Title: zenith of stars
Rating: T
Summary: "It's not the Six Eyes," they said. So then, the question is –what is it? [OC, Mystic Eyes of Death Perception!OC, AU]
Warnings: N/A.
AN at bottom.
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zenith of stars
"87: recall"
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"It's been a while, hasn't it?"
Gojo Daisaku appears much the same as Shiki remembers –the elder carries himself with a measure of grace and decorum, as appropriate for a man of his age and status within the Gojo Clan. But this means nothing when Shiki can see that there are dark circles under his eyes, a clear sign that Daisaku-sama has been losing sleep over recent matters.
Their conversation today should be able to alleviate that, though, given that Shiki does not intend to contest the suspension that is to be her 'punishment.'
She offers her greetings in return to the elder, and takes a seat beside him on the engawa.
Daisaku-sama sighs heavily. "… Well. Do you have anything to say for yourself?"
The words are more tired than they are censuring. Which means that it's not meant as a chastisement towards her… not that any chastisement on Daisaku-sama's part is likely to have any tangible effect on Shiki in the first place, and both of them know it.
"I appreciate your efforts with the other elders," is all Shiki answers with. From the looks of things, Daisaku-sama had not had an easy time of it the past few days.
"And I suppose I should be grateful that you are," Daisaku-sama mutters under his breath, rubbing at his temples as if to ward off an oncoming headache. "At least one of you is polite about it when I'm cleaning up after you. You're lucky that Takatomi didn't openly speak against you and push for a harsher punishment this time."
Shiki shrugs noncommittally.
"… Hayanari told me what you were thinking," the elder states straightforwardly, cutting directly into the topic without further fanfare. "That you plan to accept being suspended from school, in exchange for any information that the Yagyu Clan might possess on Geto Suguru. Is this correct?"
"Yes."
Daisaku-sama lets out a quiet hum. "I don't doubt that you've already thought about the benefits and drawbacks of your decision. But still, I must ask –is this really worth it? To focus your attention on a curse user?"
"Geto-san is good at hiding," Shiki responds mildly. And, more importantly, "Satoru-niichan doesn't have the time or opportunity to really conduct a thorough search. If I'll be taking an extended break from my regular duties and activities, then I think this would be a productive use of my time."
The elder chokes slightly. "… A break?"
"Isn't that what this is?" If Shiki is suspended from school, then obviously it would not be expected of her to continue staying on school grounds throughout the duration of her mandated suspension. It's likely that she'll still continue to be assigned missions in the meantime, of course. But since the premise of her suspension is 'reflecting on her actions,' then it means that she probably won't be seeing an increase to her mission workload. In fact, the opposite might be true instead –so as to give her more time to be 're-educated' by her clan.
What all of this means is: For roughly half a year, Shiki is to stay away from the Tokyo school, and she will be left to her own devices under the pretext of reflection, for the most part.
… So wouldn't it make sense for her to find another task to focus on during this time? One that she didn't have the time and attention to delve too deeply into while she was being a good student of the jujutsu school?
Daisaku-sama gives her a flat look, "Do you really plan to use your suspension to –to chase after a Special Grade curse user?"
Shiki tilts her head, "You don't approve?"
"I thought you were just planning to pass the information we're getting from the Yagyu Clan to our honored clan head, not get involved directly in his search efforts yourself," Daisaku-sama puts a wrinkled hand to his head. "What do you even plan to do, assuming that you find him?"
"Break his legs so he can't run," Shiki responds immediately.
"… Why did I even ask?" Daisaku-sama mutters under his breath, not removing his hand. "Alright. So you plan to break his legs. You do realize that he's not going to quietly acquiesce to it?"
Shiki gives the elder a funny look, "Of course he wouldn't." That's obvious, isn't it?
The aged man sucks in a deep breath. "What I mean is… Geto Suguru is a dangerous curse user, and I don't believe that a fight against him would be a good idea."
"You think I'd lose?" Shiki cannot say that she's completely confident that she would be able to win a fight against Geto-san, but she doesn't think that all the cards would be stacked against her for such an altercation. And… the conditions for her victory isn't so much winning a fight against the man as it is making sure that he can't escape.
… Which also means that she needs to fight to maim, not kill. Oh, is this why Daisaku-sama is lacking confidence in her?
"It's not just a simple matter of winning or losing," the elder states, shaking his head slowly. "If you succeed in your efforts and manage to find him, then I presume there would be a high chance that it will result in a fight. And… unless you manage to corner him in an isolated area, then any fight involving Geto Suguru is likely to result in untold numbers of bystander casualties. Going by his new philosophy, he wouldn't have any reason to be considerate of non-sorcerers around him. All he has to do is release a couple dozen of his cursed spirits into his surroundings, and…"
Daisaku-sama waves his hand in a self-explanatory gesture.
"Geto Suguru is dangerous. There's no doubt about that," he says. "Yet so far, it appears that he intends to quietly bide his time, contenting himself with growing that laughable cult of his and using it to amass wealth. Provoking him… may change this status quo. If he decides to take an active role in wielding his cursed technique for more destructive purposes as a result, then that would be quite a disaster."
Shiki frowns. "You want to just let him be?"
"If he is interested in making money, then that's better than certain other alternatives he could be focusing on," the elder points out with a slight shrug. "It may seem irresponsible, but the truth is –we simply don't have enough sorcerers to go around hunting down curse users. So as long as they are not causing too much trouble, then we simply leave them be, most of the time. Many of them are aware of this unspoken policy, and actively take advantage of it."
That's not surprising. There are always more cursed spirits that need to be exorcised, and the time that a sorcerer spends hunting down and either subduing or killing a curse user is time that could be spent exorcising cursed spirits instead. So while the administration maintains a list of curse users that is updated regularly, it doesn't actually assign sorcerers to bring them in. If a sorcerer encounters a curse user, then they are expected to either subdue or kill; however, it is not a requirement that sorcerers go around looking for curse users while they are out fighting cursed spirits.
"In the case of Geto Suguru…" Daisaku-sama trails off briefly. "He's a Special Grade. No regular sorcerer is up to the task of tracking down and fighting him. The only one who is capable of doing so without a doubt is our honored clan head. But given that Geto has hidden himself quite well, finding him is no easy task –and the honored clan head simply does not have the time to be chasing after him. Not when Geto has not made himself an active threat, so there is no reason to justify Satoru-sama setting aside his other responsibilities to do so."
How many cursed spirits would Satoru-niichan be able to exorcise in the indeterminate weeks and months it would take to track and chase down Geto Suguru?
The answer was: Not nearly enough to be worth it, especially when weighed against the myriad other responsibilities pressing down on her cousin's shoulders.
"Are you trying to say that it's not worth my time as well?" Shiki asks.
"Yes," the elder answers candidly. "Even setting aside the fact that there is no benefit in fighting Geto Suguru… Your time is precious, just as Satoru-sama's is. There is no reason for you to waste it on trivial matters."
"That isn't for you to decide," she says mildly.
"Perhaps not," Daisaku-sama concedes easily, dipping his head. "Yet I am but an old man who consistently finds himself concerned for various matters that he tangentially bears responsibility towards."
The man sighs again, this time tiredly.
"Please humor me," he looks towards her. "So you say that you intend to… subdue Geto Suguru, if you find him. Assuming that Satoru-sama allows you to go about your self-assigned task, and that you do succeed in doing so, then what would come next?"
"It depends on Satoru-niichan." To be honest, Shiki isn't entirely sure, either.
"Then, what does our honored clan head intend to do?" Daisaku-sama asks, eminently reasonable. "I assume that he won't be killing the man. Does Satoru-sama want to use the clan's influence to grant a pardon to him? Will he even agree? Will Satoru-sama really be able to change Geto's mind about his current stance on non-sorcerers? It's all well and good if he does, but…"
The elder pauses for a moment.
"From what I'm aware of," he continues carefully, "Satoru-sama has already had brief encounters with Geto, over the past few years. And given what I've seen, it does not appear as if anything has changed. Geto Suguru is off still running his little cult in the shadows, while Satoru-sama works hard exorcising curses all over the country and the entire world. Two parallel lines that will never intersect with each other, so long as each of them remains unwavering upon their chosen course."
Shiki hums thoughtfully. "You think there's no point in speaking with Geto-san even if he were to be found."
"I would be quite glad to be proven wrong," Daisaku-sama allows generously. "But I don't believe it's very likely to happen, given the signs. When it comes to certain things –or rather, certain people, should I say– our honored clan head can be… sentimental. Unfortunately, Geto Suguru is one of them."
"He's not a very good friend." Shiki doesn't know if she would describe her cousin as being sentimental, but Daisaku-sama is correct that Geto-san is someone whom Satoru-niichan cares about, even now.
… It feels rather strange to be agreeing with the elder like this.
"But that wasn't always the case. That's why we have this problem to begin with, isn't it?" Daisaku-sama murmurs softly. "Satoru-sama… there was once a time when I would daresay that Geto Suguru was good for him. But I suppose that things started changing in their second year, after that incident with the Star Plasma Vessel, and then…"
And then Geto-san became a curse user.
The elder sighs deeply. "No matter what he was like before, there's no changing the fact that Geto Suguru is a curse user now. Even if the decision to commit the crime he did was one born of impulsiveness… he's had years to reflect upon his actions and express remorse. To come to his senses, and mend his ways. But has he done so? No, instead he's only gathered other curse users to him and expanded his cult. It's… concerning."
Shiki blinks. "If it's concerning, then why do you think it would be a good idea to leave him alone? Shouldn't you be worried about what he's planning?"
"Genocide?" Daisaku-sama shakes his head. "His lofty goals will never come to fruition so long as Satoru-sama remains steadfast to his own beliefs and convictions. What our honored clan head desires is reform in our society, not the irrevocable decimation of our current civilization through culling the human population on a massive scale."
Shiki doesn't really see the sense in Geto-san's plans, either, but she supposes that would merely be a reason as to why she's not a curse user like him.
"It's a pity, though," Daisaku-sama says. "If the day comes when that young man finally sees sense, then that would be wonderful… unfortunately, it appears that Tsukumo's poison is rooted far too deeply in him."
Shiki arches an eyebrow at the sudden mention of a name that she had not been expecting to hear, "Tsukumo Yuki?"
"Well, perhaps that is being slightly unfair to her," the elder allows. "But Tsukumo is not entirely devoid of blame in setting Geto Suguru on his present, chosen course. If she were any other sorcerer, then doubtlessly she would've been named a curse user for the non-negligible role she played in this –but the higher ups do not wish for two of the current three Special Grade sorcerers to both be curse users."
'Special Grade' described an exceptional level of power that stood outside the conventional ranking system used for sorcerers. And if two of the three Special Grades were both curse users, then that would not be good for morale at all. There was also the question of what kind of message it would send to other sorcerers, if the balance of power shifted in the favor of curse users.
… Or so they would think. Shiki still has confidence in Satoru-niichan as the Strongest of the Special Grades, and though she herself isn't quite a Special Grade sorcerer yet, she's confident in her ability to fight one, even if it's a fight to the death. But not all sorcerers will see it this way, and having two Special Grades on the side of curse users, even nominally, would give them ideas.
It stands to reason why the administration would be hesitant to do such a thing. Even despite their dissatisfaction with Tsukumo, they likely weren't in any hurry to be calling her a curse user, for fear of greater ramifications rippling out in the jujutsu world should they do so.
It's a similar line of reasoning as to why the higher ups would also be hesitant to name Shiki a curse user: Such an act would be more trouble than it's worth. Although in Shiki's case, it's less 'fear for what her being a curse user might mean for the jujutsu world at large,' and more 'fear of retaliation from the Gojo Clan' that the higher ups would be concerned about.
Daisaku-sama sighs.
"In short," he says, "My honest thoughts on this matter –I would not advise you to hunt after Geto Suguru. I recommend leaving that matter to our honored clan head… not that I'm aware of what, exactly, he's planning in regards to his former best friend either. But their shared history should at least mean that violence would be the last recourse in an encounter between them."
Unlike you, are the unspoken but loudly silent words that hang pointedly in the air following that statement. Which Shiki finds rather unfair, really. It's not her fault that Geto-san likes to run, and preventing him from running will almost certainly involve some manner of maiming in order to firmly discourage Geto-san from being… flighty.
He can't run forever. And if she breaks his legs, then he'll find it a lot harder to run, right?
"…" Clearly, Daisaku-sama cannot find anything wrong with her logic, either, if his silence after she voices her thoughts is anything to go by.
Shiki nods to herself, satisfied.
"If you are set on this, I cannot stop you," he finally says. "But you have heard my opinions on this venture you still seem so insistent on. Mark my words, I will be speaking of this to our honored clan head… If I am unable to dissuade you, then perhaps you'll find his words more convincing than mine."
"Satoru-niichan doesn't have any reason to dissuade me." It would be a help to him, if Shiki is able to focus her attention on a task that he is unable to. Right?
"It's dangerous, and there are numerous reasons why Satoru-sama himself would be the better candidate for this task," Daisaku-sama says flatly. "… But I'll leave that to him."
Another long, loud sigh.
"Geto Suguru… once, there had been hope that he would grow to become one of the indispensable pillars of the jujutsu world, alongside Satoru-sama," the elder murmurs quietly. "It's a pity that he'll need to be killed one day, but even should he survive… as long as he harbors hatred towards non-sorcerers, he is a danger that must be sufficiently neutralized somehow so that he cannot pose a threat to others. I wonder if Satoru-sama will be able to make the right choice, when the time comes."
Shiki silently parses through the elder's quiet reflection for a moment. "Are you wondering if Satoru-niichan will be able to kill Geto-san?"
"Don't you wonder the same?" Daisaku-sama turns towards her. "As I've mentioned earlier, Satoru-sama can be quite sentimental, at times. All that we've spoken about Geto Suguru… I have no doubt that the honored clan head knows all of this. And yet… well, it's the nature of an old man to worry, I'm afraid."
There's no need for him to worry, though.
Satoru-niichan doesn't want to kill Geto-san. That doesn't mean he can't, or that he won't –only that it would take some truly exceptional circumstances for him to commit the deed.
Because Satoru-niichan loves him, right? Geto-san is his best friend, and for Satoru-niichan that's something that hasn't changed even after the other boy became a curse user. Even after all these years, Satoru-niichan's stance on this hasn't changed.
Shiki doesn't understand it. In her opinion, Geto-san hasn't been a very good friend to Satoru-niichan at all.
… Not since he became a curse user, at least. There's a part of her that faintly remembers the days when the two of them had been classmates smiling and laughing with each other, but those days are long past now. And, with the current trajectory of things, it seemed that those days were unlikely to ever return.
But Satoru-niichan is still willing to try, and now it remains to be seen if Geto-san feels the same, somewhere hidden deep beneath his plans of mass murder and complete upheaval of the world order.
Which… isn't something that they're going to find out if they don't even have an opportunity to properly talk with each other. And all these years of avoidance is just getting ridiculous at this point, really.
Hmph. It's definitely a good idea to break Geto-san's legs if he tries to run.
"… You know," Daisaku-sama starts conversationally, breaking the quiet lull of silence that had briefly befallen them, "If you had not yet decided on your plans for what activities you would engage in for the duration of your upcoming suspension… I would've recommended that you take the opportunity to familiarize yourself with more of the internal workings of the Gojo Clan."
No thank you. "You know I don't like politics."
"Yes, yes, you've said as much before," the elder nods patiently with a wry smile ghosting over his lips. "But for one who professes to dislike it so much, you are quite adept with navigating your way through it. And a knife must be maintained in order to stay sharp."
"It's just self-defense," Shiki gives Daisaku-sama a wary look. She still hasn't forgotten that he's the one who handed the position of Tobiume branch head to her out of nowhere.
… Thinking about it from this perspective, it's probably for the best that she's found another task to preoccupy herself with for her suspension. One that does not involve nearly as much politicking as the alternative that the elder had proposed.
"Ah, if there were only more among the younger generation who saw the importance of learning 'self-defense' as you do," Daisaku-sama remarks and abruptly slants his gaze to the side for a brief moment. Curious, Shiki follows the elder's line of sight.
Hayanari-san, stationed silently beside them throughout the entirety of their conversation, continues looking straight ahead without so much as even flinching, and maintains his silence in an excellent imitation of an unmoving stone statue.
"… Well," Daisaku-sama turns away from his pointedly unresponsive young assistant, "Let us set matters relating to Geto Suguru aside for now, and return to our original topic."
"My suspension?" Shiki asks.
"Yes. Your suspension," the elder nods. "I will be frank. Of the elders who proposed this, or supported it, there are a fair few who are… not quite approving of the honored clan head's decision to take Okkotsu Yuta under his wing, shall we say."
Shiki hums lightly, "Really, now?"
Daisaku-sama shrugs. "Just so there are no misunderstandings, there are a number of those who are quite excited to hear the prospect of another Special Grade potential aligning themselves with the Gojo Clan. But there are also those who are more… apprehensive."
"They're scared of what the higher ups will think?" Shiki is unimpressed.
"They think it unwise to make more enemies," Daisaku-sama corrects. "Which is doubtlessly what would happen should the boy truly come beneath the Gojo Clan. Discounting our renegade curse user and absentee runaway, Satoru-sama is the sole remaining Special Grade, and he is our clan head. You are a potential Special Grade… and a daughter of the Gojo Clan. Because of your blood, the clan's claim on you is not something that anyone can contest. But Okkotsu Yuta, on the other hand…"
The elder shakes his head slowly.
"They think to maintain balance," he says. "They believe that there is such a thing as enough power. Foolish. But they do speak reason when they point out that the rest of the jujutsu world will not view the Gojo Clan in a good light should we, ah. Snatch up the newest Special Grade-prospective."
"That's not what's happening," Shiki points out. Satoru-niichan knows what the higher ups would do to Okkotsu-san if they sank their claws into the boy, and he is protecting the boy from their machinations.
"But it most certainly looks like that's exactly what's happening," Daisaku-sama counters, "And appearances matter. They matter greatly, Shiki. Think about it. The Gojo Clan comes into possession of two Special Grade sorcerers, forcibly obtains custody over a Ten Shadows user, proceeds to topple the Kamo Clan, and now sets about aggressively recruiting the potential new Special Grade. No matter how you look at it, our every action in recent years all paint an image of domination. I don't blame some of the other elders for thinking that we should deescalate."
"I thought they would be happy that the Gojo Clan gained power."
"Oh, that certainly hasn't changed," the elder lets out a light chuckle. "But they believe it better to observe caution and discretion at the moment. Which is why they proposed your suspension, an acceptable 'punishment' that also doubles as a message to the higher ups that the Gojo Clan does not intend to monopolize Special Grade sorcerers."
… And Shiki's action of bringing Okkotsu-san and her classmates back to the clan compound with her would be perceived as a message from Shiki to the Gojo elders that she knew exactly what they were intending to pull with that suspension of theirs. Bringing Okkotsu-san with her, after all, was an implicit act of protection, that she was still watching out for the boy.
Regardless… if their intention was to convey to the higher ups that the Gojo Clan would be washing their hands of Okkotsu-san as a 'peace offering,' "Then they'll be disappointed."
Daisaku-sama arches an eyebrow. "Disappointed?"
Because Satoru-niichan will most likely be stepping in as a teacher soon, using the window of opportunity that Shiki's suspension creates. Shiki idly wonders what expressions those elders would make, once they realized what they'd done.
Satoru-niichan becoming a jujutsu school teacher to teach Okkotsu-san was a step better than him teaching Okkotsu-san as the Gojo clan head, but it would also mean that the elders had effectively accomplished nothing on this front, despite all their subtle maneuvering. Shiki expects that there will soon be several elders who find themselves quite vexed by this. Which isn't her problem now, is it?
… It might be Daisaku-sama's, though.
"Hypothetically," Shiki starts slowly, "How do you think the elders would react if Satoru-niichan expressed a desire to teach in the Tokyo school?"
Daisaku-sama stills completely, then promptly whirls on her, eyes narrowed.
"Is there anything that's hypothetical at all about that," he says.
… Not really?
The elder gives Shiki a long look for her telling silence. Then, foregoing all grace and decorum –turns around and buries his face in his hands.
"This… isn't completely unsalvageable," Daisaku-sama mutters under his breath, in a tone of voice that sounds as if he's doing his level best to convince himself of his own words. "… Although the Gojo Clan holds considerable influence over the Tokyo school, it's still one of the jujutsu schools beneath the administration in the end. Satoru-sama becoming a teacher there can be seen as the Gojo Clan's Special Grade sorcerer agreeing to share his skills and impart his teachings upon young sorcerers not of his own clan. And if the Okkotsu boy is truly a potential Special Grade sorcerer in the making, then who else would be more suited to teaching him than another Special Grade sorcerer?"
"You're rambling, elder."
Daisaku-sama casts Shiki a dry, withering look. "Are there any other surprises that you would like to warn me about?"
"… No?" There's nothing that comes to mind at the moment, at least.
The elder does not appear to be convinced. There's really not much that Shiki can do about that, unfortunately.
"Ah," Shiki says, as another topic suddenly occurs to her. "It's not exactly a surprise, I'd say, but…"
"Yes?" Daisaku-sama watches her warily.
"The Zenin Clan." Shiki doesn't have hard proof of the Zenins' involvement in the recent incident that had resulted in her killing two of the Yagyu elders, but… she has her suspicions.
She'd also gone through most of the clan's recent reports on the Zenins' activities in Kiyohira-sensei's office yesterday, and it confirms what she'd previously surmised about the Zenins stepping in to fill the empty void left by the absence of the Kamos. This is only to be expected –but what's a little less expected is how the Zenins seem to be actively building relations with many of the lesser sorcery clans, too. One of the Zenin clan head's sons had married a Naniwa wife just last year, and the year before that it had been two others from the Zenin main family who'd taken Minamoto and Matoba wives.
Historically, it was uncommon among sorcery clans for their main family to take out-clan wives, for fear that it would 'taint' the clan's inherited techniques somehow. It was usually those of branch families who married outsiders for fresh blood, and the main family would marry individuals who were carefully selected among their branch families either due to their talents or their bloodlines.
But there were certain exceptions to the main family marrying outsiders themselves… such as for the purpose of forming close alliances.
According to the reports that Shiki had gone through, the Naniwa woman who'd married into the Zenin Clan was one of their favored daughters, even though the Zenin son was only a middling sorcerer who supposedly fell far short of the Zenin clan head's favored youngest son and heir apparent. The Minamotos had presented a gifted daughter, and the Matobas had also put forth a sighted candidate for marriage.
… It was possible that Shiki was reading too much into this. But there was nothing wrong with being cautious now, was there?
"Ah, the Zenins," Daisaku-sama is swift to pick up on the line of her thoughts. "I've heard from Hayanari-kun that you spent most of yesterday going through the recent reports. You are concerned about the Zenin Clan's involvement?"
Shiki nods.
"It's a reasonable worry," the elder agrees. "I don't think the Zenins have ever quite forgotten the insult of having their long-awaited Ten Shadows user snatched out from under their noses, and the debacle with the Kamo Clan would not have helped matters any. I would not be surprised if they were plotting some sort of comeback –I'd be more surprised if they didn't, in fact."
It didn't matter what they were plotting. Shiki would cut through it all, if it became necessary for her to do so.
Although…
Shiki glances towards the elder, "Do you think the Zenins would target Megumi and Tsumiki?"
Because if it was true that the Zenins were acting behind the scenes in the situation with the Yagyus, then that meant they had deliberately targeted Shiki. Would they be so foolish as to get it into their minds that it would be a good idea to go against the agreement of non-interference that they had with Satoru-niichan regarding the children?
Daisaku-sama frowns, "Not openly, and not until they are confident in their chances of successfully being able to do so. But if their primary goal isn't simply causing trouble for the Gojo Clan, but instead retrieving their Ten Shadows, even despite Satoru-sama having expressly stated that the boy would be under his care… that does put things in a slightly different light."
"Megumi doesn't belong to the Zenins." So it's incorrect to use 'retrieving' and 'their' in this context.
"My apologies," Daisaku-sama dips his head agreeably. "That is not how the Zenins view this, though."
Because the Ten Shadows is a Zenin technique, and so Fushiguro Megumi belongs to the Zenins. Tsumiki is someone whom they would overlook –unless they could use her to gain an advantage in acquiring the Ten Shadows that they so longed for.
But Megumi belongs to himself, and Shiki has no qualms drawing her blade if there is someone who thinks to threaten Tsumiki.
"Please don't destroy the Zenin Clan," Daisaku-sama deadpans.
Shiki blinks, "I didn't say anything."
"Please," the elder says, distinctly pained, "Don't. There is enough chaos left by the destabilization of the Kamo Clan, and adding the Zenin Clan onto the funeral pyre isn't going to help things any."
But it would help the Fushiguro siblings, right?
"… I sincerely hope that Satoru-sama returns from his business trip soon," the elder sighs tiredly.
"I hope so too," Shiki nods.
Daisaku-sama pauses, and proceeds to bury his face in his hands again.
.
.
…
.
Author's Notes:
Somehow the conversation with Elder Daisaku kept growing, but the bit with Geto at the start is something that I definitely wanted to include. So far, we know that Gojo Satoru wants to hunt down his wayward friend –but what does that actually mean? For them and for the jujutsu world at large? (Drumroll)
Daisaku, increasingly throughout this chapter: I Want To Retire
Hayanari, who thinks that Shiki has the right of wanting to stay away from politics: Lalala I can't hear you–
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