In front of a Sendai crematorium called Fujioka.
Roy leaned idly against a roadside wall.
Megumi stood by the road, hands in pockets, looking suspiciously like he was trying too hard to appear cool.
Several groups of women had already approached him for photos, only to shift their attention to Roy midway through.
"I don't do photos."
Roy declined bluntly while fiddling with his phone.
Only after the disappointed women left did Megumi glance over with mild interest.
So Roy-sensei is the type who dislikes getting close to unrelated people.
"Aren't you worried he might flee, sensei?"
"You mean Itadori Yuji? That kid will be fine."
Roy waved dismissively, yet his words carried inexplicable confidence in Yuji.
Megumi couldn't understand where this trust came from.
Even he—who'd pleaded for Yuji—couldn't help suspecting the boy might run.
Not that he distrusted Yuji.
It's just that Megumi was inherently too clever—clever enough to consider every possible scenario, to plan for the worst-case outcome, making him seem overly cautious.
After all, Yuji might still face execution.
His earlier bravery against curses could have been genuine skill, or perhaps the curses weren't strong enough to feel life-threatening, or maybe adrenaline made him momentarily fearless. But now in cold reflection, fleeing to avoid execution was still a possibility.
"Megumi, I don't dislike your tendency to anticipate worst-case scenarios. In fact, compared to Yuji's shonen protagonist-style enthusiasm, I prefer your personality more."
"Because if you can envision the worst-case scenario, then when things actually reach their worst, you'll be the only one capable of turning the tide. That's the mark of reliability—provided you also consider the worst possibilities within yourself."
Upon hearing this, Megumi's face twisted in confusion.
Considering the worst possibilities within himself... It was advising him not to always expect the best when it came to his own affairs and to avoid shying away from contemplating the worst outcomes.
But what did this have to do with the present?
"People like you usually find it hard to truly trust others. You probably think you can handle everything alone without relying on anyone—has anyone ever told you that?"
Megumi fell silent.
He had hit the nail on the head.
Gojo had said the same thing.
Roy observed Megumi and nodded subtly to himself.
He had brought this up precisely because he recalled Megumi's behavior in the original story and wanted to give him a heads-up.
Whether it would be effective was another matter.
"But if you ask me, you should try trusting others more. Open your heart a little and choose people you can rely on. Life will be better that way. When you face difficulties, you'll realize how precious trustworthy people are. This is wisdom from experience. Every sorcerer reaches that point eventually. What I mean is—you could consider Itadori Yuji as someone like that."
"...I didn't expect to hear such words from you, Roy-sensei."
Megumi paused, then sighed helplessly.
"What, do you dislike me lecturing you?"
"No, it's just a feeling."
Megumi shook his head. "Roy-sensei seems like the type who observes events unfold but doesn't personally intervene. Hearing this from you doesn't quite match my impression of you."
During morning training, no matter how much he or Maki struggled, Roy never offered guidance unprompted.
Only when they actively asked what they were doing wrong would he speak up, effortlessly clearing their doubts.
He didn't think Roy was indifferent to everything—just that he prioritized people's autonomy over his own desire to help. For Roy, "this person must want help" mattered more than "I must help this person."
"If that's your impression, it just means you don't know me well enough yet."
Roy chuckled at this, his smile fox-like and enigmatic, veiled in a mist of inscrutability.
Megumi's perception of him was slightly off.
The only reason Roy had been so attentive to him and Maki lately was because he was playing the role of a teacher.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have spared them a second glance.
But Roy saw no need to explain this.
Still, looking at it another way...
Even with his identity as a teacher, Roy wasn't the type to treat all students equally. The fact that he only helped Maki and Megumi after they actively sought his guidance showed that he preferred students who had the drive to improve themselves. He had absolutely no interest in those who had already given up on themselves.
"Don't become the kind of student who gives up on themselves, Fushiguro."
"What?"
"Never mind. Yuji's coming out."
Roy smiled and pointed toward the crematorium.
Yuji emerged, holding an urn, his expression heavy with grief.
"Before he died, my grandpa told me… that I'm strong, that I should help others as much as I can, that I should save people before I hesitate, and that I should die surrounded by people…"
On a bench by the roadside, Yuji clutched the urn containing the remains of his only family—his grandfather, who had passed away the day before. They had relied on each other since he was a child.
It wasn't until he watched his grandfather's body being pushed into the incinerator that the reality of his death truly sank in.
"So that's why you were so desperate…"
Megumi's expression cleared slightly.
Was that why Yuji had acted so selflessly yesterday—because he was following his grandfather's dying words?
But was that really okay?
"Did you buy a burial plot for your grandfather?" Roy asked Yuji, his expression unreadable, completely calm.
"Yeah, he bought it himself before he passed."
"Then let your grandfather rest in peace."
The group stayed in Sendai for one more day.
Only after Yuji's grandfather was properly laid to rest did they board the Shinkansen bound for Tokyo.
"Sensei, is the higher-ups' side really okay with this?"
On the train, Megumi couldn't help but voice his concerns to Roy.
"It's fine. I've already handled it."
Roy yawned, unconcerned.
After all, he was one of the higher-ups in the Jujutsu Headquarters.
And as one of Japan's last remaining four Special Grade sorcerers—well, now three—it was easy for him to protect Yuji.
He didn't even need to resort to arguments like "let him consume all of Sukuna's fingers before executing him." All he had to do was propose "keeping Yuji Itadori under my supervision," and the elders who had previously engaged in daughter or niece exchanges with him readily agreed to let Yuji live.
But the elders who had no daughters or nieces to offer were far more troublesome. From the start, they stood firmly against Roy, insisting that "Sukuna could emerge from Yuji Itadori at any moment and slaughter countless people," refusing to let Yuji live under any circumstances.
To say these old men genuinely cared about the general populace would be a blatant lie.
What they truly cared about was their own authority and the past glory of the jujutsu world.
They believed sorcerers should act a certain way, that vessels like Yuji deserved death.
Their stubborn adherence to outdated traditions was downright repulsive.
Of course, in the end, those old men weren't entirely wrong. In the original Shibuya Incident, Sukuna did indeed kill many people the moment he surfaced—but that was only because Gojo Satoru had been sealed. If Gojo hadn't been sealed, Sukuna, with only fifteen fingers, would never have been able to wreak such havoc under his watch.
Finally.
The higher-ups voted four to three in favor of the resolution regarding Yuji Itadori, temporarily designating him as an observation subject. If he were to exhibit behavior harmful to the public, a final decision would be made at that time.
As a teacher, Roy held considerable fondness for students like Yuji.
Moreover, he was quite curious to see what kind of chaos the Sukuna residing within him might stir up.
He was equally intrigued by Sukuna's cursed techniques.
"Sensei, who exactly is this Sukuna inside me?"
At the foot of the Jujutsu High mountains, while ascending the stone steps, Yuji placed a hand on his own body as if suddenly remembering something and turned to Roy with curiosity.
"Ryomen Sukuna is generally considered a fictional demon god, but he was actually a real historical figure who lived over a thousand years ago during the Heian period when jujutsu flourished. At that time, the Fujiwara clan gathered a group of powerful sorcerers, including the Five Empty Generals and the Sun-Moon-Star Advance Team, to challenge Sukuna. They were all defeated and ultimately had to enshrine Sukuna like a deity, serving him with humble reverence..."
"He was the true King of Curses, born with four eyes and four arms, unimaginably powerful. The sorcerers couldn't even handle the Death Wax formed after his demise, only managing to seal his cursed remnants—twenty fingers in total..."
Megumi explained all this in a lengthy lecture to Yuji.
"Is he really that strong?" Yuji asked with wide, innocent eyes.
"But didn't sensei beat him up pretty badly?"
"That's because he only had the power of one finger at the time. He has twenty fingers in total, each one a Special Grade cursed object."
"So you're saying if he collects all twenty fingers, he'll be stronger than sensei?"
"Well..."
Megumi hesitated, unsure how to answer definitively.
"Itadori."
At that moment, Roy, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped.
"Yes, what is it, Roy-sensei?"
Itadori immediately stood at attention like a soldier.
That said, even now, calling someone who looked about his own age "sensei" still felt incredibly awkward to him.
"Just remember one thing."
Roy turned around and gave Itadori an enigmatic smile.
"No sorcerer can ever be my match."
It wasn't until much later that Yuji fully realized just how profound those words were.