Chapter 17

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Gojo was getting his fill.

At the same time… he was regretting seeing everything at once. Despite not going for alternative time lines… well… just one or two. He wanted to see the past, he wanted to know what happened that reset everything.

He wanted to know how Yua did it.

He was able to get his request granted, and for the first time, he saw through the eyes of Yua.

She stood in Tibet, sensing everything that had happened within Japan, at the same time, she was trying to adjust to the dragon, Ryujin she had taken in. Yet, as things grew worst and worst, she refused to sit idly by and allow more death to occur.

"We have to wait, Yua." Ryujin explained. "For if we act now, we are going to cause more destruction…"

"When do we do this?" she asked.

Ryujin paused. "When all hope is lost, and the souls who have been taken are used…"

She didn't understand it, but, Yua waited.

Satoru didn't realize the pain she was in as she felt life after life be stuffed out. She felt and sense it all, and she even felt the pain Ryujin was in! "He shouldn't have had to do this… this wasn't the path we planned!" he protested every so often.

"Ryujin, what do you mean?"

Gojo realized… Yua was told everything by this dragon about Ryomen Sukuna! He explained the family history they had and how they raised him, yet, Kenjaku made certain that Sukuna became the living catastrophe that he wanted him to become. "You mean to tell me… Ryomen Sukuna… is like family?!" she demanded of the dragon.

"Yes, however he is plagued by madness. He held your family in high regards, and yet… Kenjaku made him forget, and had him believe that your family has tried to kill him countless times, to use him for his power to farther their own greed and desires… he believed in the lies and thus why he turned on the family."

"Then… how do we stop this? Why are we waiting for these people to die?!" she demanded.

"It's part of the process. Please, have faith in me."

Yua agreed.

When it was all said and done, with the event over and those who lived, lived and those who died laid in the streets. Ryujin announced. "It's time"

They went to a sacred mountain. Ryujin then began to use Yua's body, her curse energy and started a ritual. Gojo himself couldn't explain what had happened, but… it felt oddly familiar.

For Ryujin gathered into his hand, balls of light. When Satoru took a closer look, he began to realize, they were the souls of the fallen.

His soul was within the grasp of the great dragon!

Yet, as he continued to witness what happened, more and more balls of light gathered. For sorcerers were not the only ones to die in these events.

When there was about, Ryujin brought the souls together. "Fallen in battle, fallen for greed, fallen for being at the wrong place and time, and for standing before the threat before me. These lives are lost, but now are found, give me time to reset and rebound…"

The incantation continued as the souls were used as energy. So much so that there was a burst of light! Then, Yua was hovering in nothingness.

"Who dares tries to reset time!" came a resonating voice.

"Ryujin, son of Tiamat… Yua Tooru, the last of her clan" Ryujin answered. "The lives lost are too many, as well this was not suppose to occur. As such I request a rest of time!"

There was silence.

"What price do you pay?"

'Price?' Gojo thought, this is where the binding vow comes in.

"I don't have much to offer, seek what you desire from me to bring this to pass." She said.

Once more, there was silence until the voice spoke.

"Yua Tooru, the last of her clan. There is a blessing upon your name. I will take that from you are partial payment…"

"YOU CANNOT!" Ryujin roared. "That was a blessing given by my mother!"

"Ryujin… it's okay." Yua insisted. "I don't know what you are even talking about anyways…"

"The blessing of rebirth. It guarantees you will return at one point or another. This is also known as a phoenix clause in the promise made between your clan and Tiamat." The mysterious voice explained. "Such a rare blessing, it's enough to cover half of the time you wish to scale back."

"What more can we offer?" Yua asked. "How much more is required to get what we ask from you?"

There was silence once more, until the voice said. "The souls in your possession."

Gojo… paused to this. 'The souls in her possession? The ones she had gathered that died in the culling games and throughout this whole shit show?' he wondered.

"I need these souls to come back." Yua explained. "Is that possible… perhaps take away the memories of the events that occurred? If time is revered, do they not have information that would benefit you for it shall become rare?"

"You appear to know that I desire information and enjoy collecting the memories of others… I will take their recall of the true event, yet leave shadows of what had truly happened. What else do you offer?"

It still wasn't enough.

"What can I offer?" came Ryujin. "It is not fitting nor fair that Yua Tooru pays the price for all of this. What do I have that I could give?"

Yua appeared nervous, since she has nothing left to give. But then, she appeared inspired. "My curse technique!" she called. "Take my curse technique!"

"Yua!" Ryujin protested. "You worked hard on that… You were in fact close to your ancestor… your namesake…"

"It doesn't matter" she said gently. "What good is it to have when I never used it for anything… Ryujin. We can save lives…"

Satoru… was speechless to this.

The Toorus had always been considered crazy among all sorcerers, yet, for the wrong reasons. All know of their closeness to Sukuna, but no one was aware as to why and how. All the council knew was that Sukuna was so powerful because of the Toorus; he was a threat because of the Toorus. Therefore, when he hunted the clan, there was no aid, no one to stop him until the Toorus themselves went into hiding… and his focus altered.

All this time, the council claimed it was their fault for Ryomen Sukuna. And yet, how is it that this clan would be willing to sacrifice everything to save those who have no less been ungrateful.

As well, for a sorcerer, their power is everything. It is what defines them and what makes them be taken seriously among their peers. He has seen and understood Mother Tooru's power, for Sukuna respected her for it. Yua had that potential… but gave it up for saving everyone else.

No one… until now knew of this.

"The technique is indeed worthy of the price. I will leave you some of your power, but be warned, sorcerer. Taking this much from you, will drastically shorten your life as it is."

"I accept," she said and nodded. "I maybe greedy here, but I ask of one thing. May I be permitted to choose a vessel for Ryujin? Until now, he has been with my family, as such when I die, he has nowhere else to go. The curse under my family will be lifted the moment he leaves my body, but I wish to choose a vessel for him to enter. May I do so as long as the vessel itself is already conditioned to hold another within them?"

'She's asking about putting the dragon in Itadori? I didn't think it was so complicated…' Gojo thought.

"It is acceptable"

"Yua…"

"It's the least I can do for you Ryujin, I'm the last of my clan… I cannot let you die when you can still do good in this world. Besides, we have seen what is to come… You need to finish what is started on our behalf." she said gently.

The ominous voice rumbled. "We have an agreement. As such this negotiations is under a binding vow. Yua Tooru, being aware of what has happened, you will be able to recall the past events that you have taken back. However, in exchange, you will not remember our agreement."

She agreed to this, as a burst of light came over them.

Gojo blacked out, yet, when he woke again… Yua was back at the temple she has been living in Tibet, the first thing she did was find the cellphone Satoru gave her years ago, and used it.

'Why did she have to eat curse blood? That still makes no sense to me…' he wondered.

But one thing at a time.

The vision came to an end. Satoru walked out of the room yet froze as Sukuna stood there. "You saw it, didn't you?" he asked.

"I can't speak of it, I saw everything through Yua's eyes!" he protested.

Sukuna was oddly silent, in fact. He peered away. "Toorus were insane for a whole different reason. It didn't matter the price they had to pay, as long as they saved who they set out to save. Bring peace to where it is needed and fight when necessary… It truly makes me wonder if I had such a right to call myself the King of Curses… for they were the most curse out of us all…"

Satoru paused as he peered at Sukuna.

"You saw this too, didn't you?"

Only a nod came from him.

"Why? Why would you want to see that? She STOPPED you in a sense… reset everything you had gone out to do and made it appear it didn't occur or it was nothing more than a distant nightmare for some… why see it?"

Sukuna didn't say anything; he merely walked away from him. Perhaps not even he knows or understands why, after all. What Yua sacrificed benefitted Sukuna as well…