Chapter 155: The Finale and Rebirth of the Star Plasma Vessel
"Your new life has only just begun."
Yami's calm words struck the still lake of Riko Amanai's heart like a stone dropped into deep water.
The girl jerked her head up.
Her eyes were red and swollen from crying, but now they were filled with disbelief.
"A new life…"
Riko murmured the words softly, as if they were something too precious and distant for her to touch.
As the Star Plasma Vessel, her path had been decided from the moment she was born.
For the stability of the Jujutsu World.
For Master Tengen's assimilation.
For the barriers that protected people who would never know her name.
She had been raised as a sacrifice meant to be placed on an altar.
But now, Master Tengen's assimilation had failed.
The terrifying assassin hunting her had been driven away.
She did not have to die anymore.
But did that mean she was free?
No.
Riko understood that much.
The rotten oranges sitting at the top of the Jujutsu World would never allow a Star Plasma Vessel who had lost her purpose and become a possible variable to keep living openly.
Even if she ran to the ends of the earth, their order for her death would follow like a shadow.
"It's impossible…"
The light in Riko's eyes dimmed again.
She shook her head bitterly.
"Those adults won't let me go. Even if you protect me for a while, you can't protect me forever."
Her fingers tightened around her skirt.
"I'll only become a burden to you."
"You're wrong."
Satoru Gojo, who had been silent until then, spoke.
He walked over slowly with both hands in his pockets.
His uniform was still torn and stained with blood, but the absolute confidence radiating from him made the air around them feel strangely steady.
"It's not just one person protecting you."
Gojo raised his brows.
"It's me and my friends protecting you."
His Six Eyes flashed with arrogance that did not place the higher ups in his sight at all.
"If I say you're alive, who dares tell you to die?"
"Satoru is right."
Suguru Geto also struggled to sit up.
His face was pale, but his eyes were firm.
"Our mission was to escort and erase."
He looked at Riko gently.
"Now that the assimilation has failed, the erasure part no longer matters."
A faint smile touched his lips.
"Which means only the escort remains."
Geto's voice softened.
"We'll protect you until you're truly safe."
Riko's tears welled up again.
But before the emotion could fully settle, Yami calmly poured cold water over both boys' declaration.
"Protecting her by force won't work."
Gojo's expression stiffened.
Geto looked at him.
Yami's tone remained rational.
"Satoru has mastered Reverse Cursed Technique, and his strength has taken a qualitative leap. But our opponent now is not Toji. It's the highest authority in the Jujutsu World."
He glanced at Gojo and Geto.
"If we openly defy orders, the higher ups will accuse us of treason and issue execution orders."
Yami paused.
"I don't care. I'm not a Jujutsu Sorcerer."
His gaze deepened.
"But you two still have to live within the Jujutsu World. More importantly, open attacks are easy to block. Hidden knives are harder to guard against. We can't protect Riko and Kuroi twenty four hours a day."
Gojo scratched his hair irritably.
"Then what's your idea? Don't tell me you want to hand Riko over. I'm not doing something that pathetic."
"Of course not."
The corner of Yami's mouth curved slightly.
It was a rare cunning smile.
"In this world, what's the best way to make someone disappear completely?"
Geto reacted almost immediately.
"You mean…"
His eyes narrowed.
"Fake her death?"
"Exactly."
Yami snapped his fingers.
"We create a perfect illusion for the higher ups. Riko Amanai died during the attack."
He looked toward the unconscious chaos around them.
"Then, through some private channels, I'll arrange completely new identities for her and Kuroi."
"Private channels?"
Gojo caught the phrase at once.
"Just how many secrets are you hiding from us?"
Yami shrugged and did not answer directly.
As someone who knew the future, and as someone who had spent enough time in this world despite having no Cursed Energy, he had never relied only on the school.
Through martial strength alone, he had already built connections in the underground black market.
Two flawless false identities were not difficult to obtain.
"However, this plan does require the Gojo Family to bleed a little."
Yami looked at Gojo seriously.
"Riko and Kuroi need to live abroad. That means relocation money, living expenses, documents, contacts, and backup routes. I'm poor, so this can only come from you, young master."
"Money isn't a problem."
Gojo waved his hand without hesitation.
"As long as it makes those rotten oranges suffer, spend however much you need."
The plan was settled.
Everyone moved quickly.
With Masamichi Yaga and Shoko Ieiri silently choosing to look the other way, Yami used lifelike artificial corpses obtained through the black market to forge the scene of Riko Amanai and Misato Kuroi's deaths.
The real Riko and Kuroi were secretly moved to a remote pier in Tokyo Bay.
Late at night, the sea breeze was damp, salty, and cold.
An inconspicuous cargo ship waited by the shore.
Riko Amanai stood on the pier.
Her iconic long hair had been cut short. She had changed into plain clothes, looking like an ordinary girl who could vanish into any crowd.
Beside her, Misato Kuroi had also changed her appearance completely.
"Are we really…"
Riko stared at the dark sea stretching out before her.
Her voice trembled.
"...leaving?"
The fourteen year fate of the Star Plasma Vessel was ending here.
"Go."
Yami stood in the shadows and watched her calmly.
"Live the life you want."
His voice was gentle but firm.
"Go to school. Make friends. Fall in love someday."
Riko's lips trembled.
"Forget the Jujutsu World."
Gojo and Geto stood beside him.
For once, Gojo was not wearing his sunglasses.
He looked at Riko seriously and said, "If anyone bullies you out there, just say my name."
Riko blinked through her tears.
"They probably won't understand it, but don't worry. I'll fly over and beat them up."
Geto smiled helplessly, then looked at Riko with warmth in his eyes.
"Be happy, Riko."
Those words were simple.
Too simple for a farewell.
But hearing them from these three unreliable, yet somehow impossibly reliable boys, Riko could no longer hold back her tears.
She took a deep breath.
Then she bowed deeply to them.
"Thank you."
Her voice shook.
"Thank you for giving me a new life."
There were no grand vows.
No dramatic promises.
Riko and Kuroi turned around and boarded the cargo ship that would carry them toward a new world.
The ship's horn sounded low across the night.
Slowly, the cargo ship left the pier.
Its outline grew smaller and smaller, until it finally merged with the vast darkness of the sea.
Yami watched the direction it disappeared.
At last, he let out a long breath.
[Ding! Hidden Mission: Save Riko Amanai, completed perfectly.]
For once, the cold mechanical voice in his mind sounded almost pleasant.
He had finally severed this cruel fate completely.
"Let's go."
Yami turned and looked at Gojo and Geto beside him.
"Riko's problem is solved, but our real trouble is only beginning."
His eyes were calm.
"The rotten oranges up top won't be that easy to fool."
Gojo sneered.
"What's there to be afraid of?"
He pointed a thumb at himself.
"I can use Reverse Cursed Technique now."
Geto sighed helplessly, but there was a firm light in his eyes.
"Yeah."
He looked back toward the city hidden beyond the pier.
"The real hard battle starts now."
The three boys walked side by side across the cold pier.
Behind them, in the dark and rotten Jujutsu World, an unprecedented storm was beginning to gather.
....
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