"Get in the car." Nanami said no more, opening the rear door.
Tu Bai sat inside, Gojo Satoru squeezed in after him, sitting down beside him. Nanami sat in the passenger seat and handed the tablet to Tu Bai: "Target Cursed Spirit, Grade 1, codename 'Shadow Hide'. Its ability is to merge with shadows for rapid movement, specializing in sneak attacks. It has already caused three civilian casualty incidents."
Tu Bai took the tablet to read the information. The photos of the Cursed Spirit's form were very blurry, looking like a mass of wriggling black shadows.
We need to trap it within a fixed area," Nanami said. "Can your Construction Technique create a Closed Barrier?
I can," Tu Bai said. "But I need to know the specific range and terrain.
The site is an Abandoned Shopping Mall, Third Layer, with a total area of approximately five thousand square meters. The Cursed Spirit was last sighted in the B2 Parking Lot," Nanami said, pulling up a structural diagram. "We need to force it into a corner of the Parking Lot, then you will perform a Construction to create a Barrier to trap it, I will perform the Exorcism.
Understood.
Gojo Satoru listened from the side and suddenly interjected, "Nanamin, you're being quite serious this time."
One must, of course, work seriously during working hours." Nanami said without even looking back. "If Gojo-san finds it boring, he doesn't have to follow us.
That won't do~ I want to see how Xiao Bai performs.
Tu Bai felt a bit awkward. He lowered his head to continue reading the documents, while Gojo Satoru's hand remained resting on his shoulder, unmoving.
It was 9:30 when the car arrived at the Abandoned Shopping Mall. Cordon lines were stretched outside the mall, two Assistant Supervisors were on standby.
Nanami-san," one of the Assistant Supervisors approached. "The Cursed Spirit is still inside. Surveillance footage from last night captured it moving around the Food Area on the Second Floor.
Mm." Nanami nodded, looking toward Tu Bai, "Tu Bai-kun, construct a Cordon Barrier around the perimeter first to prevent it from escaping.
Tu Bai walked to the entrance of the Abandoned Shopping Mall and pressed both hands against the ground. Silver Demon Power surged forth, spreading across the ground in all directions, forming a transparent Barrier around the Perimeter of the Shopping Mall. Faint Demon Wards rippled across the surface of the Barrier, swaying like water waves.
Nanami observed carefully, "What is the intensity?"
It can withstand two full-power strikes from a Grade 1 Cursed Spirit," Tu Bai said, standing up. "It can maintain that for about thirty minutes.
That's enough." Nanami pushed up his glasses. "Let's go in.
The three of them walked into the Shopping Mall. It was very dark inside, with only a few slivers of sunlight shining in through the broken windows. The air was thick with dust and the smell of mold, broken shelves and merchandise were scattered across the floor.
Gojo Satoru followed closely by Tu Bai's side, almost inseparable. Nanami walked ahead, holding a Cursed Tool—the blade wrapped in cloth.
"Did you feel that?" Nanami suddenly stopped.
Tu Bai concentrated his mind to sense the surroundings. Demon Power is highly sensitive to negative energy, he could feel.. something moving in the shadows.
"The left corridor," he said.
Nanami nodded: "Stay close."
They slowly approached the Left Corridor. Tu Bai kept his hands in a posture ready for Construction, prepared to activate his Cursed Technique at any moment.
At the end of the corridor was the Home Appliance Area, where a pile of television screens faced them, most of which were shattered. One of the screens suddenly lit up, displaying a distorted pattern of static.
Then, Black Shadow surged out from the TV Screen.
It wasn't just one, but a dozen or so masses, splashing across the floor and walls like ink, surging toward them rapidly.
They've scattered," Nanami frowned, "the main body is hidden within one of them.
"I'll find it." Tu Bai closed his eyes and spread his hands. Silver Demon Power radiated from him, sweeping across the entire area like radar waves. This was not an offensive Construction, but a sensory one—every single thing his Demon Power touched would feed back structural information.
In his perception, most of those Black Shadows were empty, except for one cluster.. that had a core inside.
"Third cluster to the front right!" Tu Bai shouted, his eyes snapping open.
Nanami moved instantly. He rushed toward that Black Shadow, his blade unsheathed, a flash of cold light gleaming.
But the Black Shadow reacted even faster, splitting into smaller fragments, merging into the shadows on the ground, vanishing without a trace.
It escaped," Nanami said, sheathing his blade. "It's cunning.
It requires a larger range of perception," Tu Bai said. "I can perform a Construction to create a perception net covering the entire floor, but it will take time.
How long?
Five minutes.
Fine," Nanami said. "Gojo-san, please protect Tu Bai.
"You don't need to tell me that~" Gojo Satoru stood beside Tu Bai with his hands in his pockets, looking relaxed, but his eyes behind the sunglasses were already in a state of alert.
Tu Bai sat cross-legged, his hands pressed against the ground. This time, what he was performing was not a Construction of physical objects, but rather countless threads of Demon Power as fine as strands of hair. Using himself as the starting point, these threads extended in all directions, piercing through walls, floors, ceilings, covering the entire floor like a massive spiderweb.
Every thread was an extension of his perception. He could "see" dust floating in the air, "hear" rats scurrying through the pipes, "feel" the direction in which the shadows flowed.
Found it.
B2 Parking Lot, Southeast Corner, hiding behind a pillar." Tu Bai opened his eyes, fine beads of sweat forming on his forehead, "It's waiting for us to go down there.
"A trap?" Nanami asked.
Probably," Tu Bai said, standing up. "It knows we are looking for it, so it is intentionally leaving an opening.
Let's use its own plan against it." Nanami looked at Gojo Satoru. "Gojo-san, please draw its attention from the front. Tu Bai, flank it with me, you construct a Barrier to trap it.
Alright.
Gojo Satoru raised an eyebrow. "Why am I the bait?"
Because you're the most conspicuous," Nanami said mercilessly. "And even if you are ambushed, you won't die.
Wow, Nanamin, you're so mean~
But Gojo Satoru did it anyway. He swayed unsteadily as he walked toward the stairs leading to the B2 Parking Lot, humming a tune and intentionally making his footsteps heavy.
Nanami and Tu Bai went down via the Emergency Exit on the other side. The B2 Parking Lot was even darker, with only a few emergency lights flickering.
Tu Bai could clearly "see" the Cursed Spirit's location through his perception net—it was indeed hiding behind the pillar in the Southeast Corner, its body merging with the shadows, almost becoming one with the darkness.
Gojo Satoru walked into the Parking Lot and stood in an open space. "Hey—are you in there? Come out and play—"
Black Shadow moved. It slid out from behind a pillar, approaching Gojo Satoru rapidly like a liquid along the ground. It suddenly leaped at a distance of five meters, transforming into countless spikes that shot toward him.
Gojo Satoru did not move an inch. Limitless activated automatically, causing the spikes to stop just centimeters away from him before they all fell to the ground.
"Is that all?" he laughed.
The Cursed Spirit realized it had been tricked and tried to flee, but it was already too late.
"Now!" Nanami shouted.
Tu Bai clasped his hands together, Silver Light erupted from his palms. It didn't rise from the ground, but instead "grew" directly from the space surrounding the Cursed Spirit—six transparent walls instantly took shape, trapping the Cursed Spirit within a cube with three-meter sides.
The Cursed Spirit slammed into the walls frantically, but the strength of the Construction was sufficient, leaving them completely unmoved.
Nanami walked over and drew his blade: "It's over."
As the blade fell, the Cursed Spirit let out a piercing shriek before dissolving into black smoke and vanishing.
Tu Bai breathed a sigh of relief and dissipated the Barrier. The consumption of Demon Power was significant, his legs felt a bit weak.
Well done." Nanami sheathed his blade and looked at Tu Bai. "Precise positioning, decisive Construction, an excellent tactical mind.
Tu Bai felt a bit embarrassed by the praise: "Thank you.."
However," Nanami turned toward Gojo Satoru, "Gojo-san, please don't keep staring at Tu Bai when he is performing Construction on the perception web next time. It will distract him.
Gojo Satoru tilted his head: "Really? I was just observing Xiao Bai's serious expression~"
It's this kind of 'observation' that interferes with work," Nanami said, pushing up his glasses. "Tu Bai is a professional Sorcerer; he doesn't need you hovering over him like you're protecting a little chick.
Tu Bai was stunned for a moment. Because he had been focused on his perception, he hadn't noticed that Gojo Satoru had been watching him the entire time.
Gojo Satoru laughed, "Nanamin, are you jealous?"
Please don't say such nonsense." Nanami turned around, "Mission complete, wrap up the unit.
The three of them walked out of the shopping mall. The Assistant Supervisor began the cleanup work. Nanami Kento went to hand over the report, while Gojo Satoru and Tu Bai waited by the car.
"Are you tired?" Gojo Satoru asked.
A little," Tu Bai said truthfully. "The perception net consumes quite a lot of energy.
I'll treat you to some desserts when we get back to make up for it~
Tu Bai did not respond. He thought back to what Nanami had just said—Gojo Satoru had been staring at him the whole time.
Why?
After Nanami finished the handover and returned, he said to Tu Bai, "Tu Bai-kun, can we speak privately for a moment?"
Tu Bai glanced at Gojo Satoru, who simply shrugged. "Go ahead, go ahead. I'll wait here."
Tu Bai followed Nanami to the side. Nanami leaned against the car body, took off his glasses to wipe them, then put them back on.
“Tu Bai, how long have you been partnered with Gojo-san?”
About a month.
How does it feel?
Tu Bai thought for a moment. "Senpai.. although his personality is a bit problematic, he is very strong, he takes great care of me."
Takes care of you." Nanami repeated the word. "Tu Bai, do you know what kind of person Gojo-san is?
The Strongest Sorcerer.. the head of the Gojo Clan.. a Jujutsu High Teacher..
Those are titles," Nanami said. "I am talking about the person. As for Gojo Satoru, he lacks interest in most things, but he becomes exceptionally obsessed with the few things he does care about. He draws a very clear line between 'responsibility' and 'care'—he can be responsible to everyone, but he only cares about a very small number of people.
Tu Bai listened without saying a word.
You belong to the 'extremely few'," Nanami said, looking at him. "This means he will make irrational judgments, he will be overprotective, he will place you in a special position, that position.. carries a great deal of pressure.
.. I understand.
Do you really understand?" Nanami's voice was calm. "When you are with the Strongest, you must also be strong enough. I don't mean in terms of power—though power is certainly important—I mean in terms of your heart. You must be able to withstand his attention, his expectations, his.. possessiveness.
Tu Bai thought of Gojo Satoru's little gestures: a hand on his shoulder, ruffling his hair, knees touching knees, the way he had held his hand from behind during the experiment last night.
Those actions were too natural, so natural that he hadn't even felt anything was Incorrect.
But now that Nanami had pointed it out..
I'm just reminding you," Nanami said. "I don't mean to deny your relationship. In fact, Gojo-san has been.. more human lately than before. That is a good thing. But good things often come with a price.
He paused. "Are you ready? To bear the weight of such attention?"
Tu Bai remained silent for a long time.
I don't know," he said finally, "but.. I want to try.