Kenjaku was stunned.
He never would have imagined that a Cursed Spirit could ask such a question. It wasn't that the question was unreasonable—quite the opposite. The fact that Mahito could ask it proved he already possessed a fundamental understanding of the human race, and even some insight into that highly specialized subset of humans: Jujutsu Sorcerers.
This might seem ordinary, but it presented a rather hair-raising implication for Kenjaku: Just how long had it been since Mahito was born?
No, more accurately—how long had he actually been *growing*?
If he continued to evolve at this rate, what kind of unfathomable heights could he reach?
Even Kenjaku felt a tremor of apprehension in that moment. He felt a sliver of fear, but simultaneously, anticipation. He looked forward to Mahito's continued growth, to the future Mahito envisioned, and to the turning of the great windmill of fate.
He couldn't help but chuckle. "Good question. A truly excellent question. Asking that means you've already developed a profound understanding of humanity as a collective."
"I wouldn't call it a 'profound' understanding," Mahito replied. "Even though I've only been alive for less than a month and a half, there are old people and kids everywhere on the streets. As long as you patiently listen to their conversations for a bit, you can figure out quite a lot. And if I was feeling a bit lazier, I could just read some books written by humans to reach the same conclusion."
Mahito genuinely wondered if there was something wrong with Kenjaku's brain. How could such basic logic be considered 'profound'? Yet, as Mahito gazed at Kenjaku's soul with his heterochromatic eyes, he was surprised to find that Kenjaku was being entirely sincere.
Kenjaku really believed it—he believed that merely recognizing the hard limits of the human lifespan constituted a "profound understanding" for a Curse.
Kenjaku smiled again, but this time, it was a mocking smirk.
He half-opened his eyes and glanced at Jogo and Hanami beside him. Mahito followed his gaze to the other two intelligent Curses. For some reason, Jogo's massive single eye was fixated on the ocean, thoroughly captivated by a few seagulls gliding over the waves; Hanami, meanwhile, stood completely impassive, rooted to the spot like a block of wood.
And Dagon—Dagon...
—He was just spacing out without a care in the world.
Mahito's mouth twitched involuntarily. He let out a deep sigh. "Alright, you don't have to say it. I get it. I'm the abnormal one."
Compared to the other three intelligent Curses, Mahito had to admit he was the outlier. He finally understood why the original Jogo—even after experiencing Satoru Gojo's overwhelming power firsthand and realizing he was utterly outmatched—never once considered using his own infinite lifespan to simply outlive Gojo.
—It simply never crossed his mind that such a method existed!
Forget Jogo, Hanami hadn't thought of it either! Even the original Mahito hadn't thought of it!
As for Dagon... well, best not to expect anything from Dagon.
But Kenjaku should have thought of it. He had waited a thousand years; surely waiting out Gojo's measly century wouldn't be an issue. Why hadn't he done it? Why hadn't he even brought it up? That was what Mahito couldn't figure out.
Jogo couldn't help but defend himself. "You can't blame me and Hanami for that! As Curses, we've always looked at humans with nothing but pure bloodlust. Before you came along, Mahito, Hanami and I were staunch human-eradication maximalists. We are firmly committed to wiping out all of humanity; who has the time to care about how they naturally die?"
It was the truth. Although the current Jogo seemed like a slightly irritable old man and Hanami radiated a sort of maternal mercy, they fundamentally despised humanity. They hated humans enough to want them entirely erased from existence. Coupled with the fact that they were Curses, it was only natural they approached humans with a Curse's mindset. It really wasn't impossible for them to be utterly ignorant of human lifespans.
In human sociology, this phenomenon was called an echo chamber. They lived entirely within their own information silo, and with no one to point out their blind spots, they naturally failed to see the issue. They literally had never processed the thought.
Hanami sighed and offered a few fair words of mediation.
Jogo scowled and barked, "Shut up! What do you mean we didn't think it through? We've been working hard too, alright?! Have you ever heard of Curses cooperating with humans in the last thousand years? The fact that we've taken this step means we've crossed a threshold that hasn't been breached in centuries. We are already incredible; we're just not as mature as Mahito yet."
Kenjaku said mildly, "That stubbornness of yours is a very Cursed Spirit-like trait, too."
"Su... guru... Geto!" Jogo roared in fury. The volcano on his head looked ready to erupt. Waves of blistering heat radiated from him in all directions, instantly vaporizing the cool sea breeze and replacing it with a sweltering humidity that scalded the skin.
Hanami stepped forward proactively, offering a few more words to gently soothe Jogo's temper.
Jogo took a deep breath, slowly smoothing out his violent rage, though his face remained impossibly sour.
Hanami turned back to Kenjaku, reiterating Mahito's question: *Why not just wait for Satoru Gojo to die before making our move?*
Kenjaku wasn't going to brush them off. Not only because Mahito's mismatched eyes were boring into him, but because he knew this was the critical juncture for forging a Binding Vow. If this were a human contract, they could play semantic games, but a Binding Vow was different. Both parties had to express their intentions with absolute clarity. Ambiguity would only harm them both. It was exactly because Kenjaku was a master of Binding Vows that he wouldn't make such a rookie mistake.
He spoke with utmost seriousness. "There are two reasons."
He held up one finger. "First, we are racing against time. Satoru Gojo is strong, but you likely don't realize just how much stronger he is now compared to when he was a child. Back then, someone hired Curse Users to assassinate him. Multiple Curse Users took the job, but the moment they laid eyes on the boy, they were so paralyzed by terror that they abandoned the plan entirely."
"And now," Kenjaku continued, "Satoru Gojo still hasn't reached his limit. He is continuing to grow. Given the lifespan of a Jujutsu Sorcerer, he could keep growing stronger right up until the day he dies. The longer we delay our plan to overturn the Jujutsu world, the more unfathomably powerful and unbeatable he will become."
Mahito nodded slightly, accepting the logic.
In truth, Mahito knew Gojo's terrifying strength far better than Kenjaku did. In the original timeline, right up until the moment Gojo died in his extreme clash with Sukuna, he was *still* evolving. He had never actually hit his absolute ceiling before being abruptly bisected by Sukuna's spatial slash.
But that was Sukuna. Let anyone else try that.
Then again, Sukuna was the ultimate anomaly of the Jujutsu Kaisen world. Everything about him defied standard logic; there was no point discussing him because his existence was completely unreplicable.
Kenjaku stated plainly, "I cannot fathom how devastatingly powerful Satoru Gojo will be in another ten or twenty years. If we were solely focused on fleeing right now, even he would have a hard time catching us. But if we let him keep growing... the moment he lays eyes on us in the future, even the thought of escape will be a luxury."
Jogo frowned. He still couldn't conceptualize Gojo's strength, but seeing Mahito nodding in agreement, he swallowed his pride and didn't voice his skepticism to spoil the mood.
Instead, he muttered indignantly, "Then we just avoid him, right? Just like now. As long as we stay out of Tokyo, we aren't in danger."
"Surviving by completely abandoning your pride—that is indeed an option. But there's a fatal flaw in that logic. Namely, the assumption that we could actually go our whole lives without Gojo stumbling upon us," Kenjaku said.
Hanami made a questioning sound, asking what Kenjaku meant.
Kenjaku took a deep breath and dropped a bombshell: "Because 'God' is about to be born."
All the Curses froze.
Kenjaku didn't hold back. He laid bare the deepest secret of the Jujutsu world:
"In this country, there is an absolutely vital, foundational Jujutsu Sorcerer. She is known as Tengen."
"It's a Go terminology. The exact center of the Go board is called Tengen. Her real name has long been lost to time; only her title, denoting her status, has been passed down."
"Since I've explained this much, you should catch my underlying meaning, shouldn't you?"
Jogo's single pupil contracted sharply. "What is her Innate Technique?"
A smile crept onto Kenjaku's face. "It seems you understand. Her Innate Technique is Immortality."
Jogo's eye snapped toward Mahito. Mahito gave a slight nod, confirming Kenjaku wasn't lying.
Kenjaku shrugged. "It's exactly what you're thinking. A Jujutsu Sorcerer who has lived for a thousand years is currently undergoing her final stage of evolution. If she succeeds, she will become a literal God. She controls the massive barriers that cover the entirety of Japan. These barriers serve many functions, but for Cursed Spirits, their primary role is an early warning system. Wherever a Cursed Energy disaster occurs, Tengen can pinpoint it through the barriers. Right now, that's the extent of what she can do. But if she ascends to Godhood..."
Kenjaku let the implication hang, but Mahito understood perfectly.
He fully grasped Kenjaku's point. Mahito actually knew about Tengen's existence. Tengen did indeed control the colossal barriers spanning Japan. According to the original lore, these barriers served as the foundation for other complex barrier techniques, prevented Japan's Cursed Energy from dissipating, and could even be utilized to project a Cursed Spirit's technique over a wide area. In the original timeline, after absorbing Mahito's technique, Kenjaku relied entirely on these massive barriers to initiate the Culling Game.
Kenjaku wasn't lying; for Curses, these barriers currently only functioned as an alarm system for Cursed Energy anomalies.
But the true power of the barrier lay in its sheer coverage and its ability to promptly halt the spread of Curse-related disasters. It was no exaggeration to say that in a modern Japan plagued by rampant Cursed Energy incidents, Tengen's colossal barrier was the nation's singular life-support system. It was unimaginable how deep into despair Japan would sink if those barriers vanished.
As the architect of those barriers, Tengen's status was unparalleled.
Before this, Mahito hadn't given Tengen a second thought. Despite her supreme status in the Jujutsu world, she almost never took direct action. To Mahito, she was just background lore. Moreover...
Even after evolving into a near-divine entity, hadn't she been one-shot by Kenjaku anyway? With such an imposing buildup leading to such a dismissive end, it was no wonder Mahito hadn't prioritized her.
Mahito truly hadn't expected that Kenjaku would view Tengen as a bigger threat than Satoru Gojo.
Kenjaku continued, "Satoru Gojo is exactly as you described: merely a powerful human. If this were a battle of attrition measured in lifespans, Gojo would inevitably lose to you. But Tengen is different. Her 'Immortality' technique has been baptized by a millennium of time and has now reached the nexus of its evolution. Perhaps becoming a God wouldn't be a big deal in itself, but a God's capacity to gather and process information operates on a fundamentally different dimensional plane than a human's."
At this, Kenjaku raised a finger.
"As long as Tengen remains human, she indeed cannot pinpoint us. But Tengen as a God absolutely will. And the moment Tengen finds us, and we are forced to face a Satoru Gojo who has had ten or twenty more years to grow... Mahito, Jogo, Hanami... do you honestly believe you could survive?"
*We wouldn't. Absolutely no way in hell,* Mahito thought grimly.
Jogo let out a heavy breath. "...You're right. While Tengen hasn't become a God yet, or while Gojo hasn't reached his absolute peak, we must kill at least one of them as fast as possible."
Hanami nodded in profound agreement.
Mahito exhaled as well. This envisioned future was truly bone-chilling for Cursed Spirits. And not just for them—the disaster curses could at least try to hide their presence. But what about lower-grade Curses? They would likely be locked onto by the divine Tengen the moment they spawned, and exorcised by Jujutsu Sorcerers before they even had a chance to experience the world.
For Cursed Spirits, that future was sheer, utter despair.
Honestly, if he wasn't a Cursed Spirit doomed to mutually assured destruction with Jujutsu Sorcerers, Mahito might have genuinely considered finding a way to surrender. Not out of cowardice, but because that future was mathematically inevitable if they sat back and did nothing.
Conversely, Kenjaku's desperate urgency made perfect sense now. He was terrified, too.
But unlike everyone else who feared the ultimate physical deterrent that was Satoru Gojo, Kenjaku feared Tengen, the imminent omniscient God. Therefore, the moment the physical vessel possessing Curse Manipulation fell into his hands, Kenjaku resolved to eliminate Tengen without hesitation.
But Mahito maintained his composure. He asked, "That covers the first point. I completely understand. So, what about the second?"
Kenjaku tucked his hands back into his voluminous sleeves, his eyes curving into a smile. "It still pertains to the Tengen and Gojo problem. But the second point hinges on a specific premise: If I manage to take care of Tengen, what do we do about the remaining Satoru Gojo?"
Jogo blinked. "Right... since Gojo is so strong, even stronger than a divine Tengen, we just need to find a way to distract Gojo, take out Tengen first, and then, without Tengen, it doesn't matter how strong Gojo is. If he can't find us, we can still use our lifespans to bleed him dry. We can just wait until he dies before we make our move."
Hanami also adopted an expression of sudden realization.
Then Jogo and Hanami noticed Mahito and Kenjaku staring at them. Their expressions were... blank. Completely deadpan. It was a look of profound disgust, but since they couldn't openly show disgust, they opted for an intensely neutral stare.
Jogo's mouth twitched. "Alright, sorry, I interrupted your train of thought. Please, Suguru Geto, continue."
Kenjaku breathed slowly, retrieving his smile.
"Satoru Gojo is continuously growing. That is an indisputable fact. Ten, twenty years down the line, he will still be growing, though the pace will inevitably slow as his human body hits middle age and his Cursed Energy development plateaus."
"Before that point, he absolutely won't harbor any anxieties about his lifespan."
"Because for a Jujutsu Sorcerer with virtually limitless potential, the constant surge of growing Cursed Energy blinds them to the issue of age. It isn't until they slide into their twilight years, when their focus wanes, their potential is exhausted, their breakthroughs cease, and their physical prowess irredeemably decays... that's when—"
Kenjaku enunciated every syllable. "—he will consider Immortality."
Mahito couldn't help but ask, "Can he actually achieve it? Or rather, is his Innate Technique suited for it?"
Mahito knew perfectly well that, theoretically, Gojo couldn't. The combination of the Six Eyes and the Limitless Technique made him peerless in terms of raw combat power, but it offered absolutely zero life-extension properties.
In fact, Gojo wasn't the first in Jujutsu history to possess both the Six Eyes and the Limitless. Previous users had existed, and none of them possessed life-extending methods; they all died normally.
Could Satoru Gojo somehow transcend even lifespan limits?
Mahito seriously considered the possibility, as this was beyond his meta-knowledge blind spot. The original work gave zero indication of this; Gojo simply died and never won the revival bracket.
Unexpectedly, Kenjaku shrugged casually. "That solely depends on whether he *wants* to or not."
Mahito's pupils shrank. "Whether... he wants to?"
"How many years do you think the Jujutsu world has been developing?" Kenjaku said calmly. "There is literally a bona fide immortal Jujutsu Sorcerer, Tengen, sitting right there. You don't honestly think no other Sorcerers have researched immortality, do you?"
"And the results?" Jogo asked, not realizing his voice was trembling slightly.
"There are a few methods for life extension, though the side effects are severe," Kenjaku replied. "But how much those side effects would actually hinder a true anomaly like Gojo is anyone's guess, assuming you're willing to gamble on that probability. Furthermore... Jujutsu is constantly evolving. We cannot assume that a genius like Satoru Gojo wouldn't invent something entirely new during his century of life."
Those words shattered any lingering fantasies the Curses had about using time as a weapon to outlive Gojo.
Mahito stared intensely at Kenjaku. "For example, you? You possess a method for life extension in your hands, don't you?"
Kenjaku wasn't surprised by the question. "Yes. I figured that by revealing so many hidden truths, I would inevitably draw your suspicion. It seems you've already guessed my... unique nature."
"You aren't a modern Jujutsu Sorcerer, are you?" Mahito asked, feigning casual curiosity. "How long have you been alive?"
Kenjaku smiled warmly. "How long? I suppose it's been about a thousand years."
Jogo and Hanami stared, dumbfounded.
Mahito, however, had anticipated this, though he hadn't expected Kenjaku to be this candid right now... Then again, in Kenjaku's eyes, Mahito's lie-detecting vision was extremely troublesome. Kenjaku probably didn't want any unnecessary complications right before sealing a Binding Vow.
Guessing Kenjaku's rationale, Mahito's expression relaxed considerably.
"Which means your real name isn't actually Suguru Geto?" Mahito asked.
"This physical body is indeed named Suguru Geto," Kenjaku deflected smoothly.
Seizing the opportunity, Mahito finally uttered the line he had been waiting to say:
"Well then, millennial Curse User... I am deeply fascinated by the Jujutsu of the past thousand years. Would you mind teaching me?" Mahito stared at him with wide, limpid, heterochromatic eyes, brimming with anticipation.
Kenjaku looked back into those mismatched eyes. They radiated something vile and warped, as if they could twist a human soul just by looking at it—correction, he *could* literally twist souls. From a modern perspective, Mahito, who could so effortlessly warp human souls and minds, was a perfect fit for the title of an Evil God.
Kenjaku thought seriously for a moment, then suddenly smiled. "Is this to be part of the Binding Vow?"
"You can't just use our power to overthrow the current Jujutsu world without giving a little something back, right?" Mahito mimicked Kenjaku's smiling expression. "Or is it that you have reservations about strengthening my abilities?"
*Not reservations. Fear.* Kenjaku sighed internally, though he kept his face perfectly placid.
Was this the manifestation of humanity's hatred and fear of humanity? Mahito was far too unique. So unique that he caused palpable, severe anxiety even in Kenjaku.
After a long deliberation, Kenjaku said carefully, "Only if you are willing to forge a new Binding Vow with me."
"What kind?"
"During the process of overthrowing the Jujutsu world, you must assist me with everything you have, exactly once," Kenjaku stated.
Mahito paused, suddenly recalling Kenjaku's dialogue from the original timeline. Kenjaku desired the evolution of all humanity. Whether they evolved into Sorcerers, Curses, or something else entirely, he didn't care.
And to achieve that grand vision, his game had to be initiated.
Mahito realized Kenjaku was laying the groundwork to use him.
Even though Mahito's power wasn't fully matured, Kenjaku already sensed that Mahito was slipping beyond his control. A Mahito outside his control had no reason to help him, which meant, theoretically, his grand game couldn't be completed.
Yet he still hadn't abandoned the game. Perhaps the millennia of constantly forming and maintaining Binding Vows was crushing him under their weight; he desperately needed the game to fulfill a Vow. Thus, he had to ensure the game proceeded. If Mahito was slipping his leash, Kenjaku had to find a way to compel his assistance.
And for a master of Binding Vows, there was no better method than forging a new one.
Understanding this, Mahito hesitated for a fraction of a second.
Misinterpreting the hesitation, Kenjaku immediately added, "Of course, I will stipulate in this new Vow that the task you help me with will absolutely not infringe upon your own interests. In fact, it will directly aid your ascension to Godhood. It is an unquestionable win-win."
*That statement is true.* With his soul-piercing vision, Mahito verified Kenjaku's absolute sincerity.
*Was there an element in that game that would directly benefit my evolution into a God?*
Mahito thought about it. There actually was.
The Great Cursed Spirit!
This was the enigma that remained unexplained even at the end of the original work. This was what Kenjaku ultimately sought to achieve. What exactly was the Great Cursed Spirit? What theoretical framework birthed it? What was it capable of? It was all completely unknown.
Kenjaku was the grandmaster of this field. If he was this confident, it meant the Great Cursed Spirit truly would aid in ascension—perhaps immensely so, maybe even directly acting as the catalyst for Mahito to become a God.
Speaking of which, what exactly *was* a 'God' in the world of Jujutsu Kaisen?
Yes, Mahito constantly shouted slogans about ascending to Godhood, but it was really just a motivational chant. At this stage, his primary objective was simply to survive. The "climbing toward Godhood" rhetoric was just necessary branding.
Slogans were slogans, but as for the actual *mechanics* of becoming a God, Mahito was utterly clueless.
In the original lore, the entity closest to Godhood was undeniably Tengen. And even Tengen was never explicitly classified as a 'God'; the official terminology was a "higher state of existence."
A higher state of existence that the people inside the world colloquially called a God. Even Satoru Gojo never disputed the term. Yet the meta-settings outside the story merely labeled it a 'higher state,' leaving its true nature a mystery until the very end.
Mahito grinned broadly. "I want all of your knowledge, millennial Curse User."
Kenjaku finally relaxed. He said easily, "As long as you can stomach it. Jujutsu looks miraculous from the outside, but actually studying it is incredibly dry and tedious."
"I have plenty of patience," Mahito smiled faintly. "Millennial Curse User... you can tell me your real name now, can't you?"
Kenjaku gave Mahito a long, hard look. He suspected Mahito's technique required true names as a trigger. He wanted to refuse, but he knew this was his only chance to bring this incredibly troublesome Curse to heel.
If he was this difficult to deal with now, he would only become more unfathomably elusive in the future.
This was a Cursed Spirit whose potential rivaled Satoru Gojo's... No, perhaps the world had birthed Mahito in this exact moment specifically to balance Satoru Gojo's existence. He was always meant to be Gojo's equal counterweight.
Concluding this, Kenjaku gave a slight nod.
"I am Kenjaku. A Curse User of a thousand years. Kenjaku."
Mahito extended a hand. "Then, until the current Jujutsu world is burned to the ground, I look forward to working with you, Kenjaku-sensei."
"The feeling is mutual, Mahito-san." Kenjaku hesitantly reached out and grasped Mahito's hand.
In that instant, the Binding Vow was forged.
But also in that exact instant, Mahito undeniably, physically—touched Kenjaku's soul.
He didn't alter a single thing. He merely laid a hand upon it. Kenjaku's Cursed Energy defenses didn't even trigger.
If this had been before he touched Haruta Shigemo's soul, Mahito absolutely couldn't have pulled this off. But now, it was effortless.
To use a modern analogy: the old Mahito was a third-rate surgeon wielding a scalpel. If he wanted to touch a target's soul, he had to carefully slice open their Jujutsu defenses with the blade first.
But now, Mahito had learned that if his goal was purely observation and recording rather than modification, an X-ray was vastly more precise than a scalpel, and completely undetectable.
In this entire world, even Sukuna probably couldn't replicate this feat. It was a miracle exclusive to Mahito.
And so, naturally, Kenjaku fell for it completely.
Kenjaku suffered zero damage—because merely *looking* with one's gaze could never be classified as an attack.
But Kenjaku's soul was now entirely mapped and memorized.
Mahito beamed with a massive smile.
"Now then, let's talk about how we're going to get rid of Satoru Gojo and stop Tengen from becoming a 'God'."
He paused, his smile unwavering.
"I'm really looking forward to your curriculum, Kenjaku... sensei."