Chapter Text
“Shit!” Nobara exclaimed as she dodged another of the curse’s tendrils. Another one was coming at her, why won’t this fucker die already? They had their generation's best sorcerers here!
“Are you okay, Nobara?” asked Maki, who was helping her get up. She must’ve ran all the way when Nobara fell to her ass.
“I’m fine. I experienced much worse. I’m running out of nails though.”
Maki frowns at that. Damn it, Nobara hates seeing Maki frown. Her girlfriend turns to her classmates.
“Megumi! How’s contacting Satoru going?”
“He—” Megumi grunts, and an explosion blasts in the distance.
“He won’t pick up! That bastard!”
He summons another shikigami at his command.
“Maki-san! Kugisaki! Behind you!”, Yuuji exclaims.
Shit, shit, shit. This is the worst. She throws multiple nails at the curse’s many eyes. All of them hit the target.
When they received intel on an “unknown” curse of an “unknown” caliber wreaking havoc in the middle of nowhere, they should’ve known it was bad news. Ever since Shibuya, the students weren’t allowed to go on missions without adults supervising.
Having just recovered from the crazy year they had, they were all too eager to treat this mission as some sort of sightseeing trip on the other side of the country. So with Yuuji and Megumi dispatched for the mission, Nobara and Maki decided to tag along too. Well, it was Nobara who decided for her. But that was before they knew this was a special grade curse! And not just any special grade, one with abilities eerily similar to Gojo’s Limitless.
Maki sprints up a tendril with amazing speed and hacks at the giant blob with her sword, when the curse suddenly shrivels up and disappears. Maki is sent freefalling. The curse materializes behind Yuuji and Megumi, who thankfully notice it just in time to dodge.
“Maki!”
A fall from that height couldn’t be good, not with Maki’s current injuries. Nobara checks her pouch for nails to heal Maki from this distance when she realizes she’s officially run out. She’s gonna have to race to her. Fuck, everything’s gone to shit!
“Boys, cover me! I’m healing Maki.”
Both of them nod, “Got it!”
She makes a run for it. Nobara ignores the ache in her right leg and forces it to cooperate. The gash is deep; she winces. She’s been running low on cursed energy too, and she intends to save her pitiful reserves for healing Maki. Nobara feels her hands sweat, her chest tighten, and her heart pounding at her ears. No, no, no, she won’t panic now. Maki needs her more than ever.
Just a few more meters in and—
“Nobara, get away! Don’t come any closer!”
“What the fuck are you talking about?!”
Then she sees it: a huge, dark hole glimmering with the same pattern as that curse, just right under her girlfriend. It could’ve been a wonderful sight, her Maki laying above a sea of stars: if it didn't downright terrify her.
Suddenly it blacked out, the hole started gaping and sucked everything in. Maki was barely holding on to the edge. Do not panic.
“Fuck! Maki, wait for me!”
Maki looks up at her — beautiful, bloody, and bruised.
“Don’t!” she shouts, “You’ll get sucked in too, just go!”
“Are you crazy?” Nobara shouts back. How dare she ask her of that!
“I’m not gonna leave you, it’s never gonna happen!”
“Please. I can’t let you die too. Not because of me, again.” Maki’s voice cracks just a bit in the end. She’s looking up at Nobara with emotions that shouldn’t be there in the first place. With grief and resignation that shouldn’t even be there if they were just normal teenage girls living their normal teenage girl lives. They should’ve quit months ago. She’s sick of this.
“NO!”
The hole closes in. Maki’s grip loosens, too weak to fight against gravity. She falls into the abyss, but Nobara jumps into the portal just in time before it closes up completely. She swears she could hear her idiot boys scream at her from afar. The thought tugs at her heart, tears threatening to fall as the words I’m sorry sit at the tip of her tongue. But she doesn’t feel regret as she gets sucked into the void, embracing the girl she’s fought wars for. At the very least, she would die with Maki by her side. She couldn’t ask for anything else.
Maki opens her eyes and immediately grunts. I’m so fucking tired. Let me just sleep for five more minutes.
Wait. The mission. The black hole. Nobara!
Her grogginess disappears from her body and is soon replaced by dread. Where’s Nobara?
Maki takes in her surroundings. They’re in some sort of forest, a strange one at that. The vegetation was entirely unnatural. She might’ve grown up sheltered from the outside world, but she’s sure no flowers should be glowing that bright a blue.
Wherever they are, it must not be Japan, even with the Torii gates looming over her by her left. Even with her eyes closed, she could sense that the energy here is something else. The air feels somehow… electric. Japan is a curse hotspot, so the low hum of cursed energy in the land is proof that they weren’t actually home. Actually, scratch that. Maki’s not even sure what she’s feeling deep in the ground is even cursed energy at all.
She looks over at her right and relief washes over her entire body. Nobara’s here and alive. Just passed out.
“Nobara,” Maki says, as she gently shakes her awake, “Nobara, wake up."
No response. Maki calls out her name a few times, enough that it should be concerning. No. She’s not losing her to this strange land, not when they’ve fought through the worst, and made it out alive together. Maki jolts up and shakes her girl's shoulders with both of her hands.
“NOBARA!”
She sees her favorite pair of eyes fly open. Thank god.
“Hm. That was sooner than I expected. You panic so easily.” Nobara deadpans, blowing a strand of hair out her face.
What.
“You were awake this entire time?”
“Yuuup, long before you woke up.”
Maki sighs and pinches the bridge of her nose. She forgot how much of a menace Nobara could actually be.
“Then why didn’t you wake up the first time I called you?”
Nobara remains on the ground. Staring at the sky. “It was payback for earlier with the black hole. You needed to feel the same shit I did.”
Maki sighs again. She refused to look Nobara in the eye and chose to fixate her gaze on the grass below them. “Look, you know why I had to do that. I couldn’t–”
“Couldn’t bear the same thing happening to me, with your immense guilt for Mai thinking it was your fault that she died. Yes, I know.” Maki could swear she could see Nobara rolling her eyes if she wasn't avoiding her gaze like a wimp.
“Yes, I’m rolling my eyes right now. I also know that you hate talking about that. Well, you hate talking about your feelings in general so. Yeah.” As soon as Maki gathers the courage to look her in the eye, Nobara closes them right away.
Maki pokes her cheek once, twice, and Nobara lets her. “Why are you closing your eyes? Are you mad at me?”
“No. I was hoping this would all go away. You probably noticed by now but we’re not at the same place as we were before. I don’t think we’re in the same world, even. The vibes are just weird. There’s something that feels close to cursed energy, but not quite. I don’t like it.”
She opens her eyes and feels for something in her pockets. She brings something out: her eyepatch. With this, she turns over to face Maki, with her left hand now holding her eyepatch propped against her head. Nobara was playing with blades of grass using her right.
“When I woke up, I was hoping it was all a dream, that I was actually in Ieri-sensei’s clinic. With Fushiguro and the others making fun of how stupid I was for jumping after you. Now that you’re awake, it seems that my wish would be ridiculous now.”
Silence washed over them. Maki couldn’t tell if this was the comfortable one or not. The forest was getting creepier by the second. The blades of grass that Nobara has been playing with release the sweetest of scents.
Then, Nobara sits up and fixes her eyepatch right in place. She cracks her neck and rises. It’s so like her to do that. So distinctly, beautifully brave, her Nobara. She stands up without fail even after the universe cruelly strikes her down. Maki wishes she could do the same. She barely musters up the courage to get up in the morning, let alone feel like she deserves to live after Mai had to sacrifice herself because of Maki's mistakes. Because she was weak, a coward, a fraud, a monkey… No. She’s not going to entertain that thought any longer, not when Nobara’s here.
“Anyway, we should probably get going and look for other signs of civilization. Your shouting probably alerted people to our location. Unless this is the afterlife, then I suppose we could probably sleep some more.”
"Don't joke about that."
"Hey, at least we get to spend it together right?" Seeing no response from Maki, Nobara sighs.
"Though I was hoping the afterlife for me would be more like Tokyo. This place just seems like some fantasy world version of my hometown. It sucks."
She checks for her hammer and her straw doll and is content to feel that they're still on her person. Cursed energy flares around Nobara, but not enough to be alarming. Maki could tell that she was still worried, but not enough to be scared.
“My technique should still work here,” Nobara declares, “I don’t have any more nails though, and you don’t have your sword. But I think we’ll be fine.”
At least one of them’s sure of that. Maki’s glad Nobara doesn’t seem shaken, or at least has accepted their circumstances. She’s just strong like that.
Maki supposes that the sword Mai gave her was forever lost to the void. She lets out a heavy exhale. Yet another thing to mourn.
She brings her focus to the situation at hand instead.
Maki looks around, “I don’t think you should be using your technique, or even cursed energy. This world doesn’t seem to have any curses, who knows what will happen if you introduce cursed energy to it.”
Something catches her eye. She could've sworn she felt someone staring at her, but Maki decided she must've imagined it.
“You’re right. Knowing I could use it anytime makes me feel safe though.”
With this, Nobara extends her hand to Maki, and Maki takes it. She expected pain to burst from her back trying to stand up, but is pleased that she feels nothing.
“You healed me?” Maki inquired, with an eyebrow quirked up.
“Yeah. My reserves replenished while I was passed out, so I healed myself too. Don’t worry.” Nobara assures while wiping Maki’s forehead with a handkerchief.
“Good.” Maki tries not to wince at the blood flaking off her face, “We should find somewhere to wash up.”
Nobara sniffs. Her face morphs into disgust.
“Yeah.”
The walk was quiet. Nobara didn’t mind though, she just hoped Maki didn’t as well. She was glad they were out of that forest. Something about it gave her the creeps.
Normally she would joke in situations like this, but then again, was interdimensional world travelling a situation that she knew well enough to navigate?
They could hear the rush of water, so a river or stream must be nearby. God, Nobara was lucky that Maki’s already in love with her, she doesn't want to know how horrible she looks right now.
She kicks a stray pebble.
“Hey, do you think the boys made it here too?” Nobara asks, just to keep a conversation going.
Maki furrows her brows, looking pensive and deep in thought. Nobara wants to wrap her girlfriend in her arms, but she doubts Maki would appreciate it right now. Maybe later. Right now, she’ll settle on holding her hand.
“That depends. We didn’t see what happened after, so if they jumped through the same portal for you, then yeah. Jumping to another portal entirely is a different story, though. With either possibility, the chances of them ending up in the same world as us is low though, I think.”
“Not just for me,” Nobara insists.
“What do you mean?”
“They couldn’t have jumped in just for me. Fushiguro’s literally your relative and Itadori adores you. He wouldn’t keep asking for you to train with him if he at least didn’t harbor some sort of affection, or at least, respect for you”
“Oh.”
“Yes, “oh”. I’m not the only one who loves and cherishes you, Maki. Everyone at school does. One day we’re gonna unpack all of your self-esteem issues, and I swear to—”
“Nobara, wait!” Maki exclaims. Nobara would’ve chewed Maki out for interrupting if it weren’t for the men charging at them with katanas. Well. At least now they know this wasn't the afterlife. Small victories, hooray.
“Holy fucking shit, what are these guys wearing?” Nobara whispers, mostly to herself. Maki still heard her though. They get into fighting stances. Weapons or none, they’re still a force to be reckoned with.
The men suddenly come to a halt. There are three of them, all with strange hats. One of them addresses what looks to be their leader. “Boss, hang on! They’re just little girls.”
Nobara scoffs, anger coursing through her veins. “Little girls? Why, I’ll show you—”
Maki reaches out to her. Stay put , is what she’s getting. Hmph.
“They look horrible, boss. Maybe we shouldn’t…?”
First, being called little, then telling them they looked horrible right to their faces? The nerve!
She could practically feel these men’s gazes on them. People stared too long at Nobara’s eyepatch, and especially at the scars that littered Maki’s body.
“Ha! If we pitied every single one of our targets we wouldn’t get to where we are right now!” Their “boss” roars. He turns to address them.
“You two! Drop all your belongings and put your hands up where we could see them.”
Nobara resists the urge to lunge at them but Maki wants to talk it out. She’d stay put and be good. For now.
Maki raises both her hands up, and Nobara begrudgingly follows.
She speaks up, “Sirs, as you can see we’re battered and tired. We’re travelers far from home, so we don’t have anything valuable with us.”
They don’t have anything, period, Nobara thinks. Besides their phones, her hammer, and her straw doll, they literally have nothing else.
“Do you think that same old excuse is gonna cut it? I’ve heard that shit a thousand times! Actually, if what you’re saying is true, then you should probably come with us.”
Confused at the sudden change of heart, Nobara looks to Maki. This can’t be good.
“In exchange for what?” Maki questions coldly.
“Hmm, perhaps somewhere along the lines of… personal services? Pretty faces like yours should—”
Unfortunately for him that was the wrong thing to say, to Maki of all people! Nobara swiftly reaches back for her hammer but she’s a split second too late when she realizes her girlfriend had already grabbed the weapon herself and launches it straight into their leader’s groin. Nobara thinks she’s falling in love all over again, holy shit. The man let out a deafening screech.
“You fucking bitch! Get them!” The way the man’s voice rang out maaybee would’ve intimidated Nobara if said man wasn’t on the ground clutching at his balls. She thinks she sees blood seeping through his hakama, though she can’t be entirely sure. It doesn’t matter, that bastard deserved it anyway.
Oops. He passed out. That’s hilarious.
The two remaining men looked at each other, unsure of what to do next.
Everything happens quickly. Maki and Nobara both spring into action, fighting missions together long enough that every attack is synchronized. Nobara wishes she could imbue cursed energy through her fists, Itadori Yuuji style. But she couldn’t do that here, not if they still want to walk away without further questions in people’s minds. The scars they both have are enough to make people wary.
Then, Maki unleashes her infamous sword-stealing technique on one of the guys. She tosses the sword to Nobara, knowing she’ll need it the most and Nobara could kiss her right there, fight be damned. She’d never say it out loud, but Gojo-sensei was right about teaching them the basics of wielding every weapon. Nobara could never be as good with a katana as Maki or Okkotsu-senpai, but she’ll live.
After endlessly dodging for the beginning of the fight, Nobara could proudly say she was on even footing with the guy, even with her rudimentary swordsmanship and left eye blinded. Metal on metal clings and reverberates through the air. Maki doesn’t even look tired. Both of the “little girls” deliver the final blow at the same time. Seriously, these guys aren’t even trying!
Not a minute has passed and they already have them subdued. Gojo-sensei would say they took way too long but they were unarmed, damn it! Nobara thinks they did a pretty good job.
Ugh, why does she keep thinking about that weirdo? This was unbecoming. Now, the reality of them being stuck in a different world for the foreseeable future was slowly sinking in. They can’t have Gojo-sensei and Yuki saving their asses now. They really were all alone. Fuck, she might not see anyone in her life ever again.
I’ll unpack that later.
She turns to see Maki hold up a katana to one of the lackeys. Has she already mentioned how hot her girlfriend looks right now?
“Where’s the nearest village?” Maki interrogated casually, face giving away nothing. She could be asking what they ate for breakfast with how seemingly cordial she was being. Most people wouldn’t be able to tell, but Nobara knows she’s pissed. Suupper pissed.
“Head on straight in that direction. Cross the river and you’ll find Konda Village.”
The guy who spoke wasn’t the one under Maki, but the same man who called them little girls.
Maki spared him a glance through the corner of her eye but stood firm. She continued to address the guy she had hostage.
“Is he lying?”
“N-no! No, Konda Village is right there! Here, you can take our map. I swear we’re telling the truth, just.”
“Just what?”
“Just don’t smash my dick, please.” said the man in the tiniest voice.
Nobara bit her lip and tried her best to reign in her laughter, this was Maki’s moment after all. She certainly didn’t want people stealing her thunder when she knew she looked badass.
“Alright. Don’t come for us again.”
Maki glares at all three men. She snatches the map from the man’s hand, turns on one heel, and walks away. Like she said, badass.
“Nobara, let’s go.”
Nobara picks her hammer up and clutches it to her chest. Then, she sticks her tongue out at them for good measure. Ha. Losers.
“Coming!”