The countdown kept ticking.
179 Days
23 Hours
59 Minutes
45 Seconds…
Yuji stared at the glowing numbers in front of him. They floated in the air like a clock that only he could see.
Six months.
Whatever had happened during that strange flash of light had done two things.
It had taken away most of his cursed energy and sent him sixty-eight years into the past.
Yuji slowly closed his eyes.
He instinctively expanded his senses.
Nothing.
No domain.
No strange cursed technique.
No distortion in space.
Everything felt completely normal.
Which made it even more disturbing.
"This isn't a dream."
Yuji opened his eyes again.
Hospitals always had a specific smell: disinfectant, medicine, and quiet anxiety.
He knew that smell well.
Too well.
Memories flooded his mind.
One name echoed louder than the rest.
"Grandpa…"
Yuji turned toward the nearby nurses' station.
Two nurses were speaking quietly.
One of them suddenly picked up the phone. "Hello?"
She paused for a moment before replying.
"Yes, this is Nurse Sajisawa speaking."
Yuji's body froze.
Sajisawa.
He remembered that name.
His gaze sharpened as he listened.
"Ah, Yuji Itadori?" the nurse continued.
"Yes, that's right. You called earlier asking about your grandfather."
Yuji's heart skipped a beat.
The voice on the other end was faint, but he could still hear it.
A teenage voice.
His voice.
"I see… you want to know if his condition has changed?"
Nurse Sajisawa nodded slowly while listening.
"Alright, please hold for a moment. I'll go check on him."
She hung up the phone and sighed.
"Mr. Wasuke Itadori never presses the nurse call button," one of the other nurses muttered.
"That's what makes it scary."
Several nurses nodded quietly.
Nurse Sajisawa turned and walked down the hallway.
Yuji stood there, completely still.
Wasuke Itadori.
His grandfather.
The man who raised him.
The man whose last words had changed his life forever.
But that was impossible.
Grandpa died a long time ago.
Yuji quietly followed the nurse.
Each step felt heavier than the last.
If this was real…
If this truly was the past…
Then that meant—
Grandpa was still alive.
They stopped outside a hospital room.
Nurse Sajisawa knocked gently.
"Mr. Itadori?"
A loud, irritated voice came from inside.
"What now?!"
"Your grandson called," the nurse replied calmly. "He asked if you need him to bring anything."
A grumbling sound followed.
"That brat worries too much."
The old man's voice softened slightly.
"Tell him to go to his club activities."
Yuji's breathing stopped.
That voice.
He knew it.
He had heard it in his memories thousands of times.
"I'll visit tomorrow evening," the teenage Yuji said quietly through the phone.
Nurse Sajisawa nodded.
"Understood."
Inside the room, the old man shouted again.
"Go already! All of you stop bothering me!"
The nurse flinched slightly.
But before she could respond—
A hand gently touched her shoulder.
She turned around in surprise.
Yuji stood there.
His hood still covered most of his face.
"I'll take care of it," he said softly.
Nurse Sajisawa blinked in confusion.
Before she could ask anything, Yuji stepped past her and entered the room.
The moment he walked in—
The old man's voice suddenly stopped.
The hospital room became silent.
Wasuke Itadori lay on the bed.
White hair.
Wrinkled face.
An oxygen mask rested near his side.
Old.
Fragile.
Yet unmistakably the same man Yuji remembered.
For a long moment, neither of them spoke.
Wasuke narrowed his eyes.
"Hm?"
His sharp gaze scanned the stranger in the hoodie.
But then something unusual happened.
The old man's expression softened.
The anger in his face slowly faded.
It was as if some instinct told him this person meant no harm.
Yuji stepped closer.
For nearly seventy years, he had carried the weight of regret.
Regret that he never had enough time.
Regret that he couldn't save everyone.
Regret that he couldn't go back.
But now…
He had.
Yuji slowly removed his hood.
The old man stared at him carefully.
"Kid…"
His voice sounded confused.
"Have we met before?"
Yuji smiled.
A warm, gentle smile he hadn't shown in decades.
"Not yet."
He pulled a chair beside the bed and sat down.
Outside the room, Nurse Sajisawa peeked through the small window in confusion.
Something was different.
Wasuke Itadori was famous among the hospital staff.
Bad-tempered.
Stubborn.
Impossible to deal with.
Yet now…
He was completely calm.
Meanwhile, inside the room—
Yuji looked at the old man who had raised him.
For the first time in seventy years…
His chest felt lighter.
"Grandpa," he whispered softly.
Wasuke frowned.
"What did you call me?"
Yuji chuckled quietly.
"Nothing."
But inside his mind, countless thoughts raced.
If this was truly the past…
Then everything could change.
Junpei.
Nanami.
Gojo-sensei.
Choso.
Everyone.
Maybe…
This time…
He could save them.
But suddenly—
The glowing countdown appeared again before his eyes.
179 Days
20 Hours
13 Minutes
02 Seconds
Yuji's smile slowly disappeared.
The numbers were still decreasing.
Which meant one thing.
This second chance…
Had a limit.
And whatever waited at the end of that timer—
Was something even the strongest sorcerer in history needed to prepare for.
Yuji leaned back slightly in his chair.
A faint spark of determination ignited in his eyes.
"Six months," he murmured quietly.
Then he looked at the old man again.
For now…
He would enjoy this moment.
Because this time—
He would not let fate take everything from him again.