The engines of the private jet hummed like a calm lullaby over the Atlantic. Kurotsuki Tenkai leaned back in his seat, eyes half-lidded, a thin silver headset over his ears as he scrolled through reports projected from his holo-screen. The text glowed faintly on his lenses — Disaster Grade Classification Approved by Global NCD.
He exhaled softly. "Good... at least something productive came out of that mess."
The AI system aboard his plane, LYRA, responded in her calm synthetic tone.
LYRA: "Incoming message from Japan NCD headquarters. Priority: Routine."Tenkai: "Routine? After a White House curse incident? Play it."LYRA: "Acknowledged. Beginning playback."
A holographic projection of the NCD symbol appeared, followed by a monotone report:
"Subject: Minor supernatural fluctuation detected in Sendai region. Student involvement is suspected. Grade 3 or lower anomaly. No special-grade presence detected."
Tenkai raised an eyebrow, a faint smile on his face.
"So they're finally catching the small ones, huh... Good. Keep an eye, but no interference yet."
He leaned his head against the seat, closing his eyes. The clouds outside shifted into streaks of gold as the sun began to set.
Unbeknownst to him — in Sendai — the gears of fate had already begun to turn.
Sendai City — Sugisawa Third High School.
"Come on, Yuji! You're not really gonna bail on us during club activities again, right?"A tall boy with a bandana — Sasaki — playfully elbowed Yuji Itadori, who was halfway through scarfing down a bread bun.
Yuji laughed, mouth full. "I told you, I'm meeting my grandpa at the hospital later! He's cranky when I'm late."
His friend Iguchi groaned, setting down the camera tripod. "Man, you're the only guy I know who can throw a shot put like a missile and still choose ghost hunting over track club."
Yuji grinned, scratching his cheek. "Hey, the Occult Club's more chill. No pushups, no drills, just cursed rumors and snacks."
Sasaki smirked. "Speaking of cursed stuff—check this out." She pulled out a small wooden box, wrapped in an old talisman paper that was half torn. "We found this in the storage room today. Creepy, right?"
Yuji blinked. "That thing looks ancient. Did you already open it?"
"Nah," Sasaki said, poking at the seal. "The paper had a charm seal on it. Probably fake, but it's cool for our next club video."
Yuji sighed. "Don't blame me when a ghost actually shows up and smacks you."
Everyone laughed — the easy laughter of students who had no idea their joke was real.
Later that day — Sendai General Hospital.
Yuji sat beside the hospital bed, watching his grandfather breathe weakly. The room was quiet except for the faint beeping of the ECG monitor.
Grandpa Itadori: "Yuji... listen."
Yuji: "Yeah, yeah, I know, Gramps. You're gonna tell me to eat better again?"
Grandpa: "No, fool." He gave a raspy chuckle. "You're... strong. Too strong for your own good. Use that strength... to help others. Don't... die alone like me."
Yuji's joking expression softened. He nodded, gripping his grandfather's hand.
Yuji: "Got it, old man."
Moments later, the ECG flatlined.
The silence that followed felt heavier than any curse.
Evening — Outside the hospital.
Yuji stared at the sky, paperwork in hand. The city lights reflected on his tired face.
Yuji: "Man… today's been rough."
Then his phone buzzed. Unknown number.
Yuji: "Huh? Who's calling now?"
He answered, tone casual. "Hello?"
Megumi: "This is Megumi Fushiguro. You're Yuji Itadori, correct? I need to ask you something about a special-grade cursed object."
Yuji blinked. "A what now?"
Megumi: "I'm with the National Curse Defense Division. We've detected residual cursed energy on your person and in your school area. Have you come into contact with any kind of sealed item or charm?"
Yuji frowned, confused. "You mean that old box thing my friends found? It had paper on it — looked like some old priest thing."
Megumi's tone sharpened. "You have it with you now?"
Yuji shook his head. "Nah, it's with my friends at the school club. Why, is it dangerous or something?"
Megumi: "Yes. Very. That object contains something that shouldn't even exist in this era. We need to secure it immediately—"
He froze. His expression changed instantly as the AI in his earpiece — NCD assistant "ARGO" — interrupted.
ARGO: "Warning: Cursed energy surge detected near Sugisawa Third High. Grade currently undetermined. Multiple signatures detected."
Megumi's eyes widened. "Damn it… It's active."
Yuji: "Uh… active? What's active?"
Megumi: "Your friends might've unsealed the curse."
Yuji's heart skipped. "WHAT!?"
He broke into a run, still clutching the phone. "You could've started with that!"
Megumi was already sprinting through the school gates, ARGO's voice guiding him through a holographic map.
ARGO: "Energy spike confirmed near the Occult Club room. Two life signs detected—wait—three cursed signatures converging."
Megumi: "No... it's already materializing..."
Meanwhile — Back in the sky.
Tenkai leaned his head to the side, faint static echoing through his comms.
LYRA: "Minor system ping: irregular curse surge in northern Japan. Local NCD units deployed."
Tenkai: "Japan again? …Huh. Probably a Grade 2 or 3. Let them handle it."
He went back to his reports, oblivious to the storm brewing below.
Sugisawa Third High — Nightfall.
The once quiet school now echoed with strange noises.Sasaki and Iguchi huddled in the clubroom, trembling as shadows crept across the floor. The talisman that once sealed the box was now torn completely open.
Sasaki: "W-what's happening… this isn't funny anymore!"
Iguchi: "The lights—why are the lights flickering—!?"
A disgusting, wet slithering sound echoed from the corner.Two blackened, malformed arms dragged across the floor as a twisted figure emerged, whispering in guttural tones.
The air grew heavy. The temperature dropped.
Then —
BWWOOOOOP!
The emergency alarm blared throughout the entire campus.
Students screamed in confusion as red lights illuminated the halls.
Yuji, still running toward the school gates, heard the sirens. His heart raced.
Yuji: "Megumi! What's going on!?"
Megumi: "The curse has manifested!"
Yuji: "Then let's go save them!"
Megumi: "Stay back! You don't understand how dangerous—"
But Yuji was already gone, sprinting faster than Megumi expected any human could.
The sky above Sendai flashed with streaks of cursed energy — faint, but ominous.
Back in Tokyo, Gojo Satoru looked up from his phone, watching the live regional feed flicker.
"Oh? A new cursed energy surge in Sendai? Heh. Maybe this year won't be boring after all."
To be continued...