I Play Ninjutsu in Jujutsu Kaisen! Chapter 12

Maki Zenin gave him no chance to argue back. She put on her shoes, grabbed him, and pulled him out of the room.

At the training ground.

Natsu Hiraku sat to one side, watching as Maki Zenin rapidly swung the longsword in her hands. His Sharingan recorded every movement.

Though he would never know whether it worked without actual combat, his current body clearly did not permit him to fight for real. All he could do was record, recall, and turn these things into instinct.

There were no flashy techniques. Every move was plain and unadorned, yet even these simple strikes carried a palpable sense of power.

Unlike the all-or-nothing, broad sweeping style of the Naginata, Maki Zenin was teaching him how to create opportunities for counterattacks while defending.

As expected of Maki Zenin, an expert with Cursed Tools.

What she taught was simple and easy to understand. If he could apply it flexibly, his odds of winning would no longer be merely fifty percent—they would be sixty.

After all, before these eyes, everything was futile. The reason his chances were low was that he had too little stamina and cursed energy. Moreover, Megumi Fushiguro was a summoner, and it was easy for him to be dragged around until his cursed energy ran dry.

The next day.

As the sound of "ring ring ring" echoed beside his ears, Natsu Hiraku opened his eyes and looked at the rising sun outside the window. He got up and moved his body a few times, discovering that he was no longer as sore as he had been yesterday.

He sighed. "My body recovered pretty well. Once today's combat training is over, I'll be sparring with Megumi Fushiguro tomorrow. Honestly, I'm kind of looking forward to it!"

After getting dressed and washing up, he picked up the longsword on the table and headed straight out.

Perhaps because of yesterday, everyone who should have still been asleep was already up training. Only Panda sat to one side, shouting, "Go! Go!"

Looking at the three people running laps around the training ground, Natsu Hiraku almost wanted to go back and check whether he had set his alarm wrong. Everyone knew Maki Zenin got up early, while Yuta Okkotsu and Toge Inumaki could be considered to be training ahead of schedule.

Panda, you weren't even working out. Did you get up early just to cheer them on?

"..."

How mean.

"Yo! Hiraku, you're really late! You're the only one missing—hurry up and join the group for a run!"

Panda waved and shouted loudly.

"You're not even running, so you have no right to criticize me! And I already got up early!"

After snapping back, Natsu Hiraku set his longsword on the ground. Once he had stretched a few times, he started running alongside the other three.

After five laps to warm up, it was time for the so-called combat training. That was also why Panda, Yuta, and Toge had gotten up so early—they wanted to see what Natsu Hiraku was capable of.

"How many minutes do you think Hiraku can last against Maki?"

Panda asked quietly.

Yuta Okkotsu recalled how badly he had been beaten before. Considering that Natsu Hiraku had better combat instincts than him, he answered uncertainly, "Ten minutes?"

"Bonito Flakes."

Toge Inumaki said in a dismissive tone.

"Normal combat training doesn't last as long as ten minutes. Maki didn't use much strength because she was teaching you. Otherwise, Yuta, you would've been defeated in an instant."

As soon as Panda finished explaining, Toge Inumaki chimed in.

"Salmon."

"Eh! Is that how it is? That makes me a little sad T_T."

Yuta Okkotsu looked at the two people in the center of the field, his eyes filled with admiration. Gripping the ring on the ring finger of his right hand, he murmured, "Rika, I'll definitely lift your curse and set you free."

In the field.

The two held longswords as they watched each other. This was a contest between "teacher and student," as well as a necessary trial on Natsu Hiraku's path to growth.

As a light breeze swept past, Maki Zenin suddenly drove her legs forward and charged straight at him like an arrow.

She's coming!

Warning bells blared in Natsu Hiraku's heart. His scarlet Sharingan appeared before everyone's eyes as both hands tightly gripped the hilt, swinging with all his strength.

Everything Maki Zenin had taught him yesterday had replayed in his mind hundreds of times, already forming muscle memory.

When to swing, what to do—everything surfaced in his mind.

All he needed to do now was follow his instincts!

Clang! Clang! Clang...

Crisp impacts rang beside everyone's ears. The pair's first clash surprised the three spectators at the side.

They were actually evenly matched!

Maki Zenin's gaze was sharp, and the angles of her strikes were exceedingly tricky, yet none of them broke through his defense. Even she could not help marveling inwardly at how monstrous Natsu Hiraku was. So many things were not something one could learn simply by wanting to.

Though she herself learned rather quickly too...

But her exceptional athletic talent and powerful physique were abilities she had been born with.

He had learned well, but she still needed to crush him mercilessly!

Clang!

The force had gotten stronger!

Faced with this sudden oppressive force, Natsu Hiraku was forced down onto one knee. At this moment, aside from using cursed energy to activate his Sharingan, he had not used it to strengthen his body.

That was the point of actual combat. Only formidable physical conditioning could sustain high-intensity battles. After all, he had pitifully little cursed energy—once it ran out, he would not even know how he died later on!

"Already can't take it? Your body really is weak!"

Maki Zenin's voice echoed by his ear. Her words seemed to strike a sore spot, leaving Natsu Hiraku with mixed emotions.

Sorry for having a weak body...

Without the system's enhancements, I'd already be rolling around on the ground.

No, my hand might've been broken already.

But this was only the beginning!

"I haven't lost yet!"

Veins bulged on Natsu Hiraku's forehead as he slowly rose to his feet under Maki Zenin's crushing pressure.

The moment he stood up to prove he was not weak, a foot sent him flying. Maki Zenin complained, "Fine, you haven't lost. Why are you shouting so loudly?"

"So, what do you think? The atmosphere here is great, right?"

Standing outside the dormitory building and watching everyone on the training grounds, Gojo Satoru spoke with a smile.

"Yeah, but is that why you knocked on my door for two minutes? It's only 5:50 in the morning. If you don't want to sleep, don't stop me from sleeping."

Megumi Fushiguro glared at Gojo Satoru with malice in his eyes. He had been sleeping perfectly well, but this guy had acted like a lunatic, banging on his door early in the morning and yelling. If he could beat him, he would definitely kill him!

"Oh, don't be so hot-headed, young man. Early to bed and early to rise is good for your health. Besides, I'm going to be your teacher in the future."

"Aren't you teaching them? If you take over the first-years next year too, won't you be too busy?"

"Nope. Once they reach their second year, it means I've already taught them everything they need to learn. By then, I can just give them a few cursed spirit exorcism missions to keep them occupied, and then I'll have time to teach you guys. What do you think? Pretty worry-free, right?"

"..."

If I were a first-year right now, I'd probably beat the crap out of you.

Megumi Fushiguro looked at the two people trading blows on the training grounds and remained silent.

He had already talked big. No matter what happened tomorrow, he could not lose.

"I'm going back to sleep."

"So soon?"

Gojo Satoru glanced at the departing Megumi Fushiguro and said, "Don't be so overconfident. Sometimes, feeling out your opponent can increase your chances of winning. Anyone can stumble in the gutter."

"No. I will win. Absolutely."

Gojo Satoru did not respond. He merely watched Megumi Fushiguro's retreating figure in silence before saying with some uncertainty, "Looks like he's quite the troublesome student. But why does this feel a little familiar?"

At that moment, Yaga Masamichi, who was still asleep, sneezed and grumbled, "Why do I feel like someone's stabbing me in the back? Forget it. There are only a little over two months left until the Exchange Event with Kyoto School. It's about time to choose the participants. This time, we're definitely going to win!"

On the training grounds.

Natsu Hiraku lay on the ground, completely lifeless. His mind was filled with only one thought: I can't beat her. I just can't beat her.

Without using cursed energy to strengthen his body, he could not even get close, much less evade. His eyes could keep up, but his body could not.

He had been getting beaten up nonstop.

Damn it, I'm done. Don't say I'm a sore loser. Megumi Fushiguro, watch me breathe fire all over...

"Get up and continue!"

The moment Maki Zenin finished speaking, Natsu Hiraku gripped the sword in his right hand and shouted, "Coming!"

Even if he could not win, he still had to fight...

Nothing was more miserable than this. Even though he shouted about giving up in his heart, the truth was that he worked harder than anyone else and would not let go of any opportunity to grow stronger.

He had once said, "Those who shout about giving up are, behind the scenes, the final meteors that grind everyone else to death."

Like an indestructible cockroach, Natsu Hiraku would get back up every time he was defeated, tighten his grip on his sword, and launch another assault.

Maki Zenin did not go too hard on him either. After knocking him down, she merely urged him to "continue" a few times.

The two people and one panda watching from the side began betting on how many times Natsu Hiraku would lose today.

Naturally, the loser would pay for the winner's food for a month.

That meant Natsu Hiraku's custom meal plan—fifty thousand yen a month.

None of the two people and one panda wanted to lose. Toge Inumaki even took out paper and a pen from his pocket to write it down, afraid that Panda, who was responsible for translating, would falsely report the result.

"Salmon!"

He wrote on the paper.

I bet Hiraku will be defeated by Maki thirty-five times.

"Eh! Thirty-five times?!"

Yuta Okkotsu looked shocked. Thirty-five times was a little impossible, no matter how you looked at it. Although Natsu Hiraku had already been knocked down twelve times, he was already gasping for breath!

A month's worth of custom meal plans—if he won against both of them, that would be two months' worth, a full hundred thousand yen! He had to consider this carefully. Lose, and he would be poor for a month. Win, and he would live well for two months...

"Yikes..."

Panda shouted from the side, "Then I'm betting thirty times. Yuta, it's your turn. Hurry up, or this bet will be void."

"Let me think for a second~"

Yuta Okkotsu scratched his head, looked at Natsu Hiraku, who was panting heavily in the arena, then gritted his teeth and said, "Then I'll go with twenty-five times!"

"Alright! No changing your bets!"

Panda stood up and shouted toward Natsu Hiraku in the arena, "Hiraku-kun, don't disgrace us men! Even if you get beaten, you have to get back up again and again. I'm proud of you!"

"Huh!?"

Natsu Hiraku stared at Panda in the distance, utterly bewildered, and cursed inwardly, Are you trying to make things worse? If you're so damn tough, come down here and take a beating yourself.

"Don't get distracted!"

Maki Zenin kicked the distracted Natsu Hiraku to the ground.

"Ah, fuck! Panda, just you wait!!"

I revised the previous chapter N times. I only posted it after feeling it was finally acceptable. My brain cells are all dead, so I still owe you today's update.