Hey everyone, sorry for the long wait. I know a lot of you were waiting on a new chapter and I hope it's to your liking. I got a lot of inspiration for this and the new JJK fic after watching the movie, which if you haven't seen it, I highly recommend it. Anyway, if any of you are interested in chatting in real time with me or some other very talented writers and readers feel free to join the discord server. Who knows, maybe you might be able to convince me to update a fic you want to see updated. A big thanks to Skairipa1337 for the Beta and help with the chapter.
The link is:
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"So the exchange event is here in Tokyo this year?" Naruto spoke into the phone. Putting the phone on his bedside drawer, he put it on speaker and continued drying himself off. How Gojo always managed to call him when he was either busy or didn't want to be interrupted was beyond him. Maybe the six eyes gave him senses that told him when the perfect time to bother him would be.
He stifled a laugh at his own quip and rubbed his upper body and hair while taking his uniform off of the coat hanger and picking out an undershirt.
"That's right." The man confirmed. Naruto smiled and punched an open fist in excitement. Apart from the curses he'd fought, it looked like he would finally face off against Utahime's students. In the past whenever he and Gojo would train in the Kyoto area, they somehow would run into the scarred woman.
Naruto suspected that the man had set that up so they'd meet but he never had anything concrete to back up his suspicion. Still, it was fun to see the two dance around each other. It seemed the only person who Gojo bugged more than him was her.
"So you calling me to wish me luck or something?" Naruto asked. "I'm pretty sure I can handle myself against anything they have."
Suddenly, Gojo laughed, causing Naruto to frown in the direction of the phone. The man didn't let up for well over a minute before getting himself under control and coughing once.
"No. Actually I just wanted to let you know that you won't be participating in the event."
Instantly, Naruto's good mood faded. "What? Why?" He asked, throwing on the shirt and jacket over his body.
"Normally first through third year students would participate, however there was a slight change to the rules after last year's event." He explained.
That got Naruto's attention. Something big must have happened for them to suddenly switch things up, especially if things have generally stayed a certain way for a long amount of time. "What happened last year?" He asked, taking a seat at the edge of the bed so he could get his shoes on.
"Okkotsu." Was all Gojo responded.
An image of the tired looking young man flashed through his mind. Naruto made a mental note to call him soon, it had been a good while since they last spoke. That thought led to the memory of their last spar as well.
Okkotsu was perhaps the only person who could give him a run for his money apart from Gojo, what with his ridiculous cursed technique. He briefly wondered just how powerful he'd gotten over the past year. Miguel was a well trained sorcerer in his own right, and the things he could be teaching as well as the cursed techniques Okkotsu could come across in their travels could be shaping him up to be a real big name in the world.
"What did he do? Did Rika go on a rampage?" He asked. He thought Okkotsu had a good grasp on it, maybe he was pushed too hard? Perhaps before he got a handle on his power part of his control had slipped up. That was the only explanation he could think of.
Fortunately, that theory of his was dispelled shortly after as Gojo quickly muttered 'no' a few times quickly.
"Not exactly a rampage. At one point during the event Rika managed to come out for a short period of time but was soon reigned in. Even after only using a bit of Rika's power, Okkotsu still had enough to breeze through the competition."
Naruto nodded, he'd experienced what he could do with just a bit of the special grade curse's power so it came as no surprise that he would have little trouble against sorcerers in training. Still, how did that correlate to why he couldn't participate.
As if reading his mind, Gojo continued. "Anyway, the exchange event isn't only to pit the two schools against each other. There's a reason why there's a team event followed by one on one battles every year." He explained. "The event is a way for the students to be recommended by higher grade sorcerers to increase in rank and let them take higher paid jobs.
The entire event is monitored by the staff and if any student shows promise, they can be recommended for a promotion."
That made sense, he thought.
"In your case you're already classified as a special grade sorcerer. You have no promotion to work towards and would most likely clear the competition by yourself." He finished.
"Damn." Naruto muttered. As much as he wanted to argue about it and make a case for why he should participate, he couldn't. He'd just fought and killed a special grade curse not too long ago, compared to that, some students wouldn't pose too much of a challenge.
Sighing in disappointment, he turned speaker mode off and put the phone up to his ear.
"Alright so what do I do while that's going on?" He asked.
"I'm glad you asked. You're actually going to be with us. Even if you are still a student you're one of only five special grade sorcerers so your word will carry some weight. You're gonna be asked if there's anyone you believe deserves a promotion and why."
"That doesn't sound fun at all. Who are the others?" He asked.
Gojo hummed for a second before responding. "Utahime, Principal Gakuganji, Principal Yaga, Mei Mei, and myself. I really hope things don't get awkward in there." The man said. Even though he couldn't see him, he could tell Gojo was grinning like a mad man on the other side of the phone.
He was the type of person after all, to gloat when he's right about something regardless of who you were.
"From what I've heard you haven't been answering her calls. I'm proud of you." He continued with sincerity.
That was true, over the past few days he'd constantly ignored her calls in favor of meeting up with Nagi. He was sure Mei Mei was pissed but he didn't care. She stayed disregarding him so why should he show her any courtesy? He wouldn't lie and say it was easy, a woman like her knew how to use her looks to get what she wanted from him.
He'd need to continue being strong the next time he met her. Though that was usually easier said than done.
"Thanks Satoru."
"No problem. By the way, you're sitting next to her on the day of the event." He threw in shortly after his reply.
Whatever gratitude he felt towards his cousin for looking out for him evaporated faster than Jogo when he was caught in his domain expansion.
"Anyways, there's one more thing I wanted to run by you."
Naruto was tempted to just hang up. If he did that though, the next time he saw him he was sure the man would be extra aggravating. "Alright, what do you want?" He asked, trying to get the conversation over with.
The tone in his relatives' voice changed from overly happy and mischievous to serious in an instant. "I'm going to need your help with training one of the first years for a little longer."
Naruto blinked. Was that all?
"Ok, do I tell them they're with me or do they already know?"
"Actually, you're only going to be focusing on Kugisaki for now. Itadori still needs help controlling his cursed energy. Fushiguro needs work with his ten shadows technique, and I need to have a chat with him about something important.
"You've done a good job with them so far but I'd like it if you could focus on improving her physical strength and versatility with her cursed technique." He finished.
Naruto thought back to the last spar he had with the two first years. They definitely worked well together and were smart enough to come up with a plan on the fly that would have worked against almost anyone bar him and Gojo. Between the two of them however, she was definitely the one that needed more work.
"Alright. I'll talk to her later then. Anything else?"
"No, that's all for now. If you need anything, call me." Having said what he needed, Gojo hung up leaving the blond sorcerer to continue his morning routine. As he finished preparing himself for the day, he mentally went over everything he knew about the young woman in order to decide on the best course of action for her.
After five minutes of thinking he stopped. He realized he really didn't know anything about her or Fushiguro for that matter. The first step in knowing how to motivate someone was knowing what drove them, what they aspired for, and what they were willing to do to get there.
A thought popped into his head and he couldn't help but smile. He knew exactly how he would go about this.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Wiping the sweat off of his face he took a few deep breaths before pulling his phone out of his pocket. He still had about an hour left before he knew Kugisaki would be free, which gave him just enough time for a few more practice runs using Playful Cloud and to take another shower.
Spinning the three sectioned staff carefully around his body, he bent down slightly and dashed forward at the training dummies he had set up. He could feel the gaze of his fellow second years who were sitting at the stairs at the edge of the field. He'd been at this for the better part of two hours now and he knew he was getting close.
If he could pull this off and have it be near second nature, it would be a huge addition to his arsenal. He knew it wasn't something that could just be done on a whim, but from what he'd been told, after doing it multiple times it would become a much easier task.
'Focus on your cursed energy' He thought to himself as he moved. His eyes and mind sharpened as he approached his targets. Slowing down, he spun the weapon around his body and as it was about to connect, he pumped his cursed energy through the weapon.
Panda, Inumaki, and Maki all looked on with varying degrees of surprise when the field flashed black and the first dummy was obliterated. The blond had successfully pulled off a black flash, but didn't stop there. Right after the first one, he jumped and twisted his body in the air.
His right leg connected with what would be the head of an opponent and once again, another flash of black went off through the area.
Naruto landed and examined the damage he did with a large grin on his face. He couldn't exactly describe how it felt but it was as if he could every last bit of cursed energy flowing through his body.
'This is probably why it gets easier.' He thought to himself. If someone was this in tune with their energy, it would be a cakewalk.
Deciding to call it a day, he waved at the second years and went to put the weapon back before heading back to his room to freshen up.
An hour later the blond was on his way towards Kugisaki's room. He'd been told by Fushiguro that she would probably be there since she had commented something about her hair getting messed up during training.
'Ok it should be…..this one.' He thought as he stopped in front of one of the doors. He knocked twice and thankfully, he could hear footsteps making their way to the door.
It opened revealing the young woman still dressed in her uniform with a comb in her hand.
"I told you I'm not letting you borrow it Itadori…" Kugisaki's voice trailed off when she realized it wasn't her pink and black haired classmate at the door.
His eyes quickly went up to her hair, it looked fine to him. Ignoring that for the time being he cleared his throat.
"Bad time?" He asked.
The orange haired woman looked slightly embarrassed about her outburst and quickly tried to save herself. She coughed into a fist and stood up straighter. "Sorry I thought it might have been Itadori. Did you need something?"
He nodded and proceeded to explain what would be going on for the next few days until the exchange event took place. To his delight she didn't seem upset about the fact that he would once again be teaching her.
"Alright sensei, when does training start?" She asked.
He smiled. "Now actually. Get changed, we're going to Harajuku."
Her eyes lit up at the idea of going to Takeshita-dori once more. The good mood only lasted a brief moment however, as the realization that she didn't have enough money to do anything hit her.
Having seen the myriad of emotions cross her face, Naruto was sure he knew what was going through her mind and reached into his pocket before she could speak. He pulled out a small thin black rectangle that clearly read 'Gojo Satoru' on the front.
"Satoru's treat." Naruto said cheerfully. The woman closed the door and yelled out that it would only take a minute for her to get dressed.
Harajuku
Takeshita-dori was as packed as it always was. Locals and foreigners from all walks of life flooded the street, taking in the various shops and enjoying everything it had to offer. Among them were the two jujutsu sorcerers who were seated at a small pastry shop enjoying some crepes courtesy of Gojo, not that he was aware of it.
Kugisaki took a bite of her pastry and inwardly moaned in delight, food really did taste better when it was paid for by someone else.
Swallowing the small bite she turned to Naruto who was just finished his own and spoke. "Hey, so what exactly are we doing here? I thought we were supposed to be training." She asked curiously.
"We are."
The orange haired first year frowned in confusion. While she was definitely enjoying her time here, she couldn't really understand how this would help her in any way.
"When I was trying to think of the best way of helping you, I realized I know next to nothing about you. That's why we came here today, so I can find out who you are." He revealed.
"So that's why you asked all those questions today." She mumbled to herself. Suddenly, a thought came to her mind. "Wait. If you just wanted to know about me couldn't we have done this back at the school?"
He nodded. "We definitely could have but we didn't for two reasons." He said, holding up two fingers. "I actually enjoyed that last shopping trip on my first day so I figured we could do it again."
That comment brought a smirk to the young woman's face. She flipped her hair to the side and with a smug look retorted. "I see you're a man who knows when he has good company."
Naruto chuckled at her smug attitude but didn't correct her. She wasn't wrong.
"The second reason is because Gojo annoyed me earlier in the morning so I figured we could have some fun at his expense."
That was something she was definitely on board with. "Well, you got my story. I just wanted to leave the countryside and come to the city. That and reuniting with my friend here. I'm sure it's probably not what you expected. So how will this help us?"
Naruto tapped his chin trying to think of the best way to say what was on his mind. "Well, it gives me an idea of how hard I can push you and let me know what kind of person you really are."
"You got that from an hour or two of shopping with me?" She asked, slightly interested in his answer.
He nodded. "You're a confident outspoken woman who says what's on her mind regardless of who you're talking to. Despite your friend leaving your hometown all those years ago you're still determined to meet up with them soon which shows you sticking to the promise you made even if it was when you were a little girl." He began. "You don't buy into the whole 'man vs woman' thing and do your best regardless of what situation you find yourself in. That's something I really like about you."
The first year stared wide eyed at his analysis as he spoke. She didn't think he would get so much of her correct with the little amount of time they had spent together. She was actually rather impressed. Before she could reply, he held a hand up to stop her and continued.
"All of that tells me that you'll take whatever I throw at you without complaint. As long as you keep to your word, I can't see a reason for you to not be a grade one sorcerer by the time I'm done with you." He smiled. "Truth be told, I think Gojo might have left me to train the best of the bunch."
At his words Kugisaki was forced to turn her head to the side. She grit her teeth in frustration as no matter how hard she tried, she could not force the heat to dissipate from her cheeks. While she enjoyed compliments from both men and women, the sincerity and confidence in his tone got to her.
Once she felt her cheeks cool down she put a cocky smirk on her face to cover up the embarrassment she felt and leaned back into her chair. "Hm. Flattery won't get you anywhere, even if you're right."
Her facade began to break when her temporary teacher just laughed at her words. Kugisaki cursed herself at that moment when she began to feel the heat rise to her face again. Even though she had yelled at Itadori and all but told him he was bad with women, she wasn't that much better with men.
Here she was blushing at the sight of a guy smiling at her. What the hell was wrong with her? She wasn't like those girly girls she'd seen on tv that got tongue tied when a cute boy compliments them.
"Shut up!" She yelled, though her voice carried no malice. Her gaze shot to the side where two older women happened to be walking by and smiling at her with knowing looks on their faces. "What are you looking at?"
That only seemed to make them giggle and continue on their way.
"You're funny Kugisaki. Anyway if you're done, we can keep looking around. I don't have a plan for today yet anyway so we can pretty much enjoy our time here. Come tomorrow, the real training is going to start." He said.
"Well, I did see this cute tracksuit in one of the stores down that way." She said, pointing her thumb in that direction.
Naruto shot up to his feet and pushed the chair back under the table.
"Alright then, let's go."
The two continued walking through the bustling street, checking out every shop that caught their attention and enjoying everything Gojo had to offer them. The duo left Harajuku at about six pm, the sun was just barely starting to make its way into the horizon. Needless to say, each of them left with four bags of things they'd bought for themselves.
By the time they arrived back at the school, he made sure to walk her back to her room and let her know to meet him in the center of the field at seven the next morning. The moment he arrived back in his room, he tossed Gojo's card on his bed and let himself flop on the mattress.
Giving himself a brief moment to rest, he pulled his phone out of his pocket and checked the time.
'It's just past six here so over there it should be….about ten in the morning I think.' Naruto thought to himself. Double checking that he was right with a quick internet search, he nodded to himself and scrolled through his contacts until he found the one he was looking for.
The usual ring was replaced with a prolonged beep for a minute until the person finally picked up the phone.
'Naruto?' Came the voice from the phone.
The blond smiled and sat up immediately. "Yuta. How's it going?"
"Pretty well. I'm still amazed at how different things here are compared to back home. What about you? Anything new happening?" He replied.
"Well, I'm officially a student here in Tokyo."
He could imagine the wide eyed look on the other special grade sorcerer's face at the news. He'd been one of the people that had tried to convince him to join last year apart from Gojo.
"Really? I thought you wanted to go overseas and see how things worked in other parts of the world." He asked with clear confusion in his voice.
"I did. I was already looking into it but Satoru called me out of the blue one day and told me Sukuna had a new vessel and needed backup for his students. That caught my attention and he asked if I would do him a favor and enroll to keep an eye on him." He explained. "He thinks the higher ups are plotting to kill Sukuna's vessel and has me here in case anything happens when he's not around."
"They are known to do that." Okkotsu replied, remembering how he had been put up for execution. "Higher ups aside, you're a second year there, how are you getting along with the others?" The way he said it had Naruto narrow his eyes into the phone.
"I haven't spoken much with them. I was put in charge of training two of Satoru's newest students while he deals with Sukuna's vessel. Now he has me focusing on one specifically. I only had the chance to talk to Inumaki, Panda, and Maki for a brief moment."
"How's Maki doing?" The young man asked a little too quickly. "And Inumaki and Panda I mean."
A large shit eating grin made its way onto the blond's face. He could hear Okkotsu stuttering on the line trying to convince him that he'd just spoken too fast and he meant all of them.
"Maki is doing good. Great even, we're supposed to spar sometime soon just haven't been able to set things up. Why? You worried about her? I can pass on a message if you'd like." He teased. This was gold.
"Well, I….how's Mei Mei doing?"
Naruto's smile instantly vanished from his face, replaced with a look of suspicion. "What do you mean?"
Now that he'd managed to turn the tables, he could picture the man standing up right with his arms crossed looking at him with a smug look. Part of him was upset that things had turned on him, but the other part was proud that Okkotsu had finally grown into his own.
Just by talking to him he could tell this wasn't the same man who used to walk with his head down, shake at the sight of danger, or have a depressed aura around him. The only downside was that now he had no problem dishing out as much as he took.
"I've heard that woman has you under her thumb and you're bound to mess up badly because of it." He replied without sugarcoating his words.
"Whoever told you that is full of it. Anyway, I actually called to see how your training was going. The last time we fought neither of us could do a domain expansion. How much stronger have you gotten?"
The two men continued their phone call for another half hour, catching up on everything that had gone on in their lives over the past two months. To Naruto's delight, he found out that his rival could also now perform a domain expansion. Though, both refrained from telling each other exactly what their techniques did.
"Naruto. One more thing before we hang up. Listen carefully, it's important."
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"So when is our next move?"
Geto looked over at Mahito who was seated comfortably on another foldable chair, overlooking the sea. Closing his eyes again to relax, he spoke.
"Soon. Jogo's death was a minor blow to our forces but a blow nonetheless."
"Well, you did warn him he would die if he tried to fight." Mahito replied with a careless smile on his face. "Though I wonder, what was he hit with that there was no trace of him left?" At this, he turned his attention to the plant-like special grade curse who was standing off to the side with its arms crossed.
"I'm not sure." Hanami replied. "He laid out his domain but shortly after Gojo and Sukuna's vessel were allowed out."
Geto smirked, knowing exactly what must have happened. "I see. Jogo's domain was overwritten. If Gojo and Sukuna were allowed out that mean's Naruto cast his own domain and killed him inside. He really will be a problem in the future."
"So what will we do about him? We have a plan for Gojo but nothing for him." Mojito asked again.
"We don't have a second prison realm, so we'll need to make sure our plan goes as we've discussed. In Shibuya after feeding Sukuna, we'll have him deal with him."
Mojito tilted his head slightly. "Will it be that easy?"
"It never is. We'll just have to make sure we play our cards perfectly then. Hanami, you'll most likely run into him, keep close to the other sorcerers to limit his techniques. You don't need to win, just hold him off long enough for us to get what we need."
The plant-like curse nodded but didn't respond. It wouldn't be as easy as they said but they would succeed. Their future depended on it.