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Chapter 125: Contract Mutation, Twin Sisters
"Is something like this truly allowed?"
Kanae didn't immediately take the Equivalent Exchange parchment Suyan offered. She hesitated.
It wasn't that she didn't want to keep existing, nor did she want to be separated from her sister. But allowing a ghost like her to permanently remain in the living world... didn't that completely violate the laws of life and death?
The last person to trample upon the boundaries of life and death was the Demon King, Muzan Kibutsuji, a thousand years ago. And the consequence of that was the Ubuyashiki Clan suffering a horrifying genetic curse, drastically shortening the lifespans of every generation for a millennium.
If she made a similar choice, would her living, blood-related sister suffer a similar curse?
"Sister!!"
Having lived the past two years entirely dedicated to mimicking Kanae's way of thinking, Shinobu instantly deduced what was going through her sister's mind.
But she didn't care. If her sister wasn't by her side, what was the difference between living and dying anyway?
Kanae shook her head at Shinobu, motioning for her to stay quiet. She looked deep into Suyan's eyes, hoping for a completely honest answer.
If it was exactly as she feared, she would have to let go of her lingering attachments and pass on to protect her sister.
"Sister, I can't lose you. So..."
Shinobu gritted her teeth and snatched the Contract parchment right out of Suyan's hand. "I'm sorry, but please forgive me for being selfish one last time."
Her mind was entirely consumed by what Suyan had just said.
As long as she signed her name, even if Suyan's power faded from Kanae, she would still be able to see her. Furthermore, she would possess the same power Suyan had, allowing her to keep Kanae anchored to the world.
All she had to do was sign this Contract. After that, she would use the Contract's power to forcefully keep her sister by her side.
Terrified that Kanae would try to stop her, Shinobu moved with lightning speed. She bit down hard on her index finger, using her blood as ink. She didn't even glance at the contents of the parchment before furiously scribbling her name across it.
Kocho Shinobu!
The bloody signature instantly materialized on the parchment.
"Shinobu, you...!"
The entire sequence of events—from Shinobu snatching the parchment, to biting her finger, to signing her name in blood—took less than a second. Kanae couldn't even react in time.
By the time she realized what had happened, all she could do was stare at her 'selfish' little sister in utter shock.
"Sister, I win this time."
Seeing the sheer disbelief on Kanae's face, a look of pure, unadulterated joy blossomed on Shinobu's.
She smiled—a brilliant, genuine smile. It was the happiest she had looked since the day Kanae died.
Kanae opened her mouth, wanting to say something.
Just then.
The bloody signature Shinobu had left on the parchment erupted in a blinding light.
The light burst apart, turning into countless motes of energy that swirled around Shinobu. Then, like falling stars, the motes transformed into threads of pure light that sank directly into Shinobu's body.
But this was merely the standard process every Contractor underwent when signing a Contract. There was nothing unusual about it.
Barring any surprises, Shinobu would become Suyan's Contractor in the next second and gain the ability to freely control the Aura within her body.
However, a surprise did happen.
The moment the last mote of light merged into Shinobu's body, several crimson ribbons of Nen—patterned like butterfly wings—burst out from her.
Like living, breathing tentacles, the ribbons shot straight toward Kanae.
Even Suyan was caught off guard.
Before Kanae could react, the ribbons engulfed her, pulling her directly into Shinobu's body and fusing the two of them together.
Suyan, still holding the Equivalent Exchange parchment he hadn't had the chance to give Kanae, stared dumbfounded as she completely vanished before his eyes.
Soon, the light radiating from Shinobu faded, revealing the girl's original appearance. Only, she seemed a bit different than before... almost as if her presence was more profound, more real.
Shinobu opened her mouth, but the name she called out wasn't 'Mr. Scumbag', but rather: "Mr. Suyan?"
"Miss Kanae?" Suyan asked tentatively, caught completely off guard.
"Kocho Shinobu" nodded and replied, "Yes, it's me."
"How did you end up inside Shinobu's body?" Suyan asked in astonishment. What kind of bizarre twist was this?
Before she could explain, Kanae's voice abruptly cut off.
A faint light began to emanate from Shinobu's body once more. The light slowly pooled together, separating from her and gathering at her side, reforming into Kanae's physical body.
Shinobu instantly lunged at Kanae, throwing her arms around her. "Sister!"
There was no anxiety in Shinobu's heart, only the overwhelming joy of having her sister back.
Simultaneously, Suyan received the corresponding feedback from the Contract.
It was their Obsession!
Shinobu's intense obsession with refusing to let Kanae disappear, mixed with Kanae's profound lingering attachment and worry for her sister.
Although Nen originally stemmed from a user's mastery over their own life energy—their Aura—the further one progressed, the more heavily Nen leaned into the realm of the mind and the soul.
It was precisely the clash of their overwhelming obsessions, catalyzed by the power of the Contract, that forged this unique miracle.
From today onward, both Kocho Shinobu and Kocho Kanae had become Suyan's Contractors simultaneously.
A bizarre, wondrous symbiosis had formed between the sisters.
When Shinobu was in control of the body, their Nen affinity became the Enhancement Type. When Kanae was in control, their affinity shifted to the Transmutation Type.
Furthermore, both of them had simultaneously awakened Conjuration Type abilities.
In combat, they could have one sister turn completely ethereal and intangible while the other remained physical. They could both manifest physically and fight a two-on-one battle. Or, as they had just demonstrated, they could merge together and fight as a single, dual-natured entity.
Much like the Upper Rank 6 siblings, Daki and Gyutaro, these symbiotic sisters had to be killed simultaneously to truly die.
On top of all that, their natural training speed from now on would be exactly double that of an ordinary Nen user.
They were truly two bodies, one soul!
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