Jujutsu Kaisen: I have everything I need now!

The salty and burnt smells were carried away by the sea breeze.

The backup power plant at Yokohama Port now resembles a steel behemoth that has been gutted. The cooling towers that were once spewing steam have fallen silent, with only the remaining heat distorting the light.

"it's over?"

Yuujin Itadori sat on the ground, supporting himself with his hands behind him, breathing heavily. His school uniform was tattered, and his face was covered in black ash and bloodstains, injuries he had sustained in the energy turbulence.

"For now."

Maki sheathed her sword with a "click," the sound particularly clear in the quiet night.

She walked over to Huzhang and stretched out a hand.

"Get up. Don't sit on the ground like a stray dog."

Itadori paused for a moment, then smiled wryly, grabbed Maki's hand, and used it to help him stand up.

"I'm just a little... exhausted." Itari patted the dust off his pants. "For a moment just now, I really thought we were going to turn into fireworks."

"If it weren't for Mayi's accurate judgment, we would have turned into fireworks by now." Yuta Otsukotsu looked at the note on the ground, his brows still furrowed. "But, compared to the explosion just now, this news makes me more uneasy."

He said this while waving the note in his hand.

[The Starting Point of the Journey Back to Death]

These words weighed heavily on the hearts of everyone present, like a boulder.

"The Imperial Palace..." Kugizaki Nobara frowned, pulled a bottle of eye drops from her pocket, tilted her head back, and put in two drops to soothe her eyes, which had been irritated by the bright light. "That place is the heart of Tokyo. That bastard Rōso, is he trying to cause trouble there?"

"not only."

The sound of the new moon in December rang in Zhenyi's ears.

"The Imperial Palace is the core of the entire Japanese barrier. Although Tengen's barrier mainly covers the high school, he must have had other plans for choosing that location."

Zhenyi nodded, her face pale, and relayed, "Shuo said that's the core of the barrier. Lu Suo chose that place; he probably has a deeper plan."

"A deeper scheme...?" Yi Gu murmured to himself.

"Don't think about it too much yet," Maki interrupted everyone's speculation. "This isn't the place to talk. Let the assistant directors clean up this mess. Since Ryouso left an invitation, he shouldn't run away for now. We need to go back and get things in order."

She glanced at the swaying Mayi.

"Especially you. Don't force yourself."

Zhenyi opened her mouth to refute, but a wave of dizziness hit her, forcing her to hold onto the shipping container next to her.

"I understand," Zhenyi said softly. "Let's go back."

The convoy returning was even more silent than when it had come.

Although they had won a tough battle and eliminated a major hidden danger, no one felt relieved. They knew that this was just the calm before the storm; the real thunderstorm was yet to come.

Mai didn't ride her motorcycle; it was left at the scene and retrieved by the assistant supervisor. She sat on the back of Otsuko's motorcycle, with Kugizaki resting with his eyes closed next to her.

December 1st, bent over and cross-legged, floated in the carriage, using his weak mental power to support Zhenyi's head so that she could sleep more comfortably.

Zhenyi closed her eyes with peace of mind.

But the moment she closed her eyes, December turned his head to look at the rapidly receding night view outside the window. In his eyes was a solemnity that Zhenyi had never seen before.

Things have gone far beyond expectations, and he himself has no idea what will happen next.

.......

Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo.

This is the outer garden of the Imperial Palace, where the lights of the Marunouchi office building are reflected on the surface of the moat. Although it is late at night, the city's neon lights still paint the sky with a murky color.

Deep within the Imperial Palace, in an ancient courtyard that is not open to the public.

Lu Suo was standing under a huge ancient pine tree, holding an old-fashioned flip phone in his hand.

"As expected... that shadow soldier was just a expendable pawn. Being able to force out even a part of the 'Ghost's' trump card is still well worth the price."

Lu Suo hung up the phone, a satisfied smile on his face.

He turned around and looked behind him.

There was a person standing there.

No, to be precise, it's a monster.

Fukuro Megumi—General Hunter Claw—stood silently in the darkness. The mask on his face seemed to have changed again; dark red patterns, like veins or curse runes, had appeared on the originally bluish-purple armor.

The patterns on the mask flickered with his breath, as if the mask was devouring the host's life force.

"Hui, did you hear that?" Lu Su walked up to him, as if admiring a masterpiece. "Your friends risked their lives to save you."

Fushiguro Megumi did not speak.

But the shadow behind him was churning violently. A gigantic jade dog head, made of shadow, emerged from the darkness and let out a silent roar at Lu Suo. But the next second, several black tentacles extended from Fukuro Megumi's back, piercing the jade dog's neck and forcibly pressing it back into the shadows.

"Tsk tsk tsk."

"Still so disobedient. The shadow magic shikigami seem to be very resistant to the power of the mask. But it's okay, this resistance will only make the fused power even more violent."

He reached out, wanting to touch the mask on Fushiguro Megumi's face.

"Smack."

Fushiguro Megumi suddenly raised her hand and grabbed Ryosaku's wrist.

The hand was covered in a black keratin layer, and the fingertips were as sharp as knives, deeply embedded in Lu Suo's flesh.

"Oh?" Lu Suo raised an eyebrow, not angry, but rather pleasantly surprised. "Not only did you retain your consciousness, but you can also control your body to fight back? It seems my assessment of you needs to be raised even higher."

"I'll...kill...you..."

A hoarse, broken sound came from beneath the mask. The sound didn't sound like a human's; it sounded more like two pieces of metal rubbing against each other.

"Very good eyes." Lu Suo looked at the eyes that were flashing red light behind the holes in the mask. "Maintain this killing intent. This is the key needed to open the 'gate'."

With a slight tremor, the rope unleashed its magical power, shaking off Fukuro Megumi's hand.

He straightened his crumpled sleeves and turned to walk towards a stone shrine deep in the courtyard.

"Now that the Yokohama fireworks have ended, it's time for us to prepare our main course."

He walked to the stone shrine and formed a mudra with his hands.

"open."

Rumbling--

The ground began to tremble. The stone shrine slowly slid aside, revealing a dark passage leading underground. An ancient, decaying, yet immensely suffocating aura surged from the cave entrance.

"This is a shortcut to the core of the Heavenly Primal Barrier, and also the 'Dragon's Lair' where Tokyo's magical power flows."

Lu Suo turned around and waved to Fushiguro Megumi.

"Come, Hui. Here, we will hold a coronation ceremony for you."

"When you devour the cursed power that has accumulated in this dragon's lair for thousands of years... you will no longer be just 'Hunter General'."

Lu Suo's smile looked particularly distorted in the shadows.

"You will become... the true 'King of Shadows'."

Fushiguro Megumi stood frozen in place. He didn't want to move, but the nerves beneath the mask seemed to be pulled by countless threads. His legs defied his will and took a heavy step.

One step, two steps.

He was like a puppet on a string, following the rope into that endless abyss of darkness.