Jujutsu Kaisen: Wheel Of Time

Chapter 12: Extreme Speed

Kamihara Hajime swiftly emerged from the shadows and sprinted towards the moving taxi. The driver seemed to notice him, and the car's speed noticeably increased.

Kamihara Hajime raised his hand, condensing a small amount of Cursed Energy, aimed at the moving taxi, and shot it towards its rear tires.

However, a Cursed Spirit's aura, whose full form was invisible, emerged from the otherwise ordinary taxi, merging with the vehicle! Strange things vaguely appeared on the taxi's surface, blocking his attacks and preventing them from puncturing the tires.

Seeing the accelerating taxi about to shake him off, Kamihara Hajime couldn't use Extermination to blow up the car, as Nitta Akari was still inside.

However, Kamihara Hajime showed no sign of frustration; instead, he smiled: "As expected, you're quite arrogant. Let's rescue Miss Nitta Akari first."

"Time Wheel Spin!"

The high-speed taxi abruptly came to a halt, stopping in place like a moth fluttering by a streetlamp, as if sealed in invisible amber.

Kamihara Hajime quickly approached the taxi, punching and shattering the car window on the locked door. The broken glass also remained suspended in mid-air, only moving slightly when touched by Kamihara Hajime.

Opening the car door, he lifted the statue-like Nitta Akari out and carried her on his shoulder. With his other hand, Kamihara Hajime drew the blade from his waist and effortlessly plunged it into the neck of the driver in the driver's seat, who had a crazed smile—the very killer they were tracking.

Kamihara Hajime then smoothly retreated, and the Time Null state was lifted. The moths fluttering in the light resumed beating their wings, and the stationary taxi instantly transitioned from extreme stillness to extreme motion.

Simultaneously, several loud bangs created a deafening tremor. The taxi suddenly swerved on the road, then violently flipped and rolled several times, its glass and body shattering and deforming, finally sliding for more than ten meters before coming to a stop.

Like someone who had just surfaced from drowning, Nitta Akari instinctively gasped for air, clutching Kamihara Hajime. After realizing her situation, she reacted quickly, saying, "That Curse Master... he has the ability to influence others' consciousness and actions. It's uncertain if it's a Technique yet."

Setting Nitta Akari down and shaking the blood from the tip of his blade, Kamihara Hajime looked at the broken, overturned car on the ground and said calmly, "It's fine. He's just struggling in his death throes now."

Nitta Akari looked puzzled. At that moment, a sound came from the broken car, and then the car door suddenly flew open with a clang, and a man covered in fresh blood crawled out.

"It's him!" Nitta Akari exclaimed, pointing at the man, her eyes still filled with confusion, as the figure was in a sorry state, crawling out of the car while clutching his neck.

Crimson blood continuously seeped from between the fingers covering his neck, and his once arrogant and unrestrained face was now filled with terror and rage.

As the man crawled out of the car, strange phenomena, invisible to ordinary people, began to occur around him. The overturned car body suddenly emitted a dark, eerie aura.

In a few breaths, it condensed into a bizarre entity. At first glance, it looked like a swirling, unstable mist, but it was covered with many eyes and mouths, which constantly moved, making it very unsettling.

Judging by its dense Cursed Energy, although its size was not large, it was even stronger than the Second Grade Curse they encountered earlier during a mission with Maki.

If this Cursed Spirit also possessed a Technique, it would be a standard quasi-First Grade Curse. And in the current situation, it seemed to exist as the Curse Master's Shikigami.

After the dying Curse Master summoned this Cursed Spirit, it swayed its body and floated to his side, then twisted into a strip, like water or smoke.

Immediately after, it burrowed into the Curse Master's body. Where his neck had a large, gushing wound, many black, unknown substances now emerged, like constantly bubbling water in a dark swamp.

Soon, this layer of black substance completely enveloped his wound. The previously dying Curse Master visibly improved significantly, struggling to his feet.

However, his expression became even more grim. The Curse Master looked at the "prey," the blonde woman standing not far away, and the stern-faced young man beside her.

Undoubtedly, the sudden severe injury and the rescue of his prey were all done by this young man... Damn it!!!

The Curse Master's rage almost made him lose his mind, but this anger was triggered by a profound, unparalleled fear within him—the most primal fear of death.

The wound on his neck was not so easily resolved. Kamihara Hajime's attack, which was non-existent in his memory, had indeed struck his vital point, the sharp blade horizontally piercing his artery and trachea.

He was still alive entirely due to some effects of his Shikigami's Technique, but this was only temporary. His Shikigami could not heal him from such a desperate situation like a Reverse Cursed Technique could.

A more apt description would be that he was merely experiencing a brief resurgence of vitality. His Shikigami's Technique could, to some extent, manipulate or "deceive" a person's body. He had used this to silently bring young women to the crime scenes and harm them.

Now, he used it to temporarily stabilize his wound, but the thought of imminent death overwhelmed his heart with immense terror.

"So... this is what death feels like?"

But soon, his heart was twisted by these negative emotions: "No! Impossible! So many 'bitches' haven't been punished yet, I can't die like this!"

Looking at Kamihara Hajime, the "culprit," the Curse Master's thoughts gradually became warped and submerged by the rising anger and hatred, even causing him to ignore the disparity between them.

Now, he only wanted to kill this young man! No! He wanted to break his limbs, then torture the woman he saved to death before his eyes!

Kamihara Hajime watched as the Curse Master merged with the Cursed Spirit, then stumbled to his feet, staring directly at him. The malice in his eyes was almost visible, but... it was merely the yelping of a dying mad dog.

Nitta Akari, on the other hand, was somewhat nervous. Seeing the dying Curse Master suddenly stand up again, it seemed he wouldn't give up easily.

And because of the suddenness of the incident, they hadn't had time to set up a veil. If the Curse Master caused another big commotion and was witnessed by nearby residents, it would be another troublesome matter.

After telling Kamihara Hajime her concerns, Nitta Akari saw the calm young man nod, indicating he understood, and then he walked towards the Curse Master with his sword.

Asking Nitta Akari to step back, Kamihara Hajime walked towards the Curse Master, gripping his sword. In his mind, Gojo Satoru Sensei's words to him resurfaced...

"Hajime, your Technique, to some extent, is the nightmare of Curse Masters and other Jujutsu Sorcerers! Humans... have limits. Most, or nearly ninety percent, of Jujutsu Sorcerers haven't mastered Reverse Cursed Technique. This means that if a vital point is hit and not treated within a very short time, it means death."

"And your Technique... has far surpassed the limits of human reaction. Except for some special trigger-based Techniques, your extreme speed can even cut down an enemy who activates their Technique after you."

At the time, Kamihara Hajime excitedly said, "Then am I super strong?"

Then Gojo Satoru maliciously shattered his beautiful dream: "Not really~ Besides the trigger-based Techniques I mentioned, if your opponent masters Domain Expansion and successfully activates it to envelop you, then it won't be good."

"And our main enemies—Cursed Spirits, high-level Cursed Spirits generally have extremely fast recovery speeds. Vital points barely exist for them, so you still need to be very careful."

Coming back to his senses, Kamihara Hajime couldn't help but agree with Gojo Satoru's assessment. With Cursed Spirits, victory or defeat might be hard to define due to their different strangeness, but with Curse Masters like this... it was simply too easy!

Cursed Spirits required him to expend a large amount of Cursed Energy to exorcise, while trash like this, whose names weren't even worth mentioning, could be resolved with a single light cut. Even if he encountered this situation again, it would just be a repeat.

If he could fully master Technique Reversal, and even combine the forward and reverse rotation of Techniques like Gojo Sensei... It's decided! When that time comes, he would challenge Gojo Satoru Sensei. He really wanted to see his smug expression when he was defeated! Hahaha...

Kamihara Hajime, who was fantasizing about the future, suddenly felt a surge of Cursed Energy. Looking up, he saw the Curse Master clutching a spike-like object in his hand, and a black-tinged, sharp cone was already shooting through the air.

The look of ecstatic ugliness on the Curse Master's face was fully captured by Kamihara Hajime. He revealed a smile, raising his left index and middle fingers side by side: "Time Wheel - Reverse."

The Curse Master's mind had already pictured the hateful young man's body being pierced. Just as he was excitedly about to forget the threat of death, he suddenly saw the young man raise his left hand, and then his full-force attack vanished in an instant!

"What's going on? What did you do?"

The exasperated Curse Master was on the verge of madness. The hideous black substance on his neck was almost swallowing half his face. His mind, almost unable to think normally, was just cursing frantically, while again squeezing all his Cursed Energy to try and launch another attack.

"It's time to end this..." Thinking this, Kamihara Hajime activated his Technique again, entering the Time Null state. With a few strides, he arrived in front of the Curse Master. Kamihara Hajime chose not to use his sword, as it would be troublesome to clean up the scene later...

A punch imbued with Cursed Energy landed on the Curse Master's heart. Then, Kamihara Hajime delivered another punch to his abdomen, confirming that his internal organs were shattered, before immediately deactivating his Technique.

"Pfft!"

Kamihara Hajime, who was prepared and standing to the side, dodged the large spray of blood that the Curse Master suddenly spat out, which was mixed with unrecognizable fragments of internal organs.

Struck by this familiar attack and immediately falling into a dying state, the Curse Master knelt on the ground, unable to speak coherent words. The Cursed Spirit that had "merged" with him also suffered damage and was now powerless.

With a return of some clarity, the Curse Master's eyes were filled with malice. He used all his strength to release the Shikigami's restraint: "Re... release! Kill... everything!"

Purple-black flesh began to grow from his body, and in the blink of an eye, a fleshy tumor monster replaced his figure on the spot.

The Curse Master was confirmed dead!

Now, all that remained was to deal with the Cursed Spirit he left behind. Looking at the fleshy tumor monster before him, Kamihara Hajime transferred the katana, which he had been holding in his left hand in a reverse grip, to his right hand, and activated his Technique again...

"Wh-what happened?"

Nitta Akari watched as the Curse Master was suddenly struck, spat blood, and then fell to the ground as if dead, only to quickly transform into a terrifying form and stand up again.

Then, as if a film had skipped frames, the swollen, tumor-like Cursed Spirit suddenly fell apart like building blocks, and Kamihara Hajime was standing in front of it, she didn't know when.

"Is this his Technique? His speed is terrifying to this extent..."

Before Nitta Akari could express more surprise, she saw Kamihara Hajime waving her over. It turned out he wanted to discuss how to clean up the scene.

The sound of the car overturning earlier was quite loud. Fortunately, Kamihara Hajime resolved the situation quickly, allowing them to disguise the scene as a car accident. It wasn't too late to contact people to handle it.