Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Kokusen.

Kokusen.

Kokusen…

To the average person, the term Kokusen, roughly translating to black line, means nothing more than a simple mathematical plane of existence that is of a specific color to them, or just a black line for the less educated.

Only a special group, known as the Jujutsu Society, which lives amongst the normality of civilized life, knows the difference.

For them, Kokusen means Black Flash. The Black Flash is a distortion of space caused by cursed energy warping during a physical hit, such as a kick or punch. During this attack, this cursed energy is applied for a single microsecond, and if you compare that to the regular reaction time of a human, which is about 250,000 microseconds, it seems nearly impossible to even think of the concept, let alone demonstrate and optimize it.

However, if the conditions are right, the attack will be infused with this cursed energy in this very restricted timeframe, and the cursed energy acts as a multiplier, turning a simple punch into something way more soul-shattering, literally.

If you haven’t figured it out yet, the Black Flash is like a critical attack, only happening in very slim intervals and almost being impossible to perform, even being the best of modern-day sorcerers.

That is, unless you’re Itadori Yuuji.

Kokusen.

Kokusen.

Kokusen…

Of course, sorcerers in the past have managed to land multiple Black Flashes back to back, but it rarely happens that even a blue moon would be considered more common than a back-to-back Black Flash. However, there have been some sorcerers who've managed to hit one, if not many. These include, but are not limited to:

Kugisaki Nobara

Satoru Gojo

Kento Nanami

Yuuta Okkotsu

Todo Aoi

And even some notable curses, such as Mahito, the curse that could bend and mold the souls of many.

And Ryomen Sukuna, the King of Curses and the one who defeated and eliminated Gojo Satoru and Hajime Kashimo, the two sorcerers who owned the title “The Strongest” in their respective eras.

However, Sukuna would find out during his final showdown with the sorcerers of the modern era that he had underestimated someone.

That someone was his own vessel specifically constructed to properly house Sukuna and be used in fully reviving the ultimate curse, which was all being the works of Kenjaku, a parasitic cursed being who jumps from vessel to vessel by swapping and transferring his brain into the victim.

The last known victim of this swapping was Suguru Geto, a sorcerer who had gone rogue and fell to the power of Satoru Gojo and Yuuta Okkotsu.

But that was beside the point.

Before the Culling games and the eventual showdown between the Heian Era’s Strongest and the Tokyo/Kyoto students of Jujutsu Tech and the available sorcerers on standby, Nanami Kento held the record for four consecutive Black Flashes before his unfortunate end to Mahito during the Shibuya Incident.

For that time, no one had managed to break it for years. Not even Satoru Gojo managed to, and he was the record holder for the most Black Flashes overall.

But on December 25^th, 2018, once sorcerer in particular broke that record by five while combating the King of Curses.

That sorcerer was the Man Chosen by the Sparks of Black.

The Strongest Sorcerer of Tomorrow.

Itadori Yuuji.

Kokusen.

Kokusen…

…KOKUSEN!

With that final Black Flash and assistance from Kugisaki, who everyone thought had passed during the Shibuya Incident, multiple things happened.

Megumi Fushiguro, who was taken over by Sukuna through a direct transfer from a possessed Yuuji during the culling games, was freed after all of the cursed fingers were puked out by force.

Sukuna’s essence turned into a blob, a pile of flesh with a single eye to see the world he had sought hard to rule over like he did a millennium ago.

The domain that Yuuji had produced on short notice crumbled away, letting the destroyed background of Shinjuku show what had to be sacrificed to kill the King.

And Yuuji?

Yuuji stood over the dethroned king, his stature a mocking of Sukuna’s power and uncanny resemblance.

However, Yuuji still believed he could fix that pathetic mass that had begun to fade on the ground. He picked it up and said something similar to Mahito all those months ago.

“You are me.”

Despite everything that has happened and highlighted many contrasts between the two, Yuuji still believed that the King of Curses was no better than a human.

Sukuna caught on, however, and it was then that Sukuna really knew the answer.

He wasn’t above humanity. He wasn’t even on par with them.

He was lower and more pathetic than them, a true curse.

And with that, Sukuna faded from true existence, the ash of his remains going with him as if the world was saying, ‘You don’t deserve to be remembered.’

With that, the final battle reached its conclusion. The modern era came out victorious, but not without many losses and unfortunate deaths.

Especially Satoru Gojo's.

There was no organized funeral for Satoru Gojo.

In fact, there were no organized funerals for any sorcerer who had fallen in combat. The reason for it was to protect the bodies from beings apprehended by rogue sorcerers or organizations to weaponize the body or its abilities that the corpse had that it once held while the user's heart was still beating.

The body of Satoru was cremated and put in an urn by the works of Shoko Ieiri, and the urn was offered to Yuuta, since the distant connections with the Gojo clan and Yuuta’s ancestors allowed Satoru to formally pass on the heir and ownership to Yuuta, but Yuuta turned it down, saying that if anything, it should go to Itadori.

“Satoru had more of an impact on Itadori, and Itadori admittedly followed in his footsteps as well. If he turns it down, then I’ll take it, but knowing him, I think Itadori will accept.”

The only other memorial to remember Satoru was a gravestone, with his clan’s name etched into the marble and incense sticks lit to guide Satoru to the afterlife. Flowers of various assortments were laid at the grave in honor of the Honored One. Some shed tears, some gave their farewells, and some bowed in respect for the sorcerer.

Eventually, the other jujutsu sorcerers began to depart on their own terms, the rather smaller crowd diminishing slowly and surely as the sun set beyond the horizon.

Only one had yet to leave by the time the sun dipped below and dusk came upon the gravestone.

Itadori sat in front of Satoru’s gravestone, lost in thought and feeling overwhelmed with sadness. For many, Satoru was just a teacher, coworker, or comrade to them. More specifically, for Megumi, it was his caregiver after Toji had passed, despite not knowing what actually happened until Megumi got the letter regarding the truth.

But for Itadori, Satoru felt like actual family. He was always there for Itadori, taking him under his wing and not treating him like he was a doomsday clock ready to go off when Itadori would consume all 20 of Sukuna’s fingers.

Hell, Satoru even treated him out with Megumi and Kugisaki like they were his kids (in which, technically, Megumi was).

In retrospect, Itadori saw him as a father figure and a brother. A person who valued the innocence of childhood despite the hard truth around approaching corners. An actual human, unlike the other Special Grade and Grade 1 sorcerers who had been appointed to teach younger and lower grades. All they did was boss around and give mission information, hammering in the fact that the students were the protectors of humanity and that certain luxuries couldn’t be provided. Satoru proved otherwise, that you could be as human as the rest.

The tears had been running down Itadori’s face ever since he sat down in front of his sensei’s grave, but now, they fell down his face like an emotional waterfall. Small sobs came from within his throat, his body hitching with every choke.

He just couldn’t accept what happened.

How could the Strongest fail against the evil for which he was sworn into this world to balance?

How could the person who had good intentions suffer the worst fate and go through so much trauma and manipulation?

Why couldn’t Satoru be given a second chance?

Those thoughts faded into the oncoming night as Itadori wiped his eyes and face with the hem of his sleeve. As he did, he felt a hand clasp his shoulder in a comforting manner, as if whoever was behind him was trying to soothe his emotions. Itadori didn’t look behind him. He just wanted to grieve by himself, but he awaited whatever they were about to say.

Silence.

Itadori’s sadness started to mix with a building confusion as he started to turn his head to see who was there.

“H-Hello?”

His eyes widened.

To Itadori’s shock, no one stood behind him. Not even a curse energy signature was present. The hand he felt on his shoulder also disappeared as he turned, feeling as if faded with the breeze. For a mere moment, Itadori sat in speculation as to why that happened to begin with.

Then he started bawling, his tears falling harder than ever.

“G-Gojo sensei! Please! Come back…come back…”

There wasn’t a doubt in Itadori’s mind that the hand he felt upon his shoulder was Satoru’s. Satoru was the type to comfort his students as such if they were feeling down, even doing it to Itadori to keep him afloat. Satoru even did so before his eventual showdown with Sukuna.

“I’m expecting great things from you. Got that, Yuuji?”

Itadori only cried harder.

3 years later

“So I guess this is it then, huh?”

Itadori said to Megumi and Kugisaki, who had just graduated along with them and now have the world to face on their own or together, depending on the paths they chose.

Megumi responded first as Kugisaki was in the middle of a thought.

“Yeah, we’re adults now. This was expected, Itadori.”

Itadori scuffed and shook his head.

“No duh. I’m 19, Fushiguro. What I meant by that was that, well…we’re our own selves, now. We don’t exactly have the society breathing down our necks anymore.”

“Wrong. They still have documentation, and you could be called in at any moment.”

“Oh come on, Fushiguro!”

Megumi let out a little snort while Kugisaki finally perked up from Itadori yelling out loud. Then they all laughed, no matter if they knew the context or not.

Three years ago, these three students had lost their dear sensei and many other friends along the way. As time went on, they realized that they still had each other. They’ve been unbreakable since.

Well, until now.

“So what are you guys planning to do now once we’re out of here?”

Kugisaki was the first to say this time.

“Eh, probably head back home. Tokyo is very beautiful, but I realized as beautiful as it is, it’s also a massive headache and feels very, very clustered together…ugh.”

“Idk, it seems lively to me. What about you, Fushiguro?”

Megumi scratches the back of his head in thought.

“If I’m going to be completely truthful, I’m not sure yet. I still have some things to wrap around my head.”

Kugisaki sighs.

“Of course, Mr. Mysterious. Can’t you ever be direct?”

Megumi glares at Kugisaki but shoves it off otherwise. Kugisaki redirects her attention to Itadori.

“How about you, Itadori? You got any swanky plans?”

Itadori paused. Just as Megumi was, Itadori hadn’t really put the thought into what he was going to do afterwards. He could go back to Sendai City, his hometown.

But who would be waiting there for him?

“…Honestly, Kugisaki, I don’t.”

“Huh? Seriously. You, the most fun guy to be around and the life of the party, doesn’t have plans after high school, let alone Jujutsu Tech?”

“…well, I might head back home to Sendai. I still have Satoru’s urn in my possession.”

“Oh…right.”

The three of them then got quiet. You could hear a pin drop in between the tension, but it was something they had to live with.

The true life of the party left a long time ago, and he wasn’t coming back.

“…Well, are you guys ready to say our goodbyes?”

Both Megumi and Kugisaki turned to Itadori, who was attempting to shift the sad moment by focusing on the task ahead, which was to bid farewell to their friends and comrades, some of whom they would never see again, possibly.

Megumi stayed silent. As for Kugisaki, she shrugged.

“If I’m going to be honest, not really. My train is also coming soon, and I gotta leave in 5 minutes pretty much, so this is my farewell.”

“Oh…well, stay safe on the ride back.”

“…Thanks, Yuuji. I’ll be seeing you, Batman.”

Megumi rolled his eyes at the comment as Kugisaki began to head towards her dorm to finalize packing and catch the ride to the train station, leaving Itadori and Megumi by themselves in the hall. The two look at each other. Not in affection. Not in malice.

But in respect for one another.

“Hey, Yuuji…I never really got to thank you for what happened in Shinjuku.”

Itadori cracked a small smile, an attempt to lighten the mood.

“You don’t need to, Fushiguro. You were hurting on the inside, and you just needed a cause to breathe a new life into you. Besides, I wasn’t expecting much from you anyway, being mysterious and all.”

“Don’t do that, Yuuji.”

“Aw, can’t handle slight teasing? Now I know why Kugisaki called you Batman.”

“And this conversation is done.”

Megumi turns his back to Itadori as he begins to walk down the hallway. Itadori’s smirk fades into a rest, and he sighs. Then, a thought pops into his head.

“Fushiguro, wait.”

Megumi pauses mid walk, tilting his head towards Itadori despite his back facing his friend.

“What?”

“…just…good luck in life. It was a pleasure to know you for all these years, Megumi.”

Another moment of silence stretched between the two before Megumi began to walk down the hallway again, not responding to Itadori.

Itadori felt hurt. How could he just walk off without saying anything in response? Did he just not care?

Then, Megumi spoke aloud.

“You too, Itadori. Say hi to Ozawa for me.”

Megumi then disappeared down the hall, turning the corner and leaving Itadori by himself.

“…I will, Megumi…”

Chapter Text

Itadori Yuuji’s train ride back to Sendai was an interesting one.

Itadori had said his goodbyes and farewells to everyone back at Jujutsu Tokyo Tech, even getting some phone numbers to call them whenever he could. Afterwards, he still had about 30 minutes until he actually had to prepare to leave.

So he went back to Satoru’s grave and sat down in front of it, putting a bundle of red spider lilies and white roses down in front of the marble.

Hey, the roses made sense after all.

After putting the flowers up in a decorative manner, leaning up against the base of the stone, Itadori talked.

He talked with the stone like it was human, not a marker representing death and passing on. He talked about how Megumi and Kugisaki had already left yesterday to go off on their own, some current trends on social media, newer sweets on the market that Satoru would’ve liked, a pandemic in 2020 that shut almost everything down before a vaccine was made, a new fashion in Tokyo regarding blindfolds, and how Satoru was the one who probably started it.

“I mean, the black one is the most worn, and to be fair, it’s the best looking obviously. You would’ve loved it.”

Itadori got quiet, quieter than ever, looking at the surname etched into the stone and the details in the chiseling. It was pristine and very neat, every corner and rounding nearly perfect. If there were any mistakes, even the most trained eyes wouldn’t sense it.

The gravestone wasn’t the typical fancy obelisk that decorated most graveyards. It also wasn’t a shoddy grave, being a literal uncut stone.

It was a simple in-between, a rounded white marble display with ‘Gojo’ indented with precise craftsmanship.

Itadori sighed and rubbed his hand on the stone, caressing it with care as tears welled up in his eyes.

“…It’s hard without you here, Satoru. Even three years later, I miss you terribly…If reincarnation is real as they say, then promise me you’ll find me if I’m still alive by then…I’ll be seeing you, sensei.”

Itadori then got up and looked at the gravestone from his new perspective. The sun, now past its apex, shone through the foliage and down onto the grave with its warmth. A gentle breeze shook the leaves and made the petals of the flowers wave in the wind. A single cherry blossom leaf broke from its stem and drifted down with the breeze, floating down onto the grave, settling in its new spot.

Itadori stood in silence as he looked at the leaf, resting perfectly at the top of his sensei’s grave.

Then he smiled.

Itadori put his feet together, his hands to his side, and gave a bow of respect. As he was, the timer on his phone went off, and with the sudden realization, Itadori had overstayed his welcome at Satoru’s grave.

“Oh, crap! I gotta go now, Gojo-sensei. I’ll visit when I can!”

With that, Yuji made a beeline back to his dorm to grab anything else he could’ve forgotten and rush to Kiyotaka Ijichi, or the designated driver for Satoru and his students, so he could get dropped off at the station.

As he was running, though, his smirk stayed on his face just slightly longer, feeling the warmth of the sun on his face.

Once Itadori had packed his belongings in the overhead compartment of his assigned row, he took the window seat and leaned back into his seat.

This was it.

He was really leaving Tokyo now.

“The next station will be…Sendai.”

The automated voice went off every occasion or so, a subtle reminder to those who were boarding of where the train was heading. Some people perked up and left the car in a hurry, realizing they had entered the wrong train and running off to wherever their actual destination would be traveled to.

Itadori sighed and looked out the window, surveying the jungle of skyscrapers and colorful advertisements, making the city feel more alive than it was. The Tokyo Tower loomed over in the distance, a 3.7-kilometer or 10-minute walk from where he was. Commercial flights flew over the city, the blue sky highlighting the technological wonders as they soared overhead.

He was going to miss this city. He hadn’t really been anywhere else besides Sendai and Tokyo (and its outskirts). Itadori did consider, however, that maybe one day, he could road trip around and explore this small country.

“Doors are now closing. The next station is…Sendai.”

The train shuddered before it slowly began to move along the tracks, gradually picking up speed as the station fell back, moving from under the sun guards and the tracks eventually merging into two separate ones. Itadori put his earbuds on and searched his phone for something to listen to, just so he could pass the time. A sudden tap on his shoulder distracted him, and he took one out as he turned to see who it was.

A teen, who seemed no older than 14, was nervously fidgeting with his hands as he spoke in a soft voice with broken Japanese

“Koko ni…uh…suwatt mo…desuu ka?”

Despite the botched pronunciation, Itadori could understand him. Along with Itadori’s experience in Jujutsu Tech, he and everyone else were taught English so they could be proficient if and during foreign missions.

The poor kid was just asking if he could sit there, and Itadori didn't want him to strain too hard on butchered Japanese

“Oh, of course. And I can speak and understand English well, so don’t worry.”

The teen sighed in relief and hopped up into the seat, accompanied by the seat and his nerves calming.

The teen, however, was a curious mind.

“Arigatō…so you’re going to Sendai too?”

Itadori had figured out from there that the two were going to converse, so he took his other earbud out.

“Yeah, it’s where I’m from. I was in Tokyo to attend school, and I finally finished my courses.”

“Cool…what school was it?”

Itadori froze for a moment. He couldn’t just up and tell this kid that he’s a sorcerer, but he needed to make up a name for Jujutsu Tech or at least use another school.

Then he remembered a college that he saw while touring the city.

“It’s…Tokyo Technical College.”

“…That’s nice.” Phew. He bought it. “For me, I go to Milton Hershey School. You’ve probably never heard of it, but it’s this swanky private school in the US. Believe it or not, it’s free!”

“No way, that’s great. I’m guessing you’re from the US?”

“Yeah. I’m on vacation cause my dad was offered a job here that pays well. We might end up moving here if he gets it.”

“Well, I hope your father gets his job. Japan is a nice place after all…say, I didn’t get your name.”

“Oh, my bad. It’s Henry. Nice to meet you.”

“Itadori. Nice to meet you, too, Henry.”

The two casually shook hands, Henry being the first to let go.

“Sorry if this is rude to ask, but how did you get those scars on your face, Itadori?”

Itadori paused once again, the scar on his cheek and the bridge of his nose pulsing in response to the teen's question.

He couldn’t tell him how he lost two people that day, one permanently and the other two months later. Hell, not even the curses that ravaged Shibuya on Halloween and the massive Fuga that nearly got rid of that whole section of the city. So he lied again.

“…I got into a fight with someone. They managed to cut me up pretty badly, but I came out the winner.”

“…So you’re like really strong then?”

The Strongest of Tomorrow…

Itadori let out a small chuckle, amused and also in reassurance to himself.

“I guess you could say that.”

“Wow…I want to become like you then. I’ve always been so weak, and it stinks.”

Henry became a little upset after sharing with Itadori about his problems, and Itadori couldn’t help but feel empathy, and he shared as well

“…Well, I wasn’t always strong, y’know. I actually was pretty weak compared to others.”

“Huh? Seriously?”

“Yeah. I mean, I was your age once. Besides, true strength doesn’t reside in here,” Itadori flexes his arm for a moment and then puts it down, “But in here.”

Itadori pats his chest, roughly where his heart is.

Henry gives a thoughtful look and then shrugs.

“Maybe you’re right, but eventually physical strength comes into play, y’know.”

Itadori nods in a listening sort, understanding what Henry was saying.

“True, it does, but to get stronger there, you have to be mentally and emotionally stronger. Even if it seems like you aren’t enough.”

Henry laughs to himself, catching the sorcerer off guard.

“You sound like that anime character, Rengoku. Set your heart ablaze. It totally sounds like that.”

“Wait, you watch Demon Slayer too? Who’s your favorite?”

“Yeah, of course I do. My fav is Giyuu by a mile.”

“Giyuu is a good character. My favorite is the MC himself, Kamado Tanjirou.”

“I can tell. You seem just like him in a way.”

“And that’s why I love him.”

Itadori and Henry continued chatting along the ride, talking for hours about pop culture, favorite movies and shows, fashion, and art as foreign as it was for Itadori. Eventually, the train pulled into Sendai after multiple stops throughout the day, and a man was calling out for Henry as he was navigating the corridor.

“Henryy. Where did you go- ah, there you are.”

The man helped Henry off the seat, despite being more than able to do it himself. The man then shifted his attention to Itadori, who was scooting his way out of the seat and reaching for the luggage compartment.

“I hope my son didn’t bother you too much. He wanted to explore and find a seat on the other side of the car, so I told him to ask someone who would be willing to.”

Itadori turned his head and smiled kindly.

“Oh, no worries. He was great, actually. We just talked the whole time about stuff that we both enjoyed. He was anything but a problem.”

“Oh, good. Y’know, it’s been stressful since we’ve got here, but the littlest help goes a long way. I’ll get out of your hair now, since I’m also holding the aisle up.”

The man then scoots past Itadori, holding a briefcase and suitcase as he follows Henry, who had nothing but excitement on his face, getting off the train.

Itadori smirked as he grabbed his luggage and walked towards the doors.

He wondered if he would ever see Henry again. That kid definitely seemed like a very interesting person to get to know.

He finally made it.

Sendai.

His hometown.

Itadori hailed a cab once he was on the sidewalk, putting his suitcase in the trunk despite the driver’s offering of assistance. He got into the backseat as the driver went back to the wheel, adjusting his rearview mirror to look at his blind spot.

“Where are you headed?”

“I’m going to this address here.”

Itadori hands the driver a neatly folded note of his grandpa’s house, the home that Itadori had resided in until his grandpa’s eventual passing.

Itadori then came to know that he actually never went back home before his sudden departure, other than grabbing a few things to take along for his long absence.

“Alright. Sit tight.”

The driver then pulled off and drove through the downtown area, Itadori reminiscing as he takes a trip down memory lane.

They go by the Date Masamune, one of Sendai’s most recognizable statues, and where Itadori’s grandpa took him to see occasionally when they walked through the city.

Itadori caught a glimpse of Tsutsujigaoka Park, which had lovely cherry blossoms that grew in abundance during April and throughout the spring season. Speaking of which, they were in the middle of their bloom cycle, sprinkling small Sakura petals about on the asphalt and sidewalk.

“I surely missed this place.”

The driver perked up, taking the chance to make small talk.

“Oh, are you from around here?”

“Yeah, this is my hometown. I used to go to school at Sugisawa Municipal High School.”

“You don’t say. Welcome back to Sendai. If you don’t mind, what led you to leave town?”

“Eh…transferred to a better school. There wasn’t anything wrong with Sugisawa, but I wanted to stretch my wings a bit.”

“Fair reason. I used to go to school in Osaka, but I was sick of the warm weather down there, so I came to Sendai for the cooler air and a clearer mind.”

“Well, I respect your decision. I hope you still enjoy it here…”

Itadori droned off. Something in the corner caught his eye as they passed near the park, approaching a small nursery school nearby. Itadori had completely forgotten about that place.

And the name of it.

Gojo Nursery.

“Hey, why’d you get quiet? You alright back there?”

Itadori perked back up, reverting his attention to the driver.

“…yeah…just remembered something, that’s all.”

“Okay then…we’ll be arriving in 5 minutes.”

Grandpa’s house was the same as it had been four years before Itadori’s departure.

The same faded white paint on the outside.

The same shoji doors at the front.

Grandpa’s prized car, a simple Nissan Fairlady, was in the middle of engine work before his diagnosis of lung cancer.

And the overloaded mailbox of newspapers and letters from whoever.

“…and that will be ¥2690.”

Itadori dug for his wallet, giving ¥2700 to the driver.

“Keep the change.”

The driver nodded and bid farewell to Itadori, pulling away from him and leaving Itadori by himself. He turned back to the house, basking in the appearance it was left in, as if it had frozen in time.

“…I’m home…”

The grip on his suitcase slacked, then tightened.

He just realized the amount of dust that likely collected over the years.

Chapter Text

“Could this place be any dustier!?”

Itadori had immediately begun to clean the place down once he could set his suitcase aside. He found all of the cleaning equipment Grandpa kept in a closet, along with some handkerchiefs to cover his face and hair. From then on, he began to dust furiously, wiping every surface down with haste and efficiency. But every time he gets one surface down, another one seemingly appears more than it was before.

It took him hours until the house was fully wiped down. He dusted, cleaned, vacuumed, and did whatever else to finally make the place spotless. Itadori finally took a sigh of relief and sat down in the loveseat that was the living room. He reached for a remote instinctively, but came up empty when he groped the lamp table without the remote immediately in between his grasp.

He then remembered, as he looked at the wall, that his grandpa never had a TV.

“…ah…what am I supposed to do then!?”

Itadori’s annoyance was an uncommon expression. Never did he appear annoyed, even in the most upsetting conditions.

The last time he was as annoyed was when he fought Mahito, and that curse was scarred for life after Itadori had his way.

Well, until Kenjaku absorbed him and took Satoru away.

“…I need to unpack anyway…I should also probably call someone who knows how to fix Grandpa’s car.”

And with that, Itadori grabbed his suitcase, which stayed by the door as he deep-cleaned the house, and rolled it away.

Underneath where the suitcase had sat idle was more dust that Itadori overlooked.

“Curse you!”

The memories that Itadori made back at home before he went to Tokyo flooded his mind when he opened the door to his room.

Posters of Jennifer Lawrence and various other feminine figures hung up on the walls near his bed, Jennifer being his celebrity crush and ideal woman type.

A wardrobe full of old clothes (that probably didn’t fit Itadori anymore) was stuffed messily, boxers and socks poking out from the drawers as anime figurines from various shows lined the top.

A box full of comics and mangaka sat near his bed, some left open and flipped on his bed so he could save the page when he came back to read them.*
*Please don't ever do this to any sort of book; you'll ruin them.

Moreover, about his bed, the blankets sat ruffled and still somewhat messy from when he last woke up that day.

And more surprisingly, his little DIY bonsai tree was still alive and flourishing on his windowsill. Itadori’s heart did a little leap in his chest as he saw his most valued plant still thriving years later

“Ikki-Chan! You’re still alive!”

Itadori rolled his suitcase into his room and grabbed a little water sprayer as he ran to the bathroom. He quickly swirled up the water in the bottle and dumped it into the sink, doing a quick and efficient cleanse to get rid of any organisms that decided to exist while he was gone.

Once refilled, he speedwalked back to his room and began to lightly spray his bonsai tree while clipping some of the dead ends of the branches with little pruners.

“Sorry I couldn’t come sooner. I bet you were thirsty, weren’t you? And these dead ends must’ve been a burden.”

Itadori chuckled to himself as he admired his plant, the bonsai tree seemingly growing taller in appreciation of Itadori’s care.

Itadori then went to his bed to move and put away the books that he had left out, neatly putting them back in his box and putting it in his closet. The bed sheets were stripped and put in a separate bin to run through the wash as he tidied up the room.

He didn’t get to his room when he was cleaning through the house, but thankfully, there were no bedbugs or random pests about in his home. His grandpa did a good job of not allowing a single insect inside, even going through Itadori’s messy room on occasion to check.

Despite being a pigsty, though, Itadori kept a good upkeep of any potential hiding spots for bugs.

Itadori went through his wardrobe, sorting the clothes for what still fit him or were just too small.

Mostly everything didn’t fit, but a few of his favorite hoodies fit pretty well, even after not being used for a while. With that, he also unpacked his suitcase, which had more clothes he bought in Tokyo that still fit him. He put them away, more neatly this time, in his wardrobe and shut the drawers when he finished.

The clothes that didn’t fit him would just have to go in a box and be stored away for now, and the empty boxes were up in the attic, which he was not exactly too hyped to even go up there.

“I guess I’ll leave them here for now…”

Soon, the sheets finished the laundry cycle, and Itadori remade his bed, making sure everything was neater than it was left.

The sun began to go down as Itadori finished up the little details in his room, eventually flopping onto his bed and staring up at the ceiling, in which he then burst out laughing.

“Oh man! I forgot I put that up there.”

On the ceiling directly above his head was an image of a lady nearly stripped down from a rather suggestive magazine he found when sorting through the mail one day. He had the bright idea of cutting the page out and taping it to his ceiling and falling asleep looking at the beauty, and somehow his grandpa never caught on that it was even up there.

Itadori got up and used his bed as a booster and took the page down, looking at it while chuckling to himself.

“Wow, was I something else then. But good times don’t last forever, y’know.”

Itadori crumpled the page up and tossed it into the can next to his bed, still partially full of missing homework and pencil shavings. He then laid back down, lightly this time, in case he was awaiting any more surprises he forgot like the page.

Thankfully, there was nothing else.

Itadori's smile suddenly began to slip from his face as it got quiet. Real quiet. The house, despite being cleaned and properly presentable, felt empty.

It was only him.

“…I wonder, grandpa…where did you go after you died?”

Satoru’s ashes didn’t come with Itadori on his train. They were separately shipped, so they were safer and not at risk of breaking. When the box showed up at the front door, Itadori took it in and slowly unpackaged it, taking it out with care and precision.

He set it on the mantle in the small dining room, placing it where it seemed just right, and stood back to look at it, making sure it looked properly placed and not just set down to be forgotten.

About a week had gone by since Itadori had arrived back home.

And nothing eventful had really happened.

He had his phone, which was one thing to pass the time, as well as his books in his room, but that was it in terms of occupying time. He had also tried to contact some of grandpa’s friends to see if they could take care of the car that sat unfinished in the driveway, but none answered.

Eventually, Itadori gave up and assumed that all of grandpa’s friends were no longer contactable since his death.

But something else did give Itadori hope that it would properly be taken care of.

Someone knocked on the door one day while Itadori was preparing a quick lunch, a basic ramen cup from the nearby corner shop. Tired and wondering who it was, Itadori scuffed his feet over to the door and opened it slightly.

“Hello?”

A man, who seemed to be a little bit older than Itadori by a few years, stood with his hands in his pockets. A simple ballcap sat on his head while a mechanic’s worker jacket was tied at the waist, dirtied with grease and oil. A simple white tee and baggy hakama pants made up the rest of his outfit, along with his jikatabi shoes.

“Oh, hey there. Are you the owner of the Fairlady in the driveway?”

“…no. My grandfather owned it, but he’s passed.”

The man gulped slightly but persisted with his questions.

“I’m sorry for your loss. I do not tend to be disrespectful, but I was curious if the car is for sale. I’ve been looking for a model like that for a while and figured I could breathe new life into it.”

Itadori sat in thought for a second.

On one hand, he could make a good number of yen off the car and maybe give it to someone who would be able to bring it to life again.

But on the other hand, it was his grandpas, a lasting memory of him.

But would he ever really use it?

Itadori sighed and decided what to do then and there.

“…how much are you looking for?”

“¥5 million at least.”

Itadori’s eyes nearly popped out of his head.

“D-did I hear that correctly? ¥5 million?

“Yeah, I see that as a fair price. And besides, these cars are a beauty. They are some of the best sports cars in Japanese automotive history.”

To the average person, ¥5 million was close to a yearly salary for a low-income job.

As of now, Itadori didn’t exactly have money like that at his disposal (as the society hasn’t sent his royalty checks for his service quite yet), but maybe he could do some slight bargaining.

“…can you do 6.5?”

“6.2.”

“Deal.”

The two shook hands as the man dug in his pocket, pulling a business card out and giving it to Itadori.

“This is my shop in the downtown area. Give me a call once you’re ready to trade. My friend will come by to pick it up as well, but I’ll be there to discuss the exchange. Anything I should know about the car?”

Itadori nodded lightly, thinking about the engine.

“My grandpa was working on the engine before he got diagnosed. I don’t think it was finished, and I know nothing about what is right or wrong, but it should be in pristine condition.”

“Good to know. We’ll bring a tow as well. I’ll be seeing you.”

The man nodded his hat in respect and began to walk to his car. Itadori almost shut the door when he saw the car the man had just opened.

It didn’t take a genius to know that he was driving a heavily modified car. Even Itadori knew about those, since he saw them regularly in Tokyo.

But was this man going to do the same to his grandpa’s car?

“Wait!”

The man stopped and perked up. Itadori stood out in front of the door, looking at the man.

“What are you going to do with my grandpa’s car once you get it?”

The man paused for a second before walking around to face Itadori in conversation.

“Well, that car will be my daily driver. Don’t worry, I’m not going to turn it into some street racer. This thing right here is the racer.”

The man pats the hood of his car in reassurance.

“I understand it was something that your grandpa valued, and you’d probably be upset if I crashed it on the Tōge. I promise it’s in safe and responsible hands.”

Itadori sighed in relief, but still held some uncertainty.

“…I’ll trust you…see you later.”

Itadori slowly walked back inside and shut the door as the man got into his car and started the ignition, a somewhat loud roar coming from the engine, and idling for a moment before pulling off slowly.

Itadori stood against the door lightly, thoughts going through his head.

“…Did I make the right decision, grandpa?”

The year went by quicker than expected.

Fall rolled around as Itadori found a part-time job so he could pay the bills and insurance, working for a simple convenience store near the highway during the night shift.

Itadori took a bus there and back, considering there was a bus stop across the road from it, and he gave the Fairlady to that man a while back, whom he later found out was named Takuto. Itadori preferred free and public transportation anyway.

The night shift wasn’t all that it was to be. Customers only came in then and now, but occasionally, a group of street racers would stop at the store and shop for some snacks and cigarettes. Itadori would pick up some of the lingo they used and certain words that were foreign to him.

"Yo Taka. Some idiot blew a gasket AND a tire last night in his Skyline. Can you believe that?”

“Lemme guess. Was it that silver wannabe racer Nagata?”

“Yeah, absolutely. He’s all bark, no bite. Doesn’t even know basic knowledge, so that's how you know his daddy is doing the work for him. He's a fucking loser.”

That was a common occurrence, the drivers dissing on a person completely unknown to Itadori or just talking about their cars and what’s underneath the hoods.

Itadori wasn’t too fond of the dissing part, but hey, he made a lot more money on those nights. Plus, he got to see them take flicks of their cars.

One particular night, the same drivers pulled into the parking lot as usual to hang out and buy some snacks and cigs. Itadori rang their items up when suddenly another car came roaring from the opposite direction and slid into the parking lot in a drift that even amazed Itadori.

The driver then got out and slammed the door, reaching for something behind his back as he laser-eyed one of the drivers in the store, who opened a pack of cigs and was about to light one once he went outside.

“Cheater! You’re using black market parts! That’s how you won against me!”

“Chill, bro. Everyone loses some, including me. I don’t know why you’re so pressed over a few yen.”

“A few!? You cost me ¥3 million, asshole!”

The man then drew a knife and tried to go after the driver. It was then that Itadori acted and jumped over the counter. In a flash, he was there, catching the wrist of the assailant and gripping it tightly.

“If you want to cause trouble, then I suggest you go do it somewhere else. You don’t leave this second; I’m calling the police.”

The knife wielder froze in confusion and fear, the knife slipping from his hands as Itadori kept a deathly gaze on him. Itadori had never been as serious since Shinjuku, and no way in hell was Itadori going to allow this man to spill blood over money.

It was pathetic.

“O-okay! Let go of me, please.”

Itadori shoved the man off, who began running to his car and fumbling with the handle. Eventually, the car peels off and speeds away in desperation. The drivers, who had watched the whole thing, began to clap as if they were seeing a performance.

“Holy cow, dude. Jiji would’ve gotten stabbed if it weren’t for you.”

Itadori sighed and turned to the person who spoke.

“It’s nothing. Just making sure the peace is kept here. Don’t bring any more trouble back, please.”

“Hey, we promise, bro. We mean it, right Jiji?”

Jiji just rolled his eyes.

The winter season rolled around quickly than Itadori expected, and soon it was December 25^th, the day of Christmas, a time of celebration.

And four years since Satoru’s passing.

He spent that day looking out the window, watching the snow drift down as inch after inch was laid onto the frozen ground.

That night, Itadori sat in his room with the lights off, except for the LED strips he put on the wall, which were set to a dark blue.

Four long years.

It just felt unreal.

He sat up from his lying position, lost in memory of the days when Satoru Gojo was alive.

“…Would you lose though?”

“Nah, I’d win.”

“Sensei! Your cursed technique is in the way!”

“…Ha ha! Give it to me!”

“I want you to be more forward-thinking, Yuuji.”

“I’m expecting great things from you…”

The tears fell like they did a year ago, and the year before.

And two years before that.

Chapter Text

It was June now. Months went by without anything interesting happening for Itadori.

His schedule was the same everyday:

Get up

Go for a light jog

Come back and take a shower

Make some breakfast

Sort through the mail for bills and insurance payments

See if anyone from Jujutsu High wanted to chat (most times the phone went to voicemail, the rest just declined the call)

Make lunch

Scroll his phone

Take a nap for the night shift

Wake up and get changed for work

Catch the evening bus

Work from 9pm-5am

Catch the morning bus

Change and go back to sleep.

Every single day for Itadori consisted of this repetitive cycle. It was even like that on his birthday, which was on March 20^th.

But he did get a little surprise after lunch.

Itadori was in the middle of cleaning a bowl after eating some homemade Soba when his phone unexpectedly went off. Curious, Itadori cleaned his hands and looked at the caller ID, which was unknown, but it didn’t say ‘potential scam’ either.

Trying his luck, Itadori answered.

“Hello? Itadori speaking.”

“BRUZZAH! Happy birthday, Yuuji!”

Itadori could only beam a smile when he heard Toudou on the receiving end.

“Toudou! Thank you, man. How’ve you been, bro? I haven’t heard from you in months.”

“I’m doing absolutely great. How come you didn’t call?”

“..Toudou, I didn’t get a number from you.”

“Huh? I didn’t?”

“Yeah, you just gave me a piece of paper that counted up to six.”

“Did it not work?”

“Of course it didn- wait, do you even have a phone?”

“…no.”

“Then how are you calling?”

“By payphone. There was one nearby when I remembered it was your birthday.”

“Huh…at least you remembered my number. What are you doing that’s causing you to use a payphone anyway?”

“I’m in Hiroshima, best bruzzah! I got called in with a few other grade 2 sorcerers to exorcise a curse.”

“Oh, if you’re on a mission, then I don’t want to disturb too much of your time.”

“Nonsense. I have all of the time-”

Another voice then cut Todo off from the receiving end.

“Todo, we don’t have time for phone calls. Say goodbye to whoever and hang up.”

Oof.

Itadori sighed and heard the line go quiet for a moment before Toudou responded.

“Well, I guess I gotta go, bruzzah. I’ll try to call you again later.”

Itadori shook his head, like Toudou was going to see that anyway.

“No can do. I have work later, and I need to rest. But it made my day that you called. You’re the first one who really talked to me in a while.”

“Hey, it would be rude of me to disregard family. See you later, bruzzah.”

Before Itadori could say goodbye, the line went dead. Despite his happiness from earlier, Itadori couldn’t help but feel even sadder.

He really just wanted to talk with Toudou for as long as possible, sharing his thoughts and feelings with someone who would actually listen.

But who knew how long it would be until he could call again.

Itadori just shook his head and went back to his room to take a nap before work.

The month of June was no different from the rest. And eventually July came around.

Cicadas made their annoying rattles as the summer heat began to set in for the year. Trees flourished, and the abundance of green inhabited the landscape again. And the flowers bloomed like never before.

Itadori usually enjoyed this time of year, but with how everything was going, it just felt like another month had come just to go days later.

Just a never-ending cycle of insufferable time.

Even with the heat, Itadori continued to wear hoodies and sweatpants, rolling up the sleeves only if necessary.

Days went by.

Paychecks came.

The money he earned from selling grandpa’s car sat in an emergency fund just in case he was fired or had some issue where he couldn’t work.

And Itadori began to sink into a depression. There was a lack of motivation, he had noticed. He skipped his jog in the morning occasionally so he could get more sleep after tough nights at the convenience store. He stopped calling for anyone, since he already figured they weren’t going to pick up. His meals were reduced to instant noodles and, occasionally, a coffee if he needed it.

Itadori hated coffee, too.

When he got home from work, he would shut the blinds and lie on his bed with tears beading in his eyes, missing the days when he had people around to support him.

He felt abandoned.

Like they never truly cared for him.

And soon, the tears stopped beading in his eyes as he fell into a deep sleep.

Itadori’s alarm clock rang extra loudly today.

He smacked the top of it hard, trying to silence its horrid beeps and blares, but didn’t get up immediately. He stared at the top of the ceiling, wondering if maybe he should’ve kept that page up so he at least woke up to a person rather than dry paint.

He yearned for someone to call his phone.

Toudou.

Kugisaki.

Fushiguro.

Anyone.

“…what a pipe dream…”

Itadori slowly sat up in his bed, rubbing his eyes before his alarm clock blared again.

He wasted no time dealing with it.

“Kokusen!”

Two seconds later, his alarm clock sat broken on the ground.

That was the first time Itadori had used any sort of sorcery on anything. He hasn’t exorcised a curse in a long time.

He stared at the clock before shuffling out of his bed and waddling over to his mirror, taking a good look at himself.

Eyebags sat under his eyes from stress and late nights, a dark purple fading into his usual tan skin. His hair was a mess, besides being the natural style he was born with, but the hue of his pink hair seemed pale, almost as if his hair was sick.

And the light in his eyes, his happiness, was gone.

Had he really fallen so far? Was this really the rest of his life? Just a lousy adult working a 9-5?

He just frowned and walked out of his room, going to the front so he could check the mail.

Once he got to the mailbox at the front, he went through what was delivered.

Newspapers, as expected.

His paycheck. That’ll get him through a week or so.

Some advertisements, which he'll just throw away later.

The water bill. He’ll deal with that later as well.

An official letter from Jujutsu Tech Tokyo. He'll- wait, what?

Itadori rubbed his eyes, hoping he wasn’t mistaken about what he was seeing. The official insignia was printed and stuck on the envelope.

It was an actual letter from the school.

Itadori carried the mail inside and went to the dining table, putting everything else aside to prioritize the letter. His heart began to race slightly, as this was the first exciting thing in almost a year.

He turned it to its backside, reading the address.

For Itadori Yuuji

It was meant for him.

Well, of course it was. It was sent here of all places.

He slowly opened the top of the envelope, pulling the folded letter out and unfolding it with anticipation.

The insignia sat at the top right, just like on the envelope.

Itadori sat with a ball in his throat as he began to read.

To Itadori Yuuji,

On behalf of the Jujutsu Society, we would like to apologize for failing to relay this letter sooner. The current reconstruction of the higher-ups has halted our advances to do so, and that includes the currency you have acquired for your duties of exorcism.

With that being said, the society has made a unanimous decision for your benefit, and we would like to hear your opinion. You have been hailed a hero amongst the society and its members for your victory against Ryomen Sukuna in 2018. We felt that this recognition shouldn't go unnoticed and should be publicly identified amongst sorcery, and we have proposed a fair reward.

The Jujutsu Society would like to identify you as an official Special Grade amongst sorcerers alike, a high honor and something to take pride in. More, including, we think you, Itadori, could use your abilities to teach the younger and less experienced to build them into great sorcerers. We understand that you had a close connection to the late Satoru Gojo, and grief is an understandable cause to decline. This is not a required agenda, but rather a suggestion and an optional proposal.

We would like to hear back from you before the beginning of August, when academic programming will resume. We wish you farewell and for your health to be in top shape.

Signed,

The Jujutsu Society

Co-signed,

Tokyo Technical School of Jujutsu and Sorcery

Itadori dropped the letter onto the table in disbelief.

They wanted him to become a teacher? And be officially identified as a Special Grade?

It felt too good to be true.

Thoughts began to shoot back and forth through his mind, going at speeds that the trained eye couldn’t perceive.

But then he thought of Satoru. He was expecting something great of Itadori, right?

Wouldn’t this be it?

Itadori then smiled as tears of joy rolled down his face.

This was his chance to do something instead of being the salary drone he had been for months. A chance to live and do what brought him excitement from his high school days. 

This was, dare he say, his purpose.

He then went to the junk drawer in his kitchen, grabbing a neat piece of paper, a semi-wrinkled envelope, and a pen.

He was going to accept, and he began to write

He wrote as if his response letter would determine his life for the years to come, and technically, it did.

As he did, grandpa’s final words echoed in his mind.

“Yuuji…You’re a strong kid, so try to help others.”

He’s helped others before. He’s just simply helping more.

Not as a vessel, but as his own self.

Just Itadori Yuuji.

The Strongest of Tomorrow.

Chapter Text

Ever since that letter, Itadori’s life began to shine once again. The excitement of finally returning, not as a student but as a teacher, kept his spirits up as he started to go through routines with renewed motivation.

Even during work, a smile was etched into his face as he rang up the typical items of the street racers, secretly missing how he would hear their conversations and their cars pulling up. He really began to build a good rapport with that crew, even having some small talk and learning some of the lingo and car talk they were always conversing about. Heck, Itadori had even given an occasional discount for the cigs they bought.

One night, Itadori decided to break the news to the street racers.

“Well, guys, it was really fun knowing all of you. I’m heading back to Tokyo soon for a new opportunity.”

The drivers fell silent before congratulating Itadori, a murmur of happiness going between the four.

The leader, Taka, spoke up.

“Hey man, we’re glad for you. I’ll say, though, we’ll miss you. When’s your last night ya think?”

Itadori thought for a second, trying to remember when he was leaving.

“I think the 27^th. I’m catching the day train back to Tokyo Station on the 29^th and need to pack beforehand.”

“Aight, cool. We’ll bid you farewell with a surprise, bro. That’s if Jiji don’t do something stupid beforehand.”

Jiji sucked his teeth in annoyance.

“Unnecessary stray, Taka.”

Taka just snickered as he put the payment down for the four of them.

“I put an extra ¥1000 for you. Spend it well.”

Itadori smirked as he pocketed the extra yen, dapping Taka up in a friendly manner.

“Will do. Can’t wait for that surprise.”

“You’ll love it, bro. Catch you on the flip.”

The drivers walked out with their snacks, laughing with one another as they exited the store and went to their respective cars. As they drove off, Itadori couldn’t help but feel bubbly inside.

He didn’t understand much before, but after that night with the man and his attempts at stabbing Jiji, that crew considered him…cool, and in a way became his friends.

He was sure going to miss this.

Soon enough, the 27^th rolled around. Itadori sighed as he got off the bus, facing towards the store as the bus rolled off and into the night. Itadori had made a quick choice and packed early so he could pass the time, and now he had a day of freedom to himself before he caught the train, minus his last work night.

The manager he had gotten his job from wasn’t here tonight, but Itadori had planned in case that would happen, having a pre-written note of resignation ready. He would put it on the manager’s desk along with the pin that said ITADORI on his chest. It felt bittersweet, and he admittedly also felt nervousness for when he would step foot out of the store for the last time, but he still had this night to get through.

And with that, he walked to the front and walked into the store, going behind the counter as he put his small bag down behind for safekeeping. For now, he just had to wait.

Minutes ticked by.

Then hours.

During that time, Itadori either scrolled his phone or rang up some things for the occasional customer, but the drivers hadn’t come.

Soon, the clock struck one, and Itadori was ready to let his hopes down when he heard the engines of their cars roaring down the road just before they slowed and turned into the lot, parking in the spaces and getting out of their cars. Itadori’s body tingled in newfound excitement as they walked in, chatting and dissing each other playfully as they approached the counter. Taka then turned, happy to see Itadori was there and ready for what they were about to reveal.

“Itadori! Final night, right?”

Itadori chuckled as he scratched a tiny itch on the back of his head.

“Yeah! Can’t believe it, y’know. It’s almost sad as funny as it is.”

“I don’t know. I personally wouldn’t miss a dinky job like this, but to be fair, it’s people like you who are underappreciated. How ‘bout we end this night with a bang, shall we?”

Taka then held his keys up, the metal ring and trinkets jingling, hinting at Itadori.

“…Wait…you want me to tag along with you guys?”

“Hell yeah, course we do. C’mon, lose the badge and live a little before you leave for the big city.”

Itadori pondered Taka’s request, wondering if he should really ditch the store so he could cruise along with these guys. It seemed like fun though, and Itadori did want to end the night with a bang as he said.

But who would watch the store?

…It wasn’t like anyone really came after 1:30 in all fairness anyway.

Itadori scoffed, then smiled. He took his pin off and took the letter out of his pocket, unfolding it and putting it on the reminder bulletin for when the manager came to list Itadori’s duties for the night, which were rarely any. He put the letter up and made sure it was level, then slammed the pin into the corkboard.

This was his official resignation, but first, he needed to ring up these guys’ things.

“Sure, why not. No one really comes here after 1, besides you guys. But first, let me do my service one more time.”

Taka flashed a smile of his own as his group grabbed their usual things, paying for them as Itadori put every coin in the register.

After that, he undid the apron and folded it neatly on the counter, leaving him in a yellow tee and some gray sweats.

“Alright! Let’s go.”

Itadori has never had more fun since last night.

Being the passenger in Taka’s Nissan S13, in which he learned what it was during their drive, Itadori got to experience firsthand the gravitational forces he hadn’t dared to imagine in a car. He thought the speed alone was absurd, but when Taka and his crew hit the Tōge, his mind blew.

The car slid through effortlessly, weaving corners like a bar of soap as adrenaline pumped through Itadori’s veins, his eyes wide in pure excitement. The tire smoke that billowed in the rearview left Itadori in awe, but the smell wasn’t all the best, since it was burnt rubber.

His grip on the door handle was tight, but never for a second did he feel in danger. In the midst of chaos came a smooth, unbreakable flow. Taka was in the zone, his eyes glued to the road and reacting with superhuman-like speed as Itadori felt the car gliding on the asphalt.

Excitement

It was a feeling Itadori longed for, and one like this he would never forget for his years to come.

It was around four when Itadori was dropped off back home. Taka had the decency to take Itadori all the way instead of the convenience store and also helped Itadori out as his legs were like Jello from clenching them.

“Told ya it would be fun, Itadori.”

Itadori just laughed, happiness billowing up like the tire smoke from earlier.

“It was, Taka. I really enjoyed that…y’know, you guys are pretty cool. I don’t care what anyone else says, the dynamic between you four is awesome.”

“Well, we have been doing this for a lil’ bit now, but thanks, man.”

“Yeah…hey. I’m really going to miss you, Taka.”

“Same here, man. Same here…hey, I gotta roll now. If you need something, give me a call, alright.”

Taka reaches his hand out, a piece of ripped paper with a phone number written on it in his grasp. Itadori took it and read the number, nodding to assure Taka.

“I will…see you later.”

“See ya…”

Taka rolled his window up and drove away, not exactly peeling off but not slow either. Itadori stood in the dark, a streetlight being the only thing illuminating the road as a smile was stuck on Itadori.

He was really happy again.

And he wanted to stay like that for as long as he could.

The next day, Itadori slept in a little bit. He was tired from the eventful night and needed that extra sleep to boost him.

He didn’t even bother checking the mail.

He made a quick breakfast and cleaned up, washing whatever gunk he had on him and looking for some clothes.

He opened a drawer in his wardrobe, thinking there were some hoodies in there along with any shorts or pants.

Instead, he was met with his old Jujutsu High uniform, the familiar navy gakuran and slacks neatly folded to be forgotten for months. Next to it was the red hoodie with the same bronze buttons as the gakuran.

Itadori was planning on going shopping for new clothes, but after seeing his uniform, he paused.

“School uniforms can be customized or requested.”

“For real? But I didn't put a request in…”

“I went ahead and asked for you.”

“…Okay…I like it anyway.”

 “…Thank you, Gojo-sensei…I’m grateful.”

Itadori then decided that once he got to Tokyo, he would wear the red hoodie of his uniform, along with his slacks and maybe a newer top from the school.

Maybe like Satoru’s uniform.

Now that Itadori thought of it, where were the rest of Satoru’s things?

He shook it off as he put on his old uniform, testing to see if it still fit.

Thankfully, it did.

He stood in front of his mirror, examining his outfit in full.

It felt right to wear it. Like he was meant to wear it from the start. As he looked, Itadori noticed something on his forehead.

It looked faded, as if you tried to wipe a permanent marker right after you wrote on yourself. The only contrasting detail was that it wasn’t smudged or wiped, just faded like it had weathered over time.

The more he looked, the more he realized that there was actually more than the thing on his forehead, almost like markings very similar to…

…It couldn’t be.

Itadori blinked hard, hoping he was just seeing things. When he reopened, though, they were gone.

Itadori never sighed harder in relief than ever, clutching his chest as his racing heart slowed down, but then he stopped to think

Was he just seeing things?

Or were they actually there?

Those thoughts carried throughout the day, even when he lay his head upon his pillow and fell asleep one more time in his home.

Itadori woke before his newer alarm went off, the replacement for the older one he had exorcised in spite.

He did a double check, making sure all of his necessities were packed and ready to go. After that, he did a very quick job of his hygiene* and put all of his packed stuff by the front door before doing one more final sweep of his grandpa’s home…well, more just Itadori’s home now.
*I forgot to mention this was a part of his schedule. Just act like he’s been doing this as well.

Itadori had pretty much gone through and checked everything, but there was one more thing he needed to ensure before he completely left.

He went up to his room and checked on Ikki, his bonsai plant.

“Hey, Ikki. I’m going away for a while. I’m not sure when I’ll be able to come back, but when I do, I’ll bring you with me. Just hang on a little bit longer, okay?”

The plant sat idle, but Itadori waved and shut the door, leaving the small tree alone once again.

Itadori left his house pretty quickly, hailing the nearest cab so he could make it to the station. It took a rather long time due to the morning traffic, but the driver managed to get there right before the doors of the train closed on Itadori.

From then, he took his appointed seat and put whatever music he had on his phone through his earbuds, soon falling asleep to the sounds and vibrations of his music and the train.

His dreams were vivid.

He imagined what his group would look like, wondering if they would be like him, Kugisaki, and Megumi, or a complete wildcard of a group.

He wondered if the uniform designs had changed much or were the same requestable styles as those Satoru had given him.

He imagined how the missions would go, exorcising curses while Itadori held pride in his students for their hard work.

He imagined being the goofy and down-to-earth sensei, just like Satoru.

And it made him very happy and excited.

Hours later

“The train has arrived at…Tokyo.”

Chapter Text

“Is that who I think it is? Ijichi! How’ve you been?”

Itadori had just gotten off his train, two suitcases in hand as he walked out of the station and onto the long walkway. The sun was shining brightly, a great warmth tingling against his face as he brought a hand up to see what was in front of him. To his surprise, Kiyotaka Ijichi, the designated driver for the school, stood in front of his Lexus, his arms crossed over his chest. From what Itadori could see, Ijichi cracked a smile when he heard Itadori.

“Itadori Yuuji. Rumors have it that you’re teaching here now. Are they true?”

“Yeah, they sent a letter and everything. I didn’t know they were rebuilding.”

“They have been for a while. After Shinjuku, some of our grade one sorcerers found every elder dead. Some speculated what could’ve happened, promoting that a rogue sorcerer came and killed them, but I knew deep down who it was. Anyway, since then, they’ve realized the corruption that was in their own organization and decided to rebuild from the ground up. And to be honest, I don’t mind the whole reconstruction stuff. I’ll tell you more later, but first, let’s get you situated.”

Kiyotaka then steps to the side and goes to the trunk, popping it open for Itadori to put his things inside.

“I can take care of those for you.”

“Seriously? Thanks, Ijichi.”

Itadori rolled his suitcases to Kiyotaka, handing the somewhat heavy luggage for him to put in the trunk. Kiyotaka struggled for a moment, not expecting it to be as heavy as he expected, but put it in with care and with no complications. After that, he shut the trunk and walked to the driver’s side.

“You can take a seat in the back, Itadori. We’ll be there shortly.”

Itadori wasted no time, getting in rather excitedly and shutting the door, eager to see the campus of his youth once more. With that, Kiyotaka pulled off, merging with the less dense traffic.

As the car glided along the crowded streets,  Itadori’s eagerness could only grow with each passing second.

“Jujutsu High, oh how have I missed you!”

Itadori had his arms outstretched in embrace and nostalgia as Kiyotaka took his suitcases out of the trunk, wheeling them to Itadori.

“You seem to really miss this place.”

Itadori turned and grinned at Kiyotaka, only supporting the statement further.

“Tell me about it. It feels like a home away from home, y’know. Besides all of that rebuilding stuff, what did I miss here?”

“Not much actually, but this week is when the new students come. You did get that in your letter, right?”

“Of course. It’s also why I’m excited to be back. I just can’t wait to meet them!”

Kiyotaka snickered lightheartedly, responding promptly after.

“Well, before that, you have to go through an orientation to measure your abilities. A teacher needs to be reliable in combat as well as mentoring, and Satoru had to do the same thing many years prior.”

“Seriously? I mean, of course he had to, but weren’t his abilities enough to show already, since his peers and comrades saw him in action?”

Kiyotaka nodded, his face taking on a more serious expression than a second ago.

“As much as everyone saw his abilities, the higher-ups at the time wanted a full report of every ability he could conjure. That included his domain, Infinity, Six Eyes, his curse energy output, the whole deal. They claimed that it was necessary for appropriate documentation, but for what I think…”

Kiyotaka shifted his glasses with his pointer, looking down to help scoot the frame up the bridge of his nose. Itadori’s excitement was ever so subtly replaced by curiosity as Kiyotaka went on.

“…I think they wanted to know weakness. To see a loophole through his abilities in case he went rogue, so they could end it like that.”

Kiyotaka snapped his fingers in correlation, emphasizing his point.

Itadori then felt an anger rise in his chest.

It was way worse than he thought. Satoru had mentioned that the higher-ups were corrupt on their own terms, claiming how they took innocence and many fragile childhoods away to create soldiers, almost, but never did Itadori know that they were also keeping tabs on Satoru like a special experiment all this time.

Their actions were no better than Sukuna’s, and even Sukuna had the decency to respect his opponent (besides Itadori, who Sukuna hated since he swallowed the first finger that caused it all).

“…then it was a good thing someone slaughtered them. I would never forgive such actions.”

Kiyotaka was admittedly surprised when those words came out of Itadori’s mouth. So was Itadori himself, although he didn’t outwardly show it.

He didn’t expect that to come out.

“Are you okay, Itadori?”

Itadori perked up once more at Kiyotaka, this time nodding slightly.

“Yeah…I’m good. Just a little upset about what you said about, y’know…”

Kiyotaka seemed quizzical but didn’t push further.

“…Fair. How about we get you evaluated now?”

The evaluation process was fairly simple.

All Itadori had to do was show he was knowledgeable in how curse energy works and simple academics; showcase his abilities such as his Shrine capabilities, Blood manipulation, his unique domain expansion (which would be monitored through someone who lacked CE completely to prevent a potential sure hit effect, if present that is), his abnormal on-command black flash, and any other abilities that were in consideration; and for post evaluation, they would monitor how he managed his students for a month in secrecy.

Itadori knew the first two from what Kiyotaka knew, and he prepared accordingly.

However, Itadori wasn’t the brightest in his class. In fact, he placed 14^th in his academic test scores across the Tokyo and Kyoto schools, only being above Hakari by 2 points.

If anything, he could fail to become a teacher if they found out he had practically flunked.

But then he remembered that Satoru never really taught the academic lessons anyway, and he sighed in partial relief.

Kiyotaka led him up to where his evaluation was being held, a classroom full of desks that were really never used the majority of the time. Itadori expected it to be some geezer behind the table, asking him questions and writing it down on some official documentation paper, just like his enrollment, but to his surprise, it was a rather younger female wearing a white kosode and red hakama, and to Itadori, she seemed familiar in a way.

“Wait. Is that you, Utahime?”

Utahime turned to Itadori and smiled warmly, even bringing a hand up to wave.

“Seems like someone remembers who I am. You have no idea how many people completely forget me. It’s seriously irritating.”

She sighs in irritation but waves Itadori in.

“Anyway, I’ll be asking you questions today as well as evaluating your knowledge in the categories that will be as follows: academic IQ, combat IQ, cursed energy, basic cursed technique knowledge, and more personal questions that will also determine everything and such. Mind taking a seat for me?”

Itadori nodded as he walked into the classroom and took a seat in the front. Kiyotaka stood a moment longer before leaving the two, his steps echoing lightly down the hall. Itadori took a breath and mentally prepared for the questions that would come his way. He cracked his knuckles and said with a partially faux confidence.

“…Alright. Hit me.”

Long story short, Itadori passed.

Barely.

He had struggled heavily on the academic questions, sometimes confusing certain events with others, and his scores were no better than his freshman year, hitting a 4.3 on the recorded sheet Utahime had to mark down his answers. Utahime was beginning to doubt him until the questions shifted, and that was when Itadori bounced back and flourished.

Before Satoru’s death, he had taught Itadori everything about how cursed energy works and every type of broad curse technique that helped Itadori in Shinjuku, and ever since, he had it locked away in his brain, waiting until he would need to use it or just answer questions regarding it, like now.

Not only that, but Itadori’s combat IQ was extraordinary since his middle school days. Being proficient in the martial art of Taido, as well as various other forms of martial arts, Itadori was exceptional when it came to one-on-one fighting or even against multiple combatants. He was nicknamed The Tiger of West Junior High for a reason.

After the standardized questioning, Utahime put down her paper and clasped her hands. These were the more personal questions to be asked. Itadori sat up a little straighter, wanting to be more direct but also thoughtful. Utahime continued with her questions.

“Itadori Yuuji, how would you properly guide your students to be the best they can be?”

Itadori hummed to himself before answering.

“Well, I would assist them in training and in real missions, and of course, I would properly teach them how to control their cursed energy, but never would I interfere with the outcome they’re striving for, unless I have to.

“Good. How would you act when it comes to handling unprecedented situations that would require your intervention?”

“Such as?”

“Well, say if a rogue sorcerer were attacking the campus, and your assistance was needed. How would you act if you were told that you were needed?”

Itadori nodded his head as he considered his answer.

“I would attend to it with seriousness, but I would also prioritize safety for the students. I’m aware they could potentially handle themselves, but I wouldn’t want someone getting hurt because they tried to play hero, y’know.”

“Interesting…how would you act if a student of yours went rogue and were a target of the society?”

The question made him pause. He had never really thought of someone going rogue, let alone how to deal with it. However, it wasn’t a completely abnormal thing to happen.

It had happened before with other people, and with him.

But in his defense, he was targeted from the start. They wanted him dead from the get-go, and Satoru was the barrier that kept him safe. He was forever grateful for that.

Then, a smile crept up on his face as he found his answer.

“I would find them and drag them back if I have to. If they went rogue, then it means they haven’t gotten the care and assistance they deserved. If it means that it’ll take a while to show them that I truly care, then so be it. They deserve a second chance, no matter how bad it may seem.”

Utahime was taken aback, now staring at Itadori with a look of surprise and maybe…remembrance? Itadori couldn’t tell until Utahime began to chuckle lightly.

“You are just like your sensei, Yuuji. It makes me happy knowing Satoru was there for you, even when he fought Sukuna and, well…I really miss that idiot.”

Utahime’s expression turned sorrowful, a tear forming in her eye, but she shook it off for the last question.

“Itadori Yuuji, how would you ensure your students that they are in safe hands?”

“Care to provide an example?”

“Sure thing. Say if a student came up to you, questioning if you could handle a foe that could potentially rival your abilities or exceed them, how would you respond?”

An idea then popped into Itadori’s head.

This was the perfect setup for something he wanted to do for a long time.

“…I would tell them that they might cause me a little trouble if I had to face them.”

“But what if they questioned you again? More specifically, if you would, say, lose against them. What would you tell them to reassure them that you can keep them safe?”

There it was.

Execution.

“…Nah, I’d win.”

Itadori said this with a grin on his face. Utahime didn’t exactly pick up on this and looked at Itadori in slight confusion.

“Seriously? That’s all you would say?”

“What, you expect me to go all Shakespeare? Sometimes a simple reassurance goes a long way.”

“…I guess that’s fair.”

She shakes her head and puts her paper to the side, already marked up with a word Itadori couldn’t exactly see.

“Alright, that concludes your evaluation. Now usually, you wouldn’t get results in for at least a day, but…I have faith in you, Itadori…you pass the evaluation. Congratulations.”

Utahime stands up and bows, showing her respect to the newly appointed teacher of Jujutsu High.

Itadori stands from his seat, returning the bow with an unnatural straight face.

“Thank you, Utahime-San. Are you headed back to Kyoto after this?”

Both of them stand straight again. Utahime shakes her head and then drops a bombshell, surprising Itadori heavily.

“Actually, no. I’m a part of the higher-ups now. They needed good leadership and trustworthy people, and I was among those considered. That’s why I did your evaluation. Along with the new duties I’ve been given, I’m also supposed to evaluate any new potential teachers.”

“Huh!? Seriously!?”

“Hey, don’t shout out! And yes, I’m serious.”

“Well, congrats. This has to be huge for you, right?”

“It is…anyway, you should get going. You gotta set up your dorm, anyway?”

Itadori squinted his eyes in confusion.

Dorm?

Utahime noticed his confused expression and shook her head in annoyance.

“Teachers have their own personal dorms. They aren’t together like the students are. Don’t you know this already?”

“…No. Gojo-sensei never told me.”

“…Honestly, not surprised…geez.”

Itadori could only sigh as he approached the door to leave.

“See you later, Utahime-San.”

“See you, Itadori-Kun.”

Itadori then exited the room, turning to where Kiyotaka had walked off to. As he did, the tears began to fall from his eyes.

Not from sadness. Not from sorrow.

From happiness.

I did it, Gojo-sensei…I can carry your legacy on.

Chapter Text

The days went by. Itadori had started to unpack his luggage in his dorm as he showcased his abilities the day after his evaluation. It was a fairly simple process, consisting of exhibiting his abilities and techniques with an evaluator writing it down and, when it came to his domain, having someone with no CE stand in the range to prevent any sure-hit effects, if any were present. The results came with a big question mark, as the person who had recorded the domain was confused after being subject to what was inside. However, Itadori knew the reason for her confusion, but didn't shed light.

"It's only necessary when it's needed."

Afterwards, he was given his instructor uniform, a black jacket with a high collar and black slacks that were a little bit baggy, contrasting Satoru’s rather slim pants he wore when Itadori first met him. From then on, Itadori began to wear the uniform to get used to it, but secretly, he felt closer to his sensei even more.

Itadori was more excited for Sunday than anything.

Sunday was the day when he could finally meet his students, the kids he would guide for the next year, and maybe until their graduation.

As the days went by and he settled into his room, his anticipation grew with each hour that passed. Hell, he was nearly bouncing off the walls, trying to find a way to occupy his time until then.

On Saturday, the day before he would meet kin, the sun was shining more than usual, with a dazzle that seemed to highlight every hue with beauty. However, Itadori was bored out of his mind.

How could he wait 20 more hours?

This question echoed in his mind as he walked around the campus, getting familiar with its locations once again. He intended to tour it like he had when Itadori was forcibly enrolled, but soon he found himself wandering around like a lost puppy, drifting through the campus as the wind blew.

Eventually, he found himself on a path surrounded by trees and foliage. It was well maintained, and the path was still clear, which meant he was allowed to be here by the standards. Itadori kept going up the path, a slope starting to form as he walked along.

“…this place feels familiar…”

Soon, the top of the path leveled off, going back to a steady elevation. Curiosity continued to claw at Itadori as he approached the top. Once he managed to get his eyes over the top and see the small clearing, he stopped.

A small number of gravestones sat in neat rows, their appearances as small as the clearing. Names were etched into the stones, all sporting a surname and then their first. Flowers adorned the front of the stones, decorating the deceased who lay there, or were just mentioned in this tiny memorial of the dead.

One stuck out in particular, a bundle of white roses and spider lilies still in their little tie when Itadori had set them there. How they were still alive baffled him.

But he remembered now.

“…how could I have forgotten…silly me.”

Itadori chuckled to himself as he continued onward, walking over to the gravestone.

His sensei’s gravestone.

Itadori stood a meter away and bowed respectfully before taking a seat in front of the stone. It was exactly like the day he left. The sun was shining. The trees were full of their green beauty. The sky was a deep and colorful blue.

Oh, how he had missed this.

He sighed and looked at the gravestone, really looked at it.

Satoru’s name was still perfect as ever.

“…Hey, Gojo-sensei…I’m back, and I think…”

He paused, looking for the right words to say.

He found them in no time.

“…I think I want to follow in your footsteps. I’m a teacher now, as crazy as that is, and I’m going to see my students tomorrow…I’m honestly really excited to see them, like bouncing off the walls and everything. I’ve just never felt so happy to be able to show that I’m capable and influence them, and considering the amount of crap that occurs already, I don’t want to be that sensei that they hate...I just wish you were here to give me some advice…As excited as I am, I’m also scared in a way. What if I screw up? What if I do something to make them hate me? What if I fail to be there for them? I don’t know if you ever felt like this either, but considering everything…I think you might have…anyway…I still miss you to this day. I wish you were here to see the beautiful sky overhead. I wish you could feel this breeze. I wish you could see me and how far I came…”

Itadori’s words went with the wind, a silence following after as Itadori felt his eyes bead up in tears again. Most times, he blinked them back, trying to hide them so he could stay strong.

That’s what Satoru did, right?

But this time, he didn’t blink them away.

He felt the warm streaks on his face as his tears ran down his face lightly. As much pain as he felt, letting go a little felt good in a way.

“…I’m thankful I got to know you, Satoru…you saved me that night, and that can’t go unmet…I’ll continue your legacy, even if I can’t be you exactly…I’ll be seeing you later, Sensei.”

With that, Itadori got up, bowed one more time, and shuffled away with his hands in his pockets. His tears let up, but the pain lingered a little bit longer.

His phone alarm buzzed to wake Itadori up.

But he was already preparing and freshening up.

Today was the big day. He would finally get to meet his students. He reached for his phone and turned the alarm off for the day as he continued to straighten up. He walked in front of his mirror as he continued to do his routine.

His hair seemed to go back to his regular pink color, being pushed back from a habit he picked up after being a vessel, but rather neater than before.

The light in his eyes returned, the light brown hue back from when he previously looked. The eyebags had faded, letting his natural skin tone take over.

Itadori let a small sigh of relief out, thankful he didn’t look like a wreck anymore, but as he continued to examine himself in the mirror, he really took a look at himself. The first thing he took in was his scars. They were permanent, one diagonal between his eyes and one on his cheek that was also felt on the inside of his mouth, both from…

…Mahito…

The name was burned into his memory. Ever since, he wanted to forget that he existed, that what happened on that Halloween night was a thing of the past. And it was, but to Itadori, the scenes were clear, and the bloodshed was still very real.

Even now, when he was considered one of the strongest sorcerers, that fear he felt still resonated in his mind.

Nanami and Kugisaki. Sukuna vs. Mahoraga. The massive crater in the middle of Shibuya that is yet to be fully rebuilt. Satoru’s sealing. That freak Kenjaku, who absorbed Mahito and took Satoru away for months before Itadori got to see him again, just for a few days before his showdown with Sukuna.

And the most vivid of all, Itadori’s mental breakdowns.

Never had he been more mentally destroyed than ever that day. Sure, Itadori had his fair share of losses, and there were times when he felt like giving up. But after he thought Kugisaki died, he felt something snap. From then on, he couldn’t move or fight back whatsoever. He was treated like a punching bag for minutes.

If it wasn’t for Toudou’s arrival, he wouldn’t have been here.

And that’s when Itadori changed. That’s when he stopped reeling his punches as much. That’s when he traumatized that curse and never did Itadori feel as good as he did then when he finally got to walk it down, knowing it was just prey at that point.

But that was the past.

And as hard as it was, he needed to let go. But even so, his scars tingled ever so slightly at the thought of the incident.

If anything, Itadori wished he could just go back and do it over. He could save Nanami. He could save Kugisaki from losing her eye. He could stop Satoru from being sealed away. But he knew, no matter what, it couldn’t be possible.

Itadori then shook it off. He couldn’t dwell on it now. He had students to meet, and he wasn’t going to keep them waiting.

He adjusted his collar slightly and started for the door. As he opened the door, a small, black object fell onto the ground. It seemed to be made of cloth and looked familiar. A smaller and yellow note was next to it, and Itadori could see the neat writing on it. Curious, he picked both up. The contents were as Itadori followed.

Itadori,

I know this may seem an interesting gift to receive on the day you meet you students, but after hearing you on your evaluation and seeing that you visited Satoru’s grave on Saturday (not to alarm you; I happened to be around the corner taking care of the stones when I saw you), I think you would want this, and so would Satoru.

This is the blindfold he wore when he taught, and it’s the same one Satoru had when you met him for the first time. It was kept away for the time being as I wasn’t sure what to do, but knowing you, I think you’ll enjoy it.

If you do intend to wear it and want any adjustments, come see me.

Good luck on your first day. You'll need it,

Utahime

Itadori felt his heart speed up a little.

Not from the fact that Utahime had unintentionally listened in on him, but how Satoru’s blindfold was sitting in his hand made him just a little bit happier.

“Thanks, Utahime.”

He looked at the blindfold, considering whether he should wear it.

On one hand, it was probably impossible to see through, and it could affect his combative ability greatly.

But then again, he could get it adjusted, and maybe he could use it to help his own training and help his eyesight, not like it was bad or anything. Besides, he might as well give a nice show for his students.

He chuckled just thinking of their reactions.

“Ah, screw it.”

He put it on, making sure it was snug and didn’t mess his hair up too much. Surprisingly, it was easier to see through than he had thought, and it didn’t blind him like he had figured it would.

With that, he started for the classrooms, now in a slight rush to meet whoever he would have the privilege to teach.

“When is this guy coming?”

Itadori could already hear them down the hall from where he was walking. He was on time, so he continued at a regulated pace as he listened in.

“He should be here any minute now.”

Itadori could tell it was one male and one female as he got closer. That just left the third student. Along with that, Itadori could sense their cursed energy signatures, which somewhat seemed to be dulled by the blindfold he was wearing.

“Who is this dude anyway? Some sort of Grade 1 or Special Grade, or is he a dud?”

“Dunno. It’s his first year teaching, from what I heard. He seems powerful, though.”

Itadori paused. He wanted to listen in a little more before he decided to make his entrance.

“Like how? Do you know?”

“If I did, I would’ve said already dimwit.”

“Okay, geez…why hasn’t he said anything yet?”

“You mean the kid staring out the window? From what I heard, he’s been through a lot in a year. He lost his dad in an accident and simultaneously realized he had a cursed technique the same day. It’s the same technique that the late Naobito Zen’in had when Shibuya blew up in 2018.”

“How do you know about that?”

“My dad told me about it. He wasn’t active during the time, but he knew people who were there when it happened.”

“Your dad seems to know a lot.”

“He does. Anyway, that kid apparently has the projection technique that is exclusive to the Zen’in. I’ve tried talking to him to see if he knows. It’s like he’s just…dead, though, but he’s still breathing.”

Itadori’s smirk slowly faded as he listened on.

“That’s not good. I’m guessing he wears that face mask for a reason, too?”

“Probably…Never mind that. I feel bad now.”

Itadori sighed as he decided to approach now. His footsteps lightly echoed, but to him, they seemed amplified even more. He continued to listen, now not as excited and adamant on his flamboyant entrance but still determined to make something good of it.

“Wait, I hear someone down the hall. That finally might be our teacher.”

Itadori smirked. She had good hearing.

The door was mere meters away, and so Itadori decided to make himself known. He approached the doorframe and simply walked in, a smile still etched onto his face, although it wasn’t completely genuine. He turned to see the three students, two sitting nonchalantly and impatiently, while the other sat in order and simply stared out the window, a black mask covering his lower features as his dark brown eyes sat trained on the glass pane, or the cloud in the sky.

The other two seemed relieved when Itadori finally arrived, happy that they could get this over with quicker than they thought. The one nearest to the door was a boy. His hair was on the shorter side and black as the sun reflected it. His uniform was on the basic side, and a katana sat next to his chair, idle. Just like his hair, the whole sheath, handle, and handguard were a deep black, almost like a shadow. His eyes were the only non-black attribute about him, and even they were a deep medium brown, borderline dark. From what Itadori could sense, this kid was close to average skill.

The girl, on the other hand, was the yang to the male’s yin, sporting a brighter appearance than the wannabe Batman or wannabe Megumi. Her hair was light, almost seemingly dyed white. It was on the shorter side, similar to Kugisaki’s length but a little messier or slightly curly. Her eyes were a nice blue, matching the color of the shallow sea, and were oddly familiar to Itadori. The girl twiddled with shades, tinted to nearly black, as she put them back on when Itadori entered. She wore close to the same thing the black knight wore, spotting a regular uniform. The only difference between hers and the male's was that she had a full button-down jacket while the male had what Itadori wore back in his school days, a gakuran with a button in the top left and a flap to cover the zipper. Unlike the male, she didn’t have a weapon shown or revealed. It was then that Itadori realized who she looked like a little.

A female Gojo-sensei was not on my list…

The Gojo lookalike also seemed to tense up when she looked at Itadori, but not in a threatening way. It was rather an evaluation of something no one else could see.

Was it possible she held the same eyes Satoru did?

Itadori then reexamined the quieter kid. He wore pretty much the same outfit as the other male but had a dark purple hood in the back and wore fingerless combat gloves, or they were at least padded fingerless gloves. The kid also wore some running sneakers, brandless, thanks to the society’s tailoring. His dark brown hair was at medium length, tied back into a bun with a few stray hairs from his bangs that hung down to mouth level. Eyebags sat underneath his eyes as he continued staring into space. As Itadori walked in, the kid finally turned to see who it was, and a sliver of recognition went through his eyes. Itadori had trouble seeing it through the blindfold but could sense the emotion shift just slightly.

At last, Itadori stopped at the front, standing directly in the middle and looking at the three, the rest of the class was bare from the lack of any other students.

“Hm…so there’s only three of you...well, that shouldn’t be a problem.

With that, Itadori grinned as he officially began his journey as a teacher.

“Welcome to Jujutsu High, everyone!”

Itadori spread his arms out in a celebratory manner.

“Can you believe it? You’re in a top curriculum specialized just for you and your sweet gifts. I don’t believe anywhere else, besides the Kyoto school, of course, offers this kind of assistance. Just imagine it! You get to simultaneously travel the country, exorcising curses to keep the peace while getting a top-tier education in academics and knowledge on the world of cursed energy. Isn’t that great!?”

The three students sat idly, silent.

Nothing.

Not even a basic clap.

Itadori acknowledged that he decided to take a somewhat different approach, lowering his hands and putting them into the pockets of his jacket.

“…ah, tough crowd I see. You know what, maybe I was a bit energetic. I get it, first day and all, but c’mon! Maybe a little excitement? The crickets are killing me here.”

For a second, neither of the three spoke. That was, until the masked one said something that seemed to catch the other two off guard.
 

“…this sounds like my old school all over again…”

That voice.

It sounded familiar to Itadori.

Just where could he have heard it?

“..I see…anyway, how about we start on a more comfortable level? Let’s do something easy, an introduction to ourselves.”

“You mean an icebreaker?”

The Satoru lookalike spoke up, clearly already a bit annoyed from Yuji’s previous frivolous display.

“Well, yes. I was trying to avoid using that word, but if you want to call it that, then go ahead. Anyway. What I’m asking is fairly simple. It’s five things: Your name, where you’re from, what you like, your ranking in grade, and your CT…if you have one, that is.”

“What, you think we’re just a bunch of normies?”

This time, it was the male closer to the door. Itadori shook his head.

“No, not at all. I mean this if any of you have a heavenly restriction, which seems to be none from what I can tell.”

The male nods as he realizes he was quick to assume. Itadori continued where he left off.

“I’ll demonstrate this little activity first so you can get a better idea.”

Itadori then took his hands out of his pockets and crossed his arms.

“My name is Itadori Yuuji. You may call me Yuuji-sensei or anything of that manner. Where I’m from is north of Tokyo, up in Sendai. I like karaoke, watching TV, and doing impersonations of my favorite characters.”

The students were practically falling asleep in their chairs. However, Itadori knew that what he would say would probably wake them up out of curiosity.

“My cursed techniques consist of Shrine and Blood Manipulation, but I also have a little special ability that helps me optimize Black Flash…you guys know what that is, right?”

The students were a little more perked up now, but were still visibly bored. The girl raised her hand, a flash of curiosity in her eyes. Itadori nodded towards her, letting her ask her question.

“We actually don’t know what that even is whatsoever. It sounds powerful, though.”

Itadori nodded, confirming her assumption.

“It is if you know how to do it right. Don’t worry, I’ll show you guys down at the training fields later today. I think I forgot something…wait, I know.”

Itadori then smirks as he imagines their reactions.

“My rank is Special Grade sorcerer.”

That gets the majority of the students’ attention. Both the swordsman and the girl shoot their hand, but Itadori holds his hand out.

“I bet you’re very curious as to who I am, but first, I want to know who I’ll be teaching. How about we start with you?”

Itadori points at the black haired male, to whom he sucks his teeth, but complies.

“Alright, fine…My name is Subaru Kurosaki. I’m from Kobe, but I moved to Osaka about five years ago. Some things I like are video games, anime, and noodles. My cursed techniques are just a simple domain and cursed energy infusion, in which I can put great amounts of energy into my blade and imitate any cursed tool properties. My rank is currently grade 3.”

Itadori nodded, impressed by Subaru’s rank.

“That’s great. Grade 3 already, wow. I like anime too, so you’re not alone on that.”

Itadori then points to the girl, who already seemed to know she was going to be next.

“Right, I know. My name is Natori. Natori Gojo. I’m from Showa in the Fukushima prefecture, and some things I like are nature, shopping, having fun, and also sweet stuff. My technique consists of this family trait that only happens every so often, and I was privileged enough to get one of the two.”

Itadori already could guess what it was, but asked anyway to make sure.

“And that would be?”

Natori sighed and gave a rather quick explanation.

“It’s this ocular technique called the Six Eyes. It gives me the ability to control my cursed energy really well and also have a better mental capacity than a typical dobe. The other ability, the one I lack, is called limitless. Basically, it means whoever has it is pretty much invincible and can’t get hit. You have no idea how bad I wanted that one, but of course I get stuck with these sensitive eyes…my luck, I guess.”

Itadori scoffed for two reasons. One was from the fact that Natori was upset and dissed her technique, and the other was, well, hurt.

“Don’t say that. You have a great technique. Not many are gifted with such abilities as you, so take pride in yours.”

Natori just sighed and rolled her eyes. She wasn’t believing it. Itadori knew that any attempt was going to fail, so he moved on.

“And last but not least, Mr. quiet over there- actually, hold on.”

Itadori turned back to Natori, who was giving him a confused look.

“What? Did I do some- oh wait, I forgot. Grade 3, just like Subaru.”

Itadori nodded, holding a thumbs up and smirking to show he wasn’t upset with her mistake. He turned back to the quiet kid again.

“You’re last, but not least. Mind telling a little bit of yourself?”

The quiet one sat idle, now staring down at the wooden desk as if he wanted to be that instead. He let out a light exhale before he muttered out loud.

“…why does it matter? No one cares about me or who I am anyway.”

Itadori was about to snap back playfully, but then he sensed it. The sadness and pain that radiated from him.

He was really going through it.

“…that’s not true. There’s definitely someone who does care about you. And I kind of need a way to identify you, even if it’s not your legal name.”

The kid sat quietly again, the cogs seemingly turning in his head.

“…just call me H…is that fine?”

Itadori nodded, flashing another thumb.

“Works for me…any objections?”

Both Natori and Subaru shook their heads.

“Then H it is…for now…want to share anything else? Maybe a CT? Your rank, perhaps?”

H nodded his head lightly, looking up at Itadori.

“…my rank…I’m a grade 1…and my CT is Projection Sorcery.”

The other two’s eyes widen in disbelief as Itadori whistled out loud, playfully, of course.

“Wow. Grade 1. So you’re our combat master and leader, it seems.”

“…I guess so…”

“Well, good for you. Now we got introductions out of the way, we’re on the same page, right?”

Subaru shook his hand in the air to show not a complete yes but also no, too, as Natori nodded in compliance.

“Great. Now we head off to the training area to really get a full understanding of our techniques. I'll also answer any questions you have while we demonstrate our abilities.”

Natori then raised her hand, catching Itadori off guard.

“Hm? What’s up?”

“What’s under that blindfold, Yuuji-sensei? You have sight issues or something.”

Itadori figured that question was going to come up; he didn’t know when exactly.

“I should probably clear that up, should I?”

Itadori grinned as he lifted it, showing his brown eyes. Natori nodded, clearly intrigued by the scar across his face, even if she already knew about the one on his cheek. Subaru looked, not reacting much. H, on the other hand, seemed to freeze. His own eyes were wide in a more secure recognition, and he then stood up.

“Wait…I think I remember you.”

Chapter Text

“Wait…I remember you.”

Itadori paused in the middle of lifting his blindfold, eyeing H in curiosity.

“You do? Have we met before?”

A pause. Tension crackles in the air as the quiet moment stretched on. Both Natori and Subaru look at H, their faces etched with expectancy. A beat goes by, as if you could hear someone’s heart increase tempo. Then, just as it had started, it ended as H eventually caved in and spoke.

“…I think I might be mistaken…I apologize, you look like someone I’ve met before.”

Subaru’s and Natori’s faces drop from being too high in hopes, looking at H, if he just said something outlandish and was just utter bullshit. Natori then flared up and stood up, pointing a finger at H.

“Oh come on! You can’t just stand up, drop a bombshell, and get everyone’s feelings running just to not say anyth-”

She stopped short as Itadori held his pointer out at her, a slight gesture to tell her to hold it. Itadori then pulled the blindfold back over his eyes and dropped his finger.

“That’s fine, H. Don’t apologize for an honest mistake. I’ve had my fair share of mistaking people for ones I know.”

H stood in silence before he barely nodded, almost nonexistent but noticeable enough for Itadori to catch. He sat back down slowly, putting his hands into his pockets. Itadori just looked for a second before turning his attention to the broad audience.

“Now that we've got that over with, let’s head to the training fields. If you like showing off, this is your time to shine, so how about we get up and take a walk?”

Itadori walked to the doorframe and leaned against it as Natori groaned in an ineffective protest. Subaru sighed as he grabbed his sword and put it through the loop of his belt, hidden by his gakuran overflowing over the waistband of his pants. H just got up and already started for the door. As quiet as he was, H was really attentive from what Itadori could assume. H stood just before the doorframe, waiting for Natori and Subaru to fall behind. Itadori held a light smile, despite the rough beginning and having to navigate all over to get his foot in the door of connecting with his students. Itadori held his hands out at the door to present a grand entrance for distinguished guests.

“After you three.”

He just walked through, turning in the direction of where to go to get to the fields. Natori rolled her eyes, cringing at Itadori’s display as she lightly scuffed her feet on the wooden floor. Subaru just looked the other way, ignoring the clown that stood next to him. However, this just fueled Itadori’s playfulness. He was getting reactions, and that’s exactly what he wanted. He followed after Subaru, closing the door behind him as he held his hands up, putting them on the back of his head in a goofy manner.

He was really going to enjoy this.

“Welcome to, drumroll please…”

Itadori patted his legs, doing an improvised drumming pattern as the three just stared in confusion. Itadori kept going for a few more seconds before clapping his hands and stretching his hands out into the sky to present.

“The Jujutsu High training fields!”

Little trumpets and fireworks went off behind Itadori to celebrate a grand opening, the sky brightening in colorful hues and explosions as music played a very cheerful ‘ta-dah!’, or that’s what Itadori imagined in the moment, at least. In reality, Itadori just made cheering noises and gave a quieter ‘ta-dah.’” His students just looked at him like he had just lost his mind, and considering everything, he might’ve.

Subaru looked away, trying to act like he had no clue who this idiot was in front of him, while Natori gave H a look that said, ‘I can’t believe that we’re stuck with this idiot.’ H just looked at Natori and shrugged. Itadori finished his little theatrics and bowed with his hands out like he was being cheered and having roses thrown at him.

“Thank you, thank you. You are a lively crowd.”

“Are you done yet, Itadori-sensei?”

Itadori looked up, seeing that Subaru was starting to get a little annoyed. Despite that, Itadori just grinned.

“I don’t have to be…but alas, we are here for a reason.”

Itadori stood up straight, his grin reducing to the smirk he had on his face since he met these three.

“Before I explain what we are fully doing here, does anyone still remember their questions you had about me, your dear sensei, before I begin demonstrating?”

More silence passed by as a single leaf floating in the wind glided across the group before Natori raised her hand.

“How are you a special grade? You don’t seem like you’ve really…shown it, y’know.”

Itadori nodded, a little hurt but also understanding why she asked.

“I can see why you would ask that. However, I don’t exactly have the words to explain it. You’ll see in a minute why I am.”

“…fine.”

“Any other questions? I know you raised your hand earlier, Subaru.”

Subaru looked like he was targeted, annoyed that he got called out since he hoped he could just let it go, but here he was, stuck in the spotlight. He exhaled and looked at Itadori.

“…who taught you? I want to give ‘em a piece of my mind.”

Itadori’s smirk wavered. For the first time, he was quiet with his own sudden internal conflict. How could he tell them? How could he not show his own weakness if he has shown anything but? Subaru seemed to realize that he struck a nerve in his teacher as his own expression lightened into something of minor concern. Even Natori, who had a light scowl on her face, also looked with the same concern at Itadori.

“You alright, sensei?”

“You alright, Gojo-sensei?”

Satoru turned to see Itadori, who seemed a little concerned and even worried. Satoru had been a little…accepting about the fight that was to come. He was going to be fighting Sukuna, the curse that had started everything. From Itadori becoming a sorcerer, to his sealing on Halloween, to now having to fight Sukuna, who took another vessel.

But it wasn’t just any vessel.

It was Megumi. Against his will and so far gone that Satoru considered that it was possible that Megumi would never wake again.
The usual goofy Satoru Gojo was afraid. Not of dying.

But of possibly failing to get Megumi back, and if they did, that Megumi would be the one to choose to isolate himself from everyone.

Satoru knew from the past that Megumi was very quiet when someone he knew passed on, like when Itadori gave them that scare a while back.

What would happen if it were Satoru this time?

“Gojo-sensei.”

He blinked back to the present. That’s right.

Itadori was worried.

“Sorry. I’m fine, Yuuji. Just in thought, that’s all.”

“…You look worried, scared even. Are you sure you’re acting like yourself? You seem out of character.”

Satoru paused for another moment.

How could he forget? Megumi wasn’t going to be alone. He had friends near him. Kugisaki could relate to him a little to help him through.

And Itadori wouldn’t allow him to fall so far.

Then, Satoru laughed. He was worried way too much to rub it off on Itadori.

“Hah! You’re such a kid. This is confidence. Confidence I’ve never had before.”

He said this to Itadori, aiming to comfort the worried sorcerer.

But in a way, he was also comforting himself, knowing that this would be his last fight.

But even without him, he knew one thing. No matter what happened…

…Everything would be just fine.

Itadori sighed, and the smirk came back on his face. He found his sight had drifted to the ground as he was lost in thought, remembering when he and Satoru talked one more time.

He couldn’t leave Subaru’s question unanswered.

Itadori looked back up and at Subaru, now a little more straight with his answer.

“…I’m fine, Subaru…regarding my sensei, that’s for another time. His legend is more suitable for a campfire story.”

Subaru looked dumbfounded. There was no way he was actually worried about his teacher for a moment.

“Seriously? Why can’t-”

Subaru then felt a light jab into his side.

“Can it, Subaru.”

It was Natori, giving him the hint to shut up and just comply. Confused but also not trying to instigate, he backed off and kept his mouth shut. Meanwhile, H continued to stand idly, staring at the trees behind Itadori in a light daze. Itadori took this as there were no more questions and clapped his hands.

“If there are no other questions, then that means we can get this train running.”

Itadori then stepped to the side, revealing what had sat behind him quietly. There, a training dummy with a big, red target painted onto its head stood immobile, sitting in a similar t-pose like any other regular dummy. Subaru and Natori stood in silence, looking at the dummy as if this were the last thing they were expecting. H was doing what H does, not giving a single care…yet. Itadori expected these reactions from the start, which means he had the element of surprise on his side. Natori did a double-take, looking at the dummy and to her teacher as if this was some sort of terrible joke.

“What the hell is this supposed to be? A basic martial art practice? This thing won’t last a single hit against anything we throw at it.”

Itadori just grinned cheekily.

“You say that now, but you won’t in three…two…and one.”

Itadori suddenly snapped his fingers. The second Itadori snapped, the dummy then drooped its arms and stood on the ground like it was alive. It got low and held a defensive stance as its target head perked up and stared at the students with predatory eyes, a red gleam appearing in the stitching as a mouth began to rip, its shape grotesque and almost feral. It let out a growl that shook the three. In an instant, Subaru unsheathed his sword and made cursed energy flow, the energy’s color a deep blue. Natori took her shades off, letting her eyes do their magic as she stared deep into the dummy. H just continued to stand still as he diverted his attention towards the dummy, almost as if this was the least of his worries. Subaru spoke up first, startled and angry in his voice.

“The hell was that for, sensei!? Are you trying to kill us?”

Itadori just shook his head, sticking his tongue out playfully at Subaru.

“Nope! Actually, this is how we demonstrate our techniques and skills. This dummy, thanks to Jujutsu High’s cursed item makers, is specifically built to assist sorcerers in combat with their weaknesses. Believe it or not, this dummy is analyzing all of you, taking in how your cursed energy flows and what skills you struggle with that are crucial to exorcism. It can and will adapt to what your weaknesses are, so you can spot the mistakes you may have overlooked or struggle with. As of now, it hasn’t locked onto either of you, so don’t worry. And like I had promised, I’ll show my moves off to you newbies.”

The three students sat there, a little offended but didn’t dare to say anything. This was when they’ll get to see why their sensei is a Special Grade in the first place. Itadori approached the dummy, which shifted its red, gleaming eyes at him in response to Itadori’s approach. Itadori just cracked his knuckles as he casually walked up to it, focusing on the dummy as his expression rested.

“Let’s start a little light, shall we?”

The dummy shifted ever so, adjusting for any attack Itadori would hand to it. Itadori knew he had to be careful. The dummy, as advanced as it is, was not completely indestructible from what he knew. That meant any Shrine techniques were out the window, and Convergence was going to push it. That left his Keitei Ken and Kokusen.

Both were his specialties anyway.

Itadori stepped into the combat radius for the dummy, and it practically flew at him, already nearly on top and sending a cursed energy-infused fist at Itadori. Itadori just sidestepped out of the way, showing off the cursed dummy’s capabilities as he continued to weave and dodge the attacks. The dummy threw everything at Itadori. Punches, kicks, jabs, uppercuts, chops. Itadori just played around with it. Natori and Subaru trained their eyes on their sensei, tracking every movement with a genuine interest. Then, a single pierce drew a small amount of blood on Itadori’s cheek. It was nothing to be worried about, but Itadori decided that he had shown off quite a bit and shifted his stance.

“Alright. Enough is enough.”

The dummy was already swinging, and the three students expected the dummy to land the hit. Subaru was already beginning to look away as the first closed in, mere centimeters away.

Then, Itadori vanished.

The dummy’s fist connected with nothing, and the students’ jaws dropped. Well, it was primarily Natori and Subaru who were shocked. H just raised an eye and seemed to pay attention more, and seemed to know where Itadori was.

“W-where did Yuuji-sensei go!?” Natori exclaimed, her eyes darting wherever she could see.

“…Up there.”

Natori snapped her neck upwards as Subaru did the same. H was looking into the sky as his eyes gleamed with something. Excitement? Eagerness?

Happiness?

Nonetheless, there was something foreign in his emotions as he looked skyward, where Itadori then faded back into existence, as if he could travel through dimensions at lightning speed. The insanity of it all?

Itadori was just fast.

Really fast.

Then, as Itadori began to fall and bring his foot down, a spark ignited at the tip of his shoe.

A spark of black that began to build up in current, turning into a frenzy of dark electricity with red streaks fizzing in and out around his foot. The air seemed to crackle as the air around warped and bent against nature. Itadori continued to descend as his shoe wound back. The dummy looked up, but by then it was too late. It could only look as Itadori slammed his foot into the dummy with a speed so devastating that the force along would rip and fray the lining in the dummy’s surface. For a second, the electricity seemed to diminish, as if Itadori’s attempt was flawed and incomplete. But Itadori smirked, as if this was the expectation. Natori and Subaru started to let their hopes down, thinking it was a dud. H, however, secretly grinned under his mask. The dummy then began to twitch unnaturally, almost like a ripple.

Then it began to convulse and twitch even more as the impact of where it hit dug in like some invisible force was pressing hard. Itadori bounced back and landed near his students, dusting off any dirt or blood that got on his jacket nonchalantly. The dummy continued to convulse until it violently expanded. From then, Itadori, with a grin of excitement, revealed his technique verbally.

“Kuroi Shōgeki.”

Itadori had figured this combination of techniques back during his sophomore year, which was also roughly around when the pandemic had begun.

In fact, Itadori had trained a lot during said pandemic, using the empty campus to his benefit as he exercised and fine-tuned his abilities, skills, and techniques to near perfection. On missions, when he could get them, he would experiment with his combinations and tweak them as necessary. One of them was discovered by accident, and it would later be known as a Black Impact, or Kuroi Shōgeki.

During a mission, Itadori would come across a grade 2 curse roaming the empty streets of the outskirts of Tokyo. It was nothing that Itadori couldn’t handle, so he decided a simple Keitei Ken, or Divergent Fist, would do the trick. However, as he poured his cursed energy into the attack, he also happened to accidentally set off Kokusen at the same time, and when the attack made its mark, two things happened.

One, the curse had stopped moving between the immediate hit and the delayed effect. Obviously, something was very wrong with it as it wide-eyed the sorcerer. The impact of the prior hit had already stunned the curse, but Itadori had never made it stop in its path like he had done. Itadori had also been dumbfounded by his attack, not intending to use Kokusen in that very moment to properly exorcise it.

The next thing that happened, Two, was that the curse began to convulse and twitch, similarly as if it were having a seizure. The flesh and body then began to rapidly expand, threatening to explode if it would pass its breaking point, which it did. A mere second later, the curse had exploded into pieces, spraying the unaware Itadori with its guts as a faint electric crackle could be felt in the air.

“Eww!”

Itadori went back to campus smelling like a load of shit, but he had discovered something that could turn the tide of any battle, no matter how dire it may seem.

As Itadori had found out, the combination of Kokusen and Keitei Ken caused the two different energy surges to combine and multiply the power of the hit and delayed effect by nearly 5 times what Itadori could produce in a single Kokusen or a full input Keitei Ken. Now, of course, Keitei Ken was more of a foundational attack to help Itadori achieve a Kokusen, and he rarely ever used it after the Shibuya Incident, as he had mastered Kokusen to near perfection. To add on, a typical Keitei Ken cannot be combined with a Kokusen, no matter how hard you try, as it would be impossible to find the balance between the timing and the delay. In simple terms, what Itadori had done by accident was never accomplished in the entire history of sorcery. Not even a sorcerer that could be capable of surpassing Ryomen Sukuna or Satoru Gojo could dream of achieving such a devastating and impossible technique.

But in fairness, this was Itadori Yuuji.

And in this world of sorcerers and curses, where logical explanation as to their existence can’t be comprehended, Itadori was an anomaly.

An anomaly that could potentially do anything if he put his mind to it.

The dummy damn near blew up into smithereens, a small shockwave cracking through the air like a gunshot as many pieces of the dummy flew at the group, charged with the cursed energy as small little crackles of black electricity buzzed on the linen-like material. Small cloth pieces floated down like ash as a light ember turned the material dark with soot and burns. The dummy, or what was left of it, stood petrified where it had stood when it absorbed Itadori’s blow. The three students, who stared in silence at the aftermath in front of them, didn’t dare to make a single twitch in their muscles.

Did he really just do that?

Natori then spoke up to break the silence.

“…I think you broke the dummy, sensei…”

Chapter Text

“…I think you broke the dummy, sensei…”

Itadori just snickered, but deep down, he was slightly nervous.

This was the only one that was available from, and he had just decimated it.

“Yeah, I think I did…”

Ash and burnt fabric fell to the earth like black snow, the sparks burning the linen being put out upon contact with the grass underneath. The faint electric energy that vibrated through the air soon faded with the sparks. A shallow breeze blew through, only lightly moving the falling debris as Itadori began to feel sweat bead on his head.

“…well…I think I owe you three an apology.”

Subaru just slapped his head and shook in disapproval. H just stood there, looking at the falling debris as Natori put a hand on her sensei’s shoulder.

“No need…what you did…I think we owe you an apology…and besides, just give it a second.”

“Huh?”

Before Itadori could ask further what Satori meant, the dummy then shifted, stood up, and let its remaining arm droop to the side. A surge of energy from within began to form around the cursed dummy, emitting an odd green aura. To Itadori’s surprise (and relief), the dummy began to repair itself, the missing linen and structure underneath its fabric skin starting to regenerate slowly, then speeding up. Natori just smirked and somewhat pushed off of Itadori, putting her hands in her pockets. It took a bit longer for Itadori to finally have that lightbulb go off in his head.

“…I knew the dummy was going to imitate sorcerers and specific curses, but having its only cursed energy networks and performing Reverse Cursed Technique like it’s nothing? I guess I don’t give enough of the makers their credit…how’d you know that Natori?”
Natori just sighs and points to her eyes. Itadori nods, silently punching at himself internally for somehow forgetting that his student is basically half of his sensei*
*I mean this with everything I love; I did NOT do this intentionally.

“Right, sorry…but this is what I was saying earlier, Natori. You have a gift that you underappreciate. If you didn’t have it so, then all three of you would be upset, and I would start panicking, thinking I broke a state-of-the-art cursed item.”

“…I guess you’re right about that part…”

Itadori smiled at Natori, giving a ‘I told you so’ attitude before he focused back on the dummy, which was repairing the last bit of damage on its shoulder, where Itadori slammed his foot into it. It also occurred to Itadori in that moment that the dummy technique doesn’t have a soul like usual curses or sorcerers, being made up of just cursed energy and a will to fight whatever it comes into contact with like a robot, which also means that Itadori’s Kuroi Shōgeki and/or a typical Kokusen are not as effective due to the lack of a structured soul.

But did it really matter if Itadori nearly obliterated it?

Probably not.

“Alright then…who wants to go first against the dummy? This will begin my personal assessment of you, so give it your all, everyone!”

He flashed a thumbs-up as he gave a cheeky grin, hoping to hype up their spirits one last time.

Subaru just looked at Itadori, a slight smirk creeping up as if he was trying to hold back a laugh.

“You look like you’re trying to pose like Kakashi from Naruto. Is that where the blindfold idea came from? Because if it is, I’m going to laugh.”

Itadori shook his head playfully.

“Actually, not at all. Naruto is a good anime; I’ll give you that. You really give off those Sasuke vibes if I’m completely honest. Just an edgy emo teen trying to appear stoic for all the ladies to fawn over.”

Itadori flutters his eyelashes jokingly through his blindfold as Subaru’s grin drops, and a vein lightly bulges from his head.

“Alright, enough.”

Itadori laughed, savoring the expression on his student’s face. Natori stepped as Itadori and Subaru were mid-conversation, waiting for her sensei to turn.

“Hey, idiots. I volunteer to go first if either of you two cares.”

Itadori stopped laughing and turned, not quite expecting the sudden offering of showcasing abilities so quickly.

“Hm? Alright then. I’ll watch from afar. Don’t disappoint~.”

“And I’m already sick of you again…”

Natori huffed as she walked towards the dummy, stretching out her knuckles with a crack. On cue, the dummy gets into a defensive stance, holding its arms out and ready for an attack to come its way. As she approached, she reached into her pocket and pulled a small wooden cylinder out, a bandage wrapped around the base, and she stopped and held it out.

“Here we go, I guess.”

With a flick of the wrist, the wooden cylinder spins, and multiple moving parts slide outwards, forming a long stick that was unmistakably a Bo staff. Next, Natori grabs one side and twists the staff, locking the parts in place and testing the staff with a few simple spins. She takes her shades off and tucks them underneath her shirt, letting her eyes see what they needed to. The Bo staff spins in one hand before she holds a stance, the staff’s end up against her armpit, and the other one is pointing at the ground. The dummy shifts accordingly, adjusting its own stance to combat the staff effectively.

A long stretch of silence goes by. Natori’s eyes burn into the dummy as if they were examining every single molecule and evaluating every drop of energy the dummy was outputting. The dummy stared back with the same efficiency, its soulless and intimidating eyes fixed on the observer.

Natori acted first, landing three consecutive hits with precision and speeds that surprised even Itadori. The dummy quickly adapted, however, and the fourth strike was caught with a slight splinter, the dummy’s hand caving in from the impact. Natori acted quickly, landing an axe kick on the dummy's head as it stumbled back, physically stunned. The dummy quickly recovered as a jab nearly impaled through it, fraying the linen as the staff rubbed up against it. The dummy then feinted a punch at Natori, making her dodge a hit that would never intentionally land. It grabbed the Bo staff and bent it hard, breaking it in two.

“Hey! Not fair!”

Natori barely dodged a sweeping kick before throwing the broken half that was still in her hand, the stick smacking the dummy as it just stood there, unfazed. The other half in its hand dropped as it shifted into a different stance, one that seemed rather familiar to Itadori as its left arm fell behind and its right stayed put, holding a few fingers out like it was ready to grab anything that came its way. Natori got into her own hand-to-hand stance, both hands up as her left fist held out in front, as her right hand stayed back, almost next to her shoulder.

It was then that Itadori knew where he had seen this scene before. How could he forget?

“Let me ask you. Why are you still wearing that face? You thought I would hold back if you looked like him? Unfortunately for you, I’ve been doing some special training. and since it’s Megumi, I can go all out.”

Despite the years that have gone by, that moment was still freshly etched into Itadori’s brain.

So he knew this was going to be good.

This time, the dummy charged in first, throwing a knee into Natori’s stomach as she checked and winded a punch back for it to collide hard into the dummy’s head. The dummy, as it had adapted, quickly recovered as it threw another feint jab into a hook. Natori blocked with her forearm as she slammed her other fist into the dummy’s stomach. However, the dummy caught it with its broken hand, gripping her fist tight as Natori tried to pull away. The grip tightened and tightened until.

“Stop! That’s enough.”

On command, the dummy let up its grip and backed off, standing more casually with its robotic nature. Natori held her fist and flexed it, testing if it was okay. She turned to Itadori, whose expression became a tad more serious for reasons that were unknown to her.

“Come here for a moment. I just have a question about something that has now occurred to me.”

She hesitated at first, looking at her sensei with something even she had trouble reading.

Was it nervousness? Maybe anticipation?

Eventually, she walked up to him as he turned to walk down the track that circled the field.

Oh. It was one of those situations.

“…what was it you wanted to talk about?”

Itadori’s face was still straight, which was making Natori nervous. However, his tone betrayed that serious look upon his face.

“You hold the Six Eyes at the age of 15. That alone isn’t the whole reason I’m talking to you, but I do have a speculation that is bugging me. What year were you born?”

“…I was born in 2007, in November.”

“…were you born with the Six Eyes?”

“Huh?”

“Did you come into this world with the Six Eyes, or did you get them a different way?”

“…If…If I’m going to be honest…not exactly. I wasn’t born with them from the start, but my sight was very…precise to say. My parents took me to an eye doctor, worried about some dumb disease or genetic mutation that could make me go blind. Nothing was found, and they were actually impressed by how I was able to see so clearly without lasting side effects, besides straining them in brighter light, which would make me go blind.”

“Interesting…so how did you come to get them?”

“It’s actually pretty funny how that happened. My eyes were always blue, but they weren’t like…blue, you get what I mean? Anyway, I remember going to bed on Christmas Eve, wishing to get something cool and exciting, since my life has been anything but that. Next thing you know, I wake up being able to see curses and cursed energy and just everything, to be frank.”

“hm…”

“What, are you doubting me?”

“No, I believe you. I mean, your eyes speak for themselves…it’s just that the only problem I see with this…anomaly is that the Six Eyes only come once every few generations, sometimes stretching close to a 100 years.”

“Wait, seriously? You’re saying that my technique is even more rare than I thought?”

“That, and there’s something amiss about it…you see, you aren’t the chosen one of the eyes in this era.”

“Huh!? Now you’re definitely pulling my leg. How can I have these eyes if I was not deliberately given the eyes through divine intervention? Who else would have them if you say I was not the intended holder?”

Itadori fell lightly conflicted for a moment, stuck between telling her the whole truth now, or to stall just a little bit so he could find the courage to say it.

Before he could choose, however, the words came out before he was able to form a thought.

“My teacher possessed them.”

Natori fell silent, her anger turning to curiosity and confusion as, much to Itadori’s own processing, she went with it. He was already too deep to back out.

“…do you want to know something? This blindfold,” Itadori pulled it off from the top, fully showing his eyes and scar across his face, “He wore this for the same reason you wear your glasses. To desensitize his powerful eyes...But I felt he wore it for another reason as well.”

The silence from Natori stretched on a bit longer before her curiosity got the better of her.

“…was he from my clan too?”

“Was he? Ha! Natori, he was the crowned heir of the clan. The Honored One…The Strongest.”

“Then how come I’ve never heard of him? How come he disappeared if he’s so strong?”

It was Itadori’s turn to lose his words again. Was it a good time to end the conversation now? He couldn’t just blurt out ‘oh yeah, about that my sensei died to a curse that lived inside my body for months, and said curse gave me PTSD when he psychologically tortured me.’

But as much as he wanted to carry Satoru’s legacy, one thing he refused to follow, the one thing he would never, ever do to even his own students, was to bottle everything up and suffer more. He already did that before, and it killed him internally. Sometimes he questions how his heart still beats because of that.

But healing was possible, and it begins one way or another.

“…He didn’t disappear…he…fell in battle a few years ago. It was Christmas Eve, 2018. My friend, Megumi, had been possessed by a curse. He wasn’t just any Special Grade…he was the King of Curses…do you know who I’m talking about?”

Natori’s eyes widen in shock and, weirdly, excitement. She read about stories and legends about this curse once the truth of her clan and lineage was shared many years ago. She dreamed of fighting someone of such power and defeating them with her abilities. But if what Itadori-sensei was true about his own teacher falling victim to him, then…was it really that impossible to defeat such a legend?

“Yeah, you’re talking about Ryomen Sukuna. He-”

Itadori’s face tensed up, hearing his name uttered. As if on instinct, Itadori’s eyes began to shift into their yellow variant, the sign of his fight or flight activating, and his focus to fight, if there was something to fight. Natori, surprised by the irregular behavior, stopped herself before going on about Sukuna’s past. Besides, if her sensei was troubled, she wouldn’t pester on.

Itadori, after taking a breath to calm down, continued with the painful tale.

“…so you know…that saves an explanation. Anyway, He and my teacher fought long and hard in Shinjuku. Y’know that part of Tokyo that’s being rebuilt, besides Shibuya? That was the battlefield. Megumi, his vessel at the time, possessed his clan’s inherited powers, the Ten Shadows. Admittedly, he wasn’t the most proficient in using them to his potential, but Sukuna…he showed the Zen’in’s might that day…and Megumi’s full potential. However, my sensei managed to defeat Sukuna and kill the two shadows that were assisting him, A merged shikigami known as Agito, and the trump card of the technique, Divine General Mahoraga. Everyone, including myself, thought my sensei won…that was, until something happened during a glitch in the broadcast that allowed everyone to view the fight safely. Next thing I knew…”

Itadori trailed off, remembering the sight on the television that broke him inside. Remembering when his forgiveness drowned with his sorrow that flooded him. Remembering the rage that formed when Gojo and Choso both fell victim to that monster.

Remembering when the only thought that went through his head was to kill him.

“…you are me…”

What a joke.

He was nothing like Itadori had said.

Natori was looking at her sensei in a considerate manner, her eyes trained on his, which seemed to darken when his words faded into the wind. Natori then realized it, and she looked down at the track in guilt. Itadori sighed and rubbed his temples, following the same action as Natori, but with hurt and painful memories.

“…By the way, Natori…”

She lightly perked up, listening just for a moment.

“…You pass my evaluation. You have potential to be great…don’t waste it for me, okay?”

Natori studied him a little bit longer, taking her sensei’s approval and consideration. And for the first time, from what Itadori saw, Natori smiled.

“…You can count on me, Itadori-sensei.”

Itadori let out a light chuckle, putting the blindfold back on as the heavy moment finally lifted.

“Good. One more thing, Natori…please don’t take my erratic behavior for granted…I have good intentions for you three…Anyway, how about we see the rest of your comrades do against that dummy now. Can’t be a sorcerer without others to back you up both ways.”

Chapter Text

The two of them came back quicker than Subaru had expected. His sensei was still his ever-goofy self, but Natori seemed to be more…appreciative, and less like the usual bratty look she wore. Subaru’s curiosity dropped the second Itadori pointed at him, however, and a groan escaped from his lips just out of earshot. Itadori just snickered, a playful taunt towards his arrogant student.

“Seems like you know the deal here, Subaru. Let’s see how you fight.”

Subaru just shuffled his feet towards the dummy in defeat, already exhibiting signs of loss even though neither he nor the dummy made a move. Subaru got into the dummy’s range, and it started to shift lightly to anticipate his sword skills. Subaru, sighing heavily like he had too much air in his lungs, cracked his neck and knuckles, rolling his shoulders a few times to loosen up.

Subaru hated to fight. As surprising as it was, he’d rather find a peaceful solution so he could take a nap and forget that the conflict ever happened. It was just his nature to do so, as he had done for years of his life, to try and find a compromise, a sacrifice on both ends to be happy with one’s compliance to a standard.

He just had to pick up that damned pipe in the alleyway.

He just had to fight his way out for once.

He just had to accept the fate that didn’t let him sleep peacefully another day. But now, he was stuck with an idiot for a teacher, a white haired brat that had all-seeing eyes, a quiet kid who he thought was mute at one point, and a target dummy that could adapt to anything.

What a joke his life was.

The entirety of it

He might as well get this over with.

With a calculated move, Subaru drew his onikatana, a special blade built to handle larger amounts of cursed energy and imitate properties of many cursed items. The effect of the blade wasn’t permanent, and in fairness, Subaru had only begun to tap into his full potential, only able to stretch the ability for at most 45 minutes at a time. Such examples were the Slaughter Demon and, if he could concentrate well enough, the Spilt Soul Katana. However, he must know of the cursed item’s existence and its abilities, or it will come up loosely imitating the object, or not imitate it at all.

The reason for Subaru’s specifically designed blade is that a regular katana or nodachi is not able to withstand the large amounts of energy flowing through the metal. Of course, an exception to this would be Yuta Okkotsu, whose ability granted him to let cursed energy flow in large amounts through his blade, as well as being able to imitate any cursed technique that would fall into that range of being able to replicate, but even his blade was specifically designed to be used by jujutsu sorcerers, not common folk.

To be able to handle Subaru’s cursed energy reserves, the swordsmith who crafted his blade used a special metal that could only be found in an ore deposit inside a cave in northern Hokkaido. The metal, called Yamabiko Iron, was discovered in a cave after a concluded mission. The sorcerer, whose name was forgotten after disappearing from the face of the earth due to unknown causes, realized that the ore held properties that could actually help cursed energy flow like electricity would with copper. From then, the cave and its surrounding area were bought by jujutsu officials posing as mining corporations under the reason that ‘the ore was emitting constant radiation and should be taken into heavy consideration that it was not to be improperly handled.’ Ever since the purchase, the society had access to the iron undisturbed and granted cursed item makers and blacksmiths to optimize the element to their needs. Shortly after the metal was granted access to these blacksmiths, they started to experiment with it, testing its properties and wear down when used for blades and other weapons that primarily relied on the metal to inflict damage. One smith discovered, when processed similarly to regular iron would to create steel, that it was way lighter and could make the flow of cursed energy three times greater, thus creating Yamabiko Steel and the primary steel type used to create most weapons for jujutsu sorcerers.

This was what Subaru’s blade was made of, and it was what he was about to fight with now.

With his sword now fully drawn, Subaru let a light bit of cursed energy flow into the blade, a faint hum emitting from the steel as Subaru began to go through the library in his mind of what cursed items he knew he could integrate into his blade. He could just use a basic buff, using the cursed energy to enhance the damage done by his blade or help him target the dummy so his attacks could land more consistently.

But, well, Subaru also just genuinely didn’t want to go all that out anyway.

All he wanted to do was go back home, eat some dollar store ramen, and take a nap listening to his favorite artist, Nujabes.

Was it really all that hard to consider?

Subaru inched forward, hoping he wouldn’t have to initiate the fight himself. He’d rather be made fun of for not properly defending himself than trying to launch at the thing.

He held his sword up, holding it out like a practiced samurai as he took a very basic stance, one foot out while the other trailed behind.
Subaru had seen this in many samurai movies and even in Ghost of Tsushima, so it should mean that it’s a proper stance, right?
It was, but as Subaru would find out, he wasn’t prepared to counter in that stance.

The dummy launched forward quicker than Subaru had expected, and he had only mere seconds to block the first hit that the dummy would land. With his quick processing, he angled his blade just lightly for the dummy’s fist to ricochet in a different direction. Thinking he had the dummy caught in an inescapable motion, he raised his blade and swung down from a high guard.

When the dummy’s foot collided with his sword and made it fly out of his hands, however, Subaru was surprised and practically dumbfounded.

How the hell did that just hap-

His thought was interrupted by a very heavy hit to the jaw, making him stumble back and a terrible ache pounding through his skull. He didn’t even get a moment to regain his awareness before another nasty uppercut to the same place on his jaw made him fall flat on his ass. Now his head felt like a hammer had just smashed his brains out. He winced for another potential attack, holding his arm up despite his vision swimming.

“Stop! That’s enough.”

For once, Subaru was thankful for his teacher stepping in.

The dummy, which was about to wind up for another strike, paused its motion and relaxed, stepping back from Subaru despite still staring into his soul with its soulless eyes. Itadori walked over, his posture now serious and one that was making Subaru a little worried. He expected a lecture, a rant about how pathetic Subaru was with how seriously his sensei was behaving.

But all Itadori did was hold a hand out, offering to help Subaru up from where he had cowered a moment ago.

With a flooding relief, Subaru took it without a second thought, Itadori pulling him up and helping him take a moment to let the pain in his skull subside.

Then came the lecture.

“I’m a little disappointed, Subaru. I thought you were really about to give a good fight against it with how stoic and samurai-like you were acting. What happened?”

Subaru shook his head, not in defiance, but annoyance.

“The damn thing was too quick. I couldn’t even get another block in before its foot smacked my blade across the grass.”

“I’m aware of that part. I saw the whole fight. I’m talking more about what happened in here.”

Itadori then flicked Subaru’s head lightly and in a more playful manner than how he was discussing, but Subaru kept his guard up even so, knowing the conversation was about to deepen.

However, words failed Subaru in the moment. What could he really tell him? That he actually hate the idea of being a sorcerer? That he just want to live normally? That this whole thing was just an accident?

“Lost in thought, I see. Trying to make up an excuse, or are you struggling to find an answer that I would find suitable? Either one, I won’t exactly be the happiest about.”

Subaru gave Itadori a glaring side eye, but deep down, deep into the darkness of his mind, a small light flickered.

Subaru’s mouth acted first before he had the chance to think.

“It was a mistake. I was never supposed to become a sorcerer.”

A long silence stretched on as Subaru tensed up. He wasn’t supposed to reveal that, let alone out loud. Why did he say that? That wasn’t even the motive in hand-

“…I guess we're a little more similar than you led on. I wasn’t supposed to be one either.”

For once, Subaru was genuinely shocked.

His teacher, a rank-and-file sorcerer, wasn’t even supposed to be one?

“But what about your techniques? You listed at least three or four of them. How was that not supposed to happen?”

Itadori lifted the blindfold again, this time so he could be level with his student.

“…I had only found out after I became integrated into the world of sorcery that I was a constructed vessel meant to hold a malevolent being…I was never meant to possess the techniques I hold now. Hell, I wasn’t even supposed to fight the transformation when it happened…what about you? What happened to you that introduced you to sorcery?”

Subaru had never shared his story about how he had managed to get into this situation, just like how he never shared that he wasn’t supposed to be here.

It was all by a freak accident that killed his friend.

…Tsuki…

He closed his eyes for a moment, gathering the memory of that terrible day.

And with a heavy heart, he delved into every single minute of the day, he realized he had something no one else had, and the regret he carried.

“Damn it! We missed the train!”

Subaru threw a pencil he had in his pocket at the ground, the small writing device bouncing off the concrete sidewalk with a small clack as a girl, panting and out of breath from running, stops to the left of him and takes a breather. They just missed the train back to their home, and now they would have to find a quick detour. The girl lets out a small swear before straightening up, gripping the strap of her bag that was slung over her shoulder.

“So, what now then?”

Subaru looked to his left, where she was standing. He quickly picks up his pencil before stretching his arms, diffusing the irritation in his system.

“…I guess we have to take the backways. If we do it quick enough, Tsuki, we might get home a few minutes late at least.”

Both of them were a little anxious now, but the girl was more outwardly showing it, a bead of sweat forming just right of her forehead.

They knew from the beginning that the path they were about to take was emergencies only, but they had no choice this time. It was that or be scolded by both of their parents for being nearly an hour late.

Subaru and Tsuki have known each other for ten years since they met. Subaru had lived in his neighborhood since he turned two, and his mom was pretty well off despite becoming a single parent when Subaru turned three. What had happened to his father was unknown to Subaru, as his mother never told him the day he left for the last time, and when a letter came into the mail that same day, his mother retreated to her room and shut the door behind her. At first, he thought maybe his mother was just doing some work outside of her job, but when he stumbled to the door and nearly fell against it as he was still getting used to walking, he heard the soft sniffles and sobs of his mother come shallowly to his ears.

For the rest of the day, Subaru felt oddly…scared.

He had never seen his nor heard his mom cry ever.

Wasn’t his mother supposed to be strong? Wasn’t she supposed to be invincible for her child? Didn’t a parent have to struggle and show their best?

Conflicted with these thoughts, Subaru sat on his small bed, looking and twiddling with his thumbs as the sky grew gray.

For a few weeks, everything felt really quiet, but also oddly loud and deafening. Subaru wasn’t sure when it would end, but then, Tsuki moved in one day, only being a month older than he was and holding a teddy bear and her mother’s hand as her father unpacked their small car full of belongings that could even fit without crowding the seating area. It was by chance that Subaru happened to be forced outside to take his small trash can out to the bigger totes to empty it, and his curiosity when he saw her guided him to a long friendship.

From the start, the two of them shared many similar interests and hobbies. They both loved to listen to music, relax, and play video games once they got their hands on an X-Station controller.*
*This is just PlayStation and Xbox combined

As time passed, the more the two of them got to really know each other. It was by their 7^th grade when their friendship hit its peak, and nearly every hobby and interest one enjoyed, the other did as well. It almost seemed like they were family with how close they were, and to their agreement, they promised that they wouldn’t make it platonic. Subaru knew it would spoil their relationship if love was in the air, and also quite frankly weird that, if they did, he was dating his childhood friend. Tsuki felt the same way about the inclusion that she would feel too vulnerable, and so they made a promise on a Friday afternoon to never date each other, ever.

That promise hasn’t been broken since, even leading up to their summer of their 8th grade year to their ninth. Now, the two were forced to go through the Forbidden Realm, which is what they called the dark alleyways full of trash and unidentifiable debris, due to missing the train back to their neighborhood.

“I’ll bet there’s some old drunkard in one of the alleyways.”

“Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised. Let’s just get going.”

Subaru took the lead, slowly shuffling towards the void of an entryway as Tsuki followed behind, now going at a regulated walking pace as the two entered the stinky maze of shit and garbage. The only other time they took this way was in their 6^th grade, and they were in their Halloween costumes on trick or treat, late for curfew, as they had gotten sidetracked when they were reeling in candy. That night was nothing but a traumatic experience as they dodged drunken salary drones and unrecognizable piles of garbage, the smell never leaving their memory even years later. However, it was still in the middle of the day, and it was usually better when the sun was out, as they found out from others who took the same path. Nevertheless, they went on with careful and calculated steps. Buildings looming over cast their shadows upon the duo as trash toters line the walls like soldiers saluting a general. Less garbage was astray, however, as the waste management had emptied the dumpsters and cleaned the asphalt a day prior, so at least the journey wouldn’t be too stinky. A rusty old bike leaned up against the wall as Subaru walked a pace ahead of Tsuki as they chatted casually, taking measured steps around the occasional puke or trash.

“So, whatcha doing once you get home? Wanna hop on Minecraft maybe?”

Subaru shook his head nonchalantly

“Not today. I got some work to do.”

“What, you mean drawing your favorite characters? You do realize it’s summer. You can rest for a moment.”

“…I guess so, but I’m trying to finish up some of the final details to Tanjirou.”

“You mean the MC of that new Demon Slayer series? Didn’t the author just release the first chapters?”

“Tsuki, it’s been in the works for a few years now. It was only released in 2016.”

“2016? It’s been that long?”

“Yeah. The anime just came out not too long ago…take a right here. They’re still in the middle of rebuilding a section of the city.”

The two turn at the intersection, going right as jackhammers and construction equipment banged away in percussion with the city noises.

“When will they fully rebuild that area? It’s been months since that gas leak and the big explosion.”

“A while. A lot of it was destroyed by the gas. Must’ve been very combustible and expensive to rock the city this badly. At least the mortality was low.”

“Yeah, but it still seems unrealistic how slow they’ve been with it.”

“Ever heard of the economy by chance?”

“Don’t be a smartass now, Subaru Natsuki.”

“Fine. I won’t, Tsuki Uzaki.”

“Wha- Hey! Don’t compare me to that softie!”

“Right, my fault. You’re more like Alstolfo.”

“That’s a DUDE, you idiot!”

Subaru started to chuckle. This was fun to do.

“I swear to God if you call me something else like that one more time, I’ll…hey, wait. Subaru, didn’t we pass this rusty bike earlier?”

Subaru paused for a brief passing. Tsuki had already stopped while she got a closer look at it. Subaru examined the bike, and to his curiosity, it did look rather familiar.

“That does look rather similar to the one we walked by. Even the rims are bent in the same directions…weird.”

“Right…and that weed in the ground…it’s the same.”

“You think we walked in a loop, maybe?”

“No way. The road was right there when we entered…wait, listen for a sec.”

The second Tsuki stopped talking, the both of them noticed almost instantaneously.

It was dead quiet.

No jackhammers. No cars. No random honks or the common urban noise you could hear regularly. Hell, you couldn’t even hear the breeze.

It was almost as if all sound ceased to exist, and then the weight of it was felt a moment later when both their eyes widened in a haunting confusion. Where did everything go? Did they walk into a dead spot perhaps? Was this going to be the next urban legend? Tsuki’s breathing pace began to increase lightly as Subaru started to perspire like a cold soda taken out of an icebox. The buildings around them seemed to grow taller just ever so slightly, but Subaru just thought it was just his eyes playing tricks because he was scared. Whatever it was, the disturbance that radiated off both of them sent shivers down their spines.

“M-maybe we can try our phones. See if we got a-”

“No service…look.”

Tsuki shows her phone, and indeed, there was a big no signal sign. Not even an SOS. Subaru sighed as he looked back at the end of where they had both come from, and a chill ran through his nerves as he locked eyes with it.

“Tsuki…we need to get out of here…now.”

Tsuki looked up at Subaru, and if she wasn’t surprised enough, she was now. Subaru stared at the end of the path they had just come from with a deathly gaze, with fear across his face, an emotion that Tsuki had never seen on him before. Confusion mixed with her own presence of fear, she followed to where he was looking, and her face contorted into pure fear.

A tall, white, looming figure stood at an immense height, easily towering over two people if they stacked on each other. Long, black, and frizzy hair hung to the thing’s shoulders, and its neck was outstretched like an ostrich. Its wingspan was about 9 feet in length alone, and its fingernails were outstretched like claws, seemingly sharp enough to mince the two with a single slash. An unnatural and inhumane growl rose from its chest as its head twitched, its aggression evident.

“…jū…kyū…hachi…”

Tsuki instinctively stood and backed away, standing shoulder to shoulder with Subaru as the figure continued its ominous chant.

“…shichi…roku…”

Subaru whispered, afraid that if the figure heard them that it might charge.

“…it’s counting down.”

Tsuki responded similarly.

“yeah…”

“…run.”

In a flash, both of them turned tail and sprinted down the pathway, pushing their legs to their absolute limit as they navigated through. As they got further away, the figure continued to count down ominously, its voice sounding as if of broken glass mixed with nails on a chalkboard.

“…go…shi…san…ni…ichi…Ikuzo.”

The figure started to run with an immense speed; its legs making long bounds as it seemed to glide with a speed that defied the logic of its properties. Tsuki looked behind, watching the slender giant closing the gap with a scary efficiency.

“Subaru!”

“Just keep running! Turn now!”

Just before they almost ran into a wall, the two turned down another path, hoping to possibly shake the beast, but their efforts were futile.

50 meters in front of them sat a dead end with a rotting dumpster. The wall stretched too high to be cleared, and the dumpster would’ve given out anyway with how much rust that had taken it over. Nearby, a small, metal pipe sat on the ground, a bit better in condition and could maybe be used, but probably wouldn’t do a single thing against it. Subaru stood there in disbelief as Tsuki began to hyperventilate.

“We’re gonna die, we’re gonna die, we’re gonna die.”

Unlike her, Subaru was still hopeful despite the terror ripping at him.

“M-maybe we could-”

He turned to see if maybe the other direction had an opening, but he couldn’t get a look as right there and then, the thing slammed into the brick wall, shattering the bricks and kicking up dust. Subaru didn’t bother to watch what it would do. They needed at least some chance to get out of here.

“Run to the wall! Just go!”

Tsuki didn’t question it. Both of them bolted away, hoping that maybe it could have trouble getting them in the corner, but then it reached out to slash at them, and Tsuki’s scream filled Subaru’s ears as he reluctantly turned to see something gut-wrenching.

Blood was trickling down her back as she fell to the ground, just mere inches away from the claws reaching her again. Three big lacerations caught her in the back, and she was bleeding heavily. Tears pricked at her eyes as she reached a hand out for him, her teeth clenched. For once in his life, Subaru froze. He was no stranger to blood. Hell, dare he say he’s seen more of it than seeing his mom, his video games being the culprit as to why. But this? This wasn’t some pixel on a screen. This wasn’t a prompt made by a game developer to simulate a real fluid effect.

This was real.

“Subaru!”

Tsuki shouting his name snapped him out of his trance, and he found his legs carrying him towards her as he dropped down to pick her up by the arm and drag her to the wall. He could feel the warm blood trickling and sticking to his fingers, making strings in between his fingers as the sticky liquid covered his hands in its putrid hue. Tsuki’s whimpers from the pain broke him from inside, but he had to keep moving. Slowly but surely, they got closer. However, the thing began to pull itself from the wall, letting out shrill and otherworldly cries of agitation.

It was mere minutes ago when Subaru and Tsuki were walking casually.

How could it go so wrong so fast?

It felt like a race against time. 20. 15. 10. 5. 2 meters away. Then, Subaru finally put Tsuki against the dumpster and leaned her up to see him. Her breaths were heavy as tears dripped down her face. Blood continued to soak through her clothes as her back stung like a hot press burning into her flesh. Subaru squatted in front of her, hurt all over his face.

He let her get injured.

Why didn’t he do something to save her?

She didn’t deserve this.

His thoughts were promptly interrupted as he heard the sound of bricks falling and the things' growls and snarls. It was trying to stabilize itself after freeing its lanky body from the wall, which meant he had at least a moment to do one thing. Instinctively, he grabbed the metal pipe, holding it out like a sword as he had seen in samurai movies. It was by faith that he believed he had a way of self-defense.

“Back off! You hurt my friend! Now, you’ll pay!”

His words fell on the deaf, unfortunately, and all it did was aggravate the situation. Without consideration, it started charging at him again, raising a claw to bring a killing blow to the high schoolers.

Subaru alternated to a defensive position, holding the pipe up like a sword when it was blocking. He held his stance, but his face scrunched, scared and terrified of the thing.

What was honor to a kid who never faced danger?

“You have no honor.”

“And you are a slave to it!”

Ironic. Of course, he was thinking of the dialogue from that trailer to a new game releasing soon on the edge of death.

That was his life, huh? Full of irony.

Amidst his fear, a light chuckle escaped. He wasn’t going to survive this. No way he could. It was a yokai, after all. What would a pipe do against it?

Just before it struck him, he closed his eyes, and he hoped. He hoped that the pathetic weapon he held could, for once, become something dangerous. Something that could cut through and keep him and Tsuki protected from this thing. Something that could take him and her home, alive.

He felt the air shift from above, and he tensed for the impending blow.

I’m sorry, Tsuki…for everything.

Shuk!

For a moment, he felt the pipe contact the thing’s wrist, but then a weird goo splattered on his face as well. A shrill shriek of pain rattled his bones next as he opened his eyes to see the matter.

The thing’s hand was severed clean through. A purple blood leaked from the stump on its wrist as it reeled back in pain, its screams echoing through the concrete corridors. Subaru was alive and saved by something.

But what?

Curious, he brought his hand down and looked at the pipe. To his surprise, a weird purple plasma flowed around the metal like a flame. It licked his hand, but to his shock, there was no burn, but a weird tingly sensation similar to how it felt when a person hits their funny bone. Not only that, but he could also feel that sense across his body like bloodwork, almost as if he had a boost of energy from 10 coffees in one sitting.

The yokai/thing started to recover as the missing limb began to grow back, and Subaru’s awe broke into a serious concentration. He stood firm, holding the pipe up again like a sword as the yokai made another beeline for the awakened teen.

This time, however, Subaru didn’t close his eyes. His pipe made the move first, and with a deep angle, the pipe quite literally cut into the yokai’s chest with a diagonal cut. Subaru almost started to cry right there as he saw the useless pipe actually do damage, but he kept his composure as he flipped the narrative. Slash after slash, his pipe dug deep into the yokai, cutting it up as his arms burned in strain. He wasn’t giving up now. He had a fighting chance.

But the yokai fought back as well, continuing to heal itself as the pipe clashed with its claws, and impossibly making sparks.

Suddenly, the yokai took a bound back and aimed its fingers like it was about to cast a spell, and its fingernails grossly shot out like spikes. Off instinct, Subaru deflected the majority of them, redirecting the nails to other directions. He was concentrated. Nothing could break him out, but he needed a win, and fast. Then, it came to him.

“Hinokami Kagura…Enbu!”

For once in Subaru’s life, he thanked Kamado Tanjirou and Kimetsu no Yaiba.

If this were a yokai, then its head would need to be severed to kill it, right?

And considering how long its neck was, he could get it rather easily.

Maybe then this illusion would break.

Subaru didn’t take a chance to reconsider his idea, and with a leaping bound, he closed the gap fast in between the two of them, his pipe winding back and ready to spring forward with a devastating blow. The yokai acted, but it was too late as it tried to swing at Subaru, which he narrowly dodged. It was then that the tension in Subaru’s arms snapped back, and he swung with all of his might.

“And you killed it, I assume?”

“Yeah…I did.”

Itadori nodded his head and rubbed his chin in thought, processing the story Subaru had delved into for 10 minutes while Natori and H stood to the side, both of them either fidgeting or staring into space, both doing something to not intentionally eavesdrop. Subaru stood as still as water on a lake during a calm day, the breeze seemingly enough to knock him down if he were light enough. Itadori stopped rubbing his chin after a moment in the process.

“And what happened afterwards?”

“…well…After I cut its neck, and the innate domain fell…the adrenaline wore off, and the cursed energy around the pipe faded. I remember dropping it and falling to my knees as the curse bled on, despite already being dead. I thought I really had just saved both of us, and I remember turning to see if Tsuki was okay…I didn’t know one of the spikes I had dodged or deflected shot at her and pierced her stomach, and the way she held it…”

“…Tsuki…TSUKI!”

Subaru shot up, running towards his friend. Tears flowed like a basin as he carried his feet as far as he could, trying to race death. In front of him, Tsuki held the nail/spike at the point where it was lodged in her, blood pooling on her shirt as it was evident that it had struck fatally. Even so, Subaru practically fell beside her, slamming into the rotted dumpster with a force enough to shatter it. Without thinking, he grabbed the spike and tried to pull, but Tsuki’s firm grip on his wrist stopped him from ripping it out.

“Don’t…it’ll just hurt even more…”

“W-what do you mean? We have to get you help; it’s dangerous to keep-”

“Subaru. Please…worry about yourself for once…you almost died a few times fighting that thing…haven’t you seen the slash on your chest?”

On cue, a searing pain pulses across Subaru’s abdomen, and he looks down to see his own blood trickling from the shallow yet wide cut.

How did it hit him?

He was sure he got out without a single scratch.

He shook it off, though.

His friend was dying.

“…it’s fine. I’ll manage, but we…”

He trailed to where the spike was protruding from, and the last of the hope he was clinging onto faded away like dust. He realized why she wasn’t keen on her own well-being.

She wasn’t going to make it, and now they both knew well. If it were possible, more tears began to fall from his eyes, now quiet, but still full of raw emotion.

Why did his friend have to leave?

Why did they have to end up in this situation?

Why?

Why?

WHY-

“…Hey, Subaru…”

His swarming thoughts and questions were interrupted by Tsuki’s unnaturally softer tone, and against his screaming instincts to try and do something to help her, he looked up to listen.

“…I never really got the chance to tell you…since our…agreement…but…”

Tsuki’s head lightly turned in the direction of Subaru, and a fragile smile grew on her lips.

“…I really like you…and…I hoped one day that we could maybe break that promise…”

“…Tsuki…”

“…remember that thing I hid in your bag and told you not to take out? You can look at it now…”

Subaru’s eyes strafed towards his bag, which was thrown against the dumpster when he had to fight back. Slowly, he reached for it and found the small zipper on the outside pocket, which he hadn’t opened in months since she put whatever it was in there.

Carefully, he unzipped the pocket and felt around until his dirty fingers grasped a small box, small enough to fit a ring…

…he nearly started bawling again, but he kept his composure as he took it out.

His intuition was correct, and in his hand was an engagement box, black with golden lining on the opening crevasse. On the top was a folded note, taped on to ensure it didn’t fall.

“…Tsuki…but-”

“I know…I went back on it, didn’t I…but I had a feeling one day…that maybe…we could be more than friends…”

“…you really felt this way?”

“…I did…but after we shook on it, it hurt me…and I didn’t tell you…I’m sorry…”

For a moment, Tsuki fell silent, and her face was a mix of regret and pain. Subaru sat still, his hands cradling the box like it was a flower that could wither at a wrong touch. After a moment, he put it down on the side, and he gave an awkward hug to Tsuki with the spike in the way.

“…I wouldn’t have cared if you broke it…you’re my best friend…I’d rather see you happy than suffering…”

Tsuki felt his light touch, and her heart fluttered. Her right hand returned the touch, being closer to Subaru than her left, and they kept their embrace.

“…thank you…I’m sorry I have to leave you…I…love…you…..”

Her arm slumped, and her breathing was no more. Subaru didn’t move at all, however. He didn’t want to leave her.

He’d rather die with her at this point, but then, a small and quick vibration buzzed in his pocket.

His phone.

Carefully, he pulled it out. To his relief, his service was back.

But there was still the dead body of his friend.

He slowly pushed off and caught her limp hand, letting it slowly drop to the ground until it was comfortably down. Her eyes were closed, which saved the guilt of closing them himself.

With a slow hand and in shock, he called his mom.

One ring. Two rings. Then…

“Subaru, I told you not to call me yet. I was in the middle of a meeting-”

“Mom…please…send an ambulance…”

“Huh? Why? What happened!? Are you hurt!?”

“…someone attacked us…we’re both in an alley…I think…Tsuki just died.”

“…I’m…so sorry for your loss.”

“…Don’t mention it…”

What used to be a casual moment between student and teacher had turned sorrowful. Itadori stood there in his own weighed silence, taking in the fact that his own student had seen someone die right in front of them, well before they were even adults.

But then again.

Itadori had seen a lot himself.

“…you mentioned a ring? I guess you couldn’t wear it from what I can see.”

“Actually…it’s here.”

Subaru put a hand into his shirt and pulled a necklace out, a small ring hanging from the thread and decorated with a white diamond on the silver band.

“I couldn’t find myself wearing it on my hands, so I put it through this…my hands feel too dirty to wear something so priceless.”

Itadori nodded as he leaned in lightly to get a better look.

“…It’s beautiful…you remind me of one of my friends, as funny as it is.”

“I do?”

“Yeah. He’s the current head of the Gojo clan, but it’s uncanny how similar the ring was, besides the gem…You’ve heard of Yuuta Okkotsu, right?”

“Wait, he’s your friend? The Okkotsu?”

“Yup. It was a partially similar case, but his friend turned into his shikigami after he had cursed her when she died from a hit-and-run. From what my sensei had told me, it took some time for him to fully recover from the fact that he had cursed her, not the other way around, as he had believed for a long time. Maybe you don’t have a shikigami following you around, and maybe you didn’t curse her, but I think it seems that something regarding her death has temporarily halted your potential.”

“You think? Isn’t it obvious that I’m a fraud? Just a one-hit wonder?”

“…No…you just believe that of yourself…Can I be honest with you, Subaru?”

Despite the irritation, Subaru just stood in silence, awaiting whatever his sensei was going to tell him.

“…I’ve seen many people that I had loved or cared for die in front of my eyes…I get what you’re feeling: It hurts. It hurts being reminded that you couldn’t do what fate had planned for you since the moment the universe began. It hurts having the thought of another possibility nag at you, and I bet you’re angry. You’re seething with the fact that you let your friend’s life slip through your fingers, aren’t you?”

Subaru was taken aback but hesitantly nodded.

As much as he was hurt, he was angry.

“So why let that anger prevent you from being the best you can be? How about instead of draining you, it fuels you? You think I got here by moping around? Not at all…I’ll give you a moment to think your decision over…if you still think you aren’t worthy of fighting, just for her alone, then I’ll escort you to the higher-ups to talk dismission. But if you want to keep going, to show that you aren’t what you paint yourself to be…then beat that dummy to hell for me...for her…take all the time you need.”

With that, Itadori put his blindfold back on and left Subaru in his solitude, in which he carried with him to the side in thought. H and Natori looked in confusion, not sure if their teacher had just scolded Subaru or not. However, their trance was broken when Itadori pointed a finger at H. Thankfully, his playful demeanor was back.

“You’re the final one. Ready?”