Susanoo's armored frame bore a few faint scratches, but Ryuu barely glanced at them before turning his gaze back to Sukuna.
"It's a little interesting, but… forget it. You're too weak right now for me to enjoy this at all."
His cursed energy surged, and the skeletal Susanoo transformed into a fully armored giant. With a roar, the massive, glowing blade impaled Sukuna into the blood-soaked ground beneath him.
The overwhelming weight of cursed energy bore down on Sukuna, locking him in place, unable to move.
The searing pain was unbearable, but more than that, the humiliation made Sukuna's fury boil over.
He now understood—his current self stood no chance against the young sorcerer before him.
"I underestimated you, sorcerer."
His grin was feral, his sharp teeth bared as he sneered through the pain.
"You're certainly strong, but don't get cocky. This is just one of my fingers."
Sukuna's eyes gleamed with malice.
"If I reclaim my full power, you'll be nothing but a nameless insect born in an era without me."
Ryuu scoffed.
"If empty threats help you cope with your weak state, be my guest."
The glowing blade pinning Sukuna down burned hotter as Ryuu stepped forward, his presence looming over the so-called King of Curses.
Even with his body restrained, Sukuna seethed. The way Ryuu looked down at him… it was the ultimate humiliation.
But he remained silent.
He would not lash out like some powerless fool.
Weaklings were the ones who raged when they lost.
Sukuna was not weak.
No, he would remember this sorcerer. He would carve his face into his mind. And when the time came—when his full strength was restored—he would rip this arrogant child apart.
He grinned.
"Brat, when I get the chance, I will slaughter you."
Ryuu didn't even blink.
"One finger wasn't even enough to warm me up. I just hope that if I ever see you again, you'll be strong enough to make me take you seriously."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"Though, I wonder if you'll even get the chance."
Sukuna's grin twitched. A cold chill crept down his spine.
"…What do you mean?"
Ryuu smirked.
"You still don't get it?"
The world around them began to shift.
The sea of blood.
The towering mountains of corpses.
Everything vanished.
The sky darkened, turning crimson, and beneath them, the blood-soaked ground solidified into black stone.
This was no longer Sukuna's domain.
It was Ryuu's.
Sukuna's breath hitched.
"…Those eyes—"
He didn't need to look around to know what had happened.
He had been dragged into a different realm.
Into a world crafted by Ryuu's Mangekyō Sharingan.
A domain entirely under his control.
For the first time in a thousand years, Sukuna felt something unfamiliar creeping into his chest.
Unease.
"…What are you planning, brat?"
Ryuu's smirk widened.
"Sukuna, tell me—what kind of attack are you most afraid of?"
Silence.
Then, a chuckle.
"I fear nothing."
Even in this situation, Sukuna's arrogance did not waver.
"You think you can intimidate me? With just this?"
Ryuu's voice was calm.
"Oh? Then enjoy this."
A shift in the air.
A low, resonant chant filled the sky.
A sacred hymn.
A prayer.
"Light, light that purifies all…
Eliminate sin, fault, and sorrow…
Guide that person…"
Sukuna's eyes snapped upward.
His entire body tensed.
A holy radiance bathed the world in divine light.
A golden ladder of pure energy descended from the heavens, radiating overwhelming power.
It was a technique from a thousand years ago.
A spell cast only by angels.
[Jacob's Ladder].
Sukuna's smug grin vanished.
His pupils shrank.
"…Impossible."
Ryuu's smirk deepened.
"This reaction… so you do remember it."
The sacred light surged downward, purifying everything in its path.
Sukuna let out an agonized roar, his monstrous form writhing under the divine assault.
His flesh seared.
His very soul trembled.
The once-mighty King of Curses was being annihilated.
"WHY?!" Sukuna howled in fury and pain. "HOW CAN YOU SUMMON THIS HERE?!"
Even in the spiritual world within his severed finger…
Even here…
The light reached him.
For the first time, true terror flashed across his demonic features.
If his soul in this fragment was destroyed—
Then the resurrection he had planned for a thousand years would be—
He gritted his teeth.
This child.
This wretched child.
He was truly capable of erasing him.
Ryuu chuckled.
"Sukuna, your frightened expression… is quite amusing."
The holy punishment descended.
Sukuna's screams echoed one last time—
And then, silence.
His soul… completely erased.
Jacob's Ladder faded away, leaving only Ryuu standing amidst the ruins of Sukuna's domain.
He exhaled softly.
"The angel's technique…"
For a brief moment, he entertained the thought of researching it further.
But that was for another time.
For now, it was time to claim his reward.
The world around him crumbled.
###
Back to reality—
Mei Mei frowned.
Something was wrong.
The special-grade cursed spirit, which had been struggling against Susanoo's grip, suddenly stopped moving.
Then, an immense surge of cursed energy exploded from Ryuu's body.
The sheer force shattered the glasses on the table.
Mei Mei sucked in a breath.
Her heart pounded.
She had suspected it before, but now she was certain.
Ryuu could consume cursed spirits to grow stronger.
He was a monster in human skin.
And yet, despite how terrifying that thought was…
She couldn't tear her eyes away from him.
In a matter of minutes, Ryuu had annihilated the soul of the King of Curses.
Susanoo dissipated.
The special-grade curse spirit crumbled into dust.
And finally, Sukuna's severed finger, once brimming with indestructible cursed energy, disintegrated into white ash.
Mei Mei's eyes widened.
"…You destroyed Sukuna's finger?"
She had never heard of such a thing.
Even Gojo Satoru had never claimed to be able to erase one of Sukuna's fingers.
She turned to Ryuu, voice filled with intrigue.
"…What the hell did you just do?"
Ryuu glanced at the empty space where the finger had once been.
His smirk returned.
"Simple."
"I exorcised Sukuna's soul."
###
P@treon // Kryzt