My Dad Is The Strongest?: Ch.20

KIllua frowned as they walked up to the front entrance, noting both Nanami and his dad standing there as well as the two principals and a frowning Utahime-sensei.

“Todo, Killua, stay. The rest of you are to leave and this is not up for debate,” Utahime spoke and Mai groaned at that, Noritoshi and Momo simply nodding with Miwa lead her friend away with a nervous smile.

“Where is it?”, Satoru asked, skipping the pleasantries as Killua simply pointed to Todo who spoke.

“In the forest behind the dorms. I was looking for a quiet place to meditate and I saw it on one of the trees there.”

“Todo does love to meditate when he can. Says it helps him calm,” Gakuganji spoke as Satoru looked at him for confirmation, the white-haired man nodding before he turned back to Killua.

“Did it fit the marking's design?”

“It was the same one, yes,” Killua answered and his dad nodded as he undid his bandages to reveal the Six Eyes shimmering with cursed energy as the man looked to Todo.

“Lead us to it,” Todo nodded as he turned and began walking, Satoru following after him with the others close behind.

“How long have you and your father been investigating these 'markings'?”, Gakuganji asked and Killua narrowed his eyes towards his father, who simply nodded as the man didn't look back.

“For almost a year now.”

“And were you ever going to inform us?”

“We were not, but since this marking was found on the campus of Tokyo's Jujutsu School and not in some random back alley, it changes things,” Satoru spoke, his usual cheerfulness gone as Gakuganji frowned.

“You are walking a dangerous line for keeping secrets from the higher-ups, Satoru.”

“Does it look like I care?”, Satoru asked as he looked back, a stoic yet bored look in his eyes as Nanami and Utahime decided to stay silent and survey the area.

“Satoru, calm down,” Yaga spoke up and Killua watched as his father glanced at the man before nodding.

“Fine, I guess finding this person or people that are doing the markings is more important,” Killua didn't say anything as he could feel the shift in the air, noticing Nanami tensing as well as it was the same oppressive energy they felt at the shrine.

“There it is,” Todo spoke up as they entered a clearing, nodding at the tree that was suspiciously in plain sight and just ever so slightly hidden by the others.

In all honesty, Killua would not have seen it if he had not felt it, which he knew to be the same for others as everyone looked tense while his dad narrowed his eyes and stepped forward.

“How exactly were you able to even meditate under this?”

“I simply saw it as an opportunity to meditate in the malice of the world and purify the tree after I drank my calming tea,” Todo answered with a smile and Killua snickered as Gakuganji sighed while Utahime palmed her face.

Yep, that was the answer he was expecting.

“It's fresh,” They all turned to Satoru as he spoke up, Nanami walking closer and examining the marking with a hum as Satoru ran his fingers on top of it.

“How fresh are we talking here?”, Killua asked and Nanami knelt besides the marking while flowing his cursed energy into it, narrowing his eyes as he looked to Satoru who nodded.

“About two days, give or take a few hours. There's still some cursed energy residue clinging to the bark.”

“It was made with surgical precision as well and made on a tree that one would have missed if they did not possess exceptional cursed energy sensory skills. It's a good thing that Aoi, one of the most skilled students, was the one who found it,” Nanami spoke and Todo simply nodded at his praise with a proud grin.

“I am honored that you recognize my excellence, Nanami-sensei,” Todo spoke and Killua rolled his eyes with a small smirk as Principal Yaga stepped forward.

“Satoru, what do these markings actually do?”

“The first time we saw this marking was when both Killua's mother and Megumi's sister fell into comas. When I decided to find out how two people fell into a coma at the exact same time in different locations, I found that they both had the same marking and that they were not the only ones as a total of 1000 people including the aforementioned two all had the same marking on their forehead.”

“And could you trace the technique?'

“Regrettably, no. Whoever made the marking took into account that it would create the faintest residue that I could track and so, I found nothing.”

“Which means that this would be the first marking you found on something non-living, correct?”, Gakuganji asked and Satoru nodded in agreement, Killua only glancing at Nanami who stood up with a stoic look on his face.

'Good, we need to hide that marking on the finger for as long as we can and see if someone tries to find out about the mission.'

“I see. Then, we must firstly seal this off and make sure that the person who placed it here does not activate some kind of technique through it. I'll inform Lord Tengen to do so,” Yaga spoke and Gakuganji nodded while Satoru tied up the bandages around his eyes again while Utahime frowned.

“What of this information? Do we share it with the others?”

“No. I believe that the person who placed it here wants to hear a report that we found it so I will ask that you guys keep the Kyoto kids from saying anything.”

“Todo and I have that covered.”

“My brother speaks the truth,” Todo nodded in agreement, Killua rolling his eyes with a sigh as the adults looked amused at their interaction.

“Good. You boys are dismissed,” Gakuganji spoke and Killua gave a wave as he turned and walked away, Todo following after him with a carefree hum.

“Todo?”

“Yes, my brother?”

“Do you think with this marking appearing inside of our base of operation, that there might be a traitor in our midst?”

“If there weren't, it would be a miracle,” Todo answered and Killua just sighed as the two continued walking before he shook his head.

It can't be one of the Kyoto students since they were all together and with how close the Tokyo students were, it couldn't be one of them either. Granted, the person who is the traitor could be faking it, but with his training as an assassin and his father's eyes, he couldn't believe that to be possible.

That led him to one of the teachers and to be honest, he was just hoping it was Mei Mei because that would give him a reason to get rid of her.

Seriously, it was like he was dealing with a female, more money-hungry version of his brother to deal with and that was honestly freaking him out because he did not expect anyone to have been able to replicate that man's creepiness.

'Yeah, if it's Mei-Mei, I can sleep peacefully.'

“I do believe, though, that this soul may be walking a path shrouded in delusion,” Todo spoke, drawing Killua's attention as the tall teen smiled down. “The foolish man who recognizes his folly is wise to that extent, but the man who thinks himself wise is a fool instead. If we can illuminate their ignorance with understanding, perhaps they may yet return to the way of truth and discipline.”

“…Seriously, where do you even get this stuff? It's like you're a goofball one moment and a sophisticated Buddhist the next,” Killua spoke with a frown before shaking his head as Todo chuckled while ruffling his hair.

“It is pure balance, my brother. To embrace the strength of the body is important, but to ignore the spirit is to walk half a path. What is power without purpose and passion without principle. One must train both muscle and mind to reach the pinnacle they are destined to.”

“Uh-huh, and how does asking a person their type of woman fit into this?” Killua asked as he swatted his hand away and Todo grinned as he placed a hand to his heart.

“That in itself is a sacred ritual. One's type reveals the depth of their soul.”

“One of these days, we're going to the hospital and getting that brain of yours checked out.”

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“So, you guys aren't allowed to talk about what you saw and we're not allowed to speak about what we saw, huh?”, Mai asked, Killua nodding as Noritoshi hummed.

“That's what we were told.”

“I see. Perhaps they may suspect there to be foul play, then?”

“Y-You mean someone might be trying to help the enemy?”, Miwa asked with a frown, which deepened as Noritoshi nodded in agreement.

“It is the logical explanation. A cursed marking is found on Tokyo Jujutsu High's premises and the only people allowed here are us students and the faculty. Since no regular curse user or cursed spirit is able to enter through the barriers around the school, it would only be the logical thing to say that the person who made the marking is a student or a faculty member.”

“The only issue then is why they are doing this. Are they being forced to do so or are they doing so willingly?”, Momo spoke up and Noritoshi nodded as he looked to Killua, who shrugged.

“Like I said, can't say anything, but I don't think it's just about who did it.”

“Is it also because no one knows what the marking means? That is what has you and the teachers on edge,” Mechamaru spoke up and Killua smirked as Mai crossed her arms.

“I don't like this. This secrecy just means things are most likely going to get far worse. What if it's some kind of trap barrier?”

“That is kind of a possibility, but the higher-ups are probably waiting to see who slips, especially if they think the traitor is still unaware they've been found out,” Miwa said with a shrug and they all nodded before Killua shook his head with a sigh.

“Well, all I know is that none of you is the traitor. I'm very good at reading others and I trust you all,”

“You're too gullible,” Mai said with a deadpan stare and Killua just shrugged, but unaware to the others, his gaze flickered to Mechamaru as he had felt the cursed puppet's energy fluctuate the moment he said that.

'Could it be…? No, everyone would see if he was the traitor since it's hard to miss the giant robot,' Killua thought as he looked at the robot before shaking his head with a chuckle.

“Anyway, there's not much we can do about this except train and not let our guard down.”

“Agreed. Whether it's a student or faculty, whoever placed that marking has a purpose and until we understand it, assuming anything would be dangerous,” Mechamaru spoke and Killua nodded even as he made a mental note to ask his dad where Mechamaru's real body is.

“What if they strike again before we figure it out, though?”, Momo asked and Killua smirked as he shrugged.

“If they're expecting us to sit still, they're gonna be in for a nasty surprise. Now, let's go and get some rest, children. Tomorrow, we're back on duty.”

“We should be saying that to you. You're the youngest,” Mai said with a raised eyebrow and Killua shrugged as he stood up.

“Yeah, but I'm also the strongest,” Killua spoke with a grin as he walked out, the others shaking their heads as they began making their ways back to their rooms.

However, as Mai and Killua walked to the far side of the dorms where their rooms were, Killua took one final glance at Mechamaru's retreating form, unable to shake that earlier flicker he felt when he said that he trusted them.

'There is the possibility, but I can't act yet. First, I need to contact that, but in the meantime, I've got my eye on you, Mechamaru.'

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Killua was a silent shadow as he landed on the rooftop of his father's room, dropping down and grabbing onto the ledge before landing with a flip at the man's door.

“It's open,” He rolled his eyes at his dad's words and opened the door, closing it softly behind him only to raise an eyebrow at seeing the man lounging on a beanbag while dressed in a white fox-like onesie.

“…”

“You can't say anything. I know about your cat onesie.”

“You leave Catsy out of this,” Killua spoke with narrowed eyes and scoffed as his dad shrugged while sitting down besides the man.

“Then you leave Foxy out of this. Now, what was so important that you couldn't wait until tomorrow?”

“It's about one of the students. I think he might be the mole.”

“Who?”

“Mechamaru,” Killua spoke and his dad raised an eyebrow behind his bandages before humming.

“He does seem to have the most capabilities to do so, especially since we don't know whether his puppets need to have a fixed size to work.”

“True. To be truthful, I don't want to believe it's him since he's quite a close friend.”

“One thing I can teach you is that close friends can betray you just as quickly as they became your friend,” His dad said and Killua didn't say anything about the melancholic tone in the man's voice as he nodded.

“I get that. So, do you think we should investigate him?”

“For now, no. Utahime and I are busy with our own investigations, but while we're busy with our own investigations, I'll try and look into this.”

“So, basically leave it to you like always, huh?”, Killua said, shaking his head as his dad just grinned and nodded.

“Hey, it's not always. Besides, you got enough on your plate with school, your missions and your mom,” He said and Killua leaned back in his beanbag with his eyes narrowing in thought.

“If he is the traitor, though, he's pretty good at hiding the fluctuations in his cursed energy that comes with doubt and hesitation.”

“That's good. Always trust your instincts as they're better than most radars. However, don't confront him unless you have proof. That is, of course, if you still wish to preserve your friendship in an attempt to save him. If not, I'm all for confronting him.”

“What if these markings are part of a bigger plan? Maybe there's someone manipulating things from behind the scenes?”, He asked and his dad frowned slightly at that before nodding.

“That might also be the case, but if there is someone like that, just leave them to me,” His dad said with a grin as he lifted his blindfold and Killua shook his head at the amused gaze the man gave him.

“Of course. Fine, I'll keep an eye on Mechamaru and keep my suspicions to myself.”

“Good idea. When you have enough concrete evidence, go to Utahime and she'll contact me. Then, we'll take it from there.”

“Sure thing. Also, I've couldn't help but notice the-!”

“Nope, don't start with that,” His dad spoke with a finger to stop him and Killua chuckled as he shrugged.

“Hey, just saying. Is there something there or just co-workers?”

“Just co-workers.”

“Uh-huh. Well, you enjoy that, then,” Killua said as he walked out of the room, closing the door behind him before taking a deep breath as he began making his way back to his room.

A/N: And here we are with the Kyoto-Tokyo Goodwill arc now done and setting up the next arc, which is of course the Night of A Hundred Demons.

Next chapter: Saying goodbye to the Copy-cat and meeting a guy with…a Hand?

As always, read, enjoy, review and until the next one…

Ba-Bye~!!