Premature Death I

In the infirmary of Jujutsu Tech, one known as Ieiri Shoko was currently treating Nanami. His wounds although bad was quickly healed by her.

She was the sole sorcerer capable of using reverse cursed techniques on others. Meaning that she alone can heal others.

Not even special grade sorcerers like Gojo and Geto were able to achieve this.

Which is why she was so valuable and was almost never dispatched to the field unless she was protected by powerful sorcerers.

In her case, she always hanged out with Gojo and Geto since they were special-grades and she was their classmate.

Taking a smoke, she huffed out a cloud of white smoke.

"Taking a smoke right next to a patient. You really have no standards."

Turning to the door, she saw Arai leaning on it while shaking his head.

"Oh? Did you come here to get healed up again? Give me the fee or you're not getting any help from me."

Her attitude towards him hadn't changed at all. Even after hearing about Nanami's death.

One might say she was cold yet she was still helping sorcerers and people without ever complaining.

Seeing people die day after day might have left her a dull feeling when someone dies.

Getting so used to seeing death was no easy task. Especially to a teenager like her but she had the resolve to do it.

"Let's go out for a bit. We need to talk." Arai didn't mind her attitude and walked away before hearing her response.

Leaving Ieiri surprised as she had never seen Arai initiate a conversation without a goal in mind. And even if he did, he wouldn't invite them to go outside.

'I guess Haibara's death affected him a bit.' She concluded before following him outside.

The two didn't talk even after walking through the city. It felt awkward and even suffocating to Ieiri. She knew he was anti-social but this was on another level.

Still, she knew he was grieving so she left him be. It did also help her as she felt a bit confined within the infirmary. Always healing people would be exhausting for anyone.

"Ieiri."

Arai broke the silence between them.

"What would you do if I said I killed dozens of people."

This question was about Arai but she found a similar situation to which he referred to.

"Are you saying that because of what Geto did?" He nodded.

Geto had been accused of killing hundreds of non-shamans. His reason was unknown but all they knew was that he purposefully left his cursed energy and insignia of sorcerers there to announce that he was no longer going to be with them.

Everyone was baffled at this as even Gojo was shook when he heard the news.

Ieiri who was one of the closer friends to Geto also heard the news and quickly put the two dots together as to why Arai asked.

"Hm... depends I guess?" She shrugged her shoulders while taking another cigarette out. Lighting and smoking it.

Her demeanor still nonchalant as always.

"... what if I told you I did kill all those people."

"Huh?"

She seemed puzzled. He was asking the same question again but in a different way. She had noticed this but Arai was acting much more differently than before. She attributed it to be from Haibara's death but...

What if something else happened in that mission?

"What would you do?" Arai kept asking but now his eyes were on her. His green eyes glowed green indicating that he was using his cursed technique.

"... I'd leave you alone. Happy now?" Despite facing Arai, she just casually left him behind. She was too free-spirited to care about this.

"Still smoking I see."

Both heard a voice addressed to them and turned around to see someone who should be running right now.

Special-Grade Sorcerer Geto.

"Hey." Waving at them as if it was a simple greeting to a friend, was Geto with a smile on his face. With no care that the literal strongest sorcerer in the world was currently tracking him down.

"Yo, it's the criminal. Need something from us."

"Guess I'm just testing my luck."

"Just asking but are those charges fake?"

"Nah, unfortunately not."

"So? Why did you do it?"

"I'll create a world where only sorcerers exist."

"Haha! That's hilarious~"

"I'm not a child. It's not like I need everyone to understand me."

"Just assuming nobody will understand you, already sounds pretty childish to me!"

"Ah Gojo? I met Geto in Shinjuku."

"Says he'll be here in a minute, at least that's what I think he wanted to tell me. He kind of hung up on me."

"Then until he comes, I want to have a chat with Arai. That okay with you Shoko."

"Sure, no need to ask for my permission. I'm not his girlfriend or anything."

Ieiri left the two and made her way back to school like it was a normal day.

Not as if one of her friends confessed to have killed hundreds of people and the other killing dozens of people.

"Isao-"

Arai who had stayed silent during their conversation was finally spoken to. Geto's line of sight was now on him, his smile vanished when Ieiri went out.

Now he was serious.

"Do you remember what I said before? The last time we talked."

Remembering what he referred to, Arai nodded. "So... what am I getting myself into."

Previously, Geto had told Arai that he would ask him to join him but he had not told him to join exactly what.

"I'm going to make a world without non-sorcerers. To do that, I need to wipe them all out. But I can't do it by myself. I need comrades, a family you can say."

Geto offered his hand to Arai. "And I want you to join me."

Arai stayed silent and looked down to the hand Geto reached out. He sighed and without saying a word turned his back and walked away.

Geto seemed unfazed as he still left his hand out.

Looking around, Arai saw the human population. Everyone was just walking and going on with their day, there wasn't anything wrong with it yet Arai furrowed his brows.

"I'm sorry Geto but I won't join."

"May I know why."

Arai turned back to Geto but he didn't see any anger. Like Geto expected this.

"In short, I'm a coward."

Geto chuckled. "Then I want the full explanation."

Arai sighed, he was never really the talkative kind of person but it seems that he didn't have a choice.

"You want to kill all non-sorcerers, right?"

"That's right."

"But I don't."

To this, Geto raised an eyebrow. "Didn't you kill dozens of people."

"So you were eavesdropping when I was with Ieiri. I knew I felt something wrong."

Looking down to his right arm, it was still patched so he had difficulty moving his arm.

"I killed those people because they annoyed me, unlike you who did it for a motive. They reminded me of some bad memories but we're not here to talk about that. If you could achieve your goal then I would of sided with you."

"But I can't; is what you're saying."

"Not with Gojo around."

When he heard the mention of his best friend, Geto adopted a sad smile.

"Yeah, you're right. He can achieve everything he wants, anything he sets his mind to; he will accomplish it. No matter what."

"But who's to say that if its possible for Gojo then its impossible for us."

The blessed ones weren't only Gojo was what Geto was saying. He wanted to not only achieve his goal of wiping non-sorcerers but wanted to prove a point that Gojo was not invincible. That even though Gojo was invincible.

That fact was not applicable to everyone else.

"We are humans Arai, not them. We know the truth, we know the real world. Not a false reality that they blindly believe in. We alone can change this world however we want, together we can change that corrupt system who throw away human life. Those higher-ups won't be able to stop us from achieving our goal."

His hand reached out once more to Arai.

"Last chance, join me."

The offer was a one in a life time chance. To be able to join Geto in his endeavor, it would liberate him from the shackles of Jujutsu Tech and the higher-ups since Geto was planning to wipe them out.

But unlike Geto, Arai had no thoughts of wiping out all non-sorcerers. He loved his parents who were non-sorcerers and was glad to be their son.

No, what he wanted was simply to wipe out all those who he hates.

People who annoy him, hate him, jealous of him.

All those who hindered him.

His goal was to obtain enough strength to do just that.

"Sorry Geto, but my answer is no."

For a moment, Arai felt as if nothing was in the world except for the two of them. He could feel it, the cursed energy that was being brought forth by Geto.

The eyes that seemed so caring now were now closed as if he didn't want to see what he was about to do.

His hands had black smoke coming out as it formed into a huge number of cursed spirits. Arai could see it, feel it.

Just one of these cursed spirits were equal to the ones he fought in the shrine.

And Geto held tens of them, and the worse thing was that they weren't alone. Various levels of cursed spirits appeared everywhere. From grade 4 to first grade, the difference between Arai and Geto could be seen from them.

"I'm sorry too... Isao but I can't let you go. Unlike Ieiri, you are not that important in the grand schemes of things and will only be a nuisance in the future."

That is right...

Unlike Ieiri who could use reverse cursed technique, Arai had nothing special. He always knew it, he always told himself that. It was a fact not an opinion.

Yet when someone told him that straight to his face.

All he could feel was anger, so much anger.

He told himself that he would live true to himself from now on.

And he would do just that.

Pulling out his daggers, he was on guard looking at the cursed spirits as his opponents.

"I won't just stand there, Geto."

Arai muttered, it was futile.

He knew it.

Geto knew it.

The power of these cursed spirits was too much.

The people surrounding them oblivious as Geto placed down a barrier blocking them out of their view.

Taking a deep breath, he exhaled as his eyes focused. Gathering up his cursed energy, he was going out with all his power.

Geto's eyes sharpened as he realized what was about to happen. He opened his eyes to look at the futile resistance Arai was showing him.

Geto originally assumed that Arai was going to try to find an escape, but he didn't. Frankly he didn't expect Arai to even deny his demand. He was always someone calculative and would preserve his life first.

Seeing him denying him like this, it surprised him.

Arai was not thinking like he normally was. His state of mind was not the same.

And the final straw was the look on his face.

The look a wolf would had when its cornered.

A man that barely showed emotions in the past now fully unleashed them.

"Come."

Geto ordered his cursed spirits to attack Arai as they all went for him.

"Show me what you've got."

Arai focused on everything he had, he had no shikigami on him, his daggers were weak against opponents of this level.

All he had was his life, and he would utilize it with everything he had.

[Contract Technique: Sacrifi-]

But just as he was about to activate his technique, the barrier suddenly collapsed.

The cursed spirits that were unleashed, exorcised and crumbled into dust in an instant. A figure descended from the sky from the shattered barrier.

"You're finally here-."

Geto smiled as he looked up to see an old acquaintance.

"Gojo."

Arai's eyes widened as he realized what had just happened.

Gojo had arrived wiping all cursed spirits in an instant, and he was not happy.

The rare genuine tint of emotion that leaked out from him was now on full display.

"What do you think you're doing-"

Taking off his glasses, his light blue shining eyes glared down at Geto.

"Geto!"

The reunion between best friends was not one of joy.