I saw Yuji, Yuta, Megumi, and Choso all staring at me from around the campfire. The flames crackled softly between us, lighting their faces with an orange glow, and for a moment, none of them spoke. There were no lights except the campfire, campfire casted massive shadows on the wall behind them.
Yuji was the first to react.
"Kita-san, you're finally awake," he said with relief, letting out a long breath he must have been holding for a while. He looked at me, his expression far more relaxed than before.
Somehow, his mood had improved again. It must be because Megumi is here, I thought quietly.
I slowly pushed myself up. I felt extremely well rested, and I looked towards Yuta. He seemed uncomfortable under my gaze and rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.
Honestly, comparing the Yuta who had one-tapped me earlier with the Yuta sitting here now felt strange.
"Kita-san…" Yuta began, looking genuinely apologetic. "I'm sorry for knocking you out. As you know, My name is Yuta Okkotsu." He said as he introduced himself.
I nodded slowly.
After that, they began explaining everything that had happened while I was unconscious. They told me about the execution order, about how Yuta had accepted the mission from the higher-ups, and about how things unfolded afterward.
Honestly, I already knew all of it. I knew Yuta had accepted the mission. I knew what he was planning.
But of course, I had to act like this was the first time I was hearing any of it.
So I listened quietly while they talked, occasionally nodding or asking small questions so I wouldn't look suspicious.
After about ten minutes, when they finally finished explaining the situation, I spoke.
"Alright," I said calmly while looking at Yuta. "I forgive you, Yuta-san, but be gentler with me next time."
I deliberately used his name to ease the strange tension around the campfire.
He visibly relaxed when I said that.
At that point, I finally realized how bad my condition had been earlier. Naoya had actually damaged me quite badly. It was probably the adrenaline that had kept me standing during the fight, but after Yuta knocked me out, my body must have completely given up.
Apparently, Yuta used Reverse Cursed Technique on me, on Yuji, and on Choso before dragging all three of us here.
Megumi had arrived shortly afterward as well.
I didn't know why I was the last one to wake up, but I probably took the most damage. And I had the weakest physique of everyone here.
Megumi himself was sitting quietly nearby, looking unusually focused. His eyes were distant, as if he were thinking about something heavy.
I knew exactly what he was thinking about.
His sister.
Right now, his sister was hosting Yorozu, though he didn't know that yet. But even without knowing the full truth, Megumi would still do everything he could to protect her.
After explaining everything, they also told me about their current plan.
And yes… They actually invited me to sneak into Tokyo Jujutsu High with them.
The exact same plan they were currently planning to carry out. Their plan was almost complete.
At first, Megumi had been cautious around me. From his perspective, I had appeared randomly in Shibuya, and there was no reason for him to trust me immediately.
But Yuji backed me up.
From Yuji's perspective, we had only known each other for two days, yet I fought against Naoya and stood in front of Yuta to defend him when the execution order was mentioned.
I must have looked like an incredibly trustworthy person from his perspective.
Honestly, if I didn't know the future events, I probably would have abandoned him long ago. Or if it were some other sorcerer like Kashimo.
I'm not going to lie or deny that. I put my life above all.
I returned from my thoughts and looked around at the group again.
They had invited me.
Which meant something important. This means I am officially part of the main squad.
Hurray!!!
And of course, I accepted immediately.
Not long after that, we set out. We began moving toward Tokyo Jujutsu High while staying hidden as much as possible. Choso explained that we should use the same method Mahito had used when he sneaked past the barriers to steal the Death Paintings and Sukuna's fingers.
As we walked, Megumi, Yuji, and Yuta began filling me in on information they thought I didn't know.
They told me about Gojo-sensei being sealed.
They explained the situation and the beef they had with the higher-ups.
They talked about the chaos that had spread through the jujutsu world after the Shibuya incident.
I pretended to be surprised at the appropriate moments while listening.
A few hours later, we successfully managed to sneak inside Tokyo Jujutsu High.
We entered a basement-like area beneath the school, and that was where I saw them.
Maki and Yuki.
Maki had burn scars covering large portions of her body and face, though she stood firmly despite the injuries. I must admit she looked badass.
Meanwhile, Yuki sat on a couch nearby like some kind of budget mafia boss, casually leaning back as if none of this chaos mattered to her.
Yuji walked forward immediately.
"Maki-senpai? What a surprise."
Yuki waved lazily without even turning around.
I quietly looked at Maki while thinking about something very important.
Should I try to save her twin sister, Mai Zenin?
If Mai survives, Maki never reaches her full potential.
Which means we lose one of the strongest fighters in the future.
That could easily put my own life at risk.
But at the same time…
Abandoning a girl who had suffered her entire life just because I needed a stronger fighter didn't sit well with me.
I sighed quietly. Fine.
I'll decide when we meet Tengen.
If I'm going to drop the information bomb I'm carrying, that's the best place to do it. Explaining everything once is easier than repeating it over and over again. And there I would decide what to do with Mai.
Yuta suddenly rushed toward Maki with obvious concern.
"Maki-san! Is it safe for you to move yet? You were badly hurt… are you alright?"
He began bombarding her with questions about her health.
Damn. What a simp, I thought silently.
Yuki answered instead.
"Not much I could do about the burns. The scars remain, even with Reverse Cursed Technique. Maki-kun survived because her body is extremely durable."
Maki didn't reply.
Instead, she looked straight at Megumi.
"Megumi, how can we enter the Star Tomb? Tengen-sama's barriers block and hides it."
Before Megumi could answer, Choso stepped forward.
"I will explain it." He walked forward calmly. And petted my shoulder.
"On the way to the Tombs of the Star Corridor, there is the forbidden vault that holds Jujutsu High's cursed tools and cursed objects, correct? The remains of my brothers Noranso, Sho-oso, Tanso, Sanso, Kotsuso, and Shoso are stored there."
His voice grew quieter.
"Even if they are only traces, I can sense their location through a side effect of my technique."
Yuki immediately gave a thumbs-up.
"Good!"
Then Maki, who had been watching both Choso and me cautiously from the start, finally spoke.
"That's great, but… who are you two?"
Yuki also turned her gaze toward us, examining me carefully from head to toe.
Yuji spoke up quickly.
"His name is Choso... You could say he is... my older brother."
"YUJI!"
Choso shouted so loudly that my ears rang for a second.
Yuji scratched his head awkwardly.
"And she… she's a friend."
I spoke for the first time since arriving.
"My name is Ikuyo Kita. Please take care of me."
Choso still looked like he had overdosed on happiness because Yuji called him "older brother."
Yuji then clapped his hands together.
"Alright, let's go."
The entire group stood up and began heading toward the Tombs of the Star Corridor.
There was some light conversation as we walked. The architecture itself felt strange and ancient, the walls and pathways looking far older than the modern buildings above us.
Honestly, the environment looked surreal. There was sorcery at work, Honestly this place felt like it could give an orgasm to a background designer. There were blue roots connecting everything.
After about ten minutes of walking, we stopped in front of the room where the Death Paintings were sealed.
Choso looked emotional for a moment.
"I will come back my brothers," he murmured quietly.
After that, we walked toward an elevator and stepped inside.
As the elevator began descending, I looked at Yuki.
"You said this place was thousands of years old… so why is there an elevator here?"
She looked at me and answered in English.
"Good question!"
Then she switched back to Japanese.
"I don't know."
The elevator stopped a few seconds later.
When the doors opened, I immediately noticed blood stains on the floor.
Yuji saw them too.
"Blood stains? Did something happen?"
Yuki then explained what had happened to Riko and the others years ago.
I already knew this story from the show, so while she spoke, I looked around the area instead.
After she finished, Yuki said,
"Alright, everyone, the main hall is up ahead."
Ahead of us was a pure white space.
The entire group began walking toward it in silence.
When we entered the white area, it was so bright that it almost hurt to look at it. Everything was covered in white light, making it difficult to see anything except the silhouettes of the others.
It felt surreal.
Yuji spoke first.
"There's nothing here."
Megumi frowned.
"This is the main hall?"
Yuki sighed.
"No… she's rejecting us. Tengen doesn't normally interfere with reality, but in this situation with six eyes sealed, I thought maybe we could reach her…"
She paused suddenly.
"No wait… It's not that she's rejecting all of us… just me?"
"Well," Yuki said with a shrug, "there's nothing we can do. Let's head back."
Everyone slowly began turning around.
But I didn't move.
I kept staring forward.
A few seconds later, something appeared in the white space ahead.
Tengen.
"Are you all leaving?"
Her voice echoed softly through the empty hall.
"Nice to meet you."
She looked at each of us in turn.
"Child of Zenin. Descendant of Michizane. Cursed Womb Death Painting. Vessel of Sukuna…"
Then her eyes landed directly on me.
Tengen's appearance was strange.
Her head looked elongated, almost like a mummified thumb, gray and disgusting if you ask me.
And then she spoke.
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First time doing a cliff hanger pls rate