𝐒𝐎𝐋𝐈𝐓𝐔𝐃𝐄 [JJK x OC]

9: Three Great Clans

A/N Tests were kicking my ass, so this was pretty delayed. Trying to make the clans more relevant...

Arc 2: Hidden Inventory (The Star in My Dreams)

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3rd person

Summer 2006

Zen'in Family Estate

The sun began to crest past the horizon, and the first rays of light crashing through the ancient estate signaled the beginning of the day. The sound echoed throughout the grounds of the Zen'in estate, its ground humming with the sounds of life as hundreds of sorcerers from the three great clans filtered through the winding passages toward the heart of the estate.

Five years had elapsed, and once more, the time had come for a meeting between the great clans of the jujutsu world, within whom the fate of their society and future rested. The event's hosting rotated every half-decade; this time, the Zen'in clan would bear the burden of hosting their rivals. With bowed heads, the servants of the clan, their daughters and mothers, bereft of talent with Jujutsu and buried under the years of traditionalism, did all they could to accommodate their guests, only to be met with sneering eyes. Still, they held their tounges, bearing that shame in silence.

This hallowed meeting, held since the end of the Edo period, once symbolized the reduced tensions between the millennia-old families. A promise that never again would they enter into such a widescale conflict like the one that claimed the lives of all three clan heads. Even so, the animosity in the air was palpable. Cursed energy stifled the environment, and were it not for the veritable army of sorcerers, the nation's myriad spirits would look upon such an event as a feast. Nonetheless, it wasn't uncommon for a grade four, or even lower, curse to sneak through the cracks and spawn on the grounds.

As the sorcerers made their way to the meeting hall, hushed whispers were shared amongst the clan members. Cheap gossip that they would never voice to the ones they spoke about.

"It would seem the Gojo clan won't attend once again. Do they have no shame?" A sorcerer born to the Kamo clan muttered into the sleeve of his robes.

"They are recluses save for their clan head; nothing has changed." Another man shrugged.

"Tch, With how the user of the six-eyes conducts himself, perhaps it would be more productive if none of their clan showed up." One other spat through gritted teeth.

All the while, on the opposite side of the hall, members of the Zen'in clan gossiped amongst themselves. "Have you heard that the girl who inherited Kamo's hereditary technique will make her official debut today?"

"The descent of Norotoshi?" One of his peers scoffed as tens of sorcerers walked past them, their words barely out of earshot. "I can only imagine the Kamo's shame for that bloodline to inherit their technique and by a woman at that. What a waste."

"It's a fitting punishment for the weak-willed Kamo." An elderly man replied with a sneer, his hatred barely hidden. "Haven't you heard those sniveling wretches put their tails between their legs, kowtowing to her, and allow a stray sorcerer to be adopted into their ranks? They sully all the clan with their actions, allowing that who—"

"Hold your tongue, fool!" A weary man hissed nervously. He turned his head, paranoid that it would be met with the gaze of the Kamo's prodigy or the shikgami she had created. "Do you have any idea what would happen if someone heard you? The position of the Zen'in is precarious enough. Both of the other clans have heirs that have borne their sacred techniques, yet the Ten Shadows still elude us. All the while, we produce failures, like those twins."