Chapter 32

The next morning…

Sukuna was rather taken aback, Kiyoshi asked to speak with him as to what happened and offered his sincerest apologies again. Sukuna brushed it off. "It was that damn lizard in you, child. Those actions were not yours."

"I'm still responsible, it's my body that caused those wounds to you!"

This… took him aback a little. "Tsk, so this is how your father saw it too, when I took over him… and what I did when he was unconscious."

They fell silent to one another. Kiyoshi, however thanked him for his time. "I know I have gotten stronger thanks to you, and I will continue to do so… ah… AH!" the boy suddenly folded over! A look of fear etched on his face as some of his body became aflame! "RAYNN STOP IT!" he ordered.

But the dragon snickered. "Oh, I will when I'm done… I just realized something boy… you see, if a soul gets damaged, only soul energy can replace it, right? If I damage you enough… I'll gain a body!"

"What…"

"Hey, you dumb lizard," Sukuna said. "I wouldn't if I were you…"

Raynn began to take over more and more, smiling wicked grin. "Oh? I nearly killed you once before, and I can do so again, but this time… I won't stop until you are dead! Don't you get it boy! HE'S the greatest threat to this world according to sorcerers, and yet, WE can destroy him INSTANTLY! Why let him have all the credit? Why does the world fear him more than they should us?"

"I… Don't… Want… to…"

The boy was trying his best to resist. But this dragon has a plan and it's solid.

"Not to worry, I'll do that for you! I think I got your mannerism down enough that your father won't even know that you are no longer there! Now, be a good brat and let me destroy you enough so I can take over!" Raynn insisted.

POP

"What… what was that? Where did THIS come from?!"

Sukuna peered down, it appears the necklace is now taking effect.

"That is something Lady Tiamat asked me to put on him. I merely bided my time and waited for the moment that you were both unconscious. It happened to be when you aged the boy's body." Sukuna explained. "That pop you hear was a fang breaking… that was his father's fang and has since alerted him. You beads there that are losing their color, is a count down. I suggest you quit while you are ahead…" Sukuna warned.

Raynn sneered, instead he tried to speed up the process. Kiyoshi was being wounded from the inside, blood trickled out of his lips and his nose began to bleed. But the boy was fighting back.

"Raynn… stop this… please!"

"NO! I WANT A BODY, I WANT THIS ONE, I WANT THIS LIFE! IT'S MINE!" Raynn decreed.

POP.

"That alerted his uncle…"

"KIYOSHI!"

The brat had come running, but, it was already too late. Raynn was speeding up his attacks. "No, I won't stop… I WON'T STOP!" he roared.

The middle fang began to crack, before… it suddenly shattered! The fang in the middle of the necklace belonged to Lady Tiamat, and the fragments suddenly floated in mid air… before they penetrated Kiyoshi's body!

He gasped before he dropped to the ground. The brat rushed over, trying to see what had happened to his son.

But the boy's eyes were glazed over.

He lay there limp and unresponsive.

"Ki… Kiyoshi… KIYOSHI!"

"Take a closer look at him, boy." Sukuna said. "Despite his state, it's the same one I had put you in when I took your heart from your chest."

He peered at his son, then… the brat began to change.

His appearance became wilder. He suddenly revealed his lower arms and wings. Then, he began to do something rather odd and disturbing.

His lower arms reached to his stomach, he began to pull at his naval captivity, as if he was trying to rip himself open! But, a strange limb slinked out and wrapped around his son… only to pull him into his body.

"That was something I could have done without seeing…" Sukuna muttered to himself.

"BRO!"

Ah, the knockoff finally arrived.

Yet he froze as the boy was taken into his father. If anything, it looked like a snake swallowing its prey.

When the boy vanished, the brat's wings came out and braced his body. He still appeared wild as he sneered and looked about his surroundings rather defensively. "What the fuck…" the knockoff whispered, only to glare at him.

Sukuna shrugged. "I can't do anything, your guess is as good as mine at this point."

The brat began to move, walked on all fours along the ground, heading back to the village. "You may want to warn those up ahead of him coming, who's to say he won't lash out at this point." Sukuna warned.

The knockoff got the message and ran ahead. Sukuna, oddly enough, lingered behind the brat as he slowly made his way back. He would glare at him every so often, but his instincts must have told him that Sukuna is no threat.

"Tch, of course that's the reason…" he thought to himself. He did miss those good ol' days where the world feared him and there was at least SOME sort of concern with him being alive.

But one shouldn't live in the past.

He continued to follow the brat as he made an odd detour. Normally, one would go home to a safe place. Instead, he went to the residence reserved for Lady Tiamat.

He barged into the residence, and then made himself at home.

#

Suiryu had made his way back to the village and warned everyone that Yuuji wasn't all there right now. "Clear a path!" he roared.

Everyone who was outside, stepped back. No one said a word as Yuuji was walking on his hands and feet and yet, growling like a dragon. He stared at everyone oddly, but the stranger sight was Sukuna walking carefully behind him.

Suiryu watched his brother go to their mother's residence, and then he shut himself in.

Suiryu of course went to see what was going on, Sukuna lingered outside and didn't dare to enter.

Yua rushed up to see what happened. "Suiryu…."

"Ask the jackass there!" he protested. "You didn't do SHIT!"

"What do you expect me to do?" Sukuna replied in a simple tone. "You think I could have done anything? I don't do well against dragons. Remember? Even a weakling like Raynn has greater strength than me. You must have known by now he nearly beat me to death just yesterday…"

Yua sighed as she opened the door. Lady Tiamat hasn't used her residence in a while and yet, why would Yuuji come here?

She invited herself in. Yua peered down at Yuuji who nestled himself in his mother's bed, his hand were mindlessly caressing his sides, he appeared oddly full and distended. Yet he was in a relaxed state and gave off a low, resonating purr. It wasn't a 'I feel good' sort of sound but a comforting one to someone other than himself. "Suiryu, did you see him do anything? Why is Yuuji this big?"

He didn't know. "He absorbed his son,"

All eyes turned to Sukuna. "Yuuji did what?" whispered a mortified Yuko.

Suiryu jumped a little, he mustn't have realized she was right behind them!

"His son, he absorbed him into his body. That bulge is the brat's brat." Sukuna stated, once more sounding rather unconcerned to the whole thing.

However, Yua appeared to be thinking something over. Suiryu picked up on that look on her face instantly. "Call your mother," she said.

"Why would she bother with this?" Sukuna asked.

"Why wouldn't I?"

Mom appeared behind him but her focus instantly shifted to Yuuji. "Oh gods… he tried it didn't he…" she whispered.

Sukuna held up the broken remains of the necklace, only confirming Lady Tiamat's suspicion.

"Raynn tried to kill Kiyoshi's soul and take over his body. The fangs cracked, all three of them… so what does it mean?" Sukuna asked.

"Mom?" Suiryu asked.

"I made it, just in case. Raynn was very deprived, despite my efforts in trying to get him to leave his spiritual state and obtain a body of his own, he refused. Yet, ever since he became trapped within Kiyoshi, he started to see and be alive for the first time in thousands of years… I worried… I worried he would do something so foolish… even to family!" she wept.

"Lady Tiamat… what is happening?" Yua asked gently.

She settled herself down. "At the moment, Kiyoshi's soul is greatly wounded, I refuse to allow Raynn harm him any farther, he is given three chances to stop, but he didn't. The last strike… took his life. However, one knows dragon's essence cannot be unleashed so… carelessly."

Suiryu froze. He suddenly grabbed his chest in pain, knowing what was happening now to his nephew. "But… he won't survive! Mom, remember that happened to me!" Suiryu protested.

"Why do you think the boy is in the brat?" Sukuna muttered.

"Wait, you knew?" Suiryu demanded.

"You forget, knockoff, you were still part of me in a sense. I got soul recall!"

Suiryu paused to the notion. "That's right, the knowledge accumulated by the soul that is destroyed is transferred to what remains…" he whispered.

"I knew this could occur, at the same time, so did the brat's father. Why do you think he's containing him now, if I didn't know any better… the moment he was taken into that odd organ of his, it started to solidify… Thus, the brat is making something similar to an egg around him."

"This is what you meant?" mom asked. She even turned and glared at Sukuna. "Did you truly think this can work?"

"Mom…"

Sukuna sneered. "This is merely a theory I have." he said aloud.

The room was silent, even Suiryu. Sukuna then cleared his voice. "I have had theories on dragons. Ryujin, also I had books of dragons when the books and information were plentiful. May scholars had written of them, but very few survived. I happened to have read them all." He then smirked. "I've forgotten more about dragons than anyone here will know!"

"So… he knows what's happening?" Suiryu asked.

Mom was silent on the matter, Sukuna didn't utter a word about it either. Yua however paused to it all. "I don't think they know, this hasn't happened in thousands of years, correct?" she asked aloud.

Mom nodded.

"We have to wait and see, at the moment this is extremely delicate, we have to wait a month to see if everything took, once we know the answer, we will have a clear direction. For now, let him rest. Keep Yuuji as calm as possible and comfortable. Until we know for certain what will occur…"

"Do you have any idea what is happening?" Suiryu asked his mother once more. She merely nodded.

"I won't speak of it now, if one knows, it may put great pressure on Yuuji. Remember, we have to keep him calm." She said gently.

Suiryu didn't like where this was going, however he sighed aloud to it all and nodded. He trusted his mother's words and knew it was best to be left in the dark for the time being. Even Sukuna kept his mouth shut, but he appeared aware of the situation.

Yua approached him oddly and whispered to him, he rolled his eyes to her but nodded.

"Suiryu…"

He snapped out of his blank stare as his mother gently called for him. "Things are going to be moving fast, as well… you are going to need to help Yuuji in his greatest time of need."

He nodded to her. "I'll protect him," he vowed.

"Not just him… Yuko is pregnant."

His eyes widened, Yuko was on the brink of tears now, since Yuuji cannot possibly tend to them both. "Wait… what?" he whispered. "Yuko…"

"I found out today, he was with me when I was about to tell him the news, he picked up on my scent change and before he could utter a word… he appeared shocked and ran off to find Kiyoshi…" she wept.

"Leave Yuuji here to rest, Yuko come with us, Suiryu, please call Nobara."