Seeing Nightmare standing in front of him completely unharmed, Sukuna expression gradually turned serious.
Back at the juvenile detention center, he had witnessed Satoru Gojo use his Hollow Technique: Purple to kill Nightmare.
However, at that time, he had been too far away and could only observe the outside world through Yuji Itadori senses. Because of that, he couldn't see the details clearly.
So even after learning that Nightmare had not actually died, he didn't think she had some kind of resurrection ability. He simply guessed that Gojo had missed his attack.
Maybe he had killed an illusion, or perhaps it was some kind of decoy or substitute technique. Regardless, the real Nightmare hadn't been harmed.
But now, having personally killed Nightmare once and then witnessing her resurrection with his own eyes, Sukuna had no choice but to abandon his previous assumptions.
While shocked, a trace of heaviness settled in his heart.
Because he could no longer use Domain Expansion.
Domain Expansion was a technique that consumed an immense amount of cursed energy. For an average jujutsu sorcerer, being able to use it once a day was already the limit.
In his prime, Sukuna could use it multiple times without issue.
However, the current Sukuna only had about one-fifteenth of his original strength.
That one Domain Expansion just now had already consumed the majority of his cursed energy.
"The one I just killed... was a clone, right?" Sukuna quickly reined in his expression and stated his guess flatly.
A thousand years ago, as the King of Curses, he had single-handedly slaughtered his way through the jujutsu world. Among the many sorcerers he had killed, there were those with unique techniques.
He had encountered a sorcerer who could create clones.
Each clone was a flesh-and-blood individual that shared one consciousness. So to truly kill them, all the clones had to be eliminated.
Nightmare only smiled and neither confirmed nor denied it.
Sukuna hadn't expected an answer anyway.
But rather than being concerned about what Nightmare cursed technique was, he was far more interested in another question.
How many techniques does she possess?
"Damn brat, the mission's failed," Sukuna muttered inwardly. "I can't deal with this woman for now."
"Huh? Are you kidding me?"
Yuji Itadori voice rang out from within his body, full of disdain and exasperation: "You just went on and on about revenge, and now the moment you see her, you want to run?"
"You saw it too. I got played by her."
Sukuna tone didn't reveal any shame or anger—only an unusual calmness. "She used a half-broken clone to bait out my Domain Expansion. If we keep fighting, the outcome won't be good."
"Last time you failed because you got ambushed. This time it's because you got tricked. You sure have a lot of excuses,"
Itadori had completely lost faith in the guy trapped inside his body. He sighed deeply: "Come on, you're supposed to be the King of Curses. Can't you think of a way?"
"Of course there's a way. Just find the rest of my fingers. Once my full power is restored, I could kill beings like her in seconds."
"Don't bring up such unrealistic requests right now."
"That's exactly what I want to say—don't bring up such unrealistic requests."
If possible, Sukuna certainly wanted to kill the woman in front of him.
However, while he was arrogant, he wasn't conceited, let alone stupid.
If he could still use Domain Expansion, even if there was a risk of losing, he would still engage Nightmare in battle.
But now, he had already used up his one and only Domain Expansion. Though he still retained full fighting capability, he had no chance of victory.
Sukuna didn't know whether she had a Domain or not, but based on common sense—anyone dubbed the "most evil of this era" would never earn that title without a Domain.
If her Domain activated, he'd be forced into a purely defensive position.
Sukuna saw the situation clearly. So even if retreating now would tarnish his pride—and give Itadori endless material to mock him with—he didn't care.
"Sukuna, we can help you!"
Just as Sukuna prepared to retreat, Choso suddenly stepped forward with a serious expression and said, "I can also use Domain Expansion. If you can buy me some time to recover, we may stand a chance."
Hearing this, Sukuna paused mid-step and glanced over at Choso.
This man who had joined the operation to encircle and kill Nightmare was at least a special grade, and even among special grades, his strength should be top tier.
Honestly, Sukuna didn't want to run.
Losing to the same woman twice, even in an incomplete state, left a smoldering rage in his heart.
But he wasn't someone who acted rashly out of emotion. He wouldn't let his brain be controlled by his feelings. That was why he had chosen to flee when he was sure he had no chance.
But now—an opportunity had appeared.
Sukuna narrowed his eyes, weighing whether to accept this proposal.
"Hey! The opportunity is right in front of you. What are you still hesitating for?" Yuji Itadori voice rang again in his mind. "Running now would be something only a coward would do!"
Sukuna had been deep in thought, but Yuji comment immediately irritated him.
This clueless kid was trying to command things from within his own mind. It made Sukuna want to dive into the mental space and give Yuji a good beating.
A battle between strong beings wasn't something that could be changed just by adding a few unknown helpers.
Still, if he backed off now, it would cement the fact that he had lost to Nightmare twice.
Previously he had retreated because he had no choice.
But now that a chance had arisen—why not take it?
"Shut up, you damn brat!"
Annoyed by Yuji chatter, Sukuna reentered battle mode. His body lowered into a fighting stance and then launched himself at Nightmare.
"B-Brother…"
Seeing Sukuna charge in for close combat with Nightmare, Eso swallowed nervously and asked in a small voice, "Since when did you know how to use Domain Expansion? Why didn't I know?"
"Of course I don't know how to use Domain Expansion."
Choso glanced at his younger brother with a helpless look and said, "But it's the only way to get Sukuna to fight Nightmare."
Originally, when their three allies chose to abandon them and flee alone, he had nearly lost all hope.
But just as he prepared to fight Nightmare with a do-or-die attitude, Sukuna vessel had appeared on the battlefield.
That man who called himself Geto Suguru had shown him photos of Yuji Itadori and other key figures. So he instantly recognized that the person now on the battlefield was Sukuna vessel.
He didn't know why Yuji was here or why Sukuna was currently in control of the body, but Choso knew—he had to seize this opportunity.
If anyone could hold Nightmare off, it was Sukuna.
This was a god-given chance to survive.
What he was doing might be morally questionable, but to live—he had no choice.
"Let's go!"
With no intention of helping Sukuna, Choso barked a single word to his brother and turned to run toward Blood Paint's direction.
Eso was momentarily stunned, but quickly realized what Choso was planning.
A flash of guilt crossed his face, but he didn't object. He immediately followed behind Choso and fled the battlefield as quickly as possible.
"You two…!"
Upon seeing Choso and Eso flee without hesitation, Sukuna expression immediately twisted in rage.
"Haha, how does it feel to be betrayed?"
The Nightmare seized the moment of Sukuna distraction—caused by his anger—and landed a heavy punch right into his chest.
Sukuna, unable to defend in time, was sent flying through the air.
However, after seeing Choso and Eso run away, he no longer had the intention to keep fighting.
Not only did he not steady himself and charge at the Nightmare again, but he instead took advantage of the momentum from being struck to escape in the opposite direction.
"No way—this can't be happening!"
Yuji Itadori also witnessed this scene and asked in a panic, "Why did they abandon us? Weren't we supposed to fight the Nightmare together?"
"Why? Of course it's because they never planned to fight the Nightmare in the first place. They just wanted me to hold it off and buy them time to escape!"
Sukuna ran frantically, his heart filled with frustration.
But it wasn't because those two small fry had dared to betray him—it was because he had let himself be swayed by Yuji Itadori and agreed to cooperate without thinking it through.
At this moment, within the mental space, Yuji Itadori stood frozen in shock, unable to say a single word.
Although it was Sukuna who was betrayed, the one who truly felt the sting of it was Yuji Itadori.
He had been entrusted by Choso to step into this dangerous battlefield to save his brothers. Yet when the moment came, his so-called brothers treated him as nothing more than a disposable pawn.
In that instant, intense anger shook the very foundations of what had supported Yuji all along. His fists clenched tightly, knuckles turning white.
Had he been wrong from the start?
Should he have refused Choso's request from the very beginning and just let the three of them meet their fate?
"This is the price of naïveté, you little brat."
Sukuna sneered and landed a heavy blow on Yuji Itadori mind: "To save a few strangers, you threw yourself into danger and even put your companions' lives at risk. How pathetic."
"Companions… lives at risk?"
Yuji heart skipped a beat. His voice trembled as he asked, "What do you mean?"
"You still don't get it? This is why I hate naive kids like you." Sukuna tone turned mocking. "Those two aren't good people. After treating us as disposable tools, of course they'd go after that ugly thing called Choso. But…"
At this point, there was a hint of delight in Sukuna voice—as if he genuinely enjoyed watching Yuji suffer.
"But do you really think they'd spare your friend?"
Sukuna words caused the burning rage in Yuji heart to instantly vanish.
At that moment, he felt as though he had fallen into a frozen abyss, consumed by endless cold and fear.
"No… no…"
Yuji lips turned pale. Holding his head, he shouted, "They wouldn't do that! Kurumi is with Choso! They have no reason to hurt her!"
"Of course they have a reason. They're the Cursed Wombs: Death Paintings. And Tokisaki is a student of Jujutsu High. From the start, you were on opposite sides."
Sukuna cut him off without mercy. "You wanted to save them, to hold hands with cursed spirits and be friends. But why did you ever think they would want that?"
"No… we have to go back! Sukuna! Take us back right now!"
Any last shred of hope was ripped apart by Sukuna, and Yuji completely panicked: "We have to go back and save Tokisaki!"
However, Sukuna only responded with a cold sneer.
Go back?
They could barely protect themselves.
Seeing that Sukuna had no intention of returning, Yuji actually began to wrest control of the body from him.
"Are you insane?! You're trying to fight me for control at a time like this?!"
As Sukuna felt his control over the body weakening bit by bit, panic and fury began to creep into his voice.
The Nightmare was still chasing them—going back now was suicide.
He had been sealed inside a finger for a thousand years, and now that he had finally revived, he wasn't going to give it up so easily.
But this body ultimately belonged to Yuji Itadori.
No matter how much Sukuna resisted, the black markings on the body began to fade, little by little.
In less than three seconds, Yuji regained full control of his body.
He immediately leapt onto a nearby tree, turning to look behind, trying to locate the Nightmare.
"Was he… waiting for me on purpose?"
Suddenly, a chilling voice made Yuji hair stand on end.
But before he could react, an intense pain tore through his chest.
Yuji struggled to lower his head, only to see a slender arm piercing right through his torso.
The pale arm was stained red with blood, and in its hand—it held a beating heart.
With a gentle push from the Nightmare, the unbalanced Yuji fell straight off the tree to the ground.
Lying close to the earth, Yuji could only feel his body gradually growing colder, his thoughts becoming sluggish.
"Kid! Give me back control of the body!" Sukuna voice roared in his mind. "I can heal you with Reversed Cursed Technique!"
Heal?
Yuji let out a bitter smile.
Even if he survived, what was the point?
He had risked his life to save others, only to be betrayed by the very ones he tried to help. The beliefs that supported him as a Jujutsu Sorcerer had already crumbled.
What pained him even more was that Tokisaki Kurumi, who had chosen to stay behind because of his decision, had now been dragged down with him.
Even if he miraculously survived, how could he ever face anyone again?
"Forget it."
Yuji slowly closed his eyes.
"It doesn't… matter anymore…"