Chapter 172
Inside the Jujutsu High dormitories.
Kiriya and Maki lay intertwined under the blankets, quietly enjoying the peace following their ’great battle’.
"This is what you meant by ’serious business’?" Kiriya raised an eyebrow, his tone teasing.
"Letting both of us vent our built-up stress—if that’s not serious business, what is?" Maki said, stretching lazily.
Her fit, athletic curves couldn’t be hidden by the thin blanket at all, making Kiriya roll his eyes as his thoughts drifted back to a certain day over half a month ago.
It had been an evening.
After a full day of grueling training, Maki was completely exhausted.
Every muscle in her body ached so much that she could barely move.
Naturally, Kiriya couldn’t just sit by and do nothing.
He quickly used the Yang power to heal the girl.
But even after a wave of healing magic, Maki still complained of severe muscle soreness and asked if Kiriya could give her a massage.
"Of course I can." Kiriya patted his chest in assurance and proceeded to give Maki a full-body massage.
Naturally, a little incident occurred during the process.
After all, they were both young, overflowing with youth and vitality.
Furthermore, both had highly conditioned bodies and abundant physical vigor, making it incredibly easy for friction to generate heat.
From there, it was like a spark to dry tinder, blazing wildly out of control.
It was also that night Kiriya realized just how much Maki kept hidden, how surprisingly well-endowed she was, and how her fighting spirit continued to surge without fading.
By the time Kiriya came to his senses, the moon was already high in the midnight sky.
"Why?" Kiriya asked softly, holding the girl in his arms.
"Because I wanted to." Her answer was bold and domineering, but her heart was pounding wildly.
It was clear that on the inside, she was far less decisive than she appeared.
Kiriya smiled.
He knew she was trying to repay a debt of gratitude.
Although a forbidden technique like the Eight Inner Gates came with a heavy price, for someone like Maki—mocked as a disgrace to sorcerers due to her near-zero Cursed Energy—it was a shortcut to instantly touching the peak.
Yet, Kiriya had casually handed such a technique over to her.
Even though Kiriya acted entirely nonchalant about it, Maki felt a heavy weight of pressure.
She wanted to do something to repay him.
In terms of power, Kiriya was already among the absolute highest echelon; she couldn’t help him there at all.
Materially speaking, it was even more impossible—she was currently just a Jujutsu High student, a mere part-timer.
The only thing she could offer was her own body.
Carrying such deep resolve, she had stepped into the world of adults.
Only to discover... ’Huh, this is actually pretty nice.’
Since then, every few days, Maki would seek Kiriya out for sex to thoroughly relieve her stress.
Likewise, Kiriya was able to free himself from his heavy mental calculations and gain some temporary relaxation.
Things like this were impossible to keep secret.
Soon enough, Panda and the others found out.
After that, Maki was constantly subjected to all sorts of teasing from Panda, who remained completely unrepentant even when it earned him a brutal beating.
Thus, leading up to the scene just now.
"I feel like I can try opening the Gates now," Maki suddenly said, after resting in Kiriya’s arms for a while.
"Then give it a try," Kiriya didn’t object.
If she could withstand it, everyone would naturally be happy; Maki’s strength would step into an entirely new rank.
But if she couldn’t handle it, she would gain a deeper understanding of her own shortcomings, allowing her to make even more adequate preparations in tempering her physique.
Either way, it was a good outcome.
"Then... I’ll try it."
Hearing his words, a flash of joy crossed Maki’s eyes, and carrying that anticipation, she fell into a deep slumber.
...
One Month Earlier: The Forests of Mount Fuji
Late at night, deep within the forests of Mount Fuji.
A tall figure draped in a kasaya was walking unhurriedly through the mountain woods, taking leisurely steps—it was none other than Suguru Geto.
Following his battle with Kiriya, Geto had suffered significant losses and recognized Kiriya’s terrifying potential.
Especially after learning that Kiriya could grow stronger by sacrificing Cursed Spirits, the sense of urgency in his heart grew ever more intense.
He had to defeat and subjugate Kiriya before the boy became too powerful.
To achieve this, he needed powerful tools and helpers.
Not the mindless Cursed Spirits from before that fought solely on instinct and innate traits, but Special Grade Cursed Spirits possessing high intelligence, tremendous strength, and the ability to use Jujutsu.
After parting ways with Gojo, Geto had traveled to every corner of Japan in order to enhance his own strength, searching specifically to collect powerful Cursed Spirits.
Upon subduing certain Cursed Spirits, he was also able to read portions of their memories.
It was precisely within these memories that he noticed clues regarding these Special Grades:
Jogo: Residing within Mount Fuji, the mighty incarnation of fire and magma.
Hanami: Residing within the vast woodlands, the incarnation of forests and nature.
Dagon: The darling of the sea, the entity representing humanity’s ultimate fear of the ocean.
These Special Grade Cursed Spirits were all incredibly powerful and still harbored immense potential for growth.
Therefore, upon learning of their existence, Geto had not rushed to make a move. Instead, he planned to wait until their strength fully developed before subduing them.
After all, while his Cursed Spirit Manipulation could subdue them, it also meant their upper limits and growth would be permanently locked.
If he acted too early, he would only reap a bunch of half-finished products.
Such Special Grade spirits would be like chicken ribs—tasteless to eat, but a pity to throw away.
But now, he had changed his plan.
To defeat Kiriya, he needed to expand his trump cards as much as possible.
Even if it meant wasting the potential of those Special Grades, he had no other choice.
Otherwise, once Kiriya fully matured, Geto would be the one forced into retreat.
Following the locations in the spirits’ memories, Geto arrived at Mount Fuji.
He repeatedly searched through the dense mountain forests, yet he couldn’t find any trace of that particular Cursed Spirit.
"Did he already leave? Or is he intentionally hiding from me?" Geto was completely perplexed.
Just as Jujutsu Sorcerers couldn’t stand the sight of Cursed Spirits, Cursed Spirits couldn’t wait to eradicate Sorcerers upon seeing them.
Not to mention a highly intelligent, short-tempered, fire-attribute Cursed Spirit.
"This is the last area. If I still can’t find that guy, I’ll have to change targets for now." Geto summoned hundreds, even thousands, of Cursed Spirits once more, scattering them to search for the powerful spirit and report back immediately at the first sign of news.
"Good thing I held back a bit when using Maximum: Uzumaki earlier, keeping some stock in reserve. Otherwise, this would really be a hassle."
Through a decade of accumulation, Geto had amassed as many as seven or eight thousand Cursed Spirits.
However, after his battle with Kiriya, he had lost more than half, leaving him with less than three thousand.
Still, they were quite useful for a carpet-style search like the one at hand.
And as the massive swarm of Cursed Spirits spread out, the Special Grade hiding in the shadows could finally sit still no longer.
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