Chapter 126

The Shibuya Incident, Part 43 (㊸) is the one hundred and twenty-sixth chapter of Gege Akutami's Jujutsu Kaisen.

Summary
With everything that Yuji's been through in Shibuya, his resolve finally gives way when Nobara appears to have perished. Mahito seizes the opportunity and adds physical decimation to the mental abuse. Just when all seems lost, Yuji's best friend arrives in time to reignite his spirit.

Plot Details
While the three first-year students were lounging at a table one day enjoying their cups of coffee, Nobara knocked over her drink onto a shirt belonging to their sensei. Unamused, Nobara tries to pass off the blame on Ijichi for leaving Gojo's freshly dry-cleaned shirt in their care. Megumi and Yuji disagree and the three of them work together to try and dab away the stains.

Despite their efforts, much of the shirt remained stained. In full denial, Nobara suggested the shirt could pass off from a Marimekko. Megumi believed that would be an insult to the fashion industry and looked up the brand of the shirt on his smartphone. Nobara wanted to know how much it costs to possibly replace it. However, she and Yuji were dumbfounded when Megumi showed them it costs 250,000 yen before tax. Nobara asked the boys to put down 80,000 each while she puts 90,000 but they naturally refused.

Instead, they hide the dirty shirt inside Megumi's uniform, annoying him. Satoru arrived to get it and immediately noticed the bulge in Megumi's jacket as well as the irritated scowl on his face. Unable to hold pretend any longer, Yuji and Nobara let out their laughs and took the shirt out of Megumi's uniform. This pleasant memory is stark in contrast to reality.

Currently, Nobara lays before Yuji, missing an eye, and likely dead. Losing to Choso, Sukuna's rampage, and Nanami's death had already taken a toll on Yuji's resolve. Having reached its limit a long time ago, Yuji's spirit breaks after Nobara is unable to answer as he desperately calls her name. Satisfied with himself, Mahito commends his own talents and believes he is a true cruse. He not only reinforces a punchy with cursed energy but successfully unleashes Black Flash on Yuji.

The sparks of black do not choose who to bless. Mahito's Black Flash sends Yuji crashing through the station. The special grade continues to beat on him while exposing Yuji's determination for being weak. Mahito believes this isn't simply a battle to fix something, it's a war of truths. He believes Yuji is the same as him because he kills without hesitation just as Yuji saves people without a second thought. This pits the instincts of a curse against dignified human reasoning. Mahito believes this conflict will determine which of the two remains one hundred years from now.

After thoroughly beating Yuji down both mentally and physically, Mahito asks the student how he ever planned on winning and if he's ever counted how many curses he's exorcised. Mahito has never cared about how many people he's killed and believes he'll forget about Yuji eventually. He morphs his arm into a praying mantis-like claw and attempts to kill Yuji. However, there is a clapping noise and suddenly Mahito is displaced.

Aoi Todo appears just in time, having used Boogie Woogie to switch places with Mahito. He says that the prosperous have no choice but to eventually decline, but adds that they are the exception. Mahito recognizes the scar on Todo's face and his cursed technique from Hanami.

Kyoto first-year Arata Nitta also joins the scene after medically treating Nobara. He believes she's probably going to die and asks his senpai not to blame him for it later. Aoi mostly tells him to help his brother Yuji next before telling his nearly defeated friend that he must wake up as their battle is just beginning!

Characters in Order of Appearance

 * Yuji Itadori
 * Nobara Kugisaki
 * Megumi Fushiguro (Flashback)
 * Kiyotaka Ijichi (Fantasy)
 * Satoru Gojo (Flashback)
 * Mahito
 * Aoi Todo
 * Arata Nitta

Battles & Events

 * The Shibuya Incident
 * Yuji Itadori & Nobara Kugisaki vs. Mahito (Concluded)

Locations

 * Shibuya
 * Shibuya Station

Jujutsu
Aoi Todo's Techniques
 * Boogie Woogie

Arata Nitta's Techniques
 * Arata's Unnamed Innate Technique

Mahito's Techniques
 * Idle Transfiguration
 * Black Flash