HRU: Chapter 299/300

Chapter 299: Black Market Gambling

Another one of Satoru's fans confidently said, "Yeah, Blood Manipulation is strong early on, but in terms of long-term growth, the Gojo clan's Limitless and the Zenin clan's Ten Shadows are the true pinnacle of jujutsu."

"What's more, Satoru is the strongest genius in a thousand years."

"Once he masters the Reverse Cursed Technique and reduces the burden of the Six Eyes on his brain, I doubt even Satoshi could beat him."

"Tch, didn't you just say once he masters the Reverse Cursed Technique? That's a big 'if.' You know how rare it is for a Six Eyes user to also master that technique? They only appear once every four hundred years. You really think Satoru can do it?"

The man fell silent.

"Alright, enough. Either way, the winner is definitely going to come from one of the five brothers," someone said, glancing at the two red-faced debaters, clearly bored of the argument.

"By the way, is no one placing their hopes on Kyoto Jujutsu High? With Iori Utahime's cursed technique enhancing him, Kamo Kenshin isn't necessarily weaker than the Gojo brothers," said a Kyoto student indignantly.

Everyone was momentarily stunned. It was true—they had all been ignoring the Kyoto team.

If you actually took a closer look, their lineup wasn't weak at all.

Kamo Kenshin, Iori Utahime, Mei Mei—this was one of the stronger rosters in the history of the Goodwill Event.

"Yeah, now that you mention it, Kyoto's lineup is solid. They might really stand a chance."

"It's still hard to say."

"What do you mean?"

"It's not about whether they're weak. It's about who they're up against—Satoru and Satoshi."

Everyone suddenly fell silent, casting sympathetic looks at Kenshin on the broadcast screen.

They had to admit.

Being peers with geniuses like Satoru and Satoshi... was miserable.

Anyone with a discerning eye could see it clearly.

The talent of the five brothers was unmatched among the younger generation.

If Kenshin had awakened Blood Manipulation, he might have stood a chance. But unfortunately, he hadn't. Despite his current strength, he was... average.

"It's not really his fault. It's just bad luck. Any sorcerer in the past thousand years, if born in the same era as those five, would've ended up overshadowed for life," someone commented with a sigh.

...

"The match is finally about to begin," Yuto said, standing at the edge of the platform.

"Kyoto Jujutsu High really drew the short straw this year. They're up against Suguru, Shoko, Satoru... and Satoshi, who's made even greater progress over the past nine years," Toji remarked, glancing at the blonde woman beside him. "Aren't you going to cheer for your students?"

As Kyoto's lead teacher, she should've taken this event seriously.

But clearly, she didn't.

"This match is meaningless," Yuki said, shaking her head.

Seeing the confused looks on Toji and Yuto's faces, she explained.

"Isn't it obvious? Satoshi's going to win. Cheering for Utahime and the others will only put more pressure on them."

"That's kind of dull," Toji muttered, scratching his chin. "Now I don't even feel like cheering for Satoshi anymore."

Yuto smiled helplessly. "Even if they were facing the strongest duo of this generation, Satoshi would still win."

"Yeah, that's probably true," Toji said with a smirk.

"Still, it's better not to get too confident." Yuki turned her tablet toward them.

"Gojo Satoshi vs. Jujutsu High School teams..."

It was a betting board.

In the underground jujutsu scene, black-market arenas had long existed for gambling on loophole-ridden matches.

And now, in the black market...

The stakes for this battle had exceeded 1 billion yen.

Of that, Tokyo Jujutsu High's Team 1 had a staggering 93% support rate.

"Not many people are betting on Satoshi," Toji said, sounding slightly surprised.

Yuto, however, remained calm. He had seen this coming.

Satoshi was powerful.

But just based on the black-market odds, he was facing off against the Gojo-Geto duo—legends who had been famous for the past nine years.

Other people simply weren't as optimistic about Satoshi as they were.

One person challenging both jujutsu academies...

That was something many geniuses dreamed of, but no one had ever done it.

Jujutsu High never lacked geniuses.

The only thing more terrifying than one monster... was a team of monsters.

"My student even placed a bet on this," Yuki added. "She said this is her closest shot at financial freedom. She couldn't miss it."

"Now that makes it interesting," Toji said with a grin, eyes narrowing.

...

The weather that morning was unexpectedly pleasant.

The sun had risen above the clouds, casting warm golden rays through the sky.

Those waiting on the teleportation platform basked in the glow.

The match was about to begin.

On Tokyo's side, the audience burst into excited cheers.

Satoru and the others waved casually in response.

"After Satoshi woke up, I lost to him once in a real duel," Satoru said seriously, glancing at his two teammates.

Suguru blinked, a bit surprised.

After a brief silence, he offered a bit of comfort. "It's fine. Look, we've got so much support. We'll win this time."

Satoru yawned and tuned into the live feed through the Cursed Corpse broadcast. "Yeah, the weather's a good omen. Shoko, Suguru, get ready. We need to give Satoshi a proper beatdown."

"Sure. I've been itching to smack him around for a while now," Suguru said with a smile.

Just once.

He needed to beat Satoshi... at least once.

Shoko was also getting ready. She pulled out her Zanpakutō and stood by to release it the moment the barrier activated.

She didn't want to be caught off guard the moment they entered.

(To be continued.)

Chapter 300: Transmission, the Game Begins

The barrier for the competition was a special space. In addition to the participants, it contained numerous Cursed Spirits.

These Cursed Spirits were mostly Grade 1 or Grade 2, with none reaching Special Grade.

Jujutsu High didn't have the strength to capture and raise Special Grade Cursed Spirits.

But if handled poorly, they could significantly affect the outcome of the match.

Shoko, however, was still somewhat concerned about the Kyoto Jujutsu High team.

"Guys, there won't be any problems on Kyoto High's end, right?" Shoko looked toward Satoru and Suguru.

"I already talked to them," Satoru said indifferently. "But I'm also prepared in case they choose not to cooperate."

"You also get the feeling that something's off with the Kamo family?" Suguru asked.

"Yeah. That guy seems overly obsessed with winning," Satoru replied. "Besides, I saw hostility through the Six Eyes."

Meanwhile, Kyoto Jujutsu High was also quietly waiting for the barrier to open, a faint nervousness evident on their faces.

"These people have no sense of risk-taking at all," Mei Mei said helplessly. "The combined betting odds for our high school and Satoshi don't even come close to Tokyo High's."

"Mei Mei, are you sure it's okay to invest your entire fortune into this?" Iori Utahime looked at her, a bit embarrassed.

"I'm nervous too, but I did the math. It'll be fine." Mei Mei licked her lips, her heart pounding like that of a day trader.

Kamo Kenshin glanced at the two, then closed his eyes again. No one knew what he was thinking.

Unlike the excited mood on Suguru's side and the mix of tension and anticipation around Kenshin's group, Gojo Satoshi stood alone in complete silence.

Few people were cheering for him.

He stood there quietly, like a peaceful oil painting.

Suddenly, he felt several gazes fall on him. Looking over, he saw Yuki, Toji, and the others.

"Satoshi, as the leader of the Yorozuya, don't embarrass us." Toji smiled.

"Boss Satoshi, good luck," Yuto added with a grin.

Yuki simply folded her arms and nodded at Satoshi.

She said nothing, but that silence seemed to speak volumes.

Satoshi's heart warmed.

Alright. Let me show you how I'll win this for you.

A soft, confident smile appeared on his face.

...

Feeling the barrier break, Satoshi sheathed his Zanpakutō and looked up at the sky.

It's starting.

The next moment, all the contestants heard a voice echo in their minds.

[The barrier is opening. Transmission is about to begin.]

At those words, everyone's heart tightened.

Because it meant—

The battle between geniuses was about to begin.

It felt as if the world around them had turned into a rippling ink painting.

They looked up toward the source of the barrier's fluctuation.

Then, everything around them began to blur.

It was as if an entirely new scroll had unrolled before their eyes.

By the time their vision cleared—

They were standing in a dense forest.

Reacting quickly to the sudden shift in environment, Satoru activated his Six Eyes.

He scanned the surroundings.

After a few seconds, he exhaled in relief.

The area was quiet.

More importantly, the three of them had not been separated during transmission.

Had they been split up in such terrain, just regrouping would have made the match significantly harder.

At that point, they couldn't be sure who they'd run into first.

"Good. The tokens kept us together," Satoru said. "Kyoto High must have had the same result."

"That's good news for us," Suguru nodded. "At least we don't have to go looking for Shoko."

"..."

Shoko didn't bother replying and instead asked, "So, what do we do now?"

All around them was nothing but an endless, fog-covered forest.

The beautiful weather from earlier had completely disappeared.

The quiet, deep woods made Shoko feel slightly uneasy.

It's been a long time since I've been in a place like this.

Neither Satoru nor the others had expected to be teleported here.

In previous years, the Sister School Goodwill Event had always taken place at the college's main campus.

But this time, Principal Sekiguchi Seiji had overridden that with the activation of this barrier.

"There's a flow of Cursed Energy within this white mist." Driven by his Cursed Energy, Satoru's eyes sparkled even brighter.

Through the Six Eyes, he saw the threads of Cursed Energy interwoven throughout the forest.

The corners hidden by fog gradually unfolded one by one in his mind.

If this was a Curse-Weaved barrier, then his Six Eyes would be more than enough.

Satoru's brain started spinning as he quickly calculated their next move.

"Alright, let's begin. Suguru, release a Cursed Spirit for recon."

"Shoko, prep Minazuki," Satoru added. "With Minazuki's help, combined with Suguru's Cursed Spirit and my aerial view through the Six Eyes, we can find Satoshi quickly."

Satoru couldn't deny that he still had some concerns about his younger brother's Zanpakutō.

But that nervousness was quickly replaced by excitement.

They were in the game now. Whether they hesitated or charged forward, danger was inevitable. So it was better to face it head-on.

Besides, this wasn't the Tombs of the Star anymore.

He was stronger now, and he knew Satoshi better.

Most importantly, he had Suguru at his side.

With the two of them together, there wasn't anything they couldn't overcome.

"Later, Suguru and I will probe Satoshi's strength first. At the same time, we'll output as much Cursed Energy as possible to draw the Kyoto High team here."

"If we can defeat Satoshi here, that would be ideal. But he's not normal. Even if it's just a goodwill match and he holds back, we can't underestimate him."

Satoru glanced at Suguru.

"If we lose to him again, we'll use Kyoto High's strength to take him on."

Back during training, Satoru had already tested the state enhanced by Utahime's technique.

It gave him such a surge of power that he nearly lost control.

To exaggerate slightly—

If they were in space, he felt he could blow up a planet with a single punch.

"..."

Suguru didn't object.

"Don't worry. I'll keep Minazuki ready to pick you up at any time," Shoko said calmly.

She was the only sorcerer in the world capable of sustained Reverse Cursed Technique output.

Her presence couldn't be underestimated.

...

At the same time, on the other end of the forest—

Kamo Kenshin and his group had been teleported deep into the opposite side.

Towering trees. Thick white fog. A silence so absolute, you could hear a pin drop.

It gave off a dead and unsettling aura.

Soon after—

A black bird landed on Mei Mei's shoulder.

It was her Black Bird Technique.

"No signs of other groups nearby," Mei Mei said flatly.

Kamo Kenshin fell into quiet thought.

"Yeah. Got it."

(To be continued.)