Jujutsu Kaisen: Nozomi no Sora

"Click."

A crisp sound, like precise gears meshing in the void.

The wheel above Mo Xuluo's head slowly rotated one notch.

Gojo Satoru's pupils contracted slightly. He knew what that meant—the shikigami, Demon Lord, was completing its "analysis."

The adaptation mechanism of the Demon Void is of two types. The first is that it gradually adapts to this type of attack after enduring multiple identical attacks; the second is that it spends a period of time analyzing the attack after it has been attacked, thereby completing the adaptation.

"It's been dragging on for too long..."

Gojo Satoru muttered to himself, his voice devoid of its usual flippancy.

His gaze shifted from the corpse of Hei Hui lying on the ground.

The boy's pale face was devoid of color in the moonlight, and the black curse marks that had once covered his cheeks had receded like a receding tide.

Suddenly, Mo Xuluo raised the Demon-Slaying Sword high and slashed it down fiercely at his head!

Before the sword even arrived, the sharp pressure of the sword had already torn a deep crack in the ground.

Gojo Satoru retreated rapidly.

He turned his head at the last second, the sword blade grazing his nose. Not knowing the extent to which Mo Xuluo had analyzed his spell, he dared not be careless in the slightest.

Mo Xuluo was already able to move freely in the information torrent of the "Boundless Void".

However, this does not mean that it has completely adapted to the "no limit" technique. If it continues to drag on until it fully analyzes the structure of the "no limit", then the inviolable absolute defense will also fail against it.

Because of Su Nuo's interference, the best opportunity to kill it in one fell swoop was missed...

Gojo Satoru glanced at Fushiguro Megumi lying on the ground not far away.

"Sukuna's soul shrank back, pushing Fushiguro Megumi's consciousness to the surface. That guy didn't unleash his domain until he was hit, was it because he couldn't?"

It shouldn't be...

Does he think he can't beat me in a battle of domains, or is he testing whether I dare to kill Fushiguro Megumi?

Never mind that for now...

Gojo Satoru raised his head and looked at the Demon Lord, who was slowly regenerating and whose aura was becoming increasingly ferocious.

"There's no way to take it slow—"

He took a deep breath, his inner magical power surging. He raised his right hand, fingers spread, aiming at the enormous shikigami.

"Phase."

"Prajnaparamita".

"Pillar of Light"

The deep incantation was uttered from Gojo Satoru's lips, resonating with the power of the incantation.

The crimson sphere of light rapidly expanded in his palm, and the terrifying repulsive force caused the surrounding air to groan in agony.

"Surgery Reversal—"

"Hah!"

boom!!!

A crimson beam of light, several meters in diameter, roared toward Moxu Luo. Moxu Luo let out a hoarse roar, crossed his arms in front of him, and forcefully withstood the "He" attack, which was enhanced to 120% output by chanting a spell.

At the epicenter of the explosion, Mo Xuluo's upper body was instantly blasted to pieces, but the next second, flesh buds began to sprout from the edges of those broken limbs, regenerating and healing at a speed visible to the naked eye, stubbornly holding on amidst the aftershocks of "He".

Gojo Satoru narrowed his eyes, his six eyes capturing the changes in the flow of cursed power on the other person.

"Has it already started to reduce the damage...? Not an instant adaptation, but a gradual reduction. If this continues, 'He' will become completely ineffective against it."

So, the only way to defeat it in one fell swoop is with just one move—

Use unlimited "zi"!

He slowly raised his hands, and the azure "Azure" on his left hand and the scarlet "Radiance" on his right hand appeared simultaneously. The two diametrically opposed forces intertwined and swirled before him, gradually merging into a deep, almost ethereal purple.

"Nine Principles".

"Polarized light."

"Ugly and the Statement"

"Between the inside and outside."

The instant the incantation was cast, Gojo Satoru flicked out a point of light from his fingertips!

"Imaginary form—"

""water chestnut"!"

The purple light engulfed it, and the sphere of light collapsed in Mo Xuluo's chest before exploding with a deafening roar! The shockwave swept across the ground, shattering the entire area. The light explosion blasted into the mountain wall, creating a spherical cavity with a diameter of 100 meters. Tens of thousands of tons of rock were annihilated into dust in the interplay of attraction and repulsion.

Then.

When the light faded, the night wind swept up the dust, dispelling the lingering smoke, and everything returned to calm.

All that remained on the riverbank was a devastated ruin, and the lonely figure standing beside Fushiguro Megumi's shadow.

Gojo Satoru's white hair was ruffled by the wind, and his six deep blue eyes gleamed faintly in the night.

"So, how long are you going to keep playing dead?"

He suddenly spoke, his voice not loud, but it clearly cut through the silence of the night.

"Now that my spell is broken, shouldn't it be easier to strike? You probably still have some trump cards up your sleeve. Hurry up, don't make me rush you!"

The "Fushiguro Megumi" lying on the ground moved.

The boy's lips suddenly parted into an exaggerated smile. He slowly sat up, raised his hand to scratch his head, and moved as casually as if he had just woken up in the afternoon.

"It's pointless now," Sukuna said through Fushiguro Megumi's words. He looked up at Gojo Satoru, his eyes filled with a calm and composed demeanor. "Even if I activate 'Demon-Slaying Chef' right now, you have a way to stop it, don't you?"

Gojo Satoru's lips curled slightly, and there was no pretense in that smile.

"Of course. I suddenly thought of a very interesting move—"

"You didn't just think of that, did you?" Sukuna interrupted him, her gaze falling on the still lingering magical energy fluctuations on Gojo Satoru. "You've already finished it, haven't you? It's amazing that you could come up with such a deadly method."

In fact, the very next second after Gojo Satoru's technique ended, it was repaired by him in a rather absurd way.

Gojo Satoru did not deny it.

Looking at Su Nuo before him, at this thousand-year-old curse that had taken over the student's body, he suddenly felt somewhat disheartened.

Su Nuo propped himself up on his knees, dusted himself off, looked around at the riverbank he had destroyed with his own hands, and suddenly laughed.

"I won't look for reasons, after all, I came here specifically for this brat."

"But now that we've seen all the interesting things, there probably won't be anything more interesting to see next." He spread his hands, seemingly somewhat helpless. "A loss is a loss. I admit you're very strong, Gojo Satoru."

Gojo Satoru revealed a smug smile, a smile so bright it was almost blinding.

"I already said I'm the strongest, didn't I? You're not saying this now to make me lower my guard, are you?"

"Shut up."

Su Nuo stared blankly at the dark night sky before him, his eyes filled with an unfathomable calm.

"Standing at the pinnacle of an era, the loneliness that comes with it, I suppose you think so too, Gojo Satoru," he said slowly, his voice carrying a strange, almost pitying tone. "What a greedy fellow."

The night wind ruffled the stray hairs on Su Nuo's forehead.

"I stand at the pinnacle of a thousand years ago. I understand the kind of loneliness you speak of, but I feel nothing about it."

I eat what I want, kill what I want, and play with anyone who seems interesting. I'll while away the rest of my life with humans—that's my way of life.

He turned his head and looked at Gojo Satoru.

"So in my eyes, you're no different from those stupid guys."

Being challenged because of your own strength is a kind of satisfaction; those challengers want to gain recognition from you, and that is also a kind of satisfaction.

"Since you've already gained so much, why are you still putting on a smiling face to hide your depression and unhappiness... What else could you possibly want?"

Gojo Satoru tilted his head, stuck out his little finger and picked at his ear, seemingly not wanting to think about these questions at all.

Su Nuo looked at him and suddenly smiled: "Forget it, with your personality, you're going to die sooner or later anyway."

"Everyone has to die eventually." Gojo Satoru smiled, then his tone became serious, and a cold killing intent rose from his body, pressing down on the surrounding air as if it were a physical force. "The subjugation ritual is over."

If I kill you now, you'll really be dead.

Don't worry about Hui; I'll find a way to get her back.

He paused, then took a step forward.

"Is there anything else you want to say before you die?"

Su Nuo still wore that maniacal smile, as if he wasn't the one about to be killed.

"That's all."

"I see."

Gojo Satoru spoke calmly, then extended his hand.

The edge of his palm was filled with a magical power powerful enough to sever everything.

"Bye now."

A karate chop.

The sound of something cutting through the air broke the silence of the night.

The boy lost his balance and collapsed onto the cold ground with a thud.

In the distance, a crow perched on a bridge pier was startled and took flight, flapping its wings as it soared into the night sky.

Its eyes reflected Gojo Satoru's lonely figure, and the student lying in a pool of blood who would never rise again.

Far away in another dark corner of the country, in front of a giant screen, the view shared with the crows was mysteriously severed.

The image displayed on the screen then went out, turning into complete darkness.

She turned around to face the carved screen, a graceful smile on her lips as always.

"Dear directors," her voice echoed in the spacious Japanese-style room, "are you satisfied with the viewing?"

Behind the screen, a rustling sound of discussion came from within, like a swarm of snakes wriggling among withered leaves.

A moment later, the whispering session ended with an elderly man clearing his throat.

An aged yet authoritative voice slowly spoke: "Issue a proclamation—"

"Firstly, since Ryomen Sukuna and his vessel have been confirmed dead, Hisahito Itadori's death sentence has been rescinded."

"Secondly, the fact that Xia Youjie is alive has been confirmed, and he has been sentenced to death again. This Kyoto Incident has been confirmed to be the work of Xia Youjie."

"Thirdly, it was determined that Genichi Nishio colluded with Natsuyuki Suke to launch indiscriminate attacks in areas of Kyoto, resulting in casualties among civilians and high school personnel, and he was sentenced to death."

Mingming's smile remained unchanged, but the fingers hanging at her sides tightened slightly for a moment.