Bittersweet
"A technique that guarantees victory once it hits... You guys are strong."
You heard Kugisaki softly mutter behind you, clasping her arm,
"Too bad for you, though, that makes me the worst match for you!"
Kugisaki swiftly pulled out a nail, slamming it and piercing it into her wrist as it flowed with cursed energy. Blood trickled down her arms, her face completely drenched with insanity and mockery.
"Let's play a game of chicken! You don't like pain, right? Then start crying and release your technique."
Silence hung in the cold night air, the tall curse desperately thinking with calculations storming inside his mind.
You tapped your feet, making him immediately whirl around to face you behind him.
"It's rude to leave someone hanging," You sneered, swiftly slicing off the attached wings with your blade.
"You-" He immediately stopped, Kugisaki impaling another cursed nail into her wrist.
In the corner of your eye, you noticed Itadori clench his fists, aiming at the younger curse. Kugisaki's lips curled into a smile, holding her arm up high proudly, as if she was declaring a mockery of some kind.
How much time do we have again? 10 minutes?
You held your blade, setting it gently on the kneeling curse in front of you. You softly smiled, turning the blade towards its sharpest point.
"Guess I'll have to kill you before then first."
He immediately stepped back, eyes widening as you followed right in front of him. You tilted your head, Itadori's harsh deliberate punches at the younger brother echoing in the night.
"Kechizu!" The man in front of you yelled, eyes glancing at his brother.
You heard the sharp slam of another of Kugisaki's nails on her wrist, her snarling,
"Shut up already! Resonance!"
You slammed him onto the ground, stepping back from the impact to slam your back against Itadori's.
Switch.
You grabbed Itadori's uniform, swinging him towards the tall cursed spirit who laid on the floor. Immediately, you coughed out,
"Kugisaki!"
Kugisaki glanced swiftly towards you, grabbing onto you as you awaited the harsh wall slam against your back.
Swinging Itadori needed momentum. And that momentum sent you flying straight at the smaller cursed spirit's direction. Letting go of you as you braced for impact, she immediately stepped back, throwing a nail into the air.
You grazed your hand across the curse's dark body, its cursed energy seeping into you. Suddenly, a small flicker of light caught your eye. It was then where you could see it. The immense cursed energy that could send anyone straight to insanity.
Kugisaki's nail.
Itadori's fist.
The hard thud of your back slamming against the cold wall sounded, you coughing out as you accidentally hit your tongue. You grunted in pain, slowly getting up on you feet as Kugisaki ask the two curses,
"I haven't shown you this one yet, have I?"
And with the click of her fingers, blood splattered onto your face, its stench something you would never forget in your lifetime.
"Hairpin."
A smile you couldn't recognize. But still one you felt familiar with.
A smile of insanity.
"Don't worry. I'll be sending your older brother to join you soon."
You immediately glanced up when you heard something. Something so unusual you didn't expect. Soft drips of tears echoed.
You whirled to look at the laying dark cursed spirit, walking towards it. Why isn't it vanishing?
Thump. Thump.
It had a physical body.
Lights illuminated Kugisaki's back, and an idea flickered across your mind. You quickly got onto the passing truck, hands gripping tightly onto it.
Pulling yourself up, you eyed the tall curse as the truck zoomed towards him.
Unsteady breaths. A deafening heartbeat.
You raised your blade, chest heaving as you stood up.
Cursed energy seeped into your metallic blade.
And as soon as the truck passed the curse, the soft roll of a head was crushed by the wheels.
You leaned backwards, falling off the vehicle and landing onto the cold road.
The night sky was aglow with city lights, the soft crickets in the underbrushes of the forest. You laid there in silence, Kugisaki and Itadori's footsteps approaching you.
Glancing over at them, you rested your eyes.
I did it.
* * * *
You walked between the two in the forest, silence a spiderweb that was threaded between each tree. Finally, it was you who snapped it.
"Are you guys alright?"
"Yeah, though it might leave scars," Kugisaki stated, glancing at her bruised arm.
She lifted her head up, furrowing her eyebrows,
"The poison... If we head home now, I wonder if Ieri will be awake; Or if she'll even be sober."
You sighed, the soft rumble of your stomach following right after. Kugisaki turned her head to face your direction, frowning at Itadori,
"What are you fidgeting for? It's creepy."
Glancing to your left, Itadori replied,
"I was wondering if this was your first time killing instead of exorcising."
You kept walking, asking him,
"What about you?"
Uneasiness settled in his eyes as he looked away, guilt creeping into him. Itadori was like an open book; Anyone could read and tell what he felt.
"I did it once before... No, I guess it isn't fair to call it once."
Itadori looked ahead, avoiding eye contact.
"It was three people."
Staring at him, a thought crossed your mind.
Just how much had he gone through?
Next to you, you heard Kugisaki point out how he was doing worse than her in that case.
Crossing your arms, your eyes stuck to the ground. You didn't feel anything. They were cursed spirits, after all. And they had nothing to do with your life. But then again, just how did they turn into cursed spirits?
What is good? What is right?
"To be blunt, this was nothing to me. These things happen when you're a sorcerer."
Kugisaki tilted her head, her voice firm and stern,
"I'm no Fushiguro, but in the end, there are only so many people we can save."
Placing your hands in your pockets, you winced in agony as the broken pieces of your ribs sent a pain down your back.
"There are only so many seats open in my life, and I don't want to let my heart be swayed by anyone who's not sitting in one of them."
You glanced to look at Kugisaki, slightly surprised at what she had said. Despite being younger than you, it seemed as if she had witnessed all the wrongdoings of the world. She simply grinned,
"Is that mean?"
You failed an attempt at stifling a chuckle, before saying your own thoughts.
"The word 'killing' can be something that means freedom. Those tears he shed..."
You placed your hand onto Itadori's shoulder, giving him a reassuring smile,
"I'm sure they'll come to be something not entirely agonizing. Good or bad, values like that aren't set in stone."
Words were something you could never get used to. Especially for such a lengthy statement. You felt a slight buzz in your pockets, making you reach out to your pocket. In the bright screen illuminating your face, you read an aglow message sent from Inumaki.
"How was your mission?"
Grinning to yourself, you typed a reply, Kugisaki peeking over your shoulders.
So that's why we'll get stronger. Because sins aren't always sins. And the only thing true to life is life itself.
That is the life of a Jujutsu Sorcerer.
(A Touch)
END