The rain kept falling.
Neither of them moved for a second.
Then—
Yuji Itadori charged.
No hesitation.
No plan.
Just conviction.
Across from him, blade low and steady—
Toji Fushiguro.
First Impact
Yuji's fist came in fast—strong enough to shatter concrete.
Toji tilted his head slightly.
The punch grazed his cheek.
Yuji followed with a second strike to the ribs.
This one landed.
Hard.
Toji slid back half a step.
The battlefield watched in stunned silence.
Yuji wasn't afraid.
He was furious.
"You don't get to decide who deserves to live!" Yuji shouted as he attacked again.
Toji blocked the next blow with his forearm.
The impact cracked the ground beneath them.
"Naive," Toji replied calmly.
Close Quarters
Yuji threw a kick.
Toji caught it mid-air.
For a split second—
It looked almost like a father stopping a reckless child from running into danger.
Then Toji twisted.
Yuji crashed into the ground violently.
Before Yuji could recover, Toji's blade stopped one inch from his throat.
Rain dripped down the metal.
"You're strong," Toji said quietly.
"But strength without clarity is self-destruction."
Yuji glared up at him.
"Then teach me!"
That sentence froze the air.
Something Unfamiliar
For a brief moment—
Toji saw Megumi.
Small.
Defiant.
Looking up at him.
Yuji grabbed Toji's wrist suddenly and head-butted him.
Blood sprayed from Toji's forehead.
Yuji rolled away and rushed again.
This time he didn't shout.
He just fought.
Punch.
Elbow.
Shoulder tackle.
Raw.
Unpolished.
Honest.
Toji countered with precision—each movement economical, brutal, efficient.
He struck Yuji's stomach.
Air exploded from Yuji's lungs.
A knee to the chest sent him skidding across wet stone.
But Yuji stood up again.
And again.
And again.
The Father-Like Brutality
Toji stepped in faster now.
A sharp backhand cut across Yuji's cheek.
Not deep enough to kill.
Just enough to hurt.
Toji spoke while striking.
"Emotion won't save people."
A body blow.
"Promises won't fix systems."
A sweeping kick.
"You need power."
Yuji wiped blood from his mouth.
"And you need to stop running from grief!"
The words hit harder than the punches.
Toji's next strike came faster than before.
He grabbed Yuji by the collar and slammed him into a broken pillar.
Stone shattered.
Yuji coughed blood.
Toji leaned close.
"You think I'm running?"
His voice was dangerously low.
"I'm finishing what they started."
The Edge of Decision
Yuji, barely conscious, looked back at him.
"If you finish it like this…"
"…your son would hate you."
Silence.
The blade trembled slightly.
Just slightly.
Behind them, Yuta Okkotsu watched carefully, ready to step in.
But he didn't.
Because this wasn't just a fight.
It was a collision of beliefs.
Toji slowly released Yuji.
The boy fell to his knees, gasping.
Not dead.
Not defeated.
But broken.
Toji turned away slightly.
"Get stronger," he said coldly.
"Then talk about justice."
The rain washed blood from both of them.
But something had shifted.
The Sorcerer Killer had fought many enemies.
But this was the first time—
It felt like he was fighting a son.