"Bro… broken?"
Saeko Dokusima couldn't believe her ears. After all the negotiating and back-and-forth, this was the answer she got.
She had considered countless possibilities: lost it, sold it, lent it to a friend, maybe even accidentally dropped it down a drain. She'd even mentally prepped emergency plans for every scenario.
But broken…?
She leaned in, holding her breath, scrutinizing the small plastic bag on the table. Inside, the dark brown fragments—some reduced to powder, some still slightly intact—clearly once formed a Sukuna finger. Even in this shattered state, it radiated an unmistakable, lingering aura of malevolence.
Impossible.
Saeko couldn't comprehend it. She hadn't been at Tokyo Jujutsu Academy for long—a little over a year—but she had already reached the level of a Grade 1 Jujutsu Sorcerer. With the influence of the Dokusima-style sword school in Japanese society, she knew a fair bit about the secret workings of the Jujutsu Association.
The Sukuna fingers weren't destroyed for any grand conspiracy. They simply couldn't be destroyed. Every possible method had been attempted, including by the so-called strongest modern sorcerer, Gojo-sensei—yet nothing worked.
Still, leaving them be wasn't an option. Even a single finger left unsealed could attract countless curses, like feeding a cursed parasite, spiraling out of control beyond anyone's ability to contain.
There was no alternative. Sealing it was the best—and only—solution.
And now she was being told it had been destroyed?
Saeko's mouth fell open, and for once, she was speechless.
"How… how did you do it?"
"Strong hands, broken rock," came the boy's blunt, almost crude reply.
"All so-called 'indestructible' things are just objects whose durability hasn't yet met the force applied. Like trying to blow up the Earth with a handgun—it won't work. But if you have a Star-Slaying Blade, that's a different story."
"Also, allow me to reintroduce myself properly: Hanakaiin Tomitaka, de facto head of the Kyoto Hanakaiin family."
"De facto head?" Saeko blinked.
For an ordinary person, the term might sound meaningless. But coming from a prestigious sword family, she immediately understood the weight behind it.
A de facto head could make major decisions when the clan's leader was absent. It required both bloodline legitimacy and undeniable strength. Gojo-sensei himself, despite being the strongest sorcerer alive and shattering the natural balance between sorcerers and curses, had still been powerless against Sukuna's fingers.
Then… Tomitaka had just broken one.
A sudden vibration interrupted her thoughts. Saeko quickly withdrew from her daze, pulling her phone from her school uniform pocket. She didn't bother checking the caller ID before answering.
"Hello, this is Saeko Dokusima, Class 3A, Tokyo Jujutsu Academy. The Sukuna finger recovery operation is—"
"Dokusima! It's me, Idichi! Big problem!"
A somewhat timid male voice came from the other end. He tried to keep his volume steady, but panic leaked through.
"Listen—about an hour ago, I sent Fushiguro, Itadori, and Kugisaki to the location where the 'Window' detected cursed embryos. I lost contact with them after they went in, but just now Fushiguro came out—he brought a seriously injured Kugisaki with him. I'm currently taking her to the hospital—"
"Where exactly?"
Saeko didn't even finish her coffee. She grabbed her sword bag, stood up, and her previously calm tone hardened into sharp decisiveness.
Oh-ho?
Tomitaka noticed the change in her aura, raising an eyebrow.
"The location is…"
Idichi quickly gave the coordinates, adding:
"I wasn't going to call, but Gojo-sensei isn't in Tokyo and won't return anytime soon. Right now, the only Grade 1 sorcerer I can reach in Tokyo is you, Dokusima-san."
"Understood. I'll head there immediately," Saeko said.
"Be careful. According to Fushiguro, the interior is completely abnormal. The curses may have manifested a Domain Expansion. In other words… it's a Special-Grade Curse."
"Got it. Thanks."
Saeko hung up. But as she put her phone away and turned to explain the situation, she found Tomitaka had already paid at the counter and was walking toward her, giving a thumbs-up and pointing toward the exit.
"I know you're in a hurry, so I took care of the bill. Afterward, transfer me half. Money's tight this month—I've got a Hakimi to feed. Can't just buy girls desserts willy-nilly… Let's go. Taking a cab would be too slow. I'll get us there."
Saeko: "…"
Wait—he's coming with me?
Used to handling missions alone, she hesitated. But Tomitaka was right—if she took a taxi, they'd be too late.
She bit her lower lip slightly and nodded.
"Then let's go."
"Mm-hmm."
The two of them stepped out. The sun had sunk a third below the horizon, painting the sky a deep, blood-red hue. Saeko scanned the nearly empty student street left by club activities.
"So… how are we getting there?"
She remembered the path they had walked from Koma Academy earlier.
Tomitaka's calm voice replied:
"Simple. The shortest distance between two points is a straight line. We go straight."
Huh?
Before she could process what "straight line" meant, she suddenly felt herself lifted off the ground, enveloped in blazing golden spiritual energy.
Tomitaka grinned mischievously.
"Then, let's go~"
With a powerful push from his legs, the two shot into the air, tracing a perfect arc as golden tail flames streamed behind them.
Like a radiant comet streaking across the sky.
Seconds later, the meteor-like streak crashed down on a youth training facility in the remote outskirts of Tokyo, smashing through the roof and plunging straight inside.