Curse Return: Demon Void Girl Doesn't Want to Be a Weakling

Gojo Satoru dusted off non-existent dust from his hands and returned to the food cart.

He turned around to face the students at the Tokyo school.

“Kyoto has souvenirs, and of course, family members can’t be without them, but I’ve prepared something even more special for our Tokyo school.”

He reached out and pressed down on the white silk cloth on the food cart.

"A big surprise."

Kugizaki frowned. "Here we go again. It's probably some random nonsense..."

Fu Hei frowned and took a step back without making a sound.

Maki noticed his movement and took a step back as well; it's always better to be careful.

Gojo Satoru tore off the white cloth.

On the food cart was a huge rectangular cardboard box, big enough to fit a whole person.

There were no markings on the cardboard box, except for a few large, crooked characters written in marker in the very center.

"Tokyo School Exclusive Surprise Box".

The cardboard box wobbled.

Kugizaki shut his mouth and shrank a little closer to Mashiro.

The cardboard box wobbled again, this time more violently, and the whole box bounced on the food cart.

Then the lid was smashed open from the inside, and a pink head popped out from the middle of the box, along with scraps of paper and white plastic bubbles.

"good morning everyone!"

It’s Polygonum cuspidatum Hisuhito.

Her pink hair was covered in scraps of paper, and the cuff of her tracksuit was slightly torn by the tape from the box.

He grinned; well, his teeth were very white.

With one foot on the edge of the box and the other foot inside, Huzhang was half-squatting on the opening of the box, which was more than a meter above everyone's heads, looking incredibly silly.

"I'm back to life!!!"

There was no one speaking for about ten seconds on the playground.

The paper bag that Miwa Kasumi was holding slipped to the ground, and Nishimiya Momo's broom really fell down.

Kamo Noriyuki's smile vanished completely, his expression stiffening, as if he had seen an ape escape from the zoo.

For the first time, Toudou Aoi fixed her gaze on a single point, staring at the pink-haired boy on the box, lost in thought.

Megumi Fushiguro and Kugizaki looked like they'd seen a ghost.

Mashiro stood still, her red eyes hidden beneath the wings watching Itadori's ridiculously silly pose, her lips twitching slightly.

She subtly moved a little further away.

Huzhang jumped off the box, landing with a scattering of paper scraps all over the floor, and several pieces were still stuck in his hair.

"Fukuhei! Long time no see!" He waved to Fukuhei Hui.

Fushiguro Megumi, her mouth still open, mechanically raised her hand and said, "Hmm."

Itachi turned to Mashiro, his smile brighter than the sun.

Even before he opened his mouth, Mashiro knew what he was going to say.

"Mashiro-nee! I made a cool entrance, didn't I! It was designed by Gojo-sensei. There was a hidden compartment inside that box. I waited in there for almost ten minutes until my legs went numb."

Ah, sure enough.

"...It's alright." Mashiro raised her hand and touched the feathers covering her eyes, saying with a forced smile.

"What do you mean by 'okay'?" Huzhang persisted, pressing for an answer.

"...Well, it was quite surprising...uh, a pleasant surprise." Mashiro wiped away non-existent cold sweat, feeling immense pressure.

Oblivious to what was happening, Itajimaru chuckled and then turned around to meet Kugizaki's gaze.

Kugizaki Nobara stood still, without moving.

Her fingers hung at her sides, the tips pinching the edge of her school uniform skirt.

His lips opened and closed briefly, his expression a complex mix of anger, resentment, and relief.

The wind on the playground blew the stray hairs on her forehead, and her eyes were red-rimmed.

“Wild Rose, that…” Yuzhang raised his hand.

boom.

Kugisaki landed a punch on Itadori's shoulder. Unlike the playful punches he usually throws during sparring, this was a solid, heavy blow. The fist mark on his shoulder was visible even through his sportswear.

Huzhang's shoulder was slightly twisted from the blow, but he didn't dodge.

"You bastard!!!" Kugizaki's voice wasn't loud, but he suppressed a sob. "You're dead! You're clearly dead! Fushiguro watched you die! Do you know that last night I was even thinking of sending Mashiro a LINE message to ask when your body would be buried!!!"

She punched the same spot again.

Tiger Staff, with his fist pressed against it, dared not move.

"I fucking thought we were going to carry your ashes back to Sendai!!!"

The third punch was lighter than the first two.

Kugizaki's fist stopped at Itadori's chest and didn't strike again; her shoulders were trembling.

Itadori stood still, then raised his hands in a gesture of surrender. "I'm sorry, I actually revived two days ago, but Gojo-sensei said we had to maintain the mystery..."

"Shut up."

"Yes!"

Kugizaki took a deep breath, forced back his tears, and then wiped his eyes hard with his sleeve.

She looked up at Huzhang and took a deep breath.

"You're not allowed to die again."

"Oh, I won't do it again." Itari rubbed his shoulder and laughed. "Wild Rose, your strength has increased again."

“Of course, I only ate during my hospital stay.” Dingzaki wiped his eyes again. “Also, next time something like this happens, tell me in advance, or I’ll put wasabi in your food.”

Huzhang's expression changed slightly. "Your methods are too ruthless."

Kugizaki didn't answer him again. She lowered her hand from the corner of her eye, her eyes were still red, but the corners of her mouth were already turning up in a smile.

She took a deep breath, straightened up, and walked to Mashiro's side.

"You knew all along, didn't you?" Kugizaki said to Mashiro in a low voice. "Is this the surprise you mentioned when you visited me last time?"

"Ah."

"So what you said before about the arrangements after the exchange battle was a lie?"

"Really, he would cook us a meal separately after the exchange battle as an apology."

Kugizaki paused for a moment, then muttered a curse under his breath.

"You two are really the same."

Chapter 52 Preparation Phase

"The vessel for Sukuna?" Rakuganji Yoshinobu's eyes widened when he saw Itadori appear. "What's going on?"

"Oh, that's great, Principal Rakuganji." Gojo Satoru walked over with a big laugh and said provocatively, "I was so worried you'd be scared to death."

"You brat!" Rakuganji Yoshinobu glared at Gojo Satoru, but could only let out a cold snort in the end.

"Now that everyone is here, let's begin explaining the rules of the exchange meeting."

Moth took over the conversation, its steady, deep voice echoing across the playground.

"In this year's sister school exchange meeting, the team competition will be held with five students from each school participating. The venue is the Spirit Training Ground behind the college, which includes the plains area, the forest area and the abandoned building area."

A map was spread out on the long table, and Moth drew a circle on it with her finger.

"Several cursed spirits of various levels have been scattered throughout the venue. The side that eliminates more cursed spirits within the time limit will advance to the individual battle. The rules for the individual battle will be announced separately."

"In team battles, it is forbidden to intentionally cause serious injury to students, to use untested magical items, or to leave the designated area. Violation of these rules will result in immediate disqualification."

He paused, looking at Mashiro.

"In addition, an observer, Kujo Mashiro, will be added to this exchange meeting. She is not among the participants, and her main responsibility is to ensure that no uncontrollable risks arise during the competition. Neither of the participants may have a conflict with her."

A murmur of discussion arose from the Kyoto campus.

Nishimiya Momo tilted her head to look at Mashiro, and asked Miwa Kasumi in a low voice, "How old is she?"

Miwa Kasumi shook her head. "She doesn't look more than fourteen. How could they let such a young child be a guard?"

Nishimiya Momo added from the side, "And what are those wings on your head? Are they decorations on your school uniform?"

Zenjima took a few more glances at the feathers on Shinshiro's head, while Kamo Kenki frowned slightly but remained silent.

Aoi Toudou's gaze lingered on Mashiro for a moment before shifting away; he was only interested in tall girls.

Mashiro didn't look at them; she just stood there, her wings obscuring her vision and expression.

Gojo Satoru walked up to Mashiro and whispered, "Did you hear that? They all look down on you."

Mashiro didn't look at him. "It's normal. It's not that I'm looking down on you, it's just an accident."

"It's normal because you're too short."

Mashiro finally turned to look at him, and the light in her red eyes turned cold for a moment.

"I'll kill you, you say?"

"Hahaha..." Gojo Satoru broke out in a cold sweat, laughed, then turned and raised his hand towards the students, quickly changing the subject. "The exchange meeting is about to begin, Tokyo campus! Go change and get ready!"

In the locker room corridor, five people from the Tokyo school were changing their gear.

Maki slung the long gun over her back, tightened the cuffs with leather straps, and took two steps in her newly changed combat boots.

The panda was chatting casually with the dog, Curly, while Fuhei stood against the wall, having changed his equipment. His left hand was in his pocket, sensing the cursed power in the shadows to check on the Jade Dog's condition.