Yuta Okkotsu was speechless.
He wanted to retort that it was easy for Mahito to say such things.
How could anyone possibly defeat a candidate for godhood without resorting to underhanded methods?
But he couldn't say it.
All the courage he had summoned to shout in anger disappeared completely.
Just as the King of Curses himself had said...
...it really was because he was good.
If he weren't good, how would the Cursed Spirits and Curse Users under him have treated this world?
If he weren't good, what would the Dream Walk Migration have become?
If he weren't good, Yuta would have been absorbed and devoured long ago.
How could he possibly have had the chance to stand here and confront him?
It was Mahito's goodness that had prevented this world from being destroyed.
And now...
Was Yuta Okkotsu really going to denounce that kind of goodness?
He himself was someone protected by the King of Curses' goodness.
Gojo Satoru suddenly patted Yuta Okkotsu on the shoulder, pulling him out of his thoughts.
Yuta turned toward Gojo Satoru.
The smile on Gojo Satoru's face hadn't changed in the slightest, as though everything unfolding before them was only natural.
"Teacher... did you already understand the King of Curses' philosophy?" Yuta asked unconsciously.
Gojo Satoru replied calmly,
"Why do you think I've kept the Jujutsu Higher-Ups around until now?
"Or do you think I couldn't sweep through the entire jujutsu world by myself?"
Of course he could.
But Gojo Satoru never did.
He had publicly declared more than once that he intended to cultivate disciples to replace the Jujutsu Higher-Ups.
Once those disciples matured, he would cleanly eliminate the Higher-Ups and let his students take their places.
Even the Higher-Ups themselves knew this.
Didn't they want to resist?
It was precisely because resistance was meaningless that they simply endured it.
In fact, in the original work, if the Higher-Ups hadn't begun purging Gojo Satoru's faction after confirming his sealing, they might not all have been killed after Gojo Satoru returned.
As long as his bottom line wasn't crossed, Gojo Satoru was surprisingly reasonable and approachable.
To a certain extent...
Gojo Satoru truly shared the same philosophy as the King of Curses.
"Precisely because one is strong, one must shoulder the obligations of the strong."
This was the belief shared by both Gojo Satoru and Mahito, and one they had both consistently practiced.
Mahito laughed.
"Satoru is far more restrained than I am. If I were in his position, I'd have slaughtered those old fossils among the Higher-Ups long ago.
"I would shoulder the obligations of the strong, but I would also exercise the authority that naturally comes with being strong.
"But this guy almost never uses his authority.
"If he had occasionally exercised the power of the strong to 'kill the chicken to warn the monkeys,' he wouldn't be so frustrated today."
Mahito wasn't exaggerating.
Although Gojo Satoru had raised the banner of rebellion long ago and always appeared extremely unruly, the original work described him as nothing less than a workhorse.
One of the original character profiles once stated:
"Rarely has an entire day off. Sleeps only about three hours each day (goes to bed at 4:00 a.m. and wakes up at 7:00 a.m.), and..."
"Every mission is like this. If not for the Reverse Cursed Technique constantly repairing his brain and nervous system, he would have died from overwork long ago."
During these two months of special training...
...he had actually been more relaxed than usual.
Yuki Tsukumo once called Gojo Satoru a giant child.
She wasn't wrong.
The Higher-Ups had pushed him around to such an extent, yet all he ever did was threaten rebellion without actually killing anyone.
To be honest...
...he was kind to a fault.
This was also why, in the original work, after Itadori Yuji died because the Higher-Ups deliberately withheld information—before Ryomen Sukuna revived him from within—Gojo Satoru calmly remarked that perhaps he should have killed all the Higher-Ups long ago.
Because Gojo Satoru's way of thinking had always been:
"I follow the rules, so you should follow the rules too.
"But if you refuse to follow the rules...
"...don't blame me for refusing to follow them either."
Yet the moment Itadori Yuji came back to life...
...Gojo Satoru immediately abandoned that thought.
One could only say...
Gojo Satoru was simply too kind.
Gojo Satoru set Six Degrees East Crossing aside and stretched.
His bones cracked loudly, like a giant awakening after a long slumber.
He took Six Degrees East Crossing back into his hands and flicked his monk's sleeves.
A gust of wind burst outward.
It was merely the fluctuation of his overflowing Cursed Energy.
"Let's end the small talk here, Mahito.
"The next battle will determine whether I can save the world."
Gojo Satoru gently shook Six Degrees East Crossing.
The staff emitted a bell-like chime.
A circle of golden light slowly spread outward.
The rabbit-eared maid knelt on one knee.
Her long hair trailed across the white sand, its white tips blending seamlessly into the desert.
She raised both hands.
Resting upon her delicate palms was her true form—
—a straight-bladed greatsword.
Mahito picked it up with one hand.
The blade let out a metallic hum.
He gently swung the greatsword.
A silver arc flashed beneath the moonlight, like a silver fish darting across the surface of water, beautiful as a painting.
The rabbit-eared maid dissolved back into a shadow and disappeared into Mahito's own shadow.
Mahito breathed slowly.
With each breath, an overwhelming pressure spread throughout the entire space like the depths of the ocean.
Yuta Okkotsu's teeth unconsciously began chattering.
Despite being a Special Grade Sorcerer, at this moment he felt like an ordinary person who had only just stepped into the world of jujutsu.
The being before him felt eternal...
...and sacred.
"In a duel this sacred," Mahito said calmly, "no unnecessary variables should be allowed."
"For Satoru's sake, I won't kill you.
"But your role ends here."
Yuta Okkotsu suddenly felt overwhelming terror.
Instinctively, he activated the Immortal Technique with all his strength.
Although the Immortal Technique couldn't solve every problem, within the domain of immortality it was virtually omnipotent.
As long as it remained active, neither his body nor his soul could truly enter death.
Mahito merely glanced at Yuta Okkotsu.
Just a single glance...
...and Yuta froze completely.
Gojo Satoru promptly rang Six Degrees East Crossing.
The golden halo enveloped Yuta's body.
Although this temporarily halted Yuta's Immortal Technique...
...it should also have fundamentally removed Mahito's influence from him.
In theory.
Yuta Okkotsu's body gradually became transparent.
Particles of light slowly drifted away.
This was the phenomenon of death within the Dream Walk Migration.
Yuta Okkotsu...
...died.
Gojo Satoru looked genuinely shocked.
"How did you do that?
"The Cursed Technique you just used on Yuta should have been dispelled by me!"
Mahito smiled.
"You shouldn't have used Buddha's Sound Purifying World on Okkotsu.
"If you hadn't, he would merely have remained in a vegetative state until our battle ended.
"But you chose to interfere using Buddha's Sound Purifying World, stopping his Immortal Technique from functioning.
"And so...
"...he died."
Gojo Satoru's heart sank.
He immediately understood Mahito's meaning.
During that brief moment just now...
...Mahito had already completed the curse.
Yuta hadn't died only because the Immortal Technique had been sustaining him.
The instant Buddha's Sound Purifying World halted the Immortal Technique...
...the curse could no longer be resisted.
Yuta died instantly.
"Satoru."
Mahito suddenly tossed Kirigiri aside.
White armor gradually spread across his body.
Soul Creation Dragon Spirit Body.
Mahito didn't bother testing the waters.
From the very beginning of the battle, he entered his Dragon God form.
"Come."
"The Seal of Salvation, just as you wished."
"The curse of humans upon humans..."
"...Mahito."
He let out a divine roar.
"HAS ARRIVED!"
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