Jujutsu Kaisen: Mystic Eyes of Death Perception

Chapter 17: Good News?

Shiki POV

The moment the special grade was killed, the hospital around us shifted. Gone were the twisted hallways and maze-like structures, replaced by the ordinary, cold, sterile walls of Asahikawa Medical University Hospital. But despite the return to normalcy, the corpses remained—still moving, still cursed. Their numbers had dwindled significantly, but they were still a threat.

Since I was the only one capable of permanently killing them, Maki and Nanami agreed on a plan: they would bait as many of the remaining corpses as they could and bring them to me for the final blow.

It took two long hours to clear the entire hospital. Scouring each floor, each wing, room by room, to make sure not a single one was left.

When the last one fell, its cursed lines severed beneath my blade, the hospital fell into an eerie silence.

Maki slumped down against a nearby wall, breathing heavily, her naginata resting across her knees. I stood nearby, leaning against a surgical table, my katana still in hand, though my grip had loosened now that the danger had passed.

"Two hours," Maki muttered, glancing up at me. "That's got to be some kind of record."

I gave a small shrug, sheathing my blade. "Could've been faster if they weren't scattered all over the place."

"Yeah, well, not all of us have the luxury of being able to kill them with one clean cut. You make it look easy."

Maki stretched out her legs, letting out a sigh. "So... how do you do it?"

I raised an eyebrow, turning my attention back to her. "Do what?"

"Cut them down like that," she clarified, her voice tinged with genuine curiosity. "Even if I behead them, they keep moving. But you—" she gestured with her hand—"you just slice through them like they're made of paper. It's... almost unnatural."

I considered her words for a moment. I could explain it to her, I suppose. The lines. The death that I see. But I don't. Instead, I offer a vague response. "It's just how I'm built."

Maki raised an eyebrow. "That's not an answer."

"It's the only one I've got."

Maki was still staring at me, waiting for an answer. I could tell she wasn't going to let it go this time. I sighed quietly and stood up.

"You really want to know?" I asked, glancing down at her.

"Yeah, I do."

I stepped away from her, looking around until I found a small branch from a nearby tree. That would do.

"Alright, Watch closely." I said, pointing the tree toward a random tree.

Maki stood beside me; her eyes locked on the branch. I didn't swing or slice it immediately. Instead, I let the tip of the branch slowly trace the crimson lines that only I could see, following one from end to end.

The branch barely touched the surface of the tree, but the effect was instant. The tree split cleanly in half, falling apart as if it had been neatly severed.

"There," I muttered, half to myself.

Maki leaned in slightly, her brow furrowing. "...What?"

"You can't see it, but there are lines. Everything has them—objects, living things. If I cut along those lines, it all falls apart. Simple as that."

I didn't tell her what the lines truly represented—that they weren't just physical weaknesses, but something far more absolute. That part wasn't important.