JJK: Chapter 71

Title: Sudden Changes

°°°

The violent impact of the Shikigami and the accompanying lightning damage caught Kamo Noritoshi off guard, and he nearly suffered a significant blow. Fortunately, he was already in the Flowing Red Scale state, which allowed him to quickly recover from the abnormal condition.

"Piercing Blood!"

A streak of blood flashed through the air, splashing a burst of blood onto the body of the Flying Serpent, but aside from a painful screech, the Shikigami didn't slow down. The wound, relative to its size, was insignificant, and it didn't even pierce through its body.

"Red Binding!"

Kamo Noritoshi tore open a blood pouch from his chest, and the blood quickly elongated into ropes under his control. He hurled them onto a distant tree trunk, using it as leverage to swiftly move through the forest.

This was a slightly modified version of his Crimson Binding technique, where the challenge lay in maintaining the shape of the blood ropes while moving. In such terrain, it proved to be very effective, allowing him to dodge the Snake's attack.

Fushiguro Megumi, noticing this, turned to Maki and said, "Maki-senpai, I'm going to try to chase him. If I can eliminate him, that would be best. If not, I'll immediately give up and look for the target cursed spirit."

Maki smirked with confidence, spinning her naginata around before placing it behind her back. "I'll take care of the robot over there. You go ahead."

With that, Maki vanished from the spot, leaving behind a blur of shadow as she disappeared into the woods.

Fushiguro Megumi quickly followed in the direction Kamo was heading, seeing the Serpent’s massive body moving awkwardly in the dense forest. It was relentless in its pursuit of Kamo, using sheer brute force to crash through obstacles. Kamo could only utilize sudden, random changes in direction to create distance.

From a distance, Megumi saw Kamo leap out from a cloud of dust created by his Shikigami's charge. Turning to face it, Kamo held his hands together, and large amounts of blood began to gather around his palms.

"Is he using that technique again? But it won't work on the Serpent. As long as he pauses for a moment, he’ll be caught. Why is he still doing this?" Megumi, carefully concealing himself to avoid being attacked, noticed something was off. He made a quick decision and used his own technique.

"Piercing Blood!"

The blood that Kamo Noritoshi had compressed into his palms shot forward in the blink of an eye, crossing the gap between him and the Shikigami, landing a successful hit. But just like before, it wasn't a fatal blow. Over time, it would quickly heal.

However, Kamo didn't show any signs of concern. His hands remained clasped, and threads of blood emerged from his robes and entered his palms.

"Too bad he didn't appear..."

"Starfall."

The crimson bloodlines reappeared, but this time, they weren’t alone. A series of Piercing Blood strikes quickly engulfed the Serpent. Kamo Noritoshi’s technique, having pushed his cursed energy to its limit, left him unable to use the blood ropes to escape anymore. All his hopes rested on this next offensive.

The stronger the summoned spirit, the greater the burden it placed on its summoner. Unless it was a particularly unique entity, such a spirit usually took up all the summoner's available cursed energy. In this case, if the spirit was destroyed, it would naturally affect the caster.

Although the Zen'in family's Ten Shadow Techniques hadn't been seen in years, records of them existed in the Kamo family, who shared similar techniques with the other major clans. The spirit Kamo was fighting against seemed to be an expansion of Fushiguro Megumi’s technique. The burden of controlling such a spirit wouldn't be light, or else the other Ten Shadows would have appeared to assist in attacking.

So, if Kamo could destroy the spirit first, he could gain some breathing room and then use the Flowing Red Scale State to pull Megumi into close combat, where he wouldn't have the luxury of controlling his spirit freely. This was basic battle strategy.

However, Kamo soon realized something was wrong. The Snake's massive body was already beginning to dissolve before he even used Piercing Blood. It was the result of Megumi's control. The Snake was disintegrating, not destroyed.

Megumi had already made his move, and the premature disintegration meant Kamo's attack was rendered ineffective. While he had lost the Flying Serpent's massive power, the swarm of smaller Serpents that remained in the air was enough to give Kamo a headache in his current state.

The small snakes, now with wings, darted through the shadows toward Kamo, who barely managed to form a blood blade, making a last-ditch effort as his plan faltered.

Shin leaned back in his chair, comfortably watching the scene unfold on the screen. Megumi's fight had no surprises left, and Maki’s battle against the mechanical doll was also nearing its end. Maki had made full use of the environment, making it difficult for the mechanical doll to track her cursed energy. Relying only on sight and hearing made her an easy target for Maki’s disturbances. Ultimately, the battle concluded with Maki intentionally letting down her guard and then swiftly retaliating in a well-prepared counterattack.

—-—

The scene with Itadori Yuji and Todo Aoi was far more harmonious. Although Itadori seemed to be taking a beating, the reality was different. Todo wasn’t aiming for victory; instead, he was fully immersed in the thrill of a visceral, blow-for-blow exchange. In between punches, Todo even took the time to coach Itadori.

If one ignored the brutal back-and-forth, the situation resembled a perfect scene of a skilled mentor teaching an eager student. Itadori, immersed in this genuine sense of progress, seemed to feel no physical pain. His entire focus was on listening to Todo’s advice and instinctively converting it into immediate action.

“These two… are they going to be okay?”

Utahime Iori watched the “barbaric” battle with growing concern. What if they got too caught up in the heat of the moment and lost control? She knew Todo well enough to understand that, once caught in a fight he longed for, he could become completely reckless.

Shin, however, had a different perspective. While the fight seemed wild and unrestrained, he knew Todo wasn’t a simple brute. Even those with rough exteriors could have a delicate side.

“Don’t worry, Professor Utahime. Shoko is here too, isn’t she? Everything’s under control,” Shin reassured her, diverting his gaze from their fight.

It was clear that Itadori and Todo had entirely forgotten about their original objective of exorcising the cursed spirit. To them, the end of this fight might as well mark the conclusion of the first team battle.

---

Elsewhere

On another part of the screen, Inumaki Toge had regrouped with Panda and Nobara. They soon encountered the Kyoto students searching the central area for cursed spirits. This group consisted of Zen’in Mai, Miwa Kasumi, Nishimiya Momo (patrolling the skies), and their new ally, Minamoto Nao.

“We have two first-years on our side; this isn’t exactly fair,” Panda remarked casually as he assessed the opposing team. But the truth was the opposite: with Inumaki on their side, they held the advantage.

They already had some intel on Zen’in Mai and Miwa Kasumi from last year. If Panda activated his Gorilla Mode and worked with Nobara, Inumaki could use cursed speech to reduce their opponents' numbers. With Junpei Yoshino assisting from the sidelines, their victory seemed assured—as long as they remained cautious of the newcomer, Nao.

Nao, meanwhile, seemed excited. She retrieved an old, worn staff from her back while Mai quietly relayed information about Panda and Inumaki, urging her to stick to their pre-planned strategy.

“Here comes Panda!”

Panda charged ahead with surprising speed, while Nobara followed close behind, wielding a toy hammer.

“Stop!”

Inumaki’s cursed speech froze the opposing team momentarily, but they had prepared for this. Mai and Miwa moved to shield Nao, who then leaped out from behind them to engage Panda. At the same time, Nishimiya swooped down from the sky on her broomstick, capitalizing on the confusion.

Nao cleverly used Panda’s large frame to block Inumaki’s line of sight, forcing him to reposition. By the time he found a new angle, Mai and Miwa had broken free from the cursed speech.

The two Kyoto students coordinated seamlessly, rushing toward Inumaki. Mai pulled out her revolver, using rubber bullets to disrupt his rhythm, while Nishimiya’s attacks darted through the trees. Miwa, blade in hand, intercepted Nobara, leaving Panda and Naon to face off.

Nao’s cursed tool was a long staff, its lacquer peeling to reveal its age. Panda knew little about her technique, but he didn’t hesitate, immediately entering Gorilla Mode.

Now a size larger, Panda swung his massive paw, the tearing wind distorting the air. He had already planned his next move to chase Nao after she dodged. However, instead of evading, the slender girl smiled and stepped into the attack. She dodged the initial strike with minimal movement and brought her staff down on Panda with a calculated swing.

Panda’s instincts screamed that something was wrong, but it was already too late to withdraw his attack. As a seasoned fighter, he knew that any strange behavior from an opponent likely concealed a deeper strategy or an unknown technique. And just as he suspected, when Nao’s staff struck him, the impact wasn’t physically significant—yet his entire body froze for a moment, and his usually sharp mind was thrown into disarray.

It took a brief moment for Panda to recover, but he quickly realized the nature of the attack: it wasn’t a physical strike but one that targeted the soul directly!

Physical blows were something Panda’s tough body could endure, but this eerie technique that bypassed his defenses left him momentarily vulnerable. In that brief window, Nao handled him like a puppet, exploiting his frozen state with ease.

Meanwhile, the other battles weren’t looking great for the Kyoto team either. Mai and Nishimiya were only barely holding back Inumaki, and that was largely because he refrained from using more destructive cursed speech. Even so, the tide was shifting, especially with Junpei Yoshino providing ranged support. While his combat experience was limited, his cursed technique made him an effective support fighter.

On the other hand, Nobara was gaining the upper hand against Miwa Kasumi. Nobara’s personality in battle stood in stark contrast to her appearance—calculated, relentless, and brutal. Despite wielding a toy hammer, her mastery of her cursed technique and her refined combat skills from recent training gave her a distinct advantage.

---

“So, this is one of the Zen’in family’s famed inherited techniques? Impressive,” Utahime remarked as she watched.

Beside her, Satoru Gojo grinned. “Cursed techniques are only as good as the person using them, Utahime. By the way, what do you think the outcome will be?”

Utahime, now used to Gojo’s smugness, had long since given up on arguing with him. She simply ignored his self-satisfied expression and turned her focus back to the screen. The situation was clear: Itadori and Todo were in their own world, their battle irrelevant to the larger outcome.

Once Fushiguro finished dealing with Kamo, he’d be free to either handle the cursed spirit or reinforce another battle, quickly tipping the overall balance in their favor.

Shin, watching with mild disinterest, had already guessed the likely conclusion. But just as he was idly contemplating slipping away, Ijichi suddenly burst into the room, hurrying over to Gojo.

---


“Ijichi, what’s going on?” Gojo asked.

“Gojo-sensei, it’s an emergency,” Ijichi said breathlessly. “A prison in Shizuoka has been overrun by curses. The situation is similar to the one at Satozalura High School. Several people are already dead, and two sorcerers have been confirmed killed in action. The target curse is likely a special grade.”

Both Shin and Gojo immediately thought of Mahito and his group. Shin volunteered without hesitation.

“Sensei, let me handle it. You should stay at the school. Based on our earlier assessments, it’s likely they’re targeting Sukuna’s fingers stored at Jujutsu High. If we split up, I can resolve things quickly in Shizuoka while you ensure the school isn’t caught off guard.”

Gojo nodded in agreement. “Alright, let’s go with that plan. Keep in touch if anything comes up. I’ll take you partway.”

---

The atmosphere shifted as the two took off into the sky, Gojo’s technique enabling long-distance teleportation. Upon reaching Shizuoka, they landed on a desolate road at the edge of a forest.

“This should be far enough,” Gojo said, looking around. “You take care of the curse here, and I’ll wait a minute to see if anyone makes a move back at the school.”

He added a warning. “Be cautious. If this is a trap, it’s likely some sort of containment strategy. They may not know the exact location of the Jujutsu High barriers or the treasury, but Sukuna’s fingers are too valuable to risk falling into their hands.”

Shin nodded. “Agreed. It’s probably a distraction like Satozakura High School. But whatever their hidden motive is, I’ll uncover it soon enough.”

With that, Shin disappeared into the forest, and Gojo stayed behind, scanning for any suspicious movements. The situation boiled down to two possibilities: either this was a straightforward curse outbreak that Shin could handle, or it was a trap designed to stall Gojo and Shin while someone infiltrated Jujutsu High to steal Sukuna’s fingers.

As Gojo waited, he couldn’t help but wonder if the curses truly had the knowledge and resources to locate the school’s secretive barriers and the cursed object repository.