The underground station was barely recognizable anymore. Smoke drifted through the air, and the floor was littered with broken concrete and bodies that no longer looked human. Nanami Kento moved through it slowly, one side of his body burned so badly it was hard to tell where his suit ended and his skin began. His breathing was uneven, but his grip on his weapon never loosened.

A transfigured human lunged at him. Nanami stepped in and finished it in one clean motion. Another followed. Then another. His movements were stiff, but precise, driven by habit more than strength. He didn’t look angry or desperate. He was simply doing what had to be done.

When the last one fell, Nanami finally stopped moving.

He stood there for a moment, shoulders rising and falling, surrounded by silence and smoke. That was when he felt it—a hand placed flat against his back. Not sudden. Not aggressive.

Nanami didn’t react.

“…So you’re here too,” he said. Mahito stood behind him, close enough that Nanami could feel his cursed energy without turning around. Mahito looked relaxed, almost pleased, as if he had arrived right on time.

Footsteps echoed through the station.

Yuji Itadori came running in and stopped short when he saw them. His eyes went straight to Nanami’s burned body, then to Mahito standing behind him. For a split second, he didn’t understand what he was seeing.

Nanami turned around. He looked at Yuji directly. His face was calm, despite everything. No panic. No hesitation. Just acceptance.

“Itadori,” Nanami said, “you take it from here.”

Yuji took a step forward. “Nanami—”

Cursed energy surged, and Nanami’s body was transfigured instantly. There was no struggle, no time to react. In the next moment, Nanami was gone, his body destroyed right in front of Yuji.

The space he had been standing in was suddenly empty.

Yuji froze. His mind lagged behind what his eyes had just seen. He couldn’t move, couldn’t speak. His hands trembled as the reality set in.