Lifting my gaze, I caught sight of Satoru Gojo, his usual carefree demeanor replaced by visible irritation. His characteristic pacing back and forth mirrored the agitation he was feeling, while his gaze, alternating between me and Kokichi, glimmered with dissatisfaction.
With his inherent charisma, he began to reprimand us, his words cutting through the tension like a blade.
"I can somewhat understand Sukehiro's antics; after all, he's an even bigger idiot than I was at his age. But you, Kokichi..." Satoru paused, letting his words linger, his gaze flicking between me and Kokichi. "What on earth were you thinking?"
Although the question was aimed at Kokichi, I stepped in to respond, knowing he wouldn't stand up to Satoru.
"Striving for a normal, healthy life and wanting to be happy," I replied succinctly.
My response seemed to only stoke Satoru's ire further. "No one asked you," he snapped angrily.
Observing his uncharacteristic emotional outburst, I couldn't help but feel unsettled. Kokichi, meanwhile, chose to apologize, his head bowed in remorse.
Satoru responded with a weary sigh, as if the weight of our actions rested heavily on his shoulders. "And why are you both such troublemakers?" he muttered, stopping to rub his temples in exhaustion and disappointment.
As Kokichi apologized once more, I remained steadfast in my refusal to acknowledge guilt. "I don't know what you're talking about," I stated firmly. "I saved a person, thanks to whom we now have information about the enemy's plans."
My lips curved involuntarily into a smirk, remembering how Kokichi, without considering the consequences, betrayed me by divulging all the information he knew. No one could have guessed that his first action would be to use me as a human shield in such a critical situation. But it was nothing to me; thus, Satoru paid less attention to Kokichi, and as for me... What could he do? Especially considering the difficult trials that awaited us, and besides, I was his student... Wasn't I?
"Idiot!" Satoru erupted once more, his patience evidently at its limit. "If you're going into a shootout, bring a partner or at least a bigger gun. And what did you do?"
The question was clearly rhetorical, and its formulation made me ponder at what point all of this turned into a Western showdown.
"I sent you a message," my response came quickly.
Clearly displeased, Satoru, echoing me, turned his gaze towards Kokichi.
"Did you hear that? He sent me a message! Well, damn, the bastard knew where he was going and just decided to message me."
Preferring not to engage in argument, Kokichi looked away, perhaps trying to avoid further involvement in the conversation.
"Alright, yes, I'm at fault," he paused, then continued, "I'm guilty of not mentioning Megumi, otherwise you would have responded instantly."
"You've got no conscience," Satoru grumbled, poking me with his index finger as if I were a cat whose tail had been stepped on.
"Stop praising me," my response only elicited a resigned sigh from Satoru, as if he had come to terms with the inevitable, facing yet another unpredictable action from his wayward student.
Don't blame me for acting like a fool when I'm around Satoru. Well, I need to let off steam sometimes, but isn't it better to do it in the company of someone who, if necessary, can handle my outbursts, rather than someone who can't respond to me... That's why I'm taking it out on poor old teacher's behind...
"What's our next move?" Kokichi asked, breaking the momentary silence.
His question prompted a scrutinizing look from Satoru, in which I saw a myriad of complex emotions and concerns.
"What are you talking about?" Satoru asked.
"We need to prevent a terrorist attack at Shibuya Station; that should be our top priority," explained Muta, emphasizing the seriousness of the situation. "With so much information about the enemy and their plans, what actions should we take?"
Satoru, with a slight smile, responded, "I'll need to inform the director. After that, the Sorcerer Council, in collaboration with the magic schools, will devise a plan of action. And you... Well, you're a traitor. Regardless of your motives, I'll have to take certain precautionary measures, so..."
"No," I cut him off sharply.
Satoru looked at me, surprised.
"I said 'no'," I repeated confidently, not averting my gaze from his.
"It seems you don't fully grasp the scale of your actions," Satoru calmly stated.
"And it seems you don't understand the shitstorm waiting for us," I didn't mince words in my response to him.
"Well then, please enlighten me," Satoru offered ironically.
"Let's say you report everything to the Sorcerer Council. You prepare, gather Sorcerers from all over the country, defend Shibuya, and take on guard duty. What will this group of curses under the leadership of... someone, do then?" I boldly expressed my thoughts, keeping my eyes fixed on Satoru.
At my last words, Satoru frowned deeply. He clearly didn't like the fact that we had seen Suguru Geto alive with our own eyes.
"They'll either take the risk and start acting according to their plan, or they'll refuse to execute it altogether," Kokichi commented on my musings first.
"What's the conclusion then?" I turned to him.
"We'll save hundreds of lives and prevent the collapse of the Sorcerer society," Muta quickly added.
"We'll lose the initiative," Satoru remarked, as if reading my mind.
"If we disregard the fact that we never had the initiative, then you're right," I agreed with him for the first time all day.
"No," Kokichi shook his head incredulously, unwilling to believe in the discussed plan. "Are you joking? Are you ready to sacrifice the lives of ordinary people in the fight against curses?"
"It's strange to hear such words from someone willing to sacrifice the lives of their comrades for the sake of a 'healthy body'," I sarcastically retorted.
"If what you said is true, then, having prepared, we'll scare these guys off. Which means that next time, and there will be a next time, they'll catch us off guard, and everything you've told us won't matter," Satoru succinctly explained his point of view.
"Who said they'll definitely be scared to execute a plan they've spent months preparing for?" Kokichi still insisted on his point.
"The fact that they left the sole witness of all their misdeeds alive," I interjected. "The person who took over Suguru Geto's body decided to spare you, fully aware that you'll spill everything to us. So, he's prepared for the worst-case scenario, where he'll have to scrap his dear and intricately laid-out plan."
— By the way, this also proves that he's willing to take the risk and carry out the terrorist attack in Shibuya, even considering our awareness," added Satoru.
"Eliminate Satoru Gojo... I don't think he'll be able to resist such a temptation," I chuckled in response.
"Especially when we're serving myself up on a silver platter to him," Satoru smirked.
"You guys are insane," Kokichi muttered doomedly.
"However, that doesn't mean we can't prepare," I tried to reassure him, patting his shoulder. "Among our small team, we already have the "Strongest", the "King of Destruction", and a cheerful robot. Add two more, and we've got ourselves a real "Mighty Rangers" team.
"Two more?" Kokichi looked at me questioningly.
"In Japan, there are four special grade Sorcerers, not just the two of us," realizing who I was talking about, Satoru reminded Muta of this simple fact that many had started to forget lately.
"Tsukumo Yuki and Yuta Okkotsu," whispering these two names, Kokichi fell silent for a couple of seconds, then his eyes lit up brightly, and he continued. "If four special grade Sorcerers really work together in a team, then..."
"No way," I stated categorically.
"No way," Satoru smiled confidently.
"The destructive potential of each of us is greater than that of a carpet bombing. Working as a team will only restrain us," I explained to Kokichi, so as not to confuse him.
"Agreed," Satoru nodded, then raised his palm, showing two fingers. "Firstly, Sukehiro and I will be enough to eliminate all enemies, so it doesn't make sense to throw a nuclear bomb on top of all this. Secondly, Yuta will greatly assist us in rescuing non-Sorcerers, and Yuki, in turn, can provide backup for the Sorcerers who will arrive in Shibuya on October 31st."
"Maybe we should still think about the plan?" Kokichi insisted. "What you two suggested is cool, but have you even thought about what will happen if one of you can't handle it?"
"I am the strongest," Satoru replied shortly.
"You heard him, he'll handle it," I couldn't help but smile.