"...you did not side with your mother. You sided with the helm."
This line absolutely changes EVERYTHING about the Genesis War and really makes you reread previous issues because now a lot more shit makes a lot more sense. Heralds of Apocalypse and XMR #13 are gonna get a heavy reread from me after this because my mind is racing
JUST when I got comfortable with LocalMonero's community... it's shutting down.
hmmmm. do any of my fellow XMR enthusiasts have any alternate suggestions? (i guess P2P... willing to pay premium opposed to jumping thru endless identity hoops.....)
This chapter is a little longer than usual and very dialogue heavy. (also plenty of swearing). Sorry if the scene is disappointing but I'm not super good at fight scenes and I'm hoping to develop them as I go on. Also if I made [Name] OP then everything would be over too quickly.
Let me know what you think about the chapter in the comments (or the tags!!) enjoy
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Chapter Five:
âKugisaki-chan. Be honest with me. On a scale of Gojo to Yuji how stupid do you think I am?â
âEh? Do you really want me to answer that?â
â... Yesâ
âIf I had to pick an idiot Iâd say Gojo-sensei. He at least has the brain power to understand jujutsu. I mean heâs a childish and immature old man who ignores whatâs staring him right in his face but he wouldnât ask me what animal the pink panther was.â
[Name] uttered out a confused thank you before thinking âI have got to stop starting conversations like thisâ
He almost never gets the answer he wants. Itâs like as soon as he asks the question he becomes humanized and not a mysterious special grade sorcerer a few seconds from ending someoneâs life for finishing off the fruit snacks. (Based on a true story. Gojo can confirm.)
âYouâre welcome. Whyâd you ask anyway?â
âActually I think Iâll jinx it if I talk about it. Plus I donât want you to think poorly of your âsuperiorsâ but letâs just say there are people plotting behind my back and Iâm wondering if I have idiot written across the top of my headâ
âOkay... â
âOn a lighter note, do you think any of the other first years know how close we are?â
âI was asked whether or not the Pink Panther was a lion and spoken to in 6 word sentences just yesterday. Youâre the only person I can hang out with. The other two are people I spend time withâ
âWhat about Maki?â
âThatâs totally different. You should know you have a totally different relationship with Gojo and Inumaki.â
âExplainâ
âYou and Gojo fight and tease each other like siblings or something and you and Inumaki spend time alone. Together. And sometimes you like go out and eat food and stuffâ
[Name] absolutely hates talking on the phone and everyone knows this. Facetime has been like a happy medium whenever people need to get in touch with him but itâs still extremely annoying to have to have a face to face conversation over the phone.
âWhy are you calling me Gojo?â
âMy precious little [Name] I was just checking up on you to see how your day off is going?â
âIt was going fine until you called and interrupted my peaceâ
âDonât be like that [Name] I know you miss meâ
âAs if- No puppy- WAIT!â
Gojo furrowed his eyebrows â[Name]-chan?â
âHmm?â
âSince when do you have a pet?â
âI made Fushiguro give me one of his divine dogsâ
âAww. Thatâs so sweet of Megumi. But you canât keep calling him puppy. Give him a real nameâ
âHe does have a real name I call him yu-yuâ
âSo who were you calling Puppy?â
â...Yujiâ
â.....â
âDonât make it weirdâ
âItâs already weirdâ
âLook me in the camera and tell me he doesnât remind you of like a golden retriever or somethinâ
âYou made several points but stillâ
âItâs supposed to be derogatoryâ
âItâs a pet nameâ
âHeâs hyper, adorable and excitable. Iâm pointing out the obvious. Me calling him puppy has the same energy as calling someone four eyesâ
âIt does notâ
â....I have to go Yuji just found out about Megan Thee Stallionâ
----------------------------------------------
âAre you a Fall out boy emo or like Lorde sad boy?â
âThatâs a loaded questionâ
âIt most definitely isâ [Name] replied holding back laughter âBut I can like, vibe to either one so just play whatever music you like and Iâll enhance the atmosphere.â
â...Okayâ
That day was definitely the most relaxed Fushiguro had been in weeks, and [Name] learned some very interesting things about FushiguroâsâŠ. tastes. They definitely had some things in common.
-------------------------------------------------
âYouâre sending me on a missionâ
âYesâ
âAlone?â
â[L.Name] youâre a special grade sorcerer. You can handle a first-grade curse on your ownâ
âI most definitely can, but so can others. Both Gojo and Okkotsu are away on missions. Are you telling me in your expert wisdom, youâre making the choice to dispatch all of the Special Grade sorcererâs for first-grade curses? What if something happens on home turf.â
âI assure you if thereâs an attack on the school Principal Yaga can handle the threat.â
âIâm not talking about the school.â
There was a brief silence in which [Name] just stared âYou have your ordersâ
âI doâ
And [Name] absolutely did have his orders. Ones that aligned with his personal feelings. You see, a little while ago Gojo ordered [Name] to protect Yuji. And if anything were to happen to the precious angel, it would be the one day that both he and Gojo were away. Yaga cares more for the rules than Gojo or [Name]. That was one thing [Name] didnât like about both Yaga and Nanami. They cared about the kids, but only to an extent. In their eyes the kids would die out or grow older but rules wouldnât change, and Yujiâs life mattered less to them than the stagnant outdated rules.
The larger problem was whether or not [Name] was willing to face the consequences for not following orders from the ârespectedâ higher ups. Then there was the whole issue of actual people being in danger and that wouldnât go over well, not with the old assholes nor with [Name]âs conscience.
âI fucking hate Satoru.â [Name] thought as he set out to do actual work. Ever since he got sent on that mission he found himself caring for more and more people. If he was going to exorcise the curse and return to make sure Yuji and the others first years were all safe, he would have to race against the clock. There was no doubt in his mind that something was going to happen today and he knew Sukuna wouldnât let Yuji die without a fight.
âWhat the actual fuck is going on anymore?? THREE FIRST YEARS WERE SENT TO DEFEAT A WHAT?â [Name] yelled into the phone
âA cursed wombâ
âSay it as it really is Ijichi! They were sent in to fight a fucking special grade curse. Theyâre barely equipped to fight a second grade curse, and it isnât as if having you there is going to help them muchâ
Ijichi flinched at that. [Name] only went for low blows when he was pissed, and it was obvious pretty soon someone would have to face his wrath. And because he knew what was best for his safety and peace of mind, Ijichi answered [Name]âs question before he asked
âI warned them not to engage a special grade so they should be fine until you get here. I lowered the curtain myself so youâll be able to get in. Theyâre at Eishu Juvenile Detention Centerâ
âIâll be there in 10â
[Name] would probably make it in less time than that but he always made sure to be careful with making promises. There was always a chance he would run into some issues on the way there. Grabbing his things, he set out for the detention center hoping Nobara and Megumi were okay. Yuji was stronger than those two, though Megumi could be a suicidal idiot at times. If things got anymore serious theyâd let Sukuna out, but that would be a whole other problem.
âIjichi, iâm hereâ
â...[Name]â
âWhat?â
âKugisaki is hurt. I'm driving back to the school.â
âIf youâre driving back, why is the curtain still up?â
âFushiguro went back in to deal with Sukuna whoâs more than likely already taken care of the curse I recommend-â
[Name] hung up. âFucking rule followers and their precious higher ups. And look what a mess I have to take care ofâ he said as he looked up at the curtain. He sighed and then walked through
âI donât feel a curse- is that megumiâ [Name] thought aloud
âHe ainât coming backâ Sukuna teased âDonât worry Iâm in a good mood. Letâs talkâ
âIâm not feeling particularly chattyâ [Name] called out. Fushiguro and Sukuna turned to the second year in shock
âFushiguro you should goâ
âNo. Iâm not leaving you alone. And besides itâs my responsibility-â
âDo you think Iâm here to kill Yuji?â
â...â
âIâm here to rescue your sorry asses. I was sent on a mission earlier and came back in a hurry to make sure you were okay. Iâm a little sad I donât get to meet the curse that hurt poor Kugisaki-chan but heâll make doâ [Name]âs voice became darker the longer he went on
âMy fighting skill is nowhere near the level of Makiâs, but my cursed technique on the other hand⊠Donât worry, Yujiâll make it out aliveâ
Fushiguro hesitated. He trusted [Name], it was Sukuna who was the problem. The curse was cunning and took advantage of Fushiguroâs hesitation to enact his plan
âIt seems heâs having a hard time changing backâ Sukuna started âThis must be a side effect of using me without restrictions. Itâs most likely only a matter of time though⊠So iâve been thinking about my next move.â
Before [Name] or Fushiguro could realize, Sukuna had ripped Yujiâs heart out, smiling as blood dripped out of his mouth and the gaping hole in his chest. The two of them froze. If he were at his best [Name] wouldâve been able to stop Sukuna from continuing to monologue or even from swallowing another of his fingers. But he had defeated a first grade curse, dealt with the higher ups and rushed to the first yearsâ rescue within 3 hours.
Fushiguro seemed to follow the conversation as [Name] just stood there, his ears ringing as if he were standing too close to a bomb that went off.
âItadori will returnâ Megumi said confidently âEven if it means his death. Heâs that kind of guyâ
And Megumi was right, [Name] knew of it. So he made a sacrifice. Fushiguro would have to deal with Sukuna while [Name] figured out what to do next. With two fingers Sukuna mightâve been able to resist [Name]âs compulsion. âNoâ he thought âit would take a few more fingers before he was that strong.â
âStopâ
The both of them froze in place. There was a trail of blood running down Yujiâs chest but [Name] could tell Sukuna had done more damage to Megumi than Megumi had done to Yujiâs body
âStay out of my way Megumiâ [Name] said before looking in Sukunaâs eyes âYuji, if you can hear me. Iâm sorryâ
âThis bratâs not worth the effortâ Sukuna smirked. He may not have been able to move but he was going to try and tempt the second year into losing his composure.
âChokeâ
Sukuna began to gargle on the blood that was supposed to be pumping through Yujiâs body. Choking, he fell on the ground. Megumiâs eyes widened and he moved to say something but [Name] shot him a desperate, angry look picking up Yujiâs discarded heart shoving it into the empty cavity.
âHeal Himâ
âItâs too late [Name]â
âYuji?? No! NO! YUJI! SWITCH BACK I CAN MAKE HIM HEAL YOUâ
âMegumi. [Name]. And Kugisaki and Gojo-sensei. Well I guess I donât have to worry about him. Live a long life okay?â Yuji smiled as tears dripped onto his face
âI Heard A Rumorâ [Name] whispered âThat nothing happened and you were gonna be okayâ
âWhat a nice rumor senpaiâ âYuji whispered back before the light in his eyes faded
Fushiguro laid a hand on [Name]âs shoulder looking up to the sky as he tried to keep from crying. [Name] let out a pained scream shocking Fushiguro. Megumi wrapped his arms around [Name] trying to pull him up and meeting resistance Fushiguro just walked toward the exit before stopping. Without looking back he said âIâll send Gojo to collect you bothâ and then walked off.
Gojo did come back to pick up the body and the shell shocked [Name] but when he showed up there was nothing there. As if the land behind the two had just up and walked away. Gojo wasnât informed of [Name]âs rumor but assumed the boy did it out of rage. He was the only one able to wipe a location off the map so cleanly. What he didnât realize that if the land had returned to its natural state as if nothing had ever happened, Yuji was bound to be okay