"You know him?"
Michizane asked Hojo who was staring at the dead man lying before him.
Know him…?
Hojo didn't know Michizane until a few days ago. But of course, he knew him.
He took a deep breath and slowly released it. Emotions that were exploding inside him vanished and his face turned expressionless.
"He is the second strongest sorcerer of the current era."
After a momentary silence, he answered.
He then stood up and glanced at Ronnie for the last time. Because of the lack of time, he could only say one thing for him: rest in peace.
"Let's go. I know that bastard hasn't gone too far."
Hojo prompted others to get ready for a chase.
He had sensed the footprints of cursed energy left by Dabura. And the intensity of cursed energy told that it was released only a few moments ago.
"Yeah, let's go. I wanna see what he's got to make you this much troubled."
Gojo stepped forward, clenching fist in excitement. He always wants someone powerful to fight with.
Michizane remained silent while Izumi was hardly paying attention to Hojo's word. But both understood and began walking in Hojo's direction.
It didn't take too long before their speed reached sound's as they followed the trails of cursed energy.
They soon reached the centre of district and what they saw there shocked them for a moment.
"I was waiting for you—and for the new guests also."
Dabura sat there on the ground which was pooled with blood. Everything around him in two-hundred metre radius was obliterated.
But unlike others, what made Hojo slightly more shocked wasn't this.
Among the corpses which laid motionless there, he could see those two familiar faces.
Aaida and Oki. There died too?
His eyes twitched as he struggled to maintain his composure. Heat welled up inside him.
Forcing himself to look away, he instead focused on Dabura who was grinning shamelessly.
"If I'm right you are that alien, Hojo was talking about."
'Hey! Come back!' Hojo shouted internally when he found Gojo so close to Dabura, inspecting his horns.
He scanned Dabura from a few angles like he was a product of a shop.
"I don't like your horns. They make me remember of someone I killed in past."
He looked at Dabura's horns before grabbing them. He then tried to forcefully pull them out, making Dabura immediately attack him in pain.
But at the right moment, Gojo retreated back. At the exact same moment, a crater opened where he was positioned a moment ago.
Dismantle.
Gojo immediately recognized the attack.
"Now, I hate you even more. Why have you Sukuna's techniques?"
Dabura softly touched his horns and replied a moment later with his actions which shocked Gojo and others even more with the exception of Hojo, who had seen this before.
A condensed red orb of cursed energy materialized above Dabura's fingers. Space bent around it as gravity escalated to an unimaginable amount at that point of singularity.
Technique Red.
The red orb screamed forward.
Space warped around it visibly and red light circled it, as it tore through everything that came between its trajectory.
Air split apart and craters continuously claimed the earth below, even without contact as it moved.
Sound came a second later as it couldn't keep up with the unbelievable speed of the orb.
And yet, it couldn't mark a scratch on four six eye users standing before it like a wall created by god.
Technique red or course hit them but no damage was caused as it was blocked by infinity barriers.
This was Dabura's turn to be stunned.
"Why have all of you infinity barrier?!"
Both sides were shocked but soon everything became normal as they accepted this bizarre situation.
In the end, nothing is impossible.
For a moment, silence took over the place but soon it was shattered by Gojo.
"You all don't need to put your efforts. Allow me to—"
Hojo gestured to him to stop. Then, he stepped forward to ask a final question to Dabura.
"Why are you doing this? Why can't we live together?"
The other six eye users looked at Hojo but then looked away.
Dabura was unable to respond. An image of someone flashed inside his mind who laid diseased there.
Then, he opened his mouth to answer.
"To gain powers."
"But how will you gain it by killing other planet's people?!" Hojo shouted back at him.
"Just like I gained Gojo and Sukuna's."
He replied calmly.
Gojo looked slightly stunned when his name was mentioned.
But now, all discussions are settled.
At the exact same moment, Hojo heaved a sigh and kicked Dabura's head from behind, teleporting instantaneously.
Dabura plummeted down but immediately stopped his momentum with his bair hand against the ground.
Impact sent cracks through the earth as Dabura leaped toward Hojo in the sky. And with him, several slashes struck toward Hojo.
But his Eternif barrier stopped everything aimed at him. He wasn't weak like before.
Dabura knew these petty tricks won't work on him.
The only thing that can bypass this barrier is a domain.
Domain Expansion: Malevolent Shrine.