章 84: Chapter 84: The Sandbag
Outside the youth institution, Fushiguro Megumi was anxiously waiting.
He looked up at the lead-gray sky. A light rain was falling, and his body was already soaked through.
"The barrier has been down for a while now. Why haven't Hayashizaki and Itadori come out yet?"
Fushiguro recalled sending Divine Dog to signal Itadori Yuji. "Could they have gotten into a fight with Sukuna?"
He couldn't help but start to worry.
He wasn't worried about Hayashizaki, but about Itadori. Hayashizaki's strength should be on par with Gojo-sensei's—he wouldn't lose to the current Sukuna. But Hayashizaki wasn't Gojo-sensei, and he didn't know Itadori. What if he killed him...
Feeling a surge of cursed energy approaching his direction, Fushiguro raised his head. From afar, he saw Yukinoshita Yukino riding a huge white wolf, speeding toward him. His eyes widened in surprise.
White Divine Dog!?
Wasn't the White Divine Dog destroyed by that special-grade curse spirit? How is it here... no, wait, this isn't my shikigami at all!
What's more concerning was that Fushiguro didn't see Itadori Yuji anywhere.
Where's Itadori? Could he really have been killed!?
Questions flooded his mind, threatening to overload the young boy's brain.
Yukinoshita Yukino, riding the white wolf, quickly arrived in front of Fushiguro. She opened her mouth to speak but hesitated. After a moment, she finally asked the question that had been bothering her the most, "Where's Itadori?"
"Itadori... you mean Sukuna?" Yukinoshita Yukino said awkwardly. "He's inside, fighting with Hayashizaki-kun."
Her doubts were no less than Fushiguro Megumi's.
The girl still clearly remembered the first time Hayashizaki appeared in front of her and introduced himself. It was the first time she had ever heard someone say "I'm a bad guy" so casually, and after that, he hadn't done anything bad. His introduction felt like it was just meant to scare her.
What's more important is that Hayashizaki had said she could call him Ryoumen Sukuna.
So, if Hayashizaki-kun is Ryoumen Sukuna, why did he call Itadori Yuji Ryoumen Sukuna at that time?
There were just too many things she didn't understand. It was pointless to guess aimlessly, so she could only wait for Hayashizaki to explain it to her.
That is, if he was willing to explain.
"Hayashizaki is fighting Sukuna?"
Fushiguro Megumi froze for a moment. After a while, he finally responded, "So, you're Yukinoshita-san?"
Yukinoshita Yukino gave him a strange look.
Realizing he'd asked a dumb question, Fushiguro Megumi awkwardly coughed twice and asked again, "How did you and Hayashizaki separate? If the cursed object became flesh, it should have taken the host's body."
"I don't know either."
Yukinoshita Yukino shook her head.
"And what's with this Divine Dog?"
Fushiguro Megumi looked at the majestic white wolf standing in front of him, its height on all fours matching his own.
Come to think of it, this is way too big…
The white wolf was many times larger than his own Divine Dog.
When the wolf raised its head, he even had to look up to see it.
"Hayashizaki summoned it."
Yukinoshita Yukino replied absentmindedly, turning to look at the juvenile detention center. A hint of worry flashed in her dark navy-blue eyes.
"What did you say!?"
Fushiguro Megumi's pupils shrank sharply.
That guy's technique is supposed to be slashing attacks like Sukuna's, right? How is he using my Ten Shadows Technique!?
Wait, no—I've never even seen Hayashizaki use a technique before!
Does that mean his technique is actually the same as mine…? Is he from the Zenin family!?
But if that's the case, Gojo-sensei would've told me after fighting him—
Could it be that he fought Gojo-sensei to a standstill without even using his technique!?
Fushiguro's thoughts spiraled into increasingly outrageous conclusions.
"Fushiguro Megumi, your technique gave me quite a bit of trouble."
A deep, magnetic voice suddenly came from behind Fushiguro and Yukinoshita.
The white wolf reacted immediately, carrying Yukinoshita on its back as it swiftly moved away from the sudden appearance of Ryoumen Sukuna.
"What!?"
There was no time to process his shock.
Sukuna's punch sent Fushiguro flying like a cannonball, crashing through the detention center's wall. Blood spilled from his mouth as he hit the ground.
After dealing with Fushiguro, Sukuna turned his cold gaze to Yukinoshita, who was still on the wolf's back, looking utterly helpless.
"You must be important to that guy, huh."
He's trying to take me hostage!?
Yukinoshita's eyelid twitched in realization.
Should I have my dog take me and run? Maybe I could buy some time for Hayashizaki to get here... No, his speed is too fast. There wouldn't be much time.
The thought of escaping appeared, but she quickly dismissed it.
Should I fight... Looks like I have no choice but to fight!
Yukinoshita Yukino gripped the fur around the white wolf's neck tightly, ready to jump off its back when suddenly, she gasped.
"You think I'm going to use you as a hostage?"
Sukuna's speed was so fast that she almost didn't notice it. By the time she came to her senses, his hand was already around her neck, and she was pulled off the wolf's back. With one hand, Sukuna pressed down on the wolf's head, and with a sharp motion, he decapitated it, slicing it in half.
Her pale neck felt like it was trapped in a vise, making it hard for her to breathe.
Yukinoshita Yukino glared at him, grabbing his arm with one hand, while the other formed a fist, wrapping cursed energy around it as she aimed a punch at his head.
Sukuna merely tilted his head back slightly, easily dodging her weak counterattack.
"You're overthinking."
He grinned cruelly. "I want to kill you in front of that little brat, and then enjoy watching him suffer."
"Right now, I may not be a match for that little brat, but even if he kills me in his rage, it will only mean Itadori Yuji will be buried with you. And I still have seventeen souls left."
"I heard that."
Hayashizaki's voice came from nearby as he looked calmly at Ryoumen Sukuna, who was still holding Yukinoshita Yukino by the neck. "So, you really did that, huh, old bastard?"
"Oh? You know what I'm going to do?"
Sukuna raised an eyebrow. "But even if you know, so what? It's already too late!"
He grinned savagely, tightening his grip on Yukinoshita Yukino's right hand, preparing to crush her throat...
*Thud!*
Yukinoshita Yukino fell to the ground, her breath returning to normal, and Sukuna's arm dropped beside her.
Ryoumen Sukuna slowly widened his eyes in disbelief. He finally realized something.
This... is my cursed technique!?
That little brat, the way he killed that special-grade cursed spirit in front of me—it was my slashing technique!
"For you to struggle a bit longer in my grasp, you're really determined, huh."
Hayashizaki's emotionless voice sounded in his ear, and then a powerful force jerked him around, making his world spin.
After throwing Sukuna far away by the back of his clothes, Hayashizaki helped Yukinoshita Yukino up from the ground, using reversal magic to heal her injuries.
Although she only had a red mark on her neck from where it was squeezed.
"Are you okay?"
"Don't worry about me. That Sukuna..."
"I'll be back soon."
After saying that, Hayashizaki looked at the tragic form of his dead Divine Dog, his expression twisting with rage.
Ryoumen Sukuna, you dare kill my dog!?
Black markings appeared on his face as a second set of eyes opened, adding a seductive beauty to his appearance.
A deafening hum filled the air before Hayashizaki vanished from Yukinoshita Yukino's sight. Looking down, she saw the stone floor cracked and a deep crater formed under his feet, with spiderweb-like cracks spreading outward.
Sukuna hadn't even touched the ground yet when Hayashizaki was already in his line of sight.
Ryoumen Sukuna grinned excitedly, his voice full of anticipation. "What you just used... is my technique, right? Little brat!"
He extended his hand, and a series of invisible cutting arrays flew out from his palm. Hayashizaki also reached out and swung a cutting strike, with the invisible blades colliding in mid-air.
Then, under Ryoumen Sukuna's astonished gaze, both of his arms—his right arm that had just been restored with a reversal technique and his left arm—were cut off again. A large amount of blood spilled into the air, as if a small-scale blood rain was falling.
"Did you just cut my strikes apart!?"
The difference in cursed energy between me and this kid is this huge!?
Amidst his shock, the reversal technique kept working, and the severed arms quickly grew back. Hayashizaki flew toward him, gripping his head.
Next, he was going to use the [Eight] slashes on Sukuna's entire body. If it were him, he would do the same...
An image of such a move unconsciously appeared in Ryoumen Sukuna's mind, and it turned out to be true.
With cursed energy enhancing the strikes, the cuts pierced through Sukuna's body from head to toe. Bright red blood flowers bloomed all over his body.
"Keep reversing and show me," Hayashizaki said, pulling him down toward the ground.
Boom!
The ceiling of a nearby house was smashed, and rubble fell as Hayashizaki held Sukuna's face with one hand. Despite the severe injuries, Sukuna wore an expression of defiance. They locked eyes, both their hands pressing against each other's bodies, applying the same cutting strike effect, with blood splattering and wounds healing.
Hayashizaki released his grip on Sukuna's head, then clenched his fist and slammed it into Sukuna's face, sending him deep into the floor. Hayashizaki grabbed his head again, lifting him and forcefully slammed him into the nearby wall.
Lifting his leg, he delivered a sidekick, breaking through the building's wall and sending Sukuna flying into the next house.
The surrounding residents had been evacuated, allowing Hayashizaki to attack without concern.
After landing in the neighboring house, Sukuna immediately got up, preparing to face Hayashizaki's fierce attacks. However, he suddenly noticed that Hayashizaki's cursed energy response had disappeared from his senses.
He quickly looked at his feet.
Sukuna's shadow suddenly stretched out, and a fist rapidly enlarged in his view.
A powerful hit sent Sukuna crashing into the ceiling, with several cutting arrays slashing through the air, tearing the entire roof to pieces.
He couldn't focus on reversing his injuries, quickly sending several cuts toward Hayashizaki below, but Hayashizaki dodged with ease. The invisible strikes created deep gashes in the floor.
"Roar!"
With a thunderous roar, a giant white tiger emerged from the shadows between the houses, swatting Sukuna out of the air.
Hayashizaki immediately followed up with another attack, intercepting Sukuna mid-air, pressing his head into the ceiling and dragging him along the roof, carving a deep trench in the orange tiles. Then, he tossed Sukuna up into the air.
A partially-formed Great Serpent spirit, made from shadows, appeared and bit Sukuna, dragging him into a nearby concrete building. The building collapsed, and a cloud of dust filled the air.
A partially-formed spirit meant that even if it was damaged, it could be summoned again, unlike the completely destroyed white Divine Dog, which could only transfer its power to another Divine Dog.
Amidst the wreckage, Sukuna coughed up blood and struggled to stand up. His reversal technique was in full operation, desperately using cursed energy to heal his wounds.
"Yo."
Hayashizaki stepped on the broken wall, a mocking smile on his face. "Seems like your reversal is slowing down. Can you even keep it up?"
"Heh."
Sukuna spat out blood, then surprisingly stopped using the reversal technique. He gestured at Hayashizaki, signaling him to come and fight again. "Let's finish this, sorcerer."
"You want me to kill Itadori Yuji? Because even if you die here, you won't truly die, right? After all, seventeen of your souls are still out there, aren't they?"
Hayashizaki immediately saw through his intentions.
"So what?"
Sukuna laughed carelessly, knowing he couldn't win. Instead, he might as well drag the kid, Itadori Yuji, into this mess. "You wouldn't want to kill him, would you…? *Cough!*"
Hayashizaki punched Ryoumen Sukuna, knocking his head to the side, then grabbed him and slammed him onto the ground with a throw. Sitting on top of him, he began raining punches onto Sukuna's face, one after another.
While beating him, Hayashizaki used Reverse Cursed Technique to heal his injuries.
"You think... ugh!"
"This will... ugh!"
"Make me surrender?!"
After having his words interrupted by punches multiple times, Ryoumen Sukuna finally managed to finish a sentence.
Hayashizaki paused, looking at him with a puzzled expression.
"Make you surrender? When did I say I wanted you to surrender?"
He smirked, a chilling smile spreading across his face.
"I just want to beat you up, that's all."
His fist came down again, the sound resembling a mallet pounding mochi, dull and heavy. The blows kept coming, one after another, until Sukuna was on the verge of passing out. Then, Hayashizaki used Reverse Cursed Technique to heal part of his injuries, just enough to keep him alive.
In the deserted ruins, Hayashizaki unleashed his violence without restraint.
"With a punching bag this tough and satisfying, why would I let you die?"
Blood splattered on Hayashizaki's otherwise gentle face.
"Besides, you're not like Gojo Satoru, who's impossible to hit. Beating you feels great."
"Listen carefully, Sukuna. From now on, I'll be in charge of Itadori Yuji. Every time he eats another finger, I'll have him switch you out so I can beat you up. Once I'm satisfied, I'll have him switch you back."
"You want revenge on me? Then take your beatings quietly, endure it all, and wait until you've regained all your power. Then, you can struggle against me with everything you've got."
At that moment, Hayashizaki's smile was eerily similar to Sukuna's earlier expression. It was as if their roles as protagonist and villain had completely reversed.
Sukuna didn't say a word. He just glared at Hayashizaki, as if trying to etch his face into his memory.
"Um..."
The black markings on Itadori Yuji's face slowly disappeared as he forced an awkward but polite smile.
"Isn't this a bit too cruel for me?"
The cruel smile vanished from Hayashizaki's face. He froze for a moment, then punched Itadori.
"Ow! Why are you hitting me now that I'm back?!"
The pink-haired boy protested loudly in frustration.
"Your face feels too good to punch. Couldn't help it. Sorry, sorry," Hayashizaki said without a shred of sincerity.
"That's too much!"
...
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