"Sasaki, Iguchi, are you two okay?" Yuji Itadori ran over to them as soon as he landed.
Sasaki pointed at Chiyo Shin and told Yuji Itadori, "Thanks to him, we're fine."
Megumi Fushiguro explained to Chiyo Shin, "He's Yuji Itadori. He's the one who found Ryomen Sukuna's finger."
Chiyo Shin held out his hand to Yuji Itadori. "Hi, I'm Chiyo Shin."
Yuji Itadori gripped Chiyo Shin's hand firmly. "Thank you so much. Sasaki and Iguchi would've been in danger otherwise."
Chiyo Shin put one hand to his forehead and the other on his hip. "It was nothing."
Megumi Fushiguro kicked Chiyo Shin out of his pose and told the three of them, "Mission complete. He and I should get going. You should head home soon, too."
The three replied, "Oh, thank you."
Megumi Fushiguro grabbed Chiyo Shin, who was playing dead on the floor, and started to leave.
But Chiyo Shin broke free of Megumi Fushiguro's hand, dropped the act, and said solemnly, "Megumi, hurry and get them out of here."
Megumi Fushiguro looked baffled. "Huh? What's gotten into you now?"
Chiyo Shin stared at the stairwell. "Never mind. It's too late."
Bam!!
Bricks and rubble flew everywhere as the stairwell shattered. A demon-like cursed spirit appeared before them in an instant and punched Chiyo Shin, who stood at the front, out onto the roof outside.
"A special grade cursed spirit!"
Megumi Fushiguro had no time to react. He could only watch as Chiyo Shin was sent flying.
"Divine Dogs!!"
The two Divine Dogs reacted quickly as well, pouncing the moment they heard the command.
Unfortunately, the demon cursed spirit was extremely agile, and the Divine Dogs' attacks did nothing.
Megumi Fushiguro could only recall the Divine Dogs to protect Itadori and the other two.
"Fuck, I hate fighting fast opponents." Chiyo Shin shook the bricks off himself.
Just as Chiyo Shin got up, Megumi Fushiguro was knocked outside by the demon cursed spirit as well.
Chiyo Shin hurriedly leaped over and caught Megumi Fushiguro in midair.
Megumi Fushiguro's eyes were tightly shut, his face covered in blood, and his body bruised in several places.
"Boo-hoo, Megumi-chan, you can't die! What am I supposed to do without you?" Chiyo Shin's hands kept working as he spoke, using Golden Repair at full power to heal Megumi Fushiguro.
The moment Megumi Fushiguro opened his eyes, he saw Chiyo Shin wailing over him.
"Thank goodness, Megumi-chan, you..." Megumi Fushiguro clamped a hand over Chiyo Shin's mouth.
Before they could say much more, Itadori jumped through the opening too. After landing, he took out Sukuna's Finger and shouted at the demon cursed spirit, "I've got what you want! Come and get it!"
Seeing the finger, Chiyo Shin felt around in his pocket. He had no idea when he had dropped it.
"Idiot! You can only exorcise a curse with another curse! You'll die if you lure it over like that!" Megumi Fushiguro hurriedly tried to stop him.
Just then, the demon cursed spirit slowly walked to the opening in the school building, smiling as it revealed Sasaki and Iguchi clutched in its hands.
The cursed spirit's meaning was clear: a trade.
"Don't give it the finger! If it gets more cursed energy, none of us will get out of here!" Seeing its gesture, Megumi Fushiguro hurriedly called out to Yuji Itadori.
Itadori remembered his grandfather's final words and all the moments he had shared with the Occult Club. Without hesitation, he said, "Even if I've only known them for two months, I can't let Sasaki and Iguchi get hurt."
"So I just need stronger cursed energy myself, right?" Yuji Itadori put Sukuna's Finger into his mouth and swallowed it.
"Damn it, don't eat it!" Megumi Fushiguro could only watch as Itadori swallowed it.
The instant Itadori swallowed the finger, his clothes burst apart and strange markings covered his body. "Hahahaha! You really do need flesh to experience the world! This era-haha! Women and children! I'll slaughter them all!" Ryomen Sukuna had arrived.
"Shin, hurry and use your cursed technique! This is the worst-case scenario. A Special Grade Cursed Object has gained a body!" Fushiguro hurriedly told Chiyo Shin.
"Got it." Chiyo Shin turned serious as well.
Meanwhile, seeing the finger swallowed, the demon cursed spirit threw the two people in its hands onto the floor, rushed toward Itadori, and threw a punch.
"Cursed Technique Reversal: Stillness!"
"Huh?" Sukuna froze in surprise. What's going on with this guy's cursed technique?
Chiyo Shin stopped between the two in an instant, freezing them in place.
"Cursed Technique Lapse: Annihilation!"
His fist, coated in cursed energy, slammed straight into the demon cursed spirit.
Chiyo Shin lifted Stillness from the demon cursed spirit, and it slowly dissipated.
"Ah, I ended up using my cursed technique anyway. I wanted to fight hand to hand. What a shame."
As he spoke, Chiyo Shin turned to look at Itadori, but the black markings on Itadori's face left him in a quandary. The original story's protagonist had eaten a cursed object. By rights, he ought to be treated as a curse and exorcised.
Should he exorcise him, then? For Chiyo Shin, who had never read the original story, that was a real question.
"What's going on here?" A familiar voice came from behind Megumi Fushiguro.
Megumi Fushiguro turned around in surprise. "Gojo-sensei, what are you doing here?"
"It's a Special Grade Cursed Object, after all. Those rotten higher-ups wouldn't stop nagging, so I had no choice but to come. Did you find the finger?" Satoru Gojo asked wearily.
Megumi Fushiguro pointed at Itadori and answered honestly, "We found it. But this guy ate it."
Satoru Gojo sounded incredulous. "Huh? Seriously?"
Chiyo Shin and Megumi Fushiguro confirmed, "Seriously."
Just then, the strange markings on Itadori's body slowly faded away.
Seeing this, Satoru Gojo walked over to Itadori and told Chiyo Shin, "Shin, release your cursed technique for a moment."
"Oh." Chiyo Shin had also noticed the markings disappearing from Itadori's body and did as instructed.
"Whoa! What was that? I couldn't move at all!" Itadori exclaimed once the cursed technique was released.
"Uh, that was my cursed technique," Chiyo Shin explained.
Satoru Gojo leaned close to Itadori's face. "You really have merged. Does anything feel wrong with your body?"
"Nope." Itadori checked himself over before answering.
"Then can you switch with Sukuna? The guy inside you," Satoru Gojo continued.
Itadori felt around inside himself. "I think so."
Satoru Gojo tossed the gift bag in his hand to Megumi Fushiguro. "Then switch for ten seconds. That's all I need."
Itadori wanted to object, but Satoru Gojo cut him off. "It's fine. I'm the strongest."
"All right, then." Itadori could only agree.
Itadori began preparing himself.
Megumi Fushiguro looked at the gift bag. "Are these souvenirs?"
"They're not souvenirs. That's Kikufuku, a Sendai specialty. I was saving it to eat on the Shinkansen," Satoru Gojo explained as he warmed up.
Chiyo Shin's eyes lit up at the mention of Kikufuku, and he hurried over to Megumi Fushiguro.
Satoru Gojo cried out in alarm, "Whatever you do, don't let Shin get that bag!"
He had barely finished speaking when Sukuna's attack reached him, but Satoru Gojo's attention was still on the Kikufuku, because Chiyo Shin had already started eating.
"Bastard." Satoru Gojo took all his anger out on Sukuna.
Sukuna seethed, his attacks growing ever fiercer.
The two fought for a while longer, until the ten seconds were up.
Itadori regained control of his body, only for Satoru Gojo to knock him unconscious.
Chiyo Shin had nearly finished the Kikufuku as well.
Satoru Gojo flashed over and snatched the gift bag. "Chiyo Shin!!"
Chiyo Shin tried to defend himself. "Hey, Megumi ate some too."
Satoru Gojo silently mourned the lost Kikufuku, then picked up Itadori. "Well, what should we do with him?"
Chiyo Shin and Megumi Fushiguro said together, "We don't want him to die."
"Is that so? Then leave your request to your teacher!"
Before you continue