The echo of fists still rang across the cracked walls of the subway.
Itadori and Choso stood opposite each other—both bloodied, both panting, both refusing to fall.
Their battle had escalated to an entirely different level:
Blow for blow.
Technique for technique.
A contest of wills.
Choso's blood attacks were relentless, ranging from Piercing Blood to devastating spirals and waves that flooded the tunnel. But Itadori kept coming, refusing to fall. His fists were raw, his muscles screamed, but his heart never wavered.
"You keep standing…" Choso muttered. "Even after all this…"
"I don't have a choice!" Itadori shouted, blood dripping from his chin. "Because if I fall, everyone else will die!"
Choso charged again, this time with a spear-like stream of blood.
Itadori dodged—barely—and with the last of his strength, tackled Choso into a wall.
Breathing heavily, his hand clutching his ribs, he said—
"I didn't want to kill your brothers."
Choso paused.
"I really didn't," Itadori continued, eyes trembling. "I never wanted to take a life. But… I had no other way. They were killing people. And I…"
He gritted his teeth.
"…I hated myself for it."
Silence.
Just the sound of dripping blood and distant collapse.
Choso stared into Itadori's eyes—searching for deceit, malice… but found none.
Only grief.
Only truth.
"…You cared?" Choso asked.
Itadori nodded. "More than you know."
A long silence passed before Choso chuckled.
"Unbelievable."
He wiped the blood from his face, stood tall, and smiled faintly.
"You're nothing like them. But somehow… you remind me of them."
He turned away, blood energy retreating into his body.
"…Fine. I'll let you live, Itadori Yuji."
Itadori looked shocked. "What?"
"I don't forgive you. But I understand you."
Choso's eyes glinted.
"And from now on… I'm on your side. Whether you want me or not."
And with that, Choso disappeared into the darkness, his allegiance shifted—drawn by something stronger than hate:
The weight of shared loss.
The bond between brothers.
Even if broken.
Itadori leaned against the wall, breath ragged, mind spinning.
"Did… that just happen?"
He smiled weakly.
And then, he pressed forward—toward Kenjaku, toward the prison realm, and toward the next battlefield of Shibuya.