The city went to rest. Slowly, the sky turned yellow as the sun lowered itself towards the horizon. Quieting laughter and the fading noise of traffic announced the evening as the streets slowly emptied.
Trains and buses were filled to the brim with tired people whose voices quietly resonated through the wagons. The laughing of teenagers. Excited voices of children. Tired adults conversations. And the polite voice of people asking their elders if they wanted their seats.
"Oh, excuse me Sir! I did not see you there. Would you like my seat?"
The man addressed the elderly man with a quiet voice, but the polite question was noticed by most people in the train's wagon. A light guilt reverberated in most people's expression, seeing that the man had to remain standing for so long.
Said Man turned around, his strong Mutant traits for everyone to see. His greenish gray skin, the volcano-like head, that single eye. Despite that, no one flinched. Even if some people bore prejudice or disdain towards Mutants, giving up a seat for a elder remained basic courtesy.
"...Hmpf. No need. I can stand just fine."
The voice of the man was raspy and his answer curt. He simply turned back towards the window of the train, his cane making a clattering sound as it bumped against the door.
Ding* "Dear guests. Our next station is : Mitake station, in approximately 17 minutes."
Conversation continued, unbothered by the announcement. The man who had wanted to give up his seat did not push any further. Elderly people's stubbornness was nothing new.
The elderly man in question was Jogo. His situation had not changed much, with the exception that he had decided to leave the city. There was no real reason to it, only preference. There weren't many things he liked about Humans, but Hot springs were certainly high up in the list.
And so, that was where he was heading. Mitake, towards the outskirts of Tokyo. He had a small stash of Human pipes and would have a short get-away from the city in order to relax.
'...that way I won't have to hear about these... irritating Heroes.'
They were everywhere. Jogo saw them in the streets. He saw them in the news. He heard people talk about them. It pissed him off to a point that he'd been about to use is Supreme Art.
'...and i suppose i could use that time to train. My domain is weak and my Meteor, slow.'
Weak was probably not the right description, but he was comparing it to Gojo and Sukuna after all. The way Gojo's domain had stripped away his own was frustrating and the way Sukuna had just evaded his Maximum technique had been telling in what he lacked.
'...although. My Meteor isn't meant to be fast anyway. Perhaps its better to focus more on its size and reach.'
Then, came the question of domains. Gojo's domain back in Shibuya. That burst version of a domain expansion.
A domain in which the technique and special effect had been deployed, before the barrier even closed. 0.2 seconds, stunning every curse in range.
The application was terrifying. Had Gojo focused on killing him, Hanami and Choso at that moment, they would all have died. The only reason he even got to face Sukuna, was because Gojo used the time in which they had been stunned, to kill the transfigured humans and save the humans down in the station.
'...what if i did that?'
Domains were not that simple. But this... this should be doable, should it not?
So, that was the purpose of his little trip. He'd relax and train... and gather his thoughts about this place he was in.
The heroes pissed him off, but so did the Villains. Each and everyone he had met, seemed to be a pathetic piece of trash, putting importance on meaningless things such as money or respect. A scoff escaped him. It wasn't as though they earned their respect, they simply demanded it.
"Excuse me Sir, your ticket please?"
"..."
Jogo's eye twitched as he looked up. Some guy stood in front of him, a device in hand and waiting for him to give him a ticket.
But Jogo...was poor.
So, he had not bought a ticket.
His irritation spiked as he stared at the presumptuous man waiting for him to react. For a moment, he considered just lighting him ablaze. A bit of steam escaped his ears and head, but Jogo did not do anything.
The man just sighed, then turned around to the next passenger. Luckily for him, Jogo did not have the ability to read minds, because the man had just assumed him to be some poor homeless man.
And so, the trip ensued. Beyond a few pitying stares at the elderly mutant covered in strange clothes, no further interaction occured.
Soon enough, the train came to a halt. The outskirts of Tokyo, filled with lush forest, rivers and most importantly, Hot springs.
Jogo's mood lifted at the thought itself.
-
The sky had already turned from yellow to red as the night creeped in. Mitake was a place he remembered from his early curse days, but it was evident how much they had changed.
The once nearly pure rural area was a lot more modern. Houses, Residences and Streets now dotted the landscape, yet Nature still dominated. The buildings retained a traditional Japanese style, something Jogo appreciated. It was rare to see Humans attempt Harmony with Nature.
With slow steps, he simply kept walking along the road. He didn't really know where the Hot-springs were... but he'd surely find them. Sometime.
Until, he noticed something.
'Flames?'
A roaring fire, out in the woods. The fire was uneven. Hot, uncontrolled but it had no reason to burst out like that. Someone had created it.
His direction changed. The city had introduced him to Heroes and among them, a figure stood out.
Endeavor. Hellflame.
A Human whose Quirk allowed him potent Flame manipulation. Hailed as among the strongest in Japan.
That was the only man with a fire Quirk, who Jogo knew about.
'...meeting him here would be a strong coincidence.'
Whoever it was, he found himself curious. As pathetic as those flames were, was that due to the Quirk itself? Or due to its application?
He accelerated a bit. His figure flickered as he maneuvered through the forest at blinding speed, coming to an abrupt halt near the edge of a small clearing.
'...a child?'