Ataraxia 平静 | Gojo Satoru

-'๑'-𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝟓-'๑'-

It was safe to say, it had been a long day in the field.

The exhaustion weighed heavy on us all. Dragging our feet along the pavement, none of us were in the mood to chat. Kugisaki clung to Yuji's shoulders like a worn-out backpack, insisting she was too tired to walk.

Fushiguro and I led the way in silence. Of the four of us, he was the only one visibly injured. He didn't complain, only occasionally winced from the pain. My body felt sore, my left shoulder aching after being thrown around like a wet towel, but I knew I'd bounce back in a couple of days. Glancing at Fushiguro beside me, I tried to hide my concern.

"How're you feeling?" I asked.

Fushiguro shrugged without meeting my eyes, hands hanging in his pockets. "Fine," he rasped, though his aura felt depleted. His energy was low.

I hummed, careful not to push him. Fushiguro disliked being doubted or fussed over. We continued in silence for a few more minutes before I mustered a proud smile, tilting my head.

"You did well today, fighting off that special-grade by yourself for so long," I said evenly.

He pursed his lips, a faint blush blooming on his cheeks. "I didn't do much. I should've realized sooner what I was dealing with, but that bastard managed to hide his cursed energy until it was too late to back down. If it weren't for you, I would've been killed," he scoffed.

I huffed at his remark and playfully nudged him with an elbow. "To be fair," I began, "You dealt the killing blow."

He snorted and I winked at him, catching the briefest hint of a smile on his lips. "Thank you, senpai," he muttered, averting his gaze toward the midday sun.

"Sensei . . ." Yuji drawled, "What about us?"

I turned on my heel to look at the deflated duo, walking backward with a grin. "You guys did well too," I said before flicking Yuji's forehead with puckered lips, "But minus points for ignoring my command."

They groaned in unison, and I chuckled before answering my ringing phone without checking the screen.

"Kurayami Yue," I answered.

"I would hope so," Yaga's voice came through, and I rolled my eyes at his sarcasm. "Rough first day, I've heard?"

"Something like that," I muttered, turning around and kicking at a stray rock.

"I'm glad to hear you're alright and retrieved the finger. I wish we could've predicted the encounter," he said, a tinge of guilt in his tone.

Continuing to kick at the asphalt, I replied, "Well, we were lucky enough to have The Strongest at our side," my retort was dripping in sarcasm, and I could feel Fushiguro rolling his eyes next to me.

Yaga snorted, "So I thought," he dragged on, completely missing the irony. It was obvious he was absorbed in some papers as he spoke, so I decided to let it go with a scowl. "Ijichi-san will be waiting for you shortly," he added, but my eyes snapped ahead, blinking incredulously.

Gojo stood in the middle of the road not far ahead, waving and beaming at us with a plastic bag dangling from his fingers.

Speaking of the devil.

"Also, Yue, you might be happy to hear we have guests—" Yaga's voice came through again, but I cut him off, no longer paying attention to his words.

"I'll call you back," I deadpanned, shoving my phone back in my pocket.

The insufferable idiot flashed me a bright smile as I finally came to a halt in front of him, arms crossed over my chest in irritation. "You better have an explanation," I growled.