DECEMBER 16TH, 17:35, TOKYO COLONY NO.1
The sky glowed an ethereal golden-orange as the sun began to set. Clouds scattered in the sky, shielding places from the sun's rays. Y/N stood by a balcony of the temporary base, watching the sun descend with her forearms on the metal railings. Her hair moved with the wind's current and she relished in the cool relief it gave her.
Footsteps echoed from behind and grew louder as they neared her. Y/N glanced behind to see who it was approaching her. She stood straight when she realised who it was. A smile formed on her as she called his name, "Gojo-sensei."
"Hey," He replied, moving to stand next to her, basking in the golden hue of the sun as well. "What're you doing all alone here?"
"Just needed a moment of tranquility," She responded and looked at him. "What about you?"
"The same," He answered. "How have you been holding up?"
"I'm fine," Y/N replied. "I'm glad to be with you, Yuta, and everyone else again."
Silence overwhelmed the conversation as Gojo turned to look at her, "... But?"
Of course I couldn't fool Gojo-sensei. He always seemed to know what I truly felt.
Y/N looked away as she turned back to face the sun, "But it doesn't feel the same without Nacht."
Gojo nodded his head and did the same, "I know what you mean. After losing someone special, you tell yourself to suck it up. You think everything's going to be fine. You think you're going to be fine..."
"But you'll never be fine," Y/N completed his sentence. "Was it the man I fought with during the Night Parade of a Hundred Demons? Geto Suguru?"
Gojo laughed as fond memories that he shared with Suguru resurfaced, "Yeah. He was my one and only best friend."
Y/N smiled in response, "Shoko told me how close the three of you were."
"We were the best of the best," Gojo shrugged his shoulders nonchalantly. "Even after his death, especially after seeing Kenjaku, I find myself thinking back to every moment and every memory I had of him. Every picture, every video... all that reminded me of him... And who made you feel like this? Is it Nacht?"
"Mhm," She nodded her head. "It almost feels like I took his presence for granted. I should've spent more time with him. I should have never used his powers so I could spend the rest of my life with him in my life..."
"Y/N..."
Y/N could feel tears gathering in her eyes once more at the thought of the oldest Faust, "But now everyone knows that there was a man named Nacht Faust, Devil of Curses, who saved me and took care of me for twelve years. And what hurts the most is that I don't even have a picture of him. He exists now... only in my memory. Sooner or later, I will forget how he looks like or how he sounds like. I could forget him entirely."
Gojo moved his hand around Y/N's shoulders, moving her to his embrace as he tried to provide comfort for her. "And you didn't tell Yuta this?"
"I love Yuta a lot, Gojo-sensei, I really do. But I didn't want to burden him anymore with my feelings. Gojo-sensei, he almost lost me. I almost died," She replied, not realising that her tears had finally escaped the grasps of her eyes.
"There, there," He muttered, patting her head with so much care.
"I promised Nacht, Morgen, and Kiera that I would survive this battle. I would survive to live on for them and my family but the truth is I'm scared," Y/N said. "In a battle against Sukuna... we would all be dead. How can I protect and lead the Jujutsu World if there is no one to lead?"
"I'll take care of him-" Gojo replied, but was instantly cut off by Y/N.
"I know that you're the strongest, Gojo-sensei, but even I'm scared for you against Sukuna. He's a sorcerer from the Heian Era, the Golden Age of Cursed Techniques. We weren't born then, Gojo-sensei. He's probably killed millions and has battle techniques far superior to ours," Y/N exasperated. "And he is in control of Megumi's body. We both know what he's capable of. And if you can't defeat him? What will I do?"
"That won't happen, Y/N, I'll protect everyone."
"But what if you're killed before you can?" Y/N cried out. "I lost my family. I lost Nanamin. I lost the Haiba siblings. I lost the Faust siblings. I lost Megumi. I cannot lose you too, Gojo-sensei. So, swear to me you'll come back. If you don't come back, I will go to finish the fight, even if it costs me my life."
Gojo stared at her, eyes wide due to an array of emotions—shock, disbelief, amazement, and admiration. She was only seventeen, and the world forced her to grow up too fast.
"I swear to you, Y/N."
───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────
"So... what's the plan, exactly?" Yuji asked, looking at everyone in the room from his seat at one of the tables.
Currently, every sorcerer in the temporary base was accounted for in the meeting room. They were planning the next course of actions for the Shinjuku Showdown between Gojo and Sukuna.
"Gojo-sensei will fight with Sukuna and someone else will deal with Kenjaku accordingly," Y/N answered, standing at the front of the room with Gojo and Yuta. "However, that person can't be me, Yuta, Maki, or Hakari."
"What? Why not?" Hakari asked with a frown, leaning back on his chair with his legs up the table.
"Because we're obviously the strongest behind Gojo-sensei," Maki answered him.
Yuta nodded his head, "We can't afford to be somewhere else if trouble arises. The only opening we have is immediately after their fight."
"So between the four of you, who'll go after Gojo-sensei?" Yuji pointed to them.
"I will," Y/N, Yuta, and Maki said simultaneously. Hakari raised his hands in defeat, not bothering to volunteer himself.
"Awkward," Takaba commented.
"I will go," Yuta spoke first. "Between the four of us, I have the most cursed energy here-"
"Yeah, but it's nowhere near Sukuna's," Maki shot him down immediately. "I should go because I have Heavenly Restriction. Unlike the three of you, I won't have to worry about running out of cursed energy."
"Enough, everyone. I'm clearly the one who goes next. I literally have the power of the universe in my hands," Y/N shot both of them down.
"No," Yuta and Maki immediately cut her off.
"I'm not debating this!" Y/N yelled. "Gojo-sensei, back me up!"
Gojo stood straight up from his chair, which was tilting from his laid-back position, "M-me?!"
"Y/N, you're the Head of the Jujutsu World now. The higher-ups are dead," Maki said. "Principal Gakuganji told us, remember?"
"Yes, but realistically speaking, I'm the second strongest here," Y/N responded. "At the very least, I can aid Gojo-sensei from afar, which is something the three of you can't do."
"Angel, we are not going to argue about this," Yuta stated. "You will stay here with the others where it is safe. I would rather die so you can live-"
"And that is exactly the problem, Yuta!" Y/N shouted, cutting him off and surprising everyone. "You keep talking as if my life is valuable and yours isn't. You talk as if nothing matters, as if it is fine for everyone else to die so long as I live. But what about me? What will I do with all of you dead? How can I live without you? Without all of you? What use is ruling the Jujutsu World if everyone is dead?"
Yuta looked at her, stunned momentarily by her words. His eyebrows furrowed as he tried to understand where she was coming from. He could see the agony in her eyes. He knew what she was hinting at, but he simply couldn't agree to it.
"You know, I hate to interrupt but she's right," Kashimo spoke up. "It's better if one person dies so the majority can live rather than the majority die so one person can live."
"Shut up, I didn't ask for your opinion," Yuta glared at him. "You just want her dead. From the very beginning, you suggested the idea of killing her. So, do me a fucking favour and never talk again in my presence."
"Yuta," Y/N called and took his hand into hers. "Please, stop. It's okay, Yuta."
"No," Yuta shook his head, looking at her in denial. "No, it isn't. Angel, I just got you back. I... I can't lose you again. I won't have it. I won't allow it."
"Yuta, there is no other option. Please, just listen," Y/N pleaded with him, but she could tell she was losing him. His hand slipped away from hers, catching her attention.
He backed away from her, breaths leaving his mouth in a shaky manner. Y/N was about to reach back for him once more until he stormed away, slamming the door shut behind him. The room was engulfed in silence as Y/N felt her heart ache at her boyfriend's sudden change in demeanour.
Y/N cleared her throat, garnering everyone's attention, "Like Maki said, I'm the Head of the Jujutsu World now. So, I declare that I will be going after Gojo-sensei. None of you will stop me."
"Y/N!" Maki exclaimed. "Don't do this. We've successfully tricked the Culling Game into thinking you're killed."
"Do you think Kenjaku will stop there? Knowing him, he could threaten Kogane into adding rules that clearly contradict one another," Y/N replied. "We were fools into thinking we could avoid this. He wants his desired outcome of me, him, and Sukuna alive. He wants his desired outcome of merging me and Tengen with the world."
"What about Kenjaku?" Choso asked. "Who will deal with him?"
"We need someone unsuspecting. We have to trick Kenjaku with an unsuspecting presence," Y/N answered.
"Oh, that's easy. Just send Takaba," Angel suggested.
"Me?" Takaba pointed to himself.
"Yeah. You'll do fine," Angel assured him. "Trust me on this. If it works, we can work another plan into this."
Y/N looked at her and nodded her head, "All right. That settles it. You're all dismissed."
Maki stared at her in disbelief, lips parted to try and refute, to try and say something. Y/N looked at her and sighed, "If I'm dead too, then you and Yuta can have all the luxury of going crazy at Sukuna."
"Y/N, please just think about this again," Maki said, putting her hand on Y/N's shoulder.
"I did, Maki," Y/N told her. "I realised something as I thought about it. I realised that I've lost way too many people, and that I didn't want to lose anyone else anymore after this."
"And you think it's okay if we lost you?" Maki asked back.
"I could ask you the very same thing. Do you honestly think it's okay to be dying for me? For one, speck of dot in this vast universe?" Y/N countered her. "I'm just human, Maki. I'm not some superhuman being like Gojo-sensei. I'm just a young woman with too much on her shoulders and powers unimaginable to one. Just... take care of Yuta for me, okay?"
Maki pursed her lips and shook her head, "He won't be the same without you. I'm begging you, Y/N. Please, don't do this."
"I have no choice," Y/N said. "This is how it ends. Believe me."
───── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ─────
Y/N sighed as she stretched her body, exhausted from training with Gojo. She was getting used to using her new powers, but the more she used it, the more tired she became. There was something happening, and she didn't know what it was.
She trudged her way back to her room and opened the door. She didn't see any signs of Yuta being in the room and sighed. Ever since her outburst, Yuta had completely disappeared.
Should I not have said that? She wondered in her head.
Y/N placed her sword aside and went towards the drawer, grabbing a new set of clothes. She headed into the bathroom and closed the door behind her. She moved towards the sink, placing her clothes on the counter.
Just as she was about to remove her clothes, Y/N felt something in her throat and began coughing. Her body heaved as she continued coughing and her hand covered her mouth. When she felt it come out, she looked down at her hand.
Blood.