The domain didn't collapse like the others.
It fractured.
Malevolent Shrine cracked across its own existence like glass remembering it was never meant to hold.
And then—
it shattered outward.
Yuji hit the ground hard.
Nobara was thrown back across the ruined space.
Megumi slid, barely stabilizing himself with cursed energy.
And Gojo—
for the first time—
didn't arrive in time.
"…I can't get through," he muttered, mid-step, stopping at the edge of a warped barrier of cursed interference.
His smile faded slightly.
"…That's annoying."
Inside the collapsing domain space, Sukuna didn't panic.
He barely reacted at all.
Takeru's body stood in the center of the ruin, expression calm—but not present.
And then Sukuna smiled.
"…Ah."
"…So it broke early."
Yuji coughed, forcing himself up."…Get out of him!"
Nobara struggled to her feet, gripping her weapon tightly."…We can't even reach him!"
Megumi's eyes narrowed."…The space is still unstable."
"…We're being kept out deliberately."
Sukuna tilted his head slightly inside Takeru's body.
"…You're all still here."
A pause.
Then a slow smile.
"…Good."
He raised one hand slightly.
The air twisted.
Not a technique.
Not a domain.
Just raw control asserting itself.
Yuji's eyes widened instantly."…MOVE!"
Too late.
A pressure wave slammed outward.
Not cutting.
Not burning.
Just erasing stability.
Nobara was thrown again, coughing."…That hurts way too much!"
Megumi barely held himself upright."…He's attacking without structure."
Yuji grit his teeth."…Why is he this strong?!"
And then—
a crack formed inside Takeru.
Not visible.
Not external.
Internal.
Something shifting.
Something deciding.
Sukuna noticed immediately.
"…Oh?"
His smile widened slightly.
"…There it is."
Inside Takeru's mindspace—
something split.
Not resistance.
Not control.
A separation.
Like a second frame forming around a collapsing image.
Yuji suddenly froze."…Wait—something's changing."
Nobara:"…I feel it too…"
Megumi's eyes widened slightly."…His cursed energy structure is dividing."
And then—
Takeru's voice came out inside his own mind.
"…If I cannot take control…"
A pause.
Long.
Measured.
"…Then I will separate from it."
Sukuna's expression shifted slightly.
"…Interesting choice."
The cursed energy inside Takeru surged outward.
Not into attack.
Not into defense.
Into manifestation.
Yuji staggered."…What is he doing?!"
Megumi's voice dropped."…He's externalizing a construct."
Nobara:"…A WHAT?!"
And then—
Takeru's body collapsed slightly.
But not unconscious.
Not defeated.
Something else stepped out.
A second form.
Not Sukuna.
Not Takeru as he was.
But a cursed-energy-formed vessel shaped by will alone.
Stable.
Temporary.
Focused.
Yuji's eyes widened."…He made a BODY?!"
Megumi stared."…He separated execution from possession."
Sukuna's smile widened inside the original body.
"…Now that's new."
The new form turned its head slightly.
No hesitation.
No fear.
Just intent.
"…Target confirmed."
Yuji shouted."…WAIT—THAT'S STILL HIM?!"
Nobara:"…I HATE THAT THIS IS STILL HIM!"
Megumi's eyes narrowed."…It's a partitioned consciousness."
"…He created a body that Sukuna can't immediately overwrite."
Sukuna laughed softly.
"…You're learning."
The new body stepped forward.
Cursed energy condensed.
Focused.
Refined.
Not copying.
Not borrowing.
But isolating one purpose:
remove Sukuna from interference.
Yuji swallowed hard."…He's going after Sukuna directly…"
Megumi nodded slightly.
"…No technique dilution."
"…No shared system."
"…Just confrontation."
Nobara tightened her grip."…That sounds like suicide."
Megumi didn't disagree.
"…Yes."
Inside Sukuna's body—
he tilted his head slightly.
"…Let's see what you built."
And the two faced each other—
not as vessel and curse—
but as system and override.
The chapter ends there.