Soon enough, you, Megumi, Yuuji and Ino are in front of the veil.

" Nope, it didn't even budge."

Ino is watching with wide eyes as Yuuji punches the veil, which rumbles in response.

"N-nice try."

It must be his first time seeing Yuuji's strength.

" The veil's sturdy. We'll have to find a weak spot and put a hole in it, even for a moment. We can't do anything without getting inside."

While Megumi's speaking, Yuuji casually drop kicks a curse. You're not useless either. You've uncapped one of your two water skins, and have created a whiplash of the water, hitting curses left and right.

Ino glances at your skill, impressed. He's never seen anything like it before.

" Water Manipulation."

You answer the question he hasn't asked just yet.

His brows raise in surprise. He's never heard of that technique before.

Meanwhile, Yuuji blinks.

" Huh, why not?"

"Yuuji, this is the veil that keeps sorcerers from entering."

You point out, cringing as Megumi's Demon Dog digs into the curse Yuuji just drop kicked like it's a meal.

"Veils are for cover and protection, right? Which fundamentally means that the one who deployed it must be inside."

Soon enough everyone is brainstorming. It gets down to it that there's a good chance that the one who cast the veil is outside of it. Besides, if they were inside, Yuuji's punch must've worked. Which it didn't.

" By that logic, they must've centered it around a place that stands out, don't you think? because the increased risk of discovering would make it even stronger?"

You find yourself nodding to Megumi's words, eyes flicking to the high building behind you. If Megumi's words were true, then the building behind you would be a good, not so subtle, hiding spot.

" A place that stands out?"

All three guys follow your line of sight.

Cerulean Tower.

Soon enough, you've formed a plan together. Megumi would summon Nue, and Yuuji would use the cord he has kept around casually in his pocket (Maki said It'd be useful) to catch them off guard. You and Ino would take out the veil, which must be in some kind of bolt looking object, according to Yuuji.

Soon enough, the plan is set in motion. Yuuji casually takes all three curse users by surprise, taking them with him with the cord, exactly according to plan.

Ino glances at the odd bolt like sealed object.

"So this is the foundation of the veil?"

Yuuji nods, explaining that the conditions for the veil were already inside.

soon enough, Ino breaks the object.

However, the veil doesn't break.

" There must've been three."

You mumble, judging by the dots in the ground. You glance at the curse users, as do the others. Ino seems to catch sight of the curse user who's holding the remaining two at the same time you do. Yuuji is already chasing at the curse user by the time the two of you notice.

He calls something to Megumi as he launches himself and the curse user off the building, leaving you and Ino to deal with the two in front of you.

A grandma and her grandson, judging by the looks of it.

Literally, that's how they address one another.

" Now, I've got my underclassmen to look out for. I better snag some achievements and hit that first-grade rank."

You're not sure why he's sharing this with you, or the curse users.

You don't bother asking, or uncapping either of your water skins. You need to be careful in your use of water. It's not like you can ever run out of a water source to be exact, but still.

You'd rather not turn to those measures.

Beside you, Ino summons something.

" Y/N. Join your classmates. I can handle this."

He'd rather keep all the first years together, just to be sure.

Your eyes flash with surprise. You glance at the curse users.

" Are you sure?"

He nods.

You search his features before nodding. Turning around, you make quick work of jumping down. Still, you scream as you plummet right towards your friends. You hurriedly uncap one of your water skins, manipulating the water in it to the ground, the water reaching for you like an elegant wave. Megumi and Yuuji both seem surprised at your arrival.

" Wasn't the plan that you'd stay with Ino?"

" he wanted me to join you two. What's the situation looking like?" You ask.

The two of them nod in front of them, towards the man who lies rolled up on the floor.

" Huh? His body is clean."

You point out with a raised brow. Megumi nods.

"Exactly. Get up, sneaky old geezer!"

For a moment, the man doesn't respond. He simply remains there, ignoring Megumi's words.

" Good grief. Kids these days got no pity for us old folks."

You watch as he gets up, snapping the wire around him like it's nothing.

" We can't waste time here."

" We won't. Y/N, follow me in."

You glance at Yuuji in surprise, before nodding, enforcing your whole body with cursed energy.

He must've remembered the training the two of you did not too long ago.

-

" Hey Y/N, we know you're pretty skilled with your cursed technique, but are you also good in hand to hand combat? Considering you always keep enemies at a distance."

You glance up from where you're resting in the grassy field of the school, leaning against Nobara.

" What kind of question is that, Itadori? Do you want to fight her?"

Nobara scowls at him from beside you. You smile at her expression.

Yuuji hurriedly shakes his head.

" Ah, no. I didn't mean it like that. I was just curious.-"

" I am. My mother wasn't sure if I would manifest a technique, so she made sure I knew how to handle myself if the other kids of the clan ever decided to pick on me. I used to fight a lot."

Nobara raises a brow, turning to you in surprise.

" You did? You don't seem like the violent type."

" I'm not. At least, not anymore. I used to be before I manifested my cursed technique. I was a late bloomer as well, it didn't happen until I was 8.- But I used to pick a fight with any cousin who looked at me like I was dirt. That was a lot of cousins. Not Noritoshi though, we got along since the day we met. our mothers are fond of one another."

" Ah, right. You're part of the Kamo clan. what was your life like there?"

You blink, shrugging.

" Hard. The Kamo clan hates me. My technique renders their own useless."

They both nod. Truthfully, they don't really remember what the Kamo clan's technique was. Nor do they really care.

" Anyway-"

You get up, dusting off your clothes as you turn to face him.

" You wanna try fighting me?"

Yuuji blinks.

" Are you sure? I don't want to hurt you."

" For that you need to be able to hit me first.-"

You grin at him.

" -Besides, I'm you twi- Sukuna's best friend. You think he ever goes soft on me during training?"

Yuuji hums, grinning as he too gets up.

Nobara moves to the side of the field, your water skins laid beside her.

Megumi blinks, approaching the scene as he rubs his shoulder.

" What're they doing now?"

" Training. How was your training with Maki?"

He grits his teeth, flexing his arm.

" Instructive."

She smiles.

And then you and Yuuji move.

You're surprisingly quick on your feet without your water skins adding extra weight on you. You dance around Yuuji like some kind of dancer, jumping around weightlessly as you avoid his hits and kicks. Sometimes, you dab at him right after you've avoided yet another punch.

Eventually, you haven't necessarily beaten Yuuji. However, he gives up, dizzy from the countless circling movements you move in.

-

Eventually, you end up making an easy gateway for Yuuji to punch through, time and time again. In between You and Yuuji's combined attacks, Megumi makes his way through with demon dog, along with aiming at him with a cursed tool. The old man is swift as well, avoiding most hits, and for some reason remaining unaffected by any other punch that does hit him.

Eventually, he takes out a pocket knife, shallowly slicing through Yuuji. Yuuji doesn't seem affected, back to punching him in the same second. Megumi comes between the two smoothly, Megumi's toad shikigami slinging the curse user into the wall.

" Itadori!"

" No worries, just a scratch."

You follow the man's movements with your eyes, uncapping a water skin to heal the shallow cut on Yuuji anyway within seconds.

Yuuji nods at you in thanks.

" Such power. Such promising features."

How was this man still uninjured?

" Makes killing you all more worth it."

Beside Yuuji, you can see Megumi puzzle as well from the corner of your eye.

Was he uninjured because of some kind of cursed technique?

" Demon Dog's claws can injure even special grades.."

" I hit him with all I got too.."

" Then why..?"

You can hear the frustration in Megumi's voice.

You wonder the same thing.

" Then how is he completely unscathed?"

You furrow your brows.

" He can't have something like cursed energy nullification.. right?"

All you get in response are furrowed brows of concern.

And then the man's on you again.

" We were free. But that freedom was taken from us! By Gojo Satoru!"

He manages to whack a kick right into Yuuji's face, Megumi's sword slicing right through the fence behind him.

" I will never retire!-"

Megumi blocks his kick, the blunt back of his sword hitting the old man right in the head.

Sadly, he doesn't relent in his nonsense.

" I'll trample over the weak until the day I die!"

He manages to break free from Megumi, though Megumi does end up slicing him right across the face with his blade. You kick him away, creating a small distance again.

" Seriously, what's with this guy?! I get that he's tough, but there has to be more to it!"

For a moment, you and Megumi try to puzzle his technique together, considering it has to have to do something with that.

"Hey! Gojo Satoru is here in Shibuya! You better leave the foundations for the veil behind and run!"

Both you and Yuuji glance at Megumi in question.

" What lousy bluff. Gojo Satoru is sealed. You guys yelled it out for the world to hear. Why do you think we curse users are out? Otherwise I would be sleeping."

So he can't beat Gojo sensei. It can't be cursed energy nullification.

" Fushiguro~, you suck at lying."

Yuuji's pouting, laying a hand on his best friend's shoulder.

"It's okay though. You tried."

He's being dramatic, all puppy eyes. You can't help but giggle slightly at the behavior. Megumi seems more annoyed by it.

" Shut up."

" If you don't want to fight, I'll kill you now."

" get ready."

You do just as Yuuji says, this time uncapping one of your water skins.- But then Megumi's eyes widen.

" Rabbit escape."

At once, multiple rabbits hop up, out of Megumi's shadow, they block the man's vision. One ends up in Yuuji's arms, and you pick one up too. It's surprisingly soft. You didn't except shikigami to actually be soft. ( You've asked your universe's Megumi to let you pet his rabbits. He's always said no.)

You glance at Megumi in surprise.

" Did you figure out his technique?"

He nods, tugging Yuuji back by his hood.

Inverse, that's his technique. The harder you punch, the less damage he receives.

Megumi has a plan, one you can follow with ease. Act like you don't know. You will land an exceptionally useless attack, Yuuji a rough one, and Megumi in between. It should render his technique.

It takes only a few moments, and then you're back. Megumi opens the attack, landing max elephant right on the man's head.

The man grins.

" Is that all that you've got?"

Max elephant dissipates.

" Come down and face me like a real man!"

The man yells up to where Megumi is currently stood on top of a lantern pole. Megumi simply points down.

" That's more their style."

Yuuji straight up throws a car at him.

Where he gets the strength from, you don't know.

You follow him in, your water skin uncapped as you chase after him, a long elegant line of water following you at your command. Megumi and Yuuji follow in too, charging up for what would be 'the final blow'. All three of you at once, locking him in position. At the very last minute, your manipulation on the water loosens. It turns into one big splash, only strong enough to push over a young child at most. Megumi summons a toad shikigami at the last second, and Yuuji punches him square in the stumic.

The attack works. He's coughing up blood. You don't stop there, the three of you each punch him one by one, landing a hit square on him.

He doesn't like it.

" Don't get cocky over that, you brats!"

The three of you jump away. Yuuji charges up with cursed energy, pretending to hit him square in the face once more. However, just before his fist is about to make contact with the man's face, he drops all cursed energy. The power behind it disappears, instead landing a raw punch square on the man's face.

it seems like Megumi's plan worked out.

" You're surprisingly adept."

" Really?"

Yuuji cocks his head at Megumi's words.

You smile, about to add on to their conversation, when you feel something.

It's like a call, pulling at your cursed energy.

Your smile falters, turning around in the directions where you can feel it coming from.

Was there perhaps another you in this universe with cursed energy? Or was it someone else?

-

" Pickled mustard leaf?"

Sukuna is angry. And disgusted. And irritated. especially irritated. How dare you disappear at the hands of the cursed spirit, causing him to chase after you? He's got zero idea what's wrong with Shibuya today. He can't leave, because of the stupid veil that keeps him from leaving. He's beating up curses left and right. ripping through them with a wicked blade, it's edges reversed, jagged, meant to inflict pain on curses ( for his own sick amusement, you cringe at it every time you see it.) there's something odd about the curses he's ripping through though. They're bleeding.

Nonetheless, he keeps going, only pausing to look at Inumaki.

" Who the fuck you callin' Yuuji?!"

For a split moment, tension between them rises. Sukuna raises his free hand, probably to swing it down for added dramatics, when he pauses, completely stilling. his eyes are fixed on his bracelet, the water in it swishing in a particular direction, even when he stands still. Sukuna's eyes are wide, realization hitting him.

Meanwhile Inumaki studies Sukuna. He looks like Yuuji, and he looks like Ryomen Sukuna, Yet he's completely different. He's much more buff, and for some reason, he's tall, taller than Inumaki, and taller than the Yuuji he knows. This must be your Sukuna. His tattoos are similar, yet not the same. There's no mark on his forehead, no slits under his eyes that should represent another pair of eyes.

Meanwhile, Sukuna's focus shifts to Inumaki, his gaze hard. He still has no idea what's going on. As far as he's concerned. He's in his Shibuya. He has no idea about what's going on just yet.

" Where's Y/N?"

Inumaki tenses.

He's heard that your Sukuna is different, kinder even, yet he's still intimidated. He's got no cursed energy. Yet the blood that's staining the jagged side of his blade, splatters of it on his face and clothes too, make him appear much more menacing than most sorcerers he's had to face. Especially with the cold look in his eyes.

He looks like he's ready to kill him.

[ A/N: Smoll heads up, I'm only catching up to what happens after Shibuya now and well,, err- it's a puzzle for the story line. After the Shibuya incident, updates will be slow.

ps. Would you be interested in silly little drabbles to keep you guys engaged in the story about Y/N in her universe? ]