Chapter Text
“What a disgrace! Our clan will never be accepted back into Jujutsu society if children like this keep being born!” The current clan head barked.
“It’s not the baby’s fault!” Kayoko didn’t cower under Inumaki Kousei’s intense glare. She cradled her newborn closer, protecting him. Her husband was close beside her, quickly backing her up.
“Exactly. We will raise Toge well, he won’t end up like the trai—”
“Don’t you dare mention him! Even if this child is raised correctly it will not undo our past! We’d finally had two generations that were clean, this is truly disgraceful, I should have you both removed from the estate.”
“Master Kousei, there is no need to go that far.” Kousei’s second in command tried to interject but was swiftly dismissed.
“They used to remove cursed speech users' tongues, they should consider it a mercy that I’m not ordering to have that practice brought back!” Kousei fumed.
“We are grateful that you’re allowing Toge to keep his speech.” Kayoko quickly bowed her head. “I believe that we as a clan can move forward from our past, those born with cursed speech should not have to be shunned.”
“It must be nice believing in such a fairytale. All it takes is for one more person to go rogue and the higher ups will have us wiped out. You will pay with your lives if that child so much as takes a single step out of line.” Kousei glared down at the baby in her arms. “Remember that well.”
“Yes, sir.” Both parents replied in unison.
“Shin, you’re in charge of training him. Make sure you’re strict.” Kousei turned to the older man to his left with a pointed look.
Inumaki Shin was the only other remaining clan member that possessed the snake and fangs seal. The markings that made one capable of cursed speech. He nodded to Kousei before turning to the distressed family in front of him. He smiled kindly.
‘Don’t worry, I will take good care of him.’ He signed the words to them despite knowing they wouldn’t understand. The couple bowed to him in thanks.
“I said be strict. The responsibility of keeping him in check lies on your shoulders just as much as his parents.” Kousei grumbled but Shin paid him no mind and continued to smile.
— — — —
Toge had found himself training with an odd group that day. It had just been him and Panda at first but then Yuji and Nobara had shown up to join them. Once they’d gone through the usual regimen, the four of them collapsed back onto the grass beside the training grounds.
“I’m hungry~~” Yuji complained the moment he hit the ground.
“Salmon.” Toge agreed.
“Yeah I could really go for some right now~”
“Hey have you guys checked out that new app that’s been trending all over the place lately?” Nobara asked, scrolling around on her phone, probably opening said app.
“Is it that dumb love compatibility one?” Yuji wondered aloud, leaning over Nobara’s shoulder to try and see what she was doing. She immediately moved away from him, not letting him get a peek.
“It’s not dumb! The results are supposed to be really accurate.”
“It just gave you a good score with Maki right?”
“N-no.” Nobara didn’t do a good job of hiding the slight blush that appeared across her cheeks. “Anyway! I figured it’d be fun to put you guys in here and see what happens.” She grinned evilly at Yuji.
“Wh—”
“Before you say anything I already put the two of us in here and we got 2%.” She cut Yuji off. He pouted in response, having lost the ammo he had. “Ok let’s see~ I’ll put you with Fushiguro...”
Everyone was leaning over her shoulders now, watching the little heart icon dance about as it calculated their score. Eventually it flipped around to display a number.
“57%... not bad.” Nobara nodded.
“Try putting Panda in there!”
“Will an app like this even work for someone like me?” Panda mused from behind them.
Nobara was already entering names, putting Yuji’s again along with Panda. The result didn’t take long this time, almost immediately flipping over to display 0%.
The four of them couldn’t help but laugh.
“Yeah, sorry Panda but I was kinda expecting that one.” Yuji said.
“Same.” Panda agreed.
“Ok then enough messing around, it’s Inumaki’s turn.” Nobara laughed smugly as she began typing his name in. Toge watched on curiously, feeling an odd sense of nervousness settle in his stomach.
He stole a glance at Yuji. They hadn’t known each other very long, but he’d found Yuji to be a nice guy. He was determined, strong and cared for those around him. Toge found himself thinking that he wouldn’t mind if their compatibility score was high.
Too absorbed in his thoughts, Toge almost didn’t register Nobara’s shocked gasp.
“Woah!” She exclaimed. Everyone else leaned closer to get a better look, a large 97% was glowing and spinning around the screen.
“Dang, was that higher than what you got with Maki?” Yuji asked bluntly.
“Shut up about Maki!” Nobara scolded, pushing him away before adding in a mumble “...It actually is though.”
“It probably just pulls a random number.” Yuji said, coming to sit beside Nobara again. His gaze flicked to Toge for a second before returning to the phone. Toge had also been looking at him so he had noticed the slightly bashful look that was in Yuji’s eyes.
“Does not! Look let’s try a different site.” Nobara muttered, furiously typing into the search bar. A couple moments later, a new number was displayed.
98%.
Everyone just stared at the screen in awe. Without prompting, Nobara began typing again, opening yet another site.
95%, 97% again, 99%....
The four of them all sat in a stunned silence. Even if the calculators were just pulling random numbers, getting that many high rolls in a row was a feat in itself. Nobara glanced over her shoulders between Toge and Yuji.
“I think you guys are fated partners or something.”
“As I said before, it's not based on anything! These sites must give high results on purpose!” Yuji tried to reason, cheeks having grown noticeably more red after all the results.
“Salmon.” Toge agreed, glad his high collar hid whatever the state of his own face was.
He didn’t believe there was any basis for the numbers the calculators were giving but it was still kind of embarrassing. It had made his mind wander to what it would even be like dating Yuji. Or dating someone in general. Toge had never dated anyone, it was difficult to get close to people with such a limited vocabulary.
The names they entered into the love calculator eventually changed to celebrities, game characters and mascots.
Yuji had even seized Nobara’s phone at one point to passionately type in his own name along with Jennifer Lawrence. Only for the result to flip around to yet another outstanding 0%. Yuji had wordlessly given Nobara her phone back after that.
Before long, the sun had begun to set and the four of them had to head back to the dorms.
Toge said his goodbyes and started heading in the direction of his room when Yuji unexpectedly fell into step beside him.
“How weird were those scores huh?” Yuji said, flashing an almost nervous looking grin.
“Salmon.”
They continued walking a few more paces before Yuji spoke up again.
“But um, if it means that we’re likely to get along then I think that’s cool.”
Toge glanced up at him, surprised at how honest he was being.
“Salmon.” Toge agreed again, eyes snapping back to what was ahead of him. For some reason the idea made him happy, a warm feeling settling in his chest.
***
Despite not wanting to believe there was any merit to those questionable matchmaking sites, Toge had discovered that he and Yuji actually had some things in common.
Ever since that day Toge had started paying closer attention to the new student. They often ate lunch and dinner around the same time in the dorm’s dining hall. It was through these casual meetings that Toge found out that Yuji also had an interest in food. He never complained about what was served, happily chomping down anything and everything. He didn’t even complain when natto was given as a side.
Sometimes Toge had even caught Yuji tapping away at his phone, scrolling through his YouTube subscriptions. Toge had strained his eyes attempting to make out what was on the screen, but he could’ve sworn he saw some familiar food channels.
Apart from their hobbies though, Toge had also noticed something unexpected that Yuji had in common with him.
The reason Toge couldn’t speak freely was due to his cursed speech being a double edged sword. It did not discriminate in who it affected. If the being could hear then any command Toge uttered would take hold. Friend, foe or otherwise.
Not even Toge himself was safe, as the push back from powerful words could cause injury. The first time one of his words had ripped his own throat apart had been a wake up call.
A reminder that he wasn’t limiting his vocabulary for no reason.
In order to protect himself and those around him. He had to control himself. If he ever brought harm to somebody innocent again he wouldn’t be able to forgive himself.
He couldn’t stain the reputation of the Inumaki clan anymore than it already had been.
And this was where the similarity he’d noticed came in. Yuji currently housed Sukuna within his body. A being akin to a natural disaster, a being with so much power he could probably scale the entirety of Japan with one swipe if he really wanted to.
And the only thing that was keeping that evil at bay was Yuji. A teenage boy who had only just recently gotten himself caught up in the Jujutsu world.
Toge admired his strength, his mental fortitude. There’s no way that the thought of Sukuna forcibly taking control of him didn’t weigh on Yuji. At least, that’s what Toge thought. Yuji had never said anything to him about it, and always seemed so cheerful. By just looking at him there’s no way you’d be able to guess what it was that Yuji was burdened with.
Toge’s situation wasn’t as grave as Yuji’s, he knew that, since he was at least able to control his own powers. But they were both in a position where they had to make sure they didn't harm those around them. Toge almost found it oddly reassuring, knowing that he wasn’t the only one dealing with such a struggle. He wanted to support Yuji however he could.
The problem currently however, was actually striking up a conversation with Yuji.
He always seemed to be so busy, getting sent out on one mission after the other despite having only been enrolled into the school mere months ago. Toge saw him around the dorms and in the cafeteria, sure, but it never felt like the right time to talk to him. All they ever exchanged were a few polite words.
So instead, Toge opted to greet him with a small wave every time they passed by one another on campus. Yuji would always wave back, usual toothy grin on his face.
The only other times Toge got to interact with him was when they did training as a group together. But again, they never spoke more than necessary and were usually too caught up in the actual training to say anything else.
Simply put, they were in some sort of weird stalemate.
Toge didn’t want to consider that the matchmaking results may have something to do with it. Maybe Yuji felt awkward around him because of them? It’s not like he knew Toge very well at all after all, maybe getting so many ninety percent scores with a stranger was off putting.
“But um, if it means that we’re likely to get along I think that’s cool.”
The words Yuji had said that day replayed in Toge’s mind. If he was uncomfortable, then why did he say that? Toge shook his head, realising he was just overthinking things. All he had to do was actually say something to Yuji next time he saw him.
With a newfound resolve, Toge zipped up his uniform jacket with purpose. He reached for his dorm room door moments later. Today was the day he broke the stalemate.
He swore it.
Toge swug the door open a moment later, so caught up in his thoughts that he almost didn’t even register that someone was standing in the hallway already.
Toge’s eyes met wide brown ones as Yuji blinked down at him. He was standing in front of Toge's room, arm raised as if he were just about to knock. Toge stared up at him with a similarly shocked expression.
“Good timing.” Yuji laughed. “Gojo-sensei told me to get you, I think he has a mission for us.”
“Tuna mayo?”
“Yeah, he didn’t tell me to get anyone else so, it must just be the two of us.” Yuji explained before smiling. “Looking forward to working with you!”
“Salmon.” Toge agreed with a nod.
Well, he’d achieved his goal pretty quickly. Toge hadn’t been expecting Yuji to appear right in front of his dorm room door no less. They’d never been on a mission together before either, the thought alone was enough to up Toge’s heart rate.
Since Toge was Yuji’s senior he had to make sure he showed a good example. He couldn’t let anything happen to his underclassman under his watch either. Toge’s purple eyes shone with determination as he made sure to grab a bottle of throat medicine before following Yuji down the hall.
“I’m kinda excited to see you in action.” Yuji said over his shoulder. Toge just gave him a nod of acknowledgement. “We haven’t gotten to hang out much lately so I’m happy about that too~”
“Bonito flakes.”
“Are you telling me to take things more seriously? I know, don’t worry, the mission comes first.” Yuji laughed.
They eventually made it to the teacher’s area where Satoru was seated on one of the lush couches. He was looking over some documents but quickly abandoned them the moment the two boys stepped into the room.
“Morning~ I’m sending you two off to dispose of a Grade 2 curse that’s been causing some havoc nearby.”
“Ok!”
“Salmon.”
“Make sure he doesn’t go overboard, Inumaki.” Satoru turned to Toge, despite having his mask on, Toge could tell he was giving him a knowing look. Toge wasn’t really sure why, was this some kind of test?
Toge gave a nod, wondering what kind of curse awaited them.
***