Yuta Okkotsu stared at those two lines, his fingertips trembling slightly.
Many things flashed through his mind.
He remembered when he had first entered Jujutsu High, how everyone had shunned him as a monster. It had been Gojo-sensei who had patted his shoulder with a lollipop in his mouth, and Gu Yue-sensei who had tossed him an ice-cold can of Coca-Cola.
But now they were gone.
One had been sealed away. The other was dead.
Those two had been so full of confidence and spirit that no one could imagine them losing. As though it were an unspoken rule, something taken for granted, victory ought to belong to them.
They were the strongest, truly the strongest, so strong that it felt as though all anyone needed to do was follow behind them and cheer, waiting for their triumphant return. As long as they were there, the sky could never fall.
His eyes slowly darkened. There were no tears, only a gaze that grew steadily more resolute.
Only now did he understand that being the strongest meant having to hold up the sky when it fell.
Was this the pressure you carried, sensei...?
It really makes it hard to breathe.
"Now, I'm going to kill Sukuna with my own hands."
He raised his head. His voice was quiet, yet as firm as stone.
"If it comes to it, I'll fight him even if it costs me my life and soul."
Those words struck Suguru Geto's ears like a needle.
His hands were still shaking, the slip of paper nearly crumbling in his palm.
Countless images crashed into his mind, chaotic, yet every frame was perfectly clear.
Jujutsu High's Training Ground, the Basketball Hall, the Dormitory, in front of the computer, beneath the trees, the Cafeteria, the Classroom.
Inseparable, through life and