A deafening explosion split the night apart. A skyscraper—dozens of stories high—detonated like brittle paper. Steel and concrete shredded into fragments, bursting outward in a storm of flame, dust, and molten debris that painted the night sky in red.
Two black figures shot out from the heart of the explosion—like cannonballs colliding with fate.
"Ha!" A sharp, mocking laugh tore through the smoke.
Hovering amidst the flames, pink hair glinting under the moonlight, Sukuna gazed down upon his battered opponent.
"Is that all you've got, Curse—Spirit—?"
Below him, Jogo spat blood, his single eye wild with rage and disbelief. Molten orbs ignited in his palms, blazing like twin suns.
"It's not over—!!!"
He thrust his hands forward, ready to hurl annihilation itself—
But then—
Swish. Swish.
Two pitch-black slashes flickered into existence. Too fast to be seen. Too sharp to be real.
Pfft!
The molten orbs, along with both of Jogo's forearms, were severed cleanly—smooth as mirrored glass.
"Wh—?!" His cry froze mid-breath.
Sukuna was suddenly there—above him, a cruel smirk curling his lips. His shadow fell upon Jogo like divine judgment. With both fists clenched, he struck downward.
Thump—!!!
A single, crushing blow. Jogo's skull caved in with a sickening crunch, and his body plummeted like a meteor trailing blood and ash. Sukuna dove after him, faster still. His left hand clamped around Jogo's mangled head like an iron vice—
Rumble!!!
The two crashed through a rooftop—then another—then another.
Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!
Each impact detonated like a bomb as they tore through floor after floor of reinforced concrete, leaving a vertical trail of destruction. The building groaned. The ground quaked.
And finally—
Boom!
They struck the foundation. The air exploded with dust.
In the Depths of the Ruin
Pale moonlight streamed weakly through the massive holes above, falling upon a scene of quiet carnage. Sukuna stood amidst rubble and rebar, hands in his pockets, posture relaxed—as if he had merely taken a leisurely stroll down here.
He tilted his chin slightly upward. Under the ghostly light, the black Cursed Marks across his face writhed like living ink. The two smaller eyes beneath his real ones glimmered with a cold, inhuman gleam.
His lips curled into a thin, cruel smile.
"The moonlight's shining in…"
"Your pathetic ugliness can't be hidden anymore."
At his feet lay Jogo—half-buried, half-broken. His chest rose and fell in ragged spasms; his mouth poured blood and shredded organs. His severed arms twitched weakly, desperate to regenerate beneath the pitiless light.
This was the great Special Grade Curse, now reduced to a heap of trembling flesh.
Flashback
"How strong am I, compared to a few of Sukuna's fingers?" Jogo had once asked, reclining on a beach chair, his tone proud.
Kenjaku's amused voice echoed in memory. "Optimistically estimated… eight or nine fingers."
Now, staring up at the moon from beneath the rubble, Jogo's one eye filled with despair.
'Eight or nine fingers?Kenjaku, you overestimated me.'
"Alright, alright, keep it up." Sukuna crouched, grabbing Jogo by the collar with one hand, his tone dripping with mockery.
"You can play as many times as you want—before I get bored." Jogo's eyes widened in dread.
Boom!!!
Flames burst from the building—erupting through every window, vent, and crack. Sukuna emerged first, wreathed in smoke, followed closely by Jogo, whose right hand now blazed like a miniature sun.
"Maximum Technique: Meteor!!!"
A thunderous roar. The night sky split open as a colossal, flaming meteor descended, trailing an infernal tail that turned clouds into fire.
On the streets below, Kusakabe and Panda, pursued by two rogue Cursed Users, froze as they felt it—the suffocating flood of cursed energy.
Then—
"No, you don't."
Sukuna's voice slithered into their ears. All four instantly stiffened, drenched in cold sweat. His oppressive aura locked them in place.
"From now on," Sukuna said lightly, "none of you move without my permission."
He turned his crimson gaze skyward. The meteor blazed, descending fast—unstoppable.
"Stand still… stand still."
He spread his hands, preparing to clap—mocking, playful, almost childlike in his cruelty.
His grin widened as he watched the four frozen figures, their terror thick as blood in the air.
"Now… you still can't run."
His palms drew closer—
Then—
Buzz.
The world fell silent. Something deeper than sound had been severed.
Vision fractured—engulfed in a million shards of cold, blue-white light. Each fragment was a blade. Each blade a will to erase.
Rip—!!!
The fiery meteor halted midair. Then, silently—disintegrated.
No explosion. No flame. It simply unraveled—reduced to dust finer than ash, cascading downward like gray snow. The world dimmed under the pale curtain of annihilated stone and ember.
Sukuna's laughter died mid-breath. His crimson pupils shrank to pinpoints, reflecting the drifting ruin above. For a moment, he was still—then the corner of his mouth twitched.
Displeasure… and then something far sharper.
Recognition. Excitement. A mad grin split his face apart.
"Heh…"
"...Hahahahaha!!!"
His laughter rose, booming through the devastated streets, echoing from every shattered wall.
"A formidable fellow has arrived—!!!"
Above the Ruins
Through the falling ash, a lone figure hovered in the night sky. His left hand-held Jogo by the back of his collar—the mighty volcano spirit now limp, half-dead, blood and ash dripping from his broken form.
His right hand rested on the hilt of his blade—the ancient Yamato, faintly glimmering in the blue haze. Wind swept past, lifting the hood of his dark shirt and scattering white strands of hair across his face. He gazed down—not with anger, nor pity.
Just quiet, unshakable indifference. The ash danced around him like the remnants of a dying world. Sukuna's manic laughter faltered, swallowed by the chill in the air.
And then— Taisai spoke. His voice was not loud, but it carried across the city, cutting through the silence like frost on glass.
"Sukuna."
He drew the Yamato halfway from its sheath. The blade caught the moonlight, shining like ice.
"Amuse me."