Chapter 40 : Secret
Facing the open palm of the black-haired, brown-eyed youth, Gojo Satoru didn't immediately reach out to take it. He pouted and said: "You want me to help you keep something? I never do this kind of work."
"Consider it a favor I'm asking." Jiang Lai said half-jokingly, "I'll owe you one, okay? I'll pay you back in the future."
"Fine, then you owe me one." Young Master Gojo nodded reservedly, following Jiang Lai's words and reaching out to take the pagoda tree wooden pendant.
After taking it, the white-haired teenager curiously held it up in front of his eyes for a few seconds. Six Eyes didn't see anything special, so his interest quickly faded. He attached the red-corded pendant to his waist: "Keep it with me, right? Then I'll wear it at my waist like you did."
Jiang Lai paused slightly here, considering in his heart.
Wearing it so conspicuously at his waist as decoration, wouldn't that attract too much attention? After all, he had just learned from the manga not long ago that there was a group of people paying special attention to items on and around Gojo Satoru.
But then he thought: in the manga, that group's conversation had a question and answer that connected as "the others also don't have any special items," indicating they had already observed the items of the group who went to the Zenin family, which should include the pendant he wore at his waist.
And among these, there wasn't the item they wanted to find.
However, if these people saw the pendant moved to Gojo Satoru and then became interested enough to snatch or steal it, that would be troublesome. Anyway, it was better to be careful.
Jiang Lai had originally wanted to directly remind Gojo Satoru to be careful, but worried about alerting them, so he temporarily didn't speak up.
His thoughts quickly ran through his mind, and Jiang Lai said calmly: "Better put it in a clothing pocket instead. Wearing it at the waist exposed to wind and sun isn't good."
Gojo Satoru raised an eyebrow: "Didn't you also wear it at your waist?"
Jiang Lai casually made something up: "I'm not like you young people full of energy running around everywhere. I spend more time in quiet cultivation and rest."
"Hah? How old are you exactly?" Gojo Satoru went along with the teasing, but didn't dwell on this aspect. He flipped his fingers: "OK, putting your precious pendant in a pocket."
The white-haired teenager put away the pendant, then looked up again, his beautiful blue eyes looking over: "When will you return it to me?"
"When we meet next time." Jiang Lai replied naturally.
"When will we meet next time?" Gojo Satoru pressed further.
Jiang Lai smiled: "I told you, next time."
Gojo Satoru was speechless for a second: "......Isn't that just nonsense?"
The black-haired, brown-eyed youth in front curved his lips. He didn't explain further, his gaze moving past Gojo Satoru's shoulder to look at the position where the topknot teenager stood not far behind.
Jiang Lai said: "Don't keep Suguru-kun waiting. Go back quickly." He paused for a second, then added gently: "Remember what I told you before, talk with him more, tell him that you're best friends for life, youth is still long, you can slowly find answers to everything together."
The white-haired teenager jumped back a small step as if his feet were burned, dramatically rubbing his arms: "Wah, stop talking, I'm getting goosebumps all over from the mushiness."
"Saying something from the heart won't make you lose any flesh." Jiang Lai blinked lightly: "This isn't fake either."
Gojo Satoru held back for half a second, then still shook his head: "......No, no. It's fine that Suguru and I get along well, but suddenly saying this kind of thing, why? Too weird."
"Alright then." Jiang Lai changed his approach: "But if you don't want to say these things, then spend more time eating with him. Eat good food."
"......Eat good food?"
"Right, the taste of what goes in your mouth can greatly affect your mood."
Gojo Satoru looked at him for a few seconds, casually scratching his head with one hand, drawing out his tone: "Fine, I'll treat Suguru to meals more often in the future. If Shoko also comes out of school, I'll bring Shoko along too."
Jiang Lai nodded slightly upon hearing this, his eyebrows curved like a new moon.
After the conversation ended, Gojo Satoru turned to go back to find Geto Suguru. Before stepping away, his form paused slightly, and he said lightly over his shoulder: "If you want to leave, then leave. I won't see you off."
"Everything that needed to be said has been said, no need to see me off." Jiang Lai curved his lips, his voice gentle: "Please also say 'goodbye' to Suguru-kun and Ieiri-san for me."
Gojo Satoru hummed in acknowledgment, then stepped away.
The teenager's posture and stride were quite casual, but his soul had the proud bearing of a pine tree. In the most youthful years with the most freedom, his eyes held only smooth sailing expectations for the road ahead.
Jiang Lai watched him leave, and from far away, also waved to Geto Suguru standing there as a farewell.
As his gaze withdrew, he noticed a light brown-haired figure approaching from not far away. That person walked up to the two little ones Maki and Mai in a few steps, somewhat stiffly greeting them.
That dog-like Yuikawa? Jiang Lai raised an eyebrow internally. Almost forgot about him... Seems like the second-years didn't go on missions today.
He had forgotten to remind Gojo Satoru to pay more attention to this underclassman in the future. But with High School Satoru's personality, he probably couldn't lay low anyway. If it progressed to taking action, the situation might become even worse.
Thoughts flowed through his mind, and Jiang Lai didn't delay further. He calculated the time, knowing that the thirty-minute countdown would end soon.
Therefore, he turned and walked toward the forest paths inside Jujutsu High.
Tokyo Jujutsu High had very large grounds, built against mountains with lush vegetation. Late spring and early summer was when plants grew vigorously. Jiang Lai followed the maintained small path in the middle, walking some distance before stopping.
He didn't turn around: "No need to follow me from a distance. If you have something to say, come forward and say it." After his words fell, he turned around: "Don't step on the growing grass, Yuikawa-san."
The light brown-haired teenager emerged from behind, his drooping dog eyes looking up, showing natural innocence: "Senior......"
Jiang Lai looked back at him with a very calm expression. Neither surprised anger at being followed, nor gentle tolerance in the face of innocent dog eyes, like a high mountain lake, without ripples.
Under the plain gaze of the person in front, Yuikawa Kurisu's hands fidgeting with his clothes tightened somewhat. He restrained a few points of his poor acting, his reddish-brown eyes reflecting the forest tree shadows.
Before Dog Yuikawa could say anything, Jiang Lai spoke first, pointing to the side: "Look at this, what thoughts do you have?" This question seemed somewhat abrupt at this moment.
Yuikawa Kurisu was stunned for a fraction of a second before turning to look.
Beside them were very ordinary trees, neither new nor old. Between two closely spaced trees, there was a diagonal spider web, with a brown spider crouching at the edge of the translucent silver web, and a fat flying insect perched on a nearby branch.
What thoughts? The question from the navy blue figure rolled through his mind, and Yuikawa Kurisu instinctively came up with an answer.
I want to catch that flying insect and throw it onto the spider web. After the spider comes and spits silk to wrap it up, I'll use a tree branch to tear open the web.
The flying insect will fall to the ground struggling, the spider will anxiously climb around rebuilding the broken web, and I'll stick the branch in the ground to watch both of their different yet similar desperate struggles.
He did these behaviors without any particular purpose, simply enjoying watching those ups and downs of emotional fluctuations, observing the entanglement trapped between right and wrong, honor and disgrace, gain and loss.
The answer rolled through his mind, but he didn't reply as such. Yuikawa Kurisu lifted his dog eyes slightly, turning his head while smiling shyly: "......I, don't have any particular thoughts, just think the scenery is very nice......"
By the end of his words, his volume had already lowered, because there was no dialogue partner beside him.
Yuikawa Kurisu turned to look at the empty road. The navy blue figure from just now was now nowhere to be seen.
The countdown had ended.
When the countdown approached its end, Jiang Lai noticed Yuikawa Kurisu trailing behind.
He didn't want to perform an overly conspicuous disappearance into thin air, so he simply stopped and let the other come out.
When pointing to the side, Jiang Lai didn't have any particular thoughts, but he knew the other would definitely have endless extending thoughts.
This way, when the other's attention was completely focused on the side, brainstorming questions and answers, he could quietly leave.
The development was about the same as Jiang Lai had guessed.
Space-time traversed once again. When he opened his eyes, the surrounding scenery entered his vision.
Huge clean floor-to-ceiling windows, a single bed, wooden desk and wardrobe, this was a Jujutsu High dormitory.
He recognized it at a glance.
......Why was the refresh location here this time? Jiang Lai paused in his heart, his thoughts wandering for a second. Good thing it wasn't in the middle of the night, or he'd be mistaken for an assassin or pervert.
He steadied himself, his gaze instinctively sweeping around.
The room had no decorations, very simple furnishings. Books and files on the desk were arranged very neatly, there was a gray mug with a spoon beside the bookshelf, and an opened box of instant coffee on top of the cabinet.
This wasn't Gojo Satoru's room. Jiang Lai instinctively judged. That guy was a sweet-tooth lover, he couldn't possibly drink instant coffee... Plus he wouldn't have the patience to arrange books and files like this.
Jiang Lai quickly withdrew his gaze, knowing that casually examining someone else's room wasn't polite behavior.
What time was this? There were no items in the room that could prove the timeline.
With questions floating in his heart, Jiang Lai wasn't in a hurry to go out. He leaned against a wall and first opened his phone to log onto the new series official website.
The manga had updated several more chapters. After his farewell with Gojo Satoru at Jujutsu High, the Star Plasma Vessel mission quickly arrived.
Because the original work had already detailed this mission, the new series only picked a few segments to depict, several contents that differed from the original work.
The first was after the Time Vessel Association posted their bounty mission with "dead or alive," Fushiguro Toji was holding his phone, looking down. There was a black circular solid mark on the back of his left hand.
Jiang Lai squinted: ......What was this? It didn't look like a wound, nor like a tattoo. The black patch had no aesthetic appeal.
Then the scene zoomed in on the phone screen. Besides the Time Vessel Association bounty, he had received another unknown email with mission payment noted at the top and "Star Plasma Vessel wanted alive" in the remarks.
There was another line below that read: [Could you please invite Geto-kun to come as a guest as well.]
Seeing this, Jiang Lai's eyes focused. Indeed there was interference from other forces!
His first thought was the Regulatory Committee, but there was no evidence yet, so he continued reading.
Later at Tombs of the Star, Fushiguro Toji fired a high-strength tranquilizer dart, not killing Amanai Riko on the spot, but making her unconscious.
After defeating Geto Suguru, Fushiguro Toji originally wanted to give him an injection too, but after thinking for a few seconds, he put down the gun and lifted his eyelids: "Geto, right? Someone wants to invite you as a guest. Please cooperate."
Geto Suguru lying on the ground didn't respond, unclear whether his consciousness was fuzzy and didn't hear, or simply didn't reply.
But when he was subsequently picked up, he indeed didn't resist, probably the previous battle had exhausted his strength and he had no energy to struggle.
The following scenes didn't show where the Star Plasma Vessel went or who Geto Suguru's guest host was. The scene switched to Fushiguro Toji walking out after completing his mission and Gojo Satoru, who had awakened Reverse Cursed Technique after "dying and reviving," pursuing him.
The process of their duel was the same as the original work, so the new series glossed over it, only showing the classic "Heaven and earth, I alone am honored."
The ending was also different. This time, Gojo Satoru pierced through Toji's right half of his body.
After the topic about "Megumi" was finished, the black circular mark on the back of dying Fushiguro Toji's remaining left hand gradually peeled off piece by piece. During the peeling, some frames looked like iris flower patterns, lingering briefly before completely disappearing from the flesh, but seeming to seep downward.
Jiang Lai's heart stirred: Iris flower... it was the Regulatory Committee!
Was what spirit form Fushiguro Toji's left hand always had wrapped in bandages concealing this mark?
He said he understood the reason for his lingering, because what bound him was the Regulatory Committee, so he psychologically detested it and wrapped the mark up, out of sight, out of mind.
The scene didn't show the spirit form, but gave a close-up of the pagoda tree wooden pendant half-visible in Gojo Satoru's pocket.
After that, Gojo Satoru reunited with Geto Suguru, but there was no trace of Amanai Riko at the scene. Only Geto Suguru standing alone, with Time Vessel Association believers in a circle around him, smiling and clapping.
"Are you alright?" Gojo Satoru approached.
"I'm fine." Geto Suguru replied.
Gojo Satoru asked: "Where's Riko?"
Geto Suguru looked down and replied: "......I don't know."
The circle of ignorant believers of different ages and appearances clapped, forming a stark contrast with the two silent people.
The white-haired teenager, dragging his tired body, lifted his eyes slightly and asked: "These people, should we kill them?"
In response to Gojo Satoru's inquiry, Geto Suguru looked down and replied: "......The problem isn't here." He murmured, "Killing them has no meaning... Rather than killing, better to use them as feed to continue other......"
Hearing this, Gojo Satoru tilted his head slightly, not quite understanding his friend's words: "Suguru?" He called the other's name.
This call seemed to pull Geto Suguru out of that drifting personal space. His form imperceptibly paused.
The topknot teenager looked up, then exhaled: "......Never mind. Let's go." Geto Suguru said quietly, "The problem isn't here." He repeated it again.
The Time Vessel Association content ended here. Like the original plot, the middle year's story wasn't detailed.
A year later, Gojo Satoru fully mastered Limitless and became the strongest, while Geto Suguru swallowed cursed spirits increasingly frequently. This summer, like the original work, cursed spirits continuously emerged.
The update stopped abruptly here. Jiang Lai's gaze remained on his phone, thoughts churning in his heart.
Obviously, during the Star Plasma Vessel incident, Geto Suguru had seen some unusual scene or learned some secret. That's why he had that attitude at the end, murmuring "the problem isn't here."
He didn't know what Amanai Riko's situation was. Even understanding this incident from a god's perspective, what he saw was [disappearance with unknown life or death].
What caught Jiang Lai's attention was that after Gojo Satoru proposed "should we kill them," Geto Suguru's reply contained a very strange unfinished sentence: "use them as feed to continue other......"
What did this mean? Use living people as some kind of "feed"? Continue other what, other traditions? Other people?
He squinted slightly. There was a heart-pounding feeling of glimpsing some secret.
Geto Suguru must know something, but he didn't say it, and hadn't made up his mind for a final choice. His heart was still hesitating.
Jiang Lai rubbed his phone. According to the manga, the current time point was Gojo Satoru and Geto Suguru's third year?
Just then, the sound of a door opening came from the entrance, and Jiang Lai instinctively looked up.