บท 179: Chapter 151
The turbulent summer of 2006 had passed. Fall had also come and gone, and now it was December.
Compared to the summer, known as the peak season for curses, winter had far fewer curses.
Still, while there was more time than in summer, Japan's sorcery community and sorcerers were always busy, even in winter. Especially the higher-ranked sorcerers, as there were more missions only they could handle.
Special grade sorcerers, of course, had it the toughest.
Clang! Clang!
A broken spear flew and embedded itself in front of a curse user who had collapsed to the ground.
The curse user looked at his cleanly severed spear, then turned his gaze to the smoke obscuring his vision. Through the dense smoke, a small silhouette could be seen, and then it cleared away like a curtain.
"A technique that traps the opponent and yourself in a temporary domain, greatly enhancing your cursed energy and physical abilities within it… And when the domain breaks, it releases a smoke screen to facilitate escape."
Not bad, said the voice of a young boy.
Sling.
From behind the smoke, a Japanese sword with a white hilt appeared. Underneath bright green hair, eyes that seemed far too calm for a ten-year-old glinted.
"It doesn't seem like you use such techniques without constraints… Are there limits on the number of uses or the duration?"
The answer was both, but the curse user kept silent. He knew well that revealing information about his techniques wouldn't change the situation.
"If a sorcerer without means to counter a domain faced you, it would indeed be quite dangerous."
The straight black blade gleamed with a hint of menace.
The curse user looked at the boy standing before him, 'Zenin Zoro.'
The fact that the son of the sorcerer killer, Zenin Toji, was active as a sorcerer at the Tokyo Jujutsu High, even at a young age, was well known among both sorcerers and curse users.
While sorcerers typically start social activities at a young age, it was not common even in the sorcery world for a child of six or seven to receive a grade and undertake missions.
When his child joined the high, Zenin Toji also quit his life as a killer and became a sorcerer, which was a huge topic among curse users.
Contrary to public expectations that he would return to being a killer after a while, Zenin Toji faithfully carried out the high's missions, beating down curses and curse users alike. Especially curse users.
Those who sought survival and livelihood, or who had a peculiar 'hobby,' all fled Tokyo. It was widely known among curse users that Zenin Toji only operated in Tokyo.
However, this also meant.
Curse users who had business with Zenin Toji all came to Tokyo.
The curse user's brown eyes glared at Zoro with clear hatred. The child before him bore no resemblance to the sorcerer killer. Yet, he spat out words of ancient resentment.
"Do you know the saying, 'Evil deeds beget evil outcomes'?"
Coughing roughly, the curse user clutched his stomach where Zoro had struck him with the sheath earlier.
"It means that a house that accumulates evil will inevitably be visited by calamity."
The curse user had wanted to become that calamity by killing the sorcerer killer's son but failed.
"My friend, Jiro, was killed by your father a few years ago."
For just a few bucks, his neck was severed.
The curse user choked on his words. Jiro had been a good friend, the only one he could rely on in this harsh world.
"I was trash, but he wasn't. He was gentle and kind, much like the respectable sorcerers you associate with at the high. Your father killed him."
So he sought revenge.
He targeted the son instead of fighting the sorcerer killer directly, knowing the odds were against him. He thought he could catch the child off guard despite hearing rumors of his strength.
It was a miscalculation.
Zoro rolled his eyes at the curse user's words.
"If that's the case, you should have gone after my father."
If he had a grudge against Toji, he should have targeted Toji, not Zoro.
Besides…
"If you truly wanted to avenge yourself on my father by killing me, you should have targeted me alone."
And left everyone else alone.
The curse user had injured ten sorcerers while testing the power of his technique. If Haibara hadn't quickly found the severely injured and transported them to the high immediately, there would have been fatalities.
The curse user snarled.
"What makes you think you're any different? No matter what you do, you can't deny the evil blood flowing through your veins. You and your father will both end up in hell."
Zoro frowned slightly but remained unfazed. The curse user ground his teeth, seeing his words had no effect.
'A kid still wet behind the ears.'
There were no gaps in his stance. Although he had a trump card, it was useless against someone with no openings. It felt like he was up against a seasoned veteran who anticipated all his moves.
He couldn't win in his current state. The old curse user accurately assessed the situation.
…As a human, he couldn't.
The curse user pulled out a crimson needle. Zoro's eyes widened, and he stepped forward, trying to stop him.
"No, don't—!"
"—I don't care what it takes as long as I can kill you."
Stab! The curse user drove the needle deep into his own neck. A stream of red blood flowed from the puncture wound.
"Urgh, urk."
The sound of boiling blood filled the air. The curse user's body convulsed momentarily before he slumped to the ground, dead.
As Zoro felt the cursed energy rising from the corpse, he shook his head with a look of both pity and disdain.
"…You should never have done that."
Such a method could never surpass Zoro.
A boar-shaped curse spirit rose from the corpse. Its flaming red eyes fixed on Zoro, and it let out a monstrous sound.
[Sor… cerer… Killer…]
"I'm not my father."
It seemed to lack the reason to understand. Zoro sighed bitterly as he looked at the boar curse spirit, growling like a beast with murderous intent.
A crimson temporary domain enclosed Zoro and the boar curse spirit. The enhanced technique, strengthened further by becoming a curse spirit, doubled the boar's physical abilities and cursed energy.
Squeal!
The boar curse spirit charged at Zoro with incredible speed, its body brimming with cursed energy, incomparable to its human form.
However, it was still not enough to reach Zoro.
Gripping the hilt of Wado Ichimonji, Zoro tightly held the sheath.
"One-Sword Style."
Lion's Song.
The boar curse spirit froze as if time had stopped. Zoro, having sheathed his sword, walked past it.
Crack, crack. The crimson domain began to fracture.
Crash!
A white line formed across the boar curse spirit and the temporary domain, splitting them in half. The boar's body crumbled to ash and vanished into thin air.
As he exhaled, Haibara Yu came running towards Zoro from a distance.
"Senpai! Are you alright?"
"Yeah."
There were no injuries. Zoro gently held the remnants of the curse spirit's ash, knowing it would soon disappear without a trace.
"What about the people?"
"The critically injured have been transported to the high! Ieiri-senpai said there wouldn't be any fatalities, so it should be alright."
"That's a relief."
Haibara looked around. There were no corpses or blood left at the scene.
"Was it a curse spirit?"
"No, a curse user. …He became a curse spirit afterward, though."
"Huh?"
"He stabbed himself."
If a non-cursed attack kills a sorcerer, they become a curse spirit. Some curse users, knowing they couldn't win with their own strength, would commit suicide using non-cursed weapons, like now.
'Sorcerers who become curse spirits after death often become stronger than they were alive.'
This curse user was stronger as a curse spirit than he had been in life. Although, both forms were no match for Zoro.
It wasn't something Zoro particularly liked. It felt like they had given up on dying as humans. As a sorcerer, abandoning their potential felt like running away.
…But it wasn't like they cared about what Zoro thought.
Recalling the face of the curse user who cursed him until the end, Zoro closed his eyes and pressed his fingers against his temples. He was tired.
Rubbing his weary eyes, Zoro turned to Haibara.
"You handled the civilians' rescue and transport, right? The mission is over; let's head back to the high."
"Yes! …And senpai, please leave these tasks to me next time. I've gotten stronger too!"
Haibara flexed his muscular arm to show he could handle it. Zoro chuckled at the sight.
"We'll see."
There was no choice today. The curse user's target was Zoro from the beginning.
"Let's go back."
"Yes! The exit is this way, though!"
"..."
...
[Author's Note]
Vote with your power stones, it motivates me to keep posting chapters.
If you're interested, you can read 20 advance chapters on my Patréon.
patréon.com/fumiaki
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