Tokyo Jujutsu High, Training Hall.
Quick footsteps echoed across the polished wooden floor. A slender figure sprinted toward Gojo Satoru at full speed. Her silky black hair was tied into a high ponytail, swaying with each movement.
Yukinoshita Yukino leaped into the air, moving with sharp precision. Her slender leg whipped toward Gojo Satoru's neck like a striking whip.
But the strongest sorcerer of this era simply raised a hand and blocked the attack with ease.
He didn't activate his Limitless technique, nor did he enhance himself with cursed energy. After all, this was just a hand-to-hand sparring match. Using techniques would've been plain unfair.
As for why he was "the strongest of this era" again? Well, that was because the real strongest had gone off to another timeline for a little vacation. So naturally, the second strongest got promoted to temporary number one.
Yukino didn't stop after her first failed strike. She pushed off and flipped backward, creating distance. Her movements traced a graceful arc in the air. The moment her feet touched the ground, she dashed forward again.
Their close-range exchange was so fast it would be impossible for an untrained eye to follow. Unfortunately, there was no audience to witness their fight.
In the end, Gojo still held the advantage. He struck out with a counterpunch, landing it against Yukino's slender forearms as she blocked, sending her skidding backward.
"Wow, that's some impressive progress," Gojo remarked. "At this rate, I could probably recommend you for special-grade."
He wasn't wearing his usual black blindfold today. Instead, a pair of sunglasses rested on his nose, but they couldn't fully hide the vibrant blue glow of his eyes.
Lately, Yukinoshita Yukino had been coming to him for sparring sessions. At first, she had been too cautious, holding back because of how overwhelming he was. But every time, Gojo could see clear improvements.
Now, as long as he didn't get serious, she could actually hold her own against him in close combat.
"Thank you, Gojo-sensei," Yukino said in a calm, even tone, not showing much excitement over her own progress.
To her, these things were just natural.
"By the way, you've sparred with Hayashizaki too, right? Compared to him, how do I rank?" Gojo Satoru asked with a playful grin.
The black-haired girl thought for a moment. Judging by her furrowed brows, she was seriously comparing the pressure she felt from Hayashizaki and Gojo Satoru.
It didn't take long for Yukinoshita Yukino to reach a conclusion. "Not as much as Hayashizaki-kun."
"...Uh."
The white-haired man's face instantly fell, looking visibly annoyed.
"Forget it, let's change the subject. I have a mission for you." Gojo Satoru's mood shifted just as quickly as it had dropped. Soon, he was back to his usual carefree self. "I want you to lead the team and complete this mission with Megumi and the other first-years."
"Why?" Yukinoshita Yukino asked, puzzled. "Is the mission that easy?"
"Why would you assume that…" He pushed up his sunglasses, which had slipped down his nose. "Do Yuji and the others seem that weak to you?"
"No matter the difficulty, my request remains the same—let me exorcise the curse whenever possible. So if it's an easy mission, then you're using it to give Itadori and the others some experience, and I'm leading the team just as a safety measure. Isn't that right?" Yukinoshita Yukino explained.
"Besides, if the mission is actually difficult, bringing them along will just be a burden. Worst case, they might even die."
"Hahaha, so that's how you see it. Well, you're not exactly wrong." Something about her words made the white-haired man burst into laughter. "Anyway, according to the support staff's estimate, the lowest difficulty level for this mission is Grade 2. So it's not exactly easy."
"Grade 2 at minimum… Meaning there's a chance the danger level was underestimated." Yukinoshita Yukino nodded in understanding. "Got it."
"I'm counting on you." Gojo Satoru said with a grin.
There was actually another reason he hadn't mentioned—Yukinoshita Yukino and Fushiguro Megumi shared the same type of technique. Having Yukinoshita lead the first-years was also a chance for Megumi to learn from her.
Gojo Satoru's real goal this time was to train Fushiguro Megumi.
—
"June, Morioka, Kaneda Taichi."
"August, Yokohama, Shimada Kyo."
"September, Nagoya, Yamato Hiroshi."
The blonde-haired support staff member, Nitta Akari, handed a tablet with the victims' profiles to Yukinoshita Yukino while explaining to the group. "All three victims died in exactly the same way—stabbed to death by a curse at the entrance of their apartment buildings."
"And in the weeks before their deaths, they all filed the same complaint with their building management—automatic doors that wouldn't close properly. But other residents never had this issue."
"The timing and locations are pretty scattered, though," the black-haired girl said from the front passenger seat, passing the tablet to the three sitting in the back.
"Yeah… Are we sure it was the same curse?" Fushiguro Megumi noted the inconsistency.
"Wait, was the door staying open caused by the curse?" Itadori Yuji asked, confused. "Can a curse be detected by sensors? I thought cameras couldn't even capture them."
"It wasn't the sensor. The automatic door's control system malfunctioned due to the curse's influence."
"Oh, the control system." Itadori nodded as if he understood.
"As for whether it's the same curse, we can't determine that just from residual energy alone. Too much time has passed. So instead, we investigated what these three people had in common—they all attended the same middle school for two years."
Kugisaki Nobara rested her chin on her fingers, deep in thought. "So… it could be that all three of them were cursed back then, and it only triggered now?"
"Oh!" Itadori Yuji looked at her in surprise.
Nitta Akari also confirmed her guess. "Yeah, that's a strong possibility."
"You're pretty sharp, Kugisaki!" The pink-haired boy's eyes sparkled with admiration.
Nobara proudly flipped her bangs. "Of course!"
Fushiguro Megumi, who was stuck between the two, looked visibly unamused.
With that, their next course of action was clear. Yukinoshita Yukino stated, "So our next step is to go investigate that middle school."
"Yeah, and we also need to talk to people who knew those three to gather more information. I hope you four can investigate from a sorcerer's perspective," Nitta Akira nodded.
A black sedan sped down the highway toward Urashima East Middle School in Saitama.
…
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