The dust slowly settled.
From the rubble—
A twisted mass of flesh writhed violently.
Tendrils of muscle intertwined.
In only a few seconds, the grotesque lump reshaped itself into a human figure once again.
Mahito stood upright.
A brand-new arm regenerated from his shoulder.
However—
The confident smile from earlier had disappeared.
Now only caution remained.
"…How strange."
Mahito flexed his newly grown fingers.
His eyes remained fixed on Yagami Sora.
"I clearly touched you."
"Yet it felt like there was an entire world between us."
His head tilted slightly.
"You…"
"…what exactly are you?"
Among cursed spirits, Mahito possessed one of the sharpest perceptions of souls.
In his vision—
Every living being possessed a soul.
The body was merely the outer shape of that soul.
Touch the body—
And he could alter the soul.
Even someone like Satoru Gojo still possessed a definable soul.
But Sora was different.
Mahito could see something strange surrounding his body.
A constantly shifting shell.
It wasn't cursed energy.
It wasn't a barrier.
It was something far more fundamental.
An invisible layer of vector control.
Anything approaching it—
Matter.
Energy.
Even cursed energy attempting to transmit through touch—
Was instantly redirected.
Mahito felt only one concept from that shell.
Rejection.
"What am I?"
Sora walked forward slowly.
Each step caused the ground beneath his feet to tremble slightly.
"I'm something you can't understand."
He raised his hand.
The surrounding air suddenly began to move.
WHOOSH—
Wind gathered violently.
The previously calm night breeze compressed into a narrow space.
Air molecules collided repeatedly.
The pressure skyrocketed.
Countless microscopic shockwaves formed within the compressed air—
Creating invisible cutting blades.
High-frequency wind blades spun around Sora.
The sound resembled thousands of insects screaming simultaneously.
"Since you like playing with bodies…"
Sora flicked his fingers lazily.
"…I'll play with yours."
A compressed wind blade shot forward.
WHOOSH—
The attack exceeded the speed of sound.
The sonic boom echoed through the street.
Mahito attempted to split his body apart to evade—
But it was too late.
THUD.
The wind blade sliced cleanly through his abdomen.
His body separated instantly.
The cut was perfectly smooth.
Even the cells along the surface were sliced apart.
Mahito's upper body collapsed to the ground.
Yet he still smiled.
"As long as my soul remains intact…"
"…I can regenerate endlessly."
But then—
His expression froze.
The wound wasn't healing.
The severed flesh twitched violently.
Every time his cells attempted regeneration—
They were shredded again.
Residual wind pressure remained inside the wound.
Countless microscopic air blades continued cutting endlessly.
Regeneration became impossible.
"Even if I can't kill you…"
Sora walked toward him calmly.
"…I can still torture you."
He looked down at Mahito's half-body with cold indifference.
"I can slice you into ten thousand pieces."
"Grind every fragment into dust."
"You'll regenerate, sure."
"But that pain…"
"…will never stop."
Sora crouched beside him.
"I'm curious."
"Will you regenerate faster?"
"Or will I cut faster?"
"Wait!"
Mahito shouted suddenly.
For the first time—
Fear appeared in his voice.
This human was terrifying.
His attacks were useless.
Even his regeneration was suppressed.
This wasn't a battle.
It was a slaughter.
"What?"
"Already scared?"
Sora tilted his head slightly.
"A moment ago you wanted to teach that kid despair."
"Now it's your turn."
He raised his hand toward Mahito.
"By the way…"
"I can see souls too."
Through extreme calculation of bioelectric signals and cursed-energy flow—
Sora could roughly analyze the structure of a soul.
Every living being possessed a core energy pattern.
Mahito's soul appeared clearly to him.
And it was disgusting.
Sora frowned.
"…Your soul stinks."
Mahito's eyes widened.
"It smells like a dead rat rotting in a sewer."
"Mixed with vomit and garbage."
"That chaotic structure…"
"…formed from countless fragments of human malice."
"It's revolting."
"Just looking at it makes me nauseous."
Those words struck directly at Mahito's pride.
He believed himself to be the true form of humanity.
A perfect being born from human hatred.
And now—
A human called him disgusting.
"You…!"
Mahito roared.
Cursed energy exploded from his body.
His flesh expanded violently.
Multiple arms burst from his torso.
Distorted faces screamed from his skin.
"Self-Embodiment of Perfection — Multiple Soul Transformation!"
The combined energy of multiple souls erupted outward.
A massive flesh monster lunged toward Sora.
The surrounding space trembled under the cursed energy.
But—
Sora only spoke one word.
"Leave."
Vector manipulation activated instantly.
Total reflection.
BOOM!!!
The monstrous mass rebounded violently.
Its speed doubled.
The flesh creature smashed through the street behind it.
Walls collapsed.
An entire abandoned building partially crumbled under the impact.
The shockwave shattered every nearby window.
Dust filled the night air.
When it cleared—
Sora stood quietly in the center of the destruction.
His clothes remained perfectly clean.
Not a single hair out of place.
He shook his head slightly.
"The so-called Special Grade curse…"
"…disappointing."
Sora turned to leave.
Then—
Something grabbed his pant leg.
He looked down.
Junpei Yoshino knelt on the gravel.
Blood seeped through his torn pants where his knees had struck the ground.
But he didn't cry.
He simply clung tightly to Sora's leg.
Like a drowning man grabbing driftwood.
"…Can I really do it?"
Junpei's voice was barely audible.
He kept his head lowered.
"The curse said my soul was 'beautiful.'"
"He said if I didn't accept his power…"
"…I'd regret it forever."
His hands trembled.
"But…"
"…was he lying?"
Sora stopped walking.
Three seconds passed.
The night wind swept ash across the ruined street.
"…Yes."
Sora answered calmly.
"He was lying."
He paused briefly.
"Your soul is beautiful."
"And that's exactly why…"
"…you shouldn't get close to garbage like that."
Junpei's shoulders shook violently.
Slowly—
His hand released Sora's pant leg.
Sora continued walking.
He didn't look back.
"Eight o'clock tomorrow morning."
"Tokyo Jujutsu High."
"Don't be late."
Junpei stood up.
He wiped the blood from his mouth.
When he lifted his head—
The fear and confusion in his eyes were gone.
Only determination remained.
"…I'll be there."
Sora paused briefly.
Then continued walking into the night.
Junpei watched his silhouette disappear down the alley.
His fist tightened.
From this moment—
His life had changed.
Not because he gained power.
But because someone had given him a choice before he fell into darkness.
"…Thank you."
His voice was quiet.
But Sora heard it.
Without turning around—
He raised his hand and waved casually.
Then vanished into the darkness.
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