(a/n) yall got me kicking my feet n curling my toes ong i love when people interact w my fics anyways i lowkey ran outta juice at the end of this chap but i hope you enjoy
When Himari was enrolling in schools, she had pondered over enrolling in Tokyo High. It was in the middle of the big city, which would allow for her to really explore her opportunities and the urban side of Japan, and alongside this, it was well known that Kyoto and Tokyo sorcerers were able to secure the best futures. It was a lot to do with funding, clan heritage, and politics.
Himari knew that Tokyo would likely be the best option for her, however the cut throat environment assembled by the higher-ups discouraged her heavily. Himari's mother was also extremely against enrolling, as Mari Suzuki previously abandoned Kyoto High to live a peaceful life by the harbour, and those who turn their backs on jujutsu were shunned from advancing their careers by higher-ups. The one aspect— piled atop a mountain of other aspects— that deterred her enrolment in Tokyo High was the entrance exam.
Entrance exams were standard. There was almost always a test of sorts upon enrolling in a jujutsu school. In Hokkaido, the entrance exam consisted of a physical component and a written component, the first evaluating your cursed technique and the second evaluating your motivation to enrol. Entrance exams spoke a lot about the culture of the specific school.
Tokyo High had a very intense reputation.
Principal Yaga had taken over in 2006, and Himari had heard rumours that he instated a grueling entrance exam where each individual would be pushed to their physical and mental limit. This was the last factor Himari considered before deciding to attend Hokkaido, she never wanted to be a part of a culture where there was an emphasis on exhaustion as a measure of dedication.
That was 2016. Himari now stood in front of the entrance to Tokyo High, her hands trembling slightly as she clutched the strap of her duffel bag tightly.
Following the incident at the hospital, Gojo Satoru had greeted her by the entrance to the reception area. He had practically interrogated her, which annoyed Himari when she was obviously winded and too exhausted to respond.
That was when she discovered one fundamental truth: Gojo Satoru loved to hear himself talk. He had been paraded around as an arrogant god in her time, and here he stood, a teenage boy yapping.
Ultimately, he had given her a spiel analyzing her, and extended an invitation for her to be scouted for Tokyo High.
Himari took the invitation, rolling her eyes at his attempts to show off, and within a weeks time, she was here, staring into the mouth of the lion.
Her footfalls were quiet as she approached the facility— she knew she had another interrogation incoming, and she had prepared responses for potential questions.
"Why do you want to be a sorcerer?" — She would answer, "To save the people I care about."
"Why Tokyo High?" — "Your facilities are the best available, and I want to become the best that I can be."
"Why should we train you?" — "Because I have incredible potential for growth. My technique is unrefined, and with time and guidance, can decide fights."
Himari had practiced in the mirror previously, and with the knowledge of the entrance exams format, she believed that she was guaranteed a pass.
Stepping foot past the entrance, she felt the doors behind her slam shut. The room was dim, lit by candles on pillars that appeared to be the only source of lighting. There was an intensity draped over the room, and Himari glanced at the man in front of her: principal Yaga stood, arms crossed his chest. It was his first year as the principal, and his last year as a teacher. It was a transitional period of time due to the limited faculty members.
Glancing at the corner of the room, she noticed Gojo fiddling with a doll-like creature. The white haired man was holding the bear-shaped doll by the scruff of its neck, and poking at its belly as the doll tried to punch to no avail. Beside Gojo were two figures, one she identified as Geto, who leaned against the wall with his hands in his pockets, and Shoko, who kept throwing crumpled papers from a notebook at Gojo. It was haunting, and Himari gulped. In ten years time, they would all be dead.
"Himari," Yaga began, "You have been recommended by one of my students, which holds a lot of weight in favour of your admission."
Himari nodded briefly, and glanced to make eye contact with Gojo, the aforementioned student. His sunglasses were obscuring his eyes, but she noticed a slight smirk on his lips, almost as if he was saying, "You're welcome."
"Why are you a jujutsu sorcerer?"
The question Himari had prepared for. Straightening her back and bowing, she glanced up at Yaga and recited her practiced speech.
"I am a jujutsu sorcerer because I want to save the people I care about. It's my duty as a cursed technique user. I know curses can cause a lot of destruction, and I want to be able to say that I helped save my loved ones."
A pregnant silence enveloped the room, and she bit the inside of her lip in anticipation.
"Insufficient."
This one statement caused Himari's calm facade to drop, and her face fell.
Floor beneath her began to slip and she felt the walls closing in— if she failed, then everything was for nothing. Her parents lives— for nothing. It was all nothing. She raised her hand, grasping at her chest and her pounding heart, willing her breath to return to her. She took a sharp inhale.
It was not over yet.
"Sir, I can be of use. I will dedicate everything I am to being a jujutsu sorcerer."
Principal Yaga remained stoic in response to this, as the doll that Gojo was previously playing with snapped its head backwards to glance at Himari. She shivered, eyes from all over the room began to glance at her, emerging from the darkness. Dozens of dolls, in all forms, staring into her.
"Your words are contradictory, you want to dedicate everything you are to jujutsu, but you're also here to save the people you care about."
He lowered his gaze, letting a sliver of his deep charcoal pupils peek out from behind his glasses.
"If you're here on behalf of saving precious people, you are already one foot out the door."
With that statement, a large green doll launched itself at her and Himari flinched at its sudden impact. Its fist collided with her chest and she fell backwards, shocked at the pressure it exerted. The doll used her chest as a launch pad, and after driving its force into her, it landed a few meters back and began flexing over-exaggerated muscles.
"I don't know a single sorcerer who died without regrets. Everyone loses someone."
Himari's gaze scoured the room, calculating the doll's next action. As it began to spin quickly, it formed a comedic tornado of cursed energy that hurled towards her. She would have laughed if she wasn't the target of its destruction, and she swerved to the side to dodge the attack. There was a looming presence from around her: several more dolls had begun to encroach.
"What will you do when you lose those precious to you? Are you just going to give up? You cannot base your motivation on others."
Himari would have scoffed at his declaration had she not been focused on maneuvering around the puppets that began to launch themselves at her. Each entity seemed drawn to her, like moths to a flame, and she could feel her movements starting to become sloppy— less sharp.
Channeling cursed energy into her eyes, Himari began activating her future image. Reality splintered in front of her, and she kept weaving between the puppets until her future image found itself closest to a pillar where a candle was present.
Himari had noticed that the dolls had been able to track her position completely independent from her cursed energy. When she intentionally muted her cursed energy, and when she had flared her energy to begin her future image, there was no change in their targeting. From this, she drew the conclusion that the puppets must rely on sight, whereas Himari would be able to rely on tracking cursed energy.
"Time weave," She gritted out through clenched teeth, and she snapped to her image by the pillar. Shooting her hand to the flame sitting atop a waxy candle, Himari pinched her fingers and extinguished the fire. The first candle was out. There were fifteen more to go.
"With all due respect, sir, I disagree!"
Her voice drew in the puppets that were temporarily disoriented by her displacement, and the puppets launched at her new location.
She needed to be able to plead her case, and it was a bonus that the sound of her voice would redirect the puppets attention to the location prior to each cursed technique usage.
Forming the hand symbols, Himari was next to another pillar, and another candle was out. Her skin prickled as she felt the eyes of the trio boring into her. The once distracted crew had begun to pay attention.
"I believe that I am capable of both saving people I care for, and dedicating my entirety to sorcery."
Another candle. Her heart pumped electricity. Another candle. Her legs trembled with each near miss. Another candle. Her breaths were short and desperate.
"I would argue the two come hand in hand, where those precious to me will always act as my driving force to succeed."
There were only a few candles left. The puppets had all but given up on finding her exact location due to the slow darkness devouring the room, and began launching in approximate directions, each following the lead of a previous puppet's launched attack. Her ribs had been bruised, and her body was scratched and scraped from each attempt. Principal Yaga stood, unfazed, arms crossed.
The last candle. She was sweating from every pore, and her jaw had been clenched tight in concentration. There were some candles Himari had chosen not to use her cursed technique for and instead ran towards— these were the candles that had gotten her the most injured.
If this fight was a marathon, then Himari wanted to end with a sprint.
Closing her eyes in pure concentration, she felt balls of cursed energy speeding in her direction. Everything was slow for a moment, and then a surge of cursed energy erupted from within her. She was beside the last pillar, and the last candle was out. But so was Himari's cursed energy.
"I will never let anyone lose their life because of my actions."
Himari bit her tongue to resist following her declaration with the word, again.
"Not because I am a jujutsu sorcer, but because I am Himari Suzuki."
Her fist, endowed with the remnants and scraps of her cursed energy, shot forth and connected with the face of the original doll, and it slammed into the wall of the classroom behind itself, sliding down into a slump.
Steeling her muscles and nerves, Himari anticipated another punch to her already sore body. That, or a wordy rejection from the principal.
Instead, she watched as the room lit up from the central ceiling light. Principal Yaga was smiling down at her.
"You pass."
Her knees buckled from underneath her, she felt a warmth bloom in her chest. It was calming, pure bliss following the anxiety that had previously sprouted within her.
She passed.
She had gotten past step one. She had fought to her physical limit, and disagreed with the principal of the school, and she had somehow passed.
Attempting to push herself up with her hands, she felt a rush of blood to her head and her vision was smothered in a haze.
"There was a fucking ceiling light?" Himari mumbled, and the world fell to darkness.
The first thing Himari felt was a cool sensation crawling throughout her nerves and trickling down her spine.
Her limbs tingled and her body unconsciously winced as a deep chill settled into her bones. She opened her eyes, and three faces hovered over her: a girl with a smoky scent and a beauty mark, a man with a kind smile and cute eye wrinkles, and Gojo Satoru.
His eyes were like a target in her brain, and when his gaze fell on her, she shot up in seated position and buried her hands in her face to avoid eye contact. She felt weirdly flustered, all three of them had watched her lose to a handful of puppets. Gojo cocked an eyebrow.
"You in love with me or something?" He asked, grinning cheekily, "Don't worry, no one will blame you."
Shoko slapped him on the head, and Himari, in her drowsy state, squinted at him through her fingers, and retorted, "I was just surprised they let rats become sorcerers."
This prompted a loud cackle from Shoko, and Geto reached his hand forward to offer her the water bottle he was holding. She took it graciously, bringing the water bottle to her mouth and taking a swig.
"Suzuki," Geto greeted her, "My name is Geto Suguru, I look forward to working with you. You've already met the idiot, and this," He motioned towards Shoko who was now using little black hair ties to create pigtails in Gojo's hair, "Is Shoko Ieiri. She's our reverse cursed energy expert."
Himari nodded and smiled, letting her hands drop from her face.
"I look forward to working with you guys."
Amusement twinkled in her eyes as she watched Shoko hop onto Gojo's shoulders and tug the two pigtails to pilot the man around the gymnasium. Ratatouille? She thought to herself, and a laugh escape her lips.
It was strange.
Things were calm, and she felt a twinge of guilt from within her for enjoying the peace. For enjoying anything while a timer ticked down, counting down the hours the world had left.
Geto reached a hand out to help her to her feet, and principal Yaga peeked his head into the gymnasium.
"Suzuki," Yaga beckoned, "How are you feeling now?"
Himari gripped her right elbow with her left hand, stretching out her arms. Clasping her hands together and flexing her fingers backwards, she noted that any pain or bruises had disappeared. The cold chill she felt earlier must have been Shoko's reverse cursed energy, and admiration shone in her eyes.
"Not too shabby," She stated, "Thank you for inviting me to join Tokyo High, I'm honoured to have been selected."
She heard a deep voice mumble behind her, "Suck up." Turning her head to glance at the source of the voice, she spotted Gojo playfully sticking his tongue out. Himari rolled her eyes, and turned back to face the principal, who scowled at Gojo's antics.
"That's good to hear. You impressed me with your convictions, and I look forward to seeing you grow. For now, please follow me."
Himari fell in line with principal Yaga as he strolled out of the gymnasium. The next hour was incredibly boring, Yaga ran through terms and conditions for her enrolment in the high school, alongside the jujutsu regulations she had previously been privy to. Forms were signed, a tour was given, and a student card was received.
Grade three.
Himari was listed as a grade three sorcerer. It was understandable due to her limited control over her cursed output, but a part of her felt a bit cheated. As a student at Hokkaido, Himari was listed as a grade two sorcerer upon enrolment, having reached a semi-grade one position after various solo missions.
The room Himari had been given was cozy, with a large window allowing sunlight to flood the space. There was a wooden bed frame with a mattress that adorned white, puffy sheets, and a small desk near the edge of the room. Tossing her duffel bag across the room, she flopped back onto the mattress and rolled herself into a cocoon.
Step one was complete.
Himari tried to resist the drooping of her eyebrows. The warmth of the sheets encasing her beckoned her to sleep, and she began to take deep, satisfying breaths.
Himari stood by the beach. A high pitched seagull call erupted from a flock of birds that passed overhead, and the coarse sand was comfortably warm beneath her feet. She was home.
"What do you want to be when you're older?"
A soft voice called from behind her, and she glanced at her hands. They were smaller than she remembered, soft, uncalloused. Free from the years of work that had claimed the majority of her life.
"I want to be a jujutsu sorcerer! Just like you!" She exclaimed, and glanced back to see her mother smiling warmly. There was a hint of sadness shimmering in her eyes, something that always reared its head with each mention of sorcery.
"You would be a great sorcerer, Himari. But you have to promise me something," Her mother was now beside her, crouching down to stroke her hair. "Promise me that you will never lose yourself to sorcery."
Himari grinned at her mother, placing her hand on her hips and reaching her pinky out to her mother, which was met with a curled pinky that wrapped around hers.
Turning to face the deep ocean, Himari bounced towards the ocean and let the cold water lap at her feet. It was beautiful. Himari loved the ocean. Staring down the sun that sank below the horizon, she watched the colours bleed into the water. A brilliant pink and red tainted the ocean, and a calm, tranquil feeling washed over her.
Then the ocean began to withdraw. The water slipped away further and further from the shore. Its foamy curves recessed, and Himari began to chase the edge of the water. Each second the ocean slipped backwards revealed various beautiful shells and pebbles, and Himari reached down to grab at the little stones. Turning to glance at her parents behind her, she beamed.
"Mommy! Look how pretty these rocks are—"
Her parents faces were obscured by a cloud of fuzz.
Turning back to face the ocean, a deep rumbling filled her ears and she fell backwards onto her bum. There was a wall of water, a vicious and powerful explosion of rage racing towards the shoreline. Himari was motionless, unable to move. Her limbs felt like boulders, and when she attempted to shout for her parents, her tongue felt clumsy— too big for her mouth.
Two pair of strong arms wrapped around her. She felt her mother's hands gingerly ruffling her hair once more, and her father embracing her in a protective clasp of his arms.
The wave had slowly morphed and shifted from a wall of water into a mass of various human limbs. Wriggling arms, twisted legs, torsos with no limbs: transfigured humans, and they came crashing towards her family. Himari squeezed her eyes shut.
It was silent when the transfigured limbs swallowed her.
Her eyes shot open, sweat clung to her clothes and she scanned the area around her. An impeding sense of doom beat within her chest, and shallow, rapid breaths filled her lungs.
She raised her hands above her head, and a sigh escaped her lips when she saw patches of rough skin near the base of each finger. Calluses.
It felt so realistic, from her mother's honeyed voice to the warmth from her father's arms cradling her. Taking her arms and wrapping herself in her own embrace, Himari sat upright, closing her eyes. She wanted to remember her parents' faces, to carve them into her memory so she would never forget.
Her parents' passing was a trauma she wasn't ready to face yet, and the fear of sleeping settled into her brain. She didn't want to sleep again, she didn't want to face the consequences she had been so desperately pushing to the back of her mind.
Standing up, Himari skulked towards the training field she had been introduced to this morning, eager to get her mind off of the mountain of loss that chased her.
The field was a wide open space, with a track along the outskirts creating an ovular shape. Crouching down near the field, she clutched a handful of the grass and noted the resistance to her strength, as well as the plastic texture. It was made of turf, material that would allow for more grip and friction.
It was dark outside, dotted with dim stars that were muted by the city light. Himari guessed that it was about 3am, and the rest of the high school was likely asleep.
She clenched her fists. Her cursed energy reserves were low.
She knew two things about the jujutsu world: Cursed energy was the foundation of its existence, and increasing cursed energy reserves was not possible. However, her current game plan required her to be strong. More than strong. And if she couldn't increase her energy reserves, then she would decrease the energy consumption. Himari needed to refine her technique on an atomic level.
Zipping up her school regulated tracksuit, she dug the heel of her foot into the turf and pressed herself lower to the floor, stretching out her stiff joints. Refining her technique came with experience, and progressive overload.
Himari broke out into a jog.
It would train her cardiovascular endurance, which she had admittedly slacked on during the past three months.
Himari activated her cursed technique. Every few minutes, Himari would weave into her future image. The moments between her time weave would allow her rest, before using her technique once more.
This would provide a baseline for her cursed technique, and allow her to understand her current capabilities.
For the next twenty minutes, Himari used her future image continuously. She was able to achieve seven weaves, each being roughly five seconds into the future.
It was a start.
Panting, Himari laid flat against the ground, feeling the turf poking at her through her clothes. A cool breeze swept over her, exhaustion caked into her tracksuit. Soft chirping echoed from the summer crickets, and for a moment, she allowed herself to forget her reality, and melt into the summer warmth.
(a/n) "Wait, principal Yaga is both headmaster and teacher? Also, Himari's in her first year? Why is she joining the second-years?"
"I was just recently appointed to be the principal. The Gojo clan held a huge influence in my promotion, but due to the limited faculty I will be acting as a teacher until we are able to employ more staff members. As to your second question, Himari is actually the same age as the second-years. After evaluating her knowledge on curses, her cursed technique, it's evident she's had previous training. As such, I believe she would be best suited to join the second years." — Masamichi Yaga