Subaru's eyes shot open, his whole body jerking upright as if jolted from drowning. Air tore into his lungs in ragged gasps, his pupils pinpricks against the endless ceiling above.
The memories hit all at once.
Gojo's death.
Shaula's demise.
The battle between Reid and the Witch of Envy—an apocalyptic storm of red and black that Subaru couldn't even exist inside. He wasn't a participant; he wasn't even an observer. He was less than dust in that clash.
And yet, through all the horror, one thing stood out.
The Witch of Envy.
"…Why… why did she appear…? That only happens if someone learns about Return by Death…!" Subaru muttered to himself, his mind spinning faster than his breath.
His chest tightened. There was only one explanation. Gojo.
He had been in the library just before everything went to hell. The library of the dead. The books that recorded lives, fates, endings.
Then that could only mean one thing...
…My deaths. Every single one. They're all in there…
Subaru's stomach turned, eyes widening in realization. No—no, it didn't matter right now. What mattered was one thing.
Stopping Gojo from opening that book.
—————————————————————————
Satoru Gojo's thoughts wandered as he strolled through the Library.
Reid's trial… Subaru. The guy had guts, no question. He'd pulled off wins that shouldn't have been possible for him at the time, and hell, he'd even surprised me a few times with flashes of insight sharper than they had any right to be. B ut beating Reid? Even if it was just one step, even if that was all it took for Subaru to win...
"I'm not one to be a believer in the impossible." he murmured. "But that's pushing it… unless he's hiding some secret special power that I somehow don't know about."
He rounded another row—then stopped, questioning if what his six eyes just saw were lying to him or not.
Two slow steps back.
Head tilted.
There it was.
A single book among thousands. Black leather binding, unadorned spine. Ordinary—until you read the name stamped there in small, neat lettering.
Natsuki Subaru.
"…What?"
The rule about not touching the books evaporated in an instant.
His hand hovered inches from the cover.
Could it be him?
Another Subaru from somewhere else?
No way the odds are that high… right? Japanese names weren't exactly something you stumbled across in this world.
The silence deepened around him. Even the dust in the air seemed to hang still.
"I can take a little peek… it can't actually be him…" he muttered, voice low like the shelves themselves might overhear.
Gojo's fingers hovered just inches away from the black-leather spine, the name etched along it plain as day: Natsuki Subaru.
"GOJO-SENSEI!!" Subaru's voice cracked with raw fear as he bolted across the floor.
Gojo's hand stilled mid-reach. He turned, bandages shifting as his head cocked slightly. "Hm? What's got you all worked up?"
"You can't—" Subaru panted, clutching at his knees before forcing himself upright. "You can't touch that book. No matter what."
One brow arched beneath the blindfold. "And why's that, Subaru?" His tone was light, but there was an edge to it— "It's got your name on it. A Japanese name, no less. First one I've seen in this world that isn't mine. You're telling me I shouldn't take a peek?"
He stepped forward, the casual weight in his stance shifting into something heavier. Measured. His words pressed down with each step:
"Why… Natsuki Subaru… are you here? Where books that tell the stories of the dead are shelved?"
Subaru froze, lips parting but no sound coming out.
Because… I can Return by Death. Because every time I die, I come back. Because that damn curse makes me walk through hell again and again.
His nails bit into his palms.
"…I can't tell you." he whispered.
The silence that followed was suffocating. The air itself seemed to still—like the library was leaning in to hear the answer.
Gojo straightened slowly, but the easy grin never came. Instead, his head tilted the slightest degree, bandaged eyes narrowing behind the cloth. His voice dropped low, and though it wasn't loud, it carried a pressure that weighed on Subaru's chest like gravity.
"…Can't, huh?" Gojo's tone was too calm. Too sharp. "Not won't. Can't, interesting wording right there."
Subaru stumbled back half a step, throat dry. His body screamed to collapse under the weight of Gojo's presence—but he forced himself to stand. Forced the words out, even as his voice cracked.
"Just… trust me, Gojo-sensei. If you read that book, something awful will happen. Worse than anything you've seen in both worlds. I swear it."
For a long moment, Gojo didn't move. He didn't breathe. His very stillness was terrifying.
Then, finally, he exhaled—a quiet huff of air that might've been amusement.
"…Alright." He stepped back, tension melting into nonchalance once more. "I won't read it. Only because you've never been the type to downplay something this serious."
His lips quirked in the faintest ghost of a smile.
"But you're gonna owe me an explanation someday, Subaru..."
Watching Gojo finally turn away from the shelves, Subaru let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. Relief washed through him—until his eyes flicked back to the black-bound book. It sat there like a curse incarnate, quietly daring him to look again. He tore his gaze away and jogged after Gojo.
—————————————————————————
"Mmm~! Dinner is served!"
Shaula's singsong voice nearly made Subaru jump. With a proud flourish, she dropped a slab of raw meat—bloody, bone-in, and very much unidentifiable—onto the table in front of them.
The thud echoed through the walls of Shuala's quarters.
Gojo stared at it in utter silence, expression unreadable.
Subaru, on the other hand, recoiled like it might crawl off the plate.
"Wh-wh-what the hell is this supposed to be?! We're not wild beasts! We can't just gnaw on a—on a—whatever that came from!"
Gojo's lips twitched, his blank face sinking into a frown. He leaned back in his chair, balancing effortlessly on the hind legs, eyes hidden but clearly bored.
"...Guess I could try cooking. Might burn a few things at first, but give me a week and I'll be a five-star chef."
Subaru scowled, snapping back instantly.
"Tsck—way to flex that ego, huh?"
Then, as if struck by divine inspiration, he puffed out his chest, struck his signature 'Natsuki Subaru' pose, and declared with shining eyes:
"No need to fear! I, Natsuki Subaru, shall cook the finest feast of mystery meat this world has ever seen!"
There was a pause.
Then Gojo doubled over, slapping the table so hard it rattled. Laughter poured out of him, muffled by his blindfold already wet with tears.
"PFFFT—GYAHHAHAHA! You!? You cooking?! What's next, you gonna tell me you can make something besides instant noodles?!"
A vein bulged across Subaru's forehead. His hand lashed out to smack Gojo's smug face—only to halt, caught against Infinity. His teeth ground audibly.
"Grghh—! Just you wait, you smug bastard!"
Snatching the meat by the bone, Subaru spun dramatically on his heel, shouting back over his shoulder:
"I'll prove it! You'll be begging for seconds when I'm done!"
Gojo wiped a tear from under the blindfold, grinning like a kid at a circus.
"Sure, sure. Knock yourself out, Chef Subaru. Just… don't knock me out with food poisoning."
—————————————————————————
Subaru stormed toward the small kitchen nook Taygeta had provided—no firewood, no oil, not even utensils—just bare essentials. He dropped the massive hunk of raw meat onto the counter with a slam, muttering through clenched teeth.
"You think I can't cook? I'll show you cooking. I'll show you cuisine."
Gojo leaned back further in his chair, arms folded behind his head, grin plastered wide.
"Yeah, yeah. This world hasn't got a microwave yet by the way!"
Shaula tilted her head, blinking innocently as she glanced between them.
"...So, should I tell you where I got that meat from or just let you find out later?"
Both Subaru and Gojo froze.
"No." They said in unison.
Subaru whipped his head back toward the counter, eyes twitching. "Focus. Just… focus."
He rummaged through the sparse supplies, managing to scrape together some salt, incredibly dried up herbs, and an incredibly rusted pan. He sparked a flame, balancing the meat over it with as much dignity as he could muster. His movements were stiff at first, then practiced—clearly, he had infact done this before.
Gojo, of course, didn't shut up.
"Oooh, look at that form! Dude has real chef energy right there. You sure you didn't lie about being a total shut in? Cuz last I checked, gamers don't know the difference between a ladle and a spatula."
"Shut! Up!" Subaru barked, flipping the meat with more force than necessary. The sizzling filled the air, fat popping against the metal pan.
Shaula sniffed curiously. "Mmm~ smells yummy!…"
Subaru smirked, wiping sweat from his brow.
"See? I told you. I'm an experienced cook! I'm not just some spoiled rich kid who can buy anything he wants!"
"Hey." Gojo raised a hand like a student asking a question.
"Spoiled and handsome, thank you very much."
That was the last straw—Subaru whirled on him, knife in hand, pointing dramatically.
"One word out of you and I'll serve you up medium-rare instead!"
Gojo's laughter rattled the room, bouncing off the library walls. And yet, when Subaru finally set the browned, seasoned meat down on a plate, there was no laughter in the silence that followed.
Gojo leaned forward, chopsticks in hand (where he even got them, nobody knew), and plucked a piece free. He chewed slowly, smirk fading into something unreadable, before he frowned.
"…Well, uh… I guess spices can only do so much huh.."
Shaula lit up instantly, chomping down her own piece with a squeal.
"Master~! This is reaaaally yummy!"
Subaru puffed up, arms crossing smugly.
"Heh. Told you. Throw me to a whole other world and I'm still a five-star chef!"
Gojo wiped his mouth, lips twitching into a frown.
"Yeah, but Shaula's been living on raw mystery meat for four centuries. I'm not sure her palate qualifies as valid. Honestly… tastes less like food and more like… uh… indescribable ropey gunk."
"—What?!" Subaru jolted forward, stabbing the fork into the slab and tearing off a bite-sized piece. He chewed once. Twice.
"Urgh… crap."
Gojo sighed, dropping his chopsticks onto the table.
"I mean… it's edible. Barely. But if this is dinner every night, you'd better beat that Sword Saint fast—or we're stuck with sewage meat for eternity."
Shaula tilted her head, beaming.
"Mhhh~ I dunnoooo… I think I could eat this forever!"
"Tch. Of course you could!" Gojo muttered. "We saw what you lived on before." His gaze slid sideways, sharp behind the blindfold.
"But speaking of Reid… Subaru. You actually got something?"
Subaru's grin faltered. He stared at the fork in his hand, then set it down.
"...Yeah. A few ideas. But one of them… I'm not sure I can do it yet. Might have to hope he doesn't kill me before I figure it out though."
—————————————————————————
The clash of fists and feet cracked through the endless white expanse.
A crimson blur darted under Subaru's kick, countering with a crushing strike to his ribs that launched him skidding across the ground.
"Tsck, tsck…" Reid clicked his tongue, lazily flossing his teeth with his chopstick before scratching his chest. "Still not even a step closer, you. What've you been doin'? Wastin' days with that fine woman of yours, eh?"
"Hfftt… hfft…" Subaru pushed himself up, breath ragged. The hit was brutal, but not overwhelming. Reid was actually underestimating just how much his body could handle—and that alone gave him a sliver of hope.
"Well… all or nothing." He inhaled deeply, then whispered the taboo, 'Return by Death' three times over.
The words scraped his sanity raw, but his body surged with cursed power, purple energy leaking like venom. Subaru slammed a foot down.
"—SHAMAK!!"
Dark smoke exploded across the battlefield, swallowing everything in pitch black. A gamble. A memory of his fight with Julius. He just had to hope the outcome would be different.
Reid only scoffed.
"Hrn… this trick... some magic right... you? Fine. Let's play."
He closed his eyes, standing perfectly still.
Three strides. That's all Subaru needed to close the gap. He spun, fist cocked back, and roared as he threw his strike like a cannon through the void.
A palm snapped up, catching his fist and blasting the Shamak apart like it was nothing.
Reid's eyes opened. Sharp. Unwavering. Beyond superhuman.
Subaru's breath caught. He hadn't just reacted—he felt it coming, the fist punching through the air.
From the sidelines, Gojo's eyes narrowed. "… Mmmm, reminds me of something I'd heard back at the Gojo clan..." He folded his arms, voice dropping. "A thingamajig uhh... Heavenly.. Restriction... something like that, involving the Zenin Clan... guess this guy is similar in a way, sacrificing one thing for an extra buff in another.."
"... Is that how it works?" Gojo muttered.
Reid's counter was swift, and slammed into Subaru's chest, sending him tumbling back, gasping and hacking for air.
"You didn't do bad this time." Gojo's voice was flat, but his gaze lingered on Reid, sharper than before. "Closer, even. He keeps underestimating you. Probably pride. But… for just a second? I saw it. Surprise. He didn't expect you to get that close that quick."
Subaru coughed, forcing himself upright with Gojo's help.
"Yeah… I saw it too."
Reid scoffed, dropping to the ground cross-legged, flicking his hand as if swatting away a fly.
"Bah. Don't flatter yourself, you. I ain't underestimatin' shit—I just know limits when I see 'em. Now piss off, come back when you've got another little trick you."
Subaru clenched his fists, glaring past the pain.
"I'll make you move. I swear I will."
"Yeah, yeah. Whatever, you." Reid scratched his chest, yawning. "Don't waste my damn time."
—————————————————————————
Days blurred into one another.
Subaru rose, ate what could only generously be called food, and faced Reid Astrea—again.
Every strike met the same wall. Every maneuver shredded by Reid's impossible speed and precision. Subaru felt like he was running in place, yet somehow bleeding with every step. Gojo lounged nearby—or rather, watched with a meticulous eye, occasionally sipping water.
Shaula perched on the railing above, arms crossed, a grin plastered to her face.
"Master~! You're doing soooo well! Ooooh, I truuuly wish I could fight alongside you! Maybe I would if it wasn't him though..."
Subaru ducked beneath a spinning red blade, grit in his teeth.
Reid pivoted in that same spot, crimson kimono flaring like fire, slicing through a wave of black-tendrils before rotating further with his palm firing forth. Subaru barely noticed the strike approaching from the corner of his vision, and the force sent him skidding, reinforced cursed energy barely keeping his body intact.
Gojo leaned forward, fingers interlaced, silently observing.
"Okay… watch closely. He's literally treating you like a bug. This is how this crappy guy fights. Everything you think you can do, he's already three steps ahead. Everything."
Subaru wiped a smear of blood from his lip, glancing toward Gojo.
"Yeah, thanks for the pep talk, but I kinda already realized that after getting my ass kicked so many times."
Shaula smiled, twirling a strand of her hair.
"Ahhh~ don't worry about it, master! You've got style! You've got pizzazz! You've got—"
A lightning-fast strike from Reid shattered the floor beneath them, snapping Shaula's attention back. The white arc of wind surged toward Subaru, forcing him into a sprint. He rolled through the shockwave, bones screaming, reinforced energy screaming louder, before he was hurtled once more across the white scape.
"Arghhh!"
Gojo's voice was calm, almost clinical.
"See? You survived, you can go on like this pretty much forever because of your busted amount of cursed energy, Good!"
Subaru scrambled upright, adrenaline spiking as he raced forward again. Each strike, each dodge, each barely-missed swipe was another lesson. The red blur of Reid's movements became hypnotic, almost unbearable. Even with his cursed energy flaring, Subaru felt tiny—an ant in a storm.
Shaula clapped from above.
"Look at him go, master! Come on kick his ass!"
Reid stopped mid-spin, frowning.
"You think dodging this many times matters? Hrn… small fry, you're shittin' laughable when you struggle..."
And then it all repeated—again.
Strike. Dodge. Roll. Impact. Cursed energy flares. Pain sears. Bones scream. Reid advances. Subaru retreats. A blur of crimson and black. Each loss another retry. Gojo observing, occasionally noting where Subaru's instincts were improving, where his weaknesses still gaped open.
Hours passed—no, days. Time was meaningless. Each loop pushed Subaru closer to exhaustion, closer to the breaking point. His body ached, his ribs felt like shattered wood, his muscles screamed—but he adapted. Learned. Reacted. Lived.
Gojo's voice cut through the haze.
"Not bad Subaru! Getting your ass kicked so many times is actually doing wonders!"
Finally—finally—Subaru caught a fleeting glimpse of a crack in Reid's timing. He forced himself forward, every ounce of cursed energy focused into a single flaring strike. But even then, Reid pivoted, avoiding and countering with such perfection it almost broke Subaru's mind.
Shaula groaned in mock despair.
"Ohhh~ master, you aaaalmost had him! You almost~!"
And still—Subaru lived.
And still—he got back up, knowing that each repetition brought him closer to understanding, closer to beating the impossible.
Gojo's smirk widened.
"That's the difference between you and almost any other person... you don't give up, you won't give up."
Subaru glared forward, bloodied, battered, lungs burning, chest heaving.
"Damn it… one day… one day, I'll get you for this Reid..."
Shaula cheered.
"And I'll be there to watch at a safe distance, master~!"
—————————————————————————
The loop continued, the cycle of blood, failure, and stubborn resolve stretching on—but with each iteration, Subaru continued becoming sharper. Meals of cooked mystery sewage-meat, fights ending in Subaru being pummeled across the white wasteland, and Reid Astrea still untouchable.
Gojo was annoyed—but he couldn't blame the guy. Honestly? He was impressed.
Reid wasn't just some fighter. He was the hero of heroes—the first Sword Saint, the man who fought the Witch head-on and stopped the world's collapse. And Subaru? He hadn't even logged a full year of actual combat training, much less mastered cursed energy. The fact he could stand against Reid at all was nothing short of prodigious.
Maybe even more of a prodigy than Gojo himself.
…Not that he'd ever admit that out loud.
With a sigh, Gojo hefted a bucket of water from the ivy-choked Green Room, batting away a few nosy spirits with lazy swats before making his way back.
Infinite retries. That was their one saving grace. But even with that… how long could Reid keep playing along before his patience just snapped? Gojo wouldn't be surprised if the bastard eventually stopped holding back and killed Subaru outright out of sheer annoyance.
He set the bucket down on a counter and strolled toward Subaru, who was deep in meditation.
A quick kick to the boy's side made Subaru jolt, hissing in pain.
"Tsck—what the hell was that for?!"
"You don't need to keep meditating like that, you know..." Gojo said, hands in his pockets. "At the level you're at now, it's pretty much useless."
Subaru blinked up at him, confused, while Gojo tilted his head, studying him.
"Honestly? If this were Earth, you'd already qualify as a Special Grade sorcerer. Especially with that weird voodoo thing you do that just spikes your cursed energy."
Subaru leaned back. "Special grade?"
"Mhm. Same rank I had. Suguru too. And some older lady I never met—uh, what was her name… Tsukomo? Tsunomo? Whatever. She was supposedly strong too, but lazy." Gojo shrugged.
Subaru rubbed the back of his neck, chuckling awkwardly.
"I dunno if I should be classified like that. I'm still waaaay weaker than you are…"
Gojo smirked.
"Well, duh. But that's not the point. There's always gaps, even among special grades. Take Suguru, for example—I was still a level above him thanks to the Limitless. He hated admitting it, said Infinity was basically cheating."
He grinned.
"Wouldn't even spar with me unless I promised to turn it off."
Subaru rolled his eyes.
"Can't really blame him. Being literally untouchable does sound like cheating…"
Gojo snapped his fingers, smirk widening.
"Tell that to Reinhard. Or Regulus. One's basically a walking hacker, the other's just immortal for literally no reason but can't fight for crap."
Subaru drifted his gaze aside, as if to ponder momentarily.
"What classifies someone as a Special Grade? Is it just how strong they are?"
Gojo tilted his head and let out a hum, a hand on his chin as he went back through his memories.
"I'm pretty sure it's if we'd be able to take out an entire country or not... I wouldn't be surprised if there some tough ass Grade Ones or unclassified guys who could've been Special Grade strength-wise but never had the chance just 'cause they couldn't survive a nuke."
Subaru deadpanned.
"Um.. I definitely couldn't either for the record..."
With a chuckle, Gojo continued.
"Well yeah, but you're weird. Freakishly smart sometimes that it has even me a bit confused, so it'd probably never even come down to a nuke from just your brains alone."
"... I feel like you're definitely overestimating me here."
Gojo raised a brow.
"Am I...? Subaru?"
Subaru just shrugged, shaking his head as he slowly rose to his feet. He stretched his arms and cracked his neck, eyes scanning the room—Shaula's quarters.
"You seen Shaula anywhere? She's usually glued to me like… some kind of shadow..." he muttered, frowning. "Kinda weird not having her clinging to my side."
Gojo's voice cut through, calm but sharp.
"I don't sense her fully either."
Subaru blinked, brow furrowed. "Huh? How can you not sense her? She's practically… I don't know… an extension of this place most of the time."
Gojo half-pulled off his blindfold, letting his cerulean eyes sweep over the room in an instant. Every nook, every shadow seemed to pass under his gaze.
"Odd… Normally, I can feel everyone in this tower. Even you when you're trying to sneak around that library—I could always sense you both. But her? Nothing now."
Subaru coughed, rubbing the back of his neck. His voice sharpened with frustration.
"Alright… cut the bullshit, Gojo-sensei... Where the hell is she?"
Gojo's brow furrowed, lips pressing into a thin line as his eyes traced the walls again.
"Mmmm… I really dunno."
The room fell silent for a heartbeat, save for Subaru's heavy breaths. Something about the way Gojo said it… something's off.
Subaru's instincts prickled. He moved toward the doorway, hand tightening on the edge as he peered into the hallway beyond.
"Not a shadow, not a trace… that's… impossible."
Gojo leaned back slightly, slinging his arms over the chair's backrest, golden eyes narrowing.
"Exactly. And when Shaula disappears without a trace, it's probably gonna mean trouble, that or she's just chilling in some secret room or something."
Subaru's stomach twisted. Something deep in his chest tightened. The tower had been unpredictable enough, but now? Even Shaula, that constant companion that was glued to his side, could vanish like she was never there.
He exhaled slowly, eyes scanning the floor and ceiling simultaneously.
"Alright… let's see if we can't fix this before whatever she's gotten into blows up in our faces."
Gojo smirked, though it didn't reach the weight behind his eyes.
"Finally, you're thinking like a survivor. Just… be ready. If she's gone this quietly… it probably won't be simple."
Subaru swallowed hard, taking the first cautious step into the corridor. The search had begun!
—————————————————————————
They moved together as a party, Gojo didn't exactly want to leave Subaru alone if there was someone who could kill Shaula like that. The tower's halls felt wrong, Shaula's absence bled into every room until it was a physical ache.
"Left..." Gojo said once, voice low. He still kept the bandages over his eyes, but his posture sharpened. "These eyes see everything... something like habits are easy to remember."
Subaru didn't argue. He followed, chest tight, steps rapid. They moved up flight after flight, the tower spiraling higher, the deeper they went the colder the air grew.
They already checked the Green Room. Empty. They swept the study alcoves. Quiet. They called her name and let the sound bounce back, unnatural and hollow. Time stretched onward.
At a narrow landing between floors—a little platform that looked down into a shaft of light—Subaru paused. Something small and bright fluttered on the ground, several strands of Shaula's hair, sliced cleanly.
"Here, Gojo-sensei here!" Subaru yelled.
Gojo crouched, picked the strands up between two fingers. He sniffed the air, the Six Eyes working beneath the blindfold; something cold and wrong tickled his senses like static.
"There's mana in the air more noticeable here. Shaula's… it seemed like this was placed on purpose or something, maybe for us to find."
The stairs past the landing led to a wing they hadn't checked yet. The door there was heavier, iron-banded, as if meant to keep people out. Around it, small birds lingered, fluttering and flapping.
Subaru's pulse thudded in his throat. He half-ran, palms slapping the wood as he pushed the door open.
The room was less a room and more a spectacle. The same small white birds from outside perched atop a metallic fence that framed an impossible view: a rich, purple night where the wind swept through the endless sandy sea. Countless stars twinkled above, winking as if the universe itself watched them. It would have been breathtaking if not for Shaula's body collapsed against the fence facing the door they had just entered through.
Sprawled there, she faced the doorway—
Her scorpion-tail braid, usually a coil of energy and life, splayed loose. Blood darkened the floor in an intense crimson pool, but the wound itself was unnaturally clean, like a blade made to cut and vanish without tearing. The incision ran across her side in a long, clinical line.
She didn't move.
Subaru's breath hitched. He stumbled forward, hands reaching—then froze, a foot away from her, eyes agape.
"A-Ah…" His voice broke at the sight.
Gojo's feet were silent as he crossed the balcony. He knelt beside her with a precision that bordered on ritual, gloved hands checking the wound, her pulse, the angles of her injuries. He did not fumble. He did not panic. Yet the blindfold slipped a fraction, revealing the storm in his eyes—and the truth Subaru already feared.
"She's dead." Gojo said, voice small and flat, an evident frown on his face as he delivered the news.
The room hollowed in response. Subaru grimaced, catching himself on the metal fence, eyes wide but not yet filled with tears as he would've been many other times. He glanced over the edge, pondering the cruel reality below.
"…Subaru, I notice things many would not be able to." Gojo muttered, frowning as he tilted his head toward him. "So why… why are you not the slightest bit saddened? Shocked, yes… but not saddened? Clearly, yet unmoved. Why, Subaru?"
Gojo's hands moved to Shaula, closing her lifeless eyes before standing. Subaru opened his mouth, but words died there, cut cleanly off by Gojo's continuation.
"I am less sad than I am angry right now." Gojo muttered, yet his voice was audible. "But even I have limits… emotion-wise. So why—why, Subaru… aren't you in tears as I've seen you so many times before?"
Gojo's eyes widened behind the blindfold.
"You look as if… it's something you never believed to have even happened, despite the fact it sits right in front of your eyes..."
"Gojo-sensei… that… I—" Subaru started.
"…You can't tell me."
Gojo clicked his tongue, eyes narrowing. In one swift motion, he grabbed Subaru by the collar, hoisting him out of the balcony and slamming him against a solid wall of the tower's interior. Not nearly hard enough to injure, but enough to stop him.
"Why—WHY can't you tell me? It obviously involves 'death' yes? What else could it involve, Subaru? Your name is in that library, after all."
"N-No—"
"Subaru… I am trying. Trying to be lenient… calm… but someone's hunting us, and yet I find it increasingly difficult to—"
Subaru's eyes widened. He pressed himself against the wall, his body frozen.
"Sensei… this—"
"Tell me."
"Sensei—"
"Tell me!"
The wall beside Subaru cracked beneath the pressure of Gojo's hand.
Subaru's fists clenched, trembling. What choice did he have? He didn't want to see all of that again—didn't want to see the Witch again, the darkness, the endless despair, the relentless agony. But secrets weren't an option here, not with Gojo.
"I… can—"
He stopped. No. He couldn't.
Subaru's fists tightened, unyielding. He'd seen it all: Gojo strung out like a puppet, torn limb by limb in front of him, Envy and Reid tearing through the battlefield; the endless purple rifts of the Witch's stare, her cold, inescapable touch.
"…What is it that's stopping you, Subaru?" Gojo's voice dropped, softer now, coaxing rather than demanding. He could see the hesitation, the desperate desire to withhold.
Subaru swallowed, eyes burning. He exhaled, finally forcing the truth out, prepared to kill himself in a heartbeat if he sees the Witch or darkness manifest.
"I… I can Return by Death. I've been coming back… after dying… again and again and again!"
Silence.
Gojo's eyes widened behind the blindfold. The air still, the tower itself seemingly holding its breath. No witch appeared. No darkness that threatens to swallow the world. Only Subaru, trembling, and the weight of the confession between them.
"…What…?" Gojo muttered in disbelief, as if those words Subaru had spoke were the last thing he had expected.