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For Gojo, life had become rather routine. Ever since Yaga assigned him and Geto to protect Riko Amanai, it had been the three of them traveling throughout Japan with Riko's maid, Misato Kuroi. It had been visiting one town or city after another with this escort mission. They even took part in some tourist stuff if they could. Eventually it became rather routine to travel and goof off.
And yet, something seemed amiss.
Oh well. It probably wasn't anything important.
On one particular day, the group decided to pay another visit to Okinawa. And so far, things were fine as usual. But unlike the previous visit, Gojo and Riko had become closer. While their friendship was initially bumpy with his careless attitude and her quick temper, things mellowed out between the two. At the moment, they were relaxing on the beach on a blanket with only an umbrella providing shade. There was initially distance between them, but soon Riko started to snuggle closer to Gojo, catching him by surprise. It took him a while to relax and enjoy this closeness.
Besides, she did look cute in her swimsuit.
Gojo wasn't sure how much time had pass. He was even feeling a little sleepy, even during a nice sunny day. Traveling must have taken a lot out of him. Maybe it wouldn't hurt to doze off and-
"̴̡̰͎̳̱̭̤̲̞̹̦̙̤̱̓̈́͊́̈͛̉̆̚͠B̵̛̩͎̠͖̫͚̞̫͉̦̳̝̏͛͒̈́̉͛̚͜͜͠͝͝͠u̷͈̼̇̊̈̆͌͠t̵̡̛̲̲̝̮͆͐͋̈́͒͛̓͆̍̉̆ ̴̡̯̻̠̜͉͍̊b̶̧̨͚͖͕̳̬̈́̅̓̅͗̓̂̅͜͝ǫ̵͔̳̬̮̗̲̗̝͛̃͊̂̚͝ṯ̶̿̎̌͂͑͛̀͒h̴̦̫̙͉̱̘̥͗̀̈́̎̽̃ ̷̨̘̞͖̩̼̯͚̤̙̠̦͛͑̇̆̆̆̈́́̀̾̚m̵̢̦̬͖̒̍̏̐͋̍̃͛̿̓̌́̆y̸̡͈̯̠̣̼̬̦͈̾͝ ̷̢̨̠̟̞̓̐̓̑̽͆̏͐͂h̵̡͎̺͖̲̳͍͇͇͍̭́̾͗̑̌̋͘ę̸̤̣̗͚̬͔̤̳̫͍͓̐̐̑̓̍̓̃̓̃͐̋̕̚ä̸̛̼̻̳͙̦͇̮́͒͂̐̒̑̏̐̈́͋͂́̔r̸̫̩͔̟̭̹̝̲̈́̒̓̊̀͐̏̔̈́̏̈̈́͝ͅͅţ̵͚͕̪̙̣̣̱̲̞̲̗͐́̈ ̷͉̤̫͖̔ả̶̢͓͔͖͙n̸̡͈͚̤͍͕̗͝d̶̗̲̽̈́̈́̉͑̀̽̅͑̌͑̒̈́̋͝ ̷̡̢̨̘͖͇͖͍̼̫̳͕͓̜̄̄̉̊̔̑̈́͜m̸̢̰̫͉̰͕̻͖̲̞͇̥͔̮͈͗̒͒̿̑̅̒̓̎y̶͚̳̩̜̗͆͗͛͌̒͗̏͌̂̑̑̎͘͠ͅ ̴͎̥̈́̔̎͂͛̅͜s̸̻͍͔̗͖͕̳͊̀͜ǒ̴̢̨̦̹̭͔̈́̋̿̍͊̈́̈͘̕͝͝ư̴͙͚͓̗͕̯̬͖͉̻̱̈́̔̾̉̽̽̽̀l̵͚͙̺͕͉͐̚̕ ̴̜͖͉̖͕̗̯͓͙͇́͋͂̆̀͛́̆͜k̵͎̼̖̑͑̏̎́͒̅͗̿̈́̚͠n̵͕̝̟̝̼̦̼͉͍̯̟͎̬͕͚̒̄͠ǫ̴̧̣̪̺͉̹͈̭͇̪̼̩͌͐̓͊͛̾͑͘͘͠w̷̢̛̭̦͈͍̗̺̻͚̾̄̈̏̍͗͂̔̓͗̈́̇̋͜ ̴̛̲́͊̏̆̃̀̿̊o̶̼̺͇̳͈̽̾̍́̏̐̌̏͌͐͘̕͝͝͝t̸̢̫̪̲̻͕̰̝̫̘̭̘̯̤̝̊̔̄͂̐̏̄̈͆̉̏̕̕͠h̸̜̼̱̜̫͙̾̈̄̓̑͘ę̴̭͇̩̍r̵̢̺̟̗̬͇̹͉͌̃̽̓w̵̤̮͌̆̓̂̃͒͑̈͑̑̚͜͝į̴͙̤̱͕̣͎̰̫́͛͜š̴̨̨͓̺͉̖͉̂͌̀̔̇̑̓͋̎̈́̔͗ȩ̸̡̪̞̥̥̪̑̑͛̆̾͊͗̑̚!̵̧̺͔̞̪͎̲̊̏̑̓̆͑̈̽͠"̸̪͎͔̥̙̣̗̦̥͔̀̂̈́
His eyes flew open upon hearing that strange, distorted voice. Where did that come from? More importantly, why did it sound like his own?
Never mind that. It wasn't important. Besides, he wanted to focus on the black-haired beauty he was cuddling with.
"Satoru?"
Looking up, Gojo could see Geto walk towards him. "What's up?" the fair-haired sorcerer asked.
"How long are you going to keep doing this?" Geto suddenly asked.
Gojo scratched his head in confusion. "What's wrong with visiting Okinawa?" he asked in response. "Amanai likes coming here. It's fine if we visit a couple of more times before the merge." He looked down at the girl in question, smiling softly as he saw her sleeping face. She looked too cute in a peaceful state.
"Yes, I know you want to come here for her sake," Geto sighed. "But how many times have we been here?"
"Whaddya mean?" Gojo asked. He didn't like how cryptic his best friend was suddenly acting.
"I mean, this is the twenty-fifth time we have visited this beach," Geto blurted out.
"So?" Gojo dismissed.
Geto sighed as he pinched his temple. "Aren't we supposed to escort Amanai to Master Tengen?"
"Relax, that's not until a couple of days," Gojo reassured with a slight hand wave. "We still have plenty of time before the merger-"
"̴̦̹͂̑̀̽̽̑̄͆͋̏S̴̢̺̼̳͙͎͎͇̭̯̩͎̯͌̀̐̊ͅű̴̢̥̫̤̻͚̹̪̰̄̋ģ̵̧̞̰̜̱̪̘͇̙̇̾̈́̇̉͑̍ͅŭ̶̦̤͔̮͙̳̯̦͕̿̾͒̃r̴̪̫̭̺͂u̴͚̗̯̼̻̖̠̯̱͐́̑́͌͗͐̿̀͘͠ͅ.̵͖̭̠̼̹͉͉͑̏̀̓́̓̈́ ̶̳̭̹̜͎͆͂́͒̈̽̓ͅS̴̨̛̮̫͍͕͍͔̝̝̰̃͑͆͐̎͊́̈́̕͜ͅḩ̷͍̦̳͔͕͇͍̠̇̿͋̇́̽̄̒͌̾̕͠͝͠ơ̸̤̩̣͊͐̓̿͊̽̔̋̿̊ͅu̴̺̖̗̭͍̱͂̀͠l̴̛̳̼̭̺͖͍͔̭̥͔̐̇͆͐̀͆̅͐̚̚͜͠d̴̪̓̄̊͊̈͌̓͆̑̅́͘͝͠ ̷̪͖͖̳̬̇̊̀͗̍̏̎͌͜͝͝w̵̨̧̢̱͑͊͆̐̀̐̈́̈́e̶̡̘͇̝͔̭̰͎͕̭̘͎̻̝͑͑͗̒̾̕͜.̶̨̬̝̘̙̀̐́̓̄̓͒͋͜͝͝͠͠.̴̢̦͙͙͊̾̕.̷̨̡͍̹̟̰͕̻̺̼͆̈́̈́̑̐̌̂͠ͅk̴̢̨̛̟̙̟̪͉̮͉̗͎͕̉̈̽̊̌̉̀̌͆̈́͐̃̚̚ï̵͔̹̞̠͉̘̪̬͓̥̊l̵̢̦̝̥̪̱͇͍̫̹̳͆̅̃̔̈̔́̑́̉͂͛͘l̵͓̦̹͇̰͇͉͉͎̼̺̮̲̼̠̉̀͛̃͛͒ ̵̘̜͕̲̻̻̩̍t̷̻̫͗͛̄̄̎͆̎͋̈́h̶̘̤͈̮̗͎̘̖̪̭̜̏͒̀̈́̋͋ę̴̨̡̰̰͓̯͔͈̫̣̫̠̲͑̇̉̂͌̈́̈̀͌̏̚͘͜͠s̵̛̛̠̣̩͇̟̳̞̓̌̍̀̇̑͂̅̿͑̉̕e̸̢͖̬̞͎̼̜̟̹͉̬̝͙̖̅̎̆͂̑́͛̊̓̆̈́̿͑̚ ̴̩̹̑̎̓͗̿̐̉̂͆̑̚͝g̵̢̹͚͕͇̻̥̀̓͒͆̈͠u̷̮̯̙͕͇͉͊̿̊̕ͅy̵̢͖̝̒̊̒͋͛͂̌̈́͝ş̴͉̖̱̍̈́͋́͝?̷̡̧̣̰̰͕͚̦͈͚̏̈́͂̓͜͠"̸̲̪͚̇̄̒͛͌̍̊̍̾͜͠
There was that strange voice again! Where was it coming from?
Nope. He couldn't let those thoughts ruin this visit. Just stay focused and enjoy the adorable beauty cuddled up in his arms-
Where did Geto get those stitches on his forehead?
"You really don't remember?"
Nope. That was clearly the heat getting to him. There was no way Suguru Geto, his best buddy, was tugging on a single thread and...
...removing...
...his...
.̸̨̛̫͓͖̳͙̣̝̝̯̌̎̅̅̕͝͝͠͝.̸̡̻̥̤̺͍̙̱͙͑.̷̛̯̆̽̿͗̃̏̇́͂̑͑̾͜h̴̗̬͕̦͓̻̖̅̏͐̈́̈́̑͒͑͝͝e̵̡̟̭̹̣͙̠̳̮͌̍̇͜ͅa̷̧̛̫̰͚̽̃̐͂̈̾̒͑d̸̞̤̯̆̄͝?̸̢̨̧̜̜͖̥͎̬̹͓̄͐̈͆̆̋͊̓͝
A single blink from Six Eyes was enough to snap back to reality. Geto was fine just as he ever was, his hair tied up in a familiar slipknot bun. No way he would ever wear it loose. That wasn't his style.
...Huh?
Why did Riko suddenly feel cold?
"Is something wrong, Gojo?"
No, that can't be right. Riko's eyes weren't this empty. They were full of light! He probably didn't get enough sleep, so that was why he was imagining things!
And yet...
How long will it be until Tengen's merge?
And did Geto say t̶̡̨̙̜̘̥͓̮͓͑̃̋̃̓̂̈͋̃̇́̚̕͠͝ẅ̷̺̖̯̞͙̯̝̩́̽͆͆́e̴͈͇̔̀̔̌̏n̵̡̢̘̗̫̗̮̗̝̮͙̙̤͉̏̽̓̋̑́̉̍͝ţ̵̠̲̼̫͔͂̀̈́̍y̸̡̖̱̟̱͓̩̝̗͈̰̅̌̋͗̍̿̽̇́͆͊̃̓̕͝-̶̲̹̤̪͙̮̞̳̭̥̠̀̀̿̂̓̿̓̇̉͠f̸̟̃̌͑̈́̀̌͑͑͠į̴͍͙̺̬͚͓̱̝͕̮͔̺̩̂̏ͅv̸̨̨̻͚̼͈̦̹̳̹̟̂̇̊͊̈̓͐̀͜͝ͅē̴͙͉͎̖̋͒̄͋̃͜͠͝ ̵̧̛̗͓̰͐͆͒̑̊̈́͘ͅv̶̧̛̞̫͉͔͚̜͖͕̖͊ͅi̸̪̎̓̇͆͒̿̆̾͗͋͘ṡ̸̫̫͙̩̿́̊͋̾̈́ȋ̸̢̬͉͖̻̫͇̤̻̘̝̤̱̰͜t̷̬̫͓̦͙̼̞̜̻̳͙̰̱̼͉̉̀͊̈́̃̒̂̾̃͐͘̚͝͝s̵̛̯̱̬̝̬̙̆̀̒̓̑̓̅͌͝ͅ ̶̧͎̬̹͚͎̱͙̗͓͕̓͑̉̈̽͛͐̀̊̂̃͛͝͝ṭ̷̡̗̳̤̟̲̼̮̦̣̔̏͌̊̾̓̈́͆̇̀͘̚͘͝͠ͅo̶̢̭̙̝̟̰̿̾͋̓͗̽̈́̄̂̾ ̷̙͇̺̯̬̼̠̼̘̳̮͍̞̔̐͌ͅÖ̵̠͕̣̻͍̺́͐̑̓̃͗̈́̽̅͊͑̋͝͠͠k̴̛͍͍͇͎̣̎̓͐͋͒̽̚̕͝i̸̡͔͔̹̫̲̺̬̤̖̣͑͑̌̌̀͂̔̉̌͐̚͝͝͝ͅͅǹ̶̨̫͖̯̳̣͎ͅa̶̧̢̙̣͉̜̟̩̾̊̀̍͌͒̎w̷͍̉͑͒̋̂ͅa̶͉͉̳̜̲͆͊͋̾̔̈̃̌̓̃ͅ?
That couldn't be right. There on this escort mission for about a...week?
A wave of dread filled his stomach.
His whole body went numb.
...
...
...
That's right.
He was still in the Prison Realm.
So if this was a dream, then maybe...
"Hey, Gojo!"
The warm and sunny sky returned as familiar faces suddenly appeared on the beach. It wasn't just the group of four relaxing. Nanami, Haibara, and Shoka also tagged along. They wanted to take part in the escort mission, so they joined a few days ago. Looking around, he could see Haibara attempting to drag a reluctant Nanami into the ocean. Shoko was casually chatting with Misato about whatever it was that girls usually talked about. And Geto... He was sipping on some lemonade, enjoying the scenery. There was absolutely nothing horrifying about him at all. Just as he remembered him.
Looking down, Gojo could see Riko's smiling face looking up at him. Strong urges overwhelmed him. And before he could think rationally, he gave the beauty a gentle kiss, tears pouring down his face. It was a quick kiss, but he felt so overjoyed. He wanted to do it again, yet he stopped himself when he saw black mix with bright red.
"Wh-What was that for?!" Riko stuttered.
"Marry me," Gojo spoke in a hushed voice.
"Excuse me?" Riko asked.
"Marry me," Gojo repeated, sounding desperate. "I love you so much, Riko Amanai. I want you to be a part of my life."
And thus, the scenery changed in an instant. Satoru had officially become Riko's husband. The two embraced in a loving kiss as his friends cheered for the happy couple. And with the Gojo Clan backing things up, the merge was officially called off and a new Star Plasma Vessel was used instead. Who was that new vessel? He couldn't really care.
Satoru Gojo was finally ḩ̷̳͎̳͔̫̜͓̺͎̬̝͚͚̀͗̒͆̓͐̚͘͝͠ͅa̴̭͑̔̂̀̔p̵̡̩̪̰͕͕̫͍̦̘͖͓̹̤̮̓̄̈́̈́͋̇̌́̓̑̐̃̀͝p̴̥̲̙̜͉͚̫̜͚͎̠̤͈̺͙̍̿̋̈́̌̒͘y̸̖̺̫̝͈̩̩͓͕̦̝̤̯̥̙͋̈́̽̉́̈́̐̆͗͝͝.