Too Strong to Care -
Damian hadn't gone far since leaving the Shinomiya mansion when he slowed down and stopped the motorcycle by the side of the road.
The roar of the engine faded, and with a relaxed motion, he dismounted and, after a casual wave of his hand, the heavy machine disappeared.
He stood there for a few seconds, his gaze fixed on an invisible point.
After a moment, the space around him seemed to distort…
An instant later, his figure vanished completely.
…
Tokyo — Metropolitan Curse Technical College, Director's Office.
The morning sun filtered through the wide windows, bathing the office.
Satoru was reclined in his chair with his usual carefree air, his hands clasped behind his head and his feet shamelessly resting on the tea table.
A lazy smile curved his lips, and although the black blindfold covered his eyes, the slight tilt of his head was enough to convey an attitude of boredom.
In front of him, Megumi was reporting in a grave tone, "Early this morning, on Mount Takakusa, the special-grade cursed spirit was exorcised. But…"
Beside him, Yūji and Nobara listened in silence. The atmosphere was tense but controlled, until—
!
A sharp crack echoed.
A black rift opened in the middle of the office, expanding with a reverberating sound, as if the very fabric of space were being torn apart.
Megumi's report was immediately cut short.
Yūji tensed instinctively, his muscles reacting before his mind. Nobara shot to her feet, her hammer already half-drawn.
Then a figure emerged from within and stepped forward, landing firmly on the floor.
It was Damian.
The rift sealed shut behind him without a trace, and the office fell into absolute silence.
A broad smile appeared on Satoru's lips.
He slowly turned his head toward him, and although his eyes remained hidden beneath the blindfold, the direction of his gaze was unmistakable.
"Well…" His amused voice broke the tense silence. "Nero-kun? What an unusual visit."
Damian's sudden arrival made the three students, tense a moment ago, relax instantly.
"Nero-sama!!!"
Nobara's excited shout echoed throughout the office.
Damian raised an eyebrow at her reaction, already well accustomed to that kind of greeting. He gave her a brief smile and a nod before walking calmly toward the sofa across from Satoru.
Satoru watched him with a playful grin.
"My dear Nero-kun~," he said with a smile as he straightened up. "To what do I owe the honor of your sudden visit?"
"To buy a house." Damian went straight to the point. "A big mansion. Something like yours."
Satoru lifted his blindfold abruptly, revealing eyes full of disbelief. "Hey, hey, I could understand if you came to me for an exorcism or some supernatural issue, but to buy a house? That mansion of yours was finished barely a month ago!"
"In a good location," Damian added, ignoring his surprise. "Close to the school. Money isn't a problem."
Satoru let out a laugh and leaned back in his chair carefreely. "Let me guess… your mansion's already too small for you?"
Damian stayed silent, meeting his gaze without the slightest reaction.
"All right, all right." Satoru raised his hands in resignation. "The Zen'in clan was wiped out by Maki, wasn't it? I can arrange for a residence to be rebuilt on their old estate, or find a better one if you want something new. But…"
His smile twisted slightly, a dangerous gleam flickering in his eyes. "Before that, why don't you join me for a fight? I've invited you several times already, you know."
"..."
The office fell silent again. Nobara held her breath, and both Yūji and Megumi took a small step back.
Damian watched Satoru's expectant expression and shook his head without hesitation. "You're not my match."
Satoru's grin widened. No one knew better than he did how overwhelming Damian's power was, but that was exactly why the idea of fighting him thrilled him.
Before an absolutely superior being, perhaps he could break through his own limits.
"Nero-kun~!" he suddenly exclaimed, turning toward him with enthusiasm. "Just for a little bit, okay~? One short round, that's all."
His syrupy tone and six-foot-two frame leaning toward Damian looked so ridiculous that Nobara had to cover her mouth to stifle her laughter. Yūji and Megumi, visibly uncomfortable, turned their eyes toward the wall, pretending not to see anything.
Damian frowned slightly, about to refuse again… but something in his expression shifted.
"Gojo, how much heat can you withstand?"
"Huh?" Satoru blinked, tilting his head curiously.
..
Training Grounds in the Mountains of Tokyo Jujutsu Technical College.
The inside of the mountain had been completely hollowed out, forming a space so vast it could hold more than a dozen soccer fields.
The walls, reinforced with complex seals and containment barriers, glowed faintly with cursed energy, reflecting the magnitude of the power that would soon gather there.
In the center of the field, Satoru was stretching—rotating his ankles, flexing his wrists, and swinging his legs.
About ten meters ahead of him, Damian stood silently, hands buried in his pockets, watching him.
Around the edges of the field, a group of sorcerers who had come after hearing the news had settled in different spots to witness the event.
Mei Mei sat with her legs crossed, her natural elegance intact, while beside her was her brother Ui Ui.
A little further back, Yūta rested with a sword slung across his back. Maki, her short hair framing a restrained grin, gripped the hilt of her katana tightly, clearly excited. Inumaki observed with his usual calm expression, the collar of his uniform raised up to his mouth.
Shoko, meanwhile, smoked leisurely, exhaling a thin cloud of smoke with a curious smile.
And in one corner, breaking the solemnity of the atmosphere, was the noisiest group of all: the "Nero cheering squad." Nobara and Hana waved glow sticks while leading a group of girls who shouted with overflowing energy.
Satoru glanced at them, letting out a small laugh before stretching his arms again.
"What exactly do you mean by 'heat test'?"
"I'm testing another katana."
Satoru lowered his leg, arching an eyebrow. "Another katana?" He tore off his blindfold, revealing his uncovered eyes. "Don't tell me it's another one like the one you use to cut through space."
He remembered that blade well…
Damian frowned, visibly impatient. "Hurry up. They're waiting for me."
Gojo let out a laugh—amused and provocative. "Hahaha! You never change."
But before his laughter could fade, his figure disappeared.
Swish
A violent blast of air echoed through the cavern. Satoru's fist, wrapped in cursed energy, shot toward the back of Damian's neck with such speed that most of the onlookers could barely catch a glimpse.
However, Damian didn't move.
He tilted his head slightly, letting the strike brush past his ear before it hit nothing but empty air.
Boom
The ground split under the unleashed force.
When the shockwave faded, Damian's voice sounded distant, off to the side. "Boring."
He still had his hands in his pockets, as if he had never moved.
Satoru's pupils contracted, but his smile widened. "Ho!"
He stomped hard, the floor cracking beneath his feet before his figure disappeared.
In the blink of an eye, a storm broke loose. Fists, elbows, knees, and kicks reinforced with cursed energy and the Limitless technique distorted space along their trajectories, multiplying into thousands of shadows.
Boom Boom Boom Boom
The training field trembled. The ground fractured like clay, the containment barriers crackled violently, buzzing on the verge of collapse.
Dust and smoke rose, covering the entire area.
The sorcerers closest to the center raised their arms to shield themselves from the debris.
Shoko exhaled a slow ring of smoke. "Even if Gojo isn't very reliable, when it comes to Taijutsu combat, he's still the best."
Mei Mei narrowed her eyes. "But it won't matter."
Amid the chaos, Damian stood motionless—unscathed, without even a wrinkle in his clothes.
He neither blocked nor counterattacked. He merely twisted his torso, tilted his head, or slid his feet efficiently. Each movement was minimal yet precise. He dodged the strikes by mere millimeters, as if reading the flow of space before it even existed.
Satoru's fists grazed his clothes without even wrinkling the fabric.
"Too slow." Damian's voice cut through the roar of the impacts.
A blaze of excitement ignited in Satoru's eyes. After missing a strike, he spun on his heel and leapt back several meters, forming hand signs in front of his chest.
"Cursed Technique Lapse: Blue."
A brutal suction force burst through the air. Space compressed into a single dark point, devouring light and distorting the surroundings.
"Cursed Technique Reversal: Red."
Almost simultaneously, he extended his other hand.
A crimson repulsive force erupted from his palm, generating a devastating shockwave. The attraction of Blue and the repulsion of Red merged, creating an absolute field of distortion that made space itself tremble.
The combined Blue-Red attack closed in on Damian like a cosmic crusher.
"Is that all?" The voice rang clear from within the vortex.
Damian stood in the center of the distortion field. No injuries. No movement. Only the wind ruffling his hair and his clothes.
With an indifferent glance, he looked up at Satoru. "Gojo, even Sukuna managed to interest me more than you."
Those words fell like a spark onto a barrel of gunpowder.
Satoru's unrestrained smile froze for an instant… and then twisted into a grin of pure euphoria.
"Ha—!" A wild laugh erupted from his throat, his eyes blazing with a feverish gleam. "You're right! You're absolutely right! Warm-up's over!"
Boom
His body vanished in a flash, propelled by an explosion of Red beneath his feet. Energy gathered in his fists and legs, wrapping them in a devastating repulsive force.
Whoosh Whoosh Whoosh
Within the training grounds, it was impossible to follow him with the naked eye. It looked as if dozens of Gojos were attacking at once from every direction, unleashing a storm of blows that shattered the very air around them.
Each punch, each kick propelled by "Red" carried enough power to bring down mountains. The ground shook, the air compressed with every impact, and Satoru, amidst that frenzied speed, desperately searched for a single opening in Damian's defense.
Boom Boom Boom Boom
The explosions echoed without pause.
The reinforced terrain shattered into fragments, debris was pulverized before touching the ground, and the containment barriers emitted a piercing hum, trembling on the verge of collapse.
"So… so fast!" exclaimed Yūji, eyes wide open.
"It's not just speed…" murmured Megumi, a bead of sweat sliding down his temple. "Each strike has twice the power it had before."
Nobara and the rest of the cheer squad held their breath.
Maki gripped her katana tightly, the gleam of excitement burning in her eyes. "This is the real Gojo-sensei…"
Shoko's cigarette slipped from her mouth. "He's completely insane…"
The explosions continued like a meteor shower crashing down on a single point. The power of "Red" devoured everything it touched, leaving behind a trail of destruction.
And still, Damian didn't change his stance.
He remained with his hands in his pockets, standing amid the chaos.
Shua Shua Shua
Each time an attack seemed about to reach him, his body moved just enough—a slight twist, a minimal shift, an imperceptible tilt.
Every dodge was so precise it bordered on the impossible.
Satoru's strikes passed so close that the air itself whistled… yet not a single one managed to touch even the edge of his clothes.
"Is that your limit?"
"I'm not done yet!" Satoru's demented laughter overflowed with madness. In an instant, he found the smallest interval in Damian's movement and seized the opportunity.
"Now! Hollow Technique: Purple!"
His figure appeared right in front of Damian, his hands rapidly forming seals as cursed energy began to build.
Blue and red twisted in the air, merging until they collapsed into a dark point that swallowed all light around it.
Dust and air were instantly pulled inward. At the center of that void, an energy of pure erasure grew.
With a crazed smile, Satoru extended his hands. "Let's see if you can handle this!"
BOOOOM
A torrent of violet energy burst from the black hole, tearing through space itself.
The force of "Purple" was so overwhelming that it devoured everything it touched, engulfing Damian and the entire field in a wave of absolute destruction.
Violet light flooded the underground mountain. Half of the training field disintegrated, and the containment barriers, already cracked, began to screech with a sharp sound.
Crack
Indeed, the barriers shattered like glass, and the remaining energy, now uncontrolled, surged toward the stands.
"Damn it!" shouted Yūta, unsheathing his sword.
"Take cover!" ordered Maki, raising her katana.
"Salmon!" Inumaki quickly lowered his uniform collar.
Megumi summoned Nue.
Everyone's faces twisted as they deployed their defenses with all their might. However, just an instant before the storm of destruction reached them—
A flash materialized.
A single line of light split the destructive wave in two, dispersing its energy.
The violet glow gradually faded, revealing a motionless figure standing amidst the smoke.
It was Damian.
He remained in the same spot, and not even the ground beneath his feet was damaged. "Purple", capable of erasing existence itself, hadn't left so much as a scratch on him.
Calmly, he slid Yamato back into its sheath. "You won't use your Domain? Then, I suppose it's my turn."
!
A pressure flooded the field. But it wasn't cursed energy—it was… heat.
Within seconds, the entire area seemed to ignite.
A moment earlier, everyone still felt the echo of "Purple." An instant later, it was as if they had been thrown into the crater of a volcano.
"Sigh—!"
"It's… IT'S TOO DAMN HOT!"
Sweat evaporated before it could even slide down their skin. The air burned as they breathed, and every inhale felt like swallowing fire.
In the stands, everyone looked drenched, but steam rose from their bodies before the drops of sweat could hit the ground, while the glow sticks Nobara waved softened and deformed in her hands.
"What… what kind of temperature is this?!" shouted Maki, feeling the scorching hilt of her katana.
"My body… it's burning…" murmured Yūta, surrounded by cursed energy. Even so, his skin trembled under the searing pain.
Shoko narrowed her eyes, sensing this terrifying heat far beyond any normal flame. "The core… is in that katana…"
At the center of the field, Satoru was the one who felt it most intensely.
His Six Eyes worked furiously, trying to analyze this heat that defied all logic.
His Infinity technique activated instinctively, forming an infinitely divided defensive layer on the surface of his body that held the lethal temperature mere centimeters away.
Even so, he could feel with absolute clarity the energy capable of incinerating everything battering furiously against the limits of his technique.
The thermal pressure was so intense that reality itself seemed to melt.
"Domain Expansion…" he murmured, raising his right hand. He didn't hesitate anymore, ready to unfold his absolute domain.
But he didn't have time.
!
An ocean of fire erupted around Damian.
The entire training ground became the core of a volcano, transforming into a blinding white inferno.
The ground cracked, rock melted into molten magma, and the air turned into an unbearable mass of heat.
Everything that existed melted away.
In his hands, Yamato had vanished. In its place, Damian held a simple-looking katana, though the air around it warped and shimmered.
"Ryūjin Jakka." He murmured the name softly—and with that, unleashed the cataclysm.
BOOOOOOM
The temperature rose exponentially. Golden and crimson flames roared upward, taking the shape of dragons that ascended to strike the ceiling of the chamber.
The special material instantly turned bright red and began to melt, dripping like burning wax.
All the sorcerers released their cursed energy at once, forming defenses so they would not be consumed.
The membrane of Infinity on Satoru's surface let out a high-pitched screech. The infinitely divided space began to deform, softening like glass inside an oven.
"Hey, hey, hey!" Satoru's voice cracked between horror and disbelief. He finally understood what Damian had meant earlier. "This temperature… is completely ILLEGAL!"
This was not human power. It was as if… it was the sun itself descending!
The corner of Damian's mouth curved into a faint smile. The flames devouring the field were reflected in his eyes, and his voice carried a subtle threat. "Can your Infinity withstand the temperature of the sun?"
Satoru's eyes widened. The sun? Wasn't that a metaphor?
"Seems like not." Damian lowered his head with an almost disappointed tone. "Then… just a normal cut…"
Before the last word dissipated, he was gone.
The Six Eyes moved frantically trying to track him… but they could not!
A scorching roar exploded centimeters from his ear. Damian appeared in front of him, descending with Ryūjin Jakka in a direct slash.
"Tsk!" Satoru released his cursed energy at maximum output, crossing his arms to reinforce Infinity. Space compressed and bent before him, forming a tangible shield.
But…
The impact he expected never came.
For a moment he thought it had been an illusion… until his eyes caught the distortion wave of space behind him, seared by the extreme heat.
But it was already too late.
The katana moved in a clean, upward, lethal cut.
Swish
The instant the edge touched him, a torrent of fire roared like a suppressed volcano suddenly released.
BOOOM
Infinity, the absolute defense… melted.
The blade pierced the barrier and sank into Satoru's back.
GRAAAAH—!
The pain was immediate and brutal. His cursed energy disintegrated on contact, his clothes turned to ash, and his flesh carbonized before blood could well up.
Boom
Satoru's body was hurled like a flaming projectile, smashing into the far wall.
Rumble, rumble…
The impact shook the entire mountain.
With that, the fire dissipated little by little, leaving behind absolute silence.
In the center of the field, Damian remained motionless.
He swung Ryūjin Jakka with indifference. The blade lost its fire, regaining its serene form. He did not even look toward the collapsed wall.
Waving Ryūjin Jakka, the flames faded, and the katana returned to its calm shape before sliding into its sheath.
Damian looked at Shoko, who watched from the stands, her face frozen in astonishment.
"Go treat him."
"He will not die."
"And remind him about my house."