Kyoto

That feeling of lethargy had been with me since before I was old enough to understand things.

When I wanted to crawl out of bed in the morning but my body refused to cooperate. When I reached for my chopsticks to eat the food Yuji had prepared. When I tried to put on my shoes in the entryway, only to find the laces coming undone. And so many other times.

But I had never considered that feeling "unnecessary" or "a nuisance."

Because this gift bestowed by God caused no trouble at all when I lived in a peaceful world. If I lived an ordinary life in that world, even with my inertia, there would be someone there to support me. And I was allowed to keep living like that, relying on them.

But the world I lived in now... although it should have been the very same land, the presence of curses had turned it into a place seething with murderous intent.

"It started when... right, when I found out Yuji had developed a second personality, and I ended up with an extra big brother."

Unlike my partner, my big brother was domineering and had a violent temper. He left me to my own devices, yet was quite strict, and almost never did anything gentle. Even so, I didn't dislike him. Sometimes, the way he refused to coddle me actually felt comfortable.

If I had to make a comparison, yes. Yuji was like a dog, and my big brother was like a cat.

When I got hurt, Yuji would constantly check on me, take care of me, and do everything he could to encourage me. But my big brother was different. He wouldn't ask how I was or pat my head... he would simply be beside me before I knew it, offering nothing but his warmth. He didn't treat me like something fragile, but made sarcastic remarks in his usual tone. That was the kind of person he was.

And when I was hurting after losing my friend, that was how he kept treating me.

I hadn't told Mr. Gojo or Yuji, but my big brother had once pulled me into a place called his Innate Domain and told me all sorts of stories. About how he had cut off three Jujutsu Sorcerers' heads while wreaking havoc in the Heian era; about how a nobleman's daughter had proposed to him, so he had revealed his true form to frighten her. I was forced to listen to plenty of stories that he found entertaining.

And as I listened, half asleep, my big brother casually asked me a question.

"Do you hate your Heavenly Restriction, brat?"

I blinked at the sudden question, then looked up and studied his face.

His face, identical to Yuji's, didn't look particularly serious. He was looking at me with the sort of expression someone might wear while wondering what to have for dinner.

"I hate it. I want to get rid of it."

After I honestly admitted how I felt, he merely gave me a glance and said, "Is that so?" Then he lay down on his throne piled with cattle skulls and said nothing more, as though he was thinking something over.

I watched his profile for a little while, then crouched beside his knees again... and passed the time dozing for the better part of an hour.

"...Hey, brat. Wake up."

That voice brought me back to consciousness, and I slowly raised my head. Opening my sleepy eyes, I saw my big brother's eyes, sharp as a crow's in the twilight. Those eyes, tinged with blood-red... an eerie, bloody hue, looked down at me as though they could see through everything in the world. Without looking away, I naturally met his gaze head-on with my round eyes.

Then his lips, pressed into a thin line, slowly curved, their corners twisting upward. It was an expression Yuji would never wear.

A signature "heh" escaped him. The king spoke:

"How about making a deal with me, brat?"

My big brother must have noticed. He had noticed what the kind people trying to comfort me, and ordinary humans, could never perceive... that emotion smoldering deep in my heart. That obsession.

That was precisely why we "monster brothers" joined hands.

I surfaced from the hazy depths of memory. It felt as though I had been flung from the clouds into open air, and I held my breath, forcing my brain to work. Struggling to lift my heavy eyelids, I cracked my eyes open and saw a fluffy white lump.

"..."

Blink, blink.

I blinked my eyes, which had yet to adjust to the light, clearing the mist from my vision until I could finally make out that the fluffy white hair belonged to Mr. Gojo. He had his head pillowed on my stomach as I lay there, enjoying a comfortable nap.

The teacher stole my usual job...

As I watched the scene in mild surprise, the fluffy lump stirred and slowly rose. His face had none of its usual blindfold, leaving his blue eyes fully exposed.

"Oh, huh... Haruka, you're awake?"

I sighed softly at the derelict teacher speaking in a sleep-fogged voice.

"If you're awake, sir, I'll go back to sleep."

I pulled the thin blanket back into place, intending to burrow under it again. Just then, a panicked voice called my name, and my warm covers were yanked away. What was that about? You were the one who wanted to sleep first.

"Wait, Haruka! Don't go to sleep! Don't crawl back under the covers!"

I resisted, clutching the blanket tightly and trying my hardest to burrow deeper into bed. Maybe I should just use the pillow as a lid for a complete defense. As I carried on this pointless struggle-

"Hey, Haruka."

With a ripping sound, the blanket was wrenched away.

There was only one person who, in a certain sense, showed me no mercy and spoke in that scolding tone. Yuji.

"...Mmgh."

"What do you mean, 'mmgh'? If you're awake, get moving. Come on, perk up."

As he pulled the blanket away, he slid his hands under my arms, trying to completely separate me from the covers as I curled up like a cat, refusing to surrender the warmth.

"...Blanketblanketblanketblanket."

"I know you're unusually attached to sleep, but this is a bit much, even for you."

He sounded exasperated, but, as expected of Yuji, he effortlessly lifted all fifty-two kilograms of me. Seeing me dangling in midair like a kitten, Mr. Gojo said:

"Wow, what a scary expression." Something along those lines. I'll remember this.

Meanwhile, Yuji said something like, "Hmm, let me see?" and leaned in to look at my face before laughing.

"This is only the beginning. When Haruka's groggy and in a bad mood, his glare is scarier than Sukuna's."

"You're kidding."

I felt as though my reputation was suffering serious damage without my knowledge, but I ignored it. Denying it would only make him divulge even more unnecessary information.

"More importantly, Haruka, hurry up and wake up properly. We have to go apologize to the people from Kyoto Jujutsu High you injured."

"Huh?"

"Wow, Haruka, you're scary."

The words "people from Kyoto Jujutsu High" registered, and I snapped fully awake. Come to think of it, what had my partner just said? Unless I'd misheard, I thought I'd caught something about "going to apologize."

"Why should I apologize to people like that? Yuji almost got killed, you know?"