Afterword; a new round

Three full days had passed since the Shinjuku Showdown ended.

Megumi Fushiguro, the domineering CEO who had been unconscious for three days, finally woke up in the little bed in his 30,000 cm² bedroom.

As it happened, Itadori pushed the door open for his daily visit just then.

"Hey! Fushiguro, you're finally awake!"

Itadori looked delighted to see Megumi Fushiguro sitting on the edge of the bed.

"..." Fushiguro was silent for two seconds. "How long was I asleep?"

"Three days, three whole days!"

Itadori put on a solemn expression:

"Shiratori-senpai even said the [Unlimited Void] Sukuna transferred to you had turned you into a vegetable!"

"Uh... my soul was submerged at the time, so I didn't really feel anything..."

"Oh, never mind that. Kugisaki woke up after Sukuna died too, and everyone's waiting for you now!"

Unable to wait, Itadori grabbed Fushiguro's hand and pulled him straight out.

"Hey! Wait, I haven't changed!"

"Oh, it's fine!"

"Oi, shithead, you know the rules."

Ryu Ishigori and Shiratori Gotsu sat across a table from each other, Cursed Energy surging around them. The atmosphere was incredibly tense.

"Of course. May the best man win."

"Hmph... I won't hold back."

"Neither will I."

"3→..."

"2↗↘..."

"1!"

In an instant, Ryu Ishigori and Shiratori Gotsu both sprang into action, making a bold grab for the last egg tart in the middle of the table.

And then...

"[Blue]!"

Shiratori Gotsu and Ryu Ishigori's fingers interlocked, while [Blue] sucked the egg tart away, depositing it neatly in the hand of Satoru Gojo, who had appeared out of nowhere.

He flashed a brilliant smile:

"It's mine. Thanks for the food!"

"Gwah! Why is Teach butting into someone else's cowboy duel?!"

Shiratori Gotsu looked thoroughly annoyed.

"I'm not a cowboy, so I don't have to follow your rules, do I~"

With that, Satoru Gojo quickly polished off the egg tart right in front of them.

"Bastard!"

Ryu Ishigori leaped to his feet with thunderous force, sending his chair flying several meters.

"Ah, this is bad. I'm out of here~"

Satoru Gojo vanished in a flash.

"Get back here!"

As Ryu Ishigori chased Satoru Gojo into the distance, the anger on Shiratori Gotsu's face vanished instantly, replaced by a smug, sleazy grin.

"Mwehehehe... just as planned!"

Looking extremely furtive, he pulled a paper bag from inside his clothes:

"Limited-edition matcha and red bean Kikufuku with fresh cream filling. I'll enjoy it all by myself..."

"Thanks for the food!"

Satoru Gojo's voice flashed past, and by the time Shiratori Gotsu came to his senses, the paper bag had vanished from his hand.

"Satoru Gojo!"

Shiratori Gotsu also leaped up with thunderous force, sending his chair flying as he officially joined the chase.

"So, you three were rampaging through Jujutsu High because of that..."

As Shoko treated Itadori, Fushiguro, and Kugisaki, who had been caught in the crossfire and sent flying, she stared speechlessly at the three culprits in front of her, who kept looking around and pretending to be busy.

"Ahem..."

Satoru Gojo cleared his throat, then said with a formal, serious expression:

"I'll tell you in the simplest, most direct way possible, without beating around the bush: that's exactly right!"

"Out."

Shoko waved her hand as though shooing away flies.

"Yes, ma'am!"

After leaving Jujutsu High's infirmary, Ryu Ishigori went off on his own to catch up with Okkotsu, leaving Shiratori Gotsu and Satoru Gojo walking side by side along the corridor.

"Have you got any ideas about ending the [Culling Game]?"

Shiratori Gotsu asked rather casually.

"I have a rough idea, I guess, but if I had to say, it's actually pretty troublesome."

Satoru Gojo pursed his lips:

"Lord Tengen has regained her self-awareness, but she's regressed to an embryonic state and still can't move on her own. She needs someone to take care of her."

"For now, her solution is to wait until she can move on her own, then find a way to separate the [Culling Game] from the 'Pure Barrier' she established."

"If it succeeds, the [Culling Game], which relies on the 'Pure Barrier' to exist, will lose its foundation."

"Then Angel can use [Jacob's Ladder] to gradually dismantle each barrier."

Shiratori Gotsu rubbed his chin:

"Looks like that thousand-year-old shut-in girl's brain hasn't rotted from staying indoors."

"Wow, do you really have no filter?"

Satoru Gojo teased.

Shiratori Gotsu pursed his lips and replied confidently:

"I'm not a Jujutsu High student, and I'm not even an officially registered Jujutsu Sorcerer. I can say whatever I want."

"Oh, speaking of that..."

Satoru Gojo seemed to suddenly remember something. He took off his blindfold, stepped in front of Shiratori Gotsu, and leaned forward slightly with an intrigued look:

"So where exactly did you come from, anyway?"

"If you were an awakened player in the [Culling Game], there's no way you'd know me that well."

"And if you were a Jujutsu Sorcerer before that, I probably would've heard of you."

"You're really suspicious, Shiratori..."

Shiratori Gotsu raised a hand and pushed his face, which had almost touched his nose, away. Then, without hesitation, he brought out an explanation he had prepared long ago:

"Because before the Culling Game began—that is, before the existence of Jujutsu Sorcerers was exposed to the whole world—I never showed my talent for Jujutsu in front of outsiders."

"But being able to see curses gave me the opportunity to gradually come into contact with Jujutsu Society."

"It's that simple."

Then he looked into Satoru Gojo's eyes and added with a smile:

"Besides, I bear Jujutsu High no ill will, and I'm certainly not some immoral Curse User. Isn't that enough?"

"Ah~ well, that's true."

Satoru Gojo put his blindfold back on and clasped his hands behind his head, his tone turning light and cheerful again:

"Come to think of it, Shiratori, would you consider coming to teach at Jujutsu High someday?"

Shiratori Gotsu paused briefly, then responded in an equally light and cheerful tone:

"Maybe. Let me think about it?"

"Then I'll look forward to hearing good news~"

That night, Shiratori Gotsu returned to the room Jujutsu High had assigned him and tossed himself onto the bed with a fadeaway jump shot.

"System~"

He called.

"What is it, host?"

"If I choose to start over now, can I save my [progress] in this timeline like a game save?"

"Of course. After you leave, host, you can choose to let this timeline continue on its own, or freeze it at the exact moment you leave."

"Can I come back later?"

"Yes."

"Then pause and save it."

"Understood. So, host, have you decided to begin a new round?"

"Yeah. Send me back to the System Space."

"Saving progress... leaving the world..."