On the golden beach, a wooden door suddenly appeared.
From within the door stepped out a group of people exuding intense spiritual pressure, their expressions dark and brooding.
It was clear that the recent plan to besiege the Nightmare had failed, and none of them were in a good mood.
Especially Noritoshi Kamo.
He had believed that after so much preparation, this time the plan was almost foolproof.
Not only had they improved the Shadow-Banishing Barrier, recruited new allies, and drawn up a detailed plan, but Mahito had even awakened his Domain Expansion unexpectedly due to his obsession with revenge.
And yet, in the end, he once again fled like a defeated dog, tail between his legs.
The plan had been progressing smoothly.
They had used a Sukuna Finger to create a new Special Grade Cursed Spirit and used it as bait to lure the Nightmare.
Then, they activated the Shadow-Banishing Barrier that had long been laid out, trapping everyone within it and completely sealing off the Nightmare trump card — her ability to combine offense, defense, and escape.
Surrounded by six Special Grade sorcerers, even the Nightmare could only struggle to keep up and gradually began to fall into disadvantage.
And once her Simple Domain shattered, Mahito had successfully enveloped her within his own Domain.
At that point, success was within arm's reach.
But it was at that very moment — that one step no one thought could fail — that Mahito failed.
He was chased within his own Domain by the Nightmare.
Anyone with even a bit of pride would have likely been so ashamed they'd have taken their own life on the spot.
And it was precisely Mahito failure that caused the entire ambush plan to collapse.
Not only did they lose three highly potential Special Grade vessels, but from now on, the Nightmare would be even more cautious in her movements, making future ambushes exponentially more difficult.
"What exactly happened inside your Domain?"
Back in the safety of their headquarters, Noritoshi Kamo finally couldn't hold back the rage in his heart and questioned Mahito directly.
He suppressed his anger and looked at Mahito with displeasure, asking, "At that time, the Nightmare Simple Domain had already been broken. Within your Self-Enclosing Perfection, she should have had no room to resist. So why were you chased out of your own Domain?"
"You can't blame me for that."
Despite the accusing tone, Mahito expression didn't show any guilt; instead, he spoke self-righteously, "No one ever told me the Nightmare research into souls had reached a level beyond my own. She's even reshaped her own soul, making it extremely difficult for my Idle Transfiguration to alter its form immediately."
"What?!"
Mahito explanation clearly caught Noritoshi by surprise.
He had never imagined that the Nightmare was not only a hidden grandmaster of Barrier Techniques, capable of creating her own unique Simple Domain, but was also extremely proficient in soul manipulation.
Noritoshi understood Mahito technique and thus its underlying principles.
Mahito, who could alter the shape of souls with his own hands — even compared to himself, a cursed user who had lived for a thousand years — had already far surpassed him in soul manipulation.
And yet the Nightmare mastery in this field even surpassed Mahito, whose technique was directly related to the soul?
Noritoshi mind filled with disbelief.
And deep absurdity.
"That woman… what kind of monster is she?!"
He roared internally in frustration.
Why does she know everything?!
In Domain Expansion, she knows how to execute an Open Domain.
In Barrier Techniques, she knows how to construct a Simple Domain with physical-layer defense.
And now, in soul manipulation, she knows even more than a cursed spirit whose entire technique revolves around souls!
After a brief mental breakdown, Noritoshi forced himself to calm down and reevaluate everything.
Though the loss this time was great, looking on the bright side, they hadn't come away empty-handed.
At the very least, they had obtained some very valuable information about the Nightmare.
"You mentioned soul reshaping. What exactly does that mean?"
Noritoshi eyes narrowed, his expression particularly sharp. "When we were attacking her, her state suddenly became unstable. Why?"
"She created an anchor point within her own soul," Mahito explained with a hint of fervor in his eyes. "I used Idle Transfiguration at full power and managed to shake that anchor to a certain degree, which caused some instability in her psyche."
Recalling what he had seen within the Nightmare soul, Mahito face lit up with obsession. "It was… it was the most beautiful thing I've ever seen. I can't even imagine the level of precision, the strength, and the depth of understanding required to create such a thing. Even catching just a glimpse of it benefited me immensely."
"Hmph..."
Noritoshi didn't comment on whether Mahito description was exaggerated, but his words were concise and easy to understand. Even without seeing it firsthand, Noritoshi understood the hidden truth within the Nightmare soul.
"An anchor point, huh…"
He murmured to himself.
Though he had decisively summoned his shikigami and fled once Mahito Domain collapsed, he still observed that something was definitely wrong with the Nightmare at the time.
According to Mahito, the reason for her instability was the disruption of the anchor point within her soul.
It seemed that although Idle Transfiguration didn't work on her as effectively as it did on other jujutsu users, it was not completely ineffective either.
"If we could fully shake that anchor… would she truly go insane?"
The question surfaced in Noritoshi mind.
Perhaps, if they got another chance, Mahito could try again.
But who knew how long it would be before they had another opportunity to ambush the Nightmare?
So for now, that thought remained just a theory, not something he intended to act on immediately.
"You just said that the Nightmare soul anchor benefited you greatly?"
Noritoshi turned his gaze back toward Mahito, his tone slightly gentler. "Does that mean you gained something from observing its structure?"
"Yes! A huge breakthrough!"
Mahito face lit up even more, his excitement almost overriding his frustration at the failed plan. "You have no idea what it feels like — this overwhelming sense of enlightenment, like I suddenly ascended to a whole new level."
"I see."
Hearing that, Noritoshi expression eased slightly.
It seemed that the spoils from this ambush weren't limited to just information about the Nightmare.
Sacrificing three Special Grade vessels in exchange for the advancement of Mahito technique wasn't such a bad trade when viewed from a long-term perspective.
"You said I'll never understand?" Noritoshi raised an eyebrow and said coldly, "Then I'll just have you share it with me."
Mahito progress was his progress.
Even though the relationship between Noritoshi and Mahito wasn't truly cooperative but one of mutual exploitation, for now, they were still bound together by the same goals.
And Noritoshi had no intention of letting go of this valuable tool just yet.
The reason he, who possessed the Cursed Spirit Manipulation technique, did not choose to enslave Mahito and Jogo was not because of what he claimed—that their power was too great for him to control.
It was simply because any cursed spirit that was enslaved through Cursed Spirit Manipulation would no longer be able to make the slightest progress in their techniques. They would forever be frozen at the level they were at when enslaved.
And Mahito still had much untapped potential. It would be a waste to enslave such a growing force.
That's why he hadn't taken action yet.
However, once Mahito technique advanced further and the fruit ripened, he would not hesitate to pluck it and devour it.
He believed that day was very near.
And when that day arrived, his grand objective would be considered halfway complete.
By then, he would be able to begin a game he had been planning for a millennium.
The Culling Game.
"No, it's still too early to consider initiating the Culling Game."
With a slight frown, he dispelled the dangerous thoughts that had started to surface.
Because, according to the original plan, before initiating the Culling Game, he needed to take care of Satoru Gojo first.
If Gojo were allowed to participate in the Culling Game, the entire game might be over within a single day.
But now, the obstacle he faced was no longer only Gojo. There was now an even more troublesome Nightmare.
"What should I do to deal with the two of them?"
He rubbed his temples in distress.
Meanwhile, Mahito was still immersed in the excitement of his recent harvest, and Jogo was reflecting on the battle just now, contemplating how to be more effective when facing Nightmare again.
The atmosphere fell into a temporary silence.
But that silence was soon broken.
From the narrow crack in the wooden door behind him, a paper doll emerged and floated into the room where he sat.
He nonchalantly reached out and caught it, removing a small note attached to the doll.
He casually glanced at the words written on the note.
However, the moment he read the first line, his breathing became heavy.
His gaze locked tightly onto the words on the note, reading line after line.
The more he read, the paler his face became, as if he had seen something utterly unbelievable.
"You've got to be kidding me!"
He roared in disbelief, shattering the silence.
Tokyo Jujutsu High, simultaneously.
After Satoru Gojo transported the remaining three students and the Cursed Womb: Death Painting triplets back to the school, he handed them a note left by Tokisaki Kurumi.
Once they finished reading the information on the Nightmare technique, all six of them fell into collective shock.
Of course, Sukuna, who was sealed within Yuji Itadori body, was equally stunned.
Nightmare technique—was time manipulation.
Its manifestation was a dark golden Roman-style clock called Zafkiel, and each tick mark represented a different ability related to time.
However, according to Tokisaki Kurumi, Zafkiel twelve time-based abilities had to be unlocked.
And unlocking each new ability required an increasingly massive amount of cursed energy.
When Kurumi chose to betray Nightmare, the Nightmare had already unlocked Bullet VIII, which allowed it to summon different versions of itself from alternate timelines.
"Now do you all understand just how dangerous Nightmare really is?"
Gojo tone carried rare heaviness as he swept his gaze across the now-stone-faced crowd.
"Is this intel… really reliable?"
Still unwilling to accept what was written, Choso asked in a dry voice, "This was just one of Nightmare clones…"
"Tokisaki wouldn't lie."
Before he could finish his sentence, Yuji Itadori cut him off firmly.
Seeing his younger brother so resolute, Choso dared not rebut further and silently accepted this reality.
Yuji had not the slightest doubt about the information Tokisaki Kurumi had provided.
However, upon learning more about Nightmare—and more about Tokisaki Kurumi—an unshakable question welled up in his heart.
"Why… why did she have to use her real name?" Yuji clenched his fists tightly. "If she had just used a fake name, Nightmare wouldn't have found her…"
"That's impossible," Gojo shook his head. "Whether it's her real name or a fake one, the moment she chose to step out of the shadows, her fate was already sealed."
Bullet X—its ability was to transmit the memories of the target's past.
As long as Nightmare obtained one of Gojo personal items, it could know everything that Gojo knew.
From the moment Tokisaki Kurumi chose to join Jujutsu High—when she revealed her true appearance to Gojo—whether she used her real name or a fake one, all that awaited her was death.
"After her soul was cursed with goodness, she could no longer condone Nightmare atrocities. Nor did she wish to see Nightmare continue growing stronger through slaughter to gather cursed energy."
"And so, she ultimately did not choose to run away. Instead, she chose to join Jujutsu High."
"She claimed she joined Jujutsu High to find a way to fight Nightmare—but from the very beginning, she stepped into this school fully prepared to die."
"As Nightmare activity increased, she began to feel death closing in. That's why she entrusted me with the intel on Nightmare."
"Unfortunately, her instincts were correct."
"But fortunately, before she died, she completed her mission and passed this sliver of hope into our hands."
Gojo tone carried both solemnity and reverence as he voiced the most logical deduction.
[Thank you, everyone]
[These past few days… I've truly been happy.]
When Yuji Itadori recalled Tokisaki Kurumi final message again, his chest ached deeply.
So, she had treated this period of time… as the final chapter of her life?
Had she chosen to live in hiding, perhaps she could have prolonged her life in cowardice.
But in order to stop the increasingly powerful Nightmare, she willingly stepped into the fatal sunlight.
All for the sake of delivering a sliver of hope against the darkness—into their hands.
"Kurumi… we'll take it from here."
Yuji Itadori thought to himself.
"Your mission… is complete."
"Your mission… is complete."
Within the Shadow Space, the real body gave a thumbs-up to Spy No. 3, who stood before him completely unharmed.
Spy No. 3 touched his chest. Although it had been healed by Bullet IV, the phantom pain of having his heart gouged out still lingered.
But if enduring this pain meant an increase in role-play integrity, then it was absolutely worth it.
He had even recreated one of the most iconic scenes from the original story—if the system didn't award him more points, wouldn't that be unfair?
"Alright, the performance part should be about done."
After sending Spy No. 3 off to play cards with the other clones inside the Shadow Space, the main body stroked his chin and muttered:
"Next… it's time to start putting pressure on Satoru Gojo and the others."