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CHAPTER START---
Standing at the edge of a trail deep within Japan's Aokigahara Forest -Suicide Forest-, Taiyo and Ijichi wait for Kusakabe to finish his phone call so they may start the mission.
Even with the midday sun high above, the open space between the sea of narrow but tall trees allows a chilly January wind to reach them, causing Ijichi to stuff his hands deep into his coat.
Taiyo looks down in front of them, spotting a set of footprints leaving the weathered dirt path and stepping into the grass to walk deeper into the forest, where he could barely see a few dozen meters before the layers of trees blocks his view.
"This makes sense. This place really does make you want to kill yourself…if you're weak."
Ijichi glares at Taiyo. "You are a Jujutsu Sorcerer, don't speak ill of the dead."
"The dead don't matter, only what they left behind. Besides, the people who came here to remove themselves…that's just what happens when you're a true loser. Opting out of the competition that is life."
"We should respect and honor the dead."
"Only winners deserve such things," Taiyo turns to Ijichi. "How come you're the Manager I get attached to the most?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, I know the Higher-Ups want to keep an eye on me, but you're in Gojo's pockets, so is he tasking you with spying on me?"
"He expects the higher-ups to attempt a scheme against you, eventually. You aren't in good standing with anyone at the moment, aside from Satoru Gojo, of course."
"So you're more like a political guide, got it." Taiyo turns back to the forest and begins radiating warmth, helping Ijichi to relax. "How long until I can operate without someone breathing down my neck?"
"Second-year students are allowed to handle Cursed Spirits one rank below them without supervision from a teacher or Manager."
"So, in three months, I can't wait."
"Me neither," Kusakabe says as he puts his phone away and walks over to them. "The less I have to deal with Special Grades, the better."
"What did he say?"
"We're cleared to enter, unfortunately."
"You can wait out here if you want," Taiyo says.
"If it were just a fight, sure, but we also need to investigate."
"I can do that."
"Before you decide to burn down the forest?"
Taiyo frowns and looks away. "Let it go already…"
"No," Kusakabe takes his sword and begins walking off the trail. As Taiyo falls into step behind him, he glances back at Ijichi. "Don't erect a Barrier unless people are approaching, but the area is closed, so hold off on it, regardless."
"Understood!" Ijichi watches their backs disappear beyond the trees, and the January chill returns as he's left alone on the trail. "Right. I'll just wait here…in the middle of a cursed forest."
Ijichi looks around, hearing insects buzzing and clicking but unable to see any of them, knowing hundreds of eyes were likely on him at any moment.
"Just in case…" He hastily takes out his phone and opens the contact for Satoru Gojo, keeping his finger above the button. "I really should ask not to be assigned to this boy."
Minutes later, closer to the middle of the forest, Taiyo and Kusakabe are following a small stream, keenly observing a faint bit of red flowing from higher up.
Hopping over a few boulders and reaching a small pond, they see the source.
Beside the pond is a single tree, decrepit and withered, out of place among the lush green forest and grass around it.
And on the single narrow branch extending over the lake, there is a rope, tied with a noose at the end, and a young man hanging from it.
The man's body is shredded by large slashes, leaving muscles and guts exposed, along with half his face gone, as what remains of his blood continuously drains into the water.
"He should have been out of blood by now," Taiyo says.
"It's a trick to get people to find the body, and enter the Barrier."
"Good bait."
"That boy looks familiar." Kusakabe takes out his phone and sends a picture of the body to Yaga, who immediately responds. "As I thought, he's part of Geto's faction."
"Confirmed?"
"No. But we think his cult is working with these Cursed Users. But still, the connection isn't solid enough to have Gojo go deal with him, or get you to go take him out."
"But it's more than enough for Jujutsu HQ."
"Too bad Gojo is more influential," Kusakabe puts his phone away. "This still doesn't make much sense to me."
"Which part?"
"The boy dying is expected. This is one of the registered Special Grade Cursed Spirits, after all. But Geto wouldn't send a Curse User to die, they're too valuable to him. Not to mention the Cursed Spirit being here."
"Can't he control them from a distance?"
"He can. But breaking the seal is already a long process. So, cracking it and then leaving the treasure here makes no sense. And his Cursed Spirit Manipulation would allow him to consume the Cursed Spirit to command it, but he can't store it back into his body from such a great distance."
"What if this is a distraction?"
Kusakabe taps his chin. "It could be. Maybe one of the other Cursed Spirits?"
"Would he know about any more?"
"This should be the final location he's aware of, so he either has new intel, or is planning something else."
"Gojo is in Japan, so he can't be planning much. At least nothing loud, otherwise Gojo would stop him, or I would."
"There must be something we aren't seeing in all of this. Did you sense anyone else here on the way in?"
"No, did you?"
"If you didn't sense them, then I surely wouldn't, but—"
"An ambush?"
Kusakabe's eyes widen. "I need to get back to Ijichi, he could be in danger. You deal with the Suicide Forest Cursed Spirit."
"Got it," Taiyo says as Kusakabe sprints through the forest, faster than any regular human being could dream of moving.
Taiyo frowns, turning back to the hanged man.
'Kenjaku, we'll have to do more than set up something like this to get the green light for killing Geto. Between Kusakabe and Yaga, they'll see through any plans like this, not to mention the Gojo problem.'
Taiyo raises his hand and fires an Immolation Beam at the corpse, raising its atomic heat. But he keeps the beam on the corpse, not punching a hole through it, but raising the heat evenly until the body melts away as black sludge and falls into the water.
He then controls Cursed Energy to walk across the water, allowing the body to flow beneath his feet downstream as he marches toward the Barrier.
'Is the only way to get a green light for Geto…killing a student? Maybe someone from one of the Big 3 clans? I'll talk to Kenjaku about organizing a sacrifice. He should be able to find someone who is important and won't be missed in the new world, that will be the ideal sacrifice…'
Stepping into the middle of the pond, directly beneath the branch, Taiyo doesn't sense anything strange around him.
'This is what Kenjaku does, Empty Barriers. But this one is different.'
Taiyo takes one step forward, and everything around him changes. There is no process of change, his brain simply acts as if the world were always this way.
Gone are the midday sun and lush green forest. Now he is surrounded by withered old trees and dead dirt, stained by the constant stream of blood falling from the bodies hanging on each branch.
For miles around him, this Domain Expansion extends, and looking around, he couldn't see the edge to break the Barrier.
Looking up, he sees a red moon hanging in the sky, giving a rose tint to the entire battlefield, and for a moment he relaxes.
Then anger surges through him as his Cursed Energy flares up.
"Annoying," he grits out as the large hill in the middle of this Domain Expansion rumbles. "Trying to calm my mind and make me more susceptible, as if I'm one of those losers that accept death!"
The large hill cracks open as a thick, withered tree rises from it, stepping out of the ground with four root-like legs. It's trunk splitting apart to reveal flesh and blood beneath its bark as pieces of its broken trunks form two arms.
One ending with a rope noose for a hand, the other with a set of sharp wooden claws.
Its blood flows into the ground, permeating the Domain Expansion with the smell of rotting flesh and iron as Taiyo stares at the Cursed Spirit.
And neither combatant moves.
'Why isn't it attacking? Cursed Spirits are default aggressive, this is odd,' he thinks while trying to activate his Innate Technique. 'I see. This is one of those Domain Expansions that disables the opponent's Innate Technique. Advanced, but since the entire forest acts as the foundation for this Cursed Spirit's power…not too surprising.
But the fact that it's not moving is still a problem. Does it want me to come to it? And the bodies… what are the conditions for hanging? Damn it. Fine. I'll just go ask it myself.'
Taiyo lowers his stance, takes a deep breath of the disgusting air, then rushes forward.
"Since you disabled Immolation, I'll just handle you with some of my new tricks!"
Closing the hundreds of meters between him and the Cursed Spirit, he keeps his gaze locked onto it, and is surprised with it digs all its root-like feet into the ground, sending a tremor through the entire Domain Expansion.
All the ropes supporting the mutilated corpses snap as pieces of rotting bark grow to fill the gaps in their bodies.
Within seconds of landing on their feet, they're reanimated, patched up, and rushing at Taiyo.
"Now this is fun!" Taiyo eagerly punches one of the corpses in the head, decapitating it, before another grows wooden claws and takes a swipe at him.
He turns and kicks it, but his Simple Domain, All Combat, alerts him to a female corpse behind him, thrusting its claws at his back.
He allows it to puppet his movements, guiding him to spin around and knock the attacks to the side.
Then, he instantly finds himself over a mile away from the Cursed Spirit atop the hill, with his feet dangling off the ground, and a noose tightening around his neck…
END CHAPTER---
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pat.reon: Keanu_Eugene [Read ahead & support me]
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