"Heh… are you ready to die, Satoru Gojo!"
The moment their eyes met, killing intent ignited.
Jogo, who had once suffered a crushing defeat at his hands, nearly lost control the instant he saw Satoru land.
Blazing heat erupted from the volcano-like crown of his head and the vents along his sides, sending the surrounding temperature soaring. Even the rails beneath their feet began to warp, letting out sharp metallic groans under the pressure.
He had never fought Mukuro, but if everything went according to plan and Sukuna fully revived, that alone would be the perfect revenge. For themselves, and for Mahito.
At the same time, cursed energy surged through Hanami's body. Thick vines burst from the ground, forcing open the doors on both sides of the tracks and tearing down the guardrails.
Every exit had already been sealed. The tangled growth blocked Satoru's vision and ensured that the trapped civilians had nowhere to run.
As the vines spread, a dense crowd suddenly filled Satoru's sight. Some people who had been standing too close lost their footing and fell down beside him. Dozens more collapsed in front of and behind Jogo and Hanami as well.
"Tch…"
This had been within his expectations, but the sheer number of civilians would undoubtedly restrict his movements.
"Who is he talking to?"
Whether on the platform or down on the tracks, everyone had noticed Satoru, who stood out like a crane among chickens.
Most of them couldn't see the curses at all and simply assumed he was the one responsible for the destruction.
"What do you mean who? Aren't there two people in cosplay standing in front of him?"
A very small number who could see Jogo and Hanami only thought they were Halloween costume enthusiasts.
Voices overlapped in confusion, but everyone could clearly feel something was wrong.
Since when had the platform become this hot?
"Don't stand too close to me, or you'll die."
Satoru gently helped up a girl who had nearly fallen onto him and gave her a quiet warning.
"So what are you going to do, Satoru Gojo? If you dare run away, we'll kill everyone here!"
Jogo grinned, revealing a row of blackened teeth as dense, pale-purple cursed energy gathered in his hands.
"Just kidding! We'll kill them even if you don't run!"
Before Satoru could respond, Jogo plunged into the crowd, eager to humiliate him. He moved through the mass of people, and wherever he passed, flames coiled around them, reducing them to charred corpses in an instant.
Hanami followed close behind, the forest that once nurtured life now erupting in madness as it harvested human lives one after another.
"Ahh! Help!"
Only then did the people snap out of their daze and begin to scream, desperately trying to climb back onto the platform.
Satoru frowned slightly and shifted his stance, preparing to charge toward the two.
"Domain Amplification!"
That was exactly the moment they had been waiting for.
To a certain extent, Domain Amplification was an extremely advanced technique. Only curses capable of using Domain Expansion could perform it.
Its function resembled a fusion of a Simple Domain and a full Domain Expansion. By covering their own bodies with their domain, they gained an almost guaranteed-hit effect. That meant it could neutralize a domain and break through the Infinity.
Satoru was not even able to launch an attack when the two curses were already in front of him. Their fists, wrapped in cursed energy, smashed toward his head.
For an instant, the clash of cursed energy felt like three masses of sponge crushing against one another, their blows forcing their way through the invisible barrier of the Infinity.
"Hmm?"
Satoru sensed it immediately. Just before the punches could reach his face, his figure vanished, slipping past them in a flash.
The attacks missed, yet the aftershock alone was enough to tear the tracks apart.
"You dodged just now, didn't you, Satoru Gojo~?"
A mocking grin spread across Jogo's face, like a kid caught stealing candy but praised instead.
Kenjaku's order was simple. Stall Satoru. Ideally, wear him down or make him drop his guard for even a moment. With the terrain, the hostages, and the timing on their side, Domain Amplification might truly be enough to drag the fight out until he grew tired.
"Hehe…"
But at that moment, looking at the carnage around him, Satoru covered his forehead and began to laugh.
"Huh? What are you laughing at? Have you finally snapped…?"
Jogo demanded, irritation rising. Yet a bad feeling crept into his chest.
"I'm laughing because you're actually naive enough to think this level is enough to beat me."
Satoru slowly removed his blindfold.
Those sky-blue eyes were filled with killing intent.
* * *
Elsewhere.
In a pitch-black space, a single road stretched endlessly forward.
"So boring… I wonder how Jogo and the others are doing. Will Sukuna kill Mukuro Fushiguro and Suguru Geto? Damn…"
A familiar figure sat cross-legged in the middle of the road, muttering to himself. The stitches across his face revealed his identity.
Mahito.
After his body and consciousness had been stripped away by Suguru's Cursed Spirit Manipulation, his soul had fallen into a state close to death.
This was the path of the afterlife, but because of his unique nature, he could not pass through it.
His soul existed only in fragments now. All he could do was wait.
Wait until Suguru died and returned the part that belonged to him. Wait until human hatred grew strong enough for him to be reborn once more.
There was nothing else he could do.
"Hmm? I'm getting sleepy…"
A sudden wave of drowsiness overtook him, and he collapsed onto the ground.
* * *
"The show is about to begin."
Above Shibuya Station, directly over the battlefield, the area was packed with civilians who had no way to escape, and Kenjaku was standing among them.
"Whether you died outright or were absorbed by that Geto through some scheme, you really are the most special one."
He spoke to himself and smiled.
Ten years ago, he had already tricked a disaster-class cursed spirit into becoming a test subject.
As long as it wasn't the exact moment they were first summoned, even a curse absorbed by Cursed Spirit Manipulation could still be used through this technique, as long as its name was known.
Unlike shikigami, a disaster-class curse might return to the world with a different form or even a different name the next time.
But Mahito was different.
Because of the nature of his soul, death meant nothing. No matter how many times it happened, the special grade curse born from human hatred would always be Mahito.
Kenjaku formed a handsign in front of his chest.
"God Feeding Art: Divine Decent, Special Grade Cursed Spirit… Mahito."
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