After digesting the complex rules within the Domain via the sure-hit effect, Kashimo realized the truth.
For the thug in front of him to return to his previous immortal form, he would have to wait for the animated scene within the Domain to finish playing out and hit the jackpot.
Before this jackpot happened, Hakari was not immortal.
Hajime Kashimo hesitated for only a moment, then slammed his lightning-infused fist directly into Kinji Hakari!
The lottery screen on the pachinko machine started spinning.
While dodging Kashimo's furious attacks, Hakari kept a watchful eye on White Zetsu, anticipating a sudden attack.
There was no such thing as immortality! Hakari had now transformed from a heavily armored, unkillable warrior into a fragile Sorcerer trying to survive long enough to roll the dice.
"Ugh, how boring."
Watching the two locked in combat, White Zetsu pursed his lips and shook his head.
Kashimo's body type meant Zetsu was unable to possess him to make a clone. As for Kinji Hakari...
After learning about Hakari's innate technique through the Domain's rules, White Zetsu was extremely disappointed.
Nearly limitless Cursed Energy, and a body regenerating reflexively from any injury.
First, Hakari needed to activate the Domain Expansion and hit the jackpot; the period of arrogance only lasted for exactly four minutes and eleven seconds...
Isn't this just a low-end version of my own skills? Zetsu thought.
There was also the flaw in this "pseudo" immortality.
Even if Hakari had infinite Cursed Energy, if his head was severed and his brain destroyed in one blow, the Reverse Cursed Technique couldn't heal him. He would still die instantly.
Even if White Zetsu lost his head, at most, it would only mean losing this specific clone body. The main body in the Kamui dimension would be fine. Taking over Hakari's body would actually weaken Zetsu in the process.
"It's a complete waste of Master Zetsu's time."
With a sigh, Hakari hit the jackpot! The barrier shattered!
The three of them descended from the sky and returned to the cargo yard still engulfed in raging flames!
...
"Music... START!"
The flames of Cursed Energy, burning everything away, shone brightly against the backdrop of their surroundings.
The theme music, which had been calming down, suddenly erupted into an absolute frenzy, and the fanatical gambler once again wore an expression of pure enjoyment.
With his hands raised high, Hakari swayed his body to the music!
Now, Hakari had an invincible buff of four minutes and eleven seconds!
Kashimo's eyes burned with a fervent desire for battle!
Faced with two near-immortal monsters, Kashimo's smile grew even more insane!
The Domain rules had been made public to him. Kashimo knew perfectly well that as long as he avoided fighting during those four minutes and eleven seconds, he could easily kill Hakari once the infinite Cursed Energy buff ended.
But escaping was the act of the weak!
As a martial arts fanatic, Kashimo couldn't accept such a useless, cowardly way to win! He hoped to defeat the enemy at their absolute strongest from the front, and what he desired was a thrilling and exhilarating battle!
The lightning burst forth, tearing the raging sea of fire in two!
"CONTINUE!!!"
Kashimo, at full power, increased his speed at an astounding rate!
Hakari, with his pseudo-immortality, was completely fearless of any damage that didn't target his head!
One was temporarily untouchable, and the other was temporarily unkillable.
But President Zetsu was finding things increasingly boring.
Before coming to the Culling Game barriers, Mirai had recommended someone to White Zetsu. Mirai said that guy was someone who could make Zetsu genuinely happy and provide a real challenge.
When Zetsu said he was looking for fun, he was also aiming to find that specific target.
The reason Zetsu didn't expand his Domain yet was because tens of thousands of mechanical flying insects were still helping him search Tokyo for his true target.
"Just having a good time is enough. Playing with you guys all the time isn't fun anymore," Zetsu muttered.
As soon as he finished speaking, a terrifying amount of Cursed Energy surged forth!
White Zetsu stretched his mouth into an extremely exaggerated, grotesque arc, with black blood gushing from the corners of his lips!
A terrifying surge of Cursed Energy flickered from a mouth that was torn open even wider than the Slit-Mouthed Woman!
The gaping hole in his chest, which had just been ripped open by Kashimo's punch, was now a twisted, bloody mess, mutating rapidly to resemble a small, biological cannon barrel!
Flames erupted from his palms, and a blood-red fleshy cannon-like structure simultaneously slammed out of his chest and back!
Kashimo and Hakari's pupils shrank sharply!
The sheer amount of Cursed Energy that White Zetsu unleashed in that single instant caused their hearts to pound wildly!
"Hey, Cursed Spirit! You've gone too far!" Hakari yelled.
Burst acceleration!
Before White Zetsu could finish charging, the two men pounced on him in perfect, unspoken unison to stop the blast!
A hint of mockery flashed in White Zetsu's eyes, and his body shimmered with a magnificent, blinding light!
Let's just play around with a hundred years' worth of Cursed Energy.
"—SIZZLE!"
Like a spinning top, White Zetsu rotated rapidly in place, churning the entire sea of fire into the shape of a massive tornado!
His mouth, palms, chest, back, and abdomen!
Countless flesh-and-blood turrets erupted at their absolute peak output in an instant!
"Spirit Missile!"
"Add another one! The Red Star Atomic Bomb!!!"
A scorching torrent surged forth, turning the clouds above Tokyo a deep crimson hue!
For a moment, the world fell utterly silent, and a massive red mushroom cloud seemed to rise from the center of the freight yard!
The next second...
BOOM!!!
A deafening sound, like a nuclear explosion, shook the entire Tokyo Colony 2 barrier for several seconds!
...
Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle...
Sparks crackled and spewed out as a half-naked, white Cursed Spirit rose from the center of the sea of fire.
Zetsu subconsciously reached into his pocket for a cigarette, only to find nothing but charred air.
"Tch, the clothes that Mirai makes are really flimsy."
Zetsu didn't care whether the remaining two Players lived or died. He scoffed and turned to leave the barrier using Mirai's newly added Rule 10.
"Never mind, I'll go back and repair my equipment first," Zetsu grumbled. "It always feels like something's missing when the President doesn't smoke a cigar."
Four minutes after White Zetsu left, the sea of fire gradually calmed down.
Deep inside a massive crater on the ground, a figure appeared.
A nearly carbonized human figure was desperately protecting Hajime Kashimo beneath him.
The automatic Reverse Cursed Technique enhanced by Hakari's Domain caused his body to rapidly change back and forth between flesh-color and carbon-color under the continuous high temperature.
"That's really going too far!" Hakari groaned.
Hakari stood up, patting off the remaining embers from his clothes, a hint of lingering fear still evident in his expression.
Just before White Zetsu erupted, Hakari, realizing he couldn't stop the blast in time, slammed his fist into the ground to create a trench. Only by relying on his newly opened Domain buff could he drag Kashimo into the deep pit for protection and survive the nuclear-level heat.
Despite this...
Hakari looked down at Kashimo, whose face was burned and who was completely unconscious, and sighed helplessly.
"Let's take him out of here and let Shoko treat him first."
For those 100 points, Kinji Hakari had almost lost his life.
...
Tokyo Colony 1.
It spans across Ikebukuro and Shinjuku, forming a massive barrier.
The former stronghold of the Zenin clan, and the Star Religious Group branch (Mirai's base), was one of the starting points within the barrier.
Perhaps because they entered the Culling Game several days earlier than in the original manga timeline, Yuji Itadori and Megumi Fushiguro had not yet encountered any troublesome or overly aggressive Players.
The three separated individuals (Yuji, Megumi, Nobara) could only confirm the identity of their target—Hiromi Higuruma—within the barrier through Kogane. However, the exact location of Higuruma within the massive barrier could not be confirmed by the Shikigami.
Ikebukuro. An underground stage theater.
After making inquiries with terrified civilians everywhere, Yuji hurried to this place.
In the center of the theater, sitting on the wooden stage...
With his head tilted back and his eyes slightly numb, Hiromi Higuruma was fully immersed in a white bathtub filled with water, still fully clothed.
He was dressed in a crumpled suit and tie, and was holding a small wooden gavel in his hand.
"You must be Higuruma?" Yuji asked, stepping onto the stage.
After Yuji confirmed the man's identity, the conversation between the two did not seem to be pleasant.
Thirty-six-year-old Hiromi Higuruma was a highly talented, newly awakened Sorcerer, and a former defense lawyer.
Because of his strong sense of justice, Higuruma had often helped defendants who suffered injustice in court. But after dealing with suspects tortured into confessing by the police, and trial outcomes constantly manipulated by power and money... with each failed trial, Higuruma's sense of justice crumbled little by little.
Even laws that seemed just and fair could be fundamentally corrupted by external factors.
When Yuji demanded that he hand over his 100 points to add a rule...
Splash!
Rising from the bathtub, Hiromi Higuruma said in a deep voice, "The law cannot be absolutely fair. I want to see if the rules of the Culling Game are fair."
"Since the innate technique I awakened is genuine, it at least means that the Game Master's requirements should be reliable. No need for a lawsuit, and no need to spend money to pull strings..."
"Isn't it good that people who break the rules will finally be punished?" Higuruma asked, staring blankly at Yuji.
Higuruma coldly looked at the boy, slightly raising the wooden gavel in his hand. "Therefore, I refuse your request."
Yuji's face darkened. "Then let's put it another way..."
A surge of powerful Cursed Energy rose from Yuji's fists. "Higuruma! Hand over your points!"
BANG!
With a soft thud of the gavel against the side of the bathtub, the Goddess of Justice, Judgeman—a massive Shikigami with its eyes sewn shut—appeared behind Higuruma.
"Domain Expansion—Deadly Sentencing!"
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