"Gojo Satoru! That's the Special Grade Vengeful Cursed Spirit, isn't it? I told you from the start that allowing that cursed vessel to attend the exchange event was a terrible idea! This mess is entirely your doing!" Principal Gakuganji scolded Gojo, who remained smiling as he looked at the screen showing the menacing figure.
Everyone present wore grave expressions. Even through the screen, Rika's oppressive aura as a Special Grade Vengeful Cursed Spirit weighed heavily on them. Yet Gojo just stretched lazily and replied, "Don't worry, leave it to me. Rika may have gone out of control, but she hasn't made any aggressive moves against anyone."
Looking closely, they could see that was indeed the case. Despite her frenzied appearance, Rika hadn't attacked anything around her. Thanks to Mechamaru's efforts, a distant crow still managed to send back footage of the scene, showing that several students were still nearby and apparently unharmed.
Gojo waved casually. "I'm heading out. It's nothing major, really. Don't worry."
Shoko Ieiri spoke up beside him, "I'll come too, just in case anyone's injured." With that, the two of them left the room and disappeared from sight.
In the sky loomed Rika's terrifying form. Her ghostly pale lower half was a formless mist, her large hands more like claws, her upper body gaunt with exposed ribs, and behind her head protruded numerous tube-like appendages. Her face had no eyes—only a massive gaping maw full of sharp, blood-stained teeth.
"Quite the spectacle. So, Satoru, how do you plan to deal with this?" Shoko asked as they stood a safe distance away.
Removing his sunglasses, Gojo's bright blue eyes reflected Rika's berserk form. "Looks like Yuta's efforts weren't in vain. On the contrary—they were a success. Something just went wrong, and now it's beyond his control."
Snap.
Gojo cracked his fingers. "Well then, all I have to do is weaken Rika until she's back within his ability to restrain."
Shoko gave him a look. "You're not planning to go wild again, are you? The students are still around."
Gojo just grinned. "I'll be gentle." With that, he vanished, reappearing in the air at the same height as Rika.
Rika instinctively wanted to attack the small figure that suddenly appeared nearby, but the bond with Yuta held her back.
Glancing downward, Gojo saw a sweating Yuta, along with Panda, Inumaki, and Aoi Todo nearby. Then his gaze returned to Rika.
"Let's restrain her a bit."
Cursed Technique Lapse: Blue.
Cursed Technique Reversal: Red.
When the inverse forms of infinity collided, they birthed a hypothetical mass—Hollow Purple.
A small violet light appeared at Gojo's fingertip and instantly stirred turbulent energy in the surrounding air. With a flick, a perfectly circular, human-sized blast carved a clean path through the sky, erasing everything it touched.
From Gojo's vantage point, he could see the aftermath—a massive tunnel of destruction through Rika's body and into the empty field beyond.
Rika let out a piercing screech and immediately began to regenerate, though her aura was visibly diminished.
As Rika charged, Gojo gave a playful wave. "Bye-bye!" He vanished once more, reappearing on the ground.
---
When Kami Genichi arrived on the scene using his technique, he saw Yuta anxiously trying to control Rika, while Panda and Todo bore visible injuries. Even White Wolf whimpered and ran over—clearly frightened.
"Genichi!" Yuta called out. "Where's Gojo-sensei? I can't control Rika anymore—she's not listening to me!"
Genichi looked up at the sky, where Rika floated aimlessly, screaming Yuta's name with twisted, broken cries. Judging from the condition of Todo and the others, Genichi could guess what had happened: Todo had probably found Yuta, putting them all in danger. Rika must have broken free to protect him.
Looking at Todo's condition, Genichi figured he was lucky to still be in one piece—Rika didn't tear him apart probably only because Yuta was present.
Fortunately, things hadn't gotten too bad, likely thanks to Yuta's partial restraint. Seeing this, Genichi didn't bother with full-scale healing, instead opting to use Cursed Technique Reversal to treat their wounds. It worked, though not as effectively as Shoko's healing.
"Tch." Watching their wounds reduce from serious to minor, Genichi muttered, "Better wait for Shoko."
Yuta, feeling some relief from the healing, asked, "Genichi, was that your technique?"
With a scowl, Genichi replied, "Gojo-sensei never told you? Seriously... It's called Reversed Cursed Technique. You can learn it too. I'll teach you later."
Right then, as if summoned by name, Gojo appeared high in the sky. He raised his hand—and a terrifying force ripped through the heavens. Rika was hit hard.
"Rika!" Yuta cried out in panic.
Genichi placed a calming hand on his shoulder. "Curses heal themselves with cursed energy. Don't worry too much."
Sure enough, Rika's body began rapidly regenerating. Yuta relaxed slightly.
Looking at the destructive aftermath, everyone was shocked. Genichi, though, remembered that Gojo could do far worse.
Before they could say anything more, Gojo disappeared from the sky and reappeared in front of them.
"Hey! Everyone alright?"
Yuta rushed up. "Gojo-sensei! I... I can't control Rika. She's not listening anymore..."
Gojo smiled at him. "It's okay. You did great. If it weren't for your restraint, things could've been a lot worse. Leave the rest to me."
Once Yuta calmed down, Gojo turned to Genichi with that familiar mischievous grin. "Genichi! That blast I hit Rika with should've weakened her. Now it's your turn! Just soften her up a little more and Yuta should be able to rein her in."
As Rika came charging again, Genichi's expression darkened. "Didn't you say you'd handle this?"
Gojo, ushering Panda and the others away, replied cheerfully, "It's only natural for a student to help ease his teacher's burdens. This is all part of your growth."
"And with that, I'm taking them to Shoko. You and Yuta handle things here. See ya!"
Before Genichi could protest further, Gojo was gone. He turned to see Rika rapidly approaching. Yuta stood beside him, trying to speak but falling silent. Genichi sighed, patted his shoulder, and stepped forward. "Hang on. I'll calm your girlfriend down. After that, it's your turn again."
Rika charged, mouth wide, roaring Yuta's name. Spotting Genichi in her path, she lunged with a massive claw.
"Stop right there."
Before the words even fully left his lips, Genichi vanished. The impact of his counterattack came an instant later, followed by a thunderous boom and shockwave.
He looked down at his clenched fist, feeling cursed energy surging through him. This overwhelming strength—intoxicating. His cursed blade was no longer suitable for this output. Too weak to channel this much power.
A sudden roar and burst of cursed energy tore through the forest. Dust and leaves scattered as Rika surged at him again, her claws trailing cursed energy.
"Too slow."
Genichi, now fully focused, could clearly see her attack trajectory—his reaction speed had grown faster along with his mastery of cursed techniques.
Wheel of Time: Spin.
He moved to Rika's side, fists raised, cursed energy surging to its limit.
One punch—massive impact. Her weakened defenses gave way. He could even see the air distort.
Second punch. Third. Once satisfied, he disengaged the technique.
Everything detonated at once.
A violent eruption of shockwaves flattened the trees, carved out the earth, and tore open the sky. All cursed energy within the area was swallowed by a twisting black vortex.
Rika's body, like a cannonball, was sent flying through several trees and vanished into the forest. The spot she had occupied was now a deep crater, earth and stone crushed into a single mass.
Genichi let out a long breath and used Reversed Cursed Technique to restore himself. That last output, including a Black Flash, had drained a lot.
Even so, Rika's durability as a Special Grade curse was absurd. A normal Grade 1 spirit would've been reduced to ash, even most Special Grades would've been near death. And yet... Rika was already recovering—though much slower.
"One more."
Genichi targeted her position and began channeling more cursed energy.
Cursed Energy Projection.
A ball of condensed cursed energy formed at his fingertip, warping the surrounding air. When it reached the size of a human head, he released it.
It vanished silently.
Then—boom—a ravine carved itself straight from Genichi to Rika's last known location, clean and unstoppable.
There lay Rika—severely damaged, her recovery slow and ragged.
With a sigh, Genichi turned to Yuta, who looked like he was about to cry. "Relax. With her own and your cursed energy, she'll be bouncing around again in a few days."
"That sounds kind of weird..." Genichi muttered, watching Rika whimper softly and return to Yuta, merging back into his cursed sword.
Originally, their binding medium was the ring from their childhood vow to marry. On Gojo's advice, Yuta had started infusing the curse into the blade, practicing again and again. Eventually, he mastered it.
Yuta knelt, gripping the sword, then looked up at Genichi. "Genichi... Thank you. And Gojo-sensei too. If things had gone any further, someone might have really gotten hurt..."
Seeing Yuta's guilt, Genichi walked over and helped him up. "Don't say that. Without your restraint, things might have gotten a lot worse. You did great. Everyone's safe, right?"
Yuta opened his mouth to respond but was cut off.
"Come on, let's go see Shoko-se
nsei, make sure you're not hurt. And hey—she's the best at Reversed Techniques. Might as well have her teach you a thing or two."
(End of Chapter)
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