Having made a decision that would shape her entire life, Riko was still riding the rush of it.
They lingered in the hot spring a little longer before finally getting out and heading for dinner together.
"I heard they're serving venison tonight," Gojo said as he walked at the front of the group, sliding the thin wooden door open. "I'm actually looking forward to it."
The moment the door parted—
A blade flashed into view.
Cold, sharp steel appeared right in front of him, aimed straight at his chest.
"Hey, old man," Gojo said, glancing at the blade that had been stopped dead in place by the Limitless Cursed Technique, hovering inches from his body. He curled his lips into a faint smirk at the black-haired man standing before him. "That's pretty rude, you know."
"Hm?"
"What's going on?"
Geto leaned out from behind him, peering ahead. The instant he saw the situation, his expression changed.
But someone reacted even faster.
The moment Gojo spoke, Betty had already moved.
Without hesitation, overwhelming mana surged forward. Crystalline purple arrows formed in an instant and shot toward the man like a storm.
The man's response was just as sharp.
The instant his blade was halted by an unseen force, he retreated. As he moved, the long sword in his hand slid straight into the mouth of the Cursed Spirit coiled around his body.
In the next heartbeat, a strange, short dagger appeared in his hand.
Gojo's eyes narrowed.
He recognized it immediately. The serpent-like Cursed Spirit wrapped around the man was an extremely rare type, one with a storage space inside its body.
But that wasn't what caught his attention.
What mattered was the man himself.
When he appeared, Gojo hadn't sensed him at all.
No presence. No trace of Cursed Energy.
Not even a flicker.
The moment the man grabbed the dagger, his large frame moved with unnatural flexibility. He bent sharply at the waist, twisting into an almost impossible angle to evade the incoming arrows.
At the same time, he surged forward again.
His target wasn't Gojo.
It was Riko, standing behind him.
"Honestly," Gojo sighed.
He'd seen this too many times. People never backed down without trying first, even when it was pointless.
Watching the man charge again, Gojo didn't move. He stood there casually, without even a hint of defense.
Seeing that, the man's lips curled slightly, as if mocking him.
In a blink, he was there.
The dagger rose and plunged toward Gojo's heart.
"This isn't going to work just because you switched weap—"
Before he could finish, the blade pierced straight through his chest.
No resistance.
No barrier.
It drove deep, straight into his heart.
For a split second, everything froze.
Betty. Geto. Everyone.
They stared in shock.
Gojo had always stood before them as something untouchable. Especially his Limitless, a defense that seemed to reject all attacks.
Betty knew it better than anyone.
Back in her world, whether it was Sin Archbishops with their twisted Authorities or assassins and knights alike, no one had ever found a way past him.
But now—
That absolute defense had been broken.
Even Gojo himself hadn't expected it.
And the man didn't stop there.
He twisted the blade violently inside Gojo's chest, shredding his heart, then yanked it free in a spray of blood and dark fragments.
Without hesitation, he shoved Gojo aside and rushed forward, aiming straight for Riko behind Shoko.
"Hey," a voice called out.
"You're really looking down on me, aren't you?"
The man had already turned to slip past him, but the instant he heard that voice, his body twisted at an unnatural angle.
At the same time, a gun appeared in his other hand.
He fired at Riko.
"Bang!"
The bullet spun through the air—
And was caught.
A long, slender hand closed around it mid-flight.
Gojo stood between him and Riko, blood still fresh across his body.
But the fatal wound that should have killed him… was already gone.
Right before their eyes, the hole in his chest had completely healed. Smooth skin, unbroken, as if nothing had ever happened.
"Now that was a surprise," Gojo said calmly, tossing the bullet aside. "No wonder you switched weapons. That dagger can disrupt techniques, can't it?"
The man tapped his head lightly with the back of his knife, looking almost amused.
"My luck's still terrible," he said. "You can recover from that? Next time I'll just stab your head. That should shut you down for good."
Even after failing, he showed no frustration.
He simply stood there, relaxed, as if none of this mattered.
"What's your name?" Gojo asked, a hint of interest flickering in his eyes.
"Toji Fushiguro."
Gojo nodded slightly, then glanced at Betty.
"Interested?" he asked. "No Cursed Energy, no Domain, but he's strong. Rare kind of opponent."
Betty stepped forward silently, coming to his side. Her gaze dropped to the torn fabric over his chest, to the blood that hadn't yet cooled.
Her eyes darkened.
"I'll handle him."
She had heard everything. She understood how close it had been.
If that attack had been aimed at his head instead of his heart…
Whether he'd be standing here now was uncertain.
The thought made something inside her snap.
"Geto," Gojo said lightly, "take them and go. Clear the area too. Put up a barrier."
"Betty's a little angry right now."
Geto didn't hesitate. He grabbed Riko and Shoko and left immediately.
He didn't worry about attacks from behind.
With Gojo here, that wasn't a concern.
Watching his target leave, Toji didn't move.
Instead, he stretched, loosening his body.
Gojo tilted his head, studying him.
"Have we met before?"
He paused, then shook his head.
"Never mind. If I didn't remember your name, it couldn't have been important."
Toji grinned.
"Sorry about that. Guess I didn't leave much of an impression."
"Doesn't matter," Gojo replied. "Heavenly Restriction, right? No Cursed Energy, but this kind of body."
Toji rolled his shoulders.
"Funny. I don't remember men's names either."
Then—
He moved.
No warning. No buildup.
In an instant, he vanished.
Gojo stayed where he was, not making a move.
But Betty reacted at the same moment.
Purple arrows filled the air, multiplying like copies of themselves, spreading across every direction.
Minya.
Each arrow carried enough power to pierce defenses, freezing time within whatever it struck, crystallizing the body before shattering it apart.
They blanketed the battlefield, sealing off movement.
And that was only the beginning.
A deep violet light burst outward, spreading in all directions.
It didn't damage anything.
But as it expanded—
Toji's figure appeared, already closing in on Betty.
At the same time, intricate patterns spread across the ground where the light had passed, forming a massive magic circle.
The moment it completed—
Gravity surged.
Several times heavier than normal.
Even Toji's enhanced body staggered under the sudden weight.
Heavenly Restriction gave him immunity to Cursed Energy, even letting him slip through barriers.
But this wasn't Cursed Energy.
This was mana.
He was caught off guard.
Before he could adjust, thick black smoke swallowed everything.
Shamak. Minya. Vita.
Three spells, cast instantly, without a single chant.
Once, Gojo had thought Roswaal was like a magical machine gun.
Now, Betty proved herself no slower.
In less than a second—
Toji couldn't move.
The crushing gravity alone was manageable for him.
But Shamak stripped away everything. Sight. Sound. Even his sense of self.
Combined, they turned him into something helpless.
A target.
And around him, countless Minya arrows waited.
From Gojo's perspective, it all happened in one or two seconds.
The world flashed purple.
Then black.
And when everything cleared—
Only fragments remained.
Purple crystal shards scattered across the ground.
All that was left of Toji Fushiguro.
"He's dead," Betty said coldly, staring at the remains.
Gojo let out a low whistle.
"That's my Betty. Took you no time at all."
"Hmph."
She folded her arms, glaring at him.
"And you've got the nerve to joke?"
"Do you have any idea how dangerous that was?"
"When your technique got broken, you could've reacted. If he'd gone for your head…"
Her words came in a rapid stream, one after another.
Every sentence carried the same thing beneath it.
Worry.
"Relax, relax," he said, crouching down to meet her eyes. "I know you're worried about me."
"I'm not!" she shot back immediately. "If you died, I'd be stuck here alone. I just don't want to die in a place like this."
Her voice was stubborn, but her reddened eyes gave her away.
"Yeah, yeah, I know."
He smiled faintly.
"I could've reacted, like you said."
"But I knew I wasn't in real danger. That's why I let it happen."
"If it actually mattered, even if that blade could bypass my Limitless, I had ways to deal with him."
He spoke gently, his tone steady as he reassured her.