Threads of Infinity chapter 16: Echoes of Bond and Power
The moon hung low in the sky, its pale light casting long shadows across the deserted streets. Tsukasa crouched on a rooftop, his eyes sharp as they tracked the figures moving below. The two men—Gojo and Geto—moved with a sense of purpose, their footsteps steady as they escorted the girl, Riko Amanai, through the dimly lit alley. To anyone else, the trio might have seemed like an ordinary group, but Tsukasa's sharp senses told a different story. There was a tension in the air, a crackling energy that hung around them like a storm ready to break.
Tsukasa's gaze flickered over Gojo first. Even from this distance, he could feel the raw power that radiated from the man. Gojo was untouchable, almost like a force of nature. His movements were fluid, effortless, as if the world itself bent to his will. Tsukasa couldn't help but acknowledge the sheer strength, the way the very air around Gojo seemed to tremble with his presence. He was everything Tsukasa aspired to be—indifferent, yet unstoppable.
Then his eyes drifted to Geto. Unlike Gojo's radiance, Geto's presence was colder, more deliberate. The way he moved was calculated, like a predator stalking its prey. Tsukasa couldn't place it, but something about Geto felt... different. There was a darkness beneath the surface, something that Tsukasa could feel but couldn't quite grasp. Still, Geto was no more than a pawn in his eyes. He was just another piece on the chessboard, a tool to be used, nothing more.
Tsukasa's gaze lingered on Riko Amanai, though. Her presence, though weak in comparison, piqued his curiosity. She was a human—insignificant in the grand scheme of things. Yet, she had an aura of importance, something that made the two strongest sorcerers in the world protect her so fiercely. Tsukasa didn't understand it. To him, her life held no value. But the fact that these sorcerers would go so far for her... that, he found interesting.
His thoughts were interrupted as the trio paused in the alley. Tsukasa's eyes narrowed. They had stopped, clearly aware of their surroundings. The street was silent, the only sound the soft rustling of the wind. He couldn't help but feel the tug of anticipation in the air.
Sensing no immediate threat, Tsukasa remained perfectly still, watching them from the shadows. They wouldn't be able to sense him—not with the control he had over his cursed energy. For now, he was just an observer, watching, calculating.
"What are you thinking, Tsukasa?" he muttered to himself, the faintest trace of a smile tugging at his lips. "What is it about you two that makes this girl so important?"
The alley was quiet once more, the soft echoes of footsteps slowly fading as Gojo, Geto, and Riko continued their trek through the night. Gojo's eyes, hidden behind his signature round glasses, flicked momentarily to the side—something had changed. It was subtle, almost imperceptible to anyone without a trained sense, but Gojo wasn't just anyone.
His Six Eyes honed in on the disturbance in the air. It wasn't a curse, not a familiar signature of cursed energy he could easily identify. It wasn't a regular sorcerer's presence either. This... this was something different.
He stopped mid-step, the air around him stilling as his senses expanded outward. His Six Eyes cut through the veil of cursed energy like a blade, scanning every inch of the surrounding area, piecing together the faintest traces of energy that lingered in the atmosphere.
And then, he found it. A presence—sharp, cold, and somehow distant, as if it didn't belong to this world. His sharp gaze darted toward the rooftops where the sensation was most intense.
"Geto," Gojo muttered, his voice low but with an edge of caution, "We've got company."
Geto, sensing the change in Gojo's tone, paused. His sharp eyes scanned the street as he subtly adjusted his stance, every muscle in his body preparing for something. "A curse?" he asked, though his suspicion was clear.
Gojo shook his head, his expression unreadable behind his glasses. "No... this is something else. It feels like... someone who's playing at being a sorcerer."
He was still focused on the rooftops, his mind already piecing things together. Whoever—or whatever—was up there, they were incredibly powerful, no ordinary sorcerer could hide their presence like this. Even with his Six Eyes, the energy was distorted, concealed in a way that made it hard to pinpoint. But Gojo's ability to sense cursed energy and detect anomalies was unparalleled. The fact that someone could hide so perfectly intrigued him.
He pushed out his cursed energy slightly, probing the area to provoke a response. It was a subtle challenge, a call to any lurking force to reveal itself.
Riko, unaware of the tense undercurrent in the air, clung to Geto's side, feeling the subtle shift in the energy around them. "What's wrong?" she asked, her voice a mix of confusion and apprehension.
"Stay close," Geto instructed, his tone sharp. His eyes never left Gojo, who was still focused on the rooftops.
A few moments passed in thick silence, but then Gojo's lips curled into a small, knowing smile. He had it now—the distortion in the air, the unusual flicker of cursed energy that didn't belong to any sorcerer he knew.
"I see you," Gojo said softly, his smile widening beneath his glasses. "You're brave, but you're also a fool. Hiding in the shadows, trying to stay unnoticed, but you're not getting past me."
With a sudden shift in energy, Gojo's cursed energy exploded outward in a controlled burst, a challenge to whoever was lurking in the shadows. He wasn't attacking, not yet—but he made it clear that if this stranger had any illusions of remaining hidden, they were gone.
The moment Gojo unleashed his cursed energy, the world seemed to pause, as if the very air had shifted to accommodate the sheer force of his presence. Tsukasa remained motionless in the shadows, his eyes narrowed, feeling the pulse of Gojo's energy ripple through the night. His gaze flicked downward for a fraction of a second, then back to the rooftop.
So he knows.
Tsukasa's expression remained unreadable, his sharp, cold eyes studying Gojo. The sudden surge of power from the older sorcerer didn't faze him; if anything, it intrigued him. A faint smirk tugged at the corner of Tsukasa's lips as his own cursed energy began to build—a flicker of something darker behind his eyes.
The Six Eyes.
For the first time, Tsukasa was truly facing someone with an understanding of the world's cursed energy on the same level as himself. He could feel the weight of Gojo's stare, like a blade cutting through the space between them. His own Six Eyes flared to life, an intricate web of cursed energy appearing around his irises as he locked eyes with Gojo across the distance.
Gojo's aura was unmistakable—intense, almost overwhelming, like a blazing sun. But Tsukasa's Six Eyes gave him a different perspective, one that was sharper, colder. Through his own vision, he saw Gojo not as a rival, but as an obstacle—a powerful sorcerer, but one that could be overcome.
Tsukasa's eyes glimmered, dark and merciless as they flickered over Gojo's form, studying him like a predator sizing up its prey. There was no fear in Tsukasa's heart, only the thrill of recognition. His mind raced with thoughts of power, of climbing higher, of crushing anything standing in his way.
Gojo, ever confident, never flinched under Tsukasa's gaze. His grin remained in place, though it shifted slightly—more of a playful challenge than a show of arrogance.
"I knew you were out there," Gojo said, his voice carrying in the night air. He wasn't looking directly at Tsukasa now, but it didn't matter—his Six Eyes could still feel the disturbance. "You're an interesting one, aren't you?"
Tsukasa didn't respond. His stare remained piercing, unwavering, as though trying to read every layer of Gojo's being. Through the Six Eyes, he saw not just the cursed energy swirling around Gojo's form, but the fine-tuned control he exerted over it. He could feel the strength of it, the overwhelming power in every breath Gojo took, and yet Tsukasa's own aura remained cold and calculating, a perfect match for the intensity of the situation.
There was a pause, an unspoken challenge in the air between them.
Then, Tsukasa spoke, his voice quiet, but filled with the weight of his disdain. "You're strong, but not strong enough to stop me."
Gojo's smile only widened at the words, but this time, there was no playfulness in it—just a hint of something far more serious. "We'll see about that."