As Zafkiel disappeared and Lucifugus appeared, Satoru Gojo, who had been frozen by the Seventh Bullet, instantly returned to normal.
In his consciousness, he should still be fighting Nightmare.
But when he came to his senses, he realized Sukuna had already appeared on the battlefield.
Not only that, the Roman clock behind Nightmare, which should have been a dark gold, had now taken on a completely different form.
"Mind explaining what just happened?"
Although Satoru Gojo and Sukuna were undoubtedly enemies, they were also both enemies of Nightmare.
Under such circumstances, Gojo naturally stood side by side with Sukuna.
And Sukuna didn't mind his approach either. He simply glanced at him, his indifferent tone laced with a hint of gravity, and said, "She realized she couldn't defeat me with conventional means, so she used her true trump card."
"Her true trump card, huh…"
Satoru Gojo twitched the corners of his mouth and said with a bitter smile, "In the end, I couldn't even force her to use it."
"What's so strange about that? You're just an ordinary mortal born in an era without me."
Although they had temporarily become allies, Sukuna still refused to give him any face, mocking him: "But I do admit you're a slightly stronger mortal. You're barely qualified to act as a pathfinder for me."
"At least let me rest a little. My cursed energy has dropped to the point I can't even deploy a Domain."
"Hmph, just a mortal after all."
Sukuna let out a cold snort.
But he said nothing more and focused his attention entirely on Nightmare.
For some reason, after Zafkiel turned into Lucifugus , the City Devouring Time also vanished.
It was unclear whether it was because the City Devouring Time was part of Zafkiel power, or if Nightmare, out of sheer malice, didn't want the battle to end too quickly.
Still, the disappearance of this barrier that drained cursed energy and stamina was ultimately a good thing—it allowed Satoru Gojo a chance to catch his breath and recover.
Sukuna didn't understand what it meant for Zafkiel to become Lucifugus .
But since Nightmare used such a transformation as a means to deal with him, it meant she was confident in her chances.
From this point on, everything became unknown.
What had once been a surefire win suddenly became uncertain again with Nightmare trump card revealed.
Although it might have seemed like self-deprecation, since the opponent was Nightmare, Sukuna—arrogant but not stupid—clearly knew that having a helping hand gave him better odds of winning.
And a helper who could deploy a Domain and one who couldn't were two entirely different tiers.
So, he didn't mind buying Gojo some time.
"Domain Expansion—Malevolent Shrine!"
With Sukuna chant, everything around them was engulfed in an ominous black and red hue.
Behind him, a shrine corrupted by demonic forces opened a single frenzied eye, and sharp, ghastly white fangs seemed poised to devour the entire world.
But this time, the Malevolent Shrine had evolved into an Open-Type Domain!
By binding it with the condition that allowed people to freely enter and exit, he gained an even wider guaranteed hit range.
However, in this arena where one could only enter but not exit, the negative effects of the binding condition were practically negligible.
"Slash!"
In an instant, countless slashes rained down like a storm toward Nightmare.
"Scales of Libra!"
Having prepared for this moment, Tokisaki Kurumi fired an ability bullet at herself the moment Sukuna launched his attack.
In the next instant, their positions were swapped.
"Swish swish swish swish——!"
The slashes that should have been aimed at Tokisaki Kurumi now mercilessly tore into Sukuna.
Blood splattered, flesh was torn, and in the blink of an eye, Sukuna was severely wounded.
"What?!"
An expression of disbelief appeared in Sukuna eyes.
Although his mind had yet to comprehend what had happened, his battle instincts activated instantly. He triggered a Reversed Cursed Technique, healing himself before his body could completely fall apart into chunks of meat.
For someone who had mastered the Reversed Cursed Technique, any injury that wasn't instantly fatal didn't count as a true injury.
At the same time, Tokisaki Kurumi, who had swapped places with Sukuna, appeared right next to Satoru Gojo.
Gojo had just started to recover and didn't expect Nightmare to suddenly appear beside him, so his reaction was half a beat slow.
"Cancer's Sword!"
The military saber in Tokisaki Kurumi hand was covered with a silvery-white radiance, slashing toward Gojo.
Though his reaction was delayed, Gojo didn't attempt to retreat. Instead, he charged forward.
"Slash——!"
The saber ripped through his clothing and flesh, exposing pale white bone.
The intense pain caused Gojo pupils to shrink sharply. Instinctively, he activated Teleportation.
He reappeared fifty meters away, eyes filled with shock as he looked down at his chest.
A ferocious bloody wound stretched from his lower waist all the way to his left chest, nearly slicing his torso in two and causing his internal organs to spill out.
He also used the Reversed Cursed Technique to immediately heal himself.
If he hadn't teleported just in time, he likely would've been cleaved in half diagonally.
"A brand-new ability!"
At that moment, the same thought struck both Sukuna and Gojo.
There was no doubt—the two abilities Nightmare had just displayed were not part of Zafkiel power.
"Scales of Libra swaps positions. But what is Cancer's Sword?"
Gojo was always protected by a layer of Infinity.
Anything approaching him would either be forcibly stopped or bounced away.
But just now, Nightmare saber bypassed Infinity entirely and directly struck his body.
Could it be that Cancer's Sword ignored defenses?
Regardless of what Cancer's Sword's ability truly was, Sukuna and Gojo were both overwhelmed.
Because this meant that the intel Tokisaki Kurumi had given them was now completely worthless.
All their previous preparations had been rendered useless!
"Kamo, let us out!"
"Hey, open this damn cage!"
At the same time, both Gojo and Sukuna roared in fury.
This arena, which had been designed to trap Nightmare, was now something they wanted to escape.
And rightly so.
The arena's main purpose had been to neutralize Zafkiel Eighth Bullet, which created clones, as well as Nightmare shadow infiltration powers.
But now, for unknown reasons, Nightmare abilities had completely changed.
Zafkiel, City Devouring Time, and shadow manipulation had all disappeared.
Replaced by powers they were completely unfamiliar with.
Continuing a beast fight in such a situation would only place them—the ones fighting blind—at a disadvantage.
At that moment, in a certain Tokyo base, watching the events unfold on the screen, Rakuin's expression shifted rapidly, equal parts joy and concern.
Joy, because both Gojo and Sukuna had asked for the arena to be lifted.
But the one managing the arena was not him—it was Kogane, the so-called Will of the Barrier.
Though he had created this barrier, due to the overwhelming power of its twisted rules, a human could not bear it; thus, the administrator had to be the barrier's manifested will.
And the Will of the Barrier could not be persuaded.
The only way to open the arena's barrier was for Tengen to voluntarily lift the grand barrier enveloping Japan.
And if Tengen did that, it would be like peeling off her shell and delivering herself right into Rakuin's hands.
His concern, however, was due to how drastically Nightmare had changed—so much so that it gave him the feeling that even with Gojo and Sukuna fighting together, they might still not be able to win.
In just a single moment, both had been severely wounded—and they hadn't even touched the hem of Nightmare clothing.
"Rakuin!"
At that moment, Tengen's voice appeared beside him.
"I want to make a deal with you."
"What kind of deal?"
"I will remove the Great Barrier and let Satoru Gojo and Sukuna out," Tengen said calmly. "But in exchange, you must join them to defeat the Nightmare."
Upon hearing this deal, a complicated expression flickered across Geto Suguru's face.
Not long ago, he had Tengen completely under control.
But now, the positions had instantly reversed.
If he refused to go and provide assistance, once Satoru Gojo and Sukuna died, the Nightmare—once freed—would definitely seek revenge on him.
And if he agreed to go, two possible outcomes would arise:
First, even with the three of them joining forces, they might still fail to eliminate the Nightmare, resulting in total annihilation.
Second, they might succeed in destroying the Nightmare, but then Tengen would tell Satoru Gojo the truth about Suguru Geto. A furious Gojo would then hunt him down.
No matter what, whether he went or not, the end result would not be good for him.
Geto silently pondered the options, thoughts churning in his mind.
After repeatedly weighing the pros and cons, he ultimately made his decision.
"I'll go."
That was the best choice.
Though going might still result in dying at the hands of the Nightmare,
And even if they won, he might still die under the joint pursuit of Satoru Gojo and Tengen,
He still had a chance to escape.
Once he escaped, everything could return to its original track—
The track from before the Nightmare appeared.
He would simply need to proceed step-by-step: seal Satoru Gojo, carry out the Culling Game, subdue Tengen, and then his plan could be completed.
After making up his mind, Geto reached for the talisman Tengen had given him and placed it on his own chest.
"Then I wish you a mutual destruction with the Nightmare," Tengen's voice fell calmly.
As his words landed, the teleportation barrier technique activated.
Through the connection between the Great Barrier and the Colosseum, Geto was instantly transported to the battlefield.
And the moment he arrived, the spiritual connection that maintained the Colosseum was broken.
As a result, the Colosseum that depended on the existence of the Great Barrier vanished as well.
"Ara ara, isn't this Mr. Geto?"
Seeing yet another challenger arrive, Tokisaki Kurumi couldn't help but chuckle lightly, "I thought you were the type to always hide in the shadows. What made you suddenly come out?"
"Geto..."
Hearing that name, both Satoru Gojo and Sukuna couldn't help but glance at the middle-aged man who had appeared on the battlefield, with somewhat complicated looks in their eyes.
Although their reasons differed, neither had the time to delve into those thoughts now.
"Shatter her simple domain!"
Geto called out quickly, and the other two didn't hesitate to take action.
They didn't know what Geto was planning, but for now, facing the enemy in front of them, it was better to cooperate and fight first.
Since Geto seemed to have a way to deal with her, then before they could come up with a better strategy themselves,
Why not test his plan first?
Thus, the two top-tier fighters simultaneously launched an attack from the left and right toward the Nightmare.
The Nightmare power, defense, and speed did not appear to have changed significantly.
What had changed was only her ability.
However, even with just that, the change in her weapons—from two flintlock guns to a military knife and a flintlock—
Significantly increased the difficulty of breaking her simple domain.
Unlike flintlocks, the military knife didn't require time to gather bullets or aim,
Which raised her close-combat capabilities by more than just one level.
Trying to suppress her through continuous attacks was no longer as easy as before.
No, even before, it wasn't exactly easy,
But now it was clearly even harder!
Sukuna slashes, if not careful, could easily injure himself or his teammates,
While Satoru Gojo Limitless technique lost its original effectiveness.
Now, the only good news was—
They were still three against one!
"Shua shua——!"
Another two Cancer Swords were launched, forcing Satoru Gojo and Sukuna to dodge instead of block—
The ferocity of the offensive couldn't even be compared to before.
"Gemini Bullet!"
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Tokisaki Kurumi fired another Zodiac Bullet.
As the Angel of Space, the primary ability of Kurumi evolved Lucifugus form was naturally spatial manipulation.
The Libra Bullet could swap the positions of allies and enemies,
The Cancer Sword could tear through space,
And the Gemini Bullet allowed the user to carve out a space for "me" to exist,
Then duplicate that space in the original world.
In other words—Kurumi classic ability:
Create a clone!
"Bang!"
With the gunshot, another Tokisaki Kurumi appeared before the group.
Another Nightmare?!
Seeing this, the three others were all startled.
They had assumed that with the change from Zafkiel to Lucifugus all of her abilities had changed as well.
Could it be they were wrong?
Did the transformation not replace her abilities, but rather add new ones on top of the old?!
Just then, the sound of a crow cawing echoed—
And three cursed tools dropped from the sky.
One landed near Satoru Gojo.
Two landed near Sukuna.
Receiving the delivered Special Grade cursed tools,
Satoru Gojo and Sukuna instantly felt a bit more at ease.
Even if there were no more reinforcements,
Having some support was better than nothing.
With three Special Grade cursed tools in hand, their combat strength could at least double!
"Next, this white-haired brat and I will do everything we can to destroy her simple domain!"
Sukuna, his four eyes fixed on the Nightmare, barked toward Geto behind him:
"Whatever it is you're planning, seize the chance and make it count!"