Chapter 20
He couldn't believe it.
Yuuji stared blankly at Suiryu, expecting him to laugh aloud to this sick joke, but it wasn't. He stared at the swollen belly of the being he has come to call mom, but now, it would be more literal. "She… is pregnant with us?" Yuuji whispered once more.
Suiryu nodded. "Perhaps it's because our bodies before couldn't handle the power, the only thing that could would be a dragon. Still, how did she do it?"
She devoured the leftovers from Yuuji's transformation. You recall his final state before he molted out of the flesh prison? asked Kur. That is where she got the materials from and mix it with her blood.
"This doesn't make it any easier to process…" Suiryu muttered. Yuuji agreed, and yet, he wasn't upset by it the least bit. He approached her bedside with caution, he wanted to reach out and touch her stomach but hesitated, after all, when he moves his arms, he moves in her too and it was uncomfortable to mom. "So… what now? She's pregnant with us… so we have to wait until we're born again?"
"Mom said we would be released on the anniversary of our deaths… wait… next year's anniversary…" he said in a correcting tone. "Which is…"
November 30th… of next year. What you two didn't know, when that vow was made, it was 4 hours after midnight of New Years day
A sense of dread filled them. "Wait, she made that on new years day, already a new year and yet… SHIT!" Suiryu protested. "We're stuck there for almost two years?!"
Yuuji was feeling sick. "What the hell do we do for that?! How on earth do we pass the time for two years!?" he demanded.
Train with your grandfather?
The two froze. "Wait… shit, we really are kin with him now aren't we?" Suiryu asked and snickered.
"What will you train us on?" Yuuji asked.
Many things, return to me and I can explain
Yuuji didn't know what to think, he turned to Suiryu we was now considering the option. "Suiryu?"
He nodded to him. "At the moment, we're going in this blind. It's best we know what the hell is going on, and if he can help us, I say we take it."
Yuuji agreed. As quickly as they came, they felt their souls shift and return to the dark void where Kur awaited them. He became much smaller and they saw his features clearly. He was defiantly a dragon as well, their soon to be mother had many of his characteristics, but he was massive and appeared very powerful. Four horns rested on his head, two curved down and two curved up over the crown of his head. His scales appeared to be on a different level than mom too. They were keeled scales that protruded up like spiky armor.
"Now, that I know you are kin, it's time I explain a few things. Your births were delayed and for good reason. The moment you are born, the others will know of your existence and will hunt you down!" he explained. "Your mother kept you, for you are not strong enough yet. Neither one of you have been feeding off of her power to gain yours."
"Feeding off of mom?" asked Yuuji. "But, we're plenty powerful. In fact… too powerful at times…" Yuuji said meekly.
"By your standards, yes. To a dragon… you are mere bugs"
"Damn, harsh…" Suiryu muttered. "Then again mom did say that Sukuna to her was no more than a child having a temper tantrum…"
"And that's being generous, Sukuna was merely a fly." Kur stated. "But now, that is your strength, both of you. If you come across as mere insects now, how long do you think you would survive as dragons?" they fell silent to his question. "Now you understand, and know that you are the sons of Tiamat. Which means that your power level compared to a normal dragon won't be the same… you won't be normal dragons either."
Yuuji gulped his pride. "We won't?"
"No, now then, how we are going to do this. From this moment on, you are under my care; I will teach you what I can in this state. If you do well, I shall reward you. If not, no reward."
Suiryu was curious. "I am interested to what we can learn from you, please take care of us" he said and lowered his head.
Yuuji wasn't so sure. Kur caught his look of reluctance and said. "Young one, do you have any idea how important this is? What you will be doing? You have been tasked to save people, as many as you can before your time. Are you satisfied with who you have saved?"
Yuuji froze, he turned his head meekly away. "I hurt and killed more than I saved, haven't I?"
"That is not true, but, with what you are about to gain… you will save countless others and not just humans. I need you two to save the dragons!"
Yuuji turned to Suiryu who was just as stunned. "Save the dragons?"
He nodded. "For too long, my brother has ruled with an iron fist. He suppressed my daughter's will and power. Essentially he stripped her of her words in the spiritual realm. She is forced to keep silent and cannot stand against him due to the rules he has in place. She did this in order to ensure the dragons remain with dragons or the males would have gone to earth and do as they pleased. She controls the human realm, he has taken the spiritual realm."
"So that's why she is there to have us," Yuuji whispered.
"Indeed, now, my brother's power is great, my daughter's is greater. He seeks to control the dragons and has since started the culling of the children. No male has survived this for ten thousand years, not since Ryujin was able to go to the human world, and my other grandson Raynn has remained in hiding."
"Ryujin has a brother?" asked Suiryu.
"Dragons only have two males at a time, which is why they are easy to hunt and defeat. I have seen so many die pointlessly. They have consumed generations of male dragons that would have made the species even stronger than the last! But they fear change, they also fear losing their power."
"What can we do?" Suiryu asked. "We're just going to be newborns!"
Kur smirked oddly. "Indeed, but very powerful newborns if all goes accordingly. As well, your name has been decided."
"Name?" they asked.
"Powerful dragons are given a name by their mother just before they are born. She will utter it only once, but after, she will forget it and never speak of it again. Those who obtain it can only speak it, and to those they either respect, or if ordered by one more powerful than they are. But, you will see that soon enough." Kur said and snickered.
"Why does this seem a lot more serious than what you are leading us to believe?" Suiryu asked. "I can't help but feel that you aren't telling us the full truth here."
Yuuji was surprised that Suiryu could detect such a thing, he didn't think a name would be that serious to obtain as a dragon. But apparently, there is more to it.
Kur snickered once more. "Oh you are a sharp one, I see that, your brother… he may not understand the concept, however he has his own intellect on this situation. After all, he did figure out your cultivation state… as well… he took notice of me before you did."
Suiryu abruptly cleared his throat. "Be that as it may!" he protested. "What exactly are you not telling us here about our soon to be given name. As well, won't we have a different name from each other?"
Kur shook his head. "No, this is going to be a shared one between you two, like your family name Itadori. But this is your dragon name. There are many and in a sense it is the pecking order as it were among my… our kind. The greater the name the more power you wield among them. There are forbidden names, and they fear it the most. For no dragon as even been able to stop such a creature when they are given such a title."
"Which is?" Yuuji asked.
"I cannot speak of them." Kur said gently. "The name given to a dragon is precious, and they are not to be spoken so carelessly. But, just be aware, you have yours already… I see it etched on your souls…" his smile grew. "They are very befitting of you two."
"Okay, enough with this naming shit, how about we get to the lessons here huh?" Suiryu demanded. "I want to know what you want to teach us, not to mention, what else we can do. I mean, we don't have curse or divine jujutsu at all do we?"
Kur nodded. "What do the two have in common?" he asked.
Suiryu paused, until Yuuji said aloud. "They're both jujutsu, that's obvious right?"
Kur snickered. "Right again child, they are energies, jujutsu that is used by both who are able to control such a thing, but the difference is this… no matter the source of power, to a dragon, jujutsu is jujutsu… it doesn't matter if it is cursed or divine, natural, nature… it's all energy. It is merely limited to one or the other in the human realm for it is what they have been accustomed to. Curse users get their through either their bloodline, or perhaps an event in their lives that triggers the body to awaken it, usually by a powerful negative emotion. The divine is the same way but opposite emotion."
Suiryu's eyes widened. "This means…"
Kur nodded. "You will be able to manipulate them all."
Yuuji fell back and sat there in shock. He was always fearing what would happen if the curse and divine energy he controlled were to mix. He was warned he could take out over half of Japan if that happened. But now, he won't have to worry about it? "It's not that simple is it?" he whispered.
Kur peered over to him. "You are a meek and humble child aren't you? You fear power for you have seen what happens to those who become obsess and driven by it…" his sights then turned to Suiryu. "You have been part of a being who abused it, used their strengths against the world for the sake of amusement. Life meant nothing to them, when life itself is sacred."
Suiryu merely nodded. "Ever since… I got a body of my own and was able to live a life I wanted… I came to appreciate it more." He said in a humbled tone.
"I have had a lot of people taken from me, many… many died because of what I was becoming, and what I had become," said Yuuji.
"I saw that as well, I am sorry for your loss, which is why we permitted some who you knew to be returned to you. But now, we must tread carefully. Despite how great of a strength it is to have, one cannot depend on it to bring back the dead. Understand?"
Yuuji nodded as did Suiryu. "It won't be abused, but are there exceptions to the rule?" he asked.
"There are, but for now, I wish to teach you what I can. Time here differs than that on earth. So, are you ready and willing to learn?"
Yuuji turned to Suiryu, who was smiling with anticipation. "I'm ready!" he said.
He nodded his head. "Please, teach us to be strong, so we can protect those we care about."
Kur smirked and nodded. "Listen closely…"
