A few days later.
Maki cracked her knuckles, looking between Nobara and the healing deer. "Alright, Nobara. Since we have a respawn point, I'm going a bit harder than 'easy'." She smirked dangerously.
Nobara paled, stepping behind the Round Deer for safety. "Wait, we defined 'easy' differently!"
Megumi sighed, dragging a hand down his face.
"OK guys continue training. There's something I need to do." he said flash, stepping away he wasn't sure if the timeline had changed or not, and he wasn't willing to risk it. he looked at the time on his phone and it said 11:45 Five minutes before Junpei's mother was supposed to die because of Mahito Leaving one of Sukuna's fingers so curse spirit will kill her and he wasn't willing to leave it up to chance that he wouldn't.
The moment Aiden vanished, Maki glanced at the empty spot. "What was that about?" She shook her head, turning back to Nobara who was still hiding behind the Round Deer. "Focus. Deer won't save you from everything."
Round Deer snorted indignantly, antlers glowing warningly.
Meanwhile, Aiden moved like lightning through the streets, his mind racing.
He blurred through the city streets, the wind whipping past his face as he pushed his speed to the limit. The coordinates for Junpei's house were burned into his memory. He had less than five minutes to intercept the cursed spirit Mahito had planted.
Checking his phone as he ran: **11:47 PM.**
Three minutes. The residential streets were quiet, unsuspecting.
Aiden's lungs burned, but he didn't slow down. The quiet streets blurred past him—innocent families tucked away in their homes, completely unaware of the curse object Mahito had planted.
**11:48 PM.**
He turned onto the residential block, scanning the houses. His heart pounded. The curse would be moving soon.
"Come on, come on..."
His eyes locked onto a modest two-story house. The curtains were drawn. A strong cursed energy signature pulsed inside—sukuna's finger the curse object Mahito had left behind, slowly corrupting the environment.
And then he felt it. Something moving. A cursed spirit, crawling along the side of the house like an insect.
**11:49 PM.**
One minute.
The cursed spirit shifted, preparing to enter the house. Aiden's shadow flickered—the Ten Shadows technique ready.
One minute.
Inside the house, a woman was probably sleeping, completely unaware that a curse was moments away from shattering her life forever.
The cursed spirit raised its claw, ready to breach the window.
Aiden's breathing was controlled now, speed maintained.
The window shattered explosively as Aiden's Star Rage-enhanced fist burst through. The cursed spirit screeched, disintegrating instantly from the sudden impact of pure physical energy mixed with cursed energy suppression.
Glass showered everywhere, but the Sukuna's finger Mahito had planted lay exposed on the floor, still pulsing with malevolent energy. Aiden stepped through the broken window, his eyes on the clock.
**11:50 PM.**
Exactly on time. The curse spirit was dead. Junpei's mother was alive.
"Just saving you from a cursed spirit." he said before realizing she couldn't see it because she was a normal person He Reached into his shadow and pulled out some Special grasses that will allow her to see them. " Put these on you will see what I'm talking about."
The woman looked at the grass skeptically, clearly not understanding but too scared to refuse. "Grass? For what—" She paused, looking at the strange dark energy pulsing on the floor. "There's something wrong with that object, isn't there?" She whispered, eyes flickering to the Sukuna finger.
"Put them on." Aiden repeated firmly.
she took them and saw the dead cursed spirit on the floor, and the dark energy coming from sukuna's finger.She gasped, hands flying to her mouth. "Oh my god... what IS that thing?! That energy... it's... it's coming from that finger!" She backed away, eyes wide with terror. "That's a human finger? But... it's pulsing with... with that darkness..."
"The dead thing is a cursed spirit. The finger is a cursed object."
Her face paled. "A cursed... spirit? This whole time? That thing was going to kill me, wasn't it?" She looked at the disintegrated remains near the window, then back at Aiden. "You... you stopped it? But why? How did you know?" Her eyes darted around, confused and terrified.
"I just had a feeling since I promised to take care of your son while he's attending at our school. I've also decided to make sure nothing would happen to you so he could focus on his studies and not be depressed. That's why I sensed the object here Knowing it would draw a cursed spirits, I handled it."
Tears welled up in her eyes as she processed his words. "You... you came here to protect me? For Junpei's sake?" She covered her mouth, shoulders shaking. "I thought I'd be safe here, that the school would keep him safe... but you came to protect *me*? I don't even know you properly..."
"Just keep those glasses on, and if you see another curse spirit call me immediately do not make eye contact with it do not steer at it and most importantly do not alert anyone else that it's near because It will attack you if you see it you have to pretend like it's not there."
She nodded frantically, adjusting the glasses. "Pretend... pretend it's not there." She repeated, trying to memorize his instructions. Her hands were still shaking as she looked at the Sukuna finger pulsing on the floor. "And what about this... thing? The finger?" She pointed at it with a trembling hand. "It's still... it's still doing something."
"I'm taking it with me." He reached down, grabbing the Sukuna finger. The cursed energy instantly flared against his skin, hot and malevolent, trying to infect him, but his own overpowering aura crushed it instantly. He shoved it deep into his pocket.
The woman stared at him with wide, terrified eyes. "That thing... is dangerous. Please be careful."
"I will be." He said, going back to the school looking over the training ground everyone was still training
Megumi was sparring with Junpei, the two boys exchanging quick blows while Nobara practiced her hammer technique against dummies. Maki was shouting critiques from the sidelines, arms crossed.
Aiden landed silently on the grass, dusting his hands off. The Sukuna finger hummed in his pocket, dormant for now.
Junpei noticed him first, grinning. "Aiden!"
"Hi guys how is training going?"
Nobara wiped sweat from her forehead, huffing with annoyance. "Maki is being brutal today." She gestured at Maki, who was still yelling from the sidelines.
Maki nodded. "She's got potential but her technique is sloppy. Needs more discipline."
Junpei, still sparring with Megumi, paused to catch his breath.
Megumi took the opportunity to launch a flurry of attacks, Junpei barely blocking them in time. The two boys were evenly matched, their moves fluid and precise. Aiden watched with interest, noting how Junpei had improved since their last training session.
Junpei finally managed to land a solid kick on Megumi's ribs, sending the Zen heir stumbling back a few steps. Both boys were panting heavily, sweat dripping down their faces.
"Not bad," Megumi admitted, wiping blood from the corner of his mouth. "Your reaction time has improved."
Nobara smirked, leaning on her hammer.
"See? I told you he wasn't hopeless!" Nobara called out, earning a glare from Maki. "With the right motivation, even a slacker can learn."
Junpei grinned at Aiden, clearly proud of himself. "You should've seen me, Aiden! I actually hit Megumi! I never do that!"
Aiden smiled. "Good job, Junpei."
Megumi grunted, adjusting his stance. "Don't get cocky, Junpei. It was one hit."
Maki rolled her eyes. "Both of you. Sparring is about precision, not just landing hits." She turned her gaze to Aiden, noting something off. "You're late. What took you so long?"
Nobara paused, curious too.
"just found this." He said, taking out one of Sukuna's fingers
Silence fell over the training ground.
Megumi's eyes narrowed immediately, his hand moving toward his sword. Nobara's jaw dropped. Maki took a defensive stance, clearly recognizing the cursed object for what it was. Junpei just looked confused.
"Aiden... that's..." Maki started, voice tight with tension.
"That's one of Sukuna's fingers,"
"Yep I'm on my way to turn into the higher-ups."
"Wait, you're just... carrying it?" Nobara's voice was shrill. "That thing is literally cursed energy incarnate!"
Megumi stepped closer, analyzing the finger with a critical eye. "How did you acquire it? Location? Were there any traces of a curse?"
"I got it from a secluded location. I feel like it's Cursed energy and spirits going towards it so I took care of them and found this."
Megumi nodded, seeming to process this information. "Smart move, neutralizing the spirits first. But you're right, we need to hand it over immediately. The higher-ups will know what to do with it."
As the night deepened, Aiden lay in his dorm room bed, exhausted from the day's events. The Sukuna finger was safely handed over to the higher-ups, and he had fulfilled his duty. He drifted off to sleep quickly.