"An alliance?"
A flicker of inquiry crossed Kamiyado's eyes, but Gojo Satoru seemed to have no intention of explaining directly.
Leaning lazily against the rooftop railing, he dropped the easygoing smile he usually wore before everyone else and countered with a question of his own.
"So, what do you plan to do?"
"Resurrect Sukuna completely?"
"How can you guarantee that Sukuna won't go on a massive killing spree once he's revived?"
"You must remember, whether it's the Sukuna you knew or the Sukuna we know, he belongs to a thousand years ago."
"Now that he has been turned into a Cursed Object and so much time has passed, how can you be sure he hasn't changed?"
Kamiyado let out a soft sigh. "You have too many questions."
Yet, he still weighed his words before replying.
"I can be certain he has never changed."
"Perhaps because of his influence, curses bred and many people died, but he himself has never killed a single person with his own hands."
"This is an answer from the deepest depths of my soul, and there is no falsehood in it."
"He simply forgot me, that is all..."
Gojo Satoru reined in the shifting glint in his eyes and sharply questioned, "Still, I have no reason to take your word for it..."
Kamiyado interrupted him softly, "This is not just my word."
"Sukuna and I established a Gojo Binding Vow—both enhanced by my Cursed Technique Construction, bindings capable of directly touching the soul."
"If he had ever killed a single person, I would have died instantly."
"And since I am standing right here safely in front of you, that should be proof enough."
Gojo Satoru let out a slightly mocking chuckle, muttering his thoughts under his breath.
He seemed to be asking Kamiyado, and yet he also seemed to be asking himself.
"Is it really worth going to such lengths for a notorious villain..."
Kamiyado answered him with absolute seriousness, "It is worth it."
"Sukuna has only me as a friend, and I have only Sukuna as a friend."
"For him, I can give up everything."
Gojo Satoru pressed his lips tight, his grip on the railing so fierce he nearly snapped it in two.
The two remained silent under the moonlight for a long time before Gojo Satoru said quietly, "What if... what if Sukuna really has changed?"
Kamiyado answered with equal softness, "I will make him change back."
"If he cannot be changed back, then the one who deserves to be judged is me, not him."
Gojo Satoru shrugged, reverting to his initial flippant demeanor. "We'll cross that bridge when we get to it."
"Are you planning to use that boy's body to resurrect Sukuna? If you do that, the kid is going to die, you know."
Whenever this topic came up, Kamiyado felt an urge to sigh, and he had no choice but to lay out his thoughts just as they were.
When he mentioned that he could use Cursed Technique Construction to build a brand-new body for Itadori, Gojo Satoru suddenly raised his hand to interrupt him, looking somewhat shocked.
"Hey, hey, hey! Just how many Cursed Techniques do you have? Limitless, enhanced bindings, and you even have Cursed Technique Construction?!"
Kamiyado replied to his question, "I have three innate Cursed Techniques."
Gojo Satoru let out a quiet sigh of relief. Good thing it was only three.
Wait—! How is that a good thing at all?!
Such a dangerous person definitely had to be dragged back to Jujutsu High and properly disciplined!
Seeing how astonished Gojo looked, Kamiyado decided against mentioning the other two acquired techniques he had spent a thousand years creating inside the Prison Realm.
If he actually told him, something would probably go wrong; whatever it was, it certainly wouldn't be good.
Gojo Satoru pondered for a moment, suddenly spotting a blind spot: "If you can construct a physical body directly, why did you even make Sukuna use Itadori's body in the first place?"
Kamiyado rubbed his nose, looking somewhat awkward. "Researching a physical body compatible with his soul takes a considerable amount of time, and I didn't want to keep him waiting..."
Gojo Satoru: ...So you kept Itadori waiting instead? You really are a great guy!
Sensing the meaning behind Gojo's inexplicable expression, Kamiyado calmly steered the conversation away. "This method won't work anymore anyway. For some reason, Itadori's body seems to have a suppressing effect on Sukuna's soul."
"I will research a body suitable for Sukuna and separate him."
Gojo Satoru's beautiful azure eyes hidden behind his blindfold spun in a circle as he suddenly thought of a great way to rope someone into Jujutsu High.
His expression instantly drooped. "Ah~~ How long is that going to take? Those old fossils in Jujutsu society aren't going to just sit back and watch a vessel for Sukuna wander around right under their noses, you know. What are we gonna do~?"
Kamiyado frowned and thought for a moment, then made a very earnest suggestion: "Shall I just kill those people?"
Gojo Satoru crossed his arms, striking an exaggerated defensive pose and dragging out his tone, "Daijoubu yo—!" Even though sometimes he really wanted to do that himself.
"Doing that would throw all of Jujutsu society into turmoil and affect normal human society as well. It won't work, you see."
After shooting down Kamiyado's idea, Gojo Satoru smiled and offered his own proposal. "I can help you buy more time."
"With my current influence in Jujutsu society, I can have the immediate execution commuted to a suspended sentence, and the reason is quite simple."
"Once a curse chooses a human body to host it, killing that human will also make the curse inside them disappear."
"I'll propose that once we find all twenty of Sukuna's fingers, we let Itadori swallow every single one of them before carrying out the execution."
"Those results-obsessed old fossils will definitely find this foolproof plan very tempting."
Gojo Satoru snapped his fingers with an air of total control. "Collecting the fingers must be part of your plan anyway, since you don't seem like the type to leave Sukuna missing a few pieces of his soul."
"How about it? Is it a partnership?"
Kamiyado thought deeply for a moment, deciding that his proposal was indeed quite good, and nodded.
"What do you need me to do?"
Gojo Satoru threw a fist in excitement and stuck up two fingers. "Yosh!"
"I have only two requests."
"First, I need you to join Tokyo Prefectural Jujutsu High School as a Special Grade sorcerer, become a first-year student, and personally protect Itadori's safety."
"Second, I need your cooperation in certain operations of mine targeting the higher-ups of Jujutsu society."
Kamiyado looked a bit dazed and pointed at himself. "I have to be a student? Why?"
"Oh come on, being a student makes it easier to protect little brother Itadori~ and easier to stay with Sukuna, too, since Itadori is bound to enroll at Jujutsu High for his studies anyway."
"You definitely won't say no, right~!"
Kamiyado fell silent, then gave a cold, flat assent.
Indeed, he could not refuse.
The two quickly finalized the agreement, and Kamiyado left first, leaving Gojo Satoru standing alone on the rooftop to enjoy the chilling, biting night wind.
He lifted a corner of his blindfold, gazing with his true azure eyes at the crescent moon in the sky.
The night was pitch black, and the stars twinkled.
He let out a soft sigh.
Suguru... if you were still here...
In the past, I could never find a firm reason, and could only watch as this Jujutsu society, controlled and squeezed dry by those higher-ups, rotted away.
New talent was ruthlessly trampled underfoot for the sake of petty struggles over status and face.
What a ridiculous and pathetic scene...
It's about time. It's time for these boring farces to come to an end...
Now, I have found the reason to act.
For Riko, for you, for... everyone who respects me, trusts me, and looks up to me—
I am going to bring reform to the entire Jujutsu society.
Gojo Satoru adjusted his blindfold, hooked his hands behind his head, curved his pretty, thin lips into a gentle smile, and hummed an unknown tune.
He walked alone down the stairs.