Trial of Bruises
Momo didn't know what the big deal was. She knew the words, of course. Trial of Bruises, she'd heard them whisper around the compound, heard cousins joke nervously about it, and heard elders speak of it with that careful, approving tone they used when something was unpleasant but necessary.
When Dad told her it was happening later in the morning he went straight to bed. . . She didn't enjoy the screaming she heard from Mom and Dad's bedroom either while they argued but they hadn't spilled any of the details.
But since she woke up the air felt wrong this morning. Heavy and pressurized,
like the compound itself was holding its breath.
At least her mother had woken them early and insisted Momo accompany her brother, no discussion allowed. So Momo had dragged herself out of bed and used the opportunity to grab a few things she didn't get to give her brother last night.
First was Kuroki's posters from the other day, and the chocolate Ren had practically begged her to pass along out of admiration for her brother.
Now she sat on the couch, knees bouncing, fingers worrying at the edge of a cushion, "So, Any idea what they're actually gonna make you do?"
Kuroki stood near the mirror, adjusting his collar with almost ritual precision. He just gave a small shrugs.
"Dad and Mom said they'd be waiting in the dojo, But that's it. I've heard about the trials, sure, but nobody ever talks about what actually happens. Which is, y'know. Not ominous at all," Momo rambled on feeling her nerves.
She was happy at the very least she got to see her brother do it before she did. She'd at least have an idea, how to do it, if she even chose to- Honestly she didn't mind coasting by.
Kuroki hummed quietly as he inhaled, the air around him rippled faintly as cursed energy stirred, subtle but present, like heat off asphalt.
He struggles but he spoke, "It is said, that the trial relates to the innate abilities common to our clan. Manipulation of the environment through cursed energy. Most often in the form of-"
Momo raised an eyebrow, and Kuroki stopped realizing he was rambling again. His jaw tightened and he squeezed his eyes shut, took a sharp breath, and again, "Maybe trying to find out how I can use our innate talent."
He straightened his posture, and glanced at his hair with a glare realizing how bad it looked, "I will use this opportunity to earn further prestige, and honor."
Momo snorted and stood, floating the comb out of his hand with her technique, "Wow, listen to you, you sound like an elder. A really stiff and boooring onw."
She teased as she inspected his hair, she wets the comb before she leaned closer, squinting as she got to work, "You're hopeless at this, by the way. Here see? You've gotta angle it like this."
She worked in silence for a moment, then spoke again, more casually, "Hey, Kuro?"
He glanced at her in the mirror and made a small hum. She hesitated, then pushed on, "I've been meaning to ask. . .why do you keep staring at that old dusty Sukuna poster? Guy's been dead for a thousand years, so he's not coming back. It's not like you're ever gonna get the chance to fight him like you always say."
Something shifted and Kuroki's cursed energy folded inward, tight and compressed. His hands curled slowly at his sides, "Fight him? No, it's more then that."
He swallowed, "No, you don't understand, I don't want to beat him.
Momo's hand slowed in his hair and she gives her brother a chance to speak, this time he seemed scared rather then unable to say the words as he whispers, "I want to be him."
Her fingers faltered and for a second she felt a flicker of childhood memory surface, her mother's voice telling her to behave, or Sukuna will come back and eat you.
Momo grimaced and dampened the comb, forcing herself to keep going, "Why? You're already better than some dumb old King of Curses. Especially if you learn to stop being so mean to everyone, It's not good, y'know. Wanting to be like a monster."
Kuroki inhaled, and when he spoke again, his words came smoother than she'd ever heard them. He must have thought about this alot, "No, No, that's not it. It's not strength alone."
His fingers twitched as he went on and she kept adjusting his look, "It's the poems. The way he spoke, the intelligence and the fact that his name became language. People say 'curse you' and mean Sukuna. People argue about him, and measure themselves against him. His existence reshaped the world like a living calamity, rather than be shaped by it."
His voice began to fray as he went on, "Who would win? Him or Sukuna? It doesn't even matter, he's the question and the standard."
He stopped abruptly, teeth grinding as he struggled to rein himself back in, "I want to be eloquent, Strong. Fearsome. The pinnacle of all of it. He ate as he pleased, killed threats as he pleased and lived by-bh a stature- by a stature- that could not be rivaled."
His reflection stared back at him, his hands squeezing tighter and his hazel eyes taking a new rage to them, "And here I am, struggling to speak like a normal human instead of a retard."
"Kuro," Momo's voice was sharp now as she slowed down in combing his hair. Her blue eyes staring at her brother, with all the love she had for him.
"You're not that, I don't care what Grandpa calls you, you're cool as you are. You've got things you like, and things you're good at, and talking's just your weakness," She nudged him with her hip.
"You love cooking, remember? And, okay, you're terrible with people, but that's fine. We'll find you something else you're great at besides sparring and stuff," Kuroki exhaled heavily, the tension draining from his shoulders as he straightened.
"S-society can only function-"
His fist slammed into the mirror and he lets lose a loud, "Fuck!"
Glass exploded outward, fragments clattering to the floor. Momo jumped back with a yelp as Kuroki stands up glaring at the shattered reflection of the mirror staring back at him. A spiderweb of cracks all around his face giving him a broken look, "Duty is duty, but Strength will set me free."
His breath shook as he sturggled on, "When I learn RCT, when I get stronger, when my vow matures I won't be just Kuroki anymore. A negative and a negative make a postive."
He turned and left, and Momo stared after him, then shook herself and followed, "That's it! After this, you're taking a break from training. I'm dragging you back to the store and we're learning how to cook together."
Some of the tension faded from him and he threw her a look, he seemed more human right now than usual.
She didn't know what to say after that. Only that she could feel it, the resentment, the self-hatred, the pressure coiling tighter with every step.
At the dojo doors, Kuroki stopped and he glanced back once, voice low, "I, I don't want to be evil, I just want to live in a world where my instincts are correct."
~~~~~
The dojo was dead quiet, when they entered. Momo felt it the moment she and Kuroki stepped inside.
Eyes slid over her almost immediately, dismissing her while they lingered on her brother with open interest. This was the fancy Dojo, that nobody was allowed to go in besides events like these or guest visits.
They bowed together as custom demanded, but Momo straightened quickly and moved to her parents, while Kuroki remained alone in the middle of the room. Nervously fidgeting as she approached her parents.
She felt, her Twin and Apathy slowly gave way to discomfort as the room was packed with so many of the Clans higher-ups.
Momo, slowed when she saw her mom clutched dad's arm tightly, her head bowed, while Daniel forced his expression into something rigid and unreadable.
At the center of the elders, Clan Head Shigemori rose slowly, a faint smile resting on his face as he shrugged out of his robes and folded them aside, "Today, we conduct the Trial of Bruises."
A servant from the branch house hurried forward at his gesture, presenting a pair of shallow bowls of sake with both hands. Shigemori took one carefully and lifted it in a brief, mocking toast, and drank. Then he turned to Kuroki and ordered, "Drink."
Kuroki stepped forward without hesitation, took the bowl, and threw it back. For a heartbeat, nothing happened besides a grimace and a faint, "Egh."
It was a noise of distaste for alcohol. At first it earned a few chuckles, and Momo couldn't help but smile at her brother's first drink-
Until he grabbed his throat and staggered, fingers clawing at his neck as his breath hitched violently, soon dropping to one knee as a harsh, wet sound tore from his chest as he began violently coughing.
Momo felt her heart lurch at the sight, watching her brother shake as something burned through him.
The elders watching all leaned forward, interest sharpening, some of them laughing and pointing while Grandpa just hummed casually popping a candy into his mouth.
All the while Shigemori observed with polite curiosity, "Our world, is not defined by curses alone. It is shaped by those who hide behind power, alliances, civility, and hide the dagger for when the moment is perfect. Do not worry, the worst of the posion will soon fade. It is not lethal, just painful, and serves as a lesson. Paranoia, is the tool of the old. Once it hits the stomach it will break down rapidly, even if it does hurt."
Kuroki coughed violently, eyes watering, body trembling as he fought for air. Shigemori continued as if delivering a lecture, "Betrayal comes most often from the familiar. Even the strong fall, not to strength, but to cunning. When you ask for mercy, you will receive it, here and here alone. Although, I doubt one as strong as you would ask. I'll give you a moment to recover."
With a flick of his hand, the other elders went to work and cursed seals snapped into place around the arena, barriers shimmering into existence and sealing the dojo off from the world beyond.
Rage flared hot in Momo's chest, but Kuroki moved before she could speak. He slapped his hands together sharply, fingers forming a tight triangle as cursed energy surged outward, "Air Blast!"
The room bursts into muttering, as the compressed air screamed across the floor, but Shigemori stepped aside effortlessly, catching Kuroki by the wrist as he lunged in to follow up.
The counter came instantly, in the form of a fist slamming into Kuroki's ribs with a deep, hollow sound that stole what little breath Kuro had left, "Curious."
Momo felt Kuroki's soul burning with shame and humiliation. A deep and burning betrayal that bleed through their link with one another.
Shigemori mused, striking again in the same spot, this time with some more enchantment, "You've refined or mutated your technique, into atmospheric manipulation gases rather than solids like your sister or mother. How curious!"
Another blow landed, then another. Each one was precise, repetitive, deliberate and the Elder did it just to keep her brother in pain and unable to breathe, "Momo, how long has your brother practiced this variation?"
Momo flinched as she watched Kuroki fold under the strikes, breath tearing in shallow gasps. Before she could answer, Grandpa Naoto barked sharply at the Clan Head, "Leave the girl out of it. If you start picking on her, I'll fight your ass right after this gegegege."
Shigemori sighed and shrugged, then drove his fist in again. This time, something cracked, but Momo felt something else, almost like a cold hand brushing across her spine.
"He made another vow," She muttered to her dad whose mask cracked as he grimaced.
Through shaking hands and gritted teeth, Kuroki forced his technique again, "Air Blast!"
This one hit harder and stronger, the compressed pressure slamming into Shigemori's face hard enough to make him raise an arm to protect his eyes.
He released Kuroki, surprise flickering briefly across his expression, only for a kick to shatter Kuroki's nose a heartbeat later, "I heard that Momo. What vow did you make Brat?"
Kuroki's body skidded across the floor in a spray of blood, coming to rest in a twisted heap. He lay still for a moment too long, then staggered upright, wheezing, cursed energy flickering unevenly as he tried to steady himself as he mutters, "Announcing my attack, makes it stronger."
"Oh? Brave, suppose there's no drawbacks on such a vow. You're a brave brat, so I suppose we can skip the instructional portion since you know you innate technique so well," Shigemori said mildly, advancing again slowly walking towards him.
"You are familiar with all-or-nothing games, yes," The Clan Head mused, as Kuroki spat blood and nodded weakly.
"W-When you win or die," Kuro stutters, struggling to stay standing. Momo felt him using curse energy to reinforce as much of his body as he possibly could. Shifting it between different areas, trying to determine what needed defending the most.
She wonders if anyone else could see her brothers Cursed Energy like she could but it was a backseat thought to the horror she felt right now.
"Precisely," The Head of the Clan coos before darting in and unleashing a flurry of blows that hit all across Kuroki's body within half seconds of each strike.
The beating that followed was relentless. Kuroki tried to defend himself, but every movement lagged behind Shigemori's timing, every counter anticipated and punished.
Broken nose, bruised flesh, even a few smacks being Kuroki's only reward as five punches all landed onto the boys body within a second and a half. Blood splatters across the mats.
Momo watched her brother's form degrade, watched his balance fail, and felt something hollow out in her chest. She whispered to her dad, "What grade is the Clan Head?"
Daniel answered in a flat voice, "Shigemori was Semi-Grade One, perhaps full Grade one."
It felt weird seeing her brother usually so dominant and capable of fighting reduced to- this. But the truth was, her brother for all his skill and talent was just a student barely into his training.
Shigemori spoke as he struck, "2001, 2004, 2006 and 2008, and so many more years ruined by horrific deeds humans have done to us! As Clan Head, I've been exposed to every horrific detail of what the outside world has done to our clan!"
The combo, is horrific to watch, ongoing. Kuroki's curse energy rapidly depleting as he struggles to hold himself up, "Rapes. Murders. Cannibalism! So much worse has been done to our clan, this happens when humans believe themselves unaccountable, of the darkness inside man! I grew up with those proud men and woman, and those are just the worst cases and not the countless who die in petty feuds!"
The lesson ended with a brutal dropkick that slammed Kuroki into the floor hard enough to crater it. Kuroki lay there quivering, one eye swollen shut, blood pooling beneath him, his shoulder hanging uselessly at his side.
Momo froze, when she realized her brother was crying. Its the first time she's ever see him cry, especially from pain
Kuroki's eyes watered and begged coughing out, "S-Stop. Please stop."
When he begged for it to stop, his voice was broken and wet with blood, yet Shigemori did not slow. He did not acknowledge him at all.
"He said stop!" Momo screamed, the words tearing out of her before she could stop herself.
The dojo froze, and Shigemori turned slowly, his gaze ice-cold as he asked, "Are you questioning my judgment child?"
Grandpa Naoto, stood fully his cursed energy flowed. His face dangerously serious as he stared at Shigemori, clearly expecting Shigemori to try something.
Before anyone could answer, Kuroki moved, reinforcing his jaw with cursed energy, he bit down hard on Shigemori's forearm. At first it barely dented the skin, until Kuroki enhanced his bite with a Air-blast straight to his own jaw.
His teeth began tearing through flesh as the elder shouted in shock. Blood sprayed across the floor, and Kuroki spat the chunk of meat out and forced one last technique through burning lungs, blasting compressed air mixed with blood and tissue into Shigemori's face once more blinding the old man.
The moment bought him only a second, because the moment he landed he crumbled from the pain. He collapsed, and Shigemori wiped his eyes, staring down at the broken, sobbing boy with something like pride.
Momo felt- Horrid. She had never seen her brother cry in all her life with him. It hurt, hurt her deeper then anything else this proud figure in her life was a bloodied crying mess on the floor and all she could do was sob.
For a second, her dad blinks glancing down at her daughter and muttering, "Your output is, 120 percent. Calm down, I'm- I'm struggling to hun."
Momo can't even speak, as they both turn back and watch the Clan Head place his foot on Kuroki's throat, choking him slowly, "Kuroki. . . You drew my blood today"
Daniel surged forward only to be dragged back by Aoi. At last, Shigemori stepped away and declared, "The trial is complete. I am proud of you boy."
Kuroki laid there, twitching, body broken, one eye bloodied and his nose broken. His breaths rough and quivering, as his hands shook as some of the old men watching just snort and elbow one another odds are discussing some inside joke.
Momo ran. She hit the floor beside her brother, wrapping him tightly in her arms, "Kuro! Kuro!"
She didn't know what else to say. Momo turned to the Clan Head to glare, as her Mom and Dad quickly reached their son and hugged him tightly.
For the first time in her life Momo felt something corrosive and unfamiliar burning in her chest. For the first time in her life, she felt hate. Kuroki coughed weakly, eyes unfocused, and whispered, "W-Which life. . . is this?"
Shigemori snorted softly, his gaze drifting idly as though discussing something mundane, "The living world, uou know, Kuroki, your sister will make a fine marriage candidate one day, especially if you continue to distinguish yourself like this."
His eyes flicked briefly toward Momo before returning to Kuroki, "If my grandson learns to control his temper, perhaps an inter-clan marriage would be, advantageous. Bit of an age difference there."
The words cut off mid-thought, as Kuroki's eyes lifted and the dazed cleared.
There was no confusion in them, no fear, and the pain disregarded. Only a raw, exposed fury layered with humiliation so naked it made even Shigemori hesitate for a fraction of a second. For the briefest moment, Shigemori felt it crawl across his skin.
Then he smiled and began stroking his beard as he chuckled "My, my, you really do care for your sister, don't you?"
He leaned closer, voice almost fond, "Those eyes. . . how monstrous you look, more curse than boy right now."
Daniel finally snapped. He stepped forward, anger cutting through his restraint as he stood up and glared at the Clan Head, "Leave him alone, you've had your fun."
Shigemori waved him off with a lazy shrug. Naoto, finished talking with the other elders and shuffled over. Shigemori sighs, "I guess you're right don't worry, regardless don't be to burned over this Kuroki. What you're feeling right now, the shame, the attachment, the anger, many will tell you those are signs of humanity."
He paused deliberately ignoring Kuro's dad like an insect as he goes on, "They are not, they are weaknesses. Corrosion that must be burned away for the sake of our bloodline having a strong and calm leader."
He straightened, himself as he dawned his robes once more, "You'll thank me for this one day."
Shigemori chuckled quietly as he walked away, leaving Kuroki where he knelt, breathing hard, eyes lowered once more, something vital and fragile retreating deeper inside him leaving behind just those monsterous eyes
AN: bit shorter because new years celebration, but happy new year!
Kuroki did not speak for a week. He lay in his hospital bed, quiet as a mouse, staring at the same point on the wall no matter the hour. Most nights, Momo simply sat beside him and watched television, the low hum filling the space between them.
The shows he liked most were cooking shows, Hell's Kitchen especially. The first time she put it on, Kuroki's very soul had sparked up with nostalgia and fondness as much as it was smothered.
Momo had been surprised by that. He tried to hide it, but she caught the way his eyes followed every dish and the soft smile he had when Gordon Ramsey screamed at a contestant.
She leaned against the side of his bed in the clan's nurse ward, half-listening to the shouting on screen, when the sliding door opened. Grandpa Naoto shuffled in, grinning as always, "Ah! Kuroki, Momo! How are my cute grandchildren doing?"
Momo stared at him, disgust still coiled tight in her chest as she shrugs, "Fine, What are you doing here?"
Naoto laughed, waving a hand as he walked in, "I miss the says you called me Nono. . .I didn't realize I needed a license to visit my own grandchildren, gegege."
He glanced between them, carrying a red box in his hand, "Your mother said you've both been moody since the trial. I thought we should talk."
Kuroki's eyes tracked him silently as Naoto set a box down on his lap, then grunted and lowered himself onto the chair beside the bed. Kuro's hazel gaze drifted back to the television, but Momo poked the box with a finger, "What's that?"
"Premium sushi, from one of the best places! Best part about being a Sorcerer is you're rich. I asked for that. . . ah, California roll you like, Kuroki, the fried one your Mother told me you destroyed the first time you ran into," Kuroki stirred. His good hand opened the box with practiced ease, and he perked up just enough to begin eating.
Momo didn't steal any this time not after everything she'd seen but Kuroki placed a roll in front of her anyway and continued chewing.
She sighed, turning it over slowly between her fingers, "So you're trying to bribe us into forgetting about that?"
Naoto snorted, eyes returning to the television, "Never. Bad experiences are important for the young, especially Sorcerer's like you two. Kuroki dishes them out often enough, why shouldn't he taste them too?"
Momo winced. "Yeah, but he always stopped when the spar ended. Shigemori didn't. He just kept going-"
"Indeed," Naoto cut in calmly. Momo reeled back at the intersection.
She normally would just dismiss whatever grandpa said but this time she felt her rage swell up and prepared to shout at him only for Naoto to go on, "It went too far. It was meant to. Do you know how modern militaries handle informational risk, girl?"
She shrugged and popped the sushi into her mouth, bottling her emotions for now. Naoto sighed, ruffling her hair, "They compartmentalize. Need-to-know only. Because very few people, true monsters at that can withstand torture without breaking."
Momo swallowed and glared at him, "So that's your excuse for beating kids?"
Naoto pinched her cheek gently, "You're preparing to enter Jujutsu Society as a whole. There are things your mother never wanted you to hear, but I suppose it's time. I'll tell you a story."
Kuroki didn't look at him, but Momo froze when she saw the longing in her grandfather's eyes. Naoto rubbed his nose and began, "Your grandmother was a strong woman. My partner on the front lines, and she taught me that even someone as ugly as I was still deserved love."
His voice softened, then cracked, "We loved each other enough to have six children. Only two of them remain to this day."
Kuroki's gaze finally shifted from the screen, dull but attentive. Naoto continued, words measured, "Clans exist for a reason. Even if they monopolize power and forge children into weapons, it's because this is a predator-prey arms race."
"Curses are smart, they observe and in many cases remember fragments of past incarcerations. They hunt sorcerers without protection, even those who hide across the seas act as beacons in desolate lands Drawn to cursed energy like moths to flame."
"What does that have to do with Grandma?" Momo asked quietly her anger simmering down, into almost a dull Apathy.
Kuroki tried to act like he was ignoring his grandpa but he was listenIng. Naoto closed his eyes, "She was captured by a curse. An intelligent one, it was a curse born from dementia."
Kuroki's hand clenched the sheets, and Naoto's voice wavered, "It tortured her. Ate her memories when her will to live weakened, and the corner told me that if she had just held on a little bit longer, if she had more- experience with such horrid pain we'd have arrived in time. I did not have the heart to put your mother through it, nor did I have the heart to oppose Shigemori's desire for you to be cultivated in this fashion."
"Your aunts went looking for her. Only your mother and her sister survived, because they were sent to notify the clan. When we arrived, my wife and children were gone," Momo's own hate died down, and she felt Kuroki's get snuffed in a breath.
"This is our world. If curses were mindless storms, it would be simpler. But they think, and the negative emotions we generate are both our shield and their fuel."
Kuroki stared, emotions choking his chest. When he opened his mouth to speak, both Momo and Naoto stifled their response and waited patiently, "I-I hate him, I hate Shigemori. I want him d-dead."
Naoto nodded, with a sigh, his finger tapping his large nose, "Hate, fear, love. The strongest emotions amplify cursed energy In his twisted way, Shigemori is nurturing your potential."
His eyes dart to Momo and poke her cheek, "Even you, at some point reached one hundred and twenty percent output just by watching, and Kuroki's own rage and memory of the event increased his output. . . Even with that stupid vow on him."
Momo then, speaks, as she mutters, "Dad always told me he married into the clan, because it's was safer. I- I just don't get it."
"You're young, but you must know the clan system exists for mutual protection. Because the only match we have for a curse is the lineage we leave behind! Shared knowledge, and stability, alongside techniques passed down so future generations can recognize what killed your grandmother, it's a necessity," Kuroki's rage screamed for a second and Momo flinched when her Grandpa stopped speaking.
It was like an all consuming flame for a few seconds before it slowly faded down, back into his normal apathy. All traces of the melancholy he'd been feeling all week fading.
"Y-yet it creates monsters, and curses born from abuse, insinuational abuse, isolation," Kuroki, spat out shuffling and wincing as his wounds irritated him.
Naoto sighed, "Stability and tragedy, hand in hand. A necessary evil in a long war, we kill our own humanity so the world may live. Tell me Kuroki what if the curses won in Japan hmm? You think the rest of the world could do anything when they barely have any sorcerers! No, you stupid brat. Only curse energy can excorise a cursed spirit. If Sakuna, came back in this day and age even a Nuke may not put the man down, for the sole sake he is more cursed spirit then man! Only Japanese Sorcerers protect the world from utter destruction and our suffering is the price for seven billion!"
Momo processed it all in silence. Kuroki's fingers tightened against the sheets, "I h-hate this."
"The council exists to prevent absolute control and stem the worst of it in Nishimiya clan. Theirs still abuse, but thats just the human condition, because without clans, techniques like the Six Eyes or tool manipulation wouldn't go on. Hate us, or try to change us. Just remember, we're a product of human nature, just like you."
Kuroki winced and threw the box aside. Momo jumped up, but Naoto caught her shoulder, "Let him go. One day, he'll thank us."
"I don't think he will," Momo said, and for the first time Momo, his cute and harmless granddaughter slapped his hand to the side to his own silent shock and ran off to join her brother.
Naoto remained alone in the hospital room, the laughter of cooking shows echoing faintly as the old man sat with his thoughts, wondering, as he eyed the hospital bed.
He just sighs and shudders thinking about himself in that hospital bed all alone, before he quickly shuffles out the room. He shakes his head and mutters, "Ol, Shigemori, I pray you do not still carry hate in your heart for that boy because she chose me over you."
~~~~
Kuroki stood alone in the gym, hammering his fists into the punching bag with terrifying force. Each strike landed with a wet crack as his knuckles split again, the bag jerking violently on its chain.
The post groaned under the strain, metal shrieking faintly with every impact, and Kuroki's eyes stayed locked on the bag, his breath came sharp and uneven, rage bleeding into every movement.
"Air Blast," The next punch detonated. Pressurized air screamed outward, tearing the bag clean off its hook and sending it slamming across the floor in a tumbling blur of canvas and chains.
The echoes hadn't even settled when Momo slowed her broom mid-flight, cursed energy sputtering as fatigue finally caught up to her. She had been training in the other half of the gym, to keep herself latched to her broom.
She hovered the broom to a stop and glanced at him, "Kuroki. . .can I ask what binding vow you made when you were fighting Shigemori?"
Kuroki exhaled and dropped to the floor, landing hard on his side as pain flared through his ribs.
He clutched his chest, teeth grinding as he fought for breath, cursed energy colliding uselessly inside him like waves crashing into stone. Momo wasn't sure what he was trying to do but it was clearly frustrating him, "It's. . stronger for me than it would be for you, b-because talking is hard for me. The wording was, if I announce my attack, the output i-is stronger."
Momo nodded slowly, inhaled, and made the same vow without hesitation. The shift was subtle but unmistakable, cursed energy tightening around her like a drawn string. Kuroki stiffened, eyes flicking toward her, "I-is that?"
"Yeah, that's how I could always tell when you made one, you dork. The conditions are optional, so it's a little boost ain't it with no drawbacks," She mused pondering why these vows were so feared.
Kuroki stared at her, then at the broom as she resumed practice. He watched in silence for a long moment, studying the way her cursed energy flowed.
Kuroki's cursed energy was forceful and hungered in a way, she always knew and he had described hers as precised and controlled. Ying and Yang twins, her dad called them affectionately.
When she lands, she groan taking a moment to let herself rest from riding her broom until Kuroki said, C-can you aim an Air Blast at the wall? I-I want to see if our attacks interfere or mesh."
"Sure," She said with a shrug walking over and getting into position. Pulling the broom back into her hands and grounding herself.
Next to her, Kuroki turned toward the same wall and drew his cursed energy inward, compressing it until the air around him felt heavy and sharp. The room seemed to tighten.
Momo swung the broom upward, "Wind Scythe!"
The cursed energy roared free in a jagged gust. The wind cut past her like blades, nearly knocking her off balance as her control wavere, At the same moment, Kuroki shouted, "Air Blast!"
Her scythe attack was abit stronger now with the vow, not much but it was noticeable she realized as it roars to the reinforced wall designed for such attacks from Cadets in the clan.
She watched and both twins blink in surprise, as their attack didn't collide, they latched on.
The two currents synchronized, their cursed energy recognizing something familiar and snapping together like interlocking teeth. It was something beautiful to watch.
The air screamed as the combined blast folded in on itself, density multiplying until it became a single, roaring wave of compressed force that made both their ears pop and was beyond anything either had ever produced.
For a split second Kuroki stared, smiling in glee as he finally felt powerful even as his favored Sakuna poster was ripped off the wall by the twins combined might. But, soon Kuroki realized something.
Kuroki threw himself into Momo just as the wave struck. The wall didn't crack, it disintegrated, wood and concrete exploding outward as the shockwave tore through it and kept going cracking the outer facility wall behind it.
The backlash hurled both siblings across the floor, splinters and debris filling the air, and a jagged chunk of wood slammed into Momo's arm. She screamed as blood welled instantly.
The winds died as abruptly as they'd formed, leaving the gym in ruin. Kuroki groaned, his back embedded with a few smaller splinters.
The doors slammed open and a clan guard rushed in, immediately positioning himself between the children and the destroyed wall, barking, "What happened?"
Momo grit her teeth through the pain, "We. . . Combined our innate technique attacks to see what would happen. It was stronger than we realized."
The guard checked Kuroki first, hands moving quickly across the boys body, "You're clear. Reinforcement saved you from most of the impalement, go see the nurse."
He turned to Momo next, inspecting the embedded wood and nodding grimly, and tying his belt around the girls upper arm, "You'll scar, but it missed anything vital."
The room went cold.
Shigemori stood at the entrance alongside Naoto and a few other adults, their presence suffocating as cursed energy pressed down on the space.
A blade hovered lazily beside the Clan Head as his gaze swept the destruction, waiting for a foe to jump out the shadows as he barks, "Explain."
The guard bowed deeply, "The twins were experimenting, and their techniques combined into a stronger effect than anticipated. I recommend they be moved to the Grade Five to Three Gym for future testing."
Naoto rushed forward to support Momo, but her eyes stayed locked on Shigemori. She felt the Clan Head's curiosity coil tighter and tighter as he stepped closer to Kuroki, studying him like an blade then a person, "I've never seen twins combine their innate techniques, I wonder what else the two of you might combine."
The tone was wrong. She couldn't describe it but something about it gave her goosebumps.
Momo felt Kuroki's fear spike, sharp and overwhelming, just before Naoto dragged her away in a blur too fast to follow. By the time she reached the hospital wing, the fear had curdled, twisting into something darker, heavier.
Hate