NGJ Chapter 90: Ryōiki Tenkai

10 meters.

That's the distance I have to keep with Mahito.

Further than that I can't reach him before he expands his domain.

Closer than that I risk getting one-shot.

I leaned back to avoid a wave of transfigured humans he threw at me that grew to the size of trucks. Ducking under the transfigured humans I came face to face with Mahito's rapidly moving blade arm. Weaving between them I released a wave of despair aura to Mahito as he flinced, despair aura deals necrotic damage which should also damage his soul.

"This is annoying. You are a natural counter to me just like Itadori. Right!?" Trying to me off guard he suddenly exclaimed at the end of his sentence as the bladed whips exploded with spikes, several of them managing to pierce me due to my low endurance. I grimaced.

"I could say the same to you. Though only the first part, you fucking perst." I raised my hand gathering necrotic energy in my palm that formed into the shape of a spear and launched it toward Mahito but he simply shrunk down and ran under it toward me as I backpedaled.

What a fucking pest. If I wasn't so overworked I could bind him and blast him with enough necrotic energy to reduce him to ash. If spirits could be reduced to ash that is.

Of course, I have my CE back to 80% but squeezing so much CE in such a small amount of time has really strained my technique. So I am stalling him until I can recover my technique as I am applying RCE.

[ Alpha has been slain ]

Fuck.

*BOOOOM!!!*

Before I could react a torrent of flame washed over me. Charring my skin, I could almost feel my eyeballs melting out of my skull. And I am more resistant to fire than other elements and even drank a potion beforehand. As the flames subsided I regenerated with RCE and glared at the offender. Magma fucker actually beat Alpha. Goddammit!

"You're late Jogo. How hard could it have been to take care of one undead?" Mahito asked teasingly as Jogo flared.

"Shut it Mahito! That bastard was almost too tenacious. I almost lost my head." At that, I felt something, a fluctuation in the cursed energy in the surroundings. Almost like a new presence had emerged.

[ Hanami has been slain! ]

My gaze snapped over to Wiz on the subway floor below us she looked exhausted and I immediately made the decision to withdraw her a literal moment before a razor-sharp torrent of water swept through where she was.

Great, Dagon evolved.

What next, is satan going to pop out of the woodworks? 

I summoned Ddraig back.

"Stall volcano head while I deal with these bastards." Ddraig nodded and charged the enraged Jogo, dragging him away from me so that I would not get involved in the crossfire.

Seeing it in advance I hooped sideways as Dagon shattered the floor below me and emerged. 

"Oh my Dagon how you've grown! I'm so proud of you! But... it seems like Hanami isn't with you. I see." For once Mahito seemed serious as he charged at me with Dagon in tow.

Oh, I see.

How funny.

I am the one getting Jujumped Kaisen'ed.

Fuck all of you.

I grit my teeth as a transfigured human the size of an entire fucking train barreled into me sending me crashing through several floors, ending above ground. Soon after the train human was sliced apart by water that went through it to hit me. The jets of water razed my skin and muscles. 

Summoning some of my soldiers to help me they darted down toward Mahito to kill him but Mahito created his own soldiers, polymeric soul isomers to counter my undead.

All the while Dagon flew above us and rained down pressurized water.

At this moment I realized.

I was being cornered. 

My technique is burnt, my body is exhausted. My undead are dealing with thousands of curses. Dagon is awakened, Mahito is bordering too. My spells are not fast enough.

Dashing in I sent a wave of thunder through Mahito but even as it shredded his body he did not seem fazed.

"Do you not understand? As long as I can maintain the shape of my soul your attacks are useless. Unless you damage my soul with that black aura stuff you won't accomplish much you know?" Suddenly my gaze snapped upward as I saw Dagon about to pull out hand symbols. 

Not on my watch!

" *Clap!* Vengeful Wraiths!" Using cursed spirit creating I created shapeless large spirit forms that swarmed Dagon and tried to devour him. 

[ Ddraig is in critical condition! ]

'FUCK! Did she get caught in his domain!?' I hurriedly pulled back Ddraig. In the corner of my vision, I saw Jogo rushing toward me faster than a bullet. I used grave buster to hit him head on but he simply regenerated from the blow and reached Akira, sending a wave of flame crashing into him. Distracting Akira just enough.

"Domain Expansion: Self Embodiment of Perfection!" Mahito's victorious glee was all Akira could hear at that moment. 

The domain enveloped all of them, hands emerging in unison in a synchronized manner. Akira activated his simple domain.

A 0.1 second too late.

Pain. A foreign disgusting sensation shook my soul. As if rough hands tried grabbing my soul and tried to pull it apart. It lasted for a single instant but it was enough to shake me. 

I felt a punch land on my face. Shaking my head. Why did Mahito expand his domain instead of Jogo? Probably because Jogo burnt his CE on his domain to deal with Ddraig.

I felt the hard punch of Dagon break my bones. The sharp pain of Mahito slicing me.

This...

Really feels dire huh?

'...'

An emergency.

Emergence, something becoming apparent or prominent.

Why is it called that?

Because in an emergency "it" emerges.

It is most often in an emergency that the true potential of someone is forced to awaken for them to find a way out. 

An epiphany.

An Inspiration.

Stuck in the middle of the self embodiment of perfection, unable to move thanks to his simple domain he was attacked relentlessly by the special grade curses.

The clock ticked closer to death. The hands of the reaper beckoned his soul. 

What better inspiration for a necromancer than death itself?

He did not even feel Mahito's blows hitting his body, nor Jogo's nor Dagon's. His body had gone on autopilot, set on preserving his life. While his mind retreated.

Mahito punched his jaw with his buffed-up arm. Making Akira spit blood.

Setting a boundary with a simple domain. 

A kick from Jogo knocked the air out of him. 

Setting up a veil alongside the simple domain to create an enclosed space separate from the world around them, a world in itself. A boundary separate from the world to freely express yourself in.

He raised his arms just in time to block a blow from Dagon.

Within this blank empty canvas of a space. Express uourself imbue your technique into that barrier separating the two worlds. Dying that canvas into your own colour.

And finally, create the expression of your ability. Turn your inner world inside out. Impose your world on the domain. Open the curtains to the stage you have created for your very being to operate to its fullest extent.

'I can do it.'

A pair of giant skeleton hands burst out of the ground making the special grades jump back in surprise.

*Clap!*

The Skeleton's hands clapped loudly as if they were praying while at the same time, Akira clasped both hands with a feral smile. As if the whole world had frozen in spot his lips moved.

"Domain Expansion:"

"Walpurgis Night."

Mahito's eyes widened as he suddenly felt a heavy force contesting his domain. Blackened ground erupted from Akira's feet as a barrier started forcing itself against the self-embodiment of perfection.

In seconds the domain was deployed, clashing against Mahito's, and with Mahito's inexperience and Akira's overwhelming power...

Akira's won.

The self-embodiment of perfection broke apart, instead, it was replaced by the vast expanse of the Walpurgis Night that overtook the world. 

The ground around everyone changed to dead grey dirt with thousands of skeletons poking out of the ground. The sky was blotted by black clouds tinged with green. If one peered closely they could see the dark green sky with malevolent stars littering it.

Mahito transformed his arms into bladed whips and lashed out, Jogo prepared a wave of scorching purple flames, Dagon sent out razor water jets.

But. Before any of them could reach.

BOOOOOOOOM!!!

From around Akira erupted a wave of tens of thousands of skeletons surging like a tide toward all the cursed spirits, swallowing all of their attacks and pushing them back as the skeletons bit, scratched, and stabbed at them.

They broke apart the skeletons, crushed them and burned them but no.

The broken pieces reformed and resuming drowning them in bones.

"ENOUGH OF THIS!" Jogo blasted apart nearly all of the skeletons around in one burst as he erupted like a volcano.

"You want to try your domain? Then fine! Domai-" Jogo put his hands together but before he could even finish his chant.

The sure-hit attack of the Endless Undead Factory.

'Grave Buster.'

*BAM!*

Unlike normal conditions, there was no chant, no delay, no cast time.

Within the fraction of a second, a giant fist of bone crashed into Jogo. Because under effect of the domain.

Grave Buster automatically hits the target. Almost instantly arriving before the target.

No. It was more proper to say that the attack did not even exist before it hit the opponent.

At almost the exact same time colossal skeletal fists large as buildings hammered down on Mahito and Dagon.

Jogo resteadied himself but the moment he did spikes of bone stabbed at him, seemingly appearing milliseconds before the moment of impact. 

Stabbing into him like he was a pincushion before he incinerated them too, creating volcanos under Akira's feet but the moment he did Akira swapped places with one of the thousands of skeletons in the domain milliseconds before Jogo got stomped on by a titanic skeleton foot.

Incinerating that too Jogo decided to activate domain amplification to protect himself from the sure hit but.

Akira suddenly teleported in front of him. His hand glowing green with cursed energy.

"You sure bullied my cute subordinates, didn't you? Jogo?" With insane speeds, Akira's figure blurred and his fist met Jogo's guard. And a flash of black enveloped Jogo's vision.

"BLACK FLASH!" *Booom!!!*

That one attack nearly ripped off Jogo's entire body. Not even bothering to chase after him Akira extended his hand out.

"False Burial." As he closed his hands a set of draconic bone jaws manifested under Joho and snapped shut around him in the same instant tens of black spikes pierced through the gaps. And then all of it imploded into a necrotic ball of searing flame with Jogo inside.

[Jogo has been eliminated.]

At the same time, unable to maintain the shape of his soul as cursed spirits relentlessly threw themselves against his body in suicide attacks Mahito finally perished.

[Mahito has been eliminated.]

But as Akira was dealing with Mahito and Jogo Dagon endured the onslaught of grave busters while reinforcing its body with immense cursed energy and willpower fueled by the desire to take revenge for his comrades. 

 "Domain Expansion: Horizon of the Captivating Skanda."

Dagon, far more experienced at domain expansion tore apart Akira's domain and replaced it with his own. But Akira smiled unperturbed. Even giggling to himself a little. With a voice tinged with fury Dagon spoke.

"Human, why do you still laugh? Inside my domain, you are already dead. The moment I activate my death swarm you will be torn to shreds."

Akira made no attempts to refute his claims yet still giggled to himself.

"Yep, you are right. My technique is burnt from my domain getting broken. I barely have any cursed energy too. But I was just thinking. You really are unfortunate aren't you?" 

"What do you mean? Explain!" Dagon's rough voice rang out.

"Yeah, all of this bought me enough time to recover Alpha back. And honestly. I wouldn't want to face an enraged Alpha either." Akira shrugged and erected a simple domain around himself.

"Grrgh, fine I will finish you off!" Several fish shikigami burst out of Dagon's stomach and flew at the speed of sound toward Akira but before they reached him.

*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!*

A punch reverberated across the entire domain. A force so mighty it made the tides reaching the beach get pushed back. All of this was produced by one thing with just one punch.

A very pissed off 2.5-meter tall skeleton in armour with Azure Cursed Energy raging around its body.

!If you liked the chapter don't forget to drop me some stones!

A/N: And so the domain expands. Akira is truly someone who thrives when pushed. And let me just say this. Domains are bullshit strong. But they will appropriate drawbacks don't worry. Biggest one is your technique being burnt when your domain gets broken, leaving you unable to use it. Domains are almost always all-or-nothing attacks.

What did you think about Akira's domain expansion? I would like to know.