The battlefield was gone again.
Not destroyed this time—just… emptied.
Like reality had decided it didn't want to remember what had just happened there.
A shallow crater. Scorched air. Residual cursed energy still flickering like dying embers.
And silence.
Yuji was the first to break it.
"…We're alive… right?"
Nobara slowly looked around."…I think so."
Megumi didn't answer immediately.
His eyes stayed fixed on the space where Mahoraga had been.
Where it had stopped being a problem.
"…That's the issue," Megumi said quietly.
Yuji blinked."…What?"
Megumi's expression tightened.
"…We didn't defeat it normally."
Nobara crossed her arms."…We noticed."
Megumi continued, voice lower now.
"…We didn't tame it through adaptation."
"…We didn't subdue it through mastery."
A pause.
"…We erased it using a borrowed authority that doesn't belong to us."
Silence fell again.
Yuji scratched his head. "…Okay, but it's gone, right? That's good."
Megumi finally turned toward him.
"…No."
That made Yuji stop.
Megumi's gaze sharpened.
"…Mahoraga is part of the Ten Shadows technique."
"…If it was killed properly, it becomes a shikigami under control."
Nobara frowned slightly."…And if it wasn't properly killed?"
Megumi didn't hesitate.
"…Then it didn't become tame."
"…It became stored."
Silence.
Yuji's expression slowly changed."…Stored where?"
Megumi's voice dropped.
"…Inside the technique system."
A beat.
Then—
"…Meaning Takeru didn't gain control."
"…He gained a loaded condition."
Nobara slowly turned her head toward Takeru."…That sounds bad."
Takeru adjusted his sunglasses calmly."…It is manageable."
Megumi stared at him.
"…You don't understand what you just did."
Before Takeru could respond—
the air shifted again.
Not aggressively.
Not violently.
But presently.
Like something had returned to awareness.
And then—
a voice echoed inside Takeru's mind space.
Not loud.
Not chaotic.
Just amused.
"…You really are interesting."
Yuji froze instantly."…That wasn't Gojo."
Nobara stepped back slightly."…That definitely wasn't Gojo."
Megumi's eyes narrowed sharply."…Sukuna."
Inside Takeru's mind—
Ryomen Sukuna spoke again.
"…You let me borrow your body for a clean execution."
"…And now the technique thinks it's been resolved."
A faint pause.
Then—
a low chuckle.
"…But it wasn't resolved by you."
Takeru's expression remained still.
"…Explain."
Sukuna's voice softened—almost entertained.
"…That shikigami didn't submit."
"…It was overwritten."
A pause.
Then the part that made everything colder.
"…Which means it may still remember how to come back."
Silence.
Yuji whispered."…That's not reassuring at ALL."
Nobara:"…That's the opposite of reassuring."
Megumi's voice was quiet now.
"…So it's not tamed."
"…It's waiting."
Takeru exhaled slowly.
"…Understood."
Then Sukuna spoke again.
And this time—
the tone shifted.
Not playful.
Not amused.
Just observant.
"…You know…"
A pause.
Long enough to feel intentional.
"…Your control is slipping in interesting ways."
Takeru's eyes narrowed slightly."…Explain."
Sukuna's voice lowered.
"…You didn't fully hand me control."
"…But you also didn't fully retain it."
Silence.
Yuji swallowed."…Wait… what does that mean?"
Megumi answered immediately, almost instinctively.
"…It means their control is overlapping."
Nobara turned sharply."…Overlapping how?!"
Megumi's expression darkened slightly.
"…Like two people holding the same blade."
"…Neither fully commanding it."
Sukuna chuckled faintly.
"…Careful."
His voice sharpened just slightly at the end.
"…If you keep letting me 'help' like that…"
A pause.
Then—
"…One day you might not notice when I stop asking."
Silence dropped like a weight.
Takeru didn't respond immediately.
Not because he didn't understand.
But because he did.
Yuji stepped forward quickly."…Hey—don't talk like that!"
Nobara:"…Yeah, that sounded like a threat."
Megumi's eyes stayed on Takeru.
"…It wasn't a joke."
Takeru adjusted his sunglasses again.
"…Noted."
Sukuna laughed softly one last time.
"…Good."
And then—
silence returned.
But not the same silence as before.
Now it had something inside it.
Megumi exhaled slowly.
"…We need to report this."
Yuji blinked."…Report what part? The 'we accidentally destabilized a legendary shikigami system' part or the 'Sukuna is getting comfortable' part?"
Nobara groaned."…All of it."
Takeru turned slightly.
"…We proceed forward."
Megumi stared at him.
"…You say that too easily."
Takeru paused.
"…It is the only available direction."
Silence.
Yuji sighed."…Yeah. That sounds about right for us."
And somewhere far away—
Gojo's voice echoed again through the cursed network:
"…Ohhh this is getting worse in a fun way."