The battlefield where Satoshi stood.
Ryomen Sukuna stared at the white-haired boy across from him, his scalp tingling slightly.
But now, the most urgent thing was to deal with Gojo Satoshi. Just as Sukuna was strategizing in his mind, his expression suddenly changed.
Because he noticed that Satoshi had started chanting again, his face expressionless, his stance almost identical to before.
But this time, the power radiating from him was far more terrifying than the previous technique. At that moment, Sukuna finally understood what Satoshi meant earlier when he said he was running out of patience.
This guy had been targeting him from the start.
Sukuna's grin faded, and he turned serious for the first time. He had no intention of standing there like an idiot and getting hit.
So he moved first.
In an instant, Cursed Energy surged through his body.
The next moment, Sukuna flicked his fingers and prepared to unleash a slash toward Satoshi.
This strike was strong enough to cleave a Special Grade Cursed Spirit in half. Even if it couldn't defeat Satoshi, it should at least interrupt the ritual chanting.
Just as he was about to act.
Satoshi abruptly changed his incantation and coldly shouted, "Bakudō #4: Hainawa!"
Suddenly, Sukuna was shocked to find his body bound by something unseen.
Even the trajectory of his slash had been forcibly redirected by Satoshi!
It narrowly missed Satoshi, slicing the building behind him cleanly in half.
What shocked Sukuna even more was that he wasn't even in his original body and only had a single finger's worth of power. Yet this rope was so strong, he couldn't break free!
Seeing this, a smile tugged at Satoshi's handsome face.
"See you next time, Ryomen Sukuna."
He slowly walked toward the cursed spirit Sukuna was possessing—twenty steps, ten steps, five steps.
Satoshi raised a foot and recited,
"Ye lord!"
"Mask of flesh and bone, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man!"
"Truth and temperance, upon this sinless wall of dreams unleash but slightly the wrath of your claws!!".
The power rising from the boy didn't feel like Cursed Energy at all. It was something entirely different, filled with a spiritual pressure that left Sukuna momentarily stunned.
What kind of spell is this?
He couldn't feel any trace of Cursed Energy. It was more like... an entirely different kind of power!
Satoshi stepped up to Sukuna and completely ignored him. He gently raised his hand and pressed it against Sukuna's head, speaking calmly.
"Hadō #33: Sōkatsui."
"Hadō #31: Shakkahō."
In an instant, spiritual energy surged from his palm, forming into radiant blue flames. Two bursts of pure destructive force exploded, unleashing consecutive waves of raw power.
They erupted from his palm, instantly engulfing Sukuna's body.
Sukuna felt his consciousness fading.
Pathetic.
What a humiliating way to lose.
Sukuna's expression twisted in rage. "Gojo Satoshi, I'll remember you. Next time, I'll definitely kill you…"
Then came a massive explosion. The radiant flash of Sōkatsui and Shakkahō swallowed everything in front of them, and the shockwave tore through the entire structure.
The building trembled, consumed by smoke and flame.
After some time.
The smoke gradually cleared. The cursed spirit Sukuna had possessed was completely incinerated, leaving behind only a strange, wax-like finger floating eerily in the air.
[Congratulations to the host for killing a Special Grade Cursed Spirit. Your proficiency with Reiryoku has improved.]
[You have acquired: Hadō #11 "Tsuzuri Raiden," Hadō #4 "Byakurai," Bakudō #9 "Geki."]
New rewards?
Byakurai, Tsuzuri Raiden, and Bakudō: Geki?
Looks like these Kidō spells are quite effective. Their ranks aren't particularly high, but that Bakudō should be very useful.
Satoshi smiled, satisfied.
He pocketed Sukuna's finger and said softly, "Mission complete."
"Time to go free Shoko."
With Six Eyes, Satoshi quickly located Shoko's imprisoned figure.
He guessed that Sukuna had realized Shoko had mastered the Reverse Cursed Technique. And since Sukuna only had one finger's worth of power, he couldn't kill her easily. So, he simply imprisoned her instead.
At that moment, in the sealed area.
Ieiri Shoko was unaware of what had just happened outside. She was still working hard to break Sukuna's seal.
She had sensed Minazuki being suppressed the moment Sukuna made his move.
Although it wasn't completely sealed, breaking through would take at least a few more minutes. However, Satoshi had lost his Zanpakutō. Without her help, there was a high chance he wouldn't last until Minazuki was unsealed.
So she was anxious.
But then, the barrier in front of her suddenly dissolved.
Her face paled.
Could something have happened to Satoshi?
It hadn't even been five minutes. Minazuki hadn't been released yet. The only one capable of breaking this seal at this time… was Sukuna.
Thinking Satoshi might be in danger, Shoko raised tMinazuki in her hand, ready to fight.
The moment Sukuna stepped in, she'd split him in two.
But to her surprise, the one who walked in… was Satoshi.
"…Satoshi?"
Shoko froze mid-swing.
Satoshi gulped and said sheepishly, "Shoko, you looked so fierce just now. Who were you planning to cut in half…"
"…"
Shoko cleared her throat, sheathed her Zanpakutō, and asked, "So, where's Ryomen Sukuna?"
Satoshi smiled. "Dead. For now."
"Dead?" Shoko blinked, looking dazed—like a pigeon who'd been beaned on the head.
Satoshi sighed. "Here, look."
He slowly held up Sukuna's finger.
Shoko's gaze locked onto it, staring blankly at the dried, waxy finger in his hand.
That strange stench.
No mistake.
This was the real thing. A top-tier Cursed Object—Sukuna's Finger.
"Eh? Wh-Why…?" she stammered.
"I'll explain later," Satoshi replied. "Let's head back."
On the way, he briefly recounted what had happened.
"Special powers?" Shoko muttered in confusion. "So you can use spells now?"
"But don't you have a Heavenly Restriction against using Cursed Energy?"
Shoko furrowed her brow, unable to figure it out.
She gave up trying to reason through it. At least Satoshi was safe.
(To be continued.)
***
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