(Some manga spoilers)
Mother? What did that cursed spirit mean 'mother'? What in the world did Geto do to me? I didn't give birth to any cursed spirit. I only had Naozumi and that was it. These triplets are my next and last. No more babies after them.
"Choso, I know you're half human and half curse, but I thought you couldn't recall any of your parents?" Patchy face asked Choso, ignoring my presence as I slowly backed away. I didn't want to get involved if they weren't going to fight me. I just want some assassins and go home afterwards, not to encounter an entity who claims I'm their mother. "I thought we were just here to find out why Geto is so interested in Sukuna's woman."
So those two curses must be affiliated with Geto? Wow they totally hinted at the big plot twist of why this year has been really crazy. Geto rose from the ashes and summoned some friends to take over the world. Never thought he would go to the extreme just because he hates non-sorcerers.
"I should leave…" I muttered to myself, walking backwards to make sure they won't attack when my back is to them. I'm never doing a stakeout again; I'm always encountering the weirdest shit. It's better to stay home and never leave the house until I give birth.
"Mother, don't go!"
"Sukuna's woman, you can't—"
They both leaped forward as they tried to grab me. Because they were curses who have inhuman abilities, I couldn't counter their fast speed to defend myself in my pregnant and useless state. But that wasn't until a strong aura made its presence clear to everyone in the area. It was filled with immense hatred and dark energy as it froze everyone in their place. It felt so heavy that it could eat us within matters of seconds. If one of us ran, it would kill us in an instant. This wasn't Yuta's because I taught him how to conceal his ominous energy. It was worse than his.
"Oi! Just because we laughed together during the brat's misery doesn't mean you can touch what's mine." Sukuna suddenly stood in front of me, guarding me like a shield from the two curses from approaching me. "I'm tired of giving you warnings. Die," Sukuna lifted two fingers up and did a slashing motion, cutting the patchy face curse before I could protest to spare his life. Blood spewed out of his body like a waterfall. I'm already cringing and squirming as I imagined the huge cut on my body. It made me want to throw up by the amount of blood leaking from the big wound. The curse would've been a great source of answers if Sukuna hadn't killed him. "As for you—"
Tugging Sukuna by his arm, his whole body tensed up. I'm not sure if it's because I scared him with my hands or not, but it made him lose focus on the curse Choso as he looked at me. There was a pink tint across his face while his lips scrunched up. Was he shy? I've never seen his face flushed before. Maybe it is because I touched him; however, it's not important so I shook off the thought. "Hold on a minute!" My fingers dug into his clothed skin as I pleaded. "You're too hasty to kill!" Then I shifted my eyes off from Sukuna to the dying corpse of the patchy face and lastly to Choso who called me mother. Although it's really odd how Choso called me that, it made me curious about my past life now. Nozomi did lose her baby but I doubt she cursed it. Did I have another past life where she had the same face as me and Nozomi? "I don't think he's going to harm me."
A snarled look plastered on Sukuna's face, asking me if I'm an idiot. "Are you stupid? I did not just come here to protect you when I felt your life and my future bride's life on the line." He lifted his finger and flicked my forehead.
Flick!
I gasped in disbelief because this was the first time Sukuna ever inflicted pain on me. Rubbing my forehead, I frowned at him. "Don't you start, Sukuna! I'm carrying Nozomi inside of me, so best behave and be careful of your words too!" Then I began poking at his chest with my finger as I glared at him. "I have the power to set you free from being a cursed spirit! You better respect me because if I die by the higher ups or by Geto, it's the endgame for humanity."
Sukuna's face was no longer red as it twitched, knowing I'm right. His ruby eyes were still giving me a dirty look after what I said. "Tch. If you insist." Sukuna had no choice but to back away from this situation while he didn't let go of being my guard.
"Can you move to the side? You're in my way."
He purposely stood in front of me again to 'protect' me from Choso. "No, Dear Ena. I still need you alive isn't that right? Your life is in danger so having you being unguarded is absolutely risky." He cooed in a painful voice like the thought of my dead body actually hurt him through his thick skin and hard head.
"Mother...your life is in danger?" Choso staggered towards us in loss, causing Sukuna to push me behind him.
"Stop it!" I hissed and slapped his back. "I'm not that vulnerable!" I jabbed his ribs as Sukuna curled from the sharp pain, creating an opening for me to approach Choso.
Hesitantly extending my hand out to Choso, I asked him a dying question that's been poking at me. "Why do you keep calling me 'mother' when I'm not your mother? How are you half human and half curse?" It's a very rare condition for a reproductive system to produce cursed spirits. There's only one case of it happening and that was back in the Meiji era. It involved Kamo Noritoshi and an unnamed woman who's able to conceive half breeds. She had 9 pregnancies which were led to 9 abortions. So he must be a cursed womb: death painting.
Choso's trembling hand intertwined with mine as he fell on his knees. He wailed from his heart and his mind unlocking memories of his past. Choso couldn't even look at me in the eyes. I'm not sure whether it's because he's scared or he's figuring out his life. "Mother had your face… You and mother share the same soul… Mother suffered because of someone… I can't remember their name or face… But please, don't leave again!" His voice cracked from his past haunting him. Choso used his other free hand and latched it onto my forearm of my hand he held. His uneven shaking made me realize he's suffering more than I thought. Due to his pleading and body language, I felt compelled to take care of him like he's my own child. In my heart, I can tell he has no intentions of hurting me as stated earlier. He's just a grown boy who wants the love of his mother.
To Sukuna's dismay, he barked back. "You peasant, get your hands off of—"
"Sukuna!" I whipped my head at him, shaking my head due to him being so rude today. Normally he never has a problem until now. "Calm yourself. Do I need to put a leash on you?" It's like I have no choice but to find a way to tame him. Yet I wished I didn't phrase my question that way…
"Sweetie, be careful of your words. My heart is for Nozomi; however, your persistent nature draws my feelings towards you."
"Oh shut up, Sukuna. Stop blabbering out weird shit. I'm really going to leave you as a curse at this point…" Sukuna has been acting so difficult today. What's up with him? It's like he wants to get under my skin and annoy me. Yuji better take over this instant. "Yuji, you better come back right now."
Turning back my attention to Choso, I stroked his head gently as he laid against my leg. "Choso, right?"
"Mhm," He mumbled.
If he's not here to kill me but to observe why Geto has an interest in me, will Choso defect and become my ally? He sees me as his 'mother' because of the face yet he knows I'm not her. He will be able to grant me any information on Geto. I still have two enemies against me. "Choso," every time I say his name, he always relaxes under my voice. "I can be your mother since your chance of having one was ripped away. Your mother is being targeted by Geto Suguru and the higher ups of sorcerers. I'm no longer safe in this world. If you turn your back on Geto and side with me, you'll be able to save your mother from a horrendous death." I sound evil for manipulating him, but it really does look like he has mommy issues. If I can act like his mother figure, I will be able to satisfy his parental feelings in his heart.
Then something inside of Choso snapped as he hastily removed himself from me. "This whole time… I've been siding with the curses… I was hurting my own mother all along?!" His eyes were flashing in different directions while his body slumped against a wall.
This face of mine has been through a lot… It's actually terrifying. My face must be cursed. None of them ended with a happy note. Nozomi died for Sukuna, the unnamed woman who gave birth to half cursed-half humans died, and I guess my fate is also to die too. What a lovely reincarnation cycle.
"Choso, you can atone by helping me." I waddled towards him. "There's no need to put a lot of blame on your shoulders. You just didn't know that you'd meet a woman who looks like your mother." I rubbed small circles on his back, calming him down from future meltdowns. I really shouldn't be this accepting of Choso but I don't care. He wouldn't be emphasizing on 'mother' a lot and letting me touch him either. I'm willing to pull any strings to change the tides of my future.
Choso unsurely lifted his head and stared at me in my eyes. He was trying to make sure I meant my words. "You can call me 'mother' or 'Ena' if any of those two names help you feel better, Choso. My face has been through a lot in this lifetime and the past. I'm willing to accept you if you are going to help me."
He inhaled sharply, standing tall as he grabbed my left hand with earnest eyes. "Yes, mother. I will protect you since I couldn't 500 years ago."
This made my heart feel very light because I wasn't going to fight alone. I gained an ally today, a trustworthy one.
Later that day, I came bursting inside the house as I announced big news which will shake everyone.
Me, Yuji, Yuta, and Choso walked in the living room. "Everyone! In my past life, I gave birth to half humans and half curse babies!"
Naozumi looked at his dad, Gojo looked at his parents, and his parents looked at me. They all shared a confused face. They probably think I went crazy from what's been happening as of late.
"Honey… what are you talking about?" Gojo carefully asked, trying to see if it was a joke or something. It's rare for me to play jokes unlike him.
"Well," I clasped my hands. "Let me give you a run down." I explained the long story. I'm always having an adventure, and it involves men being connected to me.
My in-laws made an obvious connection between me and my past life after Nozomi. "You're trying to say the woman Noritoshi Kamo abused back in the Meiji era is you?"
I nodded my head. "Yep! Crazy right? I'm discovering new things left and right. Even I didn't know about this till now."
In that moment, Choso's trembling words traveled to my ears as all of our direction flew to him. "No...Noritoshi Kamo…?" He whispered to himself like he's chanting a spell. It spiralled from uncertainty until it grew to disturb his mental state. His knees buckled as he dropped to the floor once again.
My heart picked up a pace, falling when he did. It scared me for some reason. I didn't like it when Choso wasn't okay. "What's wrong?" I stroked his head, trying my best to calm down his uneasy nerves.
Choso's face paled as his eyes enlarged from something bothering him. "That man… Geto Suguru… is Noritoshi Kamo!"
This bombshell was huge for us to take in. We were in disbelief because there's no way that could work. However, Gojo chimed in, believing in Choso for one reason: his curse technique. "Although it's odd, my sixth eye is telling me it's true. He has blood manipulation flowing in his body. No one else can hold that except a Kamo member."
The air got heavy from Gojo confirming Choso's statement. No one can deny it since Gojo has the ability to see people's techniques. Yet it doesn't explain the relation between Geto and Noritoshi. They're two different people with a large timespan. It's about 500 years ago when Noritoshi Kamo was alive. It doesn't make any sense in all of our brains.
"How can you tell?" I asked, trying to figure this out.
Choso explained how Noritoshi is the 'third' parent. He mixed his blood during the woman's pregnancy. It made sense why he's the third because the first is the human woman and second is the cursed entity that's causing the woman's uterus to conceive half breeds. "Because Noritoshi mixed his blood, I'm able to detect him so I know Geto is Noritoshi, the man who made my mother suffer… And they both have stitches on their foreheads."
"Did you see stitches on Geto's head, honey?" Gojo asked as he got his attention sucked in.
I tried to think back to the many encounters I saw him but I couldn't remember. It's been too long and I wouldn't want to either. He's been popping into my life too often. He caused a lot of trouble. "I can't recall." My answer was a let down, but it's because I don't focus on the smaller details of a person. "Nonetheless, if Choso's right about what he's saying then I believe it."
Adding Choso to the mix, what we knew got messier than before. If it's not Geto inside of his own body, who was it? And why target me? This daunting feeling of the unknown put me in an unsettling situation.
"Choso, why don't you make yourself at home? I'm going to talk to my wife."
Gojo dragged me to our shared room as we sat on the bed. I couldn't find anything to uplift my spirit.
"Baby," Gojo held my frowning face in his hands. "I'll handle this! I know it doesn't make any sense but I'll protect you. Please think about your health and the babies." He leaned in to kiss my forehead. His warm lips sent reassurance down my body.
"I have no choice but to rely on you. I can't do much in my pregnant state anyways, so I'll do my best to put less stress on myself if you say you can handle this!" I forced a smile so I could feel better. I had to put my trust in Gojo because he's my husband. No one can harm him since he's the strongest sorcerer.
"My parents will be meeting with the other clans to see where they stand. We need all the people we can get." Gojo pressed a long kiss on my lips then squeezed my cheeks together, making me look like a fish. "Now can my wife start doing hot girl shit?"
A tick mark formed as my golden eyes narrowed at his statement. Was he really serious? Did he really ask me that? This hypocrite. I pulled back from his grip and retorted, "Wow, I would love to do hot girl shit, but my possessive husband won't let me. The last time I did that, you took me away from the girls. Someone's afraid of me doing hot girl shit. You made Nanami follow you while you were stalking me."
I can't do anything by myself without Gojo gluing himself to me. I know me and him are two peas in one pod, but I would love to have time with my girlfriends. Being a mother and wife is hard work but he's not allowing me that chance to be with friends.
Gojo brought his hands together and proposed an idea as a lightbulb appeared above his head. I'm not sure whether it was a good thing or not, but I'll hear him out anyways. "You know what, let's do it together since you aren't allowed to see your friends! I'll be your girlfriend."
This goofball has so many great ideas under his sleeves and yet he produced this? It's going to be a long night. He better dress up in my clothes and wear a wig. His acting skills better pay off. He's going to win an Oscar.
A/N: Hello readers, I've been doing some thinking about the two endings. I think it'll be better to have one—the happy ending. We don't need an angsty ending because this story deserves a happy ending lol
The next chapter is going to be Naozumi's POV with Choso and maybe a jealous Sukuna? (´`)