Destined to Collide - Inumaki Toge

13. Ghastly Teaching

A/N: Hello! Thank you for reading this story. 
For this chapter, it describes some graphic injury. So if you're not able to cope with these, please do skip this chapter. :)

As days gone by, Maguro learnt defence and attacks from her morning class with Gojo Satoru, and Reverse Curse Technique for her late afternoon with Shoko Ieiri.

What Gojo-sensei warned earlier was true. Ieiri-sensei is the asset of Tokyo Metropolitan Curse Technical College. Her way of jujutsu is vastly different from Gojo-sensei's, preferring to defend and fled when the situation threatens her wellbeing.

And her way of teaching is very different from Gojo-sensei's too when she has the Reverse Cursed Technique on her beck and call.

"Listen now, Maguro-chan," Ieiri-sensei told her one evening after she had beaten up Maguro to a , leaving her lying there on the cold concrete floor. Maguro healed herself up with her Reverse Cursed Technique and stood back up, limping towards Ieiri with her twisted ankle. She has not learnt about how to heal twisted and broken bones yet and Ieiri was just about to show her.

"The jujutsu world is merciless. It has eyes for assets, not for the weak. The weak will be eliminated, and for you and I, we are considered assets. If the assets are valuable enough, we will be abducted. Hence why I am always here at the college, safe behind the barriers of Master Tengen."

"M-Master Tengen? Who's that?" Maguro repeated, wincing as Ieiri-sensei healed her with her Reverse Curse Technique, restoring her twisted ankle to its norm before Ieiri destroyed it. Ieiri nodded. "Master Tengen keeps the school safe behind a barrier. To outsiders without the power to control cursed energy, we are just a normal temple that no one will approach."

Once her ankle is healed, Maguro stood back up and flexed her foot. It worked just fine, as if nothing had happened earlier.

Reverse Cursed Technique really is handy.

"This will be the only time I heal you with my techniques for the different types of injuries sustain through this training. Memorize how you feel when the energy heals you and replicate it the next time someone with that kind of injury comes by. The next time you're beaten up, you will learn to heal it yourself. I will give you 3 days' time to learn the Reverse Curse Technique fully after all these. Master it, and I will test it on you in one of our trainings."

"As a student who can use the Reverse Curse Technique, you need to be able to master it till the point you can heal yourself even while being stabbed in the heart. When you've passed that point, then this class will end. Until then, this-" Ieiri pushed Maguro to fall on the floor and stepped onto Maguro's knee, causing it to bend backwards. Maguro screamed shrilly before Ieiri crouched down to heal her right back up with her cursed technique. "-This will not stop. This will continue until I deem you worthy enough for the battlefield."

Maguro panted. The switch between pain and relief is starting to bring a toll to her pain endurance. "But- but I thought Gojo-sensei told me I couldn't fight."

Ieiri smiled at her and stood up. She walked up to the door and slide it open, revealing Inumaki Toge eavesdropping on their conversation.

"Shake," Inumaki said, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. He came down to get his medicine, but didn't see Ieiri anywhere. He only found them following Maguro's screams.

It was a bloodcurdling scream.

He panicked for a moment and rushed towards the source of the sound, but it turns out she was just in training with Ieiri. Though it was a very ghastly way of teaching, it worked, nonetheless.

And Maguro picked things up quickly with this method too.

Ieiri smiled at Inumaki and nodded at him.

"She's done for the day. You can get her up while I prepare your medicine," she said casually, patting his shoulder and walking out of the morgue with a flurry of her white doctor coat.

Inumaki rushed into the room. "Takana? Takana?" (Are you okay? Can you heal yourself?)

Maguro looked up to Inumaki's concerned eyes. She smiled and answered him, "I'm all good now. Just give me a moment to catch my breath. Boy, those happened so quickly."

"Takana," (It's alright. I can carry you) Inumaki said, swiftly scooping her up into his arms. Maguro felt herself being lifted into the air and quickly grabbed hold onto his shoulders with a squeak.

"Don't worry. I'll bring you back to the dorms. Fushiguro is cooking again. I came to check on you because you were later than usual," Inumaki thought out to her. Maguro dropped her head, embarrassed that he needs to check up on her.

Surprisingly, Inumaki could feel whatever she feels right now. Waves of shame and poured out of her to him. He looked at Ieiri, but she shows no signs that she felt these changes from Maguro. He knew then Maguro did not establish a Connection with her.

"I just bought some gelatine. I'll give you some later," Inumaki thought out to her. He almost smiled when he felt her snap her neck up at him with bright glittering eyes.

So easy to pacify, he thought to himself quietly, greatly amused by her little antics.

Inumaki carried her out of the room and to the counter, where Ieiri is waiting with a bag of his throat medicine. She moves towards Maguro in Inumaki's arms and patted her head softly, "You will need to fight when your friends are dying in the battlefield. Justify the situation quickly. If it is dangerous, and your friends are not able to cope with the enemy, that will be the time for you to barge in, stop the enemy's attack, and run out of the scene with your friends in tow. That is your job Maguro-chan – fight, and flight."