A/N at the end of the chapter


CHAPTER 15

{POV: Suzue Kujou}

Suzue had never had the privilege of visiting the Jujutsu Headquarters in person. It was a perk reserved only for high-grade sorcerers, members of the three great families, and a few other exceptions. And, of course, only by direct invitation.

Being there, and actually being the topic of discussion, was definitely not on her bucket list; but Satoru had a plan, and when Satoru Gojo had a plan, he always saw it through. At least, that's what he'd confidently told her.

What Suzue didn't expect was that the headquarters were hiding in plain sight, right under the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building. All it took was getting dropped off by Ijichi at the entrance, passing a couple of non-sorcerer security checks, navigating a few corridors, then stairs, an elevator, more corridors, and more stairs: after what felt like an endless journey, they finally reached the floor reserved for the Jujutsu Headquarters.

She couldn't tell how deep underground they were, but once there, Satoru Gojo's name did the rest, and they were ushered into a waiting room.

Suzue adjusted her clothes. Shoko had kindly lent her a white shirt suitable for the occasion, which she paired with black pants, though the shirt was a bit too big and lost its elegant effect. She had also managed to get a new pair of white sneakers, again with Shoko's help.

Looking around, Suzue found the headquarters disappointingly ordinary.

It wasn't much different from any other set of offices in some anonymous company. And the people working there, various assistants, all seemed extremely stressed.

The only sign of life came from the receptionist, whose face lit up at the sight of the strongest sorcerer of modern era; Satoru had quickly taken advantage of the situation, avoiding the need to register Suzue's details on the guest access forms with a charming smile.

"Don't talk to anyone, don't make eye contact, don't let anyone know who you are or why you're here" he had repeated a thousand times during the car ride. To Suzue, it felt like she was walking into a lion's den, given how much Satoru had cautioned her.

"If he was so worried, he could've just left me at school." Suzue thought grumpily.

But he couldn't, Satoru had to keep her close because of the sword of Damocles hanging over her head - the binding vow with Sukuna.

Or maybe... deep down, he hoped Sukuna might order her to set everything on fire while she was there? Satoru certainly wouldn't mind seeing the place razed to the ground; it wasn't out of the question. She smirked, thinking it was very much like him.

«Suzue,» he interrupted her, bringing her back to the moment, «you're overthinking. I can practically see the smoke coming out of your ears!»

Suzue looked at him; he was sitting across from her in the small waiting room, extremely comfortable and relaxed. So relaxed that with his sunglasses on, she couldn't tell if he was sleeping or actually awake. Unlike her... who was a bundle of nerves.

«It's hard not to overthink when my future's being decided in there in a few minutes.» Suzue glanced at the door behind which the much-feared higher-ups were waiting. The same ones who, just a week before, had thrown her into that complicated situation at the prison with the special grade curse, Sukuna, and all the rest.

Satoru let out a half-mocking laugh. «Relax! You don't even have to go in!» He stood up with his hands in his pockets and leaned towards her, as if to make his decision final.

«What?» Suzue looked at him, confused: when had he decided that? It wasn't what they had agreed on. «I-I... You can't ask me to stay out here!»

Suzue frowned, her voice slightly irritated at the thought. «I can do it. Let me come in with you.» She looked at him with determination. Not because she particularly wanted to talk to those people but leaving him to fight her battles for her... didn't seem right.

Satoru raised an eyebrow, his expression turning serious like he knew this wasn't a battle she could win.

«Okay. Then prove it.» He challenged her with a provocative smile.

Suzue sprang to her feet, stiffening. She took a breath and tried to put on her most convincing face. «I killed Sukuna's vessel, I'm the hero who defeated the King of Cruises—» She bit her tongue, blushing at the slip-up.

Satoru was unimpressed, his smile fading. «Exactly. You're staying out here.» He proclaimed the final verdict, his tone leaving no room for argument.

Suzue slumped back in her chair, resigned. She sighed, staring at the floor, while Satoru took a seat next to her. Almost to encourage her, he leaned a bit towards her, their arms now touching.

«Suzue, see, everyone has talents and things they just can't do.» he began provocatively. «Lying, for example, is something you just can't do, no matter how hard you try.»

Suzue felt offended. «...And you?» she shot back, her tone more biting than she intended.

She regretted asking that question immediately. Satoru flashed his arrogant smile. «Ah! I can do everything. I'm the exception!»

Suzue rolled her eyes, but a small smile tugged at her lips despite herself. His confidence was infectious, even if it was irritating at times.

At that moment, an elderly, rather agitated assistant with a blank look poked his head into the waiting room with a clipboard and pen in hand. He quickly looked at them, first Suzue, then Satoru.

«...Satoru Gojo? They're ready for you.»

Brief and to the point. The moment had come.

Suzue clenched her fists until her knuckles turned white as Satoru got up confidently to follow the man. He turned to her one last time, gesturing with his hand.

«Remember what I said, don't—»

«Don't talk to anyone, don't make eye contact with anyone, don't let anyone know who you are or why you're here.» She cut him off, the mantra now indelibly etched in her mind.

Satoru gave her a reassuring smile. «Good girl, Suzue. Don't worry, I won't be long!»

She watched him walk away and could only sigh, hoping the matter would be resolved quickly and without complications.


-About 3 hours later -

"You've got to be kidding me. This can't be real. This isn't humanly possible!"

Suzue was starting to believe she'd been abandoned in that waiting room. It had been over 3 hours since Satoru went into the meeting with the higher-ups, and she hadn't heard anything since.

After how many hours was it acceptable to start worrying? She stood up nervously and peeked out of the waiting room door. There wasn't a soul in sight along the corridor.

Suzue was definitely parched, her throat dry: she needed water and a bathroom. She looked doubtfully at the corridor branching out from the waiting room: it would only take a few minutes, just enough time to find a vending machine and a bathroom. After all, she was human and had physiological needs.

She took a breath and made her first hesitant steps out of the room, nervously fidgeting with her hands clasped at her chest. She walked slowly and quietly towards the main entrance; the receptionist from before seemed friendly towards Satoru, maybe she could give her some directions.

"Don't talk to anyone… I'll just ask for the bathroom, nothing else."

She reached the lobby that served as the main entrance, where she saw a flurry of assistants and a few sorcerers, each minding their own business.

She aimed for the receptionist still sitting at the desk, keeping her gaze down and walked determinedly towards her. She narrowly avoided a tall assistant who was walking around reading a file and muttering to himself, probably not even seeing her in his hurry.

When she reached the desk, the receptionist didn't look up, but Suzue didn't lose heart and cleared her throat.

«Excuse me… can you tell me where the bathroom is?» she asked in a barely audible voice.

The receptionist… didn't turn. Maybe she didn't hear her, or maybe…

"Maybe she was only nice because Satoru Gojo was here…"

Suzue cleared her throat again, determined to get noticed, and spoke louder.

«Excuse me, can you tell me where the—»

«The bathroom is down the hall to the right, next to the waiting room.»

Suzue froze, unsure whether to look up at the source of the sensual, feminine voice that had just interrupted her. She kept her gaze down, her lip trembling slightly.

"Next to the waiting room? Great. Exactly where I was already."

«I saw you earlier, when you came in with Satoru Gojo. No offense, but if you hadn't been with him, I probably wouldn't have noticed you!» insisted the mysterious voice.

It seemed Suzue couldn't go anywhere without attracting unwanted attention. And the attention she was getting from this voice spelled trouble.

"Don't talk to anyone, don't talk to anyone…"

Without looking up, she gave a quick half-bow, whispering a barely audible "Thank you."

Then, just as quickly, she turned on her heels and walked briskly back to the corridor she had just come from. She narrowly avoided a couple of distracted assistants and once she reached the corridor, she thought she was safe.

«You're the sorcerer everyone's talking about, the one who defeated the King of Curses?»

No. She had followed her.

That woman had followed her like a stalker and now she was breathing down her neck.

Suzue quickened her pace, but she could feel that person sticking close.

"What an insistent person, why does she have to talk to me..."

Finally, she caught up, walking beside her, and Suzue, looking from the corner of her eye, could see a tall woman, taller than her, wearing a sorcerer's uniform and... a rather peculiar hairstyle. A thick braid of almost silver-blue hair fell straight in front of her face, making it hard to see her clearly. Despite that, the aura she gave off was powerful. Fascinating.

"Beautiful." Suzue felt intimidated.

They reached the waiting room, and to Suzue, it felt like she had found a refuge. She went in and quietly sat back down on the chair; unfortunately for her, the woman seemed determined not to give up and sat a few seats away, with her legs crossed and an amused air.

«Satoru told you not to talk to anyone? Wise advice, I wouldn't trust even my shadow in here!» she admitted, in a tone that was both reassuring and provocative. «You know, I'm an old friend of his, you can talk to me.»

Before continuing, she made herself more comfortable on the chair, leaning forward slightly, causing the braid to fall slightly to the side, revealing her face.

«See, if you had stayed in the lobby a bit longer, a couple of guys from the Kamo clan would have approached you. They figured out who you were the moment you walked in with Satoru Gojo. After approaching you in a friendly manner, they would've probably told you Satoru was already waiting for you outside, and you, well... no offense, but you seem naive. And once outside—»

«I think I get it. So I should… thank you then?» Suzue glanced sideways at her; not talking was no longer an option since she had no way out and this woman seemed determined to continue.

She would have to hold on until Satoru returned, hoping not to mess things up. The woman smiled, but it wasn't exactly a reassuring smile.

«Hmm, I'm not sure if thanking me is in your best interest. Let's just say my goal was more to make Satoru owe me a favor.» Her smile widened into a more cynical expression. «I don't think he'll be too happy about that, actually.»

Suzue gulped. Considering he had told her not to talk to anyone, he definitely wouldn't be happy.

She said nothing, trying to prolong the silence as long as possible, but she felt her nerves crumbling under the woman's penetrating gaze.

«I don't think I caught your name.» She pressed on, evidently not yet satisfied with their conversation.

«Suzue… Kujou.» she whispered hesitantly.

The woman seemed to ponder her surname. «Kujou, huh? Sounds familiar. So, Suzue, is it true what they're saying? That you defeated the King of Curses?»

Now, her gaze was definitely interested, watching her as if trying to catch every nuance on her face and in her behavior.

Suzue clenched her fists and felt a shiver run down her spine; this was exactly the kind of conversation Satoru would want her to avoid.

"But maybe, silence is even worse in this case…"

She opted for a half-truth, staying vague, hoping it would convey confidence.

«I suppose… yes.» She maintained eye contact, and the woman seemed to study her intently.

"Suppose? Suppose?! Damn, Suzue, what a terrible choice of words..."

Suzue was inadvertently holding her breath, watching the woman look at her with growing interest. Her smile widened slightly, now her demeanor seemed more... gentle. If that was possible.

«He's right. Don't talk to anyone else in here.» She gestured provocatively.

She finally stood up, walking slowly and deliberately until she was right in front of Suzue, dangerously close. Leaning slightly, she reached out and gently tucked a strand of Suzue's hair behind her ear, making her startle and pull back instinctively.

Suzue blushed and looked at her with wide eyes, trying to decipher her intentions: this woman seemed to be deliberately trying to make her uncomfortable.

«Damn, Satoru really should learn to take better care of his things.» She added, slightly irritated. «He's lucky you ran into me today.» She glanced down the corridor, where an assistant had just exited the door Satoru had entered hours before.

«That means your knight will be out any minute now!» she added, satisfied, before retreating. She turned, heading towards the exit of the room confidently, barely looking back to bid Suzue farewell.

«I'll send Satoru my bill for protecting his girlfriend.»

«I-I'm not his—» The woman was not listening to her anymore.

She let out an enigmatic smile, then with a wave, she walked down the corridor, leaving Suzue alone and confused. She was lost in her thoughts for a few seconds.

"...Damn, I didn't thank her or ask for her name."

She jumped up, almost chasing after her and peeked down the corridor, but she was already gone. Suzue sighed dejectedly; it hadn't been a conversation she was particularly proud of, but she didn't have a bad impression of the woman. She seemed, all in all... a good person. Peculiar, but good.

«Missing me?»

Suzue jumped again, still half-bent over looking down the corridor. Beside her, Satoru had quietly approached and was now looking down at her curiously. Despite his usual cocky and relaxed demeanor, she could clearly read a certain mental fatigue on his face: the discussion must have been neither easy nor pleasant.

«...Four hours. Satoru, the meeting really lasted Four hours?» In the end, she hadn't even managed to go to the bathroom, so her irritation was particularly high.

Satoru chuckled, walking past her down the corridor and gesturing for her to follow. «They didn't even do their worst. Sometimes I've been in there for entire days!»

Suzue followed him, head down until they reached the main lobby again, but instead of heading towards the exit, Satoru veered down another corridor behind the reception, walking confidently.

Suzue, with her shorter legs, had to walk briskly to keep up with him without too much trouble, and the people who moved aside for him didn't extend the same courtesy to her, which was starting to irritate her. Moreover…

"...he doesn't intend to say anything? Does he… want me that bad to ask directly?"

«So...? How did it go?»

He immediately perked up, visibly pleased. «Hehe! Who do you think you're talking to? You have so little faith in me? I got you quite the promotion! » He flung open a door, inviting Suzue inside.

"Practices office" was written on the nameplate. The room was small, with a long desk separating the entrance from tall shelves lined up neatly behind, overflowing with files and documents.

A rather short, middle-aged man exchanged a nod with Satoru, who handed him a note pulled from his pocket; then he slipped between the shelves, turning Satoru's attention back to her.

«Congratulations! You're now officially and undoubtedly the hero who defeated the King of Curses, and those decrepit old men couldn't do anything to deny it!»

He leaned against the desk, still speaking to her with a satisfied smile. «Although I admit convincing them was harder than expected; damn, I didn't expect the Zenin clan to have spent so much influence and money to keep you anchored to a low rank and role.»

Satoru ran a hand through his hair, visibly annoyed as usual when the Zenin clan was mentioned.

«I also had to quell their annoyance, they were hoping to hear your version of events directly, but I had a convincing excuse for your absence!»

Suzue, who was trying to process the inexorable flow of information Satoru was dumping on her, seemed to wake up at the last point. «What excuse? »

«Period.» he said, smiling proudly at his work.

Suzue blushed and sighed resignedly at his ways. «I... I'm sorry. From the way you talk, it sounds like you had to work really hard to fix everything.» She huffed, frustrated at her own uselessness in the situation. «You were right, I would have just complicated things by going in with you.»

She couldn't help but feel genuinely sorry, but from the way he described the meeting, Suzue was quite sure she wouldn't have been able to handle the tension and would have probably ruined everything. In hindsight, leaving her outside to wait had been the right choice.

The little man, in the meantime, had returned with a large pile of papers and a pen. He placed them on the desk, and Satoru began flipping through them quickly, knowing exactly what he was looking for. He moved with a naturalness in that environment that seemed almost unattainable to Suzue.

«A couple of signatures on these useless papers and we're done.»

He handed her the papers, an infinity of information written on paper; something about liability for damages, mission acceptance, communication protocols... Endless bureaucracy.

Suzue felt disoriented, but he had bent down next to her and was promptly pointing out every single space where she needed to sign. Feeling his face so close to hers, just a few centimeters away, only made her brain more scrambled.

She took the pen with some hesitation, glancing at Satoru, who smiled encouragingly. While she concentrated intensely on signing one paper after another, Satoru started talking again and touched on a subject Suzue preferred to leave buried.

«So, did anything happen while you waited? Everything go smoothly?»

Suzue's hand froze mid-signature, and she stiffened completely.

«Everything's fine! No problem.» She quickly added, but she could feel her voice betraying a slight agitation, and a drop of sweat was already rolling down her temple.

Satoru didn't respond, suspicious; he took off his sunglasses and scrutinized her better with those blue eyes, his face still terribly close. Suzue desperately tried to avoid eye contact, but it was now clear she was hiding the truth.

«..Suzue.» he began in an accusatory tone. «Did you talk to someone?»

Suzue cursed mentally; Satoru could always read her like an open book.

She bit her lip, thinking about how to put it in the least severe way possible. She tried to appear as calm as possible, continuing to sign the papers with a trembling hand.

«I-I well - you left me for over three hours, I needed to use the bathroom and... A woman, she seemed like a sorcerer, she helped me escape from some Kamo clan sorcerers or at least that's what she claimed.»

She barely raised her gaze to observe Satoru's reaction: he was not happy at all.

«What woman? Her name, Suzue.»

Suzue mumbled, «...I didn't ask... She had this strange hairstyle, a thick braid of hair covering her face and... Well, she was a beautiful woman, I suppose?»

Satoru, without breaking eye contact, seemed to relax slightly; finally, to Suzue's relief, he moved a bit away from her face, easing the pressure he was exerting on her.

«Oh, I'm glad you had time to admire her beauty but not to ask her name!» He collected the papers in front of Suzue, still serious but at least not as irritated as before. «You got lucky, of all the people you could have met in here, she's definitely one of the friendliest. Though now she'll want money!» He sighed, exasperated.

«So it's true she's an old friend of yours?» Suzue asked timidly, hoping not to make things worse.

«Kinda. Did She said something strange?» He said thoughtfully, still busy rechecking all the papers she had just signed.

"Kinda?" She noted mentally, irritated. What does that mean? «Well... No?» In fact, everything she said was pretty strange, but still.

He handed the pile back to the little man who disappeared again among the shelves.

Suzue was puzzled by that last statement, but decided not to probe further, letting the subject die before Satoru reconsidered and decided to grill her for disobeying.

«So... What's going to happen to me? Promotion aside...» She asked doubtfully, looking up and meeting his eyes.

«Well, now you have full freedom being an active sorcerer in every sense; you can do pretty much whatever you want! And with the grade I got you, people will think twice before bothering you. Even the Zenins.»

He returned Suzue's gaze with a smirk. «Don't tell me you're planning to leave me and the Tokyo Jujutsu High! My heart couldn't take it!» He added with sarcasm and drama.

Suzue couldn't help but smile shyly; despite his ways, he seemed to genuinely care about her presence at the school. «No... I don't think I want to do that.»

They were interrupted by the little man who re-emerged from the shelves with some photocopies for Suzue and her new sorcerer ID card. She quickly took it, with a small bow in thanks, while Satoru grabbed the documents for her, opening the door and motioning for her to follow him with a decidedly amused grin on his face.

«Let's get out of here quickly! In an hour or two, the whole world will know and... knowing you, I don't think you want to be at the center of that kind of attention.»

Suzue didn't understand the implications, and as she moved to follow him, she took a closer look at the ID card she was holding. She stopped in disbelief when her eye fell on the new grade assigned.

Satoru, walking ahead of her, enjoyed her reaction, chuckling like a kid who had just pulled off a prank behind his parents' backs.

"What the hell... This is more than a big promotion. Damn, this is definitely cheating!"

Suzue Kujou: Special-Grade Sorcerer.


A/N

Here we are at the first chapter of the new arc, I can finally head off on vacation with peace of mind! If you're interested, I've added an initial chapter that contains some general information about the OC, the reading, and the story overall.

Wow guys, we leave tomorrow and my son has fever since this morning, I don't know whether to laugh or cry. (Joking im gonna cry)

Facts:

Initially, I imagined the Jujutsu Headquarters as a kind of gigantic underground temple, very traditional and all that, but then I thought that since they are in close contact with the government, I opted for a more modern approach. In my interpretation, the Jujutsu Headquarters is located directly beneath the Tokyo government building, and it's not much different from any other office—except that you walk through a door and BAM, you're greeted by old men illuminated by candlelight hidden behind rice paper walls. I love the contrast.

Suzue has unexpectedly won herself a babysitter. Whether some shady figure from the Kamo clan really had bad intentions toward Suzue or if it was all just an excuse—I'll let you decide.

This is how I imagined the society of sorcerers: tons and tons of unnecessary bureaucracy, signatures, piles of papers, and documents to fill out, as if we're not talking about individuals who could obliterate entire armies with a snap of their fingers. So you're getting exactly this interpretation!

Satoru Gojo is extremely influential in the society of sorcerers. Sometimes we forget, but he managed to suspend two death sentences that were strongly supported by all the other clans—literally, he does whatever he wants, and no one, not even his own clan, has the power to say anything to him. He's a one-man army. I find it easy to believe that, under the right circumstances, he could walk into the Jujutsu Headquarters and say, "Hey, this person defeated Sukuna—if that doesn't merit a special grade, then I don't know what does."

And with these very brief pieces of information, I leave you! ❤️