When Sōjun Minamoto awakened his Innate Technique, he instinctively understood its ability—
Perfect Self-Control.
This control extended across the body, soul, and Cursed Energy.
It was a straightforward technique—simple, yet full of potential.
And of course, how far it could go depended entirely on the user.
He once tried speeding up his digestion by controlling the peristalsis of his stomach and intestines. After eating a large meal, his body puffed up like a balloon, leading to an energy surplus.
What followed was a wave of discomfort—itchiness, loss of appetite, fatigue...
It took several days before he felt normal again. The whole experience felt like recovering from jet lag, and that was with only shallow control.
The body is a layered, precise system—cells, tissues, organs, networks—intricately interwoven. While increasing peristalsis did help absorb more energy, that alone wasn't enough to bring about any real enhancement or results.
That taught him one thing: developing his technique required real knowledge, at least a foundational understanding of human anatomy.
That was the bare minimum.
Bones, vessels, muscles, skin—kidneys, heart, liver, spleen, lungs.
Nourish the marrow to boost growth; purify the blood to support circulation; reinforce fascia for joint flexibility; strengthen muscles for power; circulate protective energy to enhance skin and outer defenses.
Every small adjustment could affect the whole. For now, Sōjun wasn't going to interfere too much with his body's natural development—the risks were too high. Caution was key.
Still, manipulating hair to grow or shorten at will, messing around with binding techniques... or hardening his nails to carve scratches into a wooden desk—those minor adjustments didn't affect the body much and were fair game.
Next, he turned his attention to the soul.
Where exactly is the soul? What form does it take?
Those were once unanswerable questions. But now, he could see his own soul—at least partially lifting the veil.
It was a spirit body, perfectly mirroring his physical one in size and shape, overlapping it in some intangible dimension, yet deeply intertwined with the body, influencing it and being influenced in return.
Compared to the body's visible complexity, the soul was more mysterious—but also more unified, more pure.
Even small enhancements to the soul at its core brought clear benefits:
Sharper focus, stronger will, quicker thinking, better memory.
That significantly accelerated his learning.
With the help of his technique, he could vaguely perceive others' souls too.
Once the soul became visible, it meant every strike he threw could target it directly.
As long as his vision became a bit clearer, if he willed it, he could begin inflicting spiritual damage.
Then, he turned his focus to Cursed Energy.
Controlling the flow of Cursed Energy in his body felt as effortless as tracing the lines in his palm.
The only issue—he didn't have much of it. A few uses, and it was completely drained.
There wasn't much he could do about that. Cursed Energy capacity depended entirely on talent. He'd just have to wait until his body matured and let it grow to its natural limit.
Still, when it came to precision control and manipulation, he had plenty of room to work with.
Right now, he could condense Cursed Energy into various shapes and fire them off as projectiles.
He could also coat his fists with it—punching the floor and shattering it without leaving a scratch on a human target.
Clearly, Cursed Energy could be used to temporarily boost physical performance and strengthen defense.
As for advanced applications, like the Black Flash or Reverse Cursed Technique he recalled...
He had already half-stepped into that realm during his awakening. All he needed was the right opportunity to fully grasp it.
The description of Black Flash in his memory was detailed: when the interval between a physical strike and a surge of Cursed Energy was within 0.000001 seconds, spatial distortion occurred. The energy would flare with black light, amplifying the power 2.5 times.
Sōjun could even eliminate that margin of error—yet he still couldn't trigger the phenomenon.
Some minor condition was missing. He'd need to test everything, eliminate false leads—or witness a Black Flash firsthand.
As for the Reverse Cursed Technique, he knew even less. Only that it involved inverting Cursed Energy to generate positive energy, enabling healing. It was said to be even harder to master than the Black Flash.
All understanding starts with ignorance. Right now, he knew nothing. As a fledgling Jujutsu Sorcerer, all he could do was refine his body, guide his energy, and temper his soul.
His Innate Technique didn't grant him some flashy power. His strength came purely from within. He was still in that transitional phase—from "I think I can" to a true academic practitioner.
...
Yesterday was Sōjun Minamoto's tenth birthday. Outwardly, he already looked fourteen or fifteen.
He was finally starting to catch up!
He had begun to sense a certain balancing mechanism in this world.
Amazingly, Mr. and Mrs. Minamoto even came home just for the occasion. He was so touched he nearly cried.
Sob sob—
What a heartwarming surprise.
Then the next morning, they were gone again.
Sōjun didn't feel a thing. He even had two extra eggs with breakfast.
His days were packed—studying theory, training martial arts, refining his techniques.
He shuffled constantly between tutors, coaches, and the Fly Head.
His tutors were still the same few. His academic curriculum had long been systematized. He simply followed the path.
Most people reach their knowledge peak in high school.
As for university? Sōjun had no strong opinion.
After graduating himself and working for years, the only thing he still remembered was the multiplication table.
Still, the foundational understanding was there.
Going through it all again, he spent two years covering elementary and middle school material, and was about to finish the full nine-year compulsory education ahead of schedule. And he wasn't stopping there. The higher your education, the better. You might not use it—but you better have it. That belief ran deep in his bones.
His study of anatomy also started from the basics and was gradually deepening.
He was already on his ninth coach—rotating about every 0.44 years.
The first coach had racked his brains trying to take Sōjun as a disciple. When that failed, he shifted roles—nurturing him like a prized seedling and passing on everything he knew. When there was nothing left to teach, he handed him off to the second coach... then the third... and so on. Now he was with Coach No. 9. At this rate, Coach No. 10 would be up soon.
The journey of learning never ends.
Karate, Boxing, Muay Thai, Krav Maga, Sambo, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu...
The world was filled with martial arts styles, and Sōjun found them all fascinating. Martial arts on the outside, anatomy on the inside—the two constantly collided and sparked new ideas.
Six parts knowledge, three parts technique, one part physical optimization. He was excited to see what that formula would produce.
The pursuit of perfection—that was humanity's true nature.
As for the Fly Head—yes, it was the very first one he'd ever encountered. He hadn't exorcised it back then. Now it was half-trained, hanging around as a test subject.
That little pest kept trying to escape, so Sōjun wrapped it tightly with a strand of hair, leaving just one wing exposed—floating above his head like a kite.