Chapter 69: Pure Love Pinned Down
"Yuta! Yuta!"
To Orimoto Rika, everyone who intended to harm Okkotsu Yuta was a bad person, and bad people must be killed.
The three Sorcerers had been completely torn to shreds by Orimoto Rika. Covered in blood and fragments of internal organs, Orimoto Rika looked especially terrifying. But the pleasure of the slaughter vanished when her favorite person remained asleep.
"Yuta, wake up! Look at me!"
No matter how Orimoto Rika called out, Okkotsu Yuta remained completely unconscious. This situation made Orimoto Rika even more like an enraged beast, becoming abnormally violent.
Suddenly, Orimoto Rika lifted her head sharply to look at the figure hovering in the sky, like a fly.
"Enemy!"
Gojo Satoru, floating in the air and displaying a strong presence, projected a threat that was impossible to ignore, like an annoying lightbulb. It instantly forced Orimoto Rika back into a combat state.
"Roar!!!"
Orimoto Rika let out an angry roar. A massive sonic wave, accompanied by a purple energy surge, spread outwards, causing the entire building to tremble precariously. With the terrifying destructive power Orimoto Rika unleashed, the floor she was on instantly collapsed. Although Orimoto Rika had a massive physique, her serpentine body allowed for surprising agility. She vanished from the spot at an imperceptible speed, reappearing moments later next to Gojo Satoru in mid-air, carrying the unconscious Okkotsu Yuta wrapped in her tail.
"Die!"
Orimoto Rika's muscles tensed. The monstrous, corpse-like, pale, and distorted body was covered in terrifying purplish-black cursed energy. She savagely swiped her sharp claws down toward Gojo Satoru.
"How terrifying."
Gojo Satoru said this, yet he didn't even consider dodging. He remained rooted in place, hands still in his pockets.
"As expected of the Curse Queen, so spirited."
Orimoto Rika's terrifying claw attack stopped instantly, frozen just about one centimeter away from Gojo Satoru's forehead. But this single centimeter was as distant as the Milky Way,
completely unreachable. The terrifying Cursed Spirit's elbow was straining until it turned blue, yet she could only hover beside Gojo Satoru's body, unable to cross the threshold.
"Why can't I move!"
Orimoto Rika opened her cavernous, blood-stained mouth, revealing teeth sharp as knives. She wanted to bite off Gojo Satoru's head, but just like her hand, she couldn't inflict any harm on the man.
"Have you heard of Zeno's Paradox?" Gojo Satoru smiled slightly. His Limitless Cursed Technique was roughly based on that paradox. "It might be hard for a Cursed Spirit to understand: the closer you get, the less you can actually approach."
The Limitless Cursed Technique makes Gojo Satoru immune to all physical, conceptual, and Cursed Technique attacks that attempt to approach him. No matter how powerful the attack is, it's useless because it can't even touch Gojo Satoru. Even Mei Mei's strongest technique, Bird Manipulation, which can kill Special Grade Cursed Spirits, still couldn't penetrate Gojo Satoru's Limitless Cursed Technique.
But that brat could do it, Gojo Satoru shook his head.
"But being this energetic, communication is going to be quite difficult." Gojo Satoru shook his head, raised one hand, and aimed his fingertip at Orimoto Rika, smiling faintly. "I'll just cripple you first."
In an instant, a red orb of light appeared at Gojo Satoru's fingertip, and the dazzling red flash completely engulfed Orimoto Rika.
"Fall."
Even though Orimoto Rika had used her hands and body to completely shield Okkotsu Yuta in advance, she was still completely covered by the red light of destruction and violently smashed into the ground of the parking lot, like a meteor hitting the earth.
Gojo Satoru's Cursed Technique Reversal: Red, is similar to the Almighty Push (Shinra Tensei) in that it repels all forces, equivalent to infinity, like a small supernova. Considering the hospital nearby, and the need to protect Okkotsu Yuta without killing him, the Red technique he unleashed was a weakened version.
Nevertheless, Gojo Satoru's destructive power violently blew away all the vehicles in the entire parking lot. Orimoto Rika, along with the Okkotsu Yuta she was protecting, was blasted away.
"So tough. She only sustained minor injuries."
Although the parking lot below was shrouded in heavy smoke and dust, everything was visible to Gojo Satoru's "Six Eyes." Orimoto Rika only sustained minor injuries under the attack of the Cursed Technique Reversal: Red. In Gojo Satoru's calculation, that strike should have sliced off her left arm entirely.
"This is truly tricky." Gojo Satoru sighed. The power of his Cursed Technique could be increased, but in the vicinity of a hospital with ordinary people, he was constrained and couldn't fully deploy it. If he went for full power Red output, it would likely destroy the hospital in the distance as well.
That would be a huge mess.
The casualties caused by Orimoto Rika were currently three people, while the casualties caused by Gojo Satoru's technique would definitely be more than a hundred. Furthermore, Okkotsu Yuta, tied up by Orimoto Rika's tail, also limited Gojo Satoru's output, essentially functioning as a human shield.
Honestly, Gojo Satoru thought Hikigaya Hachiman might be better suited to dealing with this type of Cursed Spirit. Gojo Satoru's Cursed Technique was more suitable for annihilation battles rather than keeping targets alive. If it were that brat, Orimoto Rika might already be dismembered by now.
But just as he thought this, a figure wielding a chainsword appeared behind Orimoto Rika.
"A snake, how unpleasant."
Suddenly, Gojo Satoru heard Orimoto Rika's wail, followed by a gust of wind. The thick smoke shrouding the entire parking lot instantly vanished. The ferocious sword edge tore through the air. Amidst a shower of blood, Orimoto Rika's massive body became a living target. Orimoto Rika's originally sturdy skin, bones, and everything else were sliced into countless fragments in a single second. Massive amounts of purplish-black blood rained down, splashing everywhere.
Hikigaya Hachiman's eyes narrowed. Amidst the blood splattering from Orimoto Rika's remains, he reached out, single-handedly lifting Okkotsu Yuta by the back of his collar, bringing the Cursed Spirit's serpentine tail wrapped around him along as well.
"Yuta!"
Orimoto Rika, perceiving that her loved one had been pulled away, still worried about the person she loved, even though her entire body had been shattered. It was impossible for Okkotsu Yuta to be returned while in Hikigaya Hachiman's grasp.
Hikigaya Hachiman, wielding a crimson, bloody greatsword, had covered the chainsword with a vast amount of Spirit Power. When the Spirit Power returned, he found that the power he possessed was seemingly stronger than before. It seemed that falling into the Spirit Power overload state had this effect.
Hikigaya Hachiman's chainsword glowed with a scarlet light—a manifestation of his Spirit Power. It was only by relying on the power of Spirit Energy that he could slice Orimoto Rika's tough body as easily as melting butter.
"These guys really don't make things easy." Hikigaya Hachiman held Okkotsu Yuta by the back of his collar. He had already checked this guy's physical condition. Reverse Cursed Technique can heal physical wounds, but targeted drugs that affect the central nervous system cannot be removed. This chemical agent seemed to require other agents to neutralize it.
Orimoto Rika, covered in blood and looking utterly miserable as if her bones had been stripped by a blade, wailed in agony. Orimoto Rika hugged her body, her form constantly twisting. Her fear deepened after Okkotsu Yuta was taken away, but she still focused on Okkotsu Yuta.
"Yuta!"
However, Orimoto Rika instantly repaired all the horrific injuries her body had sustained, relying on her formidable cursed power. She kept approaching Hikigaya Hachiman, wanting to reclaim her loved one.
"Wow, is that the power of pure love?"
Gojo Satoru looked at the scene below with great interest. Hikigaya Hachiman's destructive power was clearly quite surprising to him.
But before Orimoto Rika could speak, the rest of the words she wanted to say were forcefully shoved back down her throat. A scarlet meteor violently struck the Cursed Spirit's chest, sending her entire body flying outward.
"Black Flash!"
Even while holding Okkotsu Yuta with one hand, Hikigaya Hachiman could still use "Black Flash." The astonishing destructive power that completely shattered the skull Cursed Spirit last time was equally effective this time.
Orimoto Rika's entire Cursed Spirit body was subjected to an attack even more terrifying than Gojo Satoru's Red. It instantly turned her into a crimson meteor, sending her flying backward at lightning speed. Orimoto Rika, like a forced projectile, pierced through the ground floor of several tall buildings, her momentum undiminished, flying back for over a kilometer.
Hikigaya Hachiman had held back his strength, otherwise, the ground's energy absorption alone would have been enough to put the already shaky hospital behind him through the wringer.
"Hachiman, this is a busy area; keep the noise down."
Gojo Satoru's gaze was fixed on the greatsword stuck in the ground, glowing with a scarlet, seductive light. The residual Spirit Power caused Gojo Satoru's Six Eyes to ache deeply, like needle points.
This brat has gotten stronger again.
Gojo Satoru shifted his gaze toward Orimoto Rika. "Is she still hopping around? This Cursed Spirit is really troublesome."
Gojo Satoru saw that Orimoto Rika was rapidly recovering after being hit by Hikigaya Hachiman's Black Flash, with terrifying speed.
"I've evacuated all civilians within a five-kilometer radius." Hikigaya Hachiman shook his head.
But suddenly, Gojo Satoru's expression changed, as he sensed a high-concentration cursed energy reaction rapidly approaching. A purplish-black curse shot out from the distance, targeting Hikigaya Hachiman directly.
It was Orimoto Rika's Cursed Technique Cannon. It contained her desire to save her loved one, showing how deep the cursed power within was—it was a complete manifestation of her frantic love.
"Let me." Hikigaya Hachiman motioned for Gojo Satoru to back away.
Hikigaya Hachiman didn't block with his sword. All he did was raise his hand and gently brush the air, as if flicking away dust. The Cursed Technique Cannon, which had just exhibited extreme destructive power, immediately disappeared completely, like a dud.
This was the power of Izanami, which forcefully eliminates cursed energy attacks that could potentially harm the host.
"What is that thing?"
Gojo Satoru could clearly see with his naked eye that a small portion of Hikigaya Hachiman's cursed energy had clearly vanished. The moment he raised his hand and swiped, Gojo Satoru felt uncomfortable, even though it wasn't aimed directly at him. It made him feel nauseous and generally uneasy, as if its very existence had been erased from the world. Such a massive Cursed Technique Cannon simply vanished instantly.
Even Gojo Satoru's Six Eyes couldn't perceive the secrets of this Cursed Technique. The Six Eyes perceives all Cursed Techniques, so this sight clearly astonished Gojo Satoru.
Since the opponent attacked, Hikigaya Hachiman naturally gave a return gift. Hikigaya Hachiman condensed a blood-colored spear in his hand, featuring two sharp points at the front and an overall spiral, streamlined style, looking quite beautiful. It gave the impression of the mythical Spear of Longinus.
Hikigaya Hachiman twisted his body and threw the spear straight out. With a flash of scarlet light, a sonic boom was instantly generated.
The Spear of Longinus pierced directly through Orimoto Rika's body, firmly pinning her to a skyscraper. Orimoto Rika immediately let out loud screams. The surface of the spear was coated with Spirit Power, which was like a potent poison to Cursed Spirits. This tormented Orimoto Rika, as such a curse-like substance was not easy to pull out even with bare hands. The moment Orimoto Rika touched it with her hands, it was like an explosion, splashing out
many purple electric sparks. It firmly immobilized her on the skyscraper, and the spear in her chest continued to release Spirit Power.
Just when Gojo Satoru thought he could relax and let Hachiman handle it, Hikigaya Hachiman unexpectedly threw Okkotsu Yuta to him.
"60 seconds until the restraints are broken."
Hikigaya Hachiman really wanted to use another Cursed Technique against Orimoto Rika, a nightmare technique, but for Orimoto Rika, negative emotions were like nourishment. Hikigaya Hachiman didn't want the opponent to recover while fighting.
"Don't let Orimoto Rika get close to the medical school building." Hikigaya Hachiman's words interrupted Gojo Satoru's thoughts. "Orimoto Rika and Okkotsu Yuta are your responsibility."
Hikigaya Hachiman had just discovered that someone he knew seemed to be in the original hospital area.
That's why he quickly subdued the Curse Queen, Orimoto Rika, and pinned her to the wall. Gojo Satoru's fighting style didn't look like a fight; with the superiority of his Cursed Technique, it was clearly like toying with prey.
Therefore, Hikigaya Hachiman fundamentally didn't understand why the Sorcerer Association would choose a place like a hospital, where ordinary people were densely concentrated. Hayasaka Ai's cursed energy fluctuation seemed wrong, as if it were about to extinguish. Hikigaya Hachiman vanished from the spot.
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