In the western woods of Jujutsu High.
Deafening booms echoed as Satoru Gojo and Hercules clashed repeatedly in midair.
"You're one tough bastard."
After knocking Hercules back again, Gojo pulled away, smirking.
"Hahaha! You're just too weak!"
Hercules laughed, climbing from the ground, his aura surging.
"Aren't you the self-proclaimed strongest sorcerer? Hit me with something real!"
"Right back at you."
Gojo replied casually.
From the fight's start, he'd figured out Hercules's Sacred Gear ability.
Simple: attacks triggered explosions.
A crude but effective power, perfectly countered by Gojo's Limitless technique.
As long as he kept Limitless active, Hercules couldn't touch him.
Still…
"Time to crank up the output."
Gojo ran through tactics.
Blue and Red were off the table.
He'd hit Hercules eighteen times with them, but only caused scratches.
To truly hurt him, he needed something stronger.
Hollow Purple or Domain Expansion.
Purple required prep time. Domain Expansion could be used now, but Gojo wasn't sure it'd finish Hercules.
If it failed, during the technique's cooldown, he'd lose Limitless and struggle against Hercules.
"You look hesitant."
Hercules's voice broke through.
"If you can't decide, I'll make it easy for you."
"Watch closely! This is my Balance Breaker—Malice Wave of the Superhuman!"
With a roar, dazzling light erupted from Hercules.
Under Gojo's gaze, the light gathered at Hercules's hands, feet, and back, forming thick protrusions.
"Missiles?"
With Six Eyes, Gojo instantly identified them.
"His Sacred Gear causes explosions, so Balance Breaker amps up the blast power."
"Exactly! Round two, let's go!"
Hercules aimed his Balance Breaker missiles at Gojo, firing relentlessly.
Booms rang out as Gojo's cursed energy began to dip.
Facing the endless barrage, Gojo realized Hercules's plan.
He was betting on superior stamina and mana to drain Gojo's cursed energy.
"No time to hesitate."
Gojo raised his right hand, gathering cursed energy rapidly.
"That's it! This is what a fight should be!"
Hercules laughed louder. "Gojo! Use your domain!"
"Let's see what's stronger—your domain or my Balance Breaker!"
"…I'd say I'm stronger."
As Gojo replied, his cursed energy dissipated, and his raised hand lowered.
"But looks like we won't test that now."
"Huh? What's that mean?!"
Hercules fumed. "Why not use your domain? You looking down on me?!"
"No, he means it's unnecessary."
Roy's voice came from behind Hercules, out of nowhere.
Hercules's pupils shrank, his fiery battle spirit doused like ice water.
Sensing danger, he spun, swinging a fist backward.
But a cold flash sliced through the air first.
Shing!
Hercules's tempered steel body tore apart, his arm flying off.
The Power of Destruction-coated demon sword didn't pause, pivoting to slice downward.
Shing! Shing!
Like his right arm, Hercules's legs were severed effortlessly.
In an instant, three of his four limbs were gone.
Indescribable pain flooded his mind, his eyes bloodshot.
Hercules screamed, his Balance Breaker collapsing into fading light.
"Quiet down."
Roy raised his weapon, mercilessly cutting off Hercules's last arm.
"That'll just make him scream louder," Gojo said, strolling over.
"Just securing the kill, making sure he can't fight back."
Roy drove a demon sword through Hercules's abdomen, pinning him to the ground.
Using Senjutsu, Roy attacked Hercules's mind, crumbling his mental defenses.
But as he probed Hercules's memories, a magic circle flared on the body.
A young man's projection appeared before Roy and Gojo.
"More brutal than I expected."
Georg's gaze flicked to Roy's sword and the limbless Hercules, adjusting his glasses.
"First meeting, Red Dragon Emperor."
"Interested in a deal?"
"Nope. Scram!"
Roy snorted, blasting the magic circle to bits.
"Huh? Not even hearing him out?"
Gojo, ready to probe the figure's identity, looked bemused.
"Nothing worth hearing. He'd just offer bribes to let this guy go."
Roy didn't believe in mercy.
For enemies like Hercules, who came looking for trouble, his stance was clear.
An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.
"Since you tried to kill me, be ready to die."
After extracting the needed info from Hercules's mind, Roy raised his sword.
Shing!
[Congratulations on defeating Hercules. Obtained Purple entry 'Giant's Prank.']
[Giant's Prank (Purple): Each attack triggers an additional explosion, damage scaling with infused mana.]
Meh.
Glancing at the entry's effects, Roy tossed it into storage for later use as material.
"Instead of killing him, keeping him alive might've been smarter," Gojo said, looking from Hercules's corpse to Roy.
"What's your next move?"
"What do you mean?"
"Principal Gakuganji. You're not letting him off easy, right?"
"Of course not."
Roy chuckled, stepping toward Gojo.
"What's your plan? Gonna stop me?"
"Depends."
Gojo shrugged. "I don't like the old man, but attacking him without evidence is messy."
"Got it."
Roy raised his right hand, clenching a fist.
Boom!
When Gojo reacted, he was already on the ground.
"Impossible!"
Gojo's pupils shrank, shocked.
"How'd you bypass Limitless?!"
"Not bypass—penetrate."
Roy stood over him, activating the Boosted Gear's penetration ability again.
"When I saved Yuji, you said you owed me a favor, right?"
"Let's cash that in. Go to sleep."
Thud!
[Congratulations on defeating Satoru Gojo. Obtained Red entry 'Six Eyes.']
[Six Eyes (Red): Grants 360-degree ultra-long-range vision, greatly enhances energy control, enables precise micro-operations.]
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