Tokyo Jujutsu High, Yeyama Foothills.
"Satoru."
"Hm?"
Satoru, still on alert, turned to Suguru.
"You've worked hard."
Standing beside him with one hand on his hip, Suguru spoke in a calm, gentle voice.
"Ah."
Satoru let out a sigh, then casually changed the topic.
At the same time, the Six Eyes beneath his sunglasses dimmed, no longer glowing faintly.
The black market bounty had expired.
And they had safely arrived inside Tokyo Jujutsu High, protected by layers of barriers.
The escort mission was essentially complete.
However, the darkest moment always comes before dawn.
To everyone's disbelief…
A sharp blade pierced through Satoru's chest.
He counterattacked immediately.
Suguru also acted instantly, summoning a Cursed Spirit to swallow Toji.
"Satoru!"
After the worm-like Cursed Spirit devoured Toji, Suguru ran toward the wounded Satoru.
"I'm fine. It avoided vital organs, and I reinforced myself with Cursed Energy in time."
Kneeling on one knee, Satoru stood up as he explained, not wanting Suguru to worry.
To illustrate his point, Satoru compared it to a needle passing through a knitted sweater.
"More importantly, you should protect Amanai and the others. Take them to Tengen first."
Suguru heard the forced composure in Satoru's voice.
But seeing Amanai Riko and Kuroi Misato's worried expressions, he knew that Satoru's plan was the best course of action.
"Be careful."
With those words, Suguru left with Amanai and Kuroi, heading toward the Tombs of the Star.
Meanwhile Toji, having spat out Ogama, drew the Split Soul Katana and cut the worm Cursed Spirit into pieces.
He had used an ordinary knife earlier to prevent the cursed tool's energy from being detected by the Six Eyes.
Though he failed to kill Satoru in one strike, he had still inflicted damage.
Fatigue and pain would now constantly affect Satoru throughout the upcoming fight.
"The star plasma vessel kid got away?"
Toji scanned the area, looking for traces.
At the same time, Satoru was trying to figure out where Toji had acquired his cursed tools and Cursed Spirits.
"The bounty was withdrawn, you idiot."
"Oh, that? I canceled it myself."
Toji smirked.
"If I hadn't set a deadline, you would've kept your Technique up the entire time, wouldn't you?"
The Inverted Spear of Heaven could forcibly nullify Limitless and harm Satoru.
But as a Special Grade cursed tool, its energy couldn't go unnoticed by the Six Eyes in an open area like before.
"Ah, I see. Then come at me."
Realizing the fight was inevitable, Satoru grinned wildly, a rare excitement in his voice.
He hadn't encountered an opponent of this caliber in a long time.
He's fast, so…
Satoru raised both hands, and at his command, the maximum output of Blue obliterated everything within his field of vision.
In an instant, the area within tens of meters was cleared of obstructions.
A smart move, but...
Hiding in the trees, Toji patted Ogama.
Ogama understood and opened its mouth, releasing a swarm of Fly Heads.
Thousands of them swarmed around Satoru.
The interference severely disrupted the Six Eyes' perception.
Satoru prepared to cast another Blue to clear them out, but suddenly paused.
Why hasn't he attacked?
If the goal of the Fly Heads is to block my vision, why isn't he making his move?
If he doesn't attack, I'll just eliminate them.
The moment of hesitation struck.
He was the one who issued Amanai Riko's bounty. His real target was her all along.
Realizing this, Satoru turned to run toward the Tombs of the Star.
But at that moment, Toji appeared behind him.
I fell for it.
Toji had already switched to the Inverted Spear of Heaven.
Unaware of its abilities, Satoru had no time to respond. He could only strengthen his Limitless defense.
The next moment, Limitless was forcibly canceled, and the Inverted Spear of Heaven pierced through his neck.
Satoru tried to fight back.
But Toji had the initiative. He unleashed a flurry of blows, pushing Satoru to the brink of death.
"Finally getting my touch back."
Toji turned and walked toward the Tombs of the Star.
An unspeakable sense of satisfaction surged through him, the thrill of trampling the Jujutsu world that had once looked down on him.
Not long after Toji left, a figure appeared where Satoru had fallen.
Emiya knelt by Satoru's battered body and placed a red gem on him.
Although he trusted Eichi's intelligence and knew this was part of Satoru's Awakening...
His gentle nature still made it hard to leave Satoru like this.
The red gem glowed softly, healing the fatal wounds on Satoru's neck and forehead.
After that, Emiya vanished once more.
Inside the Tombs of the Star, Suguru spoke gently to Riko.
"Through the gate. At the base of the large tree, there's a barrier different from Tokyo Jujutsu High. Once you're inside, Tengen will protect you until the assimilation ends. Or... you can turn back now and go home with Kuroi."
Seeing Riko's stunned expression, Suguru slowly revealed the decision he and Satoru had made.
Even if it meant going against Tengen, they would protect her.
"I..."
Tears welled up in Riko's eyes, her voice trembling.
"As expected, I still want to be with everyone... I want to stay with everyone..."
The next moment, she lost consciousness.
Suguru turned in shock to the figure standing behind her.
Toji reached out and caught the unconscious Riko.
"Why? Why are you here?"
Suguru asked, his voice shaking in disbelief.
Satoru lost?
That was the truth he didn't want to accept, but already understood.
"Put Amanai down."
Suguru attacked at once, trying to retrieve her.
Toji retreated while carrying Amanai in his left arm and fended off Suguru with a slash from his right.
Behind Suguru, Rainbow Dragon, Kuchisake-onna, and a Special Grade Cursed Spirit emerged.
Toji appeared unfazed.
"Hey, I already caught the brat. How am I supposed to kill her again? There were so many requirements, I forgot."
More enemies!
Suguru instantly sensed the shift.
"Oh my, how did you notice me?"
Seeing this, Medea stopped hiding and stepped into view.
Although they were currently in conflict, everyone here would eventually become comrades.
Kenjaku hadn't entered the Tombs of the Star. When Toji defeated Satoru, Kenjaku ran into his own opponent.
As for Tengen? Not worth considering.
Suguru and Satoru were already prepared to fight her, so she didn't matter anymore.
"I didn't know. I just took a guess, and you came out on your own."
(To be continued.)