CHAPTER 19: THE CRACKS WIDEN
The days turned into weeks.
Sukuna trained. He ate. He slept. He waited.
But something had changed.
He could feel it in the air. In the way people looked at him. In the way the world held its breath.
"Something is coming," he thought. "Something big."
One morning, Shadis gathered the cadets in the courtyard.
"We have received new orders," he announced. "The Survey Corps is launching an expedition. Beyond Wall Maria."
Murmurs spread through the crowd.
"We're going back to Shiganshina."
Silence.
"The higher-ups want to know if the Titans have returned. They want to know if there's a way to retake the city."
"And if there isn't?" Jean asked.
"Then we die trying."
Sukuna looked at Reiner.
The big man's face was pale. His hands were shaking.
"He knows," Sukuna thought. "He knows what's coming."
Bertholdt stood beside Reiner, his eyes empty.
Annie showed nothing. As always.
"The warriors are scared," Sukuna thought. "Good."
That night, Sukuna sat on the roof.
Armin climbed up to join him.
"You're quiet."
"I'm always quiet."
"Quieter than usual."
Sukuna looked at the stars.
"The expedition is a trap."
Armin's eyes widened.
"What do you mean?"
"Someone wants us outside the walls. Someone wants us in Shiganshina."
"Who?"
"The king. The Interior Police. The warriors. I don't know yet."
Armin was quiet for a moment.
Then he said, "Then why are we going?"
"Because I want to see what happens."
"People will die, Eren."
"People always die."
The expedition began at dawn.
Fifty soldiers. Fifty lives.
Sukuna rode near the front. Mikasa on his left. Armin on his right.
Reiner was ahead. Bertholdt beside him. Annie behind.
"All the pieces are on the board," Sukuna thought. "Now we see who makes the first move."
The first day was quiet.
No Titans. No attacks. No deaths.
The second day was the same.
Too quiet.
"They're waiting," Armin whispered.
"Let them wait," Sukuna replied.
On the third day, they reached Shiganshina.
The district was still destroyed. Broken houses. Rotting wood. Dust and ash.
But something was different.
The bodies were gone. All of them.
"Someone has been here," Mikasa said.
"Someone or something," Sukuna replied.
They searched the district.
Empty streets. Empty houses. Empty churches.
No Titans. No humans. No bodies.
Just silence.
"This is wrong," Jean said. "Titans should be here. They're always here."
"Unless someone moved them," Armin said.
"Who?"
No one answered.
Then they heard it.
A sound. Like thunder. Like the world cracking open.
Sukuna smiled.
"Finally."
From behind the broken gate, a massive hand appeared.
Then a face.
The Colossal Titan.
Bertholdt's eyes went wide.
"No..." he whispered.
The Titan raised its leg.
And kicked.
The explosion threw soldiers into the air.
Bodies flew. Blood sprayed. Screams filled the sky.
Mikasa grabbed Sukuna's arm.
"We have to go!"
"Not yet."
"EREN!"
He pulled away.
"Go. Take Armin. I'll find you."
Mikasa stared at him for a moment.
Then she ran.
Sukuna stood alone in the chaos.
The Colossal Titan looked down at him.
Their eyes met.
"You're not Bertholdt," Sukuna said.
The Titan tilted its head.
"Who are you?"
The Titan didn't answer.
It raised its foot again.
Sukuna didn't move.
The foot came down.
And stopped.
An inch from Sukuna's face.
He hadn't moved. Hadn't flinched.
The Titan stared at him.
"Interesting," a voice said. Not from the Titan. From somewhere else.
Sukuna looked around.
"Who's there?"
"Someone who has been watching you for a long time."
A figure stepped out of the shadows.
A man. Tall. Dark hair. A beard.
And eyes that burned with fury.
"My name is Zeke Yeager," the man said. "And I'm your brother."
END OF CHAPTER 19