" Is everyone listening to the fight!? "
" Run, Hisa found another victim! "
The people inside the dining room, so calm, saw many approaching the window to listen to the screams coming from afar, and Genshō, who was with another group out of curiosity, moved toward the edges. He has spent several weeks seeing a very small boy who does not speak to him, but he assumes that he is new since his clothes look very new compared to the others.
He has tried to invite him but he always goes with the most dangerous group in the prison, although it is said that they are very calm; in reality, Daigo's group is very prominent in the facility, and the member called Hisa is a woman who loves fighting.
He supposes that it must be with someone else who foolishly believed he could match the best Taijutsu master; with one blow she can send you flying and destroy the buildings there.
When Genshō approached the window to watch that brief fight, he did not know why everyone was surprised, acting like crazies; with a piece of celery in his mouth he watched.
The piece of celery fell to the ground while the saliva itself got stuck in his throat; his throat dried up so quickly just by watching that.
" I-Incredible ! That boy is new, he has lasted more than five seconds against the huntress! " a prisoner there trembled at the impression, his eyes looking like a miserable dot while his mouth trembled with surprise; no one has lasted so long against Hisa.
That boy who sleeps at the other end of the bed, who has his back turned, thinking he is so fragile, the sights his eyes witness have no limit.
Because Genshō is watching clearly how the boy keeps pace with that woman.
Outside the dining hall of Hōzuki Castle, Hisa breathed deeply, her bare feet adjusting into the stance that Yūji did not recognize: elbows raised, her center of gravity low, like a beast waiting to leap.
Yūji, on the other hand, moved with the fluidity of water, gliding between stances. His arms remained relaxed in the characteristic Wing Chun position, but his base was firm, a combination of karate and taijutsu, with the dynamism of MMA and boxing, a style that combined multiples into one.
His own style.
The seconds stretched.
In the blink of an eye, it happened.
And Yūji was the first to explode forward.
Yūji did not even need a signal or something to let him know that his rival would lunge; he had seen that crazy gesture many times.
Someone, ecstatic at the thought that a great fight was about to happen.
When the boy took the first step, the ground under his foot cracked under his pressure, not as greatly as it had before since he always reinforces himself with cursed energy; this body is still young, it is not like that of an adult who, of course, was so perfected there, a definitive vessel.
This time he will fight with his true self.
Hisa did not wait for a reaction either; upon barely seeing the slight movement of how the boy launched himself into his attacking position, the woman let out a loud laugh of excitement, her fingers trembling with emotion. When she propelled herself with her left foot, it was very different from what Yūji demonstrated; beneath her, an enormous crater became visible.
And she began with the strikes, the right foot of Hisa lifted in a devastating FSHH! aiming at Yūji's chest with enough force to lift him off the ground.
But the boy rotated his torso in a Taijutsu move, tilting his body with precision so that the leg passed within centimeters of his face. In the very instant he dodged, he counterattacked with a lightning jab aimed at Hisa's face.
She reacted instinctively. She raised her arm and deflected the strike with her forearm, sliding her leg back to readjust her base. But Yūji did not stop. He leaped forward, chaining a fierce combination of boxing and MMA punches that he had often used with the character Itadori Yūji, a right hook to the liver, a left cross to the chin, a jab with the full weight of his body behind it.
The scarred woman felt the wind of the last blow brushing her nose as she leaned back, dodging it by mere centimeters; without losing her rhythm, she spun on her supporting foot and unleashed a tornado kick aimed at Yūji's temple, the speed making even the air cry out from the force of the woman.
The boy raised his arm in time to block the impact, but the force made him slide backward, his legs digging into the concrete as a sign of pure discomfort; not recovering and accumulating blows were beginning to be a nuisance.
Yūji, taking advantage of having her leg trapped, held it to make her lose balance, and with that he succeeded; as he brought his fist toward her face, he saw the woman dodge it with a reflex enviable to many.
Hisa felt the wind of the last blow brushing her nose as she leaned back, dodging it.
Suddenly, she lunged with a brutal leap as she got very close to the brat; the woman took the opportunity to hit him with a hard part of her body, driving her knee upward in a crushing blow.
The red-haired boy reacted quickly, twisting his body and wrapping Hisa's leg with both arms. Before she could touch the ground, he used his own weight to pull her and make her spin in the air, executing a Taijutsu lock inspired by Konan-sensei's movements.
Hisa found herself falling on her back, but she did not panic; on the contrary, she was intrigued by all the movements that the brat executed.
At the last moment, she arched her back and struck the ground with her free hand to propel herself into an agile somersault. Before Yūji could regain his balance, she spun and threw a descending elbow, which landed directly on the boy's shoulder. Yūji made a grimace of pain as it was an attack he could not predict; it was quite swift in every way.
Yūji analyzed her, he can only say that her style is quite impressive; now he understands why they call her the huntress in the short time she has been with them in the prison.
The impact resonated in the prisoners' courtyard; everyone could hear in full detail how brutal the fight between them was.
Yūji gritted his teeth, his arm numb from the blow, but instead of retreating, he propelled himself with a side kick and used his left leg as a pivot to execute a kick, tensing his leg as he now attempted Pain-sensei's taijutsu.
The aggressive woman raised both arms in a guard, unlike Yūji who crossed his arms; she did so in a linear fashion, absorbing the impact, but the power of the blow made it slide slightly, on her completely covered face one could see the surprise in her expression.
No one has ever made her move with a blow; the only one who can do it is Daigo.
Yūji did not let her recover; he slid to the ground, rolling on his back and using a low sweeping kick.
Hisa jumped just in time, evading the trap, and when Yūji got back up, she met him with a knee strike to the torso.
The boy gasped, feeling the force of the blow, but he used the same momentum to grab Hisa's leg and spin in the air, wrapping his body in an attempt of his classic throw that he had performed with multiple curses.
This time, Hisa reacted before being caught; instead of showing concern, she displayed a smile full of mockery, planted her free foot on the ground, lifted Yūji with one arm and, with a devastating spin, slammed him against the concrete floor.
The blow reverberated throughout the courtyard; the little one opened his eyes, spitting saliva from the deliberate blow of the woman. Experiencing this fight without the use of chakra or cursed energy now makes one understand how abusive it was with them without their best weapons, really, he is just a brat pretending to be a fighter, so much so that Suiren was included in the equation since he truly thought he was powerful.
Now, seeing him and realizing how good he might seem, he really isn't; although he has trained so much, his body remains that of a child.
Yūji rolled, getting up with difficulty; his breathing was heavy, but there was no pain on his face… only excitement, that spark he had longed to feel, his faithful companion that always gave him motivation, his ideal, his purpose, the feeling that had always been blurry was finally becoming clear.
It really only has to be him, was it that complicated?
His face showed a big smile as he wiped away the little saliva that had fallen from his mouth.
This time Hisa showed her happy smile; to think that everything that happened in that sea of blows lasted only a few minutes, but both are so fast that it was an impressive scene to witness, without jutsus, without chakra, just a clean fight where a soul full of aggressiveness seems to drive the one who is hidden.
" It seems that now you are understanding me, boy! " Hisa lunged so inclined that she seemed like a wild beast, her big smile ready to launch another crushing blow.
That dark-haired woman, when she fully threw her left fist, saw Yūji make a cross with his arms to block the attack; all that was visible was his wince from the pain, but his smile, the spark of the battle, began to ignite, with a luminous gleam appearing in his eyes that had not been there before.
When he does not have RCT to help him, being someone extremely tolerant of pain, it is the first time in his entire second life that he can say it is a different kind of pain, something that can only be caused in someone strong; he felt as if that entire area was inflamed.
Hisa's blow contused the air around him; strong gusts emerged and the boy was propelled with a rather unnatural strength from behind. Yūji had to plant the entire sole of his feet to stay and not be sent flying, although his veins stood out from the effort, he managed.
The boy ran directly at the woman again; he only wanted to taste the flavor of her blows. He can say with certainty that the woman packs a strong punch, unconsciously reminding him of Maki in reality, her blows are indeed very similar.
The boy's eyes opened wide in concentration, while Hisa maintained a face ecstatic with euphoria at a fight.
" You have lasted more than a few minutes, you have many merits for withstanding my blows, little brat, entertain me more than these bastards ! You really know how to fight ! DO NOT DISAPPOINT ME! " the tone of the dark-haired woman was overwhelmingly aggressive, her hands positioned near her chest, a fighting style that Yūji had not seen in any ninja he had fought, and which he had analyzed before but could not discover its origin; it seemed very familiar to Muay Thai fighters in part, but also very different.
The boy's face showed a small grimace without erasing his smile, enduring the pain of those crushing blows; every strike the woman managed to deliver sounded terrible, but Yūji, by catching the rhythm, managed to avoid hitting him. That is how they had been fighting during that time, sometimes he managed to throw punches, other times she managed to do so; if she threw a punch straight, he agilely avoided it, and in the half-turn that the woman made she had already moved her body to launch another kick at his side or his back, at which point Yūji placed his hand on her leg, pushing it forcefully.
Yūji's hands slowed and at the same time he began to send punches toward her, combining his taijutsu with all the fighting styles of his masters, along with the little mixed martial arts he had trained in.
Hisa analyzed, squinting her eyes; she could say something about that brat, his fighting style is spontaneous.
She could not find a rhythm in which to hit him, and if she did it was because she might have more experience and reflexes than many possess.
Now, to the surprise of all the prisoners who were shouting with excitement and had already come out to watch them, they were yelling at Yūji, seeing that he was really dominating the huntress.
" What the hell are you doing !? Get back inside right now! " The guards, upon hearing the uproar, tried to control the inmates, but to their surprise no one paid attention; everyone was excited by what they saw on their faces, it had been years since they had seen a real fight; all of Hisa's fighters either died from their own idiocy or did not last seconds against the huntress.
" Keep hitting her, come on! Haha, I can't believe it! " Genshō showed excitement; that bored expression he always wore disappeared, euphoria in his body urging that little boy who has more strength than all the men present.
Daigo watched everything with surprise; he really had not thought that the red-haired boy possessed strength, nor had he believed that he had fought against Mui previously, but seeing him before his eyes, with a few marks that could only be distinguished by their characteristic colors, now he truly believed that he could keep pace with a Jōnin. Chouko and the twins were excited to see such finely honed taijutsu skills in that brat a prodigy? Because if he were not, they would be blatantly lying.
On the part of the fighters, everything around them began to be heard in the breaking of the wind, ignoring the onlookers and all the people around, entering a state where blood pumped from time to time as they managed to enter the zone, the perfect zone for fighters, where their bodies creaked and cried out for more adrenaline, blows appearing as blurs, both waiting for one to make a mistake, but neither of them stepped back.
' He has a lot of endurance, his physique is so deceptive, I thought the first blow would make him faint, but this brat has so much strength, his punches show so much experience that he can keep up with me; if he were bigger it is possible that... he would have defeated me, I won't let a damn brat beat me! ' thought the scarred woman, her expression of euphoria now changing to more rage, it is the first time she has found a rival she planned to crush to destroy her dreams as well, but now she has found something that made her doubt her own ability! This brat... has what the others lacked.
Real will.
The prison courtyard was a battlefield. A zone of deteriorated concrete, with brick walls falling to pieces, and fences broken from years of neglect. On one side, the old iron gates, rusted and about to give way, looked on indifferently at what was about to happen. The air was heavy, charged with the electricity of the approaching storm, but also with a more visceral energy, something that only true fighters experience; at least now there are two fighters that no one else could know who were in a unique zone.
The circular group of prisoners had gathered around the improvised ring, that courtyard that had suffered years of devastation, once again witnessing an aggressive fight, forming a circle of absorbed onlookers. Most were big men, hardened by years of fighting and prison life. Some kept their hands crossed over their chests, others observed with their hands on their knees, their whole bodies tense as if they feared that one wrong move could make everything spiral out of control or that the fight might end; tense with anticipation, ignoring even the approaching guards. There were murmurs, nervous laughter, but above all, a palpable feeling in the air: respect for what they saw.
More than anything, that boy is facing the terror of the prison, someone who was not Mui yet was feared, standing on equal footing with her.
In the center of the courtyard, under the intermittent light of an oil lamp, since it had already darkened, the minutes passed very quickly for both fighters; Hisa and Yūji faced each other, breathing heavily.
Hisa, with a strong build and fierce gaze, stood in a posture that denoted her training. Every muscle of her body seemed a reflection of her style that the boy had not been able to decipher. With her elbows raised, her fists ready to shatter any defense, her body was prepared for anything. Her gaze was calm after the euphoria and excitement she had experienced, but there was a spark in her eyes that shone with the thrill of combat. There was something animal, something visceral about her, something that only emerged when the battle completely consumed her.
Yūji, by her side, was a contained storm. His slender yet agile body moved with an almost supernatural speed given that he could not use chakra or cursed energy; it was as if his body were adapting to the environment, his legs firm on the ground and his fists ready to strike at any moment. His eyes shone with determination and fury, but also with an almost defiant fire. His fighting style merged perfectly, creating a fluid and deadly approach that only someone with his youth and strength could handle.
The battle began without warning once more, as if this time it were definitive. Hisa lunged forward, now not only creating a crater; everything beneath her no longer looked like ground, with smoke from the earth bursting from the concrete and the deafening sound being witnessed, her powerful legs propelling her with a surprising speed for her size. With an upward, curving kick directly to Yūji's chest, the earth trembled under the pressure of her attack, and the sound of the air being torn by her leg broke the silence. The courtyard floor cracked around the two of them; one could say it no longer looked like a courtyard, it was as if they were on abandoned terrain.
Yūji, with the speed he had trained for years, slid to one side, dodging by barely a hair's breadth. His reflexes shone through as never before, this time feeling the thrill of a real fight. With a quick upward hook aimed directly at Hisa's face, his fist slammed against her guard, but she barely flinched. The blow did not stop her. Before Yūji could retreat, Hisa grabbed him by the arm and pushed him to one side, hurling him to the ground with the force of a beast.
The explosion of the impact resonated in the courtyard. The earth shattered along with what little remained of the concrete and a cloud of dust rose that covered the air. The prisoners fell into absolute silence, their eyes fixed on the scene. Some murmured among themselves, their deep voices echoing in the darkness.
" Did you see that? How is it possible?! " shouted one, his eyes unable to believe what he was seeing, mostly because throughout the fight he had been skeptical that that boy could go up against the huntress.
The boy does not give up, thought one of the larger prisoners, with a scar on his face, another among those who had heard about the fight that that boy had with Master Mui; Yūji had been knocked down, but his strength was palpable.
The little redhead, without wasting time, quickly got up from the ground with an agile movement. His face, marked by sweat, displayed a defiant smile, and the brutality in his eyes only intensified. He was not going to let Hisa dominate him so easily; he had never shown that, especially not now.
" This feeling, it is very different from the pressure I have always felt when I fought "
With superhuman speed, Yūji launched a series of rapid blows, a combination of punches and elbows aimed at Hisa. The speed of his attacks was such that the movement could barely be followed by untrained eyes. He clenched his knuckles and threw his strike with his dominant hand, which landed directly on Hisa's face, and the sound of the blow was clearly heard throughout the courtyard, like thunder in the middle of a storm.
Hisa staggered, once again impressed by that boy who managed to catch her by surprise for the second time. At the exact moment when Yūji was trying to retreat to launch a new attack, she raised both legs and caught him in the air with a strong thigh grip, the perfect move to neutralize a faster opponent.
With a guttural roar full of beastly brutality, Hisa, her eyes wide, slammed him to the ground. The earth around them rose, forming a cloud of dust and stones that flew everywhere. The impact was so brutal that the prison walls trembled, and several pieces of the walls where the concrete collided broke off, falling near the onlookers.
The prisoners erupted in shouts of astonishment; some covered their faces with their hands, others simply watched in complete silence. The combat between them had transcended the human limit, at least among those who could not use chakra; can human beings really reach such a level when they have no energy?
" That boy has strength! To withstand Hisa's blow! " said a prisoner, unable to hide his astonishment.
The guards on the other side of the courtyard, watching from above, exchanged looks of uncertainty. They had never witnessed such a destructive confrontation, at least not with the huntress. The sound of the combat reached even where they were, and although their duty was to maintain order, they knew that nothing could stop this battle. It was something that went beyond what any year inside Hōzuki Castle had seen.
They will have to go in search of the master of the castle.
" Go quickly and speak to Master Mui, he must stop this fight, if they continue they will destroy the north side of the castle! " spoke a guard firmly, seeing that the one he addressed nodded nervously, as the buildings trembled.
But the boy did not stop, even though everyone was watching expectantly. With explosive speed, Yūji got up again in an agile leap, a glare of fury shining in his eyes. With unique agility, he jumped toward Hisa with a low kick executed with millimetric precision. The wind from his movement cut through the air, but Hisa, with her incredible instinct, blocked with both arms, feeling the impact reverberate in her bones. The force of the kick pushed her backward, but instead of falling, she used her own momentum to launch herself against Yūji with a knee to the face.
The blow was direct and brutal, and Yūji fell on his back, sliding across the ground. The scene looked like a battlefield, with smoke and dust rising in the air, and the sound of concrete destruction resonating like a warning. Now the boy launched directly, entangling his legs around her neck, something the scarred woman did not expect, as Yūji used a lock trying to asphyxiate her and finish it off.
The prisoners were on the verge of collapse, watching as the environment around them crumbled. Some could not even move, completely mesmerized by the violence of the confrontation.
" This is not just a fight. This is… something more. " said one of the prisoners, his voice trembling. They had sensed the essence of the battle, but they had not been able to decipher it.
The roar of the onlookers faded when Yūji, disoriented but full of determination, got up once more as Hisa held him by his neck and hurled him straight onto what little ground remained, blood falling from his forehead and split lip, his body full of bruises. The ground around them had sunk and fractured, as if the entire courtyard were a forgotten battlefield, and at that moment it was clear that neither Hisa nor Yūji wanted to give up.
With both fighters immersed in a kind of primitive combat trance, the ground continued to give way under their feet, and the prison walls cracked even more. In the air floated an indescribable sensation: the euphoria of combat, the very essence of the fight, invading them both. Nothing existed outside of them, only the roar of the warrior spirit.
[...]
I don't know when I began to lose myself.
Perhaps it was when I opened my eyes in this new body, feeling that something inside me did not fit. Perhaps it was when I looked at my hands and knew they were not the same ones I had fought with before. Or perhaps it was the day I understood what I carried within me… the same curse against which I once fought until my last breath.
In my previous life, I fought with a reason. To kill curses. To protect those I loved and all my friends. To defeat the King of Curses. That was my mission, my only purpose. I gave everything. My body, my blood, my life… I sacrificed it all without hesitation.
And yet… I failed.
I died with the conviction that my struggle had been worthwhile. But upon waking in this new body, in this new life… everything changed.
I, who had given everything to eradicate the curse, now carried it within me again, its soul now one with mine.
The weight of that truth shattered me. If I myself was what I swore to destroy… then, what was I? Who was I?
Was I still the sorcerer who fought until the end?
Or was I just a new boy trapped in a destiny I never wanted?
I ran. I refused to accept what I was. I tried to forget what I had been, what I had done. I clung to the idea of being a hero once again, of fighting to save others, of giving the smile that those I love needed, of being… Itadori Yūji once again, as if that could restore my purpose in this new life. But it was a lie. Every fight, every laugh, every gesture, every personality that emerged from me, every blow I delivered, felt empty. No matter how much conviction returned as Itadori, I still did not know who I was, my ideal, my purpose.
And then… I arrived here; I thought it would be a quick fight, once again without a hint of emotion, something ordinary, even though I had said I would try to change for Daigo.
When Hisa hit me for the first time, I felt it deep in my being. It was more than a physical impact. It was an echo in my soul, a buried voice that awakened.
Every clash of our bodies, every attack I instinctively dodged, made me remember.
Remember what it was like to be in that zone of a jujutsu sorcerer when I found the brilliance of the fight, many already had their purposes, some for money, others to save people, and some for the simple fact of hating curses, as everyone had told me when they truly fought for their convictions. Remember what it was like to feel alive.
Fear, doubt, confusion… everything began to crumble.
' It is not the curse that defines me. '
' It is not my past that dictates who I am. '
' It is not the fault of having been reborn with what I swore to destroy. '
Because at this moment, as I lunge once again toward Hisa, as I feel the creaking of the ground under my feet, the burning in my muscles, the sound of our blows shattering the air…
I realize.
I do not fight to save everyone. I do not fight to be a hero.
I fight because in this clash of spirits, in this moment in which there is no past or future, only the now… I am real.
I am not a savior.
I am not a curse.
I am not just a boy with the memories of a dead man.
Hisa is a wall. A colossus of technique and power. Each of her blows is a death sentence; she is no longer fighting for fun, her madness transcends and carries the full intention to kill me. But I do not back down.
Because this fight is not about winning or losing for me. It is about remembering.
Every sacrifice I made in my past life.
Every wound I accepted to protect those I loved.
Every drop of blood I shed in that final battle.
I was not reborn to flee my destiny. I was reborn to be the proof that my sacrifice was not in vain.
I am not just the bearer of a curse. I am the legacy of all that I was.
And this time, I will not allow my fire to go out
Because no matter how many times the world wants to defeat me… I will always stand up.
And in this world of ninjas, of sacrifices and blood… I will be the proof that an ideal never dies.
' No matter how many times I fall, no matter how many times I lose myself… I will always find the way back. '
' Because the will of a sorcerer is not erased by death. '
' I am Yūji, not Itadori. And in this life… I will fight not to save the world, but to prove that my fire will never go out. '
My eyes, showing a unique gleam, launched a swift attack that made the wind cry, monstrous and unique gusts, as if my soul resonated with itself.
I only saw how Hisa was thrown and destroyed the prison wall, a building on the verge of collapsing.
As if something broke inside me.
" ... that, is my ideal " in my beating heart, I finally smiled, a real smile.
A smile of my own.
In the end, I was able to find my true purpose, my true ideal, to be in this world.
Simply, to be me.
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[Finally, chapter 50, and yūji is chance too]