Jujutsu Kaisen: I Can Manipulate Time.

"The location is in the West District. I've already evacuated everyone there. Will the two of you be heading over immediately, or...?"

Yamaguchi Takuya led the way, wearing a forced smile. They had entered through the East Gate of the prison and needed to pass through the central area to reach the West District, where the incident had occurred.

As Kamihara Hajime walked through the corridor, he noticed some of the cells were still occupied. With the number of inmates here, a full evacuation had been impossible. Only those in critical zones had been relocated. The remaining prisoners were visibly shaken, eyes filled with confusion and fear. They didn't know what had happened, only that dozens of prisoners and several guards had died mysteriously.

The tension was palpable. Ghost stories that had long circulated within the prison suddenly no longer seemed like fiction. The more notorious inmates, who usually scoffed at superstition, now looked genuinely terrified. Some recalled the recent day when "Scabby Dog" had gone mad, mumbling incoherently toward a hallway drenched in blood—where several unexplained deaths had taken place.

Spotting the warden leading two unknown figures—one of them a handsome young man whose face they vaguely recognized from TV—the prisoners stirred.

"Warden, please transfer us out of here! I don't want to stay in this cursed place! I'll give you all my money—just get me out!"

Others lashed out from their cells, pounding on metal doors, shouting curses.

"You piece of garbage! Let me out of here or I swear I'll kill your entire family! Even if I die, I'll come back and haunt you, you balding pig!"

Yamaguchi Takuya's expression darkened. On a normal day, no one would dare speak to him like that. But the fear had eroded their sense of self-preservation. He couldn't retaliate either—not with Hajime and Ijichi nearby. So, he gritted his teeth and continued to brief them, trying to maintain composure.

"Please don't pay them any mind. Only the worst criminals end up here."

A dull thud rang out. Hajime's eyes shifted. One of the prisoners was slumped against the wall, clutching his bloodied mouth, several teeth scattered across the floor.

Yamaguchi turned, stunned. That inmate had just started to curse Hajime... and now this?

He suddenly understood. The other inmates, who had been growling moments ago, were now eerily silent.

Without a word, Hajime moved forward, his attention already elsewhere. His senses were sharp, zeroing in on the unnatural pressure lingering in the air. The oppressive atmosphere was unmistakable—a clear sign of a powerful Curse.

They passed through the central block and entered the vacant West District. Yamaguchi froze. The ceilings were higher, corridors warped, rooms shifted from their original layout.

Beads of sweat formed on his forehead.

"I... This wasn't like this before..."

A hand pressed his shoulder.

"You can leave now. Your part's done."

As if receiving divine pardon, Yamaguchi nodded hastily and ran, not bothering to hide his relief.

"From darkness to the deepest dark, let all impurities be cleansed."

Ijichi chanted the incantation to lower the Curtain and isolate the area. Hajime entered alone.

His footsteps echoed in the barren halls. Brownish bloodstains painted the floor, dried into thick crusts.

"Bang... bang..."

Faint sounds echoed ahead. Hajime vanished in an instant.

He should've already reached the far end, yet the corridor extended endlessly. The space itself had been distorted.

Finally, he entered a large hall.

There, a strange humanoid figure stood, punching a concrete pillar repeatedly. Its grayish-white skin was stretched over a bald body with no visible muscle. Tiles shattered beneath its fists, revealing reinforced concrete and twisted rebar.

Hajime narrowed his eyes. The Curse felt weak—barely Grade 1. Had the Window misjudged it?

He didn't hide his presence. The creature turned, revealing two horns and eyeless sockets of black void.

It let out a guttural growl and lunged.

Hajime casually tilted his head, dodging. A counterpunch landed, sending a shock of Cursed Energy through the Curse's chest. The blow hurled it back, viscous black fluid splattering from a gaping hole.

But then, Hajime froze.

He looked down—his own chest had been pierced in the same place. The wound vanished almost instantly thanks to Technique Reversal, but it confirmed his suspicion.

"Reflected damage?"

He vanished again, catching up midair. Totsuka-no-Tsurugi pierced the Curse's abdomen. Another identical wound bloomed on Hajime's stomach. He healed it with ease.

"Interesting."

Hajime gathered Cursed Energy and expanded a Technique Barrier—a failed Domain prototype he dubbed Time Shower.

Raindrops materialized midair and began falling silently. Simultaneously, droplets also rose from the floor, defying gravity. The air grew thick with temporal tension.

Hajime extended his hand. The rain dispersed upon contact—illusory, yet potent.

The Curse, confused by the shifting phenomenon, tried to retreat—only to reappear where it had stood moments before. The technique had locked its timeline, forcing it into a loop.

Hajime raised a finger.

A faint white arrow of Cursed Energy formed.

Bang!

He mimicked a gunshot with his mouth. The Time Arrow skipped cause and jumped to effect. The Curse, having tried to dodge, fell with its lower half dissolved into dust.

The rain curtain distorted. Hajime's legs crumbled into powder—but he was ready, reversing the damage instantly.

Strangely, the Curse regenerated. New legs grew, muscles thickened, and its aura surged.

"It gets stronger every time it's injured…"

Now three meters tall, it launched forward like a missile.

Hajime extended a finger. The moment the Curse moved, it reappeared at its starting point. Amber—his restraint move—had re-engaged, trapping it in a loop.

He observed the Curse struggling, trapped in time, then canceled the effect.

He fired multiple Time Arrows. Under the accelerated flow of Time Shower, his output increased exponentially. Each impact exploded the Curse's limbs into dust. But it kept regenerating, growing stronger still.

The battlefield echoed with splashes as the rain accelerated time for both combatants. Hajime, using Technique Reversal, handled the strain easily. The Curse couldn't.

"A regeneration-based reflection technique… This thing grows stronger the more damage it takes."

But Hajime didn't flinch. He chose the most brutal counter—pushing the Curse to its absolute limits, again and again.

His Time Shower—though not yet a true Domain—was evolving. He continued experimenting, noting the imperfect synergy between rotation and reversal, mentally planning improvements.

More than ten sword slashes split the Curse into segments. It regenerated—but its aura no longer rose.

"You've peaked."

The Curse roared. Its massive palm descended, crackling with lethal Cursed Energy.

Three swords pierced its shoulders and head, pinning it midair. Black light enveloped Hajime's fist.

He rewrote the final stroke of this battle like an artist finishing a masterwork.

The moment he deactivated his Technique, the Curse began to collapse. A phantom—Shura-like—descended. The Rotten Knife cleaved downward, hastening the exorcism.

No blood.

No gore.

Only dust, disintegrating silently.

One item fell and landed with a dull clink—a withered, shriveled finger.

Sukuna's finger.

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