A light breeze swept through the ruins, stirring fine dust and sand.
Silence hung for a moment—then, boom.
Like a cannonball shattering a mirror, a deafening explosion tore through the quiet.
Shion and Sukuna had collided, each throwing a powerful right hook aimed at the other's face. They recoiled at the impact, separating instantly.
But Sukuna's expression faltered. Something was off. He had struck an invisible barrier, unable to push forward no matter what he did.
"This must be the 'Limitless' Kenjaku mentioned. Fascinating," Sukuna muttered, his grin turning savage.
Suddenly, his body jerked forward, drawn involuntarily toward Shion as if pulled by an unseen force.
"Cursed Technique Lapse: Blue!"
Shion pulled his left hand back as if tugging at the air itself, while a crimson orb of energy swirled in his right palm.
"Cursed Technique Reversal: Red!"
When they were barely half a meter apart, Shion slammed the red orb into Sukuna's abdomen.
Sukuna crossed his arms, absorbing the blow head-on.
Boom.
The force of Red sent Sukuna crashing through three buildings before he finally came to a stop.
Without hesitation, Shion darted forward, passing through the gaping holes he'd created and appearing before the recently recovered Sukuna almost instantly.
Black Flash.
His blow struck Sukuna's chest, yet this time, the demon king only stumbled slightly before regaining balance.
His arms, battered by Red, were already restored by Reverse Cursed Technique.
Sukuna raised his head slowly, a proud and confident smile spreading across his face.
"Interesting," he said, almost as if praising Shion, or perhaps admiring a toy worthy of his attention.
Since his birth, Sukuna had crushed everyone he met effortlessly. To meet someone who could injure him right from the start of a fight was unprecedented.
"In that case, time to get serious."
He spread his hands and clapped them together, curling his pinky and index fingers into a specific sign.
"Domain Expansion: Malevolent Shrine!"
A demonic face rose behind Sukuna as a colossal shrine erupted from the ground. Darkness spread like ink, and the surroundings twisted into a projection of human and animal skeletons piled into mountains.
Sukuna perched atop the shrine, towering over Shion like a god.
"Ant, entertain me fully."
---
Subway Station.
"Will Satoru come, or will it be Shion instead?"
"Then we run!"
"Tch, don't lose your nerve, Hanami."
"By the way, can 'Simple Domain' really neutralize Limitless Void?"
"I told you, it can."
Mahito's voice cut through, carrying a subtle warning.
"Even if Satoru Gojo disables Limitless with Simple Domain, don't think about taking that chance."
Jogo and Hanami glanced at him, puzzled. Mahito explained with a hint of fear.
"When Kenjaku and I faced Gojo Shion, he hadn't activated Limitless yet. I thought it was my opportunity and tried Idle Transfiguration, and you saw what happened. So, even if Satoru Gojo hasn't activated Limitless, don't deactivate Simple Domain."
Simple Domain was a small-scale Domain Expansion that formed a vacuum shell around the user.
This vacuum absorbed any technique that touched it, much like oxygen rushing into empty space. As long as it held, Limitless Void was nullified, and the user remained protected.
However, while using Simple Domain, one couldn't access their own innate technique. To attack, it had to be deactivated first.
Mahito's casual warning would soon save Hanami's life.
Boom.
The subway entrance collapsed. A figure shot through like a ghost.
"He's here!"
Jogo roared, a mix of fear, surprise, and excitement flooding him. Mahito and Hanami split, retreating in different directions.
Satoru Gojo's gaze swept over the chaos, his knuckles cracking slowly.
"I'm going to kill you."
---
Toji Fushiguro sensed a strange familiarity in the man blocking his path.
The man's eyes, cold and gloomy, scanned him intently.
"No Cursed Energy?" he sneered. "No wonder you were abandoned by the Zen'in name and forced to change your surname to Fushiguro. A piece of trash carrying the Zen'in legacy—what a stain on our family!"
Toji frowned.
"Your Zen'in family?"
"My name is Zenin Takeshi," the man hissed, "nineteenth head of the Zen'in family."
Toji's eyes widened. Nineteenth! Naobito is now the twenty-sixth head, meaning this man was from a generation long past.
Composing himself, Toji asked, "So? You're resurrected too. Will you stop me?"
Takeshi's rage flared.
"I never thought the Zen'in head would one day become a pawn for a Curse User, opposing the Big Three Families!"
His eyes bloodshot, he roared:
"The Big Three Families! Gojo! It's all the Gojo Family! That stinking woman Satoru Gojo, acting noble? Bastard!"
Toji's memory sparked—the Ten Shadows Technique, the Six Eyes, and a family grudge centuries old.
"You are… the Ten Shadows successor who died with the Six Eyes of the Gojo Family?"
Takeshi's mind reeled with rage and lustful obsession.
"She rejected me!"
"I am the noble Zen'in head! A genius commanding nine of the Ten Shadows Shikigami at seventeen! A prodigy! How dare she despise me?!"
"Toji Fushiguro, watch me destroy her Gojo Family, make her soul wail in hell!"
Toji twitched, watching the lunacy. The Zen'in of three centuries ago were even crueler than he imagined. Men above women, hierarchy absolute, cold and selfish.
Picking his ear, Toji charged.
"Sorry, I have no interest in your melodramatic family feud."
"And one more thing. You were wrong."
"It wasn't the Zen'in name that abandoned me."
"It was I… who abandoned Zen'in!"