"Is this the mission site?"
Shingen stood at the base of a cracked stone stairway, peering up at the eerie silhouette of an abandoned hospital. A rusted sign dangled crookedly over the entrance, creaking in the breeze.
Beside him, Maki adjusted her glasses. "Confirmed. A Second-Grade Cursed Spirit was detected by a Window inside. Took a while for someone to report it, so there's a bunch of low-level curses roaming too."
(Window: A regular person that can see curses, this peoples spreads through Japan and will immediately report to Jujutsu Headquarters if any dangerous curses spotted)
She swung the cloth-wrapped naginata off her back, one hand casually resting on the tied fabric.
"A Second Grade on our first mission, though?" Maki snorted. "That blindfolded moron really believes in us, huh."
Jujutsu Sorcerers were ranked from Fourth Grade to First Grade, with Special Grade existing beyond even that. Normally, same-grade sorcerers outclassed same-grade spirits. But still—starting with Second Grade wasn't exactly beginner-friendly.
"Curtain time," Shingen muttered.
He placed his hands together, forming the familiar hand sign. "Emerge from the darkness, blacker than darkness.Purify that which is impure."
A ripple of dark grey light fell like a curtain from the sky, draping over the hospital. The building shimmered for a moment, then vanished from the sight of normal people. Within its boundaries, curses could rage freely — but no civilians would stumble in or see the chaos within.
Maki cracked her neck, then gripped the wrapped naginata. "Let's go."
The air inside was heavy with malice.
Within minutes of stepping inside, a swarm of blade-limbed curses burst from behind overturned gurneys and broken doors. They hissed grotesque phrases — "pain" and "don't want to die" — before charging.
Maki pulled the cloth free from her weapon with a single motion, revealing the gleam of her naginata. "Tch. The weak ones always swarm."
With one stomp, she launched forward like an arrow, her entire body coiling and twisting with trained momentum. Her naginata whipped behind her like a silver arc, slashing with circular grace.
She passed through the curses like a whirlwind.
The next second, silence.
The curses stood still—until purple-black blood sprayed from their necks, torsos, and limbs. They collapsed in spasms, disintegrating into smoky residue.
Clap… clap… clap...
Maki turned, her brow twitching.
There was Shingen, standing politely at the stairwell, Extermination tucked under one arm, clapping seriously. "That was incredible, Maki! Precision, timing, spacing, YOU NAILED ALL THE VITALS."
"Shut up," she snapped, cheeks faintly red.
Why's he praising me like that… earnestly?
Still, she turned away quickly, hiding her smirk behind a mask of irritation.
"I'll sweep from the rooftop," Shingen said casually, heading toward the fire escape. "If anything happens, it's happen, hehe~"
No response came, just the sound of Maki storming deeper into the hospital with her naginata tapping against her shoulder.
Reaching the roof in mere moments, Shingen's view widened. Beyond the fog-covered trees, the old annex building loomed beside the main structure. He turned his gaze toward the rooftops, scouting for movement. Nothing obvious. Still, the residual Cursed Energy in the air was unmistakable.
He entered through the stairwell door.
A few stray curses darted through the halls — a floating sheet-like figure, a hunched beast with too many limbs. Shingen pulled back the bowstring on Extermination, manifesting a shimmering blue arrow of Cursed Energy.
Fwoosh~
A single arrow vaporized the teru-teru bozu-like spirit in an instant. The faint black smoke curled upward, harmless.
But then—he felt it.
A pulse.
His head snapped toward the annex building. From its second floor, waves of thick, erratic Cursed Energy spilled outward. Even from here, he could hear the clatter of battle.
Maki
Without hesitation, Shingen darted through the corridor. His form blurred from sheer speed as his Technique accelerated him beyond natural limits. At the end of the hall, he didn't bother opening the window.
With a loud crash,he smashed through the glass and launched across the ten-meter gap between buildings. Wind tore past his ears as Cursed Energy wrapped tightly around his limbs.
Still in mid-air, he nocked another arrow, aiming diagonally down toward the second floor.
The bowstring hummed. His breath stilled.
Fwoosh~
The arrow shot downward at a shallow angle, piercing layers of concrete. It hit something — he felt the contact — then the ceiling beneath him crumbled, and he dropped through.
•••••
Inside the annex, Maki gritted her teeth.
This thing was different.
What looked like a massive rag-draped curse had emerged after she'd cleared a hallway of its underlings. Its body was a dense tangle of dirty cloth strips, concealing something slithering beneath — eyes, muscle, something fleshy and alive.
It filled the corridor. Rags cracked tiles with each lash, pummeling walls and furniture.
Maki had already taken a few hits. Her uniform was torn at the shoulder. She twirled her naginata, maintaining distance. "Ambush, timing, recovery speed — this isn't some brain-dead fish. You've got a brain, don't you?"
She ducked, dashed forward, then vaulted off the wall, slashing through its side. The blade carved deep.
But the ragged cloth immediately sealed shut.
"No vital point…" she muttered, spinning her weapon. "It regenerates too fast. The core must be hidden under all that fabric—"
BOOM.
A shockwave ripped through the floor above her, followed by a blue arrow slamming down from the ceiling. It pierced the curse cleanly — but again, the damage started to close.
Then—
Shingen dropped from above like lightning.
The next moment was stillness.
Then,an impact with resounding boom.
A pulse of black-and-blue Cursed Energy expanded from his descending fist. It bent the air around it, as if time hiccupped. His punch connected with the curse's core.
CRACK.
Reality shattered around the impact.
The twisted rags disintegrated, and the fleshy core underneath was revealed—an amorphous bundle of writhing tentacles and eyeballs.
Maki's eyes widened.
He hit it. A direct hit.
Shingen's fist glowed, wreathed in streaks of twisting black energy that flared brighter with each second. The surge rippled unnaturally — a double-layered burst of Cursed Energy following the first.
She had heard of it.
Black Flash.
When, a distortion in space that occurs when cursed energy is applied within 0.000001 seconds of a physical hit. The destructive power of their strike is equal to a normal hit to the power of 2.5.
Shingen's voice came quietly, as he exhaled, "That was it..."
Then he slammed his other fist forward.
CRACK—BOOM!
The twisted core shattered completely.
Black mist, eye fragments, and shredded tentacles were blasted outward. The curse gave a final gurgling shriek, then collapsed entirely into smoke.
Silence returned to the floor.
Maki sheathed her naginata, whistling low. "Show off."
Shingen straightened, brushing dust off his sleeves. "I barely used any strength. I was just... in the zone."
Then he turned to Maki with a grin. "Your reaction time was amazing, by the way."
"Shut up."
But she was smiling.
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