CHAPTER ONE

【unsealed tragedy】

Everywhere was pitch-black. Rina turned, facing an endless abyss. She stood still, holding her breath, waiting for something-anything-to happen. Then he appeared-a man with silky white hair and eyes like the ocean.

"S-Satoru?" she whispered, reaching out to grab his hand. The air seemed to pulse with a strange energy, and her heart pounded in her chest.

Blood pooled in his mouth and dripped down his face, the sight sending a jolt of fear through her.

Rina's fingers trembled, her gaze dropping to them. In a split second she recognised the same crimson liquid--blood, warm and thick, trickling from her own hands.

Then her vision blurred and she blinked herself awake.

The inside of the car slowly came into focus. Sunlight streamed through the window at her side, reflecting off the glass. Her heart was still racing, the remnants of the dream clinging to her.

She exhaled shakily, staring out at the passing scenery. The eerie sense of déjà vu lingered, gnawing at her thoughts. Then in a snap the memory of the dream vanished.

"How strange...," she murmured, trying to recall what happened.

The man driving adjusted his rearview mirror, glancing at it before focusing on the road ahead. With a soft hum of the engine, the car came to a stop.

He straightened his glasses before speaking. "We're here."

"Right," She acknowledged, stepping out of the car with a take away bag filled with Chicken Nanban, Shogayaki, Dorayaki, with canned fizzy drinks.
The other bag in car contained Miso ramen and a canned drink as well. She had asked Ijichi-the man driving- to stop earlier to pick up some food. She was grateful for his help and decided to reward him in her own way, a gesture of saying thanks.

"Ijichi."

The man turned, pressing a button to lower the window to his left. She noticed the dark circles under his eyes had worsened.

"There's a leftover food at the back, help yourself, okay?" She smiled softly.

The man's eyes gleamed in gratitude. Rina had always stepped out of her way to show him kindness, knowing how underappreciated he was-she related to him in that aspect.

He smiled back at her. "Thank you Rina."

She hummed in response watching as the window rolled back up as Ijichi drove off.

She sucked in a small breath and walked into the school.

Tokyo Jujutsu High. A broad campus of several buildings built in a traditional Japanese architectural style, operating under the guise of a Buddhist temple. The school building is well hidden on Tokyo's outskirts, far and high in the mountains. Naturally, there are a lot of trees around the property to further obscure the location. Some elements other than the buildings reflect the Buddhist theme. There are several statues of deities, shrines, and torii gates around the campus. The entire property is hidden by a protective barrier maintained by Master Tengen, who lives beneath the school in the Tombs of the Star. The school grounds include training grounds, courtyards, dormitories, and classrooms, among a variety of other amenities.

Rina Akumu wasn't a teacher here but at its sister school - Kyoto Jujutsu High. Though she visited regularly from time to time. For meetings, Megumi and sometimes to stand in as substitute for either Satoru or someone else.

Although she had been gone for a week due to a mission and a funeral of one of her clan members. She wasn't a fan of them but she had to pay her respects.

Rina continued walking toward the courtyard, where she spotted a familiar spiky, raven-haired boy. He recognized her immediately and walked over quickly.

"Akumu-sensei!" Megumi called out, reaching to hug her.

She smiled, returning the hug and ruffling his hair a little. "Hello, dear."

"When did you get back?" he asked as they pulled away from each other.

"Not long ago," she replied, lifting the takeaway bag. "Shogayaki?"

They settled down at an outdoor patio, chatting casually as evening settled in.

Megumi glanced at his phone, the light illuminating his widening eyes as he checked the time. "I completely forgot! Damn, Gojo's going to kill me."
He looked at the superior in front of him "I have to go now."

Rina raised an eyebrow. "This late?"

He groaned, rubbing the back of his neck. "Gojo-sensei sent me to pick up a cursed object for him."

Her curiosity piqued. "What cursed object?"

"Ryomen Sukuna's finger."

Rina's eyes widened. "And he sent you to retrieve it?" Her tone carried a hint of condescension, which irked Megumi.

"I can handle retrieving a cursed object," he replied, a bit defensive. "You worry too much."

She placed a hand on his. "But for good reason."

He glanced at her hand, his expression softening. "I'll be fine," he said, though his tone grew more serious as he averted his gaze. "It's a simple task. I just wish you'd stop treating me like a kid. Seriously I have to go now."

Rina sighed, nodding. "You're right. I'm sorry."

Though he didn't say anything, the look on his face clearly read forgiven. Rina understood without words.

He stood up, ready to leave. "Alright, I'll be off now."

"Oh, wait." She remembered, grabbing the the bag with leftover Dorayaki and handing it to him. "Could you give this to Satoru? Drop it at his dorm or something. Just don't tell him it's from me."

Megumi made a face. "Why?"

She rested her chin on her palm, giving him a knowing smile. "That doesn't really concern you, does it?" She waved him off. "Go on now."

Rolling his eyes, Megumi ran off, baffled as ever by his superiors. As close as he was to Rina, he never quite understood her, especially when it came to Satoru Gojo. Their relationship was strange, and frankly, he didn't care enough to dig deeper into it.

"Yaga-sensei," Rina called.

"Ah, Rina, you're back," he acknowledged, placing the doll in his hand on the side of the desk. Rina wasn't fond of those dolls, especially since it was used for training back when she was student. One specific one left her with a sprained jaw.

"I heard about your uncle," he said, clasping his hands. "My condolences."

Rina didn't care much, certainly not enough to mourn a man who had despised her, but she appreciated the sentiment.

"Yes... very sad," she trailed off. "Moving on."

Yaga cleared his throat, sensing the awkwardness. "I take it the mission in Kyūshū went well?"

"It was decent," she recalled. "I did my best to cover up the damages and placed objects that would balance the cursed energy at the hotel. That place reeked of curses and foul emotions, but once I finished, the thick aura cleared."

"Hm," Yaga grunted. "Good job. At least the higher-ups won't be breathing down our necks anymore."

"My neck, you mean," she corrected.

He tapped his fingers on the desk, his tone steady. "This problem is as much ours as it is yours."

She scoffed. "Oh, spare me." Tossing her braided hair over her shoulder, she added, "Remind me who got lectured just because of the recent appearance of veils?"

Yaga's frown deepened, his voice growing firmer. "Enough," he raised a hand. "You know I've always been on your side, but now is not the time for jujutsu politics."

Rina clenched her jaw, a familiar surge of defiance rising within her. But she exhaled, forcing herself to calm down. "Fine," she muttered through gritted teeth. She knew better than to let her emotions get the better of her-and to anger Yaga. She respected him too much for that.

"My apologies. Excuse me, sir." She bowed before leaving his office.

Rina took a slow drag from her kiseru, feeling a sense of calm as the smoke filled her lungs. She closed her eyes, leaning back in her chair, but a sudden, gnawing feeling in her stomach interrupted the moment of peace. A heavy, dreadful presence seemed to weigh on her, and the hairs on her arms stood on end, alerting her to something wrong-something terrible.

"Ijichi?" Her tone softened slightly. She rarely got calls from him unless something important was happening.

"Akumu-sensei," Ijichi's voice sounded a little strained, as if he was trying to keep his calm. "I wanted to inform you that there's a situation regarding Megumi Fushiguro."

Rina's brow furrowed. "What kind of situation?"

"He... well, Ryomen Sukuna has found a vessel."

Rina's heart skipped a beat, her mind flashing back to her earlier conversation with Megumi. He had mentioned going to retrieve the finger, but she hadn't expected him to be caught up in something dangerous so quickly.

"And where exactly is this happening?" she asked, her voice sharp with concern.

"At the Sugisawa Municipal High School ," Ijichi replied. "Gojo-sensei is already there but he told me tell you-

"I'm on my way," she said abruptly, already turning on her heel and heading toward the nearest exit. She could feel her heartbeat picking up pace, she broke into a sprint, her mind racing with the possibilities of what could go wrong. Even though Satoru was there, she couldn't shake off the feeling of this being the start of something terrifying.

AUTHOR'S NOTE:

Ring, ring...

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