#chapter 236

the death of gojo satoru seemed to shift the balance of world, just as his birth had. in an instant, his finals words had fallen on deaf ears-- his alone-- as he choked before taking his last breath.

satoru gojo had died, and you were left staring at his severed body.

they say everyone is alone in death, but in this moment, you would have begged any god out there to make an exception. you didn’t care who answered. the devil himself could’ve come for you, and you would’ve gone without hesitation. if it meant saving him, you would’ve taken his place in death ten times over. gladly.

a piece of you had died with satoru, just as a piece of satoru had died with suguru. the story had come full-circle, and it was going to seal itself when yuta switched bodies.

there's was nothing you could do. as much as you wanted to claw and bite and rip apart anyone who agreed with the plan, anyone who dared to even look at, much less touch satoru's body, you couldn't. the shock of it all had rendered you useless, bound to watch as his skull was split open, brain left on the operating table as yuta's took its place.

your brain was screaming at you to move, seething at the way you stood silently in fear at the thought of never being able to see satoru again. the real satoru, you mean.

you would never be able to speak with him again, touch him, hold him, cry with him.

he was gone.

the lump in your throat burned, stung as the pain bobbed up and down with each dry swallow yet never subsiding. it sat there like a rock, heavy and pressing against your voice, silencing screams that never made it out.

a part of you wasn't even upset at his death, but instead at the way he was treated, both in life and after. like everything he gave up, everything he endured, was never enough.

to everyone he was the strongest-- a human who died a monster to protect those who didn't even have the decency to return the favor. to you he was satoru gojo-- a human who died the strongest to protect those he loved.