The Cursed Hearts | Gojo x OC | JJK

Chapter 9: Katana's Tale

"Hope you're not here to slow down the real talent". Talent, huh? Sounds more like unnecessary cockiness. She gave Satoru a silent glare, her eye practically piercing through his soul, yet it felt amusing to Satoru himself.

"Looks like the ice queen has melted by my glamorous wo--", a large hand slapped over Satoru's mouth as he got cut off. He turned to the owner of the hand, and it was Suguru. The raven haired boy just gave him a "shut the heck up" look and removed his hand.

Satoru scoffs as he yelled loudly across the training room, "Don't you know it's disrespect to cut off someone when they speak?!". Suguru lets out a soft chuckle as he walked towards Hanako's figure. "Since when did you care about respect, Satoru?" He points out immediately which has Satoru staring at him in annoyance.

Hanako lets out a small chuckle as she covered her mouth with her hand, not going unnoticed by Satoru which has him even more pissed off than before. Suguru stood Infront of her now, his tall figure slightly towering her own as small smile creeps up on his face. He's quite handsome, no doubt, she thinks in her mind.

"Well, now that you're here, you up for a playful duel, Hanako? A friendly spar might be just the thing to keep our skills sharp, maybe even have a chance to see that technique of yours. What do you say?", Suguru says in a sly voice. He really is no different than Satoru in some ways, is he?

She stared at him for a moment as she felt her mind battling over whether she should or not. If she agreed, she'd end up using her technique and could possibly hurt someone, and if not, these two idiots will have a chance to mock her.

"As tempting as it sounds, Suguru, I like to keep an air of mystery around my techniques. Maybe another time?" She declined respectfully as Suguru looked a little disappointed but then nods with a smile.

"Turning down a chance to spar? You're not making a good case for yourself, Hanako. But hey, I'm not one to judge the weak.", Satoru's mockery begins as he speaks loudly across the training room.

His voices echoes as she feels her blood boil from his words, but she was too stressed out about other stuff to argue with him, so she just ignored him and walked to the rows of seats, sitting down as she watched them both spar and clown around. She watches them for a while, feeling quite impressed with how fast and effortlessly they battle, especially Suguru's hand to hand combat skills.

Hanako, on the sidelines, her eyes fixed on the intense display of strength. Gojo, ever the provocateur, couldn't resist taunting her.

"Hanako, are you enjoying the view of real strength? Maybe you'll learn a thing or two by just watching." Internally, Hanako grappled with a deep-seated fear - the fear of losing control and causing harm as she had before. Her fists clenched, silently harboring the weight of her internal conflict.

I can't risk hurting anyone again. But how can I prove myself without unleashing the potential within me?

She felt the conflict in her mind running wild. She didn't want someone else to end up with the same fate of her mother, like years ago. The anxiety was creeping over and over.

Just as the internal struggle reached its peak, a perceptive teacher entered the scene, bearing a robust katana. It was Sumiko-sensei. She calls out her, to which Hanako comes over to her immediately in response. She looked at the tool her teacher held in her hand, a strong and sharp katana.

"I've had this thought in mind for a while, so from now on, use this. It's time you explored a different path to strength. Embrace the weapon, not your fears, kiddo.", Sumiko smiled as she brings forward the blade. Hanako felt like a huge burden had been off her shoulders. She could actually fight this time.

"Imbue your cursed energy into the katana, so that it can help you fight, the more you add into it, the strong it'll be. Now, remember, just because you can use a cursed tool, doesn't mean you can just forget your technique. Learn to control and adapt to it too, Hanako."

Grateful for the intervention, She nods as she accepted the katana, feeling the weight of a new opportunity. Now, Satoru, intrigued by the unexpected shift, couldn't help but express his curiosity.

"A weapon, huh? Let's see if it suits you better than those 'subtle strings." He laughed in amusement as he points out, only receiving an eye roll from her. Sumiko sighed as she continues to speak, "At least she has more brains than you ever could, Satoru'', to which Satoru releases a scowl. "Hanako, I've assigned Suguru to help you out in practising your new 'swordsmanship'. So, you'll be with him most for training, Got that, Suguru?"

Suguru gives a thumbs-up to Sumiko as he passed a smile to Hanako and says, "Sometimes a change in approach is all we need, and I'll be here to help for that, Hanako.". She nods as she felt a more friendly aura from Suguru. It was time to take a new road, a better road.

Time continues to pass on, as she spent her day at Jujutsu High, with her friends, and her mentors. They were all the best. Especially Suguru. He was like an older brother. He'd laugh around, accompany her, make sure she wasn't left out. Satoru was the worst, honestly. He never wasted the chance to mock her, about her techniques, her scar, her grades. It was like mental torture. Nevertheless, Suguru and Shoko taught him the lesson he deserved. Shoko, she was the best girl out there. Calm, funny and well..smoker. But she was great. Hanako would go see her sister and Mizuki sometimes too in holidays, and missions were tough, but she managed to get through it. The first year or second..or first, or..second? I don't know, forget it. The time was great.

To be continued..