A Young Girl's Ten Shadows

By Special FX and Icura

~o~

Chapter 3: The Honored One

~o~

There was an old saying in the Zenin clan, 'You are not human if you are not a jujutsu sorcerer'.

For the clan, jujutsu was everything—the end all, be all. That was because the prosperity of the clan was centered around an individual's jujutsu and their corresponding bloodlines. From that, wealth and honor were gifted unto them befitting their status since the ancient times. Against curses, it was simply human nature to fear the unknown and be desperate for countermeasures of any kind. Just like with the ninja clans of old, their exclusive specialty made them invaluable, especially considering the invisibility of curses for the masses.

However, as their power and control within the clan grew, so too did their arrogance.

In the end, the clan became one where it refused to accept those born of their bloodline with weak potential. Those with low amounts of cursed energy were looked down upon and mistreated, to the point where they either simply kept their heads down as servants or left the clan entirely. And for someone like Toji Zenin who did not even possess an ounce of cursed energy?

It was no different.

Born devoid of cursed energy due to his heavenly restriction—a type of binding vow decided at birth—he was gifted with a physically superior body that none could rival in return. His strength and overwhelming physical prowess could not be questioned, but for a clan that was stuck in its traditional ways, his blood was more like a contagion that could weaken the clan within a few generations.

In feudal times, a child without cursed energy would have been strangled in his sleep. They had made sure that he knew that fact all his life—that he had only survived due to their merciful whims. After all, what use was there in a child with no cursed energy? How would he even be able to defeat curses?

The answer was with cursed tools—items that had been imbued with cursed energy for a long enough time that they developed cursed energy of their own.

Toji could not kill curses on his own like the other jujutsu sorcerers in the clan, but why did it matter if he could just use a cursed tool? Why did he need cursed energy when he could move fast enough that the curses wouldn't even be able to react? Why did he need cursed energy when he was strong enough to cut through even the hides of the toughest of curses?

And yet, even then, standing over the corpses of hundreds of curses, they still refused to acknowledge him. He could fight and kill, again and again, but what was the point? No matter how many curses he killed, nothing would change in the end. Even destroying the entire Zenin bloodline would only result in another brief footnote in history. Their unfounded arrogance was only a small piece of the entire structure that made up the jujutsu society that rejected him.

There were plenty of other clans just like the Zenin clan.

Besides, what would destroying everything even accomplish? Nothing. Eventually, another clan would simply come along to take their place and nothing would change. There were plenty of independent families that could take over, especially out in the countryside, and that wasn't even considering other curse users.

All of it would just be meaningless in the end.

The only reason the clan was still around was because it would be annoying to have all of jujutsu society after his head. They hadn't pissed him off enough yet to make it worth the effort. Perhaps if they tried to attack him during his sleep, it would be reason enough, but fear and the old man's commands stayed their hand.

Still, it was grating to have to always see the eyes of people looking down on him or pretending he didn't exist. There were even occasions where he was tempted to just pluck them out of their sockets so he preferred not to stay in the compound most of the time.

Most of his time was spent away on jobs or gambling anyway.

The only real reason to return to the compound was to pick up some more work, to collect his paycheck, or to pick up another cursed weapon. The Zenin clan regularly received jobs from the government that paid extremely well, and while the old man still looked down on him, he didn't stop him from taking on requests. It was annoying that the clan took a cut, but it still paid more and lacked the complications that freelancing would have involved.

His last job had been a big one, so he'd probably have enough money to gamble for a couple of weeks before he would need to pick up another one. Horse racing was getting boring so maybe he'd try boat racing this time.

As Toji was making his way toward Naobito's residence in order to pick up his pay, he turned the corner and felt something bump into his leg. Glancing down, he saw a blonde-haired girl on the ground in a red kimono with a floral pattern design.

"Tanya!" The shrill voice of the girl's attendant grated at his ears. The attendant's eyes turned up to him. "How dare you—"

The woman's sentence died unfinished when she recognized who he was.

"It's alright, Misato," Tanya said with a raised hand as she slowly stood back up. "I'm fine."

Toji glanced down at the little girl who only reached up to his waist while foreign, sky-blue eyes looked back up at him. He couldn't help but think that they weren't the eyes that a five year old brat should have. There was a certain steel in those eyes of hers. Was she an orphan brat living on the streets before?

It wasn't the first time that he had seen the Zenin clan's new Ten Shadows user. After all, her arrival had caused quite a stir within the clan. He wasn't someone that was exempt from being curious. Just like the time with the Six-Eyes, Toji had decided to see what all the fuss was about so he had taken a glance at her while she was training in one of the clan's dojos. Though, unlike with the Six-Eyes brat, she hadn't noticed him at all.

At the time, Toji couldn't help but find it ironic that her shikigami was an angel. An angel in a clan full of devils. What a joke.

"I'm sorry for running into you," Tanya apologized. "I wasn't able to sense your presence."

"That's because you can't," Toji replied with his usual boredom. "I'm just a monkey without cursed energy after all."

The young girl furrowed her brow.

"...I see. You really don't have any cursed energy," she said after a beat. "I don't believe we've met before. I'm Tanya."

When she introduced herself with a practiced bow, Toji simply stared at her.

"What's the point in greeting a weakling?" Toji asked sardonically. "Have they not taught you that yet?"

"People cannot choose what they are born with, but effort is something that anyone can do. I can see that you aren't neglecting your body, and your eyes are still sharp so you clearly haven't given in. The circumstances of your birth shouldn't dictate the value you have to society."

"I wasn't talking about myself."

"That's reasonable since I haven't contributed to the clan yet in any meaningful manner," Tanya said. "May I have your name, sir?"

"...Toji."

"It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Toji-san," Tanya replied with a practiced smile. "Unfortunately, I need to take my leave. Come along, Misato, let's not keep them waiting."

"...y-yes, of course," the young girl's attendant said as she followed after her charge. He didn't miss how the attendant tried to completely avoid meeting his eyes as she walked by.

Toji watched as the two women walked past him and turned the corner, disappearing from his vision.

What a strange kid.

He stared at his hand for a brief moment before stuffing his hands back into his pockets and resuming his walk. It had been a while since anyone in the clan had piqued his interest.

"Toji!" Another childlike voice called out. "You're back!"

Ah, then again. There was another strange brat like that here, wasn't there? A kid that didn't look at him with the same eyes as all the others. However, seeing how the kid treated everyone else, he seemed more like the exception rather than the rule. Toji glanced over to the source of the voice and saw Naoya Zenin running over toward him with a book in his hands.

"What'dya want, kid?" he asked with his usual disinterest. "I don't have time to train with you today."

"Tch, you always say that," Naoya grumbled as he looked at the ground. "...help me with something else then."

"It depends on what it is."

Naoya held open the book in his hands and shoved it in front of his face.

"Can you tell me what this word means?"

"..."

Huh?

~o~

A sleek black sedan glided through the bustling city streets. If anyone paid attention, they would have recognized the car as the one that was always used by government officials. However, it was for that reason that, while a luxury car, it mainly went unnoticed. In Tokyo, a major governmental and economic hub, it was a lot more commonplace.

Inside the sedan, the air was scented with a hint of lavender, a fragrance carefully chosen to mask the city's less refined aromas. The bulletproof glass and reinforced frame provided protection against human threats, but knowing what she did, they would only delay curses and curse users at best. Tanya's fingers traced over the intricate patterns of the embroidered seat as she looked out the window.

How long had it been since she had last seen the city where she had spent so many years of her original life in? It had also been the place where she had died, waiting for the train before being pushed onto the tracks. If anything, she would like to track down both herself and her murderer. Is this the same world she came from? Did her previous self exist in this life? Would her past life's parents be here too? Would it be unethical to get revenge before the crime ever happened?

It felt like a lifetime ago, even though the total cumulative years didn't actually add up to that long since, technically, a lifetime was roughly eighty years. The Zenin clan was traditional in that they were mainly cut off from the outside world with a few exceptions. In fact, the only reason that they had television sets in the first place was because the clan head was adamant on their inclusion; before his reign, there had only been newspapers. Naobito was apparently a big fan of animation, as he would occasionally bring it up as a conversation topic whenever they conversed.

Tanya's thoughts eventually came back to that man that she had seen before she left the compound. She didn't know who he was. She had never met him before or heard about him, but there were several factors that informed her judgment within that limited time frame. The hakama he was wearing was the same type worn by clan members so he couldn't be part of the hired help. Not only that, but the fear that Misato displayed at his presence was not something she would have shown to any regular clan member; Tanya had seen her attendant talk down to some of the lower-ranked family members after all.

That meant that Toji must have had a relatively moderate to high position within the clan.

At first, she had thought that he had been hiding his cursed energy, but he had clarified that wasn't the case. Of course, he could have simply been lying to test her so she went with the safe route of believing him. Though, the fact that it coincided with her own personal beliefs made it easier to do so as well.

"Tanya." Naobito Zenin's voice snapped her out of her daze as she quickly turned her full attention to the clan leader who was sitting next to her. "What do you know about the Gojo clan?"

Was this a test?

Tanya quickly racked her brain for any information she had about the Gojo clan. While most of her time in the clan had been spent working on jujutsu or etiquette lessons, there was some regular schooling involved as well, though they were on the easy side for her. She had tested out of many of those subjects, and they had thankfully not tried to hold her back. It would have been annoying to be forced to waste time on that like she had before entering the Zenin clan.

"...the Gojo clan is one of the three great families in jujutsu society," Tanya recited from memory. "They are known for their Limitless cursed technique and the Six-Eyes trait."

"Hmph," Naobito grunted. "A textbook answer, but not incorrect. I will need to incorporate recent news into your lesson plans."

Did that mean she passed his test? She couldn't tell because the look on his face hardly ever changed unless he was drinking.

"Do not let your guard down around them. They are a pool of mud that will try to drown you at every chance they can get, and they have started to overstep their bounds as of late," Naobito continued with an annoyed look in his eyes. "All because of that brat with the Limitless and Six-Eyes."

Tanya knew who he was talking about.

Satoru Gojo's name had been mentioned more than once in various conversations since she had arrived in the Zenin clan. It was natural, he was the first person to be born with both the Six-Eyes and the Limitless technique in over 400 years after all.

"Throughout history, the Gojo clan and the Kamo clan have always been at odds with us. While the Kamo clan has become more of a neutral element in recent years, the Gojo are still our bane. They might have their Six-Eyes and Limitless technique, but we have our Ten Shadows technique, and they know that ours come about far more often than theirs."

Naobito turned his full attention to her and stared her down.

"Do you understand what I'm saying?"

Tanya nodded her head in response.

There was bad blood between the clans due to past feuds. Because of the birth of Satoru Gojo, the Gojo clan was taking advantage of their newfound prodigy and expanding the reach of their influence. It was a classic power play amidst the constant struggle for power and influence between the three great clans. However, the Six-Eyes and the Limitless technique were usually not born on the same individual, lessening their power. That meant that, if they overstepped their bounds too much this generation, then retaliation would come in the next generation after Satoru Gojo was gone.

The Gojo clan, therefore, could not truly act without bounds. However, the fire in the clan head's eyes did not lessen.

"You will surpass Satoru Gojo," Naobito tilted his head until he was staring her straight in the eyes with an intense gaze. "Do not let anyone else rival you. For the future of the clan, you must become an overpowering existence. Do you understand?"

"Yes, of course," Tanya stoically replied, though she thought otherwise.

The reason that the fire in his eyes did not lessen was because of ambition. Tanya knew exactly what he was asking for. If they were able to overcome Satoru Gojo, then they wouldn't have to worry about future retribution or anything like that. They would be able to act without bounds, possibly even destroy the Gojo clan and incorporate their remnants into the Zenin bloodline. A big reason why the Zenin clan was so powerful was because, throughout history, the clan had taken in many jujutsu sorcerers with powerful techniques.

By the time the Kamo clan realizes what happened, it would be too late. They would be able to do the same to the Kamo clan and take over jujutsu society as a whole, reigning as the single supreme power that even the Japanese government would have to bend their knees to.

After all, could the prime minister protect himself from a curse?

It was essentially the shadow domination of Japan, and that fact sent terrifying chills down her spine. If jujutsu and curses didn't primarily exist solely in Japan, then she would have been fearful of causing a world war. The ambitions that Naobito was showing were drastic and utter madness, but fortunately, there was an easy solution.

Tanya just needed to not kill Satoru Gojo. Hopefully, he wouldn't be like Mary Sue, otherwise it would be the worst situation possible. If anything, all of this made her even more tense about the upcoming meeting.

The sedan soon came to a stop, signaling the end of the conversation. That was because they were in front of the entrance to an underground parking lot underneath a skyscraper building. The building itself was a large and looming structure of concrete and reflective glass. She could see that they were waiting in a line of cars to gain entry. However, the team of security guards in black suits seemed to notice their car since they were pointing and talking to each other.

As one of those security guards walked up, bypassing the other cars in the line to reach them, the window on Naobito's side slid down. There was no conversation between them, just a simple nod from the guard after seeing him before the window slid back up. With the guards stepping out of the way and motioning to them to enter another lane, the driver drove the sedan out of the line and down the alternative lane into the tunnel.

At the end of the path, it opened up into an expansive parking garage, illuminated by ceiling lights. Despite the lines of cars being checked at the entrances, there were already endless rows of parked cars, patrolled by even more security guards than what was at the entrance. Some of those guards—visibly armed with holstered handguns—waved us over to an area where valets were standing at attention.

A small chuckle from Naobito grabbed her attention.

"Did you notice?" Naobito glanced at a security guard through the window to emphasize his point.

"Notice what?"

"A few of them are jujutsu sorcerers. That is how we make our money," he explained. "At events with this many people of importance, they cannot skimp on this. Protection is necessary, but we also provide a cleansing service. Sometimes, these politicians and wealthy patrons carry curses with them. Do you know why this is?"

"They are the recipient of negative emotions from a large number of people." It was unavoidable in the field of politics and economics. In fact, if she had been Argent Silver in this kind of world, she probably would have had tons of curses attached to her as well.

"And why is it necessary to get rid of these curses without them noticing?"

"To allow them to enjoy the party without being frightened," Tanya slowly replied. "If they are scared, they are prone to be more skittish and reserved. They won't be able to create connections or conduct deals easily. Without being able to relax, they might even choose to leave early. Not only would it be beneficial at the party, but afterward, they would feel better than they did before attending the party which would make them feel more positive toward the host."

"Hm." Naobito finally turned his head slightly to look at her. "More than what I expected from a rural girl."

"It's the same principle as to why alcohol is served at business negotiations."

"Precocious brat."

"I'll take that as a compliment, Naobito-sama."

At the drop-off point, the sedan came to a stop, but only the two of them got out of the sedan. They were quickly led by a guide to an elevator that they took up into the building. Surprisingly, the ride was actually short, but the reason became obvious why when the elevator doors slid apart.

What it opened up to was a massive hall with an incredibly high ceiling. It was ridiculously extravagant, especially considering the amount of dead space between the partygoers on the ground level and the ceiling. Of course, none of the many participants that crowded the hall paid it any mind, most of them not even paying attention to the numerous tables filled with five star quality snacks and drinks. All in all, it had the extravagance of a party that a Kaiser would host as well as an expense that would have caused the general public to revolt.

Of course, it was a norm of society no matter the era, even if she thought the money could be better spent in the current economic bubble burst.

"Tanya, I'll be introducing you to many somewhat important individuals now," Naobito said in a semi-serious manner, trying and failing not to let boredom leak into his voice. It didn't escape her eyes that he kept glancing at the wine table. "Do not speak until you're spoken to, but don't let them walk over you. You are a Zenin. Act with pride."

"I understand."

~o~

Despite how large the hall looked, there were actually a limited number of different groups, mainly industry heads, political leaders, or the heads from other clans. Many of them brought along their entire family, making it seem more crowded than it normally would be. She hadn't been expecting that, especially since the only ones coming from the Zenin clan were Naobito and herself. Why didn't the other family members come? When she asked the family head about that, he merely shrugged and responded with one line.

"Nobody wanted to come."

Her momentary frown clearly displayed how she thought of that statement, but it was soon back to the plastic smile that she was forced to plaster onto her face. It would have been difficult for a normal child, but she had experience from her past life as the face of military propaganda back then. However, she doubted that her limited experiences would actually fool many of these people here, considering how entrenched they all were in politics.

The conversations that they began with her were mostly childish and juvenile in nature, mostly small talk. Any topics that had any relevant importance to jujutsu society or the world at large were directed toward Naobito instead. She had tried inserting herself into a conversation about the current Japanese economy, but an awkward laugh from the politician and a stern glare from Naobito had stopped any further attempts.

In the end, she was stifled, relegated to plastic smiles and perfunctory chatter. Fortunately, she was still able to make connections through introductions, and she made sure to memorize the relevant details about each of the people she was introduced to—clan heads, politicians, and other influential members of society. However, in the end, it was still degrading and tiring in all matters that counted.

Tanya felt like a trophy child that Naobito was waving around to show off. It reminded her far too much of the time she had to take those propaganda photographs for the army in her past life.

Once the summit meeting finally concluded, all of the clans that attended the meeting were invited into the dining hall for a banquet. These post-meeting dinners were just as important as the actual meetings because they were always a gold mine for networking. While Tanya was still just a young child, the other clans had brought along important children of their own to the summit as well. It was a prime opportunity for her to establish early relations with generational rich children, though honestly, there didn't really seem to be much benefit to that. The opportunity to maintain such a relationship, especially with children who had short-term memories, was limited with her living in the Zenin compound.

The dining hall was a massive room filled with large circular tables for people to sit at and long tables with a varied assortment of delicacies served on top. It was the type of banquet that was more of a self-serve rather than a wait to be served one. It was also the type of social event that she had used to her past career's benefit many times in her first life. She preferred these types of events because they allowed for conversation to happen naturally, such as running into an influential person while grabbing a drink at a table. Also, she wouldn't be as restricted as before since she wouldn't have to be stuck shadowing Naobito around the whole time.

As Tanya brought her empty plate over by the food table and debated what her next move should be, she noticed another boy her age approach her. Even without the short white hair and crystal blue eyes, it would be obvious who the boy was just from his presence and the cursed energy she could feel from him, even tightly packed as it was.

"Hmm…?" Satoru Gojo playfully hummed as he leaned forward and stared at her. "So you're the new Ten Shadows user everyone's been talking about, huh?"

Considering her hair marked her as having foreign blood to anyone with eyes, Tanya wasn't surprised that he knew who she was. She placed her empty plate down on the table before turning her attention back to him.

This was Satoru Gojo, the heir apparent to the Gojo clan and a prodigy who was born in the same generation as her. He was supposed to be her 'rival', even though this was the first time she had met him. However, he was also someone that she was going to have to deal with as a jujutsu sorcerer in the future. In that sense, it would be beneficial to get a sense of what sort of person he was and try to create a cordial relationship so that in the future, they wouldn't immediately try to kill each other.

"Hello, I'm Tanya Zenin," she replied with a warm smile and a slight bow of her head. "It's nice to meet you."

The white-haired boy simply stared at her with a raised eyebrow for a moment before he smirked.

"Satoru Gojo," he eventually answered. "Though you probably already knew that."

"I did," she admitted. "Still, it's common courtesy to introduce yourself so thank you for that. Would you like to say some things about yourself?"

In the childhood development book that she had read, it was mentioned that praising young children for their efforts causes increased levels of happiness and enjoyment. In a sense, they were no different from adults, though the effects were probably more profound on children. So naturally, she took advantage of her newfound knowledge to make a good first impression on the clan heir.

"Blegh, boooring." Satoru made a face. "You sound like one of those old geezers."

Tanya felt her eyebrow twitch in response. "…is that so?"

Unfortunately, the book also did say that not all children would be as accepting.

"Yep," Satoru cheekily replied. "You want to hear about something interesting I heard recently instead?"

"…very well, enlighten me."

"So waaaaaay back in the past, a Zenin clan member with the Ten Shadows technique once fought against a Gojo clan member who had the Six-Eyes and the Limitless technique," Satoru replied with a playful tone in his voice. "The battle ended up being a draw since they killed each other in the end."

Tanya was familiar with that piece of history from the clan archives, though she didn't like the implication of him mentioning it. Was it a warning or possibly a declaration of war?

"You think it would end the same way if it were to happen again?" Tanya asked, trying to keep the sharp edge from her tone. "I would not recommend it."

"Don't be so serious!" Satoru laughed. "That's just what the old geezers told me so I wouldn't get a big head. Something about me being arrogant or what-not. I wasn't really listening."

"..."

Her smile became strained. This damn brat! If that was supposed to be a joke, it wasn't funny!

"Haha, relax, Tanya. I don't really care about the clans or any of that boring stuff, " Satoru casually admitted. Too casually even. Wasn't he supposed to be the heir? "Honestly, I just came by to talk to you since you seem interesting."

"I'm interesting…?" she dubiously repeated. "How so?"

"I mean, isn't it obvious? You're a Ten Shadows user, and I'm a Limitless user that has the Six-Eyes."

"And that's all?"

"Maybe."

Tanya narrowed her eyes at him.

"Ah, you make me feel like I'm bullying you," Satoru said with another laugh. "I'm just bored, alright?"

"Is that really it?"

Satoru just playful shrugged in response.

"I'm the strongest, you know," he said, as if it were a factual statement rather than an opinion. "It gets boring when nothing's ever a challenge, so I hope you don't let me down, Tanya-chan~. Otherwise, things might not turn out so well…for you."

And then just as suddenly as he had arrived, Satoru Gojo left, disappearing into the crowd of people by the dessert table with a plate in his hand. Wait a second…he had stolen her plate. That damn brat!

Tanya just let out a tired sigh in response.

Every action of Satoru Gojo seemed like it was meant to antagonize her. If she was actually a child, she would have considered this an act of war. Was it meant to stroke some spirit of rivalry, especially since he made a mention of his expectations for her? It seemed a bit too manipulative for a child his age so it could have possibly been something that he had been coached to say by his clan.

If that was the case, that meant that the Gojo clan was already wary of her existence. How much of Satoru Gojo was simply an extension of his clan was the real question here. However, just like with Naobito's ambition, it was likely that the elders of his clan were teaching him how to fight and kill her.

"..."

Dealing with Satoru Gojo felt like preparing for an impending tsunami.

~o~

Satoru Gojo was bored.

He was so bored that he had taken to wandering around the building to kill some time until the event was over. Sure, the food was good, but he could only eat so many sweets. The old geezers would probably be pissed, but he didn't care.

He hated coming to events like these; they were always so boring. He'd much rather be at home playing video games than have to meet with some more old geezers. As if he didn't have to already hear enough yapping regularly from the current clan head. The only reason he even attended this one was because his mom kept begging him to. It was always 'for the clan' this, 'for the clan' that, his duty to the clan, blah blah blah. Honestly, he didn't care about any of that stuff, and it was starting to annoy him that those old geezers in the clan thought that they could boss him around all the time.

Although, he would say that this year's event wasn't as boring as last year's.

The Zenin clan and their new Ten Shadows user had ended up being the main topic of the event, much to the head geezer's ire. Satoru never bothered paying much attention to the clan's history lessons, but when they talked about the Ten Shadows, it did catch his eye. Mainly because it involved a previous Six-Eyes Limitless user, and the ensuing battle that came with it. Satoru was the strongest, so the idea of there being someone else out there who could rival him was interesting, even if it was only in the past.

The Gojo clan and the Zenin clan typically stayed away from each other during large social gatherings like these. Satoru didn't care about any of the two clan's past histories or whatever though. None of that boring stuff mattered to him so he just started looking around for the Ten Shadows user the first chance he got.

They hadn't told him what she looked like, probably because they knew he would try to find her. Still, it wasn't like it was hard to find her. Just check out which kid had the most cursed energy. What he didn't expect was that the Ten Shadows user was a girl, and a foreigner at that. Her long blonde hair and sky-blue eyes made her stand out among the crowd. She looked like she was around the same age as him too which made him even more curious.

Their initial conversation hadn't gone how he had expected.

She didn't act like any of the other kids he had met so far. She was way too serious, in a way that reminded him of the old geezers. He couldn't help but want to tease her a bit and see if he could crack that shell of hers. It ended up being a pretty amusing if short conversation in the end.

If she was going to start being a common occurrence at these events, maybe he wouldn't plan on skipping out on the next one. Or better yet, just find her whenever without having to go through an event. Unless they lock her up year-round, there should be a bunch of chances in the future.

Satoru turned the corner and ended up walking down a door that led outside to what looked like a garden. It was already dark outside so the moon shining down from the night sky provided a nice amount of illumination. In the center of the garden stood a large water fountain along with the current subject of his thoughts.

"Heh," Satoru laughed as he approached her. "So they're actually letting you wander around alone like this?"

Tanya Zenin turned her attention away from the water fountain to look at him. The moonlight shining down on her gave her an almost ethereal look. It was only for a moment, but he could see the irritation briefly flash across her face before she quickly replaced it with that fake smile of hers.

"I could say the same to you."

"I'm strong. Why would I need someone to watch over me?"

She had an unimpressed look on her face "...do you always act so conceited?"

"Am I being conceited if I'm just telling the truth?"

"Yes," Tanya dryly answered. "People will get a bad impression of you."

Satoru paused and thought about that for a moment. Actually, she was probably right about that. Then again, he didn't particularly care what people thought of him. It seemed like a pain to change his attitude just to conform and cater to the masses.

He shrugged in response. "Why're you out here anyway? Finally got sick of having to talk to old geezers all day?"

"No, I just wanted to get some fresh air."

"That's a lie." Satoru smirked. "Just admit it. You got bored of having to listen to them drone on and on."

"Bored? It's only been a couple of hours," Tanya said with a frown. "And you shouldn't mock your elders, Gojo-san."

"Blegh, don't call me that. It makes me sound like them," he replied with a face. "Just call me Satoru."

"...if you insist."

The conversation soon died out as a peaceful silence took over. While the peace and quiet might have been relaxing, it was also boring, especially when he wanted to kill some time.

"So, do you like video games?"

"No."

"Then what do you do for fun?"

"Reading."

"What do you read?"

"Textbooks."

"Huh? Textbooks? Why?" He had a confused expression on his face. "That's boring."

"It's not," Tanya replied heatedly. "Preparing yourself for the future is never boring. It can affect your future career and prospects."

"What prospects? All we're going to do in the future is fight curses."

"What about if you get seriously injured?" She turned her gaze over to look at him seriously. "The chances of losing a limb in combat are incredibly high, especially in recent statistics. Even though reversed cursed techniques can deal with many issues, there are some injuries it can't help with. You need a backup plan if you receive a permanent disability."

"Nah, that wouldn't happen with my Infinity."

"But what if?"

"What's the point of talking about something that won't ever happen?"

"That's why it's hypothetical," Tanya replied with an annoyed look on her face. "Haven't you seen retired elders in your clan without a limb?"

"Wouldn't happen to me."

"Let's just say, for example, that you're fighting an unbeatable opponent that you will one hundred percent lose against. Since you can't win—"

"Nah, I'd win."

"..."

Tanya shot him another mildly annoyed look.

"You can still sustain a permanent injury while winning."

"Nah, that wouldn't be winning." Satoru smirked. "That would just be not losing."

"...I'm leaving."

Satoru couldn't help but laugh at the look on her face before she turned to leave, even if only for a brief moment. Teasing her was a lot more fun than he thought it would be. It was during times like these he was grateful for his Six-Eyes letting him notice even the slightest of changes.

~o~

Authors' Notes:

SFX: Throughout Heaven and Earth, he alone is the most annoying one. - Tanya probably.

Icura: Whew, another chapter, another meme.