"You're no longer human," Fushiguro Megumi took a deep breath, knowing he had to exorcise the curse here: "According to Jujutsu law, Itadori Yuji, as a curse, you will be exorcised by me!"
"I'm still myself, really! Besides, the most urgent thing is that we're both injured, so let's go to the hospital first," Itadori Yuji raised his hands, showing that he was still in control of himself.
"I can't tell if it's the curse or Itadori speaking anymore… Damn it, what should I do?" Fushiguro remained in a battle stance but hesitated to strike.
"What's the situation here?"
At that moment, as Fushiguro stood frozen in indecision, a calm voice sounded next to him. He turned and was immediately surprised, "Gojo-sensei, why are you here?"
Standing beside Fushiguro was a tall man, easily over 190 cm, with silver-white hair. His eyes were covered by a black blindfold, obscuring his face, but it was clear his features were sharp and refined.
"Yo!" Gojo Satoru waved casually at Fushiguro and then scanned his body with a smirk. "I wasn't planning on coming, but wow, you're all beat up."
As he spoke, Gojo pulled out his phone and started snapping photos of Fushiguro, circling him as the camera clicked away. "Look here, let's get some shots for the second-year students."
Fushiguro, embarrassed, used his hand to cover his face. Gojo-sensei was always like this—never serious.
"Losing a Special Grade Cursed Object is no small matter. The higher-ups are grumbling, so I thought I'd come by and take a look. So, did you find it?" Gojo asked, putting away his phone, his tone slightly more serious.
Itadori pointed at himself, speaking in a low voice. "Uh, sorry… I ate it."
"Hmm?" Gojo turned to Itadori, half in disbelief, "Really?"
"Really," Itadori and Fushiguro both answered in unison.
Gojo walked up to Itadori, rubbing his chin as he examined him closely, as if inspecting a rare artifact.
"Oh? It really is inside you. Interesting!" Gojo laughed, stepping back. "Any strange sensations in your body?"
Itadori checked himself over and shrugged, "Nope, feels the same as always."
"Can you switch places with Sukuna?" Gojo asked.
"Sukuna?" Itadori was confused. Who was Sukuna?
"The curse you swallowed," Gojo clarified.
"Oh, right. I think I can," Itadori nodded.
"Alright, let's give it ten seconds. After ten seconds, you come back," Gojo said, stretching casually, clearly preparing to face Sukuna.
"But—"
"It's fine. I'm invincible," Gojo interrupted, brushing off Itadori's concerns with the confidence of a man who knew his power.
Gojo then tossed a package of sweets to Fushiguro, "Here, some 'Kikufuku' from Kikusuian, a specialty of Sendai. Super delicious! I especially recommend the edamame cream flavor."
"He actually bought souvenirs before coming here, even when lives were at stake…" Fushiguro thought, speechless.
Suddenly, a dark shadow lunged at Gojo.
Boom!
The ground exploded into a crater, and as the dust settled, Fushiguro found Itadori's face just centimeters from his. Gojo was casually sitting on Itadori's back as Itadori knelt on the ground.
"Hm?" Sukuna, now in control of Itadori's body, suddenly turned and swiped at Gojo, but Gojo dodged effortlessly.
Sukuna, unwilling to give up, launched another series of attacks, but no matter how hard he tried, Gojo dodged every blow with ease, making Sukuna's efforts futile.
"Let me show off a bit in front of my students," Gojo said with a grin before grabbing Sukuna's hand and hurling him into the sky.
As Sukuna flew through the air, he frowned. "Is it his speed? No, that's not it..."
At that moment, Gojo sent a punch flying toward Sukuna, and the impact sent him crashing into the distance.
"Damn it, why are Jujutsu Sorcerers always such a pain in every era!" Sukuna grumbled as he landed, gathering energy before launching himself toward Gojo with a powerful punch.
Boom!
The ground shattered under the impact, and the building behind them cracked open. The force of the blow was immense.
As the dust settled, Sukuna lowered his hand with a smirk. "So, he's not invincible after all."
But just as he finished speaking, the dust cleared to reveal Gojo, completely unscathed, smiling calmly. "That's about enough, don't you think?"
Gulp!
Sukuna's heart skipped a beat. He knew that the original owner of the body was taking control again. "Damn it, not again… I can't stay in control! Who is this Itadori kid, anyway?"
Sukuna's consciousness grew weaker until Itadori fully regained control of his body. "Uh… everything okay now?"
Gojo beamed, surprised. "Well, I didn't expect this. You really can control him!"
"But it's noisy… I can hear that guy's voice," Itadori said, tapping his head, feeling the weight of Sukuna's presence.
Gojo walked toward Itadori, speaking as he approached, "Is that all? Honestly, it's a miracle."
Once he reached Itadori, Gojo lightly tapped him on the forehead. Itadori immediately lost consciousness and collapsed into Gojo's arms.
"What did you do?" Fushiguro finally felt a bit of relief as his body recovered slightly. He had expended so much energy earlier that he was nearly out of strength. If Gojo hadn't arrived, he might have had to fight to the death.
"I just put him to sleep. When he wakes up, if Sukuna isn't in control, then he's likely a 'vessel.' Now, a question: what should we do with him?" Gojo turned to Fushiguro, who was sitting on the ground.
"Even if he is a vessel, according to Jujutsu law, Itadori Yuji is still sentenced to death. But… I don't want him to die," Fushiguro said earnestly, looking at Gojo. The atmosphere became quiet.
"Is this a personal request?" Gojo asked, his face expressionless as he stared at Fushiguro.
"Yes, it's personal. Please, do something," Fushiguro nodded, determined.
"Hahaha! Well, since my cute student is asking so nicely, leave it to me!" Gojo grinned, giving a thumbs-up before carrying the unconscious Itadori away at lightning speed.
"Phew, it's finally over," Fushiguro sighed, looking at the wreckage around him, relieved that the crisis had passed.
Now all he needed to do was escort the two students home.
Meanwhile, Hayashi had already returned to his place. If everything followed the normal course, there shouldn't be any problems. However, if taking Sukuna's fingernail caused other issues, things could get tricky.
Sukuna's fingernail and finger were supposed to be inseparable, indestructible.
Hayashi still didn't know why he was able to take Sukuna's fingernail, but his reincarnated special ability told him that the fingernail would yield a significant number of points.
However, breaking down the black fingernail would take time, and it wouldn't yield those points immediately.
Still, the trip was worth it.