CHAPTER 11: THE CRACK IN THE MASK
The days after the mission were quiet.
Too quiet.
Sukuna trained. He ate. He slept. He watched.
The other cadets tried to return to normal life. But something had changed. They had seen death. They had killed Titans. They had left their friends' bodies behind.
"This is the new normal," Sukuna thought. "They just don't know it yet."
One week after the return, Reiner found Sukuna alone in the training yard.
The sun was setting. The sky was orange and red.
"You're always alone," Reiner said.
"I prefer it that way."
"Why?"
Sukuna looked at him. "Because people die. And I don't like losing things."
Reiner was quiet for a moment.
Then he said, "Can I ask you something? Something strange?"
"You just did."
Reiner sat down on a bench. His big shoulders sagged.
"Do you ever feel like... you're two different people? Like there's someone else inside you? Telling you what to do?"
Sukuna stared at him.
"Why do you ask?"
Reiner looked at the ground.
"No reason."
But Sukuna knew.
"The warrior and the soldier," he thought. "Reiner is breaking."
"Yes," Sukuna said. "I know what it's like to have someone else inside you."
Reiner looked up.
"How do you deal with it?"
"I don't. I am the one inside. The other one... is gone."
Reiner didn't understand. But he nodded anyway.
"I wish mine would go away," he whispered.
Sukuna said nothing.
He just watched the sun set behind the walls.
A few days later, Sukuna found Armin reading by the river.
The same river. The same spot.
"You never stop reading," Sukuna said, sitting down next to him.
"There's so much to learn," Armin replied. "So much we don't know."
"Like what?"
Armin closed his book.
"Like that village. How did people live outside the walls without being eaten? Without even knowing about Titans?"
"Maybe the Titans don't go there."
"Why not?"
Sukuna shrugged. "Maybe someone is controlling them."
Armin's eyes widened.
"Controlling them? That's... that's impossible."
"Is it?"
Armin was silent for a long time.
Then he said, "Eren... sometimes you say things that scare me."
"Good."
"That's not a good thing."
Sukuna looked at the water.
"Fear keeps you alive, Armin. Complacency gets you killed."
Armin stared at him.
"Who taught you that?"
"Someone who died a long time ago."
That night, Sukuna sat on the roof.
He heard footsteps. Light. Careful.
Annie.
She sat down next to him without a word.
They sat in silence for a long time.
Then Annie said, "Reiner is falling apart."
"I noticed."
"He talks in his sleep. About the village. About the warriors. About what we did."
"And what did you do?"
Annie turned her cold blue eyes toward him.
"You know what we did."
"I want to hear you say it."
Annie was quiet.
Then she whispered, "We broke the wall. We killed thousands. We started this nightmare."
Sukuna nodded.
"And now you live among the survivors. Eating their food. Sleeping under their roofs."
"Yes."
"Does it bother you?"
Annie looked at the moon.
"It didn't used to. Now... I don't know."
"Good," Sukuna said. "That means you're not a monster. Not completely."
Annie looked at him.
"What are you, Eren?"
"Someone who has done worse things than you. And felt nothing."
Annie stared at him.
For the first time, Sukuna saw something in her eyes.
Not fear.
Understanding.
The next day, Shadis announced another mission.
"We're going back outside," he said. "Three days. Simple reconnaissance. No combat unless necessary."
The cadets prepared their gear.
Mikasa checked her blades. Armin checked his gas. Jean sharpened his swords.
Sukuna stood apart, watching.
"Something is wrong," he thought. "Shadis is hiding something."
He approached the commander.
"Why are we really going out there?"
Shadis looked at him with cold eyes.
"Because I ordered it, cadet."
"That's not an answer."
Shadis stepped closer. His voice was low.
"Because there are things out there that need to be seen. Things that will change everything."
"What things?"
"You'll see. If you survive."
Shadis walked away.
Sukuna watched him go.
"He knows something," he thought. "About the village. About the people outside. About the truth."
He smiled.
"Finally."
That night, Sukuna packed his gear.
Mikasa stood in the doorway.
"You're excited," she said.
"I'm curious."
"Same thing."
Sukuna looked at her.
"Are you coming with me?"
"I always come with you."
"Even though I'm not Eren?"
Mikasa stepped into the room.
"I've been thinking about that."
"And?"
"And I don't care who you are. You're the one who's here. You're the one who hasn't left me."
She sat on his bed.
"Eren is gone. I've accepted that."
"Have you?"
"No," she admitted. "But I'm trying."
Sukuna was quiet.
Then he said, "You're stronger than you know, Mikasa."
"You've said that before."
"I'll say it again."
She almost smiled.
END OF CHAPTER 11