Shinjuku no longer trembled with silence.
It shook from impact.
The instant Mahito spread his six arms wide, Sukuna surged forward. His four arms tore through the air, his body blurring faster than the human eye could follow.
The pavement cratered beneath his steps, shockwaves exploding outward from every stride.
Gojo did not wait either. His body vanished with a shift of cursed energy, closing the distance in an instant.
The two strongest sorcerers of history struck at the same time, one from the left, the other from the right.
Mahito laughed, delighted as two more arms sprouted like thorned roses from his back.
Six arms met eight, each clash cracking the air. The sound was not flesh against flesh, but thunder splitting concrete.
Mahito sprouted another limb from his ribs mid-swing, twisting at an impossible angle to intercept Gojo's fist.
The limb shattered on impact, bone splintering like wood, but his main arms caught Sukuna's strike, purple sparks scattering where their cursed energy collided.
The first exchange sent all three skidding back, carving trenches through the street.
Gojo smiled as if limbering up. "Not bad. For a curse."
Mahito grinned through the armored mask. "Then let's make it interesting."
The curse lurched forward again, his body twisting unnaturally. An arm bent backward at the elbow, swiping like a whip. Another limb speared from his shoulder, stabbing toward Sukuna's abdomen-mouth, while two more swung low, claws scraping asphalt as they went for Gojo's legs.
Gojo pivoted lightly, his movements precise and efficient. He ducked one arm, let another clash directly into his Infinity, sparks rose as Mahito used domain amplification without any isssuesthen hammered Mahito's jaw with an upward strike.
The hit lifted Mahito half a meter off the ground, but before gravity could reclaim him, Sukuna was already there.
The King of Curses drove a knee upward into Mahito's gut. The impact folded the curse's body inward, the armored plates cracking under the blow. Blood spewed from his mouth, spraying across Sukuna's chest.
The blood turned into tendrils, all drilling into the former kings body with impunity.
To that, Sukuna only grunted, but it was enough encouragement for Mahito to go even further.
The strongest curse's eyes glowed brighter. He twisted midair, ignoring the damage he sustained, and sprouted a jagged limb from his spine, whipping it like a bladed tail toward Sukuna's neck.
Sukuna blocked with a lower arm, sparks of cursed energy grinding between them. He snarled, forcing the limb aside with his now broken arm, but that left his healing torso open.
An opening that Mahito would unfortunately never get to use, as Gojo slipped in, his movements cleaner, sharper. His right palm slammed against Mahito's chest.
The blow sent the curse skidding back across the boulevard, tearing gouges through asphalt, smashing a bus stop to pieces as he landed.
Mahito rolled once and crouched, arms flexing, armor still cracked from the combined blows. He licked blood from his lips beneath the mask, laughter spilling freely.
"Ahhh… This is what I wanted." His voice vibrated with exhilaration. "The strongest, united against me. How exciting! How great!"
Gojo tilted his head, smiling faintly. "Still just as crazy as when we first met, huh? Guess we didn't hit you hard enough."
Sukuna grinned with teeth bared, his abdomen-mouth chuckling in perfect sync. "Shut up, both of you. Don't ruin my enjoyment with your grating voices"
The second clash came even harder.
Gojo blurred forward first this time, fists moving with surgical precision. His strikes cut the air in clean lines, every blow enhanced by Infinity, carrying force that would shatter skyscrapers.
Mahito met him with six arms weaving unpredictable counters, sprouting extra limbs to parry when needed. The cursed spirit twisted his body like liquid, never moving like a human, attacking from impossible angles.
But Gojo's technique was undeniable. His shoulders shifted smoothly with each punch, his stance perfectly balanced, his footwork sharp enough to dodge Mahito's inhuman reach by millimeters.
Every strike he landed drove Mahito backward, each impact a small detonation of cursed energy.
And Sukuna was never far behind. He flanked constantly, pressing in with a savagery that contrasted Gojo's refinement. Where Gojo's blows were efficient, Sukuna's were overwhelming.
His four arms tore into Mahito from all sides, heavy strikes that left craters with every miss, jagged elbows and clawed fingers aiming to rip the curse apart piece by piece.
Mahito adapted. He bent spines, extended limbs, hardened portions of his exoskeleton to shield against crushing blows. He fought like no man could, a shifting storm of flesh and armor.
He laughed through the pain, twisting out of Sukuna's grip one moment, grappling Gojo with two extra arms the next.
The street disintegrated beneath them. Asphalt split into rivers of cracks. Buildings shook and collapsed under stray shockwaves. Glass rained down in torrents.
Miles away, the spectators flinched with every tremor transmitted through Mei Mei's crows.
Kusakabe muttered something half-panicked, half-resigned. "That's not even them using techniques. That's just… fists."
Yuta's knuckles whitened against the table's edge. "They're faster than the eyes of our 'cameras'. We're only catching pieces of it."
Maki's eyes narrowed, unblinking. "Gojo's controlling the pace. Sukuna's brute force would overwhelm anyone else, but Mahito's adapting too fast. He's… enjoying this."
Mei Mei remained poised, her silver hair perfectly still. "Of course he is. For Mahito, this is still just playing around."
Back on the field, the play was already escalating.
Mahito ducked Gojo's strike, sprouting an arm from his thigh that speared toward the sorcerer's throat. It met Infinity and stopped, the cursed energy sparking as if pressing against glass. Gojo did not even flinch. His counter was immediate, an elbow to Mahito's temple that rattled his skull.
At the same instant, Sukuna's lower hands seized Mahito's ribcage, crushing inward with bone-snapping force. Blood spurted, ribs cracked, but Mahito only screamed in laughter.
He sprouted another set of arms from his chest, shoving Sukuna back, then used his insect-like wings to leap high above Gojo's head. From above, he came crashing down, six arms hammering the ground in a wave of impact.
Gojo and Sukuna both evaded, debris exploding upward. Mahito landed in a crouch, arms stretching unnaturally wide, his mask gleaming with mockery.
"Too weak," he taunted, eyes glowing like molten amethyst.
"Too loud," Gojo replied, vanishing in a blur and reappearing at Mahito's side. His knee rammed into the curse's ribs, followed by a spinning backfist that cracked the exoskeleton further.
Mahito staggered, and Sukuna's claws slashed across his chest in the same instant. The combined pressure finally drove the cursed spirit to his knees, armor shattering across his torso.
For the first time, Mahito bled freely.
Yet his grin never faltered. His eyes gleamed brighter. "Yes… More! Show me how worthy you are as rivals!"
Gojo's expression shifted slightly. Enough was enough.
His hand lifted, cursed energy coiling around his palm. "Cursed Technique Lapse: Blue."
The air collapsed inward. Space itself warped as an irresistible pull seized Mahito's body, dragging him forward toward Gojo's waiting strike. Debris, dust, and shattered concrete tore through the air with him, a storm converging into the sorcerer's hand.
Mahito's laughter pitched higher, body straining against the pull. His claws scraped against asphalt, tearing furrows as he fought against the gravity
Sukuna's crimson eyes flashed. He lifted one arm, fingers poised. The grin across both his mouths widened.
"Dismantle."
The invisible slash carved through the battlefield.
Mahito's armored chest split open, the exoskeleton sheared cleanly away. Blood sprayed in an arc, staining the ruined street.
A deep scar carved across his torso, one that even his twisted body could not immediately mend.
But Gojo stood untouched, Infinity shimmering faintly around him. The slash stopped centimeters short of his skin, halted by the unseeable 'barrier' that never left him.
Mahito dropped to one knee, blood dripping from the gash. His purple eyes glowed brighter still, and his laughter, hoarse now, echoed defiantly.
"You think this… is enough? I want to see more... I guess I'll have to get serious."
With his next step, the ground trembled, asphalt turning to mud underneath their feet.
On all of the collapsed buildings around them, small vulcanos popped up like zits, bursting blazing hot magma and turning the streets into a chaotic molten sea.
The sky above them all bellowed with thunder.
Gojo's gaze sharpened. Sukuna's grin widened. They shared the same thought, both with some lingering excitement.
'He's starting to tap into his arsenal of Cursed Techniques...'
The real fight had only begun.