Chapter 167 — Good Job, Look Sharp, Don't Lose Face
In this world, there is no such thing as a true absolute limit—only the "Other Shore" that cannot be reached or touched by human strength alone. The strength of power, the measurement of speed, the high temperatures that matter can withstand... all of these concepts are the same.
Even Gojo Satoru, who considers himself—no, who is recognized by everyone as—the [Strongest], does not believe he has reached the limit.
He simply takes it for granted that he has reached the status of the "Strongest" among all jujutsu sorcerers throughout history; he hasn't reached the limit of himself, or rather, the limit of power itself. Doesn't his own technique, the [Limitless Technique], already suggest that this world has no limit, but is instead [Infinity]?
However, even while knowing clearly that he still has infinite room to improve, clearly achieving that is a near impossibility.
The reason students like Fushiguro can show progress that changes by the day is, on one hand, because they are still in a period of growth in every sense, and on the other, because they still have a "goal." It is like the difference between walking on a clear, obvious path beneath your feet and groping forward in the dark. Because young sorcerers have the experience and teachings of their predecessors, they know exactly which direction to work toward.
But Gojo Satoru cannot do that.
He has never even had a matching opponent, and no one in history has explicitly reached a similar realm.
The other Special Grade sorcerers are Special Grade because their strength reached that level. Gojo Satoru is Special Grade because the highest rank in the jujutsu world only goes that far.
One must not underestimate Gojo Satoru's talent; he simply hasn't encountered many opponents who are either his equal or can suppress him.
Like when he was pushed to a dead end by Fushiguro Toji—didn't he learn the technique of [Reverse Cursed Technique] in an instant, ushering in an unimaginable leap in strength? Humans are creatures of resilience and adaptability; a certain degree of peril can always stimulate their potential—it's just that for some high-talent individuals, the effect is exceptionally obvious.
The reason Gojo works hard to train his students, besides letting them reform the jujutsu world, is to mold them into powerhouses similar to himself to fill that void in his heart. Fortunately, though he hasn't seen his students reach full maturity, hasn't he already encountered Emiya, who completely crushes him in other aspects?
Gojo still hasn't found a way to directly challenge the "Rules of Causality," but he is already working hard toward learning in that direction.
That itself is progress! At the very least, he no longer has to lead his original mechanical life of doing nothing but sleeping and putting out fires everywhere, right?
But if possible, Gojo naturally wants his own strength to keep improving. It's just that he can never see a path, much less find a corresponding opponent... Never mind that his own strength is hard to raise, those so-called Special Grade Cursed Tools hold no meaning for him either.
Even the Inverted Spear of Heaven, which theoretically can force the cancellation of techniques, can only barely withstand his [Red]; it cannot achieve a true erasure.
By contrast, the Noble Phantasms in Emiya's hands are entirely different—if they say they can reverse time and causality, they can do it.
There is zero false advertising!
Naturally, Gojo Satoru wouldn't fight his students for ordinary weapons that look like toys to him, but if the objects were these Noble Phantasms...
He'd be totally up for that!
Clang—!
Meanwhile, on the other side, Emiya successfully completed the final step of the Cursed Tool's reforging. After finishing the strike that served as the conclusion, he swung the blade sharply into the air. The pitch-black, deep flames scattered like sparks before Emiya plunged the blade into the water barrel.
Sizzle—!
The water, which had been icy cold just a moment ago, began to roll and boil instantly, evaporating completely in a matter of seconds.
More strangely, there was no visible steam during this process, as if the water had truly been "burned away" into nothingness.
"Alright, it's done... Do you want to test it out now?"
Emiya handed the blade, now covered in magnificent patterns, to Miwa Kasumi. Fundamentally, he had studied under the "Muramasa Style" of the old man, but this blade bore no similar form or inscription. If there was a similarity... it was perhaps that this magnificent appearance truly looked like a "Demonic Blade"?
"Can I? It feels like it's a completely new sword..."
Miwa Kasumi hesitated for a moment before taking it. The instant her palm touched the hilt, her eyes widened immediately.
"The feel is exactly the same as before, and... why does it seem even more comfortable to use?!"
How could that be? She clearly had never used this reshaped blade before.
She could even vaguely feel the technique contained within the blade and the basic method of using it. That was a sensation that should only come from awakening one's own [Innate Technique]. No matter what kind of Special Grade Cursed Tool it was, its essence was ultimately just a tool; it shouldn't give you that kind of tactile feedback.
"You mean that? I couldn't let your previous practice efforts go to waste, so I used a few little tricks.
After being used by you so many times, the blade was already stained with the traces of your Cursed Energy. I only needed to follow that sensation and amplify it.
The final result is as if you've already wielded this Cursed Tool for years, allowing it to perfectly match your Cursed Energy."
To put it simply, it was like putting on a Cursed Energy recognition lock, allowing Miwa Kasumi to "unlock" and use it immediately.
"This... this is a 'little trick'?!"
If that were true, then all other Cursed Tool blacksmiths... no, all blacksmiths throughout history could just crawl to a scrapyard.
Only the non-recyclable kind of trash would be worthy of their skills and status.
"Since we've said so much, why not just test it?" Emiya urged. He was actually quite curious to see how far his current self could go. If this worked, he could custom-tailor tools for the students, and their safety would be completely guaranteed, wouldn't it?
"Ah? Oh..."
Hearing the urge, Miwa Kasumi first nodded mechanically, then looked around only to realize this small forging room didn't have the conditions for a test. After securing Emiya's consent, she walked out of the forging room into the open clearing outside.
Sigh...
Look sharp, don't lose face, good job! The "Useless Miwa" was now going to show her best side.
Just to ensure she didn't disappoint Emiya-kun behind her, she had to give it her absolute all!
"HRAAAAAAAAH!!!"
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