Don't expect this to be updated like the other stories, seriously.

I've been itching to get this down on 'paper' and figured I'd just let you guys have this for now. I do want to write more but I'm juggling as you know.

For the sake of simplicity, I don't expect this to be updated that much until we've gotten damn near everything we need to know out of the manga.

Still, welcome to 'A Positive Twist'.

~NRK~

A boy gasped as kneeled by a grinning woman's bedside, the woman's long white hair with a single, just as long, crimson red streak shifting as she giggled a bit.

"He's amazing, isn't he, Satoru-kun?" The woman asked the boy with another grin as he blinked in awe once more, her violet eyes getting a nod out of him.

The boy was young, about 11-years-old, and sported a similar head of white hair compared to her but his was pure white all the way around and short. Bearing similar fair skin to herself, the most notable detail about him was his eyes.

Those eyes of their clan, the Gojou Clan, special eyes that weren't normal by any stretch of the imagination with powers impossible to deny once they were fully-matured.

But, for now, they were just bright and blue, like her baby's left.

Satoru Gojou blinked again before leaning forward more, raising a shaky finger to slowly prod the cheek of the baby.

It 'pudged' and he was left gaping as the woman laughed.

"K-Kushina-obachan! His cheeks are like playdough!" Satoru gaped as Kushina Gojou, not Uzumaki, grinned.

"Yep! Lil Naru's a bit of a miracle!" Kushina snickered as the boy gawked at the baby again.

The baby boy, Naruto Uzumaki, opened peach-skinned eyelids to reveal those big ol' sapphire eyes that left Satoru awed, the boy focusing on the left one that held a similar coloration to his eyes.

"I-I don't get it," he said after some thought, 'pudging' the baby's cheek again, the short blonde fuzz on Naruto's head getting a small finger rub from Gojou. "W-Why don't they like him?" Satoru pouted as Kushina smiled sadly.

"They think Naruto-kun is a bad fortune," she sighed.

"Because of his hair?!"

"Well, that and the fact that he has no hint of cursed energy."

Satoru blinked. "D-Do babies have cursed energy?" He asked, confused.

"Yes, most humans are born with cursed energy. Stress, pain, and a bit of anguish can cause energy to form, even in babies," Kushina said as she brushed one of the baby's cheeks. "But Naruto-kun is different, very different… Tell me, Satoru, how far in your studies have you gotten? Say, for example, in the subject of Cursed Energy on the advanced level?"

"I'm not there yet," the way the boy grumbled had her ruffling his hair. "Hehe~ Um, it's all so boring, can't they make it interesting?" Satoru pouted. "But… well, I kinda get most of the intermediate stuff."

"Okay then you won't know this. There are those who can be born without any cursed energy," Kushina explained as he raised a brow, the woman placing a hand on his shoulder, his light blue kimono, covered in black dragonflies, shifting as she did. "For example, there's a man in the Zenin family who has none and then there are those two girls from that man's brother. It's not uncommon in the Zenin clan for such a situation to occur but, for us, it's downright super rare."

"..." Satoru observed her and then Naruto. "But so what? He's still a Gojou, right?"

"To me and you? Yes, Naruto's as much family to us as he is to everyone else but they don't want to recognize that, they're rather annoying that way, those old people."

She groaned and he snickered, getting a hair ruffle out of her.

"Hah! Then, I can do it, right? I'm the next in line!" Satoru grinned as she chuckled.

"You'd be his hero, I'm sure Naruto's going to want to be accepted no matter what. He has that 'look' in his eyes that he'll be a little troublemaker but be the bravest, kindest, most odd kid around," she chuckled. "He's going to face a lot of hardship, Satoru-kun, we need to be around for those times to guide him."

Satoru Gojou had no issue with that, he was quite willing.

This boy who was his cousin made him feel so protective.

~NRK~

~Seven Years Later~

Satoru pushed up his small black sunglasses with a grin and a smirk, watching his aunt and his cousin chat in the field they'd gone to.

The young man had grown well over the years, hitting a strong growth spurt and standing near six-feet even at the tender age of 18 even if Kushina would tease him over how slim he was.

He was quite built beneath his clothes, thank you very much.

Wearing a black double-breasted jacket with a single golden button on his left breast, a pair of fitted black pants, and some black dress shoes, he adjusted his sunglasses once more before walking to the two, a bag underarm with some nice smelling treats inside.

"Yo, aunty! Squirt!" He called out to the two, both his relatives perking up and looking at him.

"Satoru!" The two called out with grins that he reciprocated.

"Well, well, well, I guess uncle is still abroad?" Satoru asked as he crouched down by the two, holding out the bag. "I got dango," he said mysteriously.

Kushina smirked at him, taking the offering. "You're gonna have this old lady feeling cherished."

"You're twenty-seven, in what world are you old?"

"Some say our 20s and teens are lightyears apart."

"Sounds about right!" Naruto, the youngest of the Gojou Family, snickered as she pinched his nose. "Hwiya, Cuz!" He said nasally as Kushina pouted.

"How is it my genes made you like this?" The woman groaned. "You should have taken some of Mina-kun's genes."

"I'm special."

"Yeah, you are," Satoru snickered as the boy was handed a stick of dango by his mother. "So, what has normal life been like, Na-Ru-To-pyon?"

The boy's face scrunched up, those whisker marks on his cheeks more pronounced as time went on while the white bandana around his left eye scrunched.

'God, I'm gonna hit someone in the head eventually.'

Many believed said marks were more superstitious nonsense that meant bad things. Going so far as to have the blonde hide his 'special eye' and tell him to dye his hair.

Satoru just thought the kid was more unique than even himself. What with those fox-like features.

So, of course, he treated him like a rabbit, obviously.

"Mmm," the boy chopped down on his food while wearing an annoyed look. "I hate it. Who decided I needed to learn all the history of my clan? T-There are WAY too many scrolls!"

"Yeah, I think the same thing," Satoru agreed wholeheartedly as Kushina snickered.

"Yes, you two are birds of a feather," she said before groaning. "Why is it like my life is so blessed when it's so annoying?~"

"Hmph, those old guys are way too nosy," Naruto huffed as Satoru hummed with a nod of agreement. "They keep saying that if mom's gonna be 'harboring' me," the boy twitched his fingers. "We might as well move to the Kyoto sect."

"... You're moving?" Satoru balked.

"Yes, it's why Minato has been going abroad recently," Kushina admitted. "I mean, to be fair, it's not like we, or you, can't visit. We'll just be at the other sector, in their words," she huffed before twitching her own fingers. "To 'strengthen our hold in that school' or some such nonsense. It's really annoying-dattebane."

"Totally-dattebayo," Naruto said with a flat expression as Satoru snickered. "So, yeah, gonna be headin' towards Kyoto, aniki," he added, biting off another dango. "I hope I can make an actual friend there, especially with how everything is in Tokyo."

"Well, I'm sure I could find you some friends," Satoru grinned as Naruto wore a look of complete concentration.

"Is that why Uta-nee-chan hates you? Because I don't think you're good at 'friends'."

"O-Oi!"

Kushina smirked.

Yeah, they'd all be fine.

~NRK~

~A Week Later~

Naruto Uzumaki was many things.

A reincarnate as this second life would offer him.

A reject, it seemed, in the eyes of his clan's elders.

And cousin to one of the most powerful jujutsu sorcerors known to mankind, it seemed.

Still didn't stop him from trying to fight him, though.

Wearing a pair of blue pants tied at his ankles, a sleeveless orange vest over a mesh shirt, and weighted bands on his ankles and wrists, he came feet-first down on Satoru's head.

The attack was blocked with a raised forearm from the older Gojou before the man swung out lazily, Naruto already down on the ground before he punched at his midsection.

Satoru smirked as he blocked it with an open palm before raising a brow as the boy grabbed said palm and swung over it to nearly knee him in the nose.

Nearly.

Naruto was spun by the hand that grabbed his knee before he righted himself and crossed his arms.

Satoru's weak palm strike sent him flying for a bit before he recovered without too much trouble against the stone pathway.

"Go~ Naruto-kun~" Cheered a young woman on the sidelines, sitting next to a couple others who threw their own forms of 'encouragement' at the 'fighters'.

"Beat him up!" Said one particular woman.

"Uta-nee, I'm trying!" Naruto stated. "He's just full of nonsense!"

"I know!"

Utahime Iori, or Uta-nee-chan, pointed dramatically at Satoru. Being a woman with fair skin, long purplish-black hair set in a pair of pig tails that rested against her chest, and brown eyes, she wore a white shitagi, red hakama, the pants high on her waist, and a pair of flexible black shoes.

"Satoru Gojou! Go die!"

"Rude~," the man said with an 'innocent look'. "Maaa~ Hime-chan-"

"Don't you dare, you son of-" The woman began to grow heated before chuckling came from her side. "Geto! Don't stop me!"

"Stop you?" Came the voice of a young man around Gojou's age, height, and build, the man's skin fair, eyes black, and hair black pulled up into a bun with a single odd bang coming down the left side of his face. "No, please, keep going. Satoru, you suck."

Wearing a uniform similar to Satoru, his pants were much baggier while he wore shoes comparable to Utahime's.

"H-Haaa?" The young man in question's eyebrow twitched as Naruto snickered. "Oi! You tryin' to come and get your ass kicked?!"

"Don't speak like that in front of children!" Utahime said as the first young woman snickered.

She was shorter than the rest, even Utahime who stood at an average height, with chin-length brown hair, fair skin, and brown eyes, wearing a similar outfit to Gojou.

"Shoko, please, you have to help me teach him a lesson!"

"Come on, it's not like Naruto's not spent a few years around us," Shoko snickered some more. "Besides, do you honestly think that hanging with Gojou leaves you innocent in the ears? I think I heard him curse at Geto the first week we met."

Utahime's head mechanically turned to the now-looking-away Satoru. "N-Naruto-kun!"

"Nope, not yet," Naruto declared with a bright smile as the woman sighed in relief while Satoru whistled innocently. "Though, I can tell, he's very close to breaking," the boy said without remorse.

"Gojou!"

"Come on!" The man choked. "I-It's not like I did curse around him!"

"He's so bad at this," Geto said as Shoko snickered. "You'd think he'd be better at dealing with her but I guess that's Naruto's effect."

"Obviously," she said as Utahime and Satoru argued over 'happened' and 'didn't happen'. "Satoru used to be a lot more… mmm," Shoko thought of the word.

"An idiot?"

"Yeah, that," she grinned. "Nowadays, he's an idiot who basically has a little brother. I wonder how he'll be when they're in Kyoto?"

"I mean, it's not like it'll be more dangerous than if they weren't. Kushina-san is noted as having the most cursed energy known to man… well, she used to," he said, looking curious. "You know, I know Satoru said, at one point, her cursed energy was so impossible to recognize when he was younger."

"She's his favorite relative, of course, he'd notice," Shoko hummed at that. "I mean, I can't imagine what that's like but couldn't it have just been before he'd hit some Black Flashes?"

"... No, I think Satoru's understanding of energy is beyond our understanding, I have to assume it's as he theorized."

"When Naruto was born, all of it nearly vanished?"

"Yep, he thinks there's something off about Naruto's Heavenly Restriction. Maybe it's me but I think there's more to it than that," Geto said, observing the blonde boy currently working as mediator between the young man and woman.

When Utahime picked him up and acted like he was luggage, Geto was laughing again as Shoko smirked.

"Yeah, he's special in that Utahime can't get enough of him," Shoko snorted as they laughed at Satoru's look of betrayal.

~NRK~

The following day, Naruto walked around the forests of his home for maybe the last time for the next month.

"I guess I should tell ya, huh, old man?" He called out to the forest, orange kimono shifting in the wind.

"God, how the hell can you sense me?" Came a voice from behind a tree, a man stepping out from behind it with his hand on his head. "Honestly, are all kids like you gonna be special? Because I might be out of business if it's true."

He was tall, broad-chested, and scarred on his lip. Having fair skin, black eyes, and a mop of black hair that fell over his head, the light gray kimono-wearing man smirked as Naruto turned to him.

"Doncha know? The next generation's always pretty amazin'," the boy chuckled, folding his arms into his sleeves.

"Brat, ugh, what is it? You're not gonna become the head, are ya? Because, ya know? Since I've been givin' ya ideas-"

"Slow your roll there, chief, that ain't it," Naruto chuckled as the man slumped. "No, it's just, I'm likely gonna end up being in Kyoto at the end of the month," he said as the man raised a brow. "Yeah, due to some Elderly Meddling, it's no good being here in Tokyo… Honestly, though?" Naruto rubbed the back of his head.

"Let me guess, no chance at making friends?" The man asked, crossing his arms. "I get ya, I really do."

"Was it this bad for you?"

"Honestly? Worse," the man shrugged as Naruto stared at him in horror. "You're lucky you weren't born into the Zenin household, shit, they'd send you into a pit of second-grade curses every chance they could get if you survived."

"... they did that to you? As a KID?" Naruto frowned and the man laughed. "That's sick and wrong."

"Hah! Well, you know, it's at least survivable."

"I doubt that. I mean, you have a Restriction and crazy power, if they chose to actually fight you-"

"Psst, I'd win," the man said as the boy rubbed the back of his head. "Duh, I said I got thrown in there constantly, do you honestly think I'd lose to some weak ass sorcerers?"

"... No, I guess you're right," Naruto said with closed eyes as the wind picked up. "These clans, their old ways, the people up top, they're so stuck in the past that they can't see beyond their own eyes," he frowned. "It needs to change."

"Big words. Eh, those ain't wrong but you're up against people who'd find you sneezing enough for a death sentence."

"... I wanna change it," the boy said with determined eyes, looking down at his hands. "I'm going to become a Special Grade Sorcerer, I will. Once I do, I'll have some leeway," he grinned as the man shot him a look. "Maybe I'll even get you back in, old fart."

"Oi, I'm in my twenties, ya bastard," the man huffed. "Hmph," he shrugged. "At the end of the day, kid, there are some things we can't be and can. I think, in the end, with whatever weirdass power you think you really have, you'll have to realize what those things are."

Naruto shot the man a look. "... Fushi-sensei, didn't you literally get married? What happened? I mean, you told me you had a kid!"

"... Ehh," the man rubbed the back of his head. "Yeah, well, it's probably for the best for him to grow up without a dad. It ain't in me to raise anyone, I ain't that."

"But you found love."

The man choked on his breath as Naruto smirked. "Y-You little shit! Don't go saying that stuff!" Fushi shivered as Naruto sweatdropped. "Ugh, I can feel myself getting softer because of you!"

"It's mah charm," Naruto snickered. "Still, I don't think there's such things as 'can' and 'can't', life's not that simple. Hell, my cousin ended up a once-in-a-lifetime weirdo. What's to say I can't become a Supreme-Grade Badass?"

"Supreme-Grade."

"Hey, sometimes, ya gotta shoot beyond what's there."

The man rolled his eyes but shrugged. "Don't go and get yourself killed. Whether by a curse, a sorcerer, or even me. These days, they were alright," Fushi said as they faced one another. "But, no offense, if it comes between my feelings and my paycheck, I don't think it's gonna be as easy."

"Maybe but then I'll just beat ya up, take ya prisoner, and have you spend your days working as a father in a business," Naruto said cheekily as the man wore a look of disgust. "Hey, it's a win-win for you, old man. Don't complain when life gives ya lemonade instead of lemons."

"Hmph, whatever, take care, kid," Fushi considered something with a huff. "Hmph."

Naruto grinned as his hair got ruffled before the man began to leave. "Don't be a stranger, sensei, I'm sure you'll find me one way or another," he said as the man shrugged.

"... Oh yeah," the man made a realizing sound. "Megumi," he told Naruto who blinked, the man ruffling his own hair. "I gave him that name."

"... Hahahah!" Naruto laughed as the man grumbled but vanished from sight. "You can be a better person than you are, maybe, one day, you'll realize that," he said somberly but with a smile.

Sometimes, people need their life to take a drastic turn. Naruto would follow-up on his own words if things came to a head between them.

Even if he'd make the guy a 'Slave Dad'.

~NRK~

~Two Weeks Later~

The train ride to Kyoto had come with a few surprises.

"Nee-chan?" Naruto looked surprised as Utahime nodded, sitting with him, Kushina, and Satoru. "I'm confused, not to say you're not welcome but what are you doing here?"

"Oh, that's because she's being put for a teacher at Kyoto Jujutsu High," Kushina said with a smile as the younger woman blushed but nodded. "Hime-chan was always good at handling the younger students and helping them develop. I guess they wanted to offer her some ideas or future plans."

"W-Well, I believe so," Utahime said. "I… I don't know if I'm ready for that yet, though. I've been happy to lead most of our students," she shot the grinning Satoru a look. "Ignoring the special ones, it's inspiring to help the students master their talents, control, or even their Cursed Techniques."

"Hehe, I'm sure they'll be glad to have you, nee-chan," Naruto said with a grin as she smiled. "Wish my situation was different but it's what it is," he admitted as Utahime hummed.

"I understand, I wish I could teach you fully but that doesn't mean I can't teach you," she smiled. "I'm sure, when you're old enough and still have the same interest, you could learn how to handle Cursed Tools or even barriers and shikigami. There are methods to allow you to try your best, Naruto-kun. In fact-"

"That's why he trains with the greatest," Satoru jumped in without hesitation, Utahime's brow twitching in response. "Why, I could make him a real beast once he's all big and strong."

"More like really uncultured, the last thing he needs is your input on his development."

"Hey now, I've been around my cousin since he was a baby, it'll be fine!"

"Deniable," Utahime rolled her eyes before removing something from her sleeves and giving it to Naruto. "I was trying to see how your development would proceed and I figured giving you these two would work," she smiled as Kushina grinned while Naruto took the offered tags.

They were talismans; Composed of golden parchment and black ink, Naruto turned them around before finding names on the back.

Oni

Kitsune

"Nee-chan, these are awesome but how would I use them?" Naruto smiled as Utahime reciprocated. "I know you, nee-chan, I'm sure there's some kinda secret to these."

"Yes-"

"Huh? Oh, you need to put blood on 'em," Satoru smirked as Utahime's eyebrow twitched while Kushina chuckled.

"Why you-!"

"Hime-chan, please, I'm sure you can give us a more in-depth explanation," the silver-haired woman said as Utahime stopped before blushing and grumbling.

"Y-Yes, well, ignoring his interruption," Utahime's eyes narrowed. "Gojou is correct, these talismans are a bit different because they rely on your physical body," she smiled at the boy as Satoru huffed. "It wasn't easy to ask for this but Yaga was helpful in this regard. They're similar to his cursed puppets, he said, but it takes in information from your 'soul' or the material you use to conjure them. The thing is, when active, they're self-sufficient when it comes to cursed energy, they just need you to form a master bond with them through the act of giving blood."

Naruto considered it with a grin. 'It's kind of like the Kuchiyose no Jutsu,' he thought, the product before him similar in function, apparently. "So, just some blood? Would I need to do it all the time?"

"Nope," Satoru stepped in while tilting his sunglasses up, ignoring Utahime who grumbled. "Once the Master-Servant bond is formed, you're going to be able to conjure them with but a thought."

Naruto considered it while Kushina hummed. "I'm surprised, wouldn't this be nice for everyone to have? I always wondered why more people didn't use shikigami," she said, combing her fingers through her hair.

Somehow, someway, like animals slipping out of a forest, small red balls of light peeked out from by her ears before disappearing again.

"You're really amazing, Kushina-san," Utahime said in awe as the woman chuckled a bit. "Being honest, you didn't really stay a sorcerer for reasons I don't understand, no offense."

"Duh, she did the sappy stuff," Gojou said as Naruto laughed and Utahime blinked before her expression brightened while Kushina's reddened. "That's how Naru-Naru was born."

"He's not wrong," the boy grinned as Utahime smiled softly at him. "Alright-"

"Maybe not here? We'll do it when we get to your new home," the teacher-to-be said as the blonde chuckled in embarrassment. "I know, you were probably excited, these did have your own words in mind," Naruto blinked in surprise along with his family.

"It did?" Kushina asked as Satoru hummed.

"Yes. At one point, Naruto had quite the amazing concept," she explained. "He wondered if shikigami couldn't be made to get stronger as the caster did. It'd been something odd about a video game, I believe."

"Jade Cocoon 2," Naruto and Satoru said in unison, not even bothered. "It's so cool."

"R-Right," Utahime tilted her head. "Honestly? Video games? I thought you were bad at those," she asked the boy who blushed while Satoru snickered.

"I-I'm good at the ones which involve taking care of my partners and stuff, like Monster Rancher," Naruto mumbled with a squinty face, Utahime's eyes shining at his fox-like expression. "B-But what about the mixing part? I don't know if I ever mentioned that."

"Yaga didn't think that was impossible but it wasn't feasible. For now, they're simply as you originally considered, they grow with you, their caster, as long as they're not exorcized. If they're destroyed, that's different, but they're still filled with cursed energy and getting exorcized will break your connection."

~NRK~

Getting to Kyoto, the four got off the train with the mother and son getting their luggage.

Once they did, the group left the train station before traveling the streets of Kita-ku, one of the eleven wards of Kyoto Prefecture.

"It's a lot more rural where we are but it's close to the school," Kushina explained as they walked past stores, bakeries, and dojos before finding themselves on a bridge over Kamo River. "And there are rice patties we can go and see if we want to get some rest."

"It's pretty alright, no big restaurants?" Satoru asked.

"No, but the Kinkaku-ji is here."

"Officially known as the 'Rokuon-ji'," Utahime explained to Naruto. "It's also rumored to house a Cursed Object."

"Really?" The boy asked as they came to a stop by a bayou, the sight of the temple in the distance. "Why doesn't anyone know?"

"It's honestly annoying to get in," Satoru said, arms folded behind his head. "Hell, they don't even let ya see the Wise Kings, much less what might be enshrined inside of it all."

"He's right, sadly, there's not a lot to do about going in," Utahime said as Kushina nodded. "Still, Kyoto High is keeping an eye on it. Better safe than sorry."

~NRK~

Reaching their new home, Naruto and Kushina grinned at a medium-sized two-story house with cream-colored walls, red shingles, and white-bordered windows.

Going in through the dark red door, they found a comfy-looking living space with some furniture already inside.

"Mmmm!" Satoru strutted on in before collapsing into a recliner and putting up the built-in legrest. "A-Aaaaaahhh."

Utahime rolled her eyes before looking at the back of the door where, on the four corners of it, oddly-colored rectangular tiles sat.

"It's rather amazing just how incredible a normal person can be," she said as Kushina grinned. "H-He easily became one of the best users of shikigami, talismans, and barriers w-we've ever seen! How?!" Where had this woman's husband come from?

The man was a verifiable genius and the fact he'd just been a normal person made the world a hilariously amazing place the more the faculty thought about it.

"Hehe~ Minato has always been just that smart. He's a smooth talker in his field of business and a downright criminal mastermind when it comes to schematics. Honestly, he's just that one amazing thing."

"A genius," Satoru piped in while sitting up and leaning on one armrest with a grin. "Yeah, he is, especially because of how good he is," he said lazily as Utahime blinked at him, looking confused. "... hehehe, well, for one, he knows how to make a shikigami capable of bypassing my family's Infinity."

The area was silent as Utahime stared at him, her expression of confusion slowly becoming more and 'colored' by the sheer impossibility of what Satoru had just said.

"W-What?" She asked for clarification, she had to.

What Satoru Gojou had just admitted to was too outrageous to ignore!

"Yeah, trust me, I'm still trying to wrap my head around it," the young man shrugged. "It's likely because his Cursed Technique is so unique. Hell, if he'd been a sorcerer I'm sure he'd have been Special Grade, easily."

"I-I don't understand! How?!" Utahime cupped her chin. "Kushina-san, what exactly is Minato Uzumaki's Cursed Technique?"

Kushina chuckled as she sat down with Naruto on a couch. "Coordinate Reversal," she explained as the woman blinked in confusion. "Minato can shift coordinates of his energy and a target he's tagged with his own cursed energy. The thing is, that's not enough to defeat Infinity."

"It's why pops had to expand the point or something," Naruto explained as Utahime blinked at him.

"N-Naruto-kun, I don't understand."

"If he can change a point of energy and my own, he can expand a customized Simple Domain inside of my safeguards," Satoru said with a shaky grin. "That man is utterly terrifying."

Utahime's eyes widened. "If he could already bypass his Infinity, that means he's behind infinity and since it can eternally expand-"

"He can, essentially, nullify it," the young man admitted, flooring her.

That bit of information took her several seconds to process. "... No one knows, do they?"

"Heh, for what you lack in strength, you make up for in smarts," he said and she growled. "But, yeah, it'd be a very bad idea to tell anyone about that," Satoru frowned, breaking her anger for a moment.

Then she truly considered what was being implied and winced. "You'd never know rest," she said to Kushina and Naruto who nodded. "... I'm sorry for asking."

"No, it's fine, Hime-chan, you're a truly trustworthy person," Kushina smiled as the younger woman blushed. "The thing is, even at its base, Minato couldn't exploit the 'loophole' in Infinity until he explained his Cursed Technique."

"With that boost, he could do it," the younger woman understood. "Still, in a way, that just tells you how different the modern world is," Utahime said as Naruto nodded. "And how Jujutsu is changing every day. I mean, that kind of power isn't something within the Three Main Families and is just in some random person, think about it."

"I think it's just because those old statues don't want to think about it," Naruto said as Satoru snickered and Utahime smiled shakily. "They care about only 'traditional' kinda Techniques, I don't think they'd try to accept the new types that are possibly all over."

"Well… I can't say you're wrong," Utahime said, finding her seat on another couch opposite the mother and son's own. "I mean, Nanami-kun's Cursed Technique is still up for debate to them."

"Oh, right, Nanamin!" Satoru grinned as she rolled her eyes despite trying to fight the amusement on her face. "He's a guy who can put ratios on things, baa-chan, Naru."

"Huh?" The two blinked. "The hell's that mean?"

"Nanami Kento is his name, he's a first-year," Utahime explained. "His Cursed Technique is unorthodox and a bit esoteric, more like Satoru's own than normal kinds."

"Looking at a target, he can divide them or it into a line with ten points," Gojo explained while leaning back with a grin. "When he hits that ratio of 7:3, his attacks are more potent. Honestly, I'm sure that he'll be a Grade 1 Sorcerer, he's got all the things he needs. He just needs to get experience."

"He sounds like a nice young man with a brilliant future," Kushina grinned before patting her son's head. "So, let's ensure we see this one's future as well," she chuckled as Naruto nodded.

"Now, Naruto-kun, I don't know if you're queasy around blood," Utahime said to him, coming over and sitting beside him to point to his finger. "I can open up a small wound so you can perform the ritual without too much trouble."

"Hehe, I got this nee-chan," Naruto said with a determined look, getting a chuckle out of her and a look of amusement from Kushina.

Then the boy bit open a bit of his thumb and Utahime shrieked.

"NARUTO?!"

"It's not that bad, trust me," the former shinobi said without a wince as the woman trembled in horror, Satoru laughing like an idiot in the recliner. "Now, like this…"

While Utahime freaked out, and Kushina tried to calm her down, Gojo's thumb came up to lift his sunglasses, the young man sitting down fully as he focused.

'Let's see what I can find again,' he thought to himself as he watched Naruto place blood on those two Shikigami Talismans. 'Has it changed since last time?'

With the Limitless and Six-Eyes, seeing the flow, intent, and mechanics of cursed energy was simple and easy-to-'read' but when it came to Naruto, there was something… odd.

'There's the Restriction.'

The Heavenly Restriction placed on his young cousin always surprised the Gojou clan head. Not because it was one, he may have only seen a few of these cases but they all shared a uniformity in them that made sense, in a way.

Naruto's own hadn't, the 'Restriction' formed not a mass of 'chains' that removed the ability to use cursed energy but a mandala, a sort of shape, that spread out on his back, chest, core, and head.

Each of these 'mandalas' connected to one another in an odd fashion and it left him befuddled often because it shouldn't be so confusing. He couldn't see anything besides that, though, along with one other thing.

Those mandala… they were slowly solidifying ever since he first saw them, the young man's eyes focusing even further-

Before they were rebuffed. Rebuffed like always when he tried to push his perception and senses into solving Naruto's 'mystery'.

'What is it?' Watching the boy's talismans glow had him leaning back, mouth set in a smile that'd be seen as casual while his mind ran rampant. 'That's not a Heavenly Restriction like anything I've ever seen,' and something was happening, as well. 'I don't know what this is.'

How had his Six Eyes been rejected? Even now, he felt a bit of a small headache which wasn't something that happened unless he strained his 'Eyes'.

Satoru simply allowed his thoughts to go away from the 'eternal mystery' to watch Naruto's shikigami appear… and he grinned a bit at the two.

The two shikigami sat at about the same height as the blonde, clearly to Utahime's adoration, with chibified features that were relative to their 'master'.

The 'oni' hadn't been much of anything special. The creature was Naruto's height, bipedal, orange, and bearing a pair of golden horns on its head. Hilariously enough, it looked like a 'kid' of its 'species' with big black eyes on yellow sclera, a snaggletooth, and a head of spiky white hair. With its form being thin but strong, covered by a pair of baggy blue pants and a cheetah-print mantle, the creature crossed its arms and deferred to the blonde.

The 'fox', on the other hand, was more 'curious'.

The completely white creature sat in front of Naruto with a patient look, blue eyes with slit pupils never leaving the boy's form.

It had red coloration over its eyes, paws, and tail tips. Yes, tips, as in more than one.

The two fox tails it had were surprising because Satoru had been sure that the talisman had said 'Fox' and not 'Kitsune'.

With the last 'bits' on it being a black bead necklace around its neck and an 'cowlick' of fur atop its head, the creature looked regal if not intriguing.

'Wait,' he activated his Cursed Technique once more and found his eyes widening. 'It's… passing on to the shikigami?' What?

The mandala had provided 'copies', it seemed. Each shikigami bearing one on their backs and chests in his vision.

'What's going to happen when it's complete?' Satoru wasn't sure but he had a hunch that the Heavenly Restriction might lift after it was. 'Still, why do the shikigami have it?' What was the point?

He groaned mentally before dropping the thought entirely and focused on Naruto dealing with his new shikigami.

"... I'm gonna call you 'Kurama'," the blonde grinned as the kitsune perked up, tails wagging. "And you," Naruto turned to the waiting oni. "..." He looked at the horns on its head. "Sage," he smiled as the creature perked up.

He nodded rapidly as the kitsune leaned forward a bit.

"I guess we'll be working together," the boy grinned as he crossed his arms. "I wonder what Ol' Dude Yaga made 'em do."

Utahime was almost too taken with the cute creatures to answer, Kushina grinning the entire time.

Satoru sneakily took out his phone before putting it on 'Silent'.

He took picture after picture, looking to all the world like a smiling man who wasn't blackmailing anyone.

"Hmm," Kushina looked at the rather expressive shikigami. "I guess it's definitely Yaga's touch. They're so unique," she said with a smile as the two shikigami approved in their own ways. "Hm, hm, hm, oh, you three are like a team now!"

Utahime's phone was out and taking photos as she covered her mouth. 'Oh. My. God, they're so fucking cute!' Her mind raged as she took picture after picture.

Truly, Naruto really was the gift that kept on giving.

~NRK~

~A Month Later~

"Huh?" Naruto balked at Satoru as the clan head, Geto, and him walked away from Tokyo High. "So, wait, what?" The boy looked so confused.

Wearing a pair of black ninja sandals, a pair of orange baggy pants, a black tunic, and a white cloak, Naruto blinked in disbelief, a new black set of bandages in place of his white bandana to cover his left eye.

"Why'd he send you guys?"

"Hey… I mean, we are the strongest," Satoru said before considering the question as Geto rolled his eyes. "Though, being nice and friendly ain't our forte… that's why you're here!"

Naruto sweatdropped. "You guys are hopeless," he said.

"Well, 'hopeless' will buy you a drink if you take it back," Satoru said with the look of a con man.

Naruto's eyebrow rose before he grinned. "Alright, give me some passion fruit tea."

"One Passion-"

"Half-hopeless one."

Geto snickered as Satoru's form 'creaked'.

"Loopholes, cuz, loopholes, I'm sure you know more than enough about those."

Satoru's jaw dropped.

They got their drinks before the two filled him in on the situation.

"Protect this girl because she'll be the next Tengen?" Naruto reiterated Geto's words, the brunette nodding while Satoru drowned his 'sorrows' in tea. "And that Q group and the… uhhh, other one," he said with a hopeless grin.

"The Time Vessel Association. The Curse User Group 'Q' wants to overturn the current way things are by destroying the new vessel so Tengen-sama will 'evolve'," he twitched his fingers. "Into a being unfit as the pillar of the world."

"What about the other guys? I mean, what's the point?"

"The Time Vessel Association wishes to preserve Tengen-sama without a merger… yes, it's as stupid as it sounds," Geto chuckled at Naruto's look of pure confusion.

"Wait, they do realize he's done this before, right?!" He asked in disbelief. "T-This has happened already! What!?"

"Yeah, non-sorcerers are pretty stupid," Satoru said. "And we've gotta 'protect' them," he made a disgusted look as Geto sighed.

"That's the way of the world," he said, confusing Naruto. "Ah, well, Satoru believes that the strong shouldn't have to protect the weak."

"Aniki, seriously?" Naruto said with a squinty-eyed look as the older Gojou groaned. "..." He considered the concept. "I'm guessing you think otherwise, Geto-bro?"

"Yes. The strong are meant to protect the weak and our institution keeps us in check. It's a responsibility," the cursed-spirit user said as Naruto nodded slowly.

"Hmm, if I had to put it into words," he began as Geto smiled encouragingly. "In a way, you're both right," Naruto grinned as both older males shot him weird looks. "Geto-bro's right in that the strong should protect the weak, I believe that, but I think Satoru-nii's issue is that he feels like he'd be forced to."

Satoru scratched the side of his nose. "... maybe."

"It's not fair to force anyone into something they both didn't plan/want to do and just decide for them. We're all born with our own will and the like, we have a freedom to choose. That said, I think, among all else, when you find something you want to protect, most of the time it'll be something 'weak', you're gonna be The Strongest because you have something that's precious to you. Whether it's an ideal, a dream, a friend, family, or someone you're happy with. That's a nearly indescribable difference between someone who's just 'strong' and someone who IS strong."

Satoru blinked at him, trying to wrap his mind around it while Geto looked… not 'worried' but 'conflicted'.

"Your words are a lot wiser than your age would show," Geto said with a look of being a bit lost. "Why, though?"

"Why do we have families?" Naruto grinned. "Why keep things you care about? Why hold people close you may believe in? Cursed energy may run on power like negativity but humans don't."

Geto looked alarmed while Satoru snickered.

"Maybe it's just a kid's way of looking at things," he offered his friend who cupped his chin. "Or, crazy enough, maybe that's the way it's always been?"

Geto didn't know. Perhaps it was just childish ignorance… but Naruto had faced his own difficulties and trials growing up even to his current age.

What boy just accepted ostracization? What kind of child understood the concept of 'old blood and tradition'?

Perhaps, maybe, Naruto did have a point? Geto wasn't sure.

"Naru's always been a positive thinker," Satoru said, ruffling the boy's head of hair. "... In a way, I guess this is also aunty's genes in you."

"She always did have that kinda kindness," Naruto smirked as the older man snickered. "It just comes with a temper."

"Yep!"

The two laughed as Geto smiled.

Perhaps.

~NRK~

"Sheesh, I'm killing kids now?" Fushi said as he sat in a restaurant in some black clothing. "What?"

"That girl is the Star Plasma Vessel," his contact, a man in a black suit with just as much as a 'sketchy' look as himself, said. "They'll pay 30 million yen for her. And the boy is-"

"Naruto Uzumaki, the 'Blonde Sheep' of the Gojo Family."

"Yes."

"I don't get it," Fushi put the picture of his old student down. "Why?" He asked, actually pretty confused.

Nobody in the Jujutsu world had given a fuck about the blonde Gojou, outside of his two family members and people not involved, it wasn't wrong to say that Naruto essentially didn't matter to those in the higher-ups.

And, somehow, these guys wanted that kid dead? Color him confused.

"Yeah, I never understood it myself," the other man said, lighting a cigarette. "But I think it's because they found a divination sorcerer who gave them some details," Fushi's eyes widened. "That kid could make a muck of things, for some reason?" The man shrugged as the other one rolled his eyes.

"So, what's the point? I can just kill the girl and not do all that extra effort," Fushi groaned before noting his mediator's expression.

"I think you're under a misconception."

Fushi's eyes narrowed.

"They want the boy," the other man said, confusing him. "I told you, they had a divination but there was more to it," the mediator frowned with a raised brow. "That diviner, they said something odd. They spoke of this Naruto kid like he was the Gojou Clan's second coming."

'What?' Fushi blinked at that. "How?"

"Because, he's supposedly the Reverse of Satoru Gojou."

~NRK~

"Hmph, speaking of hopelessness," Geto said as the three boys looked up at a large apartment building, an explosion coming out from one of the top rooms. "That's not our fault, is it?"

"Yo?!" Naruto said, pointing to something falling from that room. "She needs help! Geto-bro!"

"Yeah," Geto said with a smirk as he ran ahead with Naruto, Satoru simply lifting his sunglasses and watching the explosion. "Satoru!"

"There's a Q guy there," the clan head said as Geto's eyebrows narrowed while Naruto flared out a talisman.

"Kurama!" Naruto called out and the talisman glowed.

It unleashed his kitsune shikigami before the boy jumped on top of it and they began to scale the wall of the apartment.

"Geto-bro, I'll-!"

"You're slow," Geto smirked as he flew past on a manta ray cursed spirit. "Get faster than me!"

"Oi!" Naruto huffed but sighed in relief as the older male caught the falling girl. "... there's someone there," he frowned as Kurama kept going before they saw the person they were dealing with.

He was a tall man with a cloth mouth covering, fair skin, and beady eyes. Wearing a white hat, a white double-breasted top, a black mantle, pants, and boots, he glared at Geto before finally noticing him.

"You-!" The man began to say, Naruto noticing a figure's head in his hands.

So, he flung out his second shikigami. "Sage!"

The orange oni's form appeared in front of the man.

"What-?!" The young-looking shikigami's fist sent him flying. 'T-This strength?!'

His grip on his hostage fell limp and Naruto slipped in just in time to catch her.

"Kurama!"

The curse-user's form slipped out of the way of the foxy spirit's headbutt that cratered the wall.

'Where's this strength coming from? Are they compressed?' The man thought as he slipped to the side before raising his hands at the boy. "Wait… it's you."

"Huh?" Naruto looked confused before the man's face contorted even behind his mask. "You got a problem with me, old man?" The blonde's eyes narrowed, his spirits flanking him.

"Hm, hm, hm, no, in fact, it's quite a bit different," the Q member said with a gleam in his eyes. "You're more of a ticket than a 'problem'!"

There was a stream of heat ahead of the blonde.

And then there was another explosion from the apartment.

"..." Geto's eyes narrowed before another explosion came from down below. "Satoru can handle that one."

His cursed spirit moved towards the opening in the wall before Geto called two more cursed spirits into the room.

Then he sighed in relief as the Q member stared in confusion at the barrier of flame-like energy around Naruto and the knocked-out woman, the kitsune standing in front of the two and his fellow shikigami with his tails glowing.

"Sage!" The boy threw his hand forward as the oni shikigami shot out of 'cover' and towards the curse user.

The man scoffed before taking aim.

Another stream of heat shot towards the shikigami before being followed by a string of explosions… that missed?!

His head snapped up before a fist came down on his noggin.

The blow stunned the man, sending him stumbling, before the oni child grabbed his head.

Geto snickered as the man's face was sent into the floor, cracking the wooden panels, by the oni shikigami.

When Sage removed his hand, the enemy didn't move.

"Nice!" Naruto praised the now-flexing shikigami as Geto came in with a smirk.

"Good work, your application of your spirits and mental commands are honestly rather ridiculous as always," which was true.

Ever since receiving them, Naruto's training with the two shikigami always resulted in a single opinion.

The boy's reflexes were scarily top-notch, no way to understate it.

Naruto, even now, was likely able to react to anything especially with his little sensory skill. Speaking of…

"Do you feel anything?" He asked and the boy's eyes closed while Kurama's form sat next to him, glowing a soft gold. 'They expand on it,' well, the kitsune shikigami did.

How odd.

"... No, aniki's got the other guy taken care of, too," Naruto said with a smile.

And, as if summoned, Satoru appeared with another knocked-out Q member.

He looked around with an impressed nod. "Good work, Naru-Naru. I can tell, you've got quite the sorcerer in you," the clan head said with a smirk before dropping the enemy he'd fought on the ground. "So, what's the next move?" He asked the two.

~NRK~

"Thank God we remembered to set up a Screen," Satoru said as he, Geto, Naruto, and Naruto's shikigami made it to another location with the knocked-out women.

With the blonde's shikigami carrying the two, they could keep all their hands free and prepared.

"With Yaga's help, I'm sure we'll send a message to those Q guys," Satoru said before Naruto perked up.

"Oh, right!" He said, confusing the two. "Those guys said something weird about me."

"... So, nothing unusual?"

"Idiot," Geto smirked. "Go on, he's just being problematic."

"So, nothing unusual?" Naruto snickered as Satoru gasped. "Whatever, ya drama queen, this is kinda serious," he said as the two blinked. "That guy, he said I was their 'ticket' or something."

"Ticket?" The two students looked at one another. "What?"

"I don't know, all I know is that I told Yaga-bro that he needs to grill 'em. He seemed prepared to try and take me."

Satoru's eyes narrowed as he cupped his chin. "That so? What do you think?" He asked Geto.

"It's not like they cared before, why now? Naruto's only connection to any current event, right now, is through you through your Six Eyes. That's too stretched of a connection."

There was a ring from Naruto's pockets and the blonde pulled out a phone as they came to a stop.

The taller males crouched down as he answered. "Yaga-bro?"

-Naruto, I have a feeling it'd be a good idea for you to stay by Gojou and Suguru's sides- Came a gruff but concerned voice. -This thing just got complicated-

"What?" The young men in question frowned. "What do you mean?"

-I mean that they want the boy for reasons even these guys are unsure of, the Time Vessel Association do. They seem to have gotten divination from some sorcerer and decided to pay these guys if they could kidnap Naruto-

Satoru's eyes narrowed, blue eyes glistening for a moment. "That so?"

-It seems like they know something about Naruto that we don't and that's important enough for them to try and keep him. They don't want him dead like Riko Amanai, the Star Plasma Vessel, this got weird quickly-

"I have to assume it has something to do with Tengen-sama, no?" Geto suggested. "I mean, there's literally nothing else that's going on right now… right?" If something was, it'd be quite the worrisome situation.

-There shouldn't be unless Gojou heard something from his clan?-

"Nah, they haven't talked to me in…" The young man's face went blank. "I think for a couple years now."

"God, our family sucks sometimes," Naruto muttered as Satoru smirked. "Yaga-bro, what should we do?"

-For now, just follow through on your mission- Yaga said kindly. -You're between two nearly unstoppable forces, trust me, there's no safer place for you but, once this is all over, you might need to keep your head down for a bit, alright?-

"Alright, hopefully this doesn't become a big problem."

-You and me both.-

The call ended and Naruto tucked his phone away. "So, I'm now 'WANTED', didn't see that coming."

"True," Geto added with a deep frown. "Still, perhaps, they know what's actually odd about your situation? If they do, we might be able to get a lot out of this," he smiled as Naruto chuckled.

"Yeah, this might be perfect," Satoru said with a sly grin. "Once we're done with the baggage, we can-yeow!" He began to say, looking eager, before jumping and holding his rear. "Who's the wise guy?!"

"Me, you idiot!" Came a feminine voice from behind them, the boys turning to see none other than the two women they'd brought standing up… well, one of them. "If you wanna die, go do it on your own!"

"Huh?"

The one who'd spoken was the younger of the two females, the special one, the Star Plasma Vessel.

Riko Amanai.

She'd been of average height for a girl in her teens with peach skin, dark blue eyes, and black hair, with a yellow bandana in it, that ended in a ponytail.

Wearing a girl's school uniform, she pointed at the three with an annoyed look.

Geto smiled disarmingly. "Please, Riko, we're not here to hurt or kidnap you."

"Stuff it, liar!"

Twitch.

"You think I'd believe someone with a face like yours?!"

Twitch.

"And what's with that weirdass side bang?! Did you lose a bet?!"

Seconds later, the girl was screaming as the two students began to pull on her limbs.

"Respect your elders," Geto said ominously as Satoru grinned in revenge.

Naruto rolled his eyes as he stood next to the girl's caretaker… who was currently obsessed with holding Sage like he was a teddy bear.

The oni didn't look bothered.

She had white skin, black eyes, and black hair tied up in a neat bun that was covered by a white hair bun cover with two chin-length bangs on the sides of her face. Wearing a black dress, skirt, leggings, and shoes, she had on a collared shirt beneath her dress and a white apron over her skirt, looking on with a sweatdrop.

"I-I guess they're as hot-blooded as she is," she said to Naruto who chuckled nervously.

"Um, yeah, right… I don't know your name, nee-chan."

"Oh, please to meet you, young man, I am Misato Kuroi," the caretaker smiled and bowed to him while the others bickered or, in Riko's case, got stretched out in repentance. "And you are?"

"Naruto Uzumaki, at your service."

"Oh, you're that Naruto-kun."

"You know me?"

"Yes, from what connections I do have with the jujutsu world, you've been a hot topic as of the last two years," Kuroi explained as he rubbed the back of his head.

"It's because that's when they were sure I didn't have any Cursed Technique. I'm just the 'black sheep'," he explained as she frowned. "It's what it is, I've still got aniki over there and my parents, I just lived my life how I choose."

"Well… I suppose," she said.

"I'M FINE AT SCHOOL, YOU KNOW!" Came Riko's voice, gaining their attention. "W-Wait! School?! Kuroi! What time is it?!"

"A-A bit before noon?" Kuroi considered. "But perhaps school can wai-"

"Nonsense! I'm going!"

~NRK~

"So, Yaga said that Tengen-sama said to just go along with what she wants," Naruto said as Satoru groaned while Geto nodded, the four of them, Kuroi included, standing in the forests outside of Renchoku Girls' Junior High.

"I'm not surprised," he said. "Once this all happens, all of this," Geto gestured to the world around them. "Is never going to be hers to walk in again, she'll be down below, working with Tengen-sama to be the lynchpin of our society. Family, friends, connections, they'll sadly all go away."

"Is there really no way for her to see the outside world?" Naruto asked as Kuroi held onto Sage gently, head down. "... Sis?"

"It's… Haa, I wish for the same, Naruto-kun," Kuroi said, messing with the oni child shikigami's fingers. "Riko-sama has no family anymore, not after an event from when she was four," Naruto winced while Satoru crossed his arms, expression unreadable behind his glasses. "There's no more relatives for her."

"But that makes you her family," Geto chuckled as the woman blushed but nodded. "You've helped her more than anyone could have expected."

"Yep!" Naruto grinned as Kuroi smiled a bit. "Family's not just about blood, sometimes, it's as simple as feeling like it. If you believe you're family and happy with one another, no one could say otherwise."

"Yes…"

"Yeah I…" Naruto began to say before his eyes narrowed to a part of the school. "Aniki, bro."

"Intruders?" Satoru's eyes narrowed as Geto's fingers pressed to his forehead.

"... Two of them have already been exorcized," Geto said with a frown. "We need to grab Riko."

The six, including the shikigami, hurried out of the forest, hurrying to the side of the girls-only school to rush in through a custodian door.

"Where's Amanai?" Satoru asked Kuroi.

"At this time, the music room or the chapel," the caretaker said as the group slowed down by an intersecting hallway. "The chapel is this way," Kuroi said nervously, pointing down the direction. "And the music room-"

"She's this way," Naruto said, pointing down the hall, surprising Kuroi for a moment before her eyes widened. "She's in the chapel."

"Then I'll head after the intruders," Geto stated before finding Naruto at his side.

"They separated," the boy said as he looked up. "One's going up while one's right down their hall and to the right."

"Hehe, good job!" Satoru said as he and Kuroi ran. "We'll handle Amanai! Go and deal with those schmucks!" He told them as the two disappeared down the hall.

"Alright, let's do this," Naruto said with a grin, Kurama and Sa…?! "Oh my God," he facepalmed as Geto snickered. "K-Kuroi-nee has-"

"Sage?"

"I'm so bad at this."

They'd found the first intruder fast thanks to the blonde's sensory skill, their old man of an opponent coming down a hallway before looking at them in surprise.

"Aniki!"

"Yeah!"

The old man's hands flashed out, talismans in both, but before they could summon anything, Geto had already released a cursed spirit that seemed to engulf the hallway towards him.

"Tsk!"

There was a crash of stone, plaster, and glass as the spirit wriggled around. "Hmph," Geto nodded before Naruto faced a window with Kurama.

"Kurama," the boy called out to the shikigami who nodded, the kitsune's tails glowing. "Hmph," Naruto dropped his weights, the metal objects around his ankles 'thunking' as they hit the floor.

Right as the old curse user came through the window, arms crossed with a knife in his grip.

Geto's eyebrow rose before Kurama flashed a golden light into their opponent's face, blinding him and allowing Naruto to tackle the man mid-air before clasping his arms around his waist.

"W-What-"

And suplexed the man right into the ground, the curse user's legs twitching as the boy let go before flipping off him, landing next to Geto.

"There, handled," Naruto grinned as the cursed spirit user blinked before laughing a bit.

"Your senses continue to be top notch, it's honestly comforting that the next generation has such capable warriors," the older male smirked as Naruto folded his arms behind his head. "Come, let's get to the second one before he causes trouble."

"He's heading towards… the chapel," Naruto said with narrowed eyes. "Let's go," he said.

"... Bring this one," Geto said, pointing to the knocked-out old man, going over and pulling the curse user out of the ground like a vegetable. "We might be able to glean more information about this whole situation."

~NRK~

They hurried to the top of the school before rushing down the roof to look down at the chapel.

Just in time to see a familiar trio hurrying down its roof and into the nearby suburban areas.

"Why is he leading him into the populated areas?" Geto frowned before he and Naruto jumped off the top of the school. "I have to assume Kuroi was able to hypnotize the students, doing all of this out in the open is troublesome!" He said before flicking out two fingers.

A pair of cursed spirits, one a familiar manta ray and the other an disfigured eagle, appeared, allowing the four to land on them, Kurama holding their defeated opponent in his extending tails.

"There are five similar signatures following them!" Naruto shouted as their rides took off at high speeds. "Is it a Cursed Technique?"

"Seems like it!" Geto answered as they began to gain on the eight. "Still, this ought to be good for us. With at least two prisoners, we can work out more ideas on what to do!"

As the eight figures made it on top of houses and small complexes, another Curtain, a seemingly inky black 'splotch', was thrown over the area, Naruto and Geto barely making it in before it fully took shape.

"There's someone else here," Geto said with a frown. "There's someone else around."

Naruto's eyes went all about the area, senses raised. "... I can't… whoever this is, their cursed energy isn't all that different from a normal person's. I have a feeling they're like our assistant directors, maybe?"

'Just like us,' that wasn't good. 'How big is this attacking force?' Geto didn't like the idea of facing a possible attack force similar to the Zenin Clan's Hei, their high-grade attack force. "... It seems that Satoru's handling this as well as we expected," he said as their ride came to an end, the two watching as Satoru essentially manhandled his opponent, a large hulking man with a bag over his head, a shirt, and a pair of pants.

There were five copies of this man on the nearby rooftops, two of which had been pulled and slammed together by a light-blue haze in the air.

"Blue," Naruto said with interest, rubbing the back of his head. "God, I hate trying to sense it, it's always such a pain in the brain."

"Really?" Geto was curious. "Can you make something out about it?"

"It's like impossible points of energy mix together. My senses can kinda make sense of it but it hurts the more I do, it's like he pulls it from a different dimension and stuff but… doesn't?" Naruto offered, like it made sense. "Infinity's kinda stupid when it comes to explaining it and then there's Limitless that makes the world clearly feel awkward."

"Hmm? Why?"

"Because it's limitless, I can't really get a feel on it but it's obviously there. Think of it like an actual ghost," Naruto's face went blank as Geto laughed. "Then, consider Infinity like an endless pool. The thing is, the ghost can pull the two ends of that pool together in a loop like an asshole."

"Don't let Iori hear you," Geto smirked as Naruto whined. "She'll just come by to clobber Satoru though… no, please, ignore my words."

"Right."

Things came to an end in, surprise surprise, Satoru's favor with one last uppercut, the four coming down to join up with the others.

"Huh?" Riko blinked as she saw the cursed spirits and then the shikigami." Oh my God, you're so cute!" She said in Naruto's direction.

Naruto chuckled as he shot Kurama a thumbs-up-

"Huh?!" He was picked up and left confused as she mashed their cheeks together. "H-Hey!"

"Where have you been?!" Riko asked in awe. "Thank God there's a cute boy around here!"

Satoru blinked before pointing at his face. "Uh, excuse you, handsome is over here," he said flatly as she shot him a flat look. "Oi!"

Kuroi smiled in relief. "Thank you, Naruto-kun, it was good we could separate our forces properly without being caught unawares," she said as she held Sage like before.

"Yep, I'm glad-" Naruto began to say, already giving in to his fate, before he felt something… off. "What?" He blinked in confusion, head snapping to the side. "U-Uhhh, guys?!"

Heads turned in that direction and they all saw them.

A swarm of cursed spirits, weak ones, ones that wouldn't even do anything, but a swarm so large that it nearly blotted out the sun.

"A desperation move?" Satoru considered with a raised brow. "Ya know?" He said but his eyes narrowed. 'There's no one over there,' which was odd.

Then there was a yelp that had them turning around to see Riko hitting the floor with a look of disbelief.

And no Naruto.

"THE FUCK?!" Satoru and Geto choked while Kuroi's eyes shrank. "NARUTO?!"

~NRK~

~An Indeterminable Amount of Time Later~

~In Okinawa~

They grinned as they sat in the shade of an umbrella, eating shaved ice at a picnic table on the beach.

"I-I got 'got' so easily!" Naruto kept slamming his head down on the wooden surface, groaning under Kuroi's watchful eye.

"Be careful, Naruto-kun, you'll hurt yourself," she said, rubbing the boy's head. "It's not something to be so worried about, regardless, you're not at fault when you did your best," Kuroi said, wearing a black skin-tight swimming top and bloomers.

"Yeah!" Riko grinned, wearing a black bikini, a straw hat, and a beach jacket. "Ya saved me from getting nabbed! As the future Tengen, I'm sure I could pull some strings," she said with a gleam in her eye.

Naruto grumbled with a pout in his orange swim trunks and black weights, Kuroi smiling while pinching his cheek.

Satoru snickered, wearing a black beach jacket and swim trunks. "Hehehe~ It wasn't that bad, besides, we also got more info on you," he said with a sly grin as Riko perked up.

"What was that all about?" She asked.

"The situation is as such," Geto began. "The Q Group, thankfully, has disbanded," Naruto looked so confused. "Yes, having their greatest member defeated left them without a head so they couldn't reign in the immediate anarchy."

"Immediate what now?"

"Don't worry about it. Then, with those two men we caught near Riko's school, things got odd, especially when we had to save you."

~NRK~

"So, explain to me again, why'd you let them take him?" The hired hand hummed as he ate some takoyaki. "Toji."

Toji, not 'Fushi', shrugged. "Because it'll work out in the end," he said with a grin as his mediator groaned across from him at the same table. "Did you not see how that Gojou brat acted? He was pushing all his senses to the max to try and find the kid, that's good."

"You're trying to tire him out," the other man said with a sigh before eating some gyoza. "Hmph. I guess your other bet also worked out, we didn't have to pay those men a single yen but they likely snitched."

Toji snorted. "So?"

"God, why do I work with you?"

~NRK~

"They called you their 'special technique'," Kuroi said as she rubbed Naruto's shoulder. "They know something odd about you, Naruto-kun, and we're sure it has to do with your Heavenly Restriction."

"Yep," Satoru said as he stretched, Riko eating while paying attention. "I don't know if you noticed…"

"You mean when you'd use Six Eyes on me, right?" Naruto offered, surprising Geto while Satoru grinned a bit. "I figured you were trying to figure something out, you weren't exactly trying too hard."

"Huh?" Satoru blinked, sitting up in confusion. "What'dya mean? I got a slight headache trying to look into your energy… I wonder…" He cupped his chin while Geto blinked.

"Actually, about that," he said. "Naruto told me, right before getting kidnapped," the boy's head hit the table. "That he gets headaches, too, sometimes. When he tries to sense out Infinity and Limitless but he can sense it on some level."

"Well… actually, that's crazy."

"Why?" Riko asked. "I mean… w-wait, didn't you say your Technique thing worked by actually going to infinity?!"

"Exactly," Satoru said as Naruto huffed while lifting his head. "... They always called Naruto a 'defect' of our clan, his hair, his eye, and just his general lacking of cursed energy and also a Cursed Technique made the others think he was a misfortune but I was always so sure it was different," he considered the blonde's single strand of silver hair and his covered left eye. "Ya see, Naru's actually got an eye just like my own. Those eyes shouldn't be possible, they've never been in two people at the same time."

"... Oh, beneath his bandages?" Kuroi looked concerned but Geto waved her off. "I was under the impression you were injured…" She said to Naruto who shook his head before undoing his coverings.

"Nope, they just hate seeing it," the boy said, left eye closed as the black wrappings spilled on the table. "If it was gonna cause mom and aniki trouble, I'd just hide it," Naruto said as he opened it.

"It's just like this guy's!" Riko said as Satoru snorted. "What's it do?"

"Um, nothing, really? I think?"

"No, I'm sure it does something," Satoru said, not even looking at the blonde's revealed eye.

"So, what about that marking on it?" Riko asked as he froze before snapping back up and leaning forward.

"Marking?" Kuroi and Geto said in confusion.

Naruto blinked and Satoru's glasses were immediately off as he looked into the younger Gojou's left eye.

'She's right,' there it was, that odd mandala.

And it was more complex.

"It's a weird-lookin' thing," Riko said as she squinted while leaning forward, eyes reflecting the 'light' within Naruto's own. "Hmmm."

"What does it mean? Why can Riko see it?" Kuroi asked.

"... Perhaps, it's because of the qualities that make her a compatible merger candidate," Geto considered. "I always was confused why Riko never showed any special traits or the like, you know? It was just weird."

"I suppose I do see your point, Riko-sama is supposedly a rare match but she's never sported any odd powers," Kuroi said, looking to Riko for answers.

The girl shrugged. "Not like I've noticed," she admitted before turning to Gojou. "Still, what about Naru-Naru? Is he gonna have an Technique like yours?"

'Most likely?' Gojou wasn't sure. "The thing is, Naruto's eye is special but I don't know what the deal with it will be. That symbol Riko's spoken of, it's a mandala," he said.

He explained his previous 'dives' into Naruto's energy system and soul, exposing his results.

"On his shikigami?" The other Jujutsu High student balked. 'It imprinted on their souls,' that was odd.

Not to say he knew Yaga's Technique but, surely, Naruto who had no cursed energy shouldn't have had such an effect… unless.

"I wonder," he said, gaining their attention. "You remember what they said, Naruto's a 'special technique', Naruto is. There might very well be something special about his body and not his energy."

"Hmm," Naruto crossed his arms in thought. 'My body?' The former shinobi might have understood.

What with the whole 'Reincarnate four times over' business, Naruto was sure his soul might have been different but his body?

"Or it's like that old theory," Kuroi considered as the boy shot her a look. "I've heard the prospect that some believe the soul defines the body or vice-versa. There have been individuals who approached the concept ever since the advent of cursed energy," she looked uneasy. "Of course, those individuals weren't great people but it's a saying that's persisted to this day, perhaps it has some weight?"

"If it's the Heavenly Restriction, the question I'd have is, what exactly did it trade his cursed energy for?" Satoru considered. "Restrictions aren't man-made, they're 'natural' things that happen to people who have cursed energy when they're born. I've seen it a couple times in books so, there's a chance, Naruto's body was affected in exchange for that cursed energy. We've been wondering for a while what it could be."

"Well, I mean, he's got whisker marks, those ain't normal, no offense," Riko said as Geto considered her words. "But that's it, unless his dad's not got blonde hair."

"He does, Naruto's father has especially powerful blonde hair but the Gojou gene has always been notable in its dominance. The fact Naruto has mostly blonde hair, that could have actually been more significant than we thought. It's related, at least," the cursed spirit manipulator said.

'Is it not the Natural Energy I can pull in but do nothing with?' Naruto wasn't even sure if he was doing that.

Ever since being reborn into this second life, for him anyway, the Natural Energy of the world simply didn't respond well to him. It was also utterly consumed by negative energy, cursed energy, and yet that never did much. It got easier with time to pull it in but the blonde never felt like it was going anywhere.

It just came and went.

"Hmph, for now, we'll have to simply wait things out, your bounty's supposed to be over in a couple days," Satoru said as Naruto squawked.

"Hold on, what?!" The boy shrieked.

"Ah, you didn't know," Kuroi looked sheepish before frowning. "Riko-sama has a bounty on her head, that's why those curse users were about, they were there to kill Riko on behalf of the Time Vessel Association," she told the boy who gawked.

"T-That's insane!"

"Yes, it is," Geto said with a smile, confusing the blonde before he perked up. "Yep, the time limit is hours before the merger is to happen. Around 11 am," he shrugged. "I guess it's either the money or the lack of wanting unnecessary danger."

Hours before the merger… "Really though?" Naruto considered. "I mean, would that be smart? What's to stop 'em from putting the bounty back up?" He asked the group who blinked.

"There'd be no time…" Satoru considered it now that he was saying it. "... you don't think…"

"No, I don't think any of the others are traitors but who's to say they won't set someone up by the school?"

When he thought about it, Satoru frowned.

"He has a point," Kuroi said with a worried look. "Don't take this as any offense, Gojou-san, Suguru-san, but just because you think you're invincible doesn't mean you are."

The two winced at that, especially considering their track record over the past couple of days.

Whether it was their slow trek to meet up with Riko or Naruto getting kidnapped right next to them, they didn't want a 'third try' at someone testing their sense of duty or combat.

"It's fine, I'll handle it," Satoru said with a thumb at his chest. "I'll keep an eye out for any hint of a sorcerer."

Hint of a sorcerer… why did Naruto feel very worried all of a sudden?

~NRK~

~Tokyo Jujutsu High, Two Days Later~

Their time in Okinawa had been spent letting Riko enjoy herself, her life, before the merger took place.

Aquariums, the beach, restaurants, or stalls, they just had fun, the five of them.

So, they hoped they'd done well by the girl before she was inevitably trapped down below for the sake of the world.

'There has to be something we can do,' Naruto thought as they stood inside of Tokyo Jujutsu High's barrier and territory. 'Maybe Yaga-bro was able to work something out for me?' He hoped his talks with the man over the past two days could bear fruit.

"We can relax now," Geto said with a smile, the group back in their normal attire. "We're inside the barrier and no one can cause trouble from here on out."

"Thank God," Riko said. "What a relief."

"I'm glad," Kuroi smiled solemnly.

"N-No more," Satoru said with a shaky grumble. "Need rest. No more babysitting."

"Excuse you?!" Riko growled.

"Too tired… to reciprocate… anger."

"Just fall dead!"

Naruto's eyes widened.

The other 'strongest' chuckled. "It's fine, thanks for your work, Gojo-"

Naruto hadn't been fast enough to stop the attack before it started, he couldn't prevent the harm that would come.

But he was fast enough to make sure it didn't hit anyone else.

Satoru stared with horrified eyes as he fell to the side in slow motion.

The grimacing man who'd slashed at Naruto staring the shocked, pained, boy in the eyes, his katana raised.

"Sorry, kid," he whispered.

And another slash crossed over the first, blood splashing over Kuroi and sending Naruto's body sailing in the same amount of time it took the others to realize.

"YOU-!" Geto's eyes widened.

"BASTARD!" Satoru's hand swung towards the assailant's face.

The tori gate by the quartet exploded, the shuddering blue haze around it crushing the materials and debris together before it was all devoured by a large cursed spirit.

Another spirit caught the injured blonde boy before he hit the floor, Kuroi and Riko choking in horror.

"NARUTO!?" They hurried over as Geto grimaced, kneeling by Naruto's heavily breathing form.

"SHIT!" Satoru exclaimed before he was beside the boy in an instant, eyes moving all around his cut and then his face. "Take him to Tengen, NOW! He has to know Reverse Cursed Technique!"

His friend, Geto, tightened his resolve and nodded, using the cursed spirit, a giant crab, to quickly take the quartet of himself, Naruto, Riko, and Kuroi to the inner sanctum of Jujutsu High.

"Naruto, you need to stay alive!" The cursed spirit manipulator said in hurried tones, the boy groaning softly with a barely-opened uncovered eye. 'Shit! He's losing so much blood!' How did this happen?

How had SATORU not noticed?

His eyes widened in horror. 'It was all bait to tire him out,' Geto's head snapped back behind them.

How do you know he won't just put back up the bounty?

"This is all our fault," Suguru realized as Kuroi did the best she could to apply medical aid while Riko looked at the boy with a pale face. "... Riko, Kuroi, I'm sorry."

"F-Focus," the woman told him, locking eyes with the shame-filled young man. "You did your best, you shouldn't feel shame for that," she told him softly as his hands clenched before going limp. "We need to tend to Naruto's wounds," Kuroi finished, taking off her apron and ripping it up into strands and pieces to apply to Naruto's injured torso. "Riko!"

The girl flinched, looking shaky, getting a bit lip out of Kuroi.

"We need to remove Naruto's top to truly see the damage… we need to focus!"

The girl swallowed before nodding, kneeling by the boy and removing bloodied cloak-

A kiss to her forehead startled her, Riko looking up to see the proudly smiling Kuroi.

"I'm so proud of you," she whispered.

The girl's eyes watered as she grit her teeth and her head fell… before it all fell away to reveal a venier of determination.

"G-Geto," she asked the cursed spirit manipulator who shot her a look. "If Tengen's been around for so long, he's had to have learned Reverse Curse Technique, right?!"

He knew where this was going before grimacing. "I have to hope so, he's the foundation of our system, we can only hope to God that he has."

~NRK~

Toji frowned as he cut through the cursed spirit Geto had used to devour him, the man wearing a pair of martial artist flats, white pants, and a fitting black shirt tucked into said pants.

Around his torso, a curse spirit sat, the creature looking like a deformed baby with a worm's tail end that secured its position.

"..." He didn't think he would feel like this. "Guess that brat was pretty important, huh?" Toji said mindlessly to Satoru whose eyes burned with anger. "Yeah, yeah, I know, I'm a shithead," he shrugged.

Even if it did sting a bit, internally.

"Ya really are, ya fucking idiot! Amanai's bounty lifted!" The Gojou glared.

"Obviously, because I took it down, hotshot."

Gojou felt his cheek twitch as he remembered Naruto's words. 'This is all our fault,' he owed his cousin a sincere apology and hopefully as much ramen as he could handle.

'Hopefully' because Satoru had to hope Naruto survived.

'Still, this guy,' nothing.

Absolutely nothing, he didn't feel a hint of cursed energy coming from him. Speaking of, where did that cursed spirit come from? And the sword he'd used to cut open the spirit who ate him, it was different.

"You're not getting past me."

"Hmm, I think otherwise."

"Are ya so sure?!" Satoru grinned wildly as his hands gestured to Toji.

The man blinked as he felt a force on his back. 'Blue!'

The rest of the tori gates by the front of the Jujutsu High territory fell away, leaving Satoru looking at nothing-

There was the clack of roof tiles and his eyes snapped to the side, the roofed passageways shifting a bit from Toji's force.

"... A Heavenly Restriction," Satoru realized as Toji's head tilted with a grin, his current sword going into the mouth of the cursed spirit on his shoulder while he pulled another implement out at the same time. "You're like Naruto, you don't have a hint of cursed energy."

He saw the man's expression break the slightest bit, the fact confusing him as he saw, even for a moment, a hint of guilt.

What was going on?

"You might be right but you're certainly wrong on one point," Toji said before his form vanished. "I ain't nothin' like that boy scout."

~NRK~

Naruto fell into that odd 'void' for a time that felt like years.

'Where am I?' He thought slowly, eyes clenched in pain from Toji's slashes. 'He missed all my vitals on purpose,' Naruto knew, for a fact, that he was an exception and not just an example of Toji's goodness. 'I knew it but didn't want to say it.'

The man reminded him of Sasuke, in a lot of ways. In more ways than Naruto was willing to accept before he focused on helping him somehow.

Whether it was by giving him something to interact with more normally, himself, or by chatting about philosophy, Naruto knew he could help him and found it had effects but they'd dampened over the years.

'Ugh, focus,' he was still 'falling'. 'Where am I?' Clenching blue eyes cracked open to look up into nothingness.

A black void with an odd 'backlight' below him that somehow cast shadows even in a place like this.

He groaned at the flaring of his injuries. 'Guh! If I don't do anything, they'll kill each other!' Naruto told himself, slowly huffing as he turned his body around to face the light beneath him.

And found a mandala lighting up his face, blue eyes widening before his left pupil emulated the symbol in place of his pupil.

"This thing is my Heavenly Restriction," he thought with a frown, grimacing at his wounds some more. "Dammit, come on! Give me something! I need to help them. If you're the binding, you switched something in me to give me something unique to my body!"

That mandala, golden in color, glowed a bit brighter as his form stopped meters up from it.

"Huh?" Naruto blinked as he tried to go towards it but couldn't. "..." He grimaced as he reached out.

Satoru was likely onto something when he said that it was almost completely done, Naruto was sure of it.

Now? He had a feeling he knew what was actually happening.

"You're the thing that's changing," Naruto realized as he looked more carefully and saw something particular. "You're not fully engraved, that's why. Yet, you're also a Heavenly Restriction."

It was like a Cursed Technique-Heavenly Restriction mix that 'traded' his power for this 'Technique'.

But it wasn't finished. The Technique for Naruto Uzumaki wasn't done, it was maybe 60% of the way but he needed it NOW.

"..." He stared at it as streams of golden light began to fly up to him, much to his confusion.

Then they touched him and he understood. A glow brightened his face and his hands came over it.

His left eye.

The mandala became clearer as time went on.

It was a giant sun-like structure that was decorated like stained glass with yellows, golds, and sun-like colors. It was composed of three powerful distinct rings, the smallest to large being yellow-gold-sun.

Three 'petals' shot out from the center, shooting out at the top, left, and right sides. With those being a powerful sunny color, the last bit of the mandala was the 'core', the very center of its being.

Where a familiar figure sat, a young man's outline in a familiar meditative stance.

"This is my power," Naruto whispered before muffled sounds reached him from 'above'. "... No… I need at least a part of this power!" The boy called out as the golden streams covered his form. "I know you're incomplete, I'll suffer any consequences for my actions, please, let me help them."

A chain shot from his chest to the center of the mandala… his Three-Tailed Mandala.

His Technique.

His Blessed Technique.

~NRK~

Kuroi covered both Riko and Naruto as best she could, the bullet in her arm causing it to shake.

"Y-You need to run, Riko," she told her charge as heavy crashing and gunshots rang out more and more. "Take Naruto and leave," Kuroi implored the girl who trembled before swallowing. "P-Please, I can't lose you…"

Riko swallowed one more time before scooping up Naruto as fast as she could and hurrying away, the boy's weight hard to deal with but she would.

She couldn't be a burden on her family or the people fighting to protect her and her future.

"... If you want, leave," Geto told her as she gasped. "It was something me, Naruto, and Satoru came up with. Even the man who gave us this mission didn't view this as something grand or great," he said to the sniffling girl, eyes softening as they went from her to the wrapped-up Naruto. "It's your life, don't lose it just because someone told you to."

Riko blinked away the tears as the roar of a dragon echoed in the wide circular space.

"My life got way too weird!" She whispered to the unconscious blonde, unaware of the glowing talismans in his pocket. "I-I've got you Naru-Naru, we're gonna get out of this place."

From afar, Geto grimaced as Toji's form cut through his summoned curse.

'How did he cut through Rainbow Dragon's scales?!' That was his toughest curse, easily capable of being as tough as cursed energy-enhanced iron! "Tch!" His hands twirled around, a shadowy portal forming by his palms.

Back with Riko, the girl looked around the space before jumping in shock from a gunshot.

Her head snapped to the space where Toji was, the man, Kuroi, and Geto's forms currently impossible to see.

'J-Jujutsu bullshit!' She nearly shrieked before she kept on running. 'The way we came is just up ahead!'

She blinked at the feeling of something on her thigh but thought nothing of it.

Then she paled at the sound of dropping bodies, freezing as her head slowly turned to see the bleeding forms of Kuroi and Geto on the floor and their assailant rubbing the back of his neck with the bottom of his palm, an odd Cursed Tool, she thinks that's what it might be and/or called, in his hand.

"Man, you're lucky I've been growing kinda soft lately," the man said to Kuroi and Geto, walking towards Riko. "You can thank your little blondie for that one."

Riko trembled as the man got closer, his eyes impassive even as they landed on Naruto's unconscious form.

"Every bit of this is me, kid," he said without thinking, Riko gritting her teeth before she ran, getting a groan out of him. "Come on, don't make this difficult."

The girl huffed as she hurried down that big tunnel before being tripped by a leg.

She grimaced, curling over Naruto as she fell into a tough tumble that ended with her back skidding on the floor for a bit more.

The pain had tears falling from her eyes but she fought through and tried to get to her feet-

A flare of pain put her back down, the sound of a gun and a hole in her right leg the culprit.

"W-What?"

"Haa, you're dealing with people you couldn't possibly imagine," Toji said as he stood above her, gun aimed at her head. "You're too valuable to the folks I'm working with."

"I-I'm not even going to be the Vessel!" She shouted at him, confusing him for a moment. "T-They said I don't have to if I don't want to!" Riko countered with trembling eyes as Toji blinked.

'What?' There was no way that was true… but his senses couldn't lie to him.

She wasn't lying. Likely, those two boys had told her this…

He had a job to do.

Riko stared down the barrel of a gun, Toji's mouth set into a frown.

"It's not your fault for existing," he told her as if he was comforting her. "It's just that we both did at the same time."

She blinked at a blaring pain in her noggin, eyes fogging up as she slowly fell back. 'W-Wait… A-Am I dying?' Even after she told him? 'Paycheck? A fucking paycheck?!' It made her angry, it made her pissed. 'Send that comforting bullshit out the fucking door!'

Even as she was fucking dying, Riko thought, she raged, she felt pain.

She wanted to curse him-

And it all puffed away like golden leaves, leaving her confused, eyes blinking away her last moments of life seeing a man's momentary miserable expression to a world of darkness.

Is this… the afterlife?

Riko blinked, the feeling of something warm filling her body left her staring down at her thigh.

Where a familiar golden tag sat, one that immediately sprouted a familiar kitsune shikigami.

"K-Kurama?" She blinked as the fox spirit circled her with that squinty-eyed expression. "... Oh fuck! D-Don't tell me that Naruto-"

'Master hasn't died,' the girl froze, staring at the now staring fox in disbelief. 'He pulled himself back.'

"R-Really?" She felt tears of relief fall from her eyes, rubbing at them with a sniffle. "I-I guess I did one thing, right?"

'... It's a bit more complicated than that,' she blinked as he said that. 'That man… never mind, the fact remains that you are dying.'

"I-I knew tha… W-Wait, dying not dead?"

'Master's power is one that is blessed,' he said. 'He holds within him the ability to change a lot of things… but that power is going to be locked away for a time, likely for the best.'

"Hold on! I am worried about Naru-Naru but we should talk about the dying part!" Riko said with a look of disbelief on her face.

'Ah, true,' her eyebrow twitched. 'Sadly, there's not a lot you can do. I'm simply here to ensure that you survive should you accept my proposal.'

Proposal? W-Wait! No way!

"You're gonna turn me into a spirit?!"

'... In most ways, that'd be true but Master's powers aren't like that of my creation. He does not fill life into death, he promotes life into others.'

Riko felt that warmth in her chest and held it, looking confused but solemn.

"... What is it? What's the proposal?" She asked him, the fox nodding.

'I desire to make a Binding Vow with you,' he said, confusing her. 'It's a form of contract that can be formed between individuals with cursed energy and other beings or things filled with cursed energy.'

"Oh, okay, so it's like a link cable."

'... Yes?'

"Sorry, it's the best I could come up with."

'It's fine, the point remains, if you accept my pact, I can bring you back to life through my Master's will and powers but you'll need to understand,' Kurama said neutrally as she frowned. 'There will never be a normal life for you. Normal school, normal friends, going to things like college and getting a normal life? That will be completely out of your realm. You'd have to learn to live on the Jujutsu side of the world.'

Her mind ran with his words, the visions of the people she knew on this side.

Kuroi.

Geto.

Satoru.

Naruto.

Those Q guys.

Her killer and the last expression she saw on his face.

Misery, pain, rejection, 'great ones', and family sat on that side for her.

It'd all be in waiting if she came back to life…

Dark blue eyes cleared as the kitsune smiled before floating over and pressing his forehead to her own.

There was a golden chain that snapped between himself and her. Was this the Binding Vow?

"I'm confused, why did you need to make a Binding Vow, Kurama?" She asked him as her eyes closed.

'To truly bind your life to my own,' her eyes snapped open to see a smiling kitsune. 'Yes, Master is impossibly special but he'll need protection,' Kurama frowned before she held him close. 'I will never be capable of being reborn through the regular method again-'

"I'll bring ya out if I have to!" She told him with intense eyes, getting a confused look out of the spirit. "Don't worry about it! I'll protect him, Kuroi, Geto, and that stupid Satoru, I'm special," Riko grinned as the shikigami blinked before chuckling as they glowed brightly.

'You're not wrong.'

~NRK~

~A Day Later~

Toji huffed as he, his contact, and a Time Vessel Association member met up at the House of the Children of the Star headquarters, arms crossed.

"I see, I see, you brought them both?" The man who'd met them asked.

He was as tall as the Toji and their mediator were while sporting white skin, many wrinkles, closed eyes, slicked back black hair with a receding hairline, and an odd bump in the middle of his forehead.

Wearing a white coat with black trim on the collar, white pants, and white dress shoes, he looked at the two with interest.

Toji rubbed the back of his head before prompting his cursed spirit to remove Riko Amanai's body from its 'hold'.

The worm-baby-like creature did as commanded, spewing out the body of the still-bloodied Riko onto the floor.

"Hmm," the man crouched down and checked her neck and pulse. 'No pulse but she's warm,' perhaps the spirit kept the body fresh? 'Little matter,' a body without a pulse was still a dead body. "And the boy?"

"That one's a bit harder to figure out," Toji lied while shrugging with his arms crossed. "The kid got away and deep into Jujutsu High, I couldn't stay around to go looking for him if I wanted to make this all quick."

"Haa, unfortunate," the Time Vessel Association member said, pulling out a white cloth and gently placing it over Riko's body. 'I hold no ill will against you, young one,' but their master needed to be preserved in all his pure glory no matter the consequences. "We'll simply have to try another time."

Toji's eyes narrowed the slightest bit but otherwise were neutral. "Quick question, Founding Father dude."

"He's not," the mediator said as Toji wore a flat expression.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm curious. You seem to have told all the other guys about this but not us. What's the thing with that Naruto kid anyway?"

"... The boy's powers aren't something that will be classified as 'Cursed' Techniques," the man began, confusing the two as he stood up with the corpse in his arms. "No, in fact, he might be the inverse and be a 'Blessed' One, likely one of the only ones in this world."

"You said something to that effect before," their mediator said. "But it's kinda…" Stupid? Not helpful?

Annoying, yeah, that was the word.

Annoying for him to talk in riddles.

"..." The man seemed to be considering it before nodding. "Since you were the one to actually accomplish your mission, it is as such," Toji frowned. "Naruto Uzumaki, the 'blackened' spawn of the Gojou Family, will never wield cursed energy when his powers fully awaken," the man explained. "He, instead, will wield nothing but the Power of Life even in his darkest moments."

Power of Life? What the hell was he talki… No.

Toji's eyes widened to impossible degrees as the cryptic man nodded.

"You seem to understand without me explaining too much more," he turned away and began to leave.

"Annoying," the mediator grumbled. "And the reward?"

"You shall get it and a bit more, this was more than we could have expected despite lacking the boy. We will likely call on your services again, Toji Zenin, Shiu Kong," the Time Vessel Association member told the two men before disappearing.

"So, can you explain to me what the hell he was talking about?" The now-named Shiu Kong asked his colleague. "Toji."

"... You know a lot about the Jujutsu world but not this?" Toji 'Zenin' huffed. "Look, there's a whole big thing about the power of Reverse Cursed Technique," Shiu looked confused. "Think of it like the opposite of cursed energy."

"... So, it's about positive emotions?"

"If such a power existed, it's not the same but I could totally see that kid having it. No, usually, Reverse Cursed Technique isn't something that just appears in someone. It's a rare and complex skill and shit that, I think," Toji strained his brow. "Only two people have it right now? Two people and a curse, maybe."

"A cursed spirit can wield positive energy?" Shiu asked as they departed. "How does that make sense?"

"Hey, man, I don't know," Toji shrugged as his contact slumped a bit. "All I know is that it does have it. Never got 'invited' to join in on it, never was wanted in the first place."

"Hmph. So, what exactly do ya think of your, most likely, next task?" Shiu asked as they exited the building.

Toji considered it with a huff. "I'm gonna be very feisty about the price," he grinned a bit. "What they're saying about that kid and what's up with him specifically, they're gonna have to hit me with something BIG to even consider it."

"Is he that valuable?"

"Like you wouldn't believe. Now," Toji grinned slyly as Shiu groaned. "How about we go to a fancy restaurant, just you and me, that you use to butter up clients, huh? I mean, I've been a good boy."

"Hah! Fuck no, you don't even plan on paying. Nope, I only plan on dealing with you on business or in hell."

~NRK~

Toji stretched as he walked past the street, forest, several buildings, and down a large stone-brick-paved area, all owned by the Time Vessel Association if one would believe it in a rather hard-to-find location.

'God, I doubt even that kid, after all this, is willin' to humor me,' well, nothing ventured, nothing gained. 'Maybe he's one of those cold types-'

There was a chill in his veins and a stench in his nose.

A familiar scent.

"Yo… You're a Zenin, right?" The bloody, tattered, injured form of one Satoru Gojou found itself in front of him. "Right? That seems about right!"

Toji stared at him, the young man before him seemingly impossible.

"For real?" Toji asked with a look of disbelief that quickly melted into consideration. "I see, that kid's power awakened, huh?"

"...?" Satoru wore a completely squinty-eyed expression, body listing to the side nearly to the point of falling. "Hm?"

"... Oh shit. Whelp, gotta kill ya."

"Hm, hm, hm, hm, hm, I learned something cool, huh?" Satoru smiled vacantly, eyes crazed. "But you're right."

"Gotta kill ya."

Toji smirked a bit as he removed 'That Weapon' from his cursed spirit's belly. 'He's fully manifested, hasn't he?'

"You lost," Satoru said with a wide grin. "You should have cut off my head or even used that little special treasure of yours. The Special Grade Tool: Inverted Spear of Heaven would have made my life a living hell! Or, wait, I'd just be DEAD!" The young man laughed without remorse as Toji's form vanished, shooting around him to bring his blade to his neck.

The body of Satoru Gojou moved like a leaf in the wind, form floating away with a sort of 'natural' grace that could only be afforded by nature itself.

'Sorry, Naruto,' Satoru had finally realized what was going on with, well, everything. 'Riko, I'm sorry as well but I don't feel anything because of your wounds or your death, all I feel is…'

Freedom.

One of his hands reached out towards Toji, the pinky and ring finger tucked in while the rest jutted out together.

"Cursed Technique Reversal-"

Toji's eyes widened in disbelief. 'Both of them got-'

"Red."

The effect was a bursting red haze that seemed to 'repel' Toji from where they were… all the way back to the headquarters of the 'Star Children's' rooftop.

What was likely over half a mile of distance instantly 'dealt with' in under half a second.

Toji groaned as he sat up, arm covering his cursed spirit to protect it from harm.

"Heh," he chuckled before coughing a bit, Satoru's form floating above and towards him.

"You fucking monster," the young man laughed hysterically. "What are you? Superman?"

"Us adults are a lot more sturdy than kids like you," Toji said even as he mentally checked himself over, standing up and stretching his arms. 'Nothing's broken but it hurt like hell,' still, he could move-

As he locked eyes once more with Satoru Gojou, Toji Fushigoro felt an unease settle inside of his gut.

An uneasiness that brought up a memory.

"Oi, I'm in my twenties, ya bastard," the man huffed. "Hmph," he shrugged. "At the end of the day, kid, there are some things we can't be and can. I think, in the end, with whatever weirdass power you think you really have, you'll have to realize what those things are."

Right, he had said those words himself, he had no right to be backing out on them now.

"I'm good," Toji said with a growing grin. "I can handle you perfectly!"

He removed a chain from his spirit's mouth, latching onto it the Inverted Spear of Heaven and spinning it around, the length seemingly never-ending even as it came out of the curse's mouth more and more.

'Blue's not that hard to deal with,' Toji thought as Satoru's eyes zeroed-in on him. 'Infinity's the same, it's never stopped my attacks from being useful, Tool or otherwise. Finally, Red, the repelling power of the Six Eyes, I could probably shield myself with the Inverted Spear of Heaven!' His confidence grew more by the second-

"Megumi… it's an amazing name!" A woman grinned.

A tomboy, a woman with 'strength' that many a Japanese man wouldn't favor, a woman with an odd delicate side that punctured even his 'self'.

The woman he'd been fine giving the entire world for.

"I ain't sure, I'm not exactly a great name planner," Toji said even as he grinned slyly, prodded the baby's cheek. "God, he's gonna hate having such a girly name."

"Oh, please," the woman blew a raspberry as he laughed. "Megumi's gonna love it! His big ol' dad gave him that name, he'll be like 'My dad decided I was his fate!'," she said with a voice that was way deeper than any woman should have had the right to imitate.

He just laughed at this 'strong' but 'feminine' character who'd stolen his heart.

Naruto had been right in that regard.

His eyes widened even as his weapon spun faster.

'A Hypocrite.'

His weapon swung out, carving through the roof with ease, before he angled the attack towards Satoru.

Nothing but a filthy hypocrite, that's really what he was.

Satoru's eyes perceived it all.

The Cursed Tool.

The chain which was also a Cursed Tool.

Their internal techniques.

And the look of misery on Toji's face.

'I know,' Satoru had put together all the clues.

Honestly, he'd wondered for a while how Naruto had learned some of his martial knowledge.

Next, Toji's words, the way he spoke of Naruto, the look on his face in every conflict where the boy was some sort of subject… he'd pieced it together.

Naruto had been trained by Toji at some point, for quite a bit of time for the seemingly uncaring man to have become attached.

And knowing Naruto like he did, the boy whose heart sat on his sleeve but was wizened by a wisdom that constantly never made sense, the boy likely cared a lot for this man as much as he probably did for him.

'I'm sorry to you all,' Satoru wasn't a machine nor was he God… but he was close. 'I can't feel like you all do, not in this moment,' all he felt in this moment was… "Throughout all of Heaven and Earth, only I, alone, am the Honored One," he grinned brightly as Toji shot him a look of horror.

The Inverted Spear of Heaven shot around the sky before coming towards his temple.

Gojo's right hand was already held up, the thumb, pointer, and middle finger clenched while his pinky and ring finger flared out.

And in that moment 'infinity' was mashed together on 'both ends'.

~NRK~

Utahime gently brushed Naruto's bangs away from his forehead, just finished speaking with Kushina on the phone.

"God, how did this happen?" She whispered as Geto came into the room with a frown, naked torso covered by wrappings and bandages.

"How is he?" He asked her as she sighed.

"Shoko thinks it was a shock-induced coma," Utahime told him as he frowned. "Naruto's so young, losing all that blood simply wasn't good for him. If those slashes had hit any of his vital points, he might very well have not been here."

'That's right because that man, he… he had attachments to Naruto,' it'd been something he'd only noticed after putting together the clues.

Naruto shouldn't be alive, the boy was just that, a child, he'd be dead with just the most proper stroke… but their assailant hadn't done that. Honestly, at first, Geto was sure that he was doing it so he could steal him later but that never came.

Even with the blonde unprotected, their assailant had left him alone and only taken/killed Riko. It'd be confusing but hard to think about since they were, well, predisposed.

All of them. Satoru was alive based on last-minute luck and… and that man had said it, hadn't he?

Thank Naruto that he'd gotten so soft.

So, yes, he was sure that that man and their friendly blonde child had a connection at some point.

Still… 'No one can know,' nor should this get out, their failure. 'It's all our fault,' had they just listened to Naruto, this might not have been the case.

They were already prepared to fight Tengen-sama, they might as well have just stayed in Okinawa!

"Ughhh."

"Don't beat yourself up about it," came a familiar voice from behind him, a small hand on his back. "We… failure happens," Shoko said to him with a helpful smile as he sighed. "For now, I should check on Naruto-kun again. Especially because, well, he seems like he'll be kinda like me, huh?"

"... What?" He stared at her in confusion while Utahime followed suit. "Shoko?"

"Hmm, I guess it's something you guys wouldn't really understand," she said with a shrug, walking over to, and kneeling by, Naruto's form. "Naruto's form is full of nothing but positive energy."

The area was silent for a moment, the two other brunettes' eyes slowly widening to impossible levels.

"WHAT?!" They shouted as Shoko nodded, touching the center of Naruto's scarred chest, the boy in a new white kimono thanks to Utahime.

"Naruto can use…" Utahime seemed startled. "B-But that doesn't make sense, he doesn't have cursed energy…"

Geto's form froze.

He doesn't have cursed energy.

No cursed energy.

Naruto Uzumaki, the child with the ODD Heavenly Restriction which traded his cursed energy for 'something' they could figure out!

"Oh my God," he uttered as both women turned to him before jumping as he hit his rear in shock. "H-His Heavenly Restriction… That's what it does."

They blinked at his words before flinching in disbelief.

"Naruto didn't have cursed energy-" Utahime began in shock.

"He had positive energy," Shoko chuckled a bit. "In a way, that makes way too much sense."

"S-Shoko, this is huge!"

"Yeah but that also means we can't say anything, not yet."

Geto's narrowed at that. "... I'd figured," he said after some thought, Utahime looking confused.

"Geto-kun, what? I don't understand," she said.

"Naruto's already being pursued, Iori, and we now know why but does that mean we have the right to reveal this? Especially in the state he's in?" He told her as she flinched, her hands settling on Naruto's forehead. "No, for one, this getting out will likely create a large amount of conflict between the branches and Big Sorcerer Families. Two, right now, we know three things. 2.a, the Time Vessel Association wants to use this part of Naruto's skill for something important to them. 2.b, the only thing we know that's important to them is-"

"Tengen-sama," Iori realized. "S-Still, for what purpose?"

"... I might know," Shoko said, surprising the two with a nod. "Let's see… hmm, how can I say this, you know how Kushina-san had a supposedly absurd amount of cursed energy?"

"Y-Yes," Iori said. "I've felt it," she told them. "... do you think it passed on to Naruto?"

"Yeah and since it got exchanged for positive energy, Naruto's likely got an obscene amount once he can use his own Technique. Imagine that, an amount of positive energy that would be large enough to overshadow likely a quarter of the jujutsu sorcerers in the world combined and how that could be used."

"Did they want to heal Tengen-sama's aging?"

Geto's question stilled the air as both women turned to him, the young man looking just as startled at his own words.

"I… If they think… no, if they know Naruto's ability could have a serious effect on Tengen-sama, it means Naruto's powers aren't even just above-average," he frowned. "If Naruto's powers can even affect a being like Tengen-sama, that's dangerous information for them to let out… and we need to ensure it doesn't get out," Geto got up. "I'm sure Satoru's already working on it, I'll follow his residuals and work together with him to find their bases, their leaders, and… and likely Riko Amanai's body."

There, in the doorway, came the familiar form of Kuroi, the woman looking miserable.

"I'm so sorry."

~NRK~

Satoru stared at the half-destroyed torso of Toji Fushigoro, father to one Megumi Fushigoro who'd likely be sold to the Zenin Clan in a few years and the Master to Naruto Uzumaki who he'd left a Cursed Tool for, the one currently in Satoru's hand.

The man's cursed spirit wriggled in confusion, seemingly unable to understand that its own master had died.

In his current state, seeing the world of cursed energy as it was, Satoru felt pity for the cursed spirit who was clearly going to realize what had become of Toji in time.

"... I need to find Riko…" His eyes stayed on the still standing corpse. "Dammit…"

~NRK~

~Two Days Later~

He held onto the corpse of the girl beneath the sheet as the door to the room opened to reveal Geto and Kuroi.

The woman took one look before she hit her knees, face pale, as Geto grit his teeth, head down.

"Hey…" Satoru said simply, staring at Riko with an indecipherable expression.

Neither hate nor anger nor sadness nor confusion.

Satoru Gojou just looked pensive.

"R-Riko," Kuroi's voice didn't change his expression but it did gain his attention.

"... I'm sorry," he said to her. "We failed," Satoru admitted simply and fully. "You were right."

"We aren't invincible," Geto concluded her past words. "... Let's go-"

"Should we kill them?"

He froze, slowly turning around to see Satoru's gaze going around to all the clapping, 'happy', people in the room.

It'd been nothing but white noise to the revelation but, now that he was focusing, they were clapping.

Just clapping with happy expressions like puppets that copied an action.

Like monk-

He held his hand to his mouth. "Because there's no point, Satoru."

"... Hmph," the young man wore a humorless smile as he slowly walked towards Kuroi. "It'd be so easy," Satoru said without inflection. "To get rid of these guys, every one of their bases, each and every member, they're a problematic faction… but I can't."

"It's the right thing to do."

"No, heh, if I had my way I might have just done it already," Satoru said with a broken grin. "I just couldn't handle him looking at me in disappointment."

~NRK~

The return to Jujutsu High had been, thankfully, shorter than most would have wanted.

Kuroi had sadly run out of tears by that point and just looked dead to the world.

Satoru crossed his arms in a foldable chair, a towel over his eyes.

And Geto was simply left observing the two dead bodies currently in front of Naruto.

Toji Zenin's and Riko Amanai's.

Utahime and Shoko looked alarmed while one last person arrived into the room.

He was tall, tan-skinned, shaved-at-the-sides-cut-haired, and held a pair of yellow eyes that looked at the situation at hand with nothing more than empathy, sympathy, and pity. Wearing a similar attire to Satoru, he let out a long sigh that was riddled with regret.

"I should have come when Naruto called," he said with a frown.

"He was thinking about this even then, huh, Yaga-sensei?" Satoru said without a hint of emotion, not a sneer or accusation in sight.

"No, he'd been asking about a way to establish Riko Amanai's consciousness if she were to mix with Master Tengen," Yaga Masamichi admitted. "I was thinking that I should have gone just to ensure you all were sure of any decisions you would have made."

The two-in-question grimaced, Satoru frowning while Geto grimaced.

"We messed up," they said and he wore a look of concern, a hand on Geto's shoulder while another was on Satoru's.

Kuroi simply brushed her fingers over Riko's forehead, eyes dark and foggy.

"..." She let out a shuddering breath as she touched what felt like still warm skin on the girl's forehead. "..." Kuroi held Riko's hand while doing the same for Naruto's. 'I'm sorry I was so useless…'

Had she been more prepared, perhaps they could have done something about this-

Poof.

The room went silent, the sound confusing them, as they all blinked before turning to the origin of it…?!

"The fuck!?"

"H-Huh?!"

"W-What in the world?!"

"?!"

"..." Satoru sat up, towel falling off his face, as he stared at the pair of black FOX EARS that decided to situate themselves on top of Riko's head. "... T-The hell? What? Did she reincarnate as a curse-"

"M-Mmmm," the sound, the moan, the shuddering eyes of Riko Amanai set all their senses on 'DISBELIEF' as her eyes cracked open, familiar dark blue orbs looking up at Kuroi's watering eyes. "... H-Hey, I'm back." Riko nearly cried as her caretaker's hands trembled like a rattlesnake's tail.

"R-Riko?!" The woman let go of the two's hands and pulled the warm alive girl into her arms as the others crowded around them in disbelief, eyes wide.

"W-What happened?!" Utahime asked, confused beyond measure, minding Naruto as the others just stared. "G-Gojou!"

Satoru just stared in confusion before he 'saw' something.

Something unusual but utterly unbelievable.

"... A-A mandala," he said as the others froze. "Just like Naruto's Heavenly Restriction, there's a similar symbol on Riko's back."

Riko's eyes widened as she held Kuroi at arm's length. "That's right!" She said as they all jumped. "I-It's thanks to Naruto and Kurama I was even alive in the first place," Riko admitted, gaze going to the unconscious boy in question.

"What?" Yaga asked in concern. "... Kurama, the kitsune shikigami?" He choked. 'No, that shouldn't be possible,' had it… sacrificed its 'self' for the sake of Riko?

How?!

"Hey, easy there," Shoko said with a shaky smile. "What you're saying is impossible. Naru… Reverse Cursed Technique can't bring someone back to life," don't say Naruto could.

The amount of rising horror in Shoko's gut nearly had her barfing as Riko considered her words.

"Not, like, if they're 'dead' dead," the… fox girl said and Shoko felt her heart rate drop in relief but now she was confused.

"... You got shot, didn't you?" Satoru asked her as she held her forehead where no such mark sat. "... H-Hold on, it was just there!" He stared at her in disbelief.

"K-Kurama did say I'd be a lot sturdier, especially due to Naruto's positive energy."

"So, it's true," Geto said. "Naruto doesn't produce cursed energy."

"Nope, just the positive stuff," Riko said as her tail shifted beneath her skirt. "Due to a lot of-"

"Tail?!" Utahime stared in disbelief as Riko blinked before looking down to see-

"What the hell?!" She shrieked, jumping up so they could see the appendage bristling in horror. "T-The hell is this?! Kurama didn't say shit about it!"

"W-Wait, no, please, go back, what exactly happened?" Shoko asked, holding her noggin as Geto looked unsure of life at the moment. "How in the world did Naruto do anything, unless he woke up at the last moment?"

"No, um, well," Riko fiddled with her skirt. "... Kurama showed it to me," she said, pointing her thumb at her chest. "Inside of me, Kurama is acting as the core of the Binding Vow we made so he could bring me back from that dark place… I guess this is what he meant about not being able to live a normal life," Riko pouted a bit, looking at the limb appendage. "I-I mean, I feel like that's a bit of an overstatement-"

Satoru simply got up and reached out above her head.

Riko froze, blushing bright red, as he rubbed… something?

"W-What the hell are you doing, ya perv?!"

Crunch.

"Ah!" The older teen dropped as Geto sweatdropped, the Gojou holding his nuts. "M-My sacred embers."

"More like cold grapes-"

"Don't you dare talk about them like that!"

Riko rolled her eyes, hands on her waist. "Look, the situation is basically this. Naruto placed one of his Shikigami Talismans on me when we were running away," she said, touching her thigh- "Oh, it did leave a mark."

The group looked and saw what had to be this so-called 'mandala' Satoru spoke of.

"That's the one that was in his eye."

"The talisman did this?" Utahime asked, completely confused. "I-I don't… I mean, yes, Naruto would learn he could 'time' his tools to release his spirits at opportune moments but t-they shouldn't just possess you!"

"No, well, I guess that's kinda what happened but it's not the talisman that did it," Riko said as Shoko blinked before she laughed uncontrollably. "See, she gets it."

"She couldn't explain shit," Satoru said with a groan before being jostled by Shoko's kick to his rear. "Oi!"

"Shush," she said to him. "I told Geto this three days ago," the young man in question choked.

She explained her thought process and the 'path' it was likely leading down.

"H-He used positive energy to reverse the talisman," Utahime realized. "S-Still, that shouldn't… is Naruto's Reverse Cursed Technique THAT powerful?"

"Well, it's the third skill he locked away by pushing it," Riko explained, confusing the group again.

"Third skill?" Satoru said… Before he started laughing. "... No fucking way!" He rolled as Riko grinned.

"See, he gets it."

"Please, explain it to people who don't," Yaga said, eyes closed and hands massaging his temple. "What's happening?"

The two perked up before looking at one another and then him.

"Naruto wields a power similar to the Six Eyes."

The room was silent as Yaga's hands trembled against his noggin.

Shoko wheezed.

Utahime froze.

Kuroi gasped.

And Geto… Geto stared in utter disbelief.

"It's his Cursed Technique, the Three-Tailed Mandala," Riko said as Satoru grinned, slicking back his hair.

"And it's the Inverse of the Six Eyes and/or Limitless," he finished.

The entire group damn near turned to stone.

~NRK~

There it is, the start of another weird but curious idea.

There's a lot of 'concepts' that I'll be using for Naruto's skillset that I feel are going to end up being partially canon. For one: I think that Sukuna's 'Open' is into his Domain Expansion where, back in his day, DEs weren't barriers.

They were CE storage units or internal domains.

Ciao, I hope that idea will be interesting.

~NRK Out~