Because Mahito had suppressed his Cursed Energy, Nanami could not gauge the true level of his strength. Out of caution, he subconsciously raised his hand to check the current time, confirming when his overtime hours would begin.
But this action was noticed by Mahito, who pointed at Nanami's watch and said,
"You're checking how much longer until overtime so you can fight me at full strength, right?"
The moment Nanami heard Mahito's words, his body froze stiffly, and a chill rose from the depths of his soul... How did he know?
However, this reaction only lasted for a second. As a mature Grade 1 Jujutsu Sorcerer, Nanami quickly regained control of his emotions.
Simultaneously, he quickly drew his Cleaver, preparing for battle. Just in case, Nanami decided to explain the principle of his Cursed Technique to Mahito before the fight officially began, hoping to enhance his strength through a Technique Reveal. But... "My Cursed Technique can apply to..."
But right at that moment, Mahito's mouth distorted, transforming into a fleshy megaphone formed by stretching his upper and lower lips.
Mahito amplified his voice using the megaphone, easily overpowering Nanami's volume in the quiet sewer channel and forcefully interrupting him.
"Your Cursed Technique can forcibly create weak points on any target's body. And it does so in a seven-to-three ratio. This divides the target's body into segments, with the weak point located at the partition line. As long as your attack hits this spot, it can inflict immense damage under the influence of your technique."
Mahito paused.
"What else was there? Oh yes, even if your opponent is stronger than you, you can still inflict considerable damage with this technique. But against beings whose Cursed Energy is weaker than yours, you can sever them in one strike with this dull blade. I haven't misspoken, have I? In that case, your Technique Reveal has failed, hasn't it?"
At this moment, Nanami had only one thought in his mind: Escape!
This was no longer a question of whether he could defeat the opponent; the opponent knew everything about him while he knew nothing about this Cursed Spirit.
This was clearly a trap set specifically for him. There was no time to figure out how the opponent achieved this. This Cursed Spirit must be the one Satoru Gojo was looking for.
He had to notify Satoru Gojo immediately. Thinking this, Nanami turned to run while reaching for his phone.
But in that instant, Nanami felt a powerful surge of Cursed Energy erupt behind him.
"Idle Transfiguration: Complete Manifestation."
Following the explosion of Cursed Energy, as Nanami turned to observe the situation, Mahito, who had fully entered Complete Manifestation, swept past him at terrifying speed.
Nanami didn't even have time to complete a full horizontal guard stance before his left palm was directly severed, and blood instantly gushed out.
Mahito had already appeared in front of Nanami. He toyed with Nanami's phone and spoke in a mocking tone.
"How annoying. I don't want outsiders interrupting our 'reunion.' Let's have a good time together, since we'll be the same kind soon~"
As Mahito spoke, he crushed the phone in his hand.
Nanami's head was covered in sweat. Feeling the biting pain radiating from his wrist, he finally understood: this creature was not an opponent he could handle.
It had probably been a long time—perhaps since his last mission with Yu Haibara—since that emotion, born from the depths of his soul, so deeply etched that Nanami would never forget it in his entire life, the emotion called fear, surged again.
He was probably going to die, right?
Such a vast disparity in strength made any thought of resistance feel impossible.
If one were to describe this feeling of powerlessness, it would be like asking Kusakabe to fight Sukuna.
He couldn't understand why Mahito, possessing such immense strength, would orchestrate such an elaborate plan just to lure him into a trap.
Surely, at the movie theater, he only needed to make those two Transfigured Humans slightly stronger to inflict severe damage or even kill him. But why... Just as Nanami was about to lose his will to survive, the figure of Yu Haibara suddenly appeared before his eyes.
It was the same as in his memory: the resolute expression of someone sacrificing himself to block a Cursed Spirit so he could escape.
In an instant, Nanami understood. He shouldn't give up like this. If he abandoned this hard-won life, he wouldn't just be letting himself down.
Because his left hand was severed, with no palm left to act as a buffer, his wrist watch fell to the ground.
Nanami's Cursed Energy suddenly surged upward, and he stomped down, shattering the watch.
The man was about to die—who cares about working overtime?! I absolutely must survive!
"I will never be the same kind as you!" Nanami adjusted his state, forcing himself to adapt to the stabbing pain from his wrist injury and the loss of bodily control due to the missing hand.
"Oh? I thought you were going to give up. You've gotten motivated so quickly?" Although Mahito said this, he didn't take the Cursed Energy-boosting Nanami seriously.
Nanami rapidly calculated in his mind how to escape the current perilous situation. When he saw the mottled brick wall of the sewer, he got an idea: use the Ten Shadows Technique, 'Collapse,' targeting the structure to cause a Collapse above, thereby hindering the Cursed Spirit's movements.
He could then use the collapsing rubble to escape to the outside. Once outside the sewer space, the intense Cursed Energy fluctuation would quickly attract the attention of the 'Window' personnel still investigating the city, allowing news to be relayed quickly.
It wouldn't take long for Satoru Gojo to learn the news. As long as he could hold out until Gojo Satoru arrived, everything would be resolved!
Nanami gathered all his strength and hurled the Cleaver in his hand at Mahito with all his might, while using that split second to instantly charge towards a nearby wall, preparing to unleash the crucial punch of his plan.
But the next second, just as Nanami's fist was about to touch the wall, about to trigger the Ten Shadows Technique, 'Collapse,' a dark shadow flashed past.
Behind that shadow, Nanami's fist did touch the wall, but the expected structural Collapse did not occur. Instead, what followed was his right forearm, now severed and lying on the ground, and blood splattering onto the wall, blooming like a Red Spider Lily.
Nanami turned his head in despair, seeing Mahito, who had fully deactivated Complete Manifestation, retracting the only part still maintaining the technique—his right forearm—like a rubber fruit.
On the elbow of Mahito's Idle Transfiguration arm was the black blade that had just severed Nanami's arm.
"If you're in such a hurry to leave, I guess I should speed things up a bit," Mahito said with a smile.