Boom!
Beneath the dark-red canopy of the Culling Game, three streaks of light breaking the sound barrier hurtled at terrifying speed toward Tokyo Jujutsu High!
These three were none other than Yoru, Yuta Okkotsu, and Hana Kurusu—who possessed the power of Angel—having forged their alliance.
The wind howled past their ears. The ultimate physical prowess granted by Yoru's Permanent Slayer Mark allowed him to maintain absolute calm without even a tremor in his breathing, despite moving at such blinding speed.
"Angel."
Weaving through the ruins, Yoru glanced at Hana Kurusu beside him with deep crimson eyes that seemed capable of seeing through everything.
"About unsealing the Prison Realm—you said earlier that you could rip that blasted box apart anytime."
"Yet as far as I know, that thing is a special grade cursed object that not even Satoru Gojo's Six Eyes could shatter from within."
"Can your Jacob's Ladder truly erase only the sealing technique with precision, without harming Gojo-sensei?"
Hearing Yoru's question, the mouth on Hana Kurusu's cheek let out a soft chuckle.
"Are you questioning my mastery over my technique?"
Angel's voice carried an innate arrogance.
"The seal of the Prison Realm is indeed complex. It not only involves the folding of space, but it even encompasses the suspension of time."
"From the outside, I could indeed vaporize it along with the space inside in a single blast of Jacob's Ladder."
"However..."
Angel's tone suddenly turned grave.
"If we want to unseal it flawlessly without harming that Six Eyes brat inside,"
"I must enter the interior of the Back of the Prison Realm, and unleash my technique directly upon the core seal's formation at close range within that cramped, enclosed space!"
"Enter the interior?"
Beside them, Yuta Okkotsu's brow furrowed tightly upon hearing this.
"Though Principal Yaga kept the Back of the Prison Realm in secret custody, hasn't Kenjaku surely laid countless traps inside that space long ago?"
"To prevent anyone from trying to break the seal through the back, an unimaginable legion of cursed spirits must be entrenched inside!"
"Precisely."
Angel confirmed Yuta Okkotsu's deduction.
"Inside, it is virtually a miniature hell compressed by sheer force."
"Innumerable cursed spirits, triggered curse traps, and even poison gas targeting the soul saturate that narrow space."
"While my technique can extinguish anything, when I cast Jacob's Ladder to carry out such a delicate unsealing, I absolutely cannot afford to divert my focus to defend against physical and cursed energy attacks!"
At this point, Angel's golden eyes locked intently onto Yoru.
"Therefore, I need someone."
"Someone who can plunge into that hell alongside me, block every attack, and slaughter every cursed spirit until I complete the unsealing!"
"And in this world, the only one who can fulfill this requirement to perfection, completely impervious to cursed energy traps..."
Angel's voice took on a feverish edge.
"Is you! The invincible Sword Saint who bears zero cursed energy, yet severs all Karma with his blade!"
Hearing Angel's explanation, the corner of Yoru's lips curled into a faint smile.
"I see."
"An escort mission?"
Yoru slowly rested his hand on the hilt of Shiranui, the terrifying heat from his Permanent Slayer Mark warping the surrounding air.
"Sounds like a decent warmup."
"In that case, I will escort you in myself."
"Senior!"
Yuta Okkotsu looked at Yoru with concern.
"While I trust your strength, that is an inescapable death trap meticulously arranged by Kenjaku. If only you and Hana Kurusu go in, what if—"
"There are no what-ifs."
Yoru cut Yuta Okkotsu off, absolute confidence flashing in his deep crimson eyes.
"Before my blade, there is no stalemate in this world that cannot be broken."
"Besides, Yuta."
Yoru turned his gaze toward this junior he held in high regard.
"Leave the enemies inside the Prison Realm to me, but what about the outside?"
"Do you really think an old sly fox like Kenjaku will just sit idly by and watch as we try to unseal Satoru Gojo?"
Prompted by Yoru's reminder, Yuta Okkotsu shuddered and realized at once!
"Senior, you mean... Kenjaku will send forces to launch a frontal assault on the unsealing site?!"
"Not just send forces."
Yoru's gaze pierced through layers of space, looking toward the distant horizon.
"He might even throw every single trump card he collected in the Culling Game right at us!"
"Thus, the defense outside is the true key to this unsealing battle!"
Yoru halted his steps, landing steadily before a hidden stronghold in the mountains behind Tokyo Jujutsu High.
He looked at Yuta Okkotsu, his tone graver than ever before.
"Go, Yuta."
"Gather all the comrades we brought to our side during the Culling Game."
"Hiromi Higuruma, Kinji Hakari, Hajime Kashimo, Musashi Miyamoto..."
With every name Yoru spoke, the murderous aura in the air thickened!
"Tell them."
"The final battle has begun ahead of schedule!"
"Even if we fight down to the last person, even if every last drop of blood is spilled—"
"Before Gojo-sensei steps out of the Prison Realm, not a single rat is permitted to take half a step into this stronghold!"
Listening to Yoru's command, which sounded like a rallying cry before war, Yuta Okkotsu felt the blood throughout his body boiling wildly!
"Understood!"
Yuta Okkotsu snapped to attention, his eyes burning with fanatical resolve.
"As long as I, Yuta Okkotsu, have a single breath left in me, I will never allow anyone to disturb Senior's unsealing!"
"Rika!"
Boom!
Answering Yuta Okkotsu's call, the massive form of the Special Grade Vengeful Cursed Spirit Rika materialized once more, instantly transforming into a streak of black light that broadcast the assembly signal in all directions!
Watching Yuta Okkotsu's retreating figure, Yoru slowly turned around and looked toward the black cubic cursed object protected by layers of barriers deep within the stronghold.
That was the "Back" of the Prison Realm!
"Well then."
Yoru tightened his grip on Shiranui. The terrifying heat from his Permanent Slayer Mark warped even the surrounding barriers slightly.
"Let me see what surprises an old turtle who has lived for a thousand years has prepared inside."
Meanwhile, hundreds of kilometers away in the depths of the Tombs of the Star Corridor.
Watching the surveillance monitor that showed Yoru and the others arriving at the stronghold, an exceedingly cruel grin spread across Kenjaku's stitch-covered face.
"Seeking to unseal Satoru Gojo?"
"Then use all your lives to fill my bottomless abyss!"
A defensive battle to protect the unsealing, monumental enough to be etched into the annals of the jujutsu world, was on the verge of erupting in its most brutal form!
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