On the street, passersby eyed three striking young guys, tempted to snap a photo.
But their cocky struts quickly killed the vibe.
Suguru Geto led the pack, hands in pockets, slouched like he had a slipped disc.
Satoru Gojo trailed, sipping a canned drink, swaying as if nursing a neck injury.
Sawa Gojo brought up the rear, hands behind his head, staring skyward—walking backward.
"By the way, I get why Q, a sorcerer group, wants to assassinate the Star Plasma Vessel. But why's the Pan-Star Cult after her? Don't they worship Tengen?"
Satoru tossed his can into a trash bin, puzzled.
Suguru sighed. "Those extremists idolize a 'pure' Tengen. Merging with the Vessel taints him, in their eyes."
"Huh? Tengen's merged with Vessels before. That old hag's hardly pure!"
"Sawa, show some respect for Lord Tengen!"
"Got it, got it~"
"Just wipe out those groups, problem solved!"
"That's too far, Satoru!"
Suguru sighed again. "The Pan-Star Cult's mostly non-sorcerers. Slaughtering them without cause is a serious crime for sorcerers!"
Sawa scoffed. "If they're in my way, that's cause enough!"
"Speaking of, the Vessel's name… Riko Amanai?"
"Yeah, a middle schooler."
"So young, stuck with this 'destiny.' Poor kid."
"Higher-ups say to grant her every wish before the assimilation."
"Tch!"
Sawa and Satoru spat in unison.
"Those old geezers and that Tengen hag, pulling this shameless stunt while playing at sentimentality? Disgusting!"
Suguru, unusually, didn't chide their harsh words.
Chatting, they reached the designated spot.
"Rock, paper, scissors!"
Suguru flashed scissors, grinning. "Looks like I'm up. With you brothers' rotten personalities, I'm the better pick!"
"Quit talking trash!"
"Pot, meet kettle!"
Suguru headed to Riko's floor, staying on the phone with Satoru.
As he stepped out of the elevator and pushed open the door to her room—
A blinding flash erupted.
BOOM!
Sawa and Satoru glanced at the exploding building behind them, clearly Suguru's floor.
"Still alive?"
Satoru's calm voice crackled through the phone.
Suguru, unfazed, replied, "Alive. Haven't paid off my Yurei debt yet!"
"The Vessel?"
"There!"
Sawa pointed, Six Eyes spotting a girl plummeting from the sky.
Suguru summoned three squid cursed spirits, shattered a window, and leaped after her.
From the smoky room emerged a figure in a white uniform.
Q Organization fighter, Kang-kun.
"Don't blame me—blame Tengen!"
"Hm?"
Kang-kun froze, seeing Suguru cradling Riko atop a flying manta ray cursed spirit.
Surveying the wrecked floor, Suguru groaned. "Can we not make a mess? I got chewed out this morning!"
He glanced at the unconscious girl in his arms. "This is the Star Plasma Vessel?"
So young, in the prime of life, yet fated to die for the jujutsu world's future.
This clashed hard with Suguru's ideals.
Irritated, he stewed.
"Hey! That uniform—you're a Jujutsu High student, right? Hand over the kid, or I'll kill you!"
Kang-kun's threat snapped Suguru out of it.
Noting Kang-kun's smug confidence,
Suguru smirked slyly.
"Sorry, didn't catch that. Come closer?"
Meanwhile, Sawa and Satoru faced their own trouble.
Countless sharp throwing knives flew at their backs, stopping dead twenty centimeters away.
By the railing, a masked man in a white uniform clapped, eyes glinting with a strongman's swagger.
Q Organization fighter, Bayer.
"You're the rumored Gojo clan Six Eyes twins? Not bad. They say you're strong—let's see if it's true."
Sawa tilted his head. "Who're you talking to?"
Bayer grinned confidently. "Doesn't matter. Both of you, come at me!"
Sawa and Satoru exchanged a look.
"Is he always this brave?"
"How should I know? You're asking me?"
Elsewhere, Suguru wrapped up his fight effortlessly.
He brewed a coffee, added a sugar cube, and lounged on a sofa, sipping leisurely.
His elegant yet flashy vibe stood out in the near-ruined room.
Glancing over, Riko and her maid, Misato Kuroi, were still out cold.
"Gimme a kiss, c'mon, a kiss…"
Suguru's cursed spirit "Fungus," a grotesque pile of deformed heads, enveloped Kang-kun, its topmost head with flaming red lips inching toward his face.
Kang-kun was losing it.
"Please, I'm begging you, listen! I was wrong, so wrong!"
"I'll quit being a sorcerer, leave Q—heck, I'll go farm!"
"Hey! Don't pretend you can't hear me!"
Suguru sipped his coffee, ignoring Kang-kun's pleas.
Furious, Kang-kun roared, "Damn brat! You'd better wise up. Bayer's here—the strongest in Q!"
Beep beep beep…
Suguru held up his phone. "This Bayer guy?"
The screen showed two white-haired idiots grinning at the camera, a man slumped unconscious behind them.
"…Yeah, that's him."
Kang-kun's voice was flat, his face ashen.
In a distant building, watching the smoking floor where Riko was, Shiu Kong said coolly, "It's begun?"
He glanced at a burly man beside him. "When're you making your move?"
The man grinned, his scarred lip twisting, exuding grim menace.
"Let those grunts wear them down first. With two pairs of Six Eyes, they've got no shot!"
Shiu Kong asked, "Not even you?"
The man paused, recalling a snowy day years ago.
Those eyes, like the edge of the sky, had spotted him the instant he appeared.
He smirked. "Who knows…"