"Thanks, I owe you one," Jotaro said as he put his coat back on, stretching his body to test his now-healed injury.
"Don't bother," Shoko replied, her voice flat as she sank into a nearby chair. "I have a feeling you're just going to rack up more debts in the future." Her expression remained blank as she pulled out her phone, barely glancing at him.
"Then I won't be polite," Jotaro said, giving her a nod. He too had the same feeling that he'd need her help again in the future. His cursed energy control was far from perfect, and with no hope of mastering Reverse Cursed Technique anytime soon, he'd likely find himself in more trouble.
"I'll be going now," he said as he turned to leave.
"Take care," Shoko murmured, not looking up as her fingers flew across her phone screen.
Instead of heading back to his room, Jotaro made his way to Yaga's office. Without knocking, he pushed the door open and stepped inside.
Yaga glanced up, his brow furrowing in irritation. "What do you want?" he asked bluntly.
Jotaro didn't answer immediately. After a brief pause, he spoke. "It's about Suguru."
Yaga's pen froze mid-air, his expression shifting. "What about him?"
"He's not in the right mental state," Jotaro said directly . "I want you to exclude him from missions for a while."
Yaga leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms. "I can't do that without a proper reason," he said with a sigh. "The higher-ups have ears everywhere. They'd demand an explanation."
Jotaro's fists tightened in frustration. He expected a no, but it didn't make it any less irritating. "Fine. If you can't exclude him, then pair us together for the next mission."
That suggestion caught Yaga off guard. He raised an eyebrow. "You don't like working with others."
"I don't," Jotaro admitted. "But I have a feeling he'll get worse if left alone."
Yaga remained silent for a moment, his face unreadable. Finally, he sighed. "Fine, but don't cause trouble. I've already assigned Suguru to a mission—he's leaving tomorrow for his hometown. There've been rumors about a series of incidents there."
"I'll call him later and tell him you are joining him," Yaga waved Jotaro off. "Go on, now. I'm busy."
Jotaro stepped out of the office. If he was right, this mission would be the tipping point—the incident that made Suguru racis- I mean pushed Suguru into complete hatred of non-sorcerers.
His plan was simple, stop Suguru from destroying his hometown. If that happened, there'd be no coming back for him. and the Jujutsu world will place a death sentence on him.
The next evening, Jotaro and Suguru sat in the back seat of a car, the hum of the engine the only sound in the tense silence. The driver kept glancing nervously at the rearview mirror, swallowing hard each time his eyes met theirs.
When the car finally came to a stop, the driver stammered, "W-we're here."
Both doors opened simultaneously, and Suguru and Jotaro stepped out. The driver let out a sigh of relief, slumping slightly as they walked away.
The town was quiet, but Jotaro quickly noticed how the locals reacted to Suguru's presence. Most greeted him with smiles and humble words, but a small group eyed him warily, their forced politeness barely masking their discomfort.
"Ah, Suguru!" A middle-aged man called out, hurrying toward them. His eyes flickered to Jotaro with unease.
Suguru's spoke, "Don't worry about him. He's with me." his smile was not genuine.
The man nodded hesitantly. "Of course…and about the incidents—"
"We'll handle it before nightfall," Suguru interrupted smoothly, his fake smile never faltering.
Jotaro raised an eyebrow, impressed by Suguru's ability to act so convincingly.
As the sky darkened, the two sorcerers got to work. They arrived at an abandoned area on the outskirts of town, where Suguru summoned a small, animal-like curse with an oversized nose. The creature sniffed the air before pointing toward the nearby forest.
"Let's go," Suguru said, unsummoned the curse and leading the way.
Jotaro followed silently, keeping an eye on their surroundings. Suguru was still angry with him over their previous argument, but did not mentioned it. Mission first, personal feelings later.
"There you are." Suguru said, spotting a curse lurking in the treetops. Its grotesque form resembled a spider, with limbs protruding at odd angles and eyes scattered randomly across its body.
Jotaro stepped forward, but Suguru stopped him with an outstretched hand. "Don't. I want to add it to my collection."
Jotaro stepped back, leaving the job to Suguru. The spider curse wasn't particularly strong—probably Grade 2 or Semi-Grade 1. Suguru summoned two of his own curses, and the fight was over in an instant.
"Let's head back," Suguru said, turning away without another word.
As they left the forest and returned to the village, they were met by the middle-aged man from earlier, who was visibly out of breath. "Suguru! We caught them!"
Suguru frowned, confused. 'Caught who?'
The man motioned for them to follow. They arrived at a large building, where a group of people armed with knives and axes stood guard. Without a word, Suguru and Jotaro entered the building.
What they saw made Suguru's eyes widen in shock. "What is this?" Suguru asked, his voice full of confusion.
Two small girls sat huddled in a wooden cage, their bodies bruised and their hair matted with dirt.
Jotaro also frowned, glancing at the adult man and women inside the room
The man stepped forward confused. "What is it? These two are behind the series of incidents!" he declared,
"Wrong," Suguru muttered, pressing a hand to his forehead.
"Those two are crazy!" The villager continued, there were no traces of guilt in his voice, he was acting like the two little girls were animals.
Jotaro clenched his fists, anger boiling beneath his calm exterior. His teeth ground together as he listened to the man's words.
'I already removed the cause of the incident' Suguru whispered to himself, his cursed energy beginning to leak out. Only Jotaro and the two girls seemed to notice the shift.
"It's over there!" one of the girls cried, pointing toward Suguru's leaking curse energy.
Suguru's head throbbed as he tried to suppress his emotions. 'This is all wrong,' he repeated in his head.