Sukuna vs Sukuna

Outside the juvenile detention center, Megumi Fushiguro waited anxiously. He glanced up at the leaden sky, the drizzle soaking him to the bone.

"The curtain's been lifted for a while now. Why haven't Ryōichi and Yuji come out?" Megumi recalled the signal he'd sent to Yuji Itadori via his Divine Dog. "Don't tell me they're fighting Sukuna?"

Worry gnawed at him. Not for Ryōichi, but for Yuji.

Sukuna's strength should be on par with Gojo-sensei's; he couldn't possibly lose to Sukuna in his current state. But Sukuna wasn't Gojo-sensei, nor did he know Yuji. What if he had killed him...?

Sensing cursed energy approaching, Megumi looked up. In the distance, he saw Yukino Yukinoshita riding a massive white wolf. His eyes widened.

The Divine Dog! But it was destroyed by that special grade curse... No, wait, this isn't my shikigami at all!

More importantly, Yuji Itadori was nowhere to be seen.

Where's Yuji? Did he really get killed?!

Questions bombarded Megumi, his mind racing.

Yukino quickly reached him on the white wolf. Megumi opened and closed his mouth, hesitant, before finally voicing his main concern: "Where's Yuji?"

"Yuji… You mean Sukuna? He's inside fighting Sukuna-kun." Yukino found her own words strange.

She was just as confused as Megumi.

She still remembered Sukuna 's introduction when he first appeared in her body. It was the most unique way she'd ever heard someone declare themselves the villain. And he hadn't done anything villainous afterwards. It was as if that introduction was just to scare her.

More importantly, Sukuna had said she could call him Ryomen Sukuna.

So, if Sukuna -kun is Ryomen Sukuna, why did he call Yuji Itadori Ryomen Sukuna?

Having witnessed the entire battle, Yukino naturally noticed the black markings and extra pair of eyes on Yuji's face, identical to the ones she had when Sukuna possessed her.

Does Ryomen Sukuna mean there are two Sukunas? Are Sukuna -kun and the Sukuna in Yuji Itadori twin brothers?

There were too many unknowns. Pointless speculation wouldn't help. She would have to wait for Sukuna 's explanation.

If he was willing to explain.

"Sukuna is fighting Sukuna?" Megumi was stunned, then realization dawned. "That means... you're Yukinoshita-san?"

Yukino looked at him with a strange expression.

Realizing his foolish question, Megumi coughed awkwardly. "How did you and Sukuna separate? Cursed object reincarnation should involve taking over the host's body."

"I don't know," Yukino shook her head.

"And what about this Divine Dog?" Megumi looked at the imposing white wolf that stood as tall as him.

Come to think of it, this is huge...

It dwarfed his own Divine Dog by several times. He had to look up to meet its gaze.

"Sukuna-kun summoned it," Yukino replied distractedly, her eyes filled with worry as she glanced back at the detention center.

"What?!" Megumi's eyes widened in shock.

His technique wasn't a slashing one like Sukuna's? Why is he using my Ten Shadows Technique?!

No, wait, I've never even seen Sukuna use a cursed technique...

Does that mean his technique is the same as mine...? Is he from the Zenin clan?!

But if that's true, Gojo-sensei, who fought him, would have told me… Did he… Did he fight Gojo-sensei to a standstill without even using his cursed technique?!

Megumi's deductions spiraled into wild territory.

"Fushiguro, your technique has really given me a hard time."

A low, magnetic voice suddenly sounded from behind them. The white wolf reacted swiftly, carrying Yukino away from the abruptly appearing Sukuna.

"What?!"

Before Megumi could react, Sukuna's fist sent him flying, crashing through the detention center wall. Blood splattered from his mouth.

Having dealt with Megumi, Sukuna turned his chilling gaze to Yukino, who looked helpless atop the white wolf. "You must be important to that brat."

He wants to take me hostage!

Yukino's heart pounded.

Should I have Shiro run? Maybe we can buy some time until Sukuna -kun arrives… No, he's too fast. We won't get far.

The thought of escape died as quickly as it arose.

I have to fight... I have no choice!

As Yukino gripped the fur on the white wolf's neck, preparing to jump off, she suddenly felt her breath hitch.

"You think I'd use you as a hostage?"

Sukuna's speed was blinding. Before she knew it, he had her by the throat, yanking her off the wolf. He pinned the wolf's head with one hand, a slash cutting cleanly through its neck, splitting it in two.

Her windpipe constricted in his iron grip, making it difficult to breathe.

Yukino glared at him, one hand clawing at his arm, the other forming a fist, striking at his head with all her might.

Sukuna simply leaned back, effortlessly dodging her weak attack.

"You're overthinking it." He grinned cruelly. "I'm going to kill you right in front of that brat and enjoy his despair."

"I may not be able to beat him right now, but even if he kills me in his rage, it'll just be Itadori Yuji who dies with me. I still have seventeen souls left."

"I heard that."Sukuna's voice rang out. He looked calmly at Sukuna, who was choking Yukino. "You really did it, huh, old geezer."

"Oh? You knew I'd do this?" Sukuna raised an eyebrow. "But what can you do about it? It's too late!"

He gave a ferocious grin, tightening his grip on Yukino's throat, ready to crush it…

Thud!

Yukino fell to the ground, gasping for air. Sukuna's arm fell beside her.

Sukuna's eyes widened in disbelief. He finally understood.

This is… my technique!

That brat, the way he killed that special grade curse earlier… it was my Cleave!

"You went to a lot of trouble just to prolong your struggle."Sukuna's voice was devoid of emotion as he appeared beside Sukuna. A powerful force yanked Sukuna backwards.

After flinging Sukuna away, Sukuna helped Yukino up, using Reverse Cursed Technique to heal her injuries. Though aside from the red marks on her neck, she was mostly unharmed.

"Are you okay?"

"Don't worry about me, that Sukuna…"

"I'll be back soon."

Sukuna glanced at the fallen white wolf, his expression hardening.

Ryomen Sukuna, you killed my dog!

Black markings slowly spread across his face, a second pair of eyes opening, adding a touch of eerie beauty.

After a deafening buzzing sound, Sukuna vanished from Yukino's sight. Looking down, she saw a crater in the stone pavement, cracks spreading outwards like spiderwebs.

Sukuna was still in the air when Sukuna appeared before him.

A thrill of excitement surged through Sukuna. "That was my technique you used, wasn't it, brat?!"

He extended his hand, unleashing a series of invisible slashes. Sukuna countered with his own, the invisible blades colliding mid-air.

Then, to Sukuna's shock, both of his hands, including the one he had just healed with Reverse Cursed Technique, were severed. Blood sprayed into the air like a miniature rain shower.

He cut through my Cleave!

The difference in our cursed energy…it's that vast?!

As Sukuna stared in astonishment, his Reverse Cursed Technique kicked in, regenerating his arms. Sukuna closed in, grabbing Sukuna's head.

He's going to use Cleave on my whole body. That's what I would do…

This thought flashed through Sukuna's mind. And indeed, that's exactly what Sukuna did.

The cursed energy-infused slash sliced through Sukuna's body from head to toe, painting him with crimson blossoms.

"Let's see you reverse that," Sukuna said, dragging Sukuna downwards.

BOOM!

They crashed through the ceiling of a house. Dust and debris rained down as Sukuna, held by Sukuna , glared defiantly.

Sukuna retaliated, his hands clamping onto Sukuna's abdomen, unleashing the same Cleave attack. Blood bloomed, then the wounds healed.

Sukuna released Sukuna's head, then punched him, driving him deep into the floor. He pulled Sukuna up and slammed him into the wall.

A kick, a side thrust, and Sukuna was sent flying through the wall, crashing into the neighboring house.

The residents had been evacuated, so Sukuna could attack without restraint.

Sukuna scrambled to his feet in the next house, bracing for Sukuna's onslaught. But then Sukuna's cursed energy vanished from his perception.

He looked down at his feet.

Sukuna's shadow stretched outwards. A fist grew rapidly in his vision.

An uppercut launched Sukuna into the ceiling. A few slashes, and the entire roof was reduced to rubble.

Ignoring his own injuries, Sukuna unleashed a barrage of slashes downwards. Sukuna dodged, the invisible attacks carving deep furrows in the ground.

"Roar!"

With a deafening roar, a massive white tiger erupted from the interconnected shadows between the houses, swatting Sukuna away with a single paw.

Sukuna intercepted Sukuna mid-flight, pressing his head into the roof of a house, dragging him along and carving a deep trench in the orange tiles with his face. Then he tossed Sukuna upwards.

An incomplete, shadowy serpent shikigami shot out, its jaws clamping around Sukuna, dragging him into a reinforced concrete building. The building collapsed, dust billowing into the air.

The incomplete shikigami meant that even if destroyed, it could be summoned again, unlike the completely destroyed Divine Dog, whose power could only be inherited by another.

Amidst the rubble, Sukuna coughed up blood, struggling to rise. His Reverse Cursed Technique was working overtime, desperately trying to heal his battered body.

"Yo," Sukuna said, stepping onto a broken wall with a mocking smile. "Your Reverse Cursed Technique seems to be getting slower. Can you still keep up?"

"Heh." Sukuna spat out a mouthful of blood, then, to Sukuna's surprise, stopped using his Reverse Cursed Technique. He beckoned Sukuna with a finger. "Come on then, sorcerer. Let's fight again."

"You want me to kill Yuji Itadori, don't you? Because even if you die here, you won't truly die. You still have seventeen souls out there, right?" Sukuna saw right through him.

"So what if I do?" Sukuna laughed carelessly. Since he couldn't win, he might as well drag that Itadori brat down with him. "Don't tell me you've gone soft—"

Sukuna punched him, sending his head snapping to the side. He then slammed Sukuna to the ground, straddling him and raining punches down on his face.

As he pummeled Sukuna, he simultaneously used Reverse Cursed Technique to heal him.

"You think—" punch

"That—" punch

"This will—" punch

"Make me submit?"

Sukuna finally managed to get a whole sentence out between the blows.

Sukuna stopped, looking at him with a puzzled expression. "Make you submit? When did I ever say I wanted you to submit?"

He grinned, a chilling smile spreading across his face. "I just want to beat you up."

His fist slammed down again, the sound of flesh hitting flesh echoing through the ruins. He continued the relentless assault until Sukuna was nearly dead, then used Reverse Cursed Technique to heal him just enough to keep him alive.

In the deserted wasteland, Sukuna unleashed his fury.

"Such a nice, durable punching bag. How could I let you die?" Blood splattered Sukuna's handsome face. "And unlike that slippery Gojo, you're actually satisfying to hit."

"Listen, Sukuna. I'll be taking care of Yuji Itadori from now on. Every time he eats one of your fingers, I'll have him switch with you so I can beat you to a pulp. Once I'm satisfied, I'll let him switch back."

"You want revenge? Then take your beating. Endure it until you regain all your power, then use everything you have to struggle against me."

Sukuna's smile was as cruel as Sukuna's had been earlier, as if their roles had completely reversed.

Sukuna didn't reply, just stared at Sukuna , etching his face into his memory.

"Um..." The black markings on Yuji Itadori's face slowly faded. He gave an awkward, polite smile. "Isn't that a bit cruel to me?"

Sukuna's cruel smile vanished. He blinked, then punched Yuji.

"Ouch! Why are you hitting me after I switched back?!" the pink-haired boy protested indignantly.

"Sorry, sorry. Couldn't help myself. You feel too good to punch." Sukuna's apology lacked any sincerity.

"That's too much!"

When Sukuna returned to the juvenile detention center with an unscathed Yuji Itadori, Megumi Fushiguro was resting against the low wall of the corridor, and Yukino Yukinoshita stood waiting silently nearby.

Seeing Sukuna's somewhat unfamiliar figure, the worry in Yukino's eyes finally dissipated. Although she didn't think Sukuna -kun would lose, she couldn't help but be concerned.

"Everything's settled, and I've had my fun." The black markings and extra eyes on Sukuna's face vanished, replaced by a refreshing smile as he greeted Yukino. "Sukuna was much more satisfying to punch than Gojo Satoru."

"That's good," Yukino nodded softly.

"Huh?" Yuji was taken aback. "Sukuna-san fought Gojo-sensei? Really?"

"Ask him yourself." Sukuna shrugged, not particularly proud of his victory over Gojo.

"Isn't Gojo-sensei the strongest?" Yuji asked, bewildered.

"Did he tell you that himself?" Sukuna raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah." The pink-haired boy nodded.

Ryōichi couldn't help but chuckle. "Maybe he was, before he met me."

Feeling it was inappropriate to discuss this behind Gojo's back, Yuji buried his doubts for now, planning to ask Gojo himself next time.

As the three approached the corridor leading to the detention dorms, Megumi looked up, relieved to see Yuji safe and sound.

His clothes were torn, his forehead was bruised, and a dried streak of blood marked his cheek.

"Yo! Megumi, you're all banged up again!" Yuji greeted him with a grin.

"Are you an idiot? Who do you think is responsible for this?" Megumi deadpanned.

"Right..." Yuji chuckled awkwardly, apologizing. "Is Nobara okay?"

"She's fine, just some minor injuries. I asked Ijichi-san to take her to the hospital. He should be back soon."

"That's good." Yuji sighed in relief, then turned to Sukuna . "Sukuna-san, could you heal Megumi?"

"No problem."

Sukuna placed his hand on Megumi's head, using Reverse Cursed Technique to heal his injuries, and ruffled his spiky hair in the process.

He can use Reverse Cursed Technique to heal others, just like Shoko Ieiri. Even Gojo-sensei can't do that…

"Thank you very much." Megumi thanked Sukuna , then stood up and bowed respectfully. "I have one more question for you, Sukuna -san."

"Go ahead, don't be so formal," Sukuna said casually, sitting on the low wall.

"What is your relationship with the Zenin clan?" Megumi asked carefully.

"Zenin clan? Ah, you mean the Ten Shadows Technique." Sukuna quickly understood. After all, it was his Divine Dog that carried Yukino out. "Is your technique also Ten Shadows?"

Megumi nodded.

"I have no relation to the Zenin clan." Sukuna smiled, answering honestly, but it didn't really answer Megumi's question.

Did he even explain anything?

"But you did remind me of something."

The subjugation ritual for the last shikigami of the Ten Shadows Technique, Mahoraga, had been interrupted by Sukuna. Sukuna decided to take care of it before Ijichi Kiyotaka returned.

He stood up and walked to an open space away from the others. He held out his fists and chanted softly, "Nue! Yura Yura!"

"That's—?!"

Before Megumi's astonished eyes, Ryōichi summoned Mahoraga and effortlessly destroyed it.

As a Ten Shadows user himself, Megumi, unlike the others, knew just how powerful the shikigami known as the Divergent Sila Divine General was.

In the history of the Zenin clan, no one who awakened the Ten Shadows Technique had ever managed to tame Mahoraga. The subjugation ritual, as he knew it, was a last resort, a suicide attack to take the enemy down with you.

But Megumi already considered Sukuna to be on the same level as Gojo Satoru. Instantly defeating Mahoraga wasn't surprising; Gojo-sensei could probably do the same.

What shocked Megumi was that Sukuna used a technique other than Ten Shadows. It was the same technique as Ryomen Sukuna's, as recorded by Jujutsu High.

"Two cursed techniques… and he can use them simultaneously?!"

Is it a technique like Okkotsu-senpai's, able to copy others' techniques?

After subduing Mahoraga, Sukuna dismissed it, then discovered to his delight that completely destroyed shikigami could be resurrected with points.

Resurrecting the Divine Dog, the initial shikigami that didn't require a subjugation ritual, cost only 500 points. Without hesitation, he spent the points to bring Shiro back.

After all, Shiro had helped Yukino overcome her fear of dogs. Sukuna wouldn't neglect it.

In high spirits, Sukuna returned to the others. Megumi wanted to ask about the two techniques, but he knew Sukuna wouldn't answer a question that touched upon his secrets. He swallowed his words.

Soon, Ijichi Kiyotaka returned after taking Nobara Kugisaki to the hospital.

Learning that no one was seriously injured, he finally relaxed, breathing a sigh of relief.

The aftermath, however, was likely to give him a headache and cause significant hair loss. After all, when Sukuna and Sukuna fought, their destructive power rivaled a demolition crew.

At Sukuna's request, Ijichi dropped him and Yukino off at Yuno Yukinoshita's apartment building before taking Yuji and Megumi to the hospital.

Before leaving, he thoughtfully handed them each an umbrella. Such was the reliability of a proper adult.

Standing in front of Yuno's apartment door, Yukino rang the doorbell several times, but there was no answer.

"It seems my sister isn't home. What should we do?" she asked, troubled.

Sukuna formed hand seals, slipping his shadow through the gap beneath the door and summoning Mahoraga inside to open it.

"..."

Yukino stared at the massive white shikigami, its head nearly touching the ceiling, its body filling the entire entryway. She was speechless.

Dismissing Mahoraga, Sukuna walked into the apartment as if he owned the place and took out two pairs of slippers from the shoe cabinet.

"Come in. What are you standing there for?" he called out.

Yukino sighed, then followed him inside. When she entered the living room after changing her shoes, she found Sukuna rummaging through the refrigerator.

"What are you doing? Are you hungry? I can make dinner."

Although she had a mountain of questions, seeing Sukuna searching for food made her temporarily put them aside. After all, Sukuna-kun had just gone through an intense battle and finally had his own body; he must be starving.

But her concern turned to disbelief in an instant.

Sukuna closed the refrigerator door, holding a can of beer. He popped it open, took a long swig, and let out a satisfied "Ahh~!"

He turned to Yukino, who was staring at him with a dumbfounded expression. "Hmm? Did you say something?"