Incarnate: Nishi

He ripped, he tore, and he gouged, by instinct committing an act of violence and brutality. He grabbed hold of the first thing his senses granted him.

With a bare throat, a quivering body, and eyes bolted open like poison had suddenly coursed through them, Nishi had a firm hold on a young man.

A scruffy stubble on his chin, a distinct pock-marked scar on his forehead, and short, messy brown hair adorning his terrified face.

Nishi's eyes widened as he heard an unfamiliar voice through a dull blur, with words that startled him, "行け,やめろ!窒息させてるぞ!"

The voice was urgent, fear and worry tinging it roughly as Nishi heard a faint ringing in his ears, a ringing that gradually died down.

"行け!" The voice pierced his ears again, this time Nishi glanced toward the source.

Nishi's eyes peered at a young man, no older than twenty. He had short brown hair parted to the side, a slender physique, and a dopey face.

With gradualness, Nishi began to speak, the words that left his mouth foreign on his tongue as the meaning flowed into his mind, "Ka-ano," Nishi said briefly as if tasting the word.

Like a rush, information flooded Nishi's senses, a violent tide of memories that caused him to freeze for but a moment.

His head slouched as he thought to himself...

Incarnated... 2018... Ike... Abandoned Shrine...

As Nishi's head bolted up merely a moment later, his eyes cemented themselves onto the man clenched in his hand, "Kawasaki," Nishi said as a grin began to creep onto his face, staring into the eyes of the black-haired man that he held a foot off the ground, terror palpable in his eyes.

Looking just a bit off to his right, three familiar faces came into his vision...

Ozaki, a brash and strong man, is one of "Ike's" closest friends, they've known each other since grade school.

Hasegawa, reserved due to his weight, is another of his friends since grade school.

Watanabe, the first to give you the shirt off his back, and a friend since newborns...

Nishi's eyes drifted back to Kawasaki, And lastly, you, he who opposed me in all I do, you even took my girlfriend from me after we broke up.

Releasing his grip on Kawasaki, he thudded to his knees as he coughed profusely, holding his throat as he gasped for air.

Ozaki gritted his teeth as he slowly looked back and forth between Nishi and Kawasaki, looking up as he stood crouched next to Kawasaki patting his back, quickly standing as he got in Nishi's face, he jabbed a finger into his chest, "Ike, what the hell was that?" Ozaki muttered angrily as he got closer, "You could've hurt him, how far were you gonna' take that joke?" Ozaki asked, a bead of sweat dripping down the left side of his face.

Nishi's eyes slowly drifted to the finger prodding his chest, before slowly tracing up his arm into his eyes, peering past him as Ozaki froze, stepping back seemingly out of instinct.

He balled his fist up as he looked on shakily toward Nishi, "W-who are you," Ozaki spoke, the others all looking at Nishi with a shared look of surprise and confusion.

No one spoke for a moment, Nishi eyed the four of them, Kawasaki slowly standing as he still clutched his throat tightly, "I-Ike...?"

Annoyed, Nishi looked down at his hands, clenching and unclenching them as he watched his fingers move, before slowly looking back up, a brief laugh possessing him, "I've finished reading the important memories, I think I get the gist of things right now," He said as he grabbed the jacket on him, ripping it off casually as he tossed the pieces to the ground, leaving him with a black sleeveless shirt.

Grinning, he held his arms out as he goaded them, "And now that that's out of the way, I think I oughta' tie up these loose ends."

Clenching his fists, Nishi paused for a moment, shooting a glance at his fists as he pulled them back in, looking at the back of his hand, "Huh?"

My cursed energy, why can't I feel it, did that damn shaman give me botched instructions...?

With a sound of annoyance, Nishi clenched his fists as he took a calm step toward the four, "Whatever, I don't need cursed energy to beat a bunch of nobodies," Nishi's grin returned as he took a single strong step forward, the floorboards underfoot creaking loudly.

Stepping back, the four pushed their back against the wall as between them and their exit... was Nishi.

Watanabe put a hand to his chest as he looked at Ike with worry, "W-what's going on, you're worrying us man," He said as sweat faintly trickled from his brow.

Scoffing, Nishi launched forward, planting a single kick in the core of Watanabe as he was forced into a wall, smashing his back into it as he gasped from the impact, the breath stolen from his lungs.

Ozaki bit his lip as he reached forward to grab Nishi, aiming for the collar of his shirt, Nishi's eyes narrowed at him as he opened his mouth, biting down hard on his index and middle finger.

Ozaki's eyes widened as he tried to pull his hand away, "I-IKE LET GO!" He said desperately, pain tinging his voice, his other hand balling into a fist as Nishi twisted his body straight into Ozaki, kicking him right in the core, the same treatment he'd just given Watanabe.

Stumbling back several feet, Ozaki fell into a pile of broken furniture, a cloud of dust billowing upward. Suddenly, two pairs of hands grabbed his left arm, limiting his movement as quickly his head darted backward, settling on Kawasaki and Hasegawa grabbing tightly onto Nishi's wrist.

"STOP THIS IKE!" Hasegawa said as he looked on worried, his eyes darting to Watanabe and Ozaki reeling from their respective kicks.

Nishi took advantage of this, spinning quickly and tearing their grip free, elbowing Hasegawa square in the nose, blood spurting out of his nose as his hands instantly moved to cover it. Kawasaki pulled his hands off as he took a step back, looking around to see his friends groaning on their hands and knees in pain.

"I-Ik-" He was stopped as Nishi began to speak.

"Nishi," Nishi spoke with a calmness, a light smirk adorning his face, "My name, is Nishi, you'd do well to remember it, fool."

Taking a step forward, Nishi was an inch from his face, his nose practically touching Kawasaki's, "Beat them half to death and I'll spare you."

Kawasaki's eyes widened slowly, his pupils fluttering like a butterfly, "H-huh?" He retorted shakily.

"I said beat them, we'll shake on it, and make it a vow between us," Nishi said with a snide grin.

Kawasaki looked to his friends petrified, his voice rattling as he spoke, "W-who the hell are you..."

Nishi patted his shoulder as he put his other hand to his chin, "Hmmm, I have many titles, easiest to remember though..." Nishi crossed his arms for a moment as he thought to himself, eventually retorting as he unfolded his arms, "Nishi Obara, First Head of the Obara clan."

Kawasaki's eyes widened a bit as he sweated, "L-like one of those major clans from the past? Kind of like Minamoto & Tachibana?"

"Different scene," Nishi said knowingly as he looked off toward the recuperating men, "Far more powerful," Nishi said darkly, "Now, I'll outline some rules you must follow, do you understand?" Nishi said as he glanced slightly at Kawasaki who stood to his left.

Kawasaki shivered as his eyes darkened, muttering, "A-alright..."

Nishi slowly looked back to the trio, "In this world, there is such a thing known as curse, you've never heard of anything like it, that I can assure you of. From negativity it springs up, bubbling up to the surface and forming cursed spirits," Nishi said as Ozaki slowly stood up, clutching his chest as he looked toward Nishi.

"I-IKE!" Ozaki roared as he raced toward Nishi, rage flaring in his eyes.

"Negativity like that," Nishi said as he took a deep breath, taking a calm step toward Ozaki, "It births those things which plague my world," a calm demeanor overtook him as Ozaki swung forward at Nishi wildly, catching a sudden blow to the jaw, his body going slack like a rope and hitting the ground with a loud and dull thud.

Nishi glanced back as he smirked, "But when not aimed, it couldn't even hurt a fly, it's when it's focused that it becomes truly amazing."

"One of the fundamental principles of this is Jujutsu Sorcery, and of that, binding vows," Nishi said as he held his hands outward, taking a deep breath as he opened an eye toward Kawasaki, "Isn't it such a lovely feeling?"

Kawasaki looked on nervously, swallowing his spit in anxiousness as he glanced to Nishi's feet, seeing Ozaki laid out cold, "W-why are you doing all this?"

Nishi scratched the back of his head as he thought for a moment, before his signature grin reached across his face to form a sick smile, "Cause' I fuckin' can, it's the right of the strong," Nishi said with a wild look in his eyes.

"The right of the strong..." Kawasaki repeated quietly as he looked on at Nishi, his own heart beating loudly, and his head held down as he looked to the ground.

Nishi put his hands behind his head as he waltzed towards Kawasaki boldly, "I'm freeing you from your shackles, after all, we're so alike aren't we?" Nishi said as he looked at Kawasaki's twisted smile, a look of bliss on his face.

"Now, destroy what you want," Nishi said as he began to leave the room.

Don't even need a binding vow for him, he's unfettered... Just like me.

As Nishi shut the door behind him, he heard a strangely familiar laughter from the room, a sound of utter indulgence.

That's right, use your negativity, crush their spirits, destroy their pride, and stomp on everything they care about, that is the path to becoming the strongest. Nishi thought to himself as he waltzed down the hallway with a whistle.

Where to next... maybe Mom and Pop's place? Nishi thought to himself as he snickered quietly.