The Inumaki Clan Prodigy [Jujutsu Kaisen]

10:20 P.M. TINOKASHIRA LINE SHIBUYA STATION-DAVENUE GATE

"Saturo Gojo is sealed, correct? I can hardly believe it." Naobito Zenin said as he ran along side Maki and right behind Isamu.

"Yes, however, even if he is just a fake, Geto seems to be involved." Nanami responded. Quite a lot had happened in the last hour.

First, Yuji, Mei Mei, Ino, and Megumi helped destroy the curtain keeping out sorcerers, taking out some cursed users in the process.

Nobara was separate then from team Zenin and attacked by a curse user. She almost lost her life in that encounter along side their assistant supervisor. Until Nanami showed up and sent the curse user flying out one building and through the next.

After that, Nobara was tasked with bringing Nitta out of the curtain to get her medical attention before staying out there as Nanami reckoned she was too weak and inexperienced for such a complicated and dangerous incident.

Nanami had then joined team Zenin on their way to the center of the curtain on level B5, where they would deal with the curse user in control of the curtains and unseal Gojo.

"I for one wouldn't mind letting things be and bearing witness to the decline of the Gojo family." As the clan head of one of the rivaling big 3 families, it was no surprise Naobito was not particularly interested in saving the Gojo clan head.

"Go home if you're not gonna help." Maki said, annoyed. Over the last hour, the hated clan head wore on her last nerve for nearly every second. It was only due to Isamu's calm presence which seemed infectious to Maki that she hadn't snapped at the old geezer.

"Go home? I'd say that's more for you, Maki. Am I right, grade 1 sorcerer Nanami?" Naobito countered in a "I know more than you" sort of way

"Maki. As far as this is concerned. I agree with Naobito." Nanami agreed, a bit to Isamu's surprise.

"Pretty sure I'm more useful than a drunk." Maki said coldly before quickening her pace to catch up to Isamu who was leading the pack, only wielding the wakizashi he'd named Maya. Why did Isamu name his anniversary gift after the Hindu goddess of illusions? Maki had no idea.

The short, machete like katana was stained with the blood of transfigured humans. For some reason, Isamu had yet to draw the sword he'd inherited from the Inumaki clan despite wearing it on his left hip.

Honestly, Maki was a bit surprised Isamu was able to kill the transfigured humans without seeming sad about it. But after thinking on it a bit, Maki figured it made sense.

Isamu was equal parts logical as he was empathic. So he probably saw them as victims too far gone, the only thing you could do for them was put them out of their misery. But it still had to hurt him. He was too emotional and empathic to deal with it 100% rationally like Maki did. They'd have to talk about it when they got home, she'd be dammed if he bottled up another emotion on her watch.

After a while, they entered a large room with two pillars on either side of a set of stairs leading somewhere else. It was a general station for people to pass through to and from their destinations. And for some reason, it felt a bit dead.

The whole city felt dead, granted, it was one of the consequences of thousands of monsters being released into a large population. But this place wasn't stained with blood, no body parts littered the ground. It gave off the same vibes as when a horror movie went all quiet right before a jump scare.

Maki, Nanami, and Naobito didn't seem to notice much. But Isamu did. At the last possible moment, Isamu's left hand, one infused with no cursed energy, whipped out and caught a cursed energy infused bud, one heading straight for Nanami.

Isamu took a quick peek and recognized the bud instantly, it was the same kind that almost killed Megumi during the goodwill event. One belonging to the curse who wiped out the clan Isamu grew up in.

Isamu dropped the bud as his comrades tensed. He swapped Maya to his left hand while drawing Saraswati with his right, Isamu, too, preparing himself as their attacker rounded the corner.

"You have gotten faster, child. Compared to our first meeting, you have grown leaps and bounds. It is fortunate I have as we-" The nature themed cursed spirit "said" in its annoying, headache inducing, telepathic way.

But before it could say more or even end its sentence, it was already frozen.

"You three. Are too slow." Naobito said, standing behind the cursed spirit. Or where the cursed spirit had been. In its place was a glass pane with what seemed like the curse painted onto it.

Throwing back a fist, Naobito shattered the glass with a heavy punch as the curse reappeared, seeming to rocket out of the glass it'd been trapped in. Isamu didn't quite know how it worked either. It seemed to be some kind of movement based technique which sped up the user. And if the user touches the enemy and they didn't meet some conditions, they would be frozen in glass for a short period.

It was quite the technique. One Isamu intended to make full use of. Cutting a small mark into the ground close to him as the curse rocketed towards their group, Isamu willed the stone itself into motion using his new special grade cursed tool.

Ten large square pillars of stone sprouted from the ground and slammed into the curse as it slammed into them. Dust and debris scattered throughout the room as Nanami and Maki closed in, all of them understood the danger this curse posed and knew they didn't want to tussle with it for long.

The curses back had hit the pillars and was just getting up when Maki slashed its eye branches off and left a long, shallow mark on its face. Nanami moved simultaneously and slashed out at the curses arm, just above the elbow while activating his technique.

Nanami was able to bury his wrapped cleaver half way into the curses left arm. The curse raised its right, shooting multiple roots out at Nanami from its palm while even more shot out of the ground towards Maki. Just as well, they accomplished their real task.

Naobito used the small opening provided and taped the curse on the shoulder from behind, freezing the weed in a pane of glass before its roots could catch Nanami. He then spun the curse before tossing it in Isamu's direction who still stood near the entrance to the room.

"New Shadow Style: Noon Eclipse Sword Drawing." Isamu said calmly before slashing 8 times into the glass pane, all slashes landing in the brief time the curse was frozen. The curse rocketed backwards at the force.

"Blast towards me!" Isamu shouted before he manifested another simple domain, ready to unleash another Noon Eclipse Sword Drawing once his command kicked in and sent the curse flying towards him. Unluckily, the curse wasn't effected by the command, simply flying into a nearby wall in a cloud of dust and a spurt of purple blood.

Naobito raced towards it as Nanami and Maki approached at a much slower speed. Naobito circled it only to be met with a spinning back fist. Luckily, he predicted it and ducked under the blow, laying a hand on its stomach.

Naobito was surprised when he was met with a fist to the face instead of a glass pane with a curse inside. Naobito's face crumpled from the hit, his nose broken as Nanami and Maki pressed the curse to cover his retreat. Naobito had always been a "as long as you don't get hit, your toughness doesn't matter" kind of guy.

"It's using Domain Amplification. Cursed techniques won't work on it. But it can't use its cursed technique either." Naobito proclaimed, mirroring Isamu's and Nanami's thoughts perfectly.

The curse ducked a slash from Maki before raising an arm to block Nanami's clever, the weapon doing significantly less damage now that Nanami's cursed technique, the ability to create a weak point on an enemy and basically land a critical hit, was deactivated.

The cursed spirit threw a back fist in Nanami's direction, forcing him back a bit before it caught Maki's blade by clapping its hands together, trapping it between them. Before the curse could break the blade or snap the pole arm, many stone spikes impaled its side and slammed it into the wall.

"Incase!" Isamu shouted, commanding the earth and metal around the curse to compact and trap the curse in the wall. While Saraswati was able to command objects at a heavily reduced cost compared to Isamu's extension technique, its range was limited and some situations still called for manual commands.

"Thanks for saving my ass." Maki said under her breath as their group got into the beginnings of a formation and caught their breath.

"Isamu, I'm sure you already know to do this but, command it the second it breaks out if it uses its technique to do so. Maki, Naobito, and I will do our best to capitalize on it." Nanami suggested from behind Isamu. Isamu was the one with the best offensive out of all of them now that Naobito's and Nanami's techniques were, for the most part, useless offensively.

But Isamu could use his technique on the environment to do damage so they all silently agreed to make him the spear head of their formation. It would be his job to finish the curse.

They all stood in silence, waiting for the curse to break out of the wall of rebar and concentrate it was being suffocated in. After a moment, nothing happened. They waited a little longer but still, nothing.

"Did it run?" Nanami questioned, curious about its lack of movement. Isamu decided to find out.

"Explode." Isamu said, commanding the entire section of stone to become a giant fire ball, hopefully cooking everything inside. A loud boom swept through the room as the very foundations of the building shook. As the fire began to die out and the smoke cleared…

Suddenly, a single plated arm came rocketing out of the dust created, striking Isamu in the gut. Or trying to, he was able to get Maya in front of it just in time. Did it throw its own arm at him?

It had, not in the conventional sense however. It was more like it extended its arm at him. About where the elbow would be on its arm was a long root which extended back towards the cloud of black smoke and fire but Isamu could still feel the aura of domain amplification around the arm.

Isamu remembered the appearance of the curses insides from when Yuji smashed open its plating during the goodwill event. Was it using its plant innards to extend its punches? If so, it was pretty risky.

The cursed spirits best attribute, by far, was its durability. Its plates were so tough that without their techniques, Naobito and Nanami could barely scratch it while Maki was in a similar situation no matter if the curse was using domain amplification or not.

So by exposing its insides, it was giving Nanami and the others the chance to actually do damage. And in Ismau's opinion, it wasn't a good trade. Extended range for much worse durability was a terrible decision. But Isamu refused to think an idiot was able to take down the Inumaki clan. There had to be another reason.

Isamu shifted his arms to trap the arm in a hold as Nanami and Maki went to cut its arm off. Right before they could, flowers sprouted from its root like body and fired buds in every direction. Maki was basically immune to them due to her body not being reinforced by cursed energy. Nanami was a different story.

Luckily, Isamu was rather knowledgeable on the curses abilities and had shared with Nanami and Naobito. Just before getting hit, Nanami deactivated the cursed energy protecting his body, causing the buds to bounce off harmlessly.

Another arm flew out of the now clearing smoke and struck Nanami's unprotected chest, sending him flying as he coughed up blood. Isamu tried to keep the arm in his grip so Maki could finish off the root. She'd cut about half way through it as she didn't need to worry about the buds. Despite the roots being much less durable than the white plates, it was still durable.

Unfortunately, the arm Isamu held between his side and his right arm erupted in roots, stabbing into his side and the inside of his right arm. He flinched in pain and was too surprised to keep a decent hold, resulting in the arm retracting just before Maki could saw through the root and sever the arm.

Isamu fought through the pain and tired to slash the second arm which had struck Nanami away. His arm was too slow though, only cutting the plated forearm instead of the weaker roots he was aiming for. The armpit held many nerves integral to the arms movement so when a root cut through it along with the bicep and forearm, it hindered Isamu's slashing speed a ton.

Still, Isamu's insanely sharp special grade blade cut deep into the white right arm, drenching the ground with the purple blood of a cursed spirit. Isamu looked back at where the arms came from to find a rather damaged cursed spirit.

8 deep slash marks covered its torso, slowly healing from Isamu's Noon Eclipse Sword Drawing. Its right side had a few puncture wounds from one of Saraswati's commands, the one that saved Maki. Besides those obvious wounds, minor scratches and cuts covered its left side from smashing into the wall along side burn marks from the explosion.

It was only now that Isamu was remind how quickly some fights could progress. Nanami had taken a serious blow, the cursed buds making him a perfect, non cursed energy reinforced target for the cursed spirit to nail. He could still probably fight but he'd be weakened and less effective for sure.

Isamu was in better shape, the damage to his right arm sucked and made duel wielding Maya and Saraswati unfeasible. But Isamu was still a good swordsman's with his left hand and he didn't need to be in tip top shape to infuse his sword with cursed energy and cut the ground.

Meanwhile, the cursed spirit had taken a good amount of damage while two of their fighters, Naobito and Maki were doing fine. Overall, they were in pretty decent shape. But one thing still troubled Isamu's. How had it used cursed bud and domain amplification at the same time?

It was impossible for it to be a technique. You just couldn't use techniques at the same time, it was impossible, period. So was Isamu mistaken and cursed bud was just a part of the curses body? Separate from its technique? It was definitely possible. But Isamu didn't really need to know how it was done, even if he was curious. He just needed to know it could.

"While it would be preferable to hold off and save power for the rest of this war, you are my main concern. And it is clear that you, child, are worth my full might." The cursed spirit said as its rose, which had been a simple bud, its center eye not visible in the slightest, opened.

A warm glow of golden cursed energy washed throughout the room and Nanami limped back to the group, a blood stain about the size of a dinner plate visible on the right side of his stomach.

Isamu rushed forward, Naobito in front of him and Maki behind. He scored the ground, launching 20 rebar spikes towards the curse. More specifically, towards the ball of energy which had suddenly appeared.

Naobito arrived before the spikes and tried getting around the curse to grapple it to ensure the rebar disrupted the energy needed to expand its domain. The curse predicted his movements and spun around, throwing a heavy right hook.

Naobito slipped it and caught ots wrist, twisted himself in the air and kicked the curse with both feet, breaking both of its eye branches. Isamu ran in, stabbing it clean through the stomach from behind, his special grade blade sharp enough to pierce its armor with ease as the rebar spikes made shallow wounds on its back and becoming stuck in its armor.

All of the curses joints suddenly expanded and exploded roots in every direction. Now wielding Maya in his right hand and Saraswati in his left, Isamu who was forced back but went untouched by the roots. The roots fired buds in every direction, Naobito was forced to disengage while Isamu kept slicing and slashing, ignoring the pain erupting through his arm as both blades weaved a dance of whooshing air.

During his cutting, Isamu marked the ground, forming a ball of stone around him to block the rest of the buds before cutting the inside of the ball, causing it to reshape itself into many stone spikes. Maybe Isamu should get more creative with his commands, he was using a lot of spikes.

The spikes left him unprotected but smashed into the curse who used the time Isamu was in the ball to retract itself and get back into its plating. The stone spikes pierced the curse in three different spots as it seemed to reinforce its armor.

"Explode." Isamu commanded. Not to the curse, but to the stone and metal rebar stuck in its body. Isamu was too close to come out unscathed but he figured it was worth it. His team could capitalize on the opening for him.

The injured Nanami and the nearly peak condition Naobito and Maki rushed into the cloud of smoke created as Isamu was blasted back by the shockwave. Isamu didn't see what they were up to but one of them seemed to land a solid punch, making the curse fly out of the smoke, three new cut marks on its flesh on top of the several searing holes created by the explosions.

Unfortunately, the ball of cursed energy was still as dense as ever, its warm yellow glow still washed over the room and no doubt put on quite the light show for any who might be looking in from the outside. Luckily, the only person who seemed to have seen the many explosions and the lighting of cursed energy was an ally.

A huge, larger than usual, black werewolf rocketed out of nowhere and cleaved a large chunk from the curse's abdomen as an orange, owl like shikigami smashed into if from above, letting out an explosion of purple lightning once it made contact.

"Isamu! Maki!" Megumi shouted as he came in from behind their loose formation, Isamu having gotten up from being blasted away, black scuff marks covered his uniform and face while the blood from the thorn stabbing into him flowed freely.

"Megumi, you're one hell of an underclassman! Keep up the pressure, we can't let it expand its domain!" Maki shouted while rushing towards the curse, her two grade 1 companions rushing ahead of her.

Megumi wasted no time on words and followed after them, Isamu rejoining the fight just before Megumi rushed in, already making hand signs to summon more shikigami, having dismissed Nue as to save energy.

The curse, having regained its feet just before their attacking forces reached them, turned and jumped out a large window covering an entire wall of the room as the cursed energy in the yellow ball flared.

"Your technique. It infuses cursed energy with an intent before sending that energy into the air in the form of sound. That cursed energy then enters the target's brain, forcing them to act out or be acted upon by that force. But, if your cursed energy never reaches me, I'm not affected. So, as long as I fill the air with my own cursed energy condensed into a field, I don't need to fear your commands." The curse explained just before it reached the ground. It rolled as it landed, spreading the impact across its body. Even still purple blood from their constant attacks dripped onto the ground at a steady pace.

A humming sound filled the air, the yellow light intensifying as roots exploded from the ground, wooden balls appearing in the air along side them. It had deactivated domain amplification!

Isamu pushed his aching and bleeding body as he ducked and dodged the many roots, hopping and rolling through them as he approached the curse. The othesr did the same, coming out of it relatively unscathed, except for Nanami who took a sharped root to the left shoulder. He lagged behind the rest of them as a result but was far from out of the fight.

Naobito reached the curse first, attempting to tag it and freeze the curse for a second. However, as the old man drew nearer to the curse, the cursed energy emitting from the flower grew more potent, burning the clan heads skin and forcing him away.

As long as that ball was burning energy into the environment, none of them could get close without taking serious damage. Luckily, the ball was burning through its cursed energy at a rapid rate. Isamu gave it a minute or two before the effect weakened enough to let them get in close and three minutes until Isamu could use his technique with enough effectiveness to make it worth the cursed energy. But that was assuming the energy stayed in the air.

Isamu, finally drawing near the curse, crouched, deploying a simple domain. No matter how simple or weak, a domain was a domain. And in a domain, the users cursed energy rained supreme unless met with another, equally or more powerful domain.

Isamu expanded his domain as far as he could and then some, burning away his cursed energy pool far faster than he'd like. But it was worth it if it meant he could make room for the others to close the distance as well. He wouldn't use a sword drawing technique, not wanting the domain to collapse sooner than need be.

The others took full advantage. Maki, now armed with playful cloud courtesy of Megumi's shadow stockpile dashed in, swinging one of the three sections of the staff towards its knee, it raised its foot to kick out at Maki but was stopped when it was frozen in a glass pane.

Megumi's werewolf slammed into it at full speed, stabbing both set of claws into its chest. The shikigami pinned it to the ground as Nanami came in from above, striking its left arm just below the shoulder in a critical hit. Isamu simultaneously pushed his special grade katana into its side while pinning its right arm with his other blade and his knee.

Maki came in again, playful cloud seeking to strike the curses head and crush it. It was do or die time. Isamu would only be able to keep up his domain for a single second more, if this didn't land, they would be in a terrible position.

"Foolish humans!" The curse shouted as it seemed to detonate its own ball of curse energy. Instead of burning it into the environment or saving it for its domain expansion, it decided trading its power for a continued existence was the best play. Everyone was blasted away in different directions as roots joined them in their moments of vulnerability.

Isamu was able to command a pillar of stone using his extension technique to block the large wall of roots. Nanami used his own extension technique to strike the ground in a critical hit, forming a large shockwave to blast the roots away. Naobito was able to freeze the cursed energy created objects while Megumi's owl took a heavy blow defending him as a meat shield. Not quite killing it but definitely taking it out of the fight.

Everyone was accounted for, except for Maki. Maki, being the weakest of their team when it came to versatility and defensive options, had been impaled through the thigh before being dragged back towards the cursed spirit.

"You took my friend, Dagon, from me. So I shall take something precious from you in return." The curse seemed to taunt as thorn covered roots slammed into Maki, encasing her in a coffin of barbed wood with only a small opening on the top. Blood seeped from the cracks in the wood as the curse grabbed onto the bottom of the structure.

"Blast Away!!!" Isamu screamed, more despite for something to work than ever before. Nothing happened, the white glow of domain amplification covered its body, as if taunting him and his uselessness. Isamu rushed forward, as did the others, but it was far too late.

The cursed spirit, having set up the cocoon of roots in such a way, was able to simply pull on the bottom of the death trap and rip it away from Maki. Maki was sliced all over, from head to toe by the insanely sharp thorns on the inside. She simply fell down with a thud, completely motionless as her entire body bled.

"Use Round Deer!" Isamu commanded Megumi, forcing his body to make the hand signs and dedicate the cursed energy to the action. The next instant, a larger than usual but not too large pure white deer appeared from Megumi's shadow. Megumi, having a good enough head on his shoulders to not freeze up in a situation like this, commanded the deer to treat Maki with its one and only use, converting RCT into output and healing others.

Isamu continued his sprint, new found hatred burning in his eyes. Nanami rushed in from his right as Naobito dashed ahead on his left. The curse was able to predict the old man's movement, sending a wave of cursed buds in his direction, shooting out of its shoulder as its now healed eye branches focused on Nanami and Isamu.

Isamu swung his sword towards it, commanding the very air to spontaneously combust into a wall of fire heading towards the cursed spirit. The commanded was so horribly inefficient in terms of cursed energy that Isamu would've never used it if he was in his right mind. Unfortunately, he was not.

A wall of roots sprouted from the ground as the curse turned its domain amplification off for the smallest of intervals in order to use its technique. It was not enough time for Isamu to even see it had turned off the technique, given the wall of burning roots. But it was enough time for Nanami to land a clean hit using his technique.

Using his techniques on the same spot he had moments before, Nanami was able to finish off its arm and sever it just below the shoulder. The black arm fell towards the ground but half way down it was caught by roots sprouting from the stump of Hanami's arm.

The arm was swung like a bull whip in Nanami's direction, forcing him away before quickly retracting the arm and reattaching it. Naobito was able to sneak in from behind and drop kick the curse in the back of the head before shifting his weight and vaulting over the cursed spirit. He twisted in the air as he flew over it, grabbed it by both sides of its head, swung himself down and kicked it in the stomach with both feet.

He then jumped away using the curse as a foot hold, rolling backwards as Isamu jumped over him. He emerged from the black smoke emitted from the burning roots around him like a bat out of hell, swing his sword towards the curses neck.

The curse was able to move fast enough to clasp its hands around the blade, stopping Isamu's attack in its tracks. Now that it'd gotten hold of the special grade cursed tool, the fight was in the bag. But as the smoke cleared and Isamu let go of the blade, the curse realized its mistake.

It wasn't holding the special grade cursed tool, but the shorter blade. Isamu rolled past the curse, his momentum carrying him to its side as he gripped his sword in both hands.

"Freeze." Isamu said, more calm than expected. His target wasn't the curse, domain amplification and all, but the air around it. At the same time, he used the technique imbued in the sword to do the same, stacking them together and creating a commanded more powerful than the sum of its parts.

The curse, now impaled through the stomach for a second time, was frozen in place as its entire body was covered in ice, like it was suddenly surrounded by liquid nitrogen. Isamu let go of Saraswati as it was now frozen stuck inside the curse.

The young jujutsu sorcerer reeled back a fist as he thought of Maki. Her bloody form, laying there, nearly lifeless. How he was unable to protect her in any sense of the word. How he was unable to defend any of his allies really.

If he was strong- no, more useful. If he was more useful, he would've been able to save her. If he had been a better teacher, maybe Megumi would've been able to do something. If Nanami hadn't been left unprotected by cursed energy and struck, maybe he could've done something. Maybe if he was able to make an opening, Naobito would've been able to get in there.

But no, he wasn't useful. Not useful enough. And in a world such as this, where someone's do's and don't's were dependent on their strength, power was the best way to become useful. Perhaps power wasn't a panacea for all of his problems, not something that could make everything disappear. But it was definitely a solution to the pesky weed in front of him.

"Black Flash!!" Black bolts of lightning flashed through the night sky as Isamu slammed his fist right between the curses "eyes", cracking the ice formed on its face as the plating underneath cracked as well.

"Black Flash!" Isamu didn't let up, black lightning streaked through the air once more as he hammered another earth shattering punch into the curses head, its arms unable to move due to the ice, its plating unable to split open to attack with the roots beneath. A small crater formed under them from the sheer force of the punch and the waves of cursed energy it let into the environment.

Isamu crouched before rocketing upwards, delivering an uppercut directly into the curses stomach, sending it a foot into the air as space distorted once more. "Black Flash!!"

While the curses frozen form fell back to earth, Isamu spun, building momentum before striking the curses right cheek with his left fist. "Black Flash!"

The curse flew away into an already destroyed and desolate building, ending Isamu's streak of black flashes with a decisive note. All distractions fled Isamu's mind as he entered the Zone for the second time in his entire sorcerer career, not even a month after the first. This time around, he had more than enough time to experience the true nature of cursed energy.

"Isamu." Nanami said, wanting to make his presence known more than anything as he took up a battle stance to Isamu's right, Naobito joining him to the left. The cursed spirit emerged from the building, swatting its left arm through the air to clear the dust away.

Shards of ice reflected the moons light as they chipped away from the curse, the curse beginning to break off large chunks, the legendary sword of the Inumaki clan still stuck in its gut, the ice surrounding the source of the cursed technique too hard and tough to break without time. Time it knew the sorcerers seeking its head would not give it.

To call its condition awful would be a terrible understatement. Along side the sword embedded in its gut, several cracks spread throughout its carapace, the densest collection of them being the places Isamu had struck using black flash.

The helmet of plating protecting its most vital body part was completely destroyed, leaving a swirling mass of roots in its place. Some roots sprung upwards, resembling a crown of thorns and branches.

Its body was covered in scuff marks, some from burns which had healed over and others from the cuts Isamu inflicted using Noon Eclipse Sword Drawing at the very beginning of the fight. Ten fist size holes slowly closed in its chest from Megumi's demon dog pinning it to the ground.

A cut circulating its upper bicep indicated Nanami's attempt to literally disarm it only moments before. Overall, it was completely destroyed. It was nonsensical that it was even still standing. Even if it could still keep itself alive, considering its head was still intact, its body should've been so fuck it couldn't even stand. And yet, it stared them down with two glowing green eyes, the light originating from deep within its swirling roots.

Revenge was a powerful emotion. Even in sorcerers, it could lead to a boost in output and cursed energy reserves for a few days. Cursed energy originated from negative emotions after all. Naturally, as a being had of cursed energy, the effects of such deep hatred and wishes for revenge for a cursed spirit were sure to be much more severe than a minor boost to cursed energy pools.

To Isamu's surprise and delight, it didn't talk, not muttering a single word as it took up its own stance, joining the three in their preparations as the cool night air whooshed through the silent scene. The time for talk had passed, it seemed. It was know time to decide a victor.