Chapter Text
One year and one month before The Star Plasma Vessel mission
The sun gently kissed the crown of Satoru’s head as he walked along the stone path while a calm, chilly breeze whipped past him. An involuntary shiver passed through him. It was an unexpected surprise as the weather was starting to warm up and cold gusts were no longer common. The wind caused Satoru to realize he was walking with his head down; he didn’t know why. Perhaps it was because he was slightly nervous; after all, it was his first day at Jujutsu Tech. After the realization dawned on him, he looked up. The sun caused his pupils to constrict, even though he was wearing his sunglasses. He quickly blinked and looked ahead, only to come face-to-face with a man. He had a buzzed head and two shaved stripes starting from his temple and stopping above his ear. He also had a small beard, which suited him. In all honesty, Satoru hadn’t even noticed the man standing there. He mentally chided himself. How could he let his guard down in an unfamiliar area? Satoru quickly realized he was staring at the stranger for too long, but the man didn’t seem to mind. In fact, the odd man looked like he was sizing him up, and it was getting quite uncomfortable, so he decided to break the silence.
“I’m Satoru Gojo…”
The man didn’t respond immediately. The silence stretched on for what felt like an eternity.
“You’re late,” the man replied in a deadbeat tone, “but that’s not enough to chastise you about.”
Satoru didn’t even know he had to be here by a specific time. “If it’s not enough to chastise me for, then don’t chastise.” He immediately regretted it. The boy was taught to not talk back to his superiors, even though he was the strongest. He was getting slightly worried and wishing he would’ve held his tongue.
A beat too long passed when the man grinned and introduced himself, “Masamichi Yaga, your new teacher.”
At least he didn’t seem mad; that was a start, he supposed. Yaga turned around and started to walk away. Satoru took that as his cue to follow him. His teacher led him down long, twisting hallways with what appeared to be classrooms. The air around him felt stuffy; it was as though it hadn’t been used in a while. He then remembered that members of his clan were saying how sorcerers were much less common now than in the olden days. As he was following his mentor, Satoru looked around, taking in his surroundings. The wallpaper was peeling in corners and along the seams where it was poorly attached. Looking up, he noticed a couple of cracks forming in the ceiling, and the windows had seen better days. Huh, some school for learning jujutsu.
A question suddenly flew into his mind, and he thought out loud, “Am I the only one?”
“No.”
“Are you sure, because it looks like I’m the only one?”
“I am positive you are not the only one.”
“Where are the others then?”
“They’ll be here in a few days.”
“But you told me I was late.”
“You were late.”
“How am I late if the others haven’t even shown up yet?”
“The head of your clan contacted me to say that you were supposed to be here yesterday, and the fact that you were late because you went to a pachinko parlor. Which, by the way, is illegal for you, seeing as you are 15.”
Satoru went rigid; he didn’t know that people, or more specifically, his clan, were keeping tabs on him. He became quite angry at the fact that he knew someone was tailing him, but he didn’t know what they were trying to do. Running his hands through his hair, he realized two things: one, he should grow out his hair a bit, and two, getting mad and frustrated that he was being stalked by his family wasn’t an option. He had been participating in illegal activities. The 15-year-old let out an angry sigh of resignation, which surprisingly echoed off the walls.
Suddenly, Yaga just stopped. Bumping into his teacher, he comprehended they were in a different building. The rooms were much closer together than before, and it felt more contemporary.
Before he could finish his thought, he was interrupted.
“Welcome to your new dorm,” Yaga sensei opened the door to his new room.
Satoru stepped into the room. It was bare, as expected. The walls were painted a light cream color. The odor of paint still lingered in the air. A twin mattress with a steel bedframe was sat in the left hand corner of his new room. A couple of feet from his bed, a wooden table sat, accompanied by a matching chair; it looked like it was begging to be studied on. Too bad, he can do anything he puts his mind to; meaning he can read, listen, or do anything once, and it is stuck with him, similar to photographic memory. A fairish window was positioned above his desk. The curtains surrounding his window had no pattern. They were a simple navy blue that appeared to block out a lot of sunlight. He liked that; it meant that sunlight couldn’t wake him up as easily. Looking around, he noticed a wardrobe and walked towards it, and opened it. Inside it, his new uniform hung. Navy blue with gold buttons, coupled with a fitted pair of pants in the same color. He wasn’t a huge fan, but at least it made moving around and fighting easier.
Yaga sensei stepped in as Satoru was observing his new bedroom. His teacher just started to list some rules off, but Satoru only caught a couple, like “be mindful of noise levels, especially during the night,” and “clean up after yourself.” He could figure the rest out pretty easily.
As Yaga sensei was leaving, he gripped the doorframe and turned around to say, “You can decorate if you want. Just don’t use anything that can damage the paint.” Having the last word, he nodded and walked out, leaving Satoru in his room alone.
Satoru sighed and walked to the door to close it. As he was walking to his bed, he looked out the window to see a gorgeous sunset. The sky was filled with shades of fiery reds, warm oranges, golden yellows, and soft pinks. His breath caught in his chest as he lay his eyes on the most enchanting shade of purple he had ever seen. It was deep, yet it made Satoru feel like he was floating. The color was the richest he's ever seen in a color. It was magical; untouchable even. The setting sun captivated Satoru’s attention for much longer than he would’ve liked to admit. A long while later, he realized the bewitching colors had made way for the dark sky filled with stars, hopes, and wishes. It was time to sleep.
The thought of dinner made him slightly nauseous, so he headed straight for bed. As he settled under the covers, he thought back to the dazzling sky and how that shade of purple had become his favorite color. His thoughts drifted from the sky to wondering if he would have any friends now that his family was breathing down his neck about staying focused on being a sorcerer. He had always loved the idea of friends, mostly because the concept was so foreign to him. Even if it was a stretch, he had hoped to find a best friend, one he could talk about anything and everything with. One, he could do mundane tasks with, and maybe he could be just as strong as himself. He gave a weak laugh, knowing it was far-fetched. With that, he fell into a dreamless sleep.