A thousand years ago, during the Heian era known as the golden age of jujutsu.
Somewhere in Japan.
Pieces of corpses were scattered across the ground, while fresh blood that had yet to clot flowed like a river. The buildings and even the earth around them were covered in dozens of smooth cuts, as though everything had been sliced apart by paper blades.
"So weak."
Within this hell-like scene, a man sat lazily atop a mountain of corpses with one hand supporting his chin. He wore a robe but left his chest exposed.
Four eyes. Two pairs of arms. A terrifying mouth filled with bloodlust grew from the muscles of his abdomen.
A man born cursed and destined to become the strongest. The one the world called a demon god.
Ryomen Sukuna.
"That is only natural. No matter what kind of sorcerer they are, being born in the same era as Sukuna-sama is their tragedy."
Behind him stood a white-haired boy with a baby face. Uraume smiled gently as he spoke, and there was not a trace of flattery in his words. In his eyes, this man was simply the strongest. Destroying these people so easily was nothing worth mentioning.
The sorcerers beneath them, who had still been shouting moments ago, were the Fujiwara Clan's famous direct assassination squad.
The Sun, Moon, and Stars Squad.
"So this is... the strongest..."
Outside the mountain of corpses, a heavily wounded woman trembled on the ground. The horrifying wound across her body nearly cut her in half.
The overwhelming gap in strength had left her, the captain of the Sun, Moon, and Stars Squad, utterly defeated within only a few exchanges. She had never expected this.
And Sukuna's crushing power was so terrifying that she could not even bring herself to use Reverse Cursed Technique to heal her injuries.
She understood clearly. If she tried, her head would likely leave her body in the next instant.
"You've got some skill. I originally planned to slice you apart together with the rest of the trash."
From above, Sukuna looked down at the woman without a shred of emotion in his eyes. The Sun, Moon, and Stars Squad sounded impressive, but in his hands they were not even entertainment. They were merely ants he could crush whenever he pleased.
And from the perspective of a god standing far above all else, why would he feel hatred toward ants that posed no threat?
If he wanted to kill, he killed. If he did not want to kill, he spared them. No special reason was needed. Sukuna acted entirely according to his own will.
Just like now.
This woman had wisely stopped struggling, so he could not even be bothered to raise a hand. That alone allowed her to cling to life.
"How boring."
After a casual glance, Sukuna left with Uraume.
Yet that single look burned itself into the heart of the nameless woman lying on the ground, and that fear remained carved into her mind even after a thousand years.
* * *
And now, a thousand years later, the moment Uro saw that familiar gesture and feeling from Yuji, goosebumps spread across her entire body.
"Pfft!"
Two bloody slashes suddenly appeared across her body. Blood sprayed into the air as the fear buried deep within her memories resurfaced once more.
"The King of Curses?!"
The slash had not pierced through her body directly, but the cursed energy packed within it still blasted Uro several meters away. For the first time, intense fear filled her eyes as she gasped heavily, trembling fingers touching the bleeding wounds on her chest.
This technique made her deeply uneasy. It even caused the entire domain to tremble unstably.
"You're really pissing me off, brat."
As if answering her curiosity, or perhaps revealing his own displeasure, a small mouth appeared on Yuji's face.
Sukuna had once considered the possibility that this brat, the perfect vessel created by Kenjaku, might eventually reach this point. But it had come even faster than he imagined.
His technique had been engraved into Yuji's body.
"It really is him?!"
After sensing that utterly evil aura, Uro instinctively stepped back several times. The arrogance she had shown earlier completely vanished.
"No need to worry. I have no interest in joining a bunch of insects fighting each other. If you can kill this brat, I don't mind."
The small mouth curled into a grin as Sukuna completely separated himself from Yuji.
At that moment, Yuji did not continue chasing Uro down. Instead, he stretched out his hand kindly and tried to persuade her.
"Stop now. Hand over your points and leave with the Jujutsu High people. I won't kill you. You still have a chance."
According to what the assistant manager had said earlier, this woman had never harmed civilians. Whether it was because of her pride or some other reason, in Yuji's eyes, she was not beyond saving.
He wanted to save her.
"Heh... I already told you earlier. Don't even think about stopping me from making a name for myself!"
After confirming Sukuna's attitude, Uro relaxed and her excitement surged again.
In her previous life, she had died without ever having her own glory. Even her name had only existed so she could take the blame for the Fujiwara Clan. But now, she would use the name Takako Uro to enjoy a real life and leave her mark upon this world.
What could spread her name further than killing the vessel of the King of Curses?
The rules of the modern world?
She had obeyed rules her entire life. From now on, she would live however she pleased.
Laughing lightly, Uro activated Reverse Cursed Technique and healed the two scars on her chest before turning her arrogant gaze toward Yuji again.
Out of the two of them, one could use Simple Domain and the other could not. Which target to deal with first was obvious.
She violently pulled at the space beside her with both hands.
"Dismantle!"
Seeing this, Yuji finally stopped holding back. He grabbed his right wrist with his left hand and condensed cursed energy before flicking his fingers forward like a blade.
A powerful slash burst out.
But Uro had already suffered from this once. Naturally, she would not foolishly let herself get hit again.
As she twisted the surrounding space, the slash that was about to reach her suddenly got dragged into the distorted area and became trapped within it.
"Thin Ice Breaker!"
Once again, the guaranteed-hit technique spiraled forward like an overwhelming tidal wave after locking onto Yuji.
Meanwhile, Uro calmly placed her hands behind her back and quietly observed the two of them. To avoid being affected by that big man's technique as much as possible, the best option was to keep some distance from both of them.
As long as she maintained this, the pressure from the guaranteed-hit technique would never disappear.
Simple Domain was still only "simple" in the end. Inside a true domain, it could not last very long.
All she had to do was wait.
"Yuji!"
Todo had fallen into a dilemma.
This Thin Ice Breaker was aimed directly at Yuji, so he could not use his technique the same way as before. Uro had clearly realized the weakness of his cursed technique. Regardless if he attacked now or tried to stall using Boogie Woogie, the effect would be minimal.
But Yuji could not use Simple Domain.
If he took several attacks like this, he was finished.
Just as Todo prepared to clap his hands and switch places with Yuji to delay the attack, he suddenly heard him shout, "Todo! Buy me a few seconds!"
Yuji sprinted away, trying his best to widen the distance between himself and Thin Ice Breaker while searching for an opportunity near Todo.
"Understood!"
Todo raised the corners of his lips, revealing his dazzling white teeth. Even though he did not know what his best friend planned to do, he knew exactly what he needed to do now.
Inside this domain, for a few seconds, he needed to prevent the guaranteed-hit technique from affecting Yuji.
The two of them instantly understood each other's thoughts.
Then they ran toward one another.
"These two... are they insane?"
Uro froze for a moment from the opposite side. She could roughly guess what they intended to do.
Within a certain range, Simple Domain could protect anyone inside from the guaranteed-hit effect. It was not limited to the user alone.
But neutralizing the guaranteed-hit effect did not mean neutralizing the attack itself. If the two of them stood together, Thin Ice Breaker would simply gain another target.
"Simple Domain!"
Sure enough, at the instant the two met, Todo took his stance and expanded Simple Domain once more.
And Yuji stood behind him, calming his mind.
"Now!"
The moment Todo shouted, Thin Ice Breaker arrived.
He raised both arms in front of himself and forcefully endured the terrifying impact.
"Pfft!"
Todo tilted his head slightly as a clean slash suddenly appeared across his face, while blood continuously spilled from his mouth under the immense force.
Inside this Simple Domain, he was using his own body to buy the time Yuji needed.
If it was only once, he could do it.
Behind him, Yuji narrowed his eyes.
This was the unconditional trust between the two of them.
'A sorcerer capable of landing Black Flash naturally understands cursed energy far better than ordinary people.'
Nanami's words echoed in his ears. Even now, Yuji had not lost the heightened state brought by repeatedly landing Black Flash.
'The best way to counter a domain is with another domain.'
Satoru had once said that over a month ago.
'But how exactly do you expand a domain?'
Later, after learning that even someone as strong as Nanami had never achieved Domain Expansion, Yuji had asked that question.
'Domain Expansion... isn't really about some special trick. Once you feel it, your body's instincts will give you the answer. All you need to do is respond to those instincts. Just like responding to your technique itself.'
That was the answer Satoru gave him.
And now, Yuji wanted to respond.
Without even realizing it, when he opened his eyes again, his hands had already moved on their own, forming the Ksitigarbha Mudra.
"Domain Expansion…"
**
**
**
Thank you for reading! If you'd like access to extra chapters and want to support my work, you can visit my P@treon:
P@treon/SilverShark769
Vote with Power Stones for Bonus Chapters!
Your support means a lot, thank you!