Shortly after the summons from Jujutsu Headquarters was issued, Suguru and Satoru arrived at the Isayama Family residence.
It had been a long time since Eichi, Satoru, and Suguru were all together.
Emiya, who had been cooking at Tokyo Jujutsu High, had also come with them.
"You got here pretty fast."
"Of course. How could I miss something like this? If Masamichi hadn't told me to wait for updates, I would've come ages ago."
Satoru, who had been slumped over the back of a chair, suddenly teleported next to Eichi.
"Hey, hey, Eichi, got any fun enemies this time? Introduce them to me."
Satoru pressed himself against Eichi's back, his long fingers continuously poking at Eichi's cheek.
Suguru, expressionless, reached under Satoru's armpits and lifted the oversized cat sprawled across Eichi's shoulder high into the air.
"Alright, that's enough."
Satoru tilted his white cat-like head back.
Their gazes met.
"Eichi's been busy lately. Let him rest properly for a while."
After saying that, Suguru placed the Gojo cat back onto the chair.
Why does it feel like Suguru's gotten gentler? No wonder so many people ship Gojo and Geto.
"Daijoubu, I'll take care of the rest of them."
Satoru waved his hand casually, as if what awaited him wasn't a million Cursed Spirits but a pile of ants.
In that moment, he truly carried the presence of someone looking down on the world.
Of course, Satoru did have the strength to back it up.
Even Tamamo-no-Mae, the strongest among the enemy, probably wouldn't be able to defeat him.
Since the Star Plasma Vessel incident last year, Satoru's power had grown by leaps and bounds.
At this point, even Eichi wasn't sure just how far Satoru had progressed.
"Satoru, can you use Domain Expansion now?"
Eichi asked, a little irritated.
"Yeah."
Satoru answered nonchalantly.
"Huh? When did you learn that?"
Suguru was surprised. Satoru had never mentioned learning Domain Expansion.
"I've been exorcising a lot of Cursed Spirits lately, right? There was this one Cursed Spirit that was like a bug—no matter how many times I killed it, it wouldn't die."
Satoru placed his legs on the table and crossed his arms, his expression twisting in mild disgust.
"So I thought, 'How do I get them to stand still and die properly?' Then, poof, I just used it."
I really want to report this guy for cheating.
Watching Satoru treat something like Domain Expansion as if it were ordering takeout made Eichi feel helpless.
Suguru narrowed his eyes, his mouth twitching.
At this point, he was the only one among the three who hadn't mastered Domain Expansion...
For the next day, both sides tacitly avoided making any major moves.
However, there were constant surveillance and probing operations.
Jujutsu Headquarters, with unprecedented urgency, mobilized a large number of Jujutsu Sorcerers to Sendai.
The Big Three Families, in a rare show of initiative, also dispatched many Sorcerers to join the battle.
They arrived in a short time and were divided into four squads, surrounding northern Sendai.
The situation became increasingly tense.
Northern Sendai.
Groups of Cursed Spirits surged out of the barrier.
Forming hundreds of tightly packed swarms.
When the Cursed Spirits began pouring out without end, Tengen, who had been monitoring the situation, immediately took action.
The long-prepared power was released.
A barrier stretching more than ten kilometers in length enveloped the entire region where the Cursed Spirits had gathered.
This was the Sendai Barrier, created by Tengen by drawing on all the barrier techniques across the entire Tohoku region.
Unlike the previous Sendai Barrier, which was deployed within Sendai, this one was constructed outside the city. Its purpose was to ensure that no Cursed Spirit could break through and enter Sendai proper.
Because it was the only barrier set up, its durability far surpassed the Sendai Barrier used during the Culling Game.
After the barrier was fully deployed, four gates appeared in front of the four Jujutsu Sorcerer squads stationed on the perimeter.
"What a massive barrier... Is this the legendary power of Tengen?"
Dhruv exclaimed.
Over a thousand years, Tengen's name had become known across every corner of the Jujutsu World. Few didn't know of him.
"It's just a barrier, Ryu."
Tamamo-no-Mae gestured toward Ryu Ishigori.
Ryu didn't decline. After arriving at the edge of the barrier, he fired several Cursed Energy blasts.
"Granite Blast."
The blasts, powerful enough to demolish a villa, had no effect on the barrier.
"Interesting."
He launched another blast at maximum output.
The barrier only rippled slightly.
Elsewhere, Cursed Spirits swarmed the barrier's edge, bombarding it repeatedly.
Still, they couldn't break through.
"This barrier seems completely connected to the land itself. It's constantly being supplied with new energy."
A hunched old man with bloodshot eyes stepped up beside Tamamo-no-Mae.
"Not just that."
Takako, hovering in the sky, looked down at the Jujutsu Sorcerers stationed near the four gates in the distance.
"By creating these gates, they've sacrificed entry and exit flexibility to further strengthen the rest of the barrier."
"And the most important thing about these gates isn't the reinforcement of the barrier's intensity," Tamamo-no-Mae added, "but that they designate battlefields tailored to their advantage."
At each gate, hundreds of Jujutsu Sorcerers stood fully prepared.
Over a thousand Jujutsu Sorcerers in total—this was nearly the full strength the Jujutsu World of Japan could currently muster.
And they weren't just standing by, waiting to be attacked.
They were setting up additional barriers and restructuring the terrain, aiming to turn the surroundings into a defensive fortress, where a single person could hold off ten thousand.
"Their message is clear. If we want to leave this place, we'll have to defeat them head-on."
Tamamo-no-Mae smiled enchantingly.
"In that case, let them witness the power of my army."
Under her command, countless Cursed Spirits began to move.
At that moment, in the eastern section of the Sendai Barrier—
Eichi and Artoria stood at the very front of the team.
In this battle, Eichi and the other four Special Grade Jujutsu Sorcerers would serve as the sharpest spear.
Behind them, the ordinary Jujutsu Sorcerers would act as the shield guarding the exit.
But clearly, those "shields" were currently filled with anxiety.
A thousandfold difference in numbers.
Even if Eichi and the others knew the battle wouldn't be difficult, the ordinary Sorcerers didn't.
Most were Grade 3 or Grade 4 Sorcerers.
Many of them had never even witnessed a battle involving a Grade 1.
So they didn't realize that in front of top-tier powerhouses, sheer numbers didn't mean much.
To boost morale, Eichi had communicated with Jujutsu Headquarters and decided to initiate the first strike of the battle.
"The Cursed Spirits have begun moving. Let's go, Ria."
If they didn't strike now, things would get complicated once the Cursed Spirits dispersed.
"Leave it to me."
Artoria stepped forward.
Here, the Jujutsu Sorcerers had specially raised an earthen platform for her.
At that moment, hundreds of Sorcerers at the East Gate turned to look at her.
Artoria had long since grown used to such gazes.
She knew exactly what this temporarily assembled force needed most right now.
The wind swirling around her Holy Sword dissipated.
The golden blade emitted a radiant, sacred light.
Countless rays of light gathered onto her sword.
"What is that?"
"It feels so warm..."
"What is this light?"
Everyone stared in astonishment as the golden light continued to gather into Artoria's hand.
"Open the top of the barrier."
Eichi spoke into the phone still in call mode.
"Roger that."
Masamichi, stationed at the Tombs of the Star and in contact with Tengen, immediately relayed the request.
The top of the Sendai Barrier opened temporarily.
Artoria raised the sword in her hand.
"Excalibur!"
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)