"
Heavy footsteps, accompanied by a terrifying heat capable of melting steel, echoed slowly through the ruins of the Shibuya underground transfer hall.
On Jogo's volcano-like head, scorching white steam and sparks were constantly spewing forth.
He glanced at the wreckage-strewn battlefield, then at the blood-covered Yuji Itadori kneeling on the ground, and finally fixed his gaze on the unmoving Choso.
"Choso, you bastard, what are you just standing there for?"
Jogo's raspy voice, sounding like a broken bellows, carried an unmasked tone of grief and agitation.
"Hanami is dead, and things on Dagon's side aren't looking right either. We don't have time to play house with this brat!"
He abruptly raised his withered right hand, and a ball of brilliant yellow flame ignited instantly on his fingertip.
"If you can't bring yourself to do it, then I will!"
"I'll break this brat's limbs and shove all of Sukuna's fingers down his throat to ensure Sukuna descends upon this world completely!"
As he spoke, Jogo flicked his finger.
"Swoosh—!"
The yellow flame instantly transformed into a roaring fire snake, carrying the terrifying power to incinerate everything as it lunged straight toward Yuji Itadori's face!
Faced with a casual strike from a Special Grade Cursed Spirit, Yuji, who was already at his limit, had no time to dodge. He could only watch as the fire snake expanded in his pupils.
However, at the very moment the lethal heat was about to touch the tip of Yuji's nose—
"Crash!"
A shield of dark red blood rose from the ground like a wall, blocking Yuji's path without warning!
"Boom!"
The fire snake slammed into the blood shield, instantly releasing a massive burst of white steam, but it failed to move forward even an inch.
"Hmm?"
Jogo's massive single eye narrowed, a dangerous light flashing within.
He looked at the figure slowly withdrawing his right hand, still standing protectively in front of Yuji, and his tone turned icy.
"Choso, what is the meaning of this?"
"Not only did you fail to kill this vessel, but now you're protecting him? Are you planning to betray us?"
"Are you betraying our grand ideal of establishing a world of pure cursed spirits?!"
The only response to Jogo was a deathly silence.
Choso kept his head lowered, making it impossible to see his expression.
In his mind, the figure of the man named Kenjaku and the figure of the scarred but unyielding youth behind him were locked in a fierce conflict.
In truth, before the Shibuya Incident began, Kenjaku had already been secretly subdued by Yoru.
The missions Choso received to 'eliminate Yuji' were merely a facade Kenjaku put on for the other Special Grade Cursed Spirits to coordinate with Yoru's plan.
However, because Yoru had changed history in the past, the forced merging of two timelines caused the Law of Causality to undergo severe distortion and deviation.
This ripple in the timeline not only caused many people's memories to become briefly disorganized but also caused Choso to lose himself in false mission directives for a time, nearly leading to a catastrophic mistake.
But now, the resonance of their blood had finally shattered the cognitive haze created by the timeline merger!
On one side was a false, fabricated order; on the other side was his only younger brother, linked to him by blood in this world!
"I..."
Choso's voice was raspy, carrying a trace of an undetectable tremor.
He slowly raised his head, and in his eyes that were once empty, a resolution and madness never seen before were burning!
"To hell with your pure cursed spirit world!"
"To hell with Kenjaku's missions!"
Choso turned abruptly, his hands pulling apart in front of him as violent dark red cursed energy erupted around him like a storm!
"Blood Manipulation: Convergence!"
"Vroom—!"
Three highly compressed spheres of blood formed around him instantly, emitting terrifying ripples that made one's heart skip a beat.
He stared fixedly at Jogo and spat out the words that left Jogo completely stunned.
"Yuji Itadori is my, Choso's, younger brother!"
"No matter who it is, or for what damn ideal... if you want to harm him, you'll have to step over my corpse first!"
"Brother?"
Jogo was dazed.
That volcano head of his, which was always erupting with fury, actually stopped smoking for a rare moment.
He looked at the blood-stained Yuji, then at Choso who was in a life-or-death stance, as if he had heard the funniest joke in the world.
"Hahahaha!"
Jogo suddenly clutched his stomach and let out a piercing, hysterical laugh, nearly laughing to the point of tears.
"Choso, oh Choso, did Satoru Gojo's Unlimited Void burn your brains out?"
"You are a Cursed Womb: Death Painting, a hybrid monster of human and curse! And this brat is just a vessel for Sukuna, a pure human!"
"You actually said he's your brother? Are you kidding me right now?!"
"Shut up!"
Choso roared, and the three blood spheres around him instantly turned into three streaks of red lightning too fast for the naked eye to track.
"Triple Piercing Blood!"
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The three Piercing Blood shots formed a triangular formation, accompanied by terrifying sonic booms that tore through the air, sealing off all of Jogo's escape routes!
"Ignorant fool!"
Facing an attack that could insta-kill a Grade 1 Sorcerer, Jogo merely snorted and didn't even move to dodge.
"Boom!"
A surge of lava and flames, more violent and scorching than before, erupted from his body like a volcanic blast!
Those three Piercing Blood shots, capable of piercing through steel, couldn't even last a second against the lava defense around Jogo before being vaporized into nothingness by the extreme heat!
"Even among Special Grades, there is a gap in strength."
Jogo slowly walked out from the flames, his single eye flashing with cruelty and disdain.
"Since you insist on claiming this brat as your brother, and since you've chosen betrayal..."
"Then I'll burn both of you pathetic brothers to ashes!"
"Vroom—!"
Jogo slammed both hands onto the ground, and the temperature of the entire underground hall spiked to an appalling level.
The concrete on the floor began to melt, and the surrounding support pillars groaned under the unbearable heat.
'It's so hot...'
Hiding behind Choso, Yuji felt as though he had been thrown into a giant oven. Even the air he breathed in carried a burning pain that scorched his lungs.
Is this the true power of the Special Grade Cursed Spirit Jogo?
He had felt it once from a distance outside Shibuya Station, but facing this terrifying heat head-on now, Yuji truly understood how vast the gap was.
"Brother, can you still move?"
Choso didn't look back; his gaze was locked onto Jogo ahead. Fine beads of sweat were already forming on his forehead.
"If you can still move, find an opportunity to escape."
"This guy's flames are the perfect counter to my Blood Manipulation. my blood vaporizes before it can even get near him. I can only do my best to hold him back and buy time for you."
Escape?
Hearing that word, Yuji was slightly taken aback.
He looked at the man standing in front of him—someone who knew he stood no chance but still stood his ground without hesitation.
Looking at that broad back, he felt as if he were seeing Instructor Yoru again, who had stayed behind alone at the juvenile detention center to cover for him and Megumi.
"I'm not in the habit of abandoning my comrades and running away alone."
Yuji took a deep breath, enduring the sharp pain in his right shoulder and the burning in his lungs as he slowly stood up.
"Besides..."
He walked to Choso's side and stood shoulder-to-shoulder with him.
Blue cursed energy, like two unyielding beasts, began to burn wildly on his fists once more.
"Didn't you just say it? I'm your brother."
"What kind of brother leaves his big brother to face danger alone?"
Yuji turned his head and gave Choso a bright, brilliant smile that was filled with wild battle intent.
"If it's a fight he wants, let's give him one!"
"With us brothers working together, even if he's a Special Grade, we'll make sure to rip a piece of him off!"
Seeing Yuji's determined gaze and unyielding smile, Choso's heart throbbed violently.
This was the bond of blood!
This was the brother he swore to protect with his life!
"Good!"
Choso took a deep breath, and all the hesitation and fear in his bloodshot eyes were swept away, replaced by pure, frantic battle intent.
"In that case, let us brothers tear down this smoking furnace together!"
"Blood Manipulation: Supernova!"
"Divergent Fist!"
A red and a blue burst of violent cursed energy erupted simultaneously in the ruins, pointing straight at the Special Grade Cursed Spirit like two unsheathed swords!
"Interesting."
Looking at the pair of brothers fighting side by side, a flash of cruel excitement crossed Jogo's single eye.
"Then let me see just how far you pathetic brothers can struggle!"
"Boom—!"
The scorching lava clashed violently with the intertwined red and blue cursed energy in the Shibuya underground hall!
The true death match had only just begun!