Tsuku

In the moonlit night, Sachi stood at the crossroads of her internal battle, with Tsuku asserting control over her. The air was thick with tension as Kazuki, a skilled sorcerer trained by the formidable Toji Fushiguro, approached with a purpose – a mission to exorcise Tsuku and end the curse that plagued Sachi's soul.

Kazuki, known for his cheerful demeanor and love for coffee, was an unlikely executioner. However, the promise of information about his mother had coerced him into this deadly task. The clash between Tsuku and Kazuki was inevitable, and the outcome would shape the destiny of those entangled in the shadows.

The skirmish began with Kazuki displaying his skill, maneuvering with precision, and launching spells that cut through the air. Despite Tsuku's cunning maneuvers, Kazuki seemed to have the upper hand. His movements were swift, and his strikes were brutal, a stark contrast to his usually jovial nature.

However, Tsuku, never one to be underestimated, lured Kazuki into a trap. In a moment of distraction, shadowy hands emerged from the ground, ensnaring him and pinning him to a tree. It seemed Tsuku had turned the tide of the battle.

With a cruel satisfaction, Tsuku approached Kazuki. His struggles were in vain as the shadows tightened their grip. Tsuku, speaking through Sachi, taunted him, claiming that men were all alike – driven by selfish desires.

Yet, in the face of impending doom, Kazuki managed to utter words that cut through the darkness. "I'm sorry you've never experienced true love. If you had, you wouldn't see all men the same way."

Tsuku, infuriated by the implication that her perception was flawed, lashed out in a fit of rage. The shadowy hand struck Kazuki's head with a sickening force. The air became still, and the moon witnessed the aftermath of a battle fought in the realm of shadows.

Kazuki's still form hung from the tree, the brutality of the encounter evident. But in the stillness that followed, a flicker of doubt crossed Tsuku's consciousness. The words Kazuki spoke lingered, planting seeds of uncertainty within the curse that gripped Sachi's soul. As the moon cast its glow on the silent battleground, the fate of Sachi and the curse she carried remained entwined in an uncertain dance.

As the days unfolded, Tsuku, now dwelling within Sachi's body, found herself haunted by Kazuki's last words and the amulet he had worn. She contemplated his cheerfulness even in the face of impending doom and the notion of true love, a concept that seemed foreign in the realm of curses and shadows. The amulet in her hand held a silent echo of the young sorcerer who had dared to defy his clan's orders.

Her thoughts drifted back to her human days, to the betrayals and injustices that led to her execution and transformation into a curse. A surge of bitterness welled up within her, and she gnashed her teeth at the memories. However, a sudden intrusion disrupted the current of her resentment – thoughts of Sachi.

Sachi, with her pure heart, emerged in Tsuku's contemplation. A heart that yearned for Todo Aoi, the man who had become Sachi's friend, protector, and the catalyst for her recovery. Tsuku couldn't deny the parallel between Sachi's emotions and her own past experiences. Was this what Kazuki referred to as true love?

The mere thought of such vulnerability sent a shiver down Tsuku's ethereal form. She vehemently shook her head in denial, feeling the very essence of her cursed energy wane as if threatened by the emergence of empathy. Tsuku recoiled from the idea of softening, refusing to acknowledge the tendrils of compassion that seemed to encroach upon her curse.

Her resolve, however, remained unyielding. The burning desire for vengeance against all men, a relentless pursuit to see them eradicated, continued to fuel Tsuku's malevolence. Even if the path of Sachi and Todo were to intertwine, it only meant that Todo, too, would fall prey to the curse through the vessel of the woman who loved him. The complexity of this situation, a dark dance between love and hatred, resentment and longing, played out within the shadows of Tsuku's consciousness.