Tokyo Metropolitan Jujutsu Advanced Academy was tucked away on the western edge of the city, hidden within a sparsely developed forested area.
From a bird's-eye view, it could hardly be called a "school." To the untrained eye, it looked more like a centuries-old temple, steeped in tradition and mystery.
It was 7:25 a.m., and the bright spring sunlight spilled over the wooden railings of the second-floor corridor of Hachiman-Style Butsu-ji Temple. Leaning against the railing, a tall girl with dark purple hair, clad in the academy uniform and bearing the poised aura of a kendo practitioner, gazed down at the distant campus below. She set her phone aside and exhaled softly.
Footsteps echoed behind her.
Although she could identify the person merely by the sound of their steps, her kendo instincts compelled her to glance back.
Stepping out of the room was a black-haired boy with a spiky haircut, also wearing the academy uniform, followed by a tall athletic student whose hair was dyed in two tones—wine red on top, black underneath.
What drew the eye, however, were the faint lines beneath the athletic student's eyes, almost giving the illusion of two more closed eyes lying in wait.
Their gazes met midair. The spiky-haired boy raised his hand first, offering a greeting.
"Good morning, Senior Dokujima."
"It's Fushiguro… and…"
Saeko Dokujima nodded lightly, then fixed her gaze on the dual-toned student behind him.
"Ah, good morning, Senior. I'm Itadori Yuuji. I'm in the same class as Fushiguro."
The athletic student scratched his head and gave a straightforward introduction.
"Hello."
Saeko smiled politely. She remembered him—he had been brought in just a few days ago by Gojo-sensei. As far as she knew, he was the only person to have consumed two of Sukuna's fingers and survived, retaining his own consciousness.
Incredible, yes… but it had nothing to do with her.
Unlike the other students at the academy, who usually operated in three-person squads, she had been maintaining a solo record since enrollment, completing all missions alone without outside assistance.
Getting to know an extra underclassman would only create unnecessary social obligations, so there was no reason to engage further.
The conversation paused, and the corridor fell silent. After two or three seconds, Fushiguro broke the silence.
"Senpai… you looked like you were lost in thought just now. Did something happen?"
"…Sort of."
The junior initiated the conversation, and Saeko could only shake her head, unlocking her phone and switching to the forum page.
"Remember the post from last night about someone night-fishing and finding a Sukuna finger?"
"Yeah, I remember. You contacted them immediately, right? Did you manage to retrieve it?"
"Unfortunately… no."
Saeko shook her head again.
Just as she was about to show the chat records, Itadori, curious, leaned in to interrupt.
"The Sukuna finger? That's the one I ate, isn't it?"
"Correct."
Saeko glanced at him calmly.
"Gojo-sensei should have mentioned this. There are twenty Sukuna fingers in total. Six are already in the custody of the Jujutsu Association. The one you consumed is just one of the twenty."
"Ah, got it…"
Itadori nodded, but Fushiguro suddenly shoved him aside, urgency threading his voice.
"So what's happening now?!"
These weren't just any cursed objects—they were fingers of the two-faced Sukuna. Each alone was classified as a special-grade cursed object. Once unsealed, any curse within several kilometers would converge on it, vying to claim it.
Just like the first day he and Itadori had met—half an hour after unsealing, the entire school had been swarmed by curses.
Yet now, Saeko claimed they still hadn't recovered it.
That post had been from last night, and the picture clearly showed the finger with its seal already broken. If no jujutsu specialist had collected it overnight…
Fushiguro dared not imagine the consequences.
Never mind the chaos the unsealed finger would have attracted; the poster might already be…
"The person replied before you all came out."
Saeko's offhand remark snapped Fushiguro back to reality.
Wait, they replied? That means they're alive?
"See?"
She opened the private messages and displayed the chat to the two juniors.
Fushiguro squinted, holding his breath. On the screen were seven simple characters:
—Hello, I am Qin Shi Huang.
"…What the hell?" The spiky-haired boy's eye twitched.
The reply indicated that the poster was fine, yet it was clear they didn't take the messages seriously at all.
"This is going to be troublesome," Saeko muttered. "Normally, people in this situation won't believe any follow-up messages, so I plan to report it directly to the principal…"
"Wait wait wait—what are you talking about? Reporting to the principal?"
A light, teasing voice cut in from nearby.
Looking in the direction, a tall young man with white hair and sunglasses strolled down the corridor, waving as he approached.
"Gojo-sensei?"
Itadori blinked, surprised, then quickly pointed to Saeko's phone.
"Oh, right. Yesterday someone posted on the school forum about finding Sukuna's fingers…"
"Huh?"
At that, Gojo's slow gait accelerated like triple-speed. Within a few seconds, he arrived beside them, took the phone, skimmed the chat, and let out a quiet "Ah."
"So it looks like the person is alive, just not believing our messages. But we actually prepared for this from the beginning of the forum."
"Prepared?"
"Remember the identity verification when registering? Every user goes through it, yes. But academy personnel—including you students—have an extra step. That step grants you temporary admin rights, letting you view the verified identity of the other party."
"Wait, so basically…"
"From a certain perspective, yes. But still… it's rare for someone to survive a whole night carrying two of Sukuna's fingers without incident."
Gojo manipulated the phone, muttering as he worked.
Soon, after gaining temporary admin privileges, previously hidden information appeared when they clicked on the user's profile.
His eyes scanned the lines until he suddenly froze at the real-name field.
After a long pause, he clicked his tongue.
"Ah…"
"What is it?"
Itadori leaned in, but Gojo's hand stopped him.
Returning the phone to Saeko, Gojo's usual playful grin returned. He waved his hand dismissively.
"All set. The person is from Koma Academy. Saeko, wait until after school and arrange to contact them yourself."
"…Understood."