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Disclaimer: I don't own either Inuyasha or Jujustu Kaisen. Both series belong to their respective owners.
"Hm?" Kagome's head tipped back onto the edge of the onsen. The world slowly seemed to fade into a soft gray, as if all the color had been leached out of the walls. Her eyes narrowed at the strange energy that ballooned around her then. Spreading like wildfire in an attempt to suffocate her, the tainted behemoth bared its fangs against the gentle touch of holy fire in her mind's eye. Cracking her neck in aggravation at the sight, the young woman quietly pulled herself up onto the surrounding lip and sighed.
It really would be her luck to have yet another bath interrupted. Especially an otherwise unoccupied one.
I'll miss you.
The silent, longing farewell glistened in her eyes, as she dragged her feet from the warm water below. Goosebumps rose across her flesh in warning. The sudden chill in the air only a precursor to the true danger rushing—
Half a dozen things happened at once.
The door hit the wall.
A blade spun out of its sheath and into her hand.
Bright red energy engulfed her vision, only to be overtaken by a softened pink hue.
The knife flew, cutting through sinew and bone to render the arm pointed at her useless.
A pair of round, tinted glasses hit the floor, shattering on contact.
And then the strange, white haired man standing on the opposite edge of the onsen laughed and laughed and laughed. His hypnotic blue eyes were like a beacon in the dark, locked onto her with a feral, appraising gleam from between the fingers of his good hand. As if he had zero care for the blade lodged in his shoulder now that he had found much more delectable prey.
Kagome wrinkled her nose. She straightened her neck, refusing to back down despite her obvious lack of attire. Or a weapon. She wasn't helpless, despite what he might think. Damsel in distress wasn't in her dictionary anymore, and she'd be more than willing to show him which of them was David and Goliath.
"Well." His grin sharpened with a crazy edge when she began to exude that same pale, pink energy from her very flesh. His hand falling away from his face, he clicked his tongue as his fingers traced the hilt of the blade lodged in his shoulder. The knife made a sickening squelch as he pulled it free and dropped it to the floor. Then he ran his bloodied hand through his snow-colored bangs, dying them crimson. "You're not a curse."
"A curse?" she spat back. "If anyone here is a curse, it's you."
"Somebody's going to get fired." He seemed to ignore her statement, choosing instead to make an exaggerated gesture with his once useless hand. The sudden swell of his twisted energy seemingly healing it in nearly an instant. "Or, at least, I thought they were until I saw you. You're much more interesting than any special grade they might have found in this dingy place."
Kagome blinked momentarily in confusion. Her own energy tightened with the knowledge that he could heal himself. Coiling like a snake around her until it was tangible. It lit up the dark around them, drawing his attention only long enough for her to shift onto her feet. Her hands outstretched, she slid her heel across the wet stone and widened her stance in preparation of another blast.
"Gojo Satoru." He swept himself into an overly exuberant bow. One much more befitting a knight meeting a princess in some foreign court than the quiet, empty onsen that they occupied. His grin suddenly cheerful. A friendly facade that only made her eyes narrow and his grin widen into teeth. He waited less than half a second for a reply, before saying, "And who are you, oh naked maiden?"
"Fuck you," Kagome told him without hesitation.
"Oh." Satoru touched his lip. His demeanor shifted into something similar to that of a coy young woman, bashful and unsure. His long, white lashes dipped downward, highlighting those brilliantly blue eyes as they beat against his cheek. "How bold of you to ask such a question when you haven't even given me your name yet."
"You attacked me."
"Does it still count if I thought you were someone else?"
"Yes, it still counts!"
"Hm?" His head tipped to one side, Satoru put his finger on his cheek as if in thought. That crazed, feral grin returned in a heartbeat. Then, he declared, "Noppppeeee," before swirling his finger through the air and poking it in her direction like she was little more than a child. "I think you're wrong. You should definitely tell me your name."
"And I think you're just a pervert," she replied, "who plans to stalk me after this just because you've seen me naked."
"You could think that, buuuuutttt," Satoru hummed, rocking on his heels, "what I really want to know is why somebody high up on the food chain wanted you dead. And that, oh naked one, requires me to know your name."
Kagome scoffed, "No, it doesn't."
"Aw, come on!"
"No."
"What if I ask pretty please?"
"Absolutely not."
"Aren't you curious, though? Even a little?"
"No." Her reply was decisive and terse, but the brief, momentary pause before she'd given it caused his eyebrows to rise. Kagome cursed underneath her breath then. "No," she reiterated, shaking her head. Several stray strands came loose from her top bun with the movement. "That part of my life is over." She bit her lip with the words, hating every single one. "I did my duty, so you can tell these 'higher ups' that whatever fairy tale they heard, whatever story they read, it's wrong."
"Ho?" His eyes brightened in the dark, fascinated. That familiar, predatory gleam tracked the subtle movement of her hands. The energy she emitted. As if even the smallest tidbit of information was enough to make him reconsider the distance between them. His grin widened, as he tipped his head onto his shoulder. "You did your duty, huh? Can't help but wonder what you mean by that."
"That's… classified." Kagome grit her teeth, wondering if the little lie seemed believable. "So it's none of your business."
"Somebody wants you dead." He laughed again, the sound short and abrupt. Satoru swayed then, and his circular frames snapped under foot as he moved toward her. The tiny shards of glass crunching with each stride. "So, sorry, but I'll hafta disagree with you there." Shoving his hands into his pockets, he ignored the looming edge of the onsen without hesitation and continued forward.
"What the…?" Kagome faltered at the sight of him suddenly walking on water. She took a step back, the physical manifestation of her power flickering with her surprise. The very last thing she expected was for him to be able to literally walk on water, and by the faint cackle he released, the white haired bastard knew it, too. His twisted energy swelled in that singular moment, so filled with rage and irritation, and then he loomed over her like a wolf that had finally caught its prey. "Ack!"
"You see, little water nymph." Satoru shivered, chuckling low, as her energy seared across his upper arm. His eyes were luminous and menacing in the saturated light. He leaned into her, holding her widening gaze, and breathed, "That makes it my business."
Kagome gaped at him.
Grinning once more, Satoru tipped his head and said, "So, how 'bout that name then?"