The hospital smelled like bleach and regret.
Ren Takahashi had been to hospitals before—in his old life, as a visitor, once as a patient. But this place was different. Too clean. Too silent. Like the walls themselves were holding their breath.
The mission briefing had been simple:
"Grade 3 lingering curse at an abandoned rural hospital. Recent reports from construction workers who ran screaming. Should be straightforward. Go exorcise it, don't let it eat you. Love, Gojo."
It was never that simple.
His cursed water flowed gently across his palms, not in active form, but ready—hovering in anticipation, glowing faintly in the dim hallway light.
His Superior Cursed Perception was ringing like a low hum in his mind. Something was definitely here.
He stepped past a broken wheelchair, eyes scanning every surface.
And then he saw it.
Not the curse.
A girl.
She sat at the far end of the corridor, dressed in a long hospital gown, legs tucked under her, back resting against a cracked vending machine. Crimson hair framed her face in wild, uneven waves. Her eyes were closed.
She looked... peaceful.
Except she was giving off cursed energy.
Strong cursed energy.
Ren raised a hand, cautious. "You alright?"
Her eyes opened.
They glowed like dying embers.
Ren barely dodged in time.
The wall behind him exploded, split open by a crimson blast of raw cursed energy. It came from her bare hand—no incantation, no gesture. Just pure release.
Ren landed on his feet and activated Shizukana Ushio, sending a silent jet of cursed water forward.
The girl bent backward, almost unnaturally, and the beam sliced just above her shoulder, missing entirely.
She laughed.
"Another one they sent to kill me?"
Ren didn't reply immediately. His instincts were blaring.
She isn't a curse.But she wasn't human either.
A hybrid?
She stood, slowly, her bare feet quiet on the cracked tile. Her hospital gown fluttered with each step, revealing a network of glowing crimson lines running up her arms—like cursed veins etched into her skin.
"Name's Kiyo," she said, eyes locking onto his. "Or that's what they called me. You can call me the girl who's about to wreck your spine."
Ren frowned. "Are we talking, or are we fighting? Because I can't multitask."
Kiyo's smile widened.
"Fight first. Talk after."
She moved fast—almost faster than the spirit from the night before. Ren ducked a wild arc of cursed energy, her hand tracing a burning line through the air. He retaliated with a flick of Rivaiazan no Kyū, summoning the swirling water shield just in time to block her second strike.
The collision created a shockwave, slamming nearby doors open and extinguishing half the hallway lights.
"She's not Grade 3!" Ren shouted to no one. "Gojo, you liar!"
He backed up, sliding along the corridor, then threw a finger-full of cursed water behind her.
Uchi Naru Daikōzui—silent insertion.
She didn't notice.
Ren prepared to trigger the expansion—but paused.
What if she wasn't hostile?What if she couldn't help it?
Something about her cursed energy felt... fractured. Like it wasn't hers.
He deactivated the technique.
"I'm not here to kill you," he said, holding up a hand.
She blinked, slightly confused mid-sprint.
That confusion cost her.
Ren used Shizukana Ushio again—this time aimed at the ground. The cursed water blasted the floor beneath her, breaking her footing without touching her.
Kiyo collapsed into a roll, gritting her teeth. "You tricked me!"
Ren stepped forward. "No. I spared you."
She stopped moving.
The tension shifted.
"…Why?"
"You're cursed, yeah," Ren said, cautiously approaching. "But not a curse. You're not… gone yet. Not like them."
Kiyo's fists clenched. The glowing veins up her arms began to pulse more violently.
"They put something inside me. I can't control it when it wakes up."
Ren's eyes narrowed. "They? Who's 'they'?"
Kiyo looked away.
Her voice dropped.
"Cursed researchers. A rogue sect. They brought me here... to die. Or break."
It clicked.
This wasn't a haunting. This was a dump site. A cursed lab masquerading as an abandoned hospital.
And Kiyo was the only surviving subject.
Ren exhaled slowly.
"Well, that's messed up on like five different levels."
She chuckled bitterly. "Tell me about it."
"Still," he added, "you attacked me first. So I owe you one."
Before she could ask what he meant, he flung a weak blast of water at her face.
It soaked her.
She coughed, stunned. "What the hell?!"
"There. We're even," he said, smirking. "Now come on. You're going back with me."
"To Jujutsu High?"
"To someplace safe."
Kiyo looked at him suspiciously. "You don't even know me."
"Doesn't matter. You didn't kill me when you had the chance. That's a good enough start."
Thirty minutes later, after calling in Gojo (who finally picked up after eleven ignored messages), Ren sat outside the hospital with Kiyo beside him, wrapped in a clean cloak. Her cursed energy had calmed to a quiet ember, and she was quietly watching the sky.
"I thought all Jujutsu sorcerers were killers," she said softly. "You're different."
Ren chuckled. "Nah. I'm just new. Still deciding what kind of lunatic I want to be."
She smiled.
Then whispered, "I heard your cursed technique singing when we fought."
Ren paused. "Come again?"
Kiyo's voice trembled slightly.
"That water. It hums. Like the deep ocean. I think I've heard it before... in my dreams. Before they experimented on me."
Ren felt a chill crawl up his spine.
That wasn't coincidence.
It was a pattern.
Later, when Gojo arrived, his usual grin faded the moment he saw Kiyo.
"You're kidding," Gojo muttered, crouching beside her. "A Crimson Curse Hybrid?"
Ren blinked. "That's a thing?"
"Very rare. Very dangerous. Usually killed on sight. You sure you want her around?"
Ren looked at Kiyo.
Then back at Gojo.
"Yeah," he said firmly. "She's staying."
Gojo smirked.
"Well, aren't you getting popular?"
As they left the hospital, Kiyo glanced at Ren again.
"You're strong," she said quietly.
"I try."
"And stupid."
"Definitely that too."
"…Thank you."
Ren smiled.
"Get used to it. I'm not done saving you yet."
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What the heck is the AI writing? lol