This was originally a place of quiet reflection for students who had strayed, but now it was filled with a suffocating air of slaughter.
Masamichi Yaga sat quietly on the wooden floor.
This principal, who was usually stern and fond of crafting all sorts of strange Cursed Corpses, appeared exceptionally calm at this moment.
Panda was no longer by his side, nor were those fuzzy Cursed Corpse dolls.
Instead, he was surrounded by a dozen fully armed fanatics from the General Headquarters, each radiating cold ripples of cursed energy.
And sitting in the shadows to the side, cradling an electric guitar that hummed with eerie cursed energy, was a gaunt old man with a complex look in his eyes.
The principal of Kyoto Jujutsu High, Yoshinobu Gakuganji.
"Masamichi Yaga."
An executioner dressed in a black suit, representing the will of the higher-ups, stepped inside holding an execution order stamped with the blood-red seal of the General Headquarters.
"You are suspected of inciting the Special Grade Sorcerer Satoru Gojo to trigger the Shibuya Incident, resulting in heavy casualties among both the jujutsu world and the civilian population."
"Furthermore, you have secretly manufactured the fully independent artificial Cursed Corpse, Panda, with the intent of building a Cursed Corpse army beyond the control of the higher-ups."
The executioner's voice was devoid of emotion.
"For these combined crimes, the higher-ups have decided to sentence you to death, to be carried out immediately."
Faced with these fabricated charges, Masamichi Yaga didn't even bat an eye.
"Inciting Satoru?"
Yaga suddenly let out a laugh, one filled with mockery and disdain.
"You rats hiding in the shadows will never be able to understand Satoru's will."
"As for Panda... he is not a weapon. He is my son."
Yaga slowly stood up, and the powerful cursed energy of a Grade 1 Sorcerer began to radiate faintly from within him.
Even facing a dead end, he would not simply offer his neck like a lamb to the slaughter.
"Presumptuous! You dare talk back when death is at your door!"
The executioner snorted and was about to wave his hand.
To the side, Yoshinobu Gakuganji suddenly plucked a string. A heavy sonic wave vibrated outward, causing visible ripples in the air.
"Yaga, is this your final answer?"
Gakuganji's voice was raspy and heavy. "You should understand that if you refuse to hand over the secret, even I cannot protect you before the General Headquarters."
"Principal Gakuganji, there's no need for more words."
The executioner interrupted impatiently.
"Kill him! Excavate the secret of creating fully independent Cursed Corpses from his brain!"
The dozen fanatics instantly drew their cursed tools, lunging at Masamichi Yaga like a pack of hungry wolves.
However.
At that critical moment.
"BOOM!!!"
The thick reinforced steel door of the detention cell, along with the entire load-bearing wall, was instantly blasted into a cloud of dust by a terrifying force beyond words!
A violent gale swept in, sending the fanatics mid-leap flying back like tattered ragdolls!
"Who is it?!"
The executioner turned pale with fright and hurriedly retreated.
Yoshinobu Gakuganji's pupils shrank as he lunged to his feet, fingers pressing firmly against his guitar strings as if facing a great enemy.
The dust settled.
A youth in a black uniform with black hair and red eyes stepped over the rubble, his face expressionless.
To his left was the second-generation Sorcerer Killer, Maki, who had just finished wiping out a clan and still reeked of blood.
To his right was the eldest brother of the Cursed Womb, Choso, standing with his arms crossed and a gloomy gaze.
"Yo... Yoru?!"
The executioner recognized the monster who had carved through Sukuna's domain during the Shibuya Incident, and his legs began to shake uncontrollably.
Gakuganji's eyelids also twitched wildly. Although he was among the top sorcerers below Special Grade, he still felt a sense of despairing pressure when facing the monster who could go head-to-head with Sukuna.
"Wh... What do you want?! We are acting on the orders of the General Headquarters—"
"Slap!"
Before the executioner could finish, Yoru appeared before him like a ghost.
A crisp, resounding slap sent the arrogant official flying over three meters into the air, half a mouthful of teeth spraying out along with a mist of blood!
Yoru didn't even look at the flying executioner; his gaze landed calmly on Yoshinobu Gakuganji.
"Principal Gakuganji, do you intend to meddle in this mess as well?"
Gakuganji fell silent. He looked into Yoru's emotionless eyes, and his fingers on the strings actually began to tremble slightly.
Finally, he slowly let go and let out a long sigh.
"...This old man was merely ordered to supervise. Since you have arrived, it no longer has anything to do with me."
"A wise man's choice."
Yoru withdrew his gaze and finally looked coldly at the shivering fanatics.
"Orders from the General Headquarters?"
Yoru didn't spare a glance for the executioner wailing on the ground. He simply scanned the fanatics with a look reserved for the dead.
"From this day forth, what does the General Headquarters even amount to?"
Yoru's voice wasn't loud, yet it seemed to carry a magic that struck the soul, making the entire detention cell hum.
"I'm protecting Principal Yaga."
"Does anyone have an objection?"
Dead silence.
These fanatics, who were usually brainwashed by the General Headquarters to do nothing but follow orders, found their hands shaking violently as they gripped their blades, faced with Yoru's tangible, terrifying pressure.
They had seen the recordings of Yoru during the Shibuya Incident.
The monster who had cut down Special Grade Cursed Spirits with a single strike and was held in high regard even by the strongest, Satoru Gojo, was not someone they could oppose.
"Yoru, don't be impulsive!"
Masamichi Yaga looked at the youth standing in front of him. While he was moved, he was more worried.
"Openly defying the General Headquarters will make you an enemy of the entire jujutsu world! They will brand you a traitor!"
"A traitor?"
Yoru let out a cold laugh and slowly turned around to look at Yaga.
"Principal, now that Gojo-sensei is gone, have you still not seen those Rotten Oranges for what they truly are?"
"They have never cared about the safety of the world; they only care about the power and interests in their hands."
"When Gojo-sensei was here, they lay low like dogs. The moment Gojo-sensei was sealed, they couldn't wait to jump out and eliminate dissenters."
Yoru pointed a finger at the trembling fanatics.
"They sentenced you to death not because you did something wrong, but because you are beyond their control—because your Cursed Corpse technology is a threat to their rule."
"You want to play by the rules with trash that is rotten to the core?"
Yoru shook his head, the killing intent in his eyes surging like a physical force.
"There is only one way to deal with trash: throw it into the incinerator and burn it all away!"
Hearing Yoru's treasonous words, the executioner on the ground found some burst of courage and screamed:
"This is rebellion! You are making an enemy of the entire jujutsu world!"
"Everyone, attack! Kill him! Kill him!"
A few of the most brainwashed fanatics were spurred by the executioner's roar and lunged at Yoru with gritted teeth.
But Yoru didn't even need to move.
"Psh!"
Maki's figure instantly turned into a blur.
The Pseudo-Soul Splitter Katana carved a cold arc through the air. Before those fanatics could even scream, they were sliced in half!
The air grew still as blood pooled on the floor.
The remaining fanatics completely collapsed, dropping their weapons and retreating in terror.
"I told you."
Yoru slowly drew the Shiranui from his waist. The dark red blade was instantly engulfed in the blazing flames of Sun Breathing.
"Today, anyone with an objection dies."
"Since you like the General Headquarters' orders so much..."
Yoru carried his blade, walking step by step toward the executioner slumped on the ground.
"Then I'll go to the General Headquarters myself and ask those Rotten Oranges who gave them the guts to touch my people."
"Principal, go and regroup with the others first," Yoru said without looking back.
"Maki, Choso, let's go."
"Where to?" Maki flicked the blood off her blade, a bloodthirsty gleam of excitement flashing in her eyes.
Yoru looked up toward the center of Tokyo.
There sat the seat of the highest authority in the jujutsu world—the General Headquarters.
"To clean out that foul-smelling garbage dump."
Yoru's voice was as cold as a Siberian wind in the night.
"From today on, what happens at Jujutsu High is my word."
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