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zenongeremek · 2 years

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King of Curses' Vessel (11.6 k)

So, hello everyone. First time posting here. I hope you enjoy my story. I had dreamed with it a couple of days ago and just finished writing it yesterday. It's from Jujutsu Kaisen. Let me know what you think.

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I ran. As fast as I could. My eyes searched everywhere, but anywhere I looked, I could only see the dark night in the forest. The burning torch I had in my hand helped in nothing, barely getting by under the heavy rain, that cut my sight even shorter. I was completely wet and barely managed to stay up on my feet with mud up to my ankles and the constant threat to fall to the ground. I constantly tripped, but managed to get by, somehow. I kept running, searching endlessly. Time was short, but there was still a chance. If I only went faster, I would reach in time. I needed to find him.

I cried his name out, but a thunder echoed above me, lighting the darkness for a second, devouring my cries. Once again. Whenever I tried, a thunder rang around, suppressing my desperate cries. Along with the heavy and loud pouring around me and the chilling and sharp roar of winds among the trees, it was as if I was in some kind of silent film, no voice coming out of my mouth. However, at that moment, I could not see my actual situation and tried time and time again, with the same vain results.

A thunder roared once again and a lightning fell close by, blinding me with the bright light. I lost my footing and couldn’t notice the abyss by my side, much less could avoid it.

I fell, for God knows how long. I had no control over my body nor ways to get myself out of that situation. I simply couldn’t react. I fell and beared all the blows and cuts received during the fall, just barely protecting my face with my arms, the torch long lost.

When I finally reached the bottom, a painful groan left my lips as I tried to stand up. The pain from my wounds seemed a thousand times worse than when I first received them. I let my body fall to the pool of mud under me, breathing heavily. All I could see was darkness around me, except for a faint, yellow light hidden among some bushes. Despite the endless pouring, I could barely hear the crackle of something still burning. The torch.

Once again, I tried to stand up, holding my breath to bear the pain that peaked at that moment. Slowly, I made my way to the bushes, seeing the weak yet stubborn fire of the torch. Breathing heavily, I went to pick it up and resume my search, but while making my way around the bush, I saw an unnatural form close by. I approached it, to see better, as the rain and the darkness prevented me from seeing too far. I didn’t need to get too close to feel my heart tighten.

My head shaked slowly as my feet continued leading me to the body, until his face was visible to me. Suddenly, all strength I managed to stubbornly keep left, my legs failing me and letting myself drop to my knees before him. My shaken hand reached for his shoulder, shaking him gently to wake him up. When he didn’t, my other hand quickly grabbed his clothing and shook him violently as I called his name, the thunder once again claiming the sound of my voice. Despite all that, he didn’t respond, much less reacted to anything.

At that moment, my eyes trailed lower and saw an unusual dark stain in his body and clothing that went from his neck down to his waist, crossing his torso, and a pitch black hole where was supposed to be his heart. It took a moment for my mind to process it all, or it had already did, but refused to accept.

Tears fell from my eyes, joining the rain drops, and a loud, pained roar escaped from my lips as I pulled his dead body close to my tired one. I cried loudly into the night, sobbing as I uselessly tried to call him, still clinging to the hope that he would wake up. I knew he wouldn’t. There was no heat left in his body. Holding him was no different from holding a snowman during winter.

A lightning ran through the skies, lighting the earth below. Around us, there are dozens of shadows standing tall and looking down on us, a gleeful, twisted smile glowing in the darkness. I, however, couldn’t spare a moment to notice them, or better, I was unable to even recognize their existence. Grief had completely taken over my body and rendered it vulnerable to their cruel intentions.

One of them approached, taking something out, slim, long and shining under the almost extinct torch’s flame. The katana rose above all shadows, enveloping itself in a pale aura, violent and thirsty. For my blood. Without batting an eye, the blade was lowered quickly in my direction…

The sight came to an abrupt end when something cold spilled over me, making me jump to a sitting position. My hands were clenching to the sheets under me, eyes wide, chest rising and falling rapidly and the water being absorbed by the mattress. No rain. No forest. No body. No shadows. I was back to my room, completely wet from head to toe. By my bedside, there was a boy around my age looking at me, eyes wide and holding a bucket.

“You wouldn’t wake up, so I thought of pouring water on you. I didn’t realize you were having a nightmare, Yoshi. Sorry, bro.”

He said, smiling sheepishly and trying to take a step back.

“YUUJI! YOU FUCKING BLOODY BASTARD! JUST DIE ALREADY!”

I cried as I threw my soaked pillow at him, making him fall hard. It took me a moment to realize what I had done. I flinched as I noticed Yuuji groan, sitting up and letting the pillow fall into his lap, revealing his bleeding nose.

“Hey. You okay?”

I asked as I went up to him.

“Yeah. It’s just a little bleeding. It will stop soon. I kinda deserved that.”

He replied, laughing it off. I snorted, helping him get back at his feet.

“Breakfast is ready. I’m waiting for you downstairs.”

“Sure. I’ll be there in a sec.”

Then, Yuuji leaves the room and goes down the hallway towards the stairs. I sigh and go to the bathroom, splashing cold water at my face. Looking at my face, still pale from the nightmarish dream.

“I hate when this shit happens.”

I murmur to get ready for the day.

~~~~ ( Time skip) ~~~~

“Well, I’ve done my part. Now we’re even.”

I tell myself, leaving the rest of the dishes at the dish drainer. It was one of the rules we’ve made: every chore is split in half. If one of us makes something alone, the other must do something else on their own. Since that damned nightmare didn’t let me wake up, Yuuji made all the breakfast. So, per rule, I had to do the dishes. It was a bother when this happens, but we’ve agreed to it, so we wouldn’t fight over every little thing. There’s just so many things that could go real bad if you live with someone you can’t get along with. It’s better to deal with a few chores than to end up at the hospital and the police station. The last time was bad enough.

I leave the kitchen and head to the entrance, where my pack was. It was kind of late, but we could just rush a bit to school and reach it in time. It was not a problem at all. Yuuji is already outside waiting. It is just a matter of going out and jogging our way there.

“Good morning, Itadori! You took your time leaving your house, didn’t you?”

While I was tying my shoes, I heard someone talking from the outside. The door was closed, so they could only be talking to Yuuji. But it was odd, since no one, in their right mind, would come to someone’s house this early.

“I’m sorry, but do I know you?”

Yuuji asked. At that question, I frown.

“Don’t give me that shit, asshole! You do know who we are! Did you really think you could just beat us and leave it at that? Huh!?”

At these next words, I sigh and get up.

“I really don’t know what you are talking about!”

“Of course you don’t. These idiots picked the wrong guy.”

I said, opening the door and leaving the house. There were a small bunch of guys at the entrance, one of them holding Yuuji by the collar. They were all staring at me, confused.

“What? Why are there two Yoshi’s?”

“There aren’t.”

I reply and punch hard the face of the guy who was holding Yuuji. I give him my pack and crack my knuckles.

“Look. I’m really not in the mood, so I’ll just beat the shit out of you and go my way.”

I told them, which seemed to enrage them as they all came at me in an instant. Unfortunately for them, in a matter of seconds, they’re all on the floor, knocked out with a single blow each.

“Alright. What a bunch of pain in the ass. Let’s go, Yuuji.”

“Shouldn’t we call an ambulance?”

“What kind of shit you spouting out now? They are just knocked out from one punch. They should wake up in no time. Besides, we’ll get late this way.”

“Okay.”

Yuji says, then throws me my pack and we both rush to school.

~~~~ ( Time skip) ~~~~

I let out a yawn as I adjust myself into the chair and cross my arms better. The whole place is dark and silent, except for a couple of students walking back and forth somewhere close by. I ignore them and just try to get myself back to sleep.

{Oh, no… Oh, no… Oh, no…}

I groan when I hear mutterings echoing. I open one eye and look around. There was a crouching, naked-butt guy at one corner of the room. I watched him for a moment before noticing how thin their whole body was in comparison to his head, that was as big as a floor fan and as deformed as a child’s first attempt to make a realistic face with clay at arts class.

{If I fail, they will be upset… If I fail, they will beat me… If I fail, they will disown me…}

It keeps muttering to itself, ignoring my presence. I turn to the door. There are no voices or steps to be heard. Yuuji and the others are usually loud, so I should have some time.

I leave the chair and walk up towards the deformed being. I breathe slowly, channeling the feeling within me. It stops muttering. None of us move. I feel a cold energy forming and accumulating at the tip of my fingers. It starts shaking, uncontrollably.

{I can’t fail… I can’t fail… I won’t fail…}

The cold feeling transforms itself into a sphere, as big as a marble. My eyes never leave the thing. Its legs are tense. It will turn and jump at me, most likely. There wasn't one mindless thing that didn't jump at me at the first opportunity. The “smart” ones usually wait a bit, but not so long. They are no different from a baby child wanting something and waiting 3 seconds to get it before they cry. This is one of them.

{YOU WON'T MAKE ME FAIL!}

It cried out as he turned to attack me with its long claws. It had no chance. My thumb was faster. The sphere of energy flew from my hand straight to its forehead, completely destroying his cranium, turning into an unrecognizable black mass. The limb body fell to the floor, slowly turning to the strange substance and evaporating before my eyes. The sphere of energy was stuck to its head, and also disappearing. I watched the bizarre show until I was certain that there was nothing left.

“It's a good thing I dealt with it before everyone showed up. It would be a pain in the ass if it did anything.”

I whispered to myself as I returned to my seat.

I don't know what these things are, or where they come from. All I know is that I can see them for as long as I can remember. Yuuji can't see them, but he gets quite nervous and agitated when we are close to one of the stronger ones. How do I know it's stronger? Not sure. There's always this tingling feeling that I feel whenever I'm close to one of them. The more it bothers me, the stronger, I guess.

“Now that I think about it, I haven't seen one of them around here since that weird one showed up.”

There was one of these that showed up in the rugby field a couple of weeks ago. I get annoyed and uncomfortable just from seeing it. I know I can't deal with it, although something tells me it shouldn't be such a bother either way. It hasn't done much. From what I heard, there were some students that got sick and others on the team that were sent to the hospital these last few weeks. It was that thing's doing. Whenever one of these is around, bad things happen, even plagues can show up out of nowhere. And the stronger, the worse. I usually try to minimize its effects, but that one isn't something I can mess with. As long as it doesn't bother me, Yuuji or the others from the club, I'm cool.

Then, the door opened suddenly.

“What? It's only you today, Itadori?”

“Oh, it's you, council president.”

I say, staring at the Student Council president. Every now and then, he comes to bother us.

“Where are the others?”

“They are coming soon. Why?”

“I need to talk to them about this.”

Then, he showed me some papers. It was about the club's info, including activity, but it was mostly empty. After seeing it, I immediately got up and grabbed his collar.

“Hey, what the fuck is this!?”

“Ah! Itadori! Calm down!”

He grabbed my arm and struggled, but he couldn't free himself.

“Calm down my ass! We've been doing activities here in the club and delivering reports! Why is this empty!?”

“Occult research? How does that count as official activity?”

“Are you actually dumb or is your mind only filled up with numbers, you computer worm? Do you think legends and haunted stories are only for show? Don't you know that negative emotions can affect places and people? Why do you think the word "haunted" is for?”

“Oh, right, for example?”

He replied, as if mocking me.

“Cemeteries. Many people are buried there and left with pain, anger or regrets, not to mention all the negative feelings of the living ones towards that place. Have you ever gone to a cemetery, president? Especially at late hours? It's surprising how cold those places are, even at the hottest summer. It also gets on your nerves when you walk there alone, even during the day, and feel like someone is watching you, or worse, is right behind you. Negative emotions fuel these kinds of places, and even if you try to stay cool, it's not like we can control our fear, you see?”

“So, you think that's an excuse for you to keep this place? It's not scientific at all.”

I laugh at his face. This man has a heart of stone, although he gets easily annoyed, if his frown meant anything.

“Not scientific? Alright. There's a guy in the Occident who made experiments on spirits and stuff like that and no one could deny his claims and proofs meanwhile he could deny everything they used to rebuke him. How about that, huh? He has books documenting all his experiments and his discoveries. I got a couple back in my house if you want to read.”

Then, I notice his eyes go wide open.

“Wait, you read!?”

“What the fuck is that supposed to mean, you moron!?”

“Oi! Itadori!”

While in the middle of the "screaming contest", I heard a voice that made me freeze. For the first time, I wished my hearing wasn't good and that I had misheard it. Slowly, I turn to the door, my face sour. That fucking bastard was here again.

“Why are you still here? Where is your brother?”

This damn fucker. The coach. He just wouldn’t leave us alone.

“I’m from this club. So is my brother. Let us fucking be.”

I reply, still holding the president’s collar. Then, the motherfucker started laughing. The president was looking at me as if I had just said there were fat pigs flying outside.

“What are you talking about, Itadori? You and your brother are in the sports club.”

“What? No, we’re-”

It was then that it clicked me.

“You bastard! You changed our club!”

I let the president go and stomped towards the teacher. My foul language was well known at this point, so no one even bothered to try to change it, let alone him, that just laughed it off always.

“Of course! Your skills are better than everyone else in this school combined! It would be a waste of your talents! So, I did you the favor-”

“You changed the official documents of someone else’s without their consent! That’s what you did, you fucker! That’s a crime! Just leave us alone!”

“I refuse! I won’t let go of either of you! Never!”

I couldn’t stand him. If I could, I would punch him so hard that he would fly to the other side of the hallway, and that's quite a flight. Unfortunately, I can’t get in problems. I promised the old man I wouldn’t, at least in school.

“So let us make a bet! We’ll compete! If I win, you leave me and Yuuji alone! You win, we join you! Choose your game. I’ll go with whatever shit you come up with.”

“Oh! Are you so sure about it, Itadori? You won’t just go back on your word if you lose, will you?”

“Nah, that’s unlikely.”

Yuuji replied from the hallway, behind the coach’s back. With him were Sasaki and Iguchi, the other members of the Occult Research club.

“Young Itadori?”

“You see, Yoshi’s prideful as heck. He would rather hang himself than let go of his pride.”

He explained and the other two nodded. They were eyewitnesses afterall.

“I see, then it’s settled. Let us compete, Yoshi Itadori.”

“Don’t forget me, coach!”

Yuuji then said, surprising everyone there, but me. I smirked, walked up to my brother and rested my arm over his shoulder, and he did the same.

“He’s gotta a point, coach. You want both of us, so both of us will compete for our freedom. If we both win, we both get free of you. You won’t chicken now, will you, professor Ta-ka-gi?”

Both me and Yuuji are smiling at him, our eyes glowing. Everyone was looking at us in disbelief, but the coach was the first to get his shit back together. The bastard even laughed.

“You two must underestimate me. I expected it from the Dragon of Carnage, but I think the Tiger of West Junior High has been caught up in his twin’s steam. I’m not the thugs you are used to fighting in the streets. Don’t underestimate your teacher, you morons! I won’t lose!”

~~~~ ( Time skip) ~~~~

“Do you think we overdid it?”

“What?”

“With the coach at the shot put.”

“Nah. He asked for it himself. Now he’s gotta deal with it.”

“He shot it 14 meters though. He must have worked hard for that.”

“So what? You did double and I almost did triple. We won, fair and square. Now, he has to keep his word if he doesn't want me to turn him in.”

“Why you?”

“‘Cause you are a goody-goody and I don’t give a fuck. Now, let’s go. Gramps is waiting.”

“You know he is expecting us not to go see him.”

“Waiting to get his hopes crushed.”

We laugh it off as we get into the hospital. The nurses greet us, already used to seeing our faces around here. It’s been kind of a routine of us showing up after classes. That was the only reason for us joining the club. For me, they let us off before five, so we could get to see the old man early and get home while it was still bright. For Yuuji, it was a chance to use my “gift” as he would call seeing those things, and for some thrill.

“Hey, grandpa. We’re back. You okay?”

“Why are the two of you here!?”

“As lively as always, right, old man?”

We walked into the room, closing the door behind us. We’ve been doing this daily thing for months, but I still couldn’t wrap my head around that man at the hospital bed being the same that raised us single handedly despite his age. Yuuji and I start to arrange things around the room. I sat by the chair by the bedside and took a bag with fruits, a bowl and a knife.

“Here. I’ve brought some fresh fruits to you.”

“Carrying so much weight will wreck your back early, dumbass. Do you want that?”

“Then you shouldn’t have carried us in YOUR back at such a late stage, old man. You should have known your limits.”

“And let my grandkids cry with their feet hurting? I’m not such a monster.”

“Then, stop complaining.”

I told him while cutting the apple, taking out the seeds and stuff.

“And what about these flowers, you idiot? Stop bringing them! I already told you to go to the club instead of wasting time with me here. Go to the club!”

“The club ends early, grandpa. We wouldn’t be here if we didn’t have the spare time.”

“Besides, the nurses really like our flowers.”

“The more reason to not bring them!”

“Yeah, yeah. That’s hunger. Eat up.”

I tell him, silencing him up by shoving a piece of the apple in his mouth. He bit it and picked up the rest. He muttered something, but kept eating. I watched him eat the fruit at the bowl for some time in silence.

Our parents passed away a long time ago. We were too young at that time. We don’t remember a thing about them, and never cared about it. There was never a single photo of either them hanging around the house. Just the three of us. It’s as if they never existed in the first place. Our grandma had long left us and our parents were single children, so we only ever had the old man with us. It was almost just us from the start. It’s been long since we even cared about it.

“Yuuji. Yoshi. I have something important to tell you two.”

“That’s unlikely.”

I replied almost immediately.

“You dumbass jerk! Starting to call me a liar at such a late game!”

“I never said that. It’s just no like you.”

“Listen at the very least! It’s about your parents!”

“We don’t really care, grandpa.”

It was Yuuji's turn to shut him before he started.

“You don’t care!? I didn’t raise you two like that!”

“That’s just the reason, old man.”

“What?”

“You were the one who raised us. You are more of a father or mother than those two. With all respect, I couldn’t care less about them. It’s not their fault that they left early, and neither is ours for feeling nothing of people we don’t even remember the faces of or know anything about other than the names and we are their kids.”

“You… are trying to put on a good face, grandpa. We don’t need that show. It’s just the three of us. No one is watching us. You can just be… yourself.”

I looked at grandpa, who watches us both closely, the empty bowl left by his side. Then he sighs and turns to his side. I smirk, seeing the tips of his ears slightly red. That stupid pride of his. And he complains about me being too prideful.

“Yuuji. Yoshi.”

“What is it now, old man?”

“You are strong. I’ve known that ever since I first held you. No. The moment I saw you two, I was sure of that. The force that you kids have is something I’d never see in ten lifetimes.”

Both Yuuji and I are in silence, staring at his back, almost stupidly. It… caught us off guard. He usually isn’t like that, and we know it’s not a show. When it is, he is loud, really noisy, like a few minutes back.

“Boys. I would like you to put that gift of yours to use.”

“How?”

Yuuji asked.

“Help others.”

“Help others?”

I repeated those words. They felt strange to my tongue, like when I spoke a language not my own.

“It doesn’t have to be all the time or everyone. Do it when you can, with those around you or are capable of. It may be odd at first. You may feel lost, especially you, Yoshi.”

I, instinctively, glup at his words directed to me.

“Don’t expect gratitude from anyone. Not everyone was raised with good principles like you two. You just need to help them.”

Help others? Without expecting anything back? I know I’m not that charitable. I usually do favors, but expect some retribution. The only ones I don’t do… I look at Yuuji, who stares back at me, and we both turn to our grandfather.

“Your time will come someday. When it comes, be sure of having as many people around you as you can. I don’t want you to end up just like me.”

His words… They hang in the air for a while after he said them. His words felt foreing to me, and my head couldn’t understand it, but I felt my chest tighten, just like it did in the nightmare. I held the clothes above my heart for some time before my hand lost its grip.

“Hey, old man…”

I called him, but was greeted with silence.

“Grandpa?”

Yuuji, silent until then, called him out, with the same response.

I breathe and quickly stand up, reaching out for him and shaking him.

“Old man? Grandpa?”

He doesn’t reply. His strong body, that managed to shoulder us on his back despite us being too big and him being too old, were limp. I let go of him and turned to Yuuji. His mouth is gapped. His jaw is trembling. Not so different from myself. He looks at me, and in that second, we… just accept it.

He goes around the bed to grab the button to call the nurses. I search for the bed controls, making it go flat again. Carefully, as if his body would turn to cinders before my very eyes, I turn him and adjust it to the bed and the pillow, arranging both of his hands so they could rest over his stomach.

[Yes? How may I help you?]

I hear one of the nurses voices from the intercom, but Yuuji doesn’t answer. When I look at him, he is sniffing.

[Mr. Itadori?]

“...our grandpa is dead.”

~~~~ ( Time skip) ~~~~

I sigh as I finally fill the last blank space. Bureaucratic procedures could be really annoying.

“Are you two okay?”

I look at the nurse. She is looking worriedly at us. With pity. I just shrug.

“It’s our first time going through it. Even though we knew he didn’t have much time, it still hasn’t sunk in…”

Yuuji is the one who bothers to explain. As far opposites we may be, only he could understand me so well, and vice-versa.

“He would be mad at us if we cried, so…”

“He used to say that, if we had time to cry in the corners, we have time to solve our problems and live on. That’s why.”

“That’s… kind of heartless.”

The nurse says, and I just shrugged.

“It may be, but he was the only family we’ve ever known, so he wanted to make sure we wouldn’t get depressed and be back on our feet when he passed. That’s like him. A pessimist that prepared for the worst future he predicted.”

I sigh and turn to grab my pack, but then I see a shadow moving among the chairs. It was already late. There was barely anyone at the hospital, since this was a small town. The reception hall was empty, except for me, Yuuji and the nurse, or so I thought.

I turn to my brother. He is busy talking to the nurse. If it’s not strong, I should be able to do it while they are busy. I was ready to turn and look for another one of those things, but then I noticed the shadows moving and followed them.

My eyes lock with a guy I’ve never seen around here. Black, pointed hair, thug pose, bad guy face, dressed almost in black, or is it some other dark color? The lights are almost all off, so I can’t be sure. But that’s not it. I’ve beaten frail looking guys that weren’t what they seemed at first like him, as well as a dude double my age.

The problem is those wolves accompanying him. My skin is tingling, hard. The all familiar feeling from my entire life. They are just like those things. They are one of them. But it’s not just that. Damn it. Why do I feel the same feeling coming from him? What the heck is this guy?

“You… can you see them?”

I’m caught off guard with his words, but stand my ground.

“What are you?”

I ask him, staring him back intensely.

“Bro?”

Yuuji’s voice brings me back and I look at him. My mind runs wild. Yuuji was in danger. Everyone in the hospital. If that guy told those things to attack… I can’t imagine what would happen.

“Are you Yuuji and Yoshi Itadori?”

The guy calls us. When I look back, the wolves are no longer there. My whole body tenses, preparing for the worst. But if he was after us, maybe I still could deal with the three of them. Never fought with an animal, let alone two, that are predators and one of those things.

“Yeah. That’s us.”

Yuuji replies. He could see him too. He was not like those things.

“I don’t have time. I need to talk to you quickly.”

“Outside. Let’s not bother the nurses or the patients any longer.”

I replied, wanting to get him outta there as fast I could. He said he wanted to talk. More likely wanted something from us. If he chose to ask us rather than just attack us to get what he wanted, he must have his hands tied.

“Fine, but quick. The time is short.”

He said than went straight to the exit. This was good, but Yuuji came up to me.

“You know him?”

I shook my head. The worst part was the fact that Yuuji was involved in this and he would not back out if I tried to turn him away. This idiot is as stunborn as I am. If we ran, he would come after us, mostly likely sent his wolves. Yuuji could not see them. If they attacked, he would not be able to fight back. Now my hands are tied.

I followed the guy to the exit, and he didn’t take long to turn to us with his cellphone. There was a photo with a box and something really warped around some old paper. There was something written, but it was too old to be read. For some reason, it gave me chills. I wanted as much distance from it, but, at the same time, I wanted to get it, no matter the cost.

“This. Do you have it?”

“No.”

“Oh, yeah! I found it! It was at a thermometer shed! Weird, no?”

I replied negatively, but Yuuji did positively. Unfortunately, I did not have time to ask him about it. The new guy was faster.

“I need you to hand it over. It is a very dangerous cursed object.”

“Look, I wouldn’t mind giving it, but our clubmates really wanted to keep it. I’d like to at least have an explanation.”

“Hold on a second!”

This was moving too fast, but there was something else in my mind.

“Yuuji, when and why did you find this thing?”

“Well, senpai found it last week and wanted to keep it, but they were found and kicked out. They were thinking of going at night, but you know, they’re scared cats. They couldn’t even jump over the fence.”

“And they told you to go?”

“Yes.”

“And you went without telling me?”

“You sleep as hard as a rock! I couldn’t wake you up, so I went on my own!”

“How often have you been doing this?”

“Well…”

“Yuuji, when we are back home, we are going to have a LONG talk, am I clear?”

He shrugged and nodded. I sighed and looked at the other guy. It wasn’t unusual for our group to go into haunted places or hunt cursed objects. However, because of my ability, I could more or less tell how dangerous a place or an object was. In our “adventures” in the past few months we’ve been at the club, I made sure to bring talismans when we went somewhere and to have a priest take a look at the objects we found, just to be safe.

This thing in the box… I don’t know how to describe it. It wasn’t something to be messed with. I don’t trust myself with it, let alone this guy.

“You know. These cursed things are magnet to all sorts of trouble. Why do you want it?”

“To save people. That should be kept away from civilians' reach.”

“Too bad. That kind of explanation doesn’t serve me. You have to be more detailed, buddy. If you want that.”

He groans. He’s desperate. He really wants this thing in the box real bad. Now, it is his time to show his true colors.

“Annually, in all of Japan, ten thousand cases are left unresolved. It’s mostly missing people or strange murders. Did you know that?”

“No, but what about it?”

“They are works of curses.”

“They still curse people nowadays? I thought it was old fashioned.”

“Not exactly that type of curse, but pretty close.”

I cross my arms and sigh with my chin, for him to continue.

“People have a wide range of emotions. Some situations trigger positive or negative emotions. The negative ones are not a problem, if from a person alone, however in places that gather crowds, like schools or hospitals, that’s a huge problem. The negative energy of these kinds of emotions starts to accumulate and, eventually, create cursed spirits, or curses for short. For that reason, talismans are put in such places, to prevent that. The cursed object you have is such.”

“How can a cursed object be a talisman? Would that not make things worse?”

“Not exactly. It’s the same line of thought of using poison to become more resistant to poison. The stronger the cursed energy in the object, the better it will fend off other curses. It’s like putting a predator to keep those below them at the food chain in check.”

“But talismans get weak with time. You have to change it every now and then.”

“Exactly. The seal weakens and the cursed energy, that deflected curses, will draw them. If a curse absorbs them, they will grow stronger to how powerful the cursed energy of the object was. And the one you have, it's a special grade, the highest possible.”

“So we have a tick-tack bomb with us. What will you do with it?”

“The group I work with collects these objects and deals with them. If they are weak, we renew the talisman and place it back, to maintain its function. Yours is too dangerous. I’ll take it back, we’ll seal it properly, so no curse can reach it, and place a new, safer talisman in the place you found it. Now, please, hand it over now.”

I looked at him for a few long seconds. His despair was clear. If he is a con artist, he’s doing a really good job. But that would not explain those wolves.

“Yuuji, give it to him.”

“What? Really? You giving up without a fight?”

“This shit is out of our league. And his explanation kind of matches up with everything I thought and theorized up until now. It will be in better hands.”

“Okay, there’s just one problem.”

“What is it now!?”

Then, Yuuji moved to his pack and picked it up. The moment I saw the box, I had the same unsettling feeling from before, but not as much as I thought I would have it that thing was before me. Then, he opened the box.It was empty

“Senpais really wanted to have it, so I gave it to them today, while you waited for us. I was meaning to tell you, but senpai was thinking of meeting up at school after class to release the seal.”

~~~~ ( Time skip) ~~~~

“Damn it!”

Yuuji cursed as he kicked the school’s side gate. He and I were just outside the school grounds. We rushed here with the wolf guy after Yuuji revealed what Sasaki and Iguchi intended to do and how in such serious danger they were. The wolf guy had told us to stay behind, since it was, well, dangerous. I would have ignored it, since it’s my friends there, but there was two important problems.

First, the weight. As we got closer to the school, I felt difficulty breathing. When we finally got there, I could see almost like a dome around the building, cursed energy that was so dense as a fog that you couldn’t see three feet ahead of you. My body shivered. It was so heavy I couldn’t move correctly and had a hard time breathing calmly.

Second, Yuuji. If I had it bad, he had it a thousand fold. My twin was worse than a single leaf in front of a tornado, trying oh so desperately to hold on to the tree it grew up from. Despite that, I knew that if I went in there, he would follow suit and most likely get killed by those curse-things! He could not see them! He would be an easy target!

“Yoshi…?”

I hear Yuuji calling and I turn to him. He is at the gate, holding those bars tightly, as if letting go of them would make something worse happen.

“What is it?”

“I remember when you once told me… That you could feel… and see things. Could it be… these were the things you saw all this time?”

I… I couldn't answer his question at first. My eyes turn to the dome of energy and look at the building, where Sasaki and Iguchi were.

“Yes, but it was never this bad.”

“Even those monsters you said were around our home?”

“That… Well, they were scary at first, but after I learned how to deal with them, they weren’t as scary, you see.”

“Deal with them? You mean, we can kill them?”

“Yeah. Why?”

“I was thinking… of how scared I was. I never thought until today. That death could be so… so frightening… and disempowering…”

The moment he says that, the memories of the nightmare from the morning come back with all their might, along with ones from my childhood, when I first saw those things, these so called curses.

“...yeah.”

“I wondered if grandpa was afraid death…”

I snort.

“I guess he was more worried about if we would be able to live on our own with him gone.”

“Yes. I thought so too. Then, I realized: grandpa had it easy. He was not afraid of death, nor were we even after he died just before us.”

“Where are you trying to get?”

“We know that death will come one day, and are not afraid of the fact its imminent, but that it can come earlier than we expect. Curses… They do just that, don’t they? They kill people before their time.”

I listened to him quietly, watching as his back stopped shivering. A light came to me as I walked up to him and place a hand on his shoulder.

“Grandpa had a good death. Not without regrets, but without fear. He knew it was his time.”

“You want to save them so they can have… a good death?”

“Help others. He told us to do that, right? That we’re strong, so we should do it. You can kill those things, can’t you? So… we should… you could…”

Then, he turns to look at me. We stare at each other for a few seconds before I sigh.

“Right. I get it. But if I say ‘Run!’, you have to forget about me and fucking run. Got me?”

“Got it!”

We smiled at each other before, without taking much of an impulse, jumping over the gate and running towards the building.

“Where are they? Yoshi!”

“Fourth floor! At the end of the hallway!”

“Roger!”

We ran straight to the wall, Yuuji ahead of me. He jumps, getting some impulse from the wall, climbing it like we’ve done a couple of times in the past. Around my hand, I feel that cold energy settles and gains form, becoming a sphere, as big as a baseball. Glass shatters and falls, but I keep moving, climbing it up as Yuuji jumps in.

“Got ‘em!”

He cries. I don’t waste time and jump in just after him. I see the wolf guy with his wolves at one corridor, Yuuji at another one, holding Sasaki and Iguchi, and the thing, the curse, at the corner.

“Eat this, you shit!”

I cry while throwing the sphere at it, with all my strength. The curse turns to me, just to be mostly vaporized by the attack.

“Wow! That’s not what I expected!”

Yuuji exclaims, adjusting our classmates in his arms.

“Everyone okay?”

I ask as I get down the window and go up to them.

“Ah, they are just unconscious! Besides, all curses are like that?”

“Not all. Some look a lot more like anima-. Wait a second! You can see it?”

“Yeah. Somehow.”

“In death-or-life situations or in places like these, where the cursed energy is strong, normal people can see curses.”

The wolf guy says.

“Does that mean Yoshi is abnormal?”

“Shut up!”

“He’s right. There are few people that are able to see curses naturally like we do.”

“Whatever.”

I ignore them and focus on what’s important: the cursed object. We had to recover it, before one of these curses did… whatever they do to absorb and strengthen themselves. I focus on the unsettling, tingling feeling. My eyes turn to Sasaki and to a pocket at her skirt. There I found it.

“Oh! Gross!”

“There’s no mistake. That’s what I came here for. The special grade cursed object, Ryoumen Sukuna. Or at least, part of them.”

Yuuji and the wolf guy keep talking. I focus on the object at hand. It’s a finger. A red, rugged, twisted finger with one giant and pointy nails. Yuuji was right: it was gross. However, there was something about this object. Something… familiar.

I don’t know why, but I know I shouldn’t let them get it. But who are they? It doesn’t matter! No one can have this, other than me!

“Itadori!”

The wolf guy’s calling wakes me up, but the next thing I see is him pushing me away and Yuuji, along with Sasaki and Iguchi being pulled away by those wolves. Above us, there’s a giant hand.

There’s a loud bang, and I’m sent rolling through the floor. I look up and see that thing, the curse that was hanging around the rugby field. The wolf guy was in their hand, looking straight at me.

“Run!”

This is his last word before he’s thrown to the wall and that curse charges at me. I barely have any time to shield myself before the impact with its giant hand.

It hurts. It hurts really bad.

The next thing I know is that I’m rolling and there are stars above me. When did I reach outside? My head is spinning. I try to get up, but I soon see that curse.

We're at the rooftop of the corridor that connects the two buildings. The thing is staring at me, growling lowly, but unmoving.

“Bro!”

I hear Yuuji screaming at me through the hole in the wall. Has it always been there? The wolf boy joins him soon enough.

“You can’t fight it! You can’t exorcise that with your current cursed energy! Run! Don’t let it eat the finger!”

“Finger…”

I wonder, standing up, then I look at my hand. It seems that I didn’t let go of it despite the attack. This ugly finger. The damn cause of all of this bloody shit.

“Watch out!”

“Yoshi!”

Their calls woke me up, but too late. The curse had moved. It was right in front of me, reaching its hand to grab me. I tried to evade it, but not fast enough.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!”

“Bro!”

“Damn it! Hue!”

I was caught. Both the large hands of the curse were holding me, crushing me in its grip. Only my legs were free, though they couldn’t do much, anyway, and my right arm, where I held the cursed object.

The thing opened its large mouth, ready to swallow me almost whole, along with the finger. If I just had more strength, I could have done something. If I wasn’t as weak as I was in my dream, none of this would have happened. If only I had more power…

Wait… Power?

(You can’t exorcise it with your current cursed energy!)

(The stronger the cursed energy in the object, the better it will fend off other curses.)

(If a curse absorbs them, they will grow stronger to how powerful the cursed energy of the object was. And the one you have, it's a special grade, the highest possible.)

(Don’t let it eat the finger!)

If this curse eats it, it will kill Yuuji, that guy, my friends and who knows how many more. But, if I have it, at the very least, I can save them. Help others, like gramps wanted me to.

Quickly, before the curse bit my arm, I threw the finger up in the air. I feel the pain. The pain of my flesh being cut and torn apart. It burns. It scratches. It's so bad. I would only feel relieved if I lost my consciousness. Still, I cling to stay awake, eyes on the cursed object. I open my mouth and, without thinking much, I swallow it whole.

“No!”

“Yoshi!”

I'm not sure if it's the adrenaline of the moment or if it's the pain that's numbing my senses, but I don't really feel that finger going down my throat or its taste. What I feel is like a hard grip over my neck, pulling me down and out of that curse's hold. I fall endlessly into the pitch black darkness as the sight of the world outside becomes blurry and distant, until I can't really see it anymore.

Then, I finally reach the bottom, being fully surrounded by something like water, but too thick for it to be just water. I struggled to bring myself up, reaching for air. I resurfaced only to find a deep red sky with strange structures that seemed like bones rising all around me. When I looked around, I saw a mountain of bones, or rather, skulls, of all kinds of beings: humans, animals and skulls of beings that could only be demons. The air was heavy, stinking with the smell of blood and rotten flesh.

{Heh… Hee Hee… AGHH HA HA HA HA!}

My attention is caught by the laugh that grows louder close by. Searching for the origin, I find the figure responsible for all that noise. It's huge. A male, towering figure that's easily twice my height. A mountain of muscles that moved freely, as if it could bring hell to earth just for walking around. Beyond that, there were two pairs of strong arms covered in black marks that reached for his torso and back.

{I knew it! Light is best appreciated in the flesh!}

The male distorted voice echoed through the place, making it tremble. Looking back at that being, I could clearly see the energy surrounding that creature, emphasizing its muscular form. Over his shoulders, I could see a hole of sorts, and in there the curse that was attacking me, ripped to shreds and disappeared, having died without putting much of a fight. That thing was a curse, like any other I've ever seen in this life. Even if I combined every single curse I remember seeing from birth, they would not even reach the feet of this guy.

{A curse's flesh is no fun! Where are the people?! The women?!}

It was not enough for that curse. Killing one of his own was nothing but boring to him. They did not care if they were the same especies. They wanted more. They wanted the thrill of feeling superior to someone else, that could run, scream, shriek and beg for their life while at their mercy, and knowing, deep inside, they would not see the light of another day.

I had to get up. I could not let this curse run wild freely, but I can't do nothing. My body is heavy and cannot move. My head is foggy, twisting, pulsing in a way that feels like it could explode at any moment. The worst part was the images: a mass of confused and overlayed images playing fast and mixed like some kind of old movie or record from the tv. I saw my whole life playing out with another set of memories, that seemed to happen in somewhere else, or in a complete time entirely else. Yuuji and I were I in both of them.

In one side, it was the soccer tournament we won at the the third grade. In the other, it was us playing at the river bank. In one, I got into a fight with some thugs to make them stop bullying Yuuji. In the other, I'm back to that dream, with Yuuji’s corpse in my arms and those shadows raising arms to kill me.

The moment I see that scene, I feel like everything had stopped at once. All I had felt until them went away, as if they were never there in the first place. I breathe slowly, picking myself. The realization hit me like a truck.

{What a wonderful era I came back to! Women and children spawning like maggots! All for me!}

“Yoshi!”

The sight from above their shoulders shift and turn to Yuuji, standing at the rooftop and coming closer. The wolf guy was chasing right after him and grabbing him.

“What are you talking about, bro! You're not like that! Cut that crappy show!”

“Stop! Don't go closer! That's not your brother! That's Sukuna! That's a curse! Your brother is gone now!”

“No! You're lying! Yoshi! Wake up! Come back!”

{Hahahahahahahahahaha!}

The curse laughed, looking down at those two.

{You're my vessel's brother? Too bad, kiddo! That sorcerer is right! Your brother is gone! But don't worry! I'm in a good mood since I came back to life! I'll give you a quick death, so you'll see him in no time in the pits of hell!}

“Cut the crap!”

I cry as I ran to him. The curse turned to face me, his eyes wide open, but I was too close for they to do anything. I jump and cling to them, choke holding with all my might and cursed energy overflowing. Breaking their concentration, I take control over my body, forcing both my hands to my neck and holding it tight. It's hard, because they still have control over it, but not over me. I think it's about evenly split.

{You!? Why are you here!? Why are you able to move!?}

“My body, my rules, dumbass! Did you really think an extra like you could just take my body away!? Think again!”

“Yoshi?”

I turn, despite the difficulty. Yuuji and I are looking at each other, eye to eye. I could somewhat see the difference in my flesh: a new pair of eyes under my normal ones (which made my sight really weird), long nails, almost like claws and black marks over my torso. It was almost laughable, but I couldn't do so without risking them taking my body back.

“Yuuji! Listen! I don't have much time!”

I have a hard time keeping control as, back into my inner conscience, the curse is thrashing around, trying to get me out of them the best way they can. Too bad. We're both stubborn to death.

“Yuuji, beat the crap out of me!”

{What!?}

“What's going on? Is he nuts?”

The curse and the wolf boy are visibly taken aback, but that's our chance. Yuuji isn't shaken, but isn't moving either.

“Bro! Beat me with all your might! Beat the fucking hell out of me! Don't stop until I can't move anymore!”

“Roger that!”

{No! Are you insane!? Do you wanna die!?}

The curse is visibly shaken by my actions, and even more with Yuuji jumping head on to beat both of us. When he is right in front of us, I see the cursed energy forming around his fist and I smile. That will be a really good one.

The first punch is like a bullet train, sending us to the floor in one go. I feel the world spinning around us, and hear the curse groan internally. I keep my focus as much as I can, still holding my neck.

The next hit comes. And the next. And the next. And the next.

Yuuji doesn't stop. I can barely feel the floor breaking under me, the consciousness fading every moment like water running through my fingers.

{STOP!}

“DON'T!

The curse is now trying his best to get free of me, but with the merciless barrage of attacks from Yuuji and my stubbornness, having grown used to his punches, he can't do anything.

“You won't do as you please! When he is done, we are gonna have a long talk. You heard me, you little shit!?”

{DAMN YOU ALL!}

That was his last effort, because Yuuji's last punch was the one to finally knock us out. As my vision from the "outside" world turns black I release the curse and quickly set some distance between us. They turn to me, their face contorted in wrath before becoming startled. Either way, it was a really ugly face.

“Now, pretty guy, we have all the time and privacy in the world to talk all we want.”

I smirk, seeing his body go tense and face become serious.

~~~~ ( Time skip) ~~~~

Finally, after God-knows-how-long, I began to awaken, now in full control of my body. The curse’s ego was strong and imponent, but I managed somehow to overthrow it. Well, that pathetic thing is the last of my worries now. I don’t know how much time had passed nor what happened to my twin.

The first thing I notice is the pain in my whole body. Damn. That bastard beat me up good. I know I asked it myself, but hell! I’m gonna give him a little taste of it when I’m back.

Next is the voice of someone I don’t know anything about. Well, anything other that is annoying as hell.

“Oh, you awake? Rise and shine, sunshine.”

I look up and see a guy dressed in dark purple clothing, like the wolf guy, with white hair unaturally going up and a blindfold. Now, having seen the one who spoke, I feel an even greater urge to punch his face. He’s, somehow, just annoying.

“So, which one are you?”

He asks, sitting at the chair in front of me.

“The one who wants to beat your fucking ass-”

I start saying, but when I try to move, I feel something holding my hands. Now that I notice, both of them were stuck in place. I turn back the best way I can and see two thick ropes tying my hands tight and pinned to the ground. Around my wrists and the ropes, there were several seals. I take a look around, and see even more of them over the walls and the ceiling.

“This is…”

“You seem quick to catch on. Regardless of who you are, the guy or the curse, you can’t do anything here.”

“Where’s my brother?”

“You should worry more about yourself, buddy.”

“I don’t give a fuck! Just fucking tell me where the hell is my brother!”

“Alright, alright. Chill out, man. He’s safe. Your little show at the school saved his back. Although I’m still surprised how two civilians managed to contain the ego and knock out the King of Curses.”

“I don’t give a shit about what you think. Release me. Let me see him.”

“Buddy, you really don’t get it, do you? Do you have any idea what kind of situation you’re in?”

“I don’t know, and I don’t care. Let me see my brother.”

“I can’t.”

“Liar. You’re wearing the same clothes as that wolf guy. You must have some sort of power to deal with those curses. You can just use your cursed energy and release me.”

“That’s not what I meant.”

He said, then shifted in his seat, picking something and threw it to the floor, right in front of me. There were some papers, one of them was signed by multiple people and stamped with the word “Approved”. I look at the blindfold guy.

“Itadori Yoshi. Last night, you ate the cursed object of special grade, Ryoumen Sukuna. Defying death by eating it, you became the vessel of that curse, thus incarnating and bringing it back to the world. That curse is over a thousand years old, and one of the most dangerous ones. That being said, your secret has been set.”

“Execution.”

“It’s our rules. Can’t do anything about it. You are a threat to all of us.”

When he says that, I can’t help but laugh at it. The guy is really taken aback.

“Oi. I just said you’re gonna die, and you’re laughing? You actually have a death-wish or something?”

I laugh a bit more before calming down.

“Alright, alright. Cut the show, blindfold. What do you want?”

“What do you mean?”

“Exactly what I said. What do you want with me? You wouldn’t be talking to me if you didn’t want something.”

“What makes you think that?”

“You said it yourself. I ate a cursed object and became a vessel to a really dangerous curse. I’m a threat. Then, why am I still alive? If I’m such a danger, you would have killed me before I woke up, but you didn’t. That means that you guys want something from me. Or could it be that your group wants me that, but its actually you who wants something from me?”

I look at him, smirking when I see him move back a little. Got him. Then, the guy smiles.

“Well, well. It seems I have someone on the same page as me. That’s good. And you’re right. The elders want you dead, but I made them suspend your execution. For now at least.”

Then, the blind fold guy picked something out of his pocket and showed me.

“Does this look familiar?”

“It looks like the finger I ate. The cursed object.”

“Exactly. It’s another one. With this one and the one you made, there are 20 in total.”

He said, throwing the finger in the air, then some force threw it at the wall. The wall became cracked and with a crater in the middle of it, but the finger itself was the same.

“As you can see, we can’t destroy it. That’s how powerful the curse is. And it’s getting stronger. Currently, we don’t have anyone who can seal it.”

“And what do I have to do with it?”

I ask, already knowing what it could be, but I wanted to confirm it.

“You see, if we kill you, the curse that’s within you will also die. The elder are the type that think that they should get rid of problems before they become bigger, but you are special. Ryoumen Sukuna is written as having a big ego, one that makes him impossible to be controlled, and despite that…”

“I managed to subdue him.”

“Exactly. If we kill you now, we don’t know when someone like you will come around, if they ever do, given how much this curse is growing. So, I thought, if we’re gonna kill him anyway, why not do so after he consumes all of the curse?”

“Wouldn’t that give more power to the curse?”

“Actually, it would, but if your control over him was so weak, wouldn’t he have come back already?”

I sigh.

“You have a point.”

“The elders also agreed. So, I came to give you two options, Itadori. Die now, or find the remaining fingers of Sukuna and die after taking all of them into your body.”

I sigh, laying my back into the back of the chair. Honestly, I’m not surprised. Given how they simply didn’t kill me off when they had the chance, I thought this would have been the case. However, they didn’t change much. The same annoying chickens always. I’m surprised that they haven't executed me yet.

“So, what do you say? I need your answer.”

“Is anyone else listening to this, or is it just the two of us?”

“I don’t see how that matters, but it's just the two of us.”

“Then, my choice is either of them.”

Silence follows. Despite his eyes being covered, I can sense his eyes over me. He’s watching me intensely, but he’s shifting. He can’t read me. I smile.

“You know this is not an actual option.”

“Oh, yes. It is. I have a counter offer for you.”

“A counter offer?”

He adjusts himself to the chair. He’s interested. Good. He took the bait.

“I’ll completely subdue Ryoumen Sukuna, learn his techniques and act as a Jujutsu Sorcerer.”

Silence once again.

“So, you know about us. And how’s that even possible? And why would the elders accept it?”

“Not the elders. You.”

“Alright. Let me rephrase it: why would I accept it?”

“Because you hate the elders and the current system.”

“Ha! What makes you so sure of it?”

“The simple fact that you are here, accepted to hear my offer and spared a thought to it.”

For a third time, silence ruled the room. I could feel his eyes over me. He didn’t know how to react. He’s in my net.

“My personal thoughts, a system that’s not entirely based on strength is boring. Unfortunately, you have to deal with a system where the heads are a bunch of old-fashioned old people whose thoughts are so square that anything that isn’t of their liking is to be despised or anything that’s a little bit dangerous, such as myself, should be gotten rid off as soon as possible. Beyond that, they usually belittle people that don’t come from traditional curse families, don’t have a cursed technique or something entirely else. You hate that for some reason I don’t know. The fact that those shitheads haven’t changed in thousands of years makes it worse.”

“Where are you trying to get?”

“You know where. You want to change things, but a coup wouldn’t sit well in the eyes of the others, and a single man can’t make a revolution, no matter how powerful they are. You want allies, strong allies, and you saw in me an opportunity of making one of them, by turning me into a Jujutsu Sorcerer.”

I stopped talking, then stared at him. He remained there, unresponsive for a while before standing up, moving his chair and sitting back, sighing as he took off his blindfold. At that moment, I saw his eyes and the cursed energy behind them. Now I know who I’m dealing with. Then, he starts talking.

“I’ll admit: I’m impressed. You read me correctly. Yeah, I want to make a revolution through my students and want to make you one of them. However, all that doesn’t answer one little question: why should I take your offer? You still didn’t give me a single reason to not think you are trying to scam me.”

“Do you believe in reincarnation?”

“Yeah. You pretty much are the vessel that allowed Sukuna’s reincarnation.”

“What happened to me would be better described as a possession. The negative feelings that gave birth to the cursed spirit known as Ryoumen Sukuna tried to erase my consciousness and individuality and take over my body as our souls merged. They failed, but if they succeeded, this body and soul would still be Itadori Yoshi’s, but with his individuality erased and turned one with Sukuna.”

“Then… what reincarnation are you talking about?”

“The one whose soul comes back to life to a new body of their own, in any form. You know, like the reincarnation cycle of Buddhism.”

“I see. What about it?”

“Jujutsu Sorcerers and Curse Users must be killed with cursed techniques, so they don't become vengeful spirits. Isn't that right? Well, the problem with that is it also kills their soul and prevents them from having a chance of reincarnation. When a sorcerer or a curse user dies without being because of Jujutsu, their cursed technique is released and carries their last feelings along with it, usually negative ones. That's how they become curses, but that's not really them. The real ones are dead and parted to the afterlife, to begin the cycle of reincarnation.”

“What does THAT have anything to do with your offer?”

“The curse, Sukuna, became stronger because of his legends as a Demon God, but his soul wasn't really in his body.”

“Wait, you mean-”

“The sorcerer that originated Ryoumen Sukuna was killed without cursed energy and this led to the creation of the King of Curses. His soul was free to go to the afterlife, and reincarnate if such was given to him.”

Without his blindfold, now I could finally see his full reaction. His eyes were wide open, and his jaw dropped. He just stared at me and I could almost see the gears in his head turning around. To confirm his thoughts, I smirk. Then he starts to laugh.

“Now you understand where my point comes from.”

“It's still hard to believe, but if that's true-”

“And it is.”

“-that is just one more reason for the elders to want to kill you.”

“I never said to tell them.”

He smirked, putting on his blindfold and standing up. He walked up to the finger that was left forgotten for some time.

“So, you have a plan to get Sukuna completely subdued? Either way, he's still THE King of Curses, you know?”

“Not exactly, but I have a good start already. He can't force me to change places with him. That should be a good lead.”

“What about his techniques?”

“In case you're wondering, they are not innate or inherent. They were either made or learned. I can just relearn them. Although it's a new body, it should be no problem.”

“I see.”

“You sure you do?”

He laughed it off as he picked the finger up and turned to come at me.

“So, what should I tell them? That you'll become one of us?”

“That would not be a lie. I'm becoming one of you, again.”

“Yeah, that's right. Then, they'll want to kill you after you get all the fingers.”

“Well, you might say that I'll become one of you, but not mention that I agreed to my execution following the end of the search.”

“Hum…”

Then, he's by my side. His hand raises and his fingers snap. In a blink of an eye, the tight ropes are ripped to shreds and I'm free. I rub my marked wrists, but quickly forget about them and turn to him.

“Well… you want me to eat that now or what?”

“Just two more things. First, why are you doing this? Given what we know about you, you're… well, not what we would expect.”

“I live for my pleasure and displeasure. It's always been like this. Much like you, no one can force me to do something I don't want to. After all, throughout heavens and earth…”

“…only we're the honored ones. I get that. Now, second, just to be safe: do you mind making a vow?”

I shrugged and turned to him. I feel as if a thousand chains appeared out of thin air and tied me up, but I don't mind it. That's just the usual thing.

“I, Itadori Yoshi, reincarnation of the sorcerer Ryoumen Sukuna and the vessel of his curse, sincerely vow: I'll leave the clothing of an Evil King and become once again a Jujutsu Sorcerer. I shall follow this path to the day death greets me again, and until then I shall exorcise all cursed spirits that cross my way.”

#sukuna #ryoumen sukuna #jjk satoru #yuuji itadori #megumi fushiguro #jujutsu gojo #satoru gojo #jujutsu kaisen

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