CHAPTER 9: SAND, SALT AND SORCERY

The golden morning sun cast wide streaks of light across the sea as waves gently lapped against the warm shore. Somewhere far from the chaos of Tokyo's cursed affairs, four sorcerers found themselves not in combat gear—but in swimsuits.

Gojo stood tall in ridiculous polka-dotted trunks, sunglasses gleaming, arms outstretched toward the water like some self-proclaimed deity of the beach.

"Behold! The ocean itself bows before me!"

Amanai, under a giant umbrella, rolled her eyes and sipped from a coconut. "More like the ocean's waiting to drown you, idiot."

Beside her, Geto sat cross-legged in the sand, sculpting a near-perfect miniature shikigami out of wet sand.

"That's impressive," Amanai admitted.

"Unlike someone," Geto added, nodding toward Gojo who was now attempting to ride two inflatable dolphins while shouting, "I'm surfing the curses of the sea!!"

A loud splat rang out as he immediately fell and got a face full of sand and seawater.

Amanai laughed so hard she nearly choked on her drink.

Sitting by the shore, Shoko Ieiri lay in a chair with a thick book over her face and her hands lazily dipping in the cooler. "This is peace," she murmured. "Temporary, but peace."

Meanwhile... elsewhere in Tokyo.

A long hallway flickered with fluorescent lights. The air was thick with tension. At the end of that corridor, two sorcerers stepped into a cursed site—formerly a subway station, now overrun with malevolent energy.

Kento Nanami, composed as ever, adjusted his tie and narrowed his eyes behind square-framed glasses.

"Looks like we've got a Class 1 Manifestation. You ready?" he asked his companion.

Beside him stood Haibara Yu, beaming with youthful energy. "Of course! First mission with Nanami-senpai! We'll crush it!"

Nanami sighed softly. "This isn't a game."

The air trembled. A low growl echoed from deep within the tunnels.

Nanami's hand drifted to his blunt sword as he whispered, "Cursed spirits are thick today. Something's stirring beneath the surface…"

Back at the beach...

Gojo, now buried in the sand with just his head sticking out, blinked up at the others.

"Hey," he called. "Anyone wanna sculpt abs on my sand body?"

Amanai stood over him, shovel in hand.

"Oh, I've got plans for you," she grinned.

Geto chuckled, watching the scene play out like a summer comedy skit.

Despite the looming darkness ahead, for now, the sun was shining.

But the peace would not last long.

A shadow shifted in the horizon's shimmer.

And far away, Toji Fushiguro loaded a fresh magazine into his weapon.

Time was running out.