[▶] ☼ 𝝖S𝝦𝝞Ɍ𝝞𝝢Ᏽ 𝝡𝝤Ɍ𝝩𝝖Ⳑ | Ryomen Sukuna ☼

☼ THREE ☼

You waste no hesitation in clashing your blades together between the two of you. Due to how close he was, the blades came in contact with his skin. Blood falls down his chest from the impact, but he doesn't flinch.

"I won't say it again," You scowl, "Leave."

"I'll give it to you, mortal," He brushes his hair back with his hand, "You've got guts."

You glare up at him wordlessly, applying more pressure on the blades in an attempt for the pain to push him back. His blood oozes onto your blades and they shiver.

"How did you get inside?" You demand.

He shrugs nonchalantly, "The vines let me inside; moved right out of my way."

Sukuna feels the force behind your blades weaken and notices your perplexed expression. You were thinking to yourself as you stared absentmindedly at his face.

The forest let him in? Why? Everything about him screams evil and death, so why did the Mother Tree let him in? I don't understand . . .

The glint of your blades catches your eye, and Sukuna follows your gaze to the blades digging into his chest. The engraved symbols light up and you hear the whispers of a thousand voices in your ears. It's as though they were trying to say, Save him.

Sukuna opens his mouth to talk as the silence is thick, but you retract your blades to idle beside you and say, "Come with me."

He quirks a brow, "And why should I take heed of your orders?"

You ignore him and begin to walk the opposite way towards the village where you plan to take him to Sei and the Chief. He scoffs and proceeds to reluctantly follow you.

What a headstrong woman . . . Sukuna thinks to himself. 

Your stubbornness and bravery were almost enough for you to earn his praise. It wasn't every day he finds and interacts with a woman who can stand her ground in his presence. Not to mention the lack of fear you show him makes him feel so inferior.

And Sukuna hated to feel that way with people who were weaker than him. But you were amusing him so far, which is the only reason why he doesn't kill you on the spot. He'd wait and see where this goes. 

It confused him that you were leading him deeper into the territory even after you were so adamant about making him leave. But in the end, it just proved him better than all those measly humans who could never put a foot inside. 

As you lead him toward the village, you can see that the border just ahead was abandoned. You feel yourself relax a tad bit knowing the people are safe.

"Where are we going, oh brave warrior?" Sukuna mocks.

You glare at him over your shoulder, "Don't speak or I'll cut your tongue out."

Sukuna lets out a laugh, "My, my, you must not know who I am. I praise your bravery, warrior."

"I will not repeat myself," Your piercing blue eye doesn't blink at him from over your shoulder.

He throws his hands up in playful surrender, and a smug smirk remains on his face. It was a long walk but it didn't seem to bore the sorcerer. Sukuna admired the wildlife he frequently encountered, and the variety of trees he passed. Some glowed, some were twisted, some were huge. 

You finally make it to the clearing where tall guard towers are seen at every corner of the village. Without the leaves and branches covering Sukuna from the sky, he finally noticed the great tree in the distance. Sukuna tilts his head up and takes in the sight of the massive structure. He lets out a long whistle, realizing just how big it truly was than it looked from outside the border.

At the top of the guard towers you passed were archers and some brute warriors at the bottom. The men nodded at you in respect but eyed Sukuna skeptically, trying to intimidate him. He scoffs at this, truly wondering if the people here knew who he was.

Just past the guard towers were a variety of hand-built homes, which were all recently abandoned. Sukuna then noticed Sei's presence and hummed in amusement. He could sense her impressive cursed energy from where he stood and admitted to himself that she was indeed powerful.

Her face glared stonily at Sukuna's figure. You come to a halt just a few feet away from her, and Sukuna follows suit. Her gaze finally lands on you and her features soften. You can see her visibly relax at the sight of you unharmed. 

"I'm taking him to the Chief, I was given a message from Aokigahara herself." You tell her.

She nods and closes her eyes, turning the other way and leading you to the Mother Tree. Earlier when you had left, Sei gathered the Chief and village council members for a meeting regarding the current threat: Sukuna. 

Sukuna becomes more intrigued the closer he gets to the tree, and you can't help but feel amused at his expressions. You finally arrive at the base of the tree where a large establishment holds the Chief and village councils. It was a much finer structure than all the other village homes, which caused Sukuna to assume it was the capital of their settlement.

As he walked inside, with some struggling through the doorway because of his massive size, Sukuna was greeted by a group of men chattering among one another. Upon seeing his arrival, they quiet themselves and greet you.

"(Y/N), I'm glad to see you're alright," The chief nods at you as you bow in respect. 

The Chief was a tall man, almost as tall as Sukuna, and presented himself well with silk robes and some expensive accessories. Sukuna notices Sei bow to him as well, but he makes no respectful gesture, causing the council behind the Chief to murmur amongst each other. 

The Chief acknowledges Sukuna by nodding at him, paying no mind to his disrespectful stance. You glare at Sukuna but he only clicks his tongue and looks away from you. He knew who he was: The King of Curses. He didn't bow to anyone, as he believed he was above the rest.

"Welcome, my friend," The Chief says curtly, "What brings you here?"

Sukuna looks down at him with his arms crossed, asserting dominance, "There is a bounty hanging over this forest, a large sum of a reward for those who infiltrate it successfully."

The Chief nods solemnly in agreement, "That we know, as much as we want to make peace with the outsiders, the forest has a mind of her own."

Sukuna quirks a brow at this, "Does it now? What do you mean."

You stand beside the Chief, facing Sukuna, "This land thrives with magic, it is controlled by the Mother Tree's spirit standing right above us."

He hums at this, as though something sketchy was going through his mind. You eye him cautiously, his company suffocates the room.

"We can pay you the reward if that will settle-" The Chief says softly, holding no grudge against Sukuna's oppressive presence, but he was cut off.

"-They also want the heads of the two women standing in this room with us," Sukuna smiles darkly.

The Chief shakes his head, "I'm afraid that cannot be done-"

Sukuna scoffs, "Do you know who I am, old man? I can do whatever I want-"

You firecly glare at Sukuna for his disrespectful nature, but then the Chief looks to you questioningly for context.

You tell him, still irritated, "We don't know of him or his origins, but the forest willingly let him in."

His brows raise at this and he looks to Sukuna warmly, "Well, a friend of the forest is a friend of ours!"

Sukuna stands there dumbfounded with you. Were these people so isolated from the world that they do not know the most powerful and deadliest jujutsu sorcerer in the world: Sukuna? And were they so dense as to not see that Sukuna's entire being was screaming: Danger!

"Please," The Chief smiles to him, "Make yourself at home, Sei Gojo right here will take you to a cabin nearby."

Sukuna couldn't help but feel irritated and his eye twitched, "Huh?"