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" 'Live long' he said? That doesn't mean much when you go and die yourself." Nobara sighed, leaning her chin on top of her folded hands. "Is this the first time you have a comrade dead?" Nobara asked
"First time for one my age." Megumi answered.
"Hmph.. you seemed oddly fine."
"Same goes for you."
"Of course. I only knew him for about two weeks, I'm not a soft woman that would cry over the death of someone like him." She said but in truth, she was holding her tears back when Megumi glanced at her. "It's so hot.." Megumi changed the topic right away, still with his calm voice.
"Yeah, I wonder when we'll get our summer uniforms."
As soon as she said that, a voice came from behind them,"What the hell is this?"
The two first years lifted their chin up to see Maki standing there, a hand on her hip. "You're more depressing than ever, Megumi. Is this a wake or something?"
"Zen'in-senpai.." Megumi greeted her.
"Don't call me by my last name."
"Pssst! Maki, Maki!"
Maki turned around to see two of her classmates "What? I'm talking here."
"Y-You actually don't know why they're so down?? Didn't Shirazaki-sensei tell us last night?" Panda half whispered his words. "What are you talking about??" She frowned
"Someone really did die yesterday! The boy from One of the first years..! That's why Shirazaki-sensei cancelled her meeting with us and went to the morgue instead!"
"Shake." Inumaki nodded, making Maki flinched and turned her head slowly.
"Say. It. Earlier! Now I looked like some heartless cold-blooded demon!" She yelled pointing at her other classmates
"That's exactly what you are, you know?!"
"Shake." Inumaki nodded, agreeing to what Panda just said. "Oi! You're supposed to try to make me feel better!!"
"Uh.. who are these people?.." Nobara asked, looking confused. "Our second year upperclassmen." Megumi replied
"You have to be kinder to your underclassmen, Maki. Didn't Shirazaki-sensei always say that??"
"There's more to kindness than being soft on them." Maki looked away, slightly blushing out of embarrassment for not actually listening to what's happening.
"That's Zen'in-senpai, she's the best of all the students at wielding cursed tools." Megumi said
"Okaka." Inumaki shook his head in disagreement to what Maki just said.
"That's the Cursed Speech user, Inumaki-senpai. His only vocabulary is Onigiri Ingredients." Megumi muttered.
"But he's a bit softer when Yuta and Shirazaki-sensei are around.." Panda mumbled. "And That's Panda-senpai. There's one more, Okkotsu-senpai. He's the only upperclassman I can openly respect but he's overseas right now." He finished his explanation and got up.
"Are you seriously gonna leave the Panda's introduction at just 'Panda'??" Nobara asked, feeling weird to see a talking panda.
"Senpai, Where's Shirazaki-sensei?"
"At the Morgue with Satoru." Panda answered
"Hmm, I see.."
"Huh? Wait, Who is this Shirazaki-sensei?" Nobara questioned again. "Oh right, you haven't met her yet.. Shirazaki Hinari-sensei, She's also our teacher but she's mostly in charge of the sophomores."
"I see.."
"My.. Anyway we're sorry about this, even though you're still mourning.. Please forgive us for that." Panda apologized and looked at them again. "The truth is, we'd like you to participate in the Kyoto Sister School Exchange program."
"Kyoto Sister School Exchange program?? What the hell is that?" Nobara asked
"It's a joint program with the other Jujutsu High in Kyoto. But isn't that event mainly for Second and Third years?" Megumi asked.
"Yeah but those stupid third years are suspended right now. We don't have enough people so you guys gotta participate." Maki said
"What do you do at this event? Smash bros? I won't lose if it's the Wii Version. I'll meteor smash so you can't come back." Nobara grinned at the end of her words
"... Then let's make a 3-man team. Tokyo and Kyoto schools.. The match types proposed by each school principal will be given one day each. The event will be carried out over two days. Though that's just how it is on paper~ every year, the first day is team battles and the second day is individual." Panda explained
"Shake." Inumaki nodded.
"Team and Individual Battles?.. we fight against other Jujutsu Sorcerers?!" Nobara yelled in surprise.
"Yeah. It's a Jujutsu Battle where anything but killing goes." Maki grinned. "On the defense, I'll train both of you to the bone so that you won't get killed." Panda said
"Wait, do we even have time for that? I thought we were short on Jujutsu Sorcerers." Nobara raised an eyebrow at Panda.
"That's a good question, for now the melancholy of humans accumulates from the end of winter until spring, and comes crashing in the early summer as Curses. It's a busy season"
"Sometimes we're busy all year long but things should be settling down soon." Maki said
"Hmm.."
"So, you'll do it, right? You just had a comrade die on you after all."
"We'll do it." Nobara and Megumi said in chorus with eyes full of determination.
I.. Have to get stronger! I'll do anything to achieve that! The two had the same thoughts and the image of Itadori appeared before their eyes.
"But if I decide that this event and training is pointless, I'll quit instantly." Nobara said and Megumi nodded. "Same here." He said.
"Hah!" Maki scoffed and smirked. "Well.. the degree of audacity makes it worth doing." Panda mutter
"Shake."
Meanwhile, on the other side of Tokyo at a certain Café Restaurant, a tall man with black hair that extends past his shoulders with some tied in the back of his head and some hanging down the right side of his face, sat across two cursed spirits and conversing with them like a normal human-to-human interraction.
The man has narrow eyes, piercings on both his ears and he has a scar across his forehead. He wears a light colored rakusu over a black yukata, black pants, tabi, and zori. His look is similar to that of a Monk.
"So, your boss wants to reverse the current positions of humans and curses, is that it?" Asked the raven haired man.
In front of him is a single eyed cursed spirit whose single eye is located on the centre of his face and he has black teeth. The upper half of his head resembles a volcano, His ears are filled in with corks. He wears a green layer with black spots over a black outfit. His hunchback posture along with his cane that has a skull for the handle gives him the image of an elderly man.
"Well, Roughly. But it's slightly different, Humans are made up of lies." He said and turned around to see the customers inside the cafe "for every positive emotion and actions they showed, there's always a flip-side."
"Oh?.." the man hummed amusedly, stirring his tea.
"Yet negative emotions like Hatred and Hostility are truth without falsehood. Since we Curses are born from those emotions that make us true, pure beings! Imitations should be eliminated!"
"Yet at the present, you are the ones being eliminated." He murmured, smiling subtly.
"That's why we came to ask you. What can we do to defeat the Jujutsu Sorcerers?"
"Hm, if you fulfil two conditions before you go to war then, you can win." The man with piercings smirked. "What are those two conditions??" Asked the cursed spirit.
"The first involves the man known as the Strongest Jujutsu Sorcerer, you have to render Gojo Satoru incapable of fighting. And it also involves the woman known as the Strongest Shikigami user, Shirazaki Hinari. If you can capture her alive or render her incapable of fighting, this is if you're lucky enough though.. then you'll automatically weaken Gojo Satoru. But remember, keep her alive. then the possibilities of winning are high. If you can, that is."
"Why does it automatically weaken him?"
"Have you ever heard that 'Love is the most twisted curse of all time.' ?" He asked nonchalantly
He scoffed and replied, "Khah! What a stupid thing. Then? What's the last condition?"
"Get Ryomen Sukuna and Itadori Yuji on your side."
"Hm?? Hold on, he died, didn't he?? That Itadori Yuji brat, I mean."
The guy with piercings then grinned, "Did he? Well, I'm not sure."
The one-eyed curse spirit frowned and went silent for a moment before starting to speak again, "Gojo Satoru and Shirazaki Hinari.. even if we all attack at once, we can't kill them, huh?"
The man closed his eyes and sipped his tea, "They'll either make an effortless escape or in the worst case scenario, you'd all get exorcised."
"Hm.."
"Both of them are dead strong if I were to say." Gojo Satoru aside, but Shirazaki Hinari.. She has potential. He thought and smirked behind his teacup.
"Then what to do? You make everything sound impossible." The cursed spirit mutters while frowning in distaste. "I recommend you to devote your energy into sealing them rather than killing them."
"Sealing them?" He squinted his eye, "What's the method?"
"We'll use Special Grade Cursed Objects, Prison Realm for Gojo Satoru, Heaven's Seal for Shirazaki Hinari."
He widened his eye in surprise, "Prison Realm and Heaven's Seal?! You have those detestable things?!"
The lava came out of his volcano head as he got excited, "Jogo, don't get too excited it's getting hot here." He moved his hand fanning himself
"Dear customer, have you decided on your ord-"
Just before the cafe waiter finished his words, the cursed spirit-Jogo, burned him to ashes using his flame and caused the people around them to scream in pure terror.
"I wish you wouldn't cause too much commotion." The man sighed. "This much is fine, isn't it?" Jogo grinned and burned everyone else, the man coughed from the smoke and fanned himself again before sighing, "I'm glad I didn't pick an expensive restaurant.."
"Geto, how strong am I in terms of Sukuna's fingers?"
"At a low estimate, I'd say eight or nine fingers?" The man named Geto, answered nonchalantly.
"That's plenty! Give me the Prison Realm and Heaven's Seal, I'll add it to my collection. Instead.." he grinned "I'll Kill both Gojo Satoru and Shirazaki Hinari."
"Hmm.. that's fine but.." Geto smirked looking at Jogo "Don't blame me later on if you die, Jogo."
The clock was ticking, the cold silence surrounded the morgue as the three people watched Shoko getting ready to operate on Itadori's dead body. The silence was too deafening until Gojo breaks it.
"You know I have a bad personality, right?" He started a conversation with Ijichi while Hinari glanced at her senior's sudden words.
"I know." Ijichi answered right away.
"Ijichi, expect a very hard forehead flick later." Gojo said, pointing his index finger on the younger man. "F-Forehead flick?.."
"Ahaha.." Hinari furrowed her eyebrows as she closed her eyes and smiled bitterly.
"Being a teacher isn't my style. Do you know why someone like me decided to teach at Jujutsu High?" He asked and turned to see Ijichi who was standing next to him "Ask me." He demanded.
"W-Why is it?" He stuttered, making Hinari felt bad for him but decided to just keep quiet as this happens almost all the time. Just Gojo being Gojo.
"Because I have a dream." He said
"Dream?" Hinari asked
"Yup~"
"What kind of dream is it?.." Ijichi's interest was piqued a little.
"You see in this case with Yuji, the top of Jujutsu is a den of vice. Conservative fools. Arrogant fools. Traditional fools. Just plain fools. It's a bargain sale on Rotten Mikan. I'll hit the reset on the shithole that the world of Jujutsu is."
"Reset.." Hinari mumbled lowering her eyelids while Ijichi just went silent.
"Slaughtering everyone at the top would be an easy task. But they would just get replaced, it wouldn't bring a revolution. And if I did that no one would follow me. That's why I choose education to raise strong, clever comrades."
"Hmm.." Hinari hummed
"That's also why I occasionally tossed my missions to my students, they're lashings of love." He grinned and Hinari chuckled dryly upon hearing what Gojo just said.
That's just because you want to slack off. Ijichi thought to himself and Gojo lowered his body slightly
"They're all talented. Especially the third year Hakari and the second year Okkotsu, they'll become Jujutsu Sorcerers who can rival me." He said and clenched his fist tightly. Yuji was one of them too.
Noticing this, Hinari initiatively held his hand and Gojo looked at her right away, his lips parted slightly out of surprise and saw her smile gently at him, soon he loosened his own grip and he intertwined their hands causing her to flinch slightly as he returned the smile.
A very tiny amount of electricity-like wave touches her skin all of the sudden. Ah.. it's happening again. She thought.
"Hey, you three." Shoko's words distracted them and they turned to see her, "I'm about to start, are you just gonna watch from there?"
They widened their eyes when Itadori suddenly sat up on the autopsy table, Gojo's lips parted slightly while Hinari covered her mouth with her left hand.
"T-T-T-That!!" Ijichi stuttered and half screamed, making Shoko turn her head around to see Itadori all healed. "Wha-"
"Woah! My dick's hangin'!" Itadori yelled as he looked down to his naked self.
"G-G-G-G-Gojo-san..!! H-H-H-He's...!!"
"Khhhaahaha.." Gojo chuckled, resting his forehead on the palm of his right hand, "Ijichi, be quiet."
"Yuji-kun.." Hinari mutters in relief and gently lets Gojo's hand go as he gets up from the bench.
"Aah.. that's a bit of a shame.." Shoko furrowed her eyebrows and pulled down her mask. "Um.. I'm embarrassed to ask but.. who are you?.." Itadori asked
"Yuji." Gojo addressed and raised his right hand while grinning "Welcome back."
"Yo sensei! I'm back!" He grinned and they high-fived. With that, the three lecturers walked out of the Autopsy room together, leaving Ijichi and Itadori alone.
"Hhhh.. I'll have to revise the reports." Shoko sighed
"Nah, leave it as it is." Gojo answered, "Before they come after Yuji again, I want time to build up Yuji's strength to an acceptable minimum. Sorry, Shoko, but could you leave Yuji listed as dead on the records?"
"Hm? So you're gonna completely hide Itadori away?"
"Nah, I'll make sure he returns to school before the exchange program begins." Gojo said again.
"Why?"
"It's a simple reason, I haven't forgiven them for taking a young person's youth away. No one's allowed to do that, not anyone." Gojo said in a serious tone.
"I see. I'll get going first, see you two around." she smiled but halted her steps, turning her body to the side. "And Gojo, don't pester Hinari too much."
"How rude!? Who is pestering her??"
"You." Shoko said again.
"I didn't do that!"
"Whatever. Hinari, don't hesitate to slap him if he goes beyond holding your hand, okay?" She winked
"Eh? Ah... okay.." Hinari blinked her eyes twice and waved at her as she watched Shoko getting further and further. "... What does it mean tho..?" She mumbled in a low voice but sadly, Gojo heard it.
He smirked and started to get really playful "Oh?~ are you curious, Hina?~"
"No.." she shook her head.
"Is it?~ really?~" His smirk never left his lips as he stood two steps away from her since they were standing on the staircase and he's very tall so standing two steps from her quite matches her height.
"Yes." She nodded but Gojo just chuckled before holding her right hand and smirked. "Fine~ I'll show you. This.. is what goes beyond holding hands." He said before kissing the palm of her right hand.
She flinched, eyes widened and a slight hint of red dusted her cheeks. She looked away slightly, feeling the weird sensation in her heart again. Upon seeing this new reaction, Gojo chuckled once more and intertwined their fingers again.
Pulling her onto his arms, she gasped slightly and felt the vibration each time he spoke. "You can slap me if you want, you know~"
"Senpai.." she murmured, burying her face on his chest. He smiled and tucked her hair behind her ear when he pulled away, "Jokes aside, do you want to meet up with our students or follow me and Yuji?" He asked with his usual gentle smile
"Ah, do you plan to train him today?"
"Yup!"
"Then I'll go there after I make sure Megumi is fine." she smiled and Gojo nodded. "Alright, I'll call you later then."
"Okay." She smiled, "See you later, Gojo-senpai."
ᴛʜᴇ ᴄᴜʀꜱᴇ ɪ | 06
[A/N]: FULLY EDITED.