Satoru Gojo

Satoru had just returned from another mission when the call from the Higher Ups reached him. Urgent, sharp, like the striking of a gong. The Higher Ups had no patience, that was well known, but there was something in the brief message that even alarmed him. A whole clan, wiped out. No one knew exactly what had happened, only that this clan had been conducting dark experiments for years. Always in the shadows, always with the approval of those old men who now acted so shocked.

When Satoru entered the clan grounds, he froze. Before him, the image of pure destruction unfolded. Buildings shattered like rotten wood. Blood soaked the ground. The air was heavy with the smell of burnt earth and something else, a suffocating, eerie energy that made his skin tingle. Everywhere there were bodies, men, women, all dead.

As Satoru followed the cursed energy, he found a young woman, no older than her mid-twenties. Her head was bowed, her hands clenching the torn fabric of her dress. The cursed energy that had caused all this destruction poured from her, so powerful it could have torn the atmosphere apart. Her hair clung to her face, wet from the tears that continuously ran down her cheeks. She trembled, her body shaking like an unstable vessel about to burst.

Satoru approached slowly, his steps cautious. "It was you, wasn't it?" His voice was calm, almost gentle. She didn’t respond, not even lifting her head. But her shoulders jerked as if he had struck her. "Why are you crying, then?"

He searched for her gaze. And when her eyes finally met his, Satoru was paralyzed. Those eyes... they were filled with sorrow, with guilt, and a pain so deep it was almost unbearable. No, this was not the gaze of a cold killer. It was the gaze of a victim who had experienced something unfathomable.

Around her, chaos reigned. The energy of her cursed power had left deep marks on the surroundings. But one thing was clear to Satoru, this woman was no monster. She had lost control. Her cursed power had been altered from the outside, however this clan had managed that. She was a victim. A victim who had been used. In the end, the clan’s own experiments had backfired on them.

---

A storm raged within the Higher Ups' estate. The Higher Ups had no patience for questions, even less for doubts. "She must die!" one of them shouted, veins bulging in his neck from anger. "Whatever she is, whatever she’s done, such a monster cannot be allowed to live!"

Satoru stood before them, hands in his pockets, his posture relaxed, but his eyes gleamed dangerously. "A monster?" His voice was quiet, but it reverberated through the room like a loud thunderclap. "Is that all you see?"

"She wiped out an entire clan!" Another one stood up, hands pressed against the table. "We cannot risk that she does it again."

"And who made her what she is?" Satoru’s tone grew sharper. "You knew about the experiments, didn’t you? You tolerated them as long as they were useful to you. And now, when you’ve lost control, you call her a monster?" His voice rose, his presence threatening. "You are the real monsters. Her entire cursed power was altered by external influences."

The Higher Ups fell silent, but Satoru was not finished. "You want to kill her?" He laughed, a cold, mocking laugh that made the room chill. "Then try it. But be warned, I will erase each one of you before you even get close to her." His grin widened. "And honestly, I’d enjoy it."

---

Satoru took her in as a student, at least he could ensure her protection this way. It was unusual, even unheard of. She was an adult, too old to be learning, but Satoru didn’t care about rules. There was something about her that wouldn’t let him go. Perhaps it was the loneliness in her eyes that reminded him of his own. Perhaps it was the power she didn’t want but had to bear. She was alone. And Satoru knew what that felt like.

She didn’t speak a word. Since that night he had found her, she remained silent. No matter what he did, no matter how hard he tried, she just sat there, staring into space. To this day, he didn’t even know her name.

---

One evening, as darkness enveloped the academy, Satoru knocked on the door to her room. No answer, as always. He entered and found her where she always was, sitting on her bed, staring blankly at the floor.

"You know" he began, sitting down on the floor in front of her. "I can imagine how you feel. It's hard being alone. Hard living with power you didn’t want." He leaned his head back and looked at the ceiling. "But no matter what you did, you're not alone."

No reaction. But Satoru didn’t give up. "You can keep silent. I’ll stay anyway. As long as it takes, until you’re ready to talk. And if that never happens... well, I’ll probably come visit you every day. I can be quite stubborn."

Slowly, he set water and Kikufuku on her table, gently. He had noticed that she reacted with fear to quick movements and noise. What had those monsters done to her? How long had she been with that clan... Questions upon questions, and only one thing was certain, he had no answers. "I’ll be back tomorrow morning. Drink something, and maybe try the Kikufuku. They're heavenly. I got them specially from Sendai."

Satoru paused at the door. "At least tell me your name?"