Chapter 20

The next day…

Nanami had little choice.

"Satoru… I do believe you have already been warned about this…"

Gojo being Gojo was nothing out of the norm. However, to throw a surprise 'gender reveal party' for Toji was crossing the line.

He had already gotten the balloons ready, and even a cake made. Nanami had to stop him before he set everything up in Lady Tiamat's residence.

"Oh come on! I just want to have a little fun." He protested.

He was firm on his decision. "Have you not had enough amusement for the day? I know you have been teasing Sukuna for some time, much to the dismay of his wife."

"It's all in good fun and it's no hard feelings either. After all, he suggested that he take the kids tonight and Yua and I could have some alone time."

Nanami wondered what Sukuna was up to, but he wasn't going to push it. If it's against Gojo, he's fine with it. However, if Yua gets caught up in the antics, well, all bets are off at that point. Besides, it was only two in the afternoon, Gojo likes to get all of his 'work' done before dinner.

"Just don't go through with this damn little party you wish to throw. We are not to upset Toji for the sake of Megumi."

He sighed. "FINE!" he protested and released the balloons. "I'm keeping the cake!" and walked off.

Nanami shook his head to it all. "What on earth is going to get him to grow up?" he muttered.

He turned to see if he could check up on Toji, however, something else caught his attention.

Sukuna… was building something.

There were these massive logs, freshly cut no doubt just sitting around until he began to move them and started to build. "What on earth…" curious, he approached and saw that it was the outer framework for a house. Despite the ground being rather frozen, and the air getting colder. Sukuna… was building something. "Accommodations not suitable for you?" he called aloud.

Sukuna turned. "Not for me," he muttered and continued on.

Despite the fact he has been rendered human, he worked remarkably fast and was very skilled. He had the frame and flooring done within a matter of a single hour. "Do you require assistance?"

This, made the former king of curses pause. "Why would you help me?"

"I am naturally curious to the construction here. It's close to Lady Tiamat's residence, so I can only assume this is not just to benefit you, but her as well."

He sneered a little. "Fine, that log there, follow me with it."

Nanami nodded as he approached the log, the problem was, despite his power and curse energy… he couldn't lift it.

"Huh… heavier than I thought…" he muttered.

In his mind he was already thinking of breaking it into two, yet before he could go through with the action, Sukuna shouted. "They have to stay whole!"

It startled him a little to his tone, and yet, Nanami sighed aloud. He couldn't assist him despite offering. He turned and nearly ran in Sukuna himself. He glared down at him and sneered. "Pathetic, even for you."

"Apparently strength like yours is not my strong suit…"

"No shit, you aren't reinforcing your body with curse energy…"

Nanami paused. He knows that can be done, but to give him the strength to lift that log… "I know of the reinforcing method…"

"You know nothing of it." Sukuna snapped back.

"Then teach him,"

He paused as Chusi appeared. She smiled warmly to Sukuna. "Better still, I'll show him, you keep going." She said gently.

His displeased look vanished as he went back to work, he could carry four logs without issue on his own, he doesn't even need the help and yet, he was willing to accept it?

How odd.

"Nanami right? Let me explain this. You have the basic idea down as to how to use curse energy to enforce your body, however that is what I said it was, basic. You have enough to buffer from the affects of a curse strike and even take a hard hit, that's a barrier enforcement." She explained. "Like a bubble around the body, it won't strengthen you, merely absorb the impact, lessen the blow and add weight to your strikes. NOW the method that I wanted Ryomen to teach you was this. You are putting curse energy into your muscles." She explained.

"It's been ruled not to do such a thing unless it is one's technique. Curse energy penetrating the human body can have very devastating effects." He explained.

She paused. Sukuna even paused. "Who taught you that!?" he demanded.

"Indeed, this was the way we did it back in the day, my whole family perfected this method!" she protested.

"That may explain it…" muttered Sukuna as he went back to work.

"Wait, the Tooru family…"

She nodded and explained. When they fought, they didn't always use their curse abilities or techniques, especially if they wanted to keep a low profile. The benefit to this method is that when the curse energy is within the body, your aura doesn't change on the outside. "You aren't expelling that energy, when it is still contained within you, no one can track you as easily."

He paused to consider the notion once more. The elders have always told them that there were other ways of enforcing the body with curse energy, but their way was the safest… so they claimed.

"Very well then, please, teach me this method." He asked politely.

She happily obliged.

Chusi was an excellent teacher, he understood what she was explaining very quickly. He tested it on one arm first to make certain there were no adverse affects. When he was able to lift a log with the one arm, he was convinced. "This will take away more of your power, however, it lasts longer." Chusi warned.

Since then, Nanami was assisting Sukuna moving logs and apparently building something. "Since when could you do construction?" Nanami asked offhandedly.

"I built a temple, this… this is nothing," he said.

"So, what are you making?"

"A nursery."

Instantly, Nanami paused. "A… nursery?" he asked oddly.

He merely nodded. "With what Kiyoshi went through, Toji is doing the very same process to one Megumi Fushiguro now. Toji said earlier, he didn't want to be in Lady Tiamat's residence for this… I happen to agree with him. The others tend to go to Lady Tiamat's residence when something occurs… so, I decided to make a new place for them to go rather than her place."

He was doing this just for Toji and Megumi?

Stranger still…

"Are you going to stand around? Or was your offer to help just a mere slip of the tongue?" Sukuna demanded of him.

Nanami rolled up his sleeves, funny thing was, just as he started to assist him, Toji's students noticed what was happening and instantly offered their help as well…

#

It took only an hour. With the combined forces of Toji's top students, Nanami and Sukuna himself, they made a rather large almost shrine like structure. Yet inside, it was rather magnificent.

Nanami has seen home shows were they have made everything from wood, this was the exact same as he has seen, just with greater detail and quality. Sukuna peered over it rather proudly. "One of my finer works I would say…"

"And without curse energy, well done!" Chusi said with great pride.

His chest appeared to have swelled out even prouder on the notion. Despite his strength with curse energy, he was remarkably strong without it.

They left shortly after inspecting the inside. "I am certain those who use this will enjoy the structure…"

"We're not done." Sukuna said defiantly.

"Yeah, the thing is build, but there's nowhere for them to rest." Chimed Toji's top student Mikey. "If anything, we got to speak with Choso on the matter, in fact, we better ask all those who are dragons what should go in, I mean, they know what will make them comfortable…"

"Already on it," Chusi said with great pride. "In fact. Toji's children are designing the inside along with Calypso."

There came a curious look on the former king of curses' face. He went into the structure once more and froze. Nanami was just as curious as he peered in through a window.

The place was already furnished!

"We were barely inside no more than five minutes ago…" he muttered to himself.

Chusi giggled. "Ryomen told them ahead of time what he was making, Calypso helped design the structure, but the inside features she insisted on doing herself."

Nanami wondered why Sukuna made a massive hole in the center of it all, only to see Calypso and her family form and construct a rather large and robust nest. It was lined with firm padding on the bottom, and then the layers grew softer and softer until it became a rather familiar structure. The nest was large enough to hold at least twenty… well… twenty expecting dragons in a sense.

"It looks remarkably comfortable." Nanami said. "So, when is it going to be…" before he could answer, he saw Toji being dragged towards it by his sons.

"Dad, look what they made for you and big brother! LOOK!"

Toji appeared to be on the brink of passing out. It's been happening a lot to him recently, he would stuff himself stupid but then, fall asleep the moment he obtained enough food. He wasn't paying attention to where he was going, instead, his sons merely guided him in and brought Toji to the massive nest in the center of it all. He eased himself in and passed out before he could even say a word. If anything, it is a high compliment.

"Wow, that goes to show how much he trusts his environment…" Chusi said offhandedly. "Normally for a dragon, they won't sleep anywhere they haven't been before or consider safe until they have verified for themselves that it was. Perhaps it's the scent of everyone who worked on it…"

"He can pick up on that?"

"Oh easily!" She insisted. "But also, I think this is a really big process for him to under take too. He's exhausted." She explained. "But that's also because the father must give some of his strength to his son… it's to be expected."

He had no idea the situation before him was so delicate. Itadori made it appear rather simple. He was never this lethargic when he turned Kiyoshi, but then again. Kiyoshi was merely a teenager, not nearly a full-grown young man.

He continued to watch on as Toji fell asleep then and there. His sons protectively looked over him. "He's getting stronger… I can sense the young dragon gaining his strength…" Chusi said and smiled. "I wonder what kind he will become…"