…After Fushiguro politely declined Itadori's apple, Itadori could only trail behind him in silence, the apple in hand, as they headed for the cafeteria.
A whispered grumble came from Sukuna inside—
[I told you not to give it to him—look how gloomy Fushiguro got…]
He glanced at the hideously mangled apple in Yuji's hand and had to turn his head away in pain.
[Can't you wait until your technique is less pathetic before showing it off?]
Yuji muttered, aggrieved, "What can I do? Your Cleave is straight; it won't bend…"
A big slash was fine—just swing and let it fly. Once shrunk, the thing refused to listen; one slip and it missed, nearly shaving his own finger at first.
An apple's round, okay? Getting it this round with Cleave was already a miracle!
Sukuna snapped: [Then why are mine perfect every time? Face it—your skill's garbage. Go practice!]
Yuji went quiet for two beats. "…Extra practice is fine, but I can't eat another apple…"
He really… couldn't even look at an apple now. "Fushiguro said we can't waste food… so, could you help me finish it?"
Sukuna: […]
He didn't want any more either… Last night, Yuji had just learned Cleave and was too pumped to sleep. Back in the dorm, he spotted the bag of apples and couldn't resist practicing.
Six apples fell in one go—Sukuna demoed two, flawless; Yuji trained on four, and the one in his hand was the best result.
After polishing off the apples, they were stuffed—so stuffed the feeling still hadn't left.
Whoever front-lined next would suffer; Sukuna didn't dare switch in… Sigh, new skill proficiency had to be ground slowly; Yuji's micro-control clearly needed work.
Sukuna sighed.
[Forget it. Don't use Cleave on apples anymore. Curses are great—practice on them from now on.]
Slicing Curses was eco-friendly: zero residue, pure clean-up, the perfect training tool.
Unlike apples—wasted food and wasted stomach space.
Yuji stared at the apple: eat it and he'd hurl; toss it and Fushiguro would kill him.
He sighed too.
"I don't want to see an apple again for a long, long time…"
Sukuna agreed: […Same here.]
Fushiguro, walking ahead, couldn't hear Sukuna but could guess the topic; the corner of his mouth twitched.
So… you offered me the apple because you couldn't stomach another bite??
Then, the moment they reached the cafeteria, they spotted Nobara and Maki—each crunching an apple loud enough to echo.
And cheerfully handing over a few more.
"Here, here! Just delivered this morning—super sweet and fresh! We saved these for you!"
Fushiguro: "…"
He gave the apple a meaningful look, then gave Itadori an even more meaningful one.
Itadori: "…"
Face contorted in horror, Itadori took a step back.
Spun on his heel.
Bent over.
Blaaargh—
Nobara: "…"
She glanced at him in bewilderment, then shot Fushiguro a questioning look—What's up? Knocked up?
Fushiguro calmly accepted the apple Nobara offered and said flatly,
"It's fine. He's allergic to apples."
Nobara: "…???"
You can be allergic to apples???
…Afternoon.
On the field, Maki slung her Training Spear and beckoned everyone to look at her.
"One month to the Exchange—stay sharp!"
She swept her gaze over the three first-years.
"Last time Yuta alone clinched it. This time he's overseas, and the third-year idiots are all suspended, so you three are joining in."
Itadori & Nobara: "Exchange?"
"A brawl with the other Jujutsu High—Kyoto."
Maki rattled off the details while Panda and Fushiguro chipped in.
Once the briefing was done, Maki declared: "Bottom line—"
Her face lit with absolute certainty, a wicked grin tugging at her lips.
"This time we crush them!"
She turned to Itadori.
"Yuji, Eyepatch-bozo says your combat skills have rocketed—you can solo a Grade 1 Curse now, right? Then their Todo is yours!"
Itadori straightened; this was the first mission his senior had ever given him!
"Yes, Maki-senpai!"
He accepted at once, then raised a hand.
"Um, what kind of guy is 'Todo'?"
"Todo, huh…"
Maki's expression went weird.
She fought hard not to let raw disgust show in front of him.
"You'll see. Look forward to it."
Itadori, expectant: "Got it—!"
…One hour later, Itadori regretted.
He shouldn't have looked forward, shouldn't have taken the Todo mission… Could someone explain—why was this guy chasing his butt while yelling "dearest friend" nonstop?!
All he'd done was run an errand to buy water, met the legendary Todo at the vending machine—
his designated opponent in next month's Exchange—answered a question about what type of girls he liked… and the man fell into a trance, tears and snot everywhere, then bellowed: "dearest friend—!!"
Itadori: "…"
Huh?
Dearest friend? We only just met!
W-wait! Hold up—don't come any closer—!!
I don't even know you! Chill—aaaaahhh—!!
And so began the classic scene: he runs, he chases, he can't fly away.
Inside, Sukuna stared at the pursuing Todo in surprise, curious.
[Good grief, so passionate. You really don't know him?]
[Childhood friend you dumped and forgot?]
Itadori: "How could I? I'm not that forgetful!"
Sukuna: […]
Did he just get roasted?
Let's reboot the topic.
[…Maybe you two grew up, changed looks, and he only recognized you after hearing your name?]
Itadori: …Sounds… plausible?
He slammed the brakes, spun, and called breathlessly to Todo behind him.
"First tell me—when exactly did we meet?"
Todo's nostalgic voice floated over: "Back in middle school…"
Itadori spun back and sprinted off.
Sukuna pressed: [Why cut him off mid-sentence? You asked and ran—rude, no?]
Itadori yelled: "There was nobody like him in my middle school—"
Sukuna: […]
He turned back to Todo, bewildered.
Well… that is pretty baffling…?
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