward centuries because everyone had the same goal, efficiency. Nations pooled resources and united under a cause, regardless of what side they were on.
You're trying to get a similar result with what, ten thousand people? Even if you had a hundred people at the level of Satoru Gojo, it wouldn't be enough."
Kenjaku thinks about it for a moment, and his eyes widen in horror as the realization of what Taiyo is suggesting strikes him. "Are you saying that I've been—"
"Thinking too small, yes. Instead of a little back alley fight, let's make some real progress."
Taiyo extends a hand cloaked in Cursed Energy, and with much hesitation and excitement, Kenjaku accepts the Binding Vow of permanent truth between them.
---Hours Later…
In a luxurious mansion hidden somewhere in Japan, Taiyo is standing in front of a large whiteboard with pictures and maps stuck to it.
Behind him, Kenjaku sits on the couch, sipping her tea as they carefully select locations across Japan.
"I told you it's impossible," Kenjaku says. "Even with your absurd Cursed Energy reserves, the process is too great. We need a conduit."
"Does one exist?"
"Jujutsu Headquarters has one, but you'd need to get two clans to agree to give it to you."
"Can't you make that happen?"
"I only control the Kamo Clan. The Zen'In and Gojo Clans are too secure for me to lean against them, and the smaller clans are irrelevant in this."
"Jujutsu Headquarters wants to use me as a weapon against Gojo, won't they be excited for me to get stronger?"
"They are, but giving you the Empty Seal Anchor would still require more than that. It's a Barrier Cursed Object only rivaled by the Prison Realm."
"If we get that, we can set up everything before taking Tengen, right?"
"We also need Surugu Geto's Innate Technique, which your Binding Vow with Gojo blocks."
"Is there any way to undo it?"
"The person on the other side of the Binding Vow will feel when it's broken or undone. The only way I managed to avoid the consequences of breaking my Binding Vows is by transferring to a new body, since I effectively replace their Soul with mine without breaking the container. But I'm not sure of how that works."
"Then we need to bait Geto into doing something that even Satoru Gojo wouldn't defend him from the consequences of. But we can solve that problem later. None of this matters if I can't beat Gojo."
"While I teach you everything I know of Jujutsu, we can start setting up the Controlling and Amplification Barriers around Japan. For now, I'll just use you as a battery, since you have more Cursed Energy than even Sukuna.
If you tried to make one of these Barriers, it would alert Tengen, since to avoid detection, they have to perfectly overlay hers. Look at Mt. Satsunai."
Taiyo focuses on a marked spot on the map, located on Japan's northern island.
"I've already made some smaller Barriers there to force specific streams of Cursed Energy into that area. It's a fermenting bug jar with over five million Cursed Spirits."
"Including the Special Grade Cursed Spirits we need for this."
"We really only need the one with Idle Transfiguration. The others are…a bonus."
"And points for the game. Besides, humanity can't work together without a common enemy, and a few million Cursed Spirits should be enough motivation."
Taiyo steps to the side, standing in front of an atlas with many cities marked. "How much time do we need for all of these?"
"Alone I'd need years, so I can get some of them done before the big announcement. After that, there will probably be a tsunami of requests from different nations, so I'll need help."
"How many do we need to do?"
"How many people are you willing to sacrifice?"
Taiyo thinks about it for a moment. "If everything works perfectly, how many Jujutsu Sorcerers are we making?"
"Two hundred million, maybe a quarter of a billion, at best. But the number will increase exponentially over the next decade."
Taiyo studies the board carefully. "And we're sure Jujutsu won't cease to exist if all the regular humans are wiped out?"
"The new Barriers and Binding Vows should mean that Jujutsu Sorcerers and Cursed Spirits feed into the cycle of death and rebirth. We'll have Jujutsu and Cursed Spirits without needing humans as cattle for it all."
"In that case, let's set the starting goal for the new world at… 20 million Cursed Spirits per billion people. That puts us at nearly—"
"160 million. And how should they be spread out after the initial trial phase?"
"Random dispersal?" Taiyo walks over to Kenjaku and sits beside her.
"That would cause problems in itself. We could border-lock them."
Taiyo shakes his head. "World War 3 would start, which isn't bad, but we don't want that until Jujutsu is optimized enough for humanity to no longer fear Cursed Spirits. We'll save that war for the next big push."
"What if we use Japan as a training and awakening field for everyone in the months leading up to the big change?"
"That would also give us more people for the Culling Game, and time to set up more Barriers around the world."
"I think that's how we should play it. Afterward, let Jujutsu decide where Cursed Spirits will be born. We expect some nations to be wiped out within the first year anyway, so why try to decide who those are?"
"Yeah. I'll be too busy dealing with politicians and challengers anyway, so that's probably for the best." Taiyo takes a sip of his water and relaxes into his seat. "Estimated deaths within the first year?"
"After the initial Culling Game is complete and all the Barriers go live…2 billion from Cursed Spirits, countless more from famine, lack of infrastructure, and medicine shortage. We'll likely cut the global population in half. But the Jujutsu advancements will be incredible…"
"And a bigger stage couldn't possibly exist. But we should start giving some governments a heads-up early. Nothing major, but signal them to begin consolidating as many resources and manufacturing in one place. That way they can already have those places set when we show up to erect Barriers."
"I have connections in the United Nations, so it should be easy enough. A little whisper of nuclear war here and there will do it."
"Connections in the United Nations but not the Zen'In or Gojo Clans, seriously?"
Kenjaku shrugs. "Politicians are cheap."
"I guess so." Taiyo checks his phone, seeing that it's almost 3 AM. "I need to head to the airport. Final review?"
"The Empty Seal Anchor comes first. Without that, your version of the plan is impossible."
"But for now, I can focus on learning from you and getting stronger. That way we can force Gojo into the Prison Realm if needed."
"After that, Geto, then allowing the Idle Transfiguration Cursed Spirit to grow to a useful strength. Then we simply barge into Tengen's bunker and kick off a new world order."
"Heh, almost makes it sound easy."
"If you become as strong as you think you'll be, it very well might be," Kenjaku says, tears forming in her eyes.
"What's wrong with you?" Taiyo asks the woman.
"Nothing," she wipes the tears. "It's just. Tengen was my best friend, but unwilling to do whatever it took to push Jujutsu forward. My life has been stormy ever since. But today, after meeting you. Well, you've really cleared my skies."
Taiyo smiles. "I'm glad I found someone willing and able to make a different world, too."
"I've found some of those over the years. But for the first time in a thousand years, I have a real friend…"
END CHAPTER---
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