Itadori, Megumi, and Nobara froze almost instantly, their eyes turning toward Sol, who sat calmly by the window.
The classroom fell silent.
"Gojo-sensei!" Itadori was the first to react, nearly leaping to his feet. His face was filled with shock and disbelief. "Y... You knew all along? You knew Sol was the one who sealed you?"
Megumi Fushiguro frowned deeply, unconsciously tightening his grip on the pen in his hand. Without looking at Sol, he fixed his gaze on Gojo.
"What exactly happened?" he asked, his voice lower than usual.
Nobara was far less restrained.
She slammed her palm onto her desk and pointed at Sol.
"So it really was you! Why?" Anger, lingering fear, and confusion all mixed together in her eyes.
Gojo Satoru seemed completely unfazed by the tense atmosphere. Grinning as always, he casually swung the leg resting on the podium.
"Of course I knew. Even though I was trapped inside the Prison Realm, I could still vaguely sense what was happening outside."
He tilted his head toward Sol. His round sunglasses slipped slightly, revealing a glimpse of his pale blue eyes.
"Right, Sol? You'd need a lot more than that to completely hide your little stunt from me."
Sol met everyone's gaze without changing his expression.
"Mm."
That was his only response.
His dark red eyes briefly swept over the three first-years, showing no intention of explaining himself.
The simple acknowledgment only made Nobara more frustrated.
"'Mm'?! That's all you're going to say?" she snapped. "Do you have any idea how worried we were? How..."
She struggled to put everything she had felt into words.
"Worried?" Gojo finished for her.
His tone remained light, but his words struck their deepest fears.
"Worried that after I was sealed, you wouldn't be able to handle everything in Shibuya? Worried the jujutsu world would descend into chaos? Or worried Sol might turn against all of you?"
Silence filled the classroom again.
Every concern Gojo mentioned had crossed their minds during the incident.
Itadori opened his mouth to argue that they had been most worried about Gojo's safety.
Then the memories of Shibuya surfaced.
The chaos.
The destruction.
The overwhelming despair.
He could not deny Gojo was right.
The thought of Gojo and Sol becoming enemies during the Shibuya Incident was something he never wanted to experience again.
"Still," Gojo continued, his voice becoming slightly more serious, "things worked out pretty well, didn't they?"
He spread his hands.
"I'm alive, all of you made it back safely, and the Shibuya crisis was resolved. Sure, the process was a little... forceful."
He pointed toward Sol.
"This guy chose his own way of pushing all of you to grow. He even saved every transfigured human. Other than Shibuya getting wrecked, it was probably the best possible outcome."
Gojo clicked his tongue.
"That said, your approach was ridiculously reckless."
A playful grin returned to his face.
"Next time, at least warn me first. My poor heart can't handle surprises like that."
Sol looked at him for a brief moment before replying.
"The situation required immediate action. Informing you would have introduced unnecessary variables."
His answer was as direct as ever.
Gojo dramatically placed a hand over his chest.
"Ouch. That hurts, Sol. You really don't trust your teacher?"
Watching the exchange, Itadori, Megumi, and Nobara became even more confused.
The tension they had carried since Shibuya suddenly felt almost meaningless.
"So..." Itadori asked cautiously, "you're not a traitor?"
"I never said I was," Sol answered.
"Then why..." Megumi finally turned to face him. "Why did you choose that method?"
Before Sol could respond, Gojo answered instead.
"Because it was the fastest and most effective option."
His smile softened slightly.
"Besides, there were plenty of old fossils hiding behind the scenes who were hoping Sukuna and I would kill each other in Shibuya, or that I'd stay sealed so they could make their move."
He smiled knowingly.
"Sol completely ruined their plans."
Gojo looked at Sol again. Although his sunglasses hid his eyes, the scrutiny behind them was unmistakable.
"And thanks to him, I even got a firsthand look at the inside of the Prison Realm. That's a rare experience."
He laughed.
"If I ever have to deal with it again, I'll know a lot more about how it works."
The conversation gradually shifted away from questioning Sol's actions and toward the larger forces operating behind the scenes.
Itadori, Megumi, and Nobara exchanged confused glances.
There was simply too much information to process.
The suspicion surrounding Sol had been cleared, yet his actions and Gojo's attitude only deepened the mystery surrounding him.
"Alright, alright." Gojo clapped his hands together, breaking the heavy silence.
"The Shibuya Incident is over for now. Making it out alive deserves a celebration."
He paused with a grin.
"But before that..."
His gaze swept across the four students.
"Special training continues. After everything you've been through, you should all understand how much stronger you still need to become."
Finally, he looked directly at Sol.
"You too, Sol. Your solution worked, but it came with plenty of consequences."
He pointed toward Itadori, Megumi, and Nobara, who still looked thoroughly overwhelmed.
"The least you can do is properly comfort the classmates you terrified."
Sol looked at the three of them.
After a brief silence, he gave a small nod.
"I'm very good at comforting people."