Shiro's eyes slowly opened as he saw Kiyotaka and Yuki sitting next to his bed. Yuki was asleep beside him, her head resting on Kiyotaka's shoulder.
Shiro smiled slightly, thinking, 'I see how it is.'
Kiyotaka looked at him and said, "Looks like you're finally awake."
Shiro slowly got up and said, "Yeah. I am."
Kiyotaka then asked, "How are you feeling?"
Shiro smiled and said, "I'm fine."
Shiro's face then darkened, and he said, "Thank you for saving me, Kiyotaka and...I'm sorry about..."
"Don't be. You didn't kill Gojo-Sensei. You were made into Sukuna's vessel against your will."
Kiyotaka said this firmly as Shiro nodded, saying, "I know. I meant... I'm sorry for not taking you with me when I left the White Room."
Kiyotaka looked surprised as he said, "Logically, leaving me there produced a reality where Sukuna and Kenjaku are dead. That is a good thing."
Yuki's eyes opened as she saw Shiro and smiled, saying, "It's good to see you again."
Shiro stretched his arms and said, "Yeah. It looks like you two have been getting along pretty well while I've been unconscious."
Shiro said this, and Yuki went red in the face, shouting, "You jerk! I know what you're implying! You said it like that on purpose, didn't you?"
Shiro laughed softly and said, "And if I did?"
Yuki glared at him as she grabbed his shoulder and slowly started draining his heat as he pulled away, shouting, "Okay, okay. I'm sorry."
Yuki smiled as Shiro said, "You grew up to be a tyrant. Where's the sweet girl who was my friend?"
Yuki smirked and asked, "Ah, yes. The sweet girl whom you were manipulating under the false motive of friendship to up your chances at survival."
Shiro paused and said, "Exactly."
Their banter grew sharper and more playful, until one sound broke it—laughter.
They turned to see Kiyotaka laughing slightly as they looked shocked, and Shiro said, "It's been so long since I've seen you express anything, let alone a laugh."
Yuki smiled and said, "He's come a long way since back in the White Room."
Kiyotaka gave them a warm smile and said, "It's a good feeling."
Kiyotaka looked to Shiro and asked, "Would you like to meet the woman who helped me save your life?"
Shiro nodded, saying, "Yeah. I should thank her as well."
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Choso was sitting next to Tsukumo as he asked, "I left for a while to help Kiyo. Sorry, it took me a while to get back. How are you?"
Tsukumo smiled, saying, "I'm fine. Don't worry so much."
Tsukumo grinned and said, "Your little brother managed to take down Sukuna. That was pretty awesome."
Choso held his face in his hand, saying, "I'm... just so proud of him."
"Are you crying?"
Tsukumo asked this as Choso said, "No. I'm... just really proud of him."
Tsukumo smiled, thinking, 'He's way too cute sometimes.'
That's when they heard a knock at the door as Choso walked over and opened it.
Kiyotaka was standing there as Choso smiled, saying, "Come in."
Kiyotaka, Yuki and Shiro walked into the room as Shiro walked over to Tsukumo and bowed, saying, "Thank you for contributing to saving my life."
Tsukumo smiled and said, "Hey. Hey. It's fine."
Yuki looked at Choso and asked, "You and Kiyotaka seem really close. We never got the chance to talk things through properly during those 2 months. Who are you exactly?"
"I'm his older brother."
Choso said this as Yuki and Shiro both deadpanned.
Shiro sighed and said, "That Kenjaku guy, huh?"
Choso nodded, saying, "Yes. It's through his blood that Kiyo and I are connected."
Yuki smiled and said, "Kiyo? That's so adorable! I love it."
Choso then asked, "Kiyotaka told me you two were in the White Room with him. Childhood friends. Right?"
They nodded as Choso smiled, saying, "Thank you for being his friends."
Tsukumo slowly got up onto her feet and walked over to Kiyotaka and then asked, "So, Kiyotaka. What kind of woman is your type?"
Yuki stared at Tsukumo for a second suspiciously when Kiyotaka answered by pulling Yuki closer to him.
Tsukumo looked surprised before saying, "You got good taste."
Yuki blushed, saying, "Um, well... Kiyotaka and I are..."
Kiyotaka put a hand on her shoulder, saying, "You don't have to be tense."
Yuki bowed to Choso and said, "My name is Sakurako Yuki. I'm interested in Kiyotaka romantically."
Choso looked to Kiyotaka and asked, "How do you feel about this, Kiyotaka?"
"I feel the same."
Kiyotaka said this as Yuki smiled, thinking, 'He really feels the same way.'
Choso smiled, turned back to Yuki and said, "Then please treat my younger brother well."
Shiro stared at Kiyotaka and Choso, deadpanning as he thought, 'Both Tsukumo-san and Yuki have the same first name and hair colour. These two really are brothers, aren't they?'
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Kiyotaka walked over as Megumi and Nobara flagged him down.
"What's happened?"
Kiyotaka asked this as Nobara asked, "You know how you helped Yuta get Gojo-Sensei's eyes transplanted and told him to use Rika to copy Limitless?"
Kiyotaka's eyes sharpened as he asked, "Are you telling me that he didn't do that? Did he..."
Megumi nodded, saying, "He ate it himself."
Kiyotaka sighed, saying, "He didn't have to take it that far."
They walked into the room as Yuta was sitting there with his bangs hanging over his face.
Kiyotaka sat down and said, "You're not a monster. I already told you that the role will be filled by me."
Yuta looked to him, his new blue Six-Eyes glowing were in the dark, and said, "Eating Gojo-Sensei's fingers to copy Limitless... I feel like a Curse."
Kiyotaka put a hand on his shoulder and said, "You're not a Curse."
That's when Maki walked in and shouted, "Yuta! Stop acting like you're some kind of monster or I'll beat some sense into you!"
Yuta sweated and said, "Uh... Maki-san?"
She glared and said, "You're not the only one who signed off on you eating his fingers. I was there too. I know how much you struggled and how disgusted you were when you did it. If you blame this on yourself again, I'll..."
Yuta laughed softly as he said, "You're as cool as always, Maki-San."
She blushed and shouted, "Stop saying stupid things all of a sudden, you idiot!"
Kiyotaka sat there thinking, 'I've become a third wheel', before he slowly got up, silently left the room and closed the door as Megumi and Nobara were waiting outside.
He sighed and said, "Those two are definitely going to get married soon."
Nobara nodded, saying, "I give them 6 months before they're engaged."
They walked together as Megumi said, "8 months. Okkotsu-Senpai is shy when it comes to these things."
Kiyotaka shook his head, saying, "I bet 6 months and that Maki-senpai will take the lead."
Nobara grinned, saying, "Oh? Got it."
Megumi then said, "Speaking of bets, has anyone seen Hakari-Senpai?"
Nobara then said, "He and Kirara-Senpai went on a cruise with all the money he won from betting on Ayanokoji to beat Sukuna."
Megumi deadpanned, saying, "Why did I expect anything less?"
Nobara then asked, "Should we organise a grave for Gojo-Sensei?"
Kiyotaka sighed and said, "I wonder how he would feel about that, though."
Megumi nodded, saying, "He'd probably have been mad at us if we made it before the fight happened, but now... I'm not sure."
Nobara sighed, saying, "I wonder how he's doing on the other side -- --- -----."
Every student under Satoru Gojo and Utahime Iori knew a truth they would hide from the rest of the world.
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1:00 pm, United States, New York City, January 1st 2019.
Utahime began panting as she shouted, "Hey! Slow down! How are you so fast while in a wheelchair?"
She was chasing after a man in a wheelchair who shouted, "Look! I can see it from here! The Empire State Building! It's huge!"
Utahime caught up huffing and puffing as the man smiled and said, "Aw, you're so weak that you can't keep up with a guy in a wheelchair, U-ta-hi-me."
Utahime looked annoyed as she shouted, "Shut it, Satoru!"
Gojo smiled. His eyes were now the same colour as Yuta's, and he said, "Thanks for all of this, Utahime."
Utahime sighed and said, "It's fine."
"I could've sworn that I would die. Lucky me that Ui Ui reacted so quickly, and that girl Hiyori is so good at Reverse Cursed Technique Output. It's a good thing you were there to help boost her output, too."
Gojo said this as he then added, "Nitta-kun was a great help too. Managing to halt everything from getting worse. He's probably the only reason I'm still alive."
[Hiyori stared at Gojo's body in horror, saying, "He's... been cut in half!"
Nitta rushed over, applying his Cursed Technique to both halves of Gojo's body and said, "My Cursed Technique is stopping it from getting worse, so he won't die. Please hurry!"
Utahime looked at Hiyori and said, "Please save him. Please."
Hiyori steeled herself, chanting, "Fourth Wall."
A mental barrier formed in her head, allowing her to think logically and preventing her from panicking.
Hiyori got ready, thinking, "Do I even have the Cursed Energy to do this? Maybe 51% chance of success?"
She took a breath as she put her hands on Gojo's torso and began outputting Reverse Cursed Technique as the flesh and veins knit back together.
Utahime didn't just stand there idly. She began her dances and chants. Not a single step, hand sign or incantation was done with anything less than perfection.
Hiyori felt the change and thought, 'I... just might be able to do this!']
Gojo sighed and said, "Though it's kinda annoying that Kiyotaka prepared all that, since it means he believed there was a chance that I would lose."
Gojo squinted and said, "Yuta's eyes make everything look like it's in low resolution. Guess that makes sense, though. I don't have the Six Eyes anymore."
Utahime hugged Gojo from behind and said, "I was so desperate. I really thought you were going to die. You idiot."
Gojo smiled and said, "Sorry, Utahime. I'll have to depend on you from now on. Take good care of me, okay?"
Utahime smiled and said, "I got it."
Utahime grabbed the handles of the wheelchair as they started moving.
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3:00 pm, Japan, Tokyo, January 3rd, 2019
A meeting was being held between the Kamo Clan and the Gojo Clan. Ayanokoji Kiyotaka, Choso, and Okkotsu Yuta were also sitting in.
An elder of the Gojo clan points at the Kamo Clan members and shouts, "Making Kenjaku your Clan head during a national crisis. You're all traitors!"
They shouted back, "And what were we to die? Fight until every one of us dies?"
Kiyotaka stepped in and said, "You didn't directly participate in Kenjaku's plans. You remained docile to both sides. Due to this, I think a bit of leniency can be allowed."
The Gojo clan elder laughed at Kiyotaka and said, "Don't talk as if you're completely in the clear. Where is Satoru's body? We have the right to reclaim his body and bury it. There have been reports that it's gone missing!"
Yuta spoke up, saying, "My Cursed Technique requires Rika to consume the target's corpse to copy its Cursed Technique. I had Rika eat the entire Corpse to maximise my ability to use Limitless. It was a requirement to end this conflict smoothly. Because of this, there is no corpse anymore."
The Clan Elder looked displeased but then smiled, saying, "Well then, we can call in a witness that may attest otherwise."
Kiyotaka nodded, saying, "That is within your right."
The doors opened as Mei Mei walked in, and the Gojo Clan Elder grinned as he asked, "So Mei Mei-San. What is your account of the situation?"
The Clan Elder looked to her, thinking, 'As long as you tell us where his corpse really is, you'll earn 50 million yen as agreed, so talk.'
Mei Mei smiled and said, "Sorry. But it's true."
Mei Mei looked to Kiyotaka, thinking, 'Using the favour like this? You're basically robbing me of 50 million yen. How nasty of you.'
The Clan Elder looked shocked, thinking, 'What? Why would you agree to this if it was the truth...'
He turned to Kiyotaka with a glare, thinking, 'You're trying to make me look like a fool to gain advantage.'
An elder of the Kamo Clan laughed, saying, "It seems you've grown senile in your years."
"How dare you!"
The Gojo Clan Elder shot this as Kiyotaka sighed and said, "If suspicions are gone, then I'd like to announce how things will go from here on out."
They all looked to him as Kiyotaka then said, "Okkotsu Yuta will take over as the Clan Head of the Gojo Clan."
The Gojo Clan Elder then shouted, "As if we would just accept that!"
Kiyotaka glared at him as the old man shut his mouth quickly.
Kiyotaka then said, "As for the Kamo Clan. Even if you didn't participate in his plans, siding with Kenjaku is an act of betrayal to humanity itself. I'll be keeping a close eye on your clan in the coming years."
The Kamo Clan elder then asked, "Then would you consider doing so as the Clan's head?"
Kiyotaka sighed and said, "Very well. I'll take responsibility for the clan, but in exchange, you'll be welcoming two people into the Clan. You will treat them with respect, as they are my siblings."
Kiyotaka gestured to Choso as the door behind them opened, and Ichika stepped out and sat to the other side of Kiyotaka.
Kiyotaka looked to the elder and said, "Also, who I marry will be up to me. Do not think you will have any say in that."
The Kamo Clan elder nodded, saying, "Of course."
The Kamo Clan elder sighed, thinking, 'Well, this meeting has gone far better than I would have expected.'
Kiyotaka then said, "As for the Zenin Clan. I think we should leave them to Fushiguro Megumi. He can decide their fate."
Everyone nodded as Kiyotaka then said, "Alright. This marks the end of the meeting."
—————————————————————————————————————
Kiyotaka sat down on a blanket on the grass as Megumi and Nobara sat across from him.
Nobara poked Megumi and said, "Hehe. Heard you and Hana are getting along."
Megumi looked annoyed, saying, "Can you not? Besides, when's the last time you've been on a date?"
Nobara then shouted, "Hey! I'm just waiting for my dream man!"
Kiyotaka sighed and said, "It feels like the good old days."
Nobara deadpanned and said, "Good old days? Why are you saying that like an old man? It's only been a year since then."
"I know. But even still."
Kiyotaka said this as Nobara grinned, saying, "Hey, come on. There are a lot more good days to come."
Megumi nodded, saying, "Kugisaki is right. Everything's been dealt with, after all."
Nobara looked annoyed, saying, "Hey! Don't jinx it!"
Megumi sighed and said, "Don't go acting like something horrible is going to happen in the next second."
Nobara's eyes then flashed, and she asked, "Hey. What did you do with Sukuna's fingers by the way?"
"Those things are harmless now. I put one at Advanced Nurturing High School as a warding talisman. I put the other one in the facility of the White Room. Both should deter the birth or approach of Cursed Spirits in those areas."
Kiyotaka said this as Nobara, then asked, "So what're you gonna do with all those White Room kids anyways?"
"They're being processed through therapeutic services. After that, they can either become civilians or become Sorcerers, though most of them don't have Techniques."
Kiyotaka said this as Nobara nodded, saying, "It'd be pretty terrifying if they all had Cursed Techniques."
Megumi sighed and said, "Only the really crazy ones will decide to become Sorcerers."
Kiyotaka nodded, saying, "In the end, that's for the best."
Shiro arrived from one side, saying, "Sorry, I'm late."
Yuki walked over from the other side, saying, "There you are."
Yuki sat next to Kiyotaka, and Shiro sat down between Nobara and Megumi.
Nobara then asked, "Hey! Yuki-san! Did you bring the pie?"
Yuki nodded, saying, "Yeah."
She took it out, laying it on the blanket and said, "Let me get the knife."
"Dismantle."
Shiro chanted this as the pie was cut into perfectly equal servings. One for each of them.
Megumi sighed and asked, "Was that really necessary?"
Shiro shrugged and said, "It got engraved into me cause that bastard took over my body. Why shouldn't I use it whenever I want? Maybe I'll become a chef and feed the poor and weak for free just to spite him?"
Nobara laughed, saying, "That bastard would probably roll over in his grave."
They grinned widely at each other as the group's banter grew louder.
Kiyotaka held a slice in his hand, taking a bite as he watched the others smiling and laughing as he thought, 'I have considered the possibility that I might have been Cursed from birth, but it's clear now that... I've been blessed.'
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To Be Continued?
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Rating Out Of 10 For This Chapter?
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