Megumi already knew getting into the underworld and its business was going to be something he wouldn't be able to break out of easily. Especially if he were to stay in this occupation for too long.
That was why he was planning to get enough money to escape from the underworld, get a legal identification (somehow), and then get the hell out of there. If he had to move to a new country, so be it then.
'...But isn't this too quick?' He stared at the girl with pink mouse ears on the top of her head, along with human ears where they're supposed to be. 'She seems to be some influential person in the underworld. If those mercenaries and baristas reacted that way, it's obvious... What did I do to attract her attention this much?'
Megumi was pulled into the backroom, where the files for other commissions not listed directly in the tavern are placed. Behind those doors was also another room, being a fancy office, or rather,a meeting table they went to.
He was quite nervous now, but he wouldn't let it show on his face, keeping the same expression he had back during his Jujutsu College days.
Did he piss her off by killing Hanshi? No, that couldn't be possible, why would it be a commission in the first place.
Or was it because the commission he completed was extremely important, in some way or another?
Lin Yuhsia finally opened her mouth to speak, "I take it you don't know who I am?"
Megumi raised an eyebrow, "..No, I do not," then shook his head. "Didn't you say you were going to get straight to the point?"
"My apologies, but would it not be in our best interests to receive our names first?" Lin interlocked her fingers and sat straight, keeping a professional look. "It's only respectful that I start off first, no? My name is Lin Yuhsia."
"..My name is Zen'in, pleased to meet you, Lin," it took Megumi a bit of time to deliberate on a fake name, but he settled with this.
Lin closed her eyes with a slight smile, as if she knew that were an obvious lie.
Megumi didn't like that look, 'does she know I faked my name?' He tried his best to make himself not look like he was lying, hell, he didn't even feel any emotion when he spoke the false name. "Is something wrong?" The black haired man kept up his facade.
"Ah, no, it's nothing," Lin shook her head and crossed her legs. The woman went back to her 'natural' expression. "It's a pleasure to meet you too, Zen'in."
'She definitely knows,' Megumi was perturbed at this point, but still found it within him to keep an uncaring expression. "So... What is your purpose for bringing me here? Care to explain that now?"
"Indeed, after all, you did kill Hanshi," Lin replied with the same bluntless as the man's previous statement, "I mean it with no offense, but it's quite astounding that a stranger like you completed this commission, it was a difficult one that many strayed from."
"...And one of your baristas just gave it to me..? On the first day?" Megumi pointed to himself. He was really confused now, 'was it really that crazy?'
Lin stared at him silently, the same cool and composed expression she had ever since they entered the room, "...Excuse me? Was that your first commission?" But the way she narrowed her eyes was uncomfortable for the black haired man.
Megumi pondered, weighing his choices if he should answer that or not... 'On one hand, would it show that I'm inexperienced and can be easily manipulated? Or does it just show capabilities that could be exploited?' He couldn't underestimate this woman, seeing how experienced she was at detecting lies. 'Alright, I'll tell a very hidden lie.'
"Well, my first ever commission since I came to be in this world," Megumi spoke as vaguely as possible, hoping it would confuse her with him implying that it was his first ever since being born. Rather than him being thrown into this world for reasons unknown.
It worked.
'...He's not lying, so that's his first ever commission and he completed it? Did he receive special training? So was that how... No, no, but that would also mean he lacks experience, and Hanshi has been able to take down many experienced assassins...' Within a flash of a second, Lin composed all details that could possibly surround this man. 'Unless he's some prodigal genius who is very adept at combat and was born with a great talent for arts... Which explains his expensive clothes, perhaps he has some backing to him in Higashi? But what is he doing in Lungmen, staying in Higashi would be a far better place for him to train and gather experience, rather than Lungmen, or does whoever is backing or training him want him to gather more experience in other places?'
Megumi was wondering if he should be planning to escape this room, if things go south. 'Okay... So the door behind us is not that durable, I've assessed how durable it is, which can be broken with any of my Shikigami well suited for combat. But I also sensed five guards that appeared behind the door after we entered. Does she have some method of communication that can alert them? Is she planning to assassinate me because I'm too much of a danger? If I get into a fight with Lin and those five guards outside, I might not have an opportunity to escape... Which suggests I might have to use two options as a last resort if I want to get out... The second option costing my life.'
The two kept staring at each other in silence.
Lin Yuhsia decided to speak up, "Then I'd like to know, Zen'in, what is your purpose for setting foot in Lungmen? Or, more specifically, the Slums?"
"...No particular reason," Megumi felt some level of tension defusing after she decided to speak first. "Just the only place I could find."
'The only place he could find?' Lin was perplexed with that statement, 'did he leave Higashi alone then? A decision of his own volition or did something force him to leave?' Her theories about him having backing were fading.
"Though, the Slums... I guess it's because I don't have an ID?" Megumi shrugged.
'...He definitely lacks experience... Giving that away so easily. Aside from that, why does he not have an ID? If he moved from Higashi to Lungmen, he should have at least brought some records to legitimize himself...' Lin couldn't help but look past all of the bloody murder his aura screamed, and analyze his behaviors first. 'It's like I'm talking with a teenager who has just reached adulthood, it's jarring how his appearance contrasts with his mannerisms,' Lin's mouse ears twitched.
Lin took in a deep breath, closing her eyes and crossing her arms. She was going to cut straight to the chase, "tell me, do you wish to bring Lungmen or its Slums under any danger?"
Megumi blinked once, 'what...? Do I even need to lie about this?' He spoke up, "No? Why would I? I can't really do much against a city in the first place." Unless he summoned a certain Divine General, but it was Mahoraga that could cause the destruction, not him.
"...You're quite honest, hm?" Lin seemed to sport a very small amused look. 'The only lie I detected so far was him stating his name. Although, I wonder, why do you give off such a presence despite looking so inexperienced?' Her focus was still on the metaphorical dark mist that seemed to cling onto him.
Megumi wondered if that was a mistake, perhaps the manners his sister had taught him were starting to leak through. "I wouldn't say so?"
"Hah~," Lin let out a breath from her mouth, how is somebody like him interacting with the Lungmen's Underworld? "If you're being honest, then it would only be courteous for me to reciprocate it, don't you agree?"
"I guess so?" Megumi wondered what she was getting at. 'This woman doesn't come off to me as the Godfather- or rather... Godmother of Crime from those movies Gojo had me watch...'
"Then I'll have to thank you for getting rid of Hanshi, I'm sure you've already heard of the troubles he has caused for Lungmen?"
"Yes," Megumi blankly spoke. Honestly, he only took the commission because the guy was a total scumbag. If it had been anybody else, say, a random company owner who didn't have many wrongs, then he wouldn't even think of taking it.
Lin took a brief moment to reassess the man.
In that moment, she had come to the conclusion that she could still not fully trust the other person because of the bleeding apparition that clung onto him. Moreover, deep in his eyes, she could see just how empty they were, like staring into an abyss.
Even if Zen'in sounded honest, the feeling he gave off completely contradicted his words and tone.
Lin wouldn't call herself the greatest judge of people's character, but the sheer tiredness in the man's eyes was telling that something had happened to him. To leave him this broken and hollow was strange... 'But what drives him? What brings him forward?'
It was strange, to see what was practically a 'corpse' walking around, acting as any normal being would have. To have such a motivation and strength of will to push them forward despite having their mind shattered seemingly five times over was something Lin couldn't understand.
This Zen'in had nothing to lose, because he had already lost everything; a valid assumption that came to her once she had gotten a better look at his eyes. 'He's dangerous, very dangerous,' her eyes tensed. To describe it in words, he most likely had the mentality of a suicide bomber.
Megumi tilted his head, a bead of sweat forming on the back of his neck, wondering if he would have to resort to a fight. He thought things were starting to become better after finding out Lin actually advocated for the ridding of Hanshi. But when she stared deeply into his eyes, something seemed to have altered the atmosphere.
"...Hanshi's death was a benefit, as I said before, but you... Zen'in, I don't believe I can trust you," Lin spoke her ultimatum, keeping her gaze fixed within his hollow eyes.
"...May I ask why, then?" Megumi didn't know if this was going to blow up in his face or not.
Lin elaborated, "you have no records here, you are stuck in the slums accepting commissions from the Underworld, and you lack any sort of identification."
Those words felt like they were stabbing into him.
"So please, tell me, how can I be so sure you won't cause irreparable damage when you are at stake? This occupation you've found yourself dipping your feet in is ripe with those."
"You're giving me too much credit," Megumi shook his head, 'where was she even getting these assumptions?' It was sort of accurate, but the man was more concerned on where her basis for these were. "I'm not as powerful-."
"Are you aware of the presence you emit?" Lin cut him off, crossing her arms as she stood up. Before Megumi could react to her abrupt action, the mouse began once more, "you look like a bloodied corpse, any competent warrior can see right through you."
'...Damn it Sukuna,' Megumi bit the inside of his mouth.
"Your words are hard to believe. Please, tell me, what logical person could fully believe the words of someone who presents themselves as you have been?" Lin had experienced many people whose feelings completely betrayed their words throughout her entire line of business.
'Is this falling apart..?' Megumi had to focus and contemplate on his next answer. He needed to show that he wasn't a danger, not simply relying on the other resident's lie detecting skills. But could he actually do such a thing?
Megumi could try to sound as honest as best he could before, but his Cursed Energy would invalidate it severely, 'that's already a given.'
One thing Megumi was certain about, was that Lin cared a lot for Lungmen, and perhaps even the Slums. Either because she valued the power she possessed here, or for more personal reasons. 'She's a big shot in the Underworld, there's no way she cares about it for personal reasons...It's probably the first.'
But was it truly?
Megumi recalled how Lin said that Hanshi had been causing them problems for Lungmen, but not herself, was it a slip up or a manipulation tactic to throw him off?
Maybe he was overthinking this, and shouldn't view her as a perfect manipulator who had been pulling his strings along?
His choice was made, he was going to bet on the woman's supposed care for Lungmen, even if it was just a hunch with a' valid' logic at best, but not a 'sound' one in any way.
Hopefully it won't backfire.
***
Lini cared a lot for the Slums, hoping one day it would be the 'downtown' of Lungmen rather than what it was now. But would that even be possible? Her father was a very capable man, and yet it was still in the state it was right now.
Infected people composed the majority of those who reside in the Slums, people who are rejected from the denizens of this world and revoked of their rights because of it.
So it became a contradiction, how could the Slums ever advance to a higher status, how could welfare in this area increase when it is composed of the most hated people in the world?
For now, that didn't matter. Lin would focus on that matter once she succeeded her father in his position. The present was far more important right now.
From the very slight changes of Zen'in's features, Lin could tell he was in distress. 'How will you respond?'
"...I took the Hanshi commission because I didn't like the guy," Megumi spoke, leaning back as he crossed his arms.
"Hm?" Lin tilted her head, not saying anything further to give him the green light to continue.
"Posing as a tech company and using it as a front to steal is scummy, yeah, but I can't overlook the fact he was trafficking kids in the background," Megumi began. He hoped to god he wasn't rambling on about something Lin didn't care about, it would be digging himself into a different grave entirely.
He continued on, "and the file stated it was happening in the Slums mainly, correct?"
Lin nodded.
"Then I really couldn't look past that, can I? Especially since I also live around those parts..." Hopefully, not for long, but Megumi didn't include that; it would be unnecessary. "...So that's why I decided to take on the commission."
The pink haired mouse continued to stare at him in silence, a scrutinizing gaze.
'Crap... Did I blow it?' Megumi could feel his arms start to itch, as if it wanted him to bring them together. 'Calm down... Calm down... Wait for a response first...'
"...What you are saying is, you only undertook the commission because Hanshi's methods were unsavory in your eyes?" Lin reciprocated the message Megumi was trying to convey back to him.
"...Yes," this was as honest as Megumi could be, something he would have never thought he could be so sincere about. But his life and security was on the line, and lies were ineffective against this crazily good-at-detecting-lies mouse woman.
Lin really couldn't understand this person well. A past shrouded in mystery, one she probably wouldn't be able to explore efficiently because he came from Higashi. A country bearing some cultural similarities to Lungmen, but overall is quite a distance away.
Having to investigate an entire country just for one man, a country where she is not as experienced as she is in Lungmen would be one word; tedious.
She had to trust his honesty, because he was practically wringing out from his body when he spoke. 'Still... I'd expect him to lie more?' Lin couldn't peer through what was going through that man's mind, and his visceral aura was not helping.
He was quite honest so far, but there was one thing he still lied about, something Lin wanted to find out; "...Tell me your actual name." Lin stared at him with an aloof expression, speaking her final deal.
"Excuse me?" Megumi wanted to know why she was asking his name of all things now.
He had lied about it when he first entered, that was a given, but to have to be exposed in front of his face was a bit...
"Tell me your actual name, and I'll consider trusting your words completely," it served two purposes, one, finding his name would make investigating his identity in Higashi (if it even existed) much easier.
The second reason was: if he lied again, then that meant Lin couldn't trust him, basically a test. 'Will you answer this, Zen'in?'
Megumi placed a hand under his chin, leaning to the right of the luxurious chair he was sitting on. 'Should I do it? If I did, then that meant...' That he would have to abandon his identity of Fushiguro Megumi if it were leaked to the LGD or the Slums. 'But I can always falsify my name, right? Leave Lungmen and find some other place...'
Abandoning his name, Megumi didn't particularly like his name, as his father most likely didn't care for his gender, and by extension his offspring; seeing how Megumi was actually born as a male instead of female. 'Still...' Blessing, it was a blessing to have a name in the first place, and he had grown attached to it. Albeit, somewhat reluctantly.
There were many complications that would come from revealing his actual name, so all Megumi could do was take a deep breath and risk having to abandon it entirely. "Fushiguro Megumi, that's my name."
Lin paused for a moment, letting it register in her mind... "Is that not a woman's name?"
Megumi watched as the faintest smirk appeared on the woman's lips, 'you've got to be kidding me...' Did Lin find it humorous so much that she would break her stoic character and nearly smile? '...Is it that bad?' Megumi started to dislike his name even more, 'forget what I said earlier, this name is trash.'
The mouse began pondering the name once more, 'I've taken many language courses... 'Megumi' means blessing, but is a woman's name, but judging from his reaction, this Megumi fellow also does not seem to like it?' Tilting her head to the side, Lin could only make assumptions of his family situation, 'did his parents name him like that because they did not care for his gender? Or did they wish for him to be a female?'
Based upon the man's displeased expression, there was one thing that she could confirm, 'the name is a form of negative influence to him.'
"That doesn't matter," Megumi guarded against her with a scowl.
"Is that truly so?" Lin closed her eyes and moved a hand to cover her mouth, hiding the smile, "Fushiguro Megumi then, despite your unique circumstances, I'll trust you; for now that is."
Megumi let out a grumble, turning his head to the side as he reassessed the exit door, 'those five guards are still there...'
"Curious about those five people?" Lin spoke out, as if reading his thoughts.
Megumi didn't reply, turning back to her with a deadpan look.
"Ah, well, they aren't my people to begin with," The pink haired woman crossed her arms. 'Hmm... it seems 'they're' making their move now, the question is how they were able to gain access to this place undisturbed?'
The Ten Shadows user paused, completely immobile from the shock and realization.
"What do you mean? They're not your people?" Megumi's expression shifted to exasperation, trying to keep a level tone so he didn't alert those five people. 'If they're not Lin's... Then... Who the hell are they?!'
"Oh? They're not yours either?" Honestly, Lin already had a large suspicion that they couldn't possibly be Megumi's. After all, they trailed her far before she entered the Mercenary's Tavern, when Megumi was already there. 'Hm, I thought they had stopped stalking after I gave a glance at their position.'
"...I'm not in the position to hire anybody," Megumi turned to the door again, feeling a far more ominous premonition. "Won't they hear us? If they're trained assassins after you then they must have good hearing, no?" He shifted into a more serious position, preparing for a battle.
In regards to his first statement, Lin wanted to point out his expensive Higashin outfit, but shifted to his second one instead. "The room is soundproof, and besides, they are most likely after you too; seeing how you killed Hanshi," Lin noted out rather boredly. "Let me ask you again, can I trust you?"
Megumi turned to her one more time, seeing the same expression on her face. 'She doesn't seem to bear any ill will towards me... And it seems that both of us are getting targeted by this assassin group, so I have no choice but to...' The man heaved a sigh. "Fine," he spoke, standing up and staring at the door, "but can I trust you?"
"Oh? Aren't you being too coy?" Lin extended her right hand to the side, spawning pink auric glass that formed into a sword.
"I'm helping you deal with your mess," Megumi moved to the right while Lin took the left.
"My mess? Did I not explain that they're most likely after you too?" Lin entered her typical battle stance, side-eyeing the man. 'He doesn't have his dagger and chain weapon, will he fight with his fists? His demeanor has changed too, from the usual restrained aptitude from when we first entered the room to a far more cold one.'
"Forget it, do you know who they are?" Megumi reached into his haori, not wanting her to see him use his shadow powers, pulling out The Inverted Spear of Heaven. 'If they're also after me for killing Hanshi, do they have some connection to him?'
"A theory, but they're most likely the Blood Hounds," Lin watched him pull out the dagger, slightly surprised how she didn't know he had a weapon on him the entire time.
She had a keen eye for hidden weapons, so color her surprised when the man was able to keep it completely hidden from her the entire meeting, "after all, the Blood Hounds had some connection to Hanshi, negotiations I would say."
"Alright, I get it now," Megumi narrowed his eyes, unwrapping the cloth and placing it into his haori; but actually placed it in his spatial shadow. "I'm sure you already know their positions?"
"Of course," Lin leaned against the wall to the left of the door, while Megumi leaned on the right. "So, will you do the courtesy of opening it?"
Megumi let out a huff, before forming a dog hand sign, the small size and maneuverability of his dagger letting him do so.
"Divine Dogs."
He remembered how Sukuna had summoned Divine Dogs without a stable form, getting down on one knee as he recalled so. 'If I can get the same feeling right, then I can produce expendable Shikigamis that won't be lost if they die, but I also won't be able to control them on my whims... They'll also become weaker and won't act independently... But I can compensate with my higher Cursed Energy.'
Lin watched in silence, getting the shadows gathered around him into three wolf-like heads that spawned from the ground, groveling. 'Shadow-type arts? Or is this a variation of summon arts?' She couldn't help but be fascinated by the foreign feeling that was emitting from the man... Until a wave of pure malevolence and malice erupted from him, freezing her in place.
The three silhouettes shadows of Divine Dog shot forward, bursting through the door and tearing it apart, increasing their size as they flooded the next room.
Shouts were heard as the clanging of blades rang through, the growling of wolves tearing apart the assassins resounded.
Two of them had managed to break through the wolves, leaving the other three assassins bleeding and attempting to recover from the pain.
Lin Yuhsia blinked, feeling the influence of Megumi's aura subsiding when she kept her focus steeled, 'what... Was that?' Cold sweat ran down her neck as she stared at the stoic man. 'He's... No, that doesn't matter right now, I'll question him later.'
Lin made her move, spinning graciously behind Megumi as the two assassins who had made it through the wolf-like shadows charged Megumi, swinging her blade as she did so.
Their heads immediately fell to the floor, blood flooding from their severed stumps.
The other three assassins had finished destroying the wolves with their weapons, before drawing out their crossbows hidden beneath their trench coats and aiming them.
Only for Megumi to burst forward at high speeds, becoming a blur.
Lin took the opportunity to send out an arts slice, before realizing that it might hit her current ally, "Megumi-" But her worries were undeeded, as he ducked and let it pass by and bursted open the assassins' chest in a shattering of glass. 'Nevermind, then.'
While they were staggered, Megumi placed his right hand on the ground, lowering his form as he did a sweeping kick and knocking them all off their balance.
With a huff, he reverse gripped his dagger and used his already built up momentum to run the dagger through in a wide arc, slicing cleanly through all of their heads.
Blood splattered everywhere, staining the file room that they were in. The black haired man huffed, standing up and straightening his posture.
"...You could have done it more cleanly," Lin noted out, trying her best to ignore the presence of a mountain of corpses standing in front of her- 'wait, no, did it disappear? What?' The mouse scrutinized him with a more confused look, not feeling the extreme presence he gave off earlier.
"Something wrong with that?" Megumi turned to her, already having suppressed his Cursed Energy. 'It's a whiplash to do it so fast, but I don't want to make her too alerted to Sukuna's influence.'
"Forget it," Lin's suspicions of the man only rose, 'it's obvious he's combat capable, since he was able to shatter Hanshi's elite bodyguard's arts barrier with a mere dagger... No, wait, that dagger looks-'
She couldn't get a better sense of the weapon, as it was wrapped in a black cloth and placed into his haori.
'...Okay... So his arts are shadow based, and possibly even involves summoning too, quite useful,' Lin also wondered if he could use it to give off an intimidating presence, maybe attributing that to the weird way he provoked people's senses with his mere existence. 'Quite a wide arsenal... Can it even be considered arts?' Her ears twitched as she tried to piece him together, like a puzzle.
Lin relented, not finding anything useful and turned her sights to the corpses, 'they most likely used stealth arts to sneak through, the baristas aren't that well trained after all.'
"I've seen them lingering around the Slums," Megumi knelt down, not caring if his shoes were getting stained with blood.
"These people definitely look like they belong to the Blood Hounds," Lin dispelled her sword, crossing her arms as she stared at the bodies from a distance. She didn't want to be covered in their blood. "You've seen them before, what were they like?"
"Extorting money and having kids transport their drugs, yeah, I've seen it," Megumi slightly turned back to the woman, seeing her expression darkening at those words. 'That got a reaction, huh?'
Lin already knew such activities were happening in the Slums, especially when the Blood Hounds decided to set their sights on Lungmen. "I already knew," She tried her best to calm down, but hearing it in person was far more grating.
Her sights lingered on the man, the way he methodically analyzed the scene and held at least some sense of morality from what the woman could tell. It might just be the person she was looking for...
That was it, Lin decided to make her choice.
"...Fushiguro-"
"Just call me Megumi," he interrupted her, standing back up to stare at her.
"...Megumi then," slightly peeved at his interruption, Lin simply let it slide, "would you like to work for me?"
"Huh?" Megumi blinked, looking at her surprised, before multiple thoughts rushed into his brain, 'she wants to hire me? Is it because of the skills I displayed? Or...'
"We have a mutual interest," Lin's words broke Megumi off from his thoughts, "the Blood Hounds want us both gone, me for the control over Lungmen's Underworld, and you for your meddling."
Megumi listened to her, mulling over her words, 'if I get involved with her, I most likely won't be able to leave the Underworld after I get enough money to ditch the slums...'
"Money and protection from the LGD are what I can provide, while also getting rid of those Sircusan thorn in our sides," Lin explained further, bearing a confident expression. 'I do not favor those who attempt to ruin Lungmen, and he dislikes those who are extreme in their criminal endeavors, our interests align completely-'
"No."
"I'm glad-," Lin lightly smiled in satisfaction, but immediately then immediately froze when she registered the words, "-what?"
"No thank you," Megumi turned back, walking to the exit door, "I'm not interested."
"Could you tell me why?" Lin crossed her arms again, leaning her body to the right. "The benefits far outweigh the costs, especially since we have the same enemies."
"They do not outweigh the costs, not for me," Megumi spoke out, placing his hand on the door and twisting the knob. "It was nice working with you for a bit, I guess." That was the only compliment he could give to her.
"...If you change your mind, I'm open to more negotiations," Lin huffed out, watching as the man opened the door and closed it after exiting. '...Did he actually leave? Just like that?'
Staring at the corpses still on the floor, Lin pinched the bridge of her nose, knowing she had to call in a clean-up crew to get rid of the mess. 'At the very least, he's not a danger... Yet.'
Out of some consideration, the mouse would at least call to Swire to tell them that the black haired man was nothing to worry about. 'I already have it handled after all.'
Taking one more glance at where Megumi had left, Lin turned around to make a phone call, first to clean up the mess, and then the next to the LGD, ' ugh, forget about that man for now, I'll need to focus on putting the Blood Hounds in their place.'
A low shadow cast over her eyes.
***
Megumi breathed a hard sigh of relief, slumping against the wall of an abandoned building. 'Damn, that was tiring.'
His thoughts came back to the meeting with Lin Yuhsia, and the deal she proposed to him, 'not a chance... Not a chance in hell.' Megumi creased his brows as he stood back up, letting the adrenaline fade from his veins.
The man didn't want to constrain himself to the criminal Underworld, accepting a deal like that would completely ruin his chances of living the way he wished to. 'It'd just be becoming a sorcerer all over again, but a thousand times worse...'
Megumi needed to secure enough money to get an ID legally instated, but the method to legally instate it wouldn't necessarily have to be legal itself... 'I'm sure there's somebody out there who can get the job done if paid enough... And then I can live freely.'
His thoughts lingered back to his sister-
'No, forget it, it'll only demotivate you,' gritting his teeth, a sense of paranoia and stress overtook him. 'If I linger on the past too much, I'll probably be consumed by too many negative emotions.'
Megumi needed to get stronger, he needed to become an unstoppable force of nature if he wanted to get what he wished, Sukuna of all things taught him that.
'If I want to protect the people I-,' Megumi blinked, and stopped his steps. 'A-ah... Right, I have nobody...'
He started to contemplate why he was even fighting to live in this world, nobody from his previous life were here, and he'd never ever see them again.
'Damn it, damn it!' He gripped his forehead, feeling as if his brain had been hit by a truck. 'What's even the purpose?!'
Did there even have to be a purpose? To live just to live? Wasn't that what Yuji had preached during his final showdown with Sukuna?
'...Do it for Yuji, because he wouldn't want to see you like this...' Breaking away from his depressive thoughts, Megumi steeled himself. 'I need to train... To get stronger, and hopefully find a way to get back home.'
If there even was a method to go back home, but this was basically a modern magical world, so maybe there was a one in a million chance for some method of world transportation?
'That mouse woman shot some sort of glass sword slash, and that dragon lady had a sword that could beam me from a distance... The world is large, there has to be some method of parallel traveling or some sort, right?' It was just coping, but Megumi needed any sort of confirmation or thoughts to not immediately surrender to the confines of his situation.
'Just train for now... And have existential thoughts later-,' Megumi froze, feeling a dreadful feeling claw on his back.
'Something's wrong...'
The sounds of something falling could be heard, a gigantic shadow loomed over him, before the man jolted and looked above him.
An entire half section of a building was falling on him.
"Shit!" He needed to act fast, making his decision to attempt to summon a Shikigami that can protect against it.
Megumi's thoughts were interrupted as he could see a white haired grinning Lupo jumping out of the window of the fallen building, laughing as her sights met with his.
"Found ya'!" The woman brandished two white katanas, with... Protractors attached to their hilt?
It didn't matter, but the woman was falling towards him at high speeds, and Megumi needed to act fast to combat the two dangers present.
"Great Serpent!"
***
A/N: Gojo Fic got me a bit occupied.