fics I read

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Shoko-san says that Kiyohira-sensei will be fine. But…

"There's nothing that I can do for his arm," the brown-haired woman informs them, her voice calm and level. Shoko-san is the only person who can use reverse cursed technique on another person, discounting the recent discovery of Araya possessing similar skills. But the less said about that man, the better.

Still, Shoko-san is not a miracle-worker, no matter the seemingly-miraculous feats that she is able to pull off as a doctor. If anyone could've helped Kiyohira-sensei to make a full recovery, it would be Shoko-san, except…

"If we still had the original limb in relatively good condition, or if there was at least enough of it left for me to work with, then I might've been able to reattach the arm," Shoko-san explains. "Unfortunately, regrowing an entire limb is still beyond me."

The young woman sounds faintly apologetic. She shouldn't be. It's not Shoko-san's fault that Kiyohira-sensei's arm is gone, that he'd nearly died trying to protect Shiki.

… But Kiyohira-sensei will recover. He's not dead; he's not going to die. Shiki's cursed technique guaranteed that much, at least. Even though Kiyohira-sensei lost his sword arm, he's still alive.

He's still alive.

His chest rises and falls to a steady rhythm with each breath, even as he remains asleep. Asleep, and not dead.

…

Shiki imagines that Kiyohira-sensei will be very upset when he wakes up again. Unlike her, Kiyohira-sensei is a swordsman in the sense that the sword is much more than just a 'weapon' to him. His skill with the blade was born of hard work and dedication, and passion. It's not hard to see that in the man's actions and his behaviors. Kiyohira-sensei loves the sword. The only time that the seemingly-perpetual scowl on Kiyohira-sensei's face eases is when he's concentrated on performing his sword forms.

But now his arm is gone.

Because Araya had torn it off when Kiyohira-sensei had been saving Shiki. Because Shiki had been foolish enough to get herself poisoned and kidnapped. Because she'd been helpless to do anything but watch as Araya had–

"How are you feeling right now? Any lingering aftereffects from that nasty paralytic?"

"I'm fine, Shoko-san." Under the pointed look from the older woman hovering over her, Shiki obediently follows her instructions to move through a range of different motions. Swinging her arms, bending her legs, jumping up and down lightly on her feet a few times for good measure.

Satisfied, Shoko-san nods absently and jots something down on the clipboard in her hands.

"… Is there really nothing that can be done for Kiyohira-sensei's arm?" Shiki finds herself asking in the brief interval of silence.

Shoko-san hums absently. "Prosthetic implants are an option to look into. It won't be as good as the real thing, though, and it's not without its own difficulties and issues to deal with. We might be able to make some improvements if we involve jujutsu puppetry, but I'm afraid that's not my field of expertise."

"Puppetry? Yaga-sensei might be able to refer us to a specialist or two, if that's the case," Satoru-niichan muses from the side. "Probably should wait until Kiyohira is awake again first, before we get any further into this."

"That would be for the best," Shoko-san agrees. "Kiyohira-san is the one with the final call on any decisions regarding his own body."

… A prosthesis. A replacement that would be machinery, rather than flesh. It won't be as good as the real thing, Shoko-san had said, but there's no way to give Kiyohira-sensei back the arm he'd lost. Araya had destroyed the limb entirely, when he'd torn it off of Kiyohira-sensei so brutally and carelessly.

Had it been on purpose?

It… it must've been, under those circumstances. Araya had only told Shiki that he would keep Kiyohira-sensei alive, and mentioned nothing of the state that Kiyohira-sensei would be alive in. He hadn't mentioned anything about recovering Kiyohira-sensei's lost arm, when he'd offered to heal him. If Shiki had unthinkingly accepted Araya's offer…

The very thought is chilling. Both in the implications that it carried for Kiyohira-sensei, and for Shiki herself.

A hand suddenly lands atop her head, ruffling her hair in a manner that's clearly, purposefully intent on drawing her attention.

"Cheer up," Satoru-niichan tugs pointedly on a stray lock of her hair, long white strands slipping easily through his fingers. "Your teacher is still alive, isn't he? I'd say that's the most important thing here."

It is, but there should've been more that Shiki could've done for Kiyohira-sensei. Right?

… But Satoru-niichan isn't wrong in that Kiyohira-sensei is at least still alive, when he very easily could've died during this altercation. Kiyohira-sensei could've died at Araya's hands, just like Jihei-san.

Despite everything, Kiyohira-sensei is still alive. That… surely means something, doesn't it?

(It means that Shiki didn't get her teacher killed. Only dismembered.)

Shoko-san makes a soft sound, as if suddenly recalling something, "Hold on, does Nanami know about this?"

… Ken-jichan. Ken-jichan!

Shiki startles slightly, eyes widening. In the chaos of everything that had gone down today, she hadn't… she hadn't thought about Ken-jichan at all. Was Ken-jichan alright? The Kamos hadn't targeted her uncle too, had they? If they'd gone after Shiki and also accounted for Kiyohira-sensei, then it was entirely possible that–

Urgently, the girl reaches up and tugs at her cousin's sleeve, opening her mouth to ask after Ken-jichan's wellbeing–

–only for said cousin to promptly stick a lollipop into her mouth.

Wait, where did he even pull that out from?

The too-sweet artificial taste of strawberries immediately burst upon her tongue, poignant and overpowering. Shiki casts Satoru-niichan a bewildered look.

"If Daisaku hasn't already filled Nanami in on the situation, I'll be doing it myself once we're out of your hair here," he answers Shoko-san, blithely unwrapping a second candy in his hand and popping it into his own mouth. "Nanami was originally scheduled for another mission today, but it's already been passed to another sorcerer due to the… extenuating circumstances."

Shoko-san snorts inelegantly. "Careful, you're starting to sound like one of your clan's elders."

"… That's the last thing I wanted to hear, thanks," Satoru-niichan groans exaggeratedly.

"You're welcome." There's not a single note of pity in Shoko-san's voice, despite the impressive pout painting the young man's face. "Although, I suppose that comes part and parcel with being the head of your clan."

"Look, it's not like I wanted this position, okay?" Satoru-niichan grumbles.

"Oh really?"

A drawn-out sigh. "… Fine. It has its uses, I'm not denying that. The position is convenient and gives me additional clout and leverage, which is useful. But it's also irritating."

"Should've thought more about it in the first place, then," the young woman remains entirely unsympathetic. "You're the one who went and declared himself clan head with no room for refusal."

Satoru-niichan chokes silently on the air for a moment. "… Whose side are you on here?!"

Shoko-san shrugs, "I'm not on anyone's side. Just calling things the way I see them. On another note, you should probably think about how you're going to be presenting this to Nanami. Even if he gets someone else to apprise him on the situation, he's definitely still going to shake you down for details."

"Right, Nanami," the white-haired young man rubs his chin thoughtfully. "He's going to be upset, isn't he?"

"Y'think?" Shoko-san responds dryly. "Honestly, I'm a little surprised that Nanami hasn't just snapped and tried to run off with Shiki in the dead of the night or something already. The entire point of Shiki staying with the Gojo Clan in the first place isn't just for her training, after all. It's–"

"It's so she'll be safe, I know, I'm aware!" Satoru-niichan waves his hand impatiently. "Except there's already been multiple incidents over the years. That ambush including the curse user with the cursed doll technique, the run-in with the Sorcerer Killer, Shiki crashing Nanami's mission with the land god that one time, et cetera, et cetera…"

"The track record hasn't been looking too great," Shoko-san nods. Satoru-niichan huffs, but doesn't refute the statement. "With what happened with the Kamo Clan today, I don't think it would be unreasonable for Nanami to finally lose his faith in the Gojo Clan."

Why?

"Because this incident has decisively proven that the Gojo clan compound is unsafe, and that their sorcerers aren't enough to protect you." Shiki's confusion was probably a little too obvious, going by the way Shoko-san glances over and elaborates on her previous words without any prompting. Which is appreciated, although that's not entirely accurate.

Because it's not just the Gojo Clan's security measures at fault here; it's Shiki's own fault, too. She's not going to blame anyone else for her own failings and shortcomings. Even if it's the Gojo Clan.

… Would the Gojo Clan pin the blame on Kiyohira-sensei instead?

"It's possible they might try to," Satoru-niichan hums, after Shiki voices the question aloud. "You mentioned that Kiyohira was the one who decided to look for Gojo Kikuhime, right? And that was where you guys got ambushed, so…"

The girl frowns, "That still doesn't mean it was Kiyohira-sensei's fault."

"It won't be how the elders will see it," Satoru-niichan shakes his head. "They'll only see that Kiyohira was the one who brought you into a trap with him, resulting in the both of you being kidnapped"

"Ken-jichan wouldn't blame Kiyohira-sensei."

"Well, no, I don't think Nanami would blame Kiyohira," her cousin agrees. "I'd imagine that he would blame the Gojo Clan as a whole for allowing this to happen."

"He wouldn't be wrong to think that," Shoko-san adds from the side.

"No, he wouldn't be." Satoru-niichan doesn't even bother trying to defend the Gojo Clan on this. "If we're assigning blame, the majority of it should fall on the Kamo Clan for coming up with this harebrained scheme at all. But the Gojo Clan… I wasn't even gone for an hour, and they were able to snatch Shiki straight out of the clan compound? Hello? That's a mark against the clan no matter how you look at it."

Shoko-san tilts her head. "That's your own clan you're talking about, y'know. So what are you going to do about it?"

"I'm still trying to decide," Satoru-niichan admits, running a hand through his hair in a faintly frustrated motion. He briefly looks towards Shiki, who's gingerly holding the strawberry-flavored lollipop in her hand instead of eating it. It's way too sweet! "There's a lot to sort out here. What to do with the Kamo Clan, what this means for the Gojo Clan… and the changes we'll need to make for Shiki as well."

Shiki slowly points towards herself. "Me?"

Her cousin huffs out a small laugh. "You know, you could at least stand to look a little angrier about all of this."

Angry? … Should she be angry? Towards the Kamo Clan, or the Gojo Clan –or both?

Shiki understands that there were numerous underlying issues behind this kidnapping incident. But ultimately it was her own indecisiveness and inaction that allowed Araya Souren and Kamo Matsuhime to so easily gain the upper hand as they did. It had only been luck that Matsuhime's words coincidentally triggered an epiphany for her, allowing Shiki to save Kiyohira-sensei using her cursed technique instead of having to resort to a dangerous binding vow. Only luck that Satoru-niichan had arrived shortly thereafter, before the situation could deteriorate any further.

What if Shiki hadn't been lucky?

… Shiki isn't so much as angry as she is frustrated, and she's frustrated with herself most of all, even if she doesn't openly wear it on her face.

She should've reacted faster. She should've been better. She should've–!

Satoru-niichan studies her silently, then bends down and leans forward so that his face is right in front of hers. At this proximity, Shiki is close enough to see the individual flecks of fractal light reflected in his cursed blue eyes. Cursed eyes that are similar, yet so very different from her own.

"How do you feel about moving out of the clan compound?" he asks her.

… Wait, what?

Shiki blinks up towards her cousin, startled by the unexpected words. Leaving the Gojo clan compound? That was–

"Are you being serious?" To the side, Shoko-san appears similarly startled. "Your clan is going to fight that tooth and nail, even if you're the clan head. Isn't the entire reason why they've been keeping Shiki in the compound because–"

"It's not up to them to decide anymore," Satoru-niichan's voice is firm, and just a touch cold in this moment. His eyes are still focused on Shiki. "If I can't even trust them to watch over her in my absence, then there's no point in having her remain there under their thumb any longer. And right on the heels of the cleanup I did recently, too… it's almost like someone is trying to make a statement."

Shoko-san purses her lips. "You're saying that someone deliberately left holes in the Gojo Clan's security measures?"

But that –that doesn't make any sense. Shiki doesn't understand. Why would anyone do something like that? … For all their squabbling, the elders are united in that they cared deeply for the power and prestige of the Gojo Clan. Something as self-sabotaging as leaving holes in the clan's security just didn't make any sense, and that was to say nothing of how Shiki was considered one of the clan's assets. One that was meant to be properly trained and protected in order to become useful to the clan in the future.

"I mean, you have to admit that this is all very suspicious," Satoru-niichan waves his hand airily. "Highly suspicious. Just Kikuhime on her own shouldn't have been enough for the Kamos to send in their people the way they did without raising any alarms. Which means either someone was cooperating with them, or there was a highly skilled third party involved who opened those holes for the Kamos to take advantage of. The former option certainly seems more likely than the latter, doesn't it?"

If there were Gojo elders who were in on this kidnapping plot… it was a disquieting, disturbing thought. With the value that the Gojo Clan placed on her cursed eyes, Shiki would've thought she wasn't so disposable to them. Wasn't the entire reason why they'd taken custody of her in the first place because of her so-called potential? So that they could train her to become a sorcerer and exorcise curses for them?

"I'm not really seeing the logic here," Shoko-san rubs at her temples with a frown.

"If I had to make a guess at it…" Satoru-niichan taps his fingers against the nearby table. "Well, there's definitely no way any of those old fossils would directly write Shiki off as an acceptable loss. Not with her cursed eyes. But someone must've decided that Shiki's safety was an acceptable risk, if they deliberately allowed the Kamos to execute their plans unobstructed. Then, their goals in that case must… ah. Hmm."

Shiki tilts her head questioningly, while Shoko-san raises an eyebrow.

"… I think I get it now," Satoru-niichan snaps his fingers. "Their goal here is the Kamo Clan."

A heartbeat of silence.

"They used Shiki as bait?" Shoko-san's voice is openly incredulous, while Shiki is still trying to sort through all the implications of her cousin's statement.

"If someone already knew beforehand that the Kamos figured out how to transplant cursed techniques, then I wouldn't be surprised if they wanted to do something about it. And with us already looking into the Kamo Clan?" Satoru-niichan makes a slightly miffed sound. "It would've been the perfect opportunity. Jihei's death only escalated things and ensured that wewould be committed to digging up their secrets."

… And everything would fit together neatly following that. After all, if Gojo Satoru had his eye on the Kamo Clan, then there was flexible room to do much more than just 'keep watch' on the Kamo Clan's activities. If the Kamo Clan's secrets were exposed under Satoru-niichan's purview, there was no way he would just let it be. His position wouldn't allow him to. And once the Kamo Clan was forcibly dragged into the light like this, with the Gojo Clan being the wronged party, what sort of advantage would that give them when it came to demanding reparations? What resources would they be able to snatch from the Kamo Clan's hands?

Compared to the groundbreaking possibility of transplanting cursed techniques, which would surely upend jujutsu society if the information became widespread… Shiki can see why her personal safety would've been relegated to an 'acceptable risk,' given the magnitude of what was at stake. Whether or not they had been banking on Shiki being able to overturn the situation on her own or relying on Satoru-niichan to resolve things in the end was unimportant. Because even in the worst case scenario where Shiki was dead, her cursed eyes and cursed technique still would've been preserved by the Kamo Clan that kidnapped her. It would only be reasonable for the Gojo Clan to demand that the Kamo Clan returned that which belonged to them.

Shiki is important to the Gojo Clan –but only for her cursed eyes and cursed technique.

… She's always known that. It's not anything new. This attitude is cold, certainly, and highly calculative in terms of gain and loss for the clan. But it's not surprising.

Shoko-san's eyes furrow slightly. "Wait a minute. If someone from your clan already suspected the Kamos of something of this magnitude beforehand, why wouldn't they have just directly informed you of the situation?"

"Maybe they didn't want to be implicated, maybe they didn't trust my judgment, or maybe they just wanted to play their cards close…" Satoru-niichan makes a face, "Take your pick, there are plenty of options to choose from."

The young woman sighs. "Urgh. Glad I'm not from any of the sorcery clans."

"Yes, yes, how fortunate for you," Satoru-niichan rolls his eyes. "… If this is really their game, then it's definitely high time for Shiki to leave the compound. The nominal reasoning for Shiki staying in the compound at all is for her safety. I'd like to see them try to keep her after this entire mess."

… It's a little funny. All these years, Shiki has lived within the walls of the Gojo clan compound 'for her own good.' For protection. For training. So she won't be a burden to Ken-jichan. It's for the best, right?

Shiki doesn't regret it. She doesn't regret meeting Kiyohira-sensei and Jihei-san and Yuzuki-san. She treasures the memory of making mochi with Panda and the Fushiguro siblings. The moments of running through the gardens together, under the midday sun. There's no way that Shiki would ever regret any of it.

That doesn't mean she can't see the irony in her current situation, though.

Leaving the Gojo clan compound… Shiki had always thought of it as something that would happen far, far into the future. Not until she was enrolled as a student in one of the jujutsu schools, at least. Satoru-niichan bringing up the prospect so suddenly like this was completely unexpected, but by no means was it unwelcome.

To be perfectly honest, Shiki doesn't quite mind being restricted to the compound the way she is. Despite being stifling at times, Satoru-niichan had ensured that it never became a cage. And… frankly, she's not exactly the adventurous, exploring type. Tsumiki-san was the outgoing one among the children, not Shiki.

But in this moment, a faint stirring of something light and hopeful rises in her chest all the same, even if she can't quite put this sensation into words.

"I'll sort this out," Satoru-niichan promises her. "Even without this incident… I'd say that it's high time for this."

"Nanami will probably be happy to hear that," Shoko-san hums. "But don't expect him to let you off the hook so easily."

"Of course not," Satoru-niichan shakes his head with a small huff.

"… Also, on another note. Try not to go too overboard with whatever it is that you're planning," his former classmate says slowly.

"Overboard? Me?" Satoru-niichan is indignant for all of three seconds before relenting under the withering look from his friend. "Relax, Shoko, I know what I'm doing."

"That doesn't exactly give me any confidence," the young woman mutters. Then, a drawn-out sigh. "Well. I'll keep the two of you updated on Gojo Kiyohira's status once he is awake again. In the meantime, try not to upend the entire jujutsu society."

… Was she including Shiki in this, too? Really? The girl draws herself upright and tries not to look too offended.

On the other hand, Satoru-niichan only smiles in response, a sharp little expression. "No promises. If they had the guts to attempt what they did, then they have no room for any complaints when retribution comes knocking on their doors."

"Just 'knocking?' Tearing down the entire building sounds more like what you'll be going for," Shoko-san sounds completely exasperated. "… Whatever. Have fun, and please try to keep the collateral damage to a minimum."

"Would it kill you to at least pretend to have some faith in me?"

"I have absolute faith in your ability to stir up chaos," is Shoko-san's flat response, "Now get out of my office. Shoo."

Satoru-niichan sniffs, "Chasing us out already?"

"Oh no, Shiki can stay if she wants. Nanami should be dropping by soon," Shoko-san responds dryly. "You, on the other hand, have an entire clan to be corralling, prisoners to be interrogating, and upcoming talks with the Kamo Clan to be sorting out."

"Right, you don't need to remind me," Satoru-niichan grouses, before his eyes flick towards Shiki again. "It would be for the best if you're at the meeting with the Kamos later… but there are other things that I'll need to take care of first before we get to that. Want to stay with Shoko and take a break while you wait for Nanami in the meantime?"

"… Okay." Part of Shiki wants to stay with Satoru-niichan, but she doesn't want to hamper him while he'll be busy. She also recognizes the distinct sense of fatigue in her body. Going into a meeting with the Kamo Clan while exhausted was probably not the wisest choice.

…

… Plus, Shiki wants to see Ken-jichan. Ken-jichan would probably be worried, too, if he wasn't able to see for himself that Shiki was alright considering the circumstances.

"See you in a bit, then," her cousin ruffles her hair one last time. "Remember to eat something too, alright? Oh, Shoko, if you also need–"

"I know, I know," the young woman waves him off good-naturedly. "I think I'll just text Nanami and let him know to bring some takeout for both of us."

Shiki tugs pointedly on her cousin's sleeve, "Make sure you eat something too, Satoru-niichan."

Her cousin grins, "Will do!"

Laughing, Satoru-niichan leaves the room.

.

.

The first thing that Ken-jichan does when he arrives in Shoko-san's office is make a beeline for Shiki. He gives her a swift once-over, then promptly sweeps her into a hug.

… It's not the first time this scene has played out between them. Shiki wonders what it says about her that she's actually starting to get used to it at this point. Probably not anything good.

But still, it's… nice. It's nice, knowing that Ken-jichan cares about her and has no qualms expressing it like this. His arms are large, and warm, and while his hugs don't really have the same sense of safety that Satoru-niichan's do, they're still comforting. In the aftermath of everything that had occurred today, it's nice to be comforted.

"Again. This happened again." Ken-jichan's arms tighten around her. "Why does this sort of thing keep happening to you?"

There's a note of something faintly hoarse in his voice. Anguished, and helpless. Shiki raises her hands and gently pats her uncle on the back a few times in a reassuring manner that she learned from Tsumiki-san. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to be very effective here.

But even so, "I'm glad you're alright, Ken-jichan."

At that, her uncle draws back and gives her a strange look, faintly incredulous. "I should be the one saying that; you were the one who was kidnapped! And by the Kamo Clan, no less!"

"I'm glad that you weren't also targeted by them," Shiki amends herself, clarifying her previous statement. "Not like Kiyohira-sensei was."

"… Yes. I've heard about that." Ken-jichan nods slowly. "He was with you when you were kidnapped, right? How–?"

"Shoko-san says he'll be unconscious for a while, since his injuries were so severe." Kiyohira-sensei had nearly died at Araya's hands in his efforts to protect her. "He lost his right arm."

Ken-jichan's eyes widen. "That's–"

"Why hello, Nanami, how very nice to see you too," Shoko-san's voice sounds dryly from the side, and she leans over to peer into the plastic bag that Ken-jichan had dropped onto the ground when greeting Shiki with a hug. "Oh, is this gyudon from that cozy diner run by the elderly Satos? You shouldn't have."

Ken-jichan jerks a little bit, and coughs for a moment from faint embarrassment at having completely overlooked his former upperclassman. "Hello, Ieiri. I-I apologize, I didn't mean to–"

"It's fine, I know you didn't mean anything by it," Shoko-san waves off his half-formed apology in favor of handing Shiki one of the beef bowls from the takeout bag. The younger girl accepts it automatically, the weight of the bowl surprisingly heavy in her hands. On cue, her stomach rumbles –which is unexpected, because despite the earlier reminder to eat from Satoru-niichan, she… she hadn't even realized she was hungry at all. "Here, chopsticks."

"Thank you," Shiki accepts the pair of chopsticks that Shoko-san passes to her. The food smells amazing.

Kiyohira-sensei would've liked this.

Something in Ken-jichan's expression softens slightly, when she turns and tells that to him.

"We can bring him some after he recovers," he tells her. "Or bring him to the diner in person, and make an outing of it."

That sounds… nice. Shiki doesn't even recall the last time she'd been at a restaurant, or anything of the sort –most of her meals are all made by the household staff serving the Gojo Clan, and taken inside the compound itself. The last time she'd eaten anything else had been… it had been that time when Jihei-san had accompanied her on one of her missions. He'd handed her a strange bread filled with yakisoba of all things, and smiled.

Let's keep this a secret between the two of us, alright?

Even Kiyohira-sensei?

Even Kiyohira. He'd probably nag and say that I'm spoiling your appetite, but there's nothing wrong with having a treat once in a while. Have a taste, won't you? I think you'd like this.

Jihei-san had been right. Shiki liked the yakisoba bread.

"… I'd like that sometime," she responds to her uncle. Eating out with Kiyohira-sensei sounds a little strange to even consider, but… it would be nice, she thinks. Shiki is pretty sure that Kiyohira-sensei would like this gyudon, so hopefully it would be something that he would enjoy. Maybe it would cheer him up from the loss of his arm? Furthermore, "It should be easier to move around freely once I leave the clan compound, too."

So there wouldn't really be any concern of someone trying to shut down a casual outing in the name of her safety anymore–

"What?" Ken-jichan's voice rises sharply. "Leave –leave the Gojo Clan?"

Shiki can't tell if her uncle is happy or upset at the news. Surprised, definitely. Wasn't this good news for him, though? Shouldn't he be happy about it?

"You can't just suddenly drop the news on him like that out of nowhere, Shiki," Shoko-san's voice is amused. Then, towards Ken-jichan, "Our resident 'Strongest Sorcerer' was around earlier. This came up in conversation while we were talking about his future plans with respect to the current situation. Satoru seems determined for Shiki to move out of the Gojo clan compound in the near future. He'll probably be around to talk to you about it at some point, so the two of you can hammer out the details."

Ken-jichan slowly raises his hands, rubbing at his head. "I… thank you for letting me know. I am sure that Gojo and I will have much to discuss later."

"That you do," Shoko-san takes another bite of her food. Shiki copies the motion. "Do you plan on making a bid for Shiki's custody again?"

"Was that ever in question?" Ken-jichan steeples his fingers. "Again and again and again, the Gojo Clan keeps… this keeps happening, Ieiri. Shiki is supposed to be safe, but she isn't. It doesn't matter how they spin it, when this is consistently the result of the 'accidents' that just keep reoccurring. I don't care what excuses Gojo will try to make for his clan again. Even if he didn't agree for her to leave that compound–"

"He didn't make any excuses, y'know," Shoko-san waves her chopsticks. "In fact, he was the one who brought it up on his own. Getting Shiki out of the Gojo clan compound, that is."

"… That still doesn't make him–"

"Look, I'm not here to argue with you, Nanami. Just reminding you that even though he's the head of his clan, Gojo Satoru is not the Gojo Clan. He's responsible for them, yes, but he's not to blame for every individual decision that his clan elders make." There's a slight pause, as Shoko-san pointedly holds Ken-jichan's gaze. "… We're getting a little off-track, though. Nanami, if you're serious about getting some kind of custody over Shiki, then I'm telling you this: You need to stop dragging your feet on getting promoted. Become a Grade One sorcerer."

'Dragging his feet?' Grade One promotion? He'd never mentioned this before. Shiki glances up towards her uncle in confusion, but Ken-jichan avoids her eyes. Instead, he remains focused on Shoko-san.

"A Grade One promotion isn't so simple," he shakes his head.

Shoko-san snorts, "Don't play coy, you know you're strong enough to make the cut. Yes, Grade One sorcerers are in high demand, and it's likely that you'll become even busier, which logically dictates a negative impact on the amount of free time that you'd have for Shiki. But you're overlooking the upsides."

"Which would be?"

"Grade Two is a respectable rank, but it's nothing in the eyes of the sorcery clans. On the other hand, being Grade One means that the Gojo elders would be forced to take you seriously. Like Satoru becoming clan head even though he's already a Special Grade sorcerer –the words of a clan head have weight that even being Special Grade doesn't give him," Shoko-san explains clearly. "Satoru probably didn't push you on it because of the undue attention it would get you, in addition to inevitably involving you in clan politics while you've already expressed your distaste for the sorcery clans. But at this point, I really don't think there's any avoiding it anymore."

"… If I was Grade One," Ken-jichan says slowly, "Would that have deterred the Kamo Clan from setting their sights on Shiki?"

That's–

"Hard to say. The Kamos were running a long game here, weren't they?" Shoko-san shrugs. "But it certainly would've given them another factor to consider. Either it would discourage them, or they might've made additional precautions to account for you. Like Gojo Kiyohira."

Getting promoted to Grade One would be a double-edged sword for Ken-jichan, then. Grade One sorcerers had a higher salary and a stronger influence due to their acknowledged strength, but it also came hand-in-hand with more dangerous missions and attention from the sorcery clans that may or may not be a good thing.

"I understand," Ken-jichan nods. "I appreciate your advice, Ieiri. The recommendations… I'll see what I can do about it."

"Gojo would probably be more than happy to put in a recommendation himself, if you asked him for it," Shoko-san sets down her chopsticks. "But that might get you heavier scrutiny and rumors of nepotism, which might affect your mission assignments."

"I'll consider it."

Grade One. Shiki hasn't really seen her uncle fight before, but she knows that he's capable, knows that he can handle himself. Satoru-niichan had said as much before, and even Kiyohira-sensei had admitted that Ken-jichan had talent as a sorcerer. Grade One… she thinks she can see Ken-jichan as a Grade One sorcerer. That Ken-jichan is considering pushing for a promotion because of Shiki, however, it's…

She's happy. She's worried. She wants… she just wants him to do what's comfortable for him, and not for Shiki.

She tells this to him, and Ken-jichan's lips quirk into a small smile that seems both happy and not. Shiki can't quite put her finger on the expression.

"I would've gone for this eventually," he says, patting her gently on the shoulder. "Don't look so worried. Getting promoted isn't a bad thing."

Considering the abysmal fatality rate of working sorcerers, there was probably an argument that could be made against that. Shiki deliberately chooses to ignore it for now, though.

She turns towards Shoko-san.

"I thought you didn't like politics." Yet going by the way she'd broken down the points of Ken-jichan's promotion for him, it was clear that she had a fairly nuanced grasp of things.

"I don't," the young woman agrees. "But I have a rare skill set myself, and… I was classmates with Gojo Satoru. It was self-defense, really."

The note of plaintive complaint in Shoko-san's voice makes Ken-jichan snort and shake his head, and Shiki hides a small smile.

.

.