A Review of His Growth and Some Long-Overdue Relaxation

"Whew."

Toho Tetsu let out a long breath and withdrew the Cursed Energy he had been using to reinforce his body, still feeling somewhat dissatisfied.

When he had fought that Semi-Grade 1 Cursed Spirit with the unusual Cursed Technique, he had poured all his Cursed Energy into reinforcing his body. At the time, he had indeed gained explosive speed and tremendous strength.

But he had also noticed signs of slight muscle strain. It seemed that he had reinforced himself too much, pushing his body beyond what it could withstand.

His body was much stronger than it had been in his previous life, perhaps thanks to the mysterious online friend who had given him that gift along with his vast reserves of Cursed Energy. Still, there were no shortcuts when it came to physical training. It took time and consistent effort.

So ever since then, he had made a point of training his body, but... his progress so far had been pretty average.

Watching him, Utahime Iori couldn't help teasing him for once.

"You really are hardworking. Don't you have anything else to do? Every day, you're either out on a mission or training."

Until his evaluation was complete, she and Mei Mei had both been responsible for supervising Toho Tetsu. So even though he could now take missions on his own, the two of them still took turns accompanying him, or went with him together.

She had been watching his efforts all this time, and his dogged perseverance left her both moved and exasperated.

But Toho Tetsu merely smiled at her words.

After everything that had happened, how could he afford to let his guard down?

The trouble was, he couldn't improve his Cursed Technique through sheer willpower. So for now, all he could do was keep training and improving himself, mastering as much power as possible so he would be better prepared for whatever lay ahead.

"If we're talking about hard work, you're no slouch yourself, are you?"

Mei Mei, standing on the other side, joined the conversation, looking at Utahime with curiosity.

"I've heard from some assistant managers that you two have been going to the library a lot lately to research and study something. Sometimes you stay so late that the librarian has to kick you out."

At that, Utahime and Toho Tetsu exchanged a glance, and both saw a hint of delight in the other's eyes.

What they had been working on was the possibility of using Barrier Techniques offensively. They had been spending so much time in the library to look for relevant theory and plan how they might use Barrier Techniques.

Most importantly, they had made progress.

Their breakthrough had come from an idea Toho Tetsu had proposed.

Most Jujutsu Sorcerers used Cursed Energy by wrapping it around themselves or imbuing an object with it and throwing that object.

The latter could be considered a form of ranged attack, but it did very little damage and consumed a lot of energy. It was far less effective than attacking directly with Cursed Energy.

As everyone knew, Cursed Energy couldn't be used for direct ranged attacks because it weakened and became difficult to control once it left the body. Apart from people with special Cursed Techniques or exceptional talent, almost nobody could attack at range with Cursed Energy alone.

But what if they approached it from a different angle?

If Cursed Energy became difficult to control and weakened after leaving the body, they could use Barrier Techniques to constrain it in multiple layers, condensing and compressing it. Then they could add several layers of barriers to accelerate it, firing the condensed mass of Cursed Energy at tremendous speed over a short distance. Finally, they could surround it with a barrier that controlled its direction, ensuring it could deal a certain amount of damage within a certain range.

The overall effect would be something like... an electromagnetic railgun?

It was a fine idea, but their best result so far had been Utahime managing to fire a chaotic stream of Cursed Energy at a target five meters away.

The attack wasn't very powerful. It might not even have done half as much damage as she could have inflicted by reinforcing her body and punching the dummy directly. Still, it proved beyond a doubt that they were on the right track.

The reason they couldn't yet achieve what they had envisioned was simply that their Barrier Technique skills weren't good enough—or, more specifically, they still lacked the precision to control Cursed Energy.

As long as they kept studying and refining their Barrier Techniques, they would eventually make the idea work.

However, because they had promised not to tell anyone about it until they had succeeded, Utahime guiltily turned her head away.

"I'm just teaching this kid some basic Barrier Techniques, and helping him review the fundamentals of Jujutsu. I noticed he's forgotten quite a lot lately, so he really needs to brush up!"

"Uh, that's true."

Seeing how obviously Utahime was hiding something, and meeting Mei Mei's amused gaze, Toho Tetsu could only feel helpless.

He knew Mei Mei wouldn't be fooled by that explanation, but he also knew she wasn't the sort to press for every last detail. Most likely, she would accept their story at face value and leave it at that.

Sure enough, Mei Mei simply shook her head.

"Fine, let's say that's what it is. But you really have been doing well lately. You handle and organize missions well, and your control of the scene is excellent. You're already on par with most Grade 2 Jujutsu Sorcerers."

Halfway through, she sounded a little regretful.

"It's just a shame that your observation period isn't over yet. Otherwise, I don't think the higher-ups would hesitate to give you a Grade 2 Jujutsu Sorcerer rating."

Toho Tetsu didn't care much about this so-called ranking. A title on paper didn't prove anything; what mattered more was getting stronger.

But Mei Mei seemed to see what he was thinking and made sure to remind him.

"Don't underestimate a Jujutsu Sorcerer's grade. It affects your compensation. There's a significant difference between the pay and monthly stipend for a Grade 3 Jujutsu Sorcerer and a Grade 2 Jujutsu Sorcerer, let alone the difference between Grade 2 and Grade 1."

Halfway through, her words took on a somewhat pointed tone.

"Besides, only after you receive an official rating will Jujutsu High be willing to let me invite you on missions."

At that, Toho Tetsu paused slightly. He had heard things about Mei Mei from some assistant managers before.

She usually didn't team up with others and preferred to work alone. On the few occasions when she did team up, it was either with Utahime or on large joint missions involving multiple people.

Some thought she was cold and disliked dealing with others, but he knew she simply couldn't stand unprofessional people who made a fuss over everything, because they wasted a great deal of her time.

By contrast, she seemed to think rather highly of him. In the breaks between a few missions and training sessions, she had even mentioned the idea of becoming long-term partners in the future.

Maybe that was why he had also unlocked fifty percent of Black Bird Manipulation, another accomplishment he had made during this time.

He couldn't show what his Cursed Technique could do just yet, but either way, gaining a new ability was something to be happy about.

Besides, it meant Mei Mei really did consider him a friend. To him, that was a better reward than a Cursed Technique.

Just as he was about to say something, a familiar voice sounded from nearby.

"You three are still here."

The three of them turned to see Yaga Masamichi stepping into the training ground, and quickly put aside the casual mood of their conversation.

He had personally assigned them missions a few times before, so they wondered if another mission had come up.

Seeing their reaction, Yaga Masamichi spoke without giving it much thought.

"I'm here to tell Toho Tetsu something."

At his words, Toho Tetsu and Utahime exchanged a glance, while a hint of speculation appeared in Mei Mei's eyes.

Sure enough, Yaga's next words revealed why he had come.

"Your evaluation and review are complete. Jujutsu High has decided that you passed. Once the other new students arrive in a few days, you'll be able to begin your studies officially and become a full-fledged student at Tokyo Metropolitan Jujutsu High."

Only then did Toho Tetsu finally breathe a sigh of relief.

He hadn't thought Jujutsu High would casually decide to deal with him or seal him away, but with the matter now settled, he could finally feel at ease.

Utahime was even less inclined to hide how happy she was. Her delight practically showed on her face.

Even Mei Mei, who rarely showed much emotion, smiled faintly. Perhaps she was happy that he had passed his evaluation, or perhaps she was glad that her future partner was now within reach.

No one could say.

Seeing how close the three of them had grown during this time, Yaga Masamichi felt quite pleased. He continued with a few words of advice.

"Your evaluation may be complete, but I'd still recommend that you avoid leaving campus alone, or leaving too often."

He paused halfway through, as if searching for the right words, but in the end he said what he meant.

"After all, some people still have their doubts about you."

Toho Tetsu nodded at the words, which sounded like a warning but held concern beneath them.

"I understand. Thank you, Mr. Yaga."

Having finished what he came to say, Yaga waved and turned to leave. Only after he had disappeared from view did Utahime say happily,

"Congratulations. Now you're officially my junior."

Mei Mei nodded beside her.

"Now that you've passed the evaluation and review and become an official student, I expect you'll receive a grade of your own before long."

Toho Tetsu was in a good mood too. For the first time, he even suggested taking a break.

"This is definitely worth celebrating. How about we do something to mark the occasion?"

At that, Utahime's eyes lit up at once.

"Of course we should celebrate! We've been busy with missions and training all this time, and haven't had much time to go shopping. Now that we're free, let's go out, get something delicious to eat, and have some fun!"

Mei Mei wasn't usually very interested in that sort of thing, but seeing how eager the other two were, she nodded as well.

"That does sound like a good idea."

With both of them on board, Toho Tetsu contacted an assistant manager who was currently free.

After paying for the assistant manager's time and the fare, the three of them got out in central Tokyo about ten minutes later.

On the way, Utahime had eagerly told them where to find tasty food and what interesting places they could visit.

Neither of the other two was particularly materialistic, but they didn't object or dampen her enthusiasm. Instead, they went along with her to all the places she wanted to visit.

As they passed a certain shop, Toho Tetsu stopped on purpose. With the two women watching curiously, he walked over to the shopkeeper and chatted with her for a moment before handing her a few bills.

Watching the two of them chatting happily in the distance, Utahime had been enjoying her food, but suddenly felt strange. Her brows furrowed without her meaning to.

Mei Mei noticed at once. Amusement rose in her heart, though she spoke as if musing aloud.

"I thought Toho had been busy with missions and training this whole time. When did he meet her?"

At that, the girl's hand tightened around her dessert. When Toho Tetsu finished talking and returned to them, she deliberately glared at him and warned him in a strangely pointed tone.

"I'm telling you, kid... as a Jujutsu Sorcerer, you'd better keep some distance from ordinary people. Things might not end well otherwise."

Toho Tetsu was taken aback by her odd words, then looked confused.

"What are you talking about, senpai? I was just paying her back for those crepes I borrowed from her before."

"Huh?"

Utahime froze. Then she realized what he meant, quickly turned away, and said in a somewhat stiff voice,

"Th-that was what you meant from that day?"

Seeing her like that, Toho Tetsu had a few guesses about what was going through her mind, but he only pretended to be confused.

"Yeah. What did you think I meant, senpai?"

"I... I thought you meant that day too! All right, let's go!"

Watching her turn and walk away with Mei Mei, who wore an inscrutable smile, Toho Tetsu found it a little amusing, but he still followed after them.

Just then, a girl happened to step out of the convenience store nearby.

She was holding a pack of Mild Seven she had just bought. As she was about to tear it open, the corner of her eye caught sight of the three figures walking away.

She thought for a moment, looking uncertain.

"That figure on the left, wearing shrine maiden's clothes... looks kind of familiar?"

The girl recognized the figure, but couldn't remember where she had seen her. So she shook her head and walked off in the opposite direction.

She would officially start school in a few days. Surely she'd get to meet some new faces then?

Thinking that, she lit a flame and walked into the night.