Even for average jujutsu sorcerers, it was a lethal strike.
As one of the ultimate techniques of the Kamo family's Blood Manipulation, 'Piercing Blood' relied on its extreme initial velocity and penetrating power.
In that instant, Noritoshi Kamo's retinas could only capture a faint red afterimage.
He believed that at this distance and speed, no one could evade it.
Unless they were a monster like Satoru Gojo with his Limitless technique.
Otherwise, even a Special Grade Cursed Spirit would have its skull pierced by this strike!
But in Yoru's perception, everything slowed down.
The world seemed to have been put in slow motion.
[THUMP—THUMP—]
That was Yoru's own heartbeat.
Steady and powerful, like a war drum.
The surrounding world seemed to lose its color, turning into a black-and-white line drawing.
The sound of wind, breathing, heartbeats...
Everything became clearly audible.
The red blood arrow was no longer just a flash of light in his eyes, but a mass of liquid spinning at high speed, compressed to the absolute limit.
He could even see the flow trajectory of every drop of blood and how the cursed energy within propelled it forward.
[SYSTEM: HIGH-INTENSITY COMBAT DETECTED!]
[CURRENT CONCENTRATION IS PEAKED. TEMPORARILY ENTERING 'SEMI-TRANSPARENT' STATE!]
[YORIICHI TSUGIKUNI TEMPLATE RESONANCE DEEPENED!]
[SYNCHRONIZATION RATE INCREASED TO 19%!]
[UNLOCKED: SUN BREATHING - SEVENTH FORM: BENEFICENT RADIANCE, EIGHTH FORM: SUNFLOWER THRUST, NINTH FORM: SETTING SUN TRANSFORMATION!]
The system's notification rang in his mind, crisp and pleasant.
This was a realm infinitely close to the 'Transparent World'.
A mysterious, profound sensation flooded his heart, as if the blade in his hand had become an extension of his own body.
Even the microscopic dust in the air felt like his own sensors.
"Whew..."
Yoru slowly exhaled a breath of scorching air.
The moment that breath left his lips, it turned into a wisp of white mist, as if his internal body temperature had reached a terrifying level.
Total Concentration: Sun Breathing.
He stopped evading.
Facing this supersonic strike capable of piercing a tank, he chose a direct confrontation.
No, he chose to attack!
"Seventh Form: Beneficent Radiance."
Yoru's figure moved.
No wasted movement, no flashy stance.
Just a simple thrust.
But in that instant, the Shiranui in his hand seemed to transform into a golden bolt of lightning.
All his strength, speed, and will converged onto the single point of the blade's tip.
Piercing the surface with a single point.
Breaking power with power!
This strike was fast to the extreme.
So fast that not even an afterimage remained; it was as if the moment Yoru drew his blade, the tip had already reached its destination.
Clang—!!!
A sharp, crystalline sound of impact echoed through the forest.
It was the sound of the blade's tip colliding with the blood arrow, so piercing it made one's eardrums ache.
Immediately after.
Sizzle—
The grating sound of evaporation followed.
Noritoshi Kamo's Piercing Blood—which condensed all his cursed energy and compressed the blood density several times over—met the tip of Shiranui and vanished like snow under a blazing sun.
The red blood instantly boiled and vaporized.
The kinetic energy capable of piercing steel was forcibly shoved back by Yoru's Sun Breathing thrust!
Red mist instantly filled the air, carrying a heavy scent of rust and burning.
"What?!"
Noritoshi Kamo's eyes widened, nearly popping out of his head.
His proud finishing move had been crushed head-on?
Countering a blood arrow with just the tip of a blade?
What kind of terrifying precision did that require? What kind of insane dynamic vision?
If he had been off by even a millimeter, Yoru's head would have been blown open!
Before he could react.
Yoru's figure suddenly blurred.
Sun Breathing, Ninth Form: Setting Sun Transformation.
Yoru, who had been several meters away, seemed to transcend the limits of space, flickering in front of Noritoshi Kamo in an instant.
That golden lightning had already pierced through the blood mist, like the fleeting afterglow of a setting sun—brief yet brilliant.
It was too fast.
So fast that even the dynamic vision provided by his 'Flowing Red Scale' was useless.
At that moment.
The Shiranui in Yoru's hand stopped steadily just an inch away from Noritoshi Kamo's forehead.
A trace of lingering heat still remained on the blade's tip.
That scorching breath singed Noritoshi's eyebrows and made his skin prickle with pain.
Time seemed to stand still.
Noritoshi Kamo remained frozen in the pose he used to release Piercing Blood, stiff and unmoving.
Cold sweat instantly drenched his back.
He could clearly feel that if Yoru's hand moved forward just a tiny bit.
Even the slightest bit.
His head would explode like a watermelon.
The aura of death had never loomed over him so clearly.
'Is this what a truly powerful person is like?'
No need for cursed techniques, no need for domains.
Just a man and his sword were enough to crush everything.
"Your blood..."
Yoru's voice rang out calmly.
He looked into Noritoshi Kamo's pupils, which were dilated with fear, and slowly sheathed his sword.
Click.
The sound of the hilt hitting the scabbard was exceptionally clear in the deathly silent forest.
"...is afraid."
Those words hit Noritoshi Kamo's chest like a heavy hammer.
It wasn't just about his blood technique being broken; it was about his pride and conviction as a jujutsu sorcerer.
In the face of absolute power, his lineage, his technique, and his pride all seemed so laughable.
Pfft.
Another mouthful of blood sprayed from his mouth.
This time it wasn't from using a technique, but from overwhelming shock and internal turmoil.
It wasn't just the backlash of the broken technique, but his completely shattered self-esteem.
He had lost.
Lost completely.
From start to finish, the opponent hadn't even taken a single step back.
While their entire Kyoto School, gathering their strongest forces, couldn't even touch the hem of his clothes.
"You... just what kind of... monster are you..."
Noritoshi Kamo knelt weakly on the ground, propping himself up with his hands as his voice trembled.
He didn't understand.
Without any cursed energy, how could someone be this strong?
Was the common sense of the jujutsu world for thousands of years wrong?
Yoru didn't answer.
He simply turned around and looked deep into the forest.
There, an extremely wild and domineering presence was rapidly approaching.
That aura was like a rampaging gorilla, startling birds and sending beasts fleeing wherever it went.
"Finally here?"
Yoru's mouth curved into a faint smile.
For the first time, a true fighting spirit ignited in his eyes.
The previous battles were merely warm-ups for him.
One could even say it was like playing house with children; he had been guiding them and suppressing his own strength.
But now, a real opponent had arrived.
"YORU—!!!"
A roar filled with passion and hot-blooded intensity came along with the booming sound of falling trees.
The sound was so loud it seemed to make the ground vibrate.
"Brother! My best friend! I've come for you!!!"
Boom!
A hulking figure burst from the woods and landed heavily in front of Yoru.
The earth shook, and dust billowed into the air.
As the dust settled, it revealed a man with a bare torso, bulging muscles, and a scar across his face.
Kyoto School third-year, Grade 1 Jujutsu Sorcerer.
Aoi Todo.
He looked at the Kyoto School students lying all over the ground, then at Yoru standing unharmed in the center.
Instead of anger, a look of extreme excitement and a wild laugh broke out on his face.
"Hahahaha! Well done!"
"As expected of the man I, Aoi Todo, have acknowledged!"
"What's the point of this boring hunting game?"
"Only the collision of fists is the true romance between men!"
Aoi Todo slammed his chest hard, making a dull thudding sound.
"Come, best friend! Let me see your powerful soul!"
[ Author's Note : If you're loving the story, a power_stone, review or comment means the world!
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