Chapter 5: First fight?
In the next moment, Itsuki found himself in a residential area, sunlight streaming down and momentarily blinding him.
The surroundings were eerily quiet, a typical scene for Japanese suburbs. This silence brought him relief; he didn't want his sudden appearance to be noticed by passersby who might call the police or post about him on the internet.
"Is this the world of Jujutsu Kaisen?" he wondered, his excitement barely contained as he took in the familiar sight of modern Japanese houses, much like those in Honkai and his previous world.
I can't believe I've come to another of my favorite series' worlds. I can't wait to meet and fight alongside these characters.
"Let's see where Yuji is now!" He smiled, running as he opened his chat group.
[Itsuki Kurokami: @Yuji Itadori, where are you? I've arrived in your world!]
[Yuji Itadori: !!! Kurokami-san, you're here already?! I thought you were coming another day.]
[Itsuki Kurokami: Sorry, I couldn't wait to get superpowers. You know my problem—living in a dangerous world that's not friendly to guys like me.]
[Yuji Itadori: True... Well, alright. I'll come to meet you now. Where are you?]
Itsuki stopped running and looked around to figure out his location. Finally, he spotted a street sign and informed Yuji.
[Yuji Itadori: That's pretty far from where I am now. It might take me a while to get there.]
[Itsuki Kurokami: That's fine. I'll wait here and explore your world a bit.]
"Alright, while waiting for Yuji, let's see if we can find any Cursed Spirits nearby," he said, stretching his body and scanning the area for any signs.
"Ah, I found it!" Itsuki spotted an abandoned building in the distance and headed towards it.
By the way, can I see Cursed Spirits? As far as I know, people without Cursed Energy can't see them. Hmm, I probably can't see them, but let's take a look first.
As he arrived, he noticed the place was dirty and old, with an unpleasant smell and cracks in the walls. He was sure there was a high chance a Cursed Spirit lived here.
"Hello, is anyone here?" Itsuki called out as he entered, covering his nose against the stench.
I regret not bringing my mask before coming. Who knows if there are contagious diseases in other worlds, like COVID-19?
He decided he would bring a mask on his next world-hopping journey. Better to be overly cautious than regret being careless.
He frowned upon feeling a somewhat ominous presence here as if the whole area was filled with negative energy. But that made him smile, knowing he had found the right place.
Lucky! Found it on the first try!
While he celebrated internally, Itsuki remained cautious. Who knew what might jump at him out of nowhere?
As he ventured deeper, the temperature began to drop, making him shudder—a clear sign that he was getting closer to his goal.
Suddenly, his eyes widened as time seemed to slow down. His entire body screamed at him to run, and a loud crash echoed behind him as if something heavy had fallen.
A roar mixed with an animalistic growl, unlike anything Itsuki had ever heard, sounded from behind. Without thinking, Itsuki followed his instincts and dodged to the side, narrowly avoiding the attack.
BOOM!
A loud explosion-like sound erupted where Itsuki had been standing. The floor shattered with wide cracks around it, marked by what looked like two sharp objects thrown at high speed.
His heart pounded as he turned around, but there was nothing there. Yet, his instincts told him otherwise—something was definitely there.
Despite the danger, Itsuki smiled. "It seems it's true that I can't see any Cursed Spirits since I don't have any Cursed Energy," he mused before leaping backward, following his instincts.
BOOM!
Another explosive sound rang out as he moved, narrowly escaping the unseen threat.
"Again? It's really angry at me right now," he joked before dodging another incoming attack.
Well, well, well, let's see what I can do to handle this situation.
He thought, searching for a solution to fight the invisible Cursed Spirit. First, from now he couldn't see it, only sense its presence. Second, Cursed Spirits could only be defeated using Cursed Energy.
His eyes flicked toward the monster, trying to sense and see its presence more clearly without relying solely on his instincts. Gradually, he began to feel the negative energy emitted by the Cursed Spirit more distinctly.
Realizing this, he smirked. It seems anything is possible to solve as long as I have a cheat. Sure enough, as he had anticipated, the aura of pure negativity and malevolence he could initially only sense began to take shape in his eyes.
And slowly, he could see the energy forming into a beastly creature—a ferocious and ugly animal with two heads, one resembling a dog and the other a cat, with two long, sharp tails like iron spears.
"Uwaaah, you are very ugly," mocked Itsuki, a look of disgust on his face. Perhaps understanding the insult, the Cursed Spirit roared loudly, its eyes full of rage, and lunged at him.
The Cursed Spirit raised a clawed paw and swiped at Itsuki, but with his superhuman reflexes and agility, Itsuki dodged swiftly.
BOOM!
Once again, a loud crash echoed, leaving deep claw marks on the floor where Itsuki had just been standing. Narrowing his eyes, Itsuki realized he couldn't underestimate this enemy.
Sharp claws and tails? This thing is dangerous at both long and close range. If it wasn't for my superhuman body, I would have been dead back there.
He remained calm despite the dire situation. His cheat abilities kept him from panicking, even in the face of danger.
He rolled to the side and noticed a table nearby. Grabbing it, he hurled it at the creature with his superhuman strength, sending it flying like a bullet.
BANG!
The Cursed Spirit screeched in pain as the table struck one of its heads. Seizing the opportunity, Itsuki dashed forward, leaping and delivering a powerful punch to the creature's head with all his might.
"Oraa!!!" he shouted, his fist connecting with a sickening thud. One of the Cursed Spirit's heads slammed into the floor, screaming in pain.
"Again!" Just as he was about to deliver another punch, he noticed a flash of light. Quickly, he ducked, narrowly avoiding a surprise attack from the creature's tail.
"That was close," he muttered, yet laughed at the situation that almost got him killed. Anyone watching might think Itsuki was insane.
But what could he do? Itsuki was someone who thrived on dangerous situations that made his heart race. The rush of adrenaline coursing through his body was an addicting experience.
This is the life I want! Not a monotonous ordinary life that is just filled with only mundane activities!
He grinned excitedly and accelerated his movements. With a powerful push off the ground, he leaped towards the Cursed Spirit, lifting his left leg to a 90-degree angle and kicking its head before it could react to his superhuman speed.
His powerful kick sent the Cursed Spirit crashing to the ground, but since his attack lacked Cursed Energy, the creature quickly recovered and stood up as if nothing had happened.
"Tsk, was my attack useless? This is very troublesome," Itsuki clicked his tongue while muttering before dodging the two tails aimed at his head. He then grabbed and pulled one of them with all his strength.
"Come here!!!" With an incredible yank from his superhuman strength, the Cursed Spirit was pulled toward him, unable to resist. Itsuki prepared to kick its head but quickly flung the creature away when he saw both heads ready to bite him.
The Cursed Spirit smashed into a wall, shattering it from the force. Itsuki's eyes widened in surprise, realizing just how strong he had become.
"Damn! Have I really become this strong?" he asked himself, still in disbelief at how much he had changed in just two days.
Unfortunately, he didn't have any chance to relax as he saw the Cursed Spirit quickly recover and attack him again, moving faster than before.
It seemed enraged, finally noticing that Itsuki had repeatedly thrashed it. This realization made Itsuki understand that he had to take the fight more seriously.
"Huff…" he exhaled, his eyes narrowing with determination. He stomped his foot and rushed at the monster, not caring that it was rushing at him too. By now, he had become familiar with the Cursed Spirit's attack patterns.
Dodging its attacks with fluid movements, he smiled as he saw a dark purple aura enveloping his fist.
It was Cursed Energy! Itsuki had finally managed to harness it after observing and feeling the Cursed Spirit's energy throughout the battle.
This was extraordinary, considering Itsuki initially had no affinity or Cursed Energy. But thanks to his cheat ability for rapid growth, he achieved the impossible with ease!
Now, he had gone from having no Cursed Energy to becoming a true Jujutsu Sorcerer.
If Toji and Maki knew this, they would probably be envious. Both of them had tough lives due to their lack of Cursed Energy affinity.
Back to Itsuki, his fist, now infused with Cursed Energy, smashed into one of the Cursed Spirit's heads, causing it to explode like a watermelon bursting open.
The Cursed Spirit howled in pain and launched a frenzied attack with its two tails. Itsuki jumped back and smiled.
"Now my attacks work, and this Cursed Spirit won't recover. Let's end this game," Itsuki said, wrapping his leg in Cursed Energy. His speed exploded, leaving an afterimage.
He reappeared behind the monster, grabbing both tails. Using all his strength, he lifted the creature and slammed it down in a suplex.
The impact dazed the Cursed Spirit, but Itsuki didn't give it a chance to recover. He lifted one of his legs and repeatedly slammed its body into the floor.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
The entire floor of the building was destroyed, but Itsuki didn't care. The place had been abandoned for a long time anyway.
Bit by bit, the Cursed Spirit's body started to break apart. But Itsuki knew that without a Cursed Energy attack, it would heal just like before. So, before it could fully recover, Itsuki smashed his dark purple aura-infused fist into the creature's remaining head.
BOOM!
With the last of its heads exploding, the Cursed Spirit finally stopped moving, its lifeless body collapsing before disappearing into thin air.
He sighed, "That was really fun! Didn't expect my first fight since reincarnating to be so easy!" He laughed, then sat down to rest, even though he wasn't tired—his lack of sweat was proof of that.
Closing his eyes, he reminisced about the recent battle. He was truly grateful for his cheat ability; without it, he wouldn't be feeling this relaxed and exhilarated right now.
But there was one thing that made him particularly happy—Cursed Energy! After all, it was the reason he came to this world. Moreover, he also noticed that his strength had grown stronger considerably than before.
With this, I feel more at ease and confident in defeating Herrscher! Just give me enough time, and I'll overwhelm everything with my talent!
He grinned and closed his eyes again. He could feel the energy of pure negativity coursing through his body—the very essence of Cursed Energy. However, there was only a small amount left after the recent battle.
However, Itsuki wasn't worried. His eyes suddenly turned blank before filling with rage, murderous intent, and other malevolent desires, only to return to normal a few moments later.
Just now, he had hypnotized himself to unleash all his negative emotions, which replenished his reserve of Cursed Energy and even increased it.
This was his method after concluding that Cursed Energy and Cursed Spirits originated from accumulated human negativity. By releasing all his negative feelings just now, he had effectively restored his Cursed Energy.
Itsuki then stood up but noticed his clothes had become filthy from the recent battle, which made him feel annoyed.
He sighed, "It can't be helped. Hopefully, Yuji has some clothes I can borrow." He felt uncomfortable in his dirty attire, especially since his appearance could draw a lot of attention, particularly with his newly handsome look.
[Yuji Itadori: Where are you now, @Itsuki Kurokami? I'm at the location you mentioned earlier.]
[Itsuki Kurokami: I'm on my way! I had some business to take care of, so I wasn't at the location.]
Itsuki hurried back to the previous location. There, he spotted a young man around his age, shorter than him, with spiky pink hair and a somewhat handsome face, looking around.
"Yoo! Are you Yuji Itadori-san?" Itsuki called out, waving his hand, causing the young man to turn and look at him in surprise.
"Itsuki Kurokami-san?" asked the young man, who was indeed Yuji. Itsuki nodded and smiled in response.
Itsuki extended his hand, and Yuji did the same. They shook hands and smiled at each other.
"Nice to meet you, Itsuki Kurokami-san."
"Nice to meet you too! You are my special~~"
"Eh?"