Chapter 96 — "The Terrified Mahito"
"I understand now," Mahito whispered, his new form pulsing with cursed energy.
"Through Black Flash, I've seen the truth of my soul.
This… this is who I really am."
He trembled—not in fear, but in ecstasy.
Every cell in his body seemed to hum with delight, as though he had just broken free from his cocoon.
A curse reborn. A monster perfected.
---
Yuji stood across from him, blood still dripping down his cheek, his breathing heavy but steady.
He looked calm—almost too calm.
"…I'm surprised," Yuji said quietly. "You're actually the kind of creature who seeks himself."
Mahito chuckled darkly.
"Ha… I didn't think so either. But this is how it ends. Once I kill you, I'll finally be complete."
Without another word, the two of them charged forward—
their final battle beginning.
---
In his evolved form, Mahito's entire being was sharper, stronger, faster.
Gone was the soft, shifting form that relied on trickery.
Now, his body was pure weaponry—
a living engine of violence.
His blows carried terrifying force, his defense felt like forged steel.
Yuji's fists slammed into him, but each punch clanged like metal striking metal.
"Clang!!"
"Damn it—he's harder than before!"
Yuji's arms ached, his knuckles split.
His attacks barely left a scratch.
Still, his eyes stayed fierce.
No matter how strong Mahito became, Yuji would exorcise him—
because someone like this, who toyed with human life,
didn't deserve to exist.
Mahito laughed manically.
"Come on, Yuji! I'll make sure this ends perfectly!"
His bladed elbow whistled through the air as he punched Yuji back, his body lunging forward like a beast on the hunt.
Every part of him—fist, blade, tail—was now a killing tool.
---
Meanwhile, Zen'in Shinsuke dropped down beside the collapsed Todo, glancing at him with mild amusement.
"Still alive, hot-blooded kid?" he asked.
He clicked his tongue at the sight of Todo's missing hand.
"Lost an arm, huh? Rough day."
Todo grinned, his face pale but his spirit unbroken.
"Hah… an arm's nothing. I can still fight."
He used his ruined hand to brace himself upright.
Then, smirking up at Shinsuke, he added,
"You're one to talk, Zen'in-sensei. What's with all those fresh cuts? You look like you got mauled by a blender."
"If your teacher saw me like this," Shinsuke chuckled, "she'd probably be pissed.
But hey—it's Sukuna. You don't take him down without a few souvenirs."
He paused for a moment, wondering how Yuki Tsukumo would react if she saw him now.
Would she scold him? Or laugh? Probably both.
---
"Sukuna, huh… that explains a lot."
Todo nodded, glancing toward the battlefield where Yuji fought Mahito.
"So that's why Yuji was in such a state earlier… Sukuna's handiwork."
Then his tone grew serious.
"Zen'in-sensei, don't interfere yet. This is Yuji's fight—his moment to evolve."
Shinsuke raised a brow.
"Oh, I'd love to kill that one," he said casually, eyes gleaming as he watched Mahito.
"Such a fine specimen of cursed energy… better even than Jogo.
But unfortunately, I made a binding vow with Kenjaku. I can't touch this one."
Todo blinked. "A vow?"
"Yeah," Shinsuke sighed, shrugging. "Part of the deal was—
I can kill any curse in Shibuya… except him."
Mahito was too important to Kenjaku's plan, and the vow made it crystal clear—
Shinsuke couldn't interfere, not unless the terms changed.
Unless…
He smiled faintly to himself, as if already considering a loophole.
---
"Then I'll go," Todo said, straightening up.
"I still owe my best friend a little support."
He strode toward the fight, back straight, one-armed but unbroken.
Shinsuke followed leisurely, hands in his pockets.
"Might as well watch how this clown gets himself killed," he muttered.
As they approached, he couldn't help but marvel.
Yuji—barely a year into being a sorcerer—was standing toe-to-toe with a Special Grade curse.
His progress was insane.
That kind of growth… only true prodigies possessed it.
Given time, Shinsuke thought,
the boy might even surpass Sukuna one day.
---
"...No one can consciously trigger a Black Flash," Mahito muttered, circling the crater.
His form blurred into motion, his presence flickering like a shadow.
"But that doesn't matter. You won't live long enough to try again."
He locked his gaze on Yuji, who stood knee-deep in the shattered ground, cursed energy gathering around his fists.
With a sharp cry, Mahito lunged.
The two clashed—fist to fist.
Their blows split the air.
Water and dust burst around them.
Mahito shed part of his armored body, his form shifting back into his humanoid state to strike faster.
Yuji's fist slammed into Mahito's shoulder, his technique following through—
Divergent Fist!
The delayed second impact crushed into Mahito's core, making him stumble back.
But Mahito twisted midair, his right arm morphing into a gleaming blade.
"Die, Yuji Itadori!" he roared, thrusting forward.
And in that instant—
the final clash between man and curse reached its breaking point.
The elbow is already descending when a voice cuts through—sharp, teasing. "Curse, you probably don't know this: hands are merely ornamentation. But a clap… that's a soul's applause."
Todo appears on the high ground, light blazing behind him. He brings his palms together with a crisp clap.
"Over here!"
Mahito reacts without thinking and sweeps his bladed arm backward—but the switch never happens.
"How unfortunate. Looks like my twisted game is dead." Todo stares at his severed arm and shows no regret.
Mahito realizes he's been tricked; his pupils widen. "No—"
Before he can react, a fully charged fist meets him.
"Black Flash!!"
Rip!
A black-red thunderclap erupts through Mahito's chest. The blow detonates his form, ripping him back to his original shape. He flies on a slant, bangs through an earthen wall, and tumbles from the deep pit to the rubble-strewn floor.
"It's… not—over!" Mahito scrambles, desperately searching his throat for another modified body—only to find none left.
"Gone!" he rasps, lying face-down as Yuji approaches step by step. For the first time, panic and dread appear in his eyes.
"I admit it, Mahito. I am you—I've always wanted to deny you," Yuji says, deadpan. "I've tried to ignore what you said, but now… I just want to kill you."
He stares at Mahito with an impassive fury. "No matter how you're reborn, no matter how many names you take or faces you change, I'll find you and put you down. I will keep exorcising curses until a hundred years have passed—until rot itself dies."
Each sentence lands like iron on Mahito. He feels fear, pure and immediate—more than he ever felt even facing Sukuna. In this moment, he finally understands: he is going to die.
"No—!" Mahito drags his weakening body and bolts. He can't die here; he must live. He scrambles toward a figure ahead, mindless now except for the animal instinct to survive. If he can grab another modified body, he might have a chance.
He reaches out, lunges—slaps his palm against the chest of the person before him—and a wild, grotesque grin claws across his face. "I still have a chance!"
"Non-action Transformation!" he cries, trying to seize whatever will save him.
"Sensei Zen'in!" someone yells.
Yuji barrels forward, surprised to see Zen'in Shinsuke suddenly appear right where Mahito aimed. He tenses, alarmed.
Thud thud.
Two steady heartbeats sound—Mahito looks up at the unmoving figure before him and his gaze locks on Zen'in's face. A cruel smile meets him, and in that instant Mahito sees a demon from hell come to harvest his life.
Zen'in senses the cursed energy pressing on his body and stares at Mahito, cool as ever. "Kid," he says softly, "you want to change my soul?"
"Too bad," he adds, voice flat. "The shape of my soul is determined by the body that contains it."