In that instant, space twisted, and the overwhelming cursed energy turned into streaks of pitch-black lightning.
Black Flash!
Mahito stared in shock at his severed hands. His eyes lost focus as he murmured, "What… is this black light?"
The moment Fushiguro Megumi swung his blade, he could have dodged. But behind him was his younger brother—if he moved, Choso would be trapped in a deadly crossfire.
So, his only choice was to block with his reinforced hands. But he never expected that the black blade would not only slice through his hands but also carve a deep gash across his abdomen.
Bright red blood gushed from the wound.
"B-Brother…"
A weak voice came from behind him. Mahito barely managed to turn around, his body trembling. "Brother!?"
Compared to Mahito, who was still barely holding on, Choso's chest had been completely blown open by the sheer force of Itadori's Black Flash punch.
Kechizu collapsed weakly to the ground, life quickly draining from the gaping hole in his chest.
"Brother! Don't die, brother!"
Choso crouched down in a panic, completely letting his guard down. He didn't even care that he was exposing his back—something he had always been careful to protect.
His eyes were filled with nothing but concern and worry for his younger brother.
But no matter how desperately Choso called out, Kechizu would never wake up again. That final cry seemed to have drained the last bit of strength he had left.
Clear tears welled up in Choso's eyes, slowly rolling down his hardened face before falling onto his brother's lifeless body.
We three were always one…
"I'm sorry, brother. Even though I was here…" Choso mumbled, his eyes dull as the tears streamed down his cheeks.
Seeing him like this, Itadori Yuji froze for a moment. His fists clenched, then loosened, only to clench again.
With a wound that severe in his abdomen, even if Itadori Yuji and Fushiguro Megumi left him alone, Choso wouldn't last much longer.
When Itadori Yuji saw the bright red blood spilling from their bodies and realized that Kechizu's corpse hadn't disappeared, he instantly understood—these two weren't curses. They were living, breathing beings.
He should have delivered the final blow to Choso and ended it. But neither he nor Fushiguro Megumi could bring themselves to do it.
Instead, they took two steps back, silently watching as Choso cradled Kechizu's lifeless body in his arms.
Blood kept pouring from his wound, pooling beneath him in a dark red puddle.
"Don't worry, little brother. I'm right here with you," Choso whispered. His vision was growing blurrier, his body growing colder as more and more blood drained from him.
An unstoppable chill slowly crept over him.
Just like those 150 long, dark years where it had been only the three of them.
But he had never been lonely.
It was just that…
"I'm sorry, big brother. Looks like I'm leaving you alone."
With those final words, Choso held his brother's body tightly and quietly closed his eyes.
He was dead.
Itadori Yuji stood in silence, staring at the two brothers' lifeless bodies. With a complicated expression, he walked over to Fushiguro Megumi and muttered, "We won… but I don't feel happy at all."
"…Me neither," Fushiguro Megumi said after a brief pause.
This wasn't the first time Itadori Yuji had taken a life with his own hands. But no matter how many times it happened, he just couldn't get used to it.
"No matter what, they were still our enemies. And not just any enemies—probably special grades. Against opponents like that, we didn't have the luxury of holding back. Killing them was the only option."
"I know… I know that," Itadori Yuji murmured, staring at his bloodstained hands, his gaze unfocused. "But… when he saw his brother die in front of him, he cried."
"Winning this fight should be something to be happy about, but still… I can't help but think—"
"The lives I've taken… they cry too."
Seeing him like this, Fushiguro Megumi let out a helpless sigh. "Dwelling on it won't change anything. Let's go find Senpai Yukinoshita."
"Yeah… you're right."
Just as the words left his mouth, a powerful presence suddenly appeared within their senses. The violent energy was so overwhelming that even Itadori, who wasn't the best at sensing things, instantly recognized what it was.
"A Sukuna's finger!?" Fushiguro Megumi's face darkened, and he instinctively turned toward the source of the energy.
"Is it coming from where Senpai Yukinoshita is?"
There was no time to mourn the enemy's death. The two exchanged a glance and immediately rushed toward the source of the cursed energy from the Sukuna finger.
Before long, they saw a black-haired girl approaching from the same direction. Seeing that she was unharmed, they both let out a sigh of relief.
"Looks like it's all taken care of," Yukinoshita Yukino said as the three of them met up. "No one got hurt, right?"
"I'm fine. What about you, Yukinoshita-senpai? We sensed the presence of Sukuna's finger," Itadori Yuji asked with concern.
"Ah, the finger is right here." Yukinoshita Yukino opened her palm, revealing a withered, wax-like finger resting quietly in her hand. A sinister aura instantly spread through the air.
"The owner of that cave barrier was a special-grade curse that had eaten a Sukuna finger. It looked just like the one we encountered at the juvenile detention center, but it was much stronger," the black-haired girl explained.
"So it was another one like that, huh? As expected of Yukinoshita-senpai, you actually took down a special-grade curse all by yourself!" Itadori Yuji said in amazement.
"It looked the same but was stronger… That must be resonance."
Fushiguro Megumi thought for a moment before figuring it out. He glanced at the pink-haired boy, who looked confused, then explained, "It's probably because of Itadori. The scattered Sukuna fingers are reacting because their original owner, Ryoumen Sukuna, now has Itadori's body. That caused the cursed energy inside the fingers to be released."
"Resonance… I see."
Yukinoshita Yukino nodded thoughtfully before remembering that she wanted to ask about the enemies Itadori and Fushiguro had fought. But since they were both standing here, their enemies must have already been dealt with.
Well, there would be another chance.
Shaking her head, she held the Sukuna finger out to Itadori Yuji. "Here."
"Oh, you want me to eat it?" Itadori Yuji didn't think much of it and reached out to take the finger.
"Wait!" Fushiguro Megumi quickly stopped him, looking exasperated. "Why are you acting like it's normal to eat that?"
"Is there a problem?" Yukinoshita Yukino asked, puzzled.
"We don't know how many fingers Itadori, as a vessel, can handle. If he exceeds his limit, Sukuna will take over his body. That would be a disaster," Fushiguro Megumi explained, already feeling a headache coming on.
"But I saw Hayashizaki-kun just let Itadori eat one before."
"That guy… Even if Sukuna fully took over, Hayashizaki-sensei could still deal with it easily. But we definitely can't!"
Yukinoshita Yukino suddenly understood and pulled the finger back. "I see. That was careless of me. Sorry about that."
"Oh? So I don't have to eat it after all?" Itadori Yuji said, sounding relieved. He was actually quite happy about it—eating those fingers was disgusting.
"Let's head back. This mission should be considered a success."
"Alright!"
…
The Eighty-Eight Bridge Incident turned out to be a valuable experience for both Yukinoshita Yukino and Fushiguro Megumi.
For Yukinoshita Yukino, she got to test her strength against a special-grade curse, giving her a clearer understanding of her current combat level.
For Fushiguro Megumi, he managed to land a Black Flash during battle, bringing him one step closer to understanding the core of cursed energy.
Although they weren't able to get the information they wanted from the two enemies who had intruded midway, Yukinoshita Yukino was still satisfied with how the mission turned out.
However, she didn't expect that the information she was looking for—the mastermind behind the Shinjuku Night Parade of a Hundred Demons—would come knocking on her door the very next day.
"Miss Yukinoshita, we have an emergency."
The day after returning from Eighty-Eight Bridge, a visibly anxious Ijichi Kiyotaka came looking for Yukinoshita Yukino.
"What is it?"
"Hikigaya and Yoshino went missing during a mission. They've been out of contact for two days now." Sweat was pouring down Ijichi Kiyotaka's face.
They had known from the start that there was a possibility of unexpected dangers, but they never imagined that the two wouldn't even get a chance to retreat.
Yukinoshita Yukino's eyes instantly sharpened. "Take me there."
The two hurriedly prepared to leave Jujutsu High, but on their way out, they ran into a white-haired man who had just returned.
"A student went missing? Guess I'll tag along and take a look," Gojo Satoru said with a grin. "If Hayashizaki finds out that his student got into trouble because of a Jujutsu High mission, he'll definitely come after me."
…
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