Chapter 17: Finger Bearer (I)
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December 12th, 2004.
Oiwa Shrine, Ibaraki Prefecture.
7:32 AM.
A sparse number of tourists reported the presence of an egg-like membrane floating above them, with a creature attached to what resembled an umbilical cord resting inside; photography proved ineffective in capturing the alleged specimen.
9:40 AM.
Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical College responded by sending a team of manager's alongside a few Window's to survey the situation. Followed by the local police force in order to isolate a 100-meter radius around the site.
10:21 AM.
Reports from questioned civilians are confirmed by the supporting ground team.
10:39 AM.
Investigation suggests that the formation of a Cursed Womb has occurred, insinuating the presence of Special Grade Cursed Object, Ryomen Sukuna's Fingers. Count of the object is currently unknown, however cursed energy presence suggests the possibility that the count has EXCEEDED one.
11:00 AM.
Exclusion zone has been increased to 300-meters, Jujutsu Sorcerer exclusive veil is casted. Civilian traffic has been redirected from Ibaraki Prefecture until the zone is deemed safe for entry. Preparations for exorcism are made by the ground support team.
12:32 PM.
Special Grade Gojo Satoru, and Grade 1 Geto Suguru are unavailable for deployment. Semi Grade 1 Mei Mei is deemed not suited for solo undertaking of said task. Therefore, Grade 1 Atsuya Kusakabe and Grade 2 Ginko Kyofu with signed/verbal approval from the following;
(AN: This is essentially them backing his strength to be above what his Grade suggests if you are wondering. Obviously they wouldn't send someone with Grade 2 strength on a mission like this.)
- Yamada Kyofu.
- Yaga Masamichi.
- Atsuya Kusakabe.
- Mei Mei.
- Geto Suguru.
—will be dispatched to the scene.
Semi Grade 1 Mei Mei may remain as backup, to be called by either Grade 1 Atsuya Kusakabe, or Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical College faculty member and appointed mission supervisor, Yaga Masamichi.
End log.
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Ginko's face lit up with childlike joy as he read the document his teacher had just handed him. An ecstatic grin plastered on his face as he savored each and every word. "To think I'd be handed such a gift on my first week here. I have to hand it to him, the old man was right to send me here." He could feel the burning sensation well within his gut, this was exactly what he needed to take the next step. "So, what are we waiting for?" He looked at Kusakabe. "Let's get going already."
"Did you actually read the damned thing? This is not something someone of my level should be undertaking, and certainly not yours either." His student's smile didn't waver in the slightest.
"Maybe, maybe not. Does it matter? They want us to do it, not someone else." Ginko was well aware of the mission's severity, but what his teacher didn't seem to understand was that it was the precise reason behind his attitude.
Kusakabe placed his palm on his forehead with a distressed look on his face. "That's exactly the problem. I don't know what the hell is going on in that muscle-brain's head. The report hasn't stated that the womb has hatched yet, so why not just wait for Gojo Satoru to return?" It just didn't make sense.
Sure, Kusakabe had indeed fought a Special Grade curse before. But comparing that to one born from Sukuna's fingers was like the difference between an ant and an elephant.
They couldn't even eradicate the guy's grave wax for crying out loud. And now he was being sent to fight something that had possibly absorbed even more than one of them.
"Bah! If you're going to be so doom and gloom about it I'll just go on my own then." Ginko huffed, preparing to head outside before Kusakabe grabbed him by the collar. "What?"
"Don't be ridiculous, if I let you do that I'd be fired in a heartbeat." He reluctantly stood up as Ginko shot him a pleased smile.
"That's more like it." He beamed. "You're strong anyways so I don't see why you're brooding so much. Maybe this'll finally get you to awaken your cursed technique."
Initially Ginko was surprised to find out that Kusakabe didn't possess an innate technique despite being a Grade One sorcerer, but at the end of the day it didn't really matter to him. Strong was strong, nothing else mattered.
"Uh-huh." But at his age, he had long forgotten about the possibility. "Just remember, once we're in there you are to listen to everything I tell you down to the letter. Otherwise I'm sending you back. Got it?"
"Yup." He replied cheerfully, giving him a thumbs-up.
'You say that, but somehow I'm not entirely convinced.' He sighed as he set the document aside, grabbing his dust-brown peacoat and katana.
Ginko as per usual was in his kimono, the only addition being a sheath around his waist which Kusakabe had given him in order to carry around the katana he gave him with ease.
"Got everything?"
"Mhm."
"Then let's go." Kusakabe said reluctantly, moving towards his front door as the sound of hurried footsteps soon lingered.
"Uncle! Something bad is happening isn't it!?" Takeru's face was filled with genuine worry, the sight of his uncle and Ginko being suited up all but confirming them. "Tell me! What's going on!?"
"It's not nice to eavesdrop, Takeru." He turned to face his nephew, to which the latter flinched a little. "Moreover it's just a standard mission like usual, go back to your room. We'll be back later." He spoke with full confidence, not wanting to worry the child.
"You're lying! I can tell when you're lying!" He protested out of concern, turning towards Ginko. "He's lying isn't he? Tell me what's happening nii-chan!" But Ginko remained silent.
"Tak-e-ru." Kusakabe cautioned. "Are you calling me a liar?"
"That's not…"
"In that case, when I say I'll be back. It means I'll be back. I've told you how long I've been doing this job for, correct?" His nephew nodded stiffly. "Then you should be aware that I know what I'm doing by now. I've already set your food on the table, and your mother will have already returned by the time I'm back. Alright?"
"...Alright." He replied softly, lowering his head as he walked towards the dining table.
Kusakabe groaned, not happy about the fact that he had to tell such a blatant lie to Takeru, but it's not as if filling him with even more worry would do a child his age any good.
"Thanks for not saying anything."
"No problem." Even Ginko had the common decency not to intervene in someone else's family affairs.
"Sounds like our ride is here." They both heard the sound of wheels hitting asphalt getting closer. "Shall we?"
Once they stepped outside, they were met with the sight of a well-fitted man with neatly combed black hair. He adjusted his vermillion tie before politely bowing towards the two sorcerers.
"Greetings, my name is Hiroshi. You are Kusakabe-san and Ginko-san correct?" Even his voice was filled with dignity.
"We are. Any updates on the situation?" Hiroshi shook his head.
"Our last update has shown that the womb remains dormant, but on top of the five hours since its initial sighting we are unsure as to how long it has been present for. So I suggest we proceed with haste, I'm more than happy to answer any questions you may have along the way." He opened the passenger door for them, to which they quickly entered.
"How many sorcerers do we have as backup?" Kusakabe questioned as they drove off.
"Besides Mei-san, we only have a few other Grade 2 sorcerers on standby. I do not mean to be crude, but I don't believe they will be of much support in this endeavor." Hiroshi adjusted his glasses.
Kusakabe nodded. "When can we expect Gojo Satoru and Geto Suguru to return?"
"It's estimated that they will need at least two hours to return to Tokyo. I don't wish to pressure you needlessly, but should the womb hatch I believe the two of you will be on your own for the most part."
"That's certainly not reassuring. But if there's nothing to be done about it then I suppose that's that." He leaned back into his seat, wondering how his student could maintain such a carefree expression despite comprehending the gravity of the situation.
"What's wrong? Is there something on my face?"
"No, just wake me up when we're there." Kusakabe moaned.
…
The car came to an abrupt halt, the sudden lack of motion waking the veteran sorcerer from his brief nap.
"If you have any concerns gentlemen, I suggest you address them now." Hiroshi exited the car and opened up the passenger side, allowing Ginko to exit followed by Kusakabe.
"HIROSHI! IT'S URGENT!" A man wearing similar attire came running towards him, almost stumbling over a stray rock and falling flat on his face.
"What is it?" The manager maintained his composure.
"IT HATCHED! THE WOMB IS GONE!"
Everyone present was filled with overbearing dread, save for Ginko, forcing themselves to remain poised in order to do their jobs.
"Any casualties?"
"None, everyone saw the tear. But the cursed spirit inside was simply too fast for our eyes to follow, the only saving grace is that the veils haven't experienced any disturbance."
Hiroshi heaved a sigh of relief. "Good, that means it hasn't left the exclusion zone yet." He turned towards the sorcerers. "The main area is that way, I don't want to waste your time so head on without me."
"On it." Kusakabe channeled his cursed energy into his feet, taking off at full speed as Ginko followed suit.
The further in they got, the more they noticed just how abundant the amount of managers and officials had become. But Ginko was the only one to be surprised by it, in truth Kusakabe expected them to have had at least double the numbers for such a situation.
Without Gojo present, the presence of a cursed womb was an immense threat.
It only took them a few moments to arrive at the main veil, none of the onlookers daring to get in the way of the only people who could possibly get them out of this situation alive.
"So this is it?" The landscape consisted mainly of gravel pathways, hills filled with lush greenery and foliage, and architecture representing that of the Edo period. "Ginko-kun, what do you think?"
"The residuals are pretty damn potent, doesn't seem like the curse made any attempt to conceal its tracks." Kusakabe nodded approvingly, seeing that most of the cursed energy residue suggested that the curse had gone north.
"Luckily for us it decided to go further into the epicenter of the main veil, that should buy us some time before it tries to break out."
"They do that?"
"One's of this level do, we're somewhat lucky it only just hatched. But it'll figure out that something's off about the surrounding area soon enough, and when that happens the Window's and managers are going to be in a whole lot of danger."
"I see, then we better hurry." It was true that veils were more durable from the inside than they were from the outside, but against an opponent of this caliber it would only last so long.
"You there." Kusakabe gestured towards one of the staff members. "If you feel three bangs on the veil, get someone to reinforce it or expand its perimeter. Understood?" Kusakabe planned on using Ginko's wind daggers as projectile alarms if need be.
"Understood." They promptly obliged.
"Alright, we're going in."
The both of them immediately froze in place once they entered the veil. Their senses picking up on a stomach-churning amount of cursed energy from their surroundings.
"Wow, so this is what the presence of his fingers is like?" Ginko smiled, his fingers twitching with a warped mix of excitement and fear.
"Don't dawdle, keep moving." He ordered, his senses on full-blast in hopes of him getting so much as an inkling of a heads-up before the monster that was lurking around them appeared.
"We're close." The younger of the two commented, his smile widening by the second as he could feel the "press of death" as he called it, inching ever closer.
"Mm. I trust you have that technique active?"
"Yeah, but I can only gamble as to which part of my body might get attacked. So I might just die before I even know what's going on." Kusakabe couldn't even begin to understand how Ginko could be making light of things in such a situation. But if that's what helped him cope then so be it.
Better an insane teammate than an incompetent one.
Or something like that.
"Wait." Ginko halted abruptly. "I hear something coming our way."
The sound of something metallic clanking started to get closer and closer, and alongside it a presence so suffocating it would make one's very soul scream in dread.
Each footstep that resonated was louder than the last, you could almost envision it in your head through sound alone.
"Here we go." Kusakabe withdrew his sword, taking his stance as the blade glistened with his cursed energy.
'So this is what a true Special-Grade feels like?' Ginko maximized his cursed energy reinforcement, shifting his left foot forwards as he prepared to move in whatever direction he deemed necessary.
"My blade…" An aged, distorted voice moaned. "Someone… satiate … my blade."
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As you can see, this is going to be a multi-length chapter as this is a pretty major battle.
Hopefully you end up enjoying it as much as I do.
Disc: ZrWk2jqjbV
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