Chapter 163: Chapter 163: Swinging
"The time's almost up."
The summoning technique relied on the host's cursed energy to sustain it. Once the energy ran out, the technique would disappear.
But the situation now was different. Zenin Toji had taken over Ebinara Jinji's body. Once Ebinara Jinji's cursed energy was drained, Zen'in Toji would likely lose his mind and turn into a killing machine that acted purely on instinct.
After ruffling the hair of his unlucky son—whom he had barely seen a few times—Zen'in Toji suddenly reached into his own chest and crushed his own heart.
"!?"
"What!?"
Fushiguro Megumi shot to his feet, staring in shock at the man who collapsed in front of him with a faint smile.
As he fell, his face changed back to Ebinara Jinji's, but Zenin Toji's image was now etched into Fushiguro Megumi's mind.
"Hey! Fushiguro!" Itadori Yuji, just as shocked, ran over to his friend. "What the hell? Why did he suddenly kill himself?"
"I don't know…"
"You okay?" Itadori noticed something was off about Megumi's expression.
"I don't know why, but I feel kind of sick." Fushiguro Megumi frowned.
What the hell was with that guy? He suddenly showed up, asked a bunch of weird questions, and then just killed himself.
"Either way, he's dead now." Nanami Kento walked over, sword in hand. "We don't have time to dwell on this. We need to go help the others."
"If I had to guess, Gojo is probably about to break through the barrier." He looked up at the sky, still shrouded by the cursed veil.
"This attack is almost over."
…
"So, up until now, it was still just a cursed womb? No wonder it was so weak."
Zenin Naobito stroked his beard as he looked at the red figure floating in midair. He didn't seem the least bit concerned about the enemy's power-up.
The previous, slug-like body had been shed, revealing a fully formed special-grade curse. It still had an octopus-like head, but now it had a muscular human-shaped body. A pair of red demon wings had also sprouted from its back, making it far more intimidating.
Hikigaya Hachiman, barely standing with the support of a pillar, also looked up at Dagon. His dead-fish eyes were filled with exasperation.
He grumbled internally, *Why couldn't they have sent this guy to fight Hayashizaki and get himself killed? Now look what happened. They pissed him off.*
His gaze subtly shifted to the old man in the white training uniform standing nearby. Deep down, he hoped the guy had special-grade strength—enough to take on the monster floating above them.
Because if not, the sorcerers here might not be able to hold out until Hayashizaki arrived for backup.
Zenin Naobito glanced at Hikigaya Hachiman's injured arm. Seeing that he was in no shape to continue fighting, he spoke in a cold tone.
"If you're injured, get the hell out of the way. Don't be a burden."
"Okay."
Hikigaya Hachiman happily ran to a spot far enough away but still within view of the battlefield and sat down.
Yukinoshita Yukino also joined the others. Seeing that Hikigaya Hachiman had temporarily withdrawn from the fight, she felt a little relieved.
"Yukinoshita-san, long time no see!" Kugisaki Nobara greeted her with a smile.
"Yeah, it's been a while." Yukinoshita Yukino nodded slightly. "But this isn't really the best place to catch up."
"It's fine, it's fine! This guy won't last long! After this, we can find a bubble tea shop and chat properly!" Kugisaki Nobara grinned confidently.
Ino Takuma, standing nearby, was momentarily dazed by the black-haired girl's stunning looks. His mind wandered.
Is there such a pretty girl among the first-years at Jujutsu High? Is she the new transfer student? But I thought that was supposed to be a guy?
Before he could figure it out, Dagon, who was floating midair, raised a hand and extended one finger.
A massive sphere of water formed at his fingertip, spinning rapidly like a Rasengan before dropping down.
The moment it touched the ground, the water sphere exploded, turning into a surging wave that rushed toward the group.
From a distance, Hikigaya Hachiman shouted in shock, "Water Style: Great Waterfall Jutsu?!"
"Oh?" Zenin Naobito's mustache twitched as he grinned, raising his hands to summon blank paper-like frames of cursed energy, using them as shields in front of him.
The crashing wave slammed into him, but instead of washing him away, the impact seemed strangely delayed.
"Water?!" Kugisaki Nobara's face tensed as she was almost swept away. She quickly grabbed onto a support pillar, barely managing to hold her ground against the rushing current.
Yukinoshita Yukino dug her feet into the ground, creating two deep holes to anchor herself. She crossed her arms in front of her and braced against the impact head-on.
Kugisaki Nobara couldn't help but feel envious of her physical strength.
The most at ease among them was Ino Takuma, who had a bandit-style head covering. His feet seemed to be coated with chakra as he stood on the turbulent water, effortlessly gliding across the surface like he was skating on ice.
"Summoning: Sacred Beast No. 2, Spirit Turtle!"
After a while, the raging water receded, and Dagon slowly floated down from the air.
"Hey, cursed spirit! Do you know how many frames per second anime runs at?" Zenin Naobito smirked.
"I'm not just a cursed spirit. My name is Dagon," the special-grade cursed spirit, born from humanity's fear of the ocean, replied.
"In recent years, people have been chasing higher resolutions and frame rates..."
"Hanami, Jogo, and Mahito..."
"Jumping straight to 4K and boosting everything to 60 FPS..."
"We all..."
"If it were just a personal preference, that'd be fine. But now TVs are set to motion smoothing by default! It's like people have forgotten the phrase 'more harm than good.' It's honestly depressing..."
Zenin Naobito kept interrupting Dagon, ranting endlessly about anime frame rates as if he were in his own world.
Dagon finally lost his patience and roared, "We all have our own names!"
"Don't you think you're being really rude?!" Zenin Naobito shouted back.
Wow, that old man really seems like the type to only care about himself. He could've just listened properly, but no, now he's completely pissed the guy off.
From afar, Hikigaya Hachiman silently commented to himself.
Just as Dagon was about to attack, his movements suddenly stopped.
Zenin Naobito had somehow moved behind him without notice, placing a hand on his back.
The red figure froze, as if trapped inside a mirror, unable to move.
"What?" Hikigaya Hachiman stood up in surprise. "That old man... is he the same like me?!"
Should I ask him for advice on how to use my technique?
But… he looks like a really difficult person to get along with.
No, wait—what I should be thinking about right now is whether I can even get out of here alive.
Boom!
While he was distracted, a loud crash echoed as Dagon, frozen by Zenin Naobito's Projection Sorcery, was sent flying into a nearby wall, slamming into it with great force. Yukinoshita Yukino immediately followed up with a few extra attacks.
Debris scattered everywhere as a thick cloud of dust erupted, only to be split apart by a compressed jet of water.
Zenin Naobito sidestepped with ease, dodging the incoming water jet, but the supporting pillar behind him wasn't as lucky—it took a direct hit, leaving a hole the size of a bowl.
As the dust cleared, Dagon emerged unscathed, surrounded by a swirling current of water.
"A defensive water barrier… yet he can still unleash powerful attacks at the same time?" Zenin Naobito analyzed with interest. "Huge reserves of cursed energy, and a tricky technique. So, what's the best move here?"
"The answer is simple—take him down with speed before he can attack!"
The moment he finished speaking, a barrage of attacks was launched at the red figure—high-speed spinning projectiles, cursed-energy-infused spikes, invisible slashes, and all sorts of ranged strikes.
At the same time, Zenin Naobito, Ino Takuma, and Yukinoshita Yukino charged forward.
The swirling water burst outward, blocking all the long-range attacks. But before that, the white-haired elder had already appeared behind Dagon, delivering a powerful kick to its waist, sending it flying.
As the cursed spirit hurtled through the air, Ino Takuma pressed his palms together, fingers pointing forward.
"Beast Summon No.1—Kaichi!"
A point-blank cone-shaped blast was unleashed. It didn't pierce through Dagon's body entirely, but it blasted a deep hole in its abdomen.
A pale, slender hand then pressed against Dagon's body.
Yukinoshita Yukino's lips parted slightly.
The technique activated instantly. Cursed energy-fueled slashes rained down in an instant, creating a spray of blood across Dagon's body.
In the next moment, Zenin Naobito appeared at its side once again, landing a fierce kick to its thick neck, sending it flying yet again.
Kugisaki Nobara seized the opportunity and fired several nails toward the cursed spirit's landing spot. The moment it touched the ground, she clenched her fist tightly.
The cursed energy imbued in the nails detonated, swallowing Dagon in a violent blast.
"Hmph, is that all a Special Grade can do?" Zenin Naobito grinned.
Hey, hey, celebrating too early is the worst thing you can do in a fight!
Hikigaya Hachiman was amazed by the seamless teamwork of the four, but his excitement quickly turned into concern over the white-haired elder's overconfidence.
And sure enough—before the cursed energy explosion had even fully dispersed, Dagon rushed out of the smoke.
The wounds they had inflicted earlier had already healed completely.
It seemed to have locked onto Zenin Naobito, ignoring the other three entirely as it dashed straight for the proud, white-haired elder.
A massive wave surged from Dagon's hands, crashing toward them like a tsunami. The four were caught off guard and separated. Only Zenin Naobito, using his technique, managed to block the impact of the water, but in doing so, he left himself open.
Dagon, moving freely through the waves, closed in from behind.
A powerful punch landed squarely on the old man's head, sending him flying.
The water currents then dragged Zenin Naobito back toward Dagon.
"Old man!"
Thanks to the abilities granted by his spirit turtle, Ino Takuma was one of the only two unaffected by the environment. Seeing the elder being pulled back, he gritted his teeth and unleashed his strongest attack.
"Beast Summon No.4—Dragon!"
A surge of cursed energy erupted from his hands, forming a crimson Chinese dragon.
With a fierce roar, the dragon charged toward Dagon with unstoppable force.
Dagon, clamped in the jaws of the massive dragon head, spat out a mouthful of thick purple blood. After a violent shake and tear, he was slammed heavily onto the ground.
His technique was forcibly interrupted, and the raging tides vanished.
The crimson dragon beast darted through the air, slashing and crashing into its target. Compared to its massive body, the underground space felt almost too small.
"Damn it! I can't activate my technique!"
While struggling to defend against Ino Takuma's attacks, Dagon also had to deal with Yukinoshita Yukino's slashes and Kugisaki Nobara's flying nails.
In a brief moment of distraction, Zenin Naobito seized the opening, freezing him for just one second—more than enough time for the white-haired elder to unleash a flurry of punches. The stacked Cursed Energy exploded on impact, sending Dagon flying.
The red dragon snatched Dagon in midair and slammed him against the wall.
If that's the case…!
Dagon gritted his teeth, raising his hands with great effort and pressing his fists together.
"Not happening."
Zenin Naobito appeared above the dragon beast's head, stomping down on Dagon's hands, preventing him from activating his Domain.
However, even though his hand signs were blocked, a strange pattern slowly emerged on his abdomen—hidden from Zenin Naobito's view.
"Domain Expansion…"
"What?"
In a blink, Zenin Naobito realized that his surroundings had completely changed. The underground shopping area in Shinjuku had vanished, replaced by golden sands and a vast blue ocean.
The sound of gentle waves filled the air, and the salty sea breeze brushed against his skin.
A crimson figure stood on the water, its eyes finally brimming with killing intent.
"Horizon of the Captivating Skandha!"
…
"What the hell just happened?"
Hikigaya Hachiman stared blankly at the black barrier before him.
It was his first time witnessing a Domain Expansion, and before he could even process what was going on, everyone except him had been swallowed into the dark veil.
"Is this… a Curtain?"
The deadfish-eyed boy stepped forward and knocked on it. "So tough…"
"Woof!"
A sudden bark sounded behind him. Turning around, he nearly jumped out of his skin at the sight of a massive black-and-white wolf baring its fangs. Its gleaming white teeth looked like they could tear through flesh in an instant.
Luckily, a few familiar figures followed behind the beast.
"Hikigaya! It's you!" Itadori Yuji called out excitedly.
"Itadori… and Fushiguro?"
Itadori Yuji and his group had also arrived at the Domain's boundary.
Nanami Kento and Fushiguro Megumi's expressions turned serious.
"This… Someone's expanded a Domain?"
…
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