Chapter Three: The Election Shifts Orbit
Document Entry: July 2018
Location: Nishi-Tokyo City
Institution: Eishuu Reform School
Subject: Spectral Phenomenon
Classification: Potentially High-Grade Vengeful Spirit (Name Pending)
Observations:
- The entity was sighted above the school's field.
- Multiple reports from non-shamanic witnesses confirm the presence of a 'Cursed Womb'.
- The urgency of the situation warranted immediate attention.
Response:
- Three first-year students from the Tokyo Jujutsu High School were deployed to the site.
- Among the dispatched group, one individual is—?
Remarks:
- The situation is ongoing, and further details will be documented upon resolution of the incident.
In the dimly lit briefing room, the air was thick with anticipation. Yuuji Itadori, Megumi Fushiguro, and Nobara Kugisaki stood before Kiyotaka Ijichi, their expressions a mix of determination and nerves. The mission was clear yet daunting: to exorcize a special grade womb, a task that could easily spiral into life or death.
Ijichi, with a stern face that belied his usual nervous demeanor, briefed the trio on the gravity of their task. "This is not your typical mission," he began, his voice steady. "The womb you're about to face is of Special Grade. It's unpredictable and extremely dangerous."
Yuuji, ever the optimist, cracked a smile. "Don't worry, Ijichi-san. We've got this," she said, clenching his fist with resolve.
Megumi, the strategist, nodded in agreement but added a word of caution. "We'll need to be careful. Special grade curses are no joke. We can't afford to let our guard down for even a second."
Nobara, fierce and fearless, chimed in with a fire in her eyes. "Let's just get this over with. I didn't come all this way to back down now."
Ijichi adjusted his glasses, a gesture that conveyed both his concern and trust in the young sorcerers. "Remember, your safety is the priority. If things get out of hand, retreat immediately."
They fell silent as the weight of the mission settled on their shoulders. Yuuji felt a surge of determination. She was ready to prove herself, to show that she could excel within the parameters set by Ijichi. The mission was more than a test; it was a chance to shine.
Outside the juvenile detention center, the atmosphere was tense. A woman, her face etched with lines of worry and desperation, approached the guards at the gate. "Please," she pleaded, her voice cracking with emotion, "I need to see my son, Tadashi Niko. He's all I have."
The guards, unmoved by her distress, stood firm. "No one is allowed," one of them said sternly, blocking her path with an outstretched arm.
Yuuji, witnessing the scene unfold, felt a pang of empathy for the mother. She stepped forward, her resolve as clear as the determination in her eyes. "Don't worry," Yuuji said softly, yet with a confidence that belied her years. "I promise, I'll bring him back to you." She looked at Megumi. "Right Fushigoro?"
"Of course," he replied, but something was off about the way he said it.
The woman looked up, hope flickering in her eyes as she met Yuuji's gaze. In that moment, a silent understanding passed between them—a mother's plea and a young girl's vow.
With their mission etched in their minds, Yuuji, Megumi, and Nobara set out into the night, the weight of their responsibility heavy on their shoulders, but their spirits unyielding. They were ready to face whatever twisted form the special grade womb had taken, together as a team.
As they departed, Ijichi watched them go, a silent prayer on his lips for their safe return. The fate of the mission rested in the hands of these brave young sorcerers, and the jujutsu world held its breath, waiting for the outcome.
He raised his hand and made a sign as he chanted, casting a dark veil over the area.
"Emerge from the darkness, blacker than darkness. Purify that which is impure."
As the last word echoed, the air shimmered, and a dome of darkness enveloped them, the Veil's incarnation coming to life. It was as if night had descended prematurely, the artificial sky within the barrier twinkling with stars that didn't exist.
Yuuji's eyes widened in awe, but she quickly regained her composure. "So this is the Veil… it's like we're in a different world," she murmured, her voice a soft contrast to the surrounding darkness.
Megumi, ever observant, analyzed their surroundings. "It's not just for show. The Veil hides us from the outside and traps curses within. We must be vigilant."
Nobara nodded, gripping her hammer tighter. "Let's get moving. The sooner we exorcize whatever's trapped here, the better."
The trio advanced, their footsteps silent on the stone floor. The Veil's incarnation was more than a mere barrier; it was a realm of its own, a pocket dimension where the rules were dictated by the caster's will.
The air was thick with tension as Nobara, Yuuji, and Megumi stepped into the dimly lit detention center. The walls seemed to pulse with a malevolent energy, the domain of a cursed spirit not yet fully formed but still dangerous.
"Great, the door's gone," Nobara muttered, spinning around. "This is just like a bad horror movie."
Yuuji, adjusting her white kimono, sighed. "I knew we should've left breadcrumbs."
Megumi, ever the pragmatist, wasted no time. "Divine Dog come forth!" he commanded, and with a burst of shadows, a white dog, his divine dog appeared, it's presence a comforting constant in the chaos.
Nobara's eyes lit up. "Puppy!" she exclaimed, rushing over to cuddle the nearest one. "Who's a good boy? You are! Yes, you are!"
Yuuji joined in, laughing as the divine dog licked her face. "So much for cursed spirits, we've got the cutest ally."
Megumi rolled his eyes but couldn't suppress a smile. "Focus, you two." He looked at his dogs. " Stay alert and locate the exit. Look for survivors."
The dogs, unbothered by the affection, set to work, their noses sniffing the air. As they trotted off, Nobara and Yuuji followed, still cooing over them.
Megumi shook his head, a thought crossing his mind. 'Maybe I should summon them more often if it keeps morale this high,' he mused, following his friends and their new furry guides, hoping they'd find the exit before anything else found them.
Abruptly, the dog stiffened and began to run in a certain direction. The others were swift to follow it. Soon they came into what seemed like a huge high power plant with no machines. The dog began to bark in an alarming way. The teenagers stiffened as they saw the blood form of a boy, his legs torn off his body.
"He…" Nobara quickly kneeled beside him. "Tadashi Niko."
Yuuji went to grab the body, "We must take his body, otherwise his mother won't believe that he is… dead.," However, Megumi caught her arm and gave her a hard look.
"We should escape." He said.
"What!" She yelled. "But why?"
"He is a criminal, Itadori." He reasoned. "I read his file. Tadashi Niko, he ran a car over a small girl, despite having been charged for unlicensed driving before."
"But—"
"You can't save everybody," he interrupted. "What if someone you save kills an innocent in the future? You—"
Tush!
Megumi was shocked, the girl had slapped him.
Yuuji stood face to face with Megumi, the tension between them palpable. The air was charged, a storm brewing in the silence of the place.
"You just don't get it, do you, Megumi?" Yuuji's voice was low, a mix of anger and disbelief. "It's not about the mission; it's about people. Real people with lives and dreams."
Megumi's expression was stoic, but his eyes betrayed a hint of frustration. "I do understand, Yuuji. But we can't save everyone. We have to prioritize our objectives as jujutsu sorcerers."
Yuuji shook her head, her fists clenched at her sides. "That's just an excuse! An excuse to hide behind so you don't have to face the truth. We're supposed to protect people, not treat them like collateral damage!"
"It's not that simple," Megumi countered, his voice steady. "We have a duty to contain curses and prevent greater harm. Sometimes that means making tough decisions."
"Tough decisions? Is that what you call it?" Yuuji's voice rose, echoing off the walls. "I call it being heartless. I call it forgetting what makes us human in the first place!"
Megumi took a step forward, his resolve unwavering. "Being a jujutsu sorcerer is about balance, Yuuji. It's about protecting the many, even if it means sacrificing the few."
"And I say that's wrong!" Yuuji shot back. "If we lose our humanity, what's the point of any of this? What are we even fighting for?"
Suddenly, a low growl resonated through the chamber, and shadows coalesced into a monstrous form. The cursed spirit, a malevolent force drawn by the Veil's power, lunged at them.
"Why didn't the Divine dog—" Megumi stopped as he saw the immobilized and dead form of his Shikigami's body who was 'frozen' in a wall.
The air was thick with tension. Yuuji, garbed in a pristine white kimono that contrasted sharply against the darkness, stood poised for battle. Her eyes, a mirror of resolve, scanned the shadows for the impending threat.
Without warning, the silence shattered as the special grade curse erupted into existence. Its form was a grotesque mockery of nature, and its power was palpable, radiating malice that chilled the very soul. In a flash of malevolence, it lunged, severing Yuuji's hand with a precision that was both terrifying and awe-inspiring.
The pain was immediate, but Yuuji's spirit remained unbroken. She knew the gravity of her mission; the safety of countless innocents weighed heavily on her shoulders. With a heart fortified by determination, she faced the curse, her stance unwavering even as her blood painted the floor in stark crimson.
Meanwhile, Nobara, caught off-guard, stumbled and fell into a pit that seemed to appear out of nowhere. The cursed spirit, seizing the opportunity, turned its attention towards the other two sorcerers. The battle was fierce, a dance of life and death, as each move could mean the difference between survival and demise.
Yuuji, her severed hand a stark reminder of the curse's lethal prowess, summoned her power. The air crackled with energy as she prepared to unleash her might. She tried to lift the spirit, but it was simply too fast and strong for her to even lift an inch.
The curse broke into laughter as it punched her hard. Very hard. Air knocked out of her lungs as she found herself airborne.
Before she could recover, she was punched. Again.
Soon it became clear that her attacks barely scratched the surface of its malevolent hide.
The realization dawned on her; this was a battle they could not win by force alone. With a heavy heart, Yuuji made a decision that bore the weight of sacrifice. "Megumi," she called out, her voice steady despite the chaos, "Go save Nobara. I'll hold it off."
Megumi hesitated, his eyes torn between Yuuji and the direction of Nobara's fall. But the resolve in Yuuji's gaze left no room for argument. He nodded, "Don't die, or I'll kill you!" Turning to sprint towards the pit, his own shadows coiling around him, ready to aid in their rescue.
Yuuji turned back to the curse, her stance defiant. She was the decoy now, her every move calculated to draw attention, to give her friends a fighting chance. The curse, sensing an opportunity, focused its fury on her, but Yuuji danced away from each strike, her spirit unyielding.
Above all the noise, above the fear and the pain, Yuuji's thoughts were clear. This was her role to play, her moment to ensure that her friends lived to fight another day. And she would not falter.
As Yuuji faced the newborn curse, its mocking laughter echoed through the air, a sound as chilling as the intent behind it. The curse reveled in its newfound freedom and power, toying with her as if she were nothing more than a plaything.
The battle raged on, with Yuuji pushing her limits, her every strike fueled by desperation and courage. But the curse was relentless, and with each passing moment, Yuuji's hope of victory dimmed. Pain racked her body, a stark reminder of the curse's formidable strength.
In a cruel twist of fate, as she staggered from the curse's latest assault, a loose brick from the dilapidated ceiling came crashing down. It struck Yuuji with a brutal finality, and the world around her spun into darkness.
"Is this the end... am I dying?" Yuuji mused, her thoughts swirling in a cocktail of despair and denial. "Who will be there for grandpa, and what of my vow to disprove those sorcerers? To kick that blindfolded bastard? I refuse to succumb... I mustn't..." Her heart clung to a thread of hope, even as her mind waded through the fog of impending doom.
Tears welled up, but so did a chuckle. "I mean, who else is going to make sure grandpa doesn't put salt in his tea instead of sugar? And those sorcerers... they haven't seen the last of my killer rabbit slippers attack. As for the blindfolded bastard, I've got a banana peel with his name on it."
Her consciousness may have been on the brink of being checked out, but Yuuji's spirit was busy planning a comeback tour, complete with pyrotechnics and laugh tracks. Because if there's one thing Yuuji knew, it was that every good hero needs a dramatic pause before the grand finale. And this was hers.
As her awareness ebbed away, her form lay still upon the unforgiving earth, the curse's shadow looming ominously. Yet, even in the grip of impending defeat, Yuuji's spirit stood defiant, her resolve unshaken—a beacon of her determination to protect and to prevail.
Her eyelids fluttered open, a haze of bewilderment clouding her senses. "Where... where am I?" she murmured, the ache in her bones a stark testament to her ordeal. With effort, she rose, her body rebelling with each movement. "Could this be the Reanimation Jutsu once more?" Her gaze fell upon her severed hand. She looked at her body. "A woman? Animal Path? If that's the case—" Her voice broke the silence, "Summoning Jutsu!"
Silence answered her call.
Perplexed, she realized, "Why can't I sense any Chakra? Yet, there's a presence here—an energy..."
The walls trembled as the spirit was repelled, its form a fleeting shadow. The girl's heart raced, her mind a whirlwind. 'This isn't right. Wasn't I sealed within Itachi's Susanoo's gourd?' The confusion was palpable as she struggled to align her fragmented recollections with the alien world around her.
The spirit, silent yet mocking, encircled her, its movements a caricature of scorn. It lunged with a surge of malice, intent on overpowering her.
But the girl, driven by instinct, evaded with an elegance honed by relentless training. The spirit's assault was fierce, but her will to endure was fiercer.
"Almighty Push!" she commanded.
The spirit, caught by an unseen force, careened from wall to wall until it was halted by a dead end.
It recovered, its anger resonating in the quiet. The girl appeared before it in an instant, her hand raised, and the spirit hovered as if weightless.
"What are you?" she inquired.
The spirit merely hissed in response.
"No words?" She arched an eyebrow. "A minion of Madara, perhaps?"
The spirit remained silent.
"Allow me to introduce myself," she offered with a stern expression. "I am Nagato Uzumaki. Would you care to enlighten me about our current predicament and why you seek my end?"
The creature began to move in a pattern less way before catching Nagato off guard and jumping at him.
"Almighty Push!" Nagato shouted, thrusting his hands out. A powerful force blasted from him, hitting the spirit like a wall of wind. The spirit reeled back but quickly recovered, its eyes burning with rage.
It charged at Nagato, fast and fierce. Nagato leaped aside, thinking fast. 'I need to use my powers wisely,' he thought. "Universal Pull!" he called out next. The spirit flew towards him, as if pulled by a magnet.
The spirit swung wildly, but Nagato was ready. "Almighty Push!" he yelled again, and the spirit was thrown back, crashing into the walls. It wasn't giving up, though. It came at him again, faster this time.
Nagato's heart raced. 'I can't let it win,' he thought. He dodged and weaved, using his "Universal Pull" to bring the spirit close, then "Almighty Push" to send it flying. Each time, the spirit came back, but Nagato was relentless.
Finally, with a mighty shout, "Almighty Push!" Nagato sent the spirit hurtling into the wall one last time. It slumped to the ground, defeated. Nagato stood over it, breathing hard but victorious.
The fight was over, and Nagato had won.
"Now," Nagato said to himself. "Let's find out what's happening here…"
Suddenly he fell on his knees and clutched his head and began to scream. "Aghhh… ughh… what the…"
Blood came from his nostrils as he screamed louder.
Then abruptly, the screaming stopped. Yuuji looked at her hand.
"I am Yuuji Itadori…" she said to herself in a shaky voice. "But why do I have the memories of… Nagato Uzumaki…?"
Then the world around her morphed into a void.
Megumi was expecting two things when he was sprinting in the juvenile detention center.
One. A dead girl and a crazy cursed spirit.
Two. A bloody, barely alive girl and a crazy cursed spirit.
It wasn't his fault that nobody told him there was an option three.
The girl was wounded. Just unconscious. Good. Her hand was severed— Shoko-sensei could easily fix it, no problem.
But where the hell is the Special Grade cursed spirit?
And why is there Sukuna's finger!?
As he carried Yuuji away, she opened her eyes.
"Is Nobara okay?" She asked.
"Yes." He replied.
"The cursed spirit—"
"It's gone."
"Of course it is," she grinned. "I am the one who exorcized it, after all!"
What.
He dropped her on the ground.
"Itai!" She shouted. "Hey you moron!"
She, a newbie, exorcised a Special Grade cursed spirit…
Well, the world is full of freaks.
She Is one of them.
No big deal.
Three curses were in a capsule lift along with four humans, three of which were non-sorcerers.
"Why did you set that cursed womb in that detention center?" The volcano curse, Jogo asked.
"It was merely a step to awaken the latent power of Yuuji Itadori." A man wearing a monk dress replied.
"And why is that important?" Jogo asked.
"Yuuji Itadori is a vessel." The monk, Geto replied.
"Vessel for—?"
"Ryomen Sukuna."
"তুমি কি সত্যি বলছো? এটা কিভাবে সম্ভব!?" Hanami exclaimed.
"Shut up, Hanami!" Jogo sneered. "Nobody can understand you!"
"তোমরা বাংলা বুঝতে না পারলে আমি কি করবো?" Hanami reasoned. "আমি যেখানে জন্মগ্রহণ করেছি সেখানকার ভাষায় বলছি।"
Jogo sighed. "What should we do in order to create a new era for curses, Geto?"
"There are two things that you can do," Geto said as he raised his hand. "Seal Satoru Gojo and ally with Sukuna by awakening him in Yuuji Itadori."
"How do you seal him?"
"I have a Special Grade cursed object that can hold him."
Jogo's eyes widened. Then flames began to come out of his head. "Give it to me, I'll seal him away."
"Not now."
"When?"
"October thirty-first in Shibuya." Geto replied with a gentle smile.
Jogo sighed once more before looking at the non-sorcerers with them in the lift. "I can at least kill them, right?"
The lift stopped and Geto stepped out. He looked back at Jogo with a smile. "Sure."
The lift began to ascend once again before screaming and shoutings began to be heard from there a few moments later.
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Tilll next time!