HRU: Chapter 220/221

Chapter 220: You Must Learn

Looking at the four people standing below the stage, everyone in the audience wore expressions of mixed emotion.

This year, a true monster had emerged from Jujutsu High. Two Special Grade and two Grade 1 sorcerers had been recognized the moment they entered the school.

Everyone's eyes naturally turned to the young man below with a calm smile on his face.

Gojo Satoshi had no Cursed Technique, yet with only Heavenly Restriction and a Zanpakutō, he had reached such an absurd level. People had once assumed that nine years of sleep would dull his edge, but contrary to expectations, he had only grown stronger.

Everyone was shocked.

Even now, they hadn't known that Heavenly Restriction could be applied in such a way.

Seeing this, Naobito and Kamo Shinji exchanged glances and fell into a brief silence.

Kamo Shinji's gaze toward Satoshi held a trace of fear. He once believed that the heirs of Blood Manipulation could rival the Gojo clan.

But now he realized... there was still a huge gap between him and Gojo Satoshi.

It seems we'll have to raise Gojo Satoshi's danger level within the clan.

…

At Jujutsu High's central plaza, everyone watched as Satoshi received his honors for passing the entrance examination, their feelings complicated.

No one had expected that after nine years, Gojo Satoshi would return even more unfathomable than before.

They still couldn't sense any Cursed Energy from his body, yet just by standing there, he exuded a pressure that chilled the soul.

Heavenly Restriction.

His body had grown stronger again after nine years.

And his strange spell-like power gave them all headaches.

Not far away, near the plaza where the Yorozuya members were gathered.

Toji looked down at Satoshi and spoke seriously. "Yuto, while we've always acknowledged Satoshi's Zanpakutō as powerful, I genuinely feel that over the past nine years, his physical strength alone has reached another level. Even without his Zanpakutō or that mysterious technique he just used, he could've likely defeated the Cursed Spirit with pure physical strength alone. That's the confidence I have as someone born under Heavenly Restriction."

"Toji, don't be so arrogant."

Yuto glanced at him. "I don't deny the power of your Heavenly Restriction, but as for Satoshi's body... I'm more curious about whether Ryūjin Jakka and Sode no Shirayuki really lost their effects during his slumber. After all, those rumors have circulated for years, and Satoshi didn't use his Zanpakutō just now. So in the end, we still don't have a definitive answer."

Toji chuckled. "Who knows?"

Yuto asked, "Should we go talk to him?"

"No rush. He'll definitely come to us once he's finished his business. That's the trust of a close friend."

"Alright, then should we head back?"

"Wait. I want to watch the replay again..."

Yuto nodded. He didn't mind. He knew Toji, being the battle junkie he was, was clearly interested in the technique Satoshi used to kill Sukuna.

…

On a nearby elevated platform sat the Gojo family.

Gojo Shunichi's eyes stayed fixed on Satoshi. "There's no need to worry about Young Master Satoshi. Even without his Zanpakutō, he's still capable of protecting himself. That looked like his innate technique, didn't it? It seems quite effective. Though it doesn't align with Heavenly Restriction, it's undeniably powerful. Heavenly Restriction users aren't born with techniques, but in Satoshi's case, things never really follow the rules."

After all, someone capable of forging Zanpakutō... now displaying abilities akin to granting life without relying on Cursed Energy. It was no longer something one could simply explain as a fluke.

Kumaen took a sip of tea and exhaled slowly. "No need to overthink it. Still, since he recovered two more fingers this time, he should at least return home and report in."

As he spoke, his tone turned a little bitter.

Clearly, he still hadn't gotten over how Satoshi chose to return to school first after waking up, instead of visiting the clan.

Such diligence was excessive.

We should've seized the opportunity and made him the Gojo Clan's acting head right away.

After nine years, I truly understand what the old patriarch once said. If one wishes to be a leader that others rely on, they must first possess absolute strength.

But while the elders had their own frustrations, the ones most fixated on Satoshi right now were undoubtedly Satoru and Suguru, standing right next to him.

That unknown power Satoshi used still lingered in their minds. He had called it a spell, but it clearly wasn't a conventional Jujutsu Technique.

Because even now, they still couldn't sense any Cursed Energy from Satoshi.

A technique that doesn't rely on Cursed Energy? What kind of power was that?

Finally, Satoru couldn't take it anymore. He asked, "Satoshi, what exactly is that power you used? It doesn't seem any weaker than the Gojo family's techniques!"

Shoko and Suguru both looked over curiously. They were clearly interested in what Satoshi had just used.

"Kidō," Satoshi said casually with a smile.

Suguru's expression didn't change, but inwardly, he wasn't calm at all. He pretended to nod in interest. "It's called Kidō? It seems to have a lot of potential."

But deep down, he was shaken.

It's more than potential!

This power must not be underestimated. I have a feeling this isn't even Satoshi's full strength. There must be other techniques or forms of Kidō with entirely different powers waiting to be revealed.

Hearing Satoshi's offhand response, Satoru grimaced and scratched his head. "Damn it, now even my signature technique feels inferior. Looks like I really won't be able to surpass you until I master the Reverse Cursed Technique!"

But he quickly perked up and turned to Shoko. "Shoko! Teach me the Reverse Cursed Technique!"

He had a feeling that once he mastered it, all the ghost arts Satoshi had used would be neutralized. Moreover, with it, he might finally stand a chance at beating him.

Once I master the Reverse Cursed Technique, I'll make up for my previous humiliation.

Satoru was determined. He had to learn it no matter what.

Only by fully mastering Limitless could he have a real showdown with his brother.

Others might not know the current state of Satoshi's Zanpakutō, but Satoru did.

He knew there was absolutely nothing wrong with it.

After all, not long ago, in the Tombs of the Star, Satoshi had used Bankai to battle him...

(To be continued.)

Chapter 221: Spiritual Pressure

At the center of everyone's attention below the platform, despite countless cheers and countless eyes watching him, Satoshi remained calm.

He ignored the gazes.

While successfully entering Jujutsu High was certainly noteworthy, it wasn't his true goal. At most, it was just the beginning.

His purpose was simple—to turn Jujutsu High into his own power base.

There was still a second objective.

His eyes shifted toward the two Sukuna Fingers in Sekiguchi Seiji's hands.

"The second goal is to deal with those two Sukuna Fingers..." Satoshi said solemnly.

If Satoru was ever to break free from his destined death, then Sukuna was an obstacle that couldn't be avoided.

Although it was technically Shoko who had overseen the operation in the original timeline, in the end, Satoru still had to face Sukuna head-on.

Now, he had personally recovered two Sukuna Fingers, but he didn't know how many others the Gojo Clan or the Jujutsu General Administration had gathered over the past nine years.

Leaving them lying around like this was far too dangerous.

He clearly remembered that, in the original timeline, Jogo and the other Special Grade Cursed Spirits had stolen Sukuna's finger directly from Jujutsu High.

Although Jogo had now joined his faction, there was no guarantee Kenjaku hadn't made alternate arrangements during these past years.

He needed a solution.

After the awards ceremony, most of the audience began to disperse.

Sekiguchi Seiji would now handle the process of officially transferring the Sukuna Fingers to the General Administration.

Only Yaga remained in the plaza to oversee the situation.

Normally, the audience would have left by now, but many were still captivated by the earlier fight and chose to stay behind to rewatch the replay.

Shoko said her goodbyes and went to look for her father, Ieiri Inamichi, while Satoshi had no intention of lingering. He still had more pressing matters to handle.

After leaving the square, he headed straight to the location he had previously hinted to Yagyū Hidetsugu.

The contact point.

After all, he had been asleep for nine years. He knew nothing about the current political landscape of the sorcery world.

And Yagyū Hidetsugu, who had infiltrated the Curse Administration, was the perfect source of insider knowledge. Without a doubt, he was the best person for Satoshi to speak to.

Before long.

He arrived at a remote school building with sparse foot traffic.

Soon after, two men arrived cautiously.

It was Yagyū Hidetsugu and Yagyū Saemon. Over the past nine years, their temperaments had changed drastically.

They still hadn't revealed their close ties with Satoshi to anyone.

Only after confirming that they weren't being followed did they finally relax.

Yagyū Hidetsugu walked up and clapped Satoshi on the shoulder.

"Satoshi-kun!"

Satoshi nodded. "Uncle Hidetsugu, looks like things have gone well for you these past nine years."

"Haha, all thanks to your support back then."

Had Satoshi not asked Gojo Kumaen to place him within the Curse Administration before his slumber, he would've never made it this far.

"Alright, Uncle Hidetsugu, about the task I left with you to gather Sukuna Fingers—how's that going?" Satoshi asked directly, wearing a faint smile.

He still trusted Hidetsugu and Saemon, so he didn't bother with small talk.

Hidetsugu sighed and shook his head.

"After your arrangement, we and Gojo Takuya began working together to collect Sukuna Fingers. But the results haven't been great. We found out that even within the General Administration, we weren't the only ones trying to gather the fingers."

"There's another faction also actively collecting them."

"After some investigation, it appears to be connected to the Zenin Clan and the Kamo Clan. But we haven't fully confirmed it yet."

"As for the power structure in the curse world, the Kamo and Zenin clans seem to be working together to isolate the Gojo Clan..."

Hearing this, Satoshi fell silent for a moment, then sighed.

What exactly are the Zenin and Kamo clans trying to do?

Naobito had sent him friendly signals in the past, but the rest of the Zenin Clan didn't seem aligned with his intentions.

As for the Kamo Clan… they had always been difficult to read.

But he didn't dwell on it for long. He didn't care for politics. If needed, he'd crush their little tricks head-on.

"What's our next move?" Hidetsugu asked again.

Satoshi thought for a moment, then gave his orders. "Uncle Hidetsugu, transfer every Sukuna Finger under your control to Jujutsu High. Keep collecting more. I'll be the one to destroy them. We will end this disaster once and for all."

Both Hidetsugu and Saemon were stunned.

"You're going to destroy Sukuna's Fingers?!"

His decision left them speechless.

Was such a thing even possible?

These were the remnants of Ryomen Sukuna's existence.

For over a thousand years, even the combined power of the Big Three Sorcerer Clans hadn't been able to damage them. They could only seal them away.

Was Gojo Satoshi truly planning to destroy them?

Was it really possible?

Satoshi gave them a final look. "That's all for now."

"I'm a thorn in the side of both the Zenin and Kamo clans. Uncle Hidetsugu, let's keep our contact to a minimum for the time being."

With that, Satoshi turned and left.

He didn't need to explain himself. He knew Hidetsugu and Saemon would give everything they had to get it done.

Still, he had gained an important piece of information.

It seemed someone in the Zenin and Kamo clans was actively collecting Sukuna Fingers. Did Naobito know? Was it on his orders?

He couldn't be sure. But it didn't matter.

Eventually, the truth would come out.

After nine years of slumber, there were far too many things he needed to deal with.

Too many people to meet. Too many unfinished threads to address.

But returning to Jujutsu High immediately after waking up hadn't been for nothing.

He'd not only retrieved two Sukuna Fingers during the entrance exam, but he had also gained two Hadō and one Bakudō:

[Hadō #4: Byakurai],
[Hadō #11: Tsuzuri Raiden],
[Bakudō #9: Geki].

With these three new Kidō, his proficiency had increased significantly.

He was quite satisfied.

And after using Kidō against Sukuna, he finally understood what the energy in his body truly was—it wasn't Cursed Energy.

It was Reiryoku.

In other words, if used properly…

He could generate Reiatsu.

Spiritual Pressure was similar to Haki. If released in high volumes, it would suffocate even strong opponents. Weaker ones could be rendered unconscious on the spot.

It was a style with overwhelming presence.

That's why he couldn't fall behind in mastering Kidō. He also needed to start paying attention to the matter of Tengen.

I really am too busy.

But before all that…

Time to catch up with some old friends from nine years ago.

(To be continued.)