It's Like That

Back in the current timeline, Nobara crosses paths with Yuko Ozawa, an old classmate of Yuji's who is keen to see him again. With a girl clearly interested in Yuji, Nobara and Megumi cannot resist wondering whether it's like that.

While the trio debates how to spend their day, a teenage girl watches Yuji from a distance. Aoi Todo learns from Mei Mei that, having recommended Yuji for grade 1, he cannot accompany him on the required missions, deflating him. The watcher introduces herself to Nobara as Yuko Ozawa, a middle school classmate whose appearance has transformed since she was shorter and heavier, and admits she has a crush on Yuji. Nobara even pulls Megumi back into the city to help, and he confirms Yuji is single and likes tall girls. When Yuji arrives, he instantly recognizes Yuko despite her changes, which makes her realize he always saw past her looks; ashamed of trying to impress him, she leaves without sharing her feelings, though Nobara secures her number.

Later, the team joins Utahime to hunt the mole at Jujutsu High, concluding Kokichi Muta, known as Mechamaru, must be the traitor since only his Puppet Manipulation could manage long-range surveillance. They discover a false hideout, confirming his guilt; Kokichi has secretly entered a binding vow with Geto and Mahito to repair his body in exchange for information. When the two factions clash, Mahito heals Kokichi with Idle Transfiguration only to fight him outright. Kokichi blows up the hideout and unveils his ultimate creation, Mechamaru Mode: Absolute, a colossal puppet he pilots from within, opening with a year's worth of cursed energy from his Ultra Cannon.

This installment bridges the Death Painting and Shibuya Incident arcs, adapting chapter sixty-four and portions of chapters seventy-nine and eighty, and aired in Japan on August 31, 2023. The opening theme shifts to SPECIALZ by King Gnu. Kokichi has stored seventeen years of cursed energy and pins his survival on contacting Gojo for rescue, having recorded everything he learned to give himself a fighting chance against Mahito. The anime expands Yuji's pitch to see Human Earthworm 4, tying it to the film series Junpei Yoshino once attended.