Kamo Shizumi felt that his head hurt a little.
The memories rolling around in his mind were shapeless, like glass that had fallen onto the ground and shattered into scattered fragments.
—So after all that, I still have to piece it together myself…
Fortunately, without any external interference, Kamo Shizumi quickly sorted through this part of his thoughts.
He did not know the name of the man in the memories.
Even his face and other features were extremely blurry and indistinct…
It was as though a voice kept whispering in his ear, “None of this is important.” Kamo Shizumi’s attention naturally shifted toward other details.
First…
This thing was a cursed object.
Then, what specific abilities and effects did it possess?
The thought had barely formed when Kamo Shizumi watched as the jade slowly sank beneath his flesh.
Like water blending seamlessly with water, the cursed tool naturally embedded itself into his body.
“…???”
Kamo Shizumi somewhat nervously felt around his body for a while.
Finally, through his ability to sense blood, he roughly located the strange sensation within his body, around his “chest.”
Tengaigyoku had sunk deep into the interior of his heart, as though it had become a part of his body.
At the same time, a familiar notification appeared before Kamo Shizumi’s eyes.
[Acquired Rokudō Tsuji · Tengaigyoku]
[Fusion conditions fulfilled. Cursed Energy Total +5]
[Preset activation of cursed tool’s special effects…]
As a series of messages appeared, the strange expression on Kamo Shizumi’s face transformed into one of excitement.
So that was how it worked.
No wonder!
Old mother really had given him a gun.
Moreover, through observation and analysis, he could easily draw a further conclusion.
‘This thing is activated through blood…’
Kamo Shizumi recalled the suffix attached to his Innate Technique on his status panel.
Blood Manipulation (Modified).
He had reason to suspect that Kenjaku had mixed something strange into his inheritance, serving a function similar to a key that could directly activate these cursed tools and unlock the restrictions originally placed upon them.
Although there was currently too little information to uncover anything deeper, those details were not particularly important anyway.
He could slowly investigate them later.
And judging from the results…
The gains were substantial.
Because of Hanami’s rampage at the hospital, Kamo Shizumi had also obtained some other “rewards.”
[Completed the “A Narrow Escape from Death” Trial]
[Obtained a special reward: Cursed Energy Efficiency +2]
Oh!
Judging from the current situation, there were clearly more ways to obtain rewards than simply completing the troublemaker missions.
‘Through some kind of epiphany during PvP, or perhaps the sensations experienced during a battle…
I should probably be able to obtain corresponding special rewards through those methods as well.’
In theory, when someone kept getting more and more fired up during a fight, landing a Black Flash should have been relatively easy.
Considering what had happened earlier, Kamo Shizumi had reason to believe…
if he had possessed the strength of a Grade 1 sorcerer back then, he probably could have produced a Black Flash.
Come on!
Everything can be pushed to the limit!
At this point, aside from lamenting how ridiculously weak he was, Kamo Shizumi had no other thoughts.
‘My attributes have increased again.’
After his brief reflection, Kamo Shizumi took the opportunity to glance over his current status panel.
[Kamo Shizumi]
[Cursed Energy Total: 44 (Cursed Tool +5)]
[Cursed Energy Efficiency: 24]
[Cursed Energy Output: 22]
[Innate Technique: Blood Manipulation (Modified)]
[Hand-to-Hand Combat and Cursed Energy Manipulation: 33]
[Derived Abilities: None]
After a brief moment of thought, Kamo Shizumi once again allocated the 2 Freedom Attribute Points he had obtained earlier into “Cursed Energy Efficiency.”
Seeing the value increase to [26] overall, Kamo Shizumi finally felt somewhat reassured.
In fact, his battle this time had given him a fairly profound understanding.
—At his current level, the efficiency of his cursed energy circulation could be said to be absolutely crucial.
‘Faster circulation, more power contained within each individual technique, while also reducing consumption…’
He could fight, endure attacks, and run.
Improving the overall efficiency of his cursed technique was literally the best possible attribute for a technique like Blood Manipulation, which had such a broad range of applications.
Of course, the main reason was that after seeing Piercing Blood, Kamo Shizumi was genuinely rather envious.
After all, what man would not want to have a proper anti-materiel rifle of his own?
Blood compressed through Flowing Red Scale, then activated and fired through a specific technique…
It could reach speeds exceeding the speed of sound for a short period.
He could literally manufacture an anti-materiel rifle with his bare hands.
But looking at things this way, the Six Eyes really were too authoritative.
Gojo Satoru could use cursed energy faster than he could consume it, firing Blue from one side and Red from the other, then bringing both hands together for a spectacular explosion.
And if you somehow survived that, he could simply open his Domain and stuff your brain full of all kinds of information.
Add in his 1.9-meter supermodel physique and his overwhelming advantage in hand-to-hand combat…
The more Kamo Shizumi thought about it, the more he laughed.
How was he supposed to fight a ridiculous boss like that?
From the perspective of the villains, Sukuna absolutely had to make an appearance.
Otherwise, old mother would have to lead everyone in attacking Gojo’s soles with their heads…
With that thought, Kamo Shizumi let out a soft breath and looked around.
Although it was still early and the temple had not yet reached its opening time, if he continued messing around here, there was a very good chance he would run into unnecessary trouble.
He tightened the brand-new Mammut jacket he had acquired through his “free shopping” and hurriedly left the area.
…
One day later.
“Welcome back.”
Seeing Kamo Shizumi return to their base looking exhausted from his journey, Kenjaku warmly welcomed him.
He even stood up and pulled out a chair for him.
“Sit.”
Facing an elder, Kamo Shizumi displayed the proper restraint expected of a young person.
“I brought you some preserved persimmons from Kyoto. Please enjoy them…”
Looking at the exquisitely packaged gift box, Kenjaku could not help but choke slightly.
“So you delayed your return by an entire day just to buy local specialties?”
“Huh? No… I ran out of money. The Bullet train was too expensive, so after traveling one-third of the way, I took a night bus back.”
Kamo Shizumi pulled out the only 126 yen remaining in his pocket, his face filled with emotion.
“Give me another two days to operate independently and I will probably have to start living out of trash cans. To be honest, the crows in Tokyo are pretty fierce. I might not even be able to beat them for food… So, father.”
“Do I really not get paid when I go on missions?”
Kenjaku raised his right hand and rubbed his cheek expressionlessly.
There was a subtle and indescribable sense of embarrassment in his voice.
“I will give you a bank card later. You can use the funds inside whenever you need them…”