Neither Sakurada Niji nor Toji Fushiguro spoke again. They simply waited quietly for news of Satoru Gojo.
"Hello~ Moshi Moshi~ Geto?" Shoko's voice came through the phone.
While playing dead, Sakurada Niji had messaged Shoko and asked her to find Satoru Gojo.
"Shoko... how's Gojo?" Suguru Geto asked nervously.
"Wow~ He's a bloody mess. Super gruesome~ Holes all over him. But he learned Reverse Cursed Technique on his own using the method I taught him. I'm helping him heal right now. We should have him patched up in about half an hour~"
"It... wasn't you!" Satoru Gojo's weak protest came through the phone's speaker.
Sakurada Niji deactivated his cursed technique and released Toji.
"Reverse Cursed Technique..." Toji froze, scarcely able to believe it.
"Well, Toji? Gojo hates the rules of Jujutsu Society. It's rotten to the core right now, with Kenjaku pulling strings behind the scenes. The three great clans are stubborn fools with feudal thinking ingrained in their bones. Gojo wants to change all of that. And you hate that disgusting clan too, don't you?"
"Toji, only those idiots in the Zenin Clan would think you aren't strong," Sakurada Niji continued tirelessly.
Toji stretched a little, slowly put away his weapons, and sat on the ground.
"I'll wait here. We can talk once he beats me."
"Geto, take Toji and me to the Training Ground," Sakurada Niji called to Suguru Geto nearby.
Suguru Geto turned, saw Toji was no longer restrained, and nearly dropped his phone.
"Niji! You just let him go?"
"Relax, Geto. Once Gojo beats him, we'll be teammates," Sakurada Niji said.
"What the hell are you talking about?!" Suguru Geto's face was full of confusion.
"Geto, I 'saw' long ago that Gojo would nearly die. And I 'saw' that he would master Reverse Cursed Technique," Sakurada Niji said seriously.
It's time to tell them a few things. Otherwise, their questions will only keep piling up. But to make it plausible, I can only pass off the plot I saw as prophecies granted by my heavenly restriction.
"Come on, Geto. Trust me."
Suguru Geto said nothing, merely glancing at Toji, who sat on the ground resting with his eyes closed.
"Don't worry, Geto. He won't fight anymore."
"Tch. Let's go," Geto said reluctantly.
"Toji, come on. Jujutsu High has a place specifically for fighting."
"Ah-choo!" Masamichi Yaga suddenly sneezed just after exorcising the fly heads.
"I'm still an intruder, you know. Are you sure this is okay?" Toji asked curiously.
"Toji, all I can say is that you and your son are both very important. You affect how things end for everyone in the future."
"...Trusting me for no reason. That's really hard to understand," Toji said helplessly.
Toji thought back to how Sakurada Niji had simply released him earlier.
The elevator slowly ascended.
Jujutsu High Training Ground-
Only Masamichi Yaga, Toji, and Sakurada Niji remained. Suguru Geto had gone to fetch Satoru Gojo and Shoko.
"Sorry, Mr. Yaga, but we can't contact the higher-ups right now. As for why, can that wait until after Gojo and Toji's fight?" Sakurada Niji asked the wary Masamichi Yaga.
"Please trust me, sir." All Sakurada Niji could do now was appeal to his feelings.
His students had saved their mission's target, then started hanging around with the man who had tried to assassinate that target.
"Ah... there goes any hope of a promotion," Masamichi Yaga sighed.
"Thank you for understanding, Mr. Yaga!" Sakurada Niji bowed deeply to Yaga.
Not everyone would sacrifice their own interests for their students, but Masamichi Yaga had always guided his students properly and never stood in the way of their sound ideas.
A little over ten minutes later-
Satoru Gojo and Shoko arrived.
Though he had known in advance, Toji was still a little surprised to see Satoru Gojo standing nearby on the Training Ground, his body fully restored.
"...Interesting." Toji started warming up, preparing for the fight.
Gojo in tatters~ Click~ Sakurada Niji secretly took a photo beside Satoru Gojo as a keepsake, while Shoko stared curiously at Sakurada Niji, who was still dressed as Riko.
Satoru Gojo slowly walked toward the Training Ground. At that moment, he felt as though his body had merged with the world. His mind had reached a peculiar state, and he paid no attention to anyone else.
"Hey~ Long time no see~" Satoru Gojo greeted Toji.
"You're a tenacious one. Like a cockroach~" Toji said with a hint of mockery.
"Reverse Cursed Technique~ Cursed energy is negative energy. Even if it can strengthen the body, it can't regenerate it. So you multiply negative energy by negative energy. Two negatives make a positive. That's Reverse Cursed Technique."
"Easy to say~ But I'd never managed it before~ And the only person around me who could do it~ explained it in a way that made no sense~"
Watching Satoru Gojo suddenly launch into an explanation all by himself, Toji sensed something was wrong.
What a noisy brat... Is he already high?!
"But on the verge of death, I grasped the core of cursed energy!"
"The reason you lost was that you didn't cut off my head! And you didn't use that cursed tool when you damaged my brain!"
Satoru Gojo spoke as he watched Toji warming up nearby.
Toji stopped warming up and drew the Inverted Spear of Heaven from the cursed spirit on his shoulder.
"The reason I lost? The fight hasn't even started!"
"Hmm...? Hasn't it...? Oh, right..."
"Maybe you're right!!!" Satoru Gojo shouted.
The instant Satoru Gojo finished speaking, Toji lunged at him with the Inverted Spear of Heaven!
The blade slashed upward, and Satoru Gojo tilted his body slightly, dodging it.
Toji twirled the blade into a reverse grip and slashed hard at Satoru Gojo's head with the Inverted Spear of Heaven.
But he missed. Satoru Gojo instantly moved behind Toji.
"Cursed Technique Reversal-Red."
For some reason, Satoru Gojo flipped upside down in midair and unleashed his Reverse Cursed Technique at Toji.
A small red sphere shone as it flew toward Toji's chest.
Toji blocked Red with the Inverted Spear of Heaven, but its powerful repulsive force still sent him flying.
With a succession of crashes, Toji was blasted clean out of the Training Ground, smashing through several large trees before he finally stopped.
As the dust cleared, Toji slowly got up and began checking his injuries.
Right. Blue, Red, Limitless-I can handle all of them with my equipment. If I can't win, I can still run. Was there something that killed me instantly?
Toji now believed what Sakurada Niji had told him and began considering how he had died.
Once he finished checking himself, Toji returned to the Training Ground.
Everyone watched in silence as Satoru Gojo floated in the air opposite Toji, who had taken that attack and come away with only a little blood on his forehead.
Masamichi Yaga seemed to want to say something, but he held himself back and remained silent.
Suguru Geto watched from the sky atop Rainbow Dragon, his expression grave. There was no telling what he was thinking.
Shoko, meanwhile, complained to Sakurada Niji about Toji's physique. "What's with that guy? An ordinary person's body would've been shredded by that move..."
Sakurada Niji explained, "The weapon Toji's holding can block cursed technique attacks. He also has an extremely rare zero cursed energy heavenly restriction. His physical strength should be the greatest of any human."
"I see..." Shoko seemed to be considering something.
On the Training Ground.
Toji pulled the Chain of a Thousand Miles from the cursed spirit's mouth and attached it to the Inverted Spear of Heaven, turning it into a chain blade. Then he spun the newly assembled weapon, whipping up fierce winds around himself.
Suddenly, Toji stopped spinning it and lashed the chain blade at Satoru Gojo, who floated in the air. Lying in midair, Satoru Gojo let his body sink slightly and dodged the Inverted Spear of Heaven.
Here it comes! I have to record this! I'll show it to every new student from now on! Holding his phone, Sakurada Niji stared intently at Satoru Gojo and started recording.
Satoru Gojo suddenly rose from his reclining position in midair. He extended a hand and slowly swept it through the air, then settled into a pose with a wild, unrestrained smile on his face.
"Throughout heaven and earth-I alone am the honored one."
Toji's swinging chain blade tore up the ground, hurling shattered earth and bricks at Satoru Gojo to draw his attention.
Then he swung the chain blade again, sending the Inverted Spear of Heaven at its end stabbing straight toward Satoru Gojo's face.
Satoru Gojo did not dodge. Purple light simply radiated from his hand, bathing the entire grounds in purple.
This sense of danger! Is this it?!
In an instant, the purple light burst forth. Its overwhelming brilliance illuminated the surroundings, and everyone closed their eyes.
The light vanished, and the surroundings returned to normal.
Before you continue