Defeat

[Comments and suggestions are welcome.]

[The author is neither a Kashimo fanboy nor a hater. Fire away.]

[A fanfic written after taking time to regroup. Thank you for your support.]

Within that all-encompassing grid of slashes, the "strongest of four hundred years ago" met his final end...

Strength.

Loneliness.

Love...

Fully incarnated, the four-armed Sukuna stood behind the aged "Thunder God," whose temples had turned completely white, and sneered calmly:

"You respond to others' [love], yet worry about your own [loneliness]."

"You and Satoru Gojo..."

"Are both far too [greedy]..."

There was no defense.

No argument.

And no question in return.

When he turned back again, the aged "Thunder God" had already reverted to the youthful appearance he had taken after his incarnation.

His long eyelashes trembled slightly. Ready to accept it all without resistance, Hajime Kashimo looked toward where Sukuna stood, only for his eyes to widen abruptly.

On the secluded, weed-choked cliff, the four-armed Sukuna had vanished at some unknown moment.

In his place was a bizarre cursed spirit with a crooked mouth, three eyes, and seven pairs of thin wings...

"So this is how it ends?"

"The [strongest] of four hundred years ago?"

The voice emerging from the cursed spirit's crooked, open mouth was Hajime Kashimo's own-the slightly arrogant, self-assured voice of his youth.

Before he could answer the bizarre cursed spirit's questions, Kashimo's vision suddenly went black, and the scene immediately began to change...

Towering buildings rose all around him. Huge neon signs flashing with every kind of light appeared like mirrors reflecting the lingering defiance in his heart.

Surrounded by a maze of modern city buildings and dazzling signs, Kashimo could only raise an arm to barely shield himself from their blinding light...

"Can't even use a domain... and you call that the strongest?"

A neon sign flickered, and crooked, glaringly colorful words appeared across it...

"No Reverse Cursed Technique either. Takes a slash and goes straight to sleep. That's our mighty strongest~"

Two neon signs flashed, driving the most twisted, mocking words into Kashimo's eyes like a knife...

"Do you feel sorry for failing to satisfy Lord Sukuna? Hahahaha-"

The dazzling neon signs transformed into all manner of words, blending and intertwining.

Information both related and unrelated to Kashimo slammed into his brain like floodwaters bursting through a dam. The sheer volume brought his thoughts to a crashing halt, leaving him frozen in place...

"These are..."

November 1: the Culling Game began.

December 24: Kenjaku was beheaded by Jujutsu High's Special Grade Sorcerer [Yuta Okkotsu]. The strongest sorcerer in history, [Sukuna], was killed by [Yuji Itadori]. The Culling Game was declared over.

Kashimo saw the future.

But the future was not all he saw.

He saw the past as well.

October 31, 2018, 7:00 p.m.: the Shibuya Incident began.

11:30 p.m.: Kenjaku absorbed the special grade cursed spirit [Mahito] and initiated the Culling Game...

Everyone's battles, every process of [growth], [desperation], and [transformation]...

He saw them all...

His heart, already sliced to pieces, should have stopped beating. Yet in that instant, it sprang back to life!

It was his hunger for battle, his stubborn drive to grow stronger!

The instant that desire arose within Kashimo, the bizarre cursed spirit appeared again.

"Many people question your title as the strongest..."

"But that's because you were born in the wrong era..."

"You shouldn't stop here..."

"Go fight. Seek the true [strongest]."

The cursed spirit's voice trembled with excitement.

Using Kashimo's voice, it almost seemed intent on spreading that hunger for battle and driving it to its peak.

As the cursed spirit's body trembled, a warped vortex replaced the glaring, clamorous signs around Kashimo. In their place, a heavy, tightly shut ancient gate stood before him...

[Cursed energy is a special form of energy generated and converted from negative human emotions.]

[Birth, aging, illness, death, anger, distortion, fear, hatred, and despair can all serve as its sources.]

"And I come from beyond this island, where cursed energy is more complex and powerful. Even arguments online can give birth to considerable cursed spirits..."

"And I..."

"Am one of them."

[Special grade cursed spirit: Guixu Ying. Unregistered.]

The words appearing in Kashimo's mind revealed the identity of the cursed spirit that had intruded upon his life flashing before his eyes. What it said next would shake his understanding of the world once again...

"My ability is simple."

"To give you a new life."

"I'll reshape an independent timeline for you-you'll become that timeline's [singularity]."

"Make a binding vow with me, and my Cursed Technique will make you a reborn individual who belongs to no predetermined time or space, free of all past karmic ties-a completely new being born out of nothing!"

"You can retain all your memories and your Cursed Technique from before your death, without being subject to any restrictions from your original timeline, including binding vows and life-and-death pacts made by others."

"But in return, you must offer me truly spectacular battles and slaughter. Show me the true [strongest]!"

"The moment you cease to improve and lose all desire to advance, the power of the rules will crush you. Your soul will vanish forever, with no possibility of rebirth..."

"And this binding vow will end... only when you kill another [strongest]..."

"Of course, you can give up this opportunity. At worst, I'll simply find another soul that fought to the death..."

Though Guixu Ying's final words offered Kashimo a choice in a faintly pitying tone, they gave him the chance to decide.

Yet it was clear that the deliberate provocation from this cursed spirit that had crossed the ocean had not worked on Kashimo-

Because he had already pushed open the gate before him.

"Enough posturing!"

"Give me something to really enjoy!!!"

"I hope your Cursed Technique lives up to the hype!!!"

The ancient gate collapsed with a thunderous crash.

As Kashimo's figure vanished, Guixu Ying's crooked mouth slowly opened, spitting out an eyeball coated in thick saliva...

An azure pupil and a bloodstained eyeball...

The owner of that eye was-

Guixu Ying shook its body in self-mockery, seemingly regretting Kashimo's resolve a little.

"If I'd known he'd be like this, I should've let him test the waters first..."