Nighttime.
Satoru Gojo pushed open the doors to the meeting hall. At a glance, he saw Suguru Geto sitting at the conference table. On the table in front of Geto were a few small side dishes, a bowl of rice, a bottle of sake, and a small white porcelain cup. He was leisurely sipping sake and chatting with Shoko Ieiri beside him. In the main seat of the meeting hall sat Masamichi Yaga, while Atsuya Kusakabe sat nearby with a look of existential doubt on his face.
Gojo grinned broadly. "Suguru! I knew you bastard would come!"
Geto looked up and saw Gojo. Even though Gojo had just achieved the feat of killing Ryomen Sukuna 20 times, there wasn't a trace of fatigue on him. He lifted his blindfold, revealing his sky-blue Six Eyes, the corners of his mouth turned up in a wide smile.
"Yo. I heard a lot about you from Shoko. You've really made some big moves since I died." Geto raised his cup in a distant toast. "It's great to see you so energetic. Yeah, fits my impression of you perfectly... I can't imagine you looking lethargic."
Gojo laughed loudly. "You sure have the nerve to say that! I've only been pathetic three times in my life, and you saw every single one of them clearly. Seeing you again actually makes me a little embarrassed."
Geto's eyes dimmed slightly. He knew exactly when those "three pathetic times" were:
The first was the death of Riko Amanai, where Gojo was nearly killed by Toji Fushiguro. The second was the night he parted ways with Gojo in Shinjuku; Gojo's fierce Six Eyes glared at his back, the anger and confusion from that moment still echoing in his heart. The last time was before his death, seeing Gojo come to send him off. Even though he still had room to struggle, seeing Gojo's face made him suddenly let go and die in relief.
"You don't look 'embarrassed' right now," Geto laughed. "Did you also deduce, like Shoko, that Mahito would resurrect me sooner or later, so you're not surprised by my arrival at all?"
"No, I didn't realize that at all," Gojo admitted frankly. "My view was the opposite of Shoko's. Since your body was already occupied by Kenjaku, I assumed Mahito wouldn't resurrect you out of respect for Kenjaku. I judged wrong. It seems that while Kenjaku and Mahito cooperate happily, their personalities must clash terribly."
Geto and Gojo burst into laughter simultaneously.
Indeed, they didn't get along—so much so that before Mahito even received Gojo's call, he had already resurrected Geto. Geto had no intention of exposing himself and had remained hidden until now. Only when he saw that all conditions for revenge were met did he come to Tokyo High.
On the other hand, Geto was confident his arrival would remain completely hidden. Everyone currently at Tokyo High was die-hard loyal to Gojo Satoru. As long as Gojo decided to help him, Geto's information would be perfectly concealed.
—Until he fully matured and dealt Kenjaku a fatal blow!
Gojo couldn't wait to walk over. He casually grabbed a cup of sake from Shoko's table, ignoring her sudden sneer, and clinked cups with Geto.
The two best friends downed the sake together.
Kusakabe wasn't even surprised anymore. He had even casually leaned his inseparable sword against the wall. Before this, he could never have imagined that a Special Grade Curse User invading Tokyo High would result in such peace.
He had to admit, his worldview was too small.
While shoveling rice into his mouth, he said to Yaga, "I can imagine what a headache you had back then. As the direct superior and teacher of these two Special Grades, your insomnia must have been so bad that sunglasses couldn't hide the dark circles."
Yaga drank his sake silently and said flatly, "I got used to it."
*What a 'got used to it'!* Kusakabe looked blank.
Shoko snatched her sake cup back. "Where are your students?"
"Still fighting in the Dream Migration," Gojo said cheerfully. He bypassed Shoko and sat naturally on the other side of Geto. Even though he was witnessing his best friend's resurrection with his own eyes, his demeanor was even more natural than Shoko's, without a hint of estrangement.
Shoko looked at the sky outside the meeting hall window. Dusk had arrived. "Don't they eat?" she asked.
"Points are omnipotent in that regard," Gojo shrugged. "For just 2 or 3 points, you can enjoy a nutritionally complete set meal for the day. If you're willing to spend ten times the points—10 or 20—you can even eat meals made by master chefs. Even more exaggerated are the 100 and 200 point meals."
Shoko's mouth twitched. "Who's stupid enough to spend 100 or 200 points on food? I remember 100 points buys a resurrection, right? Buying food with your life?"
"For 100 to 200 points, you can enjoy a top-tier state banquet." Gojo smacked his lips, sighing with emotion. "It's really nice."
"So it was you, you prodigal idiot!" Shoko shouted a retort.
Geto clapped gently. "As expected of you, Satoru. But I assume it's also because for Special Grade Sorcerers, 100 or 200 points aren't worth mentioning."
Gojo snapped his fingers, speaking excitedly, "Guess how many points I get on average for fighting Sukuna once?"
Just seeing Gojo's expression, one knew the amount must be incredibly huge. Otherwise, with Gojo's show-off personality, he would have casually dropped a number to humble-brag. The fact that he couldn't even hide his excitement meant the amount was exaggerated even to him.
Shoko thought for a moment and tentatively asked, "Several million?"
Gojo extended a hand, spreading it open. He laughed. "500 million."
Kusakabe, who happened to be wetting his throat with sake, nearly spat it out in shock. He coughed loudly, disregarding the trio's class reunion, and shouted, "Are you kidding? That difference is too huge! I remember the average for a Grade 1 Sorcerer deathmatch is around 5,000? A Special Grade deathmatch jumps straight to 500 million?!"
The gap between Grade 1 and Special Grade was indeed vast, but this was too far! Historically, there were cases of massive numbers of Grade 1 Sorcerers grinding a Special Grade to death. No matter how you looked at it, this point discrepancy was absurd.
Yaga, however, didn't doubt it. He was surprised for only a moment before calming down, saying in a low voice, "Because the two fighting are [Ryomen Sukuna] and [Gojo Satoru]."
One was recognized in history as the King of Curses, also holding the title of [Strongest Sorcerer in History]. The other possessed the Six Eyes and Limitless, holding the title of [Strongest in the Modern Era].
Thinking of it that way, it wasn't strange that a clash and deathmatch between these two levels would generate so many points.
Kusakabe felt relieved. "I suddenly understand."
"The current Sukuna hasn't grown to his prime yet. In fact, our exchanges were very fast because that guy absolutely refused a head-on duel. He didn't even buy an Information Lock. I only needed to use points to confirm his revival location, then continuously spawn-camp his revival spot, forcibly preventing him from summoning his Kogane to lock his information, forcing him to be killed by me uninterruptedly."
Gojo unconsciously tapped the table, musing, "Also, Sukuna is very good at exploiting rules. I could feel his strength growing more or less after every revival. And I can be certain, since my assaults were timely, he couldn't have used Kogane to teleport [Fingers] to recover his strength. So... I can only think of one possibility."
Kusakabe's expression twisted. "You mean, points in the Dream Migration can indeed replace [Sukuna's Fingers] to help him restore his prime?"
"That's right," Gojo nodded, smiling. "Terrible news, isn't it?"
"It's worse than terrible!" Kusakabe clutched his head.
Everyone knew what terrifying consequences this would have: If Ryomen Sukuna could restore the power of his 20 fingers through the Dream Migration, what about the other Special Grade Cursed Objects, [Sukuna's Fingers], scattered within the Dream Migration? Wouldn't that mean Sukuna could hold the power of 40 fingers?!
"The situation is much worse than you imagine," Gojo said indifferently. "Although that guy is a bastard, his mind is sharp. He will definitely use some [Binding Vow] to utilize his extra fingers rather than simply eating them to gain 40 fingers' worth of power—that cost-performance ratio is too low. I think by the end of the year, he'll grow to be even stronger than his prime a thousand years ago."
Kusakabe swallowed hard, unable to speak.
What was Sukuna's combat power like at his peak a thousand years ago? Put it this way: Sukuna single-handedly thrashed the entire world! Including the regular armies of the time, the wild factions, and the gods.
And now, he was going to become even stronger?!
Kusakabe couldn't help but feel pain and fear.
*Clap.* Geto gently clapped his hands, making a crisp sound.
"Alright, alright, Satoru, don't scare people," Geto said with a smile. "After all, no matter how much Sukuna strengthens, since you're saying it like this, you must have your own countermeasures."
Gojo smiled confidently. "At the end of the year, I'll let him know... who the real challenger is!"
Gojo's confidence wasn't groundless. He was truly brimming with confidence. He didn't even put Ryomen Sukuna in his eyes anymore; his true target now was [God Mahito]! If the opponent he was researching was a [God], how could a mere Ryomen Sukuna be a concern?
One could say that ever since he learned of Sukuna's current intelligence from Kokichi Muta, and spent points to purchase the Innate Techniques Sukuna had newly bought, he became convinced that Sukuna posed absolutely no threat to him.
Sukuna's current configuration was completely a low-spec version of [God Mahito]! Could the *Ten Shadows* and *Copy Technique* compare to the infinite techniques created by Mahito's Reverse Cursed Technique [Soul Creation]? Could a perfect sorcerer body with two faces and four arms compare to Mahito's [Soul Creation Dragon Spirit Body]?
It wasn't that Gojo was careless, but from the beginning, Gojo's target was the high-spec Mahito. If he couldn't even step over the low-spec Sukuna, he should just wash up and sleep early, stop calling himself the savior of humanity, and honestly hand the world over to Mahito.
"Enough about me. Let's talk about you, Suguru," Gojo waved his hand dismissively to stop the topic, asking curiously, "Based on my understanding of you, you shouldn't have jumped out so quickly. Yeah, I know you came while I was fighting Sukuna to avoid detection, and you're still in a secret state... but do you still have the motivation to move forward?"
"I thought you were going to talk about helping me control Cursed Spirits to increase my strength," Geto laughed.
"As long as you ask for help, I will help," Gojo suddenly said seriously. "Suguru, as long as you don't fall into darkness again, I will choose to lend a hand. There's no need to discuss you asking me for help."
Geto unconsciously avoided Gojo's Six Eyes.
He was silent for two or three seconds before slowly speaking. "Whether what I did was right or wrong can only be decided by future generations. Regardless of any judgment, I have no regrets... You're right. The current me actually has no attachment to the mortal world. I shouldn't be so actively seeking power to take revenge on Kenjaku. I don't have that strong desire for revenge."
Kusakabe quietly whispered to Yaga beside him, "I remember before Gojo came, he was laying out his revenge plan quite logically."
Yaga knew Geto well and said, "Having desire and doing something are two different things. Suguru Geto could do things he didn't want to do for his ideals of justice in the past. And now, he must be carrying a layer of [Justice] on his back that we don't know about."
*So awkward.* Kusakabe's lip twitched.
Geto looked down at his hands, suddenly clenching his open palms tight. "But I cannot tolerate that guy using my corpse, using my voice to deceive and exploit those who followed behind me! I already know. To let my corpse rest in peace, my former followers have all entered the Dream Migration... using their lives to help my corpse rest."
Gojo sighed, understanding Geto's reason.
Geto carried responsibility and duty throughout his life. It was so when he was a sorcerer, it was so when he was a Curse User, and now, returned from death, it was still so. He seemed to have never lived for himself; he was a man who lived for others. Lacking the desire for revenge, he shouldered revenge once again because of responsibility and duty.
"You guy. You really are Suguru," Gojo lamented.
Geto smiled. "I thought you were already sure of that."
Shoko spoke up, "So, are we certain about helping Suguru?"
Gojo laughed. "That's a given!"
He paused, then smiled. "Then, let's talk about intelligence on your main opponent."
This was getting down to business.
Everyone unconsciously straightened their backs.
"After knowing your goal, I immediately used points to check Kenjaku's information and location after dealing with Sukuna," Gojo said in a deep voice. "He is currently in the Tokyo No. 2 Colony, but he bought an Information Lock. I don't know his specific location... but I do know he is actively collecting points."
"He's Mahito's subordinate, right?" Shoko frowned. "I thought at least he wouldn't personally participate in the Dream Migration, because it's meaningless, unless..."
"They've already fallen out," Geto interjected. "This is very favorable for me. At least killing Kenjaku won't require worrying about pressure from Mahito."
"Killing Kenjaku is difficult. Not only does the Dream Migration's Information Lock hide his specific location, but we also don't know his location in reality," Gojo said. "Because of the Dream Migration, any sorcerer with a bit of ambition has already entered it, and the same goes for sorcerers skilled in searching outside. We don't have the manpower to collect Kenjaku's location in reality."
"Can't you buy it with points?" Kusakabe asked.
"Regarding personal information in reality, unless you use the [Finite Infinity], it's not provided. Not just sorcerers, even ordinary people are off-limits," Gojo said. "However, you can buy fake IDs—no, not fake, but a special ID card processed by a legitimate agency—through points."
Kusakabe sighed inwardly: *Don't give me strange privacy protection in a place like this! Even the Americans had PRISM, how does this Cursed Spirit boss have more integrity than the Americans? Who is the Curse here?!*
"We don't need the [Finite Infinity] at all," Geto suddenly said coldly. "Tengen turned into a 'Curse-like' form after a thousand years. I don't believe Kenjaku can maintain a human identity. He must be the same. As long as I find an opportunity to weaken him, even in the Dream Migration... he won't escape my *Cursed Spirit Manipulation*!"
This was something even Gojo hadn't thought of. "Is that... possible? He's using your corpse. At least to us, he still looks human."
"Open his brain, and you can see his fragile [Brain]," Geto said with certainty. "That brain form isn't a standard [Body Hopping Technique]. I'm sure my judgment is correct."
"How can you be sure?" Shoko asked.
"In the exchange list, there is a [Body Hopping Technique] technique," Geto pointed to his head. "To defeat your enemy, especially when you are at a disadvantage, you must understand his intelligence in detail. I think I've done these preparations quite well."
Gojo whistled.
Don't think that just because Geto was solo-killed by Yuta Okkotsu in the original work (Volume 0), he was arrogant or careless. On the contrary, he valued intelligence highly. When Yuta first transferred to Tokyo High in the original work, Geto sent Cursed Spirits to test him. The spirit Yuta and Toge Inumaki fought together was specifically released by Geto to check Yuta's skills.
It seemed dangerous for Yuta and Inumaki at the time, but they were actually in no danger because if there were danger, Geto would have personally saved them.
So why was Geto solo-killed by Yuta in the original work? Because Yuta was hacking!
Geto completely failed to anticipate that Yuta could improve to such a level in such a short time. During the battle, he expressed surprise at Yuta's power increase more than once. Especially in the final beam struggle—who could have thought a Maximum Technique, second only to a Domain Expansion, would lose a beam struggle to a raw Cursed Energy blast that was simply brute-forced? Geto's heart must have been full of doubt about the world at that time.
"Conveniently, I'll collect some low-grade Cursed Spirits in the real world," Geto said slowly. "I will enter the Tokyo No. 2 Colony. The moment my spirits discover him, he won't be able to leave my sight."
"So confident," Gojo laughed.
"It's been a long time since we cooperated, Satoru," Geto also laughed. "Let me... do this one last thing well."
*This time... we won't fail.*
—At the same time, Tokyo No. 2 Colony.
Fumihiko Takaba looked at the comedy stage in front of him, covering his cheeks with his hands in shock, and shouted loudly, "I know! This is *Kasou Taishou* (Masquerade), right?!"
"That's right, it's *Kasou Taishou*!" Kenjaku laughed loudly, then suddenly his face turned gloomy. "Wait, what the hell is *Kasou Taishou*?! What on earth is your technique!"