Ten Shadows in the Heian Era

A/N: If you're the type to listen to music while reading, I recommend going to your spotify or yt or whatever and getting the song 'Can't take my eyes off you' prepared for when Narauko's door is opened. It's literally the perfect song for him. Like, if he had a theme song, this'd be it, the lyrics are just so perfect I wanna scream lol.

///

Ashiya Dōman hums pleasantly to himself as he walks through the corridors of the flying fortress, idly impressed that he cannot even feel the fluctuations of the flying Shikigami's wingbeats.

Impressed he may be, surprised he is not. It is Tengen-sama after all. Going above and beyond what seems conventionally possible should be expected of the immortal Sorcerer.

It was still weird to wake up this morning and be however high in the sky though. He is the kind of man who likes to go for a walk in the morning, and if he was any more tired then he might have fallen off of the balcony.

Alas, all was fine, and he had a nice and relaxing morning, followed by a brief spot of training, because it would be best to keep himself sharp with the upcoming event.

Which brings him to the afternoon, where he has decided that he wanted to visit the Special Grade among them, Narauko.

Truthfully, he's been wanting to meet the man ever since he first heard about the Black Butterfly Technique.

Dōman is a firm believer that the strong have a duty to protect the weak, it's why he has been trying to figure out an easy to use counter to Domain Expansion, something that has killed many good Sorcerers, all because the big clans want to hoard their knowledge.

So when he heard about someone else, a Special Grade at that, inventing and freely spreading a Technique that will uplift and assist the entire Jujutsu world?

Well, he naturally wanted to meet the man and see if they truly see eye to eye. Dōman has yet to meet another Sorcerer of real strength who has agreed with his view. He doesn't get why Sorcerers must be so selfish.

It's only unfortunate that he hasn't had the opportunity to talk with Narauko sooner. They do not have a lot of free time as Jujutsu Sorcerers these days, what with Curses popping up left right and centre, so they just haven't been free of obligation at the same time yet.

However, now that they are all in transit to Heian-kyō, he finally has the time. Well, assuming that Narauko isn't busy right now, experimenting or practicing or something.

However, as he is making his way towards Narauko's accommodations, something he only knows because of the servants have come with them to serve food and stuff, he finds himself bumping, metaphorically, into a familiar face.

Not exactly familiar in a good way, unfortunately.

"Dōman," she says, her kaleidoscopic eyes looking at him as if he were the dirt at her feet. "How nice to see you."

He faces her blatantly insulting gaze with the grace of a man who has never been looked at differently, brushing some of his hair out of his face, half as black as her own hair and half pure white, a clear sign of his bastard blood, and smiles politely in her direction.

Kiyohara no Nagiko is a perfect example of his earlier thoughts of Jujutsu Sorcerers being a selfish lot. She has hated him since the moment they met, seemingly for no reason at all.

It was only later, after he learned of her Eyes of Truth that he even found out why. 

Kiyohara no Nagiko detests the weak and untalented. Now, while he is neither weak nor lacking in talent, that hardly matters when the goal he pursues is to uplift the weak and untalented, such that they may better survive this occupation.

She seems to take such a goal as an insult, though he has no idea why. He simply assumes that it is for the same reason that most Sorcerers look down on him. A simple contempt for the weak.

"Kiyohara-san," he returns her greeting, far more politely than her, who would use the given name that was forced on him when he was banished from his family, the Doumon clan. One final insult for him to carry with him.

"It is nice to see you as well," he continues, lying. 

Normally, this would be the extent of their conversation. They have nothing much to say to one another after all. 

However, when they both go their own way, he finds that they end up walking the same way.

Still, there is but silence until the third chance for them to split passes by, and it appears that they might be walking in the same direction.

"I do not suppose that you are heading to meet with Narauko-san, are you?" He asks, getting a narrow-eyed glare in return.

"And if I am?" She responds, terse.

"Nothing, nothing. Just an idle curiosity."

She doesn't ask what would cause him to be visiting Narauko this fine afternoon, but that's okay. She would have just sneered at his answer anyway, so he doesn't mind avoiding that.

He might be able to bear the looks of contempt, but that does not mean that he enjoys them.

The rest of the walk is filled by an unfriendly silence that he happily ignores, only slightly pleased by the hope of Kiyohara finding the silence uncomfortable.

Still, it does not take long for them to arrive, and Dōman raises his hand to knock on the sliding door and pulses some Cursed Energy to announce them, but is beaten to the punch when Kiyohara simply slides the door open without waiting for permission.

Dōman is halfway to constructing a thought on how rude she is being when the sight and sound beyond steals the words from his lips.

"-Of you~,"

Narauko's voice drags out, soft and rhythmic, interrupted in the middle of a verse. But the words are foreign. Gibberish.

"Pardon the way that I stare~,

There's nothing else to compare~."

Narauko is sitting at his balcony, directly opposite the balcony. He is sitting with his side to them, one finger rapping steadily on the balcony's banister.

"The sight of you leaves me weak~,

There are no words left to speak~."

His finger taps out a repetitive beat. Slow but steady, each tap sounding louder than it should, like a soft beat of the drum. Matched only by the soft tone of his voice.

"But if you feel like I feel~,

Please let me know that it's real~."

The sunlight caresses his face where he is seated, leaning against the balcony with his head resting against the bicep of the same arm tap-tap-tapping against the false wood, his face tilted to the sky, a smile in his eyes as they look unwaveringly to the sun.

"You're just too good to be true~,

Can't take my eyes off you~."

Dōman has no idea what foreign language Narauko is speaking, or rather, singing with. He doesn't recognise it. Wouldn't even recognise it as a real language if not for how structured the words sound.

But even if he could not understand the words, he could feel the depth behind them, the emotions put into mere words. Enough that he hesitates to interrupt, feeling like it would be a cruel thing to do.

Kiyohara apparently feels the same, though he honestly forgot she was with him for a moment, as she does not interrupt either, despite her earlier disregard for manners.

And so he listens. Lyrics pass by without comprehension, and yet he find himself enjoying them regardless.

"You'd be like Heaven to touch~,

I wanna hold you so much~."

Dōman certainly never would have thought that one as powerful would practice the arts of song like a Shirabyōshi. Sorcerers rarely deign to learn performative arts. It is a waste of time when a lack of dedicated training could get them killed.

"At long last love has arrived,~

And I thank God I'm alive~."

He supposes that Narauko is powerful enough that he does not need to dedicate his every moment to Jujutsu in order to survive and thrive. Still, Dōman wonders who taught him, since he has heard no rumour of Narauko singing.

"You're just too good to be true~,"

Can't take my eyes off you~."

Idly, Dōman wonders if Narauko would appreciate a gift of a koto. He believes that he has one of the stringed instruments lying around somewhere. However, his musing is cut short when, with the next lyric, Narauko seems to come aware of their presence.

"I, love, yo-" He freezes mid word, his mouth held open and immobile as his eyes snap to the two of them.

It almost seems as if he believes they will be unable to see him if he does not move with the way he becomes as if a statue, freezing entirely.

Well, not that he and Kiyohara are any better, feeling as if they have been caught doing something they should not have been.

It's awkward.

And then Narauko is moving again. He straightens from his slouch against the balcony and rises to his feet, giving them both a small smile, just a hint of already fading red on his cheeks the only sign of embarrassment.

"Yo. Sorry, I didn't hear you come in," he says, for some reason not seeming at all upset that they were the ones to be rude by opening the door without permission in the first place.

Dōman knows men that would have others put to death for interrupting such a clearly private moment without good reason. Narauko certainly shouldn't be the one apologising here.

Perhaps some of those rumours hold truth after all.

"It is us who should apologise," Dōman says with a polite bow, recovering before Kiyohara. "We should not have barged in without your word, that was rude of us."

He makes sure to phrase his words appropriately. On one hand, he is not the type to simply throw people to the wolves as he easily could have done with Kiyohara being purely at fault.

However, he would argue that it is even better to take the blame equally with her, because he knows that she will hate the idea that she is in anyway equal or indebted to him for his little show of solidarity.

He also knows that she will see through his subtle insult at her lacking manners, but that just makes it better for him, because he wouldn't want her to doubt his dislike of her.

So he can be a petty man, so what? He never claimed to be perfect.

Narauko blinks. "Yeah, I guess that is actually pretty rude. What if I'd been naked or something?"

Dōman stifles a laugh and enjoys the pinched expression that briefly crosses Kiyohara's face at Narauko's words.

"It's fine though," Narauko continues, moving towards a low table in the centre of the room and gesturing to the side opposite him. "I choose not to concern myself over the little things, so I do not mind. Would you like some tea?"

Dōman decides that if Narauko is willing to move past that whole awkward encounter, then he has no problem also doing so, and so he bows once more as he answers and finally steps beyond the boundary of Narauko's door. "I would find myself most grateful of your generosity."

Kiyohara hums, vaguely in agreement. He gets the feeling that she just wanted to say something but has nothing to say and settled for that.

"So," Narauko begins again once they've all taken their places around the table. "What brings you here?"

Dōman accepts the cup poured for him as Kiyohara answers first.

"Tengen-sama saw fit to add a number of training halls to this construction," she starts, accepting her own cup. "It would be a shame to put such effort to waste, and so I would like to offer you a friendly spar."

He knows in his bones that there will be nothing friendly about that spar. At least not from her end. But then again, maybe he is being a little bit too bias, he can at least admit that much.

He just really doesn't like Kiyohara no Nagiko.

"Sure," Narauko easily agrees with barely a thought, "Sounds fun." His attention then turns to Dōman. "Are you here to fight too?"

"Ahah, no, not as such," Dōman responds with mirth. "I merely came to talk, though... No, never mind. I only wanted to talk with the man who invented the Black Butterfly Technique."

He was going to say how he now finds himself curious about the language than Narauko was singing with earlier, however he decided against bringing it up for fear of being rude.

Asking questions of Sorcerers is a dangerous game. Often it is without consequence, but Sorcerers can become incredibly defensive if they feel it merited, and he'd rather not sour any potential relationship he might have with a Special Grade like Narauko.

Besides, if they can become friends, then it is likely that he might be able to find an answer to his curiosity some time in the future.

"Would the conversation be an extended one?" Narauko asks, a curious tilt to his head that Dōman is noticing to be a regular thing.

He doesn't think he has ever met a man who wears his emotions so openly as Narauko.

"I would hope it to be, yes, but the main point need only be brief, if you have not the time." Dōman answers with practiced politeness even as he wonders as to the nature of the question. He might be a bastard cast out of his family, but he was still raised to be noble and can act as such.

Besides, it never hurts to be polite.

"I see. In that case, let us head to the training hall now and talk afterwards, so that we do not bore Kiyohara-san."

Ah, so he was asking in order to determine in what order he should give them his time.

"I find this agreeable," Dōman says with a nod of the head, draining the last of his tea.

Kiyohara is the first to stand. "Let us not waste time then."

"Sure sure," Narauko casually agrees, and then they are up and away.

///

Kiyohara no Nagiko

///

The training hall is deceptively large as they enter it. There are three in total built into the flying fortress, including one on the roof that would have allowed for even more space.

However she cannot fly, and she doesn't intend to give Narauko any kind of field advantage over her by providing such access to open air.

The room itself is large enough that it is difficult to make out the little details of the far wall, but not so large that Sorcerers as powerful as them could not close the distance with ease.

Her Cursed Energy thrums beneath her skin, her own emotions stirring the volatile energy.

Narauko's attitude certainly doesn't help matters.

It was his dismissal of her talent that left her burnt with fury in the first place. That he would declare her stronger than him yet hold the belief that it wouldn't matter, because his talent would simply allow him to overtake her should they fight.

It was perhaps more insulting than if he'd have just called her weak. Because it is not her ability he was looking down on, but her talent. Her potential to improve.

That is not something she could just accept. Talent is all that matters in this world. Without talent, you are nothing. Just a tool to be used by your betters and an obstacle to be overcome or ignored.

It was That Man's lack of talent that lead to the death of the woman Nagiko considers more her mother than her own blood. If only he'd been better, things might have been different.

Murasaki always complimented her talent. Told her that she was going to stand among the greatest of her generation.

Oh how she wishes she could have believed those words, but her eyes do not lie. Can not. And every time Murasaki told her of her talent, there was always a... Not quite a lie, but not a truth either.

She will never know what Murasaki was not telling her. Just that she was not enough. That Murasaki saw some flaw in her that she does not know.

It pisses her off. Makes her want to scream, but at what, she does not know.

She just knows that Narauko looked at her with the same eyes as Murasaki. Eyes that acknowledge her and discredit her in the same breath.

Perhaps that is what pisses her off the most. That he seems to recognise the same thing that held Murasaki's compliments back that she hasn't been able to find even after all of these years.

"Are you ready?" Narauko's voice brings her back to the world, and she looks up to see him standing opposite her.

Immediately after taking sight of him, her eyes do as they always have and they speak to her.

Relaxed. Doesn't see you as a threat. Thinks you have gotten stronger. Thinks you are less dangerous. Believes he has grown stronger faster than you. Is disappointed. Hoped that you would have grown more. Wants you to be strong-

She scrunches her eyes shut to put an end to the noise, feeling her Cursed Energy grow even stronger as her fury fuels it.

If he could just have looked down on her then she could have handled that.

But why do his eyes only remind her of Murasaki?

She hates it. Hates him.

Her eyes open. They are cold.

"I am," she says, and Dōman steps between them, holding a coin on a thumb.

He looks between them and nods his head. They don't need to discuss how to start the fight, none of them are stupid. So Dōman does not say anything, he just flicks the coin in the air and jumps back.

She doesn't track the coin with her eyes as it arcs. Instead, she just pours almost all of her boiling Cursed Energy into her bones. Suffusing her entire body with the violent power.

She is Kiyohara no Nagiko, and she holds the record for the highest number of consecutive Black Flashes achieved in a row. Combined with her Eyes of Truth and she has greater control over her Cursed Energy than just about anyone, especially now that Michizane is no more.

With this control, she has refined her Reinforcement beyond what most Sorcerers are capable of, and has even gone a step further to use a Binding Vow that limits her strength in exchange for extra speed, as she has no need for strength.

With this, she is likely the fastest Sorcerer in the world in terms of pure physical ability. She obviously can't run as fast as Minamoto no Yorimitsu when he uses his technique, but the speed of her body is second to none.

The coin starts to arc down and she lowers herself into a stance, while what remains of her Cursed Energy she pushes towards her Inherited Technique, priming it to be ready for use.

Her eyes return to Narauko.

Arms tense. Uses shadowgraphics to summon Shikigami. Hands twitching to the shape of a wolf's head. Going to summon wolf Shikigami as soon as coin touches the floor. Believes the Shikigami will form before you can reach him. Doesn't plan to step away.

He's underestimating her.

The coin clinks against the floor and she moves.

///

Ashiya Dōman

///

Truthfully speaking, Dōman has no idea what to expect from this confrontation.

On the one hand, if one were to simply look at the facts, Narauko should be the victor by virtue of being a Special Grade fighting against a Grade One Sorcerer.

However, in this era, the term 'Special Grade' has hardly retained its meaning.

Special Grades are called as such for a reason. They are supposed to be special. They are anomalies.

And yet, what value does the term hold when the special cease to be special? In this era, Special Grade hardly holds the same weight as it is supposed to.

The point being that even if Narauko is the only one of the three of them who holds the title, Dōman does not think that it really means anything. The Higher Ups don't like deviations from the norm, so they would naturally be hesitant to name too many people Special Grade.

The most they would be willing to go for would be five holding the title. And isn't it a coincidence that almost right away after Narauko arrived and could not be denied Special Grade, that the oldest among that number, Michizane, went and died, bringing the total back down to five?

Not that it will matter soon enough. He obviously doesn't know what gambit Tengen-sama is playing here, but with the show surely to come, the Higher Ups will no longer be able to control the number of Sorcerers who hold the title of Special Grade.

The question really, is whether or not Kiyohara ranks among those who deserve to be called anomalies of Jujutsu.

He's honestly looking forward to watching those uptight nobles shit themselves as they slowly come to realise how little their power means in this era full nation destroying monsters.

However, now isn't the time to ponder. 

There's no sense to miss out on the spectacle before him.

The coin clinks against the floor.

///

Kiyohara no Nagiko

///

Both of them move before the sound even reaches them.

Her first step closes half the distance, and even as the world seems to come to a stop around her, only Narauko continues to move with speed as his hands snap together into the shape of a wolf.

"Divine-"

He starts, but she is already there, having thrown herself at him with a flying kick to his chest. His eyes widen, sharing the same surprise at her speed that almost everyone she has fought has shown.

However, Narauko is differing in that he reacts in time to drop backwards just a hair ahead of her foot.

"-Dog," She hears him continue as she passes him by, the sound of his back hitting the floor barely registering in her head as a great wolf-like Shikigami bursts out from underneath her.

He connected your shadows as you passed so that he could summon his Shikigami from yours, her eyes tell her when she spares a glance behind her.

Her feet drop down from her kick and she touches the ground running, banking a hard left to test the Shikigami's agility.

It is fast and agile, that much is obvious, however it is not as fast as her and lacks the traction she can generate via her Cursed Energy, that much is obvious from the way it skids across the ground, its claws carving great trenches into the floor as it dutifully chases her.

She feels herself start to grin as her blood starts pumping, the thrill of combat temporarily overtaking her fury as she runs from the beast and arcs around back to Narauko.

Her eyes turn back to Narauko to see him standing in place, watching her run from his Shikigami as if he is a spectator and not a combatant here.

No.. That isn't quite right.

Relaxed. Doesn't think he is in danger. Is curious if his Shikigami is enough to best you. Is prepared for a surprise. Hasn't let his guard down. Doesn't think you will lose to his Shikigami.

He is still looking down on her. The thought rankles, but she ignores that.

It's fine. She doesn't like being looked down upon, but at the same time, it is to her benefit. Her Technique isn't something that can be used right away after all. She needs some time to build it up, and he seems willing to give her that time, so she spins on her heel and swings a kick at the Shikigami chasing her.

It, or Narauko depending on how much control he has over his Shikigami, clearly wasn't expecting the sudden reversal, as her foot neatly lands on the side of its head.

A crack of displaced air follows the beast as it is launched to the side, but she doesn't chase. There's no point.

Instead, she just watches the thing straight itself mid-air and carve up the ground some more as it slows itself to a stop.

Non-standard Shikigami. It has a Technique imbued into it. Not imbued. Carved. Not carved.

She has to take a sharp step back as the Shikigami rushes her and attempts to gut her. It is not as easy to dodge as she would like, but she manages, and her counter barely stumbles the thing.

She isn't very strong without sufficient momentum built up, so she uses what little distraction her punch made to hop forward and vault over the Shikigami, using its surprisingly warm back as a springboard.

As she lands in a run, she mulls over what her eyes are telling her. It's not the first time they've failed to understand the Truth of a matter right away, but usually it is cleared up almost immediately.

She's not worried, she just needs a little bit more time.

She also doesn't want to give her game away, so she turns to Narauko and launches herself in his direction, the air parting in front of her and buffeting her clothes like a cyclone. Yet, even as she runs, she does not keep the Shikigami from her peripheral vision.

Cursed Technique is simple. Enhances physical attacks. Cursed Technique is an Innate Technique. Shikigami do not have souls. This Shikigami does not have a soul. Not an Innate Technique.

Kiyohara's eyes are cut off when the Shikigami dissolves into a liquid shadow, and she barely rolls out of the way in time to dodge as that same Shikigami appears once more right in front of her, lunging out of Narauko's shadow.

"Sorry, but drawing my Shikigami away isn't a valid tactic against me," Narauko says, but she hardly hears him enough to note his amusement when he continues, "Though perhaps that does not matter, if the smile on your face is anything to go by. Did I fall into a trap?"

He doesn't sound nearly as concerned as he should be if he had been baited into a trap, but still, she ignores that in favour of what her eyes told her at the sight of Divine Dog being dispelled and resummoned.

Shikigami is formed around Technique. The Technique itself is its core. The Technique enhances physical attacks. Shikigami's body is formed out of shadows. Specifically formed out of Narauko's shadow and held together by Cursed Energy.

She grins wider as the Shikigami changes course to chase after her, only this time, she doesn't run. She doesn't move at all.

She hates the concern that appears on Narauko's face as his Shikigami approaches. She hates it because it is concern for her, and not for himself.

But even then, her mood is not ruined when the Shikigami reaches her and mercilessly brings its claws down on her neck. Yet still, she does not move, her heartbeat steady and breath only slightly uneven from the running.

The attack lands, and is summarily brought to a halt against her skin.

Her clothes don't even ruffle.

She sees the Shikigami almost recoil in what could only be called surprise and confusion at the lack of damage. However, she does not allow the thing to recover and explodes into movement, spinning her entire body to line a roundhouse kick against the Shikigami's body.

The Binding Vow she placed on herself granted an increase in speed for a decrease in strength. Because of this, her attacks in close quarters combat are almost entirely without weight behind them. It's why her earlier punch barely phased the Shikigami in front of her.

And yet her kick carves straight through its torso as if it is not even there.

She lets out a heavy breath as the two halves of the Shikigami collapse into shadows, and she turns her attention back to Narauko, who is ginning even wider than she is.

"Tch." 

Is happy you succeeded. Believed you would. Didn't want to be disappointed. Is trying to figure out the trick. Thinks your victorious smile was attractive.

She scowls at what her eyes are telling her. It's hardly the first time her eyes have told her about others desiring her. In fact, it happens with almost every man, and most women, who's eyes she meets, so she doesn't think much of it.

People find other people attractive, they're only human, it's nothing special.

What she is much more focused on is how Narauko is looking at her with an almost mirror of Murasaki's proud smile when she first started mastering her Cursed Energy.

It pisses her off.

"That was impressive," Narauko compliments. "Are you gonna use the Reveal One's Hand Vow to boost your Technique? Because I am terribly curious."

"Hmph," she scoffs, "I'm sure you are."

The Reveal One's Hand Vow, not that it really has a specific name, is only really useful for Techniques that are simple. Or rather, it is an active detriment to Techniques that benefit more from obscurity than greater effectiveness.

Hers is one such example.

Her Innate Technique is called Fragile Understanding. It allows her to become untouchable by anything that she understands completely. Combined with her Eyes of Truth that allows her to see the Truth of everything around her, and it is a fearsome combination

"You have ten Shikigami, right?" She calls out, her tone and smile both mocking, "Aren't you going to bring another one out?"

It doesn't matter if he does. Now that she's figured out the trick, it will only take a single glance for her to figure out the rest. The threat of his Shikigami have been nullified.

Quite the dilemma for a Shikigami user to face~.

///

A/N: He~llo! Dear readers!

Cliffhanger~ 

Jk, cliffhangers are gay. Luckily I wrote two chapters so I can revert all the progress I made by posting two chapters today and returning my backlog back down to 5, because I am good at decision making :)