In the Academy as Sukuna

"Even the greatest make mistakes, but those mistakes get deeply engraved into their hearts, affecting their lives at every turn."

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(POV: Ryomen Sukuna)

The sun was low in the horizon, painting the sky in a pretty red.

This red sky, however, seemed to be frighteningly symbolic, as if prophesizing the ceaseless bloodshed which was about to take place.

I was fidgeting with my fingers, clearly impatient. I was standing in the City 30, the place where the demons would attack, as far as the information from the Hunter Association told.

There was a huge line-up behind me. All the powerhouses of the human world were here. It was clear... this was a war.

I could feel many gazes on me, but two of them were the most intense, as if they were boring into my back. Eva and Ryogaku.

Their reasons for staring at me were different, but the ferocity of their eyes on me was more than noticeable.

I, however, was completely unbothered by it... my mind was at a totally different place.

This was the first time in my life that I felt so... frustrated.

I couldn't protect my mother, and I couldn't even be near her when she needs me. It just pisses me off!

I unintentionally grit my teeth, my fists clenching beside me.

I took a deep breath, calming myself down, but my heart kept racing.

I wanted to show these demons their place.

I, however, knew perfectly that I had no hate for demons... they did what they had to do. What I hated was my own powerlessness.

As much as it hurts me to say this... I was throwing a tantrum. The anger I held for demons was simply a way for me to vent my emotions... and I knew this better than anyone.

Even the best men fail, but that doesn't mean that failure doesn't hurt.

No matter how much I tried to console myself. No matter how much I told myself that going into an outburst like a child wouldn't do anything good, I couldn't help myself from coming here, from feeling the blood of the demons rain onto my hands that dared to strike at me and my family.

The tension in the air seemed to rise as a cloud of dust rose near the horizon... the demons were coming.

I could here agitated whispers behind me, drowning in the sound of my own blood boiling inside my body.

My face was stoic, almost eerily so. I felt such overwhelming emotions inside, but I was focused... focused on eradicating these demons at any cost.

I took a step forward, the light thud echoing in the battlefield as the first line of demons became visible, their aura flaring up much more than the last invasion.

Eva, standing quite far behind me, mouthed the words: "Be safe," her eyes fixed on me, glinting with both concern and confidence.

She held the belief that no matter what falls upon me... I would come out victorious.

I glanced back at Eva, her worried face sending something through my heart.

I felt... happy. Happy because there was someone rooting for me, someone I could rely on even at such a time.

Even with the emotions whirring inside me, I wasn't dumb enough to forget who I loved.

I failed to protect my mother, I won't let the same happen with Eva.

A small smile formed on my face, one that seemed almost... sad.

I turned back to the incoming demons, the smile immediately fading, replaced by a focused, composed look as I shot forward, the ground under me cracking, making a few people behind me stumble.

I could feel the intrigued eyes of Ren and Liam on me, staring at me with full focus.

I had already told the S+ Class that I was going to start this war... and after some convincing and showcases, they accepted. Though, it wasn't easy.

Who's Liam, you ask?

He was the person I fought in the Tournament quite a while ago, the one with the heterochromatic eyes.

I realized... I was getting distracted.

I shot through the ranks of the demons before they could even notice, running at the highest speed I could muster.

My speed made a few demons stumble, leaving a cloud of sand behind me.

I collided with a few demons on my way, either stomping on them, injuring them, or making them fly away due to the force of the hit.

Uncannily, however, I felt... nothing. It was as if, in course of time, I had gone numb to my feelings. I didn't feel excited like usual, nor did I feel fear.

The anger, though, was still fresh in my mind.

I ran through the ranks, a few injuries appearing on my body. Some of the stronger demons noticed my quickly moving presence, trying to attack me as I ran, though only a few succeeded.

I casted Dismantles on demons I thought were attacking me to make sure I sustained as few injuries as possible.

The injuries were quickly healed using reverse cursed techniques, I didn't intend to take any risks.

Once I believed that I was sufficiently far, I stopped. Noticing this, the demons around me immediately shot towards where I stood.

Their eyes were hungry, almost like animals, their mouths wide open. Their teeth were unnatural, some were too sharp, some were too many, a string of saliva connecting them.

On the other side of the battlefield, my allies noticed me stopping, which was their cue to get ready.

""Prepare!"" Two voices echoed in the battlefield simultaneously, one male and one female. These two were Eleanor and Garon.

Usually, they fought like old buddies, but right now, they both were serious, their expressions stoic as a drop of cold sweat ran down their foreheads.

I felt more than a dozen demons approaching me at unimaginable speeds.

Time seemed to slow down, my movements graceful as I raised my hands. They came together in front of my chest, my expression blank as I stared at an incoming demon, her lips curled up in a huge grin, her teeth visible.

I opened my mouth, taking in a deep breath as I chanted in a low voice:

"Domain Expansion: Malevolent Shrine"

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(POV: Aiden Arceid)

The sun was low in the horizon, painting the sky in a pretty red.

This red sky, however, seemed to be frighteningly symbolic, as if prophesizing the ceaseless bloodshed which was about to take place.

I was fidgeting with my fingers, clearly impatient. The damn sects were too forceful, much more than I had anticipated, and sent a whole another invasion to take down humans faster.

I gazed out of my window at the sky, my fingers tapping the armrest of my chair in agitation.

I didn't want to step in to balance the war out, but if the demons take over humans already, only humans would suffer, while demons would prosper.

The humans hadn't matured... Sukuna, Ren, even Ryogaku... they were all ones with potential rivalling the strongest demons, but they needed time.

People like Aegis and Nero needed time to get stronger too. In brief, it was not a good situation for humans.

Suddenly, my eyes widened, my irises turning a bright blue, the light being reflected from the window.

My hands went to my eyes as I shut them tightly, creases forming on my forehead as I clutched my head.

"The hell?" I muttered, leaning back on my chair, my eyes still shut tightly. It was a very familiar feeling, one which I felt in only one case.

Why had my ability activated?

My special ability, one which only I knew about, and also the one I had relied on to get this far.

Suddenly, my heart skipped a beat... I felt a ripple in the river of Fate... a ripple I was all too familiar with.

I opened my eyes with a gasp, my irises turning back to their normal color as my tense muscles finally relaxed.

My mind, however, was running faster than ever... my heart racing in my chest.

He had achieved UI... or he will, at least.

I put a hand on my face, taking deep breaths to calm myself down. It took me a few minutes, but I was back to normal, my emotional turmoil quickly gone, a result of the centuries of experience.

I got up from my seat slowly, walking to the window, tapping it slowly, the sharp sound echoing in the room.

It was a habit I had built over time. I tapped a thing whenever I was thinking deeply about something.

This would balance out the odds temporarily... but it was bad. It was bad because it was...

"A waste," I muttered, the air escaping my lungs condensing on the window, making a small part of it foggy. "What a waste of talent."

Achieving UI... at such a time. Without enough knowledge... It will only lead to his downfall.

I pulled out my phone from my pocket, dialing a person I was all too familiar with.

I put the phone next to my ear, the line ringing, my eyes glinting in anticipation.

The sound of the call being picked up emanated from the phone. I brought it closer to my ear. "Garu."

I had called Garu, after all, I would need someone which only he can provide me.

"Yes, sir?" He replied, his voice steady, yet weird, as if he was trying to act polite but failing.

I paid no heed to such things for now, since this was much more important than mere manners.

"Garu, I need you to bring me Yaen immediately," I commanded, my voice authoritative.

Garu paused for a second, I could almost feel his eyes widening in surprise. Realizing he was frozen, he quickly came back to his senses. "R-right away, sir!"

"Good," I said without delay, cutting the call, putting the phone back into my pocket.

I glanced out of the window one final time, before walking towards the door, pushing it open.

My gaze was sharp as I walked out of the Hunter Association building, the people making way for me.

I picked up a glass on the way, I'll need it later.

A few even took a video of me... they thought that I had finally decided to personally act.

I stood on the street, the deserted street where the only people were the pitiful homeless beggars, half-dead, on the side of the road.

The wind around me converged towards me, mana bending to my will as I used a complex wind spell.

My feet raised from the ground, the wind picking me up from the ground, making me rise in the air slowly.

This was different from the basic flying spell, since it does not cause fast winds and damage the surroundings, but rather, manipulates mana in intricate ways to increase both the efficiency and effectivity of flight while also preventing damage to the surroundings.

I shot out from the spot with a sonic boom, flying with my left hand kept neatly in my pocket, while my right hand was to my side, holding the glass.

I was headed towards City 30, or more precisely, to City 30 via the hills where 'Garu's workshop,' as he calls it, is.

In seemingly no time, I arrived at the hills, slowing myself down as I landed on the ground gracefully. Garu was ready to welcome me, holding a child, who looked fine physically, but pitiful mentally.

He was being held quite close to Garu by his arm, Garu's hand resting on his shoulder.

I brought the glass in front of the boy, who shrunk back and away from Garu in fear.

I smiled warmly, filling the glass with water which formed from thin air, using my water magic. The boy's eyes widened at the display, excited to finally see magic not aimed at hurting him at all.

I could still see hesitation in his body language, but my smile seemed to soothe him a bit as he took a step towards me.

I knelt down, making eye contact with him. Without him noticing, I dropped a small piece of my nail in the water, which was almost invisible in the glass.

I pushed the glass to his hand, which he grabbed hesitantly, staring at me confused.

"You must be thirsty," I said, my voice warm... almost soothing. "Drink it."

The combination of my smile and voice seemed to make him let his guard down. He eagerly drank the water, and with it, ingested my nail.

It was almost pitiful how eager he was to drink a mere glass of water... Garu really doesn't treat them well, does he?

Suddenly, after drinking the water, he froze, his pupils dilating.

It was done.

"How annoying," I muttered, getting up, dusting the soil away from my pants as I looked at the boy.

This was the consequences of achieving UI, putting one's soul inside another person's body gets just too difficult.

Once one has achieved UI, their soul would become a part of their body, which would also mean that putting your soul in another person's body requires them to ingest a part of you.

I guided the small segment of my soul inside his body, which slowly devoured his own soul, leaving a fragment of it smaller than my own, which allowed me to control his body, though only temporarily.

This was only possible because he didn't know about the soul, so he couldn't kick mine out. However, it was quite taxing to myself, since controlling a different body than your own requires a lot of both practice and skill.

I grabbed the boy by the collar, giving Garu a final glance before flying away.

My movements were sluggish, my thoughts overwhelmed by controlling two bodies at once.

It would be easy to manipulate this boy into doing what I wanted, but I didn't have time.

I increased my speed, a sonic boom resounding in the air as I shot towards City 30.

He'll get UI soon, and I would love to see him get his fun with a little rampage, but before he could kill anyone I have my eyes on...

My eyes were sharp, my expression stoic as my tight grip on the boy's collar didn't waver.

...I have to seal him.