29

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Shiki stares at her cousin. Kill things that don't have a physical form?

"I… don't understand what you mean."

The red lines that she sees appear on everything in her surroundings. Her physical surroundings, in the world around her. These lines symbolize death, so cutting a target's lines will 'kill' it. That's essentially the long and short of Shiki's ability.

Even the cursed techniques that she's able to kill are things that exist and are present in a physical, literal sense. Which is likely the reason why she's able to see the lines of active techniques at all.

"Okay, let's put this a different way… hm. Remember what you told me before?" Evidently sensing that this conversation is going to take awhile, Satoru-niichan takes a seat on the nearby patch of grass. He pats the empty space next to him in clear invitation for Shiki to sit down beside him. "You said that you 'killed' the cursed womb, except it still evolved into a Special Grade afterwards."

Shiki remembers that, yes. She carefully lowers herself onto the grass beside him. "It became a Special Grade because I didn't kill it properly, right? I didn't cut all of its lines, so it wasn't fully dead. But that doesn't have anything to do with–"

The girl's voice breaks off when her cousin suddenly leans forward and pinches her cheek.

"I'm getting to the point! Have a little patience," he laughs. Shiki huffs, rubbing at her face. "So, the cursed spirit. Or cursed womb, if you want to be precise about the wording. If we're going by the understanding that all lines you see act as indicators of 'death' of the chosen target, then… it honestly shouldn't have mattered that you didn't cut every single line, as long as the majority were already severed."

Correct. That was what Shiki had originally believed, too. This understanding was also supported by the extensive testing that the Gojo Clan had done on her abilities –before her recent encounter with that Special Grade cursed spirit, at least. Her fight against the Special Grade cast doubt onto what she had once taken for granted, but Shiki would not be making that particular mistake again.

"Obviously, your experience with the cursed womb contradicts this," Satoru-niichan's words mirror her thoughts. "But listen, didn't you find anything about the newborn Special Grade that appeared afterwards odd?"

Odd?

Shiki casts her mind back to the battle. The way the Special Grade cursed spirit had formed itself out of the remains of the cursed womb, the way its cursed energy stung with poison, the way it controlled the very ground beneath their feet…

What is her cousin getting at?

"I don't understand where you're going with this," Shiki admits her confusion. "The Special Grade's cursed energy was significantly stronger than it was as a cursed womb, and it showed the same aptitude for earth manipulation–"

"That," Satoru-niichan snaps his fingers. "Isn't it rather strange that the Special Grade didn't show any stronger versions of its abilities? Because from what I'm hearing, all it got from becoming a Special Grade was a general boost to its cursed energy, and slightly better mobility. That's it."

Shiki instinctively opens her mouth to refute that statement, but he's… not wrong, actually?

Looking back on the details of the fight, the cursed spirit hadn't actually unveiled any new forms of its earth manipulation abilities. It had only continued to relentlessly form constructs from the rocky ground to send after her and Iori-sensei instead of… triggering an earthquake, or tunneling through the earth to attack. There hadn't actually been any significant upgrade to its skill set.

"Aside from just being highly destructive, Special Grade cursed spirits are designated as Special Grades because their cursed techniques are far more powerful and refined than any run-of-the-mill Grade One," the older sorcerer informs her. "Compared to the abilities that it showed as a cursed womb… This cursed spirit should've at least been able to create rocks and boulders from its own cursed energy to throw at you, instead of staying restricted to using preexisting material from its surroundings."

That certainly puts things in a slightly different perspective. It wasn't something that she'd noticed at all, during the heat of the battle. But now that Satoru-niichan is laying it out clearly like this…

"You're saying that it was weak, for a Special Grade cursed spirit." That was a scary thought, especially considering how far Shiki had been pushed in her fight against it. It's the first time that she experienced cursed energy exhaustion while battling a cursed spirit, and Shiki can't say that she's particularly keen on repeating the experience.

Ah, she still has a long way to go, doesn't she?

"Yes," Satoru-niichan confirms. "For a Special Grade, its skill set seemed quite limited. Which brings me to my theory: When you severed its lines as a cursed womb, you didn't actually cut away at its literal 'existence' as a living being. Instead, your technique targeted a portion of the core 'ability' that defined it. For example… didn't you mention something about clones earlier? Did it create any clones of itself after becoming a Special Grade?"

"… No, it didn't." Was Satoru-niichan saying that the cursed spirit had actually lost the ability to create clones, when Shiki cut its lines? … Was something like that even possible? Killing an abstract aspect of the curse, instead of the very curse itself?

Beginning and end. Open and close.

(Deep inside her soul, something stirs and hums in agreement.)

"Also, another point that supports this theory," her cousin continues. "You cut off its arm, and it didn't regenerate. Setting aside the possibility that you may have damaged its regenerative abilities when slicing it up as a cursed womb… Shiki. Have you ever fought any cursed spirit that regenerated from an injury that you inflicted on it, after you cut its lines?"

The girl gives the older sorcerer a flat look, "Cursed spirits usually die after I cut their lines."

"Humor me here, okay?" Satoru-niichan's voice is dry. "Think about it, and try to remember any nonlethal cuts that you've made –maybe a hand or a foot, I don't know. Did you ever witness any cursed spirit regenerating itself after its line was severed?"

… Shiki has seen curses regenerate from seemingly-lethal wounds before. There was that one time when she'd watched Kiyohira-sensei cleave a cursed spirit into two separate halves, before the bifurcated cursed spirit then proceeded to pull itself back together. Unlike humans, healing techniques come easily to cursed spirits, since their bodies are largely composed of cursed energy instead of living flesh and blood. There's no need for a cursed spirit to convert their cursed energy into positive energy to heal themselves –positive energy is, in fact, capable of destabilizing and destroying the very shape and form of a cursed spirit's cursed energy-based body.

But as for Shiki herself…

Did you ever witness any cursed spirit regenerating itself after its line was severed?

…

Shiki can't recall any instances of a cursed spirit properly healing itself after she cut its lines. Not unless she counts the recent case where the Special Grade cursed spirit had pulled the detached bottom half of its insectoid body back onto itself. But its 'healing' had been patchwork, at best. From all appearances, it had seemed like the cursed spirit only succeeded in attaching a useless, unmoving lump of flesh back onto its torso, rather than any proper healing. The cursed spirit hadn't been able to move its lower body at all, even after reattaching it; instead it relied on moving the earth beneath itself as a makeshift means of retaining mobility.

Reflecting on the altercation, only injury that the cursed spirit had healed properly was its nearly-decapitated head. But… Shiki hadn't cut its lines when she'd been dealing that blow and aiming to distract it.

So then, what did this all mean?

"Here's what I think," Satoru-niichan leans forward with a gleam in his eyes, elbows resting on his knees. "When you cut off its arm, you weren't just cutting a 'line of death' that happened to be located on its arm. Rather than the general idea of 'killing the cursed spirit,' you were specifically 'killing the cursed spirit's arm.'"

The girl blinks.

Killing a specific body part, rather than the cursed spirit itself as a complete entity? Destroying the very concept of an arm existing at all in the first place?It sounded… plausible, but…

"Your eyes allow you to see lines symbolizing death; we've already established this. But the death of what, precisely?" Satoru-niichan wags a finger at her. "Because if we look back on everything you've accomplished to date, it really doesn't seem like your lines are limited to only representing a simple, generalized sort of 'death of the target' as a whole."

… He's… not wrong. The more Shiki is thinking about it, the more these little oddities seem to add up in favor of Satoru-niichan's theorizing about her abilities. And… even if it's not something that she's really thought of in those exact terms, something about what he's saying feels right.

Sometimes an object that she 'kills' simply falls apart in pieces, while other times they are completely reduced to dust. In Satoru-niichan's words, then… would this be the difference between killing 'the shape of an object' versus killing 'the object itself,' or something to that extent?

The lines she sees represent death. This, Shiki knows intimately. But… not every line is necessarily the same sort of death, if this is the sort of subtle nuance that her ability possesses. Of course, the end result is the death of the target, but…

…

Whenever Shiki kills a cursed spirit, she simply cuts along its lines. The lines are severed, and the cursed spirit dies.

She never stops to think twice about it, because it makes sense. Everything that exists is flawed, decaying with the inexorable march of time until it reaches its final conclusion. Shiki's cursed technique simply… allows her to bring that forth in reality. She does so by severing the lines reflected in her eyes, these countless eerie red lines that are visible to her and only her alone.

Inanimate objects. Cursed spirits. Humans.

Even cursed techniques are no exception, because the active cursed energy itself is still a physical, tangible thing that exists in this world for her to reach out and cut.

But…

Shiki hums thoughtfully. "… I understand what you're saying, but I think I'll need to test things out some more on my end before we can draw any conclusions on this."

Starting by finding a cursed spirit and loping off its legs, preferably. If Satoru-niichan was right, then the lines weren't just symbolic of the generalized 'death of the cursed spirit.' Rather, it would be the specific 'death of the severed limb' instead.

If Shiki was truly destroying the very concept of the leg existing at all, then the inability to regenerate makes sense. Because that's like… destroying the blueprints, rather than the end result of something created by those blueprints. Without a template to work off from, it's impossible to restore what has been 'killed.'

… Does this apply for every single line that she sees, then? Some lines might be a 'physical' death of the chosen target, but others are more 'conceptual' in nature? Or, are they actually all 'conceptual?' … If that's the case, then is it the cumulative result of multiple 'conceptual' deaths that ends up resulting in the actual death of the target in question?

A hand lands roughly on top of her head, snapping Shiki out of her increasingly-convoluted line of thought. "Y'know, I'm surprised this isn't something that was included as part of the tests that were conducted back while the clan was still trying to figure out your cursed technique. Which they… still haven't really done, come to think of it. Except Daisaku, maybe."

Shiki shrugs, "I think the emphasis was on figuring out what I'm able to cut, rather than what I'm actually cutting, since the results were all pretty self-explanatory."

At this point, it's not exactly a secret that whatever Shiki cuts, dies.

"Sloppy," Satoru-niichan makes a 'tsk' sound. "I don't even know why I expect anything from them anymore, honestly."

"It might be for the best." Shiki has always been exceedingly aware that her ability is of a rather permanent sort. In Ken-jichan's words, it's the kind of ability that 'doesn't have room for any regrets.' Shiki is inclined to agree with her uncle's assessment; you can't 'un-kill' something once it's dead, after all.

But the ability to kill virtually anything –it's not the kind of ability that's safe to openly flout around, either. So, it's probably for the best that the majority of the Gojo Clan still believes that Shiki's cursed technique is 'enforcing weaknesses' onto other things, expressed as 'lines' through her cursed eyes.

"Y'know, we should probably talk about that too, actually," Satoru-niichan muses. "Your cursed technique. In your own words, how would you define it?"

"The ability to forcibly execute the death of things," Shiki responds simply. Then, reaching up to tap at her eyes, "I visually interpret this as 'lines.'"

"Is that your final answer?"

The girl nods once, firmly, in confirmation.

Satoru-niichan hums, a noncommittal sound. His voice when he speaks again is light and breezy, "If you told me that a day ago, I might've agreed with you."

Shiki startles, straightening and staring. "What do you mean?"

… Was he implying that she actually misunderstood her own cursed technique? No, but she's pretty sure that's exactly how it works?

The girl peers up towards her cousin, perplexed and feeling a little wrong-footed in her uncertainty.

"I mean, I don't think you're wrong, but also… that's definitely not entirely correct, either."Her cousin waves his hands vaguely, which explains absolutely nothing at all. "The reason why I'm saying this is because of Utahime."

"Iori-sensei?" Now Shiki is even more confused. "… What does Iori-sensei have to do with this?"

"So, about that. Shoko and I actually had a brief chat about Utahime's injuries yesterday," Satoru-niichan smiles, secretive and conspiratorial. "Do you know what she told me? She said, and I quote, 'Utahime's injuries should be impossible.'"

"… Impossible?"

"Not in the sense that it's impossible to inflict that kind of injury, of course. But the state that Utahime arrived in –that's what Shoko called 'impossible,'" he elaborates. "According to Shoko, Utahime's injuries were severe. Going from that mountain in the middle of nowhere all the way to the Tokyo school should've made things even worse. And, judging bythe amount of blood that her injuries indicated she would've lost, she should've required a blood transfusion and urgent care immediately. But she didn't. Shoko didn't need to pull out any of the big guns."

Shiki opens her mouth, then hesitates. Luckily for her, Satoru-niichan instantly picks up on her line of thought.

"Even with additional assistance, emergency first aid on the field only could've done so much," he shakes his head. "Unless someone like Shoko was there to treat Utahime on the spot, then the miraculous condition that she arrived in should've been impossible. Open wounds can be cleaned and bandaged, but severe blood loss and traumatic injury isn't something that can be fixed by a quick patch-up job."

Shiki didn't… she'd seen the blood, of course. But she'd only known that Iori-sensei's injuries were serious and that she needed help. While she'd done her best to support Iori-sensei with her own cursed energy throughout the battle, Shiki couldn't actually heal her. Positive energy was something that still remained beyond her grasp. And that was to say nothing of how using reverse cursed technique on another person was a feat only Shoko-san was capable of performing.

Even Satoru-niichan was unable to use it to heal someone else, despite knowing how to use reverse cursed technique himself.

"Was this just a case of injuries looking worse than they happened to be?" she ventures tentatively.

"You and I might make that sort of mistake, but Shoko's a doctor. She definitely knows what she's talking about, trust me," Satoru-niichan shoots down that idea. "It was good that Utahime received some basic treatment for her injuries, but what really helped her was whatever it was that kept her from bleeding out in the first place, and prevented her injuries from worsening."

The white-haired young man pauses, fixing Shiki with a steady gaze.

"Do you know what that reminded me of?"

The similarly white-haired girl sitting beside him tilts her head questioningly, and her cousin takes it as an invitation to answer.

"It reminded me of the state I found you in when I rescued you from Zenin Toji, years ago," Satoru-niichan tells her, in no uncertain terms. Whatever she'd expected him to say, that most certainly hadn't been it. The sudden swerve in their conversation leaves Shiki feeling bewildered."That mission with Amanai… towards the end, he got the drop on us. He thought he killed me. He did kill Amanai and Kuroi, and left Suguru half-dead afterwards. But you, he took along with him. Presumably to cash in on a bounty, or so he could sell your eyes."

Shiki is aware of all of that, yes. "You killed him before anything happened to me, though."

"I did, yes, but that's not what I'm getting at here," her cousin pokes her in the cheek for 'interrupting.' Shiki bats ineffectually at his hand. "See, when I picked you up, I found you in the exact same state as you were when he stabbed us. Do you see where I'm going with this?"

… It would've been quite some time later after the initial altercation, before Satoru-niichan was able to catch up to the Sorcerer Killer. Time that elapsed between Shiki first getting injured, then eventually handed off to the medical staff in a hospital… during which her condition had not worsened, despite a bleeding hole in her midsection. Just as a not-insignificant amount of time had passed between Shiki discovering Iori-sensei grievously injured, and Iori-sensei eventually reaching Shoko-san for treatment. During which her condition had not deteriorated, either.

Shiki points to herself, faintly disbelieving despite the pieces laid out before her. "… You're saying that I did this?"

Her technique is one that revolves around killing, not some sort of… stasis? Preservation? Is that even the right term for this?

"Yup! I mean, I don't know about what happened with Utahime here exactly, but I distinctly recall you doing something with your cursed energy back then when Zenin stabbed us. You glowed a little bit, before you were out like a light in my arms," Satoru-niichan gestures vaguely.

Shiki holds her head. "… You couldn't have mentioned this years ago?"

"Hey, in my defense, I thought it was because of some other cursed tool that he used on you at the time! And the glowing was from your own half-baked attempt at using reverse cursed technique, or something," her cousin half-raises his hands in surrender. "But with what Shoko brought up about Utahime… it makes sense, doesn't it?"

"No, it doesn't," Shiki holds her head in her hands. "My cursed technique is not 'preservation,' I know that much, but… I don't understand anymore. How does 'preservation' relate to 'death?' Aren't they completely opposite of each other? … It's definitely not cursed technique reversal, you know I still don't know how to generate positive energy."

'Cursed technique reversal' –a specialized extension technique that was powered by positive energy. Specifically, it allowed for the 'reversed' effect of an innate cursed technique to be realized by the sorcerer. Not to be confused with 'reverse cursed technique,' which was mainly used for healing human bodies.

… Who came up with these names, honestly?

Satoru-niichan gives her a commiserating pat on the shoulder. "I'd have to see it again for myself before saying anything further about it. But if not cursed technique reversal, then… what about cursed technique lapse?"

Cursed technique lapse? The other counterpart extension technique, where instead of positive energy, additional cursed energy was used in order to greatly amplify an innate technique's effects and strengthen it beyond its base state?

"That makes even less sense," Shiki sighs, puffing out her cheeks in faint frustration, and no small amount of confusion.

"Really? I wouldn't be so quick to dismiss it," her cousin arches an eyebrow. "Remember, you were extremely low on cursed energy when I saw you with Shoko. But you killed that cursed spirit with a final Black Flash prior to that, didn't you? Black Flash isn't just a powerful one-hit strike, it also makes you enter a 'zone,' where everything from your senses and reactions to the output of your cursed energy is strengthened. So it should've also recovered a portion of the energy that you expended earlier… unless you expended all that energy again in short order. Like powering a cursed technique lapse, for example."

"Or fighting my way through several tons of falling boulders in a cave-in, maybe?" Despite her contrary words, Shiki thinks back to the moment when her cursed energy had turned black, in that mountain cavern. The way everything in the world had seemed so clear and beautiful. How, for a single instant, the rush of energy surging beneath her skin was an unstoppable force driving her onward… before Shiki dragged Iori-sensei out of the rubble with her, and her exhaustion caught up with her once more. Honestly, she'd only thought it was the adrenaline.

Satoru-niichan watches her with a knowing smile. "Well, maybe that, too. But are you sure about it?"

… She isn't, no.

The girl bites her lip. "… But 'preservation' and 'death' are basically opposites of each other. If it's really cursed technique lapse like you say, then why does strengthening the concept of death result in stasis?"

"Clearly, there's only one answer to this dilemma," Satoru-niichan says solemnly, not even bothering to hide the mirth in his voice at her bafflement over the entire situation. "Your cursed technique isn't preservation or death. Instead, it's something else that just so happens to encompass the two."

Shiki gives her cousin a deadpan look that she dearly hopes conveys how thoroughly unimpressed she's feeling at the moment. "… And that would be?"

He beams cheerfully back at her.

"No idea!"

It takes a moment for his answer to actually sink in. "You're being serious?"

"Okay, well, 'some idea,'" Satoru-niichan swiftly amends his answer, which Shiki is only slightly mollified by. "Something like 'stop,' or 'nullification,' maybe? Or we might actually have some sort of highly-specific 'destruction' on our hands, given the 'killing' aspect, although… obviously, there are still things that can't entirely be explained if we go along with any of these options. Which makes me wonder if we're actually looking at…"

… Shiki is starting to get a headache, listening to him think aloud like this. Why is everything so convoluted? "Is there any way to figure this out properly?"

"Aside from good old trial and error? I'm afraid not," Satoru-niichan gives her a sympathetic pat on the head. "That's the thing about complex cursed techniques that are completely undocumented, unfortunately –everything is completely unknown, and you get to be the trailblazer who gets to figure out the details for your future successors to follow. Have fun!"

The girl makes a face; her cousin laughs at her.

"Cheer up. You've got me! I won't leave you to stumble around this on your own," Satoru-niichan's arm sweeps out and gathers her towards him so that she's pressed tightly against his side. Carefully, the girl curls her fingers into the loose folds of his shirt and leans in to him, accepting the comfort for what it is despite her mild irritation over the situation. "Look on the bright side. Now that we know your innate technique isn't what we thought it was, at least we can work on understanding what it actually is."

Shiki shifts a little so she can peer up towards her cousin. "… Will you help me with my cursed technique, please?"

"'Course I will, did you even need to ask?" He flashes her a quick grin, an expression that's as bright as the sun. "Anything for my favorite little cousin."

.

.

By the time Ken-jichan is back from his overseas assignment, it's been roughly a week and a half since Shiki's unexpected altercation with a Special Grade cursed spirit… and even further unexpected encounter with Geto Suguru following the heels of the aforementioned altercation.

Overall, she supposes that she should be glad that things turned out as well as they did. Shiki is alive and so is Iori-sensei, and neither of them have been permanently maimed or crippled. Even though the entire situation leaves her with many unanswered questions in the aftermath. Many, many questions, from Geto-san's motives and Araya's plans to uncertainties regarding her own cursed technique.

Shiki gets a headache just thinking about it.

Regardless, there's still good news: Shiki is no longer limping, and her cursed energy reserves are fully replenished. She's also been learning a lot from training with Satoru-niichan recently, whose insights are very helpful for Shiki improving her control over her own cursed energy… even though she hasn't succeeded once in replicating her 'stasis' technique again. Yet.

Despite additional aid from her cousin's Six Eyes, the mysteries surrounding her cursed technique have yet to be properly solved. Hopefully, the confusion would be resolved, once Shiki manages to consciously repeat what she did so Satoru-niichan can analyze what she's doing with his Six Eyes.

"Weird," is all her cousin currently has to say on how things are going. "I feel like my eyes are giving me nothing, even though there's clearly something still going on…"

It's a work in progress.

At any rate, Shiki has mostly recovered, and she's making progress. So, obviously, there's nothing for Ken-jichan to be worried about anymore, now that he's finally returned from his overseas mission.

… The bad news: Ken-jichan is worried. And upset.

There's a heated argument that takes place between him and Kiyohira-sensei immediately after his return, one that Shiki doesn't actually learn about until Tsumiki-san runs up to her, biting her lip and wringing her hands in concern.

"I've never seen Nanami-san raise his voice like that before," the younger girl whispers, dark eyes wide with worry. "Kiyohira-san's expression was also… scary. W-will they be alright?"

Of all the adults that Shiki knows, Jihei-san had always been the reasonable one, forever even-tempered in situations where tensions ran high. It was him who usually stepped in to defuse arguments, acting as the calm voice of logic. Satoru-niichan had trusted him with internal matters of the clan for a reason.

… But Jihei-san isn't here with them anymore. There's no one to step in and act as a calming presence when tempers flare up.

A soft purring suddenly catches her attention, and Shiki glances downwards. There's a white ball of fluff winding its way around her ankles–

Ah. Jihei-san's cat. The one that Tsumiki-san had adopted, following Jihei-san's death. Shiki swiftly reaches down and picks it up before the finicky little thing can get it into its head to start treating her yukata as a scratching post or worse.

The cat blinks at her innocently, batting soulful blue eyes. "Mrrowr?"

Shiki doesn't buy the act for an instant, "You're the only one in this house that leaves claw marks. Leave my yukatas alone."

The cat purrs agreeably. Shiki still doesn't trust it one bit, though, considering its appalling track record.

Next to her, Tsumiki-san makes a muffled sound –wait, is she laughing? … Wasn't she concerned and upset about Ken-jichan and Kiyohira-san arguing just a second ago?

Shiki doesn't get it.

"Sorry, it's nothing," Tsumiki-san shakes her head, smiling at Shiki's obvious confusion. Something else to add to the never-ending list of questions to ask Yuzuki-san, then. "Don't mind me, it's just cute seeing you with Mi-chan like this."

Like what, exactly?

Shiki automatically glances down towards the cat in her arms, uncomprehending.

… On second thought, she realizes that maybe picking it up like this was a bad idea. She might've saved her clothes from unwanted claw marks for the moment, but instead this just means that she's going to get cat fur everywhere. Jihei-san was really fond of this fluffy little menace? Why?

The cat meows at her.

That's… not an answer. Not that she really expected a cat to be able to give her any answers, but it could at least still–

Wait. This could work.

A light bulb suddenly goes off inside Shiki's head.

"Hmm…"

Tsumiki-san's smile fades slowly, and she gives her an uncertain look, "I don't know if I like the sound of that."

"Have you been talking to Yuzuki-san?" Because that definitely sounded like something Yuzuki-san would say to her –but that wasn't really important at the moment. Shiki readjusts her hold on the furry animal wiggling around restlessly in her arms. "Rest assured, Yuzuki-san would approve of this. Probably."

"What–?"

Shiki turns heel and promptly heads out of the house, cat and all. Tsumiki-san hurries after her with a small yelp, and Shiki pauses a moment to wait for the other girl to catch up.

"What are you doing, Shiki?"

"Solving the problem," she responds. Shiki walks around the house until they're standing outside the room that Ken-jichan and Kiyohira-sensei are still arguing in. The numerous spells for protection and privacy laid upon the walls means that there's no sound to be heard from the other side, but Shiki is familiar with the layout to say with complete certainty that this is the room that she's looking for. This is the room that Ken-jichan and Kiyohira-sensei are currently arguing in.

She tiptoes upwards, opening the window a slight crack, and promptly tosses the startled cat into the room.

"–like this, Shiki isn't –wait, what just–?"

"The FUCK–"

"Mrrrowrrr?!"

The white-haired girl carefully shuts the window behind the unfolding chaos and nods to herself, satisfied. She dusts her hands off primly, while Tsumiki-san gapes at her.

"Did you just… did you just throw Mi-chan into the room with them?" The younger girl's stunned look is one that's torn between panic and hilarity. "Why would you do that?"

"Cats always land on their feet," Shiki explains. "And… you laughed, when I was holding Mi-chan earlier. Because Mi-chan is cute? Even though you were upset about Ken-jichan and Kiyohira-sensei arguing. So, since Ken-jichan and Kiyohira-sensei are upset right now, they'll be happier once they see Mi-chan, and they might stop arguing. Petting animals is supposed to reduce stress, right?"

Tsumiki-san's expression twitches oddly. "Um, I don't think that's really how it works–"

"SHIKI." The front door suddenly slams open. Kiyohira-sensei is standing there, complete with a faint line of red scratches across his forehead, and a yowling cat hanging from his back. "GET IN HERE."

"Alright, sensei," Shiki straightens her yukata, brushing off a few last strands of cat fur, and turns towards Tsumiki-san with a small, satisfied smile. "See? My plan worked."

The dark-haired girl sweat-drops. "I don't know, Kiyohira-san still looks pretty mad to me."

"But he's not arguing with Ken-jichan anymore, is he?" Shiki points out reasonably.

Tsumiki-san looks at Shiki, looks towards Kiyohira-sensei, then turns back towards Shiki. "I think I'm going to go find Megumi so we can bring him in for reinforcements. Should I get Yuzuki-kun, too?"

"'Reinforcements?' For what?"

"… I'll be back with Megumi and Yuzuki-kun," is all Tsumiki-san responds with. The girl reaches up and pats Shiki on the shoulder, then scampers off on her own.

Shiki stares after her bemusedly for a moment, then shrugs mentally and heads inside the house again, following Kiyohira-sensei.

"What on earth possessed you to throw a cat at me?" he growls.

… Maybe Tsumiki-san was onto something, when she made her observation of Kiyohira-sensei still seeming angry. Was the cat not doing its job properly? Shiki gives the animal a disappointed side-eye; the cat bristles beneath her gaze. It calms down once Kiyohira-sensei grudgingly starts running his hand through its snow-white fur, though.

"I wasn't throwing it at you in particular," the girl shrugs. "Are you still angry?"

Kiyohira-sensei sighs, heavy and frustrated. "Yes."

… At least he's not doing her the disservice of lying to her face. Just to clarify, though, "Are you angry because of the cat, or because of Ken-jichan?"

The man glances sharply down towards her, unamused, then shakes his head. "It's not something that concerns you."

Ah. So it's still her uncle, then.

"Whenever Ken-jichan argues with you, nine times out of ten it's because of me," Shiki points out bluntly. If she's guessing correctly here, this latest argument probably has something to do with the Special Grade cursed spirit that she'd fought recently.

"It's not…" Kiyohira-sensei reaches up a large, burly hand, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I mean, yes, it's about you, but it's not… well, it's complicated. Nanami seems to be under the impression that I enjoy putting you in dangerous situations, and I don't appreciate his insinuations."

That… doesn't sound like Ken-jichan. Sure, he might not be happy about Shiki walking the path of a sorcerer, but he's a sorcerer himself. He understands the nature of the work they do. Sorcery is a dangerous profession; missions going unexpectedly awry is something that happens not infrequently, so it's not something worth getting overly worked up about.

… Granted, it's usually not so horribly awry to the level of a Special Grade cursed spirit unexpectedly springing up out of nowhere. But like she'd mentioned before to Tsumiki-san, that was the exception, not the norm.

"Ken-jichan?"

Shiki is the first to step back into the meeting room that Kiyohira-sensei had stormed out of. Her uncle is –there.

Ken-jichan is sitting there on the low couch, and he looks… tired, like he belongs asleep in a bed, instead of holding an argument with Kiyohira-sensei. There are faint hints of dark circles forming under the blond man's eyes, but he still musters up a small smile for her, and Shiki happily smiles back in return.

"Shiki. I'm… glad that you're alright." His words are gentle, although his throat is sounding a tad hoarse at the moment. Shiki reaches over and deftly pours a cup of tea from the teapot sitting in the middle of the table, then hands it over to her uncle, looking up at him expectantly.

Ken-jichan huffs out a small laugh, and accepts the drink. He tenses briefly when Kiyohira-sensei enters the room with a purring cat in his arms, but relaxes and obediently finishes drinking his tea when Shiki pointedly nudges his leg a few times in quick succession.

The girl waits a beat, then decides to dive straight to the point. "Please don't be mad at Kiyohira-sensei. It's not his fault that things escalated the way they did."

Her uncle pauses. His gaze settles heavily on her for a fleeting second, and then he sighs, setting down the teacup in his hands.

"I am aware." The young man's voice is calm, level. Threaded through with a subtle tension, but not openly angry. Seems like the cat-intervention had worked wonders for cooling tempers, then –Shiki makes a mental note to herself noting the unorthodox tactic's resounding success. Throwing a cat is a lot easier than trying to find the right words to say to other people, after all. Satoru-niichan would probably agree with her on that.

The girl deliberates for a moment, attempting to choose her next words carefully, "If you… already know, that it's not Kiyohira-sensei's fault things went wrong, then… why are you still upset with him?"

Ken-jichan lifts his gaze towards Kiyohira-sensei, who remains impassive.

"I am upset," her uncle says, slowly and purposefully, "Because he left you alone, with no backup and no reinforcements on hand."

That was… slightly different from what Shiki was expecting. Ken-jichan catches sight of her expression, and smiles wryly, resigned.

"I know that you'll be placed into dangerous situations, as a sorcerer," he admits quietly. "I don't like it, and I'll always worry for you. But… much as it pains me to admit, there's nothing I can do about it. Gojo Satoru is probably the only one with any real understanding of what your situation is like, and while my respect for him is debatable, I… trust him. I trust him to protect you and watch out for you, in ways where I'm unable to."

Oh.

… Shiki knows that Ken-jichan doesn't get along with her cousin all that well due to their differing personalities, but it… it touches something inside her that she can't quite name, hearing her beloved uncle verbally affirm that he trusts Satoru-niichan like this.

"But Kiyohira-san…" Ken-jichan's lips thin. He forces himself to let out a slow breath, as he turns to address the other man, "I do not doubt that you care for Shiki, as her guardian. I am aware that you also have other responsibilities to attend to, as a sorcerer of the Gojo Clan. However, something like this, where Shiki was left to fight a Special Grade cursed spirit on her own? It shouldn't have happened!"

Kiyohira-sensei gives a low grunt, "That, we can both agree on. But you're also a sorcerer yourself; you should know just as well as I do that no one can ever really expect when a mission goes terribly awry, with powerful curses involved. And while we're on this topic, technically this wasn't even Shiki's mission to begin with–"

"Iori-sensei needed help–"

"Going in alone so recklessly as you did, though?" Kiyohira-sensei's eyes briefly close for a moment, as if he's praying for patience. "You should've waited before rushing in on your own."

But every passing moment that Shiki waited would've been another moment that Iori-sensei could've died in… or not, actually, considering that Geto-san had been there. Would he have arrived in time, though? … Then again, it's not like Shiki had any way of knowing that, back then. As far as she'd been aware, she was the closest and only source of help for Iori-sensei. There was no room for any hesitation, not if she wanted to help her teacher.

"The problem isn't that Shiki failed to wait for backup," Ken-jichan's voice is sharp. "It's that no one else was there with her at all!"

Now that just wasn't true. "Choki was there."

Her uncle shakes his head, "No, Choki is not a sorcerer who could've helped you in battle. I… I know it's only inevitable that you'll find yourself in dangerous situations, Shiki, but this is different. This time, you were alone. Kiyohira-san left you alone, without any help nearby. I realize that you only went on your original mission expecting to fight a Grade Two curse before Utahime-san's situation came up, but even then…"

Shiki tilts her head, unsure of what Ken-jichan means to say. "Kiyohira-sensei shouldn't have to accompany every single one of my missions. Solo missions are normal, for a sorcerer."

"But you're still a child, Shiki. It shouldn't be on you to shoulder everything alone like this!" Ken-jichan's hands grip her shoulders determinedly. "Don't you see that?"

Well… yes? Shiki sees herself in the mirror each day, and it's the white-haired form of a preteen girl who looks back at her. Of course she knows that she's a child, but what does that have to do with anything?

Sorcerers are in short supply and high demand, and Shiki will become a powerful sorcerer one day. A weapon must be polished and honed and cared for, but ultimately it's only meant to be used. Right?

It's not as if she minds it, really.

Ken-jichan stares at her with an unreadable look in his eyes for a long moment, then shifts his gaze towards Kiyohira-sensei. The older man is scowling again, for some reason. "… Do you understand my concerns now?"

No?

"Yes," Kiyohira-sensei responds, in direct contrast to Shiki's renewed confusion. "I… suppose that I should apologize for misunderstanding you earlier, then."

Ken-jichan dips his head, "I must apologize, too. I was perhaps… abrasive…"

Kiyohira-sensei snorts, and waves a burly hand dismissively. "You were worried about your niece. Understandable."

"Even so, that still doesn't excuse my poor attitude," Ken-jichan sighs, running a hand through his hair tiredly. "I… understand that things may be difficult for you with your clan, but… please. Shiki's power belies her age, but she still needs help. Please look out for her. Don't let her be alone."

"I won't. You have my word."

… Shiki doesn't really understand what's going on, but at least it looks like they're not angry with each other anymore? Which is a good thing, even though she still doesn't know how they actually got here. She's not about to question it, though, except maybe in front of Yuzuki-san later.

There is a quiet lull in the air, as the tension eases.

Then, the cat in Kiyohira-sensei's arms grows bored and suddenly leaps forward using him as a springboard –directly atop the table, knocking a folder to the ground and scattering papers everywhere.

"Mi-chan, no," Kiyohira-sensei grumbles irritably through his teeth. The cat in question flicks its tail playfully and leisurely saunters to the other end of the table, utterly unrepentant. "… If you weren't Jihei's, I'd skin you for a new pair of mittens."

Despite the harsh words, the man's hands as he catches the cat again and corrals it to a different corner of the room are incredibly gentle.

While Kiyohira-sensei is taking care of the cat, Shiki and Ken-jichan begin gathering the scattered documents from the floor. It doesn't take long between the two of them, and Shiki passes her stack over to Ken-jichan when he reaches a hand out for them. Her uncle shuffles the papers, reordering them neatly –and makes a surprised sound, when something catches his eye.

"Isn't that the obou-san from the Ukiharu Temple?"

The obou-san? A monk?

"I didn't know that you knew any monks, Ken-jichan." Curious, Shiki leans towards her uncle, peeking at the sheaf of paper he's paused over. The girl then freezes slightly when she recognizes just who is in the photo that he's looking at.

Ken-jichan doesn't appear to notice her reaction, distracted by the photo as he is. "Well, not really. I only recognize him because he was the one who my sister visited before for guidance –you wouldn't remember, you were still incredibly young at the time. Shizuka-nee was concerned for your health, since you were born an extremely frail child, so she would often visit temples to pray… Shiki? Is everything alright?"

Belatedly, he finally notices Shiki's prolonged silence.

"… That's not a monk, Ken-jichan," she finally says slowly. The girl reaches over to take the paper from his hands, gently holding it up and shaking it for emphasis, "The man in this picture is Araya Souren."

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NOTICE:

I'm not sure where this particular misconception came from. However, since this is something that I've received multiple DMs about from several people to date, I would like to take a moment to state clearly:

I do not take story requests. I have never accepted such unsolicited requests in the past before, nor do I have any plans to do so moving forward. Please do not contact me asking me to write a specific story according to your plans and/or interests. Please do not approach me under the pretext of 'what do you think' and pitch your story idea. In response to this, my DMs on this site have been closed permanently.

You may consider this an 'official stance' from me on the matter going forward.

Thank you kindly for your understanding!

(If you come up with an excellent idea for a story, then I strongly encourage that you consider writing it yourself. Aside from improving and sharpening your writing skills, no one else has as clear an image as you do of the story that you would like to see!)

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