Chapter 38. Cicada (Part 2)

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In the next moment, blood began to form between Choso's clasped hands, and his Blood Manipulation technique flared with blinding intensity. The crimson droplets, like ruby rain, swirled around his hands, creating intricate patterns. Suddenly, the blood transformed into a lethal arrow that shot towards the white-haired monk's heart with incredible speed. The arrow pierced through the air, generating a sonic wave that rippled across the surroundings. The androgynous monk barely had time to put up a block before the arrow struck him, leaving a deep wound from which blood flowed.

The true power of the Blood Manipulation technique was beyond the comprehension of even experienced users like the current heir of the Kamo clan. It was even more elusive to those who had never encountered it before.

Wasting no time, Choso swung his hands to the side, hurling the monk away with the arrow. His movements were swift and confident, like a predator pouncing on its prey. He then directed the same arrow towards Kenjaku. The scarred man quickly retreated, and the arrow only managed to carve a deep furrow into the ground, raising dust in its wake.

Despite the miss, Choso didn't hesitate for a moment. He dashed forward with astonishing speed, sharply swinging his arm upward, causing the blood left from the arrow to churn the earth. Kenjaku momentarily lost his balance, giving the "elder brother" a chance to deliver a crushing blow. What followed was a storm of rapid and powerful attacks. Each strike from Choso was precise, swift, and filled with lethal intent.

Unfortunately for Choso, no matter how fast and accurate his movements were, Kenjaku blocked them with ease. His movements were smooth and assured, each block executed with minimal effort, as if he were toying with his opponent. Kenjaku seemed invincible, his confidence and skill unshakable.

"Don't strain yourself," Kenjaku said with his trademark serene smile. "You're already exhausted."

Yuta, standing nearby, watched the fight. His cold face showed no trace of emotion. He might not fully understand what was happening, but if this strange guy with the Blood Manipulation technique was fighting his enemy and claiming Itadori as his brother, then there was no need to focus on him. What mattered more was...

"I must retrieve the Prison Realm... no matter what," he thought, and his hands began to glow with cursed energy.

Panda, noticing the change in his comrade, shouted loudly and swung his arm:

"Drumming…"

Even with a simple swing, the air around vibrated.

Unfortunately for him, before he could finish his strike, the temperature, which had soared due to the explosion, suddenly plummeted.

"Ice Formation … Frost Calm!" shouted the white-haired monk, who had rejoined the battle just in time, directing a stream of icy air towards his enemies.

In the next moment, the area was engulfed in ice. Cold whirlwinds swirled around, coating everything in sparkling ice crystals. The ground was instantly covered in a thick layer of frost, and the air hung heavy with icy dust, creating the illusion of a frozen world where every breath scorched the lungs. Nearly every sorcerer's body was buried under the ice.

Despite the powerful effect of the cursed technique, before the white-haired monk or Kenjaku could say anything, a human-sized shadow knocked the latter off his feet. Yuta, as befitted a special-grade sorcerer, almost instantly broke free from the icy shackles and attacked the person holding his teacher.

Yuta slashed his sword from top to bottom, but Kenjaku surprisingly dodged swiftly, shifting slightly to the side. The failed sword strike abruptly changed trajectory, aiming to slice Suguru Geto's body in half. Unfortunately, before Yuta could land the blow, he had to stop to block another "frosty" attack.

Moving with lightning speed, Yuta dodged the frigid air. Immediately, he lunged towards Kenjaku again. The blade of his sword glimmered in the ice's light, leaving thin lines of frost in the air with each swing. He delivered rapid strikes, each calculated to defeat the enemy instantly, but his opponents proved to be formidable.

The white-haired monk attacked with icy bursts, creating barriers and slowing Yuta's movements. Every time Yuta got too close, the monk would instantly surround himself and Kenjaku with icy walls, fending off the attacks. His technique was graceful and deadly, each gesture accompanied by a wave of cold, turning the battlefield into an icy hell.

Kenjaku, on the other hand, barely used his powers, occasionally deflecting blows with minimal effort. He seemed to be toying with Yuta, smoothly and confidently dodging all his attacks. Yuta quickly got the sense that his opponent knew exactly when to retreat and when to strike. Every block was flawless, every strike precise. Kenjaku used Yuta's strength against him, directing his attacks into the void and countering with his own.

"Enough!" the monk exclaimed irritably, whether addressing Yuta or Kenjaku standing behind him was unclear. Immediately after, he knelt down, raising one hand. "Ice Formation: Icefall!"

In the next moment, a massive amount of ice surged towards Yuta. Powerful streams of frozen water, like a crashing icy waterfall, rushed straight at him. The ice formed gigantic whirls and spikes, ready to pierce and tear apart everything in their path.

Yuta understood that retreating wasn't an option, as his comrades, still buried in the ice, were behind him. Time seemed to stretch, each moment elongated as if the universe itself decided to slow down. The icy spikes were nearly upon him, the cold air searing his skin, and thoughts of protecting his friends flashed through his mind. His focus turned to the ring on his finger, preparing to summon Rika for help, when suddenly, all the ice shattered. Huge chunks flew in all directions, turning into sparkling crystals. Immediately after, the temperature around him soared again.

At that moment, two figures appeared beside him.

A whirlwind of energy and fire illuminated the battlefield, heralding the arrival of the last special-grade sorcerer — Yuki Tsukumo! Her presence was overwhelming, exuding strength and confidence, her energy saturating the air, creating an aura of unshakeable power around her.

Standing slightly apart from the tall blonde was the strongest living sorcerer — Sukehiro Yami!

***

A few minutes earlier.

I saw the endless night sky. Boundless and so distant, it loomed above me like the purest and calmest ocean. Not a single cloud marred the night, and only the majestic silver moon dared to reside there, casting its soft light upon the earth.

Next came hearing. I could hear water dripping somewhere nearby, and far-off, muffled screams of people. These sounds pierced through the destruction, a reminder that life continued even after catastrophe.

Then came smell. The sharp scent of smoke, coal, and metal flooded my senses. The stench of grime surrounded me. After regaining the ability to smell, I became aware of taste. My mind instantly registered the scalding metallic bitterness of blood in my mouth.

Finally, touch returned. I could feel my own body again. My hands, legs, torso, head… Everything felt strangely unfamiliar after what had happened. It felt so… alien.

"Shit..." was all I could manage.

Getting to my feet, I looked around. Complete devastation. The explosion and the clash of our powers had turned Shibuya into a battlefield where nothing living remained. Buildings lay in ruins, their skeletons jutting out of the ground like the ribs of a giant beast. Streets were filled with debris, overturned cars, and charred trees. Fires still burned in some places, casting an eerie glow on the destruction.

I examined my own body. My clothes were torn and charred; I was essentially naked. My skin was covered in burns and cuts. Many of the wounds looked fresh but weren't bleeding—they had already begun to heal thanks to the reverse cursed technique.

I might not have felt pain, but that was only because all the nerves that could register pain had long since dulled. More precisely, they had burned out in the hell we had created. The thermal damage to nerve endings and continuous cycles of regeneration had led to atrophy of pain sensitivity. The numerous cycles of burning and healing with the reverse cursed technique had pushed my body to its limits. Cells regenerated so quickly that it resulted in a heightened metabolism and depletion of the body's resources. Muscle tissues had been damaged and regenerated so many times that microscopic changes in muscle structure made them less elastic. My skin, burned and restored, was covered in scars and patches where pigmentation was disrupted.

Under normal circumstances, a person would have died from such stress and overload, but my superhuman body, bolstered by my thirty-five-minute "Enhancement," gave me the strength to continue.

To be honest, even though I had prepared to run, I still almost died. And when I say "almost died," I mean I had never been so close to death in my entire life. At one point, even the reverse cursed technique couldn't keep up with restoring my lost body parts. The positive cursed energy filling me at that moment couldn't fully compensate for the destructive impacts, and I felt my life slipping away.

I think the fact that I survived is a miracle, only possible due to my unique "Enhancement" and the new limits of the reverse cursed technique. I don't even know whom to thank — God or the old lady Fate — but several lucky coincidences occurred.

First: I maintained "Enhancement" for over thirty-five minutes, which made me strong and durable enough to survive without becoming crippled from a direct hit of Satoru's "Blue" and "Red."

Second: my "Enhancement" operated on "thermal energy," which granted me increased resistance to anything related to "elevated particle vibration," meaning any "fire attacks." After thirty-five minutes of enhancement, my body had become like a superconductor, using thermal energy to fortify tissues with maximum efficiency. This led to significantly increased heat resistance and the ability to endure extreme stress.

Third: due to a sort of "enlightenment" during the first activation of Sukuna's domain expansion, my understanding of cursed energy reached a completely different level, and the efficiency of my reverse cursed technique multiplied several times over.

And although I should be glad that I survived a micro-version of "Hiroshima," the rapid depletion of cursed energy and the nauseating tension in my body didn't allow such joy. A small battle with Uraume, expelling Dagon, fighting Jogo, the brawl with Sukuna, the Domain Expansion, and my last little maneuver using the reverse cursed technique cost me nearly eighty percent of my cursed energy reserve.

"The thought that I could use three domain expansions seemed overly naive… Besides, I spent much more cursed energy in the last minute than I did the entire evening before that…"

To top it all off, the time for my enhancement was nearing its critical limit.

At that moment, a silhouette appeared in the smoke of destruction. Slowly, calmly, step by step, Sukuna emerged before me. The moon seemed to illuminate his path on purpose, highlighting his sinister aura. His four eyes gleamed, reflecting the bloodthirsty pleasure he felt. Fortunately, Sukuna's right half looked like a roasted chicken, or else I really would have been out of my depth. Plus, my burning spear had done much more damage to his soul than his body... I could see that through "Spiritual Sight."

"Howdy!" Sukuna greeted, his voice dripping with undisguised pleasure. "You proved to be tougher than that cursed spirit."

So Jogo perished in the fire after all. At least there's some good news.

"Although that guy exceeded his limits, he still lacked the selfishness that you and I share," the King of Curses sneered.

"He was far more selfish than me," I said, shaking my head as I steadied my breathing. By now, most of my wounds had healed.

"Don't sell yourself short," Sukuna laughed. "You've set a goal for yourself, one you're willing to risk everything for and claw your way back from death itself… Honestly, I was pleasantly surprised by the level of your reverse cursed technique."

A goal? Oh, right… In the heat of fighting this bastard, I had almost forgotten about that. As I prepared to call for Kokichi, I realized my earpiece, which had been stuck to my ear, was missing.

I focused instantly and sensed Yuta's cursed energy a few kilometers to the west. The fact that he hadn't rushed here headlong meant he was dealing with someone... If that was the case, it was time to wrap things up here.

"Nice to hear that from you, but I've already stayed here too long. So how about you let Yuji take over, so I don't have to burn my junior's body any further?" I suggested to Sukuna, starting to stretch my stiff body.

"I don't think we're fin…"

Before Sukuna could finish, he coughed up a pint of blood and staggered slightly. At that moment, heat began to rise from the depths of the King of Curses' body. In less than a second, the heat turned into a searing flame, burning him from the inside out.

Aspect Six: Fire Infusion

I had fought Sukuna for over fifteen minutes, and it was no "friendly" match like with Todo, but a genuine battle to the death, more intense than anything I had ever experienced before. The number of times I "injected" my flame into the King of Curses' body was countless. How did Sukuna not notice this? Simple — Deception and Diversion! Even the King of Curses was more focused on the soul-damaging properties of my fire, making it easy to divert his attention from something as "insignificant" as "residual cursed energy" after my strikes, which "seemed" to disappear instantly.

"Bastard," Sukuna glared at me, and then his body was engulfed in white flames.

"I recall saying something like, 'Don't make excuses later about not using 'Cleaving.'' Didn't I?" I said, watching as Sukuna's soul struggled against my fire. "Honestly, I wasn't sure until the end if I could defeat you, but when you decided to use your 'Fire'... I couldn't help but smile."

"I still don't regret it," Sukuna replied softly with a raspy voice. "On the contrary, it just got more interesting…"

With that, the tattoos disappeared from Itadori's face.