The moment he said those words, Kamo Shizumi saw the group of figures in front of him pause noticeably.
It was like being in the middle of an intense firefight in some FPS game when the computer suddenly freezes for a moment.
You could probably tell right away:
That damn thing was scanning the area again!
Then.
Kamo Shizumi watched as the red-eyed puppets collectively retreated, eventually allowing one seemingly unremarkable figure to step forward.
Under the moonlight, Kamo Shizumi finally got a clear look at the other party’s appearance.
About 1.75 meters tall, wearing the standard Kyoto Jujutsu High uniform.
From the outside, it looked no different from an ordinary person, but its exposed, perfectly round head gave it a distinctly inhuman appearance…
As mentioned earlier, this thing was a mechanical puppet.
It had a wooden framework, reflecting a subdued, dark-yellow outline beneath the moonlight.
Overall, it appeared to have even been coated with a layer of paint.
Seeing it during the day would have been fine, but encountering it in the middle of the night would genuinely make you think you had encountered a ghost.
As for its true identity…
At Kyoto Jujutsu High, it went by Mechamaru.
Its real name was Kokichi Muta.
As one of the “victims” of a Heavenly Restriction, the Monkey King exchanged cursed energy for an extraordinary physical body, while Kokichi Muta exchanged his physical body for cursed energy.
His real body was extremely fragile and incapable of moving around in the outside world.
He was born without a right hand and had no sensation below the waist.
He even needed to rely on a life-support device in his daily life just to remain conscious.
In a certain sense, he could be considered “paralyzed.”
Your body is in terrible shape, but your Cursed Technique makes up for it quite nicely.
Puppet Manipulation.
This was a technique that allowed cursed energy to be distributed and infused into objects, controlling them through specific methods.
And thanks to the enhancement provided by his Heavenly Restriction, this guy’s Puppet Manipulation had also been greatly strengthened.
With a technique range that could practically cover the entire country, along with cursed-energy output capable of both refined control and explosive bursts, Kokichi Muta’s jujutsu possessed an extremely wide range of applications as long as the conditions allowed for it.
Whether he wanted to gather intelligence or launch a full-scale kamikaze assault, there was no problem.
When Kamo Shizumi first read the original story, he had already sighed over this.
This damn guy could have simply stayed in the back and remotely controlled his puppets to harass his opponents…
Even if his offensive power could not keep up in the later stages, he would at least have been an excellent means of gathering intelligence.
But what happened?
His lower half controlled his upper half.
In order to pursue a romantic relationship, he made a deal with Kenjaku and Mahito, then turned around and sold all of Jujutsu High’s intelligence.
Although that speculation might be somewhat unfair, since the guy did show concern for his classmates in the original story…
But that was all.
The scenes of everyone else getting injured were not even as “spectacular” as Miwa’s one backward glance.
And what Kamo Shizumi found most difficult to understand was this guy’s way of thinking.
—What exactly was this guy thinking?
In theory, someone like Kenjaku, a master of barrier techniques, would certainly have established a two-way Binding Vow preventing Kokichi Muta from actively exposing information about their side.
But still…
Before deciding to make a deal with the cursed spirits, did you really not consider preparing some contingencies first?
For example, prepare a puppet in advance before making the decision.
Then, after becoming a traitor, immediately contact Gojo.
“Boss, I became a traitor because I wanted to pursue a romantic relationship with someone. Remember to come rescue me later!”
Putting everything else aside, considering Gojo’s personality, he really might have agreed…
Of course, if you said you were not close enough with Gojo, then at the very least, could you not have given Utahime a heads-up?
Instead, he prepared absolutely no contingency plan.
He simply built an EVA-style machine by hand, buried it in the mountains, and waited to have a mecha battle against Kenjaku and Mahito.
Bro really seemed to think he could solo two Special Grade entities…
In the end, he died, and he still failed to accomplish what he wanted.
His beloved became a mascot and almost got sent to the afterlife by Prison Mom with a single Uzumaki.
From the perspective of the original story, he basically contributed nothing himself and instead gave Mahito another point-blank horror image opportunity.
All I can say is, his decision-making was completely screwed.
While Kamo Shizumi was still thinking about all this nonsense, the mechanical puppet spoke first.
“Who are you?”
The voice overlapped layer upon layer, like an electric microphone with severe interference, making the listener’s ears itch.
“Just a nobody passing through this place. I am an insignificant pawn. My own affairs are not important. What matters is that I can solve your problem.”
The moment he said this, the other party’s eyes flickered slightly before it continued speaking on its own.
“No… Just now, I could sense fluctuations of cursed energy, and there was also the outline of blood crawling around your body. I remember now. You are that ‘anomaly’ Kamo kept mentioning.”
He raised his right hand and pointed it toward Kamo Shizumi from a distance.
“The enemy who is not recorded in the Kamo clan genealogy, but can use Blood Manipulation.”
—The information had been shared.
But that was not surprising.
There would definitely be information exchange within Kyoto Jujutsu High.
‘Having a memorable Cursed Technique is not necessarily a good thing…’
After sighing inwardly, Kamo Shizumi took half a step backward and spoke in an even tone.
“Although I would like to say there is some misunderstanding here… At this point, explaining myself would not be very useful, would it? So, what do you intend to do?”
The mechanical puppet was silent for a moment before raising its right hand.
Its five fingers spread slightly, revealing the rounded shape within its palm…
Seeing this, Kamo Shizumi also tensed slightly.
This guy’s attack methods were quite straightforward.
He directly converted cursed energy into flames, or alternatively, into another form of impact cannon.
Because he used mechanical puppets, there were basically no problems with reloading or charging up again.
In an emergency, he could even treat his mechanical puppets as disposable weapons, somewhat similar to Mei Mei’s “Bird Strike.”
To be honest, as long as there was no overwhelming difference in strength, this guy’s Puppet Manipulation was quite a troublesome technique.
After all, even ants could pile up enough to kill an elephant.
“You injured Zenin. I will not let you off. But before that… What exactly do you want from me?”
After a brief pause, the mechanical puppet’s red eyes began to flicker slightly.
“I do not remember ever revealing my real name to outsiders. How did you know it?”
Although it had not lowered its guard or canceled its attack stance, the very fact that it was asking questions in this manner was already a form of “compromise.”
Getting the other party interested in talking was merely the means.
Being able to communicate normally was the prerequisite.
Only after that would come the “fatal blow.”
Kamo Shizumi smiled and said,
“None of that matters. What I want to say is… I can help you stand up and experience life with your own body. How does that sound? Do you want to escape from this miserable state of paralysis?”
“…!”
The mechanical puppet in front of him remained silent for a long time before lowering its right hand.
“Who exactly are you?”
Hearing this, Kamo Shizumi understood.
This guy…
His lower half had started controlling his upper half…