Becoming Sukuna

Under a clear blue sky stretched a boundless ocean, the sun warming the white-sand beach. A lone red octopus head bobbed playfully on the calm surface of the water.

Several beach chairs were lined up on the soft sand, a black-haired man relaxing on one of them. Two figures, grotesque in appearance, stood beside him.

"You're saying... Mahito is dead...?" A curse with a Mt. Fuji-shaped head and a single, giant eye dominating its face spoke in disbelief.

"Yeah, I didn't expect it either," Suguru Geto replied with a sigh, spreading his hands. "He had such a troublesome technique, yet he was still killed."

"Who did it?!"

Jogo, the volcano-headed curse, erupted with fury, spewing jets of steam from the vents on his head and sides.

"I don't know for sure. Probably someone from Jujutsu High. It seems they have a new sorcerer with powerful barrier techniques. I'm not sure if that person has any way to counter Mahito's abilities, though."

A playful smile touched Geto's lips. He was intrigued by this mysterious figure from Jujutsu High.

"Without a way to directly attack the soul, it's impossible to kill Mahito," Hanami, a beige-colored curse with black markings and branches growing from its eye sockets, chimed in.

"It might not have been the one who set up the barrier," Geto countered, stroking his chin thoughtfully.

"What do you mean?" Jogo narrowed his eye.

"I detected traces of Sukuna's cursed energy at the scene. Perhaps Mahito accidentally stepped on Sukuna's toes and got killed by him."

"What?! Did the vessel unleash Sukuna?"

"I don't know. There's not enough information, and I can't risk showing myself to Jujutsu High yet, so I haven't been able to investigate personally."

Geto sighed heavily, frustrated by the disruption to his plans. "With Mahito gone, my plans are affected. Infiltrating Jujutsu High to steal the six fingers will be more difficult now."

"And Sukuna's stance has become ambiguous..." He paused, then turned to Jogo. "What are your thoughts? Do we continue with the original plan of offering all the fingers to Sukuna, or do we have other options?"

Jogo settled into another beach chair, pondering. After a moment, he slammed his hand on his thigh. "We continue! No matter how you look at it, Sukuna, as a curse, would never side with humans."

"Even if it's not us who will be laughing in the end, as long as curses replace humanity, I'll be satisfied."

"Very well." Geto got up from his chair. "It seems we need to adjust our strategy. Without a specific location, finding where Jujutsu High stores those cursed objects within Tengen's barrier will be tricky."

"We need more time..."

And if we can uncover the identity of that barrier user in the process, all the better.

A glint of determination flashed in his eyes.

Suguru Geto, I'll recreate what you've done.

...

With the final exams concluded, Sōbu High School entered the long-awaited summer break.

Vacations, shopping sprees, beaches, the ocean... For the students, summer had truly begun.

A week after the exams, the results were finally released.

Although Yukino's overall score had dropped slightly, she still held firmly to her position as the top student in her year.

The difficulty of the exams varied each time, so fluctuations in scores were normal. This dashed the hopes of a certain enthusiastic teacher who had been planning to use Yukino's grades as an opening to inquire about her recent activities.

Asking directly would likely result in vague answers and no useful information, as it had before.

Hiratsuka was doomed to continue her fretting.

Even during the holidays, Yukino maintained her healthy routine, waking up naturally early in the morning.

She sat up in bed, her thin white sleepwear slipping slightly off her shoulder, revealing smooth, fair skin. Her soft black hair spread across the bed, a few strands sticking out playfully.

After a few minutes of groggily sitting in bed, she finally got up, changed into comfortable clothes, and left her room to wash up.

"Huh?"

She instinctively glanced towards the balcony, but the familiar figure wasn't there.

Sukuna-kun wasn't at his usual spot. Is he sleeping in?

Curiosity led her to the guest room, now Sukuna's room.

Hesitantly, she raised her hand and knocked on the door.

"Hmm." Yukino hesitated, then opened the door.

As the owner of the apartment, she was familiar with its layout. Sukuna hadn't moved any furniture, only adding a desk for his new computer.

She saw him sitting in the office chair, eyes glued to the screen, his fingers flying across the keyboard, a blur of motion.

Curiosity piqued, she glanced at the screen. It seemed to be some game, and he was chatting with another player.

As for the content of the chat...

Yukino quickly looked away, feeling her eyes burning.

So that's how you curse people out...

No, the point is, Sukuna-kun has such a foul mouth! Is it because he feels liberated by the anonymity of the internet?

"Good morning, Sukuna-kun."

She greeted him softly. Although he was wearing headphones, with his sharp senses, he must have already noticed her.

"Were you playing games all night?"

"Yeah, I didn't have anything better to do."

Sukuna seemed to have finished his game, his hands leaving the keyboard.

He checked the time and raised an eyebrow. "Oh, it's already this late. Are you here to call me for breakfast?"

"No, breakfast isn't ready yet. I just didn't see you at your usual spot, so I got curious," Yukino replied, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, her eyes fixed on him.

"I thought you were sleeping in, but you were either drinking all night or playing games. Can your lifestyle be any unhealthier?"

"Who cares? I won't get sick or anything," Sukuna said nonchalantly, leaning back in his chair.

"Hmph, suit yourself. You're just a temporary resident anyway. I can't control your personal life." Yukino huffed and turned to leave.

"But if you want to freeload, please eat at normal mealtimes. It's inconvenient if your schedule is too erratic!"

"Okay, okay, master chef Yukinoshita."

Sukuna replied dismissively as he followed her out of the room.

"Speaking of which, do you have any thoughts on the matter Gojo-sensei asked you to investigate?" Yukino asked.

"Oh, that? I haven't agreed to it yet." Sukuna plopped down at the dining table, waiting for breakfast like a slug. "Doing that guy a favor feels annoying."

He scratched his nose, recalling the scene:

"Oh, Sukuna,"

At the entrance of Saito, as they were about to leave after a satisfying meal, Gojo Satoru had called out to Sukuna.

"Yeah? You wanna die?"

Sukuna had turned around with a fierce glare, not appreciating the nickname.

Ignoring the threat in his eyes, Gojo smiled. "I have a favor to ask."

"I'm quite busy with various things, so I was hoping you could investigate something for me. It's about the group of special grade curses."

"If I'm not mistaken, there's a mole within Jujutsu High who is cooperating with the curse users. I'll handle the investigation on Jujutsu High's side, but I need your help with the curse users."

"A mole..." Yukino was surprised. "A jujutsu sorcerer is working with curses?"

"Not necessarily with the curses themselves. He probably thinks he's only cooperating with the curse users," Gojo explained. "I doubt even an idiot would intentionally collaborate with curses."

"I'll offer you a reward, of course. As the current head of the Gojo clan, I have access to quite a lot of resources~"

"So, what do you say?"

Gojo looked at Sukuna expectantly.

"You think I'd agree?" Sukuna raised an eyebrow.

"I don't know, that's why I'm asking," Gojo said with a playful shrug.

"Those special grade curses… what are they planning?" Yukino asked, concerned.

"I don't know, but it's definitely not anything good," Gojo admitted.

Sukuna discreetly glanced at Yukino, who looked worried, then gave his answer. "I'll think about it, but don't get your hopes up. I might not agree."

With that, he turned and left with Yukino.

"Tsundere?"

Gojo's teasing voice echoed from behind. Sukuna didn't bother turning around, simply flipping him off.

"Speaking of which, I'm a bit curious," Gojo continued, ignoring the gesture. "Whose side are you on?"

"Whose side?" Sukuna scoffed. "No one's. I'm on my own side."

They disappeared around the corner.

"Honestly, why can't he just be straightforward?" Gojo sighed. "Not cute at all."

"Gojo-sensei! Come on, we're leaving!" Yuji called out from ahead.

"Coming, coming!"

Gojo waved and jogged to catch up with the students, slinging an arm around Yuji's shoulders.

"Sensei, sensei, we're going to Ginza. Want to come with us?"

"Actually, that's a good idea. Let's pick up some snacks for everyone."

"Yay!"

Ignoring Gojo's annoyingly cheerful face, Sukuna turned to Yukino, who was now in the kitchen. "What's wrong? Are you worried about this?"

"Special grade curses with human intelligence gathering together, plus the curse users and the mole in Jujutsu High... They must be plotting something evil, right?"

"If those villains succeed, many people will die."

"You want to investigate with me?" Sukuna saw through her. "You might encounter multiple special grade curses, you know."

"Yes..." Yukino nodded. She understood the hidden meaning in his words. A pang of sadness resonated within her, but she still spoke her mind. "Even if I'm not strong enough yet, I want to do what I can."

"Is that... not okay?" She looked at him cautiously.

"It's not 'not okay.' You'll be safe with me."

Sukuna shrugged. "I just don't think we'll find anything, so I didn't accept that idiot's request. Investigating isn't my forte. I'm a jujutsu sorcerer, not Sherlock Holmes. It would be awkward if we found nothing."

"I absolutely refuse to do anything that might make me look bad in front of that guy."

"Eh?" Yukino was taken aback. "How can you know the outcome before even trying?"

"Idiot, we're dealing with a group of special grade curses and curse users. Do you think they'd be stupid enough to leave clues for us to find?"

"That idiot Mahito probably didn't know about unconventional existences like me. He was caught off guard and blindly jumped out."

"But after that fight, they know about me. They won't make any careless moves."

After hearing his analysis, Yukino simply nodded slowly. She hadn't thought that far ahead.

Or rather, she had been naive.

Even Sukuna-kun couldn't solve everything easily.

"But we can't just do nothing, can we?" Yukino asked.

"Well, we'll just have to look around and see. It's all about luck."

"So, how exactly are you going to help me?"

At the dining table, Sukuna pointed his chopsticks at Yukino, a playful smirk on his face.

"Well..." Yukino hesitated, then stammered, "I can assist you with the investigation. Another pair of eyes means another perspective. Two people are better than one... right?"

"You want to be Watson?"

"Who was the one who said he wasn't Sherlock Holmes just now?"

Sukuna chuckled, seeing the girl trying to maintain her composure. "Alright, alright, I'll take you with me. Look at you, all worried."

"I-I wasn't worried..." Yukino froze mid-sip of her miso soup, a faint blush creeping onto her cheeks.

After breakfast, Sukuna sprawled on the sofa, contemplating what to do with his day.

Yukino, having finished cleaning up, retrieved a book from her room and sat on the single-seat sofa beside him, quietly reading, occasionally glancing at him.

Sukuna stared blankly at the ceiling, then suddenly sat up. "Yukino, do you know any barrier techniques?"

"Barrier techniques?" Yukino shook her head. "Like the curtains? You never taught me those."

"Here, repeat after me. 'Born from darkness, darker than black, all impurities, be cleansed.'" Sukuna formed a hand seal.

Yukino repeated the incantation softly.

"There, you've learned the incantation and the hand seal. Now go set up a curtain," he said, slumping back down.

"...If you don't want to teach me, you don't have to," Yukino said flatly, but she still tried it herself, muttering the incantation.

Naturally, nothing happened.

"First, you need to imagine using cursed energy, along with the incantation and hand seal, to create a barrier. Then, you set the range and effect. The most common ones are barriers to trap curses and those to conceal things from others," Sukuna explained.

Yukino nodded thoughtfully.

A moment later…

"Born from darkness, darker than black, all impurities, be cleansed."

A black curtain appeared above the apartment building, expanding until it enveloped the entire structure.

Sukuna noticed the light outside dimming, as if the bright morning had suddenly turned to pre-dawn twilight.

"See? I told you it was simple." He saw the joy on Yukino's face and shrugged. "Don't get too excited. You've just scratched the surface. For more advanced barrier techniques, you'll need to practice Domain Expansion. Most large-scale barriers require anchors to maintain."

"The pinnacle of jujutsu sorcery, Domain Expansion, also requires barrier techniques. These are all things you'll need to learn step by step."

The excitement on Yukino's face faded slightly, replaced by a determined smile. "You're right. I still have a long way to go."

She couldn't help but recall the Domain battle between Sukuna and Gojo.

To reach that level, I need to keep working hard.

Just as she was about to dispel the barrier and practice more, her phone rang.

She reluctantly put her practice aside and answered the call. The caller ID displayed: Hiratsuka-sensei.

"It's Hiratsuka-sensei."

She answered the call and put it on speakerphone. Hiratsuka's cheerful voice filled the room. "Hey, Yukinoshita, I found a summer camp activity for the Service Club!"

"It's a volunteer activity for an elementary school summer camp in Chiba Village. Two days, one night stay. No problem, right?"

"Eh?" Yukino paused, glancing at Sukuna before asking, "When is it?"

"Tomorrow. If it's okay, I'll pick you up tomorrow morning." Hiratsuka sounded confused, sensing her hesitation. "What's wrong? Do you have something else planned?"

"No..."

Yukino looked at Sukuna questioningly.

"Just go if you want to. It's not like we have anything planned for those two days," Sukuna said casually.

Yukino nodded, then spoke to Hiratsuka on the phone. "Okay, tomorrow then. Have you informed the other club members, Hiratsuka-sensei?"

"Huh? No, not yet. Since you're okay with it, the others will be easy to convince. I'll contact them now. See you tomorrow then."

In a slightly messy apartment, Hiratsuka hung up the phone, her expression serious. "Was that... a man's voice?"

If she remembered correctly, Yukino lived alone. But she had just heard a man's voice on the phone. And then there were Yukino's frequent absences during the last two months of the semester...

Hiratsuka's eyes widened in realization.

Yukino... is in love!

And judging by the voice, it's someone older than her, from outside the school!

And considering that Haruno always helped Yukino with her absences, using family matters as an excuse to prevent her from interfering, could it be one of those classic arranged marriage situations in wealthy families?!

Hiratsuka felt like she had figured it all out.

So that's why Yukino's grades dropped. She must be affected by this.

She knew that Haruno was being groomed as the heir to the Yukinoshita family.

So Yukino, as the second daughter, is being used as a tool for an arranged marriage to benefit the family?

At home, Hiratsuka wasn't wearing her usual stylish white coat. She was dressed like a middle-aged man in a light green T-shirt and gray shorts.

Her usual cheerfulness was gone, replaced by worry as she lit a cigarette and pondered how to help her beloved student.

The immediate impact on Yukino might be just a slight dip in her grades, but in the long run, being forced to marry someone she might not love would have a devastating psychological impact.

Marriage is not a child's play.

Although Hiratsuka was nearing thirty and had never been in a relationship, her string of failed blind dates gave her the right to say that.

"No, I have to do something!"

She crushed her half-smoked cigarette in the overflowing ashtray.