Chapter 81: Keep It Up, Big Brother Who Fights!

[Successfully killed a special-grade imaginary curse spirit, special mission completed. Do you wish to activate the reward?]

A system notification echoed in his mind, but Hayashizaki ignored it for now.

He jumped off the broken bridge and landed in front of Ryoumen Sukuna.

"You're Itadori? No, wait."

Hayashizaki raised an eyebrow and immediately dismissed his words.

The pink-haired boy standing before him, with black markings on his face and two pairs of eyes, looked identical to Yukinoshita Yukino, except for the differences in gender and appearance.

A photo sent earlier by Gojo_Satoru suddenly flashed in his mind, and he quickly realized.

"You're Ryoumen Sukuna, right?"

Hayashizaki looked at him with interest. "Fushiguro didn't mention anything about this kind of situation."

In contrast to the relaxed Hayashizaki, Ryoumen Sukuna furrowed his brows, also studying the girl who had just appeared and stolen his head.

The earlier attack, along with this cursed energy...

"Who are you?"

He asked slowly.

"Didn't you recognize me?"

Hayashizaki suddenly got playful, a mischievous smile on his face. "I'm you, don't tell me you don't even recognize yourself?"

"Hmph, acting all mysterious!"

Sukuna snorted, then grinned cruelly and rushed toward Hayashizaki. "Cursed sorcerers these days sure have guts. In just a month, two people have dared to challenge me!"

It didn't matter what you were; I'll kill you first!

Boom!

A figure was sent flying like a cannonball, crashing through the walls that supported the stone bridge. The weightless bridge surface collapsed, crashing to the ground, and dust filled the air, accompanied by strong vibrations.

Hayashizaki shook his hand and looked at the pile of rubble, clearly disappointed. "So weak? No wonder Gojo Satoru forced you to take photo him."

As soon as he finished speaking, the pile of rubble suddenly began to shake violently.

In the next moment, all the rocks were shattered into gravel, shooting in all directions.

Just as the countless pieces of flying rock were about to hit him, Hayashizaki's figure suddenly sank, as though swallowed by the shadow beneath his feet, and he vanished.

"My new clothes can't get dirty or ruined."

A teasing voice came from the remaining section of the broken bridge.

Ryoumen Sukuna, having freed himself from the pile of rocks, looked up at the black-haired girl standing at the edge of the broken bridge, hands in her pockets, with confusion and caution growing on his face.

That technique of shifting through shadows… Was that his? And what was that attack earlier?

Interesting.

Sukuna grinned, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, then rushed toward Hayashizaki's position again.

The next second, a loud crash was heard as the remaining bridge was destroyed. Hayashizaki was standing on a piece of flying debris, his hands still in his pockets.

He looked at Sukuna, who had also landed on a piece of debris, and spoke as they both descended at the same speed.

"Speaking of which, Gojo blamed me for losing a finger earlier... You should only have the strength of one finger, which makes this a bit boring."

Sukuna suddenly looked up, grinning as he swung a slashing attack toward Hayashizaki. The slash cut through the large rocks, but Hayashizaki had already disappeared.

When Ryoumen Sukuna landed with the falling debris, he quickly turned around.

Hayashizaki was standing where the special-grade imaginary curse spirit had been killed, bending down to pick up a severed finger that had been made into a waxy remnant. He casually tossed it to Sukuna.

Sukuna caught the finger and looked confused.

"What's this supposed to mean?"

"Eat it, don't be shy."

Hayashizaki had a mischievous smile on his face, clearly not concerned that doing so would make his enemy stronger. "You need to eat to have the energy to fight."

"You look confident, little brat."

Sukuna didn't refuse the enemy's gift, opening his mouth and swallowing the finger Hayashizaki had thrown him.

"So now it's two fingers, right?"

"No, it's three!"

After swallowing the third finger, Ryoumen Sukuna suddenly released a burst of massive cursed energy, sending nearby rocks flying. Feeling the cursed power filling his body, he lifted his head again, flashing a cruel smile at the still dismissive Hayashizaki. 

"You're going to pay for your foolishness and arrogance, little brat!"

Although he didn't yet know what kind of technique this arrogant little brat was using, or why her cursed energy was almost the same as his, judging from the power she displayed, it was clear she was only slightly stronger than him.

That small gap was nothing to worry about!

Ryoumen Sukuna disappeared from Hayashizaki's sight. In the next moment, a sharp sound cut through the air from above. Sukuna swiped down from above, but Hayashizaki leaned back just enough to dodge it, only to be met with a palm strike aimed at his abdomen.

Finally taking his hands out of his pockets, Hayashizaki leisurely blocked Sukuna's determined attack.

"Even if you block it, it won't matter. You're planning to shatter her hand with [Eight], right?"

Sukuna was caught off guard, and his technique was delayed by a moment. Suddenly, a sharp pain surged through his abdomen, and cursed energy shot through him from the front to the back. A mouthful of blood spilled from his lips.

Hayashizaki retracted his knee, twisted his body slightly, and with great force, delivered a swinging punch to Sukuna's face, sending him flying. He spun several times in the air before crashing to the ground.

"Three fingers and this is all you've got? Sure, your speed's improved a lot, and your cursed energy's a bit stronger, but it's nothing impressive."

Hayashizaki commented, a little disappointed.

Sukuna managed to land and quickly adjusted, but after taking that punch to the temple, his vision became hazy.

The injuries weren't the main issue. What bothered him more was...

"You seem to know a lot about my technique?"

While using reverse technique to heal himself, Sukuna seized the opportunity to ask.

"Well, I suppose so."

Hayashizaki smiled, tilting his head slightly, and an air of arrogance naturally surrounded him. "Aren't you going to attack? Try harder, you might actually hit me."

Since Sukuna first attacked Hayashizaki, the latter hadn't been hit even once, not even grazing his clothes.

...

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