'Run... run faster!'
Hiding in the shadows of the ruins, Megumi Fushiguro screamed at himself in his mind.
But his legs, heavy as lead, refused to listen to his commands.
His muscles were spasming violently, and his bones let out a scream as they reached their limit.
In the life-and-death struggle against Haruta Shigemo just moments ago, he had pushed his cursed energy to the absolute limit.
Now, facing this terrifying monster charging toward him with pure physical destructive force, he didn't even have the strength to flee.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Every step Pseudo-Toji took left a deep crater in the hard asphalt road.
His massive frame pulled blurred black afterimages through the air, his speed far exceeding the limit of what the human eye could track.
'Since I can't run... then I have to fight!'
Megumi bit his tongue hard, using the sharp pain to force his consciousness to remain clear.
He took a deep breath of the air thick with the scent of blood and slammed his hands together into a complex series of seals.
"Divine Dog: Totality! Nue!"
Megumi let out a guttural roar that tore at his throat.
The dim shadow beneath his feet suddenly churned violently.
"Roooooar!"
A massive black dog, radiating a wild and ferocious aura, was the first to pounce from the shadows.
Its razor-sharp claws carried a cold glint that seemed to tear through the void itself, aiming straight for Pseudo-Toji's throat.
"Cr-ckle!!"
Immediately after, the monstrous bird Nue, wreathed in blinding lightning, dove from the sky.
Countless bolts of azure electricity formed a dense net of thunder, attempting to seal off all of Pseudo-Toji's paths of escape.
This was the strongest dual physical and magical assault Megumi could summon in an instant.
However.
Facing a lethal combination that could instantly exorcise a Grade 1 cursed spirit.
There wasn't even a flicker of emotion on Pseudo-Toji's expressionless face.
He didn't even seem interested in looking at the attack; his posture was one of utter disdain, as if silently mocking the slowness of the strikes.
Pseudo-Toji didn't even slow down; he merely tilted his head slightly while maintaining his high-speed charge.
"Whoosh!"
The massive Divine Dog: Totality, carrying the wind of its own power, only managed to brush against Pseudo-Toji's cheek.
As for the net of lightning striking down from above.
Pseudo-Toji didn't even bother to dodge. He simply reached out a hand that looked like it was cast in steel and snatched Nue out of the air by the neck!
"Crr-ack!"
Accompanied by a bone-chilling sound of snapping vertebrae.
The shikigami bird, despite being wrapped in violent electricity, didn't even have time to let out a cry before its neck was crushed by Pseudo-Toji's raw strength!
"Bang!"
Pseudo-Toji casually tossed the now-collapsing shadow of Nue onto the ground, his hollow black eyes locking onto Megumi like a hunter staring at a dying prey.
"How is this possible?!"
Megumi's pupils shrank, and his heart felt as if it were being squeezed by an invisible hand.
Even Maki or Instructor Yoru, without using Breathing Techniques, could never kill his shikigami with such effortless ease!
'Just what... is this guy's body made of?!'
There was no time for shock.
Pseudo-Toji's massive frame was already closing in, less than ten meters away.
That undisguised, frenzied killing intent made Megumi feel as if his very soul were trembling.
"Not over yet! Max Elephant!!!"
Megumi's eyes turned bloodshot as the capillaries in his eyes burst from the strain of overdrawing his cursed energy.
"Hum—!"
A giant pink elephant, as large as a small mountain, suddenly materialized above Megumi!
"Trumpet—!!!"
Max Elephant let out a deafening roar that shook the heavens.
Its pillar-like trunk curled high, carrying the force to shatter skyscrapers and the weight of several tons as it crushed down toward Pseudo-Toji.
"Whoosh!"
A violent surge of water erupted from its trunk, transforming into high-pressure water blades capable of slicing through steel, aiming to tear the enemy apart.
This was Megumi's final trump card.
It was the largest and most destructive shikigami he could currently summon.
"Die!"
Megumi screamed in his heart.
However, what happened next completely shattered his understanding of reality.
Facing the crushing weight of the attack.
Pseudo-Toji actually stopped.
He looked up slightly, a flicker of extreme disdain crossing his eyes, as if this massive, imposing shikigami was nothing more than a lump of soft scrap metal.
Pseudo-Toji's legs bent slightly, and the concrete road beneath him instantly collapsed.
Then, he lunged upward!
Carrying an absolute arrogance that suggested nothing was worthy of blocking his path.
"BOOM!!!"
There was no flashy technique, nor any ripple of cursed energy.
Pseudo-Toji simply threw a plain, ordinary right punch.
The moment his fist collided with Max Elephant's massive head, it felt as if all the air in the street had been vacuumed out.
In the next second.
Accompanied by an ear-splitting explosion.
The ton-heavy Max Elephant, composed of pure cursed energy, began to shatter from the head down under the force of that single punch!
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The massive pink body exploded like a powder keg, turning into a cloud of black residue that scattered across the sky!
"Gwah!!"
The terrifying backlash from his shikigami being instantly destroyed made Megumi cough up a large amount of blood.
His body flew backward like a kite with a broken string, slamming heavily into a ruined brick wall.
"Cough... hack..."
Megumi clutched his chest, every breath accompanied by a piercing pain.
At least three of his ribs were broken, and his internal organs were severely displaced by the impact.
He had lost.
It was a total, indisputable defeat.
All his tactics and shikigami were laughable and pathetic in the face of this monster's absolute physical violence.
'Is this where it ends...?'
Megumi lay slumped in the ruins, his vision starting to blur.
As he watched the terrifying figure slowly walk out from the black afterimages, countless scenes flashed through his mind.
Tsumiki's pale, gentle smile as she lay on her hospital bed.
Gojo-sensei's broad back, which always seemed so reliable despite his goofy personality.
And Instructor Yoru's stern guidance on the training grounds, swinging his wooden sword and saying, 'True strength doesn't require cursed energy.'
'I'm sorry... everyone...'
Megumi closed his eyes in despair.
His cursed energy was completely depleted, and his stamina was beyond its limit.
Right now, he was like a wrung-out rag; even moving a finger was a luxury he couldn't afford.
Pseudo-Toji stood before Megumi, looking down at the boy who had lost all ability to resist.
His fist was still stained with the black residue of the shattered Max Elephant.
Pseudo-Toji slowly raised the right fist that could shatter stone and aimed it at Megumi's head.
"Die."
The shadow of death completely enveloped Megumi in that moment.
In this critical, life-or-death instant.
Deep within Megumi's collapsing mind, an inescapable sense of familiarity bubbled up.
This monster... this cold, heartless man.
Why did his heart pound so violently the moment he saw him?
Why did this man give off an aura that made him feel both repelled and strangely attached?
"BOOM—!!!"
Before Megumi could make sense of it.
Pseudo-Toji's heavy punch, accompanied by a piercing sonic boom, swung down toward his face like a reaper's scythe!
"Bang!"
However, the expected impact of his skull shattering didn't happen.
Just as Pseudo-Toji's fist was less than an inch from Megumi's nose!
Another tall, sturdy figure—one with an even deeper and more terrifying presence—suddenly plummeted from the sky like a meteorite without warning!
"THOOM!!!"
Two fists, seemingly forged from steel, collided violently above Megumi's head!
The terrifying physical shockwave transformed into a literal blast of air, blowing away all the rubble and debris within dozens of meters!
The violent wind scraped against Megumi's cheek like a knife, forcing his eyes open.
When he saw the broad back standing in front of him.
Megumi's pupils shrank violently, and he froze in place as if struck by lightning.
'There's another one...'
It was another man who looked exactly the same!
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