𝐑𝐄𝐀𝐏𝐄𝐑 。𝘫𝘶𝘫𝘶𝘵𝘴𝘶 𝘬𝘢𝘪𝘴𝘦𝘯

𝐞𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭

About an hour before Satoru Gojou went to see Alchemy Kamo...

Kaiya Shinimi was back on her feet in no time. She sat in front of her vanity, tilting her head to the side to see the light bruises on her neck. They were healing, slowly, but healing. She grabbed her hair and twisted it up. She reached the hair clip and clipped her hair up.

"Shinimi..."

A chill ran down her spine. She felt like her name was whispered in her ear, like someone was behind her. Kaiya gasped and turned around, standing up. Her scythe was summoned in her hand as she frantically looked around. The whites of her eyes turned dark grey and her red irises emitted an eerie glow.

She blinked and like magic, her eyes were back to normal. She glanced out of the corner of her eyes to the window, giving a look in the direction of the morgue of the school.

Sukuna...

A small smirk formed on her lips as she let out a small chuckle, "So you're alive after all."

Meanwhile, Shouko Ieriri was inside the morgue under the school. She was cleaning up her work area after completing her operation on Itadori Yuuji's body. There were some dirty rags she had to discard as well as tables that needed to be wiped down.

At that moment, the door opened. Shouko looked toward the metal door, curious as to who it could be. To her disbelief, Kaiya walked inside. She had a dead look in her eyes, dark grey bled through the whites of her eyes and there was something off about her aura.

Something feels... Evil. Shouko thought to herself.

"Kaiya..."

"Where is he, Shouko-san?" Kaiya asked, keeping her gaze forward.

"Where is who, Kaiya?" She asked, speaking cautiously.

"Sukuna."

Shouko widened her eyes in surprise. "Don't be ridiculous, Kaiya. Itadori's dead," She lied. The young boy was very much alive. She doesn't know how he managed to survive losing his heart, but she supposed Sukuna wasn't done yet.

"I know he's alive. Don't even try to lie to me," Kaiya growled, "Where is he!?" She yelled. Shouko instantly took a step back, hitting the edge of one of her operating tables.

"I know he's nearby. He called me here. He's calling for us again. He wants us back."

Shouko took a deep breath, processing what Kaiya was telling her. Us? Does that mean the Reaper species? Who else is she talking about? So many questions and she hoped Kaiya would know the answer to some of them.

Shouko gulped as Kaiya began walking to her. A much smaller version of her scythe manifested in her hand, "I won't ask you again."

Shouko stayed silent this time, unable to move as Kaiya approached her. She didn't understand why Kaiya was suddenly doing this, whether it was mind control or it was really their ancient bond to Sukuna being reawakened, she didn't understand.

She watched with fear in her eyes as Kaiya lifted up her scythe, the blade cast a menacing shadow over Shouko. Before Kaiya could attack her, someone grabbed her wrist and slipped their arm around her waist to pull her back into a tight hold.

"Kaiya! Calm down!" Their voice immediately snapped Kaiya out of the mysterious trance she was in.

Kaiya's scythe dematerialized back into her skin as her eyes returned to normal. "It's okay, Kaiya," Their soothing voice reached her ears. Kaiya turned her head and met eyes with third-year Kyoto student, Noritoshi Kamo.

"N-Nori?" She asked softly.

Noritoshi Kamo was Kaiya's oldest friend, having known each other since they were six years old. Kaiya was there for him when his mother left and he was there for her when her parents died.

The Kamo clan saw their closeness and their techniques and found that they'd be able to have a powerful technique if combined. Thus, the two of them ended up engaged. Pushed into an arranged marriage because of their heritage. It was Alchemy's idea.

"It's alright," Noritoshi mumbled, loosening his grip, "You're alright."

"Take her outside," Shouko said.

—-

"I don't even know what happened..." Kaiya mumbled softly. Her head was in her hands and she was seated on the stairs in front of the main building of the school. Noritoshi was sitting next to her.

"I just... I heard Sukuna's voice... Calling me. And I was just compelled to find him. Next thing I knew... I was in the morgue," Kaiya explained. She glanced over at Noritoshi.

"It's alright, Kaiya," Noritoshi inched closer to her, putting a comforting hand on her back.

"I don't know what to do," Kaiya said, "I could sense Sukuna ever since he was reincarnated into Itadori's body. Whenever he's near me, I can feel him. It's... It's scary... Sukuna and the Reapers go back centuries. I felt the bond between the Reapers and Sukuna activate again. I've been trying to ignore it but..."

She looked away and closed her eyes, "But I'm afraid that the bond might be stronger than I think." Noritoshi heard her voice shake and waver.

He reached over and cupped her face, turning her head back to him. He gently wiped away the tear falling from her eye with his thumb. "You are not what you think you are," Noritoshi said softly.

"Then what am I?"

Noritoshi hesitated; his answer on the tip of his tongue. He silently reached behind her head and pulled her closer to him. He gently kissed her forehead and hugged her. Kaiya wrapped her arms around his neck and nuzzled her face into the crook of his neck.

Noritoshi held her tight, one hand on the small of her back and one behind her head, tangled in her hair. "How did you know to come?" Kaiya asked softly.

"Shouko called me the night you and Sukuna fought," Noritoshi replied with a gentle tone, "Toudou and I have been busy but I managed to get some free time. So I figured I should stop by."

Kaiya pulled back, "Thank you."

"Of course," He put his hand over hers, "You mean a lot to me."

Elsewhere, Shouko was in the middle of telling Satoru Gojou what had happened. "I'm sure it's not a coincidence Utahime reported Masato getting a headache at the same time Kaiya did when Sukuna was reincarnated," She said, "Sukuna really is trying to get them back."

"And you think he'll succeed?" Satoru asked, "Reapers are no doubt loyal but Kaiya and Masato are unshakable."

"And you're confident in that?" Shouko questioned with a raised eyebrow, "Kaiya just tried to attack me in Sukuna's name."

"I have faith in her," Satoru replied, "She's got a strong spirit."

He looked at Shouko, seeing the look of doubt on her face. Satoru sighed, "You know Kaiya's better than that."

"I'm not saying she isn't," Shouko retorted, "I'm saying you should prepare countermeasures. I think it's time we finally get Alchemy involved. After all, she was the one who authorized the mission that got Itadori killed."

Satoru stopped in his tracks. Shouko turned to look back at him.

"She did what?" Satoru asked with a low voice.

"You didn't know?"

"No... I did not."

----

a/n: sorry about the changes i felt like this part was ??? unfinished ??? so i'm adding more meat to the bone 👹