Kenjaku barely reacted in time.
Yuta's blade flashed through the air like silver lightning, aimed straight for his neck.
At the last possible moment, Kenjaku raised his arm to block.
The katana sliced cleanly through it.
His arm separated from his body instantly, spinning through the air as blood sprayed across the shattered street.
The blade continued forward, barely missing his neck.
Kenjaku's eyes widened.
He jumped backward, creating distance, and landing several meters away.
His severed arm hit the ground beside him with a wet thud.
For the first time since the fight began, Kenjaku looked genuinely cautious.
"…Damn it," he muttered quietly.
His eyes narrowed as he stared at Yuta.
"If those cursed spirits hadn't told me you were here… that strike would've killed me."
Yuta didn't respond to the compliment.
Instead, he turned immediately toward me and helped me up from the ground.
"Ikuyo-san… are you okay?" he asked, concern clear in his voice.
I forced myself upright.
"Yeah… I'll survive," I replied, brushing dust and blood off my Jujutsu High uniform.
Reverse Cursed Technique had already repaired the damage I took, but my body still felt like it had been hit by a truck.
Yuji finally managed to break away from the cursed spirit that had been stalling him. He rushed toward us, breathing hard.
"You two alright?" he asked quickly.
"Still alive," I said.
The three of us turned toward Kenjaku again.
He stood several meters away, watching us carefully.
His missing arm was already beginning to regrow as he used the Reverse Cursed Technique. Bone extended first, then muscle and skin slowly formed over it.
But something else moved behind him.
A figure slowly rose from the rubble.
Kenjaku sensed it too and glanced back.
Yuki.
She pushed herself upright, wiping blood from her mouth. Her clothes were torn, and her body was still covered in injuries—but she was standing.
Alive.
Kenjaku frowned.
Yuki grinned.
"I'm not that easy to kill," she said.
But I could feel it immediately.
Something about her had changed.
She had made a binding vow.
Yuki spoke again, her voice lighter than it should've been for someone who had nearly died.
"Had to make a little trade," she said casually. "No more healing others… but I'll survive a lot better myself."
I exchanged a quick glance with Yuji and Yuta.
They understood instantly.
Now was the moment.
"Attack."
Yuta moved first.
He rushed toward Kenjaku again, katana drawn.
Before Kenjaku could react, Yuta appeared beside one of the cursed spirits Kenjaku had summoned earlier.
Yuta's hand flashed once as he grabbed the curse roughly with his free hand.
He poured positive energy through his grip.
The cursed spirit shrieked for less than a second before exploding instantly.
Exorcised. Kenjaku's eyes sharpened.
He immediately rushed toward Yuta to intercept him—
But something heavy crashed into the battlefield.
GARUDA.
The shikigami slammed into the last special grade cursed spirit like a cannonball.
The curse exploded apart under the impact, its body scattering across the street before dissolving into dust.
Kenjaku turned around sharply.
Yuki stood there with a wide grin, her leg still extended from launching Garuda.
Kenjaku's expression darkened.
For the first time in the entire battle…
He realized how bad the situation had become.
But before he could move—
Yuji appeared beside him.
Yuji's fist was already swinging.
BLACK FLASH.
Red Lightning erupted across the battlefield.
Yuji's punch connected with Kenjaku's ribs and sent him sliding across the ruined street for more than ten meters.
The pavement cracked beneath his feet as he skidded to a stop.
Before he could recover—
I moved.
Twelve tentacles of cursed energy burst from the ground around him and shot forward.
They wrapped around his arms, legs, and torso, pinning him in place.
Kenjaku struggled immediately.
But I tightened the grip.
"EXPERIENCE WHAT GIRLS IN JAPANESE WEIRD HENTAIS DO!" I yelled.
Yuji blinked.
Yuta blinked.
Even Yuki looked confused for a second.
They really wanted to judge me, but there was not enough time for that.
But the tentacles grabbed Kenjaku harder as he couldn't even move.
Kenjaku tried to activate his technique—
Too late.
Yuki appeared behind him.
Yuta appeared in front of him.
Both moved at the same time.
Their fists swung toward Kenjaku's head from opposite sides.
For a brief moment, Kenjaku's eyes widened.
Then, both punches landed.
CRACK.
Kenjaku's head exploded like a watermelon.
Fragments scattered across the broken street.
His body collapsed instantly.
But Yuki's punch had been too strong.
The force of the collision traveled through Kenjaku's skull and into Yuta's arm.
A sickening crack echoed.
Yuta staggered backward slightly, grabbing his arm.
"…Ow."
His forearm bent at an unnatural angle.
He immediately activated Reverse Cursed Technique, healing the fracture while grimacing.
I stared at Kenjaku's body lying on the ground.
"…Was that it?"
It felt wrong. Too easy.
After everything we had gone through…
Kenjaku—the mastermind behind everything—was just lying there.
Dead.
I couldn't shake the feeling that something about it was off.
Then a distant explosion shook the skyline.
We all turned.
Across the city, massive sections of Tokyo had been flattened.
Smoke rose into the sky in enormous pillars.
The battle between Gojo and Sukuna was tearing the city apart.
Even from this distance, we could feel the shockwaves of their attacks.
Yuta looked toward the destruction.
"Should we go help Gojo-sensei?"
I shook my head.
"No." I pointed toward the distant battlefield.
"We'd just get in the way."
Gojo and Sukuna were fighting on a completely different level.
Adding more people to that fight would only complicate things.
"But we should stay close," I continued.
"I already warned Gojo about open domains. If they clashed earlier… he should've won that exchange."
I paused.
"Sukuna's also weaker right now."
"Only nineteen fingers."
But something still bothered me.
"The vessel's technique is unknown, though…" I murmured.
We began moving, jumping across rooftops until we reached the top of a nearby skyscraper that gave us a clear view of the battlefield.
From there, we could see the distant flashes of light as Gojo and Sukuna continued fighting.
Then several figures approached from behind us.
Megumi arrived first.
Behind him were Ryu, Choso, and several others.
When I saw them, a small weight lifted from my chest.
At least we had more people.
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End of chapter.