"Got it!"
Itadori answered cheerfully.
He felt a little wistful, though. After all, he had grown attached to this place after running around it so much. He even remembered exactly where every tree stood.
Still, curses had to be exorcised, so he answered without hesitation.
Great! With this many cursed spirits around, he would definitely master the Dismantle Sukuna had taught him!~
Itadori gazed at the forest below the cliff, his eyes shining.
Today was his last day training here. He would be sure to properly "thank" his "sparring partners."
-They'd chased me for so many nights. Now I can finally pay them back all at once!
Itadori darted through the trees.
After a few steps forward, he suddenly turned to face the curse chasing him. He extended one hand and slashed his fingertips diagonally downward.
[Cleave]-
The invisible slash split the pursuing curse in two, even wounding the curse behind it and drawing an agonized howl.
But more curses lunged at him again, seemingly without fear.
Itadori remained completely unfazed. He lowered his cursed energy output, switched to [Dismantle], and traced another diagonal line, cutting down the approaching curse before immediately turning and rushing forward a few steps to gain some distance.
That's two to start.
He let out a soft breath, his light brown eyes gleaming faintly as he raced along like lightning.
He could easily kill a curse in one hit without even getting close. Trying this kind of midrange attack for the first time left him a little excited.
With increasingly practiced movements, he unleashed slash after slash, and the cursed spirits pursuing him kept falling.
He alternated between "Cleave" and "Dismantle," carefully observing their differences.
Just as Sukuna had said, the damage dealt by "Cleave" varied according to the amount of cursed energy he put into it. But "Dismantle"...
Itadori's eyes shone brilliantly-
Dismantle is so handy!
Even with a minuscule amount of cursed energy, it could still kill these grade 4 cursed spirits in one hit!
So that's how it works...
Dismantle really does depend solely on how much cursed energy my opponent and I have, he thought. My cursed energy is close to grade 1. Against these grade 4 curses, as long as my slash hits them, it'll be an instant kill.
It saves way more cursed energy than Cleave.
He gradually began using only "Dismantle," trading a small amount of cursed energy for frequent attacks. Itadori unleashed his slashes faster and faster.
Finally, the curses pursuing him could no longer keep up with the rate at which he exorcised them. Once there were no living curses within ten meters behind him, Itadori stopped and turned to face those still approaching from farther away.
He took a deep breath, pushed off the ground, and charged toward those curses.
The chase reversed-
Like a reaper's scythe, the invisible slashes kept harvesting the cursed spirits that approached him among the trees.
Itadori raced through the forest like lightning. With every flick of his fingers, not a single curse within ten meters of his path could escape alive.
His heart pounded, his excitement mounting. For the first time, he experienced what it felt like to dominate the entire battlefield without fighting at close range.
It felt completely different from killing cursed spirits with Divergent Fist!
Had Sukuna known what he was thinking, he would definitely have nodded and told him, "That's right, kid. That's what clearing the field with an area-of-effect skill feels like!"~
When his slash exorcised the final cursed spirit, he panted lightly, bright flames burning in his eyes.
Not from exhaustion, but from the thrill ignited by battle, the excitement brought on by that rush of stimulation.
That felt amazing-
For the first time, he found himself feeling that way during a battle against curses.
He couldn't resist sharing this unique experience with Sukuna.
The boy lowered his head slightly and dropped his voice, but he couldn't hide the delight in his tone.
"Sukuna, your Dismantle-it's ridiculously strong!"
"-It's seriously so useful!"
Sukuna, who had been watching anxiously from the Inner World the entire time, was so pleased by Itadori's sudden praise that he practically had his tail in the air-
Who could have imagined that one moment he would be worrying about whether his Dismantle would be useless, and the next he would receive such high praise?
The contrast left him so delighted that he didn't know what to say. He clenched his fist and pumped it in front of him, his voice rising as he nearly lost his composure.
[Heh! Of course it is. This is the King of Curses' cursed technique. Go ahead and count your lucky stars!]
Hahahaha-as expected of me!
Everything the King of Curses makes is a masterpiece!
...No, no. Keep it together!
[Ahem! Of course, don't get excited too soon. These were only grade 4. Against a grade 1, it probably wouldn't work.]
Hearing that, Itadori immediately promised, "I'll keep working hard to build up my cursed energy. I definitely won't let you down after you taught me your cursed technique, Sukuna!"
[Yeah, keep at it, kid. I've got faith in you~]
Sukuna's voice rose again~
The curse-exorcism mission was completed successfully, leaving all three of them satisfied.
Gojo hadn't expected Yuji to become proficient with Dismantle so quickly, either. At first, he had worried that the boy, accustomed to close combat, would struggle to make the switch.
Fortunately, the results were encouraging. He could only call him exceptionally gifted.
"Nice work!~"
Gojo couldn't resist reaching out to ruffle the boy's hair.
"Next time, try combining close combat with Dismantle. I'll find you a suitable mission."
"Starting tomorrow, you can take on grade 1 missions."
Awesome!
Itadori clenched his fists. It looked like his strength had taken another step forward!
Sukuna, still in the Inner World, nodded in satisfaction as well.
Excellent!
Looks like I can add more savings to my little stash!
The next day.
"Fushiguro-!"
Early that morning, Megumi Fushiguro had just stepped out of his room when he saw Itadori running excitedly toward him and offering him an apple-
The apple had been peeled into a crooked mess, as though a child had hacked at it countless times for fun. Uneven chunks were missing here and there, and the sight set his perfectionist tendencies on edge.
He frowned, sorely tempted to take the apple and peel it again himself.
Then he heard Itadori say:
"Fushiguro, I learned Sukuna's cursed technique!~~~"
The boy's excited voice carried a hint of pride.
"Look, I peeled this using Sukuna's Dismantle~!"
Megumi Fushiguro: "..."
*???*
Huh? What did you say?
His eyes widened as he looked at the apple again-sure enough, there were faint traces of Itadori's cursed residue on it.
For a moment, he couldn't decide whether to congratulate Itadori on finally learning a cursed technique or make a sarcastic comment.
So... after learning a cursed technique... you used Dismantle to... peel an apple??
And you made it this ugly??!
Does your Sukuna know about this?
Sukuna: [...]
Of course he knew! He was furious!
How could you show people an apple you peeled this badly? Won't that make them think my Dismantle is to blame?!
How could there possibly be anything wrong with my Dismantle...
The apples I peel look way better than Yuji's! ＜ (｀^′) ＞ Hmph!~
Before you continue