Chapter Text
Megumi watched in horror as the curse was obliterated. Itadori wasn’t dead. Which meant the worst case had happened.
Sukuna had incarnated.
He forced himself up off the ground, putting his arms in front of him in the sign of the 10th Shadow Mahoraga. He didn’t know why he was hesitating. That wasn’t Itadori anymore. Anything left of that kindhearted boy was gone, his soul ripped to shreds by the King of Curses. Itadori was dead, and in his place was a psychopathic monster who wouldn’t hesitate to kill everyone in sight. A horrific demon puppeting what might as well be the corpse of a genuinely good person, someone he’d actually wanted to save. Itadori would probably want him to kill him, anything left would be in pure agony.
So why couldn’t he man up and finish the ritual?
“Wait, how are you doing that?” He heard the Curse mutter, it’s deep voice in contrasting Itadori’s heavily.
“Well, it is my body!” Came Itadori’s voice.
What?
Suddenly, Itadori’s body slumped, before jolting back to consciousness. The cursed energy that had swallowed Itadori had abated, leaving behind a much less oppressive aura of power. Even still, it was significantly more cursed energy than he had possessed previously.
Suspicious. Was Sukuna playing with him? Bating him to lower his guard so he could make him suffer in his last moments? It’s possible he recognised his stance and was trying to get him to call of Mahoraga’s ritual. The textbooks said the Ten Shadows technique hadn’t yet emerged in the Heien Era, but what if they were wrong?
He forced himself to speak up, narrowing his eyes at the potential imposter. “Yuuji Itadori.” He spoke, trying to keep the tremble from his voice. “Under Jujutsu Regulations, I will now exorcise you as a curse!”
Itadori, or Sukuna in disguise since he still wasn’t quite sure, held up his hands in surrender. “Fushiguro! Shouldn’t we go to a hospital or something? We both got kinda roughed up.” He said, and the marks covering Itadori slowly began to fade away.
He couldn’t trust it.
But before he could gather the nerves to summon Mahoraga, a burst of wind by his side told him that his benefactor had unfortunately arrived.
Whatever he was getting paid for this mission, it wasn’t enough.
Satoru couldn’t help but feel relieved when he saw Megumi alive and well, even if he was a little roughed up. He felt the explosion of cursed energy from several blocks away and took off as quickly as possible.
But by the time he got there, there wasn’t a curse in sight! Just his student and a boy with a pretty decent supply of cursed energy. He must have just been introduced to the world of Jujutsu because he was leaking it all over without any control. Strangely enough, the Cursed Energy felt almost familiar, but he couldn’t put his finger on why.
Suddenly, it clicked. Megumi must have already exorcised the curse after it had absorbed Sukuna’s finger! Not just that, but he did it with a new friend! That was a welcome surprise, he really was growing every day.
Though, his friend was shirtless. So maybe Megumi didn’t have as good a taste in friends as he hoped.
With a grin, he leaned down to his student. “Wow, you got roughed up kid!” He pointed out with a laugh, causing Megumi to groan. With a flash of inspiration, he pulled out his phone and started taking pictures. “I gotta show the second years! Say cheese!”
After taking a good many, he started to send them to the group chat.
“Why are you here Gojo-sensei?” Megumi grumbled, clearly upset at the treatment.
“Higher ups got nervous about a special grade object being missing, so they sent me to retrieve it.” He replied casually, smirking as Inumaki died in the group chat. He pocketed his phone and held out a hand expectantly. “So where is it?”
It was weird. He could feel the malignant aura of Cursed Energy choking this place but couldn’t locate a source. Not in Megumi’s pocket, nor the pink-haired kid’s, or anywhere in this school for that matter. He supposed Megumi could have reapplied the seal, but he couldn’t have had the time to do that in between exorcising the curse and him showing up. Maybe it was pink-hairs cursed technique? He’d never heard of a Cursed Object sealing one, but there was a first time for everything he supposed.
His focus locked on to Megumi tensing. Before he could question, pink-hair raised his hand. “Uhh sorry, but I ate it.” He said sheepishly.
… huh?
He turned to focus on him more, reading a little deeper into his Cursed Energy, but he couldn’t find more than a background level of Sukuna’s energy clinging to him.
“For real?” He asked, just to be sure. He half expected Megumi and his new friend to be playing a prank on him. If they were, this would actually be a pretty funny one. If they were, he’d be proud of his student for coming out of his shell. Things would be so much easier if they were pranking him.
“For real.” Both said at the same time.
He moved closer to the pink-hair, subtly positioning himself so that Megumi was behind him as he leant forward to inspect the boy. Now he was closer, he could see there were two separate wells of Cursed Energy in the kid. One was vast and emanated pure evil, whilst the other, while smaller, was smothering it completely with ease. No wonder he didn’t see it at first, the kid was holding Sukuna back so easily it was like he wasn’t even there. How interesting.
“Damn, it really did combine with you!” He chuckled aloud, letting his mirth show clear on his face. If he was relaxed, the kids would be too. “That’s hilarious.”
The kid was containing Sukuna, of that there was no doubt. How long he could keep it up was the real question. Did he really have full control to switch back and forth, or was this a one-time thing? Was Sukuna merely letting the boy believe he was fully in control, or was the King of Curses actually trapped?
He started stretching, it was largely unnecessary and almost entirely for show, but he wanted to be at his best for what he was planning to do.
“Anything weird about your body?” He asked casually.
The boy took a second to test his arm, as if to make sure he could still control it. “Nah, seems okay!” He replied brightly.
“Do you think you can swap with Sukuna at will?” He asked, winding up one of his arms.
“Sukuna?” The kid asked confused. Huh, Megumi must not have fully filled him in.
“The curse you ate.” He prompted, causing him to nod.
“Oh, yeah I think I can do that.” The kid said with confidence. He was really taking all this in stride, wasn’t he? The adaptability was admirable.
“Okay! Give us ten seconds, then switch right back to yourself.” Pink-hair made a noise like he was going to protest, so he gave him another reassuring smile. “Don’t worry, I’m way too strong for him!”
He turned back to Megumi and tossed him the bag of Kikufuku he’d bought on his shopping spree. He was in the middle of making his student annoyed when he felt a massive Cursed Energy spike. He pretended not to notice, waiting until the last second to dodge Sukuna’s surprise attack, even if he didn’t really need to dodge.
The fight was thankfully easy. It was expected, because Sukuna only had a 20th of his power and he was Satoru Gojo, but it still made something within him relax as he easily sidestepped another of the so called ‘King of Curses’ desperate swings. Honestly, no form with this guy.
He sidestepped another attack, before leaning back over their shoulder to whisper in his ear. “My students watching, so I’ll show off a bit.” Before sending him flying across the rooftop. And okay, maybe Sukuna did have some form if the graceful recovery was anything to go by, followed by the Curse bounding back towards him. He was prepared for another attack, so he was slightly confused when Sukuna pre-emptively dodged around him, creating distance by himself..
“Let’s see what tricks this vessel has to give!” He heard the thing laugh as he clapped his hands together. He felt the Cursed Energy rise as his hands took on a very familiar shape. In hindsight, it made sense. He’d felt something similar before after all.
A blast of high-pressure red liquid shot towards him, so quick he had to block it with infinity. Blood manipulation. That explained why the kids Cursed Energy felt so familiar, he was a Kamo.
He felt a surge of anger as the King of Curses lined up another shot. The pink-haired Kamo would lose too much blood with another attack like that. Hell, if Noritoshi Kamo had tried something even close to what the King of Curses had just fired, he’d be anaemic for weeks! The bastard was going to drain his vessel dry just to spite him.
Except, the body didn’t seem at all pale. There was always the possibility the curse was replenishing his vessels blood with reversed curse technique, but that didn’t feel quite right. RCT gave off a very distinct aura, but that wasn’t what he was feeling.
His thoughts were interrupted by another high-pressure blast of red impacting infinity, this one even more powerful than the last. Not enough to even make him flinch, of course, but it should be more blood than a human could have. And that was before orbs of blood started to impact him from all sides.
“To make blood from Cursed Energy, what a rush!” Sukuna laughed, shaping a dagger out of blood in his hand. “What a perfect gift for my awakening! A perfected technique, all for me!”
Well, wasn’t that the most interesting thing he’d heard all day? And that was saying something. If what he was saying was true, then that meant this Pink-haired Kamo had somehow come to possess the most powerful form of Blood Manipulation ever seen. But if that were the case, why hadn’t he ever heard of him? They’d try to keep it on the downlow, sure, but the Kamo’s would have been crowing it from the rooftops that they held such a powerful sorcerer. So why hadn’t they?
The answer was obvious; they probably had no idea he existed. Someone probably left the clan and had a kid who inherited the technique, like Megumi. And just like Megumi, they’d probably want them back now that they had something they wanted.
The Kamo’s weren’t as bad as the Zenin’s, sure, but they weren’t exactly the cuddliest family to raise a child. But still, he could use this.
Of course, before the curse could close even half the distance, time ran out. As soon as ten seconds had passed, he slumped, before the bright eyed Kamo came too. “Are you okay?” He asked, almost immediately, eyes darting to the blood that covered the stones in worry. How sweet and utterly un-Kamo like.
“Me? I’m fine!” He laughed, strolling casually up to the Pink-haired Kamo. “What’s your name?”
“Yuuji Itadori!” Itadori said, standing straight.
Itadori, huh? Guess he was right. Looking at him closer, he could see the traces of Kamo-genes in his features. The eyes were a little big, and the hair was clearly a product of whatever other genes were mixed together, but he definitely wouldn’t look out of place in one of their meetings. He wouldn’t be surprised if it was one of his parents who were the link, or maybe a grandparent if Kamo genes were that strong.
He took it back. Megumi had fantastic taste in friends! He needed to get him out more often, he already sniffed out a stray with real potential.
He smiled and reached out a hand with two fingers extended, gently forcing him into unconsciousness. He caught him when he fell, and when Sukuna didn’t rise to take his place, he hoisted him over his shoulder.
“Gojo-sensei.” He heard Megumi call, and he turned to face him. “I-… you… you saw his technique too, right?” He asked, pulling at his sleeve anxiously.
He nodded. “A perfected form of Blood Manipulation.” He said, his student sighing as if he was afraid of that answer. “I almost can’t believe the Kamo’s never found him before. Strong cursed energy, powerful technique, he has the potential to be First Grade at least.”
Megumi nodded slightly. “I felt his Cursed Energy before. He was a non-sorcerer before eating that finger. I thought he was like Maki, but…”
Satoru could fill in the gaps. “Sukuna’s Cursed Energy must have jumpstarted his own.” He theorised, looking carefully at Itadori slung over his shoulder. “Most people have a cursed technique but never the energy to activate it. Sukuna being introduced must have changed things.”
Megumi looked at him worriedly. “What’s going to happen to him?” He asked.
He looked sideways at his student, and smirked. “I don’t know, what do you want to happen to him?” He shot back.
Megumi looked flustered for a second, before taking a breath. “If it comes down to it, Jujutsu Regulation states he is to be executed. But even still, I don’t want him to die.” He stated simply, meeting his gaze through the blindfold.
Satoru hummed in delight. “And is this your personal opinion?” He asked, already knowing the answer. Megumi had always been adamant in his refusal to rely on him; it wasn’t every day he asked him for a personal favour.
Megumi answered without a second of hesitation. “Yes, please save him Gojo-Sensei.”
He shot back a winning smile. “A request from my adorable student? Leave it to me!”
He’d have to make sure some key people were present to pull this off.
He sighed as the voices rose to a roar, several higher-ups all clamouring for Itadori’s execution. These old fools, afraid of anything and anything capable of disrupting their precious status quo.
“Now before we get too hasty,” He cut in, effectively retaking the spotlight, “I haven’t even told you the best part! Afterall, his fate isn’t ours to decide.” He spoke cryptically, playing up the theatrics to catch their attention.
“And what do you mean by that?” A particularly old man asked, he might’ve been a Zenin but he really wasn’t sure. “This is a particularly troublesome pest, why are we not the deciders?”
“His Cursed Technique.” He spoke grandly, spreading his arms. “It was remarkable, I must say. Sukuna gave quite the explanation, let me tell you. And I promise, It’ll be the envy of-“
He cut himself off as a thought struck him, turning to Shigeru Kamo, the clan leader who turned pale as the focus was brought on him. “Why does every Curse-human symbiosis link to your clan somehow?” He asked curiously.
“Blood Manipulation.” Shigeru breathed out, causing the gathered elders to start whispering amongst themselves in shock, the Kamo’s especially were equal parts thrilled and revolted. “You’re absolutely certain? No mistake?”
He shook his head gleefully. And now for the finisher. “No mistake! It took me by complete surprise, after all, it’s not every day you see someone create blood with cursed energy. Sukuna himself was in awe!”
Okay, maybe not awe, but the guy was definitely excited.
The room broke out into furious discussion, though this time it was easy to see how different the energy in the room was. It was laughable how much difference such an arbitrary detail made to the minds of these people.
Satoru felt comfortable enough to lounge casually as the conversation continued on, he didn’t even feel the need to supply any more information. The debate was heated, but he could already see where it was headed.
Blood Manipulation was already a powerful technique. Paired with the creation of blood through cursed energy and you’ve nullified one of it’s biggest weakness. The Kamo clan won’t let such a technique slip through their fingers.
And really, at the end of the day Itadori’s life hinged on a numbers game. Before, it would have been him and maybe a handful of Gojo’s loyal to him on principle against the rest of the clans and the more unruly members of his own. He would have needed to throw his weight around and maybe lay our a few threats like he needed to with Yuta to get them to agree to any kind of deal. Afterwards it would have been a matter of stacking the deck so Itadori’s execution never actually came around.
But now? He could feel it in the air. The Kamo’s wanted him. They wanted him and his technique so badly they were willing to overlook any concessions to have him. So what if he was Sukuna’s vessel? He could control him after all, so really no harm letting him live.
With the Kamo’s standing with him, the rest of his own clan would fall in line to save face. After all, they couldn’t risk his allegiance swinging from his bloodline, no matter how few damns he gave about continuing it. Most of the smaller clans would follow suite to suck up to the two main ones, only leaving the Zenin’s and the Zenin-loyal proxies heavily outnumbered.
Discussions suddenly abated as Shigeru stood to his feet, clearly having finally reached consensus with his own kin. “This is a case that must be treated with the utmost care.” He said, moving from the sidelines to join him centre stage.
How bold.
“The Kamo Clan will lead the investigation into this matter concerning one of its members. If he is able to maintain control over Sukuna, I see no reason to concern ourselves with the destruction of the child and instead begin research into purging this evil from our kin.” He spoke with authority, as the other Kamo’s in the room nodded solemnly.
Gojo couldn’t help the knowing smirk on his lips. ‘One of its members.’ From disgusting vessel to precious child in under five minutes, quite the promotion. They’d always overcompensated since Noritoshi Kamo senior.
“I stand with the Kamo’s decision.” He announced, playing into clan theatrics just this once. “And in turn propose he be placed into my protective custody and attend Tokyo Jujutsu High until his situation is resolved.” He could practically feel Naobito Zenin grinding his teeth from all the way in his chair. But that was his problem, really. He didn’t have to come but apparently hearing that the heads of the Gojo and Kamo clans would be in attendance made him think he deserved to be there too.
Shigeru glanced at him in the corner of his eye, seemingly gauging how invested he was in Itadori, and ultimately sighing when he realised he wasn’t going to give in. “You’re proposal is acceptable, but further terms will be worked out in private between our clans.”
In other words, he was going to desperately try to prevent another Megumi from taking place. Megumi, then Yuta, and now Yuuji. Maybe he had a problem when it came to taking in descendants of big-name clans.
Satoru clapped his hands in joy. “Well, that settles that. Yuuji Itadori-“
“Kamo.”
“-is not to be executed and will attend Tokyo Jujutsu High! Any objections?” He asked, spreading his arms wide in invitation.
He could feel the Zenin’s glares from here, but none spoke up. They were probably bitter about him taking their prized technique from them whilst allowing the Kamo’s access to their own, but at least they were smart enough to know they couldn’t win against both clans. Still, he’d need to keep an eye out. Maybe three.
“Very well.” Shigeru said solemnly. “Then this hearing is adjourned. Gojo, with me. We have much to discuss.”
Gojo gave a big smile and a friendly wave to the seething Zenin’s before promptly following Shigeru and the Kamo procession without a care. Any other Clan Leader would probably feel worried about being surrounded by rival clansmen without back up, but honestly, he would welcome an assassination attempt, if only to give him an excuse to let loose and destroy the system with a valid reason.
Unfortunately, no such attack came as they were guided to a private meeting room away from prying eyes, guards taking up position outside as they stepped in.
He took a seat without care as Shigeru Kamo sat more properly. He’d have to wrap this up quickly. By his count, Itadori would be awake in about ten minutes, and he’d really like to be there when he does.
“I’ll cut to the chase.” Shigeru began. Thank God. “We want visitation times, both ways. We want to visit him at Tokyo, and I want him to visit the Kamo estate on occasion. I want to arrange regular meetups with my son Noritoshi to aid in the development of both their Cursed Techniques, and if he needs anything, I want him to know our clan will help provide it.”
Visitation hours? What was this, a custody battle?
… Shit this was a custody battle. It really was Megumi all over again. Good thing he didn’t need to raise this one.
“No can do on the first one.” He shut down quickly. “Random visits to a school won’t work. Like, legally. Tokyo Jujutsu High is a boarding school and you can see him on regular visitation days.” Or never if he got his say.
“He’s our kin and we need to make up for lost time.” Kamo shook his head. Satoru rolled his eyes behind his blindfold. ‘Lost time’, like you didn’t want him executed before you heard he had a fancy technique. “One-hour check-ins every other Saturday.”
Now, he could put his foot down and deny any further advancement like he did with Megumi, but he had the feeling that for Itadori’s sake he needed to keep them appeased to prevent them from just trying to take him. Or worse, deciding it wasn’t worth it and electing to have him executed. They’d fail, of course. The Zenin’s always did, but Megumi still needed to check over his shoulder when he was out and about and he’d rather avoid that.
So instead he nodded. “Fine. But to make up for the interference in his free time, we’ll combine those next two into one. He can train with your kid at the Kamo estate once every two weeks.”
Loathe as he was to have the pink-haired boy spend too much time around his clan, he had to concede that the Kamo heir would know more about the ins and outs of Blood Manipulation than he did. He couldn’t restrict him from learning something that may save his life. And hey, maybe making friends with a Kamo that isn’t brainwashed from birth would do Noritoshi some good! Utahime could thank him later.
Shigeru grimaced but nodded. Thankfully, he was able to sense that Satoru wouldn’t be relinquishing any more of his students time without consulting said student first, because he didn’t try to press for more.
As for that last wish.
“And I’ll keep you posted, but I’m sure Itadori will be just fine.” He dismissed with a wave of his hands. He might take advantage of the offer a smidge, maybe have the Kamo’s foot the bill for a few restaurant visits, but otherwise he planned to keep the kid from owing his clan anything.
He checked his watch. Five minutes to go.
He stood and walked to the door. “Well, it’s been fun but now I gotta go. My guys will contact yours. See ya!”
He teleported from the room before the man could reply. He let out heavy sigh the moment he was back in the Gojo safehouse in Sendai. Wow Megumi, your first selfish wish was already turning out to be a pain. He couldn’t be prouder.
He took a moment to prepare himself for a lot more Kamo in his life before turning to face the door to the prison.
Time to wake sleeping beauty.