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Yuji’s return trip from Kawasaki was a solemn one. The lack of words paired well with the whir of their car’s engine and the grind of asphalt underneath its tires. Nanami and Ijichi remained silent, and Yuji found no reason to do anything different as even his lips were too exhausted to move. His mind was still in the process of mourning as the proper time had been taken from him by the very curse who held responsibility for the manipulation and loss of Yoshino Junpei.
If only he’d reacted sooner, arrived at the school faster, been stronger to take out that smug bastard before he had a chance to slip away— Yuji’s anger manifested in his clenched fists, unable to curl open long after the fight was over. The whole trip had been a massive shitshow. And while enough had occurred for blame to have been taken out of his hands by the adults supervising him, their words weren’t good enough for Yuji to excuse himself of responsibility.
And he doubted it ever will be.
Gojo did not ask too many questions when the time came for Nanami to turn Yuji back over into his sensei’s care. If Gojo did later on, it would be when his student’s ears weren’t around to listen in. For that, Yuji was grateful. He didn’t want to recall such recent and horrid memories in any more detail. Nor did he want to go over his shortcomings, let alone admit to just how close he’d come to giving everything and more to the very curse he was supposed to be suppressing within his own body. If Sukuna hadn’t chosen sadism in favor of his freedom… How cruel it was for Yuji to find another reason to be grateful for that very thought.
Returning to his temporary living quarters to rest had done little to alleviate Yuji’s pain. Isolation within his sensei’s home was a recipe for rumination, and nothing Yuji could do to pass the time was distracting enough to let him close his eyes and pretend the world outside was nothing more than a nightmare he had yet to wake up in. Gojo’s recent absence only compounded this effect, as a sudden mission alongside his teaching responsibilities had taken Yuji’s only source of socialization now that Nanami and Ijichi were sent out in opposite directions for their next set of missions. It was only when the two were working together that Yuji could tag along with Nanami, as they couldn’t risk any other assistant learning the truth about Yuji’s curious case of still being alive.
Yuji’s phone buzzed, the vibrations strong enough to toss the electronic device off the armrest and against the top of his head before sinking beneath the cushions of Gojo’s couch. It did not make it out of his reach, though, Yuji wasn’t exactly thrilled when he read the text message his sensei had left for him. The man would be gone through the evening and into tomorrow afternoon at this rate. And while Yuji would nod his head despite his sensei not being around to see it when typing a thumbs-up in confirmation, that wouldn’t stop the loud groan echoing through the room once Yuji pressed send before shoving his face back into the hoodie scrunched together beneath him.
There he lay on his stomach, his arm dangling off the side while the other flopped over somewhere to his right with little motivation to do anything but continue doing his best impersonation of a dead body yet. None of the movies still piled high beside the television interested him. There wasn’t enough space in this room to run around or do proper exercises to stretch his muscles and since he couldn’t leave the house in fear of being seen…
Boredom was the result.
Pure, agonizing, soul-eroding boredom.
“Are you done wallowing yet?”
Yuji’s ears perked out at the sound of Sukuna’s voice emanating from somewhere behind him. If he had to guess, the curse had manifested a mouth on the back of his neck.
“I’m not wallowing.”
“You could have fooled me.”
“Screw you.” Yuji whined, shoving his face further into the pillow as if that would drown out the curse’s words when they both knew Sukuna had other means of making himself heard.
“This is how you face adversity? I’d question where that spark of yours had gone, but ever since you begged so embarrassingly for my aid, I shouldn’t be so surprised. You’re pathetic once that high of battle fades from your system.” The curse’s words rolled lazily off his tongue, their weight building against Yuji’s back as if Sukuna were physically lounging against it. “Your lack of ability and cursed technique ensured this outcome. How I’ve managed to get stuck with such a useless vessel, only fate would know.”
“Are you done?” Yuji hissed. He then slammed his palms over his ears and rolled off to the side, hoping to shake the metaphorical curse off him. “Or is kicking me while I’m down all you’re good for? I’m starting to think that, just maybe, you didn’t accept my ‘embarrassing display’ because you couldn’t have done shit to save Junpei even if you wanted to! And how is it my fault if I don’t have a cursed technique? I understand being new to using cursed energy, but you can’t use that other crap against me!”
“You figured out that much, did you?” Sukuna sneered. All the teenager had accomplished was getting the curse to move from his neck to the back of his hand. Everything about these unwelcome changes to his body would continuously make Yuji’s skin crawl, but he would not dare show his unease beyond the immediate shiver through his spine. “If you were brighter, you would have realized that no power could have undone what that childish cursed spirit did to that whelp’s body. The reversed cursed technique can’t heal the soul.”
“How was I supposed to know that!?”
“And then, to make matters worse, you let that curse scurry off to live another day. You should have worked harder to tear such vermin to pieces.”
“You could have done more when he touched your soul.” Yuji recalled the sudden strike from Sukuna just as Yuji had broken into the patchwork curse’s domain. If his parasite of a curse had felt enough of a need to get involved then and clearly possessed his own desire to see Yuji’s enemy far from his own ally, then why didn’t Sukuna do more? Lazy bastard.
“I shouldn’t have had to raise a single finger, but you, brat, had the nerve to force my hand. It’s unsuitable for the vessel to the King of Curses to act so poorly. Why did I have to be cursed with such a troublesome reflection?”
“Like I care about your reputation.” A third attempt was made at ending the conversation by reaching out for the blanket he once had, now fallen to the floor. Once in hand, Yuji tossed it over his head to block out the light above him to signify that he’d rather shut off his brain and sleep. If Sukuna were a bird, he’d surely do the same. “Leave me alone.”
“How can I do that in good conscience when the teachers surrounding you are incompetent?” Since when did Sukuna have a conscience? “You’re still missing certain fundamentals and there’s a whole history of theory and application that those sorcerers should have transcribed over the last millennium for the sole purpose of education. Why aren't you being provided those… It’s as if even your daft savior still wants to see you fail.”
Yuji did not take kindly to Sukuna’s insult toward his sensei.
“Oh yeah?” Partially enraged, mostly fed up with the curse’s incessant insulting, the teenager tossed pillows and blankets alike as he shot up from his hideaway to twist his hand over in the light and confront Sukuna directly. “I’d like to see you do any better!”
“Do any better…?” The curse mused, lips pursed on the provocation Yuji hadn’t given any serious thought to. “Is that a challenge? Because I’m inclined to take you up on that, if only to prove my superiority and make you choke on those words, brat.”
What?
“For real?” Dumbfounded, Yuji stared down at the curse’s mouth as he ran the conversation back through his head. Without any correction on Sukuna’s end, Yuji could only assume he’d heard him right, leaving him skeptical as to whether the curse’s intentions were as presented. “What’s the catch?”
“At least you know enough to grasp that there are no free handouts.” Sukuna’s mouth disappeared, and thus his words continued to bounce around in the space between Yuji’s ears. ‘I’ve already scolded you once about attempting to utilize me without a binding vow. At least I won’t have to repeat myself.’
Yuji scowled. Then why did it seem as though the curse did just that?
“You want a binding vow in exchange for your ‘superior’ teaching? Yeah, sure. That checks out, but what exactly does that mean? What do you want?” Free use of his body for a day? A pass to kill one person without question? Or maybe he wants Yuji to burn down an orphanage as some kind of cruel, twisted—
‘A proper home-cooked meal.’
Oh.
“Seriously?” Yuji wasn’t expecting that response at all. What was nefarious about a home-cooked meal? Aside from someone trying to poison it. Too bad Yuji himself was resistant to poisons, which meant Sukuna was probably the same… “That’s it?”
‘Is that so strange?’ The curse was surely jabbing him in the brain for questioning his desires. ‘I know your mind is puny, but do attempt to imagine what a being consisting of greed and self-satisfaction must have gone through while experiencing a thousand years of existence without even the taste of consumption?’
That description sure sounded like hell, but Yuji wasn’t about to give the curse any more sympathy than that. Was the insult necessary?
“It must have been so hard.”
‘I would cease your sarcasm if you’re considering this deal.’
Was he actually considering it? They were speaking as if terms were being worked out, but Yuji hadn’t found himself determined to see the binding vow through either way. Hesitation took precedence as he could easily see how any deal with Sukuna may as well be a deal with the devil himself. There was always a catch. A home-cooked meal felt too easy. It felt strange, even if the reason behind the curse’s desire was sound. And to top it all off, what was Sukuna truly offering him in return?
“A meal in exchange for what? You said it yourself that there are probably books on all this cursed energy stuff. All I have to do is ask Gojo or Nanami for those, and while reading sucks, I can do that for free.”
‘That much is true, but what about my innate cursed techniques?’
“Your… innate cursed techniques?” Yuji thought back to when Sukuna had fought the special grade cursed spirit inside the detention center. The use of his Domain Expansion and the way he turned that special grade into sashimi before his eyes was, admittedly, terrifyingly cool. “You can do that? But I thought you had to be born with innate techniques to use them. Gojo-sensei said—”
‘You’re my vessel, aren’t you? My cursed techniques, just as everything else about my being has been forcibly merged with your own. It’s only a matter of encouragement to see them brought forth.’ Self-satisfaction laced Sukuna’s words. His confidence had Yuji convinced, but the way the curse’s voice came across was enough to reel Yuji back from pumping his fist in the air to celebrate the news that should have been initially concerning. Being Sukuna’s vessel had irreparably changed his body. Gifting a cursed technique was only another thing to pile on the list of weird shit Yuji now possessed, on top of his inhuman strength since birth. Despite all that, Yuji found the promise of a weapon beyond his fists to use against curses to be enticing. Adaptability in combat was just as important as brute force. A range of options in his arsenal would allow that…
All for a home-cooked meal.
As long as this curse wasn’t expecting some horror movie feast, then Yuji couldn’t find fault in at least humoring this wager. It wasn’t as if Yuji was going behind his sensei’s back in search of replacement tutelage. Far from it. This was more akin to… supplementary classes. Temporary supplementary classes. As long as this lesson and any potential others prove themselves useful, why not take advantage of the offer?
“That does sound interesting,” Yuji lingered on his acceptance just enough to be a tease. “I guess if it means learning something really cool and useful… You just have to be a good enough teacher to pull it off.”
‘Please, I’ll engrave these instructions into your very core. You should be honored.’
“We’ll see.”
A smirk took to Yuji’s face as a mutual agreement was formed between them. Words were not needed, as their souls resonated with identical intent and understanding of their conditions to warrant the creation of the new vow that bound the two together. A simple exchange of food and knowledge. As soon as the sensation of cursed energy coiling around their souls into a constricting knot had faded, Sukuna wasted little time in seeing their vow be put into use.
‘Get up. We start now.’
“As in, right now?” That felt a bit too sudden. He was still in his pajamas as the energy required to change out of them had left Yuji the moment he’d forced himself to change into them after returning home.
‘I’m sorry, did you have any prior engagements this evening?’
“Oh, haha.” Yuji stuck out his tongue, convinced that the curse was rolling his eyes at him in response.
‘Go upstairs to the kitchen. You’re making dinner.’
“Teach me your techniques first.”
‘Brat, making the meal is part of your lesson. Now go!’ Confused, but curious enough to go along with Sukuna’s orders, Yuji pried himself off the couch and trudged up the stairs toward his sensei’s kitchen. ‘And you’ll address me with respect.’
“Yeah, whatever, ‘Sukuna-sensei.’”
‘Sukuna-sama.’
Yuji shook his head.
“Not doing that.”
‘Brat.’
“Curse-sama.”
If Sukuna had been walking up the stairs beside him, Yuji was certain that the curse would have sent him on a one-way trip back down them after that comment. Sukuna wouldn't comment further to confirm this. He didn't have to. Yuji could feel the curse's irritation rolling off the void that constituted Sukuna's soul quite easily without the necessity of words.
These small verbal jabs and the response they elicited were as much of a victory Yuji was going to get in their constant volley of taunts. The semblance of bliss that came with such small joys were enough to keep Yuji's mood up as unease began to settle in regard to what he'd just gotten himself into. Nevertheless, Yuji would press on.
'As far as cursed techniques are concerned, I possess two that history is most familiar with. Cleave and Dismantle.' Sukuna's narration continued as Yuji made his way to the center of Gojo's kitchen. The space was a bit too large for one person, leaving Yuji to feel as though he were under a spotlight on a stage once his last step brought him to its absolute center. The refrigerator, sink, cabinets, and appliances hugged the wall with a large open countertop in Yuji's opposing side paired with it for additional workspace. 'Both techniques involve slashing attacks, which are far from your preference for bludgeoning. What better way to get you acclimated than to start with a kitchen knife as your framework?'
The curse’s thought process had led to Yuji eyeing the knife rack.
‘Based on what the Six Eyes has…’ Sukuna paused to recall the last time Yuji rummaged through Gojo’s kitchen. It may have been pitch dark with only the interior light of the fridge illuminating the rest of the room, but a thorough search for a midnight depression snack had commenced. ‘You’re going to prepare that hotpot dish from a couple of nights ago. Gather the necessary ingredients and line them up on the counter.’
Yuji didn’t see a reason to argue. The pot was easy to find, considering it had been placed back in the box it’d come in as Gojo had yet to decide where to store it long-term. Vegetables came next, followed by the bonito stock, ground ginger, egg, and ground chicken still fresh enough for safe consumption.
‘Next, you’ll permit me to expand my domain—’
“Hell no!” Yuji slammed the slab of ground meat onto the counter in protest. He should have known Sukuna was going to push his demands. “I know you think I’m stupid, but you can’t honestly believe I’m that stupid.”
‘How else am I to demonstrate anything if I’m not in view?’
“That’s not my problem to figure out.”
‘All I wish to do is project myself into this room by overlaying a sliver of my domain into reality. Nothing more.’
Yuji had every reason to believe letting Sukuna out in this manner was a bad idea. A horrible idea. An astronomically terrible idea. If there had been another person observing this conversation to chime in and remind him of this fact, Yuji would have fought against Sukuna’s insistence. Instead, the teenager sighed and raised his hands a few centimeters from his chest.
If anyone were to question him on this, at least he could recall hesitating at this point.
“Do you swear you won't destroy Gojo-sensei's house?”
‘Leaving evidence of this ability behind would get us both in more trouble than it’s worth. Or would you rather let your instructor know what you’re getting up to in his absence?’
Fair enough.
Yuji bit his lip as he passed control over his arms and hands to Sukuna. He shuddered at the feeling of the curse puppeteering his body this way, but it would only be long enough for the necessary hand sign to form. The name of Sukuna’s domain would not be uttered aloud, leaving Yuji suspicious as to just what the curse had done to make it so that when Yuji lifted his head, he stared directly into the eyes of his malevolent reflection. Looking at his own face with Sukuna’s influence was more uncanny in the proper light of Gojo’s kitchen than it was in the drenched waters of the curse’s domain. Sukuna’s tattoos and additional pair of eyes weren’t the only thing different between them, just the most striking feature. Yuji’s face appeared more angular, and possibly a tad older, though there was no difference in height or body size to suggest that.
While Sukuna had stated that he was projecting himself, both the curse and his kimono appeared very real to Yuji’s eyes. It was as if Sukuna were physically standing beside him, and all it took was a poke in the shoulder for Yuji to almost believe it.
“Are you done gawking?”
“You’re not going to run off now, are you?” Yuji reeled his curious hand back at the sight of Sukuna’s glare.
“This projection is made of cursed energy. My soul still rests alongside yours. Now focus.” The curse struck the back of Yuji’s head with the side of his open palm. A swift chop that Yuji knew could have hurt way more if Sukuna had felt inclined. “Stand up straight. Remain alert.”
“Ow! God, OK— Was hitting me necessary?”
“You learned from the cursed corpse through this method, did you not?” Sukuna snickered. “And no, it’s not. But if you’re going to run your mouth with unnecessary comments…”
“Yeah, Yeah. I get it.” Yuji rubbed the back of his head until the pain faded into the background. The curse, meanwhile, assessed the kitchen with his own sweeping gaze before settling on the knife rack. Careful fingers danced over the hilts until he settled on the Nakiri Yuji had already familiarized himself with the last time he’d made his meatball hotpot. “At the risk of getting hit again, you’re not going to use that on me, are you?”
“Striking you down would defeat the purpose of raising you from the brink of death.” Sukuna caressed the edge of the blade with his fingers, enamored with how smooth the glide was from the hilt to the tip. “And this blade is specialized for cutting vegetables, not human flesh.”
“Noted.” God, this was so weird.
“After you begin heating the water in your pot, return to the cutting board and chop the green onions.”
The directions were simple enough. Water would take a little bit of time to boil, even with the stovetop on a higher setting. While Yuji was hovering over the stove, he added the bonito stock powder to the water before covering the pot and spinning around to the cutting board that awaited him. It took less than thirty seconds, right as Yuji was about to make his first cut before Sukuna clicked his tongue, and shook his head.
“What?”
“Your thumb is in the wrong spot. You need to move it up further, to the back end of the blade. And your fingers should all be curled like so— Just give me that.” There would be no struggle over the knife in Yuji’s hands. The teenager released his grip the moment Sukuna reached over him, going so far as to step back with his arms raised in the air as Sukuna clearly wanted the whole cutting board to himself at this rate. “See? You need to hold it as I do. Your other hand steadying the vegetables should have its fingers curled back like so unless you want to lose a finger. I refuse to heal any injuries resulting in this level of stupidity.”
Yuji rolled his eyes as he muttered a not-so-sincere apology. If Sukuna’s lower eye had caught him in the act, the curse did not say. He was too focused on his demonstration to care.
This was the first time that Yuji witnessed the curse inside him show a hint of humanity. The spark was there in Sukuna’s passion. And in an odd way, the teenager found it endearing.
“My cursed techniques are engraved in your body. To learn the basics of using it, you must familiarize yourself with the feeling of a knife in hand. It’s weight. It’s sharpened edge. How it feels to slice through a variety of things with it.” Sukuna made his first harsh chop into the first of his green onion victims. “When using either technique I’m about to show you, picture a blade in your hand and your cursed energy will shape itself accordingly.”
It made more sense to follow Sukuna’s demonstration with a knife of his own, and thus, Yuji reached for the knife rack for a similar blade of a slightly smaller size. Mirroring Sukuna’s grip on the rather expensive-looking knifewear was simple enough to accomplish. What came next, however, would not come naturally on the first try.
“I’ll start by demonstrating Dismantle, as its purpose is twofold. Firstly, this cursed technique is more apt against targets without cursed energy. You take your blade and multiply it,” Sukuna chopped down on the green onion again, but this time, the incision of his cut repeated itself along the entire stalk, to see all of it chopped in one motion. Despite it being the perfect size for Yuji to use in his meatballs, the curse was not done yet.
“Then cross the ethereal blade over itself,” The curse chopped again, this time without needing to make contact with the vegetable as vertical strikes down the stalk halved the chopped pieces further
“And finally, continuously slash away,” Another strike divided the pieces again. And again. And again until there was nothing but dust to scatter across the countertop. “Relentlessly without remorse. Do so until you’re satisfied, or until there is nothing left. Though, you may find that both conditions tend to be one and the same.”
Yuji stared at Sukuna with his mouth ever so slightly open in awe. This was the attack the curse had used in the Detention Center. Dismantle hand split the cursed spirit into a handful of chunks, but what he’d just witnessed with the green onion? There was nothing of the vegetable left as soon as waved his hand to disperse what dust remained.
The thought of using it on a human… had to be shoved to the back of Yuji’s mind as he proceeded to snatch a stalk of green onion from underneath Sukuna’s arm. There was a thrill that came with attempting Sukuna’s technique. A morbid race of Yuji’s heart that had him eager to demonstrate his capability. Sukuna and his air of superiority appeared to possess little faith in Yuji to succeed. The teenager’s first few tries resulted in nothing but frustration, but with enough perseverance, two uneven cuts manifested alongside Yuji’s initial slice.
Sukuna would not praise him, nor complain about the outcome of Yuji’s first taste at Dismantle once they were done with the green onion and it was time to season and mold the ground chicken into a spherical shape.
Naturally, Yuji did this all by himself. Sukuna watched with little interest the moment the knife left Yuji’s hands. In all honesty, the lack of assistance and conversation had taken the building pressure off Yuji’s shoulders as he engrossed himself in his work. About fifteen grams of ground ginger, a few shakes of salt, pepper, and a whole egg were all that needed to be added to the meat before Yuji smashed and kneaded it together with his hands. Shaping them came with little difficulty, but it was only after Yuji was about to place the last one onto his plate before walking over to the boiling pot did he notice an empty space where a meatball should be.
Did Sukuna eat one when he wasn’t looking… raw?
While Yuji knew he couldn’t speak on what one should or should not put in their mouth, he still had to hold back a mild gag.
Once the meatballs were added to the boiling pot, Sukuna’s interest returned with a new fever as he slid the carrots and leeks over to the cutting board. The mushrooms were left as is, leaving Yuji to catch the container as Sukuna tossed it over the shoulder as a silent order to add the mushrooms to the pot whole.
“While not the ideal targets for Cleave, they will suffice as a demonstration.” Sukuna, with his knife in hand, emphasized the single strike he made to cut the pre-sectioned carrot in half. He would do so again with the leek whose greens were already removed, only his next strike would forgo the use of the knife and cut at an angle across the vegetable. “This technique is ideal for targets with cursed energy, as cursed energy can be used to enforce one’s natural resistance to an enemy’s attack. The amount of cursed energy required for Cleave is dependent on how much is necessary to strike through your target in one swift motion. Learning how to shift its power quickly so as not to waste energy should become second nature, eventually, but for now, you’re going to practice visualizing the blade and striking with your knife in front of the vegetable. Extend the single, empowered blade of cursed energy beyond it toward your target.”
Yuji takes Sukuna’s place at the cutting board after the curse concludes his lecture, Unlike Dismantle, Yuji couldn’t get Cleave to work well by the end of his first attempt. His strikes were weak, barely doing anything beyond what he could have done with the literal knife in his hand. The tiniest of tremors shook his hands, though Yuji would do well to stifle them quickly to avoid providing any more ammo for Sukuna to taunt him with.
Both of Sukuna’s cursed techniques were designed to kill as fast and efficiently as possible. That only became clearer as Sukuna added one last word of advice before there were no more vegetables to practice with.
“A battle shouldn’t be prolonged unless you desire it.”
Yet, the fact that a life could be brought to an end at his very fingertips without the impact of a fist to ensure that connection between life and death could be felt… It left Yuji numb. These techniques were the answer to the versatility he was looking for. Sukuna was surely going to hint at more beyond that to encompass Yuji’s understanding of cursed energy in general, yet to know another daunting ability exists in this world he had no choice but to live in… He would silently swear to be careful when invoking it.
The hotpot finished cooking sooner than Yuji anticipated. Rather, his thoughts distracted him just long enough for the water to boil over, reminding Yuji of his current task. The teenager promptly dashed toward the stove and removed their meal from the heat. Dinner was ready to serve.
“I guess I’ll bring it to the table then…” Yuji muttered to himself as he looked around the room, planning his route from the kitchen to the dining table. Chopsticks, bowls, and anything else he could think of were gathered as the curse sauntered over to peruse the still-covered dish. And to Yuji’s surprise, once the teenager sat down, Sukuna would join him at the seat on the other side of the corner rather than directly across as Yuji’s sensei had. This made them noticeably closer than Yuji had anticipated.
“Here’s your meal, Sukuna-sama.” Yuji squinted at the curse leering over at him. Sukuna’s slouched posture and bored expression paired well with the chin resting against his open palm. Annoyingly, the curse wouldn’t move from this position, content with staring back until Yuji was forced to provoke him. “Well, aren’t you going to eat?”
“I believe you should feed it to me.”
Feed it to him!? Yuji had already gone through the effort of preparing the entire meal by hand, and the curse had the nerve to ask him for more?
“You have two working hands. Feed yourself.”
The glare Sukuna gave in response did not waver in the slightest. Nothing more needed to be said, as all four eyes bore through Yuji’s skull as a silent means of insisting the teenager follow through with the request. Yuji had tried his best to stay strong, but he had enough physical retaliation for one day and would rather eat without the risk of being stabbed with the chopsticks still by Sukuna’s hand.
He truly was a lazy bastard!
“Fine, here.” Yuji balanced one of the larger steaming-hot meatballs between his chopsticks. He kept his other hand protectively underneath it as a precaution while he shoved home-cooked efforts into Sukuna’s face.
The curse took the bite in stride, showing no hesitation in opening his maw wide to accommodate the meatball in its entirety. Once grasped between his teeth, Yuji reeled back to pick out a bite of his own, readily scarfing it down while the curse lingered on the flavor offered to him.
“How is it?” The question came out before Yuji had the chance to stop it. He really was curious, but knowing Sukuna, no amount of contemplation would lead the curse to say a good thing. Then again, if this was what got the curse to praise him…
“It’s serviceable.”
“Just serviceable?”
Not good or bad? Just, meh?
Sukuna shrugged.
“It could be worse.”
“Would it kill you to give a compliment!?”
“Ordering you to feed me another is compliment enough.” Sukuna pointed to his mouth open wide, “Another.”
“Do it yourself!” Yuji hissed, quickly plopping a growing collection of vegetables into the bowl in his hands.
“You’ve spoiled me once, now do so again.” The curse remained insistent, one claw at the ready to grasp Yuji’s hand if the teenager took another bite before he did.
“This wasn’t a part of the deal. Now let me eat in peace!”
Peace, unfortunately, would not be had. It wasn’t as though the act was tortuous. But there was a point Yuji wished to make about not becoming the curse’s personal servant, even if he was seemingly benefitting far more from their vow than the curse was. If this was all that learning Sukuna’s cursed techniques would entail… Yuji wasn’t entirely against doing this again one or two more times. At least until he got the basics down.