Jujutsu Kaisen: Purple

Chapter 1: Neglect

The streets of Kichijōji, Tokyo were quieter than usual, likely due to the gloomy weather consisting of clouds plaguing the sky. It was a late Thursday afternoon. Yukari stood inside a foreign clothing store, counting the value possessed by the handful of coins in his right hand. The teenager's hair was purple and long enough to fall past his black eyebrows, almost reaching his eyelashes — which were black as well. His eyes were a light-grey colour, contrasting with the black hoodie and dark-blue jeans he wore. Moreover, Yukari had a pale complexion and no facial hair. He was 160 centimetres tall and weighed approximately 49 kilograms, making him fairly slim.

"4500... 4600... 4700..." The boy frowned. His gaze shifted from the coins to the cashier, who had been waiting patiently for the last minute. "I'm missing 100¥..." stated the fifteen-year-old, a slight hint of sadness to his tone. A woollen, purple scarf sat on the counter, with a small 4800¥ price tag attached to it.

"Sorry, please come back when you have enough money," replied the woman before calling forward the next customer.

Yukari sighed.

I thought I had enough already. A coin probably fell out of my pocket on the way here. Whatever... it doesn't matter.

The teenager was about to leave when he noticed a tip jar on the counter. It looked decently full. Yukari froze. He glanced at the cashier; she seemed busy helping a different customer. The boy thought for a second — but ultimately decided against it.

I'm not that kind of person.

Yukari left the store, feeling dejected. It took around ten minutes for the teenager to get home, and at that point, he would unlock the door to an apartment using his own keys.

As expected, no one was home.

It was getting dark outside. The boy removed his shoes and flipped a nearby light switch, illuminating the kitchen. Unfortunately, the table did not have any change on it as Yukari had hoped.

She forgot to leave me money for dinner. Again.

The teenager's father often worked until late and his mother, like always, had gone out for dinner with her friends, leaving the boy to care for himself.

Yukari checked the fridge. Empty. He was starving. For the last couple of weeks, the teenager had been saving some of the money left by his parents for food to eventually have enough to buy the scarf he had really been wanting for a while. However, that meant the boy did not have much money remaining, so he had been eating sparingly. His parents forgetting to leave him cash was not an uncommon occurrence and as such, Yukari occasionally had to rely on the money he had saved up if he wanted to eat. Even so, at times the teenager decided not to eat at all to avoid spending anything. His selection of clothing was pretty limited, so a brand-new scarf would have been nice and, although the boy had told his parents, they simply did not care. They rarely did.

Yukari entered his barren room. A bed, a desk and an old wardrobe were the only pieces of furniture present. The white walls and wooden floor gave the impression of simplicity, yet also served to create a desolate atmosphere. Without bothering to turn on the otherwise dim lights, the teenager mindlessly emptied all the money from his pocket and placed it on the desk, except for three 100¥ coins. He left the uninviting room and made his way to the front door. Once there, the boy put on the only pair of shoes he had — purple sneakers. Yukari then reintroduced darkness into the kitchen by flipping the familiar light switch and exited the apartment.

A bolt of lightning flashed in the distance, followed by a tempestuous roar of thunder. Streetlights shone softly, dispelling the darkness in the district. The teenager tightened his grip on the cheap packaged sandwich clutched in his left hand and quickened his pace.

Great. I should have brought an umbrella.

He felt multiple water droplets hitting his face and, not wanting to get wet, decided to wait in a roofed alleyway until the rain subsided.

The loud, vicious downpour dampened the chatter that could be heard from restaurants further down the road as a thin, watery film paved the ground. Yukari shivered. He crossed his arms and sighed heavily, realising it may take some time for it to stop raining.

It's so cold.

A wave of misery washed over him, intensifying the hollow loneliness he had grown accustomed to over the years. The boy sat down against a wall and hugged his knees.

He stared at the floor, isolated.

I... don't get it. Isn't life... supposed to be enjoyable? No one has ever cared about me... not even my parents. Is it my fault, or am I just unlucky? I guess it doesn't matter either way. It's all pointless, isn't it? To be honest...

Why was I even born at all?

...

What's that noise?

Yukari's trance was shattered by a grotesque sound — one akin to that of flesh being torn apart. He looked up. A strange, dark-blue glow of energy had appeared before him; it was opaque and constantly changing shape. The teenager's eyes widened in shock. An appendage resembling a human hand extended from the apparition, aggressively grabbing the boy's right ankle. Yukari dropped the sandwich, paralysed. The metaphysical flesh split open, revealing numerous key-like teeth sprouting from within it. Several soulless eyes with swampy green irises germinated above the monstrous maw, every single one fixed on the teenager. Another hand became visible, and so did four pairs of arachnoid legs located near the bottom of the creature. As it formed, the beast let out a distorted wail of sorrow.

A curse had manifested.

The boy remained motionless, unable to react. He dissociated, helplessly watching as the monster inched closer — its dilapidated fangs nearing his face. An icy breath struck Yukari's skin, snapping him back to reality.

The teenager slammed his eyes shut.

No. I don't want to die!

A splatter of blood stained the wall. The creature's mouth trembled erratically, a purple, blood-like substance slowly spilling onto the floor. The boy opened his eyes. He was met by a long, slender arm made of shadow on either side of him — both of which had pierced through the cursed spirit like spears. Their sharp, clawed hands were slightly larger than a person's head, and their colouration was pitch-black. Stuck to the wall were two dark puddles roughly half a metre in diameter each. They retained the same colour as the shadowy limbs, acting as portals for them.

The monster's body swiftly disintegrated into ash and disappeared, leaving nothing behind. At the same time, the splatters of purple blood evaporated entirely. The phantom arms vanished into thin air immediately after, as did the dark puddles.

Yukari blinked, sitting completely still.

What... the hell was that?