Chapter 185 Eighty-Eight Bridges

Tsumiki Fushiguro's situation was not an isolated case; over the years, many others had encountered curses and fallen into comas.

To realize his grand plan, Kenjaku had been laying the groundwork since a thousand years ago. Taking on different identities, he entered into 'Binding Vows' with Jujutsu Sorcerers of various eras, promising to resurrect them one day in the future.

Sukuna was one of them.

Dividing his power into twenty pieces and turning them into Special Grade cursed tools—Sukuna's fingers—was part of the preparation for his resurrection.

And Tsumiki Fushiguro was one of the many vessels Kenjaku had prepared for ancient Jujutsu Sorcerers.

To use a more professional term, it was Incarnation.

The so-called curse was actually a mark and a form of physical modification, designed to help the resurrected Jujutsu Sorcerer better adapt to their new body.

Tsumiki Fushiguro was not a Jujutsu Sorcerer, and the brain structure of an ordinary person could not withstand the sudden eruption of Cursed Energy within the body.

This was the fundamental reason she had fallen into a coma.

For Chen Nuo, solving this problem wasn't difficult; he had a successful case right at hand.

Yoshino Junpei was a successful product of Mahito's modification; originally, he was just an ordinary person.

"Are you really sure about this?"

Fushiguro Megumi looked at Chen Nuo nervously, confirming once more.

"You all can go out now."

Chen Nuo didn't answer. He simply adjusted the "Non-Action Hand" on his arm, and a profound sense of professionalism emanated from him, so overwhelming that Fushiguro Megumi and the others didn't dare speak further.

It felt like being a child again, facing a doctor wearing a mask and holding a needle, only able to cover one's rear and tremble in fear.

If it were about exorcising Cursed Spirits, they could be called professionals now, but when it came to other fields, the group couldn't even be considered zygotes in front of Chen Nuo.

It wasn't about strength; it was a pure crushing of intellect.

In the blink of an eye, only Chen Nuo and the comatose Tsumiki Fushiguro remained in the ward.

“...”

Fushiguro Megumi pressed his ear tightly against the door, holding his breath, terrified of missing any unusual sound. His tense body looked ready to burst through the door at any moment.

It wasn't that he didn't trust Chen Nuo's character...

Well, in that regard, Chen Nuo's credit rating was indeed a bit low; he'd probably only get fifty cents from Ant Credit.

What made it even more unsettling was that not a single sound could be heard from behind the door. The silence was nerve-wracking.

After waiting for quite a while, the ward's doorknob turned ninety degrees downward.

Someone was coming out.

"How is the situ—"

Fushiguro Megumi barely started his sentence before swallowing the rest. His eyes instinctively grew moist, and he subconsciously tilted his head back slightly to prevent the tears from overflowing.

They were all bastards who had learned bad habits from Chen Nuo; every one of them had pulled out their phones, aiming them at his face to take photos.

If they succeeded, wouldn't he be laughed at for the rest of his life?

"Did I sleep for a long time?"

Tsumiki Fushiguro said somewhat bashfully, reaching up to brush aside a stray lock of hair. Her gaze held a hint of apology, as if saying, "Sorry for making you worry."

"Sis... Sis..."

Fushiguro Megumi's lips trembled, and his emotions burst like a dam; he couldn't hold back after all.

*Click click click...*

A round of camera shutter sounds erupted from the surroundings. A camera flash blinded Fushiguro Megumi, forcing the half-vented emotions back down his throat.

Please, can you guys act like human beings for once?

"Idiot! Don't you know you're supposed to turn off the flash when taking photos?"

Chen Nuo raised his hand and smacked Itadori Yuji. What a useless fellow.

"I just accidentally forgot..."

"Reporting to the Class Rep, I strongly suspect Yuji did it on purpose."

Kugisaki Nobara raised her hand, expertly stabbing him in the back.

"Mei Mei, just pretend we don't exist and keep expressing those emotions. It's so touching; I'm going to post it in the Special Grade Jujutsu Sorcerer group and write a five-hundred-word essay!"

Gojo Satoru joined in the banter.

Only Yoshino Junpei remained as quiet as a girl, upholding the last shred of dignity of the Jujutsu High first-years.

This guy's presence in the class had always been quite thin due to his personality.

Unless he encountered a topic he was interested in, or if it involved Itadori Yuji, he wouldn't become active.

"...Can you give me and my sister some private space?"

Fushiguro Megumi suppressed the irritation marks on his head, took a deep breath, tried his best to control his emotional fluctuations, and spoke slowly.

...

...

After waking up in the hospital and having her body checked—confirming there were indeed no issues—Tsumiki Fushiguro was arranged by Gojo Satoru to transfer into the Jujutsu High first-year class, becoming the second transfer student of the year.

After being modified by Chen Nuo and Kenjaku successively, Tsumiki Fushiguro had become a Jujutsu Sorcerer and possessed her own Innate Technique.

It wasn't a powerful technique, but it was a rare auxiliary buff-type technique that could enhance a Jujutsu Sorcerer's Cursed Energy output.

Although her total amount of Cursed Energy was average, achieving the rank of a Second Grade Jujutsu Sorcerer in the future would be simple.

Having gone through these events, she could no longer return to the normal life of an ordinary person.

Tsumiki Fushiguro didn't have the slightest resistance to joining Jujutsu High; on the contrary, she held great expectations for this unfamiliar Jujutsu World she had never encountered before.

The seemingly gentle and kind girl appeared to have a significant spirit of adventure in her bones.

Compared to her younger brother Mei Mei, Tsumiki's personality as the older sister was clearly more resilient.

She was the type who was soft on the outside but firm on the inside.

"...Then I'll be in your care, seniors."

Tsumiki Fushiguro stood before the podium and finished her self-introduction, even giving Fushiguro Megumi a playful wink halfway through.

Although she was slightly older chronologically, in terms of psychological age, Tsumiki Fushiguro was the youngest.

After all, she was only in her third year of middle school when she fell into the cursed coma.

*Clap clap clap~*

Chen Nuo took the lead in applauding.

There were only six students in the large classroom, but the applause was quite enthusiastic.

The arrival of a beautiful girl with long straight black hair greatly improved the first-year's male-heavy ratio.

"As the Class Rep, I feel it's my duty to accompany Tsumiki-san on a proper tour of Jujutsu High."

As Chen Nuo spoke, he naturally took Tsumiki Fushiguro's wrist. Tsumiki had a very high initial favorability toward this savior of hers.

She didn't resist this level of contact; on the contrary, there was an indescribable joy deep in her heart.

A beautiful blush appeared on her fair cheeks.

"There's no need to trouble the Class Rep with such a small matter. I can show my sister around the school myself."

Seeing this scene, alarm bells immediately rang in Fushiguro Megumi's head.

With lightning speed, he forced himself between the two, breaking their physical contact. With a completely fake smile on his face, he pushed Tsumiki Fushiguro out of the classroom door as he spoke.

"Mei Mei?"

Tsumiki Fushiguro was a bit puzzled.

It seemed like Fushiguro Megumi didn't want Chen Nuo to have too much contact with her, which was somewhat rude.

After all, Chen Nuo had saved her life.

"The Class Rep already has a second-year girlfriend. It's best not to spend too much time alone with him."

Fushiguro Megumi didn't attack Chen Nuo's character, but he pointed out a current reality.

If the target wasn't his own sister, Fushiguro Megumi actually had a high tolerance for Chen Nuo's promiscuous behavior.

It was like the secular society's tolerance for famous authors.

If a great author didn't have several girlfriends around them, the public would instead worry if they lacked enough creative inspiration.

After all, emotions and sex were the best catalysts.

And for a Jujutsu Sorcerer of Chen Nuo's strength, having a few partners around would actually make people feel at ease.

If they had normal physiological needs, their psychological state was surely not bad.

"Oh, is that how it is?"

Tsumiki Fushiguro's words carried a hint of regret and disappointment.

If he had a girlfriend, then she should indeed keep some distance.

But for some reason, a feeling of unwillingness welled up in Tsumiki's heart.

This wasn't hard to understand; the emotional impact of having one's life saved was too great for a woman, and it could easily transform into another kind of feeling. However, she hid this well and didn't let Fushiguro Megumi notice.

...

...

Several days passed.

"Hello, First Grade Jujutsu Sorcerer Nuo. I am Akari Nitta."

A female Assistant Supervisor with shoulder-length, slightly wavy blonde hair stood before Chen Nuo and greeted him respectfully and politely.

Those grayish-blue eyes were very bright, carrying a hint of curiosity.

Because the number of first-year students had increased and they occasionally split into teams, the school had arranged another Assistant Supervisor.

Although her looks weren't exceptionally outstanding and her figure was unremarkable under her suit, she was at least more pleasing to the eye than that overworked old drudge Ijichi.

"Hello, Miss Nitta."

Chen Nuo gave her a brilliant smile that Ijichi had never seen before.

This made Akari Nitta breathe a quiet sigh of relief.

It seemed Chen Nuo wasn't as brutal and difficult as the rumors suggested, but she couldn't let her guard down because of that; she had to remember Senior Ijichi's warning.

An Assistant Supervisor's role was primarily to assist, but the necessary supervision was certainly required.

Therefore, in some cases, conflicts would arise between Assistant Supervisors and Jujutsu Sorcerers. Not a few supervisors had died at the hands of sorcerers, so learning how to build good relationships with them was a compulsory course for every supervisor.

After all, while Assistant Supervisors could also manipulate Cursed Energy and might possess Innate Techniques, most lacked actual combat power; otherwise, they would have entered the profession of Jujutsu Sorcerer long ago.

"These are all the curse incidents that have occurred in Tokyo recently."

Akari Nitta presented the materials she had prepared to Chen Nuo.

Normally, first-year students wouldn't have the authority to access such files, but Chen Nuo was also the patriarch of the abiko clan and held a significant position in the current Jujutsu World.

Students could not all be treated the same.

"Thank you."

Chen Nuo offered a polite word and flipped through the intelligence reports.

Most curse incidents remained between Grade 3 and Grade 4, with few casualties.

However, these incidents couldn't be left ignored for long.

Because Cursed Spirits spread fear, over time, curse incidents would escalate and spread, giving birth to even more dangerous curses. By then, it would be too late.

Although the Jujutsu World Higher-ups were long since corrupt and decadent, the system of Jujutsu Sorcerers functioned without issue, preventing any truly society-shaking curse incidents.

Because before any signs of trouble could fully develop, Jujutsu Sorcerers would be responsible for handling them.

This was why, for thousands of years, society could still exist stably and normally despite the omnipresent threat of Cursed Spirits.

Tengen, that 'thumb-head,' naturally deserved the most credit.

Soon, Chen Nuo found the information he wanted.

(Yasohachi Bridge Curse Incident)

Seeing Chen Nuo's gaze linger on this report, Akari Nitta guessed he was interested and began to explain.

"The causes of death for the three victims were identical, but it's not certain if it was the work of the same Cursed Spirit... I investigated their commonalities before and found that they all attended the same middle school."

Despite her young appearance, Akari Nitta was a very qualified and professional Assistant Supervisor.

"The specifics will still require an on-site investigation."

Chen Nuo set down the documents and stood up.

Akari Nitta nodded in agreement, took out her keys from her pocket, and said,

"Then I'll be responsible for driving."

As soon as driving was mentioned, Akari Nitta's face lit up with a bit of spirited energy.

Sure enough, once she gripped the steering wheel, Akari Nitta became a different person, flooring the accelerator and speeding down the highway in the middle of the night.

After arriving near the destination, Akari Nitta still felt like she hadn't had enough.

Normally, she wouldn't dare speed on the road, as that would truly be breaking the law, but it was different during a mission.

Watching Chen Nuo push open the passenger door and leave, Akari Nitta couldn't help but ask,

"Do you really not need my help?"

"Just wait in the parking lot. I'll come find you once it's handled."

After saying that, Chen Nuo turned and left Akari Nitta with only his back, vaulted over the railing, and jumped directly to the bottom of the bridge.

"Can he really find the Cursed Spirit like that?"

Akari Nitta couldn't help but sigh at the sight.

The areas where some powerful Cursed Spirits were born might form natural barriers, or even combine with an Innate Domain, masking the Cursed Spirit's existence and making it difficult for Jujutsu Sorcerers to find them.

It was hard to break through without following certain rules and sequences.

Based on the previously collected intelligence, the 'Yasohachi Bridge Curse' was likely such a case.

It required satisfying conditions like 'at night' and 'from under the bridge'.

However, this wasn't absolute.

This special barrier only masked the Cursed Spirit's presence and distorted the Jujutsu Sorcerer's senses; it didn't truly make it disappear from the world.

As soon as she finished speaking, a violent roar exploded beneath her feet, with a momentum as grand as a mountain collapsing.

The entire bridge shook uncontrollably.

Akari Nitta didn't have time to think; she slammed on the gas to quickly leave the danger zone. Only after pulling away to a safe distance did she have time to wipe the cold sweat from her forehead.

Looking back at the dust rising into the sky, she murmured in a low voice,

"This is just way too reckless..."