Jujutsu Kaisen: I have everything I need now!

The helicopter's rotors roared deafeningly, shattering the tranquility of dawn.

Inside the cabin, apart from the mechanical noise of the engines, no one spoke. The intense combat and extreme mental tension left everyone deeply exhausted after the danger had passed.

Kugizaki Nobara leaned against the hard bulkhead, her head drooping little by little until it finally rested on Otsuko Yuuta's shoulder, and she fell into a deep sleep. Her breathing was relatively steady, but her brows were furrowed, and a few drops of blood were faintly seeping from the emergency bandage wrapped around her wrist.

Yuta Ekiku remained seated upright, motionless, as if afraid of waking his companion. He looked down at the backpack on his lap, inside which lay the Alien Group mask.

Mayi sat opposite them. She wasn't asleep; although her face was as pale as paper, her eyes were fixed on the "Black Queen" placed on her lap.

The originally pure black gun body now faintly revealed a layer of dark blue luster. That luster was not the reflection of metal, but rather like some kind of liquid flowing inside the barrel.

"It's gotten heavier," Zhenyi said to December 1st.

"It absorbed the core energy of the Alien Corps, and the internal magical energy circuits are changing. This gun was originally made from the remains of ordinary shadow soldiers, but now it has absorbed the power of a general-level soldier; it is evolving."

"In the world of sorcery, with enough negative emotions and sorcery power, even a stone can become a top-grade cursed object." December's tone was very calm. "What you need to do now is suppress it. Don't let it think it's its master."

Zhenyi nodded silently. She closed her eyes and poured her magical power into the gun, strand by strand, to soothe and suppress the restless aura of the deep sea.

Two hours later, the helicopter landed smoothly on the helipad of Tokyo Jujutsu High School.

Gojo Satoru and Ieiri Shoko were already waiting there.

The cabin door opened, and Yuta Otsuko was the first to jump out, then turned around to catch Kugizaki, who was still a little dazed after being woken up. Mai was the last to get off the plane, her steps slightly unsteady.

"Good job, everyone." Gojo Satoru stepped forward with his signature relaxed smile, but his sharp gaze behind his sunglasses swept over the three men. "Looks like you had a good haul."

Yi Gu handed over the backpack.

Gojo Satoru unzipped his jacket, glanced at the lifeless mask inside, and nodded in satisfaction.

"Very good. With Ika's card, we now have two cards in our hand. Shoko, the wounded are yours to handle."

Shoko Ieiri, with a lollipop dangling from her mouth, glanced at Kugizaki's wrist and then at Mai's pale face.

"Fractured wrist, mentally exhausted. Come with me, the medical room is ready."

……

Medical room.

The pungent smell of disinfectant slightly cheered Zhenyi up.

Shoko quickly healed Kugizaki's wrist with a reversal technique. Kugizaki moved his perfectly healed joint and immediately started clamoring to take a bath and go to bed, rushing out of the medical room.

Only Shoko and Mayi remained in the room.

"Take off your coat and lie down," Shoko said, pointing to the hospital bed.

Zhen Yi did as instructed.

Shoko attached several patches connected to the curse power monitor to Mayi's arm and forehead. The waveforms on the screen began to fluctuate, and the data appeared very chaotic.

"Your body hasn't suffered any external injuries, but the curse circuits in your brain are under extremely high pressure." Shoko frowned slightly as she looked at the data on the screen.

"I can control it." Zhen leaned against the pillow, her tone very calm.

"Don't try to be brave." Shoko bluntly exposed her. "Right now, if you close your eyes, can you hear the sound of flowing water? That's the residual thoughts of the Alien Group."

Mai fell silent. Shoko was right. From the moment she boarded the plane, the intermittent sound of flowing water had been constantly in her ears.

The figure of December 1st slowly appeared beside the hospital bed.

He was trying to use the power of the talismans to repair Mayi, but the [Horse] talisman was having little effect on this kind of mental damage, and the [Sheep] talisman was not specifically for treatment. He could only try to alleviate Mayi's symptoms as much as possible.

Seeing that May's complexion was gradually improving, Shoko knew that December had made her move. She took out a small medicine bottle from the pocket of her white coat, poured out two white pills, and handed them to May. "These are strong sedatives. Take a nap and let your brain rest. Don't touch that gun for the next 24 hours."

Zhenyi took the pill and swallowed it in one gulp.

"understood."

Shoko packed up the equipment, turned around and walked out of the ward, closing the door behind her.

The room fell silent.

December 1st sat on a chair by the hospital bed, watching as Zhenyi's breathing gradually became steady as the sedative began to take effect.

"Go to sleep," December 1st said softly. "Leave the rest to us."

Zhenyi didn't speak, but simply closed her eyes tightly.

……

At the same time. Deep inside an abandoned subway tunnel in Tokyo.

There was no light here, only the faint sound of wind coming from the ventilation vents and the dripping sound of groundwater.

"Bang!"

A dull thud broke the silence of the tunnel.

Yuji Itadori slammed his fist heavily against the moss-covered concrete wall. The wall instantly cracked, and spiderweb-like cracks spread outwards.

"They got away again!" Itari gritted his teeth, pulled back his fist, and his knuckles were covered in black stains.

Fushiguro Megumi stood a few meters away, holding a powerful flashlight. The beam of light shone on the wall that Itajō had just smashed, where a pool of black, sticky liquid was rapidly drying.

"Don't waste your energy, Itadori." Fushiguro's voice was calm. "It doesn't have a physical form. Or rather, its form is scattered throughout every corner of this underground network."

They've been tracking them here for a full six hours.

Their mission was to clean up the remains of the Shadow Eater Clan, who were operating underground, but the reality was far more complicated than they had imagined.

The Shadow Eaters never confronted them directly.

Whenever they approach, the black substance burrows into cracks in the walls, drainpipes, and even blends directly into the shadows underground, like a rat.

"What's going on here!" Itari scratched his head in frustration. "What is this thing doing? It's not attacking us, nor is it hurting anyone on the ground. It's just playing hide-and-seek down here?"

"It's eating."

Fushiguro Megumi squatted down, dipped her finger in the black residue on the ground, and smelled it.

Besides the stench of the sewers, there was also an extremely strong aura of deathly cursed spirits.

"Take a good look around." Fushiguro Megumi shone the beam of her flashlight upwards.

Huzhang looked in the direction of the beam of light and immediately gasped.

The load-bearing pillars of this abandoned tunnel were originally supposed to be as thick as two people could hug, but now, the base of the pillars looks as if they have been corroded by some kind of strong acid, with a large chunk missing. The steel bars are exposed to the air and covered with black viscous liquid.

"Unlike last time, this time it's not just devouring shadows; now, physical entities are also within its devouring range." Fukuro Megumi stood up, her expression grave.

It's like a stomach that can never be filled; it will take anything that can be converted into a part of itself, whether it's energy or matter.

At this rate, it won't be long before the load-bearing structure beneath Tokyo is completely hollowed out. At that point, large-scale ground subsidence will occur.

"Then what should we do?" Itari clenched his fist. "Can your shadow catch it?"

Fushiguro Megumi did not answer immediately.

He closed his eyes and mobilized the magical power within his body.

The dark red cracks on his cheeks glowed faintly. His shadow began to spread outwards, like ink dripping into clear water, quickly reaching the walls and ceiling of the tunnel.

He was using the power of shared origins to sense the other's presence.

A few seconds later, Fukuro Megumi suddenly opened her eyes, grabbed Itachi's arm, and quickly retreated.

"Boom!"

The instant they stepped back, the ground where they had just stood suddenly collapsed. A huge black hole appeared in the center of the tunnel.

Large amounts of black viscous liquid gushed out of the black hole, like a giant mouth trying to swallow them.

"Direct Court Fist!"

Tiger Stick twisted his body in mid-air and delivered a heavy punch to the surging black water.

The deep blue magical energy exploded in the air, and the powerful shockwave dispersed some of the black water. But more black water immediately replenished it, forming a black wall that completely blocked the tunnel's path.

Then, distorted human faces appeared on the black water wall. They were the faces of the homeless and underground workers who had been swallowed by it.

"Get out..."

The walls emitted a cacophony of screams, a mixture of countless human voices.

"This is my... territory..."

"Tch." Fukuro Megumi formed hand seals, "Jade Dog."

The black jade dog leaped out of the shadow behind him, let out a roar, and pounced towards the black water wall.

But as soon as the jade dog's claws touched the black water, they were pulled by a huge suction force and could not break free.

"Come back!" Fukuro Megumi immediately released the spell, and the Jade Dog turned into a shadow and shrank back to his feet.

"It's too big now." Fushiguro Megumi looked at the constantly writhing wall. "We're at a disadvantage in this cramped underground space. We must notify Gojo-sensei."

The two did not linger in the fight and quickly retreated along the passage they had come from.

Behind them, the black water wall did not pursue, but slowly seeped into the ground, continuing its silent devouring.