What is up with this form...?
Although its body was bloated, the giant baby—having become a curse—still retained a certain level of cognitive ability.
Curses are born from negative human emotions. Except for people with extremely strong innate talent as jujutsu sorcerers, the uglier and filthier a person was in life, the higher the probability of them becoming a powerful Special Grade curse after death.
Because it itself possessed a strength far exceeding that of the Special Grade curse Dagon, the flesh baby could sense that the armor on Yuji was extraordinary.
Although it looks like ordinary Blood Manipulation, but...
The giant baby felt an unfamiliar emotion spreading in its chest. Since becoming a curse, it had discarded all its previous life and had never again experienced feelings akin to "anxiety" and "fear." Its powerful strength made it believe it could dominate everything.
Although its lifespan as a curse was only a few short nights, it had never experienced this kind of feeling.
When facing Jogo, it felt the recognition of a peer. When facing Choso, it only felt the frailty of prey. But when facing this human wrapped in pitch-black armor in front of it...
Am I afraid...?
Is it fear? Impossible.
How could it feel fear toward a human? But what it couldn't deny was...
The cursed energy discharge just now was its full-power strike, yet that strike was easily cleaved apart by Yuji.
Manipulating solid blood was inherently something that violated common sense. If blood was allowed to coagulate excessively, the user would face the risk of sudden thrombosis—
Except for Yuji, no one could ignore this point.
But how is this possible?
Regardless, remaining in this stalemate was not an option.
"ROAR—!"
The Tyrannosaurus clone opened its massive, blood-soaked mouth and roared at Yuji. Following that, the flesh baby manipulated the remaining normal clones to rush toward Yuji.
It was going to use a few clones as the vanguard first to test Yuji's true depth.
Several hideous monsters swarmed toward Yuji, causing Choso and Kento Nanami in the distance to sweat for him.
One must know that these clones had put two people with Grade 1 sorcerer strength into a desperate situation.
But Yuji had already understood the opponent's specific strength. The pink-haired young man simply raised his hand unhurriedly—
"Maximum: Blood Manipulation — Direct Fall."
The blood no longer struck out in a liquid state, but transformed into blood-colored crystals.
CRACK—
Densely packed blood crystals broke through the ground in front of Yuji like sharp spikes. The crystals rapidly spread forward in a fan shape with Yuji at the center.
The running clones had no time to react at all. In the next second, their torsos were pierced by the spike-like crystals. The clones following closely behind also did not escape. Some were pierced through the abdomen, some through the neck, and one tried to dodge sideways, only to be caught between two intersecting crystals rising up—unable to move.
This is...? A move I've never seen before?
The flesh baby could share vision with its clones, and right in the instant it felt surprised by the scene before it...
Yuji's figure suddenly flashed, and under the cover of the blood, he disappeared from its line of sight.
...What's going on? Where did he slip off to?
The Tyrannosaurus began to twist its massive body, looking around left and right. The dynamic vision of this body was even better than that of a real dinosaur, but for a moment, it surprisingly struggled to catch Yuji's figure.
Is he in the nearby building ruins? In the air? Or behind?
The clone's gaze swept across the surroundings.
But clearly, it guessed wrong.
Before the clone could regain its senses, Yuji had already flashed directly beneath it. The young man slightly bent his knees, making a charging motion, and then—
Raised his fist and leaped!
BANG—!
Black Flash!
One punch, right on the Tyrannosaurus's lower jaw.
The Tyrannosaurus's head violently jerked backward. That giant mouth filled with sharp teeth was forced shut. Several stark white fangs snapped from the root, flying into the air along with black bodily fluid spraying from the corner of its mouth.
Its massive body—over six meters tall—was lifted off its feet by this punch, as if hoisted up from below by an invisible giant hand. Its entire body flew backward uncontrollably.
BOOM—!
The Tyrannosaurus crashed heavily into the ruins, its massive body rolling twice on the ground before stopping.
It struggled again to climb up, but the severe pain radiating from its lower jaw made its head spin, making it difficult to rise for a moment.
This armor not only boasted astonishing defense but also elevated Yuji's strength to an inconceivable level.
This was the very move he used back then when he tanked Dagon's Domain Expansion and sliced off its head alive.
It was the ultimate culmination of Blood Manipulation.
"Do you know why you are not as strong as me?"
Yuji did not continue to attack. The young man stopped in place, watching the clone climb back up from the ground.
"With a cursed energy capacity comparable to Jogo's, plus Dagon paving the way for you earlier, as long as the sorcerer is 'marked,' your cursed technique has almost no weaknesses."
If it weren't for the cover provided by Choso and Sukuna, Yuji would also have found it hard to take down this curse.
However, all of this was built upon the premise of Dagon's help.
"But you are just inferior to me."
Yuji rarely spoke like this.
Even though his strength was greater than that of his other companions, he didn't think there was anything amazing about himself. He just had the dividend of possessing the memories of a past life.
"Whether from the perspective of cursed technique, or character."
He had never spoken to someone with such a certain tone.
"A person whose heart is truly strong will not commit evil. On the contrary, only those with flawed personalities will act so pretentiously."
Inside Yuji.
Sukuna was sitting cross-legged on a pile of skeletons, resting his chin on one hand, watching the battle outside out of sheer boredom.
"A person whose heart is truly strong will not commit evil. On the contrary, only those with flawed personalities will act so pretentiously."
"...?"
Sukuna frowned, a trace of abnormality flashing in his eyes.
Why did this sound like he was being called out?
Commit evil? What is meant by committing evil?
He, Ryomen Sukuna, had lived for over a thousand years and had killed more people than Yuji had eaten meals. According to this brat's logic, didn't that make him the person with the most fragile heart and the most flawed personality in the world?
Sukuna narrowed his eyes, but he didn't speak up to interrupt Yuji.
Although Sukuna understood that he and Yuji had fundamentally different ideologies...
He still felt the two had some similarities.
Furthermore, getting along with Yuji was indeed quite pleasant. He usually treated him to meals and let him play games. He was so enthusiastic that it made him a bit embarrassed.
He originally wanted to directly mock him with a few sentences, but for some reason, the words reached his lips and were swallowed back down.
When Yuji said those words just now, his tone held not a trace of mockery or arrogance. It wasn't like his usual self.
Usually, this kid was always laughing and joking, putting on no airs with anyone. He even dared to joke around with him, the King of Curses.
But this time was different. Yuji was truly angry.
Sukuna changed his posture, resting his chin on his fist, and continued to watch the battle outside.
"A person whose heart is truly strong will not swing a blade at the weak. A person whose heart is truly strong will not shift their own misfortune onto others."
"A person whose heart is truly strong—"
Yuji raised his hand, pointing at this cursed spirit.
"Will not be unable to distinguish between what is love and what is hate, ultimately murdering the two people in this world who loved them the most."
"Did you think that by becoming a curse, you could escape everything? Did you think that by no longer being human, you wouldn't have to face the things you've done?"
"Before my grandpa died, he told me that because I am strong, he wanted me to go save others—to save as many as possible. And I think the same way. Saving people makes me feel happy."
"So I have saved many people, and I have also killed many curses."
"But I have never felt that I was 'judging' anyone. I was merely doing what I believed was right."
"But you are different."
Yuji lowered his arm and clenched his fist.
"I have seen many curses. They are born from human fear and hatred, so their nature stands in opposition to humanity."
"But you were human in life. You clearly had room to choose, but you chose the most cowardly path. You took out your anger for your own incompetence on your mother. Poured your resentment toward the world onto your sister. You killed the only people willing to love you, and then comforted yourself with the ridiculous excuse that 'it was all their fault.'"
"Since you have become a curse, the laws of the human world cannot judge you," Yuji said coldly.
"Then I will be the one to sanction you!"
"ROAR—!"
Seemingly understanding Yuji's words, the Tyrannosaurus clone let out a deafening roar.
What do you know? Outsider!
Someone like you, born to stand in the sunlight, who has never felt anxious about their own background or appearance, who has never been bullied by anyone! What do you know about me! What right do you have to stand here, looking down from on high, and pass judgment on me!
It hated this person.
It hated him more than those classmates who had bullied it, more than the father who always belittled it, even more than the mother who brought it into this world!
What gives you the right to stand here and judge me? You haven't lived my life! What right do you have to call me weak!
The Tyrannosaurus stomped fiercely on the ground, its massive body charging toward Yuji. It opened that giant, fang-filled mouth and bit down at the armor-clad youth before it—the two rows of stark white fangs interlocking. It intended to bite the youth before it into minced meat in a single strike!
However, right as it was about to close its mouth, Yuji leaned forward, brushing past its lower jaw and dodging the attack.
BOOM—!
The curse crashed to the ground. The two rows of sharp teeth bit nothing but air, merely gouging out a deep crater over two meters in diameter in the ground.
And Yuji took advantage of the momentum to leap—
SQUELCH!
As he jumped, the wrist blade brushed against the clone's neck. The blade cut into flesh and blood, forcefully slicing a terrifying wound into it.
"ROAR—!"
The Tyrannosaurus clone let out a roar of agony, but it did not stop its movements because of it. It abruptly whipped its head around, taking a bite at Yuji, who was currently mid-air.
CRACK—!
The sharp fangs pierced toward the armor on the surface of Yuji's skin. But the armor only suffered a few shallow dents, while the clone's two rows of teeth shattered loudly upon impact.
The Tyrannosaurus violently shook its head, flinging Yuji out like a ragdoll.
Yuji's body continuously flipped in the air. The instant he was flung out, he raised his left wrist and flicked it toward the behemoth before him. The wrist blade detached from his hand and flew straight toward the clone's head.
Then it pierced into its eye socket.
"AWOOO—!"
The Tyrannosaurus threw its head back and let out a heart-wrenching howl, while Yuji performed a somersault and landed on the ground, his feet carving two trails into the earth.
"How does it feel?"
The young man stood up straight again.
"Your mother and sister probably felt this way before they died."
The clone was still immersed in the agony of its eyeball being pierced.
However, just as Yuji was planning his next attack, an eyeball that didn't belong to the clone silently arrived by Yuji's side.
The eyeball was only the size of a walnut. The pitch-black pupil occupied almost the entire sclera—identical to the one found in the dormitory building earlier.
POP!
The eyeball exploded right before Yuji's eyes. Dark purple bodily fluid splattered onto his faceplate. At the same time, that familiar wave of dizziness surged up like a tide.
The giant baby's method of dragging people into a dream was almost unavoidable. After half a minute, its cursed technique's cooldown had finally recovered.
Yuji's body froze in place, his amber pupils losing their focus.
"ROAR—!"
The Tyrannosaurus clone did not miss this opportunity. It lunged forward fiercely, opened its bloody mouth wide, and swallowed Yuji whole—pitch-black armor and all.
"Itadori—!"
In the distance, Kento Nanami—witnessing all of this—broke into a cold sweat. He was about to step forward to join the battle, but was stopped by Choso raising a hand.
"Don't worry. He's my younger brother. Yuji won't go down that easily."
"Besides, that is his own battle. We shouldn't interfere."
"..."
GULP.
The clone swallowed Yuji into its belly. It slowly turned its head, its lone remaining left eye coldly sweeping a glance at the two people in the distance, and then it grinned.
That giant mouth filled with sharp teeth curled upward at an extremely twisted angle, as if it was smiling.
What strong heart... what not committing evil... in the end, isn't he just like those people...
However, its smile did not last long.
SQUELCH—
The clone's abdomen bulged, and a blood-colored spike broke through the scales on the surface of its skin from the inside out.
Wait...
SQUELCH—SQUELCH—SQUELCH—
In the next second, countless blood-colored crystals pierced through from inside its body, exploding out densely from its surface. Pitch-black bodily fluid gushed from these wounds like fountains.
Attacking from the inside out made it much easier to break through a curse's defenses.
The Tyrannosaurus clone's massive body stumbled and pitched forward. Its four limbs could no longer support its weight—
BOOM—!
The instant it fell, the clone's back was sliced open by a single strike. Yuji cleaved through the flesh and scales covering his head. The blood-soaked youth gripped the clone's skin and climbed out from its back.
The young man lifted his foot and landed lightly on the ground, then flicked off the black bodily fluid lingering on his wrist blade.
This... is impossible...
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