How to Beat Up Satoru Gojo

He was stunned.

Although Akesato had always been the one doing things that shocked his mom for an entire year, this time, the tables had turned—his mom had shocked him for an entire year instead.

Masamichi Yaga was somewhat surprised as well. "Ms. Akesato, you—"

"I'm also a graduate of Jujutsu High. Although that was over twenty years ago, I still remember everything a Jujutsu Sorcerer ought to know." Akemi replied calmly, occasionally glancing at Akesato as though she was quite pleased with his current expression.

Satoru Gojo let out a soft chuckle.

Over the past two days, he had sent people to investigate the Akesato mother and son, but with so many people in Japan, they had not gotten very far. With this information, however, the scope would narrow considerably. There were only so many Jujutsu High graduates across the generations.

Masamichi Yaga thoughtfully adjusted his sunglasses. "Since you're a Jujutsu High graduate, there's naturally no issue. Then I'll have to trouble you, Ms. Akesato."

"Mom—"

Akesato was just about to speak when Akemi seemed to understand what he was thinking and spoke first.

"My child is working so hard. As his mother, I can't just sit around doing nothing. I'm getting a little tired of drinking tea, tending flowers, and practicing calligraphy every day. Don't worry, it'll be fine. This is Jujutsu High."

Akesato thought about it and figured she was right, so he said no more.

At worst, he could train a few more Pokémon. Akesato loved ganging up on people.

Seeing that Akesato had no objections, Masamichi Yaga instructed, "Gojo, take them to complete the paperwork, then introduce the security measures."

"Alright, Jujutsu High sightseeing group, let's go."

Satoru Gojo raised a hand, striking the pose of a tour guide.

Unfortunately, he immediately broke character in the next second when Masamichi Yaga cut him off.

"Pick up some planks and nails while you're at it. Fix the floor when you get back."

"Huh? Why do I have to fix it? I wasn't the one who broke it."

"Do as you're told. Why so much nonsense? Are you the principal, or am I the principal?"

"Yes~ What a pain."

"Too quiet. I can't hear you."

"Yes!"

Akesato understood something else.

Being a Jujutsu Sorcerer was like commanding a warship—the key was volume. You could not lose in terms of presence.

Although Jujutsu High was severely understaffed, the school had not been scaled down in the slightest. If anything, it was exceptionally grand.

Not only did it occupy an enormous area, but the buildings themselves were distinctive as well: pagodas and shrines, gray walls and wooden railings, single-eaved and double-eaved roofs, with covered corridors connecting everything.

Since jujutsu was unknown to ordinary people, Jujutsu High disguised itself to the public as a specialized religious school. They went all the way with the act, and in any case, the Jujutsu Alliance never lacked money.

After spending half the morning wandering around the school and then having to repair the floor, it was nearly noon by the time Satoru Gojo officially brought Akesato to his class.

There was no need to introduce his classmates again. They were the two people and one panda he had met before: Maki Zenin, Toge Inumaki, and Panda.

Whether they had been shaken by their earlier danger or were simply used to working hard, they trained diligently even without a teacher present.

They met not in a classroom, but at the training grounds.

"Gather up." Satoru Gojo clapped his hands, drawing their attention.

The three students stopped at once, their gazes focusing on the Playful Panda atop the broom-haired Satoru Gojo.

"Salmon mayo." Inumaki's speech: Look.

"Panda, is that your little brother?" Maki Zenin asked with a smile.

"No. It's not a cursed corpse."

Panda instinctively denied it. He was not a real panda, but Masamichi Yaga's greatest creation—a cursed corpse born with emotions and intelligence, a suddenly mutated cursed corpse.

But as soon as he finished speaking, the Playful Panda jumped over, grabbed Panda's belly, and refused to let go, continuously crying, "Playful, playful!"

Panda had no choice but to say, "Fine, fine. All pandas are family. I'm your big brother."

Only then was the little fellow satisfied. It scampered back to Akesato's side, skillfully pulled a bamboo stalk from his backpack, and offered it to Panda.

Panda was helpless. "I don't eat bamboo..."

Cursed corpses were not living creatures. They did not need to eat or excrete.

"Playful~ Playful~"

"I really don't eat... Mr. Akesato, help talk it out of this."

With Masamichi Yaga as precedent, it was only natural that Panda and the Playful Panda could communicate well.

Akesato said, "Little Playful, stop messing around. Be careful, or your big brother won't play with you."

The Playful Panda truly settled down. It held the bamboo in its mouth and stood behind Panda, looking exactly like a little follower trailing after its boss.

Thinking of one of Panda's forms, Akesato felt that Little Playful might have mistaken Panda for its ultimate evolution—Rogue Panda.

Akesato was already looking forward to the sight of two pandas fighting side by side.

"Mr. Akesato, what about this uniform?"

Maki noticed that Akesato had changed clothes, into the same dark blue jacket and pants as hers.

"Let me formally introduce him. Starting today, Akesato is your classmate. Everyone, get along," Satoru Gojo finally did what a teacher was supposed to do.

Unfortunately, the students weren't having it.

Maki said, "How rare. You actually showed up before noon."

Panda said, "By convention, you should've had lunch first, then found somewhere for afternoon tea and desserts, before dropping by just before quitting time with excuses like 'I had to go on an overseas business trip' or 'I got lost on the road of life.'"

Inumaki said, "Salmon (yes)."

"This time, it really wasn't my fault. It was his," Satoru Gojo protested, casually throwing Akesato under the bus. "He tore up half the floor in the principal's office, and I've been repairing it."

"Nicely done." Maki gave Akesato a thumbs-up.

"There's something even better. The technical college has hired two new assistant teachers—me, mainly responsible for combat training, and my mother, mainly responsible for theoretical knowledge."

"Got it. Hey, Idiot Teacher, you're useless now. Go wherever you want." Maki immediately waved him off.

"They're only assistant teachers. I'm the teacher—the Great!"

"I don't have a habit of being late."

With just one sentence, Satoru Gojo's resistance was shattered.

Satoru Gojo's worst habit was being late. Everyone at the technical college had long since had enough of it.

"Tuna mayo!"

Inumaki shouted, meaning—awesome.

"And—my experience should suit you better. Teacher Gojo isn't actually very good at teaching people."

"Eh? I thought I was doing pretty well. Are you denying the first half of my life?"

Satoru Gojo's nastiness lay in his self-centeredness and harmless pranks. His temper was actually quite good in other respects, and he didn't get angry when Akesato said that.

"It's very simple." Akesato raised one hand and asked, "What do you think of the pinnacle technique of hand-to-hand combat, Black Flash? Be honest."

Satoru Gojo answered, "Not much. I can use it whenever I want, though I don't really get many chances to use Black Flash."

"What about the ultimate of jujutsu, Inherent Technique and Domain Expansion?"

"They're not that difficult either. It just takes some time to add a Cursed Technique to a domain."

"That's the answer." Akesato sighed and pointed at the three classmates, who had been provoked by his humblebragging. "Your starting point is higher than the endpoint of most Jujutsu Sorcerers. The things we desperately struggle to master come naturally to you."

Satoru Gojo asked with complete sincerity, "Doesn't it come naturally?"

Akesato said, "..."

Even if I'm cheating too, I can barely stand this guy.

Decided. The next lesson will be how to beat up Satoru Gojo!