Chapter 104 Chapter 92 Reluctant Measures
These two cursed spirits are humans!
How could such a thing happen?
Caught off guard, Itadori Yuuji was punched in the nose by the venus flytrap cursed spirit right in front of him. He stumbled back, two streams of blood immediately flowing from his nostrils.
“Teacher Lin Qi, what do you mean these cursed spirits were once humans!? Could you explain?” Itadori yelled as he hurriedly parried and dodged the cursed spirit’s attacks.
In the moment of distraction, he carelessly showed a weakness and was hit in the abdomen by one of the cursed spirit’s punches.
He widened his eyes and arched his body like a shrimp, then was sent flying by an uppercut, landing messily not far away.
“It means exactly as it sounds.” Lin Qi grabbed a handful of popcorn and stuffed it in his mouth while observing the pitiful state Itadori was getting beaten up in by the cursed spirit.
Taking a look at Yukinoshita Yukino’s side.
The black-haired girl held an umbrella, slowly closing her eyes. Her thin lips were tightly pressed together, and Lin Qi witnessed the sorrow on her face.
After a moment, Yukinoshita Yukino opened her eyes again, a trace of pity flashing in her deep indigo irises.
An invisible slash shot forth from her slender hands, gliding across the cursed spirit’s neck.
“Your… ticket?” the cursed spirit tilted its head in confusion.
In the next instant, its head rolled off its neck, dying without feeling any pain.
Yukinoshita Yukino approached the fallen head, squatting down. Without reluctance, she reached out and closed the cursed spirit’s eyelids.
“May you rest peacefully, free from all suffering,” the girl whispered softly.
Two crystal-clear teardrops flowed from the sealed eyes of the cursed spirit, passing through its dark green skin and merging with the rainwater.
Lin Qi watched quietly with a smile, a sense of relief passing through his eyes.
As for Yukinoshita Yukino, she finished the fight and was about to help Itadori, but Lin Qi stopped her with his hand.
“This is his battle. Do not interfere,” Lin Qi said, jumping from the rooftop to the ground. Under the girl’s silent expression, he placed the bag of popcorn in her arms.
Itadori seemed to be deeply conflicted, merely blocking the punches from the venus flytrap cursed spirit over and over.
Damn! These cursed spirits were once humans? How am I supposed to fight them?!
Blocking another heavy punch aimed at his face, Itadori slid back a distance, then repositioned himself to continue defending against the cursed spirit’s attack.
However, this way I’ll lose sooner or later…
Though extraordinary in strength and stamina, he couldn’t endure being constantly battered.
Biting his lip, Itadori made his first charge against the enemy, quickly dodging the coming punch before circling around and grabbing the cursed spirit from behind, locking both its arms and legs with a ground hold. The cursed spirit started to wildly wriggle.
“Teacher Lin Qi! Can’t we do something to save him!?” Itadori shouted towards Lin Qi.
“There’s no way,” Lin Qi responded coldly. “Since they turned into this, they have long been dead.”
“How can this be…”
Itadori’s expression froze. The force he applied was reduced just enough for the cursed spirit to break free and strike him with an elbow to the face before toppling backwards into a splashing fall.
His head bumping on the floor left him feeling light-headed. Seeing the cursed spirit sitting on him, Itadori swiftly rolled aside before standing up again.
Gasping for air, his hands began shaking, weakening his grip even as he tried to make a fist.
“I’m sorry, I can’t save you,” he said painfully.
Summoning some resolve, Itadori extended both hands and struck his own face sharply. His bewildered gaze returned clarity: “But I cannot just succumb here!”
The cursed spirit lunged at him, yet did not have the same ease as before.
A fist imbued with curse energy struck the venus flytrap’s head hard, while the lagging energy from his abdomen surged up his arm, exploding anew into the cursed spirit’s head and opening a wound about the size of a bowl.
“Laundry… powder…” the cursed spirit fell back, lying on the ground as life drained away.
Itadori looked down at the corpse with a complex expression, murmuring absently, “Indeed, it hasn’t vanished.”
With hands clasped together, he closed his eyes and mourned for the departed within his heart.
“Good job.” Lin Qi came over and patted him on the shoulder, handing him a bin of popcorn as a reward.
“Thank you… No wait, Teacher Lin Qi you disappeared just now, were you fetching popcorn?” Itadori began, his expression falling.
Doesn’t Lin Qi seem just as unreliable as Teacher Gojo?
“They were already there,” Lin Qi corrected. “Employees had left, but the insulated box still had loads of popcorn, so I brought it in to avoid waste.”
“A bin per person,” he continued, magically pulling another bin of popcorn from behind him to snack on.
“Took without asking is theft. Isn’t this simple truth understood by Rinn-san?” Yukinoshika Yukino’s chilly voice echoed from behind. Turning around, she found a popcorn-filled bin tucked under her arm too.
“It’s reasonable requisitioning, I say boldly,” Lin Qi protested, unconcerned.
“You’ve crossed the line into mere unreasonable fuss,” Yukinoshika sighed, then took a popcorn kernel into her mouth.
Watching them interact, Itadori scratched his head, commenting, “Your relationship is really good.”
“Ah, well enough,” Lin Qi replied with a laugh.
“How did you come to this realization?” Yukinoshika averted her glance, “Next, what shall we do?”
“Nothing useful here, time to return temporarily.” Lin Qi glanced at a drenched Itadori, “And you should change your clothes, Yuuji. We wouldn’t want you catching a cold.”
“I’ll be fine. Haven’t been sick my whole life actually,” Itadori demonstrated a show of muscle, smiling, “Just a bit uncomfortable being wet though.”
“Waiting here won’t bear results. Let’s go,” Lin Qi led the way, heading back into the hallway.
Before leaving, Yukinoshika noticed the ticket booth, placing money for three bags of popcorn on the counter.
Somehow, the girl felt an odd mix of exasperation, reminiscent of a parent forced to clean up after a mischievous child.
…
After School, Become Jujutsu Sorcerer:
