Not long after Hayashi left, Gojo Satoru, sitting inside the room, put down the newspaper in his hand. He leaned back, gazing at the wooden ceiling, a smirk tugging at the corners of his mouth.
"Not bad at all. Money can be pretty important sometimes. With Hayashi's help, smoothing things over later will be a lot easier. That kid really didn't let me down."
Gojo stretched lazily before standing up. He walked over to a mirror, fiddled with his silver-white hair for a bit, flashed himself a grin, then spun around and left the room in a hurry, destination unknown.
By this time, Hayashi had already packed up his things and was preparing to leave the school. This trip was just a simple "mission," nothing major. Having Todo along was enough for now. If something more thrilling came up later, he'd call the others to join in.
But just as he was about to step out of the school gates, something clicked in his mind. He immediately turned and headed toward the building where Gojo had been.
"Where are you going?" Todo stood in place, watching Hayashi, unsure what he was up to this time.
"Oh, wait for me at the gate. I'll be right there," Hayashi replied before breaking into a light jog.
When he reached the spot where Gojo had been, he found it empty. Gojo was already gone. Hayashi released his cursed energy outward, stretching it far and wide, but after searching for a while, there was no trace of the jujutsu sorcerer.
"He left that fast?" Hayashi muttered, standing under a large tree, lost in thought for a few minutes. Then he bolted straight toward Principal Yaga Masamichi's location. Luckily, Yaga was still at the school, sipping tea at that very moment.
"Principal," Hayashi knocked on the door.
"Come in," Yaga's voice boomed with authority.
As Hayashi stepped inside, Yaga looked up, setting his teacup down to face him. "Hayashi, huh? What's on your mind?"
Yaga had always paid special attention to this rather unique student. Though they didn't interact much, he'd been keeping tabs on Hayashi through Gojo's reports. In Gojo's words, Hayashi's abilities weren't exaggerated, but the confidence he exuded was undeniably reassuring.
"Hey, Principal. It's not a big deal, really. I just wanted to ask for something—if that's okay?"
"Ask for something?" Yaga raised an eyebrow, sizing Hayashi up with mild curiosity. "Go on, spit it out."
"A warning talisman. Is that doable?"
"Sure, come grab it." Yaga didn't even ask why Hayashi needed a warning talisman. He slid open a desk drawer and pulled out a stack of yellow paper charms, each covered in intricate runes.
"That many?" Hayashi stepped closer, eyeing the pile. There had to be hundreds of them—like they were as common as dirt.
"They only serve a 'warning' purpose. Not much practical use, so we've got a ton of them. They're not worth much. That said, the ones I've got here are definitely better than what you'd find out there," Yaga explained casually. "Take as many as you need."
"Thanks, Principal!" Hayashi couldn't make these himself, or he would've done it already. After a moment's thought, he grabbed a hundred warning talismans, thanked Yaga again, and turned to leave.
"Sit down and have some tea with me. Training and getting stronger are important, but sometimes you need to relax—like a certain someone," Yaga said calmly, his tone as steady as a still pond.
"A certain someone?" Hayashi's mind instantly conjured up Gojo's carefree, goofy demeanor. Relaxed? That guy was always relaxed. Or was it just a front, hiding something tighter underneath?
"Thanks, Principal, but I've got some stuff to handle. I'll pass for now. Next time I'm free, I'll swing by. If that doesn't work, we can crack open some sake—I'll bring peanuts," Hayashi said, his words veering off track as he spoke.
Yaga chuckled at that, a rare laugh escaping him as if something had suddenly crossed his mind. "The world's a mess these days. Who knows how long we've got left? There's that saying—'Drink today while the wine's here.' You're right. I'll be waiting."
Hayashi froze for a few seconds. Was it dangerous for the principal to think like that? Or was he just seeing things more clearly? To bring up his own death like that…
Then again, being a jujutsu sorcerer was a high-risk gig. You could lose your life any day. Today was today, but tomorrow might not be tomorrow.
Hayashi gave Yaga a deep, thoughtful look and nodded. "Alright, Principal. I'll head out now."
"Go on," Yaga replied, lifting his teacup with his left hand for a sip while his right gently stroked the fluffy cursed corpse beside him. A faint, unreadable smile lingered on his face.
Hayashi stuffed the warning talismans into his clothes and met up with Todo at the school gate before heading off into the distance.
Todo didn't ask what Hayashi had just done. For all he knew, Hayashi might've just needed a quick bathroom break.
Later, Hayashi brought Todo to Junpei's house. He handed over forty warning talismans to Yoshino Nagi, who was home, instructing her to keep them on her at all times. If danger got close, Hayashi would sense it.
It was the best he could do for now. He didn't have any better tricks up his sleeve. He couldn't stick around forever to protect an ordinary person—people died every day around the world because of cursed spirits. He'd already gone above and beyond.
"Someone's tailing us. You didn't notice?" Todo whispered to Hayashi as they left Junpei's place and reached the airport outskirts.
"Who's tailing us?" Hayashi unleashed his cursed energy, scanning the crowd of people coming and going. Finally, it locked onto a guy with blue curly hair.
"This guy… why do I feel like I've seen him before?" Hayashi racked his brain, then slapped his thigh in realization. "That's it! I've seen him at the airport before. He's still here? You mean him—the blue curly-haired one?"
"As expected of my best bud! I didn't even need to tell you—you just knew. Yeah, that's him. He's been following us the whole way. I didn't mention it earlier because I thought you'd already clocked him," Todo said. Despite his usual loud, brash demeanor, Todo was surprisingly sharp.
"No point in wasting words. Let's nab that punk and interrogate him. Somewhere quiet," Hayashi said with a sly grin, heading out of the airport.
"Why's he stopping? Why's he turning back again!?" Miyata Juan was losing it. He was starting to think Hayashi might be unhinged. Last time, the guy had come to the airport, sipped a coffee in the lounge, and left. This time was worse—he'd walked right up to the entrance and then turned around.
Miyata was even starting to wonder if he'd been made. But that couldn't be right. He'd been so careful—how could he have been spotted? The odds were slim. His cursed energy was barely distinguishable from a normal person's when he wasn't using it. No jujutsu sorcerer should've picked up on him.
"I'll follow and see what's up," Miyata decided, stepping lightly as he trailed the duo—one tall, one short; one bulky, one lean; one fierce, one cool.
Hayashi and Todo veered further off the beaten path, the crowd thinning out until there was no one left to blend into. That's when Miyata realized something was wrong—but it was too late.
"Looking for us?" Todo's towering figure loomed behind Miyata's small frame, casting a shadow like a mountain blocking the sun.
Hayashi stepped forward too, flashing a creepy grin.
Miyata's face twisted in panic, tears welling up. He'd been caught!
Cornered by Hayashi and Todo, Miyata shrank under their towering glares. He didn't even dare fight back—his body trembled slightly.
Hayashi was about to say something when his eyes drifted to Miyata's chest. He smirked, reached out, and patted it. "Not bad, kid. Those pecs are pretty solid. How'd I miss that earlier?"
But the pat felt off. Hayashi frowned. Weren't pecs supposed to be rock-hard? This guy's felt… weird. Not like pecs at all.
Todo noticed Hayashi's move and a dark line flashed through his mind. Seriously? This guy was complimenting someone's build at a time like this? Why not hype up his muscles? Todo's pecs were way more impressive—solid as hell. Why wasn't Hayashi checking him out?
Miyata, already terrified and plotting an escape, froze as Hayashi's hand landed on his chest. His face paled, then flushed with a mix of shame and fury.
"What's up with you? Are these fake muscles or what? They're not even hard," Hayashi muttered, pressing again. Same weird vibe—like they weren't real.
"Ahhh!!!" Miyata suddenly let out a piercing scream, shrill and unmistakably feminine, identical to a woman's cry.
"You—you're a girl?" Hayashi's face shifted as realization hit. He stumbled back a few steps, staring at his hand. What the hell had he just done?
Todo's expression changed too. He gaped at Hayashi. "Hayashi, you're out here playing rogue in broad daylight? Can't even tell someone's gender before you start groping?"
"I—" Hayashi's forehead darkened as he shot back at Todo, "This jerk's dressed like a dude! She doesn't even look like a girl! You didn't notice either, so don't act all high and mighty now!"