The next day.
Tsumiki had gone to school, while Toji and Megumi headed straight for Yasohachi Bridge.
To be safe, Toji had called Gojo Sawa and obtained some crucial information through the other man's "all-knowing" ability.
"Yorozu... the madwoman obsessed with the King of Curses, Sukuna..."
Toji assessed his opponent's strength and eventually reached a conclusion.
He could probably, possibly, most likely, more or less beat her senseless.
At that moment, beneath Yasohachi Bridge, Megumi Fushiguro looked at the Cursed Spirits visible everywhere and could not help swallowing.
Seeing this, Toji teased him. "What? Scared?"
"You've got to be kidding me."
Megumi braced himself. "I was personally trained by Teacher Gojo Satoru. They're just some low-level Cursed Spirits!"
"Divine Dog!"
Megumi formed his hands into the shape of a dog's head. Two clusters of shadows immediately surged from the ground, gradually transforming into one black and one white wolf-like Shikigami.
"Oh? They look pretty decent!"
"They're more than just appearances. Divine Dogs, go!"
At his command, the black and white Divine Dogs charged forward at incredible speed, like two bolts of lightning.
In less than five minutes, the Divine Dogs' sharp claws had torn apart all the low-level Cursed Spirits lurking nearby.
Megumi raised his head proudly. "How about that?"
"Both Shikigami have the strength of Grade 1 Cursed Spirits. Not bad."
Fushiguro Toji offered his evaluation flatly.
"Hey! If you're shocked, just show it! Pretending not to care just to save face is embarrassing!"
Perhaps because the story had changed and Megumi Fushiguro no longer had to suffer tragedy, his personality had become much more cheerful as well.
At least when he was with Toji, he could joke around without restraint.
"Tch~"
Toji turned his head away and said nothing more.
You little brat! I'll show you what your dad can do in a moment!
The two continued forward. Suddenly, the ground beneath their feet collapsed.
Toji reacted swiftly, grabbing Megumi by the back and lifting him with one hand.
After several flips and shifts in midair, Toji landed steadily, while Megumi was left dizzy from the whole maneuver.
When he recovered, he found that the surroundings had completely changed.
The two of them seemed to have entered an underground world—a dim, crimson karst cavern filled with stalactites that resembled living creatures.
"What is this place?"
Megumi was utterly bewildered.
Toji grinned. "An Innate Domain activated by using a massive amount of Cursed Energy. It enhances the caster's Cursed Technique."
"Do... Domain Expansion?"
Megumi stammered out the question.
"Something like that."
After receiving confirmation, Megumi's face immediately turned deathly pale.
The legendary Domain Expansion, a sorcerer's strongest weapon, known as the ultimate secret of a Cursed Technique!
According to his teacher, Gojo Satoru, among the entire Jujutsu Society, only three of the four Special Grades could currently use this technique.
"How could this be a Domain Expansion? No, we have to run! We need to get out of here... No, that won't work either. Domains are extremely sturdy inside, so there's no way to escape..."
Seeing Megumi babbling incoherently, Toji curled his lip. "Why are you so tense? It's just a crude trash domain. It doesn't have a sure-hit effect."
Megumi exaggeratedly widened his eyes. "What do you mean, a trash domain? This is Domain Expansion!"
"Right! A weak sorcerer like you, who got beaten into unemployment, couldn't possibly understand how powerful someone who knows Domain Expansion is!"
Toji: "..."
Just then, a tall, powerfully built Cursed Spirit appeared before the two of them. It looked astonishingly similar to the merfolk Cursed Spirit from The Shape of Water.
As it approached, its immense Cursed Energy surged toward them like a tide.
Megumi Fushiguro's eyes widened in terror, while the two Divine Dogs behind him slowly backed away.
"A... Special Grade Cursed Spirit!"
Megumi was dumbfounded.
He had thought he was merely following his old man to broaden his horizons, but he had encountered the final boss right after leaving the beginner's village?
It's over. I'm going to die!
Upon seeing Toji and Megumi, the Special Grade Cursed Spirit revealed a hideously distorted grin.
The little brat overflowing with Cursed Energy would definitely taste superb.
As for the other one, it could not sense the slightest trace of Cursed Energy from him, so it would use him as a toy...
Clang!
Megumi suddenly felt his body rise into the air before landing on the fluffy back of a Divine Dog.
When he looked up, he saw his useless old man, Fushiguro Toji, carrying a blade on one shoulder and holding the Special Grade Cursed Spirit's dripping head in the other hand.
"Too weak. This shouldn't be Yorozu, should it?"
"Huh?"
Megumi was utterly confused.
What... just happened?
The Cursed Spirit's body dissipated, leaving behind a black-and-purple finger.
Fushiguro Toji was somewhat surprised, but he still picked up the finger.
Suddenly, a fierce slash shot toward Toji.
At the same time, a woman's furious shout accompanied the attack. "Put down Lord Sukuna's finger, you wild monkey!"
Toji quickly raised his blade to block, but the terrifying force still sent him flying.
Toji adjusted his posture as he spun through the air, finally landing steadily beside Megumi.
When he looked up, he saw a completely naked woman slowly approaching.
Megumi hurriedly averted his gaze.
Fushiguro Toji, however, had no awareness of the need to avoid staring. He even examined her with great interest.
Yorozu was enraged. "You uncouth man!"
Toji cut her off. "This body isn't yours, is it? I'm curious. Why can you revive through Incarnation when the seal on your Cursed Object hasn't been undone?"
Gojo Sawa had told Toji about Incarnation.
But there was one important point: the Cursed Object used for Incarnation had to be unsealed. Otherwise, even if a curse was applied, the Incarnated Vessel could only be forced into a coma.
Upon hearing this, Yorozu's face became fervent and obsessed. She was clearly not mentally sound.
"Of course it's because of love! A part of Lord Sukuna's body awakened me from the seal!"
"...As expected, she's a madwoman."
Megumi was puzzled. "Who is she?"
Toji snorted. "A powerful sorcerer from a thousand years ago. She liked chopping off handsome men's heads and hanging them up to dry!"
Megumi felt a chill run through his body. Just hearing about it was enough to imagine how cruel such behavior was.
Yorozu covered her mouth and giggled softly, but her beautiful face was filled with malice and contempt.
"Hehehe, they were nothing more than toys for my amusement. Isn't that interesting?"
"Speaking of which, you two aren't bad either. Perhaps you could become my new playthings."
The veins on Megumi Fushiguro's forehead bulged with fury. He stared coldly at Yorozu, undisguised killing intent filling his eyes.
"What was funny about that? What was interesting? What do you think life is?"
After his words fell, the evil Yorozu naturally showed no reaction whatsoever.
However, Toji, who had once been known as the Sorcerer Killer, began to sweat nervously.
Even though he had retired from the business eight years ago.
"All right, enough chatter. Let's fight!"
Fushiguro Toji stopped wasting words. Holding the Soul Liberation Blade, he charged forward with overwhelming force, moving so quickly that it left people speechless.
Yorozu was startled. "How can you move that fast without Cursed Energy?"
Bang!!!
A sudden blow struck her abdomen, bending her entire body into the shape of a shrimp.
"No! That's not right! He's even faster than I imagined! That was a mere afterimage!"
Looking at Toji's vicious grin from only inches away, Yorozu finally realized what kind of monster her opponent was!
She had to use her true strength, or she might really die!
Before you continue