!! warning: implied manga spoilers !!
A grade two curse was wandering down a dark hallway of an abandoned building. The curse thrilled softly as it moved slowly. Suddenly, a gust of wind went by the curse and it felt a sharp pain in its arm. It shrieked in pain and looked around.
A dark-haired woman was standing at the end of the hallway with her back to the curse. The fingernails on her right hand were covered in blue blood from the curse and there were black markings on her arms, running up to her neck.
She raised her hand slightly and snapped her fingers, "Parasite technique: Corruption." The curse shrieked in agony and exploded from the inside out, splattering blue blood on the walls. The woman turned her head, her eyes glowing a bright red in the darkness.
She walked toward the mess and looked down at a black bug-like creature. She knelt down and picked it up, causing it to squirm in her hands. She tightened her grip on the creature until it popped in her hand, black blood running down her arm.
She watched the blood run down her arm, following the markings. The blood seeped into her skin and her markings disappeared. She sighed, and rolled her fingers, cracking her knuckles. She shook her other hand to get the blue blood off of her hand from the curse.
She reached up and touched the bluetooth in her ear, "This floor's clear. What's your situation, Yashiro?" She asked.
Meanwhile, on the floor below her, Yashiro Shinimi looked over his shoulder at the pile of curse corpses behind him. He touched the bluetooth in his ear, "I'm good here, Ichika. What about you, Satoru?"
"You two should already know the answer to that," Satoru Gojou replied. He was on the floor above Ichika. He was sitting in an office room with his feet up on the desk as he sat, unbothered, in the office chair.
"Answer it anyways, you bastard," Ichika snarled.
"Okay, okay," Satoru said, "I exorcised all the curses on my floor." Satoru chuckled, "She's got a mouth on her. I bet that comes in handy sometimes, huh, Yashiro?"
"Maybe," Yashiro answered.
"You're both disgusting," Ichika cut in, "Why did you even come?"
"To make sure you two don't get... Distracted," Satoru said, moving his feet off of the desk, "It'll set a bad example for your daughter if she finds out missions is how you two get privacy."
"How did you--" Ichika began.
"--Yashiro talks." Satoru interrupted.
"I do not!" Yashiro argued, "He blackmailed me into telling him."
"You extorted my husband!?" Ichika asked, making it to the staircase. At the same time, Satoru reached her level. Ichika scoffed and shook her head at him as she started walking down the stairs.
"It was harmless," Satoru told her, following her down the stairs.
"Harmless, he says," Ichika mumbled sarcastically.
"How is Kaiya by the way?" Satoru asked.
"She's fine," Ichika answered, "We left her with Utahime tonight." The two of them reached the bottom level where Yashiro was waiting for them.
"You two feeling okay?" Satoru asked as he and Ichika regrouped with Yashiro. "No pain or anything, right?"
"Stop talking to me like I'm a pregnant woman," Ichika retorted, "I'm fine. I barely used any cursed energy tonight."
"Me too," Yashiro replied.
"Well, it was fun seeing you two again," Satoru said, walking toward the exit, "I have school tomorrow, so I should probably head back."
"It was good to see you too," Yashiro said. Yashiro and Satoru looked over at Ichika who had her phone in her hand, mindlessly scrolling. Yashiro nudged her slightly with his elbow.
"What?" She asked, looking up.
Yashiro motioned to Satoru, "Don't you have something to tell him?" He asked softly. Ichika glanced at him and shook her head, "I'm not saying goodbye to that little shit."
"Chika-chan," Satoru teased, knowing damn well it would get under her skin. Ichika threw her phone at him, which he effortlessly caught, "I'm the senior here!" She exclaimed.
"You know you'd miss me," Satoru replied.
"Okay, enough of that," Yashiro said, putting his hands on Ichika's shoulders, "See you at our next mission, Satoru."
"I look forward to it," Satoru replied, tossing Ichika back her phone. Ichika caught her phone and sighed in annoyance. Satoru left the building, leaving Yashiro and Ichika alone.
"Did you have to throw your phone at him?" Yashiro asked.
"He caught it," Ichika answered, pushing open the door, "I can't even hit him so I didn't think it mattered."
"That's true," Yashiro replied.
"That little bastard needs to learn to respect his elders," Ichika grumbled.
"Utahime will probably give him an earful," Yashiro smiled, putting his arm around Ichika.
----
Once Yashiro and Ichika got back to their home, not far from the Tokyo Jujutsu High, Utahime Iori left after babysitting their six-year-old daughter, Kaiya Shinimi, that night. Their home was secluded, the closest neighborhood was about two miles away. Ichika was sitting at the dining room table with Kaiya while Yashiro was in the middle of taking a shower.
"You better not end up like Satoru Gojou," Ichika mumbled.
"Why not?" Kaiya asked.
"Because he's annoying," Ichika smiled, "You're not."
"I like Satoru-san," Kaiya beamed back.
"I bet..." Ichika replied. She heard footsteps coming down the hallway and she assumed they were Yashiro.
"What're you two talking about?" He asked.
"I'm just telling Kaiya to not end up like Satoru," Ichika answered.
"She's right," Yashiro said, putting his hand on Kaiya's head, "Don't. He's annoying."
"What happened to you kissing up to him tonight?" Ichika raised an eyebrow at him.
"It wasn't kissing up," Yashiro retorted. He walked into the kitchen and grabbed a glass from the dishrack. He put the glass under the tap and filled the glass halfway. He took a sip and grimaced.
"Ichika, did you do something to the water?" He asked.
"No, why?" Ichika asked. Ichika stood up and walked into the kitchen. She took the glass from him and smelt it. Ichika put the glass to her lips, "Wait--" Yashiro tried to stop her.
Ichika took a small sip and smacked her lips. "I don't taste anything," Ichika said.
"Well, your lack of taste is a side effect of your parasite," Yashiro took the glass from her hand and dumped the water. He figured that because of her side effect, her opinion would be pointless, hence why he tried to stop her.
There was a knock at the door, alarming Yashiro and Ichika. Ichika gave Yashio a look and he nodded.
"Come on dear," Ichika said, standing up and holding her hand out to Kaiya. Kaiya stood up from her seat and grabbed her mother's hand as Yashiro made his way to the front door.
"Who is--" Kaiya began asking.
"--Shh." Ichika shushed softly, leading Kaiya into another room. Ichika knelt down and grabbed one of the tiles on the wall and moved it out of the way. "Listen to me," Ichika whispered as she helped Kaiya get inside.
It was an odd routine, but they did it to protect Kaiya. Every time they've done this routine with Kaiya, it never ended badly. But this time felt different.
"If we don't come for you in twenty minutes," Ichika pulled out her phone and handed it to Kaiya, "Call the first three contacts, Masamichi, Satoru, and Masato, okay?"
Kaiya nodded in understanding.
"I love you, Kaiya," Ichika said, smiling gently to comfort her.
"I love you too, mom," Kaiya replied. Ichika put the tile back in place and left the room.
Yashiro slowly approached the door, black markings began appearing on his skin. He looked through the peephole and saw a face he never thought he'd see again.
Suguru Getou.
Yashiro furrowed his brows, thinking about whether he should answer the door or not. "I know you're there, Yashiro," Suguru spoke suddenly.
Damn, Yashiro thought to himself. Yashiro grabbed the deadbolt and unlocked the door. He grabbed the doorknob and twisted it. He opened the door and Suguru smiled warmly at him.
"Hey, Yashiro. Long time no see," He spoke happily.
"Uh-huh," Yashiro replied, "What do you want, Suguru?"
"Just to talk," Suguru replied, "Where's Ichika?" Suguru asked.
"She's asleep," Yashiro lied.
Suguru's smile faded and he frowned at Yashiro, "No, she's not."
"No, she's not," Ichika spoke from behind Suguru. Suguru looked over his shoulder and saw Ichika standing a few feet away from him, a large scythe in hand.
"I think Yashiro asked you a question," Ichika said, "What do you want?"
"And I said just to talk," Suguru answered, "I haven't seen you two in ages."
"You can walk away from us right now and we won't come after you. We won't even report this to the higher-ups. Leave right now, Suguru, and we won't kill you," Ichika said, a threatening tone in her voice.
Suddenly a bullet flew past Ichika, cutting her cheek slightly. The bullet hit Yashiro in the shoulder, the force of the bullet knocking him back into the living room. Ichika winced in pain and put her hand over the shallow wound.
"Yashiro!" Ichika shouted, as the wound healed.
"God, are we done talking!?" A female voice asked. Ichika turned around and saw a woman with long black hair, bangs covering her forehead. She was wearing all black and she had two holsters on the side of her hips and one knife holster on each thigh.
"You..." Ichika said, widening her eyes in shock.
"It's been a while since we last met," The woman said, smiling, "I don't think we were properly introduced. My name's Chiyoko."
Ichika stayed quiet. Chiyoko scoffed, "Rude." She cocked the gun in her hand again.
"Chiyoko, don't--" Chiyoko quickly moved her hand down. Chiyoko pulled the trigger, hitting the ground in front of Suguru's feet.
"Don't tell me what to do, Getou," Chiyoko threatened, "I can kill all three of you and walk away perfectly fine." Chiyoko walked past Ichika and Suguru, heading toward the entrance of the house.
"Why are you working with her?!" Ichika yelled, looking back at Suguru, "Don't you remember what she's done!? Why are you even doing this?!"
"I want to know what you're hiding," Suguru said.
Yashiro, who was knocked back into the living room, held his bleeding shoulder as Chiyoko walked up to him. "Chiyoko..." Yashiro growled, groaning in pain.
"What're you doing back here?" Yashiro asked. Chiyoko stood over Yashiro, aiming the barrel of the gun at his forehead.
She smiled, "To make good on my promises." She pulled the trigger. Yashiro quickly moved out of the way and grabbed the handgun. He pulled Chiyoko down and tossed her over him, pulling the gun from her hand.
Chiyoko landed on her two feet with barely any effort as Yashiro stood up. His shoulder was healed and he cocked back the handgun, aiming at Chiyoko.
"And I'll make good on mine," Yashiro said.
He pulled the trigger and Chiyoko moved at inhuman speed, tilting her head to the side and raised her hand, catching the bullet. Yashiro widened his eyes in shock.
Chiyoko looked at her closed fist by her head and at Yashiro. Yashiro gasped softly, seeing the whites of her eyes were a dark grey and her red irises glowed. "What...?" He muttered.
"Wanna know something?" Chiyoko asked, lowering her hand in front of her and opened it, revealing the bullet sitting in the center of her palm. She turned her hand slightly and watched the bullet roll off of her hand and onto the floor.
"I only agreed to help Getou kill you and your wife because I knew you were both Shinimi Reapers," Chiyoko said. She lifted her other hand and black marking began showing up on her skin, "And you know, I've always wanted to kill a Shinimi Reaper."
"That's... Impossible..." Yashiro spoke softly. Chiyoko used that same hand to snap her fingers.
"Parasite technique," She said, "Silver Fang." The black markings on her hands and arms almost liquified as they dripped off of her skin and onto the floor.
The black liquid grouped together and grew in size. A large silver lizard with long legs, a long snout, a long neck, and a long tail emerged from the black liquid. Chiyoko put her hand on the base of the lizard's neck as she walked to its side.
"Let's take this back outside, yeah?" She asked. Yashiro furrowed his brows in confusion. Chiyoko clicked her tongue-- a command-- the lizard suddenly jolted, like an animatronic coming to life.
The lizard snarled and charged for Yashiro. Yashiro quickly formed his weapon, a large scythe that was similar to Ichika's, in his hands to prepare himself. The lizard turned and smacked him with its tail, hitting Yashiro through the wall and back outside where Ichika and Suguru were.
"Yashiro!" Ichika exclaimed, kneeling down to check on him.
"She's an Akuma Reaper..." Yashiro winced as Ichika helped him sit up.
"That's impossible, Akuma Reapers are extinct," Ichika replied. The silver lizard stepped out from the hole Yashiro left in the wall and let out a high-pitched shriek. Chiyoko followed her Shikigami and stood beside Suguru.
She raised her hand again and snapped her fingers, "Parasite technique: Nine Tails." Ichika and Yashiro widened their eyes in shock. They've never heard of another technique from an Akuma Reaper.
The silver lizard hissed and a bulge appeared on its size. The bulge grew larger until it completely broke off of the green lizard. A large maroon-colored fox with black patterns ran on its limber legs and down to the tip of its tail.
Ichika and Yashiro noticed that the lizard shrank in size but the lizard and the fox were still bigger than the two of them. "Who trained you?" Ichika asked.
"I'm self-taught," Chiyoko replied.
"There's no way you could have that much control and be self-taught!" Ichika exclaimed, "It's... It's never happened before!"
"First time for everything I suppose," Chiyoko smiled.
"I thought Akuma Reapers could only have one Shikigami," Ichika said, a sense of worry and fear bubbling inside of her.
"That's what my ancestors thought," Chiyoko replied. She raised her hand, ready to snap her fingers again.
Are you kidding me? Yashiro asked mentally, his eyes wide in shock.
She has more!? Ichika thought to herself.
She snapped her fingers, "Parasite technique: Dark Horse." Both the fox and the lizard had a bulge growing out of both of them. It detached from the two animals and joined together, forming into a black horse.
The horse neighed and shook its head as its mane flowed magically. Chiyoko's eyes glowed in the faint moonlight. The silver lizard hissed as its eyes started glowing red as well. The maroon fox licked its fangs, its eyes glowing red. The black horse stomped its two front legs on the ground impatiently, and just like the other two, its eyes glowed red.
"I think I finally figured out what you're both hiding," Suguru said. Ichika and Yashiro got back up on their feet as Suguru spoke, "You know, Ichika..." He looked at her, "You disappeared for nine months. Satoru and Yashiro covered for you, saying you were overseas but that's not the case, was it?"
Ichika widened her eyes in shock. "You were pregnant, weren't you?" Suguru asked, "And you also kept this birth off record, right?"
"Leave, Suguru," Ichika said, "I won't ask you again."
"I'm not going anywhere," Suguru answered. A scythe formed in Yashiro's hand and he stepped outside of the doorframe. Suguru looked between Ichika and Yashiro, "What are you two protecting?"
"Something you shouldn't touch," Yashiro answered.
"And we won't let you touch it," Ichika continued.
"You remember what Masato said about killing Akuma Reapers?" Yashiro asked under his breath.
"Kill their Shikigami," Ichika answered.
"That won't be easy," Another voice spoke. Ichika and Yashiro looked to the right and saw a figure standing in the shadows.
"You two notice anything different with your water?" The voice, a female's voice, asked. Ichika widened her eyes in realization.
"Alchemy..." Ichika said softly.
A tall woman with white hair, wearing what looked like a Jujutsu Tech uniform, stepped out of the shadows and into the open. She had a look of sympathy in her eyes, but a cold look at the same time.
"I'm sorry," Alchemy spoke softly. She raised her hand. Ichika and Yashiro groaned in pain, dropping their weapons on the ground. Alchemy lowered her hand, forcing Ichika and Yashiro onto their knees.
Fighting against Alchemy's tight hold, Ichika made her thumbnail grow longer. "That's... That's a nasty technique, Alchemy," Ichika strained, "But mine's nastier."
Chiyoko stood a step forward to try and intervene. Ichika sliced her fingertip, "Parasite technique: Corruption."
The whites of Ichika's eyes turned dark grey, almost black. Black markings appeared on her skin, running up her next and onto her cheeks. She suddenly disappeared from Alchemy, Chiyoko, and Suguru's sight.
Alchemy gasped when she felt something behind her. She looked over her shoulder as Ichika grabbed the back of Alchemy's neck and threw her into the tree.
"Alchemy!" Suguru shouted.
Ichika looked directly at Chiyoko, Chiyoko licked her lips. "You and me," Ichika said, "One on one."
"All in?"
"Winner take all."
"Ichika," Yashiro said, "What are you doing?"
"You aren't strong enough to fight her," Ichika replied, "Let me handle this." Chiyoko looked at Suguru, "I can handle this."
Chiyoko snapped her fingers, catching Ichika and Yashiro's attention. "Parasite technique: Treasure chest," Chiyoko said. The fox and the horse merged into one and morphed into a dark golden hippo.
Silver Fang hissed softly and Chiyoko raised her hand, telling her to stop. The hippo opened its mouth and Chiyoko reached inside of it and pulled out a large Japanese broadsword with a fur tsuba and a dark handle.
"Winner take all," Chiyoko repeated as Ichika's scythe formed in her hand once again.
Suguru gagged as he regurgitated a black ball onto his hand. The ball turned into a curse that stood beside Suguru. Yashiro formed his scythe in his hand.
Chiyoko pushed her foot off of the ground, launching herself forward. Ichika mirrored her actions. The two of them clashed weapons as they met. Ichika and Chiyoko pulled back, winding up for another attack.
Chiyoko swung at Ichika's head, an attack Ichika easily blocked with the blade of her scythe. "You know, some call me the Strongest Reaper in history," Chiyoko said, "And they say the same about you. Let's see who the title really belongs to."
----
Chiyoko sat in front of her silver lizard as it gnawed on something, its long body being able to curl around her and the other Shikigami. Her hands and forearms were covered in black blood as she gently stroked the top of the horse's head, watching the scene in front of her. Suguru Getou was standing over Ichika Shinimi, who was coughing up black blood.
"You'll pay for this," Ichika spoke, her voice weak and wavering.
"Tell me again, Chiyoko, how do I kill a Shinimi Reaper?" Suguru asked, looking over at Chiyoko. Ichika gulped. How to kill a Shinimi or any Reaper, wasn't a secret. A secret definitely knew, so why was he asking? To taunt her? To indirectly tell her that she was about to die?
"Cut out the Reaper parasite," She answered, "Or..." She turned her head in the direction of the lizard's head where it was still gnawing at something.
Chiyoko reached by her side and grabbed something. She lifted up her hand, holding the severed head of Yashiro Shinimi up by his hair. Ichika sobbed softly and looked away from the horrible sight that made her sick to her stomach.
"Doesn't matter, both are effective," Chiyoko said. She unceremoniously tossed the head in the direction of the silver lizard. The silver lizard lifted her head up and bit down on Yashiro's head. Ichika let out a quiet sob.
She wanted to fight back but her entire body was in pain. It hurt to move the slightest inch. Ichika's eyes flicked to Chiyoko. An untrained Akuma Reaper managed to overpower a trained and experienced Shinimi Reaper. A feat that's never been done before.
Suguru grabbed her jaw and forced her to look up at him. He pinched her cheeks together, forcing her mouth open. He held his hand over her face, causing Chiyoko to tilt her head in confusion.
"What're you--" She was cut off by Ichika's scream of pain. Chiyoko widened her eyes as Ichika cried out in agony. Ichika's previous pain increased tenfold, tears rolling down her cheeks from the physical pain and the emotional pain of losing her husband. She felt like something was coming up from her stomach and to the back of her throat.
Suguru suddenly stuck his hand into her mouth and down her throat. Ichika gagged at the sudden intrusion. Chiyoko watched, mouth slightly agape, as Suguru pulled out his hand. Chiyoko saw Ichika slowly close her eyes.
Suguru let go of Ichika's jaw, letting Ichika's body fall to the ground. Suguru was holding a black creature in his hand, it was dead.
"Her parasite," Chiyoko observed, "You used your curse manipulation technique to pull it out of her." Suguru nodded and walked over to Chiyoko. Chiyoko held her hand up and Suguru placed the dead creature in her hand.
Chiyoko brought her hand in front of the silver lizard. The silver lizard hissed and ate the parasite right off of her hand. She snapped her fingers once more, "Parasite technique: Nine Tails." The silver lizard snarled as a bulge formed on its side and broke off, taking the form of the maroon fox. She whistled sharply, catching the maroon fox's attention. Chiyoko used her head to motion Ichika's body.
The maroon fox ran over and bit into the side of Ichika's body. She stood up and sighed, dusting herself off. "Why'd you lie?" Suguru asked. Chiyoko raised an eyebrow, "What are you talking about?"
"You've had training," Suguru replied.
"Hand to hand training," Chiyoko said, "I had to teach myself to summon multiple Shikigami at the same time." Chiyoko suddenly felt a bad feeling in her gut, "Something's coming. Probably back up."
She snapped her fingers again, "Parasite technique: Dark Horse." The maroon fox back to her and the silver lizard stood up on its feet. They lost their form and turned into a black liquid. The liquid transformed into a black horse with a magically flowing mane.
"We'll worry about what happens--" Chiyoko slapped him across the face, his head turning to the side from the impact of her hand. Suguru looked at her in shock, his cheek stinging from the impact of her hand.
"You will worry about what happens," Chiyoko snarked. She whistled again, another command.
The black horse walked toward Chiyoko. It bent down slightly and Chiyoko got on its back. The black horse stood up and huffed.
Chiyoko looked down at Suguru, "We're not friends, Getou. And we never will be. You and your buddy are the reason why I'm running solo right now," Chiyoko growled, "You contact me ever again and I won't treat you so nicely. I'll kill you."
Chiyoko urged the horse with her foot. The black horse turned and neighed softly. It ran off, leaving Suguru behind. Suguru looked over and saw Alchemy's still unconscious body lying there. He ran to her and knelt down, putting his hand under the base of her neck, lifting her head up.
"Alchemy," He spoke gently and softly. Alchemy groaned softly but didn't wake up. Suguru huffed, knowing they are limited on time. He put his other hand under her legs and picked her up.
The two of them disappeared from the scene.
----
"What happened?" Satoru Gojou asked, staring down at Ichika Shinimi's half-eaten body. Satoru looked over at a black-haired man with blue eyes and glasses on his face. He was wearing a uniform similar to Satoru's.
"I don't know..." Alystair Gojou answered. He looked over his shoulder to see Utahime Iori and Shouko Ieirisitting beside Kaiya Shinimi.
"The real question is, who the hell is strong enough to kill two highly trained Shinimi reapers?" Alystair asked.
"Alchemy."
"Don't pin this on her," Alystair dared, "She's overseas right now. There's no way she did this."
"Alystair, she's changed," Satoru replied, "She could've been lying to us."
"I'm going on a mission for the higher-ups. It's overseas so I won't be back until next week."
Alystair shook his head at remembering what Alchemy told him and Satoru, "My sister is a lot of things, but she's no liar!"
"Satoru, Alystair," Masamichi Yaga interrupted. Satoru and Alystair turned around as Masamichi approached them. "Kaiya's uninjured. And we can't find Yashiro's body anywhere, so it's safe to assume... He didn't survive as well," Yaga informed the two teenagers.
Satoru tsked and looked over at Kaiya, who was now fast asleep in Utahime's arms, wrapped in a blanket. "What about her?" He asked.
"She'll probably go to her uncle in Kyoto," Masamichia replied, looking over his shoulder at Kaiya.
Satoru tsked again, "Can he even train her?"
"He's a reaper too, Satoru," Masamichi said, "And a grade one sorcerer. He'll be able to train her."
"He's not even a Shinimi reaper," Satoru argued, "I can help her."
"What?" Masamichi and Alystair asked at the same time.
"I used to watch Ichika and Yashiro train. I know their methods and their tips and tricks. I'll help her more than Masato Ketsuyuki ever could," Satoru said, quite confidently.
"Satoru, you're barely eighteen," Masamichi countered, "You can just take in a eight-year-old and train her."
"Fine, I'll train her after I graduate," Satoru claimed.
"Who will she be with until then?" Masamichi asked, "Her uncle?"
"Yeah, sure, whatever," Satoru rolled his eyes, "I can help her. Please, Yaga, you know I can."
Masamichi sighed, "Very well, Satoru."
----
a/n: the chapters probably aren't gonna be THIS long but whatever it kinda depends i'm not very consistent lmfao