Decision

Megumi Fushiguro had not hidden what happened to Itadori from Nobara Kugisaki.

After confirming that Kugisaki's injuries were stable and she had recovered mentally, he briefly explained the situation beside her bed in the basement.

The Higher-Ups' attempt to murder Itadori, Itadori's "faked death," and Satoru Gojo and Madara's intervention.

Kugisaki fell silent for a long time after hearing him out, then punched the wall.

"Those bastards..."

Her voice held suppressed anger, but even more than that, a sense of helplessness.

Afterward, the two reached an unspoken understanding: to keep Itadori from being discovered, they had to act as though they were "grieving the loss of a companion."

It was not difficult to act, because their own weakness genuinely left them feeling gloomy.

On the Training Ground, Kugisaki drove nails into the Cursed Energy Target one after another, every swing of her hammer carrying the force of someone venting her frustration.

Megumi Fushiguro practiced over and over, sweat soaking his uniform.

"Are we too weak?" Kugisaki suddenly asked, her voice particularly clear across the empty Training Ground.

Fushiguro did not stop what he was doing, only answering quietly, "Yeah."

If they had been strong enough, Itadori would not have had to face a Special Grade Cursed Spirit alone.

If they had been strong enough, Sukuna would not have had an opening.

If they had been strong enough... they could have protected their companion instead of being protected by him.

Just then, Maki walked over with her Naginata across her shoulder and glanced at their gloomy expressions.

"What's wrong, Megumi? You look like someone died," she said, her tone casual but her gaze sharp.

And so, Kugisaki and Fushiguro began their grueling training journey.

One day, Madara walked into the Training Ground carrying a convenience store plastic bag with several bottles of sports drinks inside.

He had just finished a mission.

"Oh, Madara." Maki turned her head. "Finished your mission?"

"Finished." Madara walked to the edge of the grounds, set the plastic bag on a bench, and took out two bottles, tossing them to Fushiguro and Kugisaki.

Panda ambled over from the side as well, bringing his furry head close to the plastic bag. "Did you buy me any souvenirs?"

Madara glanced at him. "My mission was nearby. There's nothing."

Panda let out a disappointed "Aww-"

Maki leaned against her Naginata and looked at Madara. "Speaking of which, are you taking part in next month's Kyoto Sister-School Goodwill Event?"

It was an annual tradition between Tokyo Jujutsu High and Kyoto Jujutsu High, ostensibly a friendly exchange but actually a platform for students from both schools to show their strength and compete.

Traditionally, representatives from the second and third years participated.

However, due to a shortage of people, the first years would be participating this time as well.

Madara unscrewed a bottle of water, took a sip, and shook his head. "I've already told Gojo-sensei. I'm not participating."

Megumi Fushiguro stopped practicing, somewhat surprised. "You're not participating, Madara-senpai?"

"No," Madara said. "So we're counting on you first years this year."

Only then did Nobara Kugisaki notice Madara.

She had previously heard of this "reliable senpai" only through Fushiguro and Okkotsu's descriptions, but had never formally met him.

She moved closer to Fushiguro and lowered her voice. "Hey, who's this?"

Only then did Fushiguro remember to introduce him. "Oh, this is Madara Uchiha-senpai. He's the one who saved us."

Kugisaki immediately straightened and bowed slightly to Madara. "Madara-senpai, I'm Nobara Kugisaki. Thank you for what you did before."

Madara nodded, his tone calm. "Hello. I look forward to getting along."

Looking at Madara, Megumi Fushiguro suddenly thought of something. Because Madara was strong and making great progress, he wanted to ask him for advice.

"Madara-senpai, have you studied the Ten Shadows Technique?"

Madara looked at him, a little surprised.

"I wouldn't call it studying, but I understand some of it," he said. "Your Cursed Technique uses shadows as a medium to summon shikigami, and each shikigami has its own unique abilities, right?"

"Yes, that's right." Fushiguro nodded.

Madara fell silent for a few seconds, seemingly considering how to phrase his words.

"Then," he began slowly, "have you ever tried using only their abilities without fully summoning the shikigami?"

Fushiguro froze.

"Huh?! Ah... I've never tried that."

Shikigami were shikigami, and abilities were abilities-in Fushiguro's understanding, that was simply how things worked.

Summon the Divine Dogs, and the Divine Dogs had detection abilities.

Summon Nue, and Nue had flight and lightning abilities.

But he had never considered whether he could "borrow" their abilities without summoning the shikigami themselves.

"The core of your Cursed Technique is 'shadows.' The shikigami are merely the form it takes," Madara continued.

"Since you can summon shikigami through shadows, theoretically, you should also be able to use their abilities directly through shadows. The effects would be weaker, but it would consume less cursed energy and activate faster."

He paused, then added, "Of course, that's just my idea. Whether you can do it depends on your talent and effort."

Megumi Fushiguro's eyes lit up.

This was an entirely new direction.

All this time, he had been studying how to summon stronger shikigami and control them more skillfully.

But the approach Madara proposed was a completely different path-not pursuing the quality and quantity of shikigami, but the "fundamental application of the Cursed Technique."

"I... I'll give it a try," Fushiguro said earnestly.

Listening beside them, Maki's lips curved into a smile.

"Oh? I didn't expect you to care so much about Megumi."

Madara did not respond, merely taking another sip of water.

Panda poked Madara's arm with a paw and chuckled. "All right, all right, stop denying it~ We all know what you're like. You act cold, but you really care about your juniors."

Madara glanced at him and put down his water bottle.

"...I've got something to do. I'm leaving."

Panda was not surprised. "What an awkward guy."

Madara turned and left the Training Ground, his figure soon disappearing around the corner of a building.

Looking in the direction Madara had left, Kugisaki whispered to Fushiguro, "Madara-senpai... seems like a good person."

Fushiguro nodded, deep gratitude flashing in his eyes.

"Yeah. He's a reliable senpai."

After leaving the Training Ground, Madara did not return to the Dormitory, instead leaving Jujutsu High directly.

He walked the streets of Tokyo, blending into the crowd, seemingly aimless while his mind raced.

His advice to Fushiguro earlier had indeed been a spur-of-the-moment thought, but what he was really thinking about was something else.

Something more important and more urgent.

-Saving Junpei Yoshino, then killing Mahito.

Junpei Yoshino, the boy whom Mahito had twisted in the original story, and who had ultimately died a horrible death.

He was just an ordinary person, swept into Jujutsu Society's conflicts and made a victim of Mahito's "experiments."

And Mahito, that Special Grade Cursed Spirit, that monster capable of changing others' forms by touching their souls, was one of the culprits behind countless tragedies.

Madara knew that if events followed the original plot, Yoshino would become Itadori's "friend," then be killed by Mahito.

And because of that, Itadori would truly "kill someone" for the first time-even if the person he killed was Yoshino after Mahito had transformed him, it would still leave an indelible psychological wound.

"Rather than making a fifteen-year-old boy carry such a heavy burden..."

Madara murmured to himself, stopping in front of a convenience store.

The glass door reflected his face-black hair, black eyes, the face of a sixteen-year-old.

"I might as well kill Mahito myself."

This was not an impulsive decision. Madara had carefully weighed the pros and cons.

Killing Mahito might indeed cut off Itadori's "opportunity to grow"-in the original plot, the battle with Mahito was a pivotal moment in Itadori's change in mindset.

But Madara believed that some kinds of "growth" came at too great a cost.

Itadori had already endured too much: his grandfather's death, becoming Sukuna's vessel, being forced down a path to death... there was no need to add the burden of "killing a friend with his own hands."

Besides, Mahito was a target who had to be eliminated. That cursed spirit's very existence was a threat to humanity.

Rather than wait until he grew harder to deal with, it would be better to take care of him early.

"But before that, I still need to take a look around where Itadori is..."

Madara remembered another key point: Jogo and Hanami.

In the original plot, the Special Grade Cursed Spirit Jogo would attack Satoru Gojo for the Prison Realm.

The result, however, was obvious: he was completely overwhelmed by Satoru Gojo.

If possible, Madara wanted to finish them off before Hanami appeared to save Jogo.

But he did not know the exact timing.

The plot had already shifted because of his intervention.

Would Jogo and Hanami still appear? When would they appear? Where would they appear?

"I need to confirm Itadori's location first, then keep watch nearby."

Having made up his mind, Madara entered a deserted alley and, after confirming that no one was around, formed hand seals.

Wood Release: Wood Clone.

Another clone separated from his body, identical to the original in appearance, clothing, and cursed energy fluctuations.

"Go back to Jujutsu High and act as usual," Madara told the clone. "Train, eat, and if anyone asks, say I'm investigating the whereabouts of a certain cursed spirit."

The clone nodded, turned, and headed toward Jujutsu High. Madara watched him leave.

"Now, then..."

He pulled up his hood and stepped into the crowd.

"One step at a time."

Madara spoke quietly, his figure disappearing around the street corner.

Summer was coming.