Waking up and coming to his senses, Itadori found himself being pointed at by an uncle in samurai attire wielding a pitch-black sword. To his surprise, he realized they were standing on a narrow support pillar.
And all around them were destroyed buildings. Looking closely, he could see that it was his own school.
Out of fear, Knotted couldn't stand firmly, and his center of gravity gradually became uncontrollable, causing him to fall toward the ruins behind him.
"Aaaaaah—"
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"Dr. Locke! You look so handsome after shaving your beard?"
"No way. It's just talent—I look like a substitute. After all, every reader who sees me here will feel like they're looking in a mirror when they see my true face, thinking they've surpassed the protagonist."
"Although I can't hear what you're saying, I'm still curious. Dr. Locke, you're rich and you're a doctor, and you're still so handsome. But at your age, you're not married. Oh! Is it because of your secret identity?"
"You're right. I did talk about a female doctor younger than me. But because I was afraid of what might happen now, I ultimately didn't pursue it."
After calling Gojo Satoru, Megumi Fushiguro turned his head to look at the two "children." His expression became very strange. He couldn't believe that the old man before him was the same Nishida Kagetatsu who had just been able to defeat Sukuna at will.
After rescuing Itadori, clearly explaining the situation, and chatting for a bit, he decided that he wouldn't be able to accompany Itadori Wasuke on his final journey today, and apologized to Itadori.
"Sorry, Itadori. I originally thought your grandfather would last at least until tomorrow, so I went to see a very important person today and was late."
Seeing Locke apologize to him so solemnly, Knotted quickly waved his hand, shook his head, and said with a sincere expression:
"Dr. Locke, you took good care of me and my grandfather, and this time you saved my and Fushiguro's lives. I should be the one thanking you. How could you apologize to me? If anyone is to blame, it's only my own impulsiveness."
Although Itadori's sincere gratitude made sense to Locke, it still made him sigh a little—some people are born with pure hearts.
Who could feel disgust when seeing someone like him?
"Um... Dr. Locke?"
Considering the questions in his heart that couldn't be ignored, Megumi Fushiguro stepped forward and interrupted their conversation. After a moment, he asked a question he couldn't answer himself:
"What just happened between you and Sukuna...?"
"Ah, that's a long story. But I'll make it short. Do you know the Buddhist concept of reincarnation?"
"Of course I know. After a person dies, their soul enters the cycle of reincarnation, is reborn, and becomes a new living individual."
Megumi Fushiguro nodded, looking at Locke curiously, and also thought to himself: Compared to his temperament, appearance, or even the timbre of his voice, he doesn't seem like the same person at all.
It's a bit like a séance. That idiot Gojo Satoru once told us that using psychic mediumship techniques built on a specific medium, the dead can be summoned to possess qualified people. But I've never heard of a case where the dead could possess someone without a medium.
Maybe it's some specific technique or an improved séance technique?
But soon, Megumi Fushiguro realized he was thinking too much. It had nothing to do with séance and even surpassed his imagination.
"Correct. After death, the soul is reincarnated, except that the form of the soul retains similarities to the previous life. Essentially, it's the same person as before, except in one case."
"?!"
"When a person's soul is strong enough to overcome the limitations of reincarnation in each life, retain their memories and the independence of their soul, and keep their soul information from being destroyed, then they can become an example of remembering past lives."
This explanation, like something out of a fantasy, left Megumi Fushiguro's brain blank for a moment. But he subconsciously remembered what Kagetatsu had said earlier.
"In the end, I was once a shadow ninja with the same technique. I fought alongside Mahoraga for so long, how could I not know?"
Reincarnation can also retain memories and power from past lives... things like that... are they real?
"Are you saying that not only do you fully retain the memories of each life, but you also possess the power of your previous lives?"
Megumi Fushiguro had originally wanted Locke to prove it to him, but recalling the battle with Sukuna and Sukuna's reaction, he suddenly realized there was no need.
In other words, what this man named Locke said was true. He had the memories and power of each life, and could summon his past lives.
Hey, why does this setting seem so familiar? It seems like the main character of some anime had similar abilities.
What was that movie called?
Oh, I remember—Embodiment of Power!