"G-gojo-sensei?" Yuji calls from behind the door. His hand is raised, ready to knock or venture into the room.

But what if they are indecent? It's not so much Gojo-sensei that he is concerned about. But the knocks at the front door are becoming stronger. Frantic. And the person is undoubtedly upset. The knocks at the door clash with the soft noise of the running shower.

Yuji falters. Stares at the door separating him from his teacher and Kagome-san. If these were normal circumstances, he'd answer the door and speak with the nicely dressed man. Maybe calm him down and feed him some calming words to the effect of how Gojo-sensei would be right out. That sensei got in at an ungodly hour last night, and he did not mean to be late all the time.

Right. He should do just that. At least the neighbors won't complain too much if he puts a stop to the banging. Yuji lowers his hand, backs away, and goes to answer the front door.

The blond man gives him an irritated look. Or was that just his default expression? Yuji smiles in response. Internally, his willpower deflates.

"Where is the blindfolded idiot?" The man crosses his arms, his eyes are blank behind his yellow-tinted glasses, and the lines on his face bulge out. The light from outside highlights the man's short blond hair.

Yuji means to tell the visitor that Gojo-sensei is getting ready, that he'll be right with him. Because surely, someone so uptight and businessman-like wouldn't trek all the way to sensei's apartment if it wasn't important. He means to tell the man this, but what comes out is, "Gojo-sensei is busy having sex right now!"

No. No. Crap! Yuji smacks his mouth and then repeatedly smacks his hands and his face as Sukuna makes his presence known. The vengeful spirit laughs and taunts him. Digs that invisible knife deeper into his throat. A part of Yuji wants to rip that knife out and cut off his tongue. Another part wishes that he could cut off Sukuna's windpipe.

"As if, boy," Sukuna voices between his eardrums, the lingering shocks of his cruel laughter poke more holes into Yuji's already drained reserves.

Yuji is so over this whole vessel thing. Why couldn't he get a cool parasite like in the shows? Instead, he gets stuck with a curse that rips his heart out just for the heck of it.

The man sighs, his body sags with the motion. "I have been waiting for over an hour. You must be Itadori Yuji. Nanami Kento." Nanami dips his head.

"Nice to meet you," Yuji replies, bowing. He closes his eyes, wishing that the ground would open up and swallow him whole. Death by embarrassment is worse than getting his heart ripped out. "W-wait!" He says as Nanami brushes past and invites himself in. "You, shouldn't—"

"Do not concern yourself with this matter," Nanami says, voice chipped.

"But, Sensei…" Yuji wonders if he can take the man. He is strong, but this Nanami person is probably a sorcerer, so that would make him strong too. But the commotion would alert Gojo-sensei in theory, and even if it's for just a minute, that's still time. "I can't let you go any further!" Yuji kicks the door close and rushes forward.

"Tiresome," Nanami says, sidestepping him. "Sorcerers do not fight one another." He glares, looking at Yuji as though he is nothing more than a disobedient child.

Yuji pauses. Well, crap. Does attacking him make him the bad guy?

"Nanami-kun!" Gojo calls out from the hallway. He's dressed down in a pair of gray sweatpants and a loose black shirt. His hair is wet and his posture is the most relaxed he's ever seen.

Yuji resists the urge to hurl. Not that anything would come up, since he has yet to have breakfast. But still. Did they forget that he was living with them?

"What are you doing here so early?" Gojo crosses his arms.

"Early? I have been waiting for you for over an hour," Nanami replies, his voice even despite the subtle twitch of his fingers.

If he could, Yuji is positive that Nanami would clock Gojo-sensei.

"Seriously? That's crazy." Gojo turns and looks at Yuji. "Yuji-kun, this is Nanami Kento. He's an ex-salary man turned sorcerer."

"You had a flight to catch. Did you not?"

"Ah, is that why Ijichi keeps calling. Should probably catch a later one then. Anyway, Yuji, ex-salary man sorcerer, is going to watch over you, while I'm gone."

"Watch over me? Is Kagome-san going with you?"

"No, but she can't take you on missions. Nanami is gonna take you with him, so you can still get some hands-on experience while I'm away. I won't be gone long." Gojo looks back over at Nanami. "Also, while I'm away, no hitting on Gome-Chan-"

"Why would I hit on your significant other?" Nanami lifts his arm and stares at the simple gold watch. "Hurry up and introduce me, so that Yuji and I may go. At this rate, I'll end up in overtime."

"So serious. Man, you should lighten up sometime." Gojo walks away, leaving Yuji in utter confusion.

"D-do you not like Gojo-sensei?"

"I have trust in his abilities and I believe that there is some merit in his desire to change the jujutsu hierarchy. But I do not respect him."

Huh? Yuji spikes a hand through his pink hair, pulls at the ends. He's convinced that it must be a requirement for sorcerers to be one screw too loose.

"Good morning, Kagome-san," Yuji greets cheerfully. Though it's closer to the afternoon and he's still holding out hope for breakfast or any kind of meal to be prepped. His stomach rumbles in agreement. "Sorry," he says, holding his stomach to drown out the loud groans.

"Morning, Yuji. Did you not eat?" Kagome asks. Her hair is piled up into a messy bun, with some strands escaping and framing her face. She's dressed down in black leggings and an oversized black shirt.

He's positive that the shirt belongs to Gojo-sensei. "No, I was hoping that you would make something."

"Oh! Sorry about that." Her face flushes pink as she makes eye contact with Gojo.

It's downright sickening.

"Gome-Chan, this is Nanami Kento. He's going to be taking Yuji out on missions. And if you have any trouble, call him," Gojo says.

"Nice to meet you, Nanami- san. You can just call me Kagome."

"Higurashi-san," Gojo says.

"That's not necessary. Kagome is just fine."

"That's improper and Nanami is a man of class. Higurashi-san."

Nanami sighs three times. "Yuji, we will be leaving now."

"But, what about food?"

"Let's go. It was nice to meet you, Kagome-san." Nanami walks out of the apartment, leaving Yuji to rush behind him.

"Have a safe trip, sensei! Be back soon, Kagome-san!" He yells out, as he slips his shoes on and runs after Nanami.


"Satoru, what the hell was that?" Kagome turns to him. Her face scrunched up.

She looks adorable, trying to get all feisty with him. "Nanami hates putting in overtime. Trauma from working that office job." He shakes his head. "Can you believe that they had him working 60, 80-hour weeks? Phew!"

"You know what I mean."

He does, but there is no point in dissecting his reaction. "I'm gonna book another flight. You want to ride me to the airport?"

"Yeah, I can." She freezes, her eyes widened. "Pervert!"

"So… is that a yes or- ow!" Gojo makes a show of rubbing his arm. "I think it's broken; I'll need you to play nurse." Kagome walks away, shaking her head. Naturally, he has to follow her. "What kind of souvenirs do you want?"

She glances back at him. "Surprise me." She opens the door to the master bedroom. "Why can't I come with you?"

"Well, one: you are a distraction." He holds up one hand, cutting off her rebuttal. "Two: If anything happens, Yuji will have you and Nanami around. And three: I'll get done faster if I know that you're safe… at home. No talking to strangers."

"I do not get into nearly as much trouble as you are insinuating." Kagome huffs as she takes her phone off the charger.

"Gome-chan, you're kind of a danger magnet. Or demon magnet. Same thing." He picks up his own phone and smiles at the latest message from Ijichi. It only took years, but Ijichi has finally figured out that he is never on time for anything. "Ijichi took care of my next flight. Should probably pack."

"Yuji asked me to pick up earplugs for him." Kagome frowns.

"You were kind of loud."

"What? No, I wasn't that loud." Kagome shakes her head, throwing off the accusation.

He clears his throat, gives his best impression of an exaggerated moan. He ducks at the pillows she throws at him. A warm feeling blossoms in his chest. His breath catches. There's a small curse, probably a fly head about two apartment buildings over. If he takes off his sunglasses, he could probably track down Yuji and Nanami, and determine if it would be faster to call a taxi or wait for Ijichi to swing back around to pick him up.

And yet, all he can focus on is how her hair has a slight blue tint to it. And the way her nose wiggles when he does something that embarrasses her.

He wants to say it so badly that his tongue gets rooted to the roof of his mouth. But something holds him back. It can't be that easy—it shouldn't be this easy to fall for someone. And how does he know if that is really what he is feeling? It's not as though he has ever been in a committed relationship before, not with the pressures of his work and political bullshit that comes along with being born into a major clan.

"You're beautiful," he says. That warm feeling spreads through his body. He sends a quick message to Nanami. He doesn't know if love is the emotion he is feeling, but if anything happens to her while he's gone…

"Come on, I'll help you pack." She walks over, taking his hand in hers.

"Are you still looking for a way back home?"

Kagome lets go of his hand, opens the closet, and sorts through their clothes. "I've put my search on pause for now. I want to help Yuji-kun, I can't leave without helping him first."

The warmth evaporates, and he's left with a chill that penetrates his infinity.

"Would you stay if I asked?"


A/N: Thank you all for the kind reviews :) I was going to post this chapter Saturday, but I remembered that I have to work this weekend *sigh* Next chapter, Kagome gets to meet Mahito.