I had been called into my Father's office once again. It was happening more often than normal, and I couldn't help but be slightly concerned about the matter. Making my presence known, I bowed slightly. "You called for me, Father?"
"Good, you're here, boy. Please sit." He instructed, pouring himself a glass of Whiskey. "Today is a Saturday, correct?"
"Umm? Yes, why do you ask?"
He took a sip of his drink, smirking. "I am afraid, but at the end of this week, I will no longer be with you. My death is guaranteed."
I had to take a moment to process what he had just said. I blinked a few times, playing down the statement. Indeed, he was joking. "W-What? How can you be so sure?"
"We are the last surviving true Sorcerers in Europe. All the others are frauds, fake copies. The Kronos family has stood for thousands of years as the pinnacle of all races, humans and Cursed Spirits alike." He poured himself another drink. "The Gojo clan would like to see them as the top, but that is far from the truth. We hold the forever truth. And soon, this will be passed down to you, my son. You shall carry our legacy and one day enact the ultimate truth."
"A-And that is Father?"
Father placed a box on the table. I couldn't help but stare; it was captivating. Begging to be opened. A hundred, no way more voices whispered, urging me to free them. He smacked his hand down on the box, getting my attention. "This is a box of lies, a box of secrets, a box of truths, a box of nothing. When the time comes, you, too, will understand. This box is our salvation. Heed it's words well."
"What is the ultimate truth?" I whisper again.
"No more Cursed Spirits. No more Humans. No more life."
****
The sun was beginning to rise as I kicked my feet back and forth, sitting on the roof of Tokyo High. There was too much on my mind. I hadn't even been here a week, and now I was caught in conspiracies of madness. I looked ahead with a deep sigh. You have something to say, DK; just come out and say it."
DK appeared, adjusting her hair, sitting next to me, looking only at me with a frown. "I hate when I see you like this."
"Like what?"
"You're so... fed up." She described not being too far off. Even if I had to do my best not to show such vase emotions, I couldn't hide the fact I was tired and annoyed. In myself more than anything. "Is it because we killed Sukuna's vessel?"
"Yuji?" I question, returning her question with a shrug and my own. "How do you feel?"
DK swayed left and right, looking annoyed. "I don't care for Someone we only just met; he hurt you really badly. I'm glad I killed him."
"As expected. Always me before anyone else." I smile faintly, holding her hand. "It was the right thing to do; who knows what else Sukuna would have done if we hadn't stopped him?"
"You're still upset, though, and if you're upset, so I am." She sulked, arms crossed. "Sorry."
Gripping DK's hand tightly, I put my hand around her shoulder, keeping her close. "You don't have to apologise. I was to blame. I didn't take it seriously. I don't take anything seriously. I think this was a real wake-up call."
"We're not leaving, are we?"
"Not just yet, no," I say, pulling my legs up and curling between my arms. We should make amends for what we did. I know it's us first, but we're not heartless. Gojo clearly needed Yuji for something; we'll just have to fill that void until then."
"I disagree with your beliefs; I hate it. I hate you feel responsible for something out of your control. If it were down to me, I'd laugh in their faces and leave." She rants before looking at me with a deflated sigh. "But that would be mean, and I promised I wouldn't be that. I love you, and that's enough of a reason to trust you, my Y/N."
Leaning my head against DK's, I nod. "You always know how to make me feel better, thanks DK."
"Tuna, Tuna," Someone says. I raise an eyebrow, lean forward, and see two students watching me from the roof. "Tuna Mayo."
"Excuse me?"
"You going to sit up there all day, or are you going to be a little social and say hello?" A girl ranted, adjusting her glasses and glaring at me with a judgemental stare.
I looked to DK, sighing. We'll talk later." Dropping down, I patted myself down. I didn't think anyone was here yet. You must be the other students Gojo mentioned, right? My quote-on-quote classmates. I'm Y/N Kronos."
"I'm Maki, and this is Toge. We're both in our second year, so as you are higher-ups, I expect you to show respect."
"If you have to ask for respect, then you really don't deserve it." I put my hands in my pockets. "You can earn it instead."
"W-What!?"
Toge nodded, responding with a single word. "Kelp."
"Tuna mayo? Kelp? I mean, I am a bit hungry myself." I whisper, even more confused; I'm really missing tea and Jammie Dodgers right about now.
"Fisk Flake."
"Hard pass on that one."
Maki sighed, arms crossed. "Gojo really told you nothing about us, did he? Toge Inumaki's technique is Cursed speech. It allows him to infuse his words with cursed energy. Because of this, he cannot speak normally and uses safe words to communicate. He was just saying hello."
I stared at Toge blankly for a few seconds before looking at Maki. "You're not pulling my leg here, are you?"
"Salmon."
"I'm... Not even going to bother asking what he said." I sigh, slouched back. "So you two are both second years here, then, yeah? How many other students are there?"
"A handful, we train here to harness and improve our cursed techniques for fieldwork. If Gojo hand-picked you from halfway across the world, you must be something special." Maki expressed, adjusting her glasses. "I can't see any cursed energy on you, though."
"I keep that locked up with DK. It only comes out if I have any major emotions." I explain, leaning against the wall and rubbing my nails. "DK does the heavy lifting when she's needed."
"The Special Grade Cursed Spirit? You talk about her like she's a friend."
"Mustard Leaf."
"DK is the closest thing to family. She's my everything. I know that may come off as a surprise, but it's the truth. We rely on each other."
"Aww, that's sweet." DK giggles, running around me. "I love you too."
"Yeah, yeah... I love you as well." I roll my eyes as Maki shakes her head, returning my words with her own.
"Not at all; there's a student in our class who is almost in the same boat as you. He's off training, though, so you won't be able to swap details over your beloved."
"Cute. This school might not be so bad after all." I say, pleasantly surprised by this turn of events. "That reminds me of you mentioning other students. Are they here yet?"
"Morning, guys; I didn't think you were all here so early." A talking Panda greeted me with a smile.
"IS THAT A PANDA!?" DK barked, unable to look away.
I couldn't either as the Panda and I continued to stare at each other lost. I went to speak but just shook my head, even more confused. "Why?"
"You must be the new student joining us; it's nice to meet you. I'm Panda."
There was more silence and a long stare. DK was still in a world of her own, waving her hand around like a child at a Zoo. "The Panda is called Panda! It's like me calling you Human because you are human."
"Please don't do that, Dk..." I whisper, trying to smile but still dazed. "A talking Panda... A talking Cursed Spirit Panda. A talking Cursed Spirit Panda who can fight? A talking Cursed Spirit Kungfu Panda! Jack Black, is that you?"
I couldn't get another word out as I walked away, processing everything that had happened. Walking towards the main building, I was already ambushed by a wild Gojo waving at me. "Yo, if it isn't my 2nd favourite Jujutsu Sorcerer who has a relationship with their Cursed Spirit."
"Ha da ha, ha," I respond in a bored, dry tone. "What does the oh-so-special Gojo want now?
"You're too boring, y'know? I'd hope someone who killed Sukuna to be a little more pumped."
I rub the back of my head, grumbling. "I killed your student; big differences there. Didn't you like need him?"
"You let me worry about that grasshopper. You've been doing well with those missions I left for you, but now it's time to really hone your skills."
"I'm sure DK is thrilled to be working 9-5," I mocked, moving my neck around. "I've been doing fine until now, though, right? Do I really need to do the pointless training arc?"
"You may be strong, Y/N, but you're nowhere near as strong as me. Besides, you have prying eyes all around now, not just from us but also from the Public Safety Department."
"What's up with those guys, though? The guy I went up against was some jacked-up Cursed Spirit with chainsaws for arms."
"You could say you didn't 'saw' that coming."
"Go fuck yourself, Gojo."
"And here I was thinking you British lot could handle a bit of banter." He chuckled. "I wouldn't worry too much about those Devil Hunters. While we may not see eye to eye most of the time, and their squads have butt heads with us in the past, they're not stupid. They know the work we do is just as vital, we leave them alone, they leave us alone."
"You almost sound scared of them, Sensei; this Makima wouldn't be a threat to you, would she?"
Gojo could only smirk, beginning to walk with me. "Nah, those Devil Hunters are weak. Not even worth my time. But keep me posted if you run into any of them again. But they're not who we're interested in."
I sigh, nodding along. "We're talking about that Russian Sorcerer who attacked me on day one, right? I forgot his name; I haven't seen or heard from him since. Maybe he got cold turkey and ran away?"
"Doran Skee, I did a bit more digging into our new friend. He was quite the big shot in the Russian sector; his Cursed Techqiue got a lot of heads turning, and being able to manipulate and bring up bad memories is quite something. However, his methods were questionable at best and downright inhumane at worst. He tried gaining full control of his sector and went mad with power. He was exiled shortly after, and no one saw him since."
"Until I had the pleasure of meeting him. He's going to be a problem, isn't he?"
Gojo shrugged it off. "Nah, hardly. You're much stronger than someone like him. It's who he could be working with that could concern me."
"Who would Doran Skee work with in Japan?"
The doors to a family restaurant opened as Doran stepped in, his hood still up, his eyes gleaming behind a pair of ski goggles. He was already gaining attention from most people as he saw someone waving him over. Walking over, he stopped at the booth, staring at the man.
"You made it; I was beginning to think you wouldn't show. We have much to talk about, don't we, Doran Skee?"
Doran looked to the other Cursed Spirits sitting in the booth before turning his eye back to the man who contacted him. "What do you want?"
"You can call me Geto, and well, I know you have your eyes on a certain foreign Cursed Spirit, do you not? The one who hid her name from history. Not well enough as I know it." Geto chuckled, sipping his tea. "I have a proposition, Mr Skee, one you cannot refuse."
Geto paused before smiling to himself with malice. "We help you kill the Blood Empress' vessel, and you take control of her. How is that for a deal?"
Doran's smile began to show as he looked down on Geto with a smirk. "I'm listening."
To be continued...