Disclaimer: I do not own Jujutsu Kaisen. It is the property of Akutami Gege. I do however own any original characters appearing in this story.

6th Curse

The Crimes of Sato Kiku

佐藤菊の犯罪

satou kiku no hanzai

"What's wrong?" I heard Gojo Satoru ask me.

I shook my head, lifting my knees to hug them and burying my face in them; "S'nothing… I'm just a little bummed that I didn't end up inventing it…" I mumbled, but he heard me.

"Inventing? You mean your cursed technique?" he asked, and I felt him lean a little bit closer.

Well, duh. It's only natural that I'd be at least a little bummed out about that. Especially after I got so excited over nothing, thinking I managed to invent a new cursed technique all on my own, without any help.

I felt a little silly that I considered myself like an anime protagonist, for once in my two lives… and it'd been a bit of an ego boost for me, but I guess I didn't know Jujutsu Kaisen's world as much as that God had thought I did.

I just nodded in response, frowning.

"Don't pout, Yukine~" he said, and I felt him poking my cheek, "It's impressive you managed to access it in the first place, without being taught how to. But you know, it's impossible to invent a cursed technique. That's not how it works. It has to be inherited. That's why it's rarer to find a sorcerer outside of one of the sorcerer clans, such as the Gojo, Zen'in and Kamo clans, to name a few." He explained, and I lifted my head a little to look at him.

When he noticed me looking at him again, he patted my head again, laughing, "Don't worry about it! Like I told you, it's actually impressive you've come along far enough to kill curses like the ones earlier today, even though they were only on the lower end of Grade 4." He said jovially.

Isn't that like the weakest of the weak? And I fainted after taking them out? What does that say about me…?

"And yet, you're only five years old and you took out three of them on your own, and quite quickly. From here on, you're only going to get even stronger. I'll make sure of it as soon as we get back to Tokyo!" he said with a nod, looking determined.

I wanted to correct him that I was actually six, not five, but his last sentence distracted me.

I widened my eyes at him, lifting my head, "T-Tokyo?!" I repeated.

He nodded again, "Yep! Tokyo! I'll be finally taking you back home tomorrow, and once you've settled in and met mother and father, we'll—" he started rambling and I sat up even more, letting the blanket fall off my back.

I waved my arms, alarmed, "H-Hang on a minute, I can't just go with you just l-like that…!" I cried, and that excitable look on his face slipped off as soon as I did. He looked down to me, brows furrowed as if he didn't understand why I would say that.

After a pregnant silence, he asked; "Why not?" with a somewhat flat voice.

I ducked my head, not wanting to meet his stare.

"F-For several reasons… It's just too sudden. I only met you today and have known you for only a few hours, even if you say I'm your little sister. A-And I can't just up and leave without saying goodbye to all my friends. And that's not even mentioning mom's funer—"

"She's not your mother, Yukine." Gojo cut in firmly.

I furrowed my brows, "E-Even if you say that, she—" I began but he interrupted me once more.

Shaking his head and looking uncomfortable, he spoke; "No. I can accept saying goodbye to your little friends, but that woman doesn't deserve you mourning her." Gojo Satoru said to me. And looking at him properly, it was clear that he was visibly angry, but it wasn't directed at me.

It was directed at Sato Kiku.

He… really hates her. It was like his hatred for Sato Kiku was rolling off of him in waves. I trembled a little, wondering how I could be that important to him, even though he'd only known me for a year before we were separated. It felt a little unreal, to me.

'But even so,' I frowned at him, 'I don't like the way he's talking about the woman who raised me…' I thought to myself, squaring up to respond to his words.

"Why are you being so nasty…when you talk about the person I saw as a mom? All these years, she really loved and took care of me, you know!" I questioned him, wringing my hands on my lap and frowning at him.

He pretty much looked unperturbed by my angry tone, and only sighed out.

Satoru turned to me and put his hands gently on my shoulders.

"She 'loved and took care of you'? Maybe it looked like that, to you. But didn't you think it was strange how she basically forced you to hide under a wig and colour contacts whenever you went anywhere outside that house or met with other people? Didn't it bother you that she was forcing you to deny who you truly were and lie to people about it? Forcing someone to turn into someone they're not isn't love, Yukine. It's borderline emotional abuse. And even if she treated you well, like I said, she wasn't your real mother. She wasn't even your adoptive mother. She was your kidnapper." His words, which rang true to my own sentiments to the situation in some parts, rained down on me and I felt myself sinking further and further into the couch with the pressure those words put on me.

I know he was right when it came to how she made me hide my true appearance and was obviously telling me lies.

But at the same time, I still didn't feel like the love she showed me was fake at all. It was genuine – I know it was! Gojo was being too cruel and harsh when speaking of her, and it upset me…!

I bit my lip to hold back the emotion that was building up inside me, and squashed it all back.

I took a few soothing breaths, trying to calm down, and then swallowed.

"Then… why did she treat me so kindly? Why didn't she…send out a ransom or something if she was just kidnapping me? There had to be a reason she would do it, right…?" I mumbled, and then remembered what Hana-san said just a little while ago, before he came into the room.

'I imagine if her daughter had survived, she would have been just as sweet and understanding as you are…'

I licked my lips and quickly spoke up again, "Hana-san said something about 'if her daughter had survived'…" I mentioned and he made a sound of agreement.

"Yes, I'd thought that might be the case. I had heard, just a little bit before you were born… like five months or so before, she gave birth to a stillborn girl." He agreed and I widened my eyes in shock.

So… Kiku had a baby girl before I was born, but when it came out of her…it wasn't breathing…? My gut twisted painfully in sympathy for Kiku.

Did she take me because she missed her baby? Did I look even a little like her, or was it just because I was a baby in close proximity to her? Would any baby have been a potential target for her…?

I glanced back at Gojo, and saw that he was frowning, "When it was discovered that mother was pregnant again, with you, they held a bunch of interviews for a nanny for you when you were born. She was one of the women who applied, and eventually, she was hired. I was never really sure if she was the right choice since she seemed a bit too gloomy, but it was ultimately up to our parents and not me. They wanted me to focus on my training since I'd be going to Jujutsu Tech in a few years… oh. That's a school for sorcerers. You'll be attending it one day, too," he explained to me.

I hesitantly nodded, waiting for him to continue.

Gojo sat back in the seat, sighing, "Did you know? Before you were conceived, our parents actually had been trying for years to have a second child, but they'd all resulted in miscarriages. All five of them, and then came you, a real miracle baby. I'd almost given up on the idea of a younger sibling until then. I thought they'd probably just drag me down…" he said, and then a small smile appeared on his face;

"But then, mother managed to carry you the full 9 months without any troubles, and suddenly, the idea of a sibling started sounding more and more appealing. To have a little munchkin like you," he paused, and ruffled my hair to which I groaned, "Who'd look up to the amazing me as a role model, and who would depend on me…! It sounded great to me, and I started getting really excited for you to come. The day you were born… I think it was the happiest day of my life, actually! I couldn't wait to grow up together…well… even though there was a 13-year age gap between us, haha!" he said, grinning down at me.

I blushed, a little embarrassed at the attention and how giddy he was, and averted my eyes.

"A-And then…?" I prompted, trying to move it forward. He still hadn't fully answered the question I'd asked him.

All of his giddiness and smiles slipped away as he furrowed his brows, "And then, a week after your first birthday party, Sato Kiku disappeared into the night with you and vanished off the face of Japan," he gritted out, his teeth clenched and I could tell he was angry again; "I wanted to chase after her immediately, even though nobody had any idea of where she went and where to look for her. But they wouldn't let me! They said to leave it to the adults! They told me that all I had to do was work on myself, and get ready to enroll at Jujutsu Tech when I turned 15," he drawled sarcastically, scrunching his nose up in annoyance, "…Like hell was I going to just sit still like that! But I literally had no choice. They watched me like a hawk for the next year and a half," he grumbled.

I squirmed in my seat, taking in what he was telling me. Something was bothering me about what he said though…

He made me seem like such a big deal. He said that I was the result of the first successful pregnancy after not one, but five separate miscarriages in just over 10 years… But if that was the case then why did it take so long for me to be found, and not even by the Gojo clan as a whole but by Satoru, purely by chance? Were they really looking for me…?

I voiced my concerns to my brother, and added on; "Are the Gojo family poor? Is that why they didn't hire a private detective to find us?" I asked him and he looked like he nearly froze over.

His eyes popped wide open as he stared down at me, and he didn't say a word.

It was as if the thought hadn't occurred to him.

And his silence was making me nervous…

"Um… Gojo—" I began and he swiftly cut me off, even though he was still in a daze of sorts.

"Satoru. Or you can call me onii-sama." He said and I raised a brow, confused.

Is that him making a joke, with this kind of mood? Or is he being serious? There's no way I'm calling him 'onii-sama' though. That sounds too much like an ego stroke.

But there's more important things to focus on right now.

I licked my lips again, "Satoru… Um. Did I ask something bad?" I asked him.

He shook his head, "No… You didn't ask anything wrong, you just… I never thought about that. All this time I was so focused on my own searches for you, mixed in with my school assignments, training, missions… I don't talk to our parents much, so I didn't think to ask how the search was going on their side. But now that you mention it… it's too strange." He said thoughtfully, rubbing his chin and frowning. He glanced at me, before shaking his head to clear his thoughts, "No, it can't be that…" he muttered.

"Can't be what?" I asked him.

"Sharp ears, huh?" he grinned, and scrubbed my head playfully again, "Don't worry about it! Your amazing, best-in-the-entire-world big brother will solve this mystery once we go back home!" he said to reassure me.

I grabbed his hand to remove it from my head, flustered, "But what about-!" I began but he removed my hand from his and patted my shoulder gently.

"Of course, not before you get to say your goodbyes. We'll leave as soon as you've done that, tomorrow." He agreed, pointedly avoiding mentioning Kiku-san's funeral altogether.

I tried to prompt him on that, but he further deflected it, taking advantage of Hana-san returning from the kitchen by asking for updates on dinner, and what we were eating. He really didn't want to entertain the idea of a funeral for Kiku-san, and it made me feel sad.

I mean… after hearing it from his point of view, I can understand his disdain for her.

On my end I was enjoying warm meals, love and tenderness, bedtime stories and lullabies from Kiku-san, feeling like a kid again and feeling so loved, and because of that, wanting fiercely to protect my new mother figure for nearly an entire year together since I reawakened in this small body of mine.

Meanwhile, on Satoru's end his worries about his baby sister's whereabouts were being stifled or ignored by our real parents, it seemed, and he was made to focus on his Jujutsu sorcery training and school. All the while, his sister's kidnapper was keeping the sister he waited for so long for away from him.

And now there was possibly a deeper mystery to our parents' actions or potentially, the lack thereof on top of that.

It must've been so stressful for Satoru. And I was the cause of it all. He wouldn't have endured this kind of stress in the original story, because I didn't exist in it.

"Yukine-chan? What's the matter? You've been picking at your food. Aren't you hungry?" Hana-san's voice brought me out of my thoughts, and I looked up from the food I'd been pushing around my plate with my chopsticks.

Both Hana-san and Satoru were looking at me from in front of their own plates, which were almost empty now, unlike mine.

I flushed at being caught, and felt uncomfortable. 'Maybe I should excuse myself…?' I wondered, and then pushed my plate away a little, "I-I'm not hungry…" I began to agree, before being proven a liar by my own traitorous stomach, which grumbled loudly.

I kept quiet, hiding my eyes from them.

After a quiet moment where I felt their concerned gazes on me, Satoru was the next one to speak.

"Does this have anything to do with me refusing a funeral for Sato Kiku." Rather than asking it, his words felt more like a statement. Because that was the thing that was truly bothering me the most.

I gulped, "I-I feel like if I were to not see mom… the person I saw as a mom off into the afterlife… I'd regret it forever and ever…" I said, my voice trembling, "E-Even after everything you told me about her… I-I can't change how I feel. I wanna say my goodbyes to her, too, because she loved me and I loved her and it was real no matter what you say…!" I said shakily, avoiding looking at the two of them.

"Yukine-chan…" Hana-san uttered, her voice thick with emotion, but Satoru didn't say anything.

After a minute where nobody said anything, Satoru finally replied.

"You understand why I'm against the idea…right? You know how I feel about what she did to our family…don't you?" he asked, and I nodded my head, "And you still won't budge on this?" he asked again.

I nodded my head vehemently, lifting my head and looking straight at him.

"If you don't let me…I'll never forgive you even if you are my brother!" I told him and he winced.

He slouched back in his chair a bit, sighing deeply. He seemed to deeply consider it for a while and Hana-san uncertainly glanced back and forth between us.

After a moment, he spoke up.

"Do you know how a cursed spirit is formed? It's a product of negative emotions such as anger, fear, envy… and regret. It builds up like a sediment and takes form. I hate thinking about it, but death comes to everyone just as it'll come one day to you…and even me. It's even more dangerous for a sorcerer to die with any lingering regrets. That's why it's so important that we don't have any regrets and can fully devote ourselves to what we're trying to achieve as a sorcerer." He explained for us, even though the concept was likely lost on Hana-san, he assumed I would understand it.

I mean… I do.

"I really don't want you to hate me… No matter how I feel about all of this, I don't want you to one day end up cursing me for ignoring how you feel." He said, putting a hand to his face and brushing his hair back with a grimace.

I looked to him hopefully, "Then…?" I hesitantly asked him.

Satoru nodded his head in consent, "Alright. The Gojo clan will carry out all the necessary arrangements for the funeral of Sato Kiku. At the end of the day, she was an employee of ours, after all," he said and I widened my eyes.

As I widened them, I felt tears slip past my lashes and trail down my cheeks. I clambered down off my chair, ignoring whatever he or Hana-san were saying and went right over to Satoru, jumping up to grab onto him.

He pulled me up onto his lap, and held me close clumsily, asking me what he said wrong, but I just sobbed into his chest, saying nothing else.

I'd get to say a proper farewell to my second mother.

Onigiriri: I hope you liked this chapter! It took me a bit longer than I would have liked, but I managed to get it done, finally.

Next up will be a special chapter from Sato Kiku's perspective, so I hope you'll look forward to it.

Please leave feedback reviews if you have the time. I love hearing about what the readers think. It keeps me motivated and happy. :) xxx