Akoto advanced without hesitation. His hand pierced straight through the mannequin's torso with ease, wrapped in Cursed Energy Reinforcement that condensed around his fingers like an invisible blade. The material's resistance gave way instantly, creaking before being completely penetrated.
In the next instant, Akoto twisted his wrist and pulled his arm back in a clean, precise motion, and the accumulated energy expanded into a horizontal slash that split the mannequin in two, both halves crashing to the floor with a dull impact.
"Very good. It seems you've already grasped Cursed Energy Reinforcement," Tengen remarked as she clapped softly, her footsteps echoing through the training space as she approached Akoto.
"This is kind of boring. Teach me something interesting," Akoto said, not bothering to hide the boredom in his voice. To him, this level no longer posed any challenge.
He had not only learned Cursed Energy Reinforcement and Energy Flow, but also understood their phenomena in depth, mastering circulation, efficiency, and minimal energy waste. On top of that, he already possessed knowledge of the Special Characteristics of Cursed Energy and how they completely altered the impact of combat.
Akoto himself had awakened the special characteristic of his energy. Unlike most, his energy was capable of directly damaging the form of the soul, ignoring conventional defenses and dealing massive damage whenever his strikes or spells made contact with the target. It wasn't merely physical destruction—it was an assault on the essence.
Tengen watched him in silence for a few seconds. There was pride in her gaze, but also a faint unease, as if something were out of place.
"You know the basics, but you don't truly master them."
"Huh?" Akoto reacted immediately, raising an eyebrow as he turned his face toward her, clearly confused by the statement.
"All right, let's imagine the following scenario," Tengen said as she raised her barrier. The environment around them gradually dissolved, giving way to a completely white space, with no defined ground or visible horizon. "A person knows all advanced forms of Jujutsu and fully masters their technique. Clearly, that person would be stronger, right?"
Akoto reflected for a moment before nodding, instinctively agreeing with the logic presented.
"Wrong," Tengen replied without hesitation. Inside the barrier, images began to form slowly. Two spheres appeared in the air.
The first was colossal, as large as a mountain, its overwhelming presence occupying nearly the entire space. Written upon it were the words Mastered Basics.
The second sphere, far smaller—about the size of a small hill—bore the name Advanced.
"The one who masters the basics is the strongest."
Akoto fell silent, his eyes tracing the surface of the gigantic sphere. He could feel the symbolic weight of that image, the absurd difference in scale forcing his mind to reconsider concepts he had always treated as obvious.
"Mastery of the basics provides the advantage of a solid foundation—something that completely changes a fight between sorcerers," Tengen continued, her voice echoing softly through the white space. "That foundation offers consistency, adaptability, and stability. Advanced techniques, when they lack proper support, are fragile and prone to failure. Under real pressure, when there is no time to think, it is well-mastered fundamentals that ensure precision in execution. Advanced techniques, on the other hand, can fail at the critical moment if the fundamentals are not perfectly established."
She smiled serenely, watching Akoto absorb every word as the image of the two spheres remained suspended, etching that lesson into his mind.
"…"
Akoto remained silent for a few moments. Slowly, he raised his hand in front of his body, fingers slightly spread, as if merely testing something in the air. In that same instant, the barrier raised by Tengen began to react. The white surface around them rippled, geometric lines emerged, and then the space shattered into countless hexagonal panels, breaking apart one by one like glass cracking in silence.
"?!"
Tengen's eyes widened, a rare sign of genuine surprise crossing her face. He dismantled my barrier? No… this is…
"Impossible?" Akoto asked as he slowly turned toward her, an ironic smile forming at the corner of his lips. "I can't read your mind, but your train of thought is predictable in a way, you know."
Before Tengen could respond, a surge of purple cursed energy erupted from Akoto's body. It wasn't chaotic, but dense—heavy—pulsing like something alive. The air around him seemed to warp slightly, pressed down by the presence of that incredible power.
"The one who masters the basics is the strongest? I was never really interested in that," Akoto continued, his casual tone clashing sharply with the crushing pressure radiating from him. Then he turned fully toward Tengen, his smile sharpening. "But you know… this whole Strongest thing sounds kind of fun."
Tengen stared at him in silence, genuine surprise mixing with something deeper. That boy who had always walked without clear ambition—who seemed to act only out of curiosity and instinct—was now showing interest in a concept few even dared to mention.
"Hehehe… are you serious?" Tengen murmured to herself, watching Akoto for a few more seconds before letting out a light sigh. "Alright then."
The master of the Temple stepped closer to her successor and, without ceremony, placed her hand on his head, ruffling his hair in an unexpectedly casual, almost affectionate gesture.
Akoto's expression immediately hardened, clearly annoyed.
"Cut it out!" he complained, quickly swatting Tengen's hand away. She simply laughed, finding his reaction far more amusing than it probably should have.
Still smiling, Tengen slipped her hand inside her kimono, her posture gradually returning to that absolute serenity that was so characteristic of her.
"If you want to be the strongest, that's fine," she said, her gentle smile growing almost imperceptibly. "I'll help you."
...
Cursed Techniques were, in essence, extensions of Jujutsu itself—supplementary abilities that gave form, function, and identity to a sorcerer's power. They did not exist in a chaotic manner, but were organized into well-defined categories: Barrier Techniques, responsible for isolating, protecting, and manipulating space; Counter-Domain Techniques, created specifically to confront or neutralize Expanded Domains; the use of Shikigami, external manifestations shaped by Cursed Energy; and, finally, the most direct and casual application, Innate Techniques—unique expressions of each sorcerer's essence.
In general terms, one who could execute all of these categories was recognized as someone who had reached the Apex of Jujutsu. A complete being, capable of responding to any scenario, any threat, any distortion of reality.
But there was a catch.
Boom!
The impact tore through the dojo like thunder. The walls exploded into fragments of wood and stone, shards scattering through the air as a figure was violently hurled outward. The body cut through the space and crashed into the temple's outer garden, rolling across the ground before coming to a grotesque stop.
It was a young man with blond hair and green eyes. He wore Tengen's temple kimono and was barefoot, the fabric torn and stained by the force of the impact.
"Bleh!" He spat blood into the garden, the dark liquid staining the temple's carefully tended soil.
Right behind him, Akoto emerged through the hole blasted open in the wall, walking with an almost offensive calm. His brown eyes carried a cold, disinterested contempt, as if what stood before him was less than an obstacle—an error.
There were those who simply could not execute even the most basic Cursed Techniques. Not due to a lack of training, but because of a factor that, in the Heian Era, defined everything.
Talent.
"What is this?" Akoto remarked, looking at the young man on the ground as he stepped into the garden without any care. "You're puking your blood all over the garden? Disgusting."
His steps were calm, yet every movement carried an invisible, crushing pressure. He stopped in front of the fallen boy, looking down at him the way one looks at something broken and useless.
"What a deplorable sight."
The young man raised his gaze with difficulty, green eyes meeting Akoto's for a brief instant before trembling.
"You're supposed to be my rival in the line of succession to Master Tengen?" Akoto asked, tilting his head slightly as he analyzed the figure before him—Ashiya Dōman, son of Ijicho Dōman. The tone was almost curious, but beneath it lay something cruel, absolute. "Should I die of embarrassment?"
Tengen could have told Ijicho many things. She could have softened the truth, chosen kinder words, or even omitted certain details. But reality was simple, direct, and as clear as day.
Akoto Kisaragi was more talented than Ashiya himself.
This was not a matter of perception or favoritism. It was an absolute fact. Akoto was capable of executing every form of Jujutsu known in the modern era—Innate Techniques, Barrier Techniques, Counter-Domain methods, refined manipulation of Cursed Energy, flow control, bodily reinforcement, and even phenomena that most sorcerers only understood in theory.
Ashiya, on the other hand, had stalled at Barrier Techniques and Counter-Domain techniques.
He was talented, yes—extremely so, even. But his talent had a ceiling. An invisible yet insurmountable limit.
Akoto looked down at him on the ground as if he were examining something microscopic.
"It's like looking at an ant." The comment came out without any emotion. He slowly raised his foot, the movement deliberate and calculated—and then stopped. He didn't step on Ashiya's face, but on the air above him, making it clear that he didn't even deserve direct contact. The look he gave afterward left no room for interpretation. "That look you have… it's full of fantasies."
In Akoto's eyes, Ashiya was a pathetic dreamer. Someone who genuinely believed he could defeat him, despite the glaring difference between the two. Maybe because he had trained in Jujutsu longer, maybe because he had grown up within the temple, maybe because of who his father was. Ashiya believed that would be enough.
That was where the difference revealed itself in brutal fashion.
'Damn it… DAMN IT!' Ashiya cursed inwardly, his fingers digging into the stones of the garden with enough force to tear his own skin. Hatred burned inside him, mixed with humiliation and disbelief. 'Quality, quantity, and talent… he has everything!'
To Ashiya's eyes, Akoto had been born blessed. An absurd amount of Cursed Energy, monstrous quality, natural control, and a talent that seemed to ignore every known rule of Jujutsu.
'But it's fine… soon Master Tengen will—'
The thought died halfway through.
Ashiya realized, too late, the gazes around him. The other students of the temple watched the scene in silence, but there was no empathy there. Only contempt. Some looked away out of discomfort; others didn't even bother to hide their judgment.
Akoto suddenly turned away, his face showing genuine fatigue, as if all of it had been an irritating waste of time.
"What a waste of time."
Without hesitation, he began to walk away.
One by one, the others followed his example, turning their backs on Ashiya and leaving him sprawled on the garden ground like something that had already fulfilled its purpose.
'No… don't… don't do this to me…' The thought came loaded with panic. Ashiya tried to get up, but his body wouldn't respond. The improper use of Cursed Energy Reinforcement had worsened his injuries, damaging muscles and bones to the point where he could barely move. 'Don't abandon me!'
In searing pain, he began to crawl, his fingers leaving trails of blood in the soil as he tried to reach anyone. With a final effort, he managed to grab the edge of Akoto's hakama.
"Let go."
The voice was low, but the pressure that accompanied those words was suffocating. Akoto's Cursed Energy condensed around him—heavy, crushing, as if the air itself had turned solid.
Ashiya didn't let go.
Zoom!
In an instant, the fingers gripping the fabric simply vanished. There was no visible cut, no resistance. Just a flash of purple light too fast to follow—and then blood exploded into the air.
A barrier of violet light formed around Akoto's hakama, preventing a single drop from touching it.
"How persistent."
Without looking back, Akoto left, abandoning Ashiya alone in the garden—mutilated, ignored, and completely broken.