Chapter 3.- Strange tales

Iridescent blue stared at the stained piece of plastic he'd fished out of the girl's blood-soaked jacket.

Most of the things inside the light blue wallet were ruined beyond salvation, but Satoru managed to scrape off the dried crimson of her student ID.

Higurashi Kagome, turned 18 a little over a month ago, should be graduating soon, and if the quick search he did on the address neatly printed on the ID, the girl lived in what appeared to be her family's shrine. The family line seemed to be quite old, but it didn't ring any sort of bells; apparently, she didn't lie back in the mall. Her family wasn't in any way related to the jujutsu world. Looking online showed no weird rumors floating around the place, and no odd incidents had happened nearby that could point to a link to any shady organizations. It all seemed to paint them as an ordinary, unremarkable family. The religious background explained where she got the paper talismans and the terminology from. And that's about the only answer he got from his quick research, leaving him with a million different questions because there was nothing normal about the young woman.

Hell, even now, he couldn't detect even the slightest bit of power coming from his room.

Not the odd energy she used, not cursed energy either. Just taking his eyes away from her was enough to make her all but invisible to him.

After being exposed to her power, there was no way in hell he could ever miss it. Her first few displays hadn't been particularly shocking (aside from the fact that it was not cursed energy), but after her final attack on the special grade, the feeling of her so-called reiki seemed to be engraved in his brain. Never had Satoru felt both, the urge to destroy and possess something with such intensity before. Fuck, a part of him had even wanted to get away from the mall's basement, driven away by something that almost felt like fear.

Today or in three years, the sorcerer was confident he'd be able to identify her power even if all he could detect was a sliver of it. He'd felt the build-up of energy of her weakest attack just as clearly as he had her strongest blow. Now that she was unconscious, it was like being in front of that man again. Whether it was instinctual or a move gained through practice, it was like her power would be sealed the moment she stopped using them. Had they passed each other on the street, Satoru wasn't sure he would've noticed anything unusual about her. There was even a high chance Miss archer had gotten close to the school without any of the old farts ever noticing. The thought was enough to make him laugh; those cowards jumped to destroy anything that threatened their privileges and precious status quo, but here was this woman going against the rules of their world as they knew it, right underneath their noses. And she was powerful, too.

The kind of attacks she'd used at first weren't what he'd call weak, and there was clearly some decent variety in her arsenal, but he'd fully expected to have to intervene halfway through the fight. Her claims of having dealt with worse were hard to believe when it was so obvious she had no clue what a curse was, but once more, Miss Archer hadn't lied. One hit was all she needed to exorcise the curse, and she'd spent more than three hours fighting the weaker monsters, healing survivors, and more than likely, taking hits for them too. Yet, she proved herself stronger than he'd given her credit for.

Was that the limits of her power? How much did her exhaustion play into her passing out? If this was all she could do, would training help her use less energy for her attacks? Even if that wasn't the case she'd still rank quite high…

….and if that wasn't the limit of her strength…then where was it?

What if she didn't have one?

Destroying her feet in an effort to get to the curse was reckless as hell, and just the right type of insane thinking needed to survive in this world. She was quick in coming up with working strategies. Blood and gore didn't seem to faze her, and her instinct to protect her family first showed she was far from being naive or sheltered. Watching her interact with the survivors made it clear the young woman had quite the experience in handling both ends of the 'extreme reaction' spectrum, not missing a beat at the grateful, near worship they showered her with or the vitriolic resentment spat at her. The sort of pressure that could make experienced sorceress crack, Higurashi Kagome had already experienced, some of it, at least. So if she was more powerful than she'd shown…could she possibly…

Are you the strongest because you're Gojo Satoru? Or are you Gojo Satoru because you're the strongest?

No…

No, he was jumping to conclusions.

Kagome wasn't weak, she could probably qualify as a special grade, but Satoru could see just how much work she needed. Hell, right now, she'd had no choice but to depend on him for protection. Her physical abilities might be decent for a regular non-sorcerer, but they paled in comparison to what most people in the jujutsu world could achieve. There was no point in having unreasonable expectations. This curious archer he found would be effective in destabilizing some of the corrupt basis of society; maybe she'd even help some of the younger generations later on. An effective and potentially valuable piece worth getting his hands on. However, in many ways, the young woman would essentially be his first student. For her own safety and for the sake of her family, Kagome needed to rely on him, not the other way around.

Speaking of…her family's safety was something he should start thinking about.

Containment and imprisonment would be the least of her worries because the assholes in Headquarters would never allow such an unusual existence to run free.

Keeping the young woman safe wouldn't be too hard. As long as she remained by his side, it'd be easy to handle any curse or curse user sent after her. Once that approach failed the Higurashi family would become the next target, and they'd be entirely defenseless. A groan got stuck in his throat. There was, he supposed, an easy solution for solution for this problem as well. It wouldn't matter how weird or irrational his orders were, no member of the Gojo clan would dare disobey him, and a task appointed by him would take priority over anything coming from Headquarters. He hated the idea of having to go back to that place, even if just for a moment, let alone the continued contact he'd need to have in order to be updated on the family's protection. Frustrating or not, Satoru gave his word, so he should probably find the time to drop by the Gojo estate.

Before taking Kagome to see the old assholes.

Of course, for that to happen, she'd have to be conscious first.

Long fingers tapped the plastic ID as his gaze flickered to his room's closed door. When the little archer passed out, the sorcerer didn't think much of it. The young woman had known how exhausted she was, finding a harmless excuse to stay behind as she sent the mall's survivors away so they wouldn't panic even more. He'd seen her heal herself after fighting the curse, so Satoru simply took her to an apartment he'd bought on a whim two years ago, did his best to get rid of the dry blood all over her, and waited. That was yesterday, and the light coming in from the grand window was painted red by now. Maybe he should call Shoko. Understanding how this spiritual energy of hers worked from sight alone was frustratingly beyond him, but he'd seen cursed energy vanish upon contact with it. Maybe it would react to all cursed energy all the same, maybe it only did so because of it's negative properties, and if her spiritual energy did work instinctively there was always a chance it wouldn't work. Then again, Shoko was far more qualified than him when it came to regular medical care and would keep quiet if asked to, so it wouldn't hurt to haver her over. One more day, Satoru decided, he'd give the girl one more day to wake up on her own.

"You know, I'm pretty sure I said if you kept fishing for information, I'd make things as confusing as I could."

His knees almost hit the table, his neck itching for a heartbeat.

Fuck, he's gonna have to get used to relying on his hearing to notice her presence from here on out, wasn't he?

The young woman scoffed but walked over to the coffee table. The bandages he'd wrapped on her feet were gone, her hair was wet, but she was clean and was wearing the clothes he'd sent Ijichi for. All in all, the archer looked refreshed and as healthy as if she'd gone out from a hot spring instead of a shower. Something he really should've heard even if the sorcerer was deep in thought. At least it didn't look like Kagome was more focused on picking one of the pastries scattered on the table as she sat in front of him.

"Please, tell me that wasn't the only salvageable thing?" Taking a bite from a cupcake, the girl raised a brow at him.

"A pair of keys," he grinned, pointing at the still-stained metal on the table corner, the rest of her ruined stuff was in a closed plastic bag abandoned in the kitchen. "Looks like you're back on your feet."

"I did say I have a knack for surviving impossible situations, didn't I?" Picking one of the unopened cans of coffee also scattered on the table, she went to take a sip. "How long was I out for?"

"We exorcised the special grade yesterday."

"Great, Mama has to be losing her mind," she mumbled under her breath before asking, "Are we still in Tokyo?"

"Yup, my place." He could see her glancing around his apartment, curious, but not particularly worried.

"…how expensive are these clothes?" Before Satoru could reply, she lifted her left hand. "No, forget it, don't tell me yet, I'll pay you back eventually."

"That's what you're worried about?"

Satoru did enjoy pissing other people off. Getting under someone else's skin could get him quite a bit of an advantage in confrontations, beyond the strategic motives of it though, he could admit a part of him felt more than satisfied when the elders' faces turned tomato red as they choked on their tongues because they knew they couldn't bully him into submission. But there was a very big difference between good-natured (and sometimes malicious) teasing and violating someone's privacy. Honestly, he would've been happy to drop her on his bed and take a nap on the couch before trying to figure out a game plan. They may have only known each other for less than one afternoon, but if the spirited archer made a fuss about potentially causing a cave-in, she would surely be upset about waking up in different clothes. Even the strongest sorcerer knew there was a reason for some protocols to be followed though, so he peeled off the ruined fabric off of her, used a wet rag to make sure there were no other injuries, and made what Shoko would call a shitty attempt to bandage her open wounds.

Angry, insulting comments and wary glances, he expected, instead, the young woman placed the can on the table, rested her head on her open palm, and stared at him. Those azure eyes of hers were looking straight at him, almost as if she could see through him, carefully watching something he couldn't see, impossible as such a thing should be. Despite how bizarre this situation should be, Higurashi Kagome looked quite at home inside his suite.

"Dried blood isn't exactly my favorite smell in the world," she smiled, as if she was used to waking up bloodied and bruised. "I've become a pretty decent judge of character. I'm not easy to fool anymore. You're not the type to be that sort of asshole. Plus, it'd be a waste to ruin your bedsheets just because you didn't notice I was still bleeding out."

"Heh, real confident about it, I see…I do have a phone if ya want it." This was not fishing for information; he was just being helpful.

"For that job offer of yours…we have to go and meet someone else, right?" And she was still dodging him.

"Ideally, the director should probably be told," Though, against the Gojo Satoru's word, his opinion wouldn't hold much weight. "There's also the old farts, we can get it all over and done with tomorrow."

"Might as well wait until tomorrow for that phone call, then." Shaking her head, the girl took another sip of coffee.

"Up to ya." Grabbing a slice of cake, the sorcerer continued. "I'll have some grunts from my clan stations around your shrine by tomorrow, so do I get my story now?"

"Right, I guess it's only fair, it's just…" For the first time since he met her, the young woman faltered before staring back up at him. "Look, I know you have questions, but things will get very confusing if you ask whatever you want, whenever you want. You have to let me tell this from the beginning without interrupting. Also…I know how this is going to sound, alright, but I'm warning you now, it's not my fault if you don't believe me, got it?"

"Should I get some popcorn?"His question earned him a huff.

"What do you know about old myths and legends?"

"Only what's related to real curses," he said, finishing the slice of cake and picking a chocolate donut.

"Have you ever heard of the Shikon?" At his silent denial, she continued. "Thousands of years ago, back when youkais roamed the land, and Kamis would directly interact with their worshippers, there was a special woman. She was the strongest priestess there was, to the point her mere existence was enough to shift the scales because she could target the very souls of her enemies. Desperate to get rid of her, hundreds and hundreds of demons got together and attempted to ambush her." Taking a second to glance at him, the girl turned to the window, absentmindedly grabbing another pastry. "For seven days and seven nights, the miko fought, refusing to give them any opening. But at the end of the day, Midoriko was only human, and she could tell her strength was starting to wane, so she made a decision. In one final attack, Midoriko tried to seal the souls of every single youkai in the area.

"She succeeded…to a degree, her soul became the price, and she was sealed together with the demons she was fighting in this one small glass-like jewel that exploded from her chest." With a smile on her lips, the girl formed a small circle with her fingers. "Honestly, I have no clue how it started, but eventually, rumors started going around about how the Shikon had the power to grant wishes and boost the strength of anyone who possessed it, causing both humans and youkais to go mad over it and it became known as a sacred relic." This time, she scoffed, clearly disagreeing before looking back at him. "We sell little replicas as good luck charms at the shrine."

It took far more self-control than he was willing to admit to remain quiet; questions burned his tongue as his brain insisted on working overtime, trying to find the connection between the fairytale-like story Kagome was weaving and their current situation, but he bit his tongue. Had the young woman managed to avoid the jujutsu world's notice, Satoru could see her becoming a successful storyteller. Before he noticed, Satoru was following her tale as she explained how the demon exterminator's clan worked and their relationship with Midoriko, their finding of the jewel, and search for a holy person capable of keeping it safe and pure. It was interesting to see the emotions play on her face as she went through the next part of the story, introducing new characters who'd become collateral damage to a deranged man's obsession. A tragedy that ended with an inu-hanyou sealed and the chosen miko dead, taking the relic with her to the afterlife.

"Just like that, the Shikon vanished from the world; for centuries, there wasn't even a whisper of it…" It wasn't just bitterness in her voice as she spoke, and he wasn't sure if she was even aware of the way her right hand went to hug her side. "And then, I turned 15 for the first time."

Confusion gave way to bewilderment when the young archer finally took on the central stage, as she became the newest priestess to get entangled with the jewel. Only instead of this new chapter of her story progressing three years ago in an obscure alley in Tokyo, it all went back to five hundred years in Japan's history, when a human/centipede monster literally dragged her down an ancient well and into the past, keeping quiet was more than an ordeal, but he could see the azure of her eyes darkened as she continued and detailed the way the demon bit her side, tearing through her flesh, letting her bleeding and watching a glass-like orb fly out from inside her. And from there, it all unraveled. Untrained and unprepared in a panicked attempt to save a life, she shattered the Shikon.

Extra details began to flood her story as she went on to describe all the other characters who joined her tale. It was unnecessary; there was little he could get from it, and Satoru was sure he could probably ask her to skip forward and get on with the story. Her voice had softened through, and there was a smile on her lips as she spoke about the trickster fox kit that became family to her, the lecherous, con artist of a monk that'd grow to be her mentor, and the demon exterminator she looked up to as an older sister. So he took another pastry from the side and listened to the stories of the random allies she made during her journey. A part of him silently noted the bittersweet tone of her voice took whenever the unsealed inu-hanyou came up. Because even he could tell there was a sense of finality hidden underneath her words from the very beginning, Kagome had been fighting a special grade on her own, and in this world, the only supernatural beings that had ever existed were curses.

"The interesting thing about souls is they can't be destroyed. And that's exactly what the Shikon is made of." With a self-derisive snort, the young woman took another sip of a new can of coffee. "We fought long enough I lost track of time, and yet, there was no way we could destroy the stupid thing." Bright azure locked up with iridescent blue. "But it could still be sealed; after all, for 15 years, no one even noticed the jewel was back, so we prepared a ritual in advance. One that'd seal it back within my soul. Not wanting to wait, we hurried to perform it; had it worked the way it was meant to, the well would've been sealed as well, leaving me as the Shikon's guardian together with my friends, and after my eventual death, the jewel would follow me to the cycle of Samsara and all that.

"Only problem was…when I opened my eyes once the ritual was done, I was staring at the roof of my family's well house, with my brother's panicked yells hurting my ears…on the day of my 15th birthday."

With an expectant look and a somewhat bitter smile, she paused.

Her story wasn't over. There was no way it was; there were too many questions still unanswered, but the pause on her tale was very much purposeful, Satoru could hazard a guess as to why. Because her story wasn't just hard to believe; it was outright ridiculous.

And it made perfect sense. Every weird little detail and odd contradiction was entirely explained if her words were true. Faking bravado wasn't difficult, but it vanished with ease when push came to shove; there was just no way to fake experience in the middle of a life-or-death situation. Whether it was fighting inhuman monsters dealing with severe injuries or handling panicked survivors, trying to claim the mysterious archer had never had real-life experience would be folly. Obviously corrupt as they were, however, the elders would've noticed if special grades began disappearing; the only way for her to have gone unnoticed for this long as she did was if this was the first high-level curse she'd fought.

Insisting on refuting her stories would only bring forth more inconsistencies.

"So you're telling me ghosts were a thing over there?"

"Ghosts…" the young woman gaped for a second. "I just told you my memories, souls, or whatever," she waved her hand around in exasperation. "Came from a different world, and the one thing you're asking about is ghosts?"

"Cause ghosts are creepy," he grinned.

"I…that's….yes, ghosts are a thing here too, you know." Huffing, the girl went for more coffee. "That's your only question?"

"Any idea how you ended up here?"

"The only thing that could've intervened was the Shikon itself; it's still sealed inside my soul, although I'm not sure we've ended.' Clearly, this wasn't the first time she thought about it. "Time and memories are…difficult. It's still happening. I'm still living through it right now; five hundred years ago it's raining, and I'm sitting in a cave, heating some water. For the most part, I've grown used to it, although, if my actions are too different my head starts killing me; that said, my school and medical records are about all the evidence I have."

"Well now, that's one detail we better keep between us," he said, making a shushing sound.

"You believe me?"

Taking off his glasses, Satoru looked at her, letting his Six Eyes focus entirely on the young woman only to come up empty.

"Why shouldn't I?" He grinned at her again. "Your powers shouldn't exist. Everything I know about this world says you can't be real, but I'm too handsome to be hallucinating, so you have to be really sitting in front of me, eating my sweets."

Laughter fell from her lips. It was an unrestrained sound urging him to join in. Common sense dictated he made sure to get the young woman to a mental health clinic, but if Satoru were to tell the story of his life to a non-sorcerer he'd end up living there himself for the rest of his life. Instead, he grabbed another random pastry, letting his brain while Kagome calmed down. There were still a hundred questions whirling around. Her story was short on a lot of details about the specifics of her powers, but the one he wasn't sure he should ask was the one he couldn't ignore.

"What happens when time catches up?"

"No clue. A few months from now, I'll go through the ritual, but that's as far as the memories go. Maybe nothing will happen; maybe the Shikon will try to get rid of me. Not like I'm about to let it do whatever it wants." The young woman rolled her eyes before picking up a slice of shortcake. "Ah, now that I think about it, I guess I lied back in the mall."

"Sorry?"

"The Shikon is as cursed a relic as it gets," she added with a laugh. "Though it's still a different kind of curse, but the energy feels close enough."

"Oh, there's another little secret we should keep between just the two of us." Satoru grinned as he stole a bite from her slice of cake.

A yawn cut off her protest, and the sorcerer glanced at his phone. He hadn't felt the hours passing by, but midnight had come and gone a long while ago. Of course, it's not like they were keeping to a schedule; honestly, if they ended up barging on the elders in the middle of a meeting or something, all the better in Satoru's not-really humble opinion. Still, the sorcerer decided to let it go. Any questions he had left could wait until later; there was already too much for him to process. Unbelievable explanation or not, Satoru had no intentions to break their deal. He could pop by the Gojo estate and arrange the Higurashi family's escort. The sooner he got that over with, the better.

"Guess I should probably go back to sleep…" she trailed off. "Say, Satoru, how many rooms does this…apartment have?"

"Furnished? Just the one; also it's a suite."

"Where have you been sleeping again?"

"I haven't." His reverse curse technique didn't exactly free him from regular human needs, but it did help keep his brain healthy despite some sleep deprivation.

"You haven't slept…in almost two days now." Slapping her hand over her face, the young woman groaned. "Gods, we're both adults, just take half of the bed; it's massive anyway."

"Aww, it's so nice to know I have your trust." He waved his fork around.

"More like I trust myself," Kagome rolled her eyes. "Try anything funny, and we'll find out how effective my spiritual power is on you. It can already bypass whatever barrier or shield or whatever you put up."

"How…?" He was sure she didn't know.

"You tense when I touch you, even when you clearly see me moving." Moving surprisingly fast for someone who'd slept for 24 hours straight, the girl grabbed a lock of silver hair. And he tensed. "Barriers get finicky with me, doesn't matter if I'm aware there is a barrier in the first place."

"Pfft, so you're inviting me to bet, but warn me you're gonna kick me in your sleep?"

There was an amused glint in her eyes as she gave him a shrug before fully standing up and heading back to the hallway she came from. Her gait was a bit more tired than when she came in, but he really couldn't see any indication that she'd been unconscious for days only to spill her guts. Definitely crazy, the right kind of crazy. Placing his shades back on, his gaze fell on the stained piece of plastic, taking a lukewarm coffee for a sip when her voice startled him.

"If you're the strongest that means you'll likely live longer than most, right?" She'd stopped halfway to the room, but she'd refused to look back at him. "I'm not a fan of funerals, so if you happen to outlive me, just destroy my body, will you?"

Oh…he'd seen something similar before.

"Not even ashes will remain…though you'll have to remind me fifty years from now." Somehow, his voice remained light-hearted.

"I'll be counting on you, then." Her laughter was bitter. "Ah, if things end up the other way around, I'll perform the funeral rites myself, I'm the only person with actual spiritual energy in this place, it'd be an honor."

"Bury whatever's left in some random place, no names. Let the elders panic and dig every random patch of dirt."

With a soft smile sent his way as she turned to glance at him, Kagome shook her head and started to walk again. For a heartbeat, her figure seemed to blur and overlap with that of a short girl, hair braided and wearing a high-school uniform, walking away.

Higurashi Kagome was 15 when her life was derailed twice over. Only one year older than that girl. She had been high-spirited, Amanai Riko, weak, almost powerless, but her presence had been annoyingly bright. For over two years, Satoru had somehow managed to not think about it, the first of the only two failures in his life; it was impossible to quiet those thoughts now. How would she have changed, had she had the chance to grow older? Surely, even time wouldn't have changed that almost arrogant demeanor of hers, if given the chance, would that girl…

No, those two were similar, but they were undeniably different too.

There was a special kind of strength needed to accept fate and face the tragedy awaiting her with a smile, hiding her pain and fears behind a cheeky grin. It wasn't something Satoru would ever be able to imitate, but could respect all the same.

So many details were missing from Higurashi Kagome's story, it couldn't be helped; three years' worth of a life full of bizarre and dangerous hunts were too much for a single afternoon, but he'd seen glimpses of her determination. Her words from just now were a clear acknowledgment of her duty. From what he could understand, this relic (which sounded way too much like Sukuna's fingers) was dangerous. Without anyone else able to harness that spiritual energy of hers there was no guarantee cursed energy could seal it effectively. Souls cannot be destroyed, that's what she'd said and the thing appeared to have a will of its own and had re-formed inside her once already. If her body was entirely destroyed, it wouldn't be used as a conduit for the jewel to appear in this world. But while she was preparing for the worst-case scenario, every one of her actions made one thing abundantly clear. If Kagome went down, she'd do so fighting every step of the way.

Failing twice was two too many.

Gojo Satoru was the strongest. And he wasn't going to go back on his word, no matter how his head was still spinning from all the earth-shattering revelations the young woman just dumped on his lap. This tale would remain a secret; she'd stay a mysterious anomaly. Let the old bastards wrack their brains trying to figure her out.

Between the protection the Gojo clan would give her and her own powers, the Headquarters would have to give up sooner or later. As for the organizations that would inevitably become interested in her…he wasn't going to fail for a third time. Even if it meant he'd have to find an excuse to have her stick by his side. Low laughter finally left his throat, little Miss archer had a knack for surviving impossible situations, alright, and it looked like she found the perfect way to keep up that trend. Because it seemed like this self-appointed mission wasn't about to end any time soon.

A/N: So yeah, it's been 3 years since the prologue, sorry if it was a little vague with the first chapter vaguely mentioning that she was a little younger than Satoru. Still, this is gonna be a bit of a slow burn, because character development.

Now, while Satoru is more than capable of recognizing he underestimated Kagome (because while he's used to being stronger he isn't stubborn enough to refuse to admit he misjudged her) there's also the emotional aspect to consider. From what we can see by the time Yuuji comes into the picture it feels like Satoru seems to keep everyone at arms length. Sure, he's technically surrounded by other people but it's not like any of the connections he has are particularly deep, the only one he sort of drops part of his mask with is Shoko, and that is only to show his anger. It makes sense, he is the one everyone else relies on, showing vulnerability when he is in that position isn't exactly easy. Especially considering what happened with Suguru. He seems to be the only person he ever leaned on, back with the star plasma vessel they genuinely talk about what to do, sharing the weight of responsibility, power, being the strongest, etc…and then one year after that failed mission Suguru snaps. It'd make sense he would get it into his head that he's the only one who can handle the weight of being the strongest, so he can acknowledge someone else can be powerful, but he's going to be way more wary about thinking someone else could carry the same weight.

Which is precisely why I needed Kagome to start the story in a weaker position than him. If she started already at his level it would be too easy for him to consider her an exception and keep his distance from everyone else when that is also not healthy, people need more than a single meaningful connection. Of course, Kagome is not the sort of character who'll wait to be on the same level to start breaking down walls. Not that she's gonna prioritize that right now considering she's also had her world turned upside down, but thing will calm down…sorta.

Anyway, as always thank you guys so much for reading and any and all review/comment/criticism is greatly appreciated.