Sorry, Lu Yun, Naoya's had too much to drink

Lu Yun plummeted from the sky, hurtling straight toward the ground between Itadori and the other two.

Who was Spider-Man?

As someone born a cursed spirit, Choso had never had much chance to learn about fictional superheroes. Seeing the force of Lu Yun's descent, he had no time to question his identity. He grabbed the stunned Itadori and retreated.

Boom!

Dust billowed everywhere. The concrete road, built to withstand vehicles weighing dozens of tons, shattered with a thunderous crash. Countless fragments flew outward with enough force to punch through ordinary walls.

Up on the overpass, Naoya Zenin watched the seemingly unscathed figure amid the dust, dodging flying rubble as he frowned.

"Where did this freak come from?"

"Ow, ow, ow! My back!"

Lu Yun had wanted to show off with a stylish superhero landing, but he had gotten too excited and lost control of his positioning, suddenly tipping off balance in midair. In his panic, he had no choice but to turn faceup and take the impact with his broad back.

Unfortunately, Lu Yun had forgotten about the cursed tool stun baton strapped to his back.

He had planned to spread the pressure across the broad surface of his back, but the moment he hit the ground, the impact concentrated on the baton first. The contact area shrank drastically, and the force traveled through the baton into his back, instantly doubling the impact he suffered. Even Lu Yun couldn't help grimacing in pain, clutching his back as he hopped around.

"Damn stun baton. You're fired."

He yanked the cursed tool off his back and angrily tossed it aside.

Seeing him like that, Naoya Zenin's wariness instantly turned to contempt.

"I thought some powerhouse had shown up out of nowhere. Turns out it's just a monkey."

He leaped down from the overpass and strolled past Lu Yun with an indifferent expression.

"You country bumpkin of a monkey. Looks like you've got a slipped disc. Bad back? Go see a doctor before it's too late, and don't get in the way of my business."

Lu Yun flew into a rage.

"I could elbow you into next week! You believe me?!"

A mere special grade 1 dared look down on him? Besides, he was clearly cosplaying Spider-Man! Where did he get "monkey" from?

Seeing Naoya Zenin heading straight for him, Yuji Itadori, who had assumed Lu Yun was there to help, shouted:

"Um, Mr. Failed-Man, find somewhere to hide! We'll hold him off."

Naoya Zenin sneered.

"Thinking about other people at a time like this? How stupid. Don't tell me you haven't heard. The Jujutsu Higher-Ups have ordered your execution."

Yuji Itadori froze. Only then did he remember that ever since he had entered Jujutsu Society, the higher-ups had considered him someone who needed to be eliminated. Without Gojo-sensei's protection, he probably would have died long ago.

Now that Satoru Gojo had been sealed, he had lost that protection, and the Jujutsu Higher-Ups had naturally put his execution back into motion.

Yes, perhaps this was the fate he deserved. If he had accepted his execution earlier, surely the tragedy in Shibuya would never have happened.

Yuji Itadori's heart kept sinking. The air around him felt as heavy as seawater, pressing down on him until he couldn't breathe.

"Fuck those damn Jujutsu Higher-Ups. They're nothing but vermin hiding in dark corners, sacrificing other people's lives to preserve their own power and status."

A muffled voice came from beneath the Spider-Man mask.

"No one has to take responsibility for what someone else does. With great power comes great responsibility. But the reverse is true, too. Do what you can with the power you have. That's enough. Dumping things they can't even accomplish themselves onto a kid isn't how responsible adults should behave. You don't need to apologize for things you can't do, Yuji Itadori!"

The boy raised his head in a daze. What met his eyes was a bright red, suit-covered finger pointing at him.

"I don't have time to listen to your preaching. Yuji Itadori, I'm not interested in you, but I'll need you to stay with me so I can lure Megumi out. Of course, I'll have to break your arms and legs first to keep you from running away."

Naoya Zenin walked toward the two brothers with an impatient expression.

"Yuji, go. I'll hold him off."

Facing the menacing Naoya Zenin, Choso pulled Itadori behind him.

"Hey, hey. I never said you could leave."

Ignored by Naoya, Lu Yun reached out with his left hand and pressed it toward his shoulder.

Naoya Zenin regarded Lu Yun's attack with contempt.

Some third-rate sorcerer from who knew where actually thought he could grab him? Did he think his Projection Sorcery was just for show?

His cursed technique activated. Following a predetermined path, Naoya Zenin's body performed twenty-four movements in a single second, moving so fast that he left several afterimages behind.

"Can you keep up with me, you filthy monkey?"

After that brief display, Naoya Zenin deactivated his technique and taunted him smugly.

"Huh? What was that?"

Lu Yun tightened his fingers slightly. Naoya instantly realized something was wrong, and his eyes widened.

At some point, Lu Yun's left hand had landed on his shoulder. Naoya hadn't noticed a thing until Lu Yun drew his attention to the palm resting there.

Like a startled rabbit, he instantly leaped to one side. Lu Yun made no attempt to stop him.

Only after putting a safe distance between himself and Lu Yun did Naoya Zenin recover from his fright.

How was that possible?!

He refused to believe anyone could grab him outright while his technique was active.

I-it had to be a coincidence!

Wiping the cold sweat from his temple, Naoya Zenin watched Lu Yun warily.

That was one twenty-fourth of a second. No one could react that fast. It wasn't like he was Toji.

Nor had Naoya sensed any particularly immense cursed energy from Lu Yun.

That wasn't really Naoya's fault. The cursed energy control Lu Yun had obtained from Takako Uro already allowed him to regulate his cursed energy fluctuations very well.

Unless he unleashed his full power or encountered someone roughly on his level, no one would realize how formidable the oddly dressed Lu Yun was.

His entrance had only reinforced the impression that he wasn't particularly strong.

Of everyone present, probably only Sukuna inside Itadori and Yuta Okkotsu, who was observing the situation from the shadows, could discern Lu Yun's true strength.

Though it hadn't been intentional, Lu Yun's idiot act had still managed to catch Naoya Zenin off guard.

Still unwilling to believe in Lu Yun's strength, Naoya Zenin chose to launch an attack himself.

Projection Sorcery activated, and Naoya's body instantly blurred into a mass of afterimages.

The images produced by his extreme speed linked together, darting around Lu Yun without pause. Watching from the side, Itadori and Choso couldn't help worrying for him.

So fast. I couldn't make him out at all.

Their ability to track motion simply wasn't enough to follow Naoya's movements.

"Well, monkey? Am I fast or what?"

Seeing Lu Yun standing motionless in a daze, Naoya became even more convinced that what had happened earlier was just a coincidence.

Moving at high speed, he entered Lu Yun's blind spot. With Lu Yun's head still turned to one side, Naoya was certain this was the perfect moment to strike.

"Now!!"