DISCLAIMER:

I do NOT own the Oregairu and Jujutsu Kaisen series as they are respectfully owned by the creators and studios.


Days ago...

"Capture Hikigaya Hachiman?" Hanami questioned. On a tropical beach with an ocean that stretched endlessly, three people discussed their next move to progress the plan of sealing Gojo Satoru and bringing Itadori Yuji, also known as Sukuna's vessel, to their side.

One was Hanami.

The other appeared to be a tall, slim human with long black hair partially tied up behind his head while the rest draped down his back. He wore a gold-colored kasaya garment over black yukata robes with white tabi socks and zori sandals. A person would think the man was some sort of monk or a Buddhist priest.

The last one was a cursed spirit with a hunchback posture and had a single eye in the center of his face and had black teeth as well. The upper half of his head resembled a volcano, and his hole-like ears were filled with corks. His outfit was a green layer with black spots over a black outfit. The special grade curse, Jogo.

There was also another cursed spirit floating in the water, but it didn't become part of the discussion since it was still a cursed womb. Yet, that cursed spirit created the tropical space.

The execution of their plan would take place in Shibuya on the 31st of October. The day of Halloween. However, the obstacles were formidable and dangerous.

One, obviously, was Gojo Satoru.

Initially, Jogo thought little of him since he was nothing but a human, but after being defeated effortlessly, the volcanic cursed spirit finally comprehended their biggest threat.

Second was Itadori Yuji and Sukuna.

An important goal in their plan was to convince the King Of Curses to join their side, but Sukuna was a problem himself. He was a being who only lived for himself and seek any form of amusement whether it'd be tormenting women and children, mocking and killing weaklings, or act as the ruler of everything. Selfish, cold-hearted, sadistic, and arrogant; Sukuna was a bomb that would end both their enemies and themselves. Itadori Yuji was also taken into account. The monk guessed that under the guidance of Gojo Satoru, he'd receive an abnormally fast development of becoming a strong sorcerer. They might have to be wary of him, despite being a sorcerer for two months.

Last but not the least was Hikigaya Hachiman.

"What makes that human so special?" Jogo asked the monk. "He looks far lower than a lowlife."

"He is tremendously special... hmm..." Geto held his chin in thought. "Well, it's better to tell you this sooner than later. Listen carefully, that boy... bears the power of a god named Shani Dev."

"A god? Gods really exist?"

"Well, if we put it in a metaphorical sense, you did meet one who is blindfolded and almost exorcised you."

"Shut up."

"Well, Shani Dev was actually a human who brought karma to people who have done good or bad deeds. If it's good, then a blessing, but if it's bad... divine punishment. He was a sorcerer from a distant history way before Sukuna's birth. His cursed technique allows him to reward those who commit good deeds to him and punish those who harm him. I don't know the details, but his power can even defy our understanding of jujutsu. I heard there was a time when he made a binding vow with one of his adversaries. In exchange for getting what they want from each other, they won't harm each other in any way until death. However, one day, that man lied to him about something that made Shani Dev furious. And so, the 'God Of Karma' used his cursed technique to punish him, resulted in the man being trapped and tortured in a domain until his last breath."

"So he used domain expansion? It sounds like that human threw a tantrum." Jogo scoffed. "All that over a lie? He is more childish than an infant."

"No, no. He didn't use domain expansion." The monk answered while waving his hand nonchalantly. "He 'created a domain' as the man's punishment."

"You're making me even more confused. Stop with the nonsensical riddle and get to the point."

"It's like that special barrier the curse user named Mèngyáo used."

"?awaniko ni eno eht naem uoY"
[You mean the one in Okinawa?]
Hanami asked.

"Yes, that one. That veil did two things: hide the entire scene inside the barrier; and to get the non-sorcerers out of that area. Now one question: How did the veil get those non-sorcerers out of the battlefield, I wonder?" When the monk asked that question, the two special grade curses looked at each other as if they were asking if the other knew the answer. They averted their gaze to ponder further until nothing came to mind after ten seconds. After waiting for that long, the buddhist monk sighed mockingly with a smile and sat on an outdoor lounge chair.

"The answer is that it didn't."

"?naem uoy od tahW"
[What do you mean?]

"It's not that it moved non-sorcerers from the area, it moved the sorcerers instead." While lying on the chair comfortably on his back, the monk explained further. "The veil creates a separate dimension that copies the appearance of the area they planted: The buildings, environment, and even the sky is copied, but there aren't any non-sorcerers. An empty dimension."

"Wha-?! Then what happened to the weak humans?!" Jogo asked in a bewildered tone.

"They were fine. In fact, they never left." The monk answered while resting his head, relaxing under the sun. "While the veil was cast, the non-sorcerers continued their normal and pathetic lives in the area like nothing is happening at all. Meanwhile, sorcerers or those with high enough cursed energy are sent to a separate dimension completely identical to that area, fighting to the death. No one can see the barrier after it's completed."

"I've never heard of this. How does that work?"

"I don't know the details. The scrolls and records of that curse user's family were lost. But I do understand they use the principles of a domain for such a special veil- hmm, I think calling it a veil is too inaccurate. It's more like an innate domain? No, its main purpose is to hide the scene from others, so perhaps a veil is the right term after all?"

"?rewop s'veD inahS htiw od ot evah taht seod tahw oS"
[So what does that have to do with Shani Dev's power?]

"That Chinese girl didn't cast it with her own power. That barrier technique is cast using a cursed object. To put it simply, the domain isn't created within her mind like all innate domains, but it's a creation of a separate space entirely. The story of Shani Dev's punishment is the same. In other words, he created a domain expansion that isn't his. For example, he can create a fire-based domain expansion like yours, Jogo. Or possibly Gojo Satoru's Infinite Void."

"He can do such a thing?!" Jogo's volcano on his head erupted.

"There are many stories about Shani Dev's power, though there are some that are exaggerated. One thing is for sure: he defies all logic and common sense of our world."

"Then why capture instead of kill?" Jogo asked with folded arms.

"The 'transformation', as many liked to call it, has three stages:..."

First stage: The Awakening
This stage is the most dangerous process as it involves the releasing of huge amounts of cursed energy that can spread as far as a city. It is dangerous because those amounts will only linger around the air like invisible smoke, causing a mass increase in curse activity and boosts the existing curses' powers. There is a way to pass the first stage without occurring such a dangerous scenario, but because the foreign organizations (Samsara's Helm, Shoal Of Ropeholders, and the Dhamini Troupe) have no means of finding the bearer before the awakening, the method is impossible to be used on time.

Second stage: Remodeling
After the first stage, the bearer will possess enough cursed energy to utilize in things such as exorcism and others. Then, it is said the brain and body may undergo changes as well, but that is not confirmed. During this stage, he is protected by "fate".

Third Stage: Resurrection
After the second stage, Shani Dev will finally be resurrected through the bearer's body. However, records and evidence of such a result have not been discovered mostly due to the actions of the Dhamini Troupe. The organization has been successful in killing the previous bearers, with some still in the first stage.

"Previous? There were humans who previously possessed Shani Dev's power?" Jogo asked after realizing that.

"Apparently, the story goes is that in his final moments before being killed, Shani Dev used his cursed technique to give his soul to one of his followers." The monk answered with an uncaring behavior. "But again, there are a lot of exaggerated stories, so let's not believe them too much. My guess is he used some kind of cursed object to store both his cursed energy and technique and gave it to someone."

".elbaveileb erom sdnuos tath"
[That sounds more believable.]

"Anyway, as for Jogo's previous question, it's because Hikigaya Hachiman will not die in the second stage because of a defense mechanism called 'fate'."

"Fate?"

"No matter what we do, fate will intervene to save him from death. Even if we drop a nuclear bomb right on his face, he'd still miraculously survive from that. So the best way to deal with him is to seal him, and while he's sealed and enters the final stage, we kill him."

"Seal him, huh? How are we going to do that?"

"I have one special grade cursed tool and a grade one cursed object in my possession." The monk answered while raising two fingers as if to count. "The cursed tool is called the Rod Of Brahma, which said to hurt Shani Dev's foot and prevents the user from falling victim to his cursed technique. Then, there is the cursed object called Indra's Net, which has the ability to turn anyone ensnared by it into a comatose state. We'll use Indra's Net to seal him, and when he reaches the third stage, we'll kill him with the Rod Of Brahma." (1)

"?dor tath htiw ydaerla mih llik ton yhW"
[Why not kill him already with that rod?]

"It works on both Shani Dev and the 'resurrected one' only. And so, we need to capture him and take him to a secluded area where no one can find us. It takes a long time to fully activate the net as well."

"The more we discuss this, the more troublesome this human seems to be." Jogo said while sitting on a lounge chair right next to the monk.

".rerecros a sa gnikrow elihw ydaerla emoselbuort eb ot sraeppa eH"
[He appears to be troublesome already while working as a sorcerer.] Hanami said while watching Dagon floating in the water. Then, the standing door opened, and they turned to see Mahito entering while stretching his arms.

"Good work." The monk complimented him.

"I did what you asked. Honestly, if you didn't give me that suggestion, I wouldn't know that I can do it at all." Mahito said while lying on the lounge chair next to Jogo.

"You have one of the most versatile cursed techniques. I know it's possible for you to do something like that."

"Hey, what the hell are you all on about?" Jogo asked while looking back and forth between the two talking to each other.

"I asked Mahito to set traps to lure Hikigaya Hachiman." The monk answered.

"Basically, I just wreck havoc in places near Tokyo to get Jujutsu Tech's attention. If they send Hikigaya-kun to one of the incidents I made, I'll know immediately." Mahito showed them his right palm that had eyes growing from it. Those eyes popped out of his palm and crawled into the sand.

"What if they won't send him?" Jogo asked with doubts.

"They will." The monk spoke while sitting up. "The higher-ups are not that lenient with abnormalities like him. They might use the same strategy that killed Itadori Yuji, or try to cut as much resources from him as possible. Once Mahito finds him, he will capture Hikigaya and take him to the destination I found days ago. Hanami, it's best to come with him as well, since you have special skills in escaping and getting through things undetected."

".dnatsrednu I"
[I understand.] Hanami accepted the plan.

"Can I at least have a chat with him? He looks like an interesting guy!" Mahito suggested in a carefree attitude.

"You could, but don't waste too much time. And I doubt he would be friendly with you."

"That's fine~, that's fine~."

"There's something that I realized, Geto." Jogo spoke to the monk named Geto, which caught his attention. "You said Shani Dev gave his power to someone, yet when you explained it further, you used the term 'resurrection'."

"Ah, my bad. That's just how the Dhamini Troupe and the Shoal Of Ropeholders like to call it. The more accurate term would be 'inheriting Shani Dev's will'. His will is passed on to the first bearer's predecessors that have the most compatibility with it. As for how that last part works, even I don't know."

"Inheriting his will, huh?" Jogo held his own chin in curiosity.

"Anyway, I'm counting on you. Mahito. Hanami."

.

.

.

"Geto..." Hanami just stood still while staring at the flying neurons circling around both him and the young sorcerer in front of him. At first, Hachiman had the eyes of a dead fish. People saw it that way because of his tired-looking expression and the dilated pupils. Now it looked more like that of a beast finally standing straight to confront his prey. There was no fear in those eyes, just the animosity and the desire to fight the special grade curse.

Hanami became a prey entering the predator's territory.

"We've severely underestimated his growth!"


The Shell And The Slug: Part 6

The Truth Of Origin

His feet remained straight and strongly planted to the "ground". His breathing slowly regained its normal pace despite the exhausted and wounded state he was in. There would be no room for self-doubt, no time to ponder what future regrets would he have from every decision. The young sorcerer's vision was in the present because surviving must come first. Most of his unnecessary thoughts were buried until the time of peace would return to him. His enemy, the special grade curse named Hanami, was a being that required his own bones broken to survive the overwhelming danger. He saw Hanami removed the white cloth to reveal his left arm that was entirely black with white fingers and a large red flower on the shoulder. Then the curse clasped his own hands together and quickly gathered cursed energy.

"... Hey, how long are you gonna keep that pose?" Hachiman asked, which made the cursed spirit confused. "Is that a prayer? I didn't know cursed spirits have some kind of religion."

"?tuoba no uoy era tahW"
[What are you on about?]

"You've been holding your hands together for like 30 seconds now." The sorcerer's answer made Hanami confused, but he ignored it and gathered cursed energy to cast his own domain. Then suddenly, Hachiman was standing a few feet in front of him. "Hello~? Hmm, I guess that means it's working?"

"That was so fast! I couldn't even sense him move!" Hanami flinched and threw a right punch at his face on instinct. Then, Hachiman snapped is fingers close to his face. "Hello~?"

"What is this?" The branch-eyed curse took a step back in bewilderment, and noticed his own fist was still raised, realizing he stopped his own punch unconsciously. The feeling of disbelief wasn't just from that, nor was the fact that Hachiman reached a new level and was gazing at him with killing intent. It was because Hachiman's movements looked like it was "cut". For example, Hachiman snapping his fingers. Hanami didn't see him raised his hand and approaching to his face, it just appeared in an instant. It wasn't a matter of speed because Hanami was clearly faster. "Is this the effect of his domain expansion?"

"Don't even try anything unnecessary."

"It's over. I can't even do anything."

"My domain can steal the person's awareness if he tries to hurt his opponents. It's not like the same effects as when I normally use Isolation Effect because rather than losing your awareness of your surroundings, time, or other things, you lose your self-awareness. Meaning that you 'cease to exist'. It's even worse than sleeping and waking up like normal. My domain erases your sense of existence and fixes it after 8 seconds."

"My sense of existence? It is different from waking up after spacing out or sleeping in general. I can't describe the feeling... because there is nothing to feel. It's just time, events, and movement just cut out of my mind."

"You know, if I just do nothing while you're trying to attack me, you won't even notice my domain keeps erasing your self-awareness. You'll just keep attempting to punch me, get 'erased', and then repeat. An endless loop. From my and anyone's view, you look like you're frozen still."

"?ssenerawa-fles ym tsol I nehw gnihtyna gniod ton uoy era yhw, nehT..."
[... Then, why are you not doing anything when I lost my self-awareness?]

"Hm? Oh, that's because the same thing will happen to me."

"What? A domain that affects the user as well?" Hanami thought in bewilderment. He couldn't tell if Hachiman was toying with him, or there were ulterior motives behind lying. "Was he stalling? A bait? No, none of those make sense. He could've just kill me now that I'm trapped in his domain. Then he's telling the truth? I've never heard of a domain expansion that work against the user himself... Wait, I see."

".uoy fo revelc etiuq si tahT ?ti si, wov gnidnib A"
[A binding vow, is it? That is quite clever of you.]

"Hmm... You're not wrong, but not right either." Hachiman shrugged his own shoulders. "My domain expansion is quite different from others. Instead of the usual guaranteed hit at the cost of massive amounts of cursed energy, I placed rules so I could make the domain without exhausting myself too much. Basically, we'll be playing a game."

"tsael eht yas ot, evitavonni etiuq si ti ...ygrene desruc gnisu ylelos fo daestni niamod ruoy fo noitadnuof a sa selur gnitnemelpmI"
[Implementing rules as a foundation of your domain instead of solely using cursed energy... it is quite innovative, to say the least.]

"I highly doubt that..." Hachiman mumbled. There were doubts in his mind that sorcerers in the past didn't think about using domain expansions through such a method. In the world of Jujutsu, one of the crucial element was that everything was not free from conditions.

Binding vows, heavenly restrictions, rules, trades, weaknesses.

Hachiman understood that the "power system" of this world involved such things to achieve the greatest efficiency of techniques and capabilities in general. With that line of thought, he hypothesized that domain expansion was also included in that rule.

The first hint he received was the mysterious veil the curse users used on two separate incidents, which were the Okinawa assassination and the assassination of himself. He wondered how they were able to create a veil that prevented non-sorcerers from going in and removing the ones out of the area. He had never heard of a veil that could do more than just turn anything occurring within the planted area invisible to people outside of it.

The second hint was the two domains he encountered on separate occasions as well. Experiencing an incomplete and a complete domain expansion left unforgettable memories into his mind. It was the pinnacle of sorcery, but even that should have limitations other than the amount of cursed energy required to cast it.

And so, he started investigating on that topic and tried finding ways through experiments.

Firstly, he learned how to cast veils to gain a proper understanding about barriers. Then, tried to make more functions to it, such as trapping someone with high enough cursed energy output to see curses. His first experiment was when he and Yuji used the cursed spirit as a training partner. Hachiman already knew the veil was a failure because it didn't turn the sky into night. When Yuji crashed into the barrier, it worked, but at the cost of breaking into pieces. Although he called it a failure, he could see progress.

In his mind, he thought placing additional functions into a veil requires a step-by-step process. The problem for him was he couldn't figure out which step should he go first. In that experiment, he did:

Gather cursed energy - focus on the desired effect - follow the basic veil procedures and speak the incantation - release cursed energy to make the barrier.

He did three more experiments with that process and the results varied: The second experiment resulted in the veil having the complete visual effect, but the desired effect was little; the third resulted in only effecting those who were at Akari's level; and the fourth was a complete failure, as he didn't cast the veil at all.

When he consulted Satoru in learning domain expansion, the white-haired teacher said:

-0-

"It actually follows the same as a domain expansion. Putting conditions on the veil is like putting a cursed technique on the barrier."

"So does that mean I have to treat the conditions I want to put as my cursed technique?" Hachiman asked in confusion.

"Eeeeeeh I guess? You see, it's like adding a layer inside the veil. No, not the area under it, INSIDE. Like... in the wall? So while putting down the veil, pour cursed energy separately inside it to place the conditions you want."

-0-

It was confusing at first, but Hachiman finally understood what that meant. He followed Satoru's lesson and practiced making veils with varying conditions and effects to understand the feeling of casting a different kind of domain expansion. After casting five different veils, he was ready to the learn domain expansion. However, the hardest part was realizing his own innate domain, which involved creating a separate space and using cursed energy to construct the environment. After achieving his innate domain, he started placing conditions while casting the domain with his cursed technique embedded in it.

And finally, he achieved his domain expansion.

However, he doubted it would be that easy to get it correctly, so he hesitated to use it in actual combat until now. Another reason was it still costed so much cursed energy despite the conditions. Was the conditions too simple and small, or did he make a mistake in the process? He figured it was the former.

"So we're going to play a game here." Hachiman spoke with his legs bent lower and apart, and his hands were on the sheathed katana strapped to his left waist. "Rules are simple..."

- keep your eye on the orange creature flying with the horde of blue ones. Your curse energy detection has to be fixated on it, too. The orange creature will only fly around just above each other's head. The user must also follow the rules as well.

- if you avert your gaze from the orange creature, cover/close your eyes, sensed other cursed energy, or lose sight of it, the domain will force you to focus your entire attention on the orange creature for eight seconds or until the person destroyed it. Blinking doesn't count.

- The user can choose what other senses to focus on the orange creature, but it is limited to two senses. The default is sight and cursed energy detection. He must announce what senses the opponent needs to fixate on the creature or else the changes won't occur.

"One attack..." Hachiman thought while trying not to cough blood, which caused a trickle of it to come down the corner of his lip. "I can only deal one attack on the curse... No, there's no need to attack it as long as it's distracted. I just have to run as fast as I can."

"The rules are simpler than I thought." Hanami thought while striking a fighting stance. "Still, it'll end far quicker if I cast my own domain. He might have a trick up in his sleeve."

He saw the orange neuron flying inside the flock of blue and yellow neurons. The trails of distorted space they left behind made the game a little more challenging because of how the trails distorted the creature's image and its surroundings. Combining that with the creature trying to blend in with the flock of a thousand other neurons, the game would be impossible to do while fighting. Another thing to note was the varying outputs of cursed energy the neurons had. It kept growing to the point they gave off a strong presence, and then it shrank until they were obscured. Sensing the orange neuron's cursed energy would be difficult as well, but Hanami was confident, as he watched the orange neuron flew so high, Hachiman wasn't in his vision anymore.

There were also sounds they were making. They made the sound of the rain as each neuron sounded like water splashes. The orange neuron had the same sound, but with whistling as well.

Then... at the corner of his eye, there was an object that appeared to be thrown up high.

"CHANGE! ISOLATE HEARING!" When Hachiman shouted, the object emitted music. That object was actually his phone, and the music playing was the video of Komachi with her band performing at the Sobu High cultural festival.

The song suddenly playing right after his announcement caught the branch-eyed curse off-guard, and that was a mistake.

Focusing on the song instead of the orange neuron's sounds was where the penalty started. Everything was all void for Hanami. Nothing but darkness stretching endlessly along with the silence. The only thing piercing the emptiness was the orange creature flying around. His mind was only filled with the thought of destroying the creature because the domain forced his full attention towards it and he remembered one of the rules, which was to destroy the orange creature to lift the penalty or wait for 8 seconds. Hanami didn't hesitate and created massive sharp tree branches under his feet to destroy it. As the branches chased after the flying neuron, it evaded every single one of them until the cursed spirit pursued it himself. After failing four times, he finally captured it with his left hand and crushed it into nothing. The fragments of the orange creature glowed brighter until the surroundings changed back into the sewer.

It wasn't that Hachiman's domain trapped the loser in darkness as a penalty. It forced the loser to put all of his attention to the orange neuron to the point he ignored everything else as if nothing existed except for him and the creature. The branch-eyed curse looked behind and saw a concrete wall with a massive hole in it.

"Did I just ran through a wall? Does that mean I've been chasing that thing around the sewers instead of inside that boy's domain?" Hanami thought and went into a tunnel to find the area he fought the young sorcerer. He didn't know how long it took to lift the penalty, but that didn't matter. When he arrived, it was already empty. The tree trunks that blocked the tunnel disappeared, and Hachiman was nowhere to be found. What caught the cursed spirit's attention was the trail of residuals on the floor that led to a different tunnel. He tried going into the tunnel, but something blew him back. "A barrier? To block anyone pursuing him. But this one is too weak against me."

Hanami punched the barrier once and shattered it completely. He ran inside the tunnel, following the trail until it ended in the middle of it, but that didn't stop him from running in the tunnel. When he came out at the other end of the tunnel, the branch-eyed curse was in another room of the sewers and looked around.

"Where did he go?... Wait, this area isn't even close to where Mahito is nor is at the nearest exit to outside. The barrier and residuals are all decoys!"


He ran without stopping. No matter how tired his legs were, and how much blood he lost from the wounds, he kept running. The injured sorcerer had to place decoys to bait the special grade curse since there was no hope of outmatching it in speed. Not to mention, his wounds, along with what little cursed energy he had left after casting domain expansion, made it impossible.

He cast the veil first before casting domain expansion. After the domain and being free from Hanami's hold, he positioned himself in a spot where the tunnel blocked by the veil was behind him. Then, after tricking Hanami and the penalty took effect, he undid the domain and took a few steps inside the tunnel blocked by the veil to leave residuals. Finally, he went back and entered another one in the opposite direction. Hachiman was doubtful about such a plan, but there was no other way.

He hoped it worked.

He prayed no other enemies would come to take his life.

"Just at least... let me reach outside..."

The sorcerer remembered the cursed energy of the person fighting Mahito. He wanted to help, but in such a weak state, he'd only be a hindrance. So his best option was to get out of the sewers because he thought no one or at least, the branch-eyed curse, wouldn't pursue him anymore. He had that idea when he heard it from Yuji about the volcanic cursed spirit being defeated by Gojo in a forest. And then, there was Mahito, who chose the sewers as the stage. They chose empty areas so no one would interfere. So he approached the exit as the light at the end of the tunnel illuminated his vision.

Just a little closer

The touch of the sunlight brought warmth that he never knew would ease his fears.

With each step, he ran faster, as if the pain in his body barely existed. When he stepped out...

There was a person.

Standing with a sharp glare was a man, pointing an object at him.

Hachiman couldn't tell from his blurry vision, and then fell on all fours. Because Hanami slammed the back of his head on the tree trunk, he had intense dizziness that became worse as seconds passed. The world kept slanting and blurring, causing him to lose balance and fall every time he tried to stand up. He held the back of his head to ease the pain, but to no avail. Then, he felt the ground shaking for a moment and saw so much debris of concrete scattering in the air. With his consciousness slowly fading, he fought the urge to fall because he sensed both the cursed energy of Mahito and someone fighting him. The latter felt familiar to the young sorcerer, as he didn't need to even look to confirm it.

"Kusakabe... sensei."


Kusakabe Atsuya

Despite not possessing an innate technique, he climbed through the ranks and became a respected grade 1 sorcerer through his mastery of the blade combined with the New Shadow Style.

He was by no means weak. Only those capable and brave could achieve such a status as a sorcerer. However, this sorcerer, in particular, was a coward. No, the more accurate word would be "realistic" or "the most normal". He could take on threats that were equal to his grade, but if the mission or circumstance was beyond his capabilities, he wouldn't take it, no matter the reward. Sorcerers died quickly for various reasons. They were either too weak or the missions were too much for them. Regardless, dying young wasn't an uncommon occurrence in Jujutsu Tech. The danger of curses was unpredictable, after all. Atsuya had no intention of dying so early when there were so many things for him to do, so many mistakes to fix. Sacrificing oneself for noble cause was an honorable action that was performed many times throughout human history, but Kusakabe Atsuya would never think in doing so, even if the situation demanded it.

Coward. Realistic.

Whichever word one would describe him had one thing in common.

It all connected to one of the most basic instincts of humans: Survival.

So why did he accept helping a boy named Hikigaya Hachiman?

At first, he thought it was because of Gojo Satoru. Being the strongest in the world, someone like that white-haired teacher surely had plans if they were exposed of conspiring with a potential threat like Hachiman. The more he trained the young boy in swordsmanship, the more he recognized his talent. Atsuya saw how quick Hachiman learned, but that didn't mean he was a capable sorcerer. It took a while for the boy to get used to the whole sorcery business, especially after working under Nanami Kento. Though, he thought Hachiman's progression was somewhat faster than normal, but he brushed it off with reasons like Hachiman being a genius, the abnormality he possess, or himself being a genius teacher. Atsuya understood Hachiman's goal in getting back his normal life, and so he decided to support that.

But after a series of unfortunate events, that initial goal changed.

Hachiman declared his desire to become a sorcerer despite the hellish encounters and misfortune. That was what Satoru told him. Atsuya couldn't believe it at first because he saw how scared the young sorcerer was when he was driven into a corner at that mansion, and how he struggled to maintain his relationships with his non-sorcerer friends and lover. However, he saw Hachiman's growing strength. Before, the boy looked composed, but with a hint of anxiety. A normal teenager who suddenly crashed into the dangerous world of curses. Now, there was that aura of confidence he gave. The determination was clear in his appearance, but also pain. Was it because of the second stage? Atsuya couldn't get an answer. After knowing how he was forced to transfer to Jujutsu Tech, the Grade 1 sorcerer felt this guilt over his student's suffering.

If he helped him at Okinawa, the dead fish-eyed student wouldn't have struggled against his tinnitus, or have to hurt himself to save his own friend from assassination. But there was nothing Atsuya could do anymore. What was done was done. All he had to do was to aid Hachiman whenever he was in a tight spot.

And it seemed the dead fish-eyed sorcerer already encountered one.

According to Satoru, he wiretapped Hachiman's clothes with a device that had a GPS function to keep track on him. Such surveillance was a violation of privacy, but they needed to do it in case he got in trouble, specifically by Dhamini Troupe and/or the Shoal Of Ropeholders. Satoru guessed the perfect opportunity for those curse users to strike would be the moment Hachiman went on a mission outside of Tokyo. Not far enough for the strongest sorcerer, but enough to set up everything for the perfect assassination. The ropeholders' source of information were unknown, but they could guess the Dhamini Troupe's, which would obviously be the Zenin Clan.

Kawanaga wasn't that far from Tokyo. It could take 30-40 minutes by car and 15 minutes by train.

They were confused as to why the curse users would choose this as an opportunity, but Satoru might have a guess:

"They're probably confident enough to hold me back with some kind of master plan."

A plan to keep the strongest sorcerer at bay? It was difficult to imagine until Satoru received a report from a sorcerer of Samsara's Helm. They found large residuals that formed the english letters "FOR GOJO" on the ground in front of the shopping mall called Lazona Kawasaki Plaza. Satoru told them to wait for him to deal with it himself while Atsuya and the two sorcerers of Samsara's Helm would aid Hachiman against the Dhamini Troupe.

One was a dark-skinned man wearing a black clergy shirt and matching pants, appearing to be a priest with a necklace that had a cross. He also had a brown satchel on his shoulder as well. The other was a woman who appeared to be in her 60s with short blonde hair. She wore a grey suit that consisted of a blazer, a white collar shirt underneath, a pair of pants, and red sneakers. Her shoes looked out of place from her elderly appearance and attire that Atsuya couldn't help but glanced at her awkwardly. The three sorcerers rode the train to reach Kawasaki City, which would take 10-15 minutes to get there.

"Hey, uh..." Atsuya called out to the priest awkwardly. "My English is too shitty. I wanna ask something but am I gonna tell that right?"

"What?" The priest asked in English and made a look of realization. After the train stopped in a station and several passengers exit the transportation, he took a phone out of his pocket. He fiddled with it for a few seconds and then spoke in English once again, which the phone translated it into Japanese after. "Is there a problem?"

"Oh, uh... You're Christian, right?" Atsuya looked at the phone that moved close to his face as it translated his words into English. "How come you work for a Hindu organization?"

"I am Catholic, to be specific. The Samsara's Helm isn't a Hindu organization. It functions the same way as your Jujutsu Tech. However, the members are too few, so they welcome other sorcerers with diverse personalities. I joined Samsara's Helm to expand my reach in helping innocent souls in the name of Jesus Christ."

"I see... and what are your thoughts on Hikigaya?" Atsuya asked with a scrutinizing gaze. He wasn't sure if he could trust the organization itself because they truly kept themselves hidden from Jujutsu Tech's eyes for so long. Although Satoru reassured their goal of protecting Hachiman, there could still be hidden intentions. Also, they were foreigners. Perhaps even Atsuya might have a sliver of the conservative mindset.

"A poor boy who've suffered long enough. But, Jesus will save him by sending us to battle."

"And also..." The old woman spoke in Japanese. "Hikigaya Hachiman is already at the second stage of 'transformation', so fate might not let him die that easily."

"Might?" Atsuya repeated that word.

"There are records of the Dhamini Troupe managing to kill previous bearers who were at the second stage. Though those cases were rare, it's still reasonable to think the defensive mechanism called 'fate' has limitations."

"I see..." After that conversation, they reached their destination, and sprinted following the GPS with Atsuya's phone. It didn't take long for them to realize the absence of citizens around the area, which caused them to stop. A sweat trickled down Atsuya's cheek after feeling a small chill in his spine. "I sensed some nasty cursed energy from below."

"There are others, too. One of them is the boy." The old woman said while crouching to touch the road. "And I sense Bong's cursed energy. That's not good."

"Who is Bong?"

"A strong curse user who was trained by the Zenin Clan."

"So that clan is already making shady businesses with curse users for a long time now?" Atsuya thought.

"There's also that twisted presence. This is bad. Hikigaya will have a rough time facing both him and other enemies at the same time. We need to-" Before the old woman could finish her sentence, a loud noise of a gunshot echoed through the empty area as something small flew towards her at blinding speed. Fortunately, the priest blocked with his right backhand, which the object pierced into his flesh until it got stuck inside.

"A sniper!" The priest shouted, and the trio quickly ran to find cover. Atsuya and the old woman chose to go in an alley while the priest crouched behind the trunk of a car. They once again heard the gunfire of the sniper rifle, and the car where the priest was hiding exploded. The explosion sent him flying and tumbling back until he recovered, but the sniper didn't give him a chance as they shot another one, which the priest guarded in time by crossing both arms in front of his face. His arm felt pain as the bullet sank into his flesh until it stopped. He jumped and ran to the alleyway in the opposite direction where the other two sorcerers were and hid. "A bullet infused with cursed energy. A curse user who uses modern weapons."

"What now?" Atsuya whispered as he, and the old woman leaned their backs on the wall.

"We'll get to the sniper through the buildings." She answered before jumping from wall to wall until she broke through a vent and after crawling inside followed by Atsuya, they went out of it. It appeared they were in some kind of office with all the cubicles, office chairs, and computers and piles of papers on the desks. The two sorcerers quickly approached the door, and when the old woman pulled the door open, a sharp sound of a string being cut reached their ears. In an instant, there was an explosion that destroyed the room and the almost half of the third floor which was where they entered. The burst of flames and shockwave sent Atsuya flying through the concrete wall and got him out of the building followed by the old woman, as they both collided against another wall from a different building outside.

"Shit..." Atsuya grunted as they fell to the ground.

"They have traps." The old woman quickly stood despite receiving that large explosion the most because she was the closest to it. "There are bombs hidden inside these buildings, and probably more traps in this entire area both indoors and out."

"Going out of cover and the sniper will get us. Getting inside means having a hidden bomb blow up right in our faces." He spoke while sitting on the ground with his back leaning against the wall. "Should we go around to get past the sniper?"

"The problem with that is his sniping position is perfect." She argued. "Based on the trajectory of those bullets, that guy is on a rooftop of a six-storey building yards away in front of us. The rest of the buildings are smaller compared to that, so if we go to another street, one of his two partners would see us. I've been sensing two... no, three different sources of cursed energy for a while now."

"That along with our distance, that sniper has every angle of 180 degrees covered. And even going around him would take too much time. We might be too late to save him by then. He has the overall advantage... unless." Atsuya looked around and saw the priest holding something in his hand. It was just a soda can. The priest locked eyes with the swordsman and nodded. Atsuya and the old woman nodded in return, as if he understood the plan while sheathing his katana.

When the priest threw the can out into the road, that was their signal. He and Atsuya went out of their covers and ran towards the sniper a millisecond before the can was shot. However, a bullet went for the swordsman's right leg and he deflected it in time with the blade by pure reflex. What confused them was the interval of the sniper's shots became shorter than normal, but they already solved the mystery through speculation. They guessed the other three curse users were snipers as well, not just serving as the primary sniper's surveillance. The cursed energy within the bullet Atsuya blocked was weaker and different from the previous ones. And so, he and the priest jumped away from each other to take cover once more in the alleys closest to them, but the latter took a bullet in his left thigh before he was safe from the line of fire.

Meanwhile, the old woman was moving from rooftop to rooftop with arms crossed in front of her face to guard her head. As she expected, the enemies already saw her as two sniper bullets hit her. One in her left bicep, and the other in her right shoulder. But the cursed energy of those bullets was weak, so the wounds weren't that serious thanks to her body reinforced in cursed energy. If anything, it was like splinters pricked her. Then she heard a strange sound. It was as if a rocket or some fireworks were flying. She lowered her arms slightly to see something flying towards her while leaving a trail of smoke. It was much slower than the bullets...

"ARE YOU KIDDING ME?!" The old woman jumped off the rooftop before an explosion occurred there. After landing on the ground, she hid in an alley while leaning her back against the wall, and spoke sarcastically. "They have RPGs. Of course they have one. "

"Still, we're closing the distance by half." The priest thought. "We can do this."

"My turn." Atsuya looked at the priest and pointed at himself with a thumb while nodding. The priest understood and waited for three seconds until the swordsman went out of cover with the blade sheathed. He rolled into the middle of the road to evade one bullet, and quickly stood up as one of the snipers missed a shot to his head. At the same time, both the priest and the old woman went out of their covers and sprinted as fast as they could. Atsuya used Simple Domain in combination with Quick Draw to block one bullet easily, and used his fast reflex to block another one aiming for his head. However, that last bullet was stronger, and so Atsuya recoiled with his deflection not perfect since the bullet ricocheted off the flat part of the blade upward and grazed his left cheek.

The priest pulled out two things from his satchel: a golden chalice and four unleavened breads small enough to occupy two fingertips.

He dropped them on top of the chalice that had red wine in it and they stopped in midair, floating on the chalice. The priest then jumped away from an RPG missile that was coming at him, and as it exploded upon colliding with the road, he rolled forward and used that momentum to run faster. Atsuya wondered how the breads and wine in the chalice didn't fall, but he already figured that was the priest's cursed technique while running behind him.

Meanwhile, the old woman was taking the lead since she was the closest to the sniper before dodging an RPG missile on that rooftop earlier. She was also the one taking the most bullets, but her durability was so unnatural, it didn't fit her appearance as an elderly. Atsuya and the priest watched her just withstanding the sniper shots as if they were nothing despite the punctures and bleedings on her crossed arms and abdomen.

"CARL!" She shouted someone's name.

"On it!" The priest named Carl responded in English, as the red wine from the chalice floated and enveloped the floating unleavened breads like spheres. Then, those breads in red wine-spheres flew high, coming towards the snipers until they reached as high as the third floor of the building they occupied. The breads glowed white as the wine on them scattered into droplets that floated still in the air. The snipers tried shooting the sorcerers, but when the bullets approached the droplets, they lost all momentum and cursed energy and just fell on the ground.

"It's like a wall of wine drops and the breads are some kind of power source." Atsuya analyzed Carl's cursed technique. After a successful defense, the three sorcerers approached the alley between the other buildings and the building occupied by the curse users. Their goal wasn't to fight, but to save Hikigaya Hachiman from the Dhamini Troupe and that other threat with such sinister cursed energy. Carl tossed another unleavened bread and used his cursed technique to shoot straight through the alley, and left floating trails of wine droplets.

"There are traps in that alley, but I disabled them." Carl spoke.

"Good." The old woman praised in English and spoke to Atsuya in Japanese. "He disabled whatever traps those bastards have over there."

"Nice." The swordsman complimented, and they sprinted into the alley. However, the moment they went outside, three horrific creatures fell on the ground in front of them.

Those creatures appeared to be more humanoid, but what set them apart from humans was one of their eyes and one of their arms was larger than the other, and their skins were pure black. The sorcerers already guessed they were cursed spirits, but what piqued their interests was them wearing combat uniforms as if they were in the military. One of them wore a helmet, and the other had a hoodie to cover its head. They held the same type of sniper rifle, which was the M24 Sniper Weapon System, and there was a piece of rectangular paper stuck on each of their faces with strange drawings and scriptures. What became the sorcerers' concern was the bombs strapped on their vests.

"Shikigamis acting like suicide bombers?!" Atsuya thought with a look of bewilderment.

While shooting, the cursed spirits ran towards them, and Carl used his cursed technique to fire one red sphere at them while dodging some bullets. The snipers jumped away before the sphere scattered into droplets of red wine, floating still with the while-glowing bread in the middle. Two of the curses jumped to two different sides while the middle one jumped above his floating cursed technique. The old woman jumped as well to attack the middle one, and when she got close enough, the bombs on its vest exploded as she flew back into the alley. But that didn't end there. An RPG missile flew behind her while she was still in the air and hit her back. Atsuya looked nervously at the explosion, but Carl held his shoulder.

"GO!" He shouted in English while pointing in the direction where the nearest sewer tunnel was. Atsuya understood his word and didn't hesitate to run, leaving the two sorcerers dealing with those cursed spirits. At the corner of his eye, he saw a person wearing a black leather jacket and a pair of jeans. That person held an M24 as well and tried shooting Atsuya, but something attacked him at the last second.

"So those shikigamis belong to him..." The swordsman thought. "This is the first time I've seen shikigamis using modern weapons. That curse user is skillful, or maybe those are cursed spirits born with the ability to wield man-made weapons."

After turning to the left and ran faster, he finally reached the sewer tunnel and tried going in. But the moment he stepped foot in the entrance, an explosion blast right at his face and both of his sides. After the flames engulfed him, the ceiling of the tunnel shattered, as the large pieces of concrete fell, completely blocking the entrance. However, that didn't kill the New Shadow Style user.

"Aw, aw, aw..." Atsuya grunted in pain while standing up inside the now-enclosed tunnel. He removed his burnt and tattered coat, leaving his attire only with a white, long-sleeved, button-down shirt, a dark green tie, and black pants. The explosion did hurt him. A lot, really.

But he was a Grade 1 sorcerer. He trained his body and mind to achieve strength, technique, and great cursed energy control to compensate for not having an innate technique. He also faced dangers equal to his grade. Overall, an explosion as small as that wouldn't work on him. The shockwave didn't even send him back flying, as he just pressed forward before the debris could crush him.

"I'm only sensing four now... One of them is Hikigaya." Atsuya mumbled and ran as fast as he could to reach his student before it was too late. It didn't take long for him to find two people.

One had dark skin, a bald head, and closed burnt eyes. He wore a yellow kimono, a black ankle-banded hakama, and a pair of brown kegutsu. He was swinging his sword at a wall of beige and green with desperation clearly displayed. The other was a woman with black hair tied into a bun, a white tank top, and red jogging pants. Her face was full of dread with tears in her eyes, while shouting with two fingers in her ear, indicating the woman was talking on an earpiece. The dark-skinned swordsman stopped swinging and turned around to face Atsuya with a much calmer expression.

"Reina." He called out the woman's name while sheathing his katana.

"I know..." The woman named Reina wiped the tears and glared at the sorcerer with flames engulfing her hands.

Atsuya gripped the handle of his sheathed katana with his gaze focused on his two enemies. He already figured the dark-skinned man was the enemy named Bong just from how great his cursed energy output was. With small and slow steps, Atsuya pressed forward, and Bong did the same while Reina just stood still with her flames blazing even more. Looking at it more closely, he realized what the two curse users were doing was cutting a wall of flesh with all those cuts in it and a huge gaping hole bleeding violently.

"Hikigaya is on the other side along with that wicked cursed energy. I have to get there now." Atsuya thought as he rushed towards Bong with determination. The latter responded by drawing his own katana to cut him down. Although he was injured, Reina cauterized the wounds to stop the bleeding. That didn't mean his right leg was healed. He could ignore a cut, but not a stab wound that went through the muscle and grazed the femur bone of that leg. A bone that was important for everyone in standing, moving, and keeping their balance.

And so, Bong used his unique Falling Blossom Emotion to attack, trying to maintain balance and making sure his strike was swift and powerful. However, Atsuya could already see the curse user's lack of mobility from the wound on that leg. It didn't go unnoticed. The sorcerer was confident he could take on Bong, but the more time he wasted, the closer his student would be to a tragic death. Also, Atsuya guessed Bong had a trick up his sleeve, so the best tactic was to avoid him at all costs, and focus on Reina instead. With his fast movement, the sorcerer jumped sideways from Bong, and ran towards the other curse user for the kill. Bong tried to catch up, but as Atsuya expected, the injury in Bong's leg caused him immobile.

Meanwhile, Reina tried throwing balls of flame, but Atsuya was too fast for her to hit at least a speck of hair. Before he could draw his katana, she enveloped herself with intense flames. It was hot enough to keep the sorcerer away and decide to just get through the wall of flesh. Thanks to Bong's effort earlier in trying to slice their way through the transfigured humans blocking the path, Atsuya easily went through with Quick Draw and ran inside the tunnel. As he reached the other side, the first thing he saw was a young man with stitches pulling Hachiman with a strangely long, stretching arm. On impulse, Atsuya swing his sword down at the enigmatic being, but the latter grew and transformed his own right arm into that of a large insect to defend. The blade cut through the exoskeletal limb, but stopped halfway because of its toughness. The enemy whipped his long right arm while turning it to a whip of thick flesh with a pointy end. Atsuya removed his katana from the limb, ducked from that whip attack, and cut the long arm off. The stitched person swung down his insect limb at him, only for the latter to jump away and rolled.

"I didn't know this sewer could be such a tourist attraction. Or maybe I'm just popular?" The man with stitches spoke while puffing his chest out as if he was bragging.

"You think I came here for you?" Atsuya asked. He already knew the being in front of him was a cursed spirit just from the twisted presence he felt earlier outside. This cursed spirit was a powerful one at that, and could speak the human language perfectly. That could only mean one thing.

That thing was a special grade.

"Well, I do have my charms." The curse answered while blowing a kiss to him. His only response was a sharp glare and raising his katana above his head with one hand as a fighting stance. The stitched-up curse just shrugged his own shoulders with a sigh and transformed his legs into that of a horse. After licking his lips with a clear display of murderous intent, the curse sprinted towards the sorcerer, and the latter just calmly sidestepped from a left hand reaching to his face and amputated the curse's left foot. Then, Atsuya cut his back before running away into another tunnel, where he could sense Hachiman but with another source of cursed energy near him. The presence was stronger than the one with the stitches. This made him gulp in fear, but he was already determined to pull this off.

"Or rather I want get this over with quickly and get out of here!" Atsuya sensed something coming from behind, and ducked from a brown, stretched flesh thicker than his own legs. He then jumped from another one that was red colored and landed on the brown flesh to run until doing an evasive roll against a third one that was white this time. After getting off the brown stretched-looking flesh while sheathing his katana, the sorcerer sensed the stitched-up curse spirit coming towards him, and that was when he realised his disadvantage. Those three attacks weren't just to get Atsuya at long range, but to also limit his space for evasion. In other words, he had no option other than to block the attack.

The curse with stitches grinned while reaching his right hand to Atsuya's back, but it was quickly amputated when the latter disappeared right in front of him. Before the special grade could turn around, Atsuya cut off his head and ran past him.

"Your moves are just like Hikigaya-chan's! Are you his teacher?" The cursed spirit asked before catching his own decapitated head and attached it back to his body. He stretched his right arm and grew the hand large enough to occupy what space was left to move around just to get Atsuya with an unavoidable attack. However, instead of catching him, his entire arm disintegrated the moment it was inches close to Atsuya. "Eh? It feels like my Idle Transfiguration was negated. What did he do?"

The chase continued until they both reached a large area on the other side of the tunnel. Atsuya tried going into another one to follow his student's cursed energy, but the special grade curse blocked it with his transfigured humans. The former went into a different tunnel to his left, and the cursed spirit pursued using his horse legs to catch up. The curse grew both hands to grab him and use Idle Transfiguration on him. However, the result was as he expected, as his hands disintegrated back to their original size when they were inches close to Atsuya after he stopped running. Atsuya tried using Quick Draw combined with Simple Domain to perform his fastest attack on his neck. The special grade already raised his right hand that transformed into a large shield, but the swing cut through. And so, he caught the blade with his teeth that grew in thickness and length. A small mouth grew on his cheek and spoke.

"I'm already getting used to that sword technique, so it's easy to predict." The mouth grinned as Atsuya struggled to pull the katana from his teeth. After letting go of the weapon, he ran away once again. With a sigh, the cursed spirit bit the katana in half and chased after him for the third time. Atsuya jumped off a slope and slid to reach the bottom. The special grade did the same, but turned into a grey ball to gain more speed and to avoid friction. When he caught up, Atsuya rolled sideways to avoid a large hand coming down at him, and shattering the concrete of the slope, then jumped to avoid another one. While in mid-air, he kicked a normal, yet stretching arm away from him and landed on solid ground.

The chase was like a pattern to them now.

It was just a game of cat and mouse at this point.

Without a katana, Atsuya was defenseless. Swordsmanship was one of his only means of combat. Even if he still had a blade, he wasn't confident he could take on a special grade curse because that was above his level. Still, he was getting close to Hachiman just from sensing his cursed energy.

"Right about... here?" Atsuya entered an area with sewer water that almost reached his knees. The cursed spirit launched two transfigured humans stretching towards him. He jumped away from the attack, but he didn't expect they would follow him like homing projectiles. The two stretched-out flesh hit him in mid-air and pushed him into a ceiling, which shattered and pushed him higher until he reached outside.

"Oh... oops. I guess I went too far." Mahito looked up at the hole in the ceiling where the sunlight illuminated the inside of the sewer area slightly. He sensed cursed energy that was already familiar to him in a short amount of time. "Hikigaya's up there!"


"Aw... shit." Atsuya embraced himself to ease the pain in his entire torso. Two of his ribs broke, his back stung a little, and he had immense dizziness and headache due to hitting the back of his head on the ceiling. Overall, he could still move, but his movements might be quite sluggish for a while. After rolling off on top of the stretched-out, transfigured humans, he looked around and saw the M24-wielding curse user lying on the ground with bruises all over his face. Then, there was another man lying on the ground at a tunnel's entrance. "Hikigaya!"

"Like I'd let you!" Mahito shouted after climbing up the transfigured humans to get out. Atsuya didn't run this time. He was prepared to fight in hand-to-hand combat despite the disadvantages. However, as if fate decided to aid him, two red spheres flew towards Mahito, followed by an old lady with a burnt blazer running towards him.

The special grade curse effortlessly weaved to the left to evade one red sphere, and then to the right to evade another one. But he noticed the second one just froze in mid-air, and guessing there was some trick to it, he jumped away before it scattered red floating droplets with something small glowing white in the middle of it. The old lady threw a straight right punch at his face, and he responded by raising an arm to guard. However, that was just a fake, as she instead performed a successful left shovel hook to the liver and then a right hook at his jaw and broke it. With his lower mouth hanging, the old lady threw a flurry of punches so fast, it was almost as if she had more than two arms that were blurry. She finished it with a real, right straight punch that sent the cursed spirit flying towards a wall that had its concrete shattered after he crashed into it.

"... Holy shit." Atsuya saw all that and couldn't help but be astonished at the foreigner's movements until he shook his own head to focus. He held Hachiman in a bridal carry and ran. "Let's go! Nothing hurts that freak and there's another strong curse presence coming!"

"Got it!" The old lady responded, and the priest nodded in agreement. He and the two sorcerers ran away as fast as they could and the former noticed there were now people filling up the streets. Before the citizens could notice, they already went to an alley and jumped from wall-to-wall to reach the rooftop of a building and continued their escape. While they were jumping on rooftops, the old lady showed Atsuya a strange object. It appeared to be a creature's head from a broken figurine or statue. "We've taken care of the barrier. The Dhamini Troupe use tomb figures as cursed objects to cast that kind of barrier to isolate enemies. and do jobs on a wider scale. With this, those cursed spirits won't chase us."

"What makes you say that?" Atsuya asked.

"According to Gojo Satoru, those unregistered special grades won't act in places with people around. It looks like he's right."

"That's a relief... Where is that guy, anyway? Isn't he supposed to catch up to us?"


Meanwhile... in the Lazona Kawasaki Plaza

A man was enjoying the crispy tonkotsu that had white gravy on top, golden rice on the bottom, and shredded cabbages on the side. He chose to eat at a table of the restaurant's outdoor area with an "acquaintance" sitting across the table. That acquaintance only ordered a cup of hot black tea, and sipped it slowly to savor the taste. Meanwhile, the man's drink was a can of MAXX Coffee. These two were in complete silence, letting each other embrace the tranquility before they let the storm enter their interaction. When he drank the coffee after swallowing a pork cutlet, the man finally spoke.

"Yup, this is too sweet!" Gojo Satoru chuckled while putting the can down on the table next to the dish. He was wearing his usual Jujutsu Tech uniform and a black blindfold to cover his eyes. "How the hell did Hachiman take this stuff on daily? He probably has diabetes by now!"

"A person's taste differs from others." His acquaintance responded. He had dark, brown, slick-back hair and wore a business suit. "I guess he wants to have sweetness all over his tongue."

"And a liter of diabetes, that's for sure. I swear, that guy's taste buds must've screwed up. That would probably explain that sharp tongue of his."

"Are you sure that last part is not from your behavior?"

"Oh, please. People love me. They're just too tsundere to admit it."

"Sundre?"

"Ah, you don't know that. Well, tsundere basically means being mean to someone you actually like."

"So you're saying they treat you poorly out of fear of showing affection? Isn't that just your assumption?"

"So you know them better than me?"

"I seem to know enough." The acquaintance argued before sipping his tea. "And you seem to overthink things."

"I don't think I do." Satoru answered before having a piece of a pork cutlet and rice. "Tsundere sounds as simple as how dangerous this oversweet coffee is."

"It's because you don't get it at all. Love and respect go hand in hand. I believe they're just the same."

"How so?"

"What does love mean, anyway?"

"Ew, two grown men talking to each other about love. Why isn't it a woman I'm talking to about this? My luck with women really ran out, huh?"

"What does love mean to you?"

"Hugs and kisses, hearts and giggles, Romeo and Juliet."

"Take this seriously or you won't even get a touch from a woman."

"Hey, I'm just telling you what I know. And women already touched me... Not in a lewd way, of course."

"Anyway, love means affection; to grow fond of someone; to be happy, when that someone is happy as well; and to give intimacy."

"Uhuh... and what do you mean by me 'overcomplicating things'?" At Satoru's question, the acquaintance pushed the tea away to his left side and leaned forward with his chin resting on the intertwined hands. He gave the white-haired sorcerer a narrow gaze, as if this topic was a serious one. "There are two primary emotions to feel towards all things and concepts: either love or hate.
Happiness, comfort, amusement, hope. Positive emotions such as those can be summarized with only one word, which is love. While the opposite, such as sadness, disgust, boredom, and despair, are within the word 'hate'. If someone says to you 'I despise you but I respect you', do you find any logic in that sentence?"

"I see it as a guy that acknowledges what I have but hates me for whatever reasons."

"Acknowledgment, yes. But how do you summarize that person's feeling with one word?"

"You think that's easy? If it is, we could've achieved world peace by now."

"So you have no answer?"

"The guy just doesn't like me, that's all."

"Correct. So why did he say he 'respects' you?"

"I guess that's his way of saying he understands something about me. Look, what are you getting at?"

"The person wants to use the word 'respect' as a way to express his fear of your abilities, because the word 'hate' is in the same sentence. What I'm conveying to you is that you tried explaining things that are in your favor by making them complex when the answer is much simpler than you think."

"Didn't you just make a deep explanation earlier about some guy hating but respecting me?"

"But I concluded his emotion with just one word. For you, on the other hand, you'll just try to look between the lines, find reasons, origins, and patterns to make the most objectively correct answer."

"Well, that's an interesting look at my character." Satoru chuckled and crossed his arms together. "You know, the description you gave me sounds more like Hikigaya than me."

"Like teacher, like student." The acquaintance shrugged his shoulders and leaned back in the chair. "You chose the longer path instead of the most logical one. Whatever your plan is, it should've been to just kill all the higher-ups and become the authority."

"Hmmmm~? I'm not trying to do anything to those old geezers~." The white-haired sorcerer spoke in a sarcastic and childish tone. "I down't undershtand~!"

"Oh, please. It's easy to see the dirt between you and those higher-ups." The acquaintance rolled his eyes. "I know you don't sit well with their... traditions and their outdated ways. The clash between you two is tedious, yet so unnecessary when it should've ended the moment you became the most powerful in the world. What are you planning, Gojo Satoru? Why are you taking so long to make change when you have everything within the palm of your hand? How is that plan of yours more effective than the most logical one?"

"My plan..." Satoru spoke in a deeper tone. "... is the most logical one."

"Explain yourself."

"Pfft, as if I'm gonna tell the leader of the Dhamini Troupe. All I'm gonna tell you is... I'll save those who's willing to reach a hand, and those who won't."

"Those who won't... you say? Then chained those people so they won't be far from your grasp."

"Damn, I thought you don't like our geezers yet you sound a lot like them."

"Don't you dare compare me to those decaying relics." The leader of the Dhamini Troupe spoke in a threatening voice. "I'm far above them."

"With your simplistic thinking? Yeah, you probably won as the dumbest guy in Jujutsu World." Satoru grabbed the chopstick and ate. "You see, Hanu. We're all just born with contradictions and complexity. So far in my life, a lot of things went the other way around. A man who has everything can't do anything."

"Hmph, The more you build, the larger it will become. And then, not even you can control it."

"Is this why we're having this discussion? Control?"

"You keep your control on the bare minimum when it reaches as far as the edge of the world. What I'm saying is you're wasting your abilities on something pointless."

"And what about you?" Satoru leaned forward and grinned at the leader named Hanu. "Why are you trying to reach too close to the sun when you're only just as small as a strand of hair?"

"..."

"You think you have the Zenin Clan by your side? That you can fulfill your goal of killing Shani Dev, like always? That oversimplistic brain of yours is gonna bite you in the ass for that, which is why I say you're no different from those old geezers. Right now, distracting me from protecting Hachiman is just a waste of time. He and the others are fine on their own. Face it, you lose and that scares you, not because it threatens humanity's free will, but your control over India in Jujutsu."

"My control is only a strand of hair as you say. Your other claims are false."

"Pray tell which one?"

"Every single one. Your comrades are not safe. Our goal will succeed because our path is right. We are above Jujutsu Tech, and our defeat is not determined by you. The simplicity in all things brings the complete and equal value in them. We will win." After Hanu's argument, both of their phones vibrated at the same time. They just stared at each other for five seconds until they answered their respective call. Their reactions were different from one another. Satoru smirked at the information he was given, while Hanu clicked his own tongue in frustration.

"Well, your distraction really is a waste." The white-haired sorcerer spoke after putting his phone back in his pocket. "You lost round 2. Bravo. Or is it three? You're the one who tricked both your own subordinates and the Kyoto kids back in Okinawa, after all."

"This is far from over." Hanu stood and walked away, as Satoru watched him until the former stopped. "It's a cycle, Mr. Gojo... The Dhamini Troupe's goal unites everyone. Samsara's Helm isn't that much different than the Shoal Of Ropeholders. They're just soft and that's it."

And with that, the leader of the Dhamini Troupe left without any hindrance.

Satoru wanted to just capture him now, but Hanu's trap actually worked.

And that was...


"... Killing hundreds of people in the mall?" Atsuya asked the strongest sorcerer on the phone with an arched eyebrow. They both sat on their chairs across from each other at a table. "I'm sure you can stop him from doing that."

"I doubt it." Satoru argued. "He said he didn't have the trigger, and the bombs will go off if I'm out of his sight to get rid of them. The real problem is using that as an incident to convince the higher-ups to hate me and Hachiman even more. Hanu's trap for me is killing hundreds of people and pin the blame on us. He'd go as far as revealing everything about his group and their goal, either by himself or one of his pals, if he dies or gets caught."

"Oh, now I get it." Atsuya crossed his legs. "Even if they don't believe a group of curse users, the higher-ups will definitely use that knowledge as an excuse to get rid of Hachiman. There's also the problem of us having our secret alliance with Samsara's Helm exposed. Things could fall apart just from one action..."

"I don't want Hachiman to get cornered and have enemies around him. He's been through a lot already."

"Hanu... that guy is a lot smarter than we thought. Even showing himself to you is bold enough. He even stopped you from doing anything."

"he got me good... I admit that... Now then!" Satoru clasped his hands together and looked at Atsuya. "Let's stop praising him or I might puke all over you!"

"Why me?!" Atsuya asked in bewilderment.

"Just hearing how great he tricked me is gonna twist my stomach. But good thing I outsmarted him and saved Hachiman."

"How?"

"By believing in my friends!" The white-hiared sorcerer's answer caused Atsuya to have a deadpan look.

"O... kay?" The swordsman stood and took a glass and pour water in it for himself to drink.

"So... how is he?"

"Ieri-san said he'd be fine. Just expect more scars and him sleeping for two or three weeks."

"That's great... I'll look for the bombs he planted. I don't know where, though."

"What about Sukuna's v- I mean, Itadori Yuji?"

"I already called Yuji, and he said he's coming back. We don't know if the Dhamini Troupe or the special grade curses are still in that city or not. For now, he needs to get away."

"I see..." Atsuya just stared at the water in the glass he filled, wondering about the certain words Hanu left for Satoru before he escaped. "What did that guy mean by their goal 'uniting everyone'?"

"It's pretty obvious once you saw the news about India or went there in person." Satoru spoke with sounds of metal scraping and falling reached the phone. "India is so divided right now. From the abolished yet still practiced Caste System to the political parties, and don't get me start on the whole mess with Hindus and Muslims. Basically, it's a shitshow. But when I came in that country, it's awfully... quiet."

"Quiet how?"

"There were no campaigns for all political parties, the people with different class are just indifferent towards each other, and even a lot of religious lunatics are just dead quiet. It felt unnatural... and fake."

"Uniting everyone, huh? So, Hachiman's awakening is involved in that. But, how?"

"A common enemy." Satoru's voice became serious. "A long time ago, Shani Dev brings 'karma' to all people, depending on their deeds. Some got a luxury while others got thrown into the waste. Many thought his punishments and rewards are unfair. 'How come I get this while that guy has all that?', 'what did I do wrong to deserve this much pain?', 'Who is he to decide what my fate is? Who is he to say what I should and shouldn't do?'. Naturally, it caused everyone who opposed Shani Dev to come together, even his own followers who didn't fully agree to his ideals and 'godly' work. That sense of unity for free will brought them together to stop the 'god' once and for all."

"And now, in modern day, they use that reason to be peaceful."

"Ironic, right? The Dhamini Troupe want Shani Dev gone for the sake of humanity's free will, but they need him to make peace for everyone. I don't know if they revealed the existence of curses to them or they used fabricated stories like terrorism to keep it all a secret. Either way, they convinced them to do this."

"So... what do you think is right?" Atsuya asked while slouching, wanting to know the right call. "If they want peace, then shouldn't they be working together with Samsara's Helm so Shani Dev could fulfill that? Not saying we should, but..."

"I guess whatever Shani Dev did in the past left a lot of scars on them." Satoru said with the sound of his own footsteps echoing. "And... the Samsara's Helm are still under my radar of suspicion."

"I thought we could trust them?"

"Change of plans, but we need to stay close to them to avoid any more conflict."

"If you say so..." Atsuya responded with hesitation clear in his voice.

"I searched every corner and there's literally nothing." The blindfolded sorcerer clicked his tongue. "So he lied about the bombs, huh?"

"I guess he wasn't willing to risk it all."

"It'll probably come sooner or later as a last resort. Once I come back to Jujutsu Tech, let's get into a meeting about this."

"Got it." Their call ended, and Atsuya just stared at the phone screen for a moment in contemplation. "There's too many gears spinning right now. Something big is gonna happen. What should I do when that comes? Should I run with my sister? No, I already steeled myself to help Hikigaya. I won't run. I won't... but this is getting real scary."


"Alright, this is the perfect chance." Akari said as she and Yuji hid behind a utility pole watching Junpei from behind. In her hand was a small cage with talismans wrapped around the bars and inside were small cursed spirits that had the wings of an insect.

"Let's do it." Yuji responded with determination, but before they could start, his phone vibrated and he just answered the call on instinct. "Hello?"

"Oi!" Akari said in a whisper.

"Yo, Yuji!" Satoru's voice reached the young sorcerer's ear.

"Gojo-sensei?" Yuji spoke while wondering why the blindfolded sorcerer called. "We're kinda in a middle of something."

"The mission, right? Forget about it and come back here." Satoru's words made Yuji bewildered.

"W-Why? We found some leads. You don't have to worry about-"

"Listen, listen. Right now, there's a lot of crazy stuff going on in that city. Abandon the mission and leave."

"But-"

"Now." Satoru's order was firm and displayed authority. If someone as easygoing as him spoke in such a tone, the situation would definitely be serious. Yuji wanted to know more, but he could just get answers once he came back to the campus. Satoru's tone was enough to convince him.

"Okay." With that one quick response, the pink-haired sorcerer ended the call. "Gojo-sensei said to abandon the mission."

"Are you serious? Why?" Akari asked in shock.

"I don't know, but he sounds serious." Yuji answered while staring at his phone with a look of worry. After seeing his expression, Akari looked back at the path Junpei took, which he wasn't there anymore since he turned to a corner. She hesitated for a moment until she decided.

"... Okay, let's go." Akari accepted the sudden decision. She was reluctant, but there was one reason why she agreed.

Hachiman.

When she and Yuji woke up and saw his sleep-deprived condition, they were incredibly worried. She thought it was best to finish the mission sooner, but Satoru giving them the order to just give up could be even better because not only Hachiman would rest sooner, Yuji might not need to dive deeper into the cold reality. It was killing two birds with one stone that helped her young sorcerers. And so, the two turned around and went in the opposite direction from the suspect's to reach the car. However, something stopped them in their tracks.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

The scream of a man echoed in the empty neighborhood. They were surprised there was no one in the area. Yuji didn't hesitate and just ran at the direction of where the scream came from.

"Hey! Wait!" Akari followed him, though the gap between them was huge because of the pink-haired sorcerer's superhuman abilities.


Yoshino Junpei

He was a 17-year-old boy who stopped attending Satozakura High School because of the severe bullying he had to endure by his classmates. It wasn't that he dropped out, at least not yet. His mother wasn't that concerned with that action. In fact, she just accepted it wholeheartedly and supported him, anyway. She believed her son could take another road aside from the usual route of life that involved schools and such.

He was conflicted.

School was necessary to move forward with society, but the painful harassment from his classmates made him afraid of even approaching a kilometer close to the building. He knew his mother wasn't as responsible as normal adults. She was too easygoing, yet that behavior was what he loved as a son. He understood how much she cared for him, but the scars in both his mind and body wouldn't go away soon, even with her by his side. He just needed to wait for the pain to ease itself and feign indifference, because it was better than hating anyone.

Yes, indifference was the key to avoid being hurt.

Not expecting anyone.

Not feeling anything that would lead to an even worse outcome.

Except for his mother, people were evil, so the best thing to do was to become stoic, to not become chained. That was what he thought.

But then, that incident occurred. While trying to watch a horror movie in a theater, he witnessed a man killing three of his classmates. Those three were bullies that hurt him everyday at school. Junpei couldn't explain the emotions he had when seeing their deaths. He was indifferent as always, but that was just his outward appearance. Somewhere, deep inside his heart, there was a sense of relief. It was as if something finally ended that the gruesome and unnatural murders of actual human beings didn't disturb him in the slightest.

And so, he chased the culprit, though the latter just walked so calmly as if he wasn't trying to escape. The culprit just talked to him so casually, and told him many bizarre things such as the existence of curses, the manifestations of those malicious beings born from accumulated fears, and more. He even gave Junpei the power to curse others.

Why? For Junpei to express his emotions more.

Instead of practicing indifference, the curse with the stitches argued that leaning to inner desires was more beautiful since life had no meaning.

Everything existed because they were all just there. There was nothing worth looking any deeper because there was never such a thing. The soul was all just made of components that were like a machine with gears.

Life was meaningless, and therefore, everyone should do as they like.

It was against Junpei's beliefs, which involved becoming passive and just accept whatever came in his way. To do as he liked would mean to defy the things he found hard to accept. He must hate because it was beautiful in an empty world. Instead of rejecting such negative emotion as an ugly thing and become empty, he must accept it and become full to enjoy the gift of being existed. So it would be better to act freely for fulfillment than to restrict himself for the sake of a nonexistent meaning.

That was the lesson he learned from the cursed spirit named Mahito. And so, Junpei was walking to his house as if nothing happened, but of course he carried something new in him. The philosophy about the pointlessness of life and the truth of the soul being told by Mahito left a weight in his mind. He still believed in the act of stoicism, but Mahito's words lingered. Little by little, the thought of letting it all go felt so appealing to do. The other was his power to use curses. Though not as strong as Mahito, the cursed technique would be useful against those weaker than him, especially non-sorcerers. The power to summon a shikigami called "Moon Dreg". Junpei was unsure what to do about those two things, so he needed to return home to recollect his thoughts. After a few minutes of walking, he finally reached the house.

"Yoshino!" A man called out his surname. Junpei saw him sitting at the front gate of his house until he stood up.

That man was fat with sweat all over his face due to the hot weather. His attire consisted of a white, long-sleeved button-up shirt, brown pants, and leather shoes.

"Where were you?" He asked while wiping the sweat off his face with a handkerchief. "You know you shouldn't skip school."

"Satomura... sensei." Junpei mumbled his name.

"Did you hear? Sayama, Nishimura, and Honda are dead. They were your friends, right?"

"... What?"

"They looked out for you when you were alone, and here you are, not even going to their funeral to give condolences. Honestly, what's wrong with you.?" Although Satomura spoke like he was scolding the boy, there was this carefree expression he had. It was as if the teacher was only doing it because it was just his job, not out of good intentions. He didn't take this seriously.

And that angered Junpei.

"Friends...? With THEM?" The boy mumbled with gritted teeth. "You graduated from school, and then you work at a school, and for what? To keep living in a small nest? That's exactly why you teachers have such small brains that I think you're all overgrown children. Both you and those damn bastards that gave me these scars. You don't know anything, so what gives you all the right to talk like that? Satomura-sensei, I bet you're putting yourself on a pedestal right now because you're doing a 'good deed', huh? Arrogant pieces of..."

"What's wrong? I guess being alone got you crazy, huh? Just joking." Satomura teased while wiping more sweat off his face. Meanwhile, Junpei raised both right index and ring fingers together and made a hand sign. His glare intimidated the teacher. "W-what is it?"

"You're so full of yourself." Junpei spoke with a low and trembling voice. "Don't talk to me like we're close. We don't share the same wavelength, so don't talk to me so casually!"

"What the-! What is this?!" Satomura had a look of bewilderment after seeing his own left arm having black spots with the burning sensation felt in his skin. "What's happening?!"

"Shut up!" Junpei shouted in anger, as he used his shikigami to wrap Satomura's neck with its tentacles and lifted him up while choking him. He then lifted the overgrown bang on his own hair to reveal the right side of his face, along with the burnt scars on his forehead. "Are you really that stupid to think me and those bastards were friends?! Look at it! They did this to me! Itou pushed a lit-up cigarette on me! Those three dead manchildren beat me up like I'm just a punching bag! I was treated like trash by them!"

"Yoshi... no!" The teacher tried to speak, but something was choking his neck harder that made it difficult for him to form a word. To him, he thought Junpei was using telekinesis since he didn't have enough power to see curses.

"Being alone got me crazy? Of course it did! The only person who's there for me is my mom! Even though she has a loser as her son, she still loves me." Junpei clenched his own chest through the purple shirt. "Meanwhile, what did you do? Showing up in front of my house and start acting like a grown-up when everything is too late?! You're such an ignorant teacher, you think nothing's wrong with me and everyone else. Well... let me show you how-!"

"Stop!" The voice of a younger man shouted behind the boy. Before he could turn around, he was tackled and got pinned on the ground facing downward. The sudden action caused the floating jellyfish to disappear, as Satomura fell on the ground with poison in his body. A woman with short blonde hair wearing a business suit approached the teacher and checked his condition. The man who pinned Junpei down spoke. "How is he?!"

"Not good, he might die any minute." The blonde woman answered while putting his arm over her shoulders in an attempt to carry him. The fat teacher was heavy enough for her to struggle, but she managed to move. "Let's go! And get that guy in the backseat with you!"

"Got it!" The man got up while holding Junpei's arms behind his back.

"W-wait! T-this isn't-" Junpei tried to reason, but he couldn't come up with an excuse.

"Yoshino Junpei, you will be taken into custody as a curse user for harming a citizen." The blonde woman spoke while carrying Satomura.


"Looks like everything is going as planned, like you said." Somewhere on a rooftop of a house, Geto stood there wearing the standard Jujutsu Tech uniform, but it had a hood on it. Beside him was Mahito who still had no clothes.

"Hahaha! I didn't think it'd go this smoothly." The special grade curse grinned. "Plan A didn't work, but Plan B might do."

"Speaking of Plan A, how is Shani Dev's bearer?" Geto's question made Mahito sit down with a sigh and spoke with a serious tone.

"He's strong, but not enough to kill special grades like me and Hanami. The main issue is his growth. Three months had passed and he's strong enough to be Grade 1. This plan needs to work or else he'd be the biggest hurdle to deal with at October 31st."

"Then let's get a move on."


Samsara's Helm - A small Indian organization that maintains order in India and incidents related to them; wants to protect Hachiman, Shani Dev's bearer.

Shoal Of Ropeholders - A criminal organization that wants to revive Shani Dev in the most dangerous ways.

Dahmini Troupe - Also a criminal organization that wants to kill the bearer under the belief that he will end humanity's free will should he be revived; wants to keep the unity in India by making the murder of Shani Dev a tradition of sorts.

Unregistered Special Grade Curses - A group of unregistered cursed spirits aiming to become the "true humans" by killing all of humanity. Their goals are to seal Gojo Satoru, recruit Sukuna, and kill Shani Dev's bearer.

Jujutsu Tech - An organization that operates as both a school and an operation base for sorcerers. Their stances are mixed with Gojo and the others helping Hachiman while others (especially the higher-ups) wish abnormalities like him to perish.


UPDATE(Jun 6 2022): Hello. for those who are worried, please go to this page on reddit r/FanFiction/comments/v889mc/how_writing_saved_me/