Sukuna can't help but grin. The anticipation in his chest is almost too much to bear, he can barely contain his excitement.
He has been restraining himself all this time, first because he needed his Domain, and then because of that fucking bet.
But now? Right now?
It's your fault, Narauko. You should know better than to Curse me.
Sukuna spares a glance for the ongoing fight in the near distance. The Curse over there is mildly intriguing, though he dos think its use of its Cursed Technique is rather wasteful. But then, for all he knows, the Curse is fighting someone who'd be disadvantaged by area denial.
Regardless, two Sacred Beasts make for a far more enticing prospect, so he can leave that Curse for dessert.
Crouching down, Sukuna places his hand on the floor beneath his feet and he focuses, pulsing his Cursed Energy just so.
His grin grows as his hand slips further down, into his Shadow. He quickly retracts the hand, pulling out the vajra he took from that bastard.
He spares a glance to the side, seeing clearly the surprise on the woman's face. He would expect no less in one as familiar with Narauko's Technique as she no doubt is.
"It's convenient," he explains, even if he really just wants to remove those eyes for feeling any manner of surprise that he would be capable of anything. "Wasn't too hard to figure out with Narauko around."
His words are somewhat misleading. He knows that what he is doing is only superficially the same as what Narauko accomplishes through his Technique. It would be more accurate to say that Sukuna's use of his shadow for storage is an entirely new Cursed Technique merely inspired by Narauko's, not quite imitating it.
Using his shadow as a vector for a personal dimension to store things in is about as far as he has managed to mimic Narauko's abilities. Not that he's really bothered with anything else, his own Technique is far superior after all. It is just as he said.
It's convenient, even if he can't fit nearly as much as Narauko.
"Woman," Sukuna says without looking, his attention solely on the approaching Phoenix. "I'm here to save you, so it'd be best if you just left with that—" he catches himself from calling her what he really thinks, "—Friend of yours. It'd be a terrible shame if she were caught in the fire, don't you think?"
The words feel gross to say. A saviour. It makes him want to puke, but that disgust is quickly and vastly overshadowed by the anticipation of his plan's culmination.
Without checking for any kind of answer, Sukuna pours a massive chunk of Cursed Energy into his vajra and swings it down.
The crack of lightning is instant and deafening, drowning out every other sound for the second it takes to pass.
In a blink, the dive-bombing Phoenix is struck down by a towering pillar of electric blue, arcing wildly in all directions like the trunk of some great tree spearing down from the Heavens.
He's gotten better with this thing.
The Dōman follows, shooting down at him like a falling star, and Sukuna just smiles as he repeats himself, stepping into and under the attack.
With the speed they were moving at, Dōman flies past him, and Sukuna's grin stretches across his entire face as he spins around with a full swing of his arm, sending an excessively large Dismantle at the man.
Sukuna's grin breaks out into laughter as the man does exactly as he hoped he would and avoids the slash, instead of trying to block it.
Perfect~!
That attack barely had any power to it anyway. Just enough to cut through stone without issue—a trade-off to give it more size, and more importantly, more range.
Sukuna watches with poorly constrained glee as the slash continues past Dōman and into the Barrier Tengen put up around the Palace's walls, where it disperses like water thrown at a wall.
...Tsk.
Sukuna frowns at the disappointment ruining his moment. He'd assumed the Barrier to be little sturdier than a Curtain, more in place to weaken the Curse and defend from aftershocks.
He'll have to hit it harder next time. That's fine, he can do that.
The Dōman doesn't wait for him to finish his thoughts as a tail of water sprouts from his back and whips at Sukuna with a crack of the sound barrier breaking. A feeling of danger floods Sukuna's mind, and he aborts the defensive motion he was making to hastily juke to the side, not quite fast enough.
The water misses its chance to be lethal, but it still hits his shoulder and passes straight through.
Sukuna's smile returns even as he regrows the entire limb, because that felt weird. It's not like he wasn't defending himself after all, he isn't so fragile that that attack should have done as much damage as it did. Yet, it went through him as if his defence didn't even exist.
It's almost like that sword, he muses as he sends a retaliatory strike before even regaining his balance, one large Dismantle that splits halfway into a thousand tiny homing cuts. Less like destruction and more like negation? Something like that Kiyohara woman Narauko mentioned?
Genbu surprises Sukuna by ignoring his attack and just charging straight through it, taking each cut and receiving no damage whatsoever.
Amusing. Was the first dodge a bluff? Or did he think the size of the slash added to its danger?
There is obviously a trick to it, there always is, that's what's fun about Jujutsu. He doesn't have the time to figure it out though as Genbu arrives before him, sword held high.
Sukuna side-steps the downswing, Dismantles the tail of water at the base before it can bisect him and catches the upswing with one hand. The sword cuts straight through and up his arm without resistance, but for every inch it cuts, his Cleave runs rampant over the blade until it exits his shoulder shattering to pieces.
The offence matches but clearly not defence. A Technique that makes attacks unblockable? How would that define a block? If I put my back to a tree and it cuts through the bark with the same effect as my defence then it'd be more like a Technique that makes an attack ignore resistance.
Feeling something coming from his back, Sukuna sends a Cleave down to split the earth beneath them, catching Genbu off-guard enough to grab his robe, spin them around and throw the man.
Sukuna quickly takes in the sight of the half dozen chains mixed of fire and ice that were heading for his back while swinging his other arm down as it regenerates, sending another Dismantle at the airborne man.
The chains catch Genbu by the legs and pull him down, dropping him as the slash continues and cuts those same chains, and then Suzaku is upon him, flying over Genbu's head with burning bi-coloured wings trailing behind her.
Sukuna hops back from an explosive right hook and Dismantles the following blast of heat in half while Cleaving the ice trying to grow over his legs before dashing forward with a Cleave infused punch to the woman's gut.
She blocks with an elbow, but his Technique still cuts a lattice of wounds down to bone all the way to her shoulder.
He notices her wounds glowing with fire instead of blood, and being the Inheritor of a Phoenix, he can guess what that means.
He can't push the offence before the head of a water snake spears around Suzaku at his side, Genbu himself coming from the other direction, now fully armoured in turtle shell designed full plate.
Sukuna sends a Dismantle in both directions while stepping to avoid the snake, and takes note of how Genbu and the snake both twist to dodge the slashes.
The snake I've already cut, but the Dōman charged straight through a moment ago. Does that mean the snake's offence is an exchange for his defence? Or is it another bluff? Or just an instinctual reaction?
Suzaku sends a thin beam of fire at him, intense enough to light up the grass and boil the air. Another wedge-shaped Dismantle splits that attack around him harmlessly and as the snake whips after him, a flick of the wrist sends a bolt of lightning into it.
The snake impacts his chest with a heavy thud, cracking his ribcage slightly but not parting through. Even as Genbu attacks at nearly the same time, Sukuna grins at the successful gamble.
The lightning went through the water and towards the Dōman, yet the man is unharmed and the snake lost its offensive power. If he is trading defence for offence, then that would match.
Genbu's leg swings low as Sukuna thinks, and the moment he feels the limb start carving through his own legs, Sukuna retaliates with a Cleave sent from the point of impact.
Sukuna is then caught off-guard when his Cleave does nothing at all, allowing Suzaku's chains to wrap around his now legless form and haul him into the air at speed.
Does his Technique not trade defence for offence? Was he bluffing with the lightning? Why would he? I'm missing something.
Sukuna Cleaves the bindings wrapping around him, but is again caught off-guard as the Cleave fails to cut through. His Reverse Cursed Technique is also struggling to grow his legs back.
Bindings that weaken?
Suzaku slams his back into the earth, and Sukuna feels nearly every bone break, but focusing his Cursed Energy on his skull keeps him from getting concussed, allowing him to use a Vow to cut through the bindings.
Without anything limiting him, he starts back on regeneration but doesn't get far before Dōman is descending on him, still covered head to toe in that turtle shell armour.
Laughing, Sukuna forces his broken body to move to the side, avoiding his head being mushed. At the same time, a weak slash is thrown at the piercing snake while an explosion of Cursed Energy goes off under his back.
Unsurprisingly, the Dismantle is ignored by the snake entirely, though Sukuna isn't certain if that's because the Technique counted the slash as a defence or if it doesn't care about that. Either way, the explosion of Cursed Energy throws him into the air over the snake, and he heals enough in the air to twist and kick at Genbu, who blocks with a forearm.
The kick itself and its imbued Cursed Energy impacts as expected, sending the man skidding back a pace, but the Cleave embedded in it once again does nothing.
Interesting~. Selective defence?
Another Dismantle is sent for the snake before he even leaves the air, cutting it off once again.
Was the Technique deactivated, or did that slash not meet the condition to be ignored?
There isn't any kind of tell being used for activation and deactivation that he can see, so he doesn't know. The only datapoints he has to go on so far is that his own Technique has been ignored, but his Cursed Tool hasn't. There are too many options for why that could be, but at least he knows how to narrow things down now.
Gathering a large swell of Cursed Energy into his Technique as he lands, Sukuna swings a hand at the wall of blue fire taking up his entire vision.
It'd be a lot easier to figure out without this boring woman intervening.
He's already more or less figured her out, after all. One of the few lessons that freak Kamo gave him way back when was about the Principle Clans and their Inheritors.
Specifically, about how each Inheritor effectively has three Innate Techniques, depending on how one counts.
As it was explained to him, an Innate Technique is carved into one's Body and Soul, but when one Inherits a Sacred Beast, the Beast will make home in the part of the Soul that holds one's Technique. Thus, the Beast will consume the Technique and express itself through it.
However, if the Beast is in the same Host for long enough, then the Technique will get engraved on the Beast's Body through the Host's Soul. Sort of like pushing a fingernail into your skin hard and long enough that the line is still there when you pull away, and like in that example, the engraved Technique will fade overtime.
In effect, this means that an Inheritor will typically have access to both the Sacred Beast's innate abilities, as well as the previous Host's and their own Innate Technique as expressed by the Sacred Beast.
The woman's Techniques are likely something to do with 'mirroring', to account for the ice, and something to do with 'binding', for the chains that limited his own abilities.
She's boring, in other words. Certainly while being actively compared to the Dōman, whose Techniques actually needs to be figured out.
It's not all bad though, Sukuna thinks with a grin. Working under pressure is fun too. But I have other plans at the moment, so I should change how this battle is being fought. At least that Yōkai took my 'advice' and disappeared.
Clenching the vajra in his hand, Sukuna holds it while sticking his middle and ring fingers out and swings down at Genbu while his other hand swings up at Suzaku, tearing up the earth in her direction.
Genbu's freshly grown water tail shoots straight up, detaches itself and flicks to the side, redirecting the lightning away and being destroyed in the process, though that hardly seems to matter as another is immediately grown. The Dismantle is simply ignored once more, but Sukuna isn't surprised by that.
He was expecting it, even. Hence why he was already chasing after the slash, hoping to take advantage of Suzaku's momentary distraction.
Since he doesn't know what he is missing for his Technique to land yet, Sukuna trades it all away to boost his body. The sudden surge in speed on his part catches Genbu by surprise, allowing Sukuna to slip under the man's punch, grab the arm and spin.
The arm snaps at the elbow from the angle he pulls it, and not a moment later Genbu's feet are in the air. Sukuna only does one rotation before letting go, throwing the man as hard as he can, turning the turtled Clan Head into a shooting star.
The process of the fight so far has moved them around a good distance, but they started right at the edge of the Palace's grounds and haven't moved far from it.
So it only takes a blink of the eye before Genbu slams into Tengen's Barrier and shatters it instantly.
Sukuna blinks as the temperature immediately rises, but beyond assuming it to be a result of the Curse no longer being restricted, he ignores that in favour of throwing himself after Dōman.
He can feel Tengen trying to rebuild the Barrier, but the ancient Sorcerer is too slow. It likely won't matter anyway, as the Curse will probably be making an effort to keep the Barrier broken now that it knows it's been limiting it.
Regardless, Sukuna doesn't give a shit about any of that, his focus is entirely on Genbu as he catches up to the man in the air and sends a hammer blow straight into their chest.
Genbu shoots straight down like a meteor and shatters the earth, instantly cratering it hundreds of metres in every direction.
Every populated direction.
Sukuna laughs. Uncontrollably he laughs as a symphony of cries and agonised screaming sings straight back at him.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?!?!"
Sukuna turns to face the screeching bird, grinning maniacally at the manifested Beast.
"Don't you know!?!" He yells back at her as he pushes off a platform of Cursed Energy and maniacally launches himself straight back at her. "THIS IS KINDNESS!!! HAHAHAHAHA~!!"
They impact in the sky, a beak of fire and ice containing more compressed power than any attack he's received so far meeting a fist wrapped in a Cleave that is itself wrapped in thousands of Dismantles.
His laughter only grows as the city around them burns and freezes and shatters into pieces.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!! COME ONNN!!!" Sukuna roars at the woman, his glee so intense that his grin turns painful, but that only makes it better! "THIS ISN'T NEARLY ENOUGH CURSE!!!"
As much as he would love to just start the slaughter properly and without restraint, doing so would defeat the point. Slaughtering the weak wouldn't be kind after all, would it?
That thought alone renews his laughter to even greater heights, bringing him a high he hasn't felt since he slaughtered his 'family'.
So consumed by his manic joy, Sukuna feels Genbu's approach far too late to avoid it.
Cursed Energy explodes beneath both of his feet, throwing him high enough that the fist that would have taken his head and killed him only spears through his heart instead. That's fine, he doesn't need it.
"What kind of a man are you?" Genbu mutters under his breath, the scorn in his voice clear.
So naturally, Sukuna leans close and whispers the answer.
"A kind one~."
Lightning spears from the sky and destroys the snake again at the same time that Sukuna's other hand grabs onto Genbu's penetrating arm. However, Genbu smirks in triumph, and pulls himself closer to wrap Sukuna in a hug.
It is only a moment later that Sukuna's smile cramps in both joy and hate and disbelief when he feels the pulse of Cursed Energy and realises why as Genbu's hands come together behind his back.
"Domain Expansion:—"
Sukuna has only an instant to decide between dropping his Cursed Tool in order to counter-Domain, or using the Cursed Tool in order to stop its activation in the first place.
If he had known Genbu's Technique, perhaps he would have made a different choice. However, Genbu's Techniques are similar enough in function that Sukuna has had no way to know which effects are being granted by which specific Technique, making it harder to discern their exact abilities.
The Technique that Genbu was born with is called Reinforced Belief. It is a purely defensive Technique, the effect of which is both simple and complex. It is a Technique that is constantly active with only one effect.
Any and all 'interactions' imposed upon his body through Cursed Energy will only effect Genbu how he believes that they should.
Against something simple, the Technique does little. Genbu knows that fire burns, so his Technique will do nothing to stop fire from burning him.
However, for a Technique that has no visible form like Cleave? He has no personal frame of reference to tell him that such a thing should hurt, and his natural defences are high enough for him to believe wholeheartedly that something capable of cutting Suzaku would be unable to cut him.
This is why he has been avoiding the Lightning, because he has a high opinion of it and believes that a strike of lightning would damage him severely, thus breaking through his Technique.
However, Genbu is not aware of any of this. He knows that he has a defensive Technique, but he has no idea what it is called nor how it functions. He only knows enough from experience to make a risky gambit.
He was chancing that Sukuna would not be able to activate his Cursed Tool multiple times in quick succession, using his water tail to put it on cooldown.
He was wrong.
If Sukuna had just blasted the man with lightning until he fried, he would have won then and there. However, his experience with Narauko's tricky style of fighting has left him predisposed to seeing deception, and he has seen Genbu bluff enough already that his gut reaction is to believe the avoidance of lightning was itself another bluff and not a mistake on Genbu's part, thus leading him to chose differently.
Luckily, there is one saving grace for Sukuna in that he did not hesitate for even a second. If he had, then he would have lost right then and there. After all, Genbu truly believes, wholeheartedly, that catching someone else within one's Domain is an instant, guaranteed victory.
But Sukuna didn't hesitate.
The moment those first words left Genbu's mouth, Sukuna dropped his Cursed Tool, twisted his arms around Genbu as if returning the hug and slammed his hands together.
"Domain Expansion:—"
"—Victory Condition."
"—Malevolent Shrine."
Twin barriers bloom into being, flashing the world in a multitude of colours before immediately shattering like glass.
However.
It cannot be denied that Sukuna's activation of Domain Expansion was a reaction to Genbu's. Thus, even if it was only for a fraction of a fraction of a second...
Sukuna was hit by the Domain's effect.
For the second time in his life, Sukuna dies.
///
Narauko
///
Watching the Vengeful Spirit swagger up to me, I only really feel a bit annoyed.
Like, this dude isn't even fun to fight, I just smacked him around a bunch and he died, I don't wanna have to go through that crap again. How the fuck does a Cursed Spirit be immune to Cursed Energy anyway? Isn't that a contradiction?
Wait isn't that really weird? That's like if I was immune to skin or blood or something, what the fuck would that even mean?
Man...
Wacky Magic shit can be absurd sometimes.
And besides, the fight might have been boring, but Masakado really had a cool moment there at the end! It was such a beautiful death! One I'll remember forever!
Doesn't it kind of ruin the mood entirely to have to kill him again?
At least as a Curse, I should have an even easier time since Reverse Cursed Technique is now super effective.
"Now I'm a little bit annoyed, Masa-chan. A girl doesn't like when a guy is too clingy you know~? Not that I'm a girl, but you know, universal suffrage or something, right? You're being a real mood-killer here, is what I'm trying to say. I don't know if you can't hear me because you don't seem to have ears anymore, but you definitely still have a mouth, so I would like to hear an apology please!"
I wait. Masa-chan Ghost Edition™ continues to walk at me. I am reminded of Johnny Bravo.
That's pretty funny. Okay, I forgive you Masa-chan! Aren't I kind~?
...What am I thinking right now?
Shaking the stupid out, I meet the Vengeful Curse in the middle and catch the punch aimed down at my head. Down because this guy is like twice my height.
Did he get weaker? Is that the norm and Michizane an exception?
Shrugging the thought away, I coat my other hand in Positive Energy and backhand the Curse. I'd have punched normally, but the fort is back there and I don't want accidental casualties. That wouldn't be very kind.
The Curse turns into a cannonball, blurring away with half off its body shattered.
Hopping over to Masa-chan's sword, I pick it up and admire the output of Positive Energy for a moment. This can probably exorcise a Curse just from contact.
Huh, now that I think about it, it's kind of like the opposite of Takiyasha's Sword. What was it? The Sword of Ruin? Do the Taira just have a bunch of cool swords or are Takiyasha and Masakado connected beyond just being in the same clan?
Crap, did I just kill Takiyasha's uncle or something? I really hope this isn't her dad.
...I'd probably have to give her the sword if he's her dad.
Man, now I feel bad for entirely different reasons than a boring fight, and I just know that asshole Kamo-Sensei chose not to tell me this.
Tsk, whatever. I turn and hop over to the hill that has now been reduced by half from the crater around the Curse's body, and I lift his sword over his own Vengeful Spirit.
Krrr-k-k-k
I pause as some strange noise sort of... echoes? It's like a sound that isn't a sound. Something that has no source yet surrounds me entirely.
Kachink
Every injury on the Curse disappears.
"Wha—"
My arm snaps up just in time to block a jab with my elbow that sends me hurtling away.
What the fuck? He was definitely half dead right then, what the fuck just happened?
Flipping around in the air, I land on my feet in a slide to see the Curse charging straight at me with that same grin on its face.
Frowning slightly, I meet it in the middle again.
It's gotten faster? I think as I pirouette around an uppercut, slashing through its back at the end of the spin.
By all means, that should have exorcised it immediately with the amount of Positive Energy this sword is outputting. It did not.
It's still a deep wound, but how is it even still alive? Does being immune to Cursed Energy apply a resistance to Positive Energy? Or is it that because I am producing Positive Energy through Reverse Cursed Technique, he is able to gain some kind of conceptual immunity to the 'idea' of the Cursed Energy that is a foundational part of my Positive Energy production? That kind of makes sense, but it feels like a stretch. Maybe becoming a Curse has mutated his Technique somehow? But that doesn't make sense either, because he didn't nullify anything just now. Not unless we circle back to the first idea.
"I am befuddled," I inform the Curse as it continues to charge straight at me without a thought. It's definitely faster. "You have befuddled me."
This time, when the Curse reaches me it opens with a stomp aimed at my shins, something that really limits the amount of time it is out of guard and vulnerable to a counter attack, so it seems to be relearning how to fight.
I'm still faster than it though, so I side-step the kick as if I'm going to spin around it again but stop myself when I see its arm moving to intercept. Instead, I lunge for the opposite arm and with a hand on its neck and shoulder, I swing myself over to its back and slam forward to pin it against the floor.
It struggles, naturally, but anchors of shadow connect me to the earth, preventing it from being able to push me off.
"Science!" I yell, having no real idea what I'm referencing but knowing that I am referencing something, and that is enough for me.
Dropping the sword into my shadow, I coat one hand in Reverse Cursed Technique and the other in pure Cursed Energy. Then, ignoring its struggle, I punch both hands down on their respective shoulders and focus my attention on what happens.
Both fists pierce straight through and into the earth blow.
...Huh?
"What the fuck is going on here? You're not immune to Cursed Energy anymore? What happened to your Technique? And why did it feel like the hand with Positive Energy struggled more than the one with Cursed Energy? That doesn't make any sense you know? Don't you understand how Pokémon typings work? Well, I guess there were Pokémon that had different typing after evolving right? I can't remember~."
Pulling my hands out, I ignore the Curse below me for a moment as I bring a hand up to my chin while the other holds its elbow. It's important to strike a thinking pose while thinking. Gives you a buff.
Seriously though, what are the mechanics here? The only frame of reference I have is Michizane, and from what I understand, he barely changed after becoming a Vengeful Spirit. Wait a minute, yeah, that guy was even talking shit! I don't have enough data points to say which is the outlier. The only other example I can think of is that one Kami that that village corrupted by accident. Does that even count as a Vengeful Spirit? It technically fits the bill, I think.
Kamo-Sensei would probably know. That guy is like Wikipedia when it comes to Jujutsu and Curses and stuff. I guess I know what I'm gonna bug him to teach me next. What is the exact process that happens when a Sorcerer becomes a Vengeful Spirit?
Because I'm really struggling to understand what is—
Kachink
The Curse abruptly swells in size before a flood of Cursed Energy leaves its mouth and immediately hits dirt, exploding with enough force to dislodge me and send me tumbling.
It takes a moment to reorient my centre of gravity from the rapid spin he sent me into, but when I get back on my feet to look at the once more charging and unharmed Curse, I feel myself start to grin.
There was that sound again, and the wheel spun as well. It's a lot faster than Masakado was now too. Interesting~.
Having an idea now of what might be happening, I bring my hands together and extend my shadow behind me.
"Generous Deer."
My favourite Shikigami climbs from the abyss with a swell of Positive Energy that revitalises the forest around us and immediately starts eating away at the approaching Curse, halting its charge to a snail's pace.
You haven't been exorcised? I think with my grin growing.
It's clearly taking damage, and the output has slowed it down significantly, but even as its flesh is burnt away by the most potent Positive Energy I can bring forth, it just keeps walking closer.
So cooool~!
"You're definitely resistant," I comment as I watch the Curse struggle when it should be exorcised. "But the immunity just isn't there anymore. You've taken way more damage than the previous two times, so the healing isn't triggered by harm, and the time differences were different. So what's the—"
Kachink
"Again so soon!?" I yell with excitement. It hasn't been nearly as long as the other spins took, so exposure must have an effect. Or it's just something that happens with increasing frequency, but that doesn't feel right.
I don't get the luxury of time to think about that before the Curse is in front of me and I have to cross my arms in a block.
It hits me with even more strength and speed than before, an impressive amount of both really. It's already starting to remind me of Kazuro in terms of physicality.
But more than that, there is no mistaking it.
When that fist hit me, what I felt...
Positive Energy?
Letting the force of the punch spin me around, I touch back down on the ground and grin as the Curse is already closing the gap.
"A Curse using Positive Energy?" I voice my disbelief as I meet the Curse halfway with a punch of my own against his fist.
The Curse's arm explodes, but mine is perfectly fine.
"What did you expect!?" I yell at the Curse as I follow the punch up with a spinning roundhouse to the side of the head, "Hitting me with Positive Energy!?"
Kachink
"Again!?!" My voice pitches up embarrassingly as it surprises me. "Are you growing bigger!?"
The Curse reaches me this time with speed nearing my own, and I backstep and lean away from the opening punch, pulling my sword out of my shadow as I do before tilting back forward like I'm one of those inflatable boxing bag things, a downward slash using the movement to cut straight into the Curse's neck.
The sword stops a foot into its flesh at the sternum.
"Haha!" I can't help but laugh as I release the stuck sword and vault over a bisecting kick, lashing out with a kick of my own to the gut as I do.
"You're adapting!" I yell at the Curse as I feel the effect of my kick being diminished, though not enough for him to shrug it off as he's still flung back into the foliage. "It was never immunity! That was just the end result of Masakado's effort!"
Dropping back to the earth, I chase after the Curse and hit it with a running knee to the face right as it's climbing back up, snapping its head back and throwing it straight back into the forest.
I absently catch a falling tree and brush it behind me before throwing myself back at the Curse. It still has the sword cut down to its sternum from its neck, a big violent bruise over its stomach and a face nearly entirely caved in.
It doesn't seem deterred, rising to meet the challenge, so I feint again, turning another running knee into a somersault that lets me leverage my arms on its shoulders. As my feet reach the peak of their arc, I swap my hands around and twist to be facing the right direction to bring my legs crashing down on its spine in a hammer blow that cracks the air and craters the Curse's flesh in a shower of purple blood.
One of its arms is already moving in a counter before it even hits the floor, slamming into my hip and fracturing the bone before throwing me through yet more trees. Though, the Positive Energy imbued in the elbow kind of diminishes that by healing its own attack immediately.
Definitely gotten stronger. If it's adapting, then what is it adapting to exactly? Positive and Negative Energy? I guess I'll have to kill it with Touki again. Thank fuck that even works against Curses.
Shaking the thought away, I charge straight back in. It's already more resistant to Positive Energy than Negative, so I probably have better odds fighting normally.
With that in mind, "Divine Dog: Totality. I'm even using the full name in the incantation~, aren't you special~."
My Shikigami rushes ahead, leaping around the risen Curse as it throws a punch. I figure the classics are on the table, so, only a step behind my Shikigami I engage the first tactic I ever came up with for my Technique.
I throw myself into a flying kick that hurls the Curse straight into Divine Dog's waiting claws.
My Shikigami pounces at the Curse with both front paws raised and brings one down on its left arm while the other digs into its ribcage.
I frown in thought as the arm remains attached an the chest not nearly as carved in as it should have been.
Did I call this wrong? Has it been adapting to 'slashing' and 'blunt' as well? Only one way to know, and I have to be quick before the wheel can turn again, I can feel another one coming already. This is getting absurd.
Putting thought to action, I throw myself at the Curse as it stumbles and as I open my swing, I suck all of my Cursed Energy away from my fist, letting the impact be a result of pure physical strength. Then, I take all of that Cursed Energy into my other hand and release it as a beam of pure power into the Curse's face.
It's resisting!! Are there not any conditions after all?!? Can it just keep adapting to anything and everything infinitely?! Why in Yomi was Masakado so weak then?! You're even adapting offensively! Is that even fair?!
Wait.
Ohhh, I think I get it.
Michizane did get stronger after becoming a Vengeful Spirit. I thought the opposite was true here because this Curse was so damn weak, but what if the same limitations that were released for Michizane have also been released for Masakado?
The limitations of the flesh.
The only difference is that if the Technique really is the ability to adapt to any and all phenomena, then by becoming a Vengeful Spirit, the adaptation that Masakado had built up has been reset, as this Curse is technically a separate entity from Masakado. However, Masakado was likely limited to having only a single adaptation, and so he chose Cursed Energy as a whole.
A smart choice, but it still left him vulnerable in other ways, as we now know.
So the question is...
Kachink
...Is there really no limit now that the Technique is free of flesh?
The Curse heals perfectly and grows another foot in the instant that the wheel turns, and the next thing I know I am looking at the sky and my chin is reflexively regenerating from being reduced to gore.
A knee. Is this Curse vengeful? Wait no, that's a stupid question. Thank Kami I kept that to myself. That was also definitely Cursed Energy this time, so no more punches that heal me I guess.
Closing my eyes, I open Divine Dog's and watch the Shikigami pounce at the Curse's back, digging into its sides with claws that barely penetrate before biting into its neck. That has me perk up because it works.
Divine Dog's Technique is all about enhancing offensive power, but its claws have become ineffectual while its bite still works. So the Curse has adapted to 'slice' but not 'pierce'. That's better than adapting to something like 'sharp'. Is it easier to adapt to something the more specific it is? That would make sense. Or does it have to build up? Like adapt to both 'slice' and 'pierce' and then combine them into 'sharp'? Does the eight-handed wheel mean that it can only turn eight times? That would make sense as a condition. Or maybe it needs eight turns to adapt to immunity for a specific phenomena? I don't know.
My train of thought is derailed as I feel the Curse reach back and grab hold of my Shikigami. I dismiss it immediately, knowing that Divine Dog would just be ripped apart.
Not a moment later, there is a thunderous rumble below before I witness this Curse arcing through the air after me.
Okay, so, what have I hit it with so far? Positive Energy is out, so are cutting attacks and probably blunt by now. It didn't seem to have any particular resistance to pure Cursed Energy as an attack, so Masakado's specific adaptation is likely an end path and not something that can be gained easily. Still...
Those offensive adaptations have made the fucker nearly as strong as I am in pure physicality. It even changed to have Positive Energy and then back to Cursed Energy. I might be in a little bit of trouble here, how fun~.
Divine Dog is out, Kon, Generous Deer and Reflective Tortoise are all probably useless. Might get one or two good uses out of Kon. Substitute Swan is on cooldown until sunrise. That leaves Nue, Max Elephant and Ice Bear offensively, and Rabbit Escape for utility. Plus Touki, of course.
Plenty of options, really, so I don't feel like I'm in that much trouble.
There is only one glaring problem.
I just really wanna see how far you can go~!
So long as I keep an ace or two that I am confident the Curse hasn't adapted to, then there shouldn't be a worry about killing it with one overwhelming attack.
However, there is a problem with that problem.
I've already decided that I am going to grow stronger with Sukuna. It'd almost feel like cheating to force myself into becoming a version of me capable of killing something completely adapted to the current me with just some rando.
Ah well, there's nothing for it. I'll just exorcise it. Though, saying that, I don't think it'll be as easy as this usually is... Oops? I probably should have just gone all in the moment I figured its Technique.
"Ah well. Being an idiot and getting away with it is a Jujutsu Sorcerer's prerogative~. Extension Technique: Divine Armament – Elephant Gun."
Taking aim at the Curse in the sky with my Shikigami-turned-sniper rifle, I pull the trigger where its brain would be and swing down.
The beam of water travels like I imagine a railgun would, near instantly penetrating through the Curse's skull. However, when I pull the shot down to cut it in half, the attack only cuts through down to the collar before leaving little more than a deep cut on the rest of its body.
Okay so the initial impact is being counted as 'pierce' while the rest was 'slice' or 'slash' or whatever. I doubt the nomenclature matters.
"Piercing Blood: Split Shot."
This shot fractures like the arms of a lightning bolt right before impact, the idea being that enough shrapnel can tear through him as well as a slash, but the Curse twists in the air and fucking shoulder checks the attack with the pectoral that has healed around that fucking sword.
The output of Positive Energy from Masakado's sword destabilises my Cursed Technique enough that the Curse only loses half of one leg and the leading arm by the shoulder.
"A Curse using Positive Energy is positively absurd." I comment in a posh English accent. "Gosh, I am positively amusing~."
As the Curse closes the gap too much to get another shot off, I dismiss my Shikigami and immediately summon it back along with another. "Max Elephant, Ice Bear."
The Shikigami stay in my shadow for now, and I wait until the Curse's remaining hand reaches out to grab me before stepping off of the air and hopping a pace backwards, leaving a Water Echo in my place.
The Curse crashes through the Echo, causing the densely packed water to explode and drench it entirely. At the same time, I make another platform on the air behind me and throw myself back forward, over its shoulder and onto its back while pulling on Ice Bear with an excessive amount of Cursed Energy.
With one knee on the Curse's healthy shoulder and my other leg resting on the sword fused into its skin, I grab it by its bald head and lean forward with a wide grin, even as my Cursed Energy flows over its body.
"You ever heard of liquid ethane, buddy~?" My rhetoric is left unanswered as I bring Max Elephant and Ice Bear together in my mind and push out an entirely new Shikigami. "Extension Technique: Woolly Mammoth."
Between one moment and the next, the water covering the Curse changes, and in a flash, the Curse ceases moving entirely, its entire body abruptly shifting to become as black as coal in instant late-stage hypothermia. And I lose feeling in both hands and the one knee, each point of contact between us.
Owwwwww ow ow owwww.
"Shouldn't I be immune to my own Techniques~?" I whine piteously, quickly moving my shadow to cut off my blackened hands and the one leg at the thigh. A heavy sigh leaves me as I regrow the limbs and step back on the frozen Curse to not keep balancing on the damn sword as we plummet to the earth.
I shouldn't be surprised, but still. At least the Technique worked out how I thought it would. I only vaguely remember reading about superfluids, but Sukuna does keep getting mad at me for mathing and sciencing, so I figured it'd be fine. Jujutsu is all about imagination after all, and I have seen superfluids in action before, so imagining one isn't hard.
Liquid ethane is just the best one. It might not get as cold as helium does, but the reaction is more violent. If I remember right, liquid ethane can drain millions of kelvin worth of heat every second. It can freeze water so fast that it doesn't even turn to ice, how crazy is that? It was used to freeze biological samples without the expected swelling of blood and such.
So turning one Curse into a severely frostbitten statue is as easy as pie~.
"Man, my Technique is so awesome~," I shamelessly brag as I wait for us to reach the ground. We did jump quite high, it'll take another dozen seconds or so. "Kind of a shame though, that was actually getting pretty fun. Kinda felt more like playing rock paper scissors than fighting though."
Shrugging the thought away, I dismiss my Shikigami and manoeuvrer myself around the Curse to be below it before using a burst of Cursed Energy to slow us down before we pancake.
The Curse isn't dissolving after all, so I might as well keep it instead of letting it shatter. I'll put it in my future home whenever Tengen decides to stop letting me mooch off of the provided shelter. It'll be one heck of a conversation starter.
The frozen Curse is safely deposited into my shadow and I brush my hands. That is that.
Job's a done'n.
Huh, déjàvu.
Shaking my head, I look down at my bare leg and quickly fix my clothes before turning my head up. Then left. Then right.
...Where the fuck am I right now?
Kkkkrrrrrr-k-k...
"Are you fucking with me right now~?" I complain, my body going slack as I pout straight up at the sky.
Kachink
I blink as my Technique... ripples.
In a blink, my shadow extends in every direction, without my dictation, and I feel a familiar process begin within my Soul.
"What the fu..." I trail off as my brain is overwhelmed by information.
Shoved into my skull without care is a name. A brand new identity born in this moment for one purpose alone.
To kill me.
Without my consent, my body begins to move; puppeteered by my own fucking Technique until I am half crouched, holding both hands out in front of me as if I'm holding an old timey pirate wheel.
And then my mouth opens and I can do nothing to stop the words that follow, soft incantation filling the sudden silence of the world, as if the universe itself is holding its breath and listening with rapt attention.
"With this treasure, I summon,"
A hand bursts out of my shadow like it is emerging from water, splashing cursed ink in every direction before slamming back down on the ground, the entire limb thicker than my waist.
"Eight-Handled Sword,"
That bone-white hand pushes, and a golden eight-handed wheel emerges, haloing a pure white head that has four small wings sprouting where it should have eyes, and a long, thick tail flowing from the back of its head, tapering off to a point.
"Divergent Sila,"
The other hand follows, limb just as absurdly muscled, but this one has a sword extending from its knuckles. With both hands pushing, the rest of the body follows.
"Divine General,"
Shaped like a human but muscled to the extreme and beyond, a towering monster of violence smiling viciously down at me.
"Mahoraga."