"Equip it?"
Yuji Itadori looked confused—then watched with wide eyes as the feather was absorbed straight into his body.
"W-What just happened!?"
"Try again—see if your strength has changed," Zephyr said.
Yuji, full of questions, still did as he was told. He turned to look at Fushiguro Megumi.
"…Why are you looking at me? Can't you pick someone else?"
"Is there anyone else at school right now?"
"…"
Fushiguro was speechless. He rubbed his hair in frustration. "Fine, hurry up. I still—"
Boom!
With a loud crash, Fushiguro was sent flying by a single punch.
"What the hell!?" the two of them exclaimed in shock.
Yuji stood frozen, his face full of disbelief. "How did my strength increase so much?!"
Fushiguro staggered back up from where he landed, clearly shaken. Luckily, Yuji hadn't hit him with full force, or he'd at least be seriously injured by now.
"I remember… your strength wasn't anywhere near this level before, was it?"
"Exactly! I don't know what happened either!"
With a sudden burst of energy from his legs, Yuji shot forward—appearing in front of Fushiguro in nearly an instant.
"So fast!" Fushiguro's pupils contracted as he hurriedly raised both arms to block.
But even so, he was once again sent flying by the overwhelming power of the blow.
Climbing out from the wreckage, Fushiguro coughed. Cough, cough… This power… What the hell happened to you…?"
"How should I know!? Wait, Big Sis—this was your doing, wasn't it!?"
Paimon said, "You're really slow. Took you long enough to realize."
"It really was!? But how did you do it, Big Sis?"
"Aiya, it's simple—I just gave you an artifact to equip."
"Artifact?"
Zephyr finally spoke. "I didn't think it would actually work… but you can really equip artifacts."
"Artifacts… what are those?"
"You can think of them as items that make you stronger. I've got plenty more of these."
As she spoke, she pulled out four more artifacts.
It was the Berserker Set:
- 2-piece effect: Crit Rate +12%
- 4-piece effect: When HP is below 70%, an additional +24% Crit Rate
Before Yuji Itadori could react, Zephyr directly shoved the rest of the artifacts into his body.
"Wait, wait, wait… Eh? They disappeared? That's amazing!"
"Wait a sec, Big Sis, you're just giving me these incredible things? Ahem—no, I mean, lending them to me?"
Zephyr replied, "It's compensation for taking Sukuna's finger from you."
"Compensation? But Big Sis, you saved me before. It's fine that you took the finger. Besides, it wasn't even mine to begin with, so why give me anything?"
"If you don't want them, you can give them back."
"No no, I do! I want them!"
Fushiguro Megumi, listening in from the side, said in disbelief, "There are five pieces like that?!"
"That's right. It's a full set. Oh, by the way—do you prefer one-handed swords or greatswords?"
"Uh… greatsword, I guess."
"Alright." She tossed him a greatsword.
"Whoa, so cool! But… I don't know how to use a sword…"
"Give it back then."
"I'll work hard and learn, I promise!"
Technically, Yuji didn't even need a weapon—after all, his main fighting style in the future relied on hand-to-hand combat. But it was possible the school didn't have any weapons that suited him.
As the saying goes, "An inch longer, an inch stronger; an inch shorter, an inch more dangerous." Having a weapon gave him a clear advantage over bare fists.
Still, if he ultimately preferred using his fists, that was fine too. Zephyr would let Yuji decide for himself which fighting style suited him best.
After his excitement settled, Yuji's eyes lit up, and he licked his lips, saying, "Hey Fushiguro, let's spar again."
Fushiguro's face darkened. "No way!"
"Haha, that's not up to you." He lunged with a punch.
Fushiguro almost started swearing.
After another round of combat, Fushiguro ended up bruised and battered, while Yuji looked full of energy, like he hadn't even broken a sweat.
"Damn it… with this kind of strength and speed… you could probably take down second or even third-rate curses barehanded now…"
"Hehe, it's all thanks to Big Sis! Thank you, Big Sis—please accept my deepest bow!"
Fushiguro stood by, watching silently. Strangely, he felt a little bitter.
"Hmph hmph! I told you Big Sis was unbeatable! If you'd shown her some respect earlier, maybe she'd have given you something too. But now? Only I got the gear. Too bad! Nyeh nyeh!"
"…Hmph!"
"But, well—if you beg the great Yuji Itadori to plead on your behalf… that might be a different story."
Fushiguro's expression shifted slightly as he considered the offer.
"So, aren't you gonna hurry up and beg me? Say: 'Please, Great Yuji Itadori, I was out of my mind before. You're so generous and forgiving—please put in a good word for me with Big Sis.'"
"You're dreaming! Even if I starve, or jump off a building, I'll never beg you! And even if I were gonna beg someone, I'd just ask Lumine directly. Why would I beg you?!"
"You—! Big Sis, waaah, you heard that, right? You have to stand up for me!"
"This Fushiguro guy is so bad. If he gets stronger, he'll definitely do evil stuff every day. So you absolutely shouldn't give him any artifacts!"
Lumine replied helplessly, "Fushiguro's not that kind of person. Besides, artifacts are really precious to me. I only gave them to you because you're a bit special. I wouldn't give them to just anyone."
"Ohhh, so I'm special, huh!"
He glanced smugly at Fushiguro, pride and disdain written all over his face—so much so that Fushiguro seriously wanted to punch him.
"Artifacts can be powered up, but the specific method is something you'll need to explore yourself. I suggest trying to feed cursed items to the artifact—maybe that'll help it grow stronger."
Paimon said, "Hey, Mr. Ice Face, what are you mumbling about over there?"
Fushiguro stammered, "Ple… please…"
"Please?"
Yuji burst out laughing, "Hahaha! Fushiguro, didn't you always say you'd never beg anyone?"
A vein popped on Fushiguro's forehead. "You want me to hit you?"
"You think you can?"
"In close quarters, no. But who said sorcerers only fight up close? I could just kite you with jujutsu until you drop!"
Paimon threw up her hands. "So dishonest…"
Zephyr added, "Oh, and about the artifacts—better not let anyone else know."
"No problem!"
…
The next day.
Gojo Satoru appeared, wearing his ever-punchable smile.
"Good morning, my lovely students! Did you miss your beloved teacher?"
"No."
"No."
Gojo turned his gaze to the last one—Paimon.
Paimon hesitated, "Uhh…"
Gojo pulled out a bag of snacks.
"Missed you!"
Everyone instantly looked at Paimon in disgust. "Seriously? You sold out for a snack?"
"Ahem, anyway! Listen up, everyone—we're about to meet our fourth classmate! Let's give them a warm welcome!"
Cue exaggerated clapping.
//END