July. The scorching sun baked the earth mercilessly, making it feel like a giant oven. The air shimmered with heat, and even breathing felt heavy.
Only the cicadas clung to life, singing their last songs.
Knock, knock, knock.
Amidst the chorus of cicadas, someone knocked on Geto Suguru's door.
When he opened the door, Geto saw a blond-haired boy holding a gift bag.
It had been four days since Haibara Yu had died in the line of duty, severely wounded during a mission.
Nanami Kento, his silky blonde hair neatly combed to one side, stood at the door. His eyes were red and bloodshot, with deep dark circles beneath them, a clear sign that he hadn't been sleeping well.
"Nanami…?"
Seeing his state, Geto's eyes widened slightly in concern. "You don't look good. Are you alright?"
"Do I look alright to you, Geto-san?" Nanami's voice was hoarse. He didn't seem to care for Geto's concern. Instead, he held out the gift bag.
"What's this?" Geto took it, puzzled.
"It's a local specialty that Haibara bought," Nanami said in a low voice. "It's sweet. He wanted to give it to you and Gojo-san himself… but now, he can't. So I'm giving it to you instead."
"…"
The boy with the bun-shaped hairstyle trembled slightly. He wanted to say "thank you," but the words got stuck in his throat. In the end, all he could manage was a quiet, "I see."
"I've done what I came to do. Goodbye."
Nanami turned and left.
After taking two steps, he suddenly stopped. Still facing away from Geto, he spoke again.
"I'm leaving Jujutsu High."
"Huh?"
Geto, who had been staring blankly at the gift bag in his hands, snapped back to reality.
"Leaving Jujutsu High…?"
After a moment of silence, he let out a slow breath, adjusted his emotions, and tried to ask lightly, "I see. So where are you planning to go next?"
"Well, I don't really know. Maybe I'll just find a normal job and become an ordinary office worker." Nanami Kento said as he started walking again.
As he was leaving, he threw out one last sentence.
"Jujutsu sorcerers are trash."
Suguru Geto watched him go, remaining silent for a long time.
…
"Good morning, this is the morning news. We are now reporting a serious stabbing incident near 72nd Street, Hakusan Town, Bunkyo Ward, Tokyo. The victim was stabbed thirteen times and has been rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment. The suspect has been apprehended."
"This is the seventh violent attack in recent times. We urge all Tokyo residents to avoid going out at night to stay safe…"
At the Yukinoshita household, the morning news played on the TV while the family sat at the table having breakfast.
"Even a place as safe as Bunkyo Ward is seeing violent crimes like this?" Yukinoshita's father looked surprised as he listened to the report. "What's wrong with people these days? Have they lost their minds?"
A rise in crime is often tied to the economy, but this isn't like the post-bubble era. With the economy stable, why are people suddenly going crazy and committing these violent crimes?
Even though he didn't know the reason, the middle-aged man furrowed his brows and warned Yukinoshita Haruno, "Haruno, try not to go out too much these days. There haven't been any stabbing cases in Chiba yet, but it's better to be safe than sorry."
"Yeah, yeah, I got it."
Haruno replied absentmindedly.
"Haruno." His tone became a little more serious.
"I know, Dad. Don't worry." Seeing her father's serious expression, the short-haired girl gave a half-hearted response.
If there was anyone in the world who had absolutely no reason to fear criminals, it was probably her.
After all, Yukinoshita Haruno had never met anyone who could defeat the demon living inside her.
If she did run into an attacker, it probably wouldn't be her who needed to be afraid—it would be the attacker.
After breakfast, her father left for work, and her mother relaxed with tea. Haruno returned to her room.
After practicing her guitar for a while, she couldn't hold back her curiosity any longer and asked, "Hey, Demon-kun, do you think the incidents on the news are really just regular crimes?"
"How should I know? Maybe it's cursed spirits or sorcerers causing trouble."
A mouth appeared on the smooth skin of her cheek, and Hayashizaki spoke lazily, not seeming to care about the recent chaos.
And in truth, he really didn't care.
Ever since he unexpectedly ran into Yukinoshita Yukino last time and had a chat—giving her some pointers on domain expansion—he had been calculating how much longer he had to stay here before he could go back.
He had seen what was happening over there.
Even though he only had Yukinoshita Yukino's perspective, it was enough to piece together the state of the jujutsu world on that side.
The Shinjuku attack, two assaults on Jujutsu High—one where they lost Sukuna's fingers and the Cursed Womb: Death Paintings, and another where Tengen's barrier was destroyed…
On the surface, Jujutsu High had won each battle, but they kept losing ground.
There was no doubt that a mastermind was pulling the strings from the shadows.
Even though the situation was finally stabilizing, thanks to the efforts of Japan's jujutsu sorcerers and the few remaining overseas sorcerers, Hayashizaki could still sense an impending storm.
Snapping back to reality, he glanced at the dressing mirror in the room, where a thoughtful short-haired girl was reflected.
"You're not thinking of investigating this, are you?" he asked, puzzled.
"Of course not." Yukinoshita Haruno shook her head. "Isn't that Gojo and Geto's problem to deal with? Why would I waste my time helping them?"
"Then what were you just thinking about?" he asked curiously.
"I was wondering if I could transform into my grown-up self and mess with Yukino-chan." The short-haired girl grinned. "That sounds like fun."
"Wouldn't that expose everything right away?"
"Not at all. There are so many people at the airport. As long as we handle it properly, there's no way we'd get caught." Yukinoshita Haruno stared at her reflection in the mirror, noticing the extra pair of red eyes on her face. "Did Demon-kun get dumber from sleeping too much?"
"What the heck?" Hayashizaki looked completely confused.
"Yukino-chan's break is over. She's flying back home tomorrow."
"Huh?"
…
(End of Chapter)
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