For the next eleven days in the manhunt for Kokichi Muta Shohei had devoted himself to the search completely. He was the first student to be notified of further news, which was almost nothing. He was the first sorcerer to volunteer for missions regarding the hunt and the first to arrive on scene and last to leave.

The prescribed missions took him far and wide due to the key matters they involved and the desperateness of Jujutsu Society. Shohei traveled further than he ever typically did for a mission, taking him anywhere from Tokyo, to Kyoto, to even the eastern coasts of Russia, North Korea, and South Korea.

Shohei cooperated with every sorcerer available that he ever knew and then some. He did several detective missions with Nanami who was very seasoned and knew all the right things to look for when hunting someone. Itadori and Takuma Ino, a second-grade sorcerer and associate to Nanami, even accompanied them once or twice.

Shohei did a handful of reconnaissance missions with Mei Mei, his sensing and her crows providing excellent degrees of scouting. Dispatched on several promising raids on locations Muta could be hiding, Shohei was deployed alongside the first-years or even full grown sorcerers in areas they were local to.

Shohei even forced his way into an interrogation of the Kyoto students. He caught wind of the higher-ups sending some goonish sorcerers to further question the classmates of Mechamaru. Shohei flew his way up to Kyoto and insisted he sit in on the interrogations to hear any information for himself. The two substandard semi grade-one sorcerers knew they couldn't do a damn thing to stop Shohei, so they amused him.

He interrupted the sorcerer's cold hearted grilling of Katsumi that was driving her to tears. He asked his own, more subtle questions, knowing full well Utahime provided all the knowledge he could've wanted. When she could provide no more information to their questions the sorcerers still held her up. Shohei insisted they have a recess from all the questions and walked Miwa away for some tea, letting her return to her own business.

After Shohei interfered one too many times in the interrogation with Mai Zenin the two sorcerers tried to escort Shohei out. Shohei only felt like the sorcerers were pressing the girl for information she did not know too much, and he couldn't stand by and watch them make his renewed friend so uncomfortable.

Rather than resisting as they converged on him, pointing to the door, he left. As soon as he stepped outside, he made a call to his good friend Aoi Todo.

"Todo," Shohei chirped like a mischievous song bird, instigating a fight between two pigeons and a hungry eagle. "What's up man! I'm here with the sorcerers conducting the private interrogations you were informed about. They're threatening repercussions on both your pay and access to the ideal pick of missions directly from higher-up if you don't make your way here right now."

The boy was in the middle of watching a live Autumn special outing of his favorite idol, Takaba, so of course he was not pleased to be summoned through such a petty threat.

And like a raging bull, Aoi came stomping up to Kyoto high.

With nothing more than a nod to Shohei standing outside the room, Todo kicked in the door and threw himself into the room, bellowing.

"So you're gonna cheap me out of my well earned money and time that I can freely spend on Takaba's hard work and talent?!" He inquired, stomping right up to the two seated across from Mai. "Well let me tell you something…" the boy rambled on as he dragged the two men by their throats from their seats.

"Lets go Mai," Shohei called, peering around Todo.

Mai crawled up from her seat and strolled past the skirmish as cool as a cucumber.

"Smart play calling Aoi," the green haired girl complimented, patting Shohei on the cheek like a well trained dog.

"They weren't getting anywhere," Shohei admitted, walking alongside the girl as they trekked deeper into the beautiful grounds of the school. "They're as smart as a stack of cinder blocks and as compassionate too. Drove Miwa to tears and didn't even get a single useful peep out of her. If they survive Aoi they still have Noritoshi and Nishimiya to question."

Mai floated alongside Sho as they walked, as graceful as a reed in the wind.

"Kamo can handle their attempts at intimidating him easily as all get out," She hummed, basking in the brisk autumn air. "We should be praying for them once Nishimiya finds out they made Miwa cry. Forget what Aoi does. I'd hate to see how they look after she gets her hands on them."

Shohei chuckled at the thought of the little blonde shoving them through a wall or breaking her broom over their heads in defense of her juniors.

"Cute scar," Mai admired, glancing up to watch Sho laugh. "It suits you. Gives your cute face a serious note. A sort of counter to your silly hair."

"Thank you," Shohei said, welcoming the foreign compliment. It was uncharacteristically kind for Mai. It wasn't her typical jab or tease she always gave Shohei before they last spoke. It sounded sincere and thoughtful to Shohei.

"I'm still getting used to it." Shohei kicked a rock and followed it as it tumbled. "Wasn't a pleasant experience."

"Well try not to earn anymore," Mai called, turning down a different path than Shohei was following. "Maki won't want your face ruined. She'll go back to dating girls if you get too ugly. Maybe I won't even think you're handsome anymore if you get too beat up."

"Goodbye Mai," Shohei called, grinning at the girl's jokes. She waved over her shoulder and turned a corner, gone from view.

"I never knew she could be so funny," Shohei whispered to himself, touching his scar. "Or kind."

The end of October rolled around sooner than Shohei would've liked with no hide nor hair of Muta. The final sign there was of him was his mechamaru doll that had been sitting inactive at Kyoto since the first-years, Utahime, and Shohei first tried finding him.

Shohei had run himself ragged in his efforts to hunt down Muta. Shohei had developed a dogged determination, and with no end in sight in catching the possible rat that led to so much hardship of his, Shohei's determination turned into pure spite and bitterness.

This coupled with the still lingering thoughts of Mahito and Hanami's hostage attempt, Shohei saw an incline in both the amounts and potency of his stores of cursed energy. Cursed energy being the natural accumulation of negative emotions and experiences, Shohei had to seclude himself more than he ever has before to handle the surge of power. Shohei turned down an invite to the small costume party the students were having before dinner.

Maki and Megumi asked if he was okay. He semi-lied about being okay and thanked them for their concern, but said he had something to do. Both knowing what he had recently been through and the disappointment he must be feeling without so much as a lead to capturing Mechamaru, they let him keep to himself.

In that time alone he revisited his old teachings to keep calm in the face of battle and not let his cursed energy flare, wasting his stamina and not using the energy to its fullest and most precise capabilities.

As he trained and trained up till sunset, Shohei folded inward to himself and sat meditating in the browning grass of the school grounds. The cold air cut through the chitter chatter of his mind and the meditating quelled his racing heart that felt like it had been running at full speed for weeks.

What the cold air and hours of meditation failed to calm however was the roaring, blazing, seering fiery passion in his stomach that sparked the subtle thoughts in his mind into full visions of past violence. The passion flared the cursed energy pooled in his stomach, calling him into action, into revenge, not to just sit idol and placated as the rat that put him, his clan, and even Noritoshi into danger. The traitor that made Shohei form a hateful resentment of the man who taught and raised him, leaving Satoru fully alone at the top of the world. The rat that left him feeling like a disappointment despite all the reinforcement and kind words offered by his friends and family.

"Shohei!" Itadori yelled, coming to a deadstop from a sprint looking panicked, tiger stripe face paint partially smeared on his face. "There's an emergency. A massive unidentified curtain in Shibuya. Almost everyone available is being called in, including all of Tokyo high including all staff that can be spared."

"Perfect," Shohei sighed, cursed energy swirling deep within him, writhing from his discord. "Just what I needed."

The curtain had been erected around 7 pm. All sorcerers confirmed to be coming arrived by 8:14 pm. Satoru Gojo was the only expected sorcerer not present yet.

The present sorcerers were split into five teams. Itadori, Mei Mei, and her little brother Ui Ui were far north well past the curtain alongside an auxiliary manager. Nanami, Ino, and Megumi were just northeast of the barrier talking to manager Ijichi. Atsuya Kusakabe, the second-year's teacher, and Panda were southeast of the barrier. Southwest of the barrier was Naobito Zenin, the head of the Zenin clan, Maki, Nobara, and manager Akari Nitta. Northwest of the barrier was both Shohei and Inumaki.

The low down Inumaki and Shohei had been given, along with all the other sorcerers, was the current curtain above the entertainment district was keeping purely civilians in. Civilians can only enter but sorcerers and auxiliary managers can come and go as they please.

No reception could be reached inside the curtain. All communication had to be done outside the curtain or through the auxiliary managers like Ijichi and Nitta who will be positioned near the borders of the curtain to move to and fro as needed.

Inside the curtain, the sorcerers learned that there was panic caused by them all unable to leave. Many were spread out along the border of the curtain all demanding one thing. "Bring Satoru Gojo".

Shohei and Inumaki came to the conclusion that the same people who raised the barrier and instilled chaos and told the citizens to say that.

"With the barrier not resisting sorcerer's entrance it is difficult to damage, let alone destroy," Shohei sighed, scanning the barrier and any layers of it he could read. "It's tougher and even more complex than the barrier I destroyed at the Goodwill Event. Even more layers beneath this one too, possibly just as powerful with specific binding vows."

Inumaki scratched his chin. "Salmon."

Shohei paced back and forth by the storefront he and Inumaki were lingering by. "It'd be much easier hunting down the caster of the curtain, but since we're all just on standby, it'll be harder covering all that ground."

"Bonito Flakes," Inumaki offered.

"He is the strongest after all," Shohei scoffed, kicking the ground. "If any one sorcerer can cover all that ground better than a whole team of people, it's him. I understand the minimizing the damages with one sorcerer." Shohei pulled his phone from his pocket, showing Toge his and Panda's messages. "Panda says it's pretty calm in there though. Kusakabe went inside the curtain to wiz. No curses or curse users running around, but people are still in a panic."

"Tuna!" Inumaki waved to Shohei, pointing down the street.

It was Satoru, strolling up the street. As cool as a cucumber, his hands in his pockets, he was dressed for field work in his uniform.

'Toge. Shohei," Satoru nodded to each, joining them.

Inumaki waved and Shohei gave a stiff nod. Sho still had nothing to say to the man.

The three stood in uncomfortable silence once past the greetings. Gojo surely expected Shohei to say something. Shohei was over his major hump of being bitter, but still felt sick looking at the man. And Inumaki knew there were some unsettled feelings between them both.

"Well," Satoru spoke up. "They're calling my name."

He firmly padded Inumaki on the back like a coach and went to place a hand on Shohei's shoulder, but his brother flinched away from the contact.

Shohei didn't do it on purpose, but more reflexively. He looked over at the man, almost his height from some growth spurt. For a brief moment, Shohei thought he saw a pained wrench on the man's blindfolded face, but in a flash he returned to his natural expression.

"I'd better get in there." Satoru hurried ahead, not looking back.

Steps before the barrier, he did pause however. He spoke up, his voice echoing through the cold night air and empty streets.

"If you see things are getting worse than you think all us sorcerer's can handle, trust that feeling in your gut. Whether that's to live to fight another day, give a battle your heart and soul, or spare a life you can't stand seeing on this world another second, act on it. Don't sit here listening to others like sheep because someone older or supposedly smarter tells you to. You're better than that."

And then the man stepped through the veil, swallowed by the darkness.

"Tuna mayo," Inumaki said.

"What?" Shohei looked down at the boy. "That wasn't an apology. That was just him giving advice to us both."

"Kelp," Inumaki disagreed, padding Shohei on the shoulder like he was an oblivious child.

Shohei really did see the deeper meaning in the speech. Whether he accepted the indirect apology was up in the air, and as for the words of wisdom, he did indeed commit them to memory despite his turmoil. Satoru had hurt him, and he challenged him left and right, but deep down he knew he was beyond capable, and wise beyond his years. Shohei would be a fool if he didn't heed Satoru's words.

Shohei took a seat on the curb outside some family mart and chewed his knuckles in contemplation. He both tried to dismiss his swirling emotions and make sense of his thoughts, but the quiet night was all but silent. Bugs buzzed too loudly, the whirr of heating units in the buildings around rang too loud, the hum of electricity in the street lamps pierced his ears, the stone builds creaked like they were made of ancient wood.

"Gah!" Shohei barked, springing up and pacing once again across the street.

"Tuna mayo?" Toge suggested.

"I just tried sitting in silence. Meditating won't be any different." Shohei stomped to and fro. "Besides. I was even trying to meditate back at the school before we got summoned, and that was about as useful as spitting on a fire."

Before Inumaki and Shohei could bicker any more, their phones rang with messages. It was from the auxiliary managers.

"Another curtain appeared in Meiji-Jingu-Mae station. Mei Mei, her brother, and Yuji are moving in. Everyone else is to hold their positions."

The two boys looked at each other, Gojo's words resonating. They could stand by and let other competent people like Mei Mei and Itadori, or they then can investigate the new curtain appearance.

The two age old friends, without a second glance, made a mad sprint for the curtain, leaping through its dark veil.