The Supervisor Is About to Be Replaced

"Alright, now that you've mastered several variations of the Curtain, what should I even say? Saying you lack talent would be an outright lie... You—why are you progressing so fast?"

At the training grounds several days later, beneath the setting sun, Utahime Iori watched her junior retract an irregular Curtain. Though she had long known his learning ability was terrifying, she still could not help complaining helplessly.

Yes, after several days of training, Toho Tetsu had already mastered the use of the Curtain. Not only could he maintain it steadily, he had even begun changing its shape and expanding its range.

The largest test they had conducted so far had covered a radius of five hundred meters, and even then, he had not felt that it was difficult to control or maintain.

That only made Utahime Iori more convinced that he was a monster.

"That's only because you taught me well, senpai. If you hadn't guided me, I probably would've taken quite a few detours."

Toho Tetsu did not grow proud at her praise. Instead, he was exceptionally modest, which only made the girl feel increasingly frustrated and helpless.

Had she taught him well? Perhaps that was part of it. After all, aside from her cursed technique, barrier techniques were the only thing she could truly excel at.

But it was obvious now that his progress had little to do with her teaching ability.

Still, she understood that he was saying this to avoid hurting her confidence, so she sighed helplessly.

"Enough with that. Since you've already mastered the Curtain, we can officially begin teaching you barrier techniques once I'm back."

At the mention of that, Toho Tetsu grew more serious.

"In that case, shall we start learning tomorrow?"

In his plans, many future changes were closely tied to barrier techniques. While he could tell Utahime about some of his ideas and directions and have her research them in his place—

This was his own matter. He could not act like an uninvolved bystander and simply have someone else work hard and take responsibility for it.

First, that would be uncontrollable; he might not even know whether his own direction was right. Second, it went against his philosophy of life.

Therefore, he had to seriously practice and understand barrier techniques himself.

Yet Utahime did not eagerly agree. Instead, she suddenly fell silent. Meeting his questioning gaze, she hesitated for several seconds before speaking.

"That probably won't be possible for a while. Do you remember the rotating supervision Yaga mentioned before?"

Hearing that, Toho Tetsu nodded, a guess forming in his mind. The answer did not exceed his expectations.

"Mei Mei—my classmate—will return to the school tomorrow. At the same time, I'll be leaving later today for a long-term mission that will last several days, starting tomorrow."

Halfway through, she gave him a complicated look.

"So our lessons will probably have to be postponed for a while. Mei Mei will be teaching you from now on."

Seeing her somewhat dejected expression, Toho Tetsu was just about to speak when she continued.

"But this is fine too. I've never been particularly good at combat, after all. All I've been able to teach you during this time is basic knowledge and barrier techniques. You must already be tired of learning that stuff. You don't need me anymore, right?"

Watching Utahime turn her head aside as she spoke, he knew that this senior of his had fallen into her familiar cycle of self-doubt again.

After all, she had once said enviously that Mei Mei was very strong, completely unlike herself.

So he sighed.

"Senpai, I already told you before—you need to have more confidence in yourself."

Looking at her face turned away from him, he spoke calmly, without putting any pressure on her.

"Mei Mei-senpai may indeed be very strong, but I don't think she would teach me cursed energy control and usage bit by bit from the very basics like you did, patiently wait as I tried again and again, or stand up for me when others looked down on me."

Thinking of certain things that had happened before, he smiled and voiced his most sincere thoughts.

"To me, senpai, you will never be someone I can casually discard after you've provided your value.

Whether it's Mei Mei-senpai or anyone else I meet in the future, I'll always remember the time I spent with you.

No one will ever be able to replace your place in my life."

Upon hearing that, Utahime Iori's ears visibly reddened. Moved yet embarrassed, she turned around and shot him a fierce glare, her tone becoming flustered and hostile.

"You... saying weird things like that again! How long are you planning to tease your senior?!"

"I'm only telling the truth~"

Seeing his completely sincere expression, as though he truly was not lying at all, the girl's heart suddenly skipped a beat. On the surface, however, she merely snorted in displeasure.

"Let's say it is the truth. But what I said before wasn't entirely empty talk either.

Mei Mei really is better than me at combat, especially close-quarters fighting and weapon use. Take this opportunity to learn more from her."

Halfway through, she deliberately emphasized her words.

"Don't let me come back only for her to tell me you've been slacking off! If that happens, you'll be making me look bad! Don't blame me if I'm not nice then!"

Though he really wanted to know what exactly she meant by "not nice," Toho Tetsu merely nodded.

"Don't worry, senpai."

Halfway through, he seemed to remember something.

"By the way, could you bring me back a souvenir or some local specialty?"

Utahime Iori replied with some irritation.

"I'm going on a mission, not on vacation. What souvenirs or local specialties am I supposed to bring back?"

Yet after meeting his gaze for several seconds, her lips moved slightly. She merely snorted again and turned her head away.

"We'll see. I'm leaving first. Remember what we agreed on?"

"Okay."

Watching Utahime Iori turn and leave, gradually disappearing beyond the training grounds, Toho Tetsu did not return immediately. Instead, he sat down on a nearby bench and began considering what came next.

Starting tomorrow, the person supervising him and teaching him the basics would be Mei Mei. Frankly speaking, compared to Utahime, Mei Mei's personality was not as obvious or easy to analyze.

All he knew from the original story was that she prioritized money and efficiency above all else. But no one had ever mentioned why she had become that way or what had shaped that personality.

Though he had done some analysis and thought about it before, none of that could be treated as direct evidence. Their way of interacting might need to change somewhat from now on.

However, there was one thing he could be certain of: Mei Mei would definitely not arrive at the training grounds early to wait for him like Utahime did. She was the kind of person who clocked in on time, clocked out on time, and absolutely would not waste even a second.

The facts proved that he was right.

The next morning, Toho Tetsu arrived at the training grounds dozens of minutes early. He did several sets of warm-up exercises, then practiced several rounds of cursed energy control.

Only when the clock struck eight did a figure slowly step into the training grounds.

She was tall and wore a sharply tailored black uniform. Unlike the curtain-like hairstyle that many would criticize in the future, her bangs were parted at the moment, revealing a faint portion of her forehead. Her white hair, faintly tinged with blue, was tied into a high ponytail behind her head.

Unlike Utahime's still delicate and cute features, her face already closely resembled how she would look in the future—mature and glamorous.

Yet what drew the most attention was the instinctive distance and scrutiny in her eyes, followed by a voice that was at once cool and elegant.

"Toho Tetsu?"

"Yes."

Toho Tetsu simply answered without saying more.

Sure enough, after seeing his reaction, Mei Mei nodded. She sized him up for a moment before slowly speaking.

"My name is Mei Mei. I'm a second-year student at Jujutsu High, and I'll be your supervisor and instructor for the coming period. Utahime and Yaga have already told me about your training progress."

Halfway through, she paused, a hint of curiosity flashing in her eyes.

"Your training has progressed quickly, so I think we can skip the unnecessary basic instruction and begin trying some real things."

Real things?

Perhaps seeing what he was thinking, Mei Mei nodded, then pointed toward another exit from the training grounds—the direction of Jujutsu High's back mountain.

"Next, you'll fight cursed spirits directly."