Chapter 133: Uchiha Ayato: I Am the Mysterious Person You're Investigating (Patreon)

The next day. Uika Misumi slowly opened her eyes in her own bed.

No cold sweat from a nightmare jolting her awake, no trace of the oppressive weight that had haunted her for so many nights running. Last night had been the most peaceful, most restful sleep she'd had since coming to Tokyo.

Uika stared up at the familiar ceiling in a daze, her mind still lingering on the achingly precious memory of last night.

All she could remember was talking with Uchiha-kun in the living room, on and on, for what felt like forever.

The instant before she'd lost consciousness, her own voice had still been echoing through the room.

But... wait. Why was she in her own bed?

Uika jolted upright as if waking from a dream within a dream.

She swung her bare feet out of bed, not even bothering with slippers, and hurried to shove open the bedroom door and dash toward the living room.

"Uchiha-kun...?"

The call, tinged with urgency and hesitant hope, sounded thin in the empty room.

But no reply came — not that faintly cheeky voice she'd hoped to hear.

The living room was empty.

The sofa, slightly rumpled last night, had been tidied smooth, and the shoes that had sat by the entryway were gone.

That particular presence of his — the one that made her feel utterly at ease just by being nearby — had drifted away on the morning breeze, leaving no trace.

Uika stopped where she was, standing blankly in the middle of the room.

"...He's gone." She lowered her head, staring at her bare feet, her voice full of disappointment.

When had he left?

Uika pressed her lips together in frustration, thinking dejectedly — why couldn't she have just stayed awake a little longer?

Even just watching him sit there would have been enough.

Just as that small pang of loss threatened to spread through her, Uika's gaze happened to sweep across the room — and she noticed something on the coffee table that hadn't been there before.

She blinked, then hurried over to look.

Up close, she found a box of sandwiches and a can of milk still faintly steaming with warmth.

Beside the food sat a small note, weighted down, written in Uchiha Ayato's handwriting.

Uika's heart skipped a beat.

She couldn't wait to pick it up and read it closely.

The note wasn't long.

He'd written that he'd gone out to the convenience store to buy this breakfast at eight in the morning, figuring the milk would still be warm by the time she woke. If it had gone cold, she should just heat it up in hot water herself.

Reading further, a faint blush crept over Uika's cheeks.

Uchiha Ayato mentioned in the note that when he'd carried her to bed after she fell asleep last night, he'd noticed she was a little underweight.

[I know you idols all have your own strict diet and calorie regimens to keep camera-ready, but you shouldn't be too hard on yourself.]

[The training ahead is going to be exhausting, so please try to keep your strength up.]

[As for when we train, it's up to your schedule — just message me on Line once you're free. I'm pretty much available anytime.]

[PS: Of course, you could also ask that idiot Mana for help. She's got a real gift in this department too.]

After reading the short lines over and over, Uika pressed the note firmly against her chest.

Something warm seemed to fill her heart, sweeping away the disappointment that had lingered there a moment ago.

So... did that mean from now on, every night, as long as she called, as long as she needed him, Uchiha-kun would come keep her company?

The thought made her lips curve into a sweet, helpless smile.

And all this food — he'd gone and bought it this very morning.

The blush on her face deepened.

So did that mean he'd stayed here with her all night, only leaving this morning?

And he'd carried her to bed while she slept, too...

Ahh, it felt just like a dream.

In truth, had Uchiha Ayato known what was going through Uika's head, he'd have popped her little fantasy without the slightest hesitation.

Was she kidding?

There was no way he'd actually spent the night at her place.

If he'd really dared to do that, what awaited Uncle Ayato back home would be a violent Cucumber grilling.

Wakaba Mutsumimi: I'll grill you first thing in the morning — if nothing comes out of it, that means you cheated on me yesterday, and I'll have to fry you dead.

Uncle Ayato still had to meet Soyo Nagasaki today — he needed to stay in peak condition.

The reason Uika had suddenly fallen asleep last night had nothing to do with exhaustion — Uncle Ayato had simply judged the time was right and let his Sharingan do its work.

Even how long she'd stay asleep had been set by him in advance, which meant he could time his return perfectly, swinging by to prepare that steaming breakfast for her before she woke.

For Uchiha Ayato, who'd already left a Cursed Technique marker in Uika's apartment, shuttling back and forth between multiple locations was nothing at all.

But Uika had no idea about any of this — and she didn't need to.

She carefully smoothed out the note, tucked it inside a book, and put it away safely in the living room drawer.

Only then did she walk over to the sofa and start eating her breakfast in small, careful bites.

The warm milk slid down into her stomach, its heat spreading quickly through her limbs.

Uchiha-kun had said she was a little underweight.

Uika took a small bite of her sandwich, brow furrowing slightly as she thought it over seriously.

Did he prefer girls with a fuller figure?

Or did he lean more toward the type like Saki, with her cute round face?

If that were the case, easing up on her diet a little wouldn't hurt...

Whatever his preference turned out to be, she felt certain she could manage it, if it meant staying by his side.

Finishing the last bite of her breakfast, Uika stood and pulled open the living room curtains.

Morning sunlight poured in, making her golden hair shimmer.

She looked out the window.

In that moment, the bustling city stirring awake in the morning light seemed, to Uika's eyes, to have shed the coldness and distance it once held.

Today's sunlight was truly beautiful.

Having just wrapped up a minor incident caused by a grade-2 cursed spirit, the trio of Jujutsu High first-years were walking through the somewhat noisy streets of Harajuku.

The autumn sun was uncharacteristically bright, its warmth pleasant on their skin.

Itadori Yuji walked with a bounce in his step, hands laced behind his head.

"Hey, since the mission wrapped up so fast, want to catch a movie while we're at it?"

He turned, looking hopefully at Kugisaki Nobara walking beside him.

"Kugisaki, what are you gonna do next?"

Kugisaki Nobara stretched luxuriously and answered as though it were obvious.

"It's still early — shopping, obviously."

"Now that this gross job is finally over, I've earned myself some new clothes."

Fushiguro Megumi gave the two overexcited idiots a listless glance, yawned, and spoke.

"You two sure have energy to burn..."

"I've had enough. I'm heading back."

With that, Fushiguro walked off toward a black sedan parked by the curb without so much as a backward glance.

"Eh? Fushiguro, you sure you don't want to come?"

Itadori called after him, trying to talk him into it, but Fushiguro had already yanked open the car door and climbed into Ijichi Kiyotaka's car.

As the black sedan pulled away, Kugisaki pursed her lips and turned toward the overpass leading to the shopping district across the street.

Itadori hurried after her, waving his phone, refusing to give up on his invitation.

"What about you, Kugisaki? You could shop a little later, right?"

Kugisaki stopped and shot him a somewhat exasperated look.

"What movie?"

"Human Earthworm 4!" Itadori held up four fingers, eyes shining as if he were pitching some masterpiece for the ages.

Kugisaki Nobara: ?

Her brow snapped into a scowl, and she snapped back.

"No way in hell am I watching something that sounds disgusting just from the title!"

"And I haven't even seen 1 through 3 — who knows what it's even about?"

"It's fine! You can totally jump straight into 4!"

Completely oblivious to the disgust on her face, Itadori barreled ahead explaining the plot.

"Dr. Richter, the mad scientist from the first movie, makes a shining comeback! Thanks to his experiments, a fusion of earthworm and human is born — the Enhanced Human Earthworm!"

"The poor Human Earthworm fights for its life to escape the doctor, ending up at a wilderness campsite, where it falls in love with a kind girl volunteering for an animal protection group..."

At this point, Itadori clasped both hands over his heart, wearing an expression of pure rapture.

"The theme of this movie... is love!"

Kugisaki Nobara: ...This wild man has lost it.

She stared at the pink-haired idiot in front of her, the corner of her mouth twitching.

"I don't care what the theme is — I'm not wasting my time on some dumb movie like that."

Kugisaki rolled her eyes and turned to walk away without mercy.

"Go feel the earthworm-man's love all by yourself. I'm going shopping."

"Have a nice trip. Don't let the door hit you."

"It's 'Human Earthworm'..."

Itadori stood rooted to the spot, watching Kugisaki's light steps carry her off into the crowds of Harajuku.

Across the street, a tall girl with shoulder-length hair took in every bit of this noisy scene.

...Half an hour later.

Kugisaki Nobara now had several large shopping bags in one hand and a cup of bubble tea in the other, chewing on the straw with an audible clicking sound.

"Ahh... all my exhaustion's melted away."

She narrowed her eyes contentedly, savoring the fleeting joy that consumerism provided.

Just then, a shadow fell across her from behind.

"Um... excuse me..."

A trembling voice sounded behind her.

Kugisaki turned around. The short-haired girl who'd been trailing her for a while had finally worked up the nerve to speak, her face bright red.

"Just now... were you with Itadori?"

Kugisaki Nobara: "Huh?"

At a family restaurant somewhere.

Kugisaki Nobara sat across from the short-haired girl, the fire of gossip blazing in her eyes.

The girl's name was Yuko Ozawa. After a short conversation, Nobara had already pried a jaw-dropping revelation out of the timid girl.

"So you're saying you've got a crush on that idiot Itadori?"

Kugisaki lowered her voice, though the excitement in her tone threatened to break through the ceiling.

Yuko Ozawa's face flushed even redder, and she nodded frantically.

"Y-yes, that's right."

"I thought, maybe now, I could..."

"Great! This is perfect!"

Kugisaki pulled out her phone right away and dialed Ijichi Kiyotaka.

"Hello? Mr. Ijichi, is Fushiguro still in your car?"

"I'll send you my location — can you turn around and drop him off here?"

"Great, thanks so much~"

After hanging up, Nobara looked at Yuko Ozawa seriously.

"Someone who knows Itadori even better than I do is coming — you can ask him for the inside scoop."

A few minutes later, Fushiguro Megumi strode into the restaurant, visibly annoyed.

"You'd better have a good explanation for this, Kugisaki."

Kugisaki completely ignored his sour mood, leaning in mysteriously to quickly whisper him the whole story about Yuko Ozawa.

Fushiguro Megumi: !!! There's really something like that going on?

The Fushiguro who'd been ice-cold a second ago now dropped into the seat beside Kugisaki, propping his chin on both hands.

"As far as I know, Itadori doesn't have a girlfriend."

"So..."

"What do we do next? Just call Itadori over here?"

There was a rare eagerness in Fushiguro's voice.

"Of course!"

Kugisaki, feeling a deep kinship of great minds thinking alike, whipped out her phone to text Itadori.

Just as the group plotted their strategy for the confession drama to come, a beautiful girl with flaxen hair stepped into the restaurant, moving with graceful, unhurried steps.

The girl was none other than Soyo Nagasaki, who had arranged to meet Uchiha.

Guided by a server, Soyo Nagasaki headed toward a booth by the window.

"...call Itadori over here..."

"...confession..."

Passing by Kugisaki's table, Soyo caught snatches of conversation drifting into her ears and easily pieced together that the group was staging a confession drama.

The corner of her mouth lifted slightly as she settled into her own booth and ordered a black tea.

Then she tilted her head slightly, gazing distractedly toward the restaurant entrance, her thoughts drifting far away.

"A confession, huh..."

Soyo Nagasaki brushed her smooth cheek lightly, a quiet flicker of anticipation rising within her.

It seemed like a good omen.

That wooden block had asked her out today over some commission.

The strictly-business reason was a little irritating, but still...

If she played her cards right, couldn't she end an old relationship and begin a new one?

Soyo Nagasaki lowered her head, gazing at her pretty face reflected in the surface of her water glass.

She didn't want to be left behind again.

Burn the boats, sink the ships — Uncle Ayato would belong to Soyo in the end!

Not long after Kugisaki's text went out, Itadori Yuji came barreling in, arms loaded down with a huge armful of stuff.

"Sorry, sorry! Got held up a bit on the way!"

He scanned the room for Kugisaki's table while striding briskly over.

At the sight of Itadori, Yuko Ozawa, already ill at ease, grew even more nervous.

After a quick greeting to Fushiguro and Kugisaki, Itadori's gaze landed on Yuko Ozawa.

He blinked, confusion flickering across his face before quickly giving way to surprise and delight.

"Eh? Isn't this Ozawa?"

"Long time no see. You've changed so much, I almost didn't recognize you just now."

Looking at Itadori's radiant smile, Yuko Ozawa opened her mouth, but a tangle of overwhelming joy and self-doubt lodged in her throat.

She could only sit there stiffly, head bowed, trapped in flustered silence.

Under the table, Kugisaki kicked Fushiguro hard, shooting him frantic looks to get him to help liven the mood.

Fushiguro's mouth twitched in pain, but he just picked up his water glass with a blank expression, pretending not to notice.

At that same moment, the restaurant welcomed a new customer.

"Welcome!~"

Uchiha Ayato strolled into the restaurant, two beautifully wrapped bags of souvenirs in one hand, the other tucked casually in his pocket.

The moment he walked in, his striking looks and presence drew every eye in the room without him even trying.

Several tables of female customers found their gazes helplessly drawn to him, and a cluster of high school girls had already started whispering excitedly to each other.

Ayato swept the room with his eyes, looking for Soyo Nagasaki, who should have arrived already.

Then his gaze collided with three other pairs of eyes, all looking straight back at him.

Uchiha Ayato: ... He stopped in his tracks, his lazy gaze sharpening, a faint headache already forming.

Great, just great. What were the odds of running into this bunch here?

On their side, Itadori and the others were no less startled than Ayato.

Itadori instinctively raised a hand to wave at Ayato, but someone else was faster.

"Ayato-kun, over here~"

Soyo Nagasaki, who'd had her eyes fixed on the door the whole time, had already spotted him.

She turned halfway in her seat, one hand propping up her chin, the other waving gently toward him.

The smile on her face was flawless, her eyes glinting with unshakable determination — the very picture of a sweet girl head over heels in love.

Uchiha Ayato: ...

Kugisaki Nobara, Itadori Yuji, Fushiguro Megumi: ...

After a brief moment of stunned silence, the Jujutsu High trio's eyes crackled together in silent communication.

Kugisaki Nobara (eyes narrowing, sharp): Seriously, another one? Didn't he just announce he's marrying into the Zenin Clan? How many boats is this guy juggling?

Fushiguro Megumi (brow furrowed, staying calm): Let's not jump to conclusions yet. Just observe for now. What if she's just a normal friend? That girl looks pretty proper, after all.

Itadori Yuji (face full of shock, shaking his head frantically): Uchiha, he... he's not that kind of guy!

Ryomen Sukuna (musing): Oh? Could it be this brat grows stronger by toying with women's hearts? That would suit that soft, sentimental air of his rather well.

Kugisaki Nobara (nodding deeply in agreement): That's insightful... Wait! Where the hell did you come from?

Yuko Ozawa (completely lost, having missed the eyes appearing on Itadori's face due to the angle): ...? What's going on?

Faced with this disaster of a scene, Ayato first glanced at Soyo Nagasaki, sweetly smiling and waving at him, then at Kugisaki and the others, their eyes glinting with gossip like wolves catching the scent of blood.

He sighed inwardly, resigned.

This was absolutely not the moment to let on that he knew them.

Ayato shot Kugisaki and the others a subtle look, then, feigning total ignorance of this odd group of high schoolers, strolled unhurriedly over and sat down across from Soyo Nagasaki.

"Sorry, did I keep you waiting?"

"Not at all, I only just got here too."

Soyo Nagasaki propped her cheek on one hand, eyes fixed on his face, brimming with a smile.

Meanwhile, the Jujutsu High trio plus the utterly baffled Yuko Ozawa held their breath, straining not to miss a single word.

"This is what I mentioned on Line last night — the souvenir I brought for you."

Ayato's voice was gentle and calm as he slid the two souvenirs he'd brought back from Kyoto across the table to her.

Looking at the wrapped boxes, Soyo Nagasaki's smile deepened.

She reached out to take them, setting them carefully beside herself, and spoke in a soft voice.

"I'm touched you thought of me even while you were out having fun, Ayato-kun~"

"But why would you go to Kyoto all by yourself?"

She tilted her head, curiosity gleaming in her eyes.

"Was there some commission you needed to handle there?"

Ayato shook his head, his manner relaxed.

"No commission. Someone invited me out there for a visit."

At those words, a flicker of wariness crossed Soyo Nagasaki's eyes, though her gentle mask stayed firmly in place.

"Someone invited you?"

She spoke with a deliberately teasing tone, the back of her hand covering her lips as if making a harmless joke.

"I never would have guessed you had friends in Kyoto too, Ayato-kun."

"That friend wasn't a girl, though, was it?"

She studied his eyes closely, hunting for any trace of panic.

Ayato just looked back at her quietly, saying nothing.

Without the denial she'd been hoping for, a quiet unease began stirring inside Soyo Nagasaki.

She quickly adjusted her tactics, pressing on with the topic.

"If it was a girl, now wouldn't really be a good time to invite you over, though~"

"She really should have waited until November to ask you."

Soyo Nagasaki leaned forward, her voice tinged with wistfulness and suggestion.

"That's when Kyoto's autumn leaves are at their peak — every mountain blazing red, every forest dyed crimson..."

"That kind of atmosphere is perfect for confessing your feelings."

If it were November, if the two of them went together...

The unspoken subtext lingered faintly in the air.

Having listened to her, Ayato nodded as though deeply in agreement.

"Huh, I never knew you'd studied up on this kind of thing so much, Soyo."

At the compliment, the corners of Soyo Nagasaki's mouth shot upward at once.

But the very next second, she froze.

Ayato had pulled out his phone and started typing away, his expression intensely focused.

The smile on Soyo Nagasaki's face stiffened. Watching him focus so intently on his phone screen, a wave of irritation rose in her chest.

"Ayato-kun, what exactly are you doing?"

"Taking notes on your suggestion."

Ayato answered with perfect self-righteousness.

"I'll bring my sweetheart along when the time comes — Mana? Mutsumi? Saki?"

Soyo Nagasaki: "...?"

Soyo's smile vanished entirely. Bitterness and resentment gnawed at her heart like venomous snakes.

She stared at Ayato, trying to figure out whether he was joking.

But his expression stayed perfectly calm.

Soyo Nagasaki took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to let her emotions spill out, and forced a smile back onto her face, chiding him.

"Honestly, Ayato-kun..."

"Bringing up another girl while you're on a date with a girl — that's not very nice, you know?"

She tried to pull things back into ambiguous, flirtatious territory.

Uchiha Ayato: ... Soyo, don't try to twist the premise on me.

This was just a meeting. Since when did it become a date?

Ayato cleared his throat, dropping his relaxed manner, and spoke seriously.

"All right, that's enough small talk."

"Let's get down to business — about that commission of yours from before..."

"That can wait until later, can't it!"

Soyo Nagasaki suddenly cut him off, her voice raised.

Urgency sharpened her tone, drawing sidelong glances from the surrounding tables.

Realizing she'd lost her composure, she quickly lowered her voice.

"At least... let's fill our stomachs first, okay?"

She grasped for the flimsiest excuse to buy time, eyes darting nervously across the menu.

"What do you like to eat, Ayato-kun? The pasta here looks pretty good..."

Don't say it.

She begged silently, desperation welling up inside her.

Don't speak to me in that cold, final tone. Don't ruin what we have now.

But Ayato had come today for exactly this purpose — to sever a dream that could never come true.

He wasn't going to let Soyo Nagasaki keep hiding in a harbor built on self-deception.

"Soyo."

Ayato didn't reach for the menu. Instead, he simply said her name.

"Just hear me out first."

Hearing her name spoken in a tone she'd never heard from him before, Soyo Nagasaki fell silent.

She sank back weakly against her chair, her face slowly draining of color.

Ayato looked steadily into her evasive eyes and spoke slowly.

"As far as I know, your life has gradually gotten back on track. Nothing's happened to you since."

"And Mutsumi walks you home most days now, too."

"So..."

"You don't need this contract's protection anymore."

"This commission —it's time for it to end."

"And it's time I told you the truth."

Soyo Nagasaki stared at him blankly.

Ended?

Was even this last fragile thread she'd managed to hold onto going to be cut away, mercilessly?

"Don't..."

Soyo Nagasaki lowered her head, her long hair falling to hide most of her face, her voice thick with tears.

"Please, I'm begging you..."

"Don't say something like it's over."

Why?

Why did he have to be so cruel?

At the same time, she'd caught onto another detail in what he'd said.

Mutsumi?

What was with that nickname?

Why would he call Mutsumimi something so intimate?

Since when had they...

A sudden sense of foreboding washed over her.

"The truth... what is it?"

Soyo Nagasaki choked out the words, her gaze fixed on him as if trying to see straight through him.

Watching her teeter on the edge of collapse, a flicker of reluctance passed through Ayato's heart.

This girl had pinned every hope she had on him.

But some wounds, if not lanced clean, would never heal.

The hardest thing in this world was never gaining something — it was letting go.

He took a deep breath, his eyes hardening with resolve.

"The truth is simple."

Looking her straight in the eye, Ayato spoke slowly, each word deliberate.

"I'm the mysterious man you've been trying to track down — the one who 'lured Mutsumi away.'"

Soyo Nagasaki's eyes went wide, and in that instant, the light in them died out completely.

"When I first took your commission..."

Ayato continued explaining.

"I wasn't clear on the details between you and Mutsumimi, and honestly, I found the whole thing kind of amusing, so I didn't tell you the truth right away."

"Then you were attacked by a cursed spirit, and your emotional state got really unstable."

"If I'd told you the truth then, it would have hit you too hard..."

"Bang—!"

Soyo Nagasaki shot to her feet, tears bursting free and splattering onto the tabletop in fat drops.

"And telling me now doesn't hit hard!?"

The mask she'd worn shattered completely in that moment. She screamed hysterically, her voice thick with despair and fury.

Every grievance, every ounce of resentment, every bit of betrayed rage poured out in the rawest possible way.

"Why would you say something so cruel!?"

"Do you really want to throw me away that badly!?"

"I hate you!"

Sobbing out those words, Soyo Nagasaki spun around, snatched up her bag and the souvenirs Ayato had given her, and stumbled out of the restaurant.

Ayato stayed seated, watching Soyo Nagasaki's figure grow smaller in the distance, and in the end, he said nothing at all.

Itadori Yuji, Kugisaki Nobara, Fushiguro Megumi: ???

Holy crap, bombshell!

Uchiha Ayato, you toying-with-women's-hearts scumbag!