"The binding is sealed. You're free to go."
Kenjaku lifted his hand slightly, signaling that Zen'in Shinsuke could leave whenever he wished.
Yet the mont the pact was complete, Shinsuke felt it — an almost physical weight in the air. If he broke this agreent, sothing uncontrollable would happen.
"Other than my innate Heavenly Restriction, I've never actually ford a proper binding vow with anyone before," he mused quietly.
The Heavenly Restriction was a natural-born contract. What he had just made with Kenjaku was entirely man-made — a dangerous promise between two monsters.
"As agreed," Shinsuke said, "I won't interfere with whatever you're planning next, nor will I allow anyone to use this weapon to free Gojo. I expect you to keep your end of the deal too."
He turned to leave. He had wasted enough ti here — it was ti to start his own feast.
"Don't worry," Kenjaku replied with a faint smile. "I've always held a certain reverence for bindings."
He watched as Shinsuke's figure disappeared into the darkness.
"…Seems Gojo was right," Kenjaku muttered once he was gone. "I really do dislike that man."
Gojo's sealing had gone exactly as Shinsuke predicted — Kenjaku had been completely outmaneuvered, though he'd never admit it aloud. Still, the man was dangerous. At least his ambitions gave Kenjaku a reason to tolerate him for now.
"Well, Gojo… even sealed, you've managed to remove one of my headaches."
The "binding" they'd made wasn't so trivial oath. It was airtight — no loopholes, no escape. For now, Kenjaku no longer had to worry about Shinsuke ddling in his grand design.
He glanced at the Prison Realm one last ti. "Ti to check on the others," he said to himself, heading down into the depths of the subway.
---
anwhile, aboveground, the chaos was spreading fast.
Tokyo tro, Fifth Basent Level.
Nanami Kento had just regrouped with Zen'in Naobito and Maki Zen'in.
"So the rumors were true… Gojo Satoru's been sealed." Naobito rubbed his chin, his tone oddly amused.
"Hard to believe," Nanami replied, adjusting his tie. "But considering the involvent of the false Geto Suguru, that explains a lot."
Naobito chuckled. "The fall of the Gojo clan gives one more reason to drink tonight."
As always, he couldn't care less about the politics — he was here for the bounty. Missions of this level ca with a hefty reward.
"If you're not going to fight, just go ho, old man," Maki muttered, resting her blade on her shoulder, her face unreadable.
"Go ho? You should be the one heading back, Maki," Naobito said with a grin, turning to Nanami. "Wouldn't you agree, First-Grade Sorcerer?"
Among the three, Maki was clearly the weakest — though not by much. Her grading was already under review; she'd soon beco a quasi–First Grade, and with ti, a full-fledged one. But compared to veterans like Nanami or Naobito, she still had a long way to go.
After all, she could only open the Second Gate of the Eight Gates Formation so far.
"To be honest, Maki," Nanami said in his calm, weary tone, "I have to agree with Naobito. You should withdraw."
"This old drunk's more useless than I am," Maki shot back, pouting. "At least I'm sober."
"Naobito-san… you've been drinking?" Nanami's temple twitched.
"Nope," Naobito said casually — then hiccupped, proving her point.
Nanami sighed. "Forget it. Better to move together than alone."
He led the way down the stairs, eyes narrowing as he scanned the darkness. "The situation isn't hopeless yet. I've received word — Zen'in-sensei is also here. As long as he's around, things shouldn't spiral too far out of control. Once we rescue Gojo-senpai, this should be over."
As they descended to the wide-open platform of the fifth basent level, Nanami froze, instantly on guard. Maki tightened her grip on her blade.
The air was thick with cursed energy — heavy and suffocating.
From behind one of the pillars, a small, red, octopus-like creature peeked out, its body draped in a sheet of white cloth.
The subway trembled faintly.
And sothing ancient… was awakening in the dark.
The source of the cursed energy pulsed from that little octopus.
"Leave this to ."
Nanami's expression hardened as he stopped Maki from stepping forward and readied himself for combat.
"Smash!"
"I say—your timing's a bit slow, isn't it?"
Naobito's figure already stood beside the Special Grade cursed spirit, Dagon. He held a slab of clear glass; the monster's form was projected onto it, as if crushed from three dinsions down to two.
"Hahahahaha—!"
With a roar, Naobito shattered the glass with a single punch. Dagon took the blow and was sent flying.
"So fast! Did you see that?" Maki's eyes widened in surprise. When did this old man beco so strong? How had she missed it?
"Not really," Nanami adjusted his glasses. "That's… a technique, I think."
After all, he was the head of the Zen'in family — he wouldn't command respect without strength. The Zen'ins aren't anything like the Gojo family with just one prodigy; they have many capable sorcerers, and several at First Grade.
"Ugh!"
Dagon's insides churned from that blow. It vomited out the human bones it had been devouring, instantly littering the platform with grisly fragnts.
"You monster…" Naobito muttered, looking at the cursed spirit. "How many humans did you eat?"
"Roo-gu… ru—LEAP!!" the small octopus snapped, fury erupting. Its cursed energy spiked, and the husk it had been hiding in shifted—no longer just an embryonic form but now a full-fledged octopus-man.
"So that was its fetus form earlier. No wonder it seed weak." Naobito peered up at the suspended Dagon without the least bit of alarm. "Cursed spirit, tell —do you know how many fras per second are in animation?"
"I'M NOT A CURSED SPIRIT. I HAVE A NA. MY NA IS Dagon."
"Animation, huh…" Naobito paid Dagon's protest no mind, casually talking himself through the effect of his technique. Without noticing, he'd just declared how his jutsu worked. Oddly, for sorcerers, announcing a technique before launching it can actually increase its potency.
Naobito's speed is legendary among First Grades; only Gojo's tempo rivals his.
"Get ready. This one's no joke," Nanami said, drawing the short knife from his back and wrapping his fist with his necktie. He warned Maki quietly: the Special Grade they were facing here would likely be at least as strong as the one they'd t at the exchange.
"Understood."
Maki tightened her grip on her long blade; hot steam rose from her skin as she pushed herself into peak condition.
While the three of them prepared to deal with Dagon, Zen'in Shinsuke had already moved out into the city.
On the avenue he felt the tremors in the air — several spots with intense cursed-energy signatures.
"So many. Where to first?" he muttered, his senses sweeping the surrounding buildings.
"One of those spots should be where Itadori and his big brother are fighting," he guessed, feeling two colliding presences in a nearby block. "That one over there isn't a cursed spirit; killing it won't solve anything."
He turned his attention elsewhere. Another direction sent a wave of raw, unruly power; Shinsuke frowned. "That must be where Mahito spawned… too bad he's bound to Kenjaku."
He moved on. There was only one more place left in his scan with multiple strong signatures: at least three powerful auras clashing—there was almost certainly a Special Grade engaged there...
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