Chapter Forty-Four: The Death Sentence (2)!
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Inside the underground sealing chamber, Ren Zenin woke up from his sleep.
The smell was unfamiliar. It was a familiar mix of aged wood and strong incense usually used to calm evil spirits.
When Ren opened his eyes, he did not find a familiar ceiling. Instead, he found himself in a sealing room completely different from what he remembered from anime scenes. The walls were not merely talisman paper, but overlapping layers of living seals that seemed to pulse in sync with the flow of his suppressed cursed energy.
In this room, he would not be able to extract any cursed energy!
Ren moved his wrists, hearing the clanking of heavy chains binding his hands and feet to the chair. He looked around with curiosity mixed with coldness, as if evaluating the quality of the prison he had been placed in, before his gaze settled on the person sitting directly in front of him.
"Isn't this a bit much, Gojo-sensei?" Ren said with a frown, his voice carrying a childish tone of complaint unbecoming of the "vessel of the King of Curses."
Satoru Gojo was sitting backward on a wooden chair, his arms resting on the backrest and his chin supported on them, looking at Ren with a bright smile as if the sun were shining from behind his blindfold.
"Seriously, Ren… are you really comparing yourself to Yuji?" Gojo laughed lightly, his laughter echoing through the gloomy room.
"Yuji was a surprise, but you… you're 'Ren Zenin.' Those old foxes were scared to death when they learned that the talent they feared had now become Sukuna's vessel. To them, you're not just a danger. You're a walking disaster."
"You mean those damn elders…" Ren spat the words with clear disgust. "I told you last year that we should get rid of them and clean that trash up, didn't I?"
Gojo fell silent for a moment, his features hidden behind the black blindfold. In that second, memories of Suguru Geto's attack on Jujutsu High—known as the "Night Parade of a Hundred Demons"—passed through his mind. He remembered a scene that never left him: when he, Ren, and Yuta Okkotsu were in the same room facing the elders' judgment.
Back then, Yuta had been trembling with anxiety, trying to understand the new world Gojo had thrown him into. But Ren… Ren had been something else entirely. He wasn't afraid. He was "indifferent" to the point of being frozen.
His emerald eyes had been so sharp they seemed to pierce through the screens hiding the elders, silently declaring that he would kill everyone if necessary.
"You didn't care about anything except gaining power back then, right?" Gojo asked as he returned to reality, looking deeply at Ren. "I'm still puzzled… why did you lose your usual composure that day?"
Ren didn't blink and replied in an emotionless tone, "Don't blame me. That was the first time in a long while that I lost control of my emotions."
Gojo smiled mockingly, as if he had grasped the thread. "You mean when Geto dared to attack your older sister, Maki?"
Ren's face remained expressionless, his gaze fixed on Gojo Satoru in unsettling silence, causing Gojo to raise his hands dramatically in surrender. "Alright, alright… I won't meddle in complicated family matters. Still, I think directly threatening the elders back then was a crazy move."
"Aren't you doing the same thing all the time?" Ren suddenly said sarcastically, making Gojo laugh as he scratched his head. "Of course… those nasty foxes need to be dealt with someday… but not now."
"Hmmm… where was I?" Ren shook his head, not caring about Gojo's current plans.
"Your actions back then would've led to your immediate execution if not for the intervention of the magnificent and amazing Gojo Satoru!" Gojo said, pointing at himself narcissistically.
"That's why they're afraid of me now," Ren said as he tugged slightly at the chains. "They want to get rid of me under the excuse that I'm Sukuna's vessel. It's the perfect pretext to remove an obstacle from their path."
"Exactly." Gojo nodded. "And judging by that expression of yours… I can confidently guess you're not having much trouble controlling that monster inside you, right?"
Ren sighed and leaned his head back to stare at the seal-covered ceiling. At that moment, deep within his mental void, Ren stood face to face with Ryomen Sukuna. The King of Curses sat arrogantly on his throne of victims' bones, one hand under his chin, wearing a blood-dripping mocking smile.
"You're annoying…" Ren muttered in his mind, pressing his temples.
Sukuna laughed hoarsely, his voice filling the void. "How pathetic… Do you think these restraints, and your flimsy control over this body, will last? One day you'll weaken, and then I'll emerge and turn this world into a bath of blood…"
Ren interrupted him with deadly boredom. "Yeah, yeah… you'll kill Gojo Satoru first and destroy everything. I get it. Stop repeating this nonsense in my head. You're giving me a headache."
Sukuna: "….."
Ren returned to awareness in the room and looked at Gojo with sarcasm. "Don't compare me to Yuji. Yuji is a natural vessel, with innate talent in suppressing curses. I'm not."
Gojo raised his eyebrows in curiosity. "Then how are you still in control?"
Ren smiled narcissistically and raised his bound hand to brush his face. "Simple… the ugly can't control this handsome face. My beauty is my first shield."
In the mental void, Sukuna exploded with rage and unleashed the technique "Kai! (Dismantle)." In an instant, Ren's spiritual image was completely torn apart—but it didn't vanish. It rippled like purple smoke and reformed immediately, Ren looking back at Sukuna with a raised eyebrow and a disdainful gaze, making the King of Curses click his tongue irritably and turn away.
"In short, I suppress him with sheer willpower," Ren continued explaining to Gojo. "With my mind. As long as my focus remains good and I don't suffer an emotional breakdown, Sukuna will stay in his cell."
"And if he takes control?" Gojo asked suddenly seriously. "How long until you return?"
"If I lose control completely?" Ren thought for a moment. "He'd have one minute at most. But I've placed mental locks ensuring that even if he comes out, he won't be able to use his full power immediately."
[You did that yourself?]
When Rina heard Ren's words, she showed a cold expression and briefly considered helping Sukuna take control of Ren's body. She thought about it for only a few moments.
"Alright… I suppose that's good enough! As long as you don't suffer an emotional collapse, you'll be fine… I'll contact the principal and tell him to place Maki in a protected underground cell," Gojo said mockingly, making Ren's eyebrow twitch.
"Don't worry… you've always been emotionless anyway. I doubt you'll ever lose control," Gojo continued his sarcasm, making Ron—who shared Ren's memories—want to punch him.
Ron angrily: "Emotionless my ass… damn you, Ren, release Sukuna and let him cut him into pieces!"
"…"
Why am I surrounded by idiots? And why do I have an idiot copy? Ren thought with a sigh.
Gojo clapped his hands enthusiastically and suddenly stood up. "Alright, Ren-chan! We're done with the long, boring interrogation segment to satisfy the elders. Let's get out of this rotten basement!"
Gojo moved lightly, opened the door, and left calmly. Ren stared at his back with eyes like those of a dead fish.
"….."
"He forgot to undo my restraints."
Ren sighed deeply, feeling pity for his luck. "Why can't I get a normal teacher even once?"
Casually, Ren flexed his arm muscles and, using his raw physical strength that surpassed human limits, tore through the steel and seals like spider silk. He stood up smoothly, dusted off his clothes, and left the room, closing the door behind him.
.
.
After some time, in a secret underground training ground, dust rose from a violent clash. Ren and Yuji were attacking Gojo Satoru simultaneously with full seriousness. Gojo, as usual, had his hands in his pockets, moving with supernatural lightness and dodging attacks mere millimeters from his body.
"Good, Yuji! Your level's improving quickly!" Gojo shouted as he flipped gracefully over Yuji, then delivered a quick kick to his back, sending him crashing into the solid wall. "You'll get stronger when you fight real opponents!"
At that moment, Ren appeared. He moved at extreme speed, making it seem as though he had teleported. His emerald eyes gleamed with terrifying coldness, like those of a ferocious beast.
Boooooom!
Gojo blocked Ren's punch directly, creating a windstorm that shattered the training ground floor. Gojo looked at Ren, who was smiling coldly.
"It seems my little Ren managed to unlock greater physical power…" Gojo said admiringly. "You truly surpassed your limits during your fight with Sukuna."
Ren nodded slowly. "My body has become strong enough. The problem is that I can't extract my full power, or even a portion of it. Still, that battle made me realize how to pressure my muscles to draw out greater strength."
"That's truly wonderful!" Gojo shouted with a suspicious smile. "Then, Ren-chan… we'll double the necklace's weight!"
"Huh?"
Before Ren could process it, Gojo swiftly formed a special hand sign. Suddenly, the crimson necklace around Ren's neck glowed, and he felt the weight of a mountain crash onto his shoulders.
"Damn it! Why did you do that all of a sudden?!" Ren shouted, struggling to keep his balance. "My internal organs almost got crushed!"
"Use reverse cursed technique to reinforce your blood vessels!" Gojo said with a laugh.
"You… you're ignoring the fact you nearly killed me again!"
"Of course not. Who do you think I am?"
"A reckless teacher!" Yuji's voice came as he lunged in with a kick from behind.
"Wrong. You deserve punishment too!" Gojo turned and punched Yuji directly in the stomach, sending his body flying and embedding him into the concrete ceiling.
Gojo turned toward Ren. "Reeeeeen…"
"Since when did my life turn into a horror movie?" Ren muttered with fake terror as he dove and hid under a nearby wooden table.
After a period of intense and insane training, Yuji sat in his room watching boring movies and trying to channel energy into a doll, while Ren was in a place that had nothing to do with Japan.
…
The South Pole.
At the center of a blizzard that made visibility impossible, with winds roaring like demonic spirits, Ren stood in this white hell wearing only light black pants, bare-chested in temperatures below minus fifty degrees. Behind him, Gojo Satoru lounged calmly atop a massive polar bear he had beaten and subdued, turning it into a warm living sofa.
"Gojo-sensei…" Ren said, shivering violently, his eyes fixed on the attacks of a special-grade curse in front of him. "Why… in the hell… are we doing missions at the South Pole?!"
At that moment, Ren dodged an icy beam that froze the air itself into solid blocks of ice.
"Ren-chan! It's the South Pole!" Gojo shouted with a wide smile. "Isn't the place amazing?"
"Damn both poles! I thought we came on a trip!"
"You could say that… a school trip? No, we should've brought the others. Let's call it… a harsh training trip then."
Ren sighed. "Damn my life…"
Ren leapt into the air, the crimson necklace around his neck glowing brightly. Gojo had forced him to wear it to face this curse with overwhelming destructive power. Ren felt the necklace's pressure preventing him from using his energy, but he focused on his lungs.
Sun Breathing: Absolute Speed!
Purple-crimson flames ignited around Ren, a demonic aura that slightly warmed his body. He used a tiny portion of cursed energy leaking despite the necklace to enhance his movement in a style resembling "Thunder Breathing." He shot forward like a red beam, piercing the heart of the blizzard.
Gojo watched with sudden seriousness and slightly lifted his blindfold to see with the "Six Eyes." "He's mixing physical techniques with cursed energy in a way I've never seen before… Ren, you really are a monster."
When Ren reached the center of the storm, he expected to see an ugly beast—but froze. There was a small boy with snow-white hair and icy blue eyes filled with tears and terror, clutching himself and trembling at the storm's center.
"Is this child… the curse?" Ren muttered, sensing something wrong. The boy raised his head and looked at Ren with shining eyes, as if seeing his savior.
"S-sir… please help me…" the child suddenly cried and ran toward Ren.
By observing the child and his surroundings, Ren easily understood that this child was a special-grade curse—or higher—and seemed non-hostile… at least for now.
The boy approached and stood in front of Ren nervously. Ren's sharp, ferocious eyes stared at him coldly, making him feel cold despite possessing the power to create a blizzard.
"S-sir?" the child hesitated, stepping back in fear.
Ren sighed and violently removed the crimson necklace. At that moment, his cursed energy exploded with terrifying force—but it wasn't blue. It was dark purple, an aura that conveyed both destruction and beauty.
The cursed energy surged like a raging dragon, forming a dark purple vortex that dispersed the blizzard.
Gojo suddenly appeared beside him. "Hoo… the color of your energy has become very distinctive."
"So… what about this curse?" Gojo Satoru asked curiously while looking directly into the child's eyes with the Six Eyes.
Ren looked at the child with a calm smile. "It seems to be a curse born from human feelings toward winter… or perhaps the embodiment of cold itself."
"Hmmm… I can easily say it's the type of curse that retains human memories and emotions… these curses easily become shikigami."
"Obtaining a special-grade shikigami… are you a light novel protagonist, Ren-chan?" Gojo said with a mocking smile, though Ren felt something strange upon hearing his words. He ignored it for now.
"What will we do?" Gojo asked curiously.
Ren smiled and lifted the small child into his arms. "We'll name him Yuki. I'll take him under my wing."
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End of Chapter 44
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