Unbound By Love's Grace [Gojo Satoru x Female Readers]

6 ~ Six

[Y]ou squirmed slightly, attempting to wriggle free from his grasp, but he only drew you in closer, his presence igniting an unexpected thrill within you. His lips hovered dangerously near your ear, warm breath ghosting over your skin, eliciting an involuntary moan that slipped past your lips before you could catch it.

With him lifting you ever so slightly, you instinctively clamped your legs together, feeling the heat pooling in your core. "Love, stop. You're only making this harder."

"Is that a challenge?" he teased, a playful smirk dancing on his lips as they brushed against the back of your neck, trailing down to the sensitive skin at the base of your shoulder.

Another moan escaped, reverberating in the charged atmosphere. Your breath hitched, and you glanced around, trying to distract yourself from the undeniable hardness pressing against your back.

The world around you had begun to dissolve, fading into a more familiar modern setting as you both emerged from the dimensional pocket that had ensnared you earlier.

"Tell me," he purred, voice low and sultry, lips teasing your ear, "if you can't hold on much longer, should I devour you right here?"

The audacity of his words sent a rush of heat to your nether. "Here? Next to a cursed object?" You arched a brow, tilting your head back to lock eyes with him, an incredulous smirk on your lips. "Not a chance. Now, if you're done toying with me, put me down."

A mock pout crossed his lips as he finally set you on your feet. Damn him for being so tall, so effortlessly charming. You'd be lying if you said his playful challenge didn't turn you on even more. But you had a mission, and focus was essential. Not that it was easy with him lingering so close, the air thick with unspoken desires.

Taking a step toward the cursed object, you forced yourself to concentrate, pushing aside the pulsing ache that begged for his touch. "How long since I dropped the veil" you prompted, trying to channel your focus.

"Twenty to thirty minutes, give or take," he answered, his tone deceptively casual, yet there was an underlying edge of possessiveness as he hovered close behind you, his cursed energy wrapping around you like a comforting embrace.

Reaching for the wooden chest that held the cursed object, you muttered, "Let's get this out quickly—" but the words died on your lips the instant your cursed energy brushed against the dark aura pulsing from within. A jolt of grisly memories slammed into your mind, dragging you into a dizzying haze. You felt paralyzed, trapped in a swirl of horrifying images.

Gojo was beside you in an instant, his hands warm against your shoulders as he pooled his cursed energy into you, steady and deliberate, pulling you from the depths of whatever darkness threatened to consume you. You gasped, the sensation reminiscent of drowning as an unseen force constricted your throat.

"Hey, babe, you good? What's going on?" His voice, tinged with concern, shattered the haze surrounding you.

"It's a finger," you managed to rasp, trembling in his grasp, shaken as if you'd glimpsed the abyss. Death had never fazed you, but this? The essence of the cursed object felt dangerously vile. What kind of twisted mind would hide something like this? Here of all places?

"What do you mean?"

"The cursed object is a finger," you clarified, your voice steadier now but still trembling. You could see him processing the weight of your revelation, a flicker of darkness crossing his features.

Gojo's hand slid forward to guide you back, fingers brushing your shoulder with a steady but teasing touch. "We should get this out of here before it stirs up any more trouble," he murmured, reaching confidently for the cursed chest.

"N-no... don't." Your voice dropped low, a warning lingering in your tone as you extended a hand to stop him. He halted, his lips curving into a slow, knowing smile.

"Ah," he noted, studying you with a spark of interest. "Absorbed some of its energy, did you? Cursed objects like this tend to linger... keep a nasty grip for a while." His fingers wrapped around the box, and when nothing immediately struck him, you felt a pang of relief. "Special grade, huh?" he mused, glancing back at you, "Enough to rattle even you. I should be the one handling it."

You shook your head, still a bit dazed. "Not sure it's wise, Satoru."

Seeing the trace of tension in your gaze, Gojo leaned in, holding the chest just out of your reach, before sliding an arm around your shoulders. His lips brushed your forehead, and the warmth sent a delicious, unbidden shiver down your spine, a soft sigh escaping your lips.

He chuckled, his hand drifting to rest in yours, fingers lacing with a certain possessiveness. "I've got you. Remember, I'm the strongest." He winked, casually, his confidence intoxicating. "And if things go sideways... I'll just obliterate it. Your man is a bit of a miracle worker, after all."

The faintest smirk tugged at your lips as he began guiding you toward where Ijichi would be waiting. Gojo's cursed energy shielded you just enough, dulling the lingering remnants of the cursed object's pull. But even with your resistances built up to 75%, the reaction had surprised you—and, perhaps, hinted that your blockers could use a reset. You let your cursed energy drop back to a manageable flow, sighing under your breath as you eased off the internal struggle to block the object's residual echoes.

"What did you see?" he inquired, the question slipping out casually, though his gaze remained fixed on you, sharp with intrigue.

"A man. Could've been a sorcerer... I'm not sure." Your voice was low, the images still crawling around the edges of your mind.

Gojo's eyes lit with interest as he tilted his head. "You mean the owner of that... finger?"

"Yeah," you replied, your tone laced with hesitation. "But I doubt he was fully human."

The faintest crease appeared between his brows. "Go on," he prompted.

You let out a shaky breath, recalling the twisted, grotesque details. "Four arms. He had four arms, Satoru. I don't know if that qualifies as human... but he looked human enough, somehow."

A dark amusement flickered in Gojo's eyes. "Sounds like a curse user gone rogue," he mused, watching you with a curious intensity.

"A curse user?" you echoed, caught off guard.

"Yeah," Gojo nodded, his tone sharpening. His eyes held a shadow of distaste. "That's what we call sorcerers who've traded honor for power. They let their techniques twist them into something... less."

You let out a slow breath, your gaze drifting to the cursed object still clutched in his hand. "I'm not sure he's even from our era."

"And what makes you think that?"

"There was... something strange," you murmured, as if trying to piece together a puzzle in your mind. "It felt like his soul had been split somehow—divided into twenty pieces, or maybe... fingers. It's hard to explain. It's just what I gathered from the fragments I absorbed."

Gojo's brows lifted, though he maintained his calm. "Fingers?"

You nodded. "Yeah. I saw someone else in the memory—another sorcerer. He's the one who did this, who... fractured the man's soul."

He paused, his expression thoughtful as he processed this. Then, with a subtle squeeze of your hand, he turned toward the exit door, the tension easing into his signature calm. "Alright. I'll have Ijichi look into it. Let's just get out of here, yeah? Leave the investigating to the rest of them."

A faint smile tugged at your lips. "Fine."

As the veil dissipated and Gojo guided you back to the car, he handed the cursed object off to Ijichi, leaning in with a quiet instruction to keep it as far from you as possible. You caught pieces of the conversation, enough to know he was taking every precaution to prevent a repeat of your earlier... entanglement with its ominous, cursed energy.

Frankly, you couldn't have cared less about the box now; the only thing on your mind was getting back to the hotel—and sorting out your own predicament.

Gojo slid into the backseat beside you, his presence too close, too distracting.

Ijichi, sensing the tension between you, cleared his throat and spoke carefully. "I've arranged for the hotel to handle your luggage," he began, glancing at you both in the rearview mirror with something close to hesitation. "Since you'll be staying in Kyoto for a week, I'll be assigned as your driver for any errands or... upcoming missions."

"Yeah, yeah," Gojo replied, casual but dismissive, his attention clearly elsewhere.

You kept your gaze on the window, trying to focus on anything other than his proximity. But his hand drifted toward yours, fingers lightly grazing the back of your hand before settling just near your palm, sparking heat beneath your skin. You held back a sigh, knowing that his every subtle touch was intentional.

Ijichi cleared his throat again. "Would you like to stop for something to eat?"

"No need," Gojo drawled, his voice lazy, though you could feel his focus unwavering on you despite the blindfold. "We'll have something at the hotel. Besides, Y/N looks like she could use a little... rest."

You almost scoffed, biting back a smirk. Rest? Right. He'd made it clear enough in the way his fingers brushed against your thigh, inching higher with each casual touch, that rest was hardly his priority. You turned your hand, letting your fingertips trace lightly over his palm. From his slight pause, you could tell you'd caught him off guard, just as you'd hoped.

He responded in kind, his fingers sliding down to hook teasingly against the fabric of your stockings, grazing your skin with infuriating precision. Each movement stoked the heat between you, and you held back a grin at the silent, charged game you'd started.

Ijichi's voice broke the spell. "We're here."

Already? You turned to look out the window, noting the hotel. "Huh. That was fast."

The assistant's eyes darted nervously between you two in the rearview mirror. "Uh—unless you'd like me to take a longer route?"

You let out a short laugh, opening the car door. "No, this'll do fine, Ijichi-san. Thanks." You shot a quick, knowing look Gojo's way, practically daring him as you stepped out.

"Of course," Ijichi merely answered, almost relieved.

Waiting for Gojo, you watched as he finished instructing Ijichi before joining you. The glint in his eyes was unmistakable, a combination of amusement and challenge.

"Someone's a little eager, huh?" he murmured, voice low as he fell into step beside you.

You shot him a smirk, batting your lashes with mock innocence. "Eager? Who, me?" You tilted your head in his direction, a dark edge to your smile. "Funny—I could say the same about you."

He let out a soft chuckle, easily matching your stride as he leaned in close. "Just keeping up, sweetheart. Try not to tempt me too much. We've got all night, after all."

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