CHAPTER 10: THE RETURN
The morning sun rose over the old castle.
The soldiers woke slowly. Their bodies were sore. Their eyes were tired. But they were alive.
Sukuna stood by a broken window, looking at the land below.
"Today we go back," he thought. "Back to the cage."
Mikasa approached him.
"You didn't sleep again."
"I don't need much sleep."
"Everyone needs sleep, Eren."
"I'm not everyone."
Mikasa stared at him for a moment. Then she turned and walked away.
Sukuna watched her go.
"She's getting closer to the truth," he thought. "But she's not ready yet."
Shadis gathered the soldiers in the castle courtyard.
"Today we return to Wall Rose," he announced. "The journey back will take three days. Stay alert. Stay alive."
The soldiers mounted their horses.
Sukuna looked at the castle one last time.
"I'll come back here someday," he whispered. "When the time is right."
Then he rode away.
The first day was quiet.
No Titans. No deaths. No screams.
The soldiers relaxed slightly. Not completely. But slightly.
Armin rode next to Sukuna.
"Eren... about that village..."
"What about it?"
"How is it possible? People living outside the walls? Not knowing about Titans?"
Sukuna looked at him.
"Because the walls are not what you think, Armin. And the world is much bigger than you know."
Armin was quiet for a moment.
"How do you know these things?"
"I just do."
Armin wanted to ask more. But he didn't.
He just rode in silence, thinking.
The second day was harder.
A Titan appeared. A six-meter class. Fast. Hungry.
It charged at the formation.
"Scatter!" Shadis shouted.
The soldiers broke apart. Wires flew. Blades flashed.
Mikasa killed it in ten seconds.
The soldiers stared at her.
"She's not human," someone whispered again.
"No," Sukuna thought. "She's a weapon."
He looked at Mikasa. Her face was calm. Her hands were steady.
"She's protecting me," he realized. "Even though she knows I'm not Eren. Even though she knows I'm dangerous."
He didn't understand it.
But he respected it.
That night, they camped near a forest.
Sukuna sat away from the others. He didn't need their company. He didn't want it.
But someone came anyway.
Jean.
"Can I sit here?"
"You're already sitting."
Jean sat down. He was quiet for a moment.
Then he said, "I don't like you, Yeager."
"I know."
"You're reckless. You're arrogant. You think you're better than everyone."
"I am better than everyone."
Jean glared at him. Then he laughed.
"You're impossible."
"I know that too."
They sat in silence.
Then Jean said, "But you're not a coward. I'll give you that."
"Was that a compliment?"
"Don't get used to it."
Jean stood up and walked away.
Sukuna watched him go.
"The horse-faced boy has a heart," he thought. "Hidden. But there."
The third day.
Wall Rose appeared on the horizon.
The soldiers cheered. They were alive. They were home.
Sukuna looked at the wall.
"A cage," he thought. "But a safe cage."
The gates opened. The Survey Corps rode in.
People watched them pass. Some cheered. Some cried. Some just stared.
"They don't understand," Sukuna thought. "They think we're heroes. But we're just survivors."
The debriefing was held in a large hall.
Shadis stood at the front. His face was grave.
"We lost seven soldiers," he said. "We killed fifteen Titans."
Silence.
"The mission was... successful. But success comes with a price."
He looked at the young cadets.
"You have seen death. You have seen horror. You have seen what lies outside the walls."
"Now you have a choice. Stay in the Survey Corps. Or leave."
No one left.
Sukuna wasn't surprised.
"They're all broken," he thought. "And broken people have nowhere else to go."
That night, Sukuna sat on the roof of the barracks.
The moon was full. The stars were bright.
Mikasa sat next to him.
"We made it," she said.
"Barely."
"But we made it."
Silence.
Then Mikasa said, "I know you're not Eren."
Sukuna looked at her.
"I know you know."
"But I don't care anymore."
Sukuna raised an eyebrow.
"Why?"
Mikasa looked at the moon.
"Because Eren is gone. And you're here. And you haven't hurt me. You haven't hurt Armin."
"Not yet."
Mikasa turned to him. Her dark eyes were steady.
"Will you?"
Sukuna was quiet for a long time.
Then he said, "I don't know."
Mikasa nodded.
"Then I'll stay. Until I find out."
She stood up and walked to the edge of the roof.
Then she stopped.
"Goodnight, Sukuna."
His eyes widened.
"What did you call me?"
Mikasa looked back at him.
"I heard you whisper it. In your sleep. The first night after Shiganshina."
She jumped down.
Sukuna sat alone under the moon.
"She knows my name," he thought. "And she's not afraid."
He looked at his hands.
"Interesting."
END OF CHAPTER 10