"All the recent strange disappearances and deaths have been compiled into a Residuals report by 'The Window'."
Kento Nanami studied the map, tracing locations back and forth with his finger. Yu Haibara nodded as he watched.
"In that case, we can narrow down the culprit's base…"
Kento Nanami glanced back at him.
"Do you think that's feasible?"
"Akira-sensei told us to think things through carefully… I think it's intentional. Based on what we've seen before, if it wanted to, it could easily leave the scene without leaving any Residuals."
"Right. It's probably bait. Those earlier incidents…"
"Haibara-sensei! Nanami-sensei!"
An energetic voice burst in from the doorway as Yuji Itadori and Kugisaki rushed straight into the room used for tactical discussions.
Yu Haibara shook his head with a smile.
"You two… why are you back again?"
"We heard the mission still isn't finished, so we came to learn how complex missions are handled."
Yuji Itadori turned toward Kento Nanami.
"Besides, with two extra people, you might avoid working overtime…"
Kento Nanami let out a sigh.
"Fine. The mission is divided into two parts anyway. One part can be handled by you two."
He took out a photo and handed it to them.
"The boy from the movie theater, Junpei Yoshino. He's a classmate of the victim at the same high school. Based on surveillance footage and his behavior, the chance that he's a Curse User is low, but we still need to conduct further investigation.
You two will carry out this task with Ijichi."
Kugisaki immediately lifted her chin.
"Just leave it to us!"
Yuji Itadori frowned.
"Curse User?"
Kugisaki replied,
"You know, those jujutsu sorcerers who've stopped acting like humans. Just think of them as vicious criminals in the jujutsu world."
"One more thing."
Yuji Itadori and Kugisaki both looked at Kento Nanami when he suddenly spoke again.
"I'm not part of the teaching staff, so don't call me 'sensei'."
Yuji Itadori glanced at Yu Haibara.
"Then we'll call you Nanami!"
"…Careful, or I'll punch you."
Yuji immediately grabbed Ijichi and Kugisaki and rushed outside.
"We're heading out! Stay safe, teachers!"
Yu Haibara shook his head with a smile.
"That kid…"
"Full of energy, right?"
"And surprisingly thoughtful."
"So, feeling confident?"
"Of course. While you were out on missions these past few years, I've changed quite a bit myself…"
...
After a quick cleanup, the two followed the trail of Residuals on the map to a sewer beneath a bridge. With Yuji Itadori and Kugisaki joining them, they could pursue the Cursed Spirit together instead of splitting up, which would have forced one of them to divert attention to investigating Junpei Yoshino.
A jujutsu sorcerer's work was always busy. Sometimes, for the sake of efficiency, a bit of safety could be sacrificed as long as it stayed within acceptable limits. This time, though, it was fortunate they hadn't separated. The situation here had clearly exceeded the permitted safety threshold.
After eliminating five or six Transfigured Humans, Kento Nanami and Yu Haibara finally saw two Cursed Spirits standing in the passage ahead. They were completely different from any Cursed Spirit they had encountered before.
Kento Nanami loosened his tie and flicked the blood off his blade. His face showed no anger, no fear, no lingering dread, and no self-reproach. He simply stared calmly at the gray, stitched-face humanoid Cursed Spirit in front of him.
"Even if they're called 'abnormal' or 'beyond saving,' killing people still leaves a bad taste in my mouth."
[Its posture and movements look frivolous, but a single glance is enough to feel that pitch-black strength radiating from within.
As for the other one…
That enormous Cursed Energy, the lazy expression, and that completely indifferent attitude toward everything. It's almost exactly like… ]
Kento Nanami adjusted his glasses.
"Haibara."
Yu Haibara nodded.
"Yeah. It really does feel like we're fighting those two seniors again…"
Kento Nanami's expression grew serious. He kept his eyes fixed on the Cursed Spirits ahead and quietly raised three fingers toward Yu Haibara.
(Scenario Three: We might not be able to handle this. Use every opening to call for backup or report the situation. Even if we can't get out alive, we must make sure the higher-ups take this seriously.)
Yu Haibara's expression turned solemn as he nodded in acknowledgment. He always approached things with optimism, but that didn't mean he was blindly optimistic.
"Oh my, oh my. This is perfect!"
Mahito stepped fully out of the shadows.
"If Gojo Satoru showed up, that would be a real problem. But if the opponent is too weak, there's no point in running experiments."
Kento Nanami took out his watch and glanced at the time.
"I don't want to work overtime. Let's finish this quickly."
Yu Haibara swallowed the rice ball in his mouth, tightened his grip on his knuckle dusters, and took his stance. He had no habit of chatting with Cursed Spirits.
First, he glanced at Saishū, who had been standing to the side with his eyes closed the entire time. Judging from the flow of Cursed Energy, the other party hadn't made any move.
The next instant, Yu Haibara clenched his fist and threw a punch straight at Mahito's head.
Mahito smiled and easily dodged the attack. He deliberately leaned his chest forward, intending to take the punch while reaching from the side to touch Haibara's fist.
But Yu Haibara immediately abandoned the attack, dodging Mahito and leaping backward several times until he returned to his original position.
[My instantaneous output is higher. Why would this Cursed Spirit try to trade injuries like that?]
Mahito withdrew the hand he had extended with a somewhat regretful expression. Then realization quickly dawned on his face.
As a Cursed Spirit, he was still far too young. He had almost no experience fighting jujutsu sorcerers, so his intention just now had been far too obvious.
"Looks like I've learned something new again. How nice…"
But Kento Nanami and Yu Haibara worked together with perfect coordination. They gave Mahito no time to think.
Nanami immediately raised his Cursed Tool and swung at Mahito's head during the brief moment of distraction. Mahito hurriedly reinforced his arm with Cursed Energy to block, but his wrist was still severed.
Meanwhile, Yu Haibara watched the state of Saishū's Cursed Energy while preparing to exploit Mahito's opening.
"I clearly reinforced it with Cursed Energy. Is it that kind of technique?"
"That kind?"
Kento Nanami frowned. A Cursed Spirit capable of speaking and communicating with humans like this was something the current jujutsu world had never encountered before.
"Do you think the soul comes first, or the body…"
Before Mahito could finish his sentence, he suddenly sensed a massive surge of Cursed Energy nearby.
Yu Haibara's entire body was now wrapped in orange-black Cursed Energy. Violent air currents whipped his hair back and forth. Nanami's actions had bought him the time he needed to prepare.
[Binding Vow: Triggered by consuming excessive food before battle. In exchange for entering a 24-hour period of exhaustion after the burst, the user gains a 3 to 15 minute window of enhanced Cursed Energy output.]
Nanami's overtime Binding Vow would activate in another ten minutes.
So this time, Yu Haibara chose eight minutes.
...
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