'[Name], Yuji, and Nobara. Today, I want the three of you to go and exorcize the curses inside that building, ' Gojo instructs. 'Consider it a practical test. I 'm interested in seeing what you guys can do. '

Balls.

You had a feeling that things would turn out this way. In the canon story, Fushiguro was the only one who waited outside along with Gojo. He already has experience using cursed techniques and all that stuff. You and Itadori are both newbies, and Gojo isn 't familiar with Nobara either, so it's hardly surprising.

In any case, you should be fine. Nothing tragic is set to happen today. As long as you play it safe and let Itadori and Nobara take care of everything, it shouldn 't be a big deal. If nobody 's life is at stake, you 'd rather not risk messing with the storyline too much and just let it unfold. It 's not like you know how to fight yet anyway.

'Well, I guess that 's fine by me, but I 'm surprised there are curses just lurking around all over the place, ' Itadori remarks.

'How do you not even know simple things like this? ' Nobara scowls.

'Ah, right, you still haven 't heard what happened. The truth is, neither Yuji or [Name] have been trained as jujutsu sorcerers yet, ' Gojo explains. He proceeds to point towards Itadori. 'This guy ate a cursed object, and now he 's become Sukuna 's vessel. As for [Name], she naturally has a lot of cursed energy, but she doesn 't seem to know how to use it. '

'He

ate

a cursed object?! ' Nobara exclaims, immediately taking refuge behind you. 'Disgusting! That 's seriously gross! What 's wrong with you?! '

'You know, ever since we met, I feel like you 've done nothing but insult me, ' Itadori grumbles. 'Anyways, sensei, I don 't mind going in there, but I thought before you said that only a curse can exorcize a curse. I still don 't know any jujutsu. '

'Since you 're Sukuna 's vessel, you 're pretty much a half-curse already. Cursed energy is flowing through your body. But of course, I can 't expect you to control it right away, so for now, use this. '

He hands Itadori a cursed tool 'the dagger you saw him wielding early on in the series,

Slaughter Demon

. A weapon imbued with cursed energy, designed to kill curses.

'Wow, ' Itadori blinks, staring at the dagger visibly in awe. It

does

look pretty cool, so you can 't really blame him.

'And you too, [Name], ' Gojo continues. You turn towards him, only for him to hand you a cursed tool of your own. It looks a bit different than Itadori 's. It 's longer, for one, and closer to a short sword than a wide-edged dagger. The blade is thin, and even though it 's considerably shorter than an actual sword, it has a decent amount of reach. Plus, it 's light enough that you can comfortably move it around.

'Does my weapon have a badass name too? ' you ask hopefully.

'Hm, I 'm not sure, to be honest. But feel free to name it yourself. '

'Since mine 's

Slaughter Demon

, you should name yours

Curse Annihilator!

Or, or 'what about

Deathbringer?

Or

Abyssal Fury

?

Eclipse 's Edge

? '

Itadori keeps excitedly throwing out names, and as cute as his enthusiasm is, you doubt Gojo 's just going to let you guys sit around and pretend like you 're in some kind of RPG.

'So childish, ' Nobara sighs, already turning towards the building.

You chuckle once, gripping the hilt of your blade a bit tighter. It 's not like you haven 't seen curses before. You already got up close and personal with

Sukuna

, the most dangerous 'curse ' of all. There 's no reason to be afraid. Especially when you can already predict everything that 's going to happen.

Gojo waves you off with a smile, and Fushiguro crosses his arms without saying anything, but you can tell that he 's a bit worried. Mostly about Itadori not having anyone to monitor him, but still. He can 't quite seem to hide all his concern, even with that cute little frowny-face of his.

'Ugh, this is such a pain, ' Nobara mutters. 'I can 't believe I have to deal with some curses first thing in Tokyo. Let 's hurry up and get this over with so we can grab sushi or something. '

'Hold on, let 's try to be a little more serious, ' Itadori protests. 'Curses are really dangerous. Don 't you know that? '

Oh, Itadori. You sweet summer child.

You 're unsurprised to see Nobara turn around with a look of sheer contempt, and she even forcefully kicks him down the stairs.

'I don 't want to hear that from someone who was a normie until now! Hurry up and get the hell on with it! If we split up, we 'll get this done faster! '

Nobara grabs you by the hand and starts pulling you along with her, before you can even get a word in edgewise.

'This is why girls don 't like you, ' she mutters as she leaves Itadori behind.

'Huh? What do you know about girls not liking me? And 'hey! If we 're splitting up, I want to be with [Name]! Hey! '

Itadori calls out, but to no avail. Nobara is already leading you up the stairs, towards the top floor.

You suppose it doesn 't really make much of a difference who you 're with. There are only a few curses inside this building, and every single one of them will be exorcized by either Itadori or Nobara. You know Gojo is curious to see how you 'll fare, but realistically, your help isn 't going to be needed.

'Don 't worry, ' Nobara reassures. 'Just stick with me. I 'll take care of all the curses. You won 't get hurt. '

Damn. The difference between how she treats you and Itadori is like night and day.

Not that you 're complaining.

You stay close to her side, and she eventually stops upon entering one of the rooms. There are a bunch of mannequins scattered around. You already know what 's about to happen here, even without her saying anything.

'Hey, you, ' Nobara points. 'The curse over there. The mannequin in the middle. Are you seriously planning on hiding? Do you take me for a fool? If you 're not gonna come out, then ' fine. I 'll just exorcize you as you are. '

She pulls out her hammer and several nails, and right as the curse springs to action, she shoots out her nails and lands several direct hits. The cursed corpse mannequin teeters backwards, but already, the damage has been inflicted. Nobara imbues all of her nails with cursed energy. That thing was done for the moment they hit their mark.

'Easy peasy, ' Nobara proudly states. She flashes you a bright smile, and you quickly return it with a smile of your own, but you know that the battle isn 't truly over.

Moments later, you hear the sound of a child whimpering in fear.

'Ah. There 's a kid, ' Nobara remarks. She leans forward slightly. 'It 's okay now. I took care of that thing, so you don 't need to keep hiding. '

As expected, the little boy furiously shakes his head in refusal, and Nobara sighs, taking a step back.

'I guess it 's true that children are naturally more wary of beautiful women like us. It can 't be helped. We 'll just have to call Itadori and wait for him to ' '

She 's cut off by the sound of the boy screaming, and you when you blink, sure enough, there 's a curse holding him hostage 'and giggling, no less.

Well, I already knew this would happen.

It 's alright. The boy isn 't really in danger, because any moment now, Itadori will burst through the wall behind it and rescue him, giving Nobara the opportunity to exorcize the curse. Of course, it hurts to see a child suffering like that, afraid that their life might be about to end, but you choose to believe that everything will unfold the way it 's supposed to. Itadori will have already finished killing the curse he encountered by now. There 's no reason he wouldn 't come looking for the two of you.

And yet, things don 't go the way you expect them to.

The fact that you 're even here right now means that sometimes, the story will change.

Nobara sets her hammer and nails down and raises her hands above her head, signaling to the curse that she won 't attack. You do the same, dropping your blade so that it realizes there 's no imminent danger. You know the curse won 't let go of the kid, but it won 't kill him, either. At least, not by the time that Itadori shows up.

Something seems off, though. And you 're suddenly hit with a wave of d 'j ' vu.

For some reason, you 're reminded of the way that other curse reacted to you. The one you encountered inside Sugisawa High. The one that got really,

really

mad when it locked eyes with you.

This one 's starting to look pretty mad too.

Without warning, the curse tosses the boy to the side, making him collide against one of the walls. It all happens so fast that you can barely even process it. One second, the curse is still a few meters away, and in the next, it 's right in front of your eyes, unhinging its huge mouth as its razor-sharp nails descend on you from above.

Neither you nor Nobara are able to pick up your weapons in time. The curse is already upon you, and it brings you crashing down to the ground, one swipe away from clawing your face off.

What 's ' happening?

You thought you were safe. You thought that by now, Itadori would be here. You thought that the curse would still be backed against the wall, where it had a blind spot, and was vulnerable to being attacked from behind. Everything you expected, all of the knowledge that you were

so

sure of ' it was wrong. It didn 't go the way you thought it would.

Nobara scrambles to try and shoot her nails out again, but it 's too late. You 're disoriented and vulnerable. You 're just short of being mauled.

In that moment, you feel it.

You feel the hot, dizzying pulse of energy that ripples through your body. You feel as if your nerves are on fire, like everything around you is inoffensive. Harmless.

For just a second, you feel

powerful.

'Get the fuck off me! ' you scream, and your hand makes contact with the curse 's body, just for a moment, before the energy flows out of your body, expands, and obliterates the curse right where it stands.

Your vision fades in and out. The weight that was pressing down on you moments ago is gone, just like that. The curse is nowhere to be seen.

'did

you

do that?

While you regain your bearings, Nobara runs over to the little boy and makes sure that he 's okay. There 's a bit of bleeding from where the curse lightly sliced into his neck, and he collided with the wall pretty forcefully, but it doesn 't look like there 's any serious, permanent damage. Thank goodness.

'I 'm here! ' someone cries out 'and it 's none other than Itadori, who finally made his appearance by breaking through the wall. Realistically, he probably got here right around the same time he did in canon, but those few seconds just now could have been the difference between life and death for you.

Itadori looks around, confused. 'Huh? For a second, I thought ' I felt a curse or something around here. Was I wrong? '

'There was one. But [Name] exorcized it, ' Nobara says. She pats the little boy 's head, then turns towards you with a frown. 'I thought you didn 't know how to use cursed energy, but you actually pulled it off. You didn 't even need the cursed tool. '

Itadori helps pull you to your feet, and you dust yourself off, still somewhat in disbelief. You 're uninjured, luckily. The curse wasn 't awfully powerful, but you wonder how much damage it could have inflicted on you if you hadn 't killed it in time. Honestly, you don 't even want to imagine. You 're just glad to have all your limbs intact.

'Are you alright? ' Itadori asks worriedly. 'Man. I don 't even have a single clue how to use jujutsu yet, but you actually killed that curse bare-handed? You 're awesome, [Name]! I didn 't realize you were already so strong! '

'I ' just got lucky, ' you admit. 'It was like some kind of reflex. I doubt I 'm good enough to consciously control it and trigger it on my own. But I 'm glad everyone 's okay. That 's the only thing that matters. '

Yeah. Everyone 's safe, including the little boy. But once again, things changed. It was only a slight deviation from the main plotline, but the fact remains that the curse acted differently because you were here.

What if that happens in the middle of an important event? What if it happens against a much more powerful enemy?

'what if you end up causing more harm than good?

You clench your fists. No. Thinking about it like that is way too scary. You already made up your mind. Right now, you 're just not strong enough. Which means the only thing to do is improve. Until you 're confident enough to be able to protect everyone.

'Let 's go, ' you say, putting on a brave face. 'I 'm gonna make Gojo treat us to a yummy meal. '

'Ew! No way! ' Nobara exclaims. 'Why do I have to live in the same place as these stinky boys?! '

'Fushiguro, she called us stinky again, ' Itadori pouts, repeatedly jabbing his dark-haired classmate in the ribs. 'Are you really going to stand for that? Hey. C 'mon. Seriously, do something about it. '

Unfortunately, Fushiguro doesn 't intend to do anything, and instead, he proceeds to ignore everyone and march to his room.

Aw. What a cute, socially-awkward little bean he is.

It 'd be nice if he didn 't think I was a pervert, though.

'You 're not stinky, Itadori, ' you reassure, and that 's pretty much all it takes for his expression to brighten up.

'If you say so, [Name], then I know it must be true, ' he beams.

Nobara glances between the two of you, lips pursed. 'So ' are you guys dating, or what? '

'I wish ' ' you start, but you manage to clamp your hand over your mouth, just in the nick of time.

Holy

shit

, that was so close. You almost just exposed yourself as the number one simp in the history of all simps. Even Itadori, as much of a sweetheart as he is, wouldn 't be able to look at you the same if he knew you were lowkey (highkey) thirsting over him.

'W-We 're just friends, ' you reply, quickly collecting yourself. 'Like I said before, we briefly attended the same high school. I transferred in late, so we 've only known each other for a few weeks, but I guess it helps that we 're already familiar with each other. '

'You 're way too pretty to be friends with someone like him, ' Nobara states matter-of-factly. 'I bet he ate his boogers as a kid. '

Wow. She actually said it to his face this time.

'I didn 't do that, ' Itadori insists, but based on Nobara 's expression, you can tell she 's not buying it.

You turn towards your new classmate with a smile. 'I think it 's cool that we all get to live together. Gojo wanted to put all the first-years in the same building. He thought it 'd be more fun that way, and I agree. We have separate bathrooms from the boys, obviously. I don 't see the problem. '

'Well, the problem is that they could sneak into my room in the middle of the night and try to steal my underwear or something. '

'Um, Itadori would never do something like that, and Fushiguro would probably sooner

die

than be labeled a panty thief. Also, these doors lock. So, I 'm pretty sure they have no way of getting into your room. '

Nobara stares at Itadori through narrowed eyes. 'Still. I bet they 'll find a way. Perverts stop at nothing to get what they want. If you try anything funny, I 'll kick your ass, just so we 're clear. '

'Why am I being accused of stealing underwear all of a sudden? ' Itadori sighs. 'I 'm too tired for this. I think I 'm gonna start getting ready for bed. Goodnight, [Name]. Goodnight, Kugisaki. '

He waves you off with a smile, and he smiles at Nobara too, but she responds by making a slicing motion across the base of her neck.

Oh, well. She 's a little rough around the edges right now, but you know that she 's actually a really good friend. She cares about people, even if she doesn 't let it show from the start.

Inside the communal girls ' bathroom, you and Nobara brush your teeth in front of the big mirror, and you watch, incredulous, as she pulls out a gigantic box and sets it down on the counter.

You spit into the sink and wipe your mouth. 'What 's that? '

'My skincare products, ' Nobara simply responds. The box opens like some kind of treasure chest, and you can hardly even count the number of items inside.

'Whoa. You use

all

that stuff? '

'Of course. How else do I think I maintain my pretty face? '

'I just use this thingy, ' you shrug, pointing to your tiny little bottle of facial wash 'which looks rather pitiful in comparison to Nobara 's treasure trove.

Nobara lets out a loud, offended gasp. 'Seriously? That 's the only step in your skincare routine? Where 's the toner? Where 's the

moisturizer?

Do you even exfoliate? '

'Back in my old world 'I mean, back when I lived in a different city, I used to wash my face with soap. Trust me, this is a step up. '

Similar to Fushiguro, Nobara proceeds to stare at you with a mixture of both horror and disgust.

'You 're way too pretty to be ruining your skin this early, ' Nobara sighs. 'Here. I 'll let you borrow some of my skincare products. You clearly have good genes, but if you 're not careful, you 'll damage your skin and it 'll all be wasted. We can go shopping together sometime to pick out what you need. '

You grin. 'So, you 're asking me out on a shopping date? '

'Sure, ' Nobara chuckles. 'That 's one way of putting it. I 'm seriously jealous now. I can 't believe you look so cute when you 're putting in minimal effort. '

Hehe. Nobara thinks I 'm cute.

You decide to take her up on her offer and try following the

very

lengthy steps of her skincare routine, and it 's definitely working, because by the time you 're done, your face feels fresher than ever.

'Wow, ' you marvel. 'Nobara, feel my cheeks. They 're super-duper soft. '

'Of course, ' she proudly replies, flipping her hair. 'Don 't ever doubt me again. I 'm an expert when it comes to this kind of stuff. There 's seriously nothing to do in the countryside. I spent a bunch of time reading up on beauty tips and fashion, just waiting for the chance to live in a big city. I don 't know why your family ever moved to the countryside in the first place. Didn 't it feel like absolute torture? '

'Not really. I didn 't mind it. And I got to meet Itadori at my old high school, which was nice. '

'Hm. Well, I 'm glad you didn 't have a bad experience. ' Nobara crosses her arms, looking rather downcast all of a sudden. 'I used to have a friend that moved to the countryside from a bigger city, just like you. Her name is Saori. She was super nice, and you honestly remind me of her a bit. People make the countryside sound like it 's so laid-back and filled with nothing but kind, warm-hearted people, but they can actually be pretty cruel. Back where I lived, all of the villagers decided to bully Saori, claiming some bullshit that she was secretly looking down on them. In the end, they ended up driving her out of the village and making her move away. Isn 't that horrible? '

Right. That was one of the reasons she grew to resent the countryside that much more. You 'll never understand why people choose to hurt others for no reason.

Then again, in a world as cutthroat and brutal as Jujutsu Kaisen, you honestly shouldn 't be surprised.

'I 'm lucky that people never bullied me like that, ' you acknowledge. Truly, you can 't say you had any particularly upsetting experiences back in the real world. You lived a fairly average, otherwise unremarkable life. Perhaps that 's why you 've been isekai 'd

here

, of all places. Perhaps someone out there felt your life was too easy and decided to give you a challenge. Who knows, really.

The only thing you

do

know is that it 's far too late to turn your back on these people. And even if it 's scary, even if it 's downright

terrifying

, you 'd like to help them.

'I 'm sorry your friend had to go through something like that, ' you say, gently patting Nobara on the back. 'And I 'm sorry that you had to be apart from her because of what those villagers did. I hope that you 'll be able to see her again someday. I have a feeling it 'll happen. '

Nobara stares at you wide-eyed, not quite sure how to respond. Maybe she 's not used to being comforted because she 's such a strong person and doesn 't ever show weakness.

But her expression makes it clear that she appreciates your words.

'You really

do

remind me of Saori, ' Nobara grins, pulling you into a hug. 'You 're both so nice. Saori was really pretty like you, too. If that old guy from earlier today would 've seen the two of us together, I bet he 'd have scouted us to be models in a heartbeat. '

You chuckle softly. You never imagined yourself in the modeling industry, but Nobara 's confidence makes you feel like you really could have had a shot at it. It would definitely be easier than being a jujutsu sorcerer.

If only.

'Alright, well, I 'm gonna head to bed now, ' Nobara says, finally shutting her massive, treasure chest-like box of skincare products. 'Beauties like us need all the rest we can get. I don 't know about you, but I do

not

want to wake up with eye bags. '

'I 'll go to sleep soon, too. I think I just want to step outside for a bit and get some fresh air before I turn in. '

'Alright. Goodnight, [Name]. See you in the morning. ' Nobara glances around and grits her teeth. 'Pray that none of the boys try to steal our underwear while we sleep. '

You laugh as she walks off, and the image of Itadori and Fushiguro sneaking around like ninjas as they rifle through your clothing drawers is almost

too

funny. Fushiguro especially. You can 't think of a single person who 'd be less likely to pull some shit like that.

After tucking your belongings back in your room, you make your way out of the dorm building. There 's a full moon tonight, and you lift your head towards the clear sky, relishing the sensation of the slight breeze that caresses your cheeks.

'...can 't sleep? '

You blink, somewhat alarmed, only to find Gojo standing mere inches away from you. The way he just sometimes manifests in the blink of an eye ' it 's kind of freaky. Although you 'd expect nothing less of the strongest sorcerer.

'Sensei, don 't sneak up on me like that, ' you huff. 'I almost had a heart attack. '

'My bad, ' Gojo chuckles. 'I was just stopping by to make sure you 'd all gone to bed. There 's a barrier around the school, so it 's not necessarily dangerous to wander around, but you 're still students. There are rules and curfews in place. '

'I wasn 't going to go anywhere. I just wanted a bit of fresh air. '

'Well, I guess that 's fine, then. Don 't worry, ' he grins, pressing a finger to his lips. 'I won 't tell on you. '

God. This man is way too attractive for his own good.

'Was there something on your mind? ' Gojo hums. 'You did pretty well for your first day, considering you have no clue how to even control your cursed energy. I 'm guessing what happened earlier today was an instinctive response. You still need actual training. But you 've undoubtedly got potential. '

'Well ' there

are

a few things, ' you admit. 'I 'm just a bit ' nervous. I guess. About everything. Does that make me a coward? '

'I 'd say that 's the normal response in your position. Yuji 's an exception. He adapts to situations very quickly, and even though he 's scared, he 's the type to jump right in when others are in trouble. But it 's not like he 's immune to fear either.

No one

is immune to fear. '

There 's a pause, and moments later, he 's got a goofy smile on his face.

'Well, except for me, of course! '

You sigh. 'I admire your confidence, sensei. If I could have even a fraction of it, that 'd be amazing. But I 'll probably just have to find my own way of coping. '

Gojo chuckles again. He doesn 't say anything for a while, and you awkwardly kick at a few leaves that have fallen to the ground, but when you turn back to look at him again, his blindfold has been pulled off.

And he 's even closer to you than before.

'To be honest, my eyes are pretty good at reading the flow of cursed energy, ' he says, and sure enough, the pale blue eyes you find yourself staring into are

so

piercing,

so

bright, that you may as well be under a spell. You can 't bring yourself to look away.

Gojo 's smile slips, just for a moment.

'I don 't really know how to describe it, but your cursed energy flows differently than what I 've become accustomed to. It feels unnatural. It 's almost like some kind of glitch. You know how like in video games, there are lags sometimes and the images get all choppy? Or the screen will randomly freeze up? Sort of like that. It just ' doesn 't really sit right with me. '

You swallow. Of course, you instinctively know that this has to do with the fact that you 've been isekai 'd. Your existence in this world already doesn 't make sense. It figures that the power you 've been imbued with doesn 't make much sense either.

He 's suspicious of you, and for good reason, but you doubt anyone would ever come to the conclusion that you 're from a different world. It 's unfathomable. Even if you told people outright, they still wouldn 't believe you.

In his eyes, you are an enigma, and you can only hope that the mystery that surrounds you won 't be the reason for your demise.

'So ' you 're calling me weird, ' you mumble, pretending to look embarrassed.

Now that you can clearly see the entirety of Gojo 's face, you 're able to pick up on even the smallest changes in his expression, like the way his eyes widen slightly, and the subtle lift of his brows.

His smile returns, even brighter than before.

'Haha! Well, I won 't deny it. Objectively speaking, your situation

is

weird. But the same can also be said of Yuji, so don 't worry about it too much. I just felt like saying what was on my mind. It wasn 't my intention to shame you. '

He happily pats your head 'which has since become your absolute favorite thing 'then places his blindfold back on. Which is kind of a shame, because you can 't see those beautiful eyes of his anymore. Oh, well. It was nice while it lasted.

'Time to get some sleep, ' Gojo says, gently pushing you forward. 'If I catch you outside again, I might have to act the part of a strict teacher for once. You wouldn 't like to see me when I 'm grumpy. '

'I like seeing you all the time, sensei. '

'Is that so? I 'm flattered, ' he muses, still pushing you into the building. 'But I 'm afraid your sweet talk won 't work on me. Believe it or not, even

I

can be responsible. Well, sometimes. '

You step inside the building and turn back to face him. This whole time, you haven 't even stopped to consider that he 's just seen you in your pajamas, and suddenly, you feel your entire face flush.

Hopefully he thinks the little teddy bear print you 're wearing today is cute.

'Goodnight, sensei, ' you say, politely bowing your head. 'You work really hard, so I hope you 'll be able to get some rest. You deserve it. '

You wave him off with a big smile before he can even respond, and he watches as you excitedly scurry off in those cute pajamas of yours, nearly tripping over your own feet in the process. You 're admittedly a bit clumsy, which isn 't ideal for a jujutsu sorcerer, but hopefully your natural strength can compensate for it.

Besides, even if he can 't really put it into words, he enjoys being around you. You 're entertaining. Despite the fact that nothing about you makes any sense.

A grin splits across Gojo 's lips.

You might end up becoming his favorite student at this rate.