Chapter 44 — Gojo Wants to Throw Hands
"To what level have you cultivated now?"
Toji fixed his gaze on Shinsuke.
This carefree brother of his was living far too leisurely. By now, he should've at least opened the fifth gate, right? That was Toji's guess.
"Just a little ahead of you," Shinsuke replied lightly. Then he waved the subject away. "Enough questions. After I eat, I'm going to check on my nephew and niece."
After mooching another free meal, Shinsuke and Toji returned home. He checked on Tsumiki's condition, then talked to Megumi about enrolling at Jujutsu High.
Megumi didn't object. In fact, he welcomed it. He'd studied long enough—it was about time he tested himself in real combat.
---
A month passed quickly.
Finally, Gojo Satoru brazenly brought Okkotsu Yuta out into the open, parading him before the jujutsu world.
When the higher-ups learned the truth, they realized they'd been tricked by Shinsuke and Gojo working in tandem. Furious, they immediately tried to hold the two accountable.
But when they confronted them, both men wore the same infuriatingly indifferent expressions. The elders could do nothing.
If not for Gojo's guarantee—that Yuta would be cultivated into a sorcerer on par with himself—those old fossils might've actually died from anger.
In the end, the higher-ups compromised. Yuta's death sentence was canceled, changed to a suspended sentence instead. His future would depend on his later performance.
"Still pays to have a special grade throwing his weight around," Shinsuke quipped with a smirk, glancing at Gojo.
"Is that so? Then I should've marched him out a month ago," Gojo muttered, sitting on the steps at Jujutsu High's front gate, scratching his head irritably.
Truthfully, Shinsuke could've brought Yuta out the moment he'd collected his pay. But out of "consideration" for the higher-ups' fragile pride, they waited a month.
And sure enough, the elders only ended up annoyed instead of apoplectic. If they'd revealed the trick immediately, some of those old men might've keeled over on the spot.
"By the way," Gojo asked suddenly, "that Zen'in Maki kid who enrolled this year—she was the one hanging around your place back then, right? Why'd you send her here?"
This year's freshman class had four students in total—including Yuta. Quite the crop.
Gojo had recognized Maki at a glance. That faint, almost nonexistent cursed energy? He'd never seen anything like it anywhere else.
"She came of her own will," Shinsuke replied with a grin. "She wants to become stronger. You're her homeroom teacher now, aren't you? Do your job properly."
"…You're the last person qualified to lecture me about responsibility," Gojo deadpanned.
Shinsuke ignored the jab. "Anyway, one year from now, my nephew will be enrolling here too. Make sure you guide him well. He's going to be the strongest sorcerer of this generation."
Gojo: "..."
"Forget it. I'm not taking him. You want him trained? Do it yourself. I'm busy. If it weren't for Yuta, I wouldn't be wasting my time babysitting students in the first place."
Gojo Satoru refused without hesitation.
Of course, he knew about Megumi. The kid had awakened the Zen'in clan's inherited technique—no different from when he himself had awakened both Limitless and Six Eyes as a child. Sooner or later, the higher-ups would learn about it too.
Megumi had the potential to become one of the strongest. If Gojo had the time, he wouldn't actually mind mentoring a few more students.
But the problem was Shinsuke.
That guy was supposed to be a teacher, yet he kept tossing everything onto Gojo's plate. His time—already scarce—vanished every time Shinsuke showed up.
Didn't teach his own students. Wanted to pawn off his own nephew. And this wasn't just anyone's kid—it was the son of the man who once tried to assassinate Gojo himself.
By rights, there was blood grudge between him and Toji. Shinsuke had smoothed it over somehow, but now Gojo was being asked to raise his enemy's child?
The thought almost amused him.
---
"No problem. Just take it as doing me a favor. You'll have the time."
Shinsuke shoved his hands into his pockets and strolled away with that infuriating grin.
"This guy…" Gojo's brow twitched as he watched him go. "Still as annoying as ever. One day, I really will beat the crap out of him."
He'd been wanting to use a sparring match as an excuse to rough Shinsuke up for ages.
But every time, Shinsuke turned him down. "Not the right time." "That's childish." Always some excuse.
If Gojo tried forcing it, the bastard would just flee outright. Never played along. It was maddening.
With a sigh, Gojo shook his head and went back inside Jujutsu High. Sooner or later, I'll get my chance.
---
When he stepped into the classroom, chaos greeted him.
Yuta was pleading desperately while Rika rampaged, tearing through his three new classmates—Panda, Inumaki, and Maki.
"Rika, stop! They weren't trying to hurt me!"
But Rika was enraged, reacting to their hostility.
"Anyone who dares harm Yuta must die!"
It wasn't even Yuta they resented. It was her. What kind of student showed up to class trailed by a nightmarish, towering curse? Of course they were on guard.
Gojo clapped his hands sharply. Pa-pa-pa!
"That's enough. Settle down. This is your new teammate—Okkotsu Yuta."
Rika's fury subsided at his command.
"Oh, a new classmate? Hah, I thought a curse user had invaded campus," Panda muttered, scratching his head in relief.
Inumaki said nothing. Maki only gave Yuta a cool glance.
Yuta's face turned red. He fidgeted nervously. "I—I'm Okkotsu Yuta… p-please take care of me!"
He was no good with people. Even with Rika's overwhelming power at his side, his timidity and lack of confidence showed through. Perhaps that was Rika's fault too.
"Alright," Gojo said, "from today, study hard. In a week, I'll arrange a curse-extermination mission for you all."
At that, Maki's eyes lit up. Her hands tightened around her long-bladed naginata.
She'd chosen the right place. As long as she kept fighting curses, she'd eventually pass her teacher's test.
---
A week later.
The group gathered outside a school wrapped in a barrier. Inside lurked their target.
Gojo's intent was clear—he wanted Yuta to rebuild his confidence.
From the outside, he watched Rika tear into the curse with brutal savagery, and couldn't help but sigh.
"What a terrifying thing…" Even as the strongest sorcerer alive, he could feel how troublesome Rika was. No wonder the higher-ups wanted Yuta dead so badly.
"Gojo-sensei, we did it!"
Yuta emerged from the building, carrying two unconscious children on his back. Maki followed behind, leaning heavily on her blade, barely on her feet.
The curse they'd faced had been near grade 1. If not for timid Yuta, Maki would never have managed it alone—unless she'd had Playful Cloud.
She glanced up at the rooftop, where Rika still snarled and ripped apart the curse's remains. Her expression hardened.
So this is why he's classified special grade.
When she'd first met him, she hadn't understood why Yuta started as a special grade. But now, seeing the monstrous queen curse firsthand, she realized the truth.
Their new teammate wasn't like them. He was a born prodigy.
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