Work Text:
Nine words were all it took for Choso to halt his attack. His brothers flanking either side of him would follow suit, always looking to him for the order to act or to refrain. Choso was the oldest. He would be the one to take the first step to show where it was safe to tread. But humoring Kamo Noritoshi to even speak, let alone stand in their presence, had come from a place of shock rather than any sound judgment of the mind.
“Don’t you want to meet your newest family member?”
Choso had been the first to awaken within the upper floors of an abandoned apartment building. Buried in the midst of a densely populated city and hidden underneath a blanket of negative emotion in the air, this space had become a refuge to curse and curse user alike as evident by the duo Choso had woken up to. The curse responsible for their freedom at the neglect of the rest of his siblings still in storage would be ignored, however, the eldest would elect to ignore him in favor of the whom he thought was a human observing them across the room.
By the door, this man rested a shoulder against the wall. While the curse may have stitched across his body, they felt inherently different from the single line across the man’s head. There was something uncanny to be felt when their eyes met, but it was when the man spoke Choso’s name did the eldest realize the impossible truth of who that man was.
“Choso.”
“Father.”
Eso and Kechizu remained silent at Choso’s side. In contrast, the curse who’d awakened them had laughed so loud the room may as well have shaken as the foundations of this building were on the verge of collapse given the state of how it appeared.
One simple confirmation of that man’s identity— Kamo Noritoshi —was enough to spring into action, shifting his feet and summoning the ability that the accursed man’s blood had provided. To say Choso saw red at that moment would not have been an exaggeration. Eso would do the same while Kechizu readied his teeth in the hopes of tearing through that monster in human disguise.
His death would be vengeance for their mother.
Justice for their abandoned siblings.
Catharsis for Choso’s heart.
But just as an arc of piercing blood had crossed the room, Kamo would open his mouth with a palm raised in a bid for Choso to stop. Crimson painted the open air, hovering in place as the tip of his cursed technique’s arrow bobbed between blunt and sharp as nine words had shielded their father better than any other barrier.
“What did you say?”
Choso had heard him. His ears functioned as any pair should, but the truth of there being another member of their family that Choso was unaware of had him engulfed in a torrent of competing feelings. Most notable was the dread which came from how they came to be. Even worse, what purpose would their father have for not just their youngest, but for awakening the three eldest to even offer the chance for them to meet?
Kamo did nothing out of the goodness of his heart.
Choso was fairly certain the man had removed the organ long ago, both in his previous body and the current puppet standing before them.
“You have a younger brother.” A little brother. “He wished to meet you, but if you must force me to bring unfortunate news that you are not interested…”
“I did not say that.”
“Your actions speak for you.”
The reprimand left Choso stuttering, muddling his focus on his cursed technique before dropping control of it completely. His blood splashed unceremoniously onto the ground. Neither of the Death Paintings paid any care, but the patchwork curse before them jumped back from the puddle flowing outward, his mischievous grin still plastered on his face.
Kamo’s face sported a grin of his own, but it did not hold the same childish glee. More subdued, yet twisted in its own right, the victory the man held here was enough to cause Choso anger even if the eldest would not show it.
“Where is he?”
Choso’s demand was met with a sigh. One that sounded already bored with a reunion a century overdue.
“Follow me. And do make sure to behave yourself.”
With both arms tucked in his sleeves, Kamo led the way through the maze of collapsed halls of the apartment building to a door that looked too new, too nice to just another piece of this derelict scene. The patchwork curse apparently working by their father’s side offers to get the door for them, revealing nothing but a bright, unbearable light awaiting on the other side.
Kamo steps in first, followed by Choso, who turns back to his brothers with a nod to acknowledge their desire for caution. Eso and Kechizu would still follow regardless, leaving the same curse who opened the door to be the one to see it shut. The noise of the wood slamming against its frame ushered in the exact moment Choso’s eyes adjusted to the new setting they were in: the shoreline of an immaculate beach.
A place Choso could only imagine through the memories of his vessel, this place was undoubtedly a domain conjured by one of the cursed spirits which lingered together as a group to oversee their arrival. Explanations for who they were or what they wanted would go ignored. Kamo was too busy stepping past them with a bare-bones introduction of his sons before aggressively gesturing for the trio to continue moving forward no matter how odd it was to shift their balance from a floor made of stone to a beach covered in sand.
Only after moving past the curses did Kamo stop. A hand was now raised, a finger pointed across the beach to a solitary umbrella and the two individuals which stood silently underneath. Choso would raise his hand to shield his eyes from the intensity of the sun, noting how one figure stood hidden behind the other which only allowed specs of pink and red to shine out from behind their silhouette.
That must be him.
Why their youngest was hiding would become apparent as they moved closer. About halfway was when Choso began to hear the whispered squabbling of the two waiting for them.
“You must stand straight and present yourself—”
“—Do I have to? I can see them from over your shoulder…”
“Weren’t you the one who couldn’t stop talking, not to even take a breath, about meeting them?”
“Yes! But now they’re here, and I’m nervous!”
The identity of the monk who stood in front of their little brother mattered little, though it lessened Choso’s worry to find the two speaking on such friendly terms. They were close, and by what little Choso could make out, their youngest appeared on the surface to be doing well.
“Ahem.” Kamo cleared his throat, beckoning for the pair’s attention.
“Geto-san.”
The monk’s form address was not a title, which meant this was the name by which Kamo had stolen, most likely from the body he inhabited. Geto didn’t fit him well. Maybe the body, but not the mind. However, if that was what they would refer to him as, then so be it. Choso would play along only when proper answers were given. Until then, the eldest would stand silent and listen to the introduction the monk in front of him had to give while stepping aside to reveal the flustered teenager in his entirety.
“You must be his siblings. Meet Sukuna-sama’s wife, Itadori Yuji. Bowing is expected—”
“I still never gave my blessing.”
Not even a minute in and Kamo already interrupted their introduction.
Apparently, their youngest sibling was already married to a husband whose name reverberated Choso’s entire being, as any curse be it full or half knew of the King whose power eclipsed them all. Ryomen Sukuna. The backstory for this marriage was unknown, but to learn that their father did not approve of this meant quite a lot, considering the gall one would have to possess to speak out against history’s most infamous curse.
“Nor did Sukuna-sama require it.” The monk snapped back, leading into a back and forth of their own as they approached Kamo directly with tempered anger in their eyes. Kamo, in contrast, did not seem to mind.
It was while the two began their own volley of petty jabs that the man’s children were left alone. The three eldest once again turned to their youngest, and truth be told, with how little preparation Choso had been given for their meeting, he found himself speechless as to what he should say.
There was little doubt his brother was beautiful. His pink hair stood out from the rest of their family, as did his gold-brushed eyes and the intricate garment wrapped around his body. While he attempted to stand tall, his hands were tucked behind his back, his eyes flickering between the ground and his brothers as he too appeared at a loss for words.
“His name is Yuji, isn’t it?” Eso clutched his chin, committing the name to memory while Kechizu shuffled behind him.
“Is he scared of me? I can back away if you think that will help…”
“Nonsense! He’s just nervous. Look at Choso, he’s already on the verge of tears.”
Eso’s words were not inaccurate. As much as Choso wished they were, he knew the dam holding back his overwhelmed feelings would break with the slightest provocation.
There was so much missing there. Not just in the circumstances which led to their father’s returned interest in his own existence, but in the years he’d missed when it came to their youngest. His creation. His birth. Did Yuji go through the same beginnings as they had? Or was he fortunate to enact a human life where they could not? If so, why had that kindness been stripped of him now that he stood in the center of these overwhelming powers? Was he safe? Did his husband, wherever he may be, treat him well? These questions held Choso’s body still, his eyes unfocused as he tried repeatedly to introduce himself as any good brother should.
What broke him out of his mental paralysis was the sudden sensation of arms wrapped around his waist. The moment did not last long enough, as the second Choso looked down, his youngest brother had already let go, stepping back with his hands crossed over his chest and a bright hue of red across his cheeks.
“I-I thought,” Yuji began, already moving to bury his head in his sleeves. “If it felt right… you know? But now I think I just made it awkward, a-and probably ruined it—”
Choso lunged forward and took Yuji in his arms. He was immediately greeted with the teenager’s head in his chest, his hands clutching around him tight which did wonders for keeping their youngest from seeing the deluge of tears running down Choso’s face.
It felt right to hold him like this. Of course it did.
They were family.
“You ruined nothing.” Choso gave Yuji a squeeze before pulling back just enough to bow his head as the monk requested. “I’m Choso, the eldest of ten.”
“Hi. I’m Yuji— Wait, Uraume already told you my name! Why do I keep doing that?" Yuji let out a groan as he wiped his eyes, sharing the same overwhelming emotion as his elder.
“Nice to meet you, Yuji!” Kechizu sprung out from behind Choso. He waved his hand as he introduced himself. “I’m Kechizu!”
“And I’m Eso. I see we got all the looks in the family.” The wink Eso gave had brought a smile to Yuji’s face, springing forth a bout of shared laughter between them.
“You think so?”
Blushing for an entirely different reason, Choso was sad he would have to turn away from Yuji to break up the mess of slapping hands his two middle brothers were exchanging as Eso’s words had Kechizu upset. Neither of them sought to do actual harm, as it was the nature of siblings to poke and prod each other now and then.
If the four of them could remain like this, Choso would be more than content. The eldest knew, however, that this would not be the case, as there were several things to be addressed as soon as they were acquainted. Missing time which needed filling in. No doubt future plans beckoning their involvement, something Choso was more willing to do only so long as it meant keeping the three siblings he had currently with him and the six still in the hands of the sorcerers who detained them out of harm’s way.
No matter what was bound to come next, Choso would prepare himself and act accordingly. He would play his role as the dutiful child and the reliable eldest. But his allegiance would not be to his father nor the curses who freed him, but to his siblings and them alone.
Kamo must have known this when permitting their incarnation.
That fact made the man all the more distrustful, as to what benefit he wished to obtain from them would be something Choso had to remain vigilant to uncover.