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“Let go of ME!”
Yuuji kicked at the jean-clad leg once they had gone– had gone wherever Gojo had taken them.
The foot never connected.
Is this– the Limitless that Sensei talked about? The infinity?
Yuuji tugged on the hold on his wrist, struggling against the hand of the Strongest Jujutsu sorcerer. “Let GO! TAKE ME BACK! TAKE ME BACK TO SENSEI!”
Okay, maybe Yuuji was throwing a little bit of tantrum right now with his flailing and his kicking and his screaming. Maybe he was. Jii-chan would be SO embarrassed if Yuuji acted like this in public.
Yuuji didn't care.
His world had gotten turned upside down too many times in the last week, and his only constant during that time had been his new Sensei. Geto Suguru had been a rock for him to lean on, a sparring partner for Yuuji to go full-force against when his emotions were out of control and he couldn't talk properly.
Sensei had been a safe space.
When Yuuji had asked why, Sensei smiled at him. One of those soft, secretive-like smiles that made it seem like he was sharing a unique secret that only Yuuji would know.
“I was once in your shoes, Yuuji-kun. Well, not perhaps the same ones, but I was once incredibly new to the jujutsu world.”
Sensei was kind and empathetic and soft when he needed to be. He was a rock that Yuuji had needed.
Yuuji knew his attachment to his sensei was probably not a good thing in the long run. Sensei was a human like anyone else. He had his flaws that Yuuji simply didn't know right now.
Did Yuuji care about that right now?
Absolutely not!
For this so-called Strongest sorcerer to yank him away from the person he needed–!
“Do you even know what happens to vessels?” Gojo asked in a conversational tone as he tugged Yuuji along, as if Yuuji weighed nothing. He was completely ignoring Yuuji's demands as he tugged Yuuji deeper and deeper into wherever they were. Wherever Gojo had taken them.
“I don't care! Take me back!”
“Not even Suguru could protect you from death, Yuuji. While he's incredible, he doesn't have enough pull. You'll be executed before long–”
“I KNOW THAT ALREADY!” Yuuji shouted, and Gojo stopped pulling. Stopped moving. Yuuji twisted his arm, twisted his wrist.
Gojo wouldn't let go.
In fact, his grip had gotten tighter.
“I know I'm going to die already!” Yuuji huffed, finally giving up on escaping the hold. “I'm fully aware of it. I chose it regardless.”
“Why?”
Gojo's tone was flat. Dead.
Kinda scary.
Yuuji didn't care.
“Because it was either be executed on the spot, or be executed after I complete my purpose.” Yuuji's hand was starting to hurt. “I'm the only one who can do what I do, who has survived what has been done to me! So I'm going to do it and I'll do it gladly!”
Gojo's jaw twitched.
"What exactly is your purpose, little Yuuji?”
“Under no circumstances, do you tell Gojo Satoru that you're a vessel, do you understand?”
That rule has been broken by Gojo himself.
But Yuuji could keep who was held captive in his skin a secret, if Sukuna didn't decide to poke his eye and mouth out.
“None of your business.” Yuuji huffed.
Gojo's phone started ringing, some sort of love song, and he started walking again, one hand delving into the pocket and answering.
~~~~~~~~~~
Satoru didn't often make impulsive decisions.
He knew it was what it looked like, often. Especially to his one and only, Suguru.
But Satoru weighed everything heavily before he took action, he couldn't afford any backlash, not truly. He may be holding the old goats hostage, but he knew they were plotting ways to defeat him.
However, there was always an exception.
Threats to his family and to Suguru, for one. Or two, Satoru wasn't counting, but he kinda lumped them together.
But. . . .
Vessels always tended to make Satoru act rashly.
Ever since Riko.
Satoru cut himself off from those thoughts and answered the phone call from Suguru. He won't get any answers from Yuuji, so he might as well grill his best friend if Suguru still thought of him like that for some answers.
“Moshi mosh~!”
“GOJO SATORU!”
“Ah, full name. How scary~!”
An inhale was heard down the line, and Satoru could picture, could juuuuusstt picture his best friend pinching the bridge of his nose.
“Do you have ANY idea of what you've done?”
Uh oh. Suguru was sounding like there were consequences to him taking Yuuji-kun. Consequences that extended beyond just Yuuji-kun’s execution being delayed.
Interesting, but also uh oh.
“Uhm, saved a vessel from execution?” Satoru replied in a “duh” tone, knowing it would rile Suguru up. “One moment Suguru.”
“Sen–”
The kid didn't get the chance to yell as Satoru tucked him under his arm like a loaf of bread and opened the door to Megumi’s room. He then proceeded to toss the kid in.
“Wha–”
“THE HELL–”
“Play nice boys~! Megumi, he'll try to escape, keep an eye on him, ‘kay? Thanks bye!”
Satoru closed the door on any complaints and placed the phone back to his ear. “Okay, I'm back Suguru.”
A soft growl down the phone, and Satoru was chuckling. His best friend, his one and only, really hadn't changed much, had he?
“Do you have ANY idea of who Yuuji-kun is a vessel to?”
“Nope! The kid wouldn't tell me when I asked.” Satoru hummed, walking through the kitchen and pat Mimiko on the head as he snagged a cookie. “Absolutely feral kid you have– well, had, Suguru. Tried to kick me and threw a tantrum when I wouldn't let go.”
“What a fucking surprise.” Suguru's sharp tone bit through the speaker to his ear. “Considering that Yuuji-kun learned about the jujustu world a whopping five days ago. And lost his grandfather in that first day. Then after seeing curses for the first time ever, mind you, became a vessel.”
Satoru grimaced as he munched on the cookie. He didn't like the tone and he didn't like the information given to him.
“Don't try to make me the bad guy here Suguru.”
“I'm not.” Suguru sniped back. “I'm simply informing you that you ripped away a teen from his safe space and his safe person, and thereby telling you why said teen is acting that way. And if your conscience happens to label you as the bad guy for that, then maybe you should look at yourself.”
Satoru huffed, leaning against the counter.
Mimiko made the knife against the neck mime, motioning to the phone. Satoru shook his head, making his daughter huff.
So cute.
“Well I'm not the bad guy here you know! Besides, what does it matter what type of curse a vessel Yuuji is–”
“Ryomen Sukuna.”
Satoru stopped cold as he was leaving the kitchen.
“Papa?” Mimiko's voice sounded faintly, as if underwater, but he waved her off and started to walk back to Megumi's room.
“What do you mean he's Sukuna's vessel!?” Satoru hissed into the phone as he speedwalked.
“Exactly that.” Suguru replied with ease, although Satoru could still hear notes of tension. “Why do you think I asked you for help?”
Satoru swallowed down his selfish reply, the one he wanted to respond with.
I thought it was because you wanted to see me again.
“Satoru, he needs to come back.”
That broke Satoru out of his shock and hurt, making him stop and laugh a sharp laugh. “You're insane if you think I'm going to bring him back now that I know who he's a vessel for.”
“Satoru!”
“If he can control it, I'll teach him here. He's a nice addition to my family, got some spunk that most of my kids don't–”
“His li–”
“Bye bye Suguru-sensei~! Have fun this semester!” Satoru trilled, before he clicked the button to end the phone call. Damn, he already missed talking to Suguru.
For the second time today, Gojo Satoru threw the door open to his son Megumi's room.
Megumi was knocked out, and his Divine Dogs were also knocked out.
Satoru yanked his phone out and dialed Suguru. “Where the fuck is he!?”
“You lost my kid!? Congratu-fucking-lations Satoru, not even I was that careless.”
“I left him with Megumi!”
“A little hint, Satoru? Yuuji-kun is quite adept at hand-to-hand combat. Something I could have TOLD YOU if you hadn't hung up on me!”
“You couldn't have told me BEFOREHAND!?” Satoru huffed, yanking his glasses off and his Six Eyes flowed, searching around the house for the newest cursed energy signature he had learned.
“Moreover! If you would just listen! Yuuji-kun’s life–”
“Found you.” Satoru found Yuuji at the edge of the property. Damn the kid was fast. “Ja ne, Suguru.”
“SATOR–”
Click
~~~~~~~~~~
Yuuji's breath was coming out in controlled huffs of air as he raced through the forest surrounding this house.
The boy in the house he had been stuck with for a few minutes had told him that this was the way out.
“Why are you helping?”
“You want to go back. And you have someone waiting for you, don't you? That's who was on the phone with Gojo. So get going.”
“U-uhn. Thank you, Megumi.”
“Fushiguro. My name is Fushiguro. Now go, before he comes back.”
Rappelling off of the trees and rocks, he was so close to the line of the trees that were the end of the property line–
Yuuji started glowing blue.
“Wha–”
“Blue, the attraction factor.” Sensei put the second finger down.
Yuuji shot backwards, nearly hitting a tree on the way, but he twisted to avoid it.
His back was suddenly hitting someone's palm, and Yuuji glared upwards with all the strength he had at Gojo, who looked somehow both smug and exhausted at the same time.
“Have you gotten the urge to run out of your system yet?”
“No.”
Yuuji knew his tone was somewhat petulant. He honestly didn't care. He wanted to go back to Sensei and he wanted to get out of here.
Yuuji couldn't see the intense blue eyes from here, but the furrowed brows told him that Gojo wasn't happy with him. “Why can't you just be a good kid and stay here? You might actually like it, despite being a vessel.”
“Because my life isn't the only one on the line here!” Yuuji tried to twist out of Blue’s hold.
Miraculously, it worked.
Un-miraculously, it meant that Yuuji nearly landed on his head and nearly lost more brain cells if he hadn't got his hands and arms out in time.
Looking up, the look on Gojo's face told him that he hadn't escaped the hold of Limitless, Gojo had merely been shocked into letting go.
Gojo. . . .
Gojo looked furious, even though Yuuji didn't know what his fury looked like, and Yuuji resisted the urge to scramble away on his hands and knees.
"I need to go back.” Yuuji said softly. “If I don't, Sensei's life is forfeit.”
Yuuji glowed blue again, and was yanked to Gojo’s side. “Hey! Let go! I need to go back–”
“No.”
Yuuji's mouth closed with an audible click. The aura surrounding the man in front of him was scary. During his time in the jujutsu world, the only scary-ish adults were the elders that Geto-sensei had talked about, but Yuuji had never met them. Yaga-sensei was really nice once Yuuji had gotten to know him.
But this Gojo guy–
The man seemed to grow cold.
Yuuji wanted Sensei.
Sensei was warm. He was understanding. He wanted to help Yuuji and he wanted Yuuji back by his side apparently, seen by the call that Sensei had tried to give to Gojo.
Sensei was an adult that cared.
Was probably the first adult that cared for Yuuji ever. Ever since Tou-san died probably. Jii-chan tried his best, but usually it was Yuuji taking care of Jii-chan.
Geto-sensei was the first person, the first adult to take care of Yuuji.
Gojo started messing with his phone as he tugged Yuuji along, as if he was a balloon.
Yuuji felt slighted.
Yuuji wanted to cry.
Gojo placed the phone to his ear, anger lining every part of his body.
“You want to explain to me why you didn't start with the fact that you've also put your life on the line, Suguru?”
~~~~~~~~~~
Suguru felt a chill run down his spine at his best friend’s old friend's question.
The anger quickly took over and made him answer on autopilot.
“I tried! YOU didn't let me! Every time I tried to, you cut me off, Satoru!”
His– his acquaintance? His friend? His– his Satoru, Suguru settled on they had never really defined their relationship before Satoru had left, had they– sounded off. Cold. Upset, when he asked that question.
“Satoru, where is Yuuji-kun?”
“Hmm? Oh, he's right beside me. Floating like a little balloon.” The tone was a strained teasing, but it was lighter, warmer than before.
“Satoru, you need to give him back.” Suguru said slowly. “You ripped him away from me.”
“Aw, missing your little duckling? Although I would compare him to a Kirby, myself. Since he did eat the finger and all. What did that taste like anyways kid?”
“Satoru!” Suguru felt like he was back in time, back in Jujutsu Tech again, as a student this time. Trying to keep his unruly friend under check and trying to save Yaga-sensei some headaches. Satoru had listened to him usually.
Up until the mission to protect Amanai Riko.
The Star Plasma Vessel.
Everything happened after that day, it seemed like.
“What? I'm making conversation with your kid!”
A silent "I'm being nice!" from Satoru. How sweet. Please note the immense sarcasm.
Suguru inhaled.
“Satoru. Give him back.”
“And let the higher-ups kill you and him for supposed defection? Not likely~!” Satoru’s irritatingly playful tone held a rather menacing note in it.
“If you aren't going to give him back. . .” Suguru inhaled. “What are you going to do, exactly?”
“Isn’t it obvious?”
~~~~~~~~~~
Yuuji watched the man glow purple.
“I'm going to kill the higher-ups for even thinking that they could lay a hand on you. Oh, and for thinking that they could lay a hand on Yuuji too.”
A large, cold hand ruffled Yuuji's hair.
Yuuji found himself too scared to say anything.