Chapter 187: Training — Sukuna Version Itadori
The light of the current world was just ahead, yet Sōjun Minamoto had walked a long way before finally arriving.
It felt like chasing a distant mountain that never got closer.
He looked up at the vortex of white light—it was vast and majestic.
"So this is the shell of the current world?"
With something to compare against, he realized his own form had become immense as well. Countless stars drifted behind his head, forming nine rings of starlight—though even those seemed small in comparison.
Still, he paled in comparison to the halo.
After all, it was a newborn world.
"Let me take a look."
He leaned down slowly, bringing his face close to the glowing swirl.
There was something off at the center of the vortex. Sensing it, he tilted his head, squinting as he moved in closer...
Soon, he straightened up again.
This was the current world—but a bigger issue stood before him.
He couldn't enter.
Beneath the outer shell lay the real world, yet a black sea stretched across its surface.
Sōjun Minamoto reached out into the halo. In an instant, the boundless black sea appeared, blocking his hand.
He pushed harder, and the sea began to churn, swirling around his arm like countless blades slicing through him.
"Ssshh—"
The pain made him smile.
It had been so long since he'd felt anything—pain now felt precious. Remembering those long, aimless days in the dark, he couldn't help but feel a twinge of bitterness.
With that thought, he pressed harder. Vortexes burst outward, carving deeper into his arm, layer by layer.
The pain intensified.
"Ke-ke-ke—" He let out a few strange laughs, bracing his left hand against the halo's edge. With his right, he pushed with all his might. Half of his shoulder jammed at the boundary as he strained to reach through.
Locked in a stalemate, the black sea slowly began to overflow, lapping over his feet.
The resistance along his arm grew stronger. Currents cut into his skin...
After a long while...
Sōjun Minamoto withdrew his arm. As it passed through the vortex, a single drop of translucent gray blood slipped free, silently entering the world.
Within the black sea, a featureless face faintly emerged—it looked familiar.
It was his own.
"Heh." Sōjun Minamoto gave a faint snort.
He crossed his legs and sat down—or rather, floated—within the formless dark. There were no borders here. He stayed relatively still in relation to the world outside.
...
The Jujutsu High group gathered once again. Yaga held a meeting, calling together all Grade 1 and above sorcerers. Along with the original members were many unfamiliar faces.
They were sorcerers who had joined from within the Barriers—not just from Tokyo's First Barrier, but others as well.
Their numbers had swelled overnight.
Right now, sorcerers were the least of their shortages. And even more people hadn't officially joined yet.
The meeting began with intelligence updates.
Then, instinctively, all eyes turned to Satoru Gojo.
They had done everything they could. But to truly turn the tide, they still needed a decisive force—something overwhelming.
And Satoru Gojo might not be enough.
Besides, not everyone actually wanted to return to how things were before.
For a moment, silent thoughts stirred in every mind.
Still, with Satoru Gojo back, their side undeniably held the upper hand.
His eyes hidden behind his blindfold, Satoru Gojo sat in thought for a moment, then finally said,
"Just us alone won't be enough. In times like this, we need to unite every force we can."
"What do you mean..." Suguru Geto seemed to catch on.
"We can't stop at suppressing the Ten Great Barriers. The most critical one... is Sōjun Minamoto," Gojo continued.
He clasped his hands together and rested his chin on them.
"Even now, we still don't know his goal. And I... it seems like I was released on purpose."
"So this—is this already the worst-case scenario?" he asked quietly.
The question sent a jolt through the room.
"You too? You can't stop this either?" one sorcerer asked instantly.
Gojo shook his head, not even sparing them a glance.
They were relying too much on him. Or rather, it wasn't that they couldn't see the truth—it was that the current situation wasn't uncomfortable for them.
That sense of danger had faded.
Even if everyone had the potential to be sorcerers, these people were still the most gifted among them.
They had all broken past their limits. Their strength had grown far beyond before.
They still stood at the top.
They didn't want to face reality—and maybe, they didn't even see the need to.
More importantly, they believed that no matter how bad things got, someone would step forward.
Just like the Jujutsu High crowd had before.
Just like Satoru Gojo now.
But now, hearing him say this—panic began to seep in.
Yaga and the others watched their reactions, silently shaking their heads. They exchanged glances, then looked to Satoru Gojo.
"What are you getting at?"
Gojo's tone was calm, even casual—it sounded like he had a plan.
"What about Itadori?" he asked instead of answering directly.
"You're… thinking of using Sukuna's power?" Yaga asked, startled.
"It's Itadori's power," Gojo corrected him. "And not just his. We need to bring in more sorcerers—even ancient ones. If they're willing to join, we'll take them."
"As long as they're strong."
From within the Prison Realm, he'd been able to observe the outside world. He knew everything that had happened during that time.
With his Six Eyes, he could see the Black Sea above, even if no other sorcerer could...
"Well, since he's not around right now, we'll talk to him later." Gojo turned to Suguru Geto.
"Didn't Sōjun hand over all of Sukuna's fingers to you? How many has he eaten so far?"
"Nine," Geto replied. "I still have six on me..."
Gojo quickly ran the numbers in his head.
Geto continued, "We haven't actively gone looking, so there are still five out there. The times we had him consume them were all…"
He suddenly froze, realization dawning. The frequency with which they'd fed Itadori the fingers was still based on Sōjun Minamoto's original suggestion.
Could that end up being a problem?
"Should we change the dosing schedule?" he asked.
"No need," Gojo shook his head. The timing Sōjun had given was extremely precise—each new finger had been administered just as the previous one was fully digested.
It was already the fastest pace possible.
As long as they maintained that rhythm, Itadori would stay in control—and in time, they'd have a version of Itadori with Sukuna's power under their command.
But something else nagged at him.
Back when Itadori came back to life, he must've formed some kind of Binding Vow with Sukuna...
"This might get tricky."
Thinking about it now—was Sōjun really in a rush back then?
The terms of that Binding Vow were critical. If they weren't careful, they might end up unleashing something even worse.
They'd need to find a way to handle that.
He mentally made a note of it.
The remaining Sukuna fingers weren't an issue. Inside the spiritual fields, the curse concentration was so high that many seals had failed, making the fingers shine like beacons—easy to locate.
And outside the spiritual fields, with cursed energy levels continuing to drop, any Special Grade objects like the fingers stood out more than ever.
"Have you found Sōjun?" Gojo asked again.
"We sent people, but it's like he vanished."
So, no. Not that Gojo was surprised—it was expected. If they had found him, they'd just have to wonder if he was setting them up.
Sukuna was likely something Sōjun had already accounted for. Everything they'd done had been along the path Sōjun laid out.
Always one step behind.
For a moment, Gojo just wanted to give up.
Despite how laid-back he looked, the weight he carried was immense.
He still had to keep smiling in front of everyone. Now he finally understood why Yaga always looked so worn down.
"But we found Riko Amanai," Yaga said quietly. "Why not go ask her?"
It wasn't that they hadn't thought of it before... they just realized now that Amanai's refusal to speak seemed to leave them helpless.
"Let's go," Gojo said, turning to Suguru Geto.
They needed to see her.