c3: The Strongest vs. The Strongest (Pseudo)
"Use!"
As Lin Ye issued the command within his mind, the response was immediate.
Boom!
An ancient, vast, and scorching aura erupted violently from within his body, surging outward like a long-dormant sun finally breaking through the horizon. The air around him distorted slightly under the sudden rise in temperature.
If Lin Ye had been nothing more than a flickering flame before, then at this moment he had become a blazing sun.
Dark red markings, resembling dancing flames, spread across the left side of his forehead, just like the Demon Slayer Mark once borne by Yoriichi Tsugikuni.
The rusty iron bar in his grip trembled violently, letting out a strained metallic hum as if it could no longer withstand the overwhelming power being channeled through it.
Then, an astonishing transformation occurred.
The corroded surface of the iron bar glowed bright red in an instant, as though it had been pulled directly from a blazing furnace, heat radiating intensely from its surface.
Nichirin Blade (Pseudo).
Though it was forcibly created using ordinary iron rather than true scarlet ore, it still carried a fragment of the properties unique to Nichirin Blades, The power to burn and eradicate unnatural beings.
The smile on Satoru Gojo's lips deepened slightly.
He could clearly sense the transformation.
The boy before him was no longer the somewhat tense civilian from moments ago.
What stood before him now felt like a battle-hardened swordsman who had honed his craft to its absolute peak—a Sword Saint whose presence alone carried weight.
"Oh?"
"This just got interesting."
Gojo casually slipped his hands into his pockets, leaning forward ever so slightly, his posture relaxed yet brimming with confidence.
"Then let's give it a try."
Before his words had even fully faded, his figure vanished.
High-speed movement amplified through the attractive force of "Blue," a core application of the Limitless technique from Jujutsu Kaisen.
Almost simultaneously, a slender palm appeared right in front of Lin Ye, infused with compressed cursed energy powerful enough to shatter solid rock on impact.
Fast.
So fast that even trained eyes would fail to follow.
But in Lin Ye's perception, the world had already changed.
Transparent World.
In his vision, Gojo was no longer a simple human figure, but a complex structure composed of muscles, blood flow, skeletal alignment, and the precise circulation of cursed energy.
Every contraction, every shift in balance, even the direction of energy flow within Gojo's body was revealed with absolute clarity.
"I see it."
Lin Ye moved.
At the critical moment, his body responded without hesitation.
A single sidestep, followed by a subtle shift in footing, no wasted motion, no excess effort.
Gojo's palm, carrying overwhelming force, brushed past the tip of Lin Ye's nose.
He dodged it.
A flicker of surprise crossed Gojo's uncovered eye.
Pure reflex? No, it was prediction.
Before Gojo could transition into his next move, Lin Ye's counterattack had already begun.
[Sun Breathing, First Form: Circle Dance]
The pseudo Nichirin Blade carved a flawless arc through the air, its trajectory precise and unstoppable, slashing directly toward Gojo's neck with a momentum capable of cleaving through steel.
Clang!
A sharp, metallic sound rang out.
The blade halted just centimeters away from Gojo's skin.
The Limitless Cursed Technique.
An absolute, untouchable barrier, an infinite distance that no ordinary attack could ever cross.
However
"Hmm?"
Gojo's brow twitched slightly.
He could feel it.
The intense heat carried by the blade had actually seeped through the concept of infinity itself, grazing him faintly and leaving behind a subtle burning sensation.
It hadn't broken through his defense.
But it had reached him.
"To think you could do this without cursed energy..."
The azure glow within Gojo's eyes intensified, his interest rising sharply.
"Cursed Technique Lapse: Blue."
In an instant, a powerful attractive force erupted between them, distorting space as everything in the vicinity was dragged inward.
Lin Ye's body was pulled forward uncontrollably, as if gravity itself had been concentrated into a single point.
No footing. No leverage.
Trapped mid-air?
No.
[Sun Breathing, Fourth Form: Illusory Sun Arc]
Lin Ye's body twisted unnaturally in mid-air, leaving behind multiple afterimages created by extreme rotational speed.
What Gojo reached for was nothing more than a fading illusion.
The real Lin Ye had already repositioned himself appearing diagonally behind Gojo.
[Sun Breathing, Sixth Form: Burning Bones, Summer Sun]
The blade erupted into a blazing vortex, the fiery slash spiraling outward with destructive force capable of tearing through reinforced steel structures.
The attack closed in instantly.
Gojo raised a finger behind him, his response as effortless as before.
"Red."
A crimson shockwave burst forth, colliding head-on with the blazing slash.
Rumble!!!
The entire abandoned construction site gave way under the clash, collapsing completely as shockwaves rippled through its already fragile structure.
Dust and debris surged upward, swallowing everything in a dense haze as the two figures crossed paths within the chaos.
Lin Ye landed heavily, his breathing ragged as he struggled to stabilize himself.
The iron bar in his hand had finally reached its limit. Under the extreme heat generated by the pseudo Nichirin Blade and the violent collision with Satoru Gojo's technique, it melted entirely, dripping down as molten iron from his fingertips.
The flame-like markings on his forehead gradually faded, retreating as the power of Yoriichi Tsugikuni disappeared from his body.
An overwhelming wave of exhaustion crashed over him.
His muscles trembled uncontrollably, his vision dimming slightly as if his body had been completely drained of strength. Standing itself became a challenge.
The trial card's duration had ended.
Ten minutes in theory yet in reality, the exchange had lasted less than thirty seconds.
Even so, Lin Ye felt as though every ounce of his energy had been wrung out, as if his entire being had been hollowed from the inside.
Gradually, the dust settled.
Through the clearing haze, a figure remained standing exactly where he had been before.
Not a single hair out of place.
Gojo Satoru.
However, the way he looked at Lin Ye had changed completely.
No longer the casual curiosity of someone observing a rare creature.
Now, it was the gaze of someone who had discovered an unpolished gem—something with limitless potential.
"Impressive, impressive~"
Gojo clapped his hands lightly, walking forward with an almost childlike excitement that contrasted sharply with the overwhelming power he had displayed moments ago.
"Even without cursed energy, you managed to keep up with my pace using that strange breathing technique and swordsmanship."
"Especially those eyes that can read and predict movements, and that blade that can interfere with cursed energy itself..."
He stopped right in front of Lin Ye, leaning down slightly with a wide grin.
"Hey, young man."
"What's your name?"
Lin Ye steadied himself and forced his back straight despite the lingering fatigue.
"Lin Ye."
"Lin Ye, huh..."
Gojo nodded thoughtfully, then suddenly pulled out his phone and snapped a photo with a quick click.
"Very good, Classmate Lin Ye."
"Starting today, you're officially a first-year student at Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical College."
"Eh?"
Lin Ye blinked, momentarily stunned.
"Don't I need to go through some kind of assessment?"
"Assessment?"
Gojo raised a hand and casually gestured toward the flattened ruins surrounding them, then pointed toward the dissipating remnants of the Special Grade Cursed Spirit Lin Ye had exorcised earlier.
"Surviving in front of a Special Grade Cursed Spirit and managing to exchange blows with the strongest jujutsu sorcerer…"
"That's the best assessment you could possibly have."
As he spoke, Gojo casually slung an arm around Lin Ye's shoulder, acting as if they had known each other for years.
"Come on, I'll take you to meet your new classmates."
"I have a feeling you're going to be an even bigger problem child than I am."
"But…"
Gojo's voice lowered slightly, a subtle smile forming—one that carried a meaning only he fully understood.
"That's what makes it interesting."
That very night, Within the unseen world governed by curses and jujutsu the gears of history began to shift.
All because of the appearance of a boy with no cursed energy…
Yet capable of standing on equal footing, even if only for a moment, with Satoru Gojo.
...