In that split second.
A tiny, almost invisible silhouette appeared above the cursed tiger.
It was Akuto!
He spun one-and-a-half times mid-air and snapped his right leg out in a vicious kick.
That leg looked like a steel cable, or a bowstring drawn to its limit.
Shriek!
Air tore with a sharp whistle, followed by the sickening thud of foot meeting tiger skull.
The cursed tiger's figure blurred.
Then the ground began to quake violently.
Kishida Itsuki and the others clung to one another just to stay on their feet.
A hurricane swept past before the deafening explosion arrived.
Boom!
Buzz...
They clutched their ears, yet blood still trickled between their fingers.
Plop.
Akuto landed lightly, strolled to the giant tiger, grabbed a handful of fur, and hoisted it up.
"Oi, put your back into it."
"Don't tell me you're out of tricks already? You did eat my finger."
Ssshh...
Black smoke hissed from the tiger's head wound, healing at speed.
"That's more like it."
Grinning, Akuto raised his foot and stamped down hard.
Boom!!
A full kilometre of earth caved in and shattered.
From the crushed skull he pulled a finger, shook off the clinging black flesh, tilted his head back, and swallowed it whole.
Boom!!
A terrible surge of power burst from within him.
[Congratulations, Host has fused the second finger!]
[Role-playing Degree cap raised.]
[Current Sukuna Role-playing Degree: 8%.]
[Ability unlocked: Domain Expansion.]
Awooo!!
Still bathing in that torrent of strength, he heard a long howl.
Countless Cursed Spirits came rushing in—well over a hundred.
The worldview of Kishida Itsuki's group was shattered.
Was this still the territory of a Spirit-user?
What had she just swallowed?
Why was she even stronger now?
Questions flooded their minds, but Akuto gave them no time to think.
"Lively bunch, aren't you?"
He glanced at the moon, his smile growing wilder.
"Then let me show you what a real Cursed Spirit looks like."
Snap.
He wove a strange seal with both hands, his low, resonant voice cutting through the silent night.
"Domain Expansion: Malevolent Shrine."
(T/N: Malevolent Kitchen in this case lol.)
Clink...
A clear wind-chime rang; then the world plunged into total darkness.
At its centre, beneath the roars of monsters, a shrine rose slowly.
Standing before it, Akuto looked like a god descended.
No one knew what was happening.
Without warning, every Cursed Spirit surrounding him split apart.
Truly split—no pattern, no logic—just shredded into a rain of meat.
Splish... splish... splish...
He stepped through the gore, reached the cursed tiger shikigami, and tapped it lightly.
The tiger shattered into a heap of scraps.
"I only meant to cut it into three pieces, but look at this mess."
"Seems there aren't any other fingers here."
Inside the seal space, even Miko couldn't keep up her poker face and dead-fish stare.
Her golden eyes went wide as she stared in disbelief.
It was her own body, yet at this moment it felt utterly alien.
And...
"So cool…"
She had never imagined she could look that cool.
And that ability!
"Domain Expansion—I can feel it—countless random slashes. Incredible!"
She thought she understood Akuto, but every time he shocked her beyond measure.
Now she remembered what he once said.
He was... the strongest.
Ignoring the dumbstruck crowd, Akuto walked toward the Card Society president.
The man was already a wreck, trembling, desperate to run, but the sheer terror bearing down on him pinned him in place.
"Move…!"
"Run…!"
He tried to force himself, yet his body wouldn't obey; warmth spread down his legs.
Akuto stepped up, expressionless, plucked a car key from the president's pocket with two fingers, and walked past.
The president opened his eyes in disbelief.
"I... I'm alive?"
Splurt!
The moment he took a step to flee, his body fell apart in chunks of meat.
Beep-beep.
Akuto pressed the key; far away a flashy black-and-white supercar chirped.
"McLaren P1, good enough."
He pressed the slot, the butterfly doors rose, he slid in, started the engine, and floored the throttle.
Vroom!
The beast roared, its rear spoiler lifting.
With a neat drift, he sped off, leaving clouds of dust and a field of carnage behind.
The Exorcism Society members left behind stared at one another.
"So... we're the cleanup crew?"
"Monster. That woman isn't on humanity's side—she kills people faster than Cursed Spirits"
"Terrifying. Imagine if she were our enemy…"
Kishida Itsuki pressed his lips, then waved.
"Let's clean this up."
They reached the warehouse entrance, saw the scattered corpses—and couldn't hold it.
Ugh!
Waah...
Cough-cough, ugh...
Everyone doubled over vomiting.
Even Kishida's face turned pale.
Hell on earth.
"We have to report this to the Higher-Ups and let them decide."
Kishida gave up; this was way beyond him, and that girl... too cruel!
No one was left alive in the warehouse.
Even the sacrifice... From the Exorcism Society's view the mission was a total failure.
The only silver lining: the Card Society was now history.
Vroom!
A top-end coupe pulled up outside the Yotsuya house.
Stepping out, Akuto stretched; the house was empty tonight, so he was completely relaxed.
"Kid, go take a bath."
He returned the body to Miko.
Miko stared dumbly at her blood-soaked body, hair matted red.
"Don't you have any ability to clean yourself?"
"Why would I waste power on something useless!"
A second mouth opened on her face; Akuto was in a rare good mood and didn't mind chatting.
"Forget that. Could you please not break the law? Driving without a licence is illegal."
"Tch, I've killed dozens of people and you're worried about a licence?" he quipped.
Miko kicked off her gore-caked shoes, exasperated.
"Still illegal, though."
"Not my problem if you don't have a licence—go take the test!"
She was stumped; oddly, she saw his point.
Ignoring her glowing father's spirit, she pressed on.
"And we can't leave this car here—what will Mom think? Our deal says no family finds out."
"How should I know, kid! A sports car is a man's romance!"
"But I'm a girl."
"I'm a man!"
"You're using my body."
Click.
She flicked on the light—and in that instant, the three humans and three spirits in the living room froze.
Mrs. Yotsuya and Kyosuka stared in horror at Miko and the second mouth on her face.
Miko, equally stunned, gaped at her mother and little brother.
Nearby, her father's Benevolent Spirit and the Cursed Spirit that had haunted the Yotsuya house were equally dumbstruck.
"Well, looks like we've been found out."
"Guess we'll just have to kill them."
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Read 35+ Chapter in advance.
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