A/N: Hello!
This is my first Jujutsu Kaisen fic. I have written this for FushiKugi because they don't really have that much of fics in this site. Based on so many medieval set-up stories, especially the ones from Indian folklore.
This fic is also available in AO3, under my account "ChimeraShadowGarden".
The shadow for the light~
Chapter 01- Kugisaki's rage, the future of Zenins
The dawn never appeared to be like a dawn, the breeze didn't seem to be a breeze, the meadows didn't seem to be meadows, and the waters didn't appear to be waters…. Because their existence was irrelevant for the people filled with remorse, solitude, shock and despair to even consider them. Every citizen in Shibuya, who belongs to royalty, the peasants, common folk, farmers and overall every citizen's heart, was filled with treachery. They all were hopeless. In the royal castle, the throne was empty. The seat of the crown Prince was empty. The velvet curtains were pulled off, and the maids were snuggling to each other in a corner of their room. The other females of the royalty were sitting hopelessly on their sits.
However, the Empress was the most hopeless out of all. Ever since the demise of her husband, she has been under the state of shock and trauma. The invasion of Sapporo did cause tremendous casualties in Shibuya. The ministers and other men who were guarding the castle during the invasion were discussing after their defeat to Sapporo. After the end of the war, the victors will take over the land of their opponents. Yes, the Sapporo men were coming to take away the land of Shibuya to make it theirs.
When every girl and women were lying in despair, the orange-haired Princess wasn't. After tying her hair into a high bun, she shielded her white Yukata with her armor and picked up her bows, arrows and katana. She also placed her sorcery tools in a small pouch.
The brave Princess walked out of her room with courage and bravery. But, that just made every courtier feel devastated.
"Princess Nobara! Princess Nobara! What are you doing?" the political minister asked. Nobara didn't bother to respond. She acted like she was deaf to every one of them. Right at the moment, she was just willing to avenge her dead father.
The Emperor of Shibuya was not her biological father. Nobara wasn't royalty by blood, but she came from a wealthy family before she got orphaned. She was from this Kugisaki clan, who were wealthy merchants, but during the attack of a cursed spirit, her clan members were slaughtered and she was the only member who survived. However, the Emperor was so generous and adopted her. The rulers of Shibuya were the members of Yoshino clan, but Nobara still kept her old surname.
When Nobara crossed the Empress's room, her pace slowed down and halted after Nagi gave a stare.
"Nobara, where are you going? Why are you dressed like that?"
"This is for redeeming me, dear mother. I feel like I have committed a crime by not taking part in the war, despite women are strictly prohibited from taking part in wars. If I were there, I could have given my life to protect my father. I hope at least Junpei is safe. Otherwise….."
Nobara firmly grasped her bow and wobbled it out of anger "….they'll pay a heavier price!" Nobara walked faster and luckily, there weren't any soldier guarding any entrances when she passed each and every one of them.
"Nobara! Don't go! You can't deal with the rulers of Sapporo all by yourself! You can't fight in this situation!" Nagi was shouting out loud from her lungs and stomach. Her eyes were bloodshot and her physical condition was too bad. The two chief maids were holding the Empress's arms.
"Soldiers! Please go and stop Nobara! I don't want to see my daughter dying either!"
"Roger!"
The soldiers started to run, but Nobara was fading away from the vicinity while riding her white stallion.
"If not, at least go for her aid!" the Empress remarked. All the remaining soldiers gathered themselves, including some of the younger Princes who didn't fight in the war as they were too young. They all were going for the aid of the Princess.
.
.
The Princess was hurriedly riding the stallion with one hand whereas the other was holding the bow. She didn't care about the rocks which were interfering; she just rode the stallion casually. After around twenty minutes of riding, she was at the outskirts of Shibuya. The land was barren and it was grassland with still some patches not having grasses. Regardless, Nobara was mentally prepared to fight in front lines. In her vicinity, she was clearly able to see a platoon marching forward. They were around fifty in number, whereas Nobara was there all by herself. But, the size did cease to disrupt Nobara's courage.
"King Mahito! It looks like the one thing which you were craving for is just in front of you!" one of the generals remarked.
"Hahahaha! It's definitely princess Nobara of Shibuya! I thought we'd be having trouble abducting her, but looks like we'll take her in no time!" Mahito laughed in a mocking light. Nobara got pissed off, but it's due to her temperamental issues. Her blood boiled after Mahito mocked her.
"How dare you underestimate me, King Mahito? Do you know how hard I have trained these years? I might not be a regular fighter, but I have high hopes on myself!"
"Oh… really? Can you beat all of them here single-handedly? Can you really do that? Did you know how much your father and your brother struggled in the war?" Mahito's laughter echoed all over the place. Unfortunately, that made Nobara angrier and she immediately advanced towards him with her rotating katana. Mahito felt an instant shock but soon blocked her katana with his's. Ultimately, this led to a duel. The sounds of the swords were dominating the surrounding. Both of them were so engaged in the duel, but Mahito was more concerned about abducting Nobara.
Sapporo was a very hellish kingdom. The earlier rulers were inspiring kings, but the later ones were cold-hearted, greedy, and cocky and had an unhealthy obsession for power. They have attacked so many kingdoms, not sparing its allies as well. They break peace across the world and this is clearly evident that they have invaded nations apart from Japan as well. However, right at the moment, nothing stopped Nobara from engaging in a duel with Mahito.
Soon, the reinforcements for the Shibuya Princess arrived. The alive members fought hard with the Sapporo warriors and overall, a small war being waged over. There weren't any brutal killings as the fight was pretty much balanced. But suddenly, the amber eyes of the princess caught her black-haired foster younger brother who was held hostage by one of the soldiers from Sapporo. Nobara stopped moving her sword her sword after realizing the situation. Mahito gave a sarcastic pitied looks followed by an evil laughter.
"Hahahahaha! Now what can Kugisaki Nobara do? After seeing her younger brother like that, she really couldn't do anything! Oww, young princess is so helpless! Know when you shouldn't be reckless, so don't behave like a fool, okay?"
"You are the fool here…. You are taking hostage because you are so weak. I want to prove my strength without taking hostage any of your soldiers, King Mahito."
"Well… now what can you do? Your brother's life is in danger. I was very much impressed by his prowess during the war, but after the King's death, he was in a helpless situation! According to the rules of a war, the side which loses the Emperor will lose! So, Junpei couldn't do anything to me!"
"JUST SHUT UP AND LET HIM GO! YOU ARE ACT LIKE A COWARD!"
Soon, she heard her brother whining in pain.
"Nobara nii-san! Don't worry about my life! Just don't listen to the evil bastard even if it costs my life! We should never let him possess you and the kingdom!" Junpei shouted out loud from his lungs, to just get kicked again. He helplessly stumbled upon the floor with him bleeding all over.
"See, it's all because of your reckless acts that your brother is under a very bad state. I am still giving you a chance, princess Kugisaki. You see me as a very terrible person, but I am still giving you a chance. I will surely let go off your brother, but on one condition. You should marry me and become the Queen of Sapporo. I am not asking for Shibuya, I am just asking for you! To be honest, I was impressed by your prowess and Sapporo will be glad to see a courageous Queen like you! I will give you enough and more wealth, but in return you should just marry me. Can you accept me, Princess Kugisaki?"
Nobara's blood boiled to no end. Never in her life had she wanted people to see her as a mere bride than a warrior princess. Of course, she doesn't have enough experience because women were not allowed to take part in wars unlike men. Gender discrimination was always prevalent. Nobara was not angry because of being asked to marriage, the exact reason was because Mahito was asking for it. She wouldn't have minded if they asked her for marriage out of love. But Mahito was never in love, he was so obsessed that he was willing to sacrifice anything, but just for her. The fact that he would be willing to give so much of wealth says everything. Her amber eyes turned bloodshot and her eyes gave a very evil look.
"Why should I marry a scum like you?"
This made Mahito raged.
"I won't marry anybody unless and until they are genuine with their feelings. And, are you trying me to lure with wealth? Do you think that a true princess will fall for a man when he offers her wealth? That's the most stupid assertion I have ever heard. You want to marry me for the endless wealth and prowess of the Shibuya Kingdom, right? What you have for me is not true love; it's for nothing but obsession and greed for land! It's clearly evident by your stupid love language, which is still not love at all! Why would I marry someone for their sake of land?"
"Kugisaki…. When did I say I would marry you for the land? I was heavily moved by your beauty!"
"Liar! To also add on… you play women's feelings like toys. Don't you already have three wives? Do you think that you love them truly? I'd never want to marry someone like you; I'd instead marry a skull with a bone on its mouth. You marry me for my external appearance. Your feelings for me are too shallow and they have no depth! You just have a lust for women, King Mahito!"
"HOW DARE YOU TALK ILL OF ME?"
Nobara was startled for a moment.
"You have lost the opportunity to marry me, who has so much of prowess! I am not going to marry you anymore! Instead, I'll kill you and your brother, right here and right now! Your demise is not so far, Princes Kugisaki!"
Nobara was absolutely clueless at that moment. Her brother was being held hostage and if she moves her sword against him, Junpei would die too soon. So, she had no option, but to die. But, any day she preferred to die instead of marrying a scum like Mahito. The sword was coming close to her throat and just when Mahito was about to chop her head off….
"That's never happening, you piece of scum!"
Between Mahito and Nobara, an arrow was projected. Mahito stopped his sword and retaliated back. The distance between him and Nobara increased. The battles between the other warriors stopped. All the eyes turned towards the speaker of the words.
Just around five meters from the beginning of battlefield, there was a big troop led by three people wearing Gusoku armors- The one at the Centre in navy blue, the one at the right in yellow and the shorter one is maroon who appears to be a woman. Their faces were hidden. Nobara couldn't figure them out.
'Who was the one who just saved me?' Nobara thought.
"Princess Kugisaki, you have taken the wise decision. It's so courageous of you to have taken the path of death instead of marrying him, because death is always better than marrying the devil," the one at the Centre remarked. Nobara was still confused who all the three were.
The two at the side took off their headpiece and revealed themselves. Nobara was so surprised yet shocked to see them.
"Prince Yuji and….. P-Princess Miwa?!"
"It was amazing to see you fighting princess Kugisaki! But, it's time for you to see us fighting. We'll take care of the rest!" Yuji remarked. Nobara finally remembered that Shibuya formed an alliance with Yokohama and also with Nikko, where Miwa is the oldest female heir.
"You brats! Do you think that I'll be patiently listening to you all?" Mahito yelled and came towards Nobara, but another arrow was projected by the navy-armored Samurai and landed right on Mahito's foot. He stumbled upon the floor and growled. The solider holding Junpei hostage went to Mahito for his aid. They all got extremely scared for the arrival of the next reinforcements.
"Those who want to marry a woman for lavishness and lust deserve this. You have no admiration and respect for her, then why would you want to marry her? You were discriminating and belittling her. You were just admiring her skills, her external beauty. There is a lot more in her. Without knowing them, how dare you'd abduct her?"
"Coward! Show your face! Don't hide it!" Mahito yelled, even when we was trembling in pain. He slowly took out the arrow, but still the pain remained there. Meanwhile, Yuji immediately went to Junpei and untied the ropes tightening his body and limbs. Junpei was taken back to the castle for medication.
"A coward is not a person who wears a Samurai armor hiding his face. A coward is a person who just hides behind without doing anything. I am just standing here right in front of you."
There was a moment of silence, unless and until the anonymous warrior removed the facial part of the Menpo. A pair of dark-blue eyeballs was glistening under the sunlight. He had a fair skin-tone and his jet black-hair was hidden by the other parts of Menpo. Nobara was shocked for a moment. She knew him, but she didn't get to meet him for years. Nobara, the Princess who was filled with rage was caught in her own world, was caught up in admiring the head of the Zen'in clan.
"P-P-Prince Fushiguro?" she asked in a very polite voice.
"I am really very proud of you Princess Kugisaki! You listened to your heart, not the wealth! I Hope you haven't forgotten that Kanto is your ally too."
"How did you know that we were engaged in a war with Sapporo?"
"Kugisaki, Sapporo has been an arch enemy for endless estates in Japan. Since we have made an alliance, your father did contact us before the war begun. He restricted us to not take part in the war with him as he didn't want to increase the casualties. But, he asked us to give support during emergency. We got a letter from Empress Nagi about the defeat around a week ago, so we had to set out from our kingdoms immediately. I too asked Princess Kasumi and Prince Yuji for support since we can put an end to this chaos caused by Sapporo soon!"
"So Prince Fushiguro, are you declaring a war? Hahahaha! This is like one huge boulder against four ants! Even if all the four kingdoms are going to fight against us, you all will meet your demise in no time!"
"Who said that? Each of our kingdoms has got only ten soldiers! It's still lesser from our side, but….. One thing what you said was right…. We will have a war right now and right here! Let this be with few members but, it's still a war!"
"Excellent! A battle between fewer pawns is still a war! Then get ready to die ants!"
"Yuji! You deal with the chief battle in commander and Miwa! You take care of the soldiers at the front lines! They are just ordinary soldiers, so I think you can take care of them together!"
"Roger!" both of them agreed and ran towards their enemies with their weapons. Yuji uses a scythe whereas Miwa uses a sword. Both of them engaged in fighting their opponents. Miwa was defeating one soldier after the other and Yuji was having a balanced match with the commander. He was a very skilled fighter, but Megumi always had high hopes on his friend.
"Prince Fushiguro, what shall I do?"
"Princess, you have done enough and more. For now, just deal with the irrelevant pawns along with Miwa. Be careful…. I can't afford to lose you."
Nobara's eyes had very mild tears without coming down.
I can't afford to lose you.
Those words kept echoing in her ears again and again. Her cheeks possessed crimson shades. She was getting distracted for a while, but unfortunately barely she realized that Mahito was coming with a sword to attack her. Megumi quickly noticed it, "KUGISAKI!"
Nobara snapped out from her unconsciousness and turned back. She felt it was too late until Megumi defended Nobara, blocking Mahito's sword with his's.
"Kugisaki, quick! Deal with the soldiers alongside Miwa!"
"Roger!"
Nobara went alongside Miwa to deal with them. Nobara was not as experienced in swords with Miwa, so she just followed Miwa's strategies and defeated them one by one. Yuji was struggling with the commander, but still he hasn't shown his full potential yet.
.
.
"Princesses Maki and Mai have successfully finished their expedition to Yokohama for a month!"
"Hail princesses Maki and Mai! Hail princesses Maki and Mai! Hail princesses Maki and Mai!"
In the royal court of Kanto, the courtiers were assembled. The twin sisters were walking on the aisle after returning from their journey to Yokohama to analyze the estate and assist the rulers in preparing the borders. Both of them were equal in height, had brown eyes and dark green hair. Both of them were wearing a white Yukata each, but Maki with navy blue Hakama whereas Mai with a purple one. There were a few facial differences between both of them- Maki had a longer hair ending up till her waist whereas Mai's ended up a few inches below her shoulders. Their eyes had different shapes as well. Maki had bigger eyelashes whereas Mai had smaller one.
Both of them looked up to their uncle Naobito Zenin, the current ruler of Kanto despite the clan's leadership has been passed on to Megumi at that time. But it's only the clan's leadership; Naobito had the control of whole of Kanto region still.
"You both have accomplished your mission successfully. I am very proud of my nieces. For years, the estates in Japan have been frequently attacked by foreign invaders and the rulers of Sapporo, thus we decided to secure the borders. Maki, Mai-both have excellent skills in strategic plans, and hence you both were sent to assist Yokohama, you both have given a light for the womanhood, proving that even women can take part in political matters. Now, you both need some rest, but before you can get back to your chambers, we are here to announce something important."
"Tell us, Uncle Naobito," Maki requested.
"Iori Utahime," Naobito turned to the scarred female teacher.
"Yes, my highness," she bowed down and turned to her former students.
Utahime is a mentor from Kyoto who trains princesses and women of noble status. She has not only taught them skills in martial arts, but also music, dancing, stitching, painting, making garlands and every other activity a woman or a girl does. However, students learn together with their gender-mates only till they turn fourteen. When they turn fifteen or sixteen, they can learn under any mentor. Each mentor can only train ten such students. Thus, Utahime has also taught Kokichi Muta, Noritoshi Kamo and Aoi Todo along with Mai Zen'in, Miwa Kasumi and Nishimiya Momo when they all grew up. Maki went to train under mentor Gojo Satoru with Toge Inumaki, Yuji Itadori, Megumi Fushiguro, Yuta Okkotsu and Kugisaki Nobara. They too had a pet Panda which was the only animal in the world that can talk. There were a few other students as well such as Junpei.
Utahime married Satoru when she turned twenty eight and settled with her husband in Kanto, eventually making her to be a part of the famous Gojo clan of Kanto. She still continued to teach for young girls even during her marital status.
Back in history, the Gojo clan failed to become the rulers of Kanto as the Zen'in clan members got the royal status due to their advantage over the number of members. Successfully, both the clans made peace and cooperated along with Gojo clan members agreeing with the Zen'in to become the future rulers.
"Well, where is your husband Satoru?"
Utahime gave an expression of disgust, remembering how irritated she used to be with his attitude.
"I am extremely sorry my lord. He has been engaged in training our son for the forthcoming warfare test for young warriors!"
'Hnn, I know he would have taken him to the local market to get him some arrows so that he can shoot some ripe mangoes when they train! And what else not, he would have taken our daughter to get her some sweets.' Utahime thought to herself. A vein popped on her forehead.
"What's the matter, Utahime?"
"Pardon me my lord; I was just angry with him for not coming here."
The courtiers were secretly giggling to themselves. Maki and Mai were silently yet openly laughing with each other. They could still remember all the antics of Gojo Satoru to Utahime. Once, all the twelve students overheard how funnily Gojo was flirting with Utahime on the night after their wedding. He flirted in a romantic yet in a way that pissed Utahime too.
Around thirteen years back on their wedding, there was some time allotted for playing games after the ceremony got over. All of their students took sides with their teachers and took part in the games. Gojo was continuously teasing Utahime after she lost a few games and that indeed pissed her off. Despite she was in love with Gojo, a few things about him still annoyed her yet she too found some entertaining.
"Maki and Mai, what's that giggling for?" asked Utahime.
"Oh, pardon us Utahime sensei, but…" still Mai and Maki weren't able to control their laughter. Utahime got pissed for a moment.
"Well enough. Get serious."
'Why do I get reminded of my wedding now?'
Utahime adjusted her throat and her white-patterned red kimono before she got up, "Maki, Mai. You both have turned twenty-six years. It's a general norm that women of Kanto are not allowed to marry when they turn thirty, and even brides of such age from other estates and nations are not allowed to marry the men of Kanto. Thus, as the former mentor of you princesses, it's my humble request that you both should agree with me and your uncle in this regard. Your uncle wants you both to get married soon, so do I as your sensei."
"What?"
Both Maki and Mai were baffled. Mai gave an expression of disagreement and sulked, whereas Maki's spirits came down soon.
"This is the best age to get married. I don't want you both to meet the same fate as I did. I got to marry Satoru at the age of twenty-eight and it was later. Back then, women were allowed to marry within the age of twenty seven. I crossed the limit by a year and had a very hard time to marry Satoru unless and until highness extended the age. This is the reason why we are concerned for you."
"But sensei, we still have four years for it. Why to hurry this up?"
"Mai, according to the Intel collected from estates in Japan; there are Princes and Kings around your age. This is the best time for getting you both married. If we lose this chance, we won't be able to find the appropriate suits for you both."
Maki developed some understanding. Mai too did, but she seemed to be a little hesitant.
"But, both your marriages are going to be different."
"Different? In what sense it is sensei?" Maki asked.
"The difference in choosing your grooms- As of Maki, we have planned to get her married to Yuta Okkotsu, the crown Prince of Hiroshima."
The courtiers were delighted because Hiroshima has always been friends with Kanto. The Prince too got a name for him when he once aided them in a war against Tibetans. There was a smile on Maki and Mai's faces too.
"Maki…" Naobito paused. "You and the Prince have always had the mutual understanding and camaraderie during the time when you both received education from your master Satoru Gojo. The bonding between you both has linked both Hiroshima and Nagasaki for years, thus lets complete this with your wedding."
Maki couldn't control the incoming exciting within herself. She has always respected him and she is so glad that she is going to marry a trustable person.
"As for Mai, we haven't chosen the groom… she'll be the one who will be selecting through a groom choosing ceremony!"
"A groom choosing ceremony?" she asked out of shock.
"Yes Mai. Unlike Maki, you'll be having a groom choosing ceremony. I will be inviting Kings and Princes from various kingdoms. You can choose anybody you want," Naobito assured.
"But…. How can I choose them? How can I choose a stranger to be my partner?"
"Mai! This ceremony has been practiced not only by other kingdoms; it has also been practiced by Zen'in clan for ages! The bride will get to choose any of the strangers. It's up to you to decide by what means you'd want to choose him unless and until it's by fair grounds. As a Zen'in, you also should learn to choose even the biggest things in your life even without any knowledge."
"But Uncle… I am allowed to know about the Princes, right?"
"Definitely! You too have the right to test them by any means. This is all what I wanted to tell. Now you both can get back to your chambers."
"Thank you so very much Uncle, but there seems to be a person missing here." Mai asked.
"Yes, I can't see Megumi here. Where is he?"
"Hmm…. Rather very disappointing news. When you both have been away from here for a month, Sapporo instigated a war against Shibuya."
Both the twin princesses were shocked for a while, especially Maki. She and Nobara were close friends but they both have lost contact after finishing their education.
"Do you mean, the estate where Nobara…"
"Yes Maki and unfortunately… they have lost their King and Sapporo won the war."
Mai was still shocked but Maki was filled with rage.
"Why didn't you tell us this earlier Uncle? Why did you have to hide it from both of us?"
"By no means had I wanted to disrupt the expedition because it's very important for the future stability of our kingdom and the allies. Yokohama is the common passage for enemies to invade us. Yokohama is also the strongest Kingdom in Japan, having Yuji Itadori as the crown Prince who is expected to become its King. We'll have to protect the strongest so that there can be no way for Sapporo to invade us again."
"But Uncle, where did Megumi go?" Mai asked.
"Did he take part in the war too?" Maki asked.
"Around a week ago, he went to give reinforcements for Shibuya. He has also asked Princess Miwa and Prince Yuji, they have also gone too."
"Miwa? That frail girl?" Mai asked out of concern, as she has been a close friend for her.
"And Yuji? When we went to Yokohama for the expedition, the Empress said that Yuji had gone to train in the wild for a year to enhance his skills?" Maki asked.
"Itadori Yuji has completed his training there around a few weeks ago. He joined Fushiguro and Kasumi on their way to Shibuya," Utahime assured.
"But Utahime sensei, why is that you sent Miwa for that? What if she loses her life?" Mai asked.
"When will you grow up Mai? Miwa is not that girl you know. Miwa has always been the best with swords. She has Yuji and Megumi with her, so why are you so worried? What was the purpose of training Miwa in martial arts and warfare? Miwa has grown up and she is brave, confident and courageous. She will handle it. Even Kugisaki might be there with them," Utahime said.
Naobito adjusted his throat and said, "Mai… This is the best test for Megumi for the throne. I am too old to handle the throne. If Megumi proves his worth in protecting Shibuya and defeating Sapporo, undoubtedly he'll become the next King of Kanto. The rulers of Sapporo are incredibly strong and they have captured endless kingdoms, proving their prowess. This is the best chance for Megumi."
"Hmm, I understand but will you allow me to help Megumi…."
"No Maki! This test is only for Megumi! He is being tested for setting up a platoon, devising strategies, appointing the best from his squad to fight against the stronger foes and also to understand his comrade's strengths and weaknesses so that he can appoint them the rightful opponents! You shouldn't interfere in this Maki! I know it's unfair for women not to take part, but the reason here is quite different. Megumi has become significantly stronger over years. He has surpassed me and every predecessor of his's. He has even surpassed Toji….the man who never accepted the throne."
Maki was paying heed to Naobito's words.
"During his period, we were about to make him the ruler but Megumi's mother just passed away. Right after her death, Toji left the palace and exiled in the forests. That's when Toji married Tsumiki's mother. Unfortunately, they both have been killed in the forest leaving Tsumiki orphaned. Thus, we adopted her to our Zen'in clan and even got her educated under a different mentor, but she never learnt any skills in warfare because her family was restricted to use any sort of violence. And Satoru himself opted to take care of Megumi till he completed his education. Thus, I am going to make Megumi the King as soon as possible! We'll face further consequences for delaying this! I hope you both can understand. Have faith on Megumi. He has grown up."
Both Mai and Maki nodded their heads.
"Dismissed!"
A/N: That's it for the first chapter. Working on the second and will try updating soon.
Thanks for reading!