Jujutsu Kaisen: I have everything I need now!

3 PM.

Conference room in the main teaching building of Tokyo Higher Vocational School.

Sunlight streamed through the window onto the long table, but the atmosphere inside was unusually heavy.

Satoru Gojo sat in the head seat, with Maki, Yuta Otoko, Panda, and Thorn Inuyama on his left. Itadori and Megumi Fushiguro sat on his right.

Mai was still asleep, while December 1st stood behind Fushiguro Megumi as a phantom.

"That's the situation." Fushiguro Megumi gave a detailed report of the results of the underground exploration.

"So, that thing has now become capable of devouring anything?" Maki tapped her fingers lightly on the table.

"The building monitoring data from the 'window' also confirms this." Gojo Satoru took out a document. "Shinjuku, Shibuya, and Ikebukuro—the underground structures of these three areas have all shown varying degrees of stress anomalies. In at most five days, large-scale ground subsidence will occur."

"Then dig it out and smash it!" Itaruma said impatiently.

"How do we dig?" Yi Guyou calmly analyzed, "There are too many distractions in the sewers; we simply can't find their location."

A brief silence fell over the meeting room.

"It's too quiet."

On the first day of December, someone suddenly spoke. This time, it was Fukuro who relayed the message.

"What do you mean?" Gojo Satoru turned his head and looked behind Fushiguro.

"I said, the enemy's reaction is too quiet."

The new moon floated to the center of the long table and pointed to two photos of masks on the table.

"We successively defeated the Samurai Corps and the Alien Corps. Although the process was thrilling, we did not encounter any obstruction from third parties. It's as if Lu Suo has completely disappeared."

"He was seriously injured, isn't it normal for him to hide away and heal?" Kugizaki pushed open the conference room door and walked in. Her wrist had fully recovered, but she still looked tired. She sat down in an empty seat and glanced in the direction of the new December 1st.

"No, this is not normal."

December's gaze became extremely profound. As a time traveler, he knew Lu Suo's style of doing things all too well.

"Lu Suo planned for so long to collect these masks, even going so far as to perform a ritual at the Dragon's Lair. He absolutely cannot just stand by and watch us collect the masks one by one."

On the first day of the twelfth month, he paused and then gave his prediction.

There are two possibilities.

"First, he was indeed badly injured and unable to intervene. But he must have been observing us in secret. He wanted to use us to weaken the power of these out-of-control masks. Once we had collected all the masks, or when we were at our weakest, he would come out and reap the benefits."

"What's the second possibility?" Gojo Satoru narrowed his eyes slightly.

"The second possibility is even worse." December New Year pointed to the black dot representing the "Shadow Eater Clan."

"The monster that's growing wildly underground might not be out of control at all. It's something that Lu Suo has deliberately allowed to grow unchecked. He's using that monster to devour the ley line energy of all of Tokyo, treating it like a giant power bank. Once the monster is fully developed, Lu Suo will merge with it directly, forcibly opening the gate to the Shadow Kingdom."

Upon hearing this speculation, everyone's expression changed.

If that's really the case, then everything they're doing now is just stalling for time.

"If it's the second case, then we must find the remaining masks before it fully develops and use the resonance between the masks to counter it." Yuta Ekiku quickly grasped the key point.

"That's right." Gojo Satoru snapped his fingers. "That's why I called you all here today. Ijichi just confirmed the location of the next target."

Gojo Satoru wrote two words on the whiteboard: 【Giant Egg】.

Tokyo Dome Botanical Garden.

Satoru Gojo posted a photo on the whiteboard. The photo showed a huge, semi-circular glass building surrounded by yellow police tape.

"Since yesterday afternoon, all 72 visitors and staff members who entered the botanical garden have gone missing."

"Missing?" Maki frowned. "Was she killed by a cursed spirit?"

"There was no blood, no signs of damage. The surveillance footage shows that they disappeared into thin air after entering a certain area of ​​the greenhouse." Gojo Satoru's tone became serious. "Extremely strong spatial distortion and remnants of shadow curse power were detected around the window."

"Mantis-shaped cluster".

On the first day of December, he immediately uttered the name.

"General Cabo, they are natural assassins, possessing extremely high speed and stealth."

"These monsters are all disgusting." Kugizaki clenched his fist.

"Time is of the essence. We must divide our forces." Gojo Satoru quickly made the arrangements.

"Megumi, Yuujin." Gojo Satoru looked at the two boys. "You two stay here. Megumi, you need to continue using your shadow perception to locate the core of that Shadow Eater underground. Once confirmed, we'll carry out a targeted explosion before it triggers an earthquake."

"Understood." Fushiguro Megumi and Itadori nodded simultaneously.

"As for the botanical garden," Gojo Satoru said, his gaze sweeping over the remaining people.

"Yuta's in charge. Maki, Wild Rose. And..." Gojo Satoru looked in the direction of the new December 1st, "...you and Mai."

"Mai is still sleeping," December said.

"Then let's wait until she wakes up before we set off." Gojo Satoru's tone left no room for doubt. "You're most familiar with the Shadow Gang, and I trust your abilities."

"Understood." December 1st did not refuse.

"Everyone, take a break." Gojo Satoru clapped his hands. "Meet outside the botanical garden at 8 PM."

……

8 PM. Tokyo Dome Botanical Garden.

As night fell, the surrounding streets were completely cordoned off. Police lights flashed in the darkness, creating a tense atmosphere.

Ichiji stood outside the cordon and immediately went to greet the group of college students who were walking towards them.

"Otsu-kun, Maki-kun, Nobara-kun... and Mai-kun. You've arrived." Ijichi wiped the cold sweat from his forehead.

Zhenyi, wearing her signature beige trench coat, was still somewhat pale, but her eyes had regained their sharpness. The tranquilizer had given her ample sleep, and "Black Queen" sat quietly in its holster. December was still by her side.

"Has the situation changed?" Yigu asked.

"No." Ijichi shook his head. "Since the afternoon, there hasn't been any sound coming from inside. The people at the window tried to send a drone in to scout, but the drone lost signal as soon as it flew over the glass door at the entrance."

"Interesting." Maki drew her long sword and slung it over her shoulder. "It seems that the inside has completely transformed into another world."

"Are you ready?" Yigu asked, looking at everyone.

Everyone nodded.

"Let's go then."

The four crossed the cordon and walked toward the botanical garden's huge glass gate.

A gentle evening breeze blew by, and the surroundings were eerily quiet.

The moment they pushed open the glass door, an extremely hot and humid air rushed out, mixed with a strong smell of soil and plants.

The botanical garden should have had a temperature control system inside, but it is clearly out of order now.

They stepped into the hall.

The lights in the hall were still flickering and making a buzzing sound. The surrounding plants looked normal; the huge palm trees and lush ferns were all perfectly fine.

But December 1st's gaze changed instantly.

"Stop!"

Zhenyi suddenly stopped in her tracks.

But Otsu, Maki, and Kugizaki have already taken two more steps forward.

At that very moment, a sudden change occurred.

There was no bright light, nor any violent energy fluctuations.

Mayi watched helplessly as the three people walking ahead of her, Otsukoshi, suddenly and drastically shrank downwards in a fraction of a second!

It was as if it had been forcibly compressed by some unseen spatial force.

"Maki-neechan!" Mai shouted, instinctively trying to rush over and pull them back.

"Don't go over there! That's the boundary of the barrier!"

On the first day of December, he grabbed Zhenyi's arm.

But it was too late.

Zhenyi had already stepped one foot across the invisible line.

An irresistible spatial pulling force instantly acted on her. Zhenyi felt a dizzying sensation before her eyes, and the surrounding scenery began to magnify wildly at an extremely exaggerated scale.

The hall's tiles transformed into a vast plaza, and the glass dome overhead seemed to touch the sky.

Those indoor potted plants that were originally only one or two meters tall now appeared to her as a primeval forest that blocked out the sky!

"thump."

Zhenyi crashed heavily onto a rough "ground". Upon closer inspection, she realized it wasn't ground at all, but a huge, withered leaf.

She stood up, surrounded by towering green "giant trees" that were tens of meters tall.

Welcome to the microscopic world.

The voice of December Shuo rang out beside her. Because they were within this special spatial barrier, December Shuo's figure became more solid than ever before, looking just like a real human.

Zhenyi drew the "Black Queen" and looked around warily.

"Where are Maki and the others?"

"I don't know." December closed his eyes and sensed the surroundings. "The space has been shattered. They should be in this vicinity as well, but their exact location is unclear."

Just then.

Suddenly, a very faint buzzing sound, like the vibration of insect wings, came from above.

Zhenyi suddenly looked up.

Between two enormous leaves, tens of meters high, a black afterimage flashed by too fast for the naked eye to catch.

Immediately afterwards, a pair of compound eyes, shimmering with an eerie green light, slowly opened among the dark branches and leaves, locking onto Mayi, who was as small as an ant below.