"Trash is still trash."
Naoya pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and casually wiped the blood from his hand, his face full of disgust.
But that disgust was also directed toward the two women inside the house.
It was true that he liked women. In Maki and Mai's eyes, he was nothing more than a lustful man obsessed with women's bodies. But to him, women were only for amusement.
And because of that, he hated the woman inside the Fushiguro household. She was the reason Toji had fallen. She made the once peerless man show a trace of tenderness.
And because of her, Naoya's own presence became even smaller.
The one standing there should have been him.
"So fast!"
The few curse users who had not foolishly rushed forward could not help but cry out in shock.
As for those who had tried to charge into the Fushiguro house earlier, they were already sprawled on the ground coughing blood. Naoya, after activating Projection Sorcery, had defeated these so-called grade 2 sorcerers in a single instant.
In front of him, Naobito and Jinichi had already dealt with the groups rushing at them as well.
The gap between grade 1 and grade 2 was like an abyss. Not to mention these grade 2 fighters were only half-baked outsiders, while the grade 1 sorcerers before them were the Zenin clan's strongest forces.
"Now you've lost your numbers advantage. Still not surrendering, white-haired brat?"
Though he said it lightly, Naobito's face had grown serious.
Because he knew clearly. That punch earlier had not been held back. Yet not only had it failed to deal serious damage, when Uraume returned there was not even a wound on her face.
Which meant… Reverse Cursed Technique.
Someone like that would not be easy to handle.
"There's no way we can win! They have three grade 1 sorcerers!"
Watching people around their own level get crushed so easily, the curse users in front of Uraume were already losing their nerve.
If they surrendered now, maybe they wouldn't die...
"Ice Formation: Frost Wind."
But Uraume activated a technique from behind them. She lightly raised a hand to her lips and exhaled a cold breath.
The three curse users in front of her were instantly frozen into ice statues without any chance to resist.
Trash that had lost its value had no reason to live.
"An ice technique. And likely a high-level one. Strong cursed energy output too..."
Naobito was highly experienced. With one glance, he judged the nature of Uraume's technique.
So he made his choice.
Strike first.
"Projection Sorcery!"
Freezing one second into twenty-four frames, Naobito launched forward again. Alongside him was Naoya.
For once, father and son moved in perfect sync, rushing toward Uraume at nearly the same moment.
'They really are fast!'
Even though Uraume had prepared herself, she still struggled to react. Their movement speed was almost impossible to follow with the naked eye.
Bang!
Just before the attacks landed, she barely managed to raise a hand and block Naoya's strike. But Naobito's fist still slammed solidly into her face.
This time, however, Uraume was not sent flying. She forcefully steadied herself, then swung her palm forward.
A torrent of freezing cursed energy burst out, surging toward the two men.
"Too slow!"
Already prepared, both of them vanished to the side and dodged the attack.
The missed frost spread rapidly across the ground and rushed toward Jinichi behind them.
"Missile Fists!"
Unlike the other two, Jinichi had not inherited the clan's Projection Sorcery. Naturally, he could not keep up with their speed.
By the time he reacted, they were already fighting. Facing the terrifying frost rushing at him, he went all out.
Dozens of fists rained down from above once more, smashing into the incoming ice and shattering it. Chunks of ice exploded before him.
The frost finally stopped less than half a meter away. Sweat covered Jinichi's face, and he was breathing heavily.
Ahead of him, Naobito and Naoya were still locked in battle with Uraume. But she had already covered her body with a thin layer of frost through her technique.
That layer of cursed-energy ice greatly boosted her defense, like a weaker version of Falling Blossom Emotion. Instead of using stance-based defense to block blows, she used the ice armor to weaken incoming attacks. At the same time, it also increased her power in close combat.
'This woman is way too hard to put down!'
Though it looked like he had the upper hand, Naobito's brows slowly tightened as the fight continued.
Uraume could barely touch him, yet even with him going all out, he still could not deal any serious damage. Sometimes, the moment one attack ended, Reverse Cursed Technique had already healed her wounds.
If this kept going, it would become a contest of who ran out of cursed energy first.
"Good opening!"
Suddenly, Naoya found a weakness.
Uraume had been focusing most of her attention on Naobito, leaving the back of her head exposed to his attack range. He activated Projection Sorcery, intending to blow her head apart with this strike.
"Idiot!"
But Naobito shouted at once.
How could someone at that level reveal such an obvious and fatal weakness?
Just as Naoya was about to land the hit, Uraume suddenly twisted her body and ruined his plan.
'Damn it!'
Naoya instantly realized something was wrong, but it was already too late. If he took her freezing technique at this distance, he would definitely suffer badly.
Uraume grabbed his arm.
His unfinished technique was interrupted.
The next second, Naoya was trapped inside a glass-like frame.
'I see...'
Uraume still did not fully understand it, but she had figured out the pattern.
When Naoya activated his technique, his speed became incredibly fast. If he used it to attack, then it was simply speed. But if he used touch on her, and she failed to respond within a certain time, she would be frozen in place like this.
On the other hand, if she interrupted him during that super-fast motion, then the sorcerer himself would be immobilized instead.
Pathetic trash.
"Icefall!"
Even faster and more explosive cursed energy burst from Uraume's palm. Sharp ice spikes shot toward Naoya, who stood frozen right in front of her.
Bang!
Naobito moved again.
He kicked with all his strength and sent Uraume flying away.
"Damn old man..."
One second passed.
Naoya's forced freeze ended. But he stared blankly ahead.
Those sharp ice spikes had not pierced him. At the final moment, Naobito had stepped in front of him and activated Falling Blossom Emotion. Yet several ice spikes had already pierced the older man's body.
'Still not fast enough...'
For the first time, Naobito felt dissatisfied with his own speed. As a grade 1 sorcerer, he was already fast. But as a father, he felt it was not enough.
"We need reinforcements."
Only now did Jinichi step forward. He stood beside Naobito in a battle stance and gave the warning.
As the strongest among the three, Naobito was already injured. Things would no longer be as favorable as before.
"You foolish insects, you all—"
Uraume was proudly about to continue attacking when a talisman on her chest suddenly ignited by itself.
It was the signal from Kenjaku. No matter how the plan had gone, it was time to leave.
Leaving now was frustrating, but if she wanted to reunite with Sukuna-sama again, she could not take risks.
"Ice Formation: Frost Calm."
Uraume no longer cared whether it would affect the Fushiguro household. She lightly breathed out.
Terrifying cursed energy froze directly in the air. Ice mixed with mist spread toward the three men at incredible speed. It looked ready to swallow them, along with the entire Fushiguro house behind them.
But when the mist cleared, the ice had stopped right in front of them.
The three Zenin men had activated Falling Blossom Emotion together and forcibly blocked it. Even so, nearly half of Naoya and Jinichi's bodies were covered in ice, leaving them unable to fight. Even Naobito had one arm frozen solid.
"You still want to stop me after this? Only you are left."
Uraume walked forward, planning to take the women away.
"You can try. One and zero are completely different!"
Naobito's fierce, bloodshot eyes showed not a trace of retreat.
"Tch!"
Faced with such a mad dog, Uraume had no choice but to withdraw.
It did not matter that she failed to take anyone. It had never been an important plan to begin with.
What she needed to do now was wait for Sukuna-sama's return.
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