Jujutsu Kaisen: Nozomi no Sora

The train rumbled rhythmically on the tracks, and the scenery outside the window rushed past, gradually changing from the buildings of Tokyo to the mountain shadows of the outskirts of Kyoto.

Yuji Itadori, Megumi Fushiguro, and Nobara Kugizaki ultimately failed to come to Kyoto.

The victims of the "Eighty-Eight Bridges Incident" appeared earlier than expected.

On the other end of the phone, Gojo Satoru's voice carried his usual laughter, but the background noise was like a bustling market.

"It was definitely the right decision to let Xuan Yi go with the second-year students first. The other three have been arguing non-stop the whole time!"

"I feel like things are going on like this, and I haven't had much of a chance to get along with everyone properly. This really isn't good!"

Genichi said with some hesitation, his gaze unconsciously drifting to the window. He really felt like a deserter, sitting on the Shinkansen to Kyoto while his companions might be in danger.

"No problem, everyone's busy with their own things, so this is quite normal. Besides, everyone understands why you went to Kyoto. If you don't believe me... Hey! Genichi is sending his greetings from Kyoto!"

Unsurprisingly, a chaotic argument then came from the other end of the phone.

"Huh? What is this guy showing off? Get out of the car! Get back here right now, you idiot!" Kugizaki Nobara's voice was extremely penetrating, and you could feel the anger that was about to lift the ceiling even through the receiver.

"Don't be like that. Unlike you, Kugizaki, Genichi went there on a mission!"

"What do you mean 'different from me'?! What are we doing standing in the sun in front of these kids' school? Why should we be treated differently, you snot-nosed brats!"

"What do you mean by that? It's infuriating!"

……

Hearing these words, Xuan felt extremely embarrassed and wished he could hang up the phone right now.

"That's how it is. Everyone's still paying a lot of attention to Genichi!" Gojo Satoru said with a grin, his tone full of schadenfreude.

"I always feel like I'm being deliberately used as a punching bag by the teacher..." Xuan Yi said with a wry smile.

"How could that be? Haha, hahaha..."

It was intentional, wasn't it...?

"That's all for now. Have fun in Kyoto, bye-bye!"

The phone hangs up.

Xuan Yi put down his phone and let out a long sigh.

"So in the end, only the three of us are left to represent us?"

The panda squeezed its round body further into the seat, resting its paws on the armrest, its tone tinged with helplessness. Beside it sat the dog, Curly, who had remained silent the entire time; the latter merely nodded in agreement.

"That Maki guy, she agreed beforehand, but then suddenly changed her mind at the last minute. She probably still doesn't want the Zenin family to see her!"

Xuan Yi remained silent; he naturally knew why Maki didn't want to come to Kyoto.

Her body, "Heaven and Curse," left her with almost no magical power, no spells, and no ability to even see cursed spirits with her naked eye.

In the Zen school system, which relies on spells and incantations, this is practically considered "useless."

Once she sets foot on Kyoto's soil, the rotten roots of the Zen family, who seek to humiliate her, will swarm her like sharks smelling blood.

Rather than dealing with those troubles, it's better to just ignore them.

The train entered the tunnel again, and the carriage was briefly plunged into darkness.

Xuan Yi stared at his reflection in the glass window. His face, belonging to a seventeen-year-old boy, was reflected on the glass, his eyes revealing a weariness and profundity that did not match his age.

The four major natural disasters.

In this timeline, which has been completely disrupted by his intervention, Louhu died at the hands of Gojo Satoru, and Hanami was exorcised during the exchange meeting.

Now, only one relatively weak Tuogen remains in the ranks of the top-tier cursed spirits, and its whereabouts are unknown.

Su Nuo's fingers and the Nine Phases of the Cursed Embryo Diagram remain safely stored in the High School's artifact warehouse. Because the real person's sneak attack failed, the High School has significantly strengthened its defenses.

Most importantly—the real person has been sealed away.

Lu Suo could no longer absorb the "inaction transformation" of real people through the spell manipulating spirits, and naturally could no longer use this technique to mark ordinary people or to launch the cruel ritual called "Death and Annihilation Return".

Without this crucial piece of the puzzle, even if the millennium-old sorcerer had successfully sealed Gojo Satoru, it would have been meaningless.

"...At least until Halloween, things should be calm."

Xuan Yi thought to himself silently.

Not long ago, Nanami Kento extracted a lot of information from the captured curse master, Shigemitsu Haruta. The High School had already sent people to Tōsō's hiding place to hunt him down, but just now, Gojō Satoru told him some bad news—

"They've all run away!"

Although it was a pity that Lu Suo escaped, the other party would not dare to make any major moves in the short term.

As for the Eighty-Eight Bridges incident...

Xuan Yi's gaze darkened slightly.

Since the Nine Phases of the Cursed Embryo Diagram wasn't stolen from the High School by the real person, the bloating phase, the decay phase, and the bloodstained phase naturally didn't appear at the Eighty-Eight Bridges. Theoretically, the danger level of this incident should be significantly lower than the original storyline.

The problem is that it touched on Fushiguro Megumi's sore spot—his sister, Fushiguro Tsuki.

He was determined to resolve the matter personally, and Itadori and Kugizaki naturally couldn't stand idly by.

Although Genichi was also a first-year student, he was forcibly "squeezed out" of the mission list by Gojo Satoru due to the mandatory rule that "at least one first-year student must send a representative to participate in the Kyoto condolence activity".

No wonder the wild rose harbored such resentment...

After nearly an hour's journey, the group finally arrived at their destination.

The underground facilities of the Kyoto Prefectural Higher School of Jujutsu were as dark and damp as ever.

Led by the geisha, the representatives from the Tokyo school walked through a long corridor to the hidden basement. The air was filled with the mixed smells of disinfectant and old machinery.

Inside the room, a boy whose entire body was wrapped in white gauze sat in a specially made wheelchair, without a right arm or lower limbs.

That is Singi's true form.

The group learned from the songstress about the final punishment the High School would give Singi:

Firstly, the promotion assessment for Level 1 Sorcerers will be postponed indefinitely.

Secondly, confiscate all remotely controlled combat puppets;

Third, he will be confined to the Kyoto school for six months, during which time he must undertake the tasks of maintaining the barrier, organizing intelligence, and providing logistical support.

Fortunately, this incident did not cause any substantial losses to the college. In addition, Singi actively cooperated with the investigation and provided a lot of information about the Cursed Spirit faction. Considering all factors, such punishment can be considered relatively lenient.

Seeing so many people all at once, Singi instinctively felt a little wary, her fingers unconsciously gripping the armrests of her wheelchair, her eyes darting away.

However, that awkwardness quickly disappeared. Even though it was the first time everyone had seen his true face, they were all classmates who had spent every day together—whether through the screen of the mechanical pill or through their usual battles, they were already familiar with each other's voices and souls.

"Yo, Mechanical Maru... no, I mean, Sinji!" The panda was the first to step forward, waving its paw in a carefree manner. "Finally met you in person! You're thinner than I imagined!"

"Shut up, you mere doll..." Singi's voice was soft, hoarse from being away from the sun for so long, but the moment that familiar retort came out, the atmosphere immediately relaxed.

The wariness in Singi's eyes was gradually melting away.

Looking at his companions who had come all the way from Tokyo specifically for him, and seeing the complete lack of suspicion in their eyes, he finally revealed the first and truly joyful smile of his life.

The smile pulled at the bandages on his face, making it look somewhat awkward, yet incredibly genuine.

After the visit, everyone except Xuan Yi, who had come with a mission, and his teacher, An Geji, left.

The air in the basement quieted down again.

"As for Singi, I only recently mastered the techniques of the True Man, and I'm not 100% sure I can restore you to normal. After all, correcting the outline of the soul is a very delicate matter, and I don't know to what extent I can do it."

Xuan Yi revealed his concerns.

Without the slightest hesitation, he and Singi...

"Hurry up, Nishio-kun. We've come this far, there's no way I can give up. After all, the worst outcome is just..." He thought for a moment, then gave a bitter smile, "Sorry, I shouldn't have said that."

He had already promised everyone that no matter what he looked like in the future, he would still be confident that he could stand with them. Even if he spent his whole life walking alongside them in that mechanical body, he would feel that it was a very lucky thing. In fact, his obsession with that thing had faded a lot.

Xuan Yi silently placed his hand on his forehead.

The curse power slowly seeped in, and Xuan Yi closed his eyes, focusing intently on sensing the outline of Xin Ji's soul.

It was a fragmented form, roughly torn apart by "Heaven and Curse".

"Transformation through non-action".

Everything went even more smoothly than I had imagined.