Notes:

Hello everyone! Here comes Vera to leave you one more chapter of this fic.

And more than here, you will learn a little more about Gojo's intentions with Yuta.

So before I continue, I want you to answer the following question:

Do you still trust Gojo Satoru?

Well, without further ado I hope you like it ❤️

Chapter 22. The Leader Everyone Wants You To Be

10:00 p.m.

Night had fallen on the Gojo residence.

The rain was falling heavily at that instant, as Yuta prepared to discuss one more topic with Satoru.

"I thought you would go directly to rest in the room we prepared for you" Gojo commented, sitting down in one of the luxurious sofas he had in what was his office inside the residence.

That room overlooked the main garden, and through its large and beautiful traditional window you could see the night rain falling against the glass.

"There is something important I also want to discuss with you…" Yuta commented seriously. His face was quite tense.

Satoru sighed.
"Okay, let's talk!" with his hand he asked Yuta to take a seat.

Then with a snap of his fingers and an almost murderous look, he ordered the servant who had accompanied them to please let them speak alone.

"With your permission, my lords" said the servant in a big bow, and then left the room, closing the door quickly and hurrying away from the room because of the fear he felt towards those two in that moment of hostility.

The tension between those sorcerers was again too heavy and suffocating. And just as Shoko had said, two special category sorcerers locked in the same room was to be feared and that was the feeling that those two were giving at that moment.

The silence that reigned for a moment was broken by that leader.

"So, what's that important thing you want to talk to me about too? I suppose there is another reason why you came all the way from Kyoto to talk to me, isn't it Okkotsu?" asked Satoru leaning his back on that sofa and raising his legs, putting them up on the tea table that was located in front of them and that separated them.

Yuta took a deep breath. He was trying to mentally prepare himself for what he was going to say.
"Well, How should I start this conversation?..." he brought his hand to his chin for a moment.

"You Say it as you see fit" suggested the host, shifting his shoulders disinterestedly, raising his arms to the back of the sofa.

"Okay, let's get down to business" Yuta filled his lungs with air and asked earnestly. –"Gojo sensei, what did you really bring me back to Japan for?" he looked at his host. –"Was it really to solve this case of the sorcerer killer? Or was it for something else?"

Satoru raised an eyebrow "What do you mean, to something else?" he asked with a hint of intrigue.

Yuta tried to be patient while he explained himself.
"I mean, is it true that you are going to make me the leader of this clan? Or is it also a false rumor?" he asked without further ado.

The albino clicked his tongue. It seemed that someone had beaten him to the punch and ruined his surprise.

"Agh! I think I know who the tattletale was who told you!" he sighed in annoyance, as he swung his legs off the tea table and straightened his posture. "I was planning to tell you later, but it seems some old drunk ruined the surprise" he was visibly annoyed. "Well, at least I'm saving myself the trouble of explaining it to you"

Yuta's eyes widened in surprise as Satoru continued speaking.
"But yes, let's say that the real reason I really brought you back to Japan is because I will indeed appoint you as the next leader of the Gojo clan" he rubbed the bridge of his nose.

"BUT!" Yuta looked quite surprised "You and I are both supposed to be distant relatives, that in theory does NOT make me a Gojo directly, so why do you want to appoint me as your successor?!" Yuta questioned rather seriously, leaning a little to the front to look carefully at his host.

"We may not be directly related, but we share a common ancestor. And since in theory I can choose my successor at my free choice, I have decided that you should be it" Satoru said this without losing his posture. He had a big smile on his lips.

Yuta was really shocked with that answer, "BUT WHY ME?!" He waved his hands back and forth. "I feel that I don't have the qualities to be the leader you're looking for..."

"Of course you do!" Gojo raised his voice and leaned forward a little as he continued to explain why he had chosen them. "You have everything it takes to guide people in the worst situations!" He waved his hands too energetically, "Do you think I didn't notice everything you did abroad?" he pointed at his guest.

"SO YOU'VE ALWAYS BEEN WATCHING ME?" asked Yuta in a voice that reflected offense and distrust at the same time.

"Of course I've been watching you! I looked for firsthand everything you did abroad!" said Satoru staring at him

"From how you saved countless people in different parts of the world, to how you led so many others on various missions. From the way you addressed and made contact with very important leaders of different countries, to how I learned that you fought against curses of unknown categories just to save different peoples. Not to mention your research on cursed techniques never seen before in this country, as well as on the cursed energy in foreign sorcerers and the great variety of cursed weapons they possess" a serene smile appeared on his lips, "Believe me Okkotsu, your trip around the world had a deeper reason than you imagine!"

Satoru continued explaining,

"Seeing you perform abroad made it very clear to me that you are my worthy successor at your 26 years old" he smiled proudly, he looked like a father who was proud of his son's accomplishments, "And not to mention, you are a prodigy since you were 16 years old. And you proved it when in less than a year you learned to use the reverse cursed technique, as well as in less than 3 months you managed to recover your special degree" he pointed out, "And by the way, the simple fact that you have more cursed energy than me, although of course with its very slight defect," he criticized in his own way, "All that makes you a worthy successor of mine and more that you are the second strongest sorcerer of the present only after me" he waved his arms with joy.-"All those actions opened my eyes that you can be a great leader for this clan once I retire"

All this left Yuta's mouth hanging open.

But that last thing Satoru said snapped Okkotsu out of his stupor. "Y-you plan to retire? So taking me out of the country was just part of your plan to make me your successor?"

"That's right, as I said my initial plan was to take you and Maki out of the country so that while you were traveling the world on their honeymoon, you would also prepare and train enough for when this time would come"

Satoru's chest rose and fell in a sigh of relief. It was the first time he had ever talked about it.
"And about my retirement. Yes. I've come to think about it many times. Mostly because I want to spend more time with Yoshio and Utahime. Although..." he shrugged his shoulders and raised his hands a Little.

"I admit that also one of the main reasons why I want to appoint you and not Yoshio as the next leader, is because he is still a child and I do not want to put such a heavy burden on his shoulders being so small" he brought his hands to his knees "Maybe when my son turns 18, we can make the title change and incidentally, we could also finally change the surname to Gojo. Then we could formally introduce him to the sorcery society as the son of the great Gojo Satoru"

Yuta crossed his arms over his chest.
"So this is the other reason why Yoshio's name is Iori and not Gojo?" he asked seriously.

"As I explained to you earlier, we decided to give him the surname Iori both so that he would not be separated from us, and also for his safety" Satoru leaned his back on the sofa once again.

"But once Yoshio comes of age, the corresponding procedures will be made, so he will inherit the Gojo surname as well as the title to be the leader of this clan" Satoru smiled enormously "But until that time comes, I know that you will be able to do a great job being the new leader of this clan."

That answer did not seem to please Yuta at all. He let out a noise of total dissatisfaction.

"What's the matter?" Gojo noticed that attitude, "Surprised, right?"

"It's just that... This is all so sudden..." Yuta ran his hands over his face and through his hair. He was processing all the information he had received.

"As I told you, my plan was to tell you later, but things didn't turn out as I expected, or rather, they took a different turn" Satoru explained, "I'm sorry you found out this way"

Okkotsu felt that those apologies sounded false.
"And does Yoshio already know about this?" he asked coldly.

"No"

Satoru sighed and grimaced in annoyance at that question, "He doesn't know yet and we won't tell him maybe until he enter the sorcery school, but until that day comes" he clasped his own hands together a little.

"I want to give you my place as leader, so I can take Utahime and Yoshio away from Japan for a while and spend some quality time with both of them" he smiled hugely, "Something like a long family vacation that we need so much"

Yuta grumbled with too much annoyance.
"I really don't agree with this..." He straightened his back, he had a posture of total seriousness.

Satoru raised an eyebrow, "And why not? Don't you like the idea of being the head of this clan, despite the benefits you will get?"

"More than benefits, I feel that they would only bring me more problems. To be the leader of a renowned clan like this doesn't sound like an easy task..."

"That's true, but it's not impossible either. Just look at me!" Satoru pointed to himself with a big smile.

"I've been the leader everyone expected me to be up to a certain point" then he pouted a little. "Yes, I admit I did some things wrong" he smiled "but in the end I've been a good leader and I know you will be too. Of course, that is until Yoshio is ready to take over" he added with a mischievous tone "Although who knows if when you taste the sweetness of power you won't want to let go of the jar and share the honey when the time comes" he let out a light laugh at the funny comparison between leadership and honey.

"It feels more like you are using me as a distraction while you enjoy your family vacation" commented Yuta with total seriousness.

Satoru sighed at that answer.
"To a certain extent it could be said that I do want to use you as a distraction, but for a good cause" he commented without a hint of guilt, "Although with your technique and your rank, you would obviously be a very respected and perhaps even feared leader. Something tells me you could even do a better job than me. Even so, those who are against you could just send them to be eliminated" he smiled mischievously, "Unless you eliminate them with your own hands"

"But that would not be being a leader... it would be being more of a dictator..."

"Okkotsu" Satoru's voice sounded with complete annoyance. He was getting desperate about his attitude.
"Sometimes you earn the respect of others by being stronger than all of them. And that's something I know you can do perfectly"

Yuta sighed and brought his elbows to his knees and covered his mouth with his hands. He was between a rock and a hard place.

Satoru continued speaking.
"Besides, we currently have very good dealings with the Kamo clan. And Noritoshi being someone as young as you, it is more than obvious that they will be able to guide this sorcery world in a better way now that the higher ups are gone"

"Even so, this doesn't convince me at all..." said Yuta taking his hands away from his mouth.

"If you decide to be my heir, as leader you can have the privileges that I have, such as making decisions based on your criteria, and you will also have all the servants of both this house and the headquarters at your service. Likewise, you would also have a good fortune added to the one you have already made abroad that you can spend on whatever you want and above all, you will have the respect of all the other sorcerers because it is more than obvious that you, as leader, would impose more than me" Satoru smiled.

Yuta seemed to analyze all that. He lowered his shoulders. There were a few more questions he wanted to know about that proposal.
"Are there any other requirements I have to meet to be a leader?"

"I'm glad you asked, I see that you are already interested in this!"Satoru commented with a big smile.

"Well, perhaps the only requirement that you will be asked after a few years in power, will be to have a son or name a next heir to lead the clan after you. But when the time comes for you to name your successor, by that time, Yoshio will be of age and you can name him as the next leader of the Gojo clan. Don't you like my plan? Although" he put his hand to his chin, "we could shorten the wait to name Yoshio to when he turns at least 16 years old"

Yuta looked quite thoughtful with that requirement. Again, his hands went to his jaw.

"What's the matter? Now you look quite thoughtful"

"It's just that I just had a few more questions..."

"And those are?"

Yuta took a deep breath before answering that.
"If I were to accept to be the leader of this clan, will I be able to bring Maki and my children to live here? Will I be able to marry her? But above all, will I be able to recognize Yurika and Yuudai as my children to the extent that they can carry my family name and be candidates to be the next leader of this clan?"

Satoru pursed his lips. He knew Yuta would ask him that. He sighed and answered flatly, "No. I'm afraid you won't be able to do any of those three things"

"WHAT? WHY NOT?" Yuta asked, elated by that response, "IF I'M SUPPOSED TO BE FREE TO CHOOSE SOME THINGS AS A LEADER! WHY CAN'T I DO ANY OF THOSE THINGS?"

The albino shook his head.
"No, you can't recognize them as your children and neither can you marry Maki and I'll tell you why"

Yuta looked at him angrily, while Satoru began to explain.

"Okkotsu. You can't marry Maki in the first place because she is supposed to be "dead" and if you were to bring her to this residence you would only get her into trouble. Imagine if the sede or her clan finds out that she is not dead as she made us believe for seven years, what punishment do you think they will give her?" He ran his index finger along his neck, making a clear reference to the end that would await her.
"Well, not only would she get that punishment, but all your friends would get it equally for hiding her for so many years"

Then he smiled mischievously.
"Although the only option that comes to my mind for you to be close to Maki and you can continue to frequent her once you become leader, is that you make her your mistress. Since ancient times this is a common practice that many leaders do to frequent and keep close to their secret love affairs and concubines" It seemed that Satoru knew quite a lot about this subject.

"I don't want to treat Maki as my mistress! It wouldn't be fair to her!" Yuta got more frustrated when he heard that.
"Well, what about my children? Can I give them my last name? Can I name them as my successors?"

"First Okkotsu, answer me something, do those children already know that you are their real father?" asked Satoru seriously, looking him straight in the face.

Yuta again lowered his shoulders.
"No... they don't know yet..." He also lowered his gaze at such a question that hurt him too much.

"And secondly," Satoru continued to explain. "It would be better for them not to know anything if you really want to protect them. Especially because if you give them your last name, it is more than obvious that all the other clans will ask you thousands of questions about the origin of those children and once they discover that they are your illegitimate children with Maki, it is more than obvious that the Zenin They won't sit idly by and may want to claim them as their own if they have inherited good techniques... well, although in the worst case they may want them dead..."

Yuta quickly got up. "I won't allow that!" He was quite furious, "So what, the Gojo clan can't do anything to protect my children, Maki, and all my friends? "So what's the point of being the clan leader of this damn clan, if no one is going to help me protect the thing I love most in this damn world?"

Satoru looked at him seriously. He was quite calm even though Yuta's heavy aura was flooding the room.
"The best protection we can give them is to simply let things continue as they are with them in hiding."

He waved his hands as he continued explaining.
"Besides, that had been my deal with Tsukumo in exchange for the freedom of all of them, neither I nor anyone from the academy were going to investigate or search for them and much less we were going to get involved in their lives. And so we did it for seven years, we lost track of them just to protect them all, as well as we destroyed all the information about them" Satoru sigh. "Well, almost all of it because there were some papers that were preserved by pure miracle as the death certificate of Maki and that medical report of the birth of your children"

Yuta's fists shook with courage.

Satoru noticed that discomfort in his guest, even so, his voice was filled with a hint of curiosity as one more option quickly crossed his mind.
"Unless..." he brought his index finger to his chin. His blues eyes glittered fiendishly.

"Unless what?" Yuta repeated those words.

"Unless I adopt your children!" Satoru commented with a big grin that went from ear to ear.

"NO WAY WILL I LET YOU HAVE MY CHILDREN AND TAKE AWAY MY CHANCE TO LIVE WITH THEM! YOU HAVE ALREADY DEPRIVED ME OF THAT CHANCE FOR ALMOST SEVEN YEARS!" shouted Yuta with such fury.

Now he understood why Satoru asked his several questions about his children hours ago and why he said those words about the fraternal twins in the sorcery society. His children now seemed to be a double prize that anyone would want to get.

Satoru went on to explain, "Believe me Okkotsu, your options are limited. And the best option would be for me to adopt them. Being under my care they will be safe"

"No... I really don't want that... and even more when hours ago you talked about them as if they were a prize that anyone would want to have because of the rarity of their birth and I can't break Maki's heart this way either... separating her from our children would only kill her..." commented Yuta taking his seat again, he was disappointed with all that.

Satoru stared at his guest. "Well, even so, this adoption offer will remain open in case you or Maki want to protect your children under my care."

Now Satoru warned pointing seriously and with a firm voice.
"But just keep in mind that, at this moment, the best option you have to protect your children, Maki and all the others, is that everything continues as it is. That everything remains in peace without moving a single piece so that they can continue to live their lives in complete tranquility"

Yuta brought his hands to his face.
"All this is so unfair..."

"It is. But if you are going to be a leader, especially of this clan, it is inevitable that you must give up many things, either to keep your position or to protect your loved ones" Satoru replied coolly.

"Then if that's the way things will be..."Yuta adopted a firm posture "I don't want this position... I don't want to be the leader that you or the others want me to be" he answered, returning his gaze to his host with total seriousness. There was hatred in his gaze.

Satoru sighed. "It's not a question of whether you want to or not, Okkotsu. I have already made a decision and that is that I want you to be my successor."

"What if I refuse?" Yuta asked coldly.

"Believe me, you'd better cooperate" Satoru's tone was cold and threatening, "It's better to have the Gojo clan as an ally than as an enemy, especially if the Zenin clan decides to meddle in your life!" warned he without looking away from that guest sorcerer.

Yuta let out the overly annoyed air as he leaned back in place.

How ironic life was. Now that he had met Yurika and Yuudai, he didn't want to leave the country. Yuta already had a reason to stay. But he did not want to carry a responsibility that did not correspond to him, like being the leader of a clan where he did not belong.

Satoru continued speaking. "So your main task right now is that you must catch that killer so that I can find some other alternative for you to be close to Maki and your children." he sounded somewhat compassionate. "I know there must be some other alternative that at least allows you to be with them without neglecting your position as the next leader of this clan"

"You're not going to give up on this idea, are you?" Yuta questioned with annoyance.

"Nup. I will not give up until you become the leader that I and everyone else wants you to be"

"What if I give up the sorcerer-killer case?" Okkotsu asked with annoyance.

"I will have no choice but to return you abroad with no chance to see your family for the last time and being far away from this country, I will not let you hear from them for the rest of your life" Satoru added cruelly.

Yuta felt that his back was against the wall. Threatened by the one who was his sensei. It seemed that both Tsukumo's and Shoko's words made more sense at that moment. He could not trust the one who was supposed to be his main "ally".

Yuta was devastated.
"I have no other choice?" he asked in a voice full of defeat.

"At this point you have only two options. So; either you catch the assassin quickly and become the leader of this clan as soon as possible or..." his smile was very big as he waved his hand from right to left while giving his options.

"Or?" Yuta looked at him suspiciously. I knew that man was planning something else.

Satoru continued to explain his point.
"Or you delay as long as you can to catch that murderer so you can spend more time with Maki and your children, even if it means stopping the whole investigation and slowing down the progress" he shrugged, "Although of course, choosing this option would only condemn more sorcerers to die at the hands of that criminal" he leaned over his place while raising two fingers of his right hand. "Still, this second option is the one that would give you more time to be with your newfound family" he leaned back in place.

"But in both options you will have to catch the murderer, only then you will leave your name high because the whole sorcery society has its eyes on you" Satoru pointed out.

Yuta sighed at the two options.

If he caught the murderer soon, he would assume the position of leader of the Gojo clan immediately and would no longer see Maki and his children.

But if he decided to ignore the case for a while, he could spend more time with them. However, he couldn't afford to let that killer go free for too long, doing so would only put the lives of more sorcerers at risk.

Okkotsu was really in a dilemma. One that truly, had him between a rock and a hard place. Between his happiness and the balance of the sorcery society.

"Well, Yuta, have you already made up your mind?" Satoru stared at him, "Are you going to accept to be my successor once and for all? Are you going to capture that assassin soon or keep putting it off?" He smiled "Don't forget that I am also offering you the option of adopting your children in exchange for their safety..."

"I..." Yuta lowered his gaze "I have to think about this…"his voice sounded very muffled.

"Whatever you decide, let me know right away, okay? Even so, I hope you have the next few days free, because I have some plans that include you here in Tokyo" Satoru gave a slight smile, the kind that always accompanied his victories when he got his way.

Yuta sighed at those words. His premonition that he would not return to Kyoto soon to be with his children and Maki came true, "Ok…" he said dryly.

"Anyway Okkotsu you should go take a bath and then rest, this day was quite exhausting" said Satoru standing up and shaking his shoulders "Seriously, it's been years since I fought like this against someone. And age seems to be taking its toll on me already"

Yuta stood up as well, "I think I'll take your word for it that I'm going to take a bath and go get some rest. I didn't get much sleep yesterday either..."

"And was that because of something special? Or "Was it because of someone in particular?" asked Satoru mischievously. He had a feeling that Yuta had spent the night with someone very special.

Okkotsu only swallowed saliva and averted his gaze so that his blush didn't give him away.
"It's still just jetlag... I still can't get used to the fucking time in this country..." he lied.

Satoru noticed that lie, he knew that his sleeplessness perhaps had the name of a woman he knew quite well, a former student of his, but he decided not to inquire more about it.

"Well, if there is nothing more to say, you may leave"

"Thank you" Yuta bowed and then approached the door, which he slowly opened.

"By the way, Okkotsu..." commented Satoru before Yuta came out of there.

"Yes?"

Satoru had a serious face "Being at the Zenin residence, did you run into anyone else besides the insufferable Naoya and the old drunkard Naobito?"

Yuta remembered Mai, but decided to continue lying. He shook his head.
"I only ran into the two of them and the servants" He answered so firmly that he seemed to have fooled his host.

"Well" Satoru sighed with fatigue and a smile appeared. "Well, it's time to go to rest... but don't forget to give me an answer to my proposals, okay?"

Yuta sighed.
"Okay..."

In the coming days, Yuta would have to make a decision. One that could change the course of his life, as well as the lives of his children and his beloved Maki.

Notes:

I hope you liked it

And tell me, what do you think of the story?

Now after reading all this I ask you the same question I asked you at the beginning:

Do you still trust Satoru Gojo?

I say this because in this chapter they could better notice Satoru's intentions with Yuta.

Besides, wanting to adopt Yuta and Maki's children and mentioning the topic of mistresses, speaks volumes about him in this story.

For the time being, this will be the last chapter where we will see Gojo for a while since, starting from the next chapter we officially return with Maki and the twins ❤️.

Is the long-awaited reconciliation between Yuta and Maki coming? Will they already know which techniques Yurika and Yuudai inherited? What decision will Yuta make? What will happen now between Maki and Yuta?

You will soon find out.

We will keep reading ❤️

Remember that your votes and comments are important, especially if you want to continue reading this fic.