KISMET, ryomen sukuna

⠀⠀⠀第5章

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CHAPTER FIVE
Those of the Hounds
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━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ( KISMET ! )

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⠀⠀⠀ The night Ryōmen Sukuna met Zen'in Kazue, his path as a shaman began. Amidst the dancing fireflies, and the heatwave of the midsummer evening, a young boy stood before a man of prominence as the elder offers a hand. His eyes glanced over the estate's master, and as the old tales foretold — the undisputed King of Curses was born.

"They oppose the palace." Yūji thought out loud as his steps leave ripples onto the vast void of Shiranui's realm. "Why am I not surprised? Of course, he is part of a rebellion!"

"Lord Ryūtaro believed it to be for a greater cause." Shiranui retorts, pale arms gracefully swinging upwards, and with that — Yūji watches as screens of memories emerge out of the darkness. Shiranui turns to him, the same amused expression ever always on such a pretty face.

"A greater cause? Rebellions lead to war and death— and this is Heian. A time of peace!" Shiranui knew of naïveté. The ghostly woman can see her ideals reflecting within him— rage evident in intense eyes, yet that is from another lifetime.

"If only the ideas of war were that simple, don't you think?" She answers, "Yet, liberation demands sacrifice."

And as her words hung by the atmosphere of the void, Itadori Yūji's eyes caught one of the many screens. Within it were memories of fire, villages burning, and scums cladded in monarch loyalty severing heads from bodies of those they deemed to be unworthy of their empire. "— And for the people of Heian, they sacrificed greatly."

When Shiranui's words ended, a sea of memories placed the boy in a trance. Vivid & rapid were the fragments of Sukuna's life during his early years with the Hounds. Itadori Yūji saw a mere child of the rebellion — a scrawny lowborn who washes bloodied garments of older shamans, meticulously maintain their weaponry, and serve meals to tired soldiers. It is no different from his duties in the estate — nothing more than a servant, and an errand boy. Years pass however, and Yūji watches as this weak boy dreadfully try his best to keep pace with Zen'in Kazue's practices, remaining within the mountains of Hida whether night or day in the name of standing in the same battlefield, and pouring blood, sweat & tears for his Master's beliefs. Therefore, Itadori Yūji was given the pleasure of witnessing Ryōmen Sukuna as a soldier of the Hounds — from his first mission, to his first battlefield by the borders of Hida province, to the first cursed weapon bestowed upon him by Sasaki Ryūtaro, and until the child turned 15 — a mere boy with undeniable talent & wit; the Hounds' prodigy. Itadori Yūji watched him over the years, and as Sukuna grew, so did the fires of rebellion.

Awaken from the trance, Itadori opens his eyes to the image of another summer night — a lonely road surrounded by the forest in dead silence. The winds were speechless, and the trees stood still for even the earth holds its breath for the tragedy that is yet to come. Breaking the midnight silence were footsteps onto dirt-road, horses whining in exhaustion and rattling of metal from rusting chains. There, from the distance were a company — weary soldiers dragging their feet as well-shined weapons hung from waists and backs. The empire's flag stood tall, and below were men bearing loyalty for the crown, its ideals as well as for its victims. Lowborns branded as traitors follow their path — bloodied, beaten, and exhausted, yet still they walk.

Pitiful as it were, Itadori Yūji noticed their peculiarity before anything else, for the lowborns they parade around the nation were no simple folk. These people — children, men & women all bear immense amounts of cursed energy.