Chapter Text
“Fighter Spiritz! Sun!”
Yuuji rushed into the abandoned park as the light from his activated armband engulfed him. His hoodie, shorts, and sneakers morphed into his magical uniform. His pink hair grew and was secured into a ponytail. The sacred light shattered around him.
“Found you!” He shouted to Haruta, a general from the Curse Empire.
The man looked over his shoulder towards him. “Not you again!” He hissed. “I’m not going back without a victory!” The newly created behemoth stirred beside him, ready for its master’s order.
“Then it looks like you’re not going back!”
Haruta clicked his tongue. He glared daggers at Yuuji. His gaze shifted to either side of Yuuji. When he didn’t see anything, he looked around. Not sensing or spotting any other attacks, his stance slackened.
“Oh? So it’s just you?” Haruta drawled. “No teammates to back you up?”
Yuuji prepared to fight. “I can handle you.”
“Is that so?” Haruta cackled at the warrior. “We’ll see. Go, Nyoroid!”
The restless monster stormed towards Yuuji. The warrior in turn bolted forward. He easily flashed out of the way of the monster’s thunderous steps and avoided its punches. When the creature lost track of him, Yuuji appeared behind it. He kicked the creature, sending it flying. But before he could celebrate the small victory, he felt a presence nearby. He turned to see Haruta lunging at him. He dodged and matched the general’s attack.
“I’m not losing today!” Haruta hissed. “How fortunate for me that your comrades abandoned you! You’re nothing without them!” He shoved aside Yuuji’s arm and grabbed for him.
But Yuuji caught him, keeping them both in a stalemate. “They didn’t abandon me!” He saw Haruta look out of the corner of his eye and smirk. He looked, as well. The Nyoroid was storming towards them. If neither of them did something, they would both be crushed. Despite this, Yuuji held onto Haruta tighter, surprising even the general. “They’re both doing their best and working towards their dreams. I’ll do anything to support them, even fight on my own! Because I know that they’re always supporting me!”
“That’s so stupid!”
“Yeah…I am!” Yuuji hauled Haruta closer and collided their heads together. Pain burst across his forehead. They both hissed in agony but Haruta was the first to let go of Yuuji. The warrior grabbed hold of him.
“Haaaaaaaah!” Yuuji threw the unconscious general at the incoming monster. The enemies collided. Yuuji flipped into the air above them. Honing in on Haruta and the Nyoroid, Yuuji tapped his armband and raised his hand to the sky. A prism of light formed into a sun-like orb in the palm of his hand.
“Midsummer Blaze!”
Yuuji flung the brilliant sphere in the monster’s direction. Its light engulfed Haruta and the Nyoroid, making them both scream. While Haruta managed to resist the effects of the sacred light, the Nyoroid slowly relaxed, reminded of its former state and faded away.
When the light faded, Haruta was left barely on his feet. Despite his shivering, injured form, he glared hatefully at Yuuji. “No! This isn’t over!”
“What’re you saying? You’re in no shape to fight!” Yuuji shouted back.
“Ha! I’m just getting started! This is my lucky day! I’ll finish you off myself and prove—”
“You haven’t even defeated him?”
A deep, displeased voice appeared seemingly all around them. Yuuji watched Haruta’s expression morph with fear.
“Sukuna-sama?”
“Sukuna?” Yuuji wondered why that name sounded familiar. “Had Gojo-sensei mentioned it? ”
But before he could ponder any further, something deep within his head told him to duck. Beyond fear, beyond knowledge. He did so, almost hitting the ground.
A gale as sharp and swift as a scythe shot over him. Yuuji was still recovering from the suddenness of it all when he finally opened his eyes. He saw the impact of the attack. A row of trees was sliced cleanly. And before him, Haruta stood. Only his lower half.
“What?”
“A meaningless death for a meaningless fool,” the voice spoke again.
Yuuji turned to identify the source of the voice. Behind him stood a tall, muscular, solemn man a fair distance away. If not for what had just occurred, Yuuji would have admired his almighty presence and power. But the man’s words reached him, stunning Yuuji. He realized what the man, Sukuna, had just done.
Four red eyes looked down upon him. “Your head is too high.”
“Did…did you do that?” Yuuji asked, the gravity of the situation sinking in.
“Is there any other within range who could have done so?” The man asked. Despite his voice not changing, he still made Yuuji feel stupid.
“How could you do that?” Yuuji asked softly, not sure how to explain the growing anxiety in his heart.
The man didn’t answer, only watching him.
“Why? Why would you do that to your comrade?”
“Why do I need a reason to eliminate subordinates who are of no use? If he hadn’t defeated you by now, his life is of no value to me.”
Yuuji glared sharply at him. Haruta may have been a pain in the ass, maybe even a monster, but he didn’t deserve such an unfair death.
Yuuji readied himself. He shoved down his festering anxiety that the being before him had finished off Haruta so easily and could very well do the same to him. Once Sukuna looked upon him, Yuuji didn’t allow himself another second to think. Even a second longer could mean defeat, or worse.
Even with Sukuna’s purposeful delay as the warrior sped towards the being, Yuuji didn’t let his guard down. When a slash threatened to cut through him, Yuuji had already jumped out of the way. He stumbled but was ready to dodge the next attack.
“Oh? Your instincts are good,” Sukuna stated, curious.
Yuuji looked forward towards Sukuna and bolted. He appeared behind the large enemy, cautious of his next move. He could either continue to distract him or try to attack. But he had never dealt with Sukuna before or any other monster to this magnitude. He would just have to try.
He zoomed at the being and aimed for his shoulder. Nothing. It was like punching an immovable wall. But even as Sukuna looked to him to admire his failed attempt, Yuuji already began to move away. SUkuna flexed his hand.
“A good punch, but you’re weak.”
Sukuna vanished from his line of sight. Yuuji would sense the overlord nearby, but it was too late as Sukuna backhanded him, sending Yuuji flying away. Yuuji struggled to shake off the punch. He managed to regain his footing. His head was throbbing but he couldn’t allow himself to stop.
He sped back at Sukuna and attempted to punch him head-on. The overlord caught his punch, but that didn’t stop Yuuji. He continued to send a barrage of fists at the overlord. Even in a split second when he faltered, allowing for Sukuna to send an attack at him, Yuuji was able to dodge. He used the opening to send a beam of light at the overlord, knocking him back if only slightly. Yuuji used the opportunity to distance himself from the overlord.
He didn’t know how much longer he could keep this up. He didn’t even know if he could defeat him. What was Sukuna’s goal?
When the smoke cleared, the overlord appeared unharmed. He waved the smoke away. He looked annoyed and mildly inconvenienced, but it appeared that something was on his mind.
Four red eyes looked towards Yuuji. “You…what’s your name?”
The question caught Yuuji off guard.
“Yes, you.”
“Fighter Sun,” Yuuji replied, fueling his answer with pride despite his own lack of self-assurance.
“I see.”
Sukuna vanished again. Yuuji glanced all around for any hint of the overlord. He only had a split second to spot the being standing before him before a giant, powerful fist descended towards him. He barely caught it with two hands, the ground beneath him splintering from the force.
“What’s wrong?” Sukuna snarled, pleased in a way that Yuuji hadn’t expected. “We’re just getting started!” He kicked Yuuji out from under him.
Before Yuuji could even regain his footing, Sukuna appeared nearby to punch him, doing so repeatedly.
“Where’s that spirit? That fire? Are my subordinates really so incompetent that they’d be defeated by someone as weak as you?”
Yuuji managed to catch sight of Sukuna. He caught the overlord’s fist and shoved it away, giving him room to throw an attack at Sukuna. His attack was still unable to reach the overlord before Sukuna closed the space between them to grab hold of him. Yuuji spun out of his grasp. He regained his footing and sent another barrage of punches at Sukuna. Before Sukuna could disappear before his last punch, Yuuji wove away. He spotted Sukuna, steadied himself, and launched forward. His fist collided with Sukuna’s side. While it didn’t damage the overlord, he was surprised by Yuuji’s attack.
He sneered at the warrior’s efforts. “That’s it! Keep it up!” He raised his fist. If not for Yuuji’s fast reflexes, he would have been crushed.
This time, Sukuna rushed at him. Yuuji brushed aside his punches. When he saw an opening, he took it, punching back at Sukuna. He didn’t think that he could win. Not against this monster. But he could try.
“You’re the only one stopping yourself,” Gojo-sensei had said to him, Nobara, and Megumi during one of their group trainings.
“Even if I’m not strong enough, I won’t stop!” Yuuji declared to himself.
He matched Sukuna’s speed to the best of his abilities. He was light on his feet, but Sukuna was fast. Too fast. Yuuji was too focused on dodging his blows to take the offensive.
He took a chance. When Sukuna punched at him, rather than clock, Yuuji met his punches head on. He cringed at the force’s impact on his arms but fought through the pain.
“HAAAaaaaaaa!”
He dug his feet into the ground and summoned his magic throughout his entire body, focusing it into his arms. He forced Sukuna back and his magic added an additional hit a split second after. Sukuna’s arms were knocked away. But despite Yuuji’s best efforts, the attack didn’t halt the overlord for long. Sukuna grabbed onto Yuuji’s forearms and threw him aside.
The warrior tumbled through the rubble left in the overlord’s wake. He managed to catch himself and pulled himself up halfway. He kept his eyes locked on Sukuna.
He didn’t have Megumi strategizing skills, but he could have really used them in that moment. Yuuji kept his eyes on Sukuna, waiting to see what the overlord would do next. He wondered to himself how he could break through the other’s defenses.
“Don’t tell me you’re done,” Sukuna remarked smugly. “I know that you can keep up with me.”
Yuuji knew that he wouldn’t get very far if he just kept throwing the same punches.
He considered the new technique that he had been trying out. He still hadn’t perfected it. All he could do was try.
He flexed his hands, drawing sparks into his palms. Sukuna considered him. He stopped. His eyes drifted to the loose gravel on the ground.
“All done? How disappointing.”
Yuuji threw a few small rocks in Sukuna’s direction. One grazed his shoulder but the others flew past him. Even as Sukuna raised his fingers in the same fashion as when he finished off Haruta, Yuuji threw another rock towards him. He barely missed the cleave sent at him. Mid-dodge, he sent a beam of light at Sukuna’s feet. The overlord only had to step back to dodge it. He looked back at the warrior. Yuuji had disappeared.
Sukuna looked around to find Yuuji. There was a burst of light behind him. Yuuji appeared from where one of the stones had been thrown. The warrior spun in the air and kicked Sukuna’s shoulder. While it didn’t affect the overlord, Yuuji used his momentum to jump out of Sukuna’s reach and into the air.
Yuuji hit his armband. Magic swelled throughout him. He extended his arms. As magic gathered into his right hand, he drew it back.
“Snow Moon Flower…Revolution!”* A cyclone of white, orange, pink, green, and yellow light formed in his hand. He rushed down at Sukuna, taking aim. Even as the overlord raised his hand to stop the attack, Yuuji continued forward. He was determined to reach his opponent. He cried out, forcing all of his power into the attack. He was getting home alive and would be there to congratulate his friends.
His attack stopped. He hadn’t let up. Its momentum had died.
Sukuna broke through the light. Yuuji only caught a glimpse of the overlord before he was thrown back. Pain overtook him. Sukuna grew farther and farther away.
Yuuji crashed into a nearby building. He was too dazed to stop himself from falling. His powers barely clung to him, light shattering from his form soon after breaking his fall. His magical uniform disappeared, leaving him as he had been before transforming.
Sukuna appeared close by. He stared down at Yuuji's defeated state and walked towards him. Yuuji could hear him but couldn’t even move.
Yuuji wondered if he was going to end up like Haruta, cleaved in half without a second to realize that his life had been snuffed out. Was that the case for everyone that Sukuna had destroyed? Killed.
He turned his head and saw Sukuna. He didn’t even have the strength to feel terrified.
“Vindictive Thorn! Lock on!”
“Lupus Strike!”
Red and green energy shot through the air at Sukuna suddenly. With the overlord briefly caught off guard, Nobara and Megumi appeared by Yuuji’s side.
Nobara shook Yuuji’s shoulder. “Hey! Snap out of it, Itadori! Itadori!”
Megumi stopped her. “He’s hurt. We have to get him out of here.”
“How? We can’t even stop that thing!”
Megumi knew that the smoke would clear soon. And even if it didn’t, Sukuna could strike at any moment. Unlike himself, he took a gamble.
“Hold onto Itadori and stay close.”
Nobara did as he told her to.
Megumi tapped his armband and raised his arms before him.
“Dusk Veil!”
Magic shot through his arms and created a dark cloud before them that fell like a curtain of night.
“Stay close!” He reminded Nobara. He tapped his armband again then made the shape of a rabbit with his hands.
“Cuniculus Escape!”
The shadow of a rabbit rose around the trio and engulfed them. It sped them out of and away from the ruins.
“What was that, Fushiguro?” Nobara demanded to know.
“I’m trying to concentrate!” He shouted back. “Don’t you remember what Gojo-sensei warned us about? That’s not something we should be facing. That’s the King of Curses, Ryoumen Sukuna!”
Sukuna didn’t know what brought him to enter the human world. He was bored. Haruta, the weak coward, was nowhere to be seen after one too many failures. It didn’t matter who exterminated him as long as someone did. But he hadn’t heard any word of such.
He had vanished from the palace before Uraume could even notice that he was leaving.
He entered the mortal realm, absently following the trace of Haruta’s energy. He hardly paid any attention to the scenery around him. The world had changed greatly during his absence.
He had found Haruta fighting yet another losing battle. His Nyoroid had been defeated and he was preparing to fight on his own.
Then Sukuna sensed his opponent and looked over.
It turns out that the rumors spreading amongst his subordinates were true. The revival of the Fighter Spiritz had come about. Infinity had at some point come out of hiding and recruited more pests.
After easily cutting down Haruta, he stood before Fighter Sun. This weak little human who dared to defy him who didn’t stand a chance and clearly knew so. But that didn’t stop him.
Despite the vast difference in their power levels, the brat didn’t back down. He went past his own limits to keep up with Sukuna. His hits had almost no effect on him and his technique was weak. Yet despite all of that, the brat had good instincts. He kept Sukuna entertained. Even as the human attempted to outwit him and unleash all of his power only to be knocked away, Sukuna hadn’t finished him off right away.
Sukuna had originally dismissed the human’s doge of his Cleave to pure luck. But maybe there was something more.
He had wanted to get a closer look at the fiery human who had defied him so vehemently. To see defiance fill his bright brown eyes even if his body was too injured to follow suit. Sukuna caught a glimpse of the human’s true form beneath the sacred mirage. But he was interrupted by the other fledgling Fighter Spiritz who disappeared with their injured comrade as quickly as they had arrived.
He could have chased after them. Perhaps even have finished them off or have drawn out Infinity to have a real challenge.
But he let them go.
They had escaped with his prey.
The human, Fighter Sun, would recover. If he was as brilliant and resilient as he seemed, his potential was limitless.
Sukuna looked forward to fighting the human again as he returned to his domain.