Little Sukuna

Outside the Juvenile Detention Center.

"The Juvenile Detention Center is about to become a three-way battlefield between special grades, so please expand the evacuation radius by ten kilometers." Megumi Fushiguro put Kugisaki into the car and explained the situation to Ijichi.

Ijichi rolled down the window. "Then are you two staying, Fushiguro, Kugisaki?"

"I have to stay and serve as the last safeguard in this three-way battle," Megumi Fushiguro said firmly.

Nobara Kugisaki planted her hands on her hips and made her position clear. "I'm not leaving my teammates behind."

"All right. Be careful." Ijichi stopped arguing and drove off to arrange the evacuation.

Inside the Juvenile Detention Center.

Chiyo Shin ran toward the strongest fluctuations of cursed energy.

He hoped Sukuna wouldn't kill the special grade cursed spirit. Otherwise, wouldn't he have brought the Bone-Binding Umbrella for nothing?

Ryomen Sukuna watched with interest as the limbless cursed spirit broke free of the wall, fully healed. "Neither you nor that brat seems to understand what a curse is. Let me teach you what real jujutsu looks like."

Sukuna loosely brought his hands together, bending both index fingers and little fingers into his palms. "Domain Expansion: Malevolent Shrine."

The terrifying aura of his domain expansion washed over the area.

"Cleave."

Terror crossed the special grade cursed spirit's face. Before it could react, it was sliced vertically into several even pieces.

"How weak." Sukuna walked up to the middle section of the special grade cursed spirit and pulled a finger from its chest. "And this belongs to me."

He swallowed it easily. Sukuna now had three fingers.

"All right, brat, come out. If you're going to switch, hurry up." Sukuna stood there for a while, but his body showed no response.

He threw back his head and burst into wild, wicked laughter.

As Chiyo Shin ran, he suddenly felt his surroundings change. The innate domain had vanished.

It looked like his plan to subdue the special grade cursed spirit with the Bone-Binding Umbrella had fallen through.

Chiyo Shin rounded a corridor and found a massive hole ahead. The laughter and dense cursed energy pouring out made it clear that Ryomen Sukuna was inside.

Chiyo Shin strode to the edge of the hole and looked down at Sukuna. "Having fun, Ryomen Sukuna?"

Sukuna looked up at the voice and recognized the brat with the unusual cursed technique from that day. "Did you come back to die, brat?"

Chiyo Shin drew the First Generation Moon and pointed it at Sukuna. "King of Curses, it seems you're the one who doesn't understand the situation. You'd better switch back to Itadori right now. Do that, and we won't have a problem. Otherwise, I'll beat you until you do."

"Hahaha! How arrogant." Sukuna raised a hand toward Chiyo Shin. "Let's see what you're made of."

"Dismantle."

Two slashes appeared out of thin air in front of Chiyo Shin.

Chiyo Shin swung his blade, blocking Sukuna's Dismantle with identical slashes. "You just won't listen, Sukuna. Then go ahead and die!"

Sukuna watched Chiyo Shin block his Dismantle with slashes. "Slashes? A cursed tool? What a crude imitation. Let me show you a real slash."

Countless slashes struck from thin air. Chiyo Shin raised his blade to block, but Sukuna's attacks were viciously sharp and came from treacherous angles.

Several slashes still hit Chiyo Shin, but they did little damage to his body.

Only a few relatively deep wounds bled, and some were even slowly healing.

Seeing Chiyo Shin remain largely unharmed after taking his slashes, Sukuna looked surprised for the second time. Are this brat's body and cursed technique both that monstrous?

Even with only three fingers' worth of power, his Dismantle should never have inflicted such minor injuries.

"Brat, you're starting to interest me." Sukuna appeared in front of Chiyo Shin in an instant.

Chiyo Shin suddenly felt the surrounding slashes disappear and had just breathed a sigh of relief.

Then Sukuna appeared before him, and Chiyo Shin swung his blade.

But Sukuna dodged easily. Chiyo Shin kept slashing, and Sukuna handled every strike with ease.

Seizing an opening, Sukuna closed in and gently touched Chiyo Shin's cheeks with both hands. "Cleave."

Three powerful slashes burst across Chiyo Shin's face. Their impact sent him flying into a wall.

After sending Chiyo Shin flying, Sukuna folded his arms and watched the dust cloud. "Get up. Come on, get up. Let me see if you really are that rare specimen."

These three slashes were far stronger than the earlier ones. Chiyo Shin lay in the rubble, his mind dazed.

After a moment, he recovered, and anger surged from deep within him. But then his teacher Gojo's words echoed in his head.

They boiled down to this.

Making further progress with his cursed technique would be difficult. Only by grasping the true essence of jujutsu on the brink of death could he break through.

Chiyo Shin abruptly stood, tore off his shirt, and tossed the First Generation Moon and the Bone-Binding Umbrella to the ground. "Ryomen Sukuna!"

His Vibration Cursed Technique surged, launching him out of the dust cloud with an instant burst of recoil.

"So fast!" Sukuna couldn't react in time.

Chiyo Shin grabbed his head, hauled him up, and slammed him viciously into the ground.

"You brat..."

"Sukuna, use everything you've learned in your life this time. Let me break out of my cocoon and become a butterfly." Chiyo Shin lowered his head, and blood from his face dripped into Sukuna's eyes.

"Bastard!" Sukuna instantly broke free of Chiyo Shin's grip and flashed to his side.

Two slashes came down toward Chiyo Shin's back.

Thwip! Thwip!

Two wounds deep enough to expose bone opened across his body. Chiyo Shin seemed not to notice as he turned and drove a swift punch into Sukuna's chest.

Sukuna spun in midair to bleed off the force.

"Dismantle."

Several more slashes flew out, knocking Chiyo Shin sideways for several meters.

The assault looked impressive, but it did little damage to Chiyo Shin.

"Is this all the King of Curses can do?" Chiyo Shin taunted leisurely.

Sukuna laughed in anger. "Brat, being too arrogant isn't good for you. Let me show you what real jujutsu is."

Sukuna formed a hand seal. "Domain Expansion: Malevolent Shrine!"

A blood-red space instantly enveloped the surroundings. An enormous shrine piled with bleached bull skulls rose beneath Sukuna.

"Cleave."

Chiyo Shin endured the slashes while studying the domain around him. His exceptional ability to learn let him gradually grasp the changes within it.

Incredible. A cursed technique can actually be used like this.

Drain my cursed energy in an instant and envelop the surroundings. Let's try it.

Chiyo Shin stopped resisting the surrounding slashes and pressed his palms together.

Sukuna laughed at Chiyo Shin's movements. "What, have you given up?"

Feeling everything around him, Chiyo Shin softly uttered, "Domain Expansion: Stillness of Yin and Yang."

"What?" Sukuna could no longer recline atop his shrine and look down on Chiyo Shin.

The blood-red space and shrine were replaced in an instant.

A pure white space, with nothing in it at all.

Chiyo Shin healed his injuries with Golden Repair, laughing so hard he couldn't lift his head. "Hahaha! Incredible. Domain expansion! Haha!"

"Thank you, Mr. Sukuna. Thank you. Now, please die!"

Unparalleled honkai energy surged from every direction, destroying Sukuna's body.

Every sound Sukuna made and every cursed technique he released was dismantled by the honkai energy. Within the pure white space, he could only watch his limbs and body gradually dissolve.

Before long, Sukuna was reduced to a limbless torso, just like that special grade cursed spirit.

Chiyo Shin dispelled his domain, walked over to Sukuna, and lifted him by the head.

Rather than rage, Sukuna laughed. "Haha! Brat, I like you more and more."

Chiyo Shin held Sukuna up and punched him twice. "Hah. I don't need you to like me. Hurry up and switch back to Itadori."

"Cough, cough... He hasn't..." Before Sukuna could finish, the markings on his body began to fade.

Damn it!

Itadori regained control of his body. "Chiyo, I'm so glad to see you. I didn't cause any major trouble, did I?"

Seeing Itadori return, Chiyo Shin hurriedly supported him with both hands. "Of course not. With the great Chiyo here, what trouble could you cause?"

Itadori smiled, his voice growing fainter as he spoke. "That's good. Chiyo, I can't feel my arms or legs. It hurts so much. Am I going to die?"

Chiyo Shin hurriedly laid Itadori on the ground and treated him with Golden Repair. "Ah! Sorry. I'll heal you right away."

Looking at the unconscious Itadori, Chiyo couldn't help marveling that he really was the protagonist. Even on the verge of death, he was still worrying about whether he had done something wrong.

The treatment was complete.

Chiyo Shin found the First Generation Moon and the Bone-Binding Umbrella among the rubble, hoisted Itadori onto his back, and hurried outside.

Outside the Juvenile Detention Center.

Megumi Fushiguro stood motionless, staring into the Juvenile Detention Center, while Kugisaki bit her finger nearby.

A familiar figure appeared, breaking the stalemate. "Hey, Megumi, come help me!"

"Shin!" Megumi Fushiguro hurried over.

"Megumi, carry Itadori. This guy's heavy as hell." Chiyo Shin immediately gave instructions when he saw Megumi Fushiguro.

"Give him to me!" Megumi Fushiguro had no complaints this time.

After handing Itadori over, Chiyo Shin dropped to the ground and held out his cursed tools. "Kugisaki, sorry for the trouble, but take care of my cursed tools. I'm going to rest a bit."

"Just this once, since you worked so hard." Despite her reluctant words, Nobara Kugisaki took both cursed tools.

Lying on the ground, Chiyo Shin murmured, "Call Mr. Ijichi and have him pick us up. All I want now is to go back and sleep."