Chapter Text
“I’ve been watching you for a long time, Sukuna.”
A voice said from the shadows, coming from a built man with zero cursed energy lurking out from the tall trees and bushes.
His black hair brushed against his face with the wind, occasionally exposing bright green eyes in the sunlight.
He wore a sinister grin on his scarred lips as he approached Sukuna carefully, as if not trying to startle prey instead of gingerly stepping towards a god.
Sukuna stares at him, all four eyes forced on the man in front of him.
He decided to entertain this for a little while.
Sukuna rolled his head down and glowered at the man, studying his face carefully before speaking again.
“Do I know you?”
The man’s grin widens and he shakes his head. “Nah, and I don’t expect you to.” He slowly pulls out a cursed tool, keeping it tight in his grip. “I’m Toji Zenin.”
Zenin? Was that name familiar?
Sukuna frowns briefly before remembering. Some weak clan he hasn’t found to the will to slaughter yet. What was the fun in stepping on bugs without any stingers to defend themselves?
“A Zenin, huh?” Sukuna crossed his upper set of arms over his chest while his lower set lazily rested in the kimono sleeve. “Why should I care about you?”
Toji shrugs. “You don’t have to, but I’d suggest it.”
This guy’s audacity was outrageous, to the point Sukuna let out a brief burst of laughter.
“Should I now?” He sneers, resting his cheek on his hand as he stared at Toji with a grin on his face. “You’re threatening me?”
Toji’s expression remained the same—smug. He steps towards Sukuna once again, now only a few paces away. “I guess I am.”
Sukuna almost rolled his eyes when Toji plunged towards him. He dodged most of Toji’s stabs, but occasionally the tool would jab his side or slice across his arms and torso.
He kicks Toji away and hops backwards to distance himself. Sukuna was bleeding, heavily at that. But he’d heal the wounds later.
Whenever he would lose sight of Toji, he couldn’t track him. This strength was barely human, and Sukuna adored it.
But eventually, Sukuna adapted like he always did. When Toji leaps towards him, Sukuna grabs his face and slams the back of his head into a tree.
Toji’s teeth sank into Sukuna’s hand instinctively and Sukuna grunted. “You’re strong for someone with no cursed energy.”
“Do I thank you?” Toji mumbled out from under Sukuna’s hand, twisting himself around to cut off Sukuna’s hand at the base of his wrist.
Toji was instantly dropped to the floor, quickly recovering and thrusting his blade into Sukuna’s abdomen, only for his stomach mouth to crush the tool as it cut into his kimono and past its lips.
Sukuna heals his hand, reforming it with reversed cursed technique. Toji’s eyes widen slightly before he’s kicked back into the tree that would probably be destroyed by the end of this.
“For real?” Toji rasps, gradually rising from his fall and holding a large cut on his arm.
Sukuna twists his hand, peering at Toji through the gaps in his large fingers. “What? Were you expecting an easy fight?”
Sukuna lowers his hand and tilts his head down to look at Toji. “Well, I am going easy on you. But that’s besides the point.”
“Bastard.” Toji abruptly hurled forward and vomited a ball of something a gross shade of purple.
To which Sukuna’s lip curled up in disgust.
The ball morphed into a large worm with the head of a toddler, crawling along his arm and curling around his torso.
“I’m not done yet.” Toji reaches his hand into the worm’s mouth with a wet sound, extracting a spear from its long body.
Sukuna’s lips twist into a grin.
Toji kept going, and Sukuna made to sure to make it difficult to continue on with their fight. At some point, he had dislocated Toji’s arm and in response he simply switched the new blade to the other hand.
Sukuna wondered what would happen if both of his arms were gone.
However, he’d let the fun go on for just a little longer. It had been so long since Sukuna had felt genuinely intrigued and excited about a battle.
The two darted between crumbling trees and crashed into abandoned homes that had been consumed by the forest.
Toji was currently pinned on his back, his cursed tool’s shaft shoved into Sukuna’s mouth to prevent him from biting. Sukuna sank his teeth into the wood before releasing and bouncing back as Toji leaped at him.
Sukuna’s eyes widen as Toji wraps his legs around his waist before their heads smashed together brutally.
Sukuna bit back a groan and used the close proximity as a chance to throw Toji once again.
He pries Toji off and flicks him far enough away to give himself a moment to breathe.
He runs his fingers through his sun bleached hair and grins as the watches Toji recover.
Toji’s worm made a small gurgling sound as Toji lifts his head. “Damn.” He pants, wiping blood from his chin.
“Still have any fight left in you?” Sukuna mocked, approaching Toji and gripping his jaw as another hand reached forward to grab the worms head.
“Yeah. Do you?”
As Toji lunged forward, Sukuna tore the head of the worm off. The sound was wet and awfully fleshy. The worm gargled and released its grip on Toji’s torso, falling to the ground and writhing.
Whatever tools Toji had stored inside would be inaccessible.
Toji bites down on Sukuna’s arm, sinking his sharp teeth into his flesh as Sukuna attempted to bat him off like he was a bug.
Blood dribbled down Sukuna’s arm and smeared around Toji’s mouth.
“You’re such a pain.” Sukuna hissed, punching Toji’s gut, causing him to groan and release his grip.
Instantly, Sukuna healed the bite with a slight scowl.
The two were exhausted. Sukuna’s back ached and each injury healed with RCT irritated him.
Toji was bleeding from every part of his body, especially across his side. Sukuna noticed how he swayed slightly.
Blood came down from the corner of Toji’s mouth as he huffed. “You’re stronger than I thought you’d be.”
“You’re a fool.” Sukuna approached Toji, but didn’t attack him. He simply observed him as he swayed and used his only working arm to prop himself up against a tree, the spear dropping to the forest floor. “Yet, I respect your strength.” He added, all of his eyes on Toji as he spoke.
He laughs, but there’s no humor behind it.
“Yeah, that’s usually how it goes.” He huffed and held his dislocated shoulder. “‘M tired.”
Sukuna frowns. He could’ve gone on for a little longer. Maybe he still could.
As Toji stumbles forward, Sukuna catches him. Maybe he could keep this one. Toji’s eyes are hazy as they look up at Sukuna. “I thought I was more prepared, yknow?”
Sukuna doesn’t respond, one set of his four eyes traveling to the intense wound on Toji’s side. Toji sighs and rests his head on Sukuna’s chest, too exhausted to keep his head up. “Thanks for a good fight though. I appreciate it.”
Sukuna huffs as Toji’s body slumps forward and he goes still. He brings one hand to Toji’s side and pressed his palm against the wound.
“Don’t thank me just yet, Zenin.”