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It happened one day in the spring. Yuuji had moved to a new place, far away from his last residence. Far from the influence of the sorcerers in that area. The sorcerer society when he was younger were leagues more open to change than the ones he came across of this era. Rumors were hard to stop when all he did was kill some curses that had been terrorizing some villages. He never overstepped his boundaries though. Only intervening when no one else would. All he could say was that he was disappointed in the complacency of these sorcerers. All this danger from curses and they couldn’t be bothered to help the people that need it the most. His little hut of a home was on the outskirts of the village, nestled right near the forest. The rumors would likely spread here soon enough too, but for now he was just a nameless new face to the people here. The sorcerers here would no doubt be asking for his presence at some point.
The sun was setting on his last trip into the woods. Having delivered chopped firewood as his first act of goodwill for the villagers. If anything, it earned him some points with the elderly for being such a ‘kind young man.’ He knew they meant it as a compliment, but a part of him soured at the reminder. They didn’t know he was much older than he looked. This last bundle of firwood was for himself. Although even before he entered the woods, he felt that shift of subtle pressure. Something that even an experienced sorcerer would have a hard time detecting, but years of experience and constant contact with cursed energy revealed the attempts to conceal their presence.
There was no fear or surprise, or even any anger. The foliage folding back as Yuuji walked with purpose to where he had left the neatly stacked firewood. Past the many trees around him and there he was. Sukuna in a form he could recall from back in his youth in Shinjuku. Yuuji had grown since then, but the curse would still tower over him regardless. Four eyes, the color of sapphires, landed on him. Neither said a word at all. Sukuna merely raised one hand lazily flicking serrated cursed energy straight at him.
Again, Yuuji didn’t feel shocked. This was inevitable. The first bite of dismantle cutting into the flesh of his throat felt like a hug welcoming him home after a long journey away. He hadn’t stepped aside, and after experiencing that feeling, why would he? As it cut deeper into his neck severing muscle with blood filing his mouth, Yuuji’s lips upturned just the slightest. He could heal this off. He could even reattach his head like any other body part if he really wanted to. But as it cut deeper hitting his vertebrae, there was only one thought on his mind.
I wouldn’t mind dying like this.
That was the last thought in his mind as his head severed entirely. Darkness taking over all his senses. Yuuji cracked open his eyes to a dark ceiling and a pulsing ache in his throat. His fingers brushed up against a thin gauze on a barely healed wound. Peeling it off as he healed the wound completely in the same breath. The immortal man sat up glancing around in what must have been a bedroom based on the mats he was left to sleep on. A very well-off bedroom at that. The stinging disappointment was brushed aside to instead tidying up before sliding open the door to step out into the early rays of sunlight. There were two other sorcerers here. Based on the familiarity of one of them, despite its careful efforts to remain out of sight, Sukuna was here and the other had to be a curse user if they were residing here too. Yuuji, being naturally light on his feet, went towards the direction of the curse user as he navigated the engawa.
The door slid open just as Yuuji was about to reach for it revealing someone with a youthful face and short white hair. Yuuji smiled reflexively, “Hi-“ The person, startled by the immortal man’s presence being where it shouldn’t, dropped their woven basket spilling some of the damp clothes out. “Oh,” Yuuji stooped down to scoop the clothes back in the basket, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you.” Standing up with the basket in hand wearing a sheepish smile, “Any chance I can help you with these as repayment?” He could get directions on where he was afterwards.
“I-“ the person’s eyes, a pretty pink, flicked across his face trying to gauge something. Their alarm flattened out to dutifulness. “That won’t be necessary.”
“Well it might not be necessary,” Yuuji handed the basket over when they reached for it, “but I’d like to help you anyway. If you’ll let me.”
They stared at him for a beat longer. Yuuji grinned in return. The curse user stepped out, closed the door behind them, and gestured next to them as they began walking. The silence between them was nice as they made for the courtyard. As they were hanging up damp towels and robes on a sturdy line wire strung between two trees, his white-haired companion asked him questions.
The usual ones like where he was from to which he answered ‘oh, somewhere far away’ to what kind of technique did he have and he answered, ‘it’s nothing special I can just cut stuff up.’ No one needed to know just how many cursed techniques and the expertise he had packed away. They already made enough assumptions to make fantastical rumors.
“What’s your name?” The mysterious companion asked in what would have been disinterest, if not for the glittering interest in their eyes giving them away.
“I’m Yuuji!” Pinning the towel on the line to catch the breeze. No need to give a last name. That wasn’t really the style back then from what he could recall. “And you?” They must not have expected the question to be returned, but they quickly regained their composure. “You may call me Uraume. “
“It’s nice to meet you Uraume,” this time the sorcerer’s smile was genuine. He was fully prepared to ignore the incoming glimmer of familiar cursed energy encroaching on where they were finishing pining up the laundry.
“Up and about are we, brat?” Apparently, the curse didn’t feel the same.
The immortal man threw a dirty look Sukuna’s way from where the curse had settled on the veranda to watch them. Disdain at the nickname rolled off Yuuji’s voice, “I am twice your age.” The curses’ slight narrowing of his eyes showing he didn’t believe him for a second. “You can be a brat at any age,” throwing the offhanded comment before leaning forward, “And you, brat, appear to be fine for someone who was beheaded two days ago.”
“Hmm,” Yuuji answered non-committal as he turned his attention back to Uraume who had picked up the now empty basket, “Do you know what direction my village is?” The white-haired curse user’s smile was serene as they addressed him, “Sukuna-sama can answer any of your questions.”
Damn it. The smug aura radiating off the curse when Yuuji turned to look at him made him want to slap it off. Which is why he didn’t even try to be respectful when he said, “Well?”
Sukuna inclined his head like he was thinking it over. Uraume was long gone and Yuuji’s patience was threadbare by the time the curse decided to speak. “Who’s to say? It was such a long time ago.” All these decades later and he knew just what to say to piss him off. Yuuji turned in a direction and started walking. “Where are you going?” The curse had the gall to sound irritated. The creak of wood and rustle of grass signaling Sukuna was trailing after him.
“I’m leaving.” They passed the surrounding outside wall of the residence. Sukuna still hot on his heels while Yuuji kept his casual pace.
“No, you’re not,” there was a shift in cursed energy, but the threat didn’t slow Yuuji down in the slightest.
“Yes, I am,” Yuuji didn’t give him the satisfaction of releasing any of his cursed energy in response. The curse could posture all he liked. The presence of the cursed energy bearing down as Sukuna walked behind him would have been unbearable to anyone else. If anything, it was comfortable for Yuuji. A far-off remnant of what he could have had once upon a time. What they could have had. Instead, he was left to endure a future where everyone would leave him behind. All because he wasn’t allowed to age like everyone else. And perhaps it was that thought that turned his words bitter, “I don’t live to entertain you.”
“Oh, but I think you do.” The footsteps behind him had stopped but that overbearing pressure was still there. Tempting to wrap him up in a deadly safety blanket. …that last part probably wasn’t Sukuna’s intention. “Now either return to the estate or I’ll-“
“Or what,” Yuuji turned on his heel to meet Sukuna’s gaze with a sharp challenge, “You’ll kill me?” The cursed energy wrapping around both of them was from Sukuna alone. The air straining under the stress. Any attack from Sukuna would just be a repeat of two days ago. They both innately knew this. The cursed energy reluctantly retreated, leaving behind little knicks where it caught in Yuuji’s skin and yukata. The immortal man didn’t flinch. Keeping eye contact the whole time. He gave a small bow, “Goodbye Sukuna.” He rose from his bow and for a brief moment Yuuji thought there was an unreadable emotion in the man’s eyes that the immortal man refused to analyze so he turned his back on the curse. “Have a good day.” He was barley a couple steps away when he heard, “We will meet again, brat. That, I guarantee.” The sorcerer didn’t bother with an answer. The little cuts healing once he was well and far away.
And meet again they did. Yuuji had been steadily working on his reputation within the village. Helping with odd jobs, getting rid of a few curses to make life easier. It was all easy stuff for him. Made him feel useful. Every now and then he would feel that familiar presence, and without fail each time he went to the forest near his home he would find Sukuna waiting. Yuuji did offer for the curse to stay in his home if he was going to wait for him anyway, but he never took him up on it.
Sometimes they would discuss some philosophical idea that Sukuna had come across. Sometimes it was about the weather changing. But more often than not, it always came back to the topic Sukuna refused to let go of. He wanted to know more about Yuuji’s cursed technique, his experience with curses and cursed energy. All the topics Yuuji did his best to sidestep every time. Not because he was ashamed of it. No, it was because he knew where Sukuna wanted this to go. He wanted a fight and if Yuuji indulged him even a little, it would be a catastrophe.
“I don’t understand why you lower yourself to serving them,” Sukuna commented. Lounging against the base of a tree across from where Yuuji sat on a freshly cut stump steadily sewing a few holes in one of the few spare yukata’s he owned. It was a lot easier to pretend he hadn’t heard him or change the topic when he was keeping his hands preoccupied. Yuuji hummed a little before responding, “Maybe that’s how you see it, but I like helping people. It feels good.” He met Sukuna’s icy, relaxed gaze and raised an eyebrow. “You might like it if you try it.”
The curse hummed a non-committal response. Despite how off putting these conversations had started, Yuuji looked forward to them. It was nice to see a different side of the man.
“There isn’t a single sorcerer among them.” Sukuna’s ramblings filling in the peaceful silence of his needle work. “Do you think their strongest would stand a chance?” The unspoken part: ‘Do you think they would stand a chance against me?’
Yuuji’s insides froze in a millisecond and instinct took over throwing dismantle with precision at the curse taking off an arm at the elbow and another at mid-forearm. Blood hitting the grass leaving a trail across where the limbs flew backwards. A tree crumbled at the base as it fell over. The freezing feeling thawed to molten rage. The flash of satisfaction on Sukuna’s face did little to alleviate the emotion.
“Are you offering to take their place?” Sukuna asked as he made no effort to heal the profusely bleeding stumps of his arms.
“Stop it. You don’t care about them.” Keeping as tight a leash on his cursed energy as he could despite the strong emotions at play. “It’s underhanded, and you know it.”
“Why deny your nature?” That familiar cruelty burned into the man’s wicked grin. “You can hide your fangs, but that doesn’t make you any less of a beast.” The blood splattered on Sukuna’s face did him no favors on making him look rational as he rose into a crouch. “Come on, give me a fight worth remembering.”
The challenge was enough to strike some clarity in Yuuji’s mind. The flaring cursed energy easily compacting until it was mostly tucked away. All the while Yuuji kept eye contact. What had been outrage at his supposed threat now all that was left was frustration at Sukuna for using innocent people against him. As if that would persuade him to do whatever he wanted. Typical. Just another person that wanted to use him. He was stupid to think maybe things would be different.
“If that’s all I am to you, then you’re no better than them.” Yuuji swiveled on the stump, so his back was to the curse. “I think you should leave.”
The only other time their talks had dipped to this level of coldness from Yuuji was when Sukuna had asked about his missing ring and pinky fingers. It was a throw away question. Simple curiosity. They were easy answers, but for some reason hearing Sukuna of all people ask that question made his heart harden. He didn’t feel this way about answering the questions on the scar near his lip or eyebrow. Their talk had ended early that day.
The grass and fallen leaves rustled as the curse behind him got up. “I tire of these games, brat.” The immortal man made no move as the curses’ footsteps came closer instead focusing on looping the needle through the outside of the small hole he was working on. “Stop playing pretend and be what you are.” A hand clamped on his shoulder that Yuuji, repulsed, harshly shook off bundling up the fabric in his hands as he moved to stand going straight for the path back to his home. The curse following right behind him along with his voice. “These niceties extend so far as we agree that we are common folk. But a wolf in sheep’s clothing is still a wolf.” That same hand clamped on Yuuji’s shoulder jolting him back. “Shed your fake skin, brat.”
Yuuji shoved the hand off him again and turned on the man getting in his space. “I actually enjoyed spending time with you,” Yuuji’s voice dripping with venom even as Sukuna’s facial features morphed from stunned to guarded. “Good to know it was one-sided,” Yuuji spat out as he turned his back on him once more making for the tree line, “Don’t ever come back here.” There was no sign of another following after him. And much like that day he had been asked about his fingers, Yuuji was left alone to stew in bitter resentment.
The estate was a bustle with activity the past few days. All in preparation of the meeting to be held today. Yuuji might have regretted coming at all if he wasn’t a part of the bustle amongst the servants. They had tried to relegate him to some fancy suit when he arrived three days ago, but if there was one thing Yuuji couldn’t stand it was sitting around waiting when he could be doing something with his hands. Of course, the servants of whatever big shot jujutsu sorcerer that was hosting this event tried to insist he not get his hands dirty with chores. They quickly accepted his help though after he said they either start bossing him around or he was going to keep doing whatever he wanted and messing with their routine.
Their work time got cut in half thanks to his own outlandish stamina and strength. That earned him getting in on the latest gossip of the manor. Apparently, the lord liked to get around what with everyone commenting that this is the longest they’ve seen him stay here consecutive days wise. Good for him. You can’t live life staying in one place forever.
The concern only started when one of the women rushed in from a side door into the seating area where Yuuji and all the other servants had been relaxing. Her harsh whispering to the head of staff had the elderly woman setting her mouth into a tight line. In no time they were being ushered about as the news spread. Yuuji had the privilege of the elderly woman escorting him back to his room. He grabbed her sleeve before she could leave. “Is everything okay?” He could have insisted on assisting the staff as he did before, but he knew how to read the room. He didn’t want to stress them out more.
“Ryoumen Sukuna will be arriving soon.” The creases on her face seemed to have doubled from the stress of the thought alone. “Please be wary. At least one person tends to die at these meetings with him.”
The mention of the name confused him more than anything else. This summit meeting had to have been planned out weeks, months in advance. Hearing about it at all would have meant planning the travel time too. There was no way the curse had just happened to hear about it or even be in the area on a whim. Why would they wait until the last minute to mention he was attending? Given how stressed the attendants were, wouldn’t it have made more sense to warn everyone before then? Something wasn’t adding up. First things first though.
“I’ll be fine. He won’t hurt any of the servants either.” Though it was hard to do it, one edge of his lips pulled up in a half smile. “I’ll guarantee it.”
The older woman took both his hands bowing in deep gratitude that Yuuji had to wave off. Alone in his thoughts he stewed on the lord’s reasoning for this misstep. The more he thought on it, the more he started to paint a picture on what this meeting might actually be for. By the time he was called on he had a pretty set idea on what this was all about now. Everyone was seated on their own cushion. All of them filled. There was no room for another when the door slid open to reveal their surprise guest. And based on the nonreactions from the nobles that had gathered for the meeting, it would have only been a surprise to Yuuji. Which only solidified his theory further.
Sukuna, for his part, was wearing more formal attire. His chest was completely covered too. It looked… not bad, but… restrictive. Like this was nothing more than a performance and it might as well be. Maybe it was the opposite end of posturing that Yuuji had chosen with wearing his regular everyday yukata while everyone else was dressed semi-formally. The curse surveyed the room giving no indication that he expected Yuuji or if he too was surprised to see him. It wasn't lost on Yuuji that the man's lower set of arms were tucked away out of sight
“Ryoumen Sukuna,” the host of this farce addressed the curse as he ducked under the doorway inside to join their meeting. “You’ve heeded our summons, so let us begin.” Yuuji patiently listened to them start discussing matters of the land. Who owned it, who had a right to control it. They didn’t like Sukuna establishing his own place nearby. Said it was liable to cause problems. This was the first he’d ever heard of it.
“Enlighten me on what these ‘problems’ could possibly be,” Sukuna continued on unfazed by their attempts to get him to relent, “Because the truth is that you were neglecting that piece of land. I merely claimed what you didn’t want.” No one had made an offer for him to sit. They didn’t even make an attempt to keep up that pleasantry. The fact, if it did bother Sukuna, didn’t show as he casually gestured, “Do not hide behind imaginary issues. You do not take issue with someone claiming that land; you take issue with me claiming it.”
“Hmph, very well.” The raven-haired host now outwardly as irritated as the others in the meeting at Sukuna’s brazen attitude. “If we shall speak plainly, either relinquish your hold on that land or you will be dealt with.”
“Oh?” The little hint of a smile on Sukuna’s lips showcasing his amusement at the blatant threat. “And how would you deal with me?”
“We have our own protector of this land.” The center of attention fell to Yuuji, and he knew that his prior conclusion had been correct. “He will take care of you as need be for your transgressions.”
Yuuji’s eyes snapped to the black-haired host. Not bothering to mask his intensity as the immortal man said, “For what?” The host had the nerve to look flabbergasted. Like Yuuji would just do whatever they asked of him because he lived nearby. Yuuji kept staring as he rose from his seat. “For what?”
“He is a blight on society.” The host gestured at the man they had forced to stand while they all tried to talk down to him. “Nothing good comes from curses like him.”
“So you thought you could use me because you’re a coward.”
The host at least tried to look guilty, “This is for the good of society.”
“No, it’s to ease your own fears while hiding behind ‘good intentions.’”
“He has slaughtered more sorcerers and villages than one can count!” The others in the meeting nodding in agreement with the host. “We are only prolonging an inevitability.”
Maybe if Yuuji was much younger he might have agreed with them. Sukuna does as he wishes. There’s no controlling him, but then again there’s no controlling anyone. Yuuji believed that the curse had done those things even if he wasn’t there to witness them. The reasons for why he did it could only come from one person here. Sukuna could slaughter everyone he came across: sorcerer or non-sorcerer. No one stood a chance. Yet enough people survived to tell the tale of his destruction.
“An execution based on a crime he hasn’t committed is murder at best,” Yuuji spoke as he calmly stepped across the tatami to be right in front of the host, “and hysterical brashness over the potential future at worst.” The host, in his pristine attire, didn’t look away from Yuuji’s gaze. Steeliness lining the noble man’s frustration. “You are willing to risk that thing killing innocents?” The underlying note was clear: ‘you are willing to defy your better’s judgement?’ They did not care about potential innocent lives being taken. If they did, they would have told their staff well in advance that Sukuna would be attending. They could hide all they wanted behind the ‘good of the people’ but when it came down to it all they wanted was a sword to direct at anything that would not yield to their authority.
“Let me make this very clear.” Yuuji leaned down as he let a little of his cursed energy seep out to create an eerie air around himself. “I am not your weapon.” The pathetic man had the good sense to bow his head. “I will never be your weapon.” The immortal sorcerer taking the time to slowly look around the room meeting the eye of every noble until they too glanced away from him. He came back to the coward of a man in front of him. “Remember that.” Turning on his heel, he could feel Sukuna’s eyes tracking him as the immortal man came to a stop beside the supposed curse.
“Do whatever you like with the nobles here.” Yuuji ignored the sharp inhale of said nobles. As if they had any right to be offended. “Leave the servants alone.”
“Are you trying to give me orders?” Yuuji didn’t meet the icy blue eyes he could feel staring down at him.
“Take it however you like,” Yuuji felt some of the bone weariness seeping in. He was having such a fun time the past few days too. He resumed walking for the entrance. “I’m done here.”
The nobles pleaded for him to reconsider, but he didn’t heed them once. The sound muffling altogether as the door slid closed behind him.
The new village Yuuji lived by was having a festival of some kind. He only knew because he had arrived with the intent to pick up a few things before trekking back to his new home. And when he meant lived by the village, he meant that it was the closest one from his hermit of a little shack deep in the woods. Hopefully this would be the last time he had to relocate. The entire process was getting bothersome. It made him feel like his years were catching up on him. Now if only that were true.
The entire energy of the place was off from what the elder had expected. He didn’t have the mental fortitude to meet it right now. As he wandered about trying to locate a good tailor, even asking for directions, he could feel his own sense of self floating above it all as his body interacted with these people. Waiting for someone to make a connection. To stare a little too long like they knew him. What they knew of Yuuji. Who even is that? Surprisingly no one spared him any of those things. They sent him in the direction he needed and went off to do who knows what. The festival must be a big deal here seeing as how he was directed to a clearly closed shop.
Yuuji bit back a sigh. Turning his back on the one thing he had mustered up the energy for. He would have to come back another day. The idea itself settling around his shoulders weighing him down and slowing his footsteps. Someone might recognize him when he did come here again. The thoughts kept swirling loudly in his head that he did not hear someone calling after him. Not even when they were right behind him.
The immortal man lurched to a halt. Staring down at the short white-hair of the person who had stepped in front of him hands pressed against Yuuji’s chest to stop the man from moving any further. They pulled their hands back, straightened their kimono, and bowed to him at what was about as close to a ninety-degree angle as you could get which was pretty impressive. Impressive enough to pull him back into his body for this odd exchange.
“Yuuji-sama,” the address sparking a slight disdain. He hated being put on a pedestal. They straightened from their bow to look up at him with crystal clear, determined pink eyes. Yuuji’s mind finally made the connection that their name was Uraume. “I humbly ask that you come with me.”
“Ah,” Yuuji stepped around them, “no. I’m going home.” He made it all but a few steps before they were in front of him again. “Wait!” They held out their hand when he tried to go around again. “Please.” Yuuji held back the sigh that went straight to his bones. He could feel himself growing more mentally distant. They were away from the more condensed part of the streets. He could hear them out even though he wanted nothing more than to crawl into bed. Uraume straightened up once it was clear the sorcerer wouldn’t be leaving again.
“I’m certain Sukuna-sama would be glad to see you.” Their eyes a muted dazzle of emotion.
“Why’s Sukuna here?” The question falling out of its own volition. There was barley any inflection in his voice. He should care that Sukuna was in some random village. He really should. Uraume had enough enthusiasm for the both of them, “They’re paying their dues to him. As they should.” They indicated to the festival happening a ways behind him. “Your presence would be a pleasant surprise.”
Yuuji wanted absolutely nothing to do with that. He would already have to go through the mental preparation of talking to everyone here again and them making connections. Getting chummy with Sukuna when the villagers obviously revered or feared him would expediate it tenfold. He was so tired. The sorcerer scratched the back of his neck.
“Sorry, I don’t think I can. I’m not feeling well.” Yuuji put a hand on the young curse users’ shoulder and mustered up a half smile. “Try and have some fun, okay?” He wasn’t stopped a third time as he stepped around them.
“Safe travels, Yuuji-sama,” Uruame called after him. The sorcerer raised a hand in acknowledgement without turning around. The hint of concern in the ice users’ expression going unnoticed as they watched the mysterious man disappear into the distance.
The slick sound of a blade against flesh reverberated in the silence of the woods. Droplets hitting the ground in steady streams of red rivulets. The wound closed up. The tip of the blade pressed into his elbow before slicing down his forearm again. Yuuji watched the blood quickly bead up and spill out of the gash. The strange detachment that floated around him like a ghost only encouraging him to leave the wound open longer before the sensible side of him told him to close it.
He knew he should care. He knew he should. But-
The sharp sting of the self-inflected cut in the same place on his opposite arm barely made a dent in his apathy. The blood flowing out down his arm to coat the ground. Staining it a dark pigment.
Sukuna was nearby. He knew he shouldn’t be showing this side of himself to him of all people. It would only be used against him. But again- The slice of the knife cut deeper than intended. Yuuji flinched letting out a hiss of a gasp at the lingering shock pulling him back into his body. He could hear his heartbeat clearly alongside his small pants for breath. The world was sharp again. The grip of the knife in his hand. The cold boulder he was sitting on. A pang of anxiety at trying to gauge how long it’s been since he’s been this self-aware. The knife fell out of his grip.
Yuuji didn’t bother with cleaning the blood off his arms as he slouched forward elbows on his knees, head in his hands. He knows he should care that he was willingly hurting himself. That this isn’t good for him. But… Yuuji gripped at his hair.
What else am I supposed to do?
The question went unanswered. Just the silence of the forest to keep him company. No one else to witness Yuuji. No one at all. Without the disconnect from his body, he could feel the ever-present melancholy creeping in at his situation since arriving. The immortal man sat there for a good while before he finally got up picking up the knife as he did. He washed up at the nearby stream, not that it really mattered, before making his way back. The walk didn’t do much for clearing his head.
There was someone clad in a black haori over the large stature of a figure at his home. Oh, right. Sukuna. The slow thought came to him as drew closer only stopping once he was within plain view to observe the other.
Sukuna’s hand rested against the wall of his little abode. “Do you have anything of value in here?”
“What?” Yuuji’s melancholy leaking in confusion, “What’re you-“ He didn’t get the chance to finish before cursed energy permeated the air. Controlled, precise, cursed energy that within tenths of a second reduced his humble little home into finely sliced pieces raining down into a pile of what it had once been. Sukuna raised his arms up like he wasn’t the source of what just happened, “Oh no, you have no place to stay.” Yuuji barely heard him over the buzzing in his ears. Stuck staring at where his home should have been. The only thing that made him look away was the hand that clamped over his arm and started pulling him away into the woods. Glancing back over his shoulder at the retreating rubble. “Wait,” Yuuji dug his heels in pulling back. That was his home. He couldn’t just leave it. The single hand turned into multiple that lifted him up to fully carry him like a child or a brittle old man, and oh that got the embers of his anger sparking. “Would you-“ Yuuji shoved hard against the man’s chest and kicking at him until he got one then both feet on the ground, and grabbing a hold of the hand that still wouldn’t let go as he twisted at the hip fully throwing the curse over his shoulder. The resounding thud of Sukuna’s back hitting the ground echoing in the emptiness of the forest. Yuuji had fallen to his knees in the process, the man still refusing to let go, so he was looking straight down at Sukuna whose bright blues spoke of clarity infused calmness. Yuuji’s breaths were labored but not from the physical exertion. “I said wait.” The words scathing as they fell out. There was something inside him that had shifted to the left in seeing the only thing he had left to his name in pieces. This was his only space left in the world. He couldn’t go to others on this. He had to fix this himself. And this man…
“You don’t get to make my decisions for me,” Yuuji refused to look away from blue that could melt the coldest of snow. A hint of interest catching in the reflection of the mid-day sun. It always came back to what Sukuna wanted. Never mind what Yuuji did. It would be fitting to call it unfair, but if that were the case then he would have to call his whole life unfair and the budding frustration at a life and calling he never asked for but not regretting meeting the people and experiences he had clashing together in a heart wrenching cocktail of agony and sorrow.
“They will find you regardless of where you are in the world.” The deep voice pulling Yuuji out his self-spiral. Blinking once to fully see the man still staring back at him from below. Clarity shining brightly as if he was looking within Yuuji. “Why isolate yourself to steep in your own misery?”
Something in his mind that had been tipping on the edge for who knows how long, slipped and shattered. Is this my life now? His fear coming back to ask the same question. Did he want to live like this? Constantly putting himself into a corner where he can’t interfere with anything and he has no one to talk to. The strongest. Neither a person nor someone to be asked after to see how he’s doing. Only ever sought out for his strength. I’m never going to see Kugisaki again, am I? The sting of tears in the corner of his eyes had him squeezing his eyes shut to hold them back. Leaning forward until his forehead rested against Sukuna’s. The fabric of the man’s haori bunched in his hands somehow grounding him in this never-ending nightmare of reality.
There was no going back. That’s the truth he didn’t want to face. He had been clinging to the ever-fading hope that he would find a way back to the future. The future he had called home. …but was it really? There was only a hand full of people he still truly cared for that he’d want to see again. They’d be dying anytime soon too. Then it would just be him. Itadori Yuuji. The never-ending years stretching out ahead of him.
Yuuji took in a slow, shaky breath. Repeating it a few times until the urge to cry faded. Without opening his eyes, he sat up from where he still knelt leaning his head back to feel the warm rays of the sun on his skin. The offer in front of him was too tempting. He was too lonely. Yuuji knew that. The smaller, optimistic side of him pointed out that these roles were reversed in years long past. Not to curse someone, but to live with someone. The ache in his heart for something that simple couldn’t be denied. He would be a fool to reject it. The sky was still a peaceful blue above him. Not a cloud in sight. None of the modern world sounds in the distance to let him know that he wasn’t far from others. As much as he didn’t want to accept it, perhaps it was time that he started taking those steps. The world he knew was gone.
Yuuji let up his grip on Sukuna’s haori. Resting a hand on the one still holding him. “Let me grab a few things.” It took a few beats of silence before the man’s grip relented. Yuuji calmly rose to his feet trudging back the way they’d came. The rustle of the man getting up at his own pace behind him. The ruins of his little home didn’t stir any strong emotions. A home can be replaced. Yuuji carefully up turned pieces of wood to get his bearings on what part of the home he was standing in. It didn’t take long given its small size. Hand sized planks of sliced wood clattered over each other as pieces were tossed carelessly. In what had been his bedroom, there was the one thing he valued. The few things he couldn’t give up. The ornate chest ordinarily wouldn’t have been anything he would buy for himself. It was big enough to hold a few pairs of yukata’s if you folded them well. Easy to carry too. Yuuji shielded the box with his body as he flipped the simple hook latch and opened it up. Folded neatly, tightly in place was the white zip up hoodie he had arrived in. He pressed in on the fabric feeling the indent of one, two objects hidden within it. For his own peace of mind since he was leaving this place behind, he felt along the inside of the hoodie until it bumped up against a wood carving. The grooves of it revealing it was a rough approximation of a wing. Right next to it, another wooden carving, an attempt at a wolf howling.
A bittersweet lightness in his chest took away some of that painful ache. Yuuji only realized his lips were pulled up in a tiny smile as he was putting the carvings and neatly folded modern clothing back into the chest. The latch fell back into place. Yuuji clutched the box against his chest as he stood up. It was by no means heavy, but something compelled him to hold it close. As if someone would take them away if he gave them any opportunity to do so. By virtue of habit alone, Yuuji picked up a few nails that had survived cleave. Of the five he found, he only kept two after a quick appraisal. She taught him well after all.
At the edge of what remained was Sukuna. Patiently waiting. Nothing showing on the man’s face of what he thought of the situation or what the eldest of the two was doing. Yuuji closed the distance between them stopping right before him. Not trusting his voice from how emotionally raw he felt, Yuuji nodded at Sukuna. The man gave a wave of one hand to the dirt path into the tree line. The displaced sorcerer took one last breath clutching the chest tighter against his chest, the metal of the nails pressing against the flesh of his palm and started walking. Not even a second passed before Sukuna was walking alongside him. Those who would stumble upon the remnants of the home would speculate a malevolent spirit must have torn the place apart. The lack of remains leading to the conclusion that the occupant must have been spirited away. Passersby offering prayers in hopes that the stranger would find peace wherever they are.