十

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"Wow. You're really getting into this teacher stuff huh?"

He had interrupted her thoughts once again. She turned her head to to be met with his own, as he crouched down behind her and peered over her shoulder to see what she was doing. The sun was beginning to set on the horizon, and the two inadvertently basked in the gorgeous red hues that the evening had to offer.

"It's better than wasting time doing nothing. I'd feel bad getting paid to do something that leaves me with almost too much spare time during working hours."

"You're getting the hang of this employment thing too!"

"Shinigami work, you know. We just don't get paid for it. Speaking of which, I need you to take me shopping later." She said, resuming her scribbling of notes for Maki's future sessions.

"Shopping? You haven't even been paid yet."

"Yeah, about that. You're going to have to cover it for now!" She said, unashamed.

"It's no problem. Yaga informed me that you told him to direct you pay to me and explained why, I suppose there isn't really another alternative."

"What was the business with Itadori you mentioned earlier? I assume that's why you're here."

Satoru went on to explain the situation concerning Itadori, how he had woken up after being knocked out as himself, and the ultimatum Satoru had given him: find and consume all of Sukuna's fingers, or be sentenced to death immediately. Satoru had managed to convince the higher ups to suspend his sentencing, arguing that it would be more use to destroy Sukuna's curse alongside Itadori.

"You seem fairly cold in all of this, isn't he essentially being used as a mule to be ultimately sent to slaughter?" It was unlike him to be so callous, she sensed ulterior motive.

"You think I'd let it end up like that?" He asked, a somewhat serious edge to his voice.

"Not for a second, I think you have something up your sleeve."

"A gentleman never tells! But you're right, if things play out the way I'm thinking they will, Itadori won't die. I fed him the second finger earlier, and the fact that the kid was able to subdue the curse after that, is proof that he can control himself against Sukuna without issue. There hasn't been someone with talent like that for around a thousand years."

"So he's a special case?"

"Yeah, he is. He's just passed his interview with Yaga and been shown to the student accommodation, which is where you come in." He grinned at her.

"I don't follow, what do you expect me to do?"

"Introduce yourself, I'm curious to see what will happen when you meet."

Yachiru looked at him, perplexed. "I guess we'll just have to go and find out!" She leapt up from her sitting position, giving Satoru a nudge with her shoulder. "Lead the way."

The two headed straight for the student housing, arriving in just a few minutes. Yachiru was curious as to what Satoru had in mind - what was he expecting to happen? Maybe she should have asked, but she supposed it was better to go along with his little plan and find out herself.

"Itadori!" Gojo chimed, knocking on the young boy's door a few times before reaching for the handle only for his hand to be slapped away.

"We can't just go in... young boys are, well... young boys after all..."

The door opened to reveal the strawberry-blonde haired boy she had seen yesterday, a toothy grin displayed on his face. He seemed to be in high spirits for someone who had just lost their grandfather and subsequently been told he would soon be sentenced to death.

"Gojo-sensei! And..." His face fell flat for a moment upon looking down at the woman next to Gojo, "Is this the other first year you mentioned? I thought we were picking her up from the station tomorrow?"

Her eyebrow twitched. First year? Did she really look that young? Before she could protest, Satoru let out a hearty laugh before explaining that Yachiru was in fact just a few months younger than himself, resulting in Itadori apologising profusely.

"It's okay. My name is Yachiru! It's nice to meet you Itadori."

"Yachiri is new here, like you! She's on a teaching trial here." Gojo gave her a push forward, closing the door behind him and enclosing the three of them in the room. "But she's not a Jujutsu Sorcerer! Yachiru is kinda like you, Itadori."

Ah, so that's how it was. She mentally smacked herself for not recognising it earlier. Her and Itadori shared something in common; they both had the soul of another being residing inside of them. The young boy looked at her puzzled, confused as to what his new teacher was trying to tell him. Itadori wasn't the smartest, and Gojo was starting to realise this himself.

The long winded explanation of Yachiru being a Shinigami was told by Satoru, exemplified by his own anecdotes concerning her travels to their world. She was somewhat thankful that she wouldn't have to explain it again for what felt like the hundredth time.

"You've heard of Izanami, right?" Gojo asked.

"Nope. Dunno her."

Yachiru laughed, hard. She was yet to meet a human who wasn't at least a little familiar with this essential part of their culture's mythology. She held her stomach, it beginning to hurt from how hard she was laughing. Gojo began another monologue concerning the origins of Izanami, making the conclusive statement of: "...Izanami is the shinto Goddess of death and creation! And her vessel is this little lady right here."

"Izanami and I live in harmony with one another, and I am my own person aside from having her live inside of me." It was true; the pair co-existed peacefully with one another, the factor that enabled them to synergise.

"So it's similar nonetheless! Now, Yachiru. You can communicate with souls, can't you?"

"I can, but it usually only happens after they die. I've never looked into the soul of a living human, but it is possible and I can give it a go." She said, anticipation eating her alive. She was somewhat excited; after seeing the demon in action yesterday, she wondered of it's nature. It was rare that cursed spirits would be able to talk, let alone have coherent thoughts or a personality. "Itadori, sit down." She said, sitting crossed legged on the floor. He obeyed, sitting across from her and waiting for her next instruction - but it didn't come.

Yachiru was silent as she concentrated, her eyes trailing over his body in search of the location of Sukuna's soul. It didn't take long. The differences in the temperament of the two souls - Itadori's and Sukuna's - were in juxtaposition with each other. Itadori's was light and warm, perhaps even comforting, whilst Sukuna's reeked of pure malice.

"There." She said, her index finger reaching forward and poking him in his stomach. Itadori's jaw almost detached itself from his skull as her finger poked through his skin, the sensation making him erupt in a giggling fit.

Her finger made contact with Sukuna's soul, it burnt to the touch. Red hot, fiery, but before she could make any further analysis on this it seemed she had been let inside.

"Oh, hey." She said, looking up at the man Satoru had described as the 'King of Curses'. He looked just like Itadori, except with tattoo-like markings and two pairs of eyes. The environment of his soul was quite the sight; the ground was covered in a thick volume of blood, a huge skeletal structure hailing over the trio. He sat upon a throne of bones, dressed in an ivory yukata.

"You should have known better than to enter my soul uninvited." He appeared before her, but she did not so much as blink. She was not scared, her inquisitiveness once again delivering her to the danger zone. "How would you feel if I touched yours?" He leaned in, his face a little too close for comfort.

"You're kinda gross, I think you touching anyone's anything would be unpleasant for most people." She giggled, noticing Itadori's awkward presence in a room thick with tension. "Is he always this belligerent?" She faced the young boy, directing her question at him.

"Heh, he's only been here for a day but he's been nothing but abusive ever since." He answered, making his way over to her.

She faced the demon, "You should probably try getting along, since you're gunna be here a while." There was a teasing tinge to her voice, she wanted to antagonise him a little more.

'You're on thin ice, Yachiru.'

Her ears pricked up, Izanami's warning hitting her loud and clear. As the sound hit her ears, she watched Sukuna's curious eyes hit her once again.

"What was that noise?" He asked, or so demanded to know.

'And so are you, Ryomen Sukuna.' Izanami began to rattle on her side.

"You can hear her?"

"What is going on? Where is that voice coming from?!" Itadori was panicking slightly, clearly slow on the pick-up of the situation.

"Izanami. It's unusual for anyone other than me to be able to hear her, but I think it has something to do with us being inside of a soul." She speculated, unsure of what the answer could be.

"Izanami? You expect me to believe that?" The curse asked, a wild, sardonic smile spreading across his face. He roared in laughter, straight in the face of the Shinigami before him.

"You really ought to not disrespect her like that, Izanami can be scary sometimes." Her hand found it's way to her hilt almost absentmindedly, as though predicting what would come next.

"Was that a threat?" His laughter had died down, and his face now expressed a mixture of seriousness and annoyance. Itadori took a few steps away from the two facing off, the unfamiliar but extremely daunting aura contaminated the room emanated from the two of them; as though their cursed and spiritual energies were already in conflict.

"You can take it how you want." She challenged. If she knew anything thing about taming a beast, it was to not let them get the better of you. Yachiru wasn't scared, not even the least bit intimidated; she knew how to handle spirits like this. His soul was akin to those Shinigami would often send off to Hell, instead of allowing them into Yomi.

Sukuna's left arm extended towards her with great haste - his compact fist with it's sharp talons would have drove straight through her. This act of aggression warranted a stern punishment, so to speak.

"Wake up, Izanami." She whispered, the sharp appendage aimed at her chest getting closer by the millisecond. Itadori couldn't quite make out what had just happened, it was all much too quick for him to catch a glimpse of anything other than the flash of crimson that gleamed from Yachiru's sword.

The arm that had been previously throttled in her direction had now been completely dismembered, flying straight over in Itadori's direction - to which he narrowly dodged. Sukuna did not so much as yelp at the harsh removal of his left arm, a small smirk appearing on his face at the look of pure curiosity emitted by Yachiru at the sight of his arm's regeneration.

"Reverse Cursed Technique?" She muttered in question, remembering how Satoru had used something similar after almost being killed by Toji.

"You're a little more clued up than the Shinigami from back then." Sukuna said, flexing his arm and rotating it as so to warm up his fresh limb. The red glow of her katana's semi-released state had heated the entire space, causing both himself and Itadori to sweat slightly. He noted, how when her sword had made contact with his shoulder, it had scorched before it cut. It hurt like hell, but there was no way he would let that show.

"And you're a little more aggressive than a spirit should act! Aren't you like a thousand years old? You should have at least developed some manners by now." She scolded, standing firmly in her oppositional stance with two hands on her sword.

He wasn't the slight bit touched by her words, he was barely even listening to her. However, there was a specific word that did raise questions. Her use of the term 'spirit' instead of 'curse', as he was often referred to, had him thinking for longer than a moment. At this point, he was torn between tearing her limb from limb, and just telling her to go away. Her demonstration of power earlier proved he was no match for her in this weakened state, Itadori having only consumed two of his fingers and thus Sukuna having only one tenth of his original power.

But there was one question, a question of his that begged for satiation.

"Izanami is just the name of your sword?" He asked, dropping his aggressive stance and placing his hands on the inside of his kimono casually.

Yachiru, however, did not drop her defences. "Just as you now live inside Itadori, Izanami lives inside of me. This sword is a manifestation of our collective soul."

"It's honestly pathetic that a God like Izanami would become a lapdog to a Shinigami." He spat, perhaps testing the aforementioned's temperament a little too hard. Yachiru's movements were quick, ducking under the much taller man and pointing the tip of her sword straight at his jugular.

"Can you grow your head back too? Should we find out?" She asked, her dark eyes challenging his own as he merely smirked down at her. He knew she would not kill him, because of the boy in the corner who stared at the two with curiosity. The heat from just the tip of her sword had his skin melting from the short distance, but it was nothing his reversed cursed energy usage couldn't fix. Yachiru did not want Izanami to pay his insolence any mind, estimating that a reaction from her was what he wanted.

The red hue of her blade began to subdue, returning to it's usual charcoal colour as she quickly placed Izanami back in her sheath. "I'll leave you alone for now. I came to test the waters, but I don't doubt we will meet again, so goodbye for now." Yachiru said politely, once again slightly shocking the king of curses. Herself and Itadori promptly disappeared from his space, leaving him to himself.

"That was quick!" Satoru chirped, noticing the perplexed expression on Yachiru's face. "Itadori, why are you so sweaty?!"

"Yachiru's sword is really hot..." He half explained, still unable to fully register what had just transpired.

Gojo turned to the now stood up woman, "So? Can you train him to be like you and Izanami?" He asked. She had guessed this would be his desired outcome from the moment he had asked if she could communicate with Sukuna, but her findings had been unfortunate.

"No." She said simply, her chin resting in her hand in thought. How could a spirit become that malevolent? Everything about him screamed bright red danger, she understood why people had grown to fear him, and even why the higher-ups would want Itadori dead; Sukuna lived up to his reputation. "It's not wholly impossible, but at the moment, there is no chance. They are not compatible, Sukuna does not care for Itadori's wishes and exists solipsistically inside of him. Their relationship is parasitic, if they want to become like me and Izanami, they must become symbiotic." She explained, sounding sorry for the outcome of the situation.

Itadori beamed at her, not at all bothered by the outcome of Gojo's little experiment. "All I have to do is befriend him, right?" He asked, simplifying her words to the best of his ability.

"Yes. If you can do that, or at least develop some kind of amicability, you should be able to synergise."

"Synergise?" Gojo asked this time. Of course, he knew what the word meant, but was more so interested in the context in which Yachiru had used it.

"Yes. Synergy is when both souls become one." She looked at Itadori,  "In our case, it is a higher state of being, where you're able to control the power of the spirit residing inside without having them take full control. Although once synergy is achieved, it shouldn't matter if the other takes over, since there is a mutual degree of trust and respect already established." She explained. In truth, she had never fully released nor become embodied with Izanami. It was Izanami herself that had explained all of this to her. There had only been one time when she had come close to showing the full release of Izanami; only to be stopped by Satoru's friend Geto. She had forgotten to ask about him, and made a mental note to enquire later with Satoru.

After her explanation, the duo said their goodnights to the teenage boy and made their way back to the teacher's living area.

"I forgot to ask, what happened to Geto?" The last time she had seen him, he had been fighting Toji. She was unsure of how the fight had panned out, and regretted her casual mentioning of Satoru's dear friend.

"That's a hell of a long story." He responded, not wanting to discuss the supposed death of his best friend at his very own hands. Yachiru didn't need to know, it was in the past. She looked at him quizzically, the speeding up of his steps to overtake his position from walking beside her indicated that it could be a sore subject, and so she left him be. "It's too late to go shopping now, you can tag along tomorrow to our trip into the city to pick up the new student." He changed the subject.

"Sure, that's fine." She had all the basics given to her; tooth brush, tooth paste, some body wash, but she would have killed for some shampoo and conditioner. Possibly a new outfit too!

He stopped in the corridor as the pair arrived at Yachiru's room, his being just a few doors down.

"Thank you for trying with Itadori today." He said in earnest, turning around to face her.

"You've done plenty for me, please don't thank me."

He pulled his blindfold down so his eyes could meet her own, not missing the small tinge of pink that coated her cheeks as she did so. "Can you promise me something?"

"Of course."

"If anything happens to me, don't let any of the kids here die."

It was a big promise to commit to, and he knew she would have difficulty agreeing. He had asked her for a reason. Gojo had only ever seen Yachiru in action for a few seconds in his entire time of knowing her, yet his intuition told him he did not need to see the full extent of her power; her aura itself reeked authority, it demanded respect.

She took him by surprise, he expected at least some level of disagreement. "I don't need to make a promise to do that, I'd do it anyway." She smiled softly, reaching up on her tiptoes and poking him in the cheek. "You are very dear to me, Satoru. The people that are dear to you, and preserve your happiness, are therefore also dear to me." She unlocked her door, opening it slightly as the two prepared to say goodnight.

As she went to enter her quarters, a hand grabbed her own. Not by the wrist, but by her actual hand. Satoru pulled her back and into a hug, her back against his chest as his arms tightly squeezed around her waist. He couldn't find the words to express his gratitude to her in the way that she had just done for him, and he didn't want to just repeat her own words. It was an intimate display of affection. The two stayed there for a few moments, she not knowing how to react other than to lean back into his embrace, it felt all too natural. He finally released her, spinning her around to gaze into her obsidian orbs once again.

"Goodnight, Yachiru."