Chapter 72: Asking Suguru Geto for Advice.
"Alright, alright, have fun this afternoon, don't take on too much psychological burden. Yuta, come with me for a bit, I'll take you to see some nice things."
"Mm, okay, Gojo-sensei."
Accepting Gojo Satoru's invitation, Okkotsu Yuta bid farewell to the others and left.
Watching the two leave, Kinji Hakari looked at Tatsuro beside him and asked, "Want to go out for drinks together, junior Tatsuro?"
"No, no, I still have some things to do. You two seniors go ahead and have fun."
Tatsuro declined. He still hadn't figured out Reverse Cursed Technique and felt that his understanding of the theoretical aspects of cursed techniques was somehow misguided.
"Is that so? Then we won't insist on junior Tatsuro accompanying us for drinks. Bye-bye." Kirara Hoshi waved goodbye, pulling Kinji Hakari along.
"Mm, goodbye, seniors."
Seeing the two leave, Tatsuro also turned and departed. He needed to go back to his room to continue researching Reverse Cursed Technique.
Although he felt he didn't particularly need it at the moment – after all, his own cursed energy reserves weren't large, and with the meticulous observation of his Sharingan, it was easy to end up in a situation where his cursed energy was depleted while he himself was fine. If he wanted to change this situation, he would either need to draw something like a Sage Body from the system, or he could only slowly complete missions.
Back in his room, Tatsuro took off his shoes, grabbed a drink he bought yesterday from the fridge, sat on his bed, opened it, took a sip, and placed it on the bedside table.
He opened the system panel. Looking at the mere 32 points he had, he felt a bit troubled for a moment. Although going down by 8 would still leave 24 points, which theoretically should be enough to draw something good.
But with his "ten-thousand-year non-chieftain's luck," the probability of drawing something good was pitifully low.
But!
If he really did draw something good, wouldn't that be taking off?
Tatsuro felt somewhat agitated thinking about it. He banged his head against the pristine white wall by his bed a few times, making thudding sounds. He only stopped when his brain completely ceased to dwell on the matter. This was why he hated excessive fantasizing; every time he overthought, he needed to forcibly calm himself down.
Looking at the white paint that had chipped off the wall and the residual bloodstains, Tatsuro knew he had broken his head open again. He got up and went to the bathroom to wash his face.
Looking at himself in the mirror, he unconsciously recalled events from his past life.
He was an odd person, a very odd person...
Sometimes, an animal dying in front of him would make him cry, feel sad. But for his father's sudden death from illness, he didn't shed a single tear, as if he had been liberated. Then he was passed around various relatives' homes. He was numb back then, like a puppet that only knew how to study and didn't want to face reality.
After growing up a bit, he understood that people needed to find meaning in life. So, on his journey of learning, he searched for this so-called meaning.
Although his classmates in middle school had called him an ill-bred child, he never paid them any mind because he knew he couldn't add to his relatives' burdens.
Finally, through his own efforts, he was admitted to medical school, and then he met that person who was, to him, special...
Liu Yang.
That was his first friend, and Liu Yang had taught him many things. More importantly, he helped him find the meaning of life, which was:
『Living itself is a meaningful thing. One cannot simultaneously achieve extreme good and extreme evil; just do what you believe is feasible.』
These words applied to this current life as well. However, on top of this foundation, he wanted to possess the strength to protect these friends who were close to him. After all, only through loss does one understand the preciousness of friendship. He didn't want to be alone; if that happened, darkness would envelop him again.
After reminiscing about the past, Tatsuro sighed softly. Looking at himself in the mirror, he muttered, "If you don't comprehend the cursed technique today, don't even think about sleeping."
Just as he finished speaking, he heard a knock on the door. Aoi Todo's voice came from outside, "Best friend, want to train together?"
"Train... together?" Tatsuro was somewhat surprised by Aoi Todo's sudden arrival. But then, as if a thought struck him, his complex mood cleared in an instant. He muttered to himself, "That's right! Train together! Everyone might have a different understanding of Reverse Cursed Technique. Why don't I ask Suguru Geto? Anyway, he's also a Special Grade sorcerer. Asking won't cost me anything. It's not like he can get me through the phone screen, can he?"
Overjoyed, he didn't forget to reply, "No thanks, I have something important to do today. Thank you, best friend, I'm sincerely grateful!"
"No time... huh..." Aoi Todo looked as if he had suffered a blow. An image surfaced in his mind: himself holding a thick book, waiting in the school corridor, waiting for his best friend from a different class to finish so they could go read under the cherry blossom trees together – a beautiful scene.
But... his best friend's class, the teacher was dragging on the lesson!
In the end, he returned empty-handed...
Tatsuro was completely unaware of Todo's dejected departure. With a joyful expression, he sat back on his bed, picked up his phone, and dialed Suguru Geto's number.
At that moment, in some religious establishment in Japan, Suguru Geto, dressed in a kasaya, was exorcising a cursed spirit from a woman.
He was heard softly telling her not to move, then extended his right hand, as if an attractive force emanated from it. The cursed spirit binding the woman was torn away, finally forming a black sphere in Suguru Geto's hand.
The affliction that had tormented the woman for months suddenly vanished. The woman rubbed her no-longer-heavy shoulders and exclaimed, "Wow! Is this for real? I feel so much lighter!?"
Suguru Geto said with a kind expression, "It's alright now."
"Thank you." The woman, who had previously been skeptical of so-called church exorcisms, was now a believer.
"It's no problem. If you encounter any issues again, feel free to come back anytime."
Suguru Geto politely saw her off, waiting until the woman was far away. His kind expression instantly turned to disgust as he muttered, "If it weren't for acquiring enough cursed spirits, I wouldn't even bother with you monke—"
Before he could finish, his phone, tucked inside his chest, suddenly rang. Puzzled, he took it out and saw it was Tatsuro calling him. His expression turned joyful, and he answered:
"What's wrong, Tatsuro-kun? Thinking of coming over? Or do you have some questions for me?"
Tatsuro: "Yes, I wanted to ask Mr. Geto, what is your understanding of Reverse Cursed Technique? Although I understand the principles Gojo-sensei explained, I get confused when it comes to putting it into practice."
Suguru Geto didn't directly explain the principles of the technique but instead chatted like a friendly older brother, "That Gojo fellow is actually teaching you Reverse Cursed Technique? You're qualified to learn it just over three months after enrolling? Not bad talent, eh? Has your second-grade sorcerer certificate been issued yet? If not, how about coming over to my side?"
"Not yet..." Tatsuro said, a bit exasperated. "Mr. Geto, if you keep talking like this, I won't chat with you anymore. Although I don't have strong feelings about your plan, what I do know is that if too many people die, the balance of this society will be destroyed. Farming, animal husbandry, power supply, scientific and technological innovation, and so on – many everyday conveniences will be greatly reduced."
"Oh! Is that so... I will consider it carefully. Thank you for your opinion, Tatsuro-kun."
Suguru Geto wasn't angry; instead, he accepted Tatsuro's opinion with a very optimistic attitude and continued, "Alright, as a reward for our chat, let me explain what I consider Reverse Cursed Technique to be."