"I knew you'd take the bait!"

  Oher end of the phone, Gojo's cheerful voice echoed with satisfa as soon as Ryuji agreed to help.

  "…"

  Ryuji rolled his eyes, letting out a soft sigh.

  For the record, he wasn't doing this because of Maki or Nobara, but because of the special-grade curse spirit that had likely trapped them.

  Still, there was no point in expining. Gojo wouldn't listen anyway.

  As soon as the call ended, an address appeared on Ryuji's phohe location was far outside the city.

  "So, Yuji's there too?" Ryuji murmured thoughtfully.

  Acc to Gojo, in addition to Maki and Nobara, Yuji had also gone missing.

  Ryuji stroked his as he sidered the situation.

  Yuji's hand-to-hand bat skills had improved greatly i months. bined with Sukuna, the King of Curses residing within him, Yuji wasn't someone who would fall easily. Even if danger arose, Sukuna would never allow his host body to die so carelessly.

  But despite this, Yuji and the others had been missing for three whole days.

  "This curse…" Ryuji mused, a glint of intrigue in his eyes. "It's going to be iing."

  ---

  As he prepared to leave, there was a stir from the adjat room. Mimiko and Nanako, still groggy, peeked out to find Ryuji already dressed and ready to go.

  "Ryuji?" Mimiko asked, rubbing her eyes sleepily.

  Nanako, still leaning against the doorway, looked equally curious.

  "Nothing to worry about," Ryuji replied with a faint smile, waving his hand. "I just o step out for a bit. You two go back to bed. You've worked hard enough for one night."

  Though sorcerers had stronger physiques than ordinary people, the two girls were still exhausted from their sleepless efforts the night before.

  Hearing Ryuji's reassurahe sisters exged a gnce before nodding obediently areating to their room.

  ---

  Meanwhile, in a dense forest outside the city, things were looking grim for the missing trio.

  "I 't go on… I'm done," Yuji groaned, colpsing onto the ground with a loud thud.

  For three whole days, they hadn't had a moment to rest. With their mental and physical stamina stretched to the limit, even Yuji's extraordinary endurance had reached its breaking point.

  Following Yuji's lead, Maki and Nobara exged tired gnces befiving in and slumping to the ground as well.

  Their surroundings were deceptively sere trees lined both sides of the forest path, and the sky overhead was a brilliant blue, unmarred by a single cloud.

  But the unging daylight, which had persisted without pause for three days, was nothing short of terrifying. If not for their phones marking the passage of time, they wouldn't have even realized how long they'd been trapped.

  "Are we… going to die here?" Nobara asked hesitantly, her voice trembling.

  She wasn't trying to be pessimistic, but the uing stress of their situation had worn her down.

  Among the three, Yuji was the most carefree, while Maki's years of experience made her mentally resilient. But Nobara, still o the world of sorcery, couldn't help but feel overwhelmed.

  "Don't be ridiculous!"

  Despite his exhaustion, Yuji forced himself to sit up.

  "Gojo Sensei will definitely e to save us!" he decred with a fidehat bordered on na?ve.

  Nobara stared at him for a moment, almost envious of his unshakable optimism. If only she could believe in something as easily as Yuji did…

  Still, a flicker of doubt lingered in her heart. Three days had passed, and there was no sign of rescue. Would Gojo really show up?

  She pushed the thought aside, unwilling to voice it and risk demoralizing the group further.

  "If I'd known this mission would be like this, I never would've e," she muttered under her breath, a bitter edge to her tone.

  The mission had seemed straightforward at first, an abandoned mountain temple outside the city where passersby had reported hearing strange screams.

  After from a dista was clear there was cursed energy present, likely from a low-level spirit. The ovement from the spirit suggested it wasn't particurly strong.

  With Maki, Nobara, and Yuji's birength, the school had deemed them more than capable of handling the exorcism.

  But they never even made it to the temple.

  Somewhere along the forest path, everything had gone horribly wrong.

  ---

  "No matter what happens, I won't die here," Maki said firmly, her voice steady despite the situation.

  Pnting her sword into the ground for support, she forced herself to her feet.

  She had dreams to achieve, goals she hadn't yet reached. There was no way she would let herself die here.

  "Let's keep moving," she said, her tone leaving no room fument.

  Yuji and Nobara exged weary gnces before silently standing up to follow her lead.

  They trudged forward for what felt like hours, their footsteps heavy and their minds clouded with exhaustion.

  Finally, after nearly half an hour, they came to a halt.

  Maki's eyes sed their surroundings, her grip tightening on her on. Nobara's face fell, and even Yuji couldn't suppress a groan of frustration.

  The path ahead was unmistakably familiar.

  There, etched into the dirt, were the marks where Yuji had colpsed earlier.

  "We're back," Maki said, her voice low and tense.

  The realization was undeniable. No matter how far they walked, no matter which dire they chose, they always ended up back at the same spot.

  Nobara ched her fists, her face pale. "This is why we've been stuck here for three days… It's a loop."

  The unging daylight. The endless forest path. It all poio one chilling clusion: they were trapped in an infinite loop, ensnared by a powerful curse.