The domain was no longer stable ground.
It was a battlefield where rules were being overwritten mid-motion.
Malevolent Shrine flickered like a machine forced to run beyond its designed limits—cuts appearing in space, vanishing, reappearing wrong.
And in the middle of it all—
Takeru saw it.
A glimpse.
Just a fragment.
Yuji's condition.
Sukuna's pressure still wrapped around him like a leash that hadn't fully tightened, but was tightening anyway.
Yuji staggered in Sukuna's presence.
Not dead.
Not gone.
But enduring something he should not have been forced to endure.
Something inside Takeru cracked.
Not control.
Not technique.
Something deeper.
"…Stop."
Sukuna tilted his head slightly inside Yuji's body.
"…Or what?"
That was enough.
Takeru moved.
The space between them vanished instantly.
"…BLACK FLASH!"
Impact.
The air detonated.
Sukuna shifted—but only barely.
A cleave followed immediately.
"…BLACK FLASH!"
A second impact stacked on the first, destabilizing Sukuna's footing inside his own cursed rhythm.
Dismantle.
"…BLACK FLASH—!"
The strike hit before Sukuna could fully adjust.
His expression sharpened.
Not pain.
Not panic.
But recognition that timing itself was being stolen.
Yuji, still partially conscious, widened his eyes."…T-Takeru…"
Nobara:"…He's chaining it?!"
Megumi's voice was tight."…No… he's forcing synchronization windows…"
Gojo, watching from the edge of the fractured barrier, murmured under his breath.
"…That's not luck anymore."
"…That's precision abuse."
Takeru didn't stop.
WORLD CUTTING SLASH—
"…BLACK FLASH!"
The slash hit mid-execution, amplifying instability in Sukuna's spatial output.
Sukuna clicked his tongue.
"…Annoying."
But now—
he was being pushed backward.
Slightly.
But visibly.
Cleave.
Cleave.
Cleave.
"…BLACK FLASH!"
"…BLACK FLASH!"
"…BLACK FLASH!"
Each strike layered onto the last, not letting Sukuna reset his cursed rhythm.
The domain itself began reacting—Malevolent Shrine struggling to keep coherence under chained critical impacts.
Nobara's voice cracked slightly."…How many is that now?!"
Megumi's eyes widened slightly.
"…He's already past Nanami."
Gojo blinked once.
"…Wait."
A pause.
"…Already?"
Yuji whispered weakly."…Nanami… had four…"
Another impact.
Another interruption.
Another forced timing break.
WORLD CUTTING SLASH—
"…BLACK FLASH!"
Sukuna finally shifted more noticeably.
Not retreating.
But adjusting stance.
Properly now.
Fully.
"…So that's how you want to play."
Takeru didn't answer.
He was already moving again.
CLEAVE.
CLEAVE.
CLEAVE.
"…BLACK FLASH!"
"…BLACK FLASH!"
"…BLACK FLASH!"
The rhythm became overwhelming.
Not a sequence anymore.
A storm of timed destruction.
Nobara stepped back instinctively."…This is insane…"
Megumi's voice lowered."…He's forcing Sukuna into continuous defensive recalculation…"
Gojo's expression sharpened.
"…He's not trying to overpower him."
A pause.
"…He's trying to desync him."
Sukuna's eyes narrowed slightly inside Yuji's body.
For the first time—
there was pressure behind his voice.
"…Enough."
But Takeru was already there again.
Final surge.
CLEAVE.
"…BLAAACK FLAAASH!"
The impact hit harder than the others.
Not because of raw strength.
But because timing finally aligned perfectly wrong for Sukuna.
A stillness followed.
Just a moment.
Then—
Sukuna's cursed energy flickered.
Not collapsing.
But strained.
Yuji's eyes widened.
"…He… actually hurt him…"
Nobara:"…That's not supposed to be possible…"
Megumi's voice was quiet.
"…He's at eight."
Gojo exhaled slowly.
"…He just doubled Nanami's record."
A pause.
"…And he didn't even notice."
Inside the chaos—
Takeru stood still for the first time in several seconds.
Breathing steady.
Eyes locked on Sukuna.
Sukuna stared back.
No longer amused.
No longer testing lightly.
Now—
measuring danger properly.
"…I see."
His voice was lower.
Heavier.
"…You're starting to become a problem that doesn't scale normally."
The domain trembled again.
Not ending.
Not collapsing.
Just acknowledging escalation.
And in that moment—
everyone understood the same thing.
Sukuna was no longer comfortably ahead.
And Takeru had just crossed a threshold where even Sukuna had to start thinking carefully.