Chapter 144 : Years Later But Still Can't Beat Jiang Lai's Nao
Zenin Naoya had once imagined countless scenarios of meeting that demon fox mask person again when passing through the corridor with red rope bells.
The trampled pride from his youth intertwined with his bone-deep admiration for strength, accumulating over the years into a certain stubbornness.
He gritted his teeth practicing his technique, fantasizing about delivering an impressive counterattack when they met again someday.
He made Toji, glimpsed briefly in childhood corridors, his idol, and made Jiang Lai, briefly encountered in youth corridors, his target.
He admired and yearned for the powerful idol while pursuing the target he wanted to defeat and prove himself against.
Zenin Naoya believed he was the most talented junior in the Zenin family, having grown into a Special Grade 1 jujutsu sorcerer.
He had mastered Projection Sorcery to perfection. Zenin Naoya was convinced in his heart that if time flowed back to replay that day's scene, he could definitely gain the upper hand within a breath.
After all, almost no one could see through his ability initially and react within one twenty-fourth of a second. As long as he exerted force from the start, he could seize the advantage.
Zenin Naoya believed this firmly.
However, when yesterday returned and the mysterious great demon wearing a mask appeared before him again, Zenin Naoya discovered he was once again held by invisible space. His fantasized scenario was ruthlessly shattered by reality.
Different scene, similar combatants, repeated situation. Zenin Naoya couldn't move an inch, much less deploy his technique.
"..." He gritted his teeth, exerting his entire body trying to break free from restraint, unwilling to accept this instant defeat outcome.
It shouldn't be... it shouldn't be like this!!
If only he could slightly escape control, he could regain the initiative...
But the demon fox mask visitor before him gave him no chance.
In fact, the reason Jiang Lai infiltrated with the mist, silently unleashing full cursed energy in a surprise attack, was precisely to give Zenin Naoya no chance of resistance whatsoever, lest the commotion become too great and cause problems.
His movements were decisive without dragging. After appearing ghost-like to trap Naoya, he didn't even leave the other party a chance to breathe, directly raising the sharp long scissors in his hand and charging toward the blonde young man!
Zenin Naoya stared in shock, his fox eyes, inherited from his mother's beautiful eyes, reflecting the approaching blade.
Bound by invisible cursed energy in the air, he could only watch helplessly as the cold light-reflecting scissors separated to both sides, clamped around him, then ruthlessly snapped together toward the center!
"!!"
However, the imagined agony of being brutally cut in half at the waist didn't come. When those sharp scissors closed, Zenin Naoya only felt a chill that seemed to penetrate into his bones, invisibly stirring his soul's trembling.
A suffocating dizziness like oxygen deprivation struck. Zenin Naoya felt his fingers grow cold, while simultaneously experiencing a floating, trance-like sensation.
His soul seemed to leave his body in an instant, then was pulled by some attractive force from the side, stuffed into another bulging shell.
Zenin Naoya at this time was still in a dazed state, his spirit tense, frozen in the moment when he seemed to be cut in half by those scissor cursed tools.
Only after several deep breaths did he come to his senses, realizing he was still alive.
...Still not dead. Thank goodness!
Whether it was the opponent's temporary mercy or a mistake in execution, his first reaction upon regaining consciousness and breaking free from restraint was to deliver a fierce counterattack!
But...
Before acting, Zenin Naoya first noticed something wrong. His expression shocked, he suddenly rolled over to find his field of vision completely changed. Everything around seemed to have expanded several times... No, he had shrunk!!
He looked down at his body to see golden fluffy paws displayed before his eyes.
"..." Zenin Naoya's mind went blank for a moment. He instinctively reached out, feeling himself from top to bottom.
His whole body was covered in soft animal-like fur, with a pair of long ears pointing upward, like a rabbit or big-eared fox, with a round short tail behind his bottom.
What the hell was this thing?!
Zenin Naoya jerked his head up, unable to control his voice as he shouted: "You bastard... what exactly did you do?!"
Jiang Lai watched the golden Stitch-like small cursed corpse stand up before him, the corners of his mouth curving slightly behind his mask.
His expression was calm, completely unconcerned about Naoya's impotent rage.
Just now, he had used spatial cursed energy code editing to envelop the room, forming an internal invisible soundproof wall, so he wasn't worried about Zenin Naoya's shouted questioning at this moment.
Actually, he had long prepared for the other party's breakdown.
Zenin Naoya, whose soul had been stuffed into the cursed corpse, tore at the fluff on his body, then noticed a familiar body lying crookedly on the bed, the soulless body lying there with closed eyes.
Zenin Naoya had never observed himself from such an angle at close range, and not through a mirror either.
His cursed corpse green eyes widened as he stiffly stopped his frenzied actions, just staring blankly at his original body.
After half a second, he said: "...Am I dead or alive?"
He seemed somewhat mentally confused.
Jiang Lai put away those long scissors, which returned to their original compact size after withdrawing cursed energy.
He stepped forward one or two paces, manipulating spatial cursed energy to straighten Zenin Naoya's original body on the bed, even kindly covering it with a blanket.
Facing Zenin Naoya's murmur, Jiang Lai's voice was calm as he answered: "Naturally you're still alive. Your body has merely entered a long sleep state due to your soul's absence, but this doesn't affect the body's original physiological activities."
This explanation made Zenin Naoya's spirits improve slightly. He immediately turned his face, glaring at the masked black-haired young man: "So what exactly did you do?! This body... what exactly is this fluffy doll body?!"
His momentum was fierce, his words roughly laced with ferocity: "Don't underestimate the Zenin family. Whether pranks or conspiracies, know when to stop."
The sharp, upturned tone carried the viciousness of a venomous snake spitting poison, but honestly, because of his Stitch-like small cursed corpse appearance, it didn't have much intimidating power.
Jiang Lai calmly raised his wrist, using techniques to sweep clean the fluff Naoya had torn off himself, carrying it out the window with the breeze to send it farther away, lest servants discover something the next day.
At the same time, he nodded slightly, saying: "No need to get excited. This is merely part of a transaction... your current cursed corpse state was your mother's decision."
Jiang Lai directly pointed out the source, not hiding that Lady Zenin was the one who suggested the cursed corpse.
In this situation, directly mentioning Lady Zenin would be more conducive to Zenin Naoya's calm and understanding.
Besides, Lady Zenin herself hadn't told him to keep it secret, so presumably it could be spoken about directly.
Hearing his mother's name, Zenin Naoya's expression visibly froze for half a second. He rarely quieted down, no longer masochistically pulling at the fur on his body.
Cursed corpses themselves lacked pain sensation, but probably because his soul was human, Naoya still retained some tactile sensation, which was why he had been tearing at himself earlier to confirm the reality before him.
Jiang Lai didn't say more or make other movements.
He knew brief quiet didn't mean the end, so he internally awaited Zenin Naoya's continuation.
After a long while, Zenin Naoya snorted with laughter, saying in what seemed like self-mockery:
"What, planning to abandon me now? Since you can't directly eliminate your son openly, you'll switch methods to turn him into a vegetable? Oh right, after all, I've never met their expectations for an heir."
Behind his mask, Jiang Lai's eyebrows rose slightly, somewhat surprised that Zenin Naoya had such self-awareness.
From his usual arrogant and wild behavior, he'd thought Naoya didn't know how terrible his personality was.
Zenin Naoya's speculation also sounded somewhat reasonable...
Perhaps Lady Zenin's action also had considerations for the family's future, silently depriving Naoya of his family inheritance ability?
But Lady Zenin didn't seem heartless to that extent. The purpose of this transaction should be more about giving Naoya a chance to escape danger and leave his cage.
Jiang Lai lowered his eyes but didn't directly comment on Naoya's speculation.
Because direct replies couldn't convince the emotionally agitated Naoya, and moreover, he didn't want to get involved in their internal family affairs.
Therefore, Jiang Lai switched approaches, naturally continuing: "She asked me to take you out of the Zenin family, with Tokyo Jujutsu High as the intended destination."
Hearing this, Zenin Naoya's originally mocking expression slightly restrained as he paused.
The Zenin family's base was in Kyoto, a considerable distance from Tokyo.
Jiang Lai had originally expected Zenin Naoya to go crazy about being abandoned by his family or complain about Tokyo Jujutsu High having the Six Eyes and such, but Zenin Naoya rarely fell silent again, only speaking after a moment.
He snorted lightly, drawing out his tone: "Compensation after so long, and in this manner... how disgusting. I have absolutely no interest. Who would want a cursed corpse body??"
"Besides, I've long passed the age of being interested in the outside. There are too many idiots out there. Naturally it's better to stay in the family."
Zenin Naoya seemed to have glimpsed some of the reasoning behind the transaction, deliberately speaking with disdainful tone.
Jiang Lai didn't expose the hidden expectation for the outside world behind the cursed corpse's words.
"Hey, speaking of which, are you the assistance they think is viable?" Zenin Naoya's next sentence drew Jiang Lai's attention.
The Stitch-like Naoya cursed corpse before him snorted, speaking deliberately: "Is this about not wanting to continue being a shrinking turtle and preparing to fight back? Kicking me out in advance... Fine, whatever. I wasn't planning to get involved in these things anyway."
"Let the old man and old woman die early so the family can be handed over to me..." Zenin Naoya's cursed corpse claws folded together, his voice mocking though his expression wasn't so calm, "Just don't squander all the family assets. I don't want to inherit an empty shell."
Jiang Lai's gaze had been fixed on cursed corpse Naoya since that "assistance" comment, narrowing his eyes slightly with some internal surprise.
He had originally thought Zenin Naoya was just an ignorant bystander in these undercurrents, but now it seemed he wasn't such a fool as to know nothing at all.