Chapter 1 - Awakening

(This chapter has 2089 words)

Two high school students, Romero and Derubin, were strolling down the street, deeply engrossed in a conversation about anime. Without warning, as they were crossing the street, a colossal truck appeared out of nowhere, plunging their world into darkness.

-

As they blinked their eyes open, they found themselves in a dense forest, bathed in daylight. The forest was so thick that it was hard to see more than a few feet ahead.

Romero, bewildered, questioned their whereabouts, turning to where he thought Derubin was standing. However, instead of his friend, he was met with a face that was eerily familiar yet supposedly fictional. "Gojo?" Romero asked, taken aback. Simultaneously, Derubin exclaimed, "Sukuna?" as he too looked at his friend in disbelief.

They both glanced down at themselves, and Derubin cried out in shock, "I'm not black anymore!" Romero stared at him, deadpan, "Besides that obvious and somewhat disappointing revelation, Derubin, is that really you?"

Derubin looked up, meeting Romero's gaze, "Romero, is that you?" he asked, his voice filled with uncertainty. They both looked at each other for a moment before simultaneously saying, "Type shit!" and then proceeded to dap each other up.

"So, where exactly are we?" Derubin asked Romero, who could only respond with a shrug. As Derubin surveyed their surroundings, he could see an energy that was raw and pure. It wasn't just cursed energy; it was magical and something he could only describe as cosmic.

"Bro," Derubin said, gaining Romero's attention, "I think we have Gojo and Sukuna's powers too." A smile began to form on Derubin's face as Romero considered the possibility.

"I think you're right," Romero said, pressing his hand against a nearby tree. As an avid reader of Jujutsu Kaisen, Romero was well-versed in the source of cursed energy - negative human emotions. It seemed that controlling emotions in this body was instinctive, and Romero suspected that Derubin would have a similar experience.

Romero focused, pushing cursed energy into his hand, searching for Sukuna's innate cursed technique, Cleave. Cleave was one of Sukuna's most powerful techniques, allowing him to adjust the amount of cursed energy used to cut down even the toughest opponents with a single, powerful slash.

As Romero touched the tree, a violent slash, visible only to Romero and Derubin, cut through the tree, splitting it in half before it fell to the ground. A smirk appeared on Romero's face as he watched the tree fall.

Derubin couldn't help but notice the powerful cleave executed by Romero, which caused a sly grin to gradually form on his lips. The sight of such a formidable move left him both impressed and eager for a challenge.

In an attempt to conceal his growing excitement, Derubin casually suggested, "You know what, Mero? I'm not even going to lie. I think we should lowkey box. Just to see where we both stand."

Romero, never one to shy away from a challenge, responded with a devious smirk, "Bet."

However, upon witnessing Romero's smug expression, Derubin felt a sudden pang of irritation. His face momentarily contorted into an expression of disgust, but he quickly regained his composure, ensuring that Romero remained oblivious to his brief change in demeanor.

As the tension between the two continued to build, Romero decided to further provoke Derubin by mimicking Sukuna's iconic fighting stance. "Dachi," he declared, his eyes locked onto Derubin's.

Not one to be intimidated, Derubin confidently replied, "Fakkuyū, Dachi," before clenching his fist and raising it near his chin. Despite his limited knowledge of boxing stances, he attempted to recreate one from memory, determined to hold his ground against Romero's taunts.

In a swift and decisive move, Romero wasted no time in charging towards Derubin, his fist propelled forward with the intention of striking Derubin's face. Anticipating that Derubin would activate his Infinity ability to halt his attack, Romero was taken aback when his fist made contact with Derubin's face, sending him hurtling through the air.

Derubin's body crashed through several trees before he managed to regain control, deftly flipping his feet and landing gracefully on a nearby tree branch. Looking up, he found Romero standing before him, a smug smirk plastered across his face. The tattoos adorning Romero's skin seemed to contort and crease with the movement of his facial muscles, further emphasizing his expression of satisfaction.

Before Derubin could react, Romero launched another kick, sending him soaring through the sky once more. As he flew, Derubin shouted out, "クソダチ,息をさせてファック!" He managed to catch himself on a nearby tree, covering his mouth in surprise as he realized that Romero had understood his words.

Putting aside his momentary shock, Romero charged towards Derubin once more, his mind focused on retaliation. "Remember Mortal Kombat?" he murmured to himself, a sinister glint in his eye. "This is my get back."

In an instant, Romero appeared in front of Derubin, catching him off guard. "What the fu-" Derubin managed to utter before Romero seized his face and forcefully threw him backwards, determined to maintain his dominance in their fight.

As Derubin landed on a sturdy tree branch, he mentally prepared himself for the next onslaught, his focus finally locking onto Romero's movements. In a flash, Romero appeared before him, his fist extended in the form of a powerful punch aimed directly at Derubin's face. With lightning-fast reflexes, Derubin raised his arm to block the blow, but before he could fully brace himself, Romero's fist found its mark in Derubin's stomach.

"Fu-" Derubin grunted, but before he could even finish his exclamation, another fist sent him flying upward. Quickly regaining his bearings, Derubin caught himself on a nearby tree, only for the tree to be split in half by Romero's relentless assault.

Leaping from the splintered tree, Derubin began to sprint, nimbly jumping from branch to branch in an attempt to evade Romero's pursuit. "Where are you going, Dachi?" Romero taunted, effortlessly keeping pace with him.

"There's no way I'm going to let you hit me with that again," Derubin yelled out. Suddenly, he turned to face Romero, who had landed gracefully beside him, a powerful kick aimed squarely at Derubin's chest.

Struggling to block the attack, Derubin managed to dodge the subsequent punch, realizing that it was time to retaliate. Inspired by his favorite manhwa, Lookism, Derubin's fist began to glow with a black lightning that crackled ominously. With a fierce shout, he struck Romero, sending him careening through multiple trees, which splintered and shattered under the force of the impact.

Recovering mid-air, Romero landed on a nearby tree, clutching his jaw, which had been dislocated by the blow. Gritting his teeth in pain, he forcefully pushed it back into place before shouting, "Fuck! That really hurt!"

Now that Romero had a moment to think, he realized that Derubin must have learned how to use the Reverse Cursed Technique, given his Six Eyes and the ability to see the flow of energy. Romero knew that reverse cursed technique involved multiplying negative emotions or cursed energy with itself to generate positive energy, which could then be used to heal any damage sustained in battle.

"Oh, so we're using cheat codes now? Alright, bet!" Derubin shouted to Romero as he watched him heal from the previous attack. Eager to press his advantage, Derubin attempted to rush at Romero but inadvertently teleported behind him, momentarily taken aback by the unexpected turn of events.

However, he quickly seized the opportunity and locked his hands onto Romero's stomach, jumping backward and executing a powerful suplex slam. Derubin wasted no time in recovering, leaping to his feet and stomping his foot onto Romero's face with brutal force.

Romero, realizing the absurdity of the situation, combat rolled out of the way to avoid the second stomp, but Derubin reacted swiftly, kicking him away with such force that it was as if he were a soccer ball.

Romero managed to recover and land on a nearby tree, frantically spamming the Reverse Cursed Technique to heal himself. "Alright, bet." he said calmly, bringing his fingers down in a slashing motion, preparing to unleash a devastating attack.

Derubin, sensing the imminent danger, screamed out in desperation, "INFINITY, PLEASE TURN ON, YOU PIECE OF SHIT!" as he leaped out of the way to avoid Romero's dismantling technique.

Having had enough of Derubin's evasive maneuvers, Romero began spamming dismantle from afar, forcing Derubin to constantly dodge and weave to avoid being struck.

"YOU FUCKING SPAMMER!" Derubin yelled out in frustration as he attempted to teleport, but to no avail. "BRO, WHAT ARE THESE DACHI'S SETTINGS? HOW THE FUCK DO I EVEN USE RED OR BLUE?" he shouted, seeking cover behind a tree as he desperately tried to figure out how to use Gojo's body effectively.

Romero, clasping his hands together, finally paused in his relentless spamming of dismantle for a brief moment. "Fine, I'll tell you the controls. You should be able to feel your innate technique. Use that," he explained cryptically, leaving Derubin confused and frustrated.

"What the fuck does that even mean?" Derubin shouted, struggling to make sense of Romero's vague instructions. Without waiting for a response, Romero resumed his assault, rushing towards Derubin and spamming dismantle once again, laying waste to much of the surrounding forest.

"Stop dodging, and I'll stop spamming," Romero yelled, his voice laced with irritation as he continued his onslaught.

"Why should I believe you? You're a known liar!" Derubin retorted, barely managing to dodge the barrage of attacks.

"Fuck you mean?" Romero responded, feigning ignorance as he sighed in exasperation. "Fine, on God," he declared, attempting to reassure Derubin of his sincerity.

"You don't even believe in God! What the fuck are you talking about, you liar?" Derubin called out, his suspicions aroused by Romero's sudden change in demeanor. Just as the words left his mouth, a fence of dismantle slashes appeared, threatening to ensnare him in their deadly grasp.

Derubin, seeking refuge behind another tree, whispered to himself in frustration, "Fucking asshole, can't even try to even the playing field and instead resorts to spamming." Taking a deep breath, he tried to recall the controls for Gojo's body. "Alright, so if I remember correctly, blue sucks things in... pause... so if I just imagine it..."

Romero, growing impatient, destroyed the spot where Derubin had previously been hiding. Unable to locate him, he began using dismantle on the entire forest in an attempt to flush him out.

Despite the cacophony of destruction in the distance, Derubin tried to focus his thoughts, picturing Gojo using blue at maximum output. After a moment of intense concentration, he felt a surge of curse energy, and a smile spread across his face. "FUCK YES, I DID IT, YOU ASSHOLE!" he yelled, inadvertently revealing his location.

Hearing the commotion, Romero air-walked into the sky to locate Derubin and avoid whatever attack he had discovered. Suddenly, a massive sphere of blue curse energy materialized out of nowhere, obliterating the surrounding trees and hurtling towards Romero, its intense gravity threatening to pull him inside.

Instinctively, Romero summoned Agito to tank the attack for him, but the blue sphere sucked in the shikigami, leaving Romero no choice but to flee in order to avoid the attack. As the blue sphere exploded, the resulting shockwave sent both Romero and Agito hurtling backwards.

Romero watched in awe as the explosion decimated the surrounding forest, feeling only the distant shockwaves from the blast. As the dust settled, he spotted Agito falling from the sky, the shikigami's body battered and nearly broken. Romero approached the fallen spirit, bending down to examine its half-dead form.

"Thank you, Agito," Romero said, a smirk playing on his lips as he acknowledged the shikigami's sacrifice. With a final flicker of energy, Agito dispersed into a cloud of cursed energy, leaving Romero to contemplate his next move. "It seems I'll need more shikigami," he mused, scanning the area for any sign of Derubin.

Meanwhile, Derubin had managed to recover from the explosion, his ears still ringing from the deafening blast. He looked over towards Romero, his eyes wide with shock and confusion. "What the hell was that thing?" he asked, still trying to wrap his head around the sheer power of the attack.

Romero shrugged nonchalantly, a sly grin spreading across his face. "I just tried to use the 10 Shadows Technique, and it worked," he explained, his voice laced with a hint of amusement.

Just as the two combatants seemed poised to resume their battle, multiple figures emerged, interrupting their standoff.