1 Facade

'Dark…why is it so dark? Ah… right. I died. But it isn't as bad as I thought it would be. I mean… it's pretty peaceful and soothing. Quite funny how being alone in the dark was once my biggest fear but now I seem to find solace in the thought. This is true peace. No worries from the Past. No consequences for the future. And no problems for the present. Just simply nothing.'

After this exact moment, a blinding bright light invaded the black abyss of this person's mind as a loud blaring noise sounded through his entire being.

'There goes my peace. Who's disturbing my death? And why the hell are they so loud?'

The light grew brighter and brighter conquering the darkness and the sound grew louder and louder until finally that person open their eyes, revealing amethyst pupils that seemingly twinkled.

'I can see a wooden ceiling above me… I can hear a violent ringing… I can feel a bed beneath me. I'm alive.' With this realization, the boy arose from his laying position and sat upright observing the room around he resided in, his purple eyes scanning over ever nook and cranny of the place, till they stopped on a shaking alarm clock that had yet to stop ringing. Reaching over to it, he slammed his hand down on the button to defeat that wretched noise but it seemed to have crushed under the force of his hand. Strange.

Standing from his seated position, he quietly approached a mirror in the far corner of the room, his steps silent in the foreign environment. Glimpsing at his reflection only consolidated his thoughts. Staring back at him was a tall tanned boy bare of a shirt revealing his chiseled body… His face seemed to be sculpted by God's hand itself with his upturned hunter eye-shape and a jawline that could pierce steel, however it's full beauty was yet to be appreciated due to the dark navy hair that fell to his neck. It seemed to be styled in such a way that attached an aura of mystery to him. Regardless of the attractiveness of the image before him, his face twisted in thought….

'This isn't me. I don't know who this attractive fella is right here…but it's not me. So it can only mean one thing… well two things actually. Either I was reborn into this body or I just had the biggest glow up of my life…. Yeah, the first one seems more plausible, I'll stick with that.'

Breaking him out of his thoughts was the distant voice of a woman, yet it was too muffled to make out what she was saying. She seemed to be approaching the door as he now heard the same voice yet it was clearer.

"Shukuro." Never in his life had he heard the name yet he felt attached to it. As if it was his. It was his. He didn't know how he knew but he knew. This name was his.

"Yes?" The now named Shukuro responded, his voice slightly shaky from anticipation. The woman was at his door, standing right by it. He didn't know how he knew but he felt her presence right at that spot. It was odd.

"May I come in?" Her voice was gently, comfort and love being clear from her motherly tone. He replied with a quick 'yes' and watched carefully as the woman entered the room. Instantly, his eyes locked onto her figure, taking the opportunity to analyze the woman he presumed to be his 'mother' from top to bottom.

'Long dark hair, a few shades lighter than my own, that stopped just before her waist. She was tall, taller than average height for a woman and she seemed to be quite built judging from her muscled arms.' After closing the door behind her, she turned round and made eye contact with Shukuro, green locking onto purple. 'Her face slightly resembles mine but not exactly.'

The atmosphere in the room was heavy with emotion as the woman slowly closed the distance between the two, before hugging the boy gently in a tight embrace. Stunned, the boy paused for a second before mirroring her action and hugging back.

Stepping back from the hug, she started to speak, her voice low, almost in secrecy. "They allowed me to see you just one last time. To say goodbye and all." Tears began to gather in her eyes as she glanced down onto the floor, steeling herself before meeting her son's eyes again. " I never could understand you Shukuro. You are quiet. You hardly talk to anyone, not even me and I don't blame you, given your circumstances. Perhaps the reason I could never understand you is because you are too much like your deceased father." Her tone laced in disgust when uttering that last part of the sentence.

Shukuro stayed silent. It was the smart choice… Even if he were to speak, what would he say? Console the woman he didn't know? Silence was the best answer in his case.

"They've only give me two minutes with you but before I go there's one last thing I need to say to you. When you go out there, don't reveal your technique. At all. When your at Jujutsu High, go ahead, you'll be protected there but with the Zenin family… you will be nothing but a mere puppet to the Clan." Tears ran down her face like river streams but she didn't hide them this time around. Her hand now played with my long hair as she hid it behind my ear and exposing my cheek to kiss it. "I love you, my son. Stand strong for you are the son of Orihime Tsukishima and Toji Zenin." With that, she turned and left the room leaving Shukuro in solitude and a shocked state.

'Technique.. Jujutsu.. Zenin.. Clan.. Toji..' Rather than feeling guilty for not reiterating his 'mother's' sadness, it was brushed aside by those five words that all indicated the same thing. He was reborn into the world of Jujutsu Kaisen. In the Zenin Clan.

With this realization, a flurry of memories attacked him, flashes of images consisting of this body living and interacting with other people. In just a brief moment, he lived the life of Shukuro Zenin.

Shukuro was snapped out of his thoughts by harsh knocks on his wooden door that reverberated throughout the entire room.

"Hurry up! We need you out in five minutes." A rough voice called out from outside his room, reminding him of what day it was today.

'Stupid. I have to fight someone to prove I'm strong enough to go Jujutsu High? These Zenin Clan traditions really make no sense but I guess I need to "uphold the honor of the clan". Uphold my ass. Bunch of losers.'

…

"You know, it's a shame you didn't inherit the family technique or at least any useful technique because your pretty talented. With just a better cursed technique, you could've been more than just a silly fire extinguisher." Shukuro gritted in teeth in aggravation due to his opponent's taunting. Why did he have to keep up this facade? Of making his cursed trait look like his technique? If he wanted to, he could've finished this guy off ages ago but his mother told him not to reveal his technique.

Ducking low, he narrowly missed a kick to his head and retaliated with a leg sweep, throwing his enemy off their feet. His opponent landed on their back and didn't have time to even process the pain before they were punched in the stomach, making them spew blood.

"Enough. Winner, Shukuro Zenin. You may pack your bags and leave for Harajuku tomorrow. Do not sully the name of this clan young Zenin." With that, he strolled away, as his fellow clan members locked eyes onto his back with only a thought in mind.

'With talent like that, he could easily augment the strength of this clan. If only he had his halfbrother's technique.'