Chapter 27. The Origins of Power (Part 2)

However, in the next moment, I had to quickly regroup and push off to the side, releasing a stream of tiny fireballs from my feet, half of which exploded and gave my body a boost, allowing me to dodge "The Blue". You bastard! But you're not the only one who can take advantage of the situation.

Creating a larger fireball, I exploded it behind me and flew towards Satoru. "The Strongest" clearly expected this, and, as if mocking me, released a clump of "The Red" at me, intending to push me back. Instead of taking the attack head-on, I used "Fire Teleportation" and moved to one of the fireballs I had released earlier. This placed me below Satoru, but within the effective control radius of the fireballs, allowing me to send a small bunch of them upwards.

Suddenly, Satoru stopped in his tracks. Ah, yes, you can fly. Then, over his pointing finger, "The Red" began to form, which Satoru directed at the fireballs. What an interesting situation: using "Fire Teleportation" equals defeat, not using it and I'll fall to the ground, and although I'll be unharmed, as I'm tough enough for such "entertainment," being on the ground means I won't be able to fight, as there simply won't be enough time... My "Enhancement" is about to dissipate any second now. So, what to do? Actually, I have one idea — as insane as it is cool.

Fire Teleportation.

Having moved to one of the fireballs, a clump of "The Blue" was already flying at me.

Did he decide to show off, changing the technique at the last second? Or did he not want to injure me too severely?

I had two-tenths of a second before colliding with "The Blue". The art of Sorcerers lies in subtraction. The ability to reduce the steps needed to compile and activate a technique is a true indicator of a Sorcerer's mastery. And although I can hardly be called an adept of this art, I have come to understand its essence very well.

My hands formed the "horse" seal. I didn't have time to utter the "spell" that helped me activate "Domain Expansion" as it took about a second. So, I had to invent the wheel — I set the existence time of my territory to one-tenth of a second. It's incredibly brief, almost negligible, but thanks to this, I not only managed with a simple hand seal, but also reduced the activation time of the technique to less than one-tenth of a second.

During the existence of my Territory, the only thing I could do was create a fireball above Satoru. Then, "The Grey City" around me shattered into nonexistence. "The Blue" shot downwards and slammed into the ground. And I found myself above the white-haired scoundrel.

Taking a deep breath that filled my lungs with air, I struck Satoru Gojo with a force and concentration like I had never hit anyone before. And at that very moment, the Cursed Energy that burst from my fist flared up in black.

"Black Flash!"

It was an astonishing sensation — I used all my Cursed Energy in a fraction far quicker than an instant, about one millionth of a second. It was so fast that no speed of thought or reaction could allow me to repeat it. It was about the focus I achieved by successively "Domain Expansion" in one-tenth of a second and almost instantaneously using Cursed Technique and "Fire Teleportation". My brain was so focused on a single task that everything else was executed purely on instinct, as if fate itself was guiding it.

The euphoria and sense of incredible satisfaction dissipated as quickly as they had arisen, and in the next moment, I was falling from a height of several hundred meters, having expended all my Cursed Energy and experiencing an unprecedented Spiritual fatigue.

***

"Expanding the Territory for one-tenth of a second... I must admit, that's a damn impressive idea," Satoru said with a cheerful smile, leaning against one of the few trees that had survived.

"Sometimes my genius is almost frightening," I nodded with a grin spread across my face.

"However, I'm slightly annoyed by the fact that you cold-bloodedly cut off my leg, and in the end, ground all my bones and internal organs into pulp," Satoru commented, putting on his blindfold.

"If you're fighting an opponent you neither hate nor are angered by, then there's no point in the battle," I shrugged, pausing for a couple of seconds to wait for a bit of Cursed Energy to regenerate before starting to use the "Reverse Technique" again.

"Sounds very romanticized," Satoru replied.

"That's how the life of a Sorcerer is."

"I can't understand that," Satoru chuckled. "Probably why you can get so mad at me, right?"

"Not at all," I shook my head and continued. "I'm just crazy enough to find a reason to be mad even at Mei or Maki."

"Our heartless 'young adult'," Satoru grimaced.

"Unlike the vast majority of Sorcerers, I genuinely acknowledge the fact that being in love with Maki, or liking Mei, or even worrying every time Panda, Toge, or any of the juniors go on a mission, gives me the strength and the ability to experience a full spectrum of emotions."

"Love is a selfish emotion," Satoru remarked, casually ruffling his hair.

"Yes, and I acknowledge that fact, but you don't."

"I'm the most selfish of all the selfish egoists in this selfish world!" 'The Strongest' chuckled.

"That's not true," I said with a smile spreading across my face. "If that were the case, you wouldn't justify your goals with a better future for the new generation."

"Well, unlike you, I'm an adult who thinks about the future I'm going to live in."

"Very self-satisfied," I replied shortly.

"Shut up," Satoru grumbled.

"You know, the reason I can feel such strong anger towards you is that we are diametrically opposed strong Sorcerers," I spoke after a short pause hanging between us. "You are strong because you were born that way, and everyone around considers you strong. In a way, you're a hostage to your destiny because no matter how hard you try, in the end, you'll be remembered as the 'Child of Destiny,' the one born with the 'Six Eyes' and 'Limitlessness.'"

"And you?"

"I became strong through my personality and my pursuit of strength."

"Very self-satisfied," Satoru responded.

"I don't deny that fate, to some extent, helped me become who I am. But, as you know, unlike Sorcerers, I was born weak and only became strong after many years of deprivation and hardship."

"Everyone has their own path," Satoru shrugged. "So, it's very childish to be offended or to feel anger about something like that."

"I'm not jealous, offended, or hateful towards you or anyone else for that reason. I'm just stating that we're different, and that's what gives me strength." Looking up at the sky visible through the foliage, I continued. "In the end, I feel genuine happiness knowing that thanks to my own efforts, not my background or some famous talent, I've become one of the strongest Sorcerers. To put it bluntly: no moms, no dads, no loans."

From the outside, it might seem like I'm so special, solitary, and strong-willed, disliking all the Sorcerers around because, you see, they received their power, their persona from birth. But besides the fact that this statement is at least sixty percent wrong, I also don't consider my path something special. Before me, there were examples of Sorcerers who achieved incredible results, like me, but they didn't just lack "Spirituality"; they didn't even have Cursed Techniques. It was a matter of philosophy, which nearly all living beings live by — the interconnection of personality and the circumstances in which it manifests.

And in this respect, my worldview diverges from Satoru's, and interestingly, aligns with Sukuna's... What an intriguing allegorical opposition.