Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical College, assembly area outside the main gate.
The morning mist had not yet fully dispersed, adding a touch of solemnity and mystery to this ancient school located in the suburbs. Six figures stood by a dedicated black van, each with a different atmosphere.
Fushiguro Megumi was as calm as ever, checking his equipment bag for the last time to ensure his talismans and special weapons were in place. His expression remained steady, though a flicker of scrutiny occasionally flashed in his eyes as he glanced at his teammates.
Yuji, on the other hand, seemed to have an excess of energy. Dressed in his Jujutsu High uniform, he was doing small jumps on the spot to warm up, his pink hair swaying with his movements. A smile mixed with nervousness and excitement was present on his face.
"Oh! Finally, an official mission. Don't worry, everyone, I'll protect you." He thumped his chest, his voice booming.
Nobara gave a wide yawn, one hand on her hip, her face written all over with displeasure. She wore a modified school uniform with nails and a hammer pinned to her skirt, her short orange hair a bit messy.
"Honestly... going on a field mission so soon after enrolling? And so early in the morning. I had planned to go shopping in Harajuku today. It's all the fault of those rotten higher-up geezers, always looking for trouble." She complained bluntly, her gaze sweeping across the unfamiliar new faces.
The "new faces" were none other than Utaha, Eriri, and Kato Megumi.
Utaha had already changed into the black Jujutsu High uniform. Her posture was upright, but her face remained somewhat pale, with a lingering exhaustion and a hint of gravity hidden deep within her eyes.
Eriri, meanwhile, was tightly clutching one of Utaha's arms, her small frame trembling slightly. Her blonde twin-tails looked a bit limp.
Kato Megumi stood quietly to the side, her expression its usual calm, as if she were on an ordinary field trip rather than a dangerous mission.
When Satoru quickly scanned the team to confirm the members, his Six Eyes, capable of seeing through everything, naturally slid over her without a moment's pause, as if she were merely a speck of dust in the air.
It wasn't until he finished counting and was about to give orders that he seemed to suddenly remember something.
He tilted his head slightly and refocused his gaze on Kato Megumi. "Oh, Kato's here too. Good, everyone's present."
Satoru leaned against the car, a pocky stick in his mouth. His gaze behind his sunglasses swept over the complex "rookie team" before him. He clapped his hands, drawing everyone's attention.
"Alright, rookies, listen up." Satoru's voice was still light, but his tone had turned more serious.
"The mission location is the Eishu Juvenile Detention Center."
"Last night, an unexplained Curtain covered the area, followed by a strong burst of Cursed Energy, cutting off all contact with the outside world."
"Several staff members and detention center guards are trapped inside. Your mission is to search for and rescue survivors, confirm the internal situation, and perform a preliminary purification."
"The preliminary assessment from Window is that a Cursed Womb may have been born inside."
"Cursed Womb?" Yuji asked immediately.
Nobara frowned.
Utaha, Eriri, and Kato Megumi also looked puzzled.
Fushiguro Megumi took over the explanation, "Simply put, a Cursed Womb is the egg or pupa state before a Special Grade Cursed Spirit is born. When a location accumulates an extraordinary amount of negative emotions and curses, or is influenced by a powerful Cursed Object, a manifested 'Curse Egg' may be birthed."
"The Cursed Womb itself may not have a complete form or offensive capabilities, but it is extremely unstable and can hatch into a true Special Grade Cursed Spirit at any time. Its specific form and abilities are hard to predict before hatching, and its danger level is very high."
He looked at Satoru and asked, "But can Window's observations confirm it's only in the 'Cursed Womb' stage?"
Satoru nodded. "The current feedback on the Cursed Energy fluctuations matches the characteristics of the mid-to-late Cursed Womb stage. Therefore, the mission priority is rescue and investigation. If the existence of a Cursed Womb is confirmed and it cannot be handled safely, retreat immediately and call for backup. A higher-level Jujutsu Sorcerer will take over."
"Understood? This isn't about you going head-to-head with a Special Grade. It's a rescue and intelligence-gathering mission."
Everyone nodded.
Yuji and Fushiguro Megumi looked serious, Nobara pouted but didn't complain further, Utaha took a deep breath, and Eriri hugged her tighter.
However, on a level invisible to the others, a certain existence within Utaha was coldly "watching" everything.
"Cursed Womb? Hmph." Sukuna sneered in his heart.
That Cursed Womb has already hatched. If this group goes in now without Sukuna or Satoru, it's a suicide mission.
Sukuna's thoughts raced.
The higher-ups...
Those pedantic and foolish old geezers had always seen him as the greatest threat and his current vessel, Utaha, as a calamity that had to be purged.
Sending a rookie team to deal with a true Special Grade Cursed Spirit disguised as a "Cursed Womb"?
This was blatant suicide, a murder plot targeting Utaha.
Using the hands of a Cursed Spirit to eliminate unstable factors was very much in line with those people's dirty methods.
But thinking deeper, how many of the Jujutsu World's higher-ups had already been infiltrated, controlled, or even replaced by that conspirator hiding in the shadows—Kenjaku?
If this was Kenjaku's doing, the purpose was definitely not as simple as "clearing the vessel."
Sukuna's gaze seemed to pierce through space, landing deep within the juvenile detention center shrouded by the ominous Curtain.
Finger.
Yes. That explained it.
A malicious Special Grade Cursed Spirit, catalyzed to hatch early, serving as a test or a cleanup tool, while the reward or bait was likely one or even several of his fingers placed at the scene in advance.
Using the higher-ups to issue a fake high-risk mission and sending his vessel into the lion's den.
If the vessel could be removed by the Cursed Spirit, it would save trouble.
If not, the Cursed Spirit and the desperate situation would force Sukuna's vessel to expose more power, and perhaps even discover and retrieve those fingers through battle, accelerating his recovery while also making Satoru and Jujutsu High more wary and hostile toward him.
No matter the outcome, for Kenjaku, it was a good move to advance the chess game, observe variables, and create chaos.
"Killing multiple birds with one stone... quite your style, Kenjaku." Sukuna sneered inwardly.
Far from being angry, he felt a flicker of pleasure as if meeting a worthy opponent.
This game was indeed more interesting than expected. He had no reason to refuse the fingers and sandbags delivered to his door. As for the lives of those students and whether Utaha could hold out... he would treat it as an entertainment program to observe the limits of his material.