Few things are certain in this day and age. At most, only three: Mito Komon always wins, Sazae airs on Sundays, and Nobara Kugisaki takes forever to shop.
So when Kugisaki said she wanted to see Ameya-Yokocho, Fushiguro was ready for a long haul, similar to one of those Sunday mornings when Gojo would say, “Megumi, shall we go to Parque España?”
Because of Itadori’s love of TV, Fushiguro expected him to be interested in a trendy destination, but he wasn’t. Instead, he said, “No, there’s someplace else I want to go.”
“Oh, all right. Then let’s meet up later.”
Fushiguro, who had become accustomed to the boisterous mood Itadori and Kugisaki generated when they were together, was as surprised by the trio splitting up as if he had found out that hijiki was low in iron, and pleased. He wanted to go straight home to finish reading the paperback he’d bought the other day, and he wanted to organize his desk drawer and closet.
However, Fushiguro was the serious, responsible type. He worried whether Itadori, a vessel for the demon Sukuna, would be okay on his own. The district of Ueno around Okachimachi Station was both historical and hopping with activity. An abundance of peculiar tales of the supernatural were associated with the lively postwar market town, so dormant curses might well be lurking there. Even worse, if Fushiguro took his eyes off him for even a second, Itadori might buy a pair of horribly tacky sunglasses or declare Tachikawa to be the essence of Shinjuku. He might even wander into Chiyoda Ward and start snapping pics at Masakado’s tomb to post on social media.
Thus, loathe though he was to do it, Fushiguro decided to stay with Itadori.
“Fushiguro, if you aren’t interested in Akiba, why’re you coming along?” Itadori asked.
“Mind your own business.”
“Fine,” Itadori responded. “Anyway, I always did wanna check out Akiba.”
“Is there something you want to buy?” Fushiguro asked. “I doubt there’s anything more than manga, video games, and electronics.”
“Huh? I’m going sightseeing,” Itadori said. “Shibuya and Shinjuku are all right, but whenever I see Akiba on TV, it has a real otherworldly vibe, sort of like a theme park.”
“So that’s your reason, huh?”
Those who are used to living in the city might not notice it, but Akihabara is an odd place. The atmosphere around the station is unique. It’s drenched in anime culture, and the sheer volume of visual stimulus from the ubiquitous advertisements is astounding. The abundance of flashing signs featuring smiling video game characters do indeed give the whole district the impression of a theme park. Other sights might include an occasional cosplayer amidst the densely packed crowd, maids busily handing out flyers to attract customers to the maid cafés, or an unusual foreign automobile cruising down the road transporting a large prototype of a giant robot.
Itadori was unable to suppress his curiosity in such a place. It was impossible.
“This is crazy, Fushiguro! There are game centers everywhere! They’re like convenience stores!”
“Because this is Akiba.”
“This is crazy, Fushiguro! Those maids are actually trying to get our attention!”
“Because this is Akiba.”
“This is crazy, Fushiguro! Is that a pervy video game? That sign is for a pervy game, right? Whoa, is that allowed?! Like, right out in the open! Uh-oh … I’m underage! Will I get in trouble?!”
“Shut up already!”
Akiba is a noisy place, but to Fushiguro, Itadori was three times noisier.
They had a few hours before they were to meet back up with Kugisaki. Fushiguro’s head hurt just thinking about spending all that time in Akiba alone with Itadori, who had transformed into a wide-eyed child. Itadori, meanwhile, was in high spirits, oblivious to Fushiguro’s mood.
“I’m so glad you came, Fushiguro!” Itadori said. “It’s so crowded I might get lost!”
“But it’s not as crowded as Shinjuku, right?”
“Don’t judge it by the usual Tokyo standards,” Itadori responded. “Tokyo’s the only place where vending machines that accept electronic money are lined up all over the place and Pepper’s standing around in front of all the stores!”
“Seeing a Pepper robot isn’t that common,” Fushiguro said.
“In Sendai, the only thing to see is the artificial hot spring Topos.”
“Don’t casually drop your local joints into the conversation like I’m supposed to know what you’re talking about. What is that Topos place like, anyway?”
“It’s a superdeluxe public bath!”
“If Pepper standing at a public bath is a sign of civilization, we’re in trouble.”
“Anyway,” Itadori said. “I’m just saying that instead of being alone, it’s reassuring to be with someone who knows the terrain. After all, I’m still not great at taking the subway.”
“Not even you could get lost on the Yamanote Line!” Fushiguro said.
“There it is! That city-boy attitude! It comes to you so naturally!”
“Actually, you don’t get lost that much anymore. You go places all the time.”
“Hey, Fushiguro!” Itadori exclaimed. “Let’s eat a kebab. Kebaaab!”
“Try to make sense, would you?!”
Fushiguro had already noticed that Itadori and Gojo had a
similar vibe, and the more he talked to him, the stronger that impression got. With Itadori, conversation was less like playing catch than dodgeball. In Gojo’s case, it was like swinging away on a golf course or at a batting center.
It occurred to Fushiguro that he hadn’t seen Gojo around the dorm or Tokyo Prefectural Jujutsu High School that day. Gojo could go wherever he wanted on a day off, but Fushiguro found himself wondering once again about the many mysteries surrounding the teacher. As he did so, he let Itadori’s chattering drift into the background. It resonated at about the same frequency as the clamorous streets and so was easy to tune out. The next thing he knew, Itadori was gone.
“Huh?”
Fushiguro looked around in confusion and spotted Itadori’s reddish hair just as it disappeared into a game center.
“What are you doing?”
“Playing a video game. Or do you mean what game am I playing?” Itadori asked.
“No, you special grade dunce!”
Fushiguro had finally located Itadori after climbing to the fourth floor of a game center located in a tall, narrow structure. Itadori was deep in the fighting-game area, at a slight remove from a gathering of hard-core gamers, in a corner lined with retro cabinet arcade games with prices starting at fifty yen for one credit.
Even worse, he was sitting in front of a game that looked particularly dull, even compared to its neighbors.
Itadori pursed his lips and launched into an explanation. “It doesn’t make sense to spend hours wandering around outside. But there are tons of game centers, which is perfect!”
“At least say something before you wander off!”
“I did.”
“Ah …” Fushiguro felt a twinge of guilt for tuning out Itadori earlier, so he changed the subject. “Anyway, what game is that?”
“Isn’t it obvious? It’s Combat Corporate Warriors Business Fighter.”
“Combat Corporate Warriors Business Fighter? That’s anything but obvious.”
“It’s my first time, so I don’t know much about it either,” said Itadori.
The game Itadori had chosen seemed unbelievably boring. Although it was a fighting game, most of the characters looked to be middle-aged company men. They all wore business suits, which made it hard to tell them apart. It only cost fifty yen, but still, that Itadori had chosen this game out of all the games here was mind-boggling.
No wonder he ate Suzuna’s finger, Fushiguro thought.
Itadori kept playing. “Wanna play? It’s a two-player setup.”
“I refuse to pay for that game.” Fushiguro frowned as if experiencing something truly distasteful.
But one-on-one fighting games are only as fun as your opponent. And playing such a mind-numbing game alone was pointless. Despite Fushiguro’s reluctance, Itadori really wanted to play him.
“Huh? Are you too chicken? Or do you suck at video games, Fushiguro? Afraid you can’t beat me?” Itadori said.
“I’m not afraid. I just don’t feel like it.”
“If you chicken out, that’s a loss by default! A defeat! Are you really fine with that?!”
“Play by yourself,” said Fushiguro.