Darkness.A weight on my chest.Cold on my back.Blurry vision.
I opened my eyes slowly.The ceiling.My ceiling.The same one I saw every night… but now it felt distant. Like it didn't belong to me anymore.
A ringing echoed in my ears.The same sound that lingers after a scream.Not the kind that comes from your throat, but the kind born from your soul.The kind that breaks you so much inside… that your body simply shuts down.
I was lying on the floor. The air smelled like dried blood. The kitchen light was still on, flickering with annoying insistence. Everything looked the same… and yet, everything had changed.
I tried to move. A jolt of pain surged through my body, as if all my energy had left me. My throat was dry, and my eyes still burned.
I looked at my clothes: stained with dark red, already dry.I looked ahead.And then I remembered.
My mother's body lay motionless beside me, clean, without wounds, as if she were just asleep. But I knew she wasn't. The coldness of her skin was the answer I didn't want to accept.
I sat up with difficulty.
I don't know how long I stayed there, or how many tears I shed. But at some point… I hit rock bottom. And from that bottom, something lit up.
It wasn't hate.It wasn't vengeance.It was absolute denial.
Then the shadow moved.
Like a living ink stain, it emerged from the floor, taking shape beside her. The dog, that being made of dense darkness, sat silently. Its eyes weren't eyes: they were voids that stared at me with a painful certainty.
"I'm sorry," I said, barely a whisper. "I wasn't fast enough. I wasn't strong enough."
The dog tilted its head. There was no judgment in its gesture.
"She's gone," I continued. "But I'm not. I… I'm still breathing. Why?"
The dog didn't respond.
"What was that thing?" I asked, my voice cracking. "And what am I now?"
Then the shadow spoke—not with a voice in the air, but one that echoed directly in my chest:
"What killed your mother was a curse. An echo of human hatred, fear, and suffering. A life form born from rejection.You, Izuku Midoriya… are a sorcerer. But not a normal one."
I closed my eyes.
"And what do I do now?" I finally asked.
"Walk. Move forward. Adapt. Like all shadows born of pain… you can stay on the ground, or you can get up and forge something new."
I looked at my hands.Trembling.I stood up.
And like every day, I followed my routine. I went to my room with my mind spinning, and out of habit I showered, got dressed in my uniform… but nothing felt the same. My mom wasn't there with breakfast anymore. Only this shadow followed me. And then I remembered: I had to bury my mother. It was still early morning and I had plenty of time, so I called the medical service and reported her death as a cardiac arrest, and waited.
When the medics arrived, they knocked for me to open the door, and I did so in silence.
"Come in. She's in the living room," I said with a hoarse voice.
They didn't ask questions. One of them glanced at me, maybe noticing the emptiness in my expression, but said nothing. Just gave a polite nod and walked in.
They handled the body carefully. Not like a corpse… but as if they sensed that this woman had meant something more than "just another report." As if even death hurt a little more when it happened in a clean, silent home, with no family around except a child with dead eyes.
"Cardiac arrest, you said?" one of them asked, while the other wrote on a tablet.
I nodded wordlessly. I didn't need an autopsy. I didn't want anyone to see what I had seen. What moved in the shadows.
"We're sorry for your loss."
That was all.
They left behind a different kind of stillness. A more definitive one.
I closed the door. And I stayed there, forehead against the wood. And for the first time since I woke up… I felt the loneliness.
"I have to go to school," I said, more to myself than to anyone else.
I went up to my room. Grabbed my backpack. The uniform still fit… but now it felt different. Like it didn't belong to this routine anymore.
And then, I walked. Through the silent dawn, crossing streets like a ghost among the living.
It took me a while to get to school. Today was the final exam for those planning to enter a hero school, to give them ten months of preparation. Something common in schools near heroic institutions. I repeated yesterday's routine: I sat alone, like always. But today, I noticed something strange. A group of teens were speaking in low voices. What caught my attention was a pink-haired boy holding a box that gave off a dark aura… like the curse from yesterday. I approached out of curiosity. Maybe I could get some answers.
I walked over awkwardly. The group noticed me right away, especially him—the pink-haired one.
"Hey," I mumbled, without thinking.
Everyone turned.
The pink-haired boy frowned, surprised. It was clear he didn't know me. No one did. I never spoke. I never got involved. But this morning, I couldn't stay silent.
"That box… what is it?"
One of his friends—a tall guy with a thug face—immediately went on alert.
"And who are you, freak? A nerd trying to steal weird stuff?"
The pink-haired boy raised a hand, signaling his friend to chill.
"It's fine," he said, eyes still on me. "He's not doing anything."
He studied me closely. He didn't seem scared. Just… curious.
"This box?" he asked, lifting it a bit. "It's some kind of strange object. We found it at school. No idea what it is, but they said it's cursed or something. You interested?"
"Cursed."
"Where did you find it?" I asked, stepping a bit closer.
"What's it to you?" the other guy scoffed, crossing his arms.
But the pink-haired one held my gaze. He didn't look away. There was something in his eyes… different. Not being able to see the curse didn't mean he lacked intuition. Sometimes the soul reacts even when the body doesn't know why.
"In the occult club. It was in some kind of sealed box. We thought it was fake, a prank to scare newbies."
"Why are you so interested?"
"I don't know. I just… have a feeling. It's weird. Like I've been uneasy since I saw it."
"I see. Well, if you're that curious, come with us tonight. We were planning to open it and see what's inside. You in?" the pink-haired boy asked with a relaxed smile, like he didn't care much about the box.
"Alright… but will your friends be okay with that?" I asked, a bit nervous. My social skills were rusty. I wasn't insecure, just not used to talking to people.
The tall guy snorted, arms still crossed, clearly skeptical.
"Tsk… if he screws up, it's your fault, Itadori."
The pink-haired boy—apparently Itadori—just shrugged and nodded at me.
"Don't worry, we're not that uptight. As long as you don't scream or run away, it's all good."
He looked at his group. Some exchanged awkward glances, but no one objected.
"See you at seven, in the old gym," added Itadori with a goofy smile. "The occult club meets there. No one will bother us."
I nodded, and without another word, turned around.
When the bell rang, I left the classroom thinking of wandering around to avoid what was waiting for me at home. I just walked. Passed by the same store from yesterday, still distracted, ignoring when the old man dropped his newspaper and shouted a greeting. I was so lost in thought that time flew. It was already late, and I remembered Itadori's invitation. I checked the time on my phone: 6:07. Still had time, so I set off.
Since I was far away, I was running late to school. But I felt it… just like yesterday. That aura the school gave off. But this time, I didn't freeze. I channeled the energy from yesterday into my shadow and hands, and formed a sign that came to mind like something I had practiced all my life. It came instinctively. And I spoke it softly:
"Ketsugo (結合)"
I felt it so naturally, like it was something I had carried for years.
And I saw it.
The shadow dog, like living ink, appeared with a howl to the sky. It turned to look at me as if waiting for a command.
And I just said:
—Follow me.
I felt euphoric, as if the energy I was releasing was rebuilding me every second. But I didn't let that feeling carry me away and I ran.
After years of running, of being afraid to show my dreams, of fearing they'd mock me for something as absurd as wanting to be a hero without a Quirk… I understood. Everyone made it clear: it was impossible.
But today, despite the loss, I understood that overused phrase:"Once you hit rock bottom, the only way is up."
And at that moment, I felt… free.I felt nothing about my loss. It was strange. I'd been sad all day, but the euphoria of being strong for the first time made me forget it.
I kept running through the school.The abandoned gym was on the other side, but at my speed, it only took me two minutes to get there.
And I saw them.
The occult club and Itadori were cornered, helpless.I gave a mental order to the dog: "Attack."I didn't know if it could do anything, but I was going to find out today.
The dog followed my thought, pounced on the nearest curse, and pinned it to the ground.I don't know how, but it merged the curse's shadow with the darkness of the floor and immobilized it. It looked like it wanted to move, but couldn't.
The dog lunged at it and destroyed its head. With a final scream, the creature exploded.
As soon as I saw it die, I reacted. I lunged to try to hit the curses that were closest.With one or two blows, they screamed and died almost instantly.They seemed afraid of my energy. And I took advantage of that.
I stood in front of the group, who still held the box in their hands, and defended them.When I finished off the last visible curse, I felt that energy flowing inside me again.And I shouted:
—Run!
But it was too late.
A much larger curse emerged from the ground… and swallowed them instantly.
I froze.
I remembered the day before, how my mother died in front of me and I couldn't do anything.And now, those I was supposed to protect were going to suffer the same fate.
But before I could lament, I felt… fear.An emotion not directed at the curse, but toward what had swallowed that box.
Something happened inside.And it wasn't good.
Then… it happened.
It was Itadori.But not the same.He had black tattoos running along his body, a multitude of black marks… and two extra eyes.
Everything around him was being cut.Except his friends, who were unconscious.And the curse… was no exception. It was reduced to nothing in a second.
I stood frozen, watching him.But then he started talking like a raving lunatic.
—Hahaha! I'm finally free! I, the king of curses, Sukuna, have returned! —he shouted at the top of his lungs—. How long has it been? A thousand years? —he said in ecstasy—. Women, children… I'm back! Tonight will be a massacre...
He kept shouting, but then covered his mouth with a hand…And the marks vanished.
I didn't know what had happened.The world had unpaused.Itadori was there, standing, as if nothing had happened.
I asked:
—Umm... Itadori, what just happened?
—I don't know —he replied, confused—. I ate a finger that was in the box when that thing swallowed us. And I just woke up, to control my body from that Sukuna guy… who won't shut up. He's still talking in my head.
I just nodded.Everything was so weird.I went from being in danger to it seeming like nothing happened.
And then… someone arrived.
A young man, slim build, white hair, and a black blindfold over his eyes. He appeared out of nowhere, waving one hand, and introduced himself:
—I'm Satoru Gojo, special grade sorcerer.
Well, another chapter done.If you have any ideas or suggestions, feel free to leave them in the comments.And with that, I say goodbye.