It was from Masamichi Yaga.
Probably knowing he was busy, Yaga hadn't come in person and had only sent a text.
It simply read: "You'll be the acting homeroom teacher for the first years."
Seems Yaga had finally decided the time was right and informed him of the class he'd be teaching just before the semester started.
But this also made things clear to Roy.
"The Root said this world lost an important figure, which is why it's become so prickly. But there aren't many truly important figures to begin with—Ryomen Sukuna, Kenjaku, Satoru Gojo, and maybe Yuji Itadori and Yuta Okkotsu... That makes it obvious who's missing!"
What a shame.
To think the important figure this world had lost was Satoru Gojo.
Roy had been looking forward to sparring with Gojo, the once-in-several-centuries prodigy who possessed both the Six Eyes and the Limitless Cursed Technique.
He'd even planned to pick up a thing or two about Limitless.
Guess that chance was gone now.
"But Sukuna's still around. That should be interesting."
Roy replied to Yaga with a "1," then summoned an assistant supervisor and took their car to the Shinkansen.
"Even if it's just the strength of a single finger, I'll see for myself just how capable the protagonist of The Legend of Sukuna really is!"
Can you beat me?
Or will your Cleave cut me in half?
I can't wait.
...
"You're Yuji Itadori?"
Sendai City Hospital.
Fushiguro Megumi chased after the boy carrying residual cursed energy, sprinting at full speed but failing to catch up until they reached the hospital. Panting heavily, he finally spotted the boy at the nurse's station.
The boy was a high school student of average height, appearing no older than fifteen or sixteen. His loose clothing made his frame seem slender, with light brown eyes and a similarly colored unruly mop of spiky hair. His pure, untainted gaze gave him an almost translucent quality, as though he harbored no wicked thoughts whatsoever. Yet his expression was somewhat blank, making him look a bit simple-minded.
"Uh, yeah? Who are you?" asked the light-brown-haired boy, Yuji Itadori, eyeing Megumi's strange uniform with confusion.
"I'm Fushiguro Megumi from Jujutsu High. No time to waste—hand over the cursed object you're carrying!"
"What the hell are you talking about?"
"...Fine."
Megumi sighed deeply.
This kid's physical abilities were absurdly strong. While not on par with Roy's level, he was probably even better than Maki. Plus, this was a crowded hospital—Megumi preferred explaining things here and having him surrender it willingly.
As for the confidentiality clause in Jujutsu Regulation Article 8... desperate times called for desperate measures. A Special Grade cursed object was too critical; no one would fault a minor breach.
"Cursed object? A curse?" Yuji's eyes flickered with concern.
Was this guy not all there?
"Look, telling me this stuff doesn't help."
Though Yuji suspected Megumi might be a little unhinged, his urgency was obvious. Digging into his pocket, Yuji pulled out a wooden box and handed it over.
"It's just an empty box. The seniors from the Occult Club took what was inside. Said they'd unseal it tonight... Is it something dangerous?"
"...It's the kind of thing that kills people."
Megumi stared at the empty box, his stomach dropping.
The residual cursed energy he'd been chasing belonged to the box—the actual Special Grade object wasn't even on Yuji Itadori.
"..."
"..."
The two blinked at each other in silence.
Then, in unison, they bolted out of the hospital, sprinting headlong toward the school.
"Seriously, is this guy okay in the head? And if I'm running along with him, does that mean I look crazy too?" Yuji mused worriedly as he effortlessly leaped several meters up a flight of stairs.
But the moment they reached the school, such thoughts melted away like spring snow.
An overwhelming pressure radiated from the building, every muscle in his body instinctively tensing.
"Stay here. Do NOT go inside!" Megumi barked, his face rigid.
Without another thought, he dashed into the school, leaving Yuji behind with that warning.
At the same time, he clasped his hands together, forming an intricate seal. Moonlight cast the shadow of his gesture onto the ground, shaping into the silhouette of a dog.
"Divine Dogs!"
From the writhing shadow emerged two canines—one white, one black, each half the height of a person.
"Devour every curse in sight!" Megumi commanded.
The black and white dogs charged down the school corridor in unison.
In the corridor, countless cursed spirits were wandering back and forth, as if searching for something. Each had an extremely abstract appearance, and each exuded the stench of curses.
These were all cursed spirits drawn by the special-grade cursed object.
Originally, the seal couldn't have been broken by ordinary people, but as it gradually weakened over time, a normal person managed to undo it. The special-grade cursed object itself contained an immense amount of cursed energy—any cursed spirit that consumed it would instantly gain power comparable to a special-grade cursed spirit. That's why these cursed spirits had gathered here like elderly folks rushing to a morning market.
"If that special-grade cursed object gets eaten by any cursed spirit, it'll be disastrous. We have to find it before that happens!"
Megumi rushed to the fourth floor of the school building—the place with the densest cursed energy—using his Black and White Divine Dogs to clear the way.
A massive, fleshy cursed spirit covered in countless hands was tightly clutching a male and female student in its embrace. Like a stray cat that hadn't eaten in years finally spotting food, it showed no intention of letting go and was on the verge of devouring them.
The female student was gripping a grotesque, crimson finger that looked like it belonged to some demonic entity. The finger appeared as though it had endured the passage of millennia, exuding an aura so unsettling that even those unaware of cursed energy would instinctively sense its overwhelming danger.
"There's no time!"
Just as Megumi's heart leaped into his throat—
CRASH!
The corridor window shattered as a boy with light brown hair kicked his way in from outside, landing a solid blow on the massive cursed spirit.
"This is the fourth floor!" Megumi's eyes widened.
There was nothing outside—no platforms or footholds to leverage.
Did he just jump straight up to the fourth floor from the ground?
What kind of physique is that?
Though utterly baffled, Megumi didn't lose his composure. He immediately commanded his Divine Dogs to charge forward, tearing into the cursed spirit that Itadori Yuji had just knocked over.
"So this is that special-grade cursed object? What's the big deal about this thing, anyway? Why are so many monsters after it?"
Itadori gently set the two students aside and examined the crimson finger in his hand. The moment he got a clear look at it, his face twisted in disgust.
"Man, that's ugly..."
"That's the special-grade cursed object—one of Sukuna's fingers. Consuming it grants immense cursed energy, which is why cursed spirits fight over it. Just hand it over quickly so I can seal its presence."
Relieved that the cursed object hadn't been swallowed by the spirit, Megumi finally let out the breath he'd been holding.
"Got it, here you go."
Itadori nodded repeatedly, extending the finger toward Megumi.
He didn't want to hold onto that thing for a second longer.
Disgusting.
Megumi stepped forward, reaching for the finger.
His focus was entirely on the cursed object, the imminent retrieval lulling him into dropping even the most basic vigilance.
BOOM!
Everything went black.
When his senses returned, Megumi found himself blasted clean out of the building.
A gaping hole had been punched through the wall, debris scattering everywhere.
He'd been hit—hard.
The force of the blow had shattered the wall and sent him flying onto the rooftop of the adjacent school building.
If he hadn't instinctively reinforced his body with cursed energy, that single strike would've turned him into paste.
"I let my guard down… Never expected a cursed spirit that could phase through walls..."
Wincing from the pain wracking his entire body, Megumi let out a bitter chuckle.
Phasing through walls was a trait of weaker cursed spirits.
Their forms were unstable, existing between the physical and the intangible, allowing them to bypass solid barriers. Stronger cursed spirits couldn't do that—but then again, they didn't need to, since they could just smash through walls outright.
"Itadori—!"
Megumi had just snapped back to his senses when he saw Yuji grab at the cursed spirit charging toward him, only to be sent flying by a backhanded slap from the creature.
"Stop! You don't have cursed energy—you can't hurt a cursed spirit! Get back and let me handle this!"
No sooner had he spoken than he tried to stand, only to be met with sharp stinging pain throughout his body, forcing him back to the ground.
"Dammit!"
As a jujutsu sorcerer, he was supposed to be the one protecting Itadori Yuji, an ordinary person. Yet here he was, collapsed on the ground while the civilian was trying to save him. The frustration welled up inside him.
"Isn't this cursed energy?"
Yuji stared at the crimson finger in his hand.
Recalling Megumi's words, a wild grin flashed across his face before he unhesitatingly swallowed the finger.
Megumi was stunned.
A chilling sensation, as if possessed by a demon, coursed through his entire body in an instant.
A cursed spirit consuming a cursed object was entirely different from a human doing the same!
"What courage this boy has."
At that moment, a composed third voice reached Megumi's ears.
He froze momentarily before instinctively turning his head.
There, standing beside him as if he had teleported, was a white-haired boy with crimson eyes.
"Roy-sensei... you finally made it..."
Seeing the boy, who appeared no older than himself, Megumi's tension, which had been as turbulent as a rollercoaster, finally eased completely. A look of relief spread across his face.
"Yep, I'm here."
Roy gave Megumi a reassuring smile.
In truth, he had arrived some time ago.
He just hadn't revealed himself.
Only after Yuji swallowed the finger did Roy make his entrance, pretending to have just arrived as he appeared beside Megumi.
Roy reached out and placed his hand on the back of Megumi's neck. As his magical energy surged, a warm current flowed into Megumi's body.
Instantly, Megumi felt his injuries healing at a visible rate. Within just a second, his wounds had completely vanished—even the gashes had disappeared without a trace. The faint stinging pain seemed like nothing more than an illusion.
"Is this... Reverse Cursed Technique?"
Megumi stared at Roy in disbelief.
And not just any Reverse Cursed Technique—one capable of healing others?
In the entire Japanese jujutsu world, he only knew of two people who could perform such a feat!
No, in fact, there were only two people who could do this!
"HAHAHAHAHA! After a thousand years, I have returned to this world once more!"
But then, a voice brimming with unbridled arrogance erupted from the other side of the rooftop.
"Where are the women? Where are the children? I want to eat human flesh! I want to kill! This era is truly wonderful—humans are as plentiful as maggots! No matter how many I eat or slaughter, they'll never run out, HAHAHAHA!"
Yuji stood there.
Beneath the glow of the moon, he uttered words so cruel they defied belief.
Upon closer inspection, his shirt had been torn apart at some point, revealing dark markings covering his body—even his face. Most strikingly, beneath the corners of his eyes, a second pair of eyes had emerged. He had already begun transforming into something monstrous, exuding an aura of brutality and overwhelming cursed energy.
"That is no longer the boy originally known as Yuji Itadori..."
Megumi stood up from the ground, his gaze fixed on the boy with unwavering resolve.
"He has become the vessel of the King of Curses, Ryomen Sukuna—the strongest curse in history. According to jujutsu regulations, he should be exorcised as a curse..."
Yet despite his words, his eyes were filled with inner conflict.
"What you're saying doesn't match what you're thinking."
Roy sympathetically patted his shoulder.
Having just been saved by the boy, only to turn around and kill him—that was too cruel for a fifteen-year-old to bear.
"Leave this to me!"
With those words, Roy stepped forward confidently.
"Yuji, can you hear me now?"
He smiled warmly at "Yuji," as if trying to engage in conversation.
Megumi couldn't hide his astonishment. That was already a vessel—there should be no self left, no possibility of dialogue—
"A jujutsu sorcerer?"
The curse inhabiting Yuji's body—Ryomen Sukuna—suddenly stopped laughing and turned to Roy, his four eyes narrowing like a lion locking onto prey.
"Coming to me already? Jujutsu sorcerers are always such pests, no matter the era. Don't you understand who stands before you? The King of Curses himself! This brat's consciousness couldn't possibly—Huh? I can hear you!"
Sukuna froze in shock.
That voice just now—it came from his own mouth?
This kid's consciousness was still present?
Seeing this, Megumi's expression brightened slightly, a glimmer of hope appearing in his eyes.
"Good. Don't switch back yet—let me have a word with Mr. Sukuna here."
Roy's expression remained unchanged, completely unfazed by Yuji momentarily regaining control. He simply smiled and continued.
"Eh?? But having someone else in my body is disgusting!"
"Don't worry, it'll be over soon."
Still smiling, Roy slowly extended a single finger.
Then, he pointed that finger directly at Sukuna.
"...Jujutsu sorcerer, what do you think you're doing?"
Sukuna's eyes narrowed dangerously, his entire aura condensing but not yet unleashed.
A wave of threatening energy rolled toward them.
"Can't you tell?"
Roy tilted his head slightly, wiggling his finger in confusion.
"It's just one finger. Right now, you only have the power of one finger, don't you? So to be fair, I'll only use one finger against you."
"Ah, but I believe you originally had twenty fingers? Would that make this unfair? Should I use only half a finger to be more considerate?"