[244]: Sukuna
"Are there any born anomalies in the capital?" Cyr asked, completely ignoring Koen as he casually changed the topic.
"Why doesn't anyone answer…" the wolf-dog youkai looked puzzled—he had no grasp of social nuances and always spoke directly.
"Ahem." Gojo Haru coughed lightly, also pretending not to have heard the youkai.
"There are quite a few anomalies in the capital. It depends exactly what sort you're looking for," Haru replied.
"…I'm looking for someone with two faces and four arms," Cyr stated.
He still hadn't seen Sukuna yet—surely the two-faced, four-armed fiend must appear eventually?
"If you meant a youkai, you might find one," Seri mused, "but among humans… I've never seen one like that in the capital." He paused in thought. "If such a person existed, rumors would have spread everywhere—but I've never heard of it…"
Wait—he might recall something?
"It's said that the Tachibana clan once had a child like that," Haru began recalling.
It must have been over a decade ago.
A woman of the Tachibana clan had a severely swollen belly during pregnancy. When she finally gave birth, it turned out to be twins—but there were complications.
Only one baby emerged, and he had four arms.
He was born covered in blood, his eyes open and red—demonic.
The other twin was stillborn, nothing but underdeveloped bones.
"When the baby was born, they called him demonic. The Tachibana wanted to kill him by throwing him away, but someone intervened," Haru said.
"Who intervened?" Cyr asked.
"No one knows—no name was passed down," Haru shook his head. "Only that it was an old monk. He said the baby was once a malevolent god in heaven. Because of deep sin, he fell to the human world and needs guidance. One day maybe he can return to Takamagahara."
Cyr raised a corner of his mouth.
"And the Tachibana believed this?" he asked in disbelief.
"Of course," Haru laughed. "Who'd choose 'evil demon' over a former heavenly god? They readily accepted the monk's explanation."
He explained that the child was seen as a fallen celestial, only needing proper redemption to regain divinity.
"And that monk offered to raise the baby in a temple—to teach him sutras each day to guide him. If he stayed among humans, he'd be hard to save…" Haru said. As he thought, memories became clearer—it was over a decade ago. Youthful curiosity had led him to ask about the matter.
"So the monk took the baby to some temple… do you know which one?" Cyr asked.
If it really is Sukuna, he'd only be in his teens now—no wonder he hasn't appeared yet.
"I didn't get a name of the temple. But…" Haru paused…
"From what I've deduced, that monk was most likely from Zenrin Temple," Gojo Haru continued.
"And? Did you go to Zenrin Temple to check?" Cyr pressed.
Considering Gojo Haru's unruly personality in his youth—even if he hadn't witnessed it personally, his curiosity alone would've driven him to investigate.
Once he had a guess, there was no way he wouldn't follow through.
"I did go. But I didn't see any boy with four arms in Zenrin Temple," Gojo Sei shook his head, sounding puzzled.
And this was something the Tachibana clan never found out.
After giving the baby to the old monk, they never looked into it again—as if that child had never existed.
"So the trail's gone cold again…" Cyr said expressionlessly.
"Why are you looking for him anyway?" Gojo Haru asked.
Before Cyr could answer, he went on, "Do you know him?"
He flicked open his folding fan and waved it gently.
Before him stood a stranger who had crossed time and space—someone who logically shouldn't know anything about a person with two faces and four arms.
Even in Kyoto, very few people knew of that rumor.
Yet, the boy spoke as if he were deeply familiar with that person.
There was only one explanation—
He had learned of this individual from the future, a thousand years ahead.
Not as a noble of the Tachibana family, but remembered for his strange appearance.
To be remembered after a millennium, he must've committed acts powerful enough to leave a lasting mark on history.
But what could those be?
"This person and I share a fate," Cyr replied with a straight face, dodging the question.
What was he supposed to say? That this guy would soon massacre Kyoto's jujutsu sorcerers and onmyoji, then be resurrected a thousand years later to slaughter a whole new generation of jujutsu sorcerers?
Oh—and he didn't discriminate. He'd kill curses too. Equality for all.
"...Sounds like a figure too sensitive to talk about. Perhaps it's tied to history itself," Gojo Sei said in a laid-back tone.
Maybe revealing it would alter history.
"Aren't you curious, Cyr-kun? Don't you want to try changing the course of history?" he added, half-teasing.
"If I change it, do you think I'll still be able to reach a thousand years later?" Cyr asked calmly.
He was only temporarily staying in Heian-Kyo.
His destination was the stage set a millennium ahead.
"…I overstepped," Gojo Haru sighed lightly.
He figured someone with Cyr's strength could live just fine in any era—but Cyr clearly didn't think so.
"Looks like we've got visitors," Gojo Haru turned to glance at one direction.
At the same time, Cyr's gaze also shifted toward the outer gates of the shrine.
---
A pink-haired boy in a girl's kimono climbed the shrine steps, hands in his sleeves.
Behind him followed a white-haired boy with a pageboy cut, carrying a large basket on his back.
"So the strongest in this era lives on this mountain?" the pink-haired boy asked.
"Yes. It's said that person conquered all of Kyoto through brute force and even forced the Emperor to build him a shrine here," the boy with the basket replied blankly.
He too wore white robes, but the basket on his back didn't match his elegant demeanor at all.
"Then I suppose I should see for myself—the strength of the so-called strongest under heaven," the pink-haired boy smirked arrogantly, stepping through the crimson torii gate.
"My Lord, we…" the basket-carrying boy hesitated.
"Shut up, Rime. Do you think I'd lose?" the pink-haired boy retorted.
"Of course not, my lord," Uraume replied, shaking his head.
As they spoke, the two had already stepped into the shrine.
°°°
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