Kenjaku looked at Hakari Kinji and let out a cold, mocking laugh. "It seems the Goddess of Fortune has finally decided to look the other way!"
He instantly unleashed a crushing wave of gravity upon the trio.
Ryu Ishigori and Uro Takako gritted their teeth, their faces turning a deep shade of crimson as they strained to maintain their Domains against the overwhelming pressure. Hakari, however, was slammed face-first into the dirt. His bones groaned and splintered under the weight; his Domain, devoid of any offensive or defensive buffs, offered zero protection against Kenjaku's technique.
Hakari spat a mouthful of blood onto the soil, yet he stubbornly forced his head up, his eyes fixed on the spinning reels.
Click-clack, click-clack—
The sound of the slot machine echoed through the chamber, sharp and rhythmic. But Kenjaku wasn't about to give him the luxury of a slow reveal.
He had learned one vital lesson from his encounters with Souma Gojo: never stand around waiting for the hero to finish his transformation.
Before the final reel could settle, Kenjaku lunged. His arms shifted into long, jagged blades, moving so fast they became a blur of steel. He hacked at Hakari with the cold efficiency of a butcher.
Hakari curled into a ball, shielding his head as the blades tore through his flesh. In seconds, he was a map of gore—arms severed, organs minced, his breathing a shallow, wet rattle.
Then, the world slowed down.
Ding! Ding! Ding!
Kenjaku's head snapped toward the holographic display. His eyes bulged. There they were: three identical portraits of the heroine, the '6' icons glowing with a radiant, neon light.
"Wooo-hoo! We're taking off!"
Like a corpse rising from a grave, Hakari's wounds vanished in a flash of white light. He sprang to his feet, his body restored to its peak condition, and flashed a brilliant, predatory grin at the monk.
What is a gambler? Even when staring into the maw of death, they will bet their very soul on that final, one-percent chance.
Hakari had been a hair's breadth from oblivion. Yet, as if truly favored by a higher power, he had struck gold at the final second.
Kenjaku's face twisted with disbelief. "A 1/239 chance? You're cheating! You've got to be damn well cheating!"
Hakari laughed, the sound booming through the hall. "Luck is just another word for talent, pal! Now then... we have four minutes and eleven seconds. Shall we go again?"
Without another word, Hakari threw himself back into the fray. With infinite cursed energy fueling every strike, he became a whirlwind of violence, his fists slamming into Kenjaku's guard with the weight of falling stars.
Uro Takako shook her head in sheer amazement. "Where do they find these freaks?"
Ryu Ishigori watched with hungry eyes. "Once this mission is over, I'm definitely going to have a round with that guy."
The two exchanged a glance and immediately dove back in. No more honor, no more duels—this was a three-on-one street fight against a monster.
Kenjaku was beginning to feel the heat. Time was his enemy. While the fight between Sukuna and Souma Gojo was likely a stalemate of titans, the battles involving the Four Great Vengeful Spirits wouldn't last forever.
He knew Satoru Gojo's generation was the strongest the world had seen in a millennium. He didn't expect his spirits to win; he only needed them to buy time. But Hakari was a wild card he hadn't accounted for—a man who lived outside the "logic" of sorcery.
Damn it! It's that feeling again... that feeling of being played!
Is this gambler another piece Souma Gojo placed on the board just for me?
Kenjaku's jaw tightened. "I won't be stalled any longer!"
He forced the trio back with a sudden burst of cursed energy and wove a new set of signs.
"Domain Expansion: Vajra Hell."
A secondary layer of crushing pressure descended. Ryu and Uro's Domains were squeezed into tiny corners, their frames groaning under the double weight of Kenjaku's techniques. They stood frozen, sweat pouring down their faces as they focused purely on survival.
Only Hakari ignored the pressure. He didn't care if his bones snapped; they would just fix themselves.
But Kenjaku didn't turn back to him. Instead, he lunged toward the massive, ancient tree that served as the heart of the Star Corridor.
"Shit! We got too caught up in the fight! Protect Tengen!" Hakari roared, trying to give chase.
But as Kenjaku's blade cleaved through the trunk of the great tree, he found... nothing. The center was hollow, save for a faint, lingering silhouette of a human form.
Hakari froze. Ryu and Uro stared in shock.
Tengen was gone.
"I knew it!"
Kenjaku let out a manic, triumphant laugh. This was the one outcome that didn't surprise him. Every time he moved, Souma Gojo seemed to be standing at the finish line, waiting for him.
He realized now that Hakari and the others weren't here to protect Tengen. They were here to keep him busy while Tengen was moved to a secure location. They were the bait in a trap designed to keep him trapped until Satoru and the others returned to finish him off.
"How clever, Souma Gojo! But this time, I've out-predicted your prediction!"
Kenjaku slammed his palm against the base of the hollowed tree.
"Idle Transfiguration."
"Barrier Technique: Seal."
He began to mutter to himself, a deranged smile spreading across his monk-like face.
"Initially, I wanted Tengen herself to initiate the merger with the hundred million souls of Japan. But I have a much better idea now!"
"Ninety percent of the barriers in Japan were created by Tengen. But she could never control them all at once. She needed a catalyst. This tree—the Amatsu-no-Hashira—is a cursed spirit born a thousand years ago. It's her amplifier! Her satellite dish!"
Creeeeaaaak—
The ancient tree began to writhe like a living thing, letting out a low, distorted groan. Under the horrific power of Idle Transfiguration, the sky-piercing timber began to shrink and warp, folding in on itself until it became a small, dense cube in Kenjaku's hand.
He tucked the cube into his robes, his eyes gleaming with malice.
"Souma Gojo, for the first time, you're a step behind me!"
He looked back at the trio one last time, a look of utter contempt on his face. "Until we meet again!"
A pair of grotesque wings sprouted from Kenjaku's back. Without looking back, he took to the air, soaring out of the Star Corridor and into the dark Tokyo night.
Read The Full Story at: Patreon.com/zefyrus