Her breath felt like it was going to run out. Her lungs felt like they were being stabbed by thousands of needles. Her vision also started to blur.
"KEEP YOUR EYES OPEN, KUSHINA!" Minato shouted.
She kept trying to open her eyes. However, the drowsiness was so heavy, that she really wanted go to sleep.
A short nap won't hurt anyone, dattebane?
She closed her eyelids to go to sleep, and the last thing she heard in her ears was the sound of Minato screaming her name before everything became silent and dark.
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Itadori Jin was feeling extremely nervous. He had been anticipating this moment for quite some time. Occasionally, he would check his watch and the pockets of his pants.
'Luckily, I remembered to bring it, otherwise, I would be so embarrassed,' thought Jin as he took out a small red box from his pocket and placed it back in his pants pocket.
Today was the day, he had been waiting for.
After dating Hana for 2 years and having twin baby boys who were just 3 months old. He was going to propose to her and make her his wife. He had also arrived early at their agreed-upon meeting place to surprise Hana with this.
For the past two hours, he had been waiting in the park. Hana had still not appeared. The time on his watch showed 11:30 PM, close to midnight. There was nobody else in the park except for him, sitting alone on a park bench.
"It seems like she won't come today. Should I just go home now? Or should I wait here for a few more minutes?" He wondered.
His thoughts were interrupted when his brown eyes caught sight of something suddenly shining brightly behind the bushes.
The light quickly faded, but his curiosity remained undiminished. He walked towards the source of the shining light, eager to satisfy his curiosity. As he approached the bushes, he caught a glimpse of what lay behind them.
The first words that escaped his mouth were,
"Gorgeous."
There, lying unconscious on the ground, was a woman with a stunningly beautiful face and long, red hair resembling a blooming rose.
Her attire was unfamiliar to him not something he had seen on an average woman.
It was only then that he realized the severity of her injuries when he saw her abdomen oozing fresh blood, almost the exact shade as her hair.
Panic set in, and without hesitation, he quickly took off his jacket and used it to tie around her wound, temporarily stopping the bleeding. Swiftly, he picked her up and hurriedly carried her back to his house.
Upon arriving home, Itadori Jin burst through the door, startling Itadori Wasuke, who was still awake. The elderly man was so shocked that he nearly choked on the pill he was about to take before going to bed.
"What the fuck-?"
Before scolding his son for barging into their home, his eyes caught sight of Jin cradling a badly injured woman with long red hair, and his son's expression was filled with deep concern.
"Dad, could you bring my medicine box?" pleaded Jin to his father.
Wasuke had a sense of deja vu. Suddenly, he remembered about 17 years ago when Jin, who was only 5 years old at the time, came home with tears streaming down his cheeks, carrying a fallen baby bird from its nest.
"Dad, could you help it?" his son pleaded, crying for the injured bird with a wounded wing.
"Dad."
"Dad."
"DAD, HURRY!"
A scream from his son snapped Wasuke back to reality. He immediately began searching for the medicine box that Jin kept in his room.
With great caution, he carefully retrieved the medicine from underneath his son's bed, making sure not to disturb his two grandsons, Sukuna and Yuuji, who were still fast asleep on the nearby bed.
Wasuke closed the door to his son's room softly before rushing downstairs to the first floor. In the living room, he saw his son who had already undressed the red-headed woman and was carefully cleaning her body with a wet cloth dipped in water to prevent any infections.
"Oh, thanks, Dad. Don't worry, I'll take it from here," Jin said as he took the box of medicine from Wasuke's hand and began treating the woman's wounds with the supplies in the box.
He observed his focused son tending to the woman's injuries. Her body was covered in cuts and the most severe one was on her stomach.
It seemed someone had a deep hatred for this red-haired woman, inflicting such severe wounds. It was the first time Wasuke had seen someone injured to this extent.
She looked like she had just come from a war.
Wasuke himself doubted whether she would survive and breathe the next day. About an hour later, he looked at his son, who had just finished stitching up the woman's worst wound and wrapped it with a bandage. They had run out of bandages that night due to the numerous injuries sustained by the red-haired woman.
"Oh, Dad, you're still awake? Remember the doctor's advice to sleep on time and not stay up too late," Jin said, realizing that his father was still awake. Jin had been so focused on treating the woman's wounds that he hadn't noticed his father presence.
"Bah! Forget about the doctor's advice! I'm more experienced than any doctor, y'know! I know my physical limits very well. Besides, how can I sleep when I see you coming in like this? Who is that woman? Where's your supposed girlfriend? Weren't you supposed to go on a date with her?"
"Hana didn't come to the park tonight. Maybe she's busy-.."
"YOU KNOW WHAT, FORGET IT! Your 'Cute Little Girlfriend' only came here to drop off her two kids! And then just suddenly disappearing god knows where! Do you still think she'll come on a date after abandoning Yuuji and Sukuna here?!? I'm sure she's out partying at some nightclub in big city, with shady men, offering herself to others behind your fucking back,"
"ENOUGH, FATHER!"
"..."
"I understand you've never liked Hana! But she's the one who filled the void in my heart after Rui passed away. Hana is also the one who gave you your grandchildren, Yuuji and Sukuna. I know she has her flaws, but I love her,"
Wasuke remained silent and walked towards his bedroom. Before closing the door, he said to his son, "Just so you know, my instincts are always right about someone's true nature and character. So don't come running to me, crying and fucking complaining, when your little girlfriend true colours come out and break your heart."
BAM.
Jin could only watch as his father's bedroom door slammed shut loudly. His evening took a turn for the worse. Feeling defeated, he found himself sitting on the floor in the living room, impacted by the hurtful words his father had just uttered.
The weight of the evening's events left him emotionally drained. It was supposed to be a perfect night for him. He had planned to propose to Hana at the end of their date.
They would become husband and wife, creating a life together with their twin sons. However, fate had a different plan. Hana didn't show up for their date, despite being the one who had asked him out for the evening.
Instead, he found a red-haired woman lying unconscious and badly injured in the park. He decided to take her home and did his best to tend to her wounds.
Unfortunately, it seemed as though luck was not on his side when it came to matters of Love.
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Wasuke could not sleep peacefully after arguing with his only son.
Just like his late mother who passed away when he was 10 years old, his son was too kind and naive. Even after his mother's death, he still held onto her teachings, as she was a nurse during her lifetime.
Jin inherited his mother's talent for healing others, as well as her innate goodness and naivety. When they were teenagers, Wasuke, who was close friends with his wife, would often witness her being teased and pranked by her older classmates at school.
Sometimes, she wouldn't even realize that she was being pranked by her seniors!
"Let's not jump to conclusions, Suke-kun. Maybe they are genuinely in need of money,"
"But they're from a wealthy family! You don't need to give them any money!" retorted Wasuke.
Since then, Wasuke made a strong commitment to always protect his late wife from people who want to take advantage of her kindness and naivety. Now, his only son is being taken advantage of as well. His son's heart is being played with by his supposed girlfriend.
Despite Hana's responsibility in giving birth to his twin grandchildren, Wasuke will never approve of a relationship between his son and Hana. However, he is unsure how to make his beloved son trust his words. Wasuke feels lost and doesn't know what to do.
"Oh, darling. If only you were still alive. You would know what to do for our child," he murmured, kissing the wedding ring he still wears from his late wife.
He hopes and prays to a higher power for guidance and protection for his son and grandchildren from any potential harm.
He also hopes his son realizes and finds a better partner than the one he has now.
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"Did you kill him, yet?"
"No, my deepest apologies, Kenjaku-sama," replied the black-robed figure. "The person you wanted me to target was not present."
Kenjaku seemed to pause for a moment, then took a seat in one of the chairs, crossing his legs. "Alright then. Go back to your original position. I'll handle this problem myself in the future."
"Understood, Kenjaku-sama," responded the figure.
The curse quickly vanished, leaving the black-robed figure alone in the room. He pondered on the necessary steps he needed to take to achieve the success he desired.
"Jin, Jin," he mumbled to himself.
"You are such a troublesome human."