Chapter 68: Fainting and Awakening
"Hey! Hayato! Want to go to karaoke after school?"
Ooka grinned as he snuck up from behind Hayama, jumping up and throwing an arm around his shoulder, pushing him off balance.
Hayama Hayato gave a helpless smile and reminded him, "We still have club activities later."
"So what?" Ooka shrugged, then Tobe also reached over and hooked his arm around Hayama's shoulder, with the two of them now holding him from both sides. "You guys just won the national competition, so you should take a break and relax!"
"That's true. It's about time for a break. While you two football guys were busy preparing for the nationals, we didn't get to have fun at all."
Yamato spread his arms wide and walked toward them, swaying his body like a gorilla.
"Hey, Yamato, don't come any closer!"
The four of them suddenly tumbled and rolled together on the ground. Just before they hit the hard classroom floor, it transformed into soft, fragrant grass.
Ooka laughed loudly, tears welling up in the corners of his eyes as he laid back on the grass, his arms outstretched in a relaxed starfish position. Hayama and the others stood not far away, smiling at him.
"Hey, I say..."
"Being able to be friends with you guys, I'm really happy."
Ooka smiled as he spoke. "Don't come looking for me too soon, okay?"
"What are you talking about? We definitely won't."
"You idiot! I'll definitely outlive you!"
"You're the one who's going to cry from loneliness, aren't you?"
The three laughed and teased him back.
"Good then."
The boy with the messy hair lay on the grass, a gentle breeze carrying dandelion seeds through the air, softly brushing his face. He closed his eyes in contentment, as if falling asleep.
…
...
A white cloth covered Ooka's face, and two men in suits lifted the body onto a stretcher.
More than an hour later, Ijichi Kiyotaka arrived in Chiba from the Jujutsu High in Tokyo.
He stood beside Yukinoshita Yukino, listening to her talk about the technique "Soul Transformation," while he jotted down notes on his clipboard.
"A technique that alters the soul's shape through touch. From his actions, we can basically say he's either a curse user or a curse spirit," Ijichi Kiyotaka speculated. "Special grade, or at least grade one."
He put away the clipboard and bowed slightly to Yukinoshita Yukino. "Thank you for the information, Miss Yukinoshita… and of course, thank you to Hayashizaki as well."
"Ooka's death will be explained as a sudden death, and your school, Miss Yukinoshita, will take a week off for classroom repairs. After all…"
Ijichi Kiyotaka glanced at the hallway, now a mess due to the battle. "The damaged area will take time to fix."
"Your friend, Yuigahama, has been checked. She's fine, just wait for her to wake up on her own."
"I understand, thank you, Ijichi-san."
Yukinoshita Yukino nodded slightly, expressing her gratitude.
"It's nothing. It's our job as assistants to the supervisors, even if you're not with the high school."
Ijichi instinctively glanced around, and once he confirmed that Gojo Satoru wasn't in sight, he spoke more freely. "Honestly, working with you is much more comfortable than working with Gojo."
"Yeah, yeah, next time, you can say that in front of that white-haired guy."
Hayashizaki laughed heartily.
"Well..."
Ijichi Kiyotaka pulled out a handkerchief and wiped the sweat from his face.
"It's okay, I've got your back. That guy can't beat me."
He patted Ijichi's shoulder with Yukinoshita Yukino's hand.
Hayashizaki's casual words felt like a thunderbolt in Ijichi Kiyotaka's mind, and a flood of thoughts instantly filled his head.
When Gojo and Hayashizaki first met, they were gone for about ten minutes. If nothing unexpected happened, they must have fought, and afterward, Hayashizaki and Yukinoshita Yukino became partners at the school.
Did Hayashizaki's words mean that Gojo lost to him during that fight? Even if not, at least he must have been at a disadvantage.
Ijichi Kiyotaka couldn't imagine the image of that carefree man, who always bragged about being "the strongest" and truly was unrivaled, losing.
And Hayashizaki's curse energy and techniques were exactly the same as Ryoumen Sukuna's, which Mr. Gojo had already confirmed. Plus, with Gojo and Fushiguro Megumi bringing back Yuji Itadori, who was the vessel for Ryoumen Sukuna, last time...
Ijichi Kiyotaka couldn't even begin to guess what Gojo was thinking. He only needed to do his job and nothing more.
He pushed these complicated thoughts aside and said to the three, "Well, I'll leave now."
After Ijichi Kiyotaka and the staff handling the aftermath took Ooka's body away, Hikigaya Hachiman, who had been standing by silently, spoke up and asked, "Who are these people?"
He was still holding a business card that Ijichi Kiyotaka had given him.
"They're from Jujutsu High. You can think of them as people from the jujutsu world. They're the ones handling the cleanup."
Yukinoshita Yukino explained.
"Oh."
Hikigaya Hachiman nodded, signaling he understood.
It seemed like Yukinoshita Yukino had been taken by Hayashizaki to hunt curse spirits again, which was why she encountered these professionals.
At this thought, he couldn't help but feel a little relieved, realizing that the battles he had experienced were already few. In fact, the number of times he had been taken into battle by Hayashizaki was only twice.
So, this was Hayashizaki's way of being kind to him?
"We should head back now."
Yukinoshita Yukino entered the infirmary, looking at Yuigahama Yui, who was lying in bed and sound asleep, with a somewhat troubled expression.
"Should we take Yuigahama home? Do you know where she lives?"
Hikigaya Hachiman hesitated and asked, "Also, about the jujutsu world..."
After thinking for a moment, Yukinoshita Yukino spoke, "I'll take Yuigahama back to my place. I'll explain everything to her. At this point, it's impossible to hide it any longer."
"Guess there's no other choice. I'll head home first, though. If I'm too late, my sister will worry."
Hikigaya Hachiman glanced out the window.
Night had fallen, and the city's lights shimmered like a sea of stars. The roads and elevated highways intertwined, forming the city's veins, with fast-moving vehicles creating rivers of light and shadow.
Hikigaya Hachiman rode his bike home, while Yukinoshita Yukino, carrying the sleeping Yuigahama Yui, called a taxi to take her back to her apartment, temporarily settling her in the spare room. Then she walked into the kitchen, tied on an apron, and started preparing dinner.
Yuigahama Yui was woken up by the smell of something delicious.
As she groggily got out of bed, she realized she was in an entirely unfamiliar room.
Where is this?
How did I end up here?
Wasn't I at the service club?
...
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