Gaiden - Zenin Zoro 12

A chilling figure appeared, and a heap resembling a grave of human and beast bones piled up like a tower. An enormous, unidentified mouth revealed its white teeth within the temple of malice.

A temple that imprisons and governs demons.

It was a Domain Expansion that manifested a real-space innate domain without dividing the space.

Domain Expansion, hailed as the pinnacle of jujutsu. Among them, manifesting an innate domain directly in reality without dividing the space was considered a divine feat, impossible for humans, even among jujutsu sorcerers.

Can you paint a picture in empty air without a canvas or paper?

Can you make a flower bloom without a stem, leaves, calyx, or even roots?

Can you contain water without a vessel such as a bottle or a pot?

A Domain Expansion that does not divide space is such a feat.

However, for some, the term 'impossible' is merely a barrier to be overcome.

Ryomen Sukuna had effortlessly surpassed the barrier of 'impossible.'

And so had Zenin Zoro.

Though a Domain Expansion that did not divide space was indeed rare throughout the history of jujutsu, Zenin Zoro had already experienced such a domain once.

And he had also defeated it.

Just as the unavoidable slash of "Kai" and "Hachi" was about to tear Zoro's body to pieces, Zoro took a step toward the temple of Malevolent Shrine with his right foot.

Then, he unleashed his Conqueror's Haki.

Boom!

The powerful Conqueror's Haki burst forth from Zoro's entire body and collided with the Malevolent Shrine.

Sukuna smirked as he felt the sensation of domains clashing.

"Oh. So you have some sort of countermeasure for a domain, do you?"

Well, there must be some sorcerers in this era who can use domains.

'That guy must have prepared for such situations too.'

Sukuna watched the situation leisurely, not even considering the possibility of losing in a domain battle.

Rumble!

The Conqueror's Haki and Malevolent Shrine fiercely clashed. Cursed energy and Haki intertwined, and crimson-black lightning struck the ground around them.

Creak, creak.

With the sensation of space twisting, the two powerful energies made a scratching sound as they fought for dominance.

Sukuna's eyes widened at the sensation he was experiencing for the first time in his life. The smile that had crept onto his face, as if watching a child's amusing prank, quickly hardened.

Clang, clang!

The edges of the Malevolent Shrine were being pushed back.

Although it was a Domain Expansion that did not divide space, it naturally couldn't manifest the entire Malevolent Shrine throughout the real world. Without setting additional constraints to expand its range, the Malevolent Shrine's range was limited to a maximum radius of 200 meters.

Conqueror's Haki, on the other hand, could reach from one country to another if a sufficiently powerful user focused solely on its range and power, disregarding precision.

Crack, crackle!

The Conqueror's Haki simultaneously pressured the 200-meter radius Malevolent Shrine from both inside and outside.

Of course, as the unequivocal King of Curses, Ryomen Sukuna could arbitrarily change the nature of his domain expansion. He could lower its power and increase the durability of the domain's interior and exterior. In fact, Sukuna did just that.

However, maintaining a domain expansion requires an enormous amount of cursed energy. Even as the King of Curses, he could not maintain the domain expansion indefinitely, especially when he wasn't in his complete form.

In contrast, the Conqueror's Haki doesn't deplete at all by simply being unleashed.

Thus, the outcome was already determined.

Screeeech!

With a sound like a massive glass shattering, the Malevolent Shrine vanished from the world. A storm-like wind from the impact swept over both fighters.

Whoooooooosh—

Sukuna held his wildly fluttering pink bangs with one hand and, for the first time in a thousand years, felt the unfamiliar emotion of tension.

The Malevolent Shrine had been broken.

Throughout his life, both a thousand years ago and now, such a thing had never happened to Ryomen Sukuna.

Even as the wind fluttered his collar, Zoro never took his eyes off Ryomen Sukuna.

Domain Expansion is the manifestation of one's innate domain, essentially a projection of that person's mental landscape. Thus, by carefully observing a Domain Expansion, one can also understand the person's psyche.

Of course, when an opponent expands their domain, there's usually no time to leisurely explore their psyche. You're too busy countering the Domain Expansion.

Unless you have the ability to sufficiently counter a domain and are determined to scrutinize the opponent's psyche beforehand.

Zoro's gray eyes shone sharply. From the moment Sukuna first expanded his domain, through the collision, the pushing, and finally the disappearance of the domain, Zoro had never taken his gaze or Observation Haki off Sukuna.

There was something he needed to know.

'Sukuna's soul and Yuji's soul.'

The definite boundary between the two.

While physical wounds can be healed with Reverse Cursed Technique, wounds to the soul are different. They are difficult to heal with any technique and may result in damage to the self more terrible than death, even from a small wound.

Therefore, Zoro couldn't afford to harm even a hair of Itadori Yuji's soul. If possible, he couldn't harm the body either. Instead, he had to be sure to cut Sukuna's soul.

'Completely eradicating the presence of the 14 fingers would be best, but…'

That would require killing the host body, Yuji. Ryomen Sukuna and Itadori Yuji are somewhat intertwined. The complete removal of Sukuna would be fatal to Yuji.

'Even if it's not all 14 fingers, removing some or at least enough to keep Sukuna from surfacing for a while…'

He would cut. By discerning the boundary of the soul.

This was why Zoro didn't kill Sukuna when he had the chance earlier. Sukuna needed to use his Domain Expansion for the distinction between the souls to be clearer.

From the beginning, Zoro had never considered killing Yuji along with Sukuna.

"Zoro-senpai!"

After all, Yuji is his junior.

Zoro gripped Wado Ichimonji firmly. Beneath the black bandana, his gray eyes blazed with resolute determination.

'I saw it.'

Though it was brief, Zoro had clearly seen the boundary between the souls in the one before him.

That was enough.

All that remained was to cut it.

Zoro slashed through the air with his two swords and charged forward.

"The nine mountains and eight seas constitute one world!"

The Conqueror's Haki surged over the three swords like black waves. Feeling the tremor in the air, Ryomen Sukuna flinched and turned to flee.

Booom!

Suddenly, red energy appeared in front of the retreating Sukuna, blocking his path. The force was strong enough that it could have sent his entire body flying. Sukuna barely managed to stop in time.

Sukuna glared at the culprit who had launched the red energy, at his escape route: none other than Satoru Gojo. The Gojo from Zoro's world took off his sunglasses and smiled mischievously at Sukuna.

'No way.'

Reading Gojo's lips, Ryomen Sukuna ground his teeth. They were ganging up on him.

Geto's curses swarmed in like bees, blocking any remaining escape routes. Under normal circumstances, Sukuna could have dealt with them with a mere flick of his fingers, but his current situation was unfavorable.

As Sukuna hesitated, Zoro had already reached him.

"A thousand of them form a small chiliocosm! And when I gather and cube that chiliocosm, there's nothing I can't cut!"

Three Sword Style Secret Technique! Zoro quickly rotated his two swords in a circular motion.

To slice through the boundary between the two souls, as fleetingly glimpsed.

"Billion-fold World Trichiliocosm!"

The black Haki and sword energy seemed to converge into a single point before Sukuna's eyes.

Then, it exploded into a blinding white light.

Shiiiiiiiing!

"Great Billion-fold World Trichiliocosm!!!!"

"Aaaaaargh!!!!!"

Sukuna screamed in agony as if his entire world was being severed. It wasn't physical pain. It was the pain of the soul. His soul had been cut.

No, this can't be happening. Overwhelmed by a sense of impending doom, Sukuna struggled to maintain his consciousness. If this continued, his soul—

Bam!

A powerful burst of Armament Haki from Zoro's palm struck Sukuna's abdomen. The combined force of the external impact and the internal destruction from the Haki, named Sakura, shook Sukuna's innards and cursed energy, causing him to vomit blood.

A person's cursed energy emanates from the abdomen. Therefore, attacking the abdomen can make it difficult to use cursed energy. This was to prevent any possible trickery.

Ryomen Sukuna's soul was sinking. His consciousness was fading, and he was losing control.

'Damn... you...'

Through the excruciating pain of his essence shattering, Sukuna cursed Zoro, with a flicker of green hair in his vision.

'Next time, no matter what... I will...'

That was as far as he got. Sukuna completely lost the control he had barely gained over the body through the consumption of the fingers.

Ssshhh. The black markings on his face vanished. The expression twisted in pain became peaceful as he collapsed.

Zoro caught Yuji's falling body with both hands. He waited tensely for a moment.

Flicker. Pink eyes opened.

Yuji shot up, spilling out worried words to Zoro in a rush.

"Whoa! That damn Sukuna! Zoro-senpai, are you okay— Ah! My stomach…!"

Ah, it's Yuji. Zoro sighed in relief and untied the bandana from his head. Itadori Yuji, clutching his stomach and groaning, eventually flopped back onto the ground.

"My stomach hurts so much…."

"Sorry."

Though it was a measure to prevent Sukuna from using cursed energy, it was true that Yuji got hurt. Yuji, eyes wide, waved his hands.

"No, no, it's not your fault, Senpai— Ah!"

"…Don't talk."

Zoro sheathed all his swords and lifted Yuji in a princess carry.

"…Huh?"

Yuji, momentarily confused, then spoke in a tiny voice.

"Uh, Senpai. This is kind of embarrassing…"

"Stay still. You can't even stand."

"That's— Ow. Even if it's not your fault— Ow!"

"Got it, just don't say anything."

Let's go to the school. Get treated by Shoko. Zoro said this as he started walking. Gojo and Geto appeared and guided Zoro in the right direction.

Cradled in Zoro's arms, Itadori Yuji thought back to the atrocities committed by Sukuna while possessing his body.

Recalling everything Sukuna had done in Shibuya from beginning to end, Yuji felt his body go limp. With a sense of relief, a deep feeling of gratitude washed over the boy's mind.

At least today, no one died.

...

[Author's Note]

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