"From the darkness, emerge—
darker still."
"Impurities and filth—be completely purged."
Standing at the entrance, Kiyotaka Ijichi formed hand seals, casting a barrier that enveloped the entire juvenile detention center.
The already gloomy sky was instantly swallowed by a curtain of night.
"A special grade, huh… Those old geezers at the top really think highly of you weaklings."
White Zetsu crossed his arms behind his head, complaining irritably.
Kugisaki tightened her grip on her hammer and shot back,
"Mommy's boy, don't talk like you're not a weakling yourself."
"If you've really got the guts, go in there and rescue them yourself—we'll just wait outside."
She glanced at White Zetsu walking at the back and sneered.
"What? Don't tell me you're scared."
"Scared?!"
White Zetsu snorted coldly.
"Back in the day, I teamed up with a cursed spirit named Shan Ji and cut our way from Hongxing all the way to Bolan Street—"
"Then from Bolan Street to Chenghua Avenue, and from Chenghua Avenue to Erxian Bridge!"
"Along the way, we slaughtered no less than eight hundred special-grade curses!"
He pointed deeper into the facility, his face full of disdain.
"That trash inside? I could snap my fingers and blow it away!"
"Eight hundred special grades?"
Kugisaki laughed mockingly.
"Then why don't you go in first, kill it, and call us when it's safe to rescue people?"
White Zetsu paused, then shook his head.
"For you guys, that thing inside is actually a good training opportunity."
"It's better if I don't interfere."
"Kugisaki, White Zetsu—if you keep arguing, everyone inside will be dead by the time you're done."
Yuji sighed helplessly.
"Our mission is to rescue people, not fight."
A show-off like White Zetsu and the short-tempered Kugisaki—
those two were like natural enemies, constantly arguing.
"White Zetsu-senpai, where are your cursed tools?"
Megumi asked seriously.
If they were likely to encounter a special grade, this wasn't the time to hold back.
"They were taken away a few days ago."
Megumi froze.
"Why?"
"Gojo—that idiot—said I'm not allowed to use them on missions. So Mirai just took everything back."
White Zetsu shrugged.
"Besides, that Crimson Lotus sword wasn't even mine to begin with."
Kugisaki frowned slightly.
"You knew about the mission this morning. If it's a special grade, why didn't you bring them?"
"I wanted to…"
White Zetsu spread his hands.
"But Mirai was assigned overseas by the higher-ups a few days ago."
"Who knew they'd pull something like this right after he left."
Not just Gojo-sensei—even Mirai-sensei had been suddenly sent away.
A faint sense of unease rose in Megumi's chest.
"Let's go. There are still injured people inside waiting for help."
Before Megumi could say anything, Yuji pushed open the gate and walked in.
"W-What is this…?!"
Yuji looked up at the warped corridors and endless, distorted floors, his face filled with shock.
"The door—?!"
"The entrance we came through is gone?!"
Sweat beaded on Kugisaki's forehead as panic crept into her voice.
"Ahem—"
At some point, White Zetsu had put on sunglasses, standing with arms crossed in a mysterious pose.
"This is a half-formed domain."
"The strange scenery you're seeing is a domain created by that special grade's cursed energy."
His calm explanation only made Yuji and Kugisaki more uneasy.
"Relax. A half-finished domain isn't as terrifying as you think."
White Zetsu spoke dismissively.
"This garbage isn't even in the same league as Mirai's domain."
Hearing that, Yuji and Kugisaki let out a breath of relief.
If it were anywhere near Mirai's—or even that volcano-head's level—
they'd be as good as dead.
"White Zetsu-senpai's right. Don't panic."
Megumi focused and quickly formed hand signs, summoning Divine Dog.
White fur, intricate markings on its forehead, and deep yellow eyes.
Compared to Mirai's shikigami…
Megumi's was smaller, gentler—and far less lethal.
"Don't worry. It's memorized the scent of the entrance."
Following behind Divine Dog, Megumi said,
"Let's find the survivors and get out."
"Even if it's incomplete, this is still not something we can exorcise."
Yuji and Kugisaki nodded and followed.
Rescuing survivors was enough—they had no intention of fighting a special grade.
The three of them—and one spirit—followed Divine Dog to a third-floor balcony.
In the corner lay three mutilated bodies.
Yuji's expression stiffened in shock.
He crouched beside the one body whose face was still somewhat intact.
The name tag on the clothing…
—it matched the name the woman outside had been crying out.
"Fushiguro… let's take this one's body out first."
"Not even seeing her son's body…"
Yuji's voice hardened.
"As a mother, she won't be able to accept his sudden death."
Megumi grabbed Yuji by the hood, equally firm.
"There are still two other survivors whose status we need to confirm. Leave the body here."
"Don't mess with me!"
Yuji turned, anger flashing.
"This place is a maze—how are we supposed to find it again later?!"
"No need to find it."
Megumi replied coldly,
"I never planned to come back for him. Just leave the body here."
Saving people selectively—
saving those deemed "good."
That had always been Megumi's belief.
"Leave it here?!"
Yuji grabbed Megumi by the collar.
"What the hell do you mean by that?!"
"This is a juvenile detention center!"
Rare anger surfaced on Megumi's face.
"The one you want to save—he killed a little girl on her way to school in a hit-and-run!"
"And this was his second offense!"
Megumi grabbed Yuji's collar in return.
"If the person you save goes on to take another life—what then?!"
Yuji bit his lip, unable to respond.
"You two—!"
"Can you think about the time and place before arguing?!"
Kugisaki shouted angrily, stepping forward.
"That's enough, both of you!"
From the back, White Zetsu watched quietly, a subtle smile appearing on his face.
"Such naive idealism… Looks like Yuji still has a lot of growing to do."
He muttered under his breath, then rushed forward, pretending to break up the fight.
Thud.
Yuji and Megumi froze mid-argument.
Kugisaki—who had just been beside them—and White Zetsu suddenly sank into the ground as if falling into water.
"Yuji!"
Out of the corner of his eye, Megumi saw the remains of his shikigami embedded into the wall.
"Run!!"
"We'll find a chance to come back for Kugisaki and White Zetsu after we get out!"
Megumi grabbed the stunned Yuji and turned to flee—
—but suddenly froze.
Cold sweat slid uncontrollably down his face.
A special-grade cursed spirit had appeared right before them—
less than thirty centimeters away.
The danger… was right in front of them.