Tadaima || S. Gojo

Chapter 5

Nozomi's POV

It was dead silent for the entire duration of the plane ride back to Tokyo.

Several days later, the silence became a new constant between us. What used to be playful banter withered into tense glances at each other and the tension was so thick that you could cut it with a butterknife. Our once beautiful relationship became my worst nightmare.

Never in my life did I want this to happen. When I ran away, I knew that no matter what I did, Satoru would always welcome me back with open arms because we promised each other that we would do so. I think back to the promise Satoru and I made for each other when I had doubts about my strength.

"Ahhh, that promise. I wonder if Satoru still remembers the day we made it?"

Flashback, 12 years ago...

Growing up as the only child, I was pampered and got anything I wanted. Kimonos made of silk, diamonds and pearls that clad my neck and arms, everything that I've ever wanted, I had with the snap of my fingers. But no matter how much I begged, there was one thing that was non-negotiable.

Training.

I absolutely despised training and I also hated the person I had to train with- Gojo Satoru. Maybe my hate for Satoru stemmed from the fact that whenever I saw him, I had to train. Whenever we weren't eating or sleeping, we were training together and one day, I had enough.

"C'mon Nozomiiii! This is our 5th match of the day and you still can't pin me to the ground? Maybe you should tell your father that you're gonna quit being a sorcerer and just become the maid or something."

"You don't understand Satoru, I'm not as strong as you and I'm not born with super crazy powers! Everything was handed down to you on a silver platter but I had to work hard to get to where I'm at today and it's still not enough for you and my family."

After my rant, I pause to catch my breath before running away. However, before I could run away, Gojo grabs my wrist, keeping me in place. His teasing smile was wiped from his face and he looked like he wanted to say something serious. Just as he opened his mouth to speak, one of the maids walked up to us to inform Satoru of his mission. Even though we were both very young, in order to gain more experience in the jujutsu world, the higher ups had us partake in missions. Although we had experienced sorceres with us, most of the exorcising was left to us and the sorcerers were there to monitor and step in when we were in danger.

Satoru looked back at me one last time before leaving with the maid, but I wanted to hold him back so that he could tell me what he wanted to say.

I continued my training after Satoru left, but it was difficult to focus on my form and technique. I was so curious to know what he had to say and as much as I hated to say it, I was also worried for Satoru. We usually go on our missions together so that we can look out for each other, but the higher ups felt that we were getting too dependent on each other so we started transitioning into having solo missions. This will be the first time either of us are on our own with minimal help and even though he's known as the strongest sorcerer, I can't stop worrying.

As I go to continue with the strength training reps, a couple of our private nurses run up to me. Immediately a sense of dread fills my body and all I could hear is that Satoru got injured during his mission and that he is resting in his room.

I run to where they are taking care of Satoru and my knees go weak when I see him. The nurses must not have told me immediately when he came back because he was wrapped in bandages and he looked on the verge of passing out. The site was horrifying and that's when I promised to myself that I would do anything if it meant never seeing him this injured again.