Gojo suddenly looked up toward the distant night sky.
"What is it?"
Without the Six Eyes, Betty's perception couldn't match his.
"I think someone's found us."
He stared into the distance.
A drone, its navigation lights blinking faintly, was flying straight toward them.
"So what if they did?" Betty asked. "Does it matter?"
"Not really."
Gojo smiled.
"I'm just curious why they're coming to meet us."
As they spoke, they drew closer to the drone.
The moment they came within range, a voice echoed from its speaker.
"This is the Tokyo Self-Defense Forces. You are approaching Tokyo airspace. State your identities and follow this drone to the designated landing area for inspection."
"If you refuse, you will be treated as intruders..."
Gojo chuckled.
"It's been this many years, and they're still using the same old speech."
He glanced at Betty.
"Sleepy?"
"If not, let's go see what they want."
"I don't mind."
She shrugged.
"I can always catch up on sleep tomorrow."
"Then let's go."
Gojo nodded toward the drone.
"Lead the way."
The drone immediately turned around and headed back toward Tokyo, with the pair following behind it.
Unlike their carefree flight out of the city earlier, the drone guided them toward a remote section of the outskirts.
After several minutes, scattered lights gradually appeared below them.
Not far away, one of the towering Monoliths loomed against the night sky.
After passing through its protective barrier, the drone quickly descended.
Their destination was the same desolate ruins they had noticed earlier.
The ground below was brightly illuminated.
Rows of armored vehicles waited in formation.
Standing beside them were fully armed soldiers carrying loaded rifles.
"Quite the welcoming committee."
Gojo looked at the nervous, astonished troops and grinned, completely relaxed.
"I hope they don't do anything stupid."
Betty sighed before landing beside him.
The instant their feet touched the ground, the sound of dozens of rifles being cocked echoed through the ruins.
"Don't move!"
"Do not make any movements that could be interpreted as hostile!"
"Cooperate with our investigation!"
A stern voice rang out from behind the blinding vehicle-mounted floodlights.
Gojo adjusted his sunglasses and stepped in front of Betty.
"Isn't this a bit bright?"
"A little."
Standing behind him, Betty rubbed her eyes.
They had spent hours flying through darkness, so the sudden flood of intense light was uncomfortable.
Gojo, of course, was the exception.
"Mind dimming those lights a bit?"
He addressed the soldiers calmly.
"This isn't exactly how you treat guests."
"For the last time, cooperate with our investigation. Do not make any..."
Gojo scratched the back of his head.
"I really don't have much patience for people who refuse to listen."
He didn't bother arguing further.
Facing the glaring lights, he casually snapped his fingers.
"Snap."
Shamak activated.
It was only the most basic version of the spell.
Against ordinary people, however, it was astonishingly effective.
Dense black smoke erupted from Gojo's body, instantly swallowing the entire convoy.
Within moments, every soldier trapped inside lost nearly all of their senses.
They could perceive only themselves...
...and the ground beneath their feet.
Nothing else.
They couldn't hear the world around them.
They couldn't feel the weapons in their own hands.
All that remained was the sound of their own heartbeat.
For ordinary people, the complete loss of their senses was almost impossible to endure.
Back when Natsuki Subaru had first experienced Yin Attribute magic, a mere instant inside Shamak had nearly made him pass out from suffocation.
These soldiers possessed stronger wills and better physical conditioning than Subaru had back then.
Even so, confronted with such incomprehensible power, panic spread through the entire formation.
Especially after they realized they couldn't even feel the rifles they depended on for survival.
The fear only intensified.
Nobody knew who fired first.
Or perhaps, deprived of all perception, someone instinctively pulled the trigger.
A muzzle flash briefly pierced the darkness.
Then gunfire erupted from every direction.
None of the soldiers could even tell what they were shooting at.
Fortunately, the black smoke lasted only a little over ten seconds.
When it dispersed...
Everyone stared in horror.
Before the smoke appeared, every rifle had been aimed directly at Gojo and Betty.
Every bullet should have struck them.
Instead...
Hundreds of bullets hung motionless in the air before Gojo, frozen as though an invisible force had stopped them mid-flight.
If the surrounding environment hadn't still been moving, it would've looked as though time itself had come to a halt.
"So..."
Gojo smiled.
"Can we turn off the lights and have a proper conversation now?"
"Oh, right."
He casually pointed toward a soldier lying nearby, twitching violently after being struck by friendly fire during the confusion.
"If someone doesn't treat that injured guy soon, he's probably going to die."
At the very back of the convoy, Takuto Yasuwaki watched everything unfold through the viewing slit of an armored vehicle.
A bead of sweat slowly rolled down his forehead.
Even inside the vehicle, Shamak had affected him.
Remembering those ten terrifying seconds still sent chills down his spine.
Yet alongside the fear...
His desire only grew stronger.
Amazing.
It was incredible.
If I could possess that kind of power...
He pressed the intercom.
"Turn off the floodlights."
"Leave only enough lighting for visibility."
One by one, the powerful beams shut off.
The harsh glare faded, leaving only soft illumination across the ruins.
"There we go."
Gojo nodded approvingly.
"Now that's a proper way to welcome guests."
"So..."
"Who's coming to talk?"
A figure emerged from behind the soldiers.
The newcomer wore an immaculate white uniform, every detail perfectly arranged.
Not a single strand of hair was out of place.
Gold-rimmed glasses gave him the appearance of a calm, refined intellectual.
"I am Takuto Yasuwaki."
"Guard Captain to Lady Seitenshi."
"Gojo."
He pointed to himself before gesturing beside him.
"And Betty."
Gojo smiled.
"So, Captain, what exactly is all this about?"
Takuto carefully observed the casually dressed young man before answering.
"Our satellites detected your movements and triggered an alert."
"For Tokyo's safety, we naturally had to investigate."
"If you don't mind..."
He deliberately softened his tone after witnessing Gojo's abilities.
"Would you accompany us so we can talk somewhere more appropriate?"
"No problem."
Gojo nodded immediately.
"Let's go."
Even Takuto hadn't expected him to agree so readily.
For them, though, that was certainly good news.
"This way."
The two climbed into one of the vehicles, and the convoy headed toward a military base.
Although the soldiers remained silent throughout the journey, none of them could forget what they had witnessed.
Whenever they looked at Gojo and Betty, awe filled their eyes.
The pair inspired even greater fear than the Gastrea themselves.
After driving for some time, the convoy finally entered the military compound.
The moment they stepped out, they found soldiers waiting everywhere.
Gojo gave the area a quick glance.
Besides ordinary troops, there were numerous mechanized soldiers similar to Rentaro.
He also spotted several Cursed Children like Enju Aihara.
It was obvious the military remained extremely wary of them.
Not only had they deployed heavy weaponry, but they'd gathered a considerable number of elite fighters as well.
Takuto led the pair into a reception room before taking the seat at the head of the table.
"What would you like to drink?"
"Tea, coffee, soft drinks. Alcohol is available too."
"No thanks."
Gojo waved a hand.
"Juice is fine."
"We're still planning to go home and sleep afterward."
Takuto nodded to one of the soldiers, who quietly left to prepare the drinks.
Gojo leaned comfortably against the sofa.
"So."
"What did you want to talk about?"
Takuto looked directly at the two of them.
"First, I'd like you to truthfully explain where you came from."
"And what your purpose is in coming to Tokyo."
"I hope you'll answer honestly."
"There isn't a single record of either of you in any of our databases."
"Our investigation also indicates you first appeared in Tokyo this afternoon."
Immediately after learning about them, Takuto had ordered a full investigation.
Although no official records existed, surveillance cameras throughout the city had documented their movements.
From the moment they appeared...
Where they went.
Which streets they walked.
Whom they met.
Everything had been reconstructed.
Even Rentaro and the others they'd interacted with had already had their files delivered to him.
"Simple questions."
Gojo smiled lazily.
"But this doesn't seem very fair."
"We're not criminals."
"How about this?"
"You ask one question."
"We ask one question."
"Each side answers honestly."
"I think that's a pretty reasonable arrangement."
Takuto considered it for a moment.
"As long as your questions don't involve classified information..."
"I can agree."
Gojo rested his chin on one hand.
"Let's see..."
"In that case, I'd like to see your files on the Zodiac."
"Certainly."
Takuto gave him a long look before taking a tablet from one of his subordinates.
After making a few selections, he handed it over.
Gojo accepted it, and Betty leaned closer to read with him.
The Zodiac.
The collective name given to the Stage Five Gastrea.
During the Great Gastrea War, the United States and Japan had assigned each one the codename of one of the Twelve Zodiac Signs.
They had displayed overwhelming power during the conflict and had nearly driven humanity to extinction.
Cancer had always remained vacant.
Taurus and Virgo had already been destroyed.
That left nine surviving members.
Scorpio.
Libra.
Sagittarius.
And the others.
The tablet contained detailed files on each of them.
Photographs.
Height.
Weight.
Known abilities.
Looking at the colossal monsters on the screen, each resembling something straight out of a tokusatsu film, with grotesque appearances unlike anything found in nature...
Gojo studied every page with complete concentration.
After finishing the last file, he looked back at Takuto.
"Your turn."
Takuto didn't hesitate.
"Where did you come from?"
Gojo scratched his cheek.
"That's... a complicated question."
"Let's just say our origins are about as mysterious as the Gastrea Virus."
Takuto frowned.
The answer clearly wasn't satisfactory.
Before Gojo could ask another question, Takuto spoke first.
"What is your purpose in coming to Tokyo?"
"No special purpose."
Gojo spread his hands.
"We're not here with bad intentions."
"We just want to live peaceful lives without other people bothering us."
He smiled.
"My turn."
"Could I see the files on the number one and number two ranked Civil Security teams?"
According to the Zodiac records, the Stage Five Taurus and Virgo had both been defeated by those two teams.
One came from the United States.
The other from Germany.
Gojo had already met Civil Security officers like Rentaro and Enju.
From his perspective, they weren't particularly remarkable.
Compared to ordinary people, they were certainly strong.
Compared to him...
There wasn't much difference.
Yet teams like that had managed to kill Stage Five Gastrea that even he considered troublesome.
That naturally piqued his curiosity.
"Their information is classified."
Takuto shook his head.
"Their home countries have sealed nearly all related records."
"Even we possess only the most basic information."
He took the tablet back, tapped the screen a few times, and slid it across the table once more.
Only two photographs appeared.
Each showed one of the famous teams.
Below them were little more than their names, ages, and a handful of basic personal details.
Nothing else.