Cursed Eyes (Itachi in JJk)

Yuji had been the best at whatever he did, for so long that when he suddenly wasn't, for the first time, the pink-haired boy was left unsure and reeling. 

He would be the last person to claim genius, but he knew he was decently talented. He had surpassed and broken records in every sport even when he had not been trying. 

As with things that were gained with no true effort, he had lost interest, for at the end of the day, it was always too easy. That was why he had stuck to his supernatural group. Even if he hardly believed in it, he had been bored enough to play with it. That it had allowed him to get another couple of friends was just the icing on the cake. 

Then his world had been flipped upside down that day. The day Sukuna incarnated. Yet not even that had been able to put him down for long. He bounced back from things easily, just like his grandfather had taught him. 

He suddenly found himself missing the old man, because there was little to nothing he couldn't talk to the old man about. An example was this sudden feeling of uselessness. 

One of the reason why he had not been too put down by the happening was because once again, he had been proven to be special. Able to suppress Sukuna with no real effort. All he had to do was will his body to fall back under his control, and it would submit to his wishes. 

So he had taken the deal. He had truly seen a reflection of himself in Sukuna when Jiki had taken him to the space that housed the malevolent sorcerer. 

Yet he was special, wasn't he? He had nothing to fear. Not truly. Till suddenly, he did. He had given up control willingly to save the life of his newfound classmate and the kid they found in the rehabilitation center. 

Then the moment of horror and dread came. The moment he found himself too deep to swim out of the mire that was Sukuna's presence. The moment he realized for the first time the weight of the malevolent sorcerer's presence. A presence he had willingly given in to. Yuji could not regain control, and he was forced to watch Sukuna puppet his body better than he ever could. 

It took him long minutes to even figure out how to shape the body, even with Sukuna's control. An extra mouth on the face when he felt Sukuna's cursed energy ignite into a technique. Perhaps that was the only reason Maki was still alive now. Yet if Maki had not been there… he remembered Gojo Satoru's words clearly. 

Sure, we can take him down, but he's definitely going to cause a lot of damage and deaths.

Maki had prevented that worst-case scenario from happening, but in the end, it didn't change the fact. 

He had lost control, just like the elders had suspected. Just like every other vessel before him. Maybe he had been wrong to think he was special.

"What's eating you up, child?" 

Yuji looked up at the new speaker, so lost in thought he hadn't even heard her approach. It was a woman. She was young, no older than thirty. She had kind brown eyes and wore a simple white gown. His own brown eyes darted to a fresh scar on her forehead, and he immediately shifted his attention away. He could already hear his grandfather's voice echoing at the back of his head: It's rude to stare, brat. 

"Ah, nothing. I was just lost in thought for a bit," he replied with a big smile that was only the slightest bit forced as he scratched the back of his head. 

His gaze left the woman and trailed to the ridiculously long staircase just to the side, leading straight into Jujutsu High, before moving back to the woman, who tugged at a primitive part of his brain. 

A part of his brain that cried of familiarity. 

The woman smiled again and, with a smooth movement, sat beside him beneath the red roof that shaded the bus stop waiting area. 

"Are you a teacher?" Yuji blurted out as he tried to figure out where the sense of familiarity came from. 

"Hardly," the woman chuckled. "I was just walking by and saw how worried you looked. Do you want to talk about it?" 

Yuji wanted to reply with another "no," but something about the woman lowered his already weakened guard. Instead, he leaned back in the chair and stared at the road, lost in thought. 

He couldn't tell if the woman was a sorcerer yet. Even if she was, revealing that he had lost control, after Maki had explicitly told Ijichi not to let anyone else know was stupid, and even Yuji knew that. 

Yet he also felt like talking to the woman. So, he thought about what to say and how to say it in a way that would be cryptic enough, giving just enough detail but not too much. 

His eyes stayed fixed on the road, watching a few scattered leaves blow across the pavement. A car sped by carrying a child who had his face pressed against the window. As the car passed, the kid made a funny face, and the barest hint of a smile spread across Yuji's lips. 

A second later, the car was gone, leaving Yuji with the familiar stranger and all his worries once more. 

"I don't know where to start."

"Give it a try child."

"It's… hard to explain," he started slowly, his voice quiet. "Have you ever felt like you were supposed to be strong and capable? Not because anyone demanded it, but because you expected it of yourself? And then something happens that makes you realize you're not strong enough—at least, not yet." 

The woman hummed softly, a thoughtful sound. "Strength isn't always measured by what you can do, my child. Sometimes, it's about what you endure, the trials you face and your ability to keep going." 

Yuji glanced at her, his expression conflicted. "But what if… what if the risk is too much? What if you shouldn't face it? What if what you're challenging is dangerous? What if it hurts people? What if there's an easier option, even if it's not one you like, a path that lets you discard the burden?" 

"The easier path is hardly ever the best," the woman replied, tilting her head, her kind eyes narrowing slightly. "But I'm curious—hurt people how?" 

Yuji hesitated. For a second, he wondered if he'd tipped his hand too much. His fists clenched, but after a breath, he realized he was being paranoid. He hadn't said too much yet. Instead of worrying, he exhaled slowly, trying to find the right words. 

"Let's just say… I've got a job. Something that was handed to me by chance, but something I ended up being really good at. I thought I could excel at it. But now…" He trailed off, his voice growing quieter. "Now I'm not so sure." 

The woman placed a gentle hand on his shoulder, her touch warm and comforting. "It's not uncommon to doubt yourself, my child," she said softly, her voice heavy with empathy. "But you're not defined by the moments you falter. You're defined by how you rise afterward." 

Her words were kind, but something in her tone distracted Yuji from their innocent meaning. He shifted uncomfortably under her gaze, yet the idea of shrugging her hand off his shoulder didn't even occur to him. 

"Sometimes," she continued, her tone soft yet deliberate, "we think we're fighting alone when we don't have to. Whatever burden you're facing, there are… ways to make it lighter." 

Yuji blinked, his brow furrowing. "What do you mean?" 

The woman smiled faintly, her hand lingering on his shoulder. "What if I told you that strength doesn't always have to come from within? Sometimes, it's okay to lean on something or someone stronger. It doesn't make you weak, Yuji. It makes you wise." 

His thoughts drifted to Gojo Satoru, who always wore a smile and had fought the elders for his sake, giving him the chance to grow. Then, his mind turned to Jiki—unreadable and quiet, yet as solid as a rock. 

He didn't notice the woman's face twist momentarily, as if she realized she'd made a mistake, so focused was he on his thoughts. 

Yuji shook his head, frustration creeping into his voice. "I can't lean on people forever. I promised my grandfather I'd stand on my own. I promised him I'd be the one to help others." 

Her fingers tightened ever so slightly on his shoulder, a gesture that might have been reassuring if not for the subtle edge in her tone. "And yet, by trying to do it all alone, aren't you already hurting yourself? How long can you keep carrying this weight alone before it crushes you?" 

Yuji's throat tightened, her words hitting closer to home than he wanted to admit. 

"You're not alone, Yuji," she continued, her tone soft but insistent. "And while some people may seem like they want to help you, not every outstretched hand seeks to save you." 

The faint unease from earlier now clawed at him more strongly. Even the strange familiarity and ease he felt around her weren't enough to dull it. He stared back at the woman with a frown as she continued. Her hand slipped off his shoulder. 

"I know how that sounds, considering we're strangers," she admitted seeming to realize something. "But I'm simply worried about you. You look like you're bearing a burden too heavy for a child." 

"Why… why do you care so much?" he asked cautiously, feeling his unease slowly dissipate. 

Her kind smile didn't waver, but her eyes closed slightly. "Because you remind me of a child I lost once. A child that was taken from me by a spiteful old man. A child who had a big destiny." Her voice ended with a forlorn note as she turned away and looked to the side to staircase that led to the red torii gate. 

Yuji turned away as he heard a vehicle approach. Slower than the car and louder too. As it crested the horizon, it resolved into a bus. 

"I… I'll think about it. Thank you for the talk," he murmured, standing abruptly and shoving his hands into his pockets. 

The woman's smile grew softer, almost maternal. She stood up after him and began to walk away, but not before a parting word. "Take your time, child. If you ever want to talk again, I hang out around here sometimes." 

With a final glance at the long stairs that led up, she began to walk away. 

"What's your name?" Yuji called out. 

She turned back to him. As the wind ruffled her short black hair, she gently tugged it behind her ears and smiled at him. 

"You can call me K, Yuji. Just K." 

She nodded at him as she walked off. The bus came to a slow stop in front of him, and the doors opened to reveal a bored black-haired boy. 

"What're you doing out here?" 

Yuji turned to face the speaker, his eyes widening and a smile dancing on his lips. "Megumi! Where have you been?" 

Megumi replied with a smirk, throwing one of his bags at Yuji, who caught it with ease. 

"Family reunion. I heard you've been going on missions without me." 

For a second, Yuji's mood almost dropped, but he refused to let it. Instead, he replied with a smile. "You should see our new classmate. She's pretty annoying, but she's strong too." 

Megumi stepped off the bus and bumped Yuji's shoulder, inviting him to turn. The two of them began to walk up the stairs as Yuji started to regale Megumi with a heavily redacted version of his mission. 

Yet as he walked, a nagging question scratched at the back of his mind. 

When did I tell her my name?

...

Junpei walked back from school, and for the first time in a few weeks, he was doing it all on his own.

The pathway that led to his house was sparse with people. There were supposed to be club activities right now—club activities he had ignored. One of the ways he used to get away from his bullies.

Only this time, he wasn't simply doing this to get away from his bullies. His legs carried him down familiar roads automatically, while his focus shifted to his hand. He lifted his palm, turning it left and right, before focusing again. And there it was.

Flickers of blue. Cursed energy.

A shoulder barged into him, sending him spiraling to the floor. It was an act he had grown accustomed to, allowing him to twist so his bag took the brunt of the fall.

"Watch where you're going, bastard!"

He recovered his wits and looked up into two ugly yet depressingly familiar faces. This was a position he was used to—him on the ground while Takumura and Heise looked down at him with cruel smirks.

"Oh, is it little Junpei? Skipping clubs and running off home so early. Someone would think you were already tired of us, you know."

Junpei tried to find his feet once more, but a hard shove to his side sent him falling again. This time, he landed more aggressively, splitting his lip on the ground.

A few people began to murmur as they walked past. Junpei was left reeling and confused—they had never bullied him in public like this before.

"What're you doing?" a voice called out, walking toward them. Junpei felt a shadow cover him, and for a second, he thought Mahito was back. But when he looked up, it was an older man with black hair and a black suit. The man pushed back his glasses on his severe face as he gave the two bullies a sharp look.

"N-nothing. He just tripped, and we were trying to help him up."

Judging by the man's expression, he didn't believe them in the slightest. They hurriedly began to backpedal. "A-anyway, see you in school tomorrow, Junpei!" They waved at him with disgustingly fake smiles before turning and goofing away.

Junpei quickly made sure his hair covered his scars, but when he looked up, there was something in the man's eyes that told him he had seen them either way. Pity.

The man stretched out a hand, and Junpei reacted by slapping it aside in anger and shame. He hurriedly stood up, picked up his bag, and started to run, his face heating up with embarrassment and frustration.

After a couple of meters, when he was sure the man wasn't following him, he slowed down. The sense of shame and embarrassment returned twofold, but none of the anger remained.

He had acted like a brat. It wasn't the man's fault. The man had simply been trying to help. Junpei let out a sigh filled with regret as he climbed the stairs to his house.

"I'm going to apologize for that. Hopefully, I see him some other day." With that declaration, he reached out for the door and froze. He looked at the outstretched hand and suddenly remembered feeling a jolt when he slapped the man's hand away. Like an undercurrent of electricity between them.

"What're you apologizing for?" The door opened, revealing his mother. She gave him a tired smile, and he quickly discarded the strange sensation, returning her smile with one of his own.

"Good evening mom. I met a man while coming home, and he helped me out a bit."

"Oh? Come on in, then. You can tell me about it after you bathe and eat." With those comforting words, Junpei entered his house with a smile and went to do as she asked.

...

It had taken him over an hour to pacify his mother, answering all the questions he could and deflecting the ones he couldn't. That led him back to the comfort of his room.

Junpei sat on the floor of his dimly lit room, staring at his hand. It was faint, barely noticeable if you weren't looking, but there it was—a flicker of cursed energy curling off his fingers like smoke from a match.

He exhaled slowly, leaning back against the bed frame. He hadn't been imagining it earlier. It was almost worth bumping into Takumura and Heise again. Almost.

As he tried to stamp down his excitement, he began to think. This was new. Seeing curses was one thing—he'd always been able to do that. But feeling this? Generating cursed energy? It had to be a result of Mahito's experiment on him.

His fingers tightened into a fist.

Mahito had promised him strength, a way to fight back against the people who made his life hell. But that memory of cold red eyes kept coming back, gnawing at him. He wasn't proud of it, but he couldn't shake the image of himself frozen, utterly useless, while that red-eyed sorcerer stood on the wall, defying physics, yet calm as death.

Junpei had seen curses tear people apart, seen Mahito twist bodies like wet clay, but the sorcerer had looked at him like he was looking at an insect. There was no hesitation, no panic. Just this… eerie confidence.

Somehow, he knew that if the red-eyed sorcerer had bothered to try, they would've been dead. Or at least Mahito would've been. Instead, the sorcerer had turned away, and while Mahito tried to hide it, the curse had been scared.

Junpei hated himself for how insignificant he had been, how small he'd felt in that moment. But more than that, he hated how it made him question everything. Made him question Mahito.

Sorcerers.

They weren't what he thought. At least not all of them. Mahito had barely mentioned them before, and now Junpei finally knew why. They were dangerous. Strong.

Dangerous enough that Mahito had started to focus elsewhere.

Other than their weekly hangouts, the curse had been too distracted to notice the changes Junpei was going through mentally. Instead, Mahito had been working on something with the other curses—the ones he called the "Disaster Cursed Spirits."

Junpei had met some of them once. A rough day at school had led him to Mahito's sewer hideout earlier than usual. And while he could hardly judge the strength of a curse, somehow, he knew they were ridiculously powerful. Fortunately, they hadn't cared much about him, and Junpei didn't care much about them either. He had left quickly. Whatever it was, Mahito clearly had bigger things to worry about than him.

So, Junpei had started doing his own research.

His laptop screen glowed faintly in the dark room. He stood up, walked to it, pulled out his chair, and sat down. He'd been digging through forums, message boards, and sketchy sites on the dark web. It was amazing what you could find if you looked long enough. He didn't know how many of the people on these sites were legit—half of them seemed like delusional idiots—but a few threads stood out.

One in particular.

A forum supposedly for sorcerers. Hidden behind layers of encryption, full of coded language, it was the kind of place Mahito would scoff at. But Junpei wasn't so sure.

He scrolled carefully, scanning the posts. People talked about techniques, cursed energy training, even rumors about special-grade sorcerers. Most of it was vague or cryptic, but every now and then, someone would mention something real.

He hesitated for a second, then typed:

"Looking for a teacher. Need someone who can teach cursed energy manipulation. Willing to trade."

It felt stupid the moment he hit send. What could he even offer? Mahito's name? Information? He doubted anyone would take him seriously. But the moment he closed the post, a notification popped up.

Direct Message: Manami Suda.

Junpei's brow furrowed. He opened the message.

"You're lucky I'm bored. You want help? Then prove you're worth my time. Send me your location."

The profile was blank. No picture, no information. He didn't recognize the name. His instinct was to ignore it, but something about the bluntness of the message stopped him.

He stared at the screen for a long moment, then typed back:

"I'll think about it."

The reply came almost instantly.

"Huh. Don't take too long. I'm not the patient type."

Junpei leaned back, his heart pounding. He didn't know who Manami Suda was or what she wanted, but for the first time in a long time, he felt like he had a choice.

He glanced at his hand again, the faint flicker of cursed energy still curling around his fingers.

Maybe he didn't need Mahito after all.