Sol's patience finally wore thin.
His figure flickered.
In the next instant, Nanami, Maki, Zen'in Naobito, and even Toji Fushiguro found themselves completely immobilized. An invisible yet irresistible force halted their movements, disrupting the flow of their Cursed Energy. They could not move so much as a finger.
Only Megumi Fushiguro remained free to move.
But before he could react, Sol was already standing in front of him, one hand resting on his shoulder.
"It seems you need a little push," Sol said quietly.
The world around Megumi suddenly distorted.
His companions' shocked, furious, yet motionless expressions rapidly faded from view as the sensation of spatial transportation washed over him.
When his vision cleared, he found himself standing at the bottom of a massive circular crater littered with twisted steel beams and melted concrete.
At the opposite end of the crater, a figure sat against a shattered wall.
It was Itadori's body.
The crimson eyes and black markings spreading across his face made it unmistakably clear that Sukuna was in control.
"Tsk. About time," Sukuna said, lifting his head. His gaze passed over Megumi before settling on Sol. "Why bring this brat? Is he supposed to be my appetizer?"
Sol removed his hand from Megumi's shoulder and stepped back several paces.
"Your new opponent," he said.
Then he looked directly at the tense Megumi.
"Defeat him."
Megumi's heart pounded violently.
Cold sweat instantly soaked his back.
He was standing alone before the King of Curses, and Sol clearly had no intention of stepping in.
What was Sol thinking?
Fight Sukuna?
Sukuna let out a scoff as he rose to his feet and rolled his neck.
"Boring. Does this half baked kid even qualify as an opponent?"
Despite his words, a bloodthirsty grin spread across his face. He clearly welcomed the chance to entertain himself.
"Begin."
Sukuna moved first.
His speed was so overwhelming that only an afterimage remained as he appeared before Megumi, throwing a punch straight toward his face. The sheer force behind it detonated the surrounding air.
Megumi's pupils contracted.
His survival instincts took over.
"Nue!"
He leaped backward while summoning the giant winged Shikigami directly in front of himself.
Boom!
Sukuna's fist tore effortlessly through Nue.
The Shikigami cried out before dispersing into shadows, but the brief delay gave Megumi just enough time to evade the strike.
The pressure from the punch still grazed his face, tearing the skin along his cheek.
"Divine Dogs!"
The black and white Divine Dogs lunged toward Sukuna from opposite directions.
"Out of my way."
Sukuna casually waved his hand.
An overwhelming surge of Cursed Energy blasted both Shikigami away like a crushing hammer.
They crashed into the distant ruins with pained cries and struggled to rise.
The gap in power was absolute.
Megumi gritted his teeth and rapidly formed another hand sign.
"Chimera Shadow Garden!"
The shadows beneath his feet expanded instantly, spreading across the battlefield like a swamp as they attempted to bind Sukuna's legs.
"Cheap tricks."
Sukuna did not bother avoiding them.
He simply stomped his foot.
Bang!
The incomplete domain shattered instantly under the impact.
The backlash struck Megumi immediately, forcing blood into his throat.
"You're too weak! Far too weak!"
Sukuna laughed as he closed the distance once again.
He casually raised a finger.
"Dismantle."
An invisible slash ripped across the ground, racing straight toward Megumi.
The lingering warmth within his body faded away as Cursed Technique Lapse disappeared, leaving only the overwhelming certainty of death.
Megumi's mind went blank.
His body reacted on instinct.
The shadows beneath his feet churned violently.
Just before the slash reached him, a massive wheel engraved with mysterious runes rose from the shadows.
Its center resembled a single eyed spinning top.
Clang!
The invisible slash struck the wheel with a deafening metallic crash.
The wheel shook violently as the runes across its surface flared with light.
But it endured.
The fatal attack had been stopped.
Mahoraga.
Driven to the brink of death, Megumi had finally summoned the legendary Shikigami.
Half kneeling on the ground, Megumi struggled to catch his breath.
He stared at the towering figure before him, overwhelmed by fear and disbelief.
If neither Sukuna nor Sol could kill Mahoraga, then all three of them would die.
Sukuna looked at the blocked attack.
Instead of anger, his smile widened.
"Oh? Now this is interesting."
His crimson eyes gleamed with almost fanatical excitement, as though he had discovered a fascinating new toy.
He slowly licked his lips.
His attention shifted completely to Mahoraga, ignoring the battered Megumi altogether.
The massive wheel behind Mahoraga slowly rotated.
Its intricate runes glowed faintly as the single eye at its center fixed itself upon Sukuna with overwhelming intensity.
The mark left by Dismantle was already beginning to repair itself.
Sukuna observed the Shikigami with obvious interest.
"At least you've spared me the boredom of crushing ants."
Before he even finished speaking, he disappeared.
It was not teleportation.
His physical speed alone created a violent shockwave where he had been standing.
An instant later, Sukuna appeared directly before Mahoraga.
His right fist, wrapped in dense black Cursed Energy, slammed straight into the enormous wheel.
Clang!
The explosive impact shook the entire crater.
Mahoraga's wheel trembled violently as the runes flashed in rapid succession.
The immense force drove a noticeable dent into the wheel, sending the gigantic Shikigami sliding several meters backward and carving two deep trenches through the ground.
Even so, Mahoraga remained standing.
The single eye at the center of the wheel continued to rotate, silently analyzing Sukuna's attack.