Inside the Building.
The moment they stepped in, the world felt wrong.
It was cramped even though there was plenty of space.
The darkness was not just blinding but suffocating.
The hallway stretched longer than it should.
Doors lined both sides like watching eyes.
The air was thick, stale, pressing against their skin.
Yuji Itadori cracked his knuckles lightly.
"…Alright. Let's find whatever's inside."
Nobara Kugisaki didn't even look at him.
"Don't slow me down."
Yuji moved toward the rooms on the ground floor.
Each door creaked open with resistance—
Dust.
Broken furniture.
No curse in sight.
Room after room—
Nothing.
Meanwhile—
Nobara walked straight down the hallway.
Her steps echoed sharply.
She was not happy about her mission at all.
At the end—
A staircase was there to lead up.
She paused briefly.
Then—
Started climbing.
"…What a drag."
Her voice echoed faintly.
"I came to Tokyo to live comfortably…"
Step.
"…eat good food…"
Step.
"…wear nice clothes…"
Step.
"…and now I'm hunting curses in some rundown dump."
She clicked her tongue.
"…Unbelievable."
Below—
A door slid open.
Yuji stepped out from one of the rooms near the staircase.
"…Nothing here either."
He looked up—
Noticing her mid-rant.
"…Hey."
Nobara stopped.
Turned slightly.
Annoyed already.
Yuji scratched his head.
"…So wasn't your goal is to get rid of curses?"
Silence.
Nobara stared at him.
Like he just said something unforgivable.
"…What?"
Her tone sharpened instantly.
Yuji blinked.
"…I mean—like—why you became a sorcerer—"
"Don't ask stupid questions."
Yuji froze slightly.
"…Huh?"
Nobara turned fully now.
"Just hurry up."
A dismissive wave.
"I'll clear from the top."
A step upward.
"You work your from the bottom."
Yuji frowned slightly.
"Hey—hold on."
He stepped forward.
"Wait a moment! Let's be serious about this."
Silence.
Nobara stopped.
Slowly turned.
Her expression was not amused.
"…What did you just say?"
Yuji raised his hands slightly.
"I just mean—"
He didn't finish.
He couldn't have finished.
Because—
THUD.
A sudden drop.
A blur of motion.
BAM!
Nobara drop-kicked him straight in the chest.
Yuji crashed backward.
Sliding across the floor.
"…GHH—?!"
Nobara landed cleanly.
Not even looking back.
"…Don't act like you know anything."
She walked back up the stairs.
Each step echoing with anger.
"…I thought you were just some ordinary guy."
"Don't start giving me advice."
Her figure disappeared into the second floor.
Yuji groaned slightly from the ground.
"…What was that for?!"
—Outside the Building—
The air outside was calm.
Peacefully calm.
Not like there was the strongest present in the vicinity.
Satoru Gojo sat casually on a stone slab attached to the wall of the opposite building.
Beside him sat Megumi Fushiguro.
Finger interlocked and sitting gloomy.
Sora leaned against the wall beside Gojo.
Gazing at the sky, trying to find funny looking clouds.
Silence lingered between them.
Sora's gaze shifted slightly.
"…They must have already fought each other by now."
Gojo chuckled.
"Great for Team bonding."
Megumi didn't look amused.
"…That's not bonding."
Gojo leaned back slightly.
"They'll figure it out Megumi. Hey, don't stay sad. You can fight next time."
---
Sora's eyes moved on the building.
"Or they won't."
The wind brushed past them.
Gojo sighed at the statement.
"Sora, you should trust the process. The curses are not strong enough to be a threat to them. It will only take time..."
Gojo paused.
Megumi interjected.
"But Gojo sensei, Itadori has yet to properly control Sukuna. Shouldn't checking on them be important?"
The question made sense.
Why would a normal person be sent to fight a curse when he doesn't know how to sense them.
Unless there was something else in the mixture.
Sora was thinking about the reasons.
"The real test is not for Yuji in the first place."
Gojo explained the true purpose.
"Yuji is fine for the time being. He won't die since the curses are not strong..."
"He was just a normal kid sometime ago. For someone his background, its normal to be frightened. But he wasn't much at all."
Gojo's word put Megumi in a state of recollection.
Sora also nodded at the statement.
" The curse attacked him who was ready to kill him and his friends. He didn't backdown that time. Didn't he?"
Gojo turned to Megumi.
"He is not like you, Megumi. He had no prior experience with curses."
"The real test is simply for testing Kugisaki Nobara's resolve as a sorcerer."
The statement reminded Sora of the interview he had with Masamichi.
"Why test them now and why like this?"
Sora couldn't help but ask.
"The path of jujutsu sorcerers are always filled with death and hardship. Its necessary to have a suitable mindset for the job."
Gojo calmly said.
"Taking your own life. Refusing to socialize. Or even abandoning humanity itself. All these become common."
Megumi and Sora silently listened.
"Nobara is similar to Megumi but testing her is necessary. Her fault may not affect her much but it will affect those around her."
"One of the reasons the jujutsu world faces a considerable shortage in sorcerer is this."
Both Megumi and Sora were silent.
For Megumi, it was not new. It was a well known fact. That's why even 1st and 2nd years were sent to fight high grade curses.
Sora was different.
It was the first time the truth of this world hit him properly.
Even before he came to this world, he didn't find the story all that appealing to be fact checking the lore.
Maybe he should have.