Chapter Text
Despite the universe's best efforts, Yuji remained alive and kicking. His captor—and possible human friend, although that might be pushing it—made sure of it, once again leaving Yuji confused and unable to predict just what went on in Ryomen Sukuna's head. The human did not seem outwardly concerned about whether Yuji remained around him or not after he recovered from his ill-advised attack. Yet, at the same time, he made an effort to acknowledge Yuji's presence and converse with him as he went about his own affairs while also showing interest in what Yuji planned to do next to rectify his position as a stranded outsider in this world.
A full rotational cycle passed before Yuji was well enough to search the wreckage of his ship. Ryomen Sukuna led him to the crash site as smoke no longer bellowed from its remains to act as a beacon for Yuji to follow.
"My ship!" Yuji wailed upon reaching the edge of the impact crater, hands flailing in the air as he slid toward the center where the main chunk of his central haul could be found. Flipping, dented, torn, and scarred, his ship was no longer the pristine and frankly blindly white color Yuji remembered. No glass window had been spared, shards scattered into millions of tiny pieces while electrical lines continued to spark and crackle about. "No, no, no—You poor thing. You've been… You've been ripped in half!?"
To be accurate, it was more like only a third was missing, but Yuji's anguish wasn't trying to get caught up in technicalities.
"That would be my doing."
Yuji spun around, his eyes burning with unwarranted betrayal while the human behind him showed not a single shred of remorse.
"You did what!?"
"Intended or not, you and your ship veered too close. I offset the trajectory with a simple swipe of my cursed technique, and both parts spiraled in separate directions." A mock demonstration by Ryomen Sukuna followed, consisting of the lazy swipe of two fingers in the air. His incorporeal blades sliced through a Reynoutrian ship, and this human treated it like nothing! "The piece containing your body landed closest to me."
"Am I supposed to thank you for that?"
"You already have."
Yuji was hurt. More than hurt. Unbelievably frustrated because Ryomen Sukuna was not wrong, and he couldn't easily take back his previous gratitude. All he could do was stutter and pout, failing to produce any words until he finally gave in and let the matter rest.
"I fail to see how something this large and heavy can fly beyond any creature I know." Ryomen Sukuna paced around the ship's remains, taking the opportunity to observe it closely under proper lighting from the midday sun. "Are your abilities responsible for that?""
"No, actually. Just really powerful— Ugh. This is impossible to salvage as it is." Yuji pressed a hand on the haul and flicked his antennae about, integrating his mind to the ship's fractured computer to coax it to shrink. He let out a silent prayer that the required system remained intact, as it possessed no central control unit, opting for a woven mesh that all shared the burden of its operation. "The technology of this vessel generates enough energy to propel it upward against the natural force that ties everything to this planet's surface. My power can manipulate that force. But, as you can see, I'm not exactly an expert, even if releasing gravity's hold comes much easier than strengthening it as I attempted against you."
"That is because you are reversing the flow of energy within your body, shifting its properties. It is only natural that it is far more taxing."
"Huh." The explanation made sense. Yuji nodded, although that knowledge did little to fix his shortcomings. "Luckily for me, the material of this ship is self-repairing. As long as I gather enough of its remains and leave it undisturbed somewhere, it will restore its original shape however long it may take."
If he hadn't been so privileged to have access to this recent scientific breakthrough, then he truly would have been stranded.
Yuji shook his head, pushing himself to keep looking ahead. Searching for the remains of his ship became his immediate goal, regardless of how frustrating and taxing his self-appointed task would be. At least the time required to see his ship back in working order would permit him additional time to rest. Physically, Yuji expected to be completely fine in a few rotational cycles. But his mind, his determination to press once he returned to intermixing with the stars… Only time will tell. Until then, Yuji chose to use the original place he'd woken up in as a base to store what he'd collected so far. Said building was an old place of worship. Once sacred ground blessed by a local deity that had been abandoned and left to deteriorate over time, which explained the strange sensation that crept over him every time he entered inside. Ryomen Sukuna held no claim over the area, simply using it as a temporary shelter among many due to his nomadic lifestyle.
"All this talk of gods and worship reminded me of stories passed along by spacefarers." Yuji had chuckled during his retelling of the longer tale, spurred about by his own confessed fear of revealing his origin to others of Ryomen Sukuna's species. "Apparently, some guy had landed on a blacklisted planet, and the locals thought he was an emissary from their creator deity. Can you imagine having to explain the truth, or worse, going along with their assumptions and taking on an unbelievable amount of pressure? I don't think I could do it."
The human had told him not to bother worrying, as he held no interest in socializing with others and that so long as Yuji kept his mouth shut, he could be considered a cursed spirit or some other enigmatic entity by most.
"You may have fallen from the heavens, but very little time observing you is required to avoid mistaking you for a divine being."
"That's a relief— Wait. What is that supposed to mean!?"
Unsure of when Ryomen Sukuna planned to leave, Yuji considered himself a sort of guest benefiting from his prolonged presence. It was the human's knowledge that kept him from mistaking dangerous creatures for sociable allies, and when it came time to figure out what kind of food to sustain himself with, Yuji began with stomaching whatever Ryomen Sukuna procured for himself so long as his host was willing. But free hand-outs would only last so long. Yuji prepared for that by contemplating the many ways he could repay the human in kind.
A part of him wondered if he had been specifically drawn to Ryomen Sukuna. The planet's gravity had pulled him from the sky, but something else, something more meaningful than sheer coincidence, had orchestrated their meeting. Despite lacking evidence, Yuji was sure of it! Life was more fun that way, and Yuji could really use some fun right about now.
Thus, when Ryomen Sukuna expressed interest in observing Yuji's powers again, Yuji had little reason to object.
Admittedly, the request had come at an odd time. The pair had been crossing an enormous field covered in flowers that had yet to close despite the lack of sun in the sky. The consistent day and night cycle wasn't too difficult to get used to, as the predictability made it easy to maximize Yuji's search efforts. Ticklish grass grew much longer here, and while the nighttime scene drowned out the varied colors surrounding them, Yuji could still appreciate the plant life by way of touch and smell. An experience his human companion would not mimic, displaying discomfort from mild allergens present in the air.
Unsurprised by the request and happy to demonstrate, Yuji slowly rose into the air to hover over the flower field. He took his time rising high, as not only did he risk feeling a bit queasy by the sudden weightless feeling, but he knew better than to rise so far that falling would be fatal. Ryomen Sukuna possessed an ability of his own. A cursed technique, as he called it. Powers that toed the lines of scientific understanding, thus turning the possible reality-shattering ramifications of watching Yuji sway about into an unnecessary worry. The human was not alone in manifesting them, as they were rare in his species, though far more varied than Yuji ever thought possible.
What a strange place this world was. Magical and still very terrifying.
"Our homes do not share the same sky. Still, I think I can figure this out…" Yuji stretched out his hand as far as it could, longing for the memory he carried of the home he knew "If I get high enough and squint real hard… My home should be there! "
A determined finger pointed toward the never-ending void of space, choosing a cluster of stars as his target. None of them were particularly familiar, and the chances of him being right were next to none, but the power of belief was a strong one.
Somewhere out there, his people were staring off into space and unknowingly looking at him. They may not share the same sky nor view the planets as they are now, and that was alright. The thought was enough to keep his tears at bay.
"Why do you not simply fly off and return to it?"
"Are you kidding me? I cannot survive for long up there. Life cannot exist without intervention beyond the world capable of sustaining it." The logistics alone… "Even if I could just fly away, I'm nowhere near as fast as my ship."
Yuji spun upside down in the air, his one leg crossed over the other. It must look strange as if he were hanging by an invisible hand around his ankle. Kicking about would break the illusion. He extended both his hands to channel his power further, not only to target himself but a wider radius to sweep the human beneath him off his feet while the flowers remained tethered by their roots.
"My home world consists of two, actually. Two planets locked orbit around one another, sharing a moon between them. A marvelous wonder. Our earliest myth states that it's because our founding ruler drew our worlds close to avoid being separated while the universe was young." Yuji drew circles in the sky with his fingers, attempting to capture the concepts he presented as best as he could. There were times when he wondered just how much the human was keeping up with him. He would not dare break the silence to ask, as he did not wish to insinuate any insults, especially when his host surpassed him in other regards. "And all I can do is yearn for the same heights."
Overwhelmed by his prolonged venture into the sky, Yuji lowered himself in front of the human. His forehead risked bumping against the one in front of him. Imagining the potential awkward exchange that could come of it caused Yuji to giggle, which, in turn, broke his concentration. If Ryomen Sukuna had not extended his arms out to catch him, Yuji would have hit his head.
Being caught had not frustrated Yuji nearly as much as how little he could boast about his powers during his display. Smaller bursts to permit bigger jumps or lighter steps were something Yuji could manifest on the regular, but bigger displays affecting an entire area were different. To if he were to dare go even grander… According to all expectations, Yuji should have possessed the power to cause the very moon above them to crash against the planet's surface. Instead, the only crash he seemed capable of was his own.
"Do all of your people share the same ability?"
"No. It's rare but hereditary if you know where to look." Anti-Gravity System was the designation. Over the years, advancing technology managed to replicate pieces of the ability, but never could it match the scale or variability of legend. It was not enough to simply lessen or strengthen the preexisting gravitational pull of the largest celestial body, but adept users were said to be able to take any point of interest and temporarily bestow a greater gravitational force to move objects and people at will.
"Cursed techniques vary in the same way, prone to manifesting in specific bloodlines. There are exceptions, myself included." The small pieces that Ryomen Sukuna shared about himself often accompanied requests for Yuji to return the offer in kind. "You do not seem like someone who would travel alone."
A recent tragedy flooded Yuji's eyes. The race for the ship, shouldering the wishes of those shouting for his survival as his home crumbled around them. Closing doors that moved too fast, yet not fast enough, granted the enemy time to catch up as Yuji prepared to take off. He did not exit the planet's atmosphere alone. Outnumbered and outgunned, desperate fingers pressed every button he could think of in preparation to warp away, only for something to go wrong at the very last second, sending him spiraling off course. Yuji had hung on tight to the control console, but what good had it done?
"You know, the eagerness of youth can't be held back." Yuji turned away, pretending that he was observing the ground before rolling out of the human's arms. Lying did not sit well with him. He was no good at it, as the sudden drop of energy in his voice couldn't be hidden no matter how he wished it. Regardless, he made an effort to bounce back, refusing to burden Ryomen Sukuna with his troubles. "Space can be quite lonely… I'll be sure to gather a crew in the future."
He wasn't sure what the human had wished to learn from his question, but Yuji appreciated that Ryomen Sukuna wasn't pressing for more.
"What about you? You're alone."
"Unwanted children remain that way." Ryomen Sukuna's response caused Yuji's throat to swell with immediate regret. That was an awful thing to say. Were humans really so callous that they would throw away their young? "I do not want to see pity in your eyes. I have grown strong as a result. And I will continue to do so until there are none to rival me."
"Uh, right. You and I both!" Yuji nodded, perhaps a bit too much with his eagerness to shift away from the solemn mood. Such conversations always sapped the colorful hues from his skin, making him a depressing sight. While he may not seek to reach the same intensity in his own pursuit of strength, there was no denying that Yuji had to work hard to face the trials that awaited him. "Recently, I had to accept that I couldn't stay at the level that I am at. Even while I live on borrowed time… I should be using this opportunity to get stronger for the sake of those who put their faith in me."
"That is where you are wrong. If you do not desire to get stronger for your own sake, you will fail."
For his own sake?
The desire to do right by others was the mechanism behind every decision and every movement Yuji had ever made. A driving force that couldn't be quelled. Even now, it hummed in the back of his mind as a constant reminder. What greater motivation was there? Yet, where Yuji saw the human's motivation as flawed, Ryomen Sukuna would only argue the same in reverse.
"Maybe we can agree to disagree on that."
A low growl from Ryomen Sukuna's secondary mouth was not necessarily in disagreement with Yuji's offer.
"Returning our focus back to your power, when you stilled my movements, the surge of freedom that came with your technique's release offered a moment of exhilaration. My body moved faster than I had anticipated." Had it? The difference may have been too small for Yuji to notice, but if the strength-obsessed human believed it to be so, he would not argue. "Why?"
"Hm…" Yuji crossed his arms to think. He wasn't exactly sure how to answer since a normal being— relatively speaking —shouldn't have endured his attack nearly as well as the human did. "I could be that, well, there are those who seek worlds with stronger gravitational forces to train on. They do it to make their body stronger when they return home."
"Would that equate to prolonged exposure to your gravitational force, making my body stronger?"
"Theoretically. You can also heal yourself, which would offset the negative effects." Yuji knocked his head back and thought even harder. Turning his head side to side accomplished more than he thought it would, as suddenly, his antennae shot up straight into the air as certain dots connected within his mind. "I figured you out. You want to use me to further your training, and then I can work on strengthening my own powers as a result!"
The human's reasoning for keeping Yuji around— and, more importantly, alive —made a lot more sense. Yuji was of use to him. And Yuji, in turn, liked being useful. Awareness of his position sorted out the problem of repayment for him. Honestly, he could not have asked for a better solution, which was why Yuji was so eager to grab Ryomen Sukuna's closest hand with two of his own. His body bounced around in excitement, breaking through previous fatigue in preparation for whenever their training was to begin.
His partner, however, did not show nearly as much outward excitement. In fact, Ryomen Sukuna appeared determined to avoid it at any cost, grumbling his response.
"So long as your growth furthers my own, then it is a coincidental boon."
Ah, alright. One's personal growth was all that mattered to the human, yeah?
"I will strive to become as strong as you! A student you can take pride in."
Only after Yuji made his declaration did he realize that he'd been holding the human's hand for longer than was necessary. The lack of comment regarding it from the human, leaving only one staring eye for Yuji to finally take a hint, caused the wayward traveler to turn bright red.
Placing some space between them would cool himself off. Yuji was confident in his assertion that he backed away a bit too quickly, causing him to fall and get sucked into the bed of flowers beneath him. Sukuna sought to quickly cover his face, shielding himself from the potential allergen plume while Yuji rolled further down the hill. Not too far, but just far enough that his own pride had practically cracked in two, leaving him stuck with a bright pink hue long after the initial red blush faded for the next several days.
To make matters worse, every time the pink began to fade, Yuji's appearance briefly shared in the same shade of pink as the human's hair, causing the color to intensify and his affliction to remain longer than it had any right to.
It did not take long for Yuji to learn what Ryomen Sukuna required unrivaled strength for.
Their initial days of relative peace ended as others crossed through the mountains to encroach on the boundaries of his companion's domain. Group numbers varied. As did the intent behind the challenges to best Ryomen Sukuna in combat in the hopes of ending the threat his very existence posed.
Yuji did not initially understand the threat in question, as they'd been living a very isolated life until now. It was not that he was blind to the human's strength and abilities, only that Ryomen Sukuna had not made an effort to antagonize anyone beyond jabs toward Yuji during their training. Oddly enough, the other humans were quite unlike the first one Yuji met. Their features were more akin to Yuji in proportion and size, lacking the secondary traits that had become quite charming to observe. This standard variant, as Yuji noted in his head, was admittedly boring in comparison unless they possessed unique talent or cursed technique of their own. Yuji did not mean to dismiss them entirely. Finding a species so similar to his own was honestly unexpected, and he would have happily conversed with and befriended others if they did not appear hostile and unwilling to sway their mind elsewhere.
Considering the nature of the challenges and the background Yuji would learn regarding previous events on this planet, Yuji did not deem it right to intervene.
Yuji initially believed Ryomen Sukuna had simply been a victim of a larger group that isolated an outlier. It was not unheard of. But then there were others, non-humans who appeared with even more complex, almost incomprehensible forms— Those were cursed spirits. Their form is solely dependent on the environment they were born within, brought to life by the cursed energy leaked out by much of humanity, and shaped by their beliefs with abilities that may reflect said beliefs. Humans capable of harnessing their cursed energy do not contribute to their creation but their eradication in some strange balancing act. Why they appeared was not simple to discern. Nor did it matter.
Every battle ended the same, many coming to a close mere seconds after both parties had taken their stance, and those were duels carried with more honor than others. One slash from Ryomen Sukuna's cursed technique, and the challenger fell. Sometimes, it would take two or three, but all bled out and died after an important internal component had been severed so easily. Their corpses made for a hearty meal as Ryomen Sukuna held no qualms feasting on his own species. Yuji could not say with certainty that this was the norm, though he doubted it and would prefer to avoid partaking in eating any sentient life, no matter how often it was offered to him. Cursed spirits, on the other hand, possessed no corpse, dissipating alongside their consciousness on the odd occasion that Ryomen Sukuna did not eviscerate them outright.
The very scenario of an immediate victory occurred often enough that Ryomen Sukuna began pushing Yuji to fight on his behalf when Yuji was far more content being an observer to the spectacle, unsure how he'd be able to match the mind-numbing levels of power on display should his opponent match one of the two battles that forever changed how Yuji saw his human companion.
The King of Curses was a title Yuji had heard spat vehemently from some men while others shrieked or refused to emote beyond their glare. Yuji did not know what to make of it. If Ryomen Sukuna was a ruler, then where was his kingdom? His subjects? The land he claimed was barren of sentient life as far as Yuji was aware. Yet, one battle made it clear that none of that mattered.
Yuji stood on the precipice of a dusty plain covered in nothing as all life within had been cut and incinerated without question. His toes practically touched upon the border, an intentional choice as the effect of Ryomen Sukuna's Malevolent Shrine had been restrained just enough to keep Yuji out of its reach.
How did one summon a building with the specific gesture of one's hands? Was it an illusion? A mental effect? This type of ability, Yuji would later learn, was not specific to Ryomen Sukuna, but the sheer amount of complete and utter annihilation to all those within aside from the summoner had caused Yuji to collapse onto his knees and wonder what would happen if humanity made it to the stars. Ryomen Sukuna stood atop them, but even he sought out and welcomed challengers to attempt to claim his throne.
Why?
Because Ryomen Sukuna would be bored otherwise.
Yuji wondered how much truth there was to that. The need for survival in a world so harsh and unpredictable would foster such power. To that end, Ryomen Sukuna had become a being most feared. A calamity responsible for an unknown number of tragedies. He embodied an ecological niche no different than a natural disaster overturning the environment. Ryomen Sukuna relished in the act of fighting, his passion burning with every new discovery and development that permitted him to push the boundaries further. The human, the King of Curses, did not act out of malice but simply because he could.
"Do you now understand just whose feet you landed in front of?" Ryomen Sukuna had managed to return to Yuji's side while the latter remained burdened with processing his surroundings. He did not appear offended at Yuji's quiet, near-frozen reaction. Expecting it, the human simply waited for an answer.
Awe could not entirely describe the way Yuji felt. He understood the ramifications of such power and the consequences of wielding it without restraint. Many fought and died, and these were willing participants who now sought out Ryomen Sukuna on reputation alone. Reputation that had to be fostered over time through events beyond Yuji's knowledge. None who appeared before him were surprised by the being that awaited their challenge. As much as someone like this should have sickened Yuji's heart, two things remained present in his mind.
The first was that the power Ryomen Sukuna displayed was even more tantalizing than before. The second was that, despite his previous conclusions, Yuji had become an exception to his destructive desires. Either personal pursuit outweighed natural tendencies for general destruction, or there was more to it. Ryomen Sukuna's choice to remain semi-nomadic even now, offering chances for Yuji to check on his ship while still traveling with him to follow animals or seek out new arenas to train within, made it seem as though he was slowly retreating from the world. Not everything Yuji knew about the human came together easily, and neither did his judgment.
"You did not tell me that you are a King." That was all Yuji could say at first. He would not have acted so brazenly when they first met if he had known.
"That title that one spat? It is one spoken in gest, hardly genuine." Ryomen Sukuna scoffed, showing little interest or care in regard to the very title that weighed so heavily on Yuji's mind. "The King of Curses is a figure others use to deflect their own failings toward. I hold no political power nor desire it. There are no armies of Cursed Spirits at my beck and call. I alone am enough to make any noble can and all their sorcerers tremble."
"A one-man army is still an army."
A King of concepts was still a King.
This was the being he'd sworn to match in strength. Was it even possible? Ryomen Sukuna struck too fast, too precisely. Even without his cursed techniques, his physical body was an absurd powerhouse that could not be bested by a single combatant. He could not understand why someone of that much power would not use said power to conquer and establish proper dominion over the land. The planet. Yuji could be told at this very moment that the human beside him was this planet's God-King, and he'd easily believe it. No one in Yuji's immediate bloodline had been able to demonstrate the powers of legend, but this human… Yuji could picture him slicing a planet in half should he desire it.
Maybe that was taking it a bit too far? Maybe not.
Yet Yuji's heart pounded, and he did not know why.
"You are not frightened, are you?"
"Frightened? Who, me?" Yuji let out a laugh, breaking through his shock to gain some semblance of control over himself. He could not tell if the human's question was a tease or if it were out of concern. The former was more likely, given the tone… "The least you could have done was warn me. What if I had taken a step forward or fell by accident?"
"Do you think I would be so inept as to allow you to be targeted by Malevolent Shrine?"
"I don't know. You've never mentioned all this before." Yuji spread his arms wide and spun around on his heels, his voice echoing across the newly formed chasm. "This planet is insane!"
"So it is."
With nothing to salvage from the day's encounter, there was nothing more to do beyond staring at the morbid wonder Ryomen Sukuna left behind in his wake. Yuji's eyes couldn't help but return to it, causing him to occasionally fall behind even after they began climbing up the ridge to their current camp. The act didn't go unnoticed by his host. As Yuji didn't want to insinuate an air of negativity surrounding the event, he quickly rushed to keep pace with Ryomen Sukuna before breaking the silence that had temporarily befallen them.
"... When are you teaching me to do something like that?"
Yuji's question had caught Ryomen Sukuna off guard, leading to what may have almost been a stumble in the human's step if his host were not so good at saving face.
"If it is even possible… We can start tomorrow."
The stars reflected in Yuji's eyes lit up brighter than ever, thanks to the beaming glow of gold originating from his core. As intimidating as such power was to wield, if he were to possess an aura even half as imposing as the human's, many of his problems would be solved.