Chapter 16: I Don’t Want to Be a Heroic Spirit [16]
"So, Sister Baobhan," Jasmine looked up at her with a soft voice, "should we head over and take Miss Amanai now?"
"Not just yet." Baobhan took a bite out of an apple and replied as she chewed, "Whether we want to capture or kill the Star Plasma Vessel, Gojo Satoru will be the toughest wall in our way. Don't let his carefree behavior fool you—despite playing around to entertain Amanai, he's constantly using his technique to monitor everything around him."
Even her distant surveillance of the group earlier had alerted Gojo. What an interesting pair of eyes.
In her past life, Baobhan had watched Jujutsu Kaisen and delved into its lore and theories. Most jujutsu techniques were fairly easy to understand.
For example, Geto Suguru's "Cursed Spirit Manipulation" allowed him to absorb and control cursed spirits; the Zen'in family's "Ten Shadows Technique" let them control their shadows, which could transform into ten Shikigami; and the Kamo family's "Blood Manipulation" let them control their own blood.
Apart from the mystery of Sukuna, only Gojo's Six Eyes and Limitless Technique had eluded her understanding.
What she did know was that the Six Eyes allowed Gojo to perceive the flow of cursed energy and detect movement on a molecular level with no blind spots. His Limitless Technique ensured that nothing and no one could touch him, while he could teleport and create "absolute attraction" and "absolute repulsion."
It was… well, completely absurd.
"All right, it's time to move."
Finishing her apple, Baobhan turned and headed toward the rooftop exit. Jasmine blinked, a little stunned, before hurrying after her.
"Are we… capturing Miss Amanai?"
"No. I'm not that clueless. At least for today, let her have her fun."
I told you, I don't like people who force themselves.
Today, I hope she realizes what she truly wants.
Jasmine's eyes widened a bit at Baobhan's unexpected response.
"So… where are we going?"
A faint smile curved on Baobhan's lips.
"Why, to make the ones who don't know how to read the room disappear."
---
"What's wrong, Satoru?"
A white-haired boy, handsome enough to be called beautiful, tilted his head, staring into the distance with eyes hidden behind tinted glasses that gleamed with a surreal silver light.
Beside him stood a dark-haired boy of the same age, with an odd hairstyle, following Gojo's gaze but seeing nothing.
"Is there something there?"
Geto Suguru knew better than anyone the power of his friend's almost absurd eyesight, and he trusted Gojo implicitly.
"...Nothing."
Gojo rubbed his chin, unsure how to explain.
He'd felt a gaze on them, but there was no malice in it.
Who could it be…?
"Take this!"
Suddenly, a wave of seawater crashed over Gojo, drenching him completely and breaking his train of thought.
"Ha-ha! That's what you get for messing with me!"
Watching Gojo soaked head to toe, Geto struggled to stifle a laugh—only to become the target of Gojo and Riko's water-splashing retaliation.
"Satoru, time's up!"
For all his overflowing self-confidence, Gojo often needed Geto to remind him about things as simple as the time.
"Is it? I didn't realize it was getting so late."
The safest place for Riko Amanai was Master Tengen's domain. As long as she reached him, she wouldn't need their protection any longer.
Hearing Geto's words, Riko, who'd been laughing and splashing a moment ago, suddenly grew quiet. Her eyes, shaded by a wide-brimmed sun hat, flickered with a hint of sadness.
Gojo noticed it instantly.
In front of others, Riko always maintained a cheerful, carefree front—eating, drinking, playing, pretending as if she were merely visiting a friend's house.
From the moment Gojo and Geto had met her, she'd embraced the role of "the Star Plasma Vessel," the future Master Tengen. She was the epitome of optimism and bravado.
But deep down, was she truly as happy as she appeared?
"Geto, let's go back tomorrow morning instead."
Riko Amanai: (☆▽☆)
Whether to nurture her attachment to life or to grant her last desires, they decided to extend their stay.
Boating along rivers, strolling through gardens, marveling at aquariums, and savoring the delicacies by the beach house.
From dawn till dusk, Riko Amanai hadn't stopped laughing.
Neither the dread of a future that wasn't hers nor the weight of her looming fate had a place in her mind.
In this moment, she was living as "Riko Amanai," not "the Star Plasma Vessel." Acting, moving, indulging as herself.
Ah, what a brilliant soul.
But why?
Why did some people refuse to tolerate even this small, dazzling light?
"This land has a gravitational pull, one so powerful it draws everything twisted, foul, and corrupt into its embrace, burying them in the soil over centuries, making them a part of this place."
At that moment, Baobhan twirled a handgun, its model a mystery to her. She was no military enthusiast.
At her feet lay a torn anti-material sniper rifle, visibly expensive—yet now split clean in half.
"To take down the Star Plasma Vessel, you went to any length, didn't you? You even brought out something like this. For that relentless ingenuity and conviction alone, I'll give you credit, even if it's just the last flails of fish on a cutting board."
With a sidelong glance, she looked down at the man bound and gagged at her feet, her high-heeled foot pressing on his head.
Aside from him, there were four other men in the room, all unconscious. Just to be safe, Jasmine had tied them up as well.
This was for their own good, after all. She couldn't guarantee that she wouldn't shred them into pieces if they started buzzing around her like flies.
Within moments, Baobhan lost interest in the gun in her hand.
"I still need to claim my payment from you all, after all. Can't have you all dead just yet."
If they were jujutsu sorcerers, she wouldn't have given these guns a second thought, but these men were all ordinary people with no grasp of jujutsu at all.
---
T/N: to me jjk ended when gojo 'won', I mean it's not really Gege's fault shonen was rushing him to finish JJK and he got sick so he had to make do with the amount of time he had left, so thats why the ending seems rushed, though im still not over the fact my hubby died