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Kokichi could count himself lucky after the battle he managed to survive. He managed to contact Gojo and reveal the Disaster Curses' plan to seal him up on Halloween. Long story short, a massive crisis was averted and nothing bad happened to the residence of Shibuya.
For now, he wasn't sure how he was going to move forward. He never expected to survive past October 19th, but here he was, actually standing in his dorm room in Jujutsu Tech's Kyoto school. Even after Utahime's scolding, she wasn't as harsh towards him like he expected. He was temporarily suspended from sorcerer training for a week. So what was he to do until then?
His gaze was fixated on his reflection. Black hair tied up in a topknot, visible sharp brown eyes, unusually pale skin, slender arms and legs... This was the body he had dreamt about, donned in the uniform he had Ultimate Mechamaru wear for two years. He slowly raised his left arm up to his face. He had to remind himself that he was no longer back in that red-lit secluded room. He was looking at his own flesh body. He could actually blink and breathe without it feeling like needles were burrowed into his skin. It would take a while for him to get used to something simple as walking, along with him now having a right arm.
As Kokichi continued to check his reflection, he was startled by a sudden knock on the door. "It's Miwa," a voice revealed. "Can I come in?"
Kokichi smiled softly. "Sure," he replied. Kasumi Miwa was the first one who was quick to forgive him after the Kyoto students found out about his traitor reveal. Even after everything, she still treated him kindly, even making sure to address him as Muta while everyone else still called him Mechamaru.
Perhaps a little visit could help lift his spirits...
Miwa opened the door and carefully entered. "So what brings you here?" Kokichi asked, his gaze finally leaving the mirror to face her.
"I wanted to check in on you," Miwa revealed. "Life's been a little rough ever since Iori told us about the whole...traitor thing."
"I take it none of our classmates are happy with me," Kokichi assumed. "I figured that was the case since they don't call me by my actual name."
"It's a little more complicated," Miwa clarified. "Todo has this whole weird backstory about what he think happened, Kamo's stern as always, and Nishimiya wants to know why you were working with cursed spirits."
"And Zenin?" Kokichi asked.
"Dunno," Miwa admitted with a shrug. "She's quick to change topics. Sounds like she doesn't want to think about it."
"Has anyone want to speak to me for forgiveness?" Kokichi hoped.
Miwa thought about it for a while. "I don't think so," she answered. "They all share the same resentment over you causing that special grade attack during the Exchange Event. You might need to give them some space to cool down and think things over."
Kokichi sighed in defeat. "I had a feeling that would be the case," he said. But how long would it take for things to settle down?
"Hey, don't be so gloomy," Miwa cheerfully reassured. "Why don't we hang out today?"
"Don't you have training today?" Kokichi asked in response.
"I have today off," Miwa revealed. "Plus Todo's off on a mission while everyone else is still training. I was hoping you could accompany me so I wouldn't feel so lonely."
Kokichi bit his inner lip to hide a possible blush. Was Miwa...asking him out on a date? If so, it felt too good to be true. After all, he was under the assumption that she was into older men, given her apparent fascination with Gojo. Besides, it wasn't that long since they first made actual eye contact. He wasn't even sure if his new body matched her ideal type.
Then again, this supposed date would be a nice break from moping in his dorm room.
"What did you have in mind?" Kokichi asked.
"I'm glad you ask!" Miwa cheered.
Hayato Tokyo
That was the fancy lettering printed above a doorway. Kokichi could only stare at the sign in confusion. Why was this the first stop? More importantly, what kind of services did this building provide?
"...What's this?" Kokichi finally asked after a brief moment of silence.
"A hair salon," Miwa happily answered. She paused as realization hit her. "You've never been to one before?"
"I spent most of my life in a secluded room, with only puppets as my eyes to the outside world," Kokichi explained. "Those same puppets also took care of my daily needs, such as occasional haircuts."
"So you were never visited by an actual stylist?" Miwa realized. She saw Kokichi nod in response. "Well you're in luck! This particular salon has a stylist who knows about curses. She's like this dropout who went to beauty school, but she's super-nice. I stopped here a few years ago and she knew which hairstyle would look good on me."
Kokichi was surprised with this reveal. "She just...knows?" he repeated.
"Yep!" Miwa insisted. Then without warning, she grabbed Kokichi's wrist. "C'mon! Let's go in!"
Before Kokichi could protest, he found himself dragged into this Hayato Tokyo place. It didn't seem all that special with various people styling and cutting the hair of customers. Those same people must have been these stylists Miwa was talking about, but which one was the former Jujutsu Tech student?
"Welcome to Hayato Tokyo," the cashier greeted. "How may I help you?"
"One wash and haircut with Miya Kondou," Miwa replied as she gave some money to the cashier. She gestured towards Kokichi. "It's for him."
"Me...?" Kokichi muttered. That was the reason why the blue-haired angel brought him here?
"You're in luck," the cashier said as she picked up her phone. "Miya is currently available. I'll let her know about you right away."
As the cashier was left to her business, Kokichi gaze switched back to Miwa. So she really was treating him to a surprise haircut. He was about to ask her about this random act of kindness when a bold-looking woman walked over to the duo. She was wearing a white tank top, dark blue jeans, and navy blue high heels. Her dark green-brown hair was tied up in a messy bun and her black eyes seemed devoid of color. But her most striking feature was her bright pink lips, presumably due to lipstick. Was this that Miya Kondou woman?
"Welcome back, Miwa," the woman greeted. "You hear for a touch-up?"
"Not this time," Miwa corrected. She grabbed Kokichi's arm and dragged him closer to her. "This is Kokichi Muta, one of my classmates from Jujutsu Tech. I was hoping you could touch him up with your usual skills."
The woman smiled at Kokichi. "Nice to meet ya," she cheerfully greeted. "The name's Miya Kondou. Any friend of Miwa's is a friend of mine. So how's about we get things started?"
After parting ways with Miwa, Kokichi followed Miya over to some hollowed sinks behind cushioned chairs. Miya stood by one of those sinks and patted on the associated chair. Was she telling him to sit down? What for? Wasn't she supposed to cut his hair?
Miya noticed Kokichi's glances. "What's with the look?" she asked with a slight chuckle. "You're actin' like you've never been to a salon before."
"I haven't," Kokichi bluntly confirmed. "This is my first time coming to such an establishment."
The older woman's gaze suddenly turned serious as she slowly walked over to Kokichi. "You're one of Miwa's friends, right?" she checked.
"I am," Kokichi replied.
Miya carefully leaned towards Kokichi's ear. "You wouldn't happen to go by the name Mechamaru," she whispered.
"...Not anymore," Kokichi confirmed in a hushed voice. He really wished most of his classmates stopped calling him by that nickname now that he was walking around.
Miya leaned back to give Kokichi some space. "Then you better come with me," she said as she suddenly walked towards a nearby broom closet.
"What for?" Kokichi asked.
"Just for a little analysis," Miya answered as she unlocked the closet door.
Although confused, Kokichi carefully walked over to the closet and stepped inside. To his surprise, what he didn't see was a small storage room full of cleaning supplies. Instead, he had found himself in a very unusual room. There was only one chair and a whole wall was covered by a large mirror. The room was dimly lit with only a few flickering candles providing light. But the strangest detail was a small waterfall flowing from the ceiling. But the atmosphere... It felt very familiar to the Simple Domains that Miwa often uses.
"What kind of Domain is this?" Kokichi asked as he heard the sound of a door closing behind him.
"It's called Luxury Spa Escape," Miwa explained. "It's no good for combat, but it helps folks like you relax." She walked over to the chair and patted it. "So come take a seat so we can get started."
Although a little reluctant, Kokichi ultimately decided to play along and sit in that one chair. His gaze was fixated on Miya through the large mirror's reflection, although his eyes widened in light surprise when she held out her hands as a pair of empty eye sockets opened on her palms. While the sight was a little grotesque, he suspected it to be some kind of cursed technique, confirming Miwa's statement about this older woman being familiar with curses.
"I need you to hold still for a bit," Miya explained as she proceeded to cover Kokichi's eyes with both of her hands. "It'll only take a few minutes."
"Miwa had told me you always know what kind of hairstyle suits each customer," Kokichi recalled. "I take it this technique allows you to do just that."
"Not quite," Miya corrected. "It's called Memory Sync and it allows me to see all your memories from birth to present. But in order for it to work, I gotta see 'em from your perspective. Just sit tight and leave the rest to me."
And so, Kokichi sat peacefully as he waited for the supposed sync to be over. He could only feel Miya's palm sockets over his own eyes, like she was burrowing them inside her skin. There was no telling how this Memory Sync worked, but he did hear her make small sounds once in a while. A gasp here, a sigh there... She was probably seeing how he spent most of his life. His parents thought he was dead and he was secluded in that accursed red-lit room. If she really was seeing those memories, then maybe she would be a little more understanding for why he was unfamiliar with hair salons.
A few minutes later, Miya finally released her grasp as her palm eye sockets closed like they were never present to begin with. And for just a brief moment, Kokichi could see her eyes change color from brown to her usual pitch black. But her initial cheerful and bold demeanor had vanished. She seemed a little heartbroken as she wiped a few tears from her eyes with the back of her hand. It didn't take much to realize what she had seen through Memory Sync.
"So you now know what I have been through," Kokichi spoke. "I'm surprised you were able to see my whole life in such a short time."
"I trained my brain to slow down during syncs," Miya explained. "Can't keep folks waitin' while I go through their whole lives in real time." She let out a small sigh. "But yikes. Bein' bound by a Heavenly Pact that kept you isolated must've stunk."
"That's putting it lightly," Kokichi said. "I have only been able to experience the outside world since October 19th of this year. There are so many unfamiliar things I have yet to experience, such as hair salons. It might take me a while to adjust to these places."
"So you've got no clue how salons work," Miya realized. She smiled sadly. "No worries. I'll explain everything that confuses ya."
"That would be appreciated," Kokichi replied.
Once the 'storage closet' was no longer needed, Kokichi returned to the odd-looking sinks and sat down on one of the chairs. "So why is this crucial?" he asked.
"I need to get your hair clean before cutting it," Miwa explained as she carefully untied the bandage holding the student's topknot in place. "It's also easier to cut wet hair."
Once the tattered cloth was dropped into a nearby trash can, Kokichi's hair didn't hang loose all that smoothly. Due to it being tied up for most of his life, it was stiff and stuck out in odd places. Miya's attempt to finger-comb the locks didn't work as they felt coarse with countless tangles and knots. Kokichi figured that would happen. While his puppets were capable of cutting hair, it was never properly washed.
At least, until this exact moment.
With Miya's guidelines, Kokichi slowly leaned back so his head was close to the sink. And then, something incredible happened. Although he couldn't see what was going on, he felt warn water lightly spray onto his hair as Miya smoothed his bangs away from his forehead. Then more sensations appeared on his scalp. Fingers scrubbing away dirt, more warm water, fingers combing through his hair, even more warm water... It all felt unusually calm and relaxing.
"So this is what it feels like to get your hair washed," Kokichi noted, suspecting that shampoo and conditioner was being applied.
One towel-dry later, Kokichi finally sat up. "So what'd ya think?" Miya asked.
But the student was at a loss for words, unable to speak. Although he couldn't see what the results were, he could feel black locks hanging loose on his neck. He didn't even know his hair was actually this long until this exact moment. Luckily words weren't needed since Miya could see his awestruck face.
For the actual haircut, Kokichi was brought to a station and he sat down, seeing his reflection in the mirror. He looked so different from before with his damp hair down. He would have been unrecognizable if it wasn't for his uniform and cheek scar. But his musings were interrupted when a black smock was suddenly fasten around his neck.
"So what kinda look do ya want?" Miya asked as she readied her tools.
"Something short," Kokichi answered. "But just the back. I'm fine with my bangs as is."
"Gotcha," Miya replied. "One short look comin' up."
Things went silent as Miya proceeded to comb Kokichi's hair into place, making it all nice and even. Once that was done, it was time for the actual haircut. So she used two fingers to hold out a shoulder-length lock, positioned it between her scissors, and-
SNIP
That sound echoed in Kokichi's head as he gasped. With his gaze fixated on the mirror, he could see the lock had been cut and was falling to the floor. It happened once more with another lock of hair being severed. And another.
And another.
And another.
The sound of scissors snipping became hollow as more unneeded length fell away from Kokichi's head. He attempted to keep his eyes on his reflection to see his hair getting shorter, but ultimately his vision became blurry with his own tears.
He was crying.
He was crying over getting his hair cut.
And for the first time in so many years, Kokichi Muta genuinely smiled.
By the time Miya was finished and removed the black smock, Kokichi finally calmed down from his happy cry. Blinking away remaining tears, he saw his reflection once more. His bangs stayed the same as he requested, but the rest of his hair was cut short. He slowly stood back up to walk closer to the mirror.
This was it.
All those years locked away were finally behind him.
He looked like a proper high school boy.
"Muta? Is that you?"
Kokichi turned sharply to see Miwa walking over to the station. He didn't waste any time to see her reaction, his feet carefully dragging away from the mirror and towards her. Once he was at an appropriate distance, he could see her face. Her eyes were the same as always, but her cheerful smile was replaced with slightly parted lips.
"What do you think?" Kokichi asked.
"Y-You... You look..." Miwa muttered. But then a slight shake of her head snapped her out of her daze. "You look so handsome!"
Handsome... That was the first time Kokichi was actually called that. The girl he had loved for so long actually thinks he's handsome. He watched as she slowly regained her usual bright smile, a smile that was for him and him alone.
Even if the rest of his classmates might take a while to forgive him, at least he still had the blue-haired angel as his shining light.