Free Web NovelChapter 349: 349 Jujutsu Kaisen 14
"Huh? Why Okinawa all of a sudden?"
"Because I’m bored. It’s nice to see the ocean and get some fresh air."
"What?! You rich people really think differently. Well, fine, let’s go. I was bored anyway."
We packed lightly, went to a department store to buy swimsuits for Maki and Mai, then went to the airport and immediately took a flight to Okinawa. This was my first time taking a plane since coming to the Jujutsu Kaisen universe. Looking at this, Japan really didn’t seem to require owning a plane. You just never use one. In the US, I used a private plane often because the land is so vast, but in Japan, a helicopter seems sufficient.
So we arrived in Okinawa and went straight to the hotel where Satoru, Suguru, Amanai Riko, and Kuroi Misato stayed in the original story, and booked a suite. Thanks to [Jack Sparrow’s Compass], finding the way wasn’t difficult. Moreover, since it was still spring and not peak season, we got a room immediately without a reservation. Maki and Mai were overjoyed at the sight of the ocean.
"Let’s go quickly! Sis, big bro! Hurry, hurry~!"
"Yeah, yeah."
This hotel had a beach right in front, so as soon as Maki and Mai entered the hotel room, they changed into their swimsuits and started pestering us. So Tsukumo and I, without even properly unpacking, changed into our swimsuits and took Maki and Mai out to the beach.
"Whee~ Whee~ Ahaha~"
As soon as Maki and Mai arrived at the beach, they started running around and playing. Since it wasn’t peak season, there weren’t many people on the beach—thankfully, or we might have been looking for missing children. While the kids ran around, Tsukumo and I set up a rented parasol and mat.
"We came on a whim, but it’s nice now that we’re here."
"Right? Watch the kids for a moment. I’ll go buy some food."
"Sure, get some beer too."
That day, we swam with the kids on the beach, built sandcastles, and had a great time. Then we ate delicious food at a nearby restaurant and returned to the hotel. After washing up, Maki and Mai fell asleep immediately, probably exhausted.
"Having kids is tiring. Would it be like this if I got married and had children?"
"Probably."
"Now I’m scared of becoming a mother."
"Well, if you find a good husband, he’ll help with housework, so it won’t be that exhausting."
"That’s only if you find such a good man, right?"
"That’s true."
Tsukumo continued talking like that, looking straight at me. It was as if she was saying, ’You’re talking about yourself, aren’t you?’ Honestly, I knew it too. That Tsukumo likes me. But there was a reason I couldn’t easily date her. In fact, when I came to the Jujutsu Kaisen world, I already had someone in mind as a romantic partner.
That person was ’Iori Utahime.’ I wanted to say that I wanted to save her from Satoru’s clutches. But as things progressed, I hadn’t even met Utahime, and instead had grown closer to Tsukumo. That’s not to say I dislike Tsukumo. She’s beautiful, charming in her own way, and has a good personality—she’s comfortable to be around.
’I don’t know either. Should I just let it play out a little more...’
The next day, we went out to the beach again. The weather was so nice that it would be a waste not to enjoy swimming. The kids loved it too.
"Big bro! Build a sandcastle for us again today."
"Okay."
Then, from a distance, I heard a commotion and saw four people—two men and two women—waving and running toward us. They were Satoru and his group.
"It’s the Head Priest and Tsukumo! What a coincidence..."
I had intended this, but I decided to pretend I didn’t know.
"Huh? What are you guys doing here?"
"We came on a mission."
"Really? We came to play. Arrived yesterday."
"Oh~ I see. This is an unexpected but welcome reinforcement! And the strongest reinforcement at that. But who are these kids? Don’t tell me you already have children..."
When Satoru said that, startled, Tsukumo’s face turned bright red. Flustered, she thumped Satoru on the head.
Knock!
"Ugh!"
"What are you talking about, you brat? I’m still a virgin!"
Satoru rubbed his head—Tsukumo’s hit must have hurt a lot.
"Ow, dammit... That hurts more than when Sensei hits me!"
"So what mission are you here for?"
"Escort and disposal of the Star Plasma Vessel."
At Satoru’s words, Tsukumo immediately understood and looked at the women accompanying them.
"So you’re the Star Plasma Vessel. Already that time of year... Then the woman next to you must be from the Kuroi family."
The ’Kuroi family’ was a family that had served the Star Plasma Vessel for generations, receiving support from the Sorcerer Association to care for and escort the Vessel.
Then the girl following behind struck a pose and said.
"Ahem! I am the Star Plasma Vessel! Master Tengen is this body, and this body is Master Tengen!!!"
Ignoring that, Suguru introduced the women who had come with them.
"This is ’Amanai Riko.’ As you heard, the Star Plasma Vessel. And this is her guardian, ’Kuroi Misato.’"
"Bangs! I’m trying to introduce myself here! How irreverent!!"
"Yeah, yeah."
Amanai Riko was a middle school girl with black hair, long eyelashes, and large, cute eyes. Kuroi Misato appeared to be in her early thirties, with long hair neatly tied back and slightly sharp eyes.
"I’m Hisakawa Jin, the Head Priest of Taijin-kyo. This is special grade sorcerer Tsukumo Yuki. And these kids are our new family members, Hisakawa Maki and Hisakawa Mai."
When I introduced them, Maki and Mai bowed their heads and greeted.
"Hello."
"Hello, cute little ladies. This guy is Gojo Satoru, and this is Geto Suguru."
After exchanging greetings, we started playing in the water together. But Satoru only played for a short while at the beginning, then came to me, asked me to look after everyone, and sprawled out under the parasol to sleep.
"Did this guy not sleep yesterday?"
When I asked Suguru, he answered.
"Probably. We were constantly attacked in Tokyo, so he couldn’t relax. But then we coincidentally met you and Tsukumo here, so he relaxed. Both of you are recognized by the school as strong, so he feels safe."
"I appreciate the sentiment, but isn’t this just dumping the mission on us?"
"It’s not like you’re strangers. Don’t be like that."
"Did you get some sleep?"
"Since Satoru was awake, I slept a bit yesterday."
"Sounds like a lot happened in Tokyo."
"Yeah, there’s a large bounty on the Star Plasma Vessel. Quite a few curse users were after it."
This was Toji’s strategy. By placing a bounty on the Vessel, he aimed to exhaust Satoru and then exploit any opening. Satoru was that strong—someone no one could recklessly challenge. But unlike in the original story, Satoru now felt a sense of security knowing I was nearby, so he was calmly napping and recovering his stamina.
"I don’t understand. Tengen’s barrier techniques are indeed excellent, but is it worth offering a Star Plasma Vessel to maintain them? It seems much better to properly train the next generation for defense. I think it’s bad to entrust everything to a single excellent barrier technique user."
When I said that, Suguru sighed.
"It would be nice if things went that ideally, but the problem is reality doesn’t work that way."
Wahahahaha!
From the beach, I could hear Amanai Riko, Tsukumo, and the children laughing brightly and playing. Watching them, I spoke.
"Since humans are involved, it won’t be perfect. But I think seeking the ideal is what humans do. If you give up in advance because it’s impossible, it’s no different from ending there."
At my words, Suguru’s expression became complicated. I was just saying what I thought, but I didn’t know how Suguru would take it. I thought he might interpret it in a different way, but I’m not the kind of person to parse words like that, so I left it, got up, and went to play with the people who were having fun.
About three hours after we started playing, Suguru looked at his watch, went to the parasol, and woke Satoru.
"Hmm?"
"Satoru, it’s time."
Satoru got up, stretched, and yawned widely.
"Yawn... Already that time? I was sleeping so well."
When Satoru and Suguru, thus awake, came to the beach, Amanai Riko, knowing her time was nearly up, looked gloomy. Seeing that, Satoru spoke to Suguru.
"Suguru, let’s head back tomorrow morning."
"But..."
"The weather is great, and the Head Priest and Tsukumo are here too. There’s probably no safer place in Japan than this? Besides, it’s better if the bounty on Amanai expires during the flight."
"Well, that’s true."
"Then it’s decided."
At that, Amanai Riko’s face brightened considerably.
After showering and changing clothes, we rented a vehicle and went on a kayak tour. After a brief safety briefing, we launched the kayaks onto the river and paddled along, exploring the mangrove forest. After that, we visited various tourist spots, enjoyed the scenery, and stopped at shops to browse souvenirs. The final stop of the day was an aquarium, which Maki and Mai especially loved.
"Wow~ a really big fish!"
"That’s a whale shark."
"Big bro, what’s this flat one?"
"That’s a ray."
But unlike the children, Amanai Riko seemed to have complicated feelings. She watched Maki and Mai, who were looking at the aquarium with sparkling eyes, with an envious expression.
After finishing the aquarium, we moved to a restaurant near the hotel and had dinner. But Amanai couldn’t eat properly. The others also knew that she would assimilate with Tengen tomorrow, so they didn’t say anything.
Then I patted Amanai on the shoulder and said.
"If you don’t want to assimilate, tell me. Our family will protect you. No sorcerer in Japan can touch me."
When I said that, Suguru tried to say something, but Satoru grabbed his shoulder and stopped him.
"But they say something terrible will happen if I don’t assimilate..."
"Don’t worry about that. I’ll take care of it somehow. To be honest, I don’t like the very existence of a Star Plasma Vessel. Besides, there’s no guarantee that something terrible will definitely happen. Think it over."
"Okay."
We finished eating and returned to the hotel. I returned the rental car, and when I came up to the hotel room, sure enough, Maki and Mai were already asleep, exhausted. Tsukumo was sitting in the living room drinking beer. She must have bathed and put the kids to bed while I was returning the car.
"Have a drink with me."
Tsukumo suddenly called me.
"Sure."
When I sat down in front of Tsukumo, she took a big swig of beer and began to speak.
"Actually, I was also a Star Plasma Vessel once. But because I had a good technique, a different Vessel was chosen. I think that was Amanai Riko. So I felt somewhat guilty. That’s why I was a bit moved, I suppose, when you said you’d take care of it earlier. Until now, I had thought it was only natural to offer a Star Plasma Vessel to Tengen."
In the original story, it’s revealed that Tsukumo had been designated as a Star Plasma Vessel during a conversation with Tengen at Tomogara Palace (where Tengen resides). At that time, Tengen had already failed to assimilate with a Vessel and evolved, and she gets very angry, saying, "So after failing to assimilate, you’re saying it was fine not to assimilate?" From the perspective of Tsukumo, who had been a Vessel, it must have been absurd.
"I see... As I said earlier, I don’t like the very existence of Star Plasma Vessels. I don’t understand why you have to be sacrificed. At the very least, I think the Vessel should have a choice. So I gave her a chance. A chance to choose for herself."
"Thinking about it quietly, I think you’re right. If Amanai Riko asks you for protection, I’ll help as much as I can."
"Having a powerful ally is good, isn’t it?"
Tsukumo chuckled at that. Anyway, we sat in the living room, chatting, having a light drink, and resting.
The next day, we took the same plane as Satoru’s group and returned to Tokyo. Even on the plane, Satoru slept and recovered his stamina.
"Well then, good luck."
"See you later. I’m glad we got some rest thanks to you, Head Priest. Next time, I’ll treat you to a meal."
"Sure."
We parted ways with Satoru’s group at the airport and returned to the mansion. Then I asked Tsukumo for a favor.
"I’m worried about Satoru and the others, so I think I should go check on them. Please look after the kids."
"Really? Then come back without causing any trouble."
Tsukumo seemed more worried about whether I would cause trouble than about something happening to me.
Anyway, I left the mansion, used my [Concealment] ability, and quickly moved to the entrance of Tomogara Palace inside the school. It was my first time going there, but with [Jack Sparrow’s Compass], it wasn’t a problem.
When I arrived, Satoru and Toji were already in the middle of a fierce battle. Unlike in the original story, Satoru had no injuries at all, and Toji was desperately trying to get close to him. The reason for this was probably not only that Satoru had been able to rest in Okinawa, but also that I had told him that the Limitless wasn’t perfect.
Toji, befitting the description ’Physical Gifted’ granted by his Heavenly Restriction, had a large, muscular, very solid-looking physique. He had a handsome face with a roughly cut hairstyle—that ruggedness actually suited Toji’s cool impression well. He also had a cursed spirit with an infant’s head and an earthworm-like long body wrapped around him, which was probably the hard-to-find ’Inventory Cursed Spirit.’
"Trying to wear me down with curse users was a waste of time."
"I rested a bit in Okinawa. Cheap tricks like that don’t work on me!"
This guy—if it weren’t for me, he wouldn’t have been able to rest at all—now he was boasting like that. I found it a bit ridiculous.
Realizing he couldn’t handle Satoru like this, Toji quickly circled around, using buildings, rocks, and trees as cover to erase his presence. Physical Gifted really is broken—even though he was just moving quickly, his speed was so great that he was nearly invisible to the ordinary observer.
Satoru, also on edge, surveyed his surroundings, then decided to use the Limitless technique ’Blue’ to pull in and obliterate all the buildings and cover in the area.
CRAAASH—!!! KABOOOOM!!!
