The fist I failed to dodge

[I had no idea what I was worrying about, yet I felt I ought to go back and take a look.]

Exorcising cursed spirits abroad was no different from doing it in Tokyo. All I did was walk over, touch them lightly, then turn and leave.

Dull and boring. I was starting to miss my days in Tokyo.

At least things were somewhat interesting at Jujutsu High. Watching Teacher Yaga stamp his feet in frustration because of me was pretty nice, too.

Still, it would be best not to let Teacher Yaga hear that.

I scheduled my return flight for nighttime. The midnight breeze was always cooler. Of course, it would have been even better without an annoying Assistant Supervisor coming to pick me up.

"Say, have those grown-ups all decided to stop sleeping?"

I spoke as though it were an idle remark to the Assistant Supervisor trembling before me, my brown eyes filled with nothing but calm and amusement.

"M-Mr. Dazai, I don't know what you mean."

"Ah, you certainly know how to read the room."

"Mr. Dazai?"

"All right, all right. Take me back to Jujutsu High."

I smiled faintly, gave him a brief glance, then got into the car. Bored out of my mind, I hummed a little tune as the scenery flashed past the window.

Everything was fine-if only I hadn't run into Teacher Yaga standing ramrod straight at the school gates.

The sight of Teacher Yaga left me utterly bewildered. As I tried to climb over the wall and escape straight to my dorm, he spotted me immediately and dragged me back.

"Teacher Yaga? What are you doing here?"

The confusion in my eyes wasn't feigned. Although I had a few ideas, I would leave the explanation to Teacher Yaga.

"I just got back from seeing the higher-ups."

"Ah, ah, did they ask you to do something again?"

"The same as always. They want Jujutsu High to hand you over."

Teacher Yaga seemed rather troubled by it, too. He rubbed his forehead as we walked back, chatting with me along the way.

"Are you going to hand me over, Teacher Yaga?"

"Jujutsu High must have paid quite a price to deal with the higher-ups."

"If you handed me over, Teacher Yaga, the whole school might get better resources. You could even renovate the place."

A smile lingered on my lips as I answered matter-of-factly, as though I had solved a particularly satisfying problem.

"Ow!"

Teacher Yaga brought his fist down on my head. Apparently still not satisfied, he tried to hit me again, but I swiftly dodged.

"Ah, Teacher Yaga, what are you doing?"

Like a monkey bouncing all over the place, I kept wriggling around Teacher Yaga, retreating even farther when I noticed him preparing to raise his hand again.

"Jujutsu High will never abandon a single student, and I will never agree to hand you over."

Teacher Yaga's tone was calm, but his words carried absolute conviction.

"But Jujutsu High has already been pressured into a corner, hasn't it?"

As I spoke, I couldn't help growing serious, and I moved back in front of Teacher Yaga.

"That isn't something you need to worry about. Dazai, all you need to do is live your life... no. Dazai, I want you to try a little harder to keep living."

"You can leave everything else to me. You're the student I'm proudest of."

"..."

"Satoru, Geto, and Miss Shoko are geniuses, too."

"This has nothing to do with being a genius. Dazai, you're the smartest child I've ever met. You know that, and you can see it."

Masamichi Yaga frowned, then explained with complete seriousness.

"Dazai, I want you to be more careful around those higher-ups in Jujutsu Society. I also want you to trust me. I will never give up on you."

"..."

I stood there in something of a daze, unable to respond, yet unable to stop wanting to run away.

"Ah, ah, I'm so tired. I'm going back to bed. Goodbye, Teacher Yaga!"

With that, I ran back to my dorm without looking back.

What was that? Such a direct attack was way too unfair.

With that thought, I quickly kicked off my shoes, tossed my already rumpled clothes onto a hanger, then locked the door and went into the bathroom to wash up.

"He won't... hand me over?"

I murmured those words, checked the time on my phone, and ultimately decided against immediately throwing myself under the covers to rest.

I'd only been away for a month, and someone was already getting restless again?

Which family was it this time?

The Zenin Clan...

Heh... Toji Zenin might be interested in this.

I gave it a little thought and eventually came up with an odd but very useful approach.

Let them experience the ultimate power of the police!

With that in mind, I kept digging through it for past offenses committed by some of the elderly higher-ups, as well as the things their crackpot advisers had gotten up to.

I bundled everything together and sent it all to Toji Zenin.

Everyone who deserved to be locked up would certainly be going in, with witnesses and evidence all accounted for. With someone to vouch for them, though, they probably wouldn't stay inside long. Either way, it would be enough to make their lives miserable.

As for those advisers working under them, it would come down to their value after all. The Zenin Clan would naturally protect anyone useful. If they weren't useful...

Ah, who knew?

Hopefully, Toji Zenin would deliver a very satisfying result.

I smiled faintly as I watched the screen light up and go dark again, the message marked as read.

By the time I finished dealing with everything, the sky was slowly turning pale. I rubbed my eyes, sore from staring at the screen for so long, and gazed motionlessly at the rising sun.

Although I hated encountering sunlight and the sun elsewhere.

There was one particular sunrise I didn't hate. As time passed, I even found myself watching it now and then.

But today... ah, I didn't feel all that sleepy. I might as well go play with the first-years.

With that thought, I looked at my other two altered uniforms before ultimately choosing my first-year uniform.

This one hadn't been fully altered. The later uniforms had been changed a little, too, but wearing this one out seemed pretty nice.

Thinking that, I changed into it and headed straight for the cafeteria.

There should be crab this morning, right? There had to be! I'd specifically picked this day to return so I could have crab first thing the next morning. I was so happy-

And so, as I hurried down the stairs, I once again spotted Suguru Geto and Satoru Gojo with their arms draped over each other's shoulders.

On their very first day at Jujutsu High, the two had even gotten into a fight. Later, Suguru Geto, who clearly looked like a model student, somehow seemed to have been led astray.

He had successfully followed in my footsteps and happily become the second generation of Jujutsu High's resident menaces.

Honestly, why give me a nickname like that? I was so well-behaved-

I rubbed my aching forehead. Aside from those few minutes of dozing on the plane, I hadn't rested at all.

Ah, whatever. I'd sleep in Teacher Yaga's class later. His lessons were a first-rate sleep aid!

With that thought, I received two extra portions of crab thanks to the teacher's special treatment, then struggled with the headache of shelling them.

All under the noble pretext of eating every last bit on my classmates' behalf.

Anyway, after finishing the crab, I went to the classroom where Teacher Yaga and the others were and slipped quietly through the doorway.

"Dazai, what are you doing here?"

"Here to sleep. I've got insomnia."

Masamichi Yaga: ???

Masamichi Yaga: ...

In short, Teacher Yaga gave me a punch in exasperation, but in the end, he couldn't bring himself to throw me out. He simply let me stay in the classroom and rest with my head on the desk.

Teacher Yaga had always been a very good teacher.

It would have been even better if he didn't punch people at the drop of a hat.

With that thought, I watched Teacher Yaga bustle about at the lectern while the others beside me each did their own thing.

Shoko Ieiri was staring into space with vacant eyes. There seemed to be cigarettes and alcohol in her desk drawer, too.

Satoru Gojo and Suguru Geto, on the other hand, were different. Sitting side by side with their heads lowered, they whispered to each other about whether to get daifuku or soba after class.

But as their voices grew louder and louder, a vein finally bulged on Teacher Yaga's forehead. White chalk flew straight at their foreheads, and Gojo the Cat and Geto the Fox tragically received Yaga's Iron Fist.

That did nothing to dampen their enthusiasm for the discussion, though. Their hands were already gesturing so quickly beneath the desk that they left afterimages.

Their guiding principle was to admit no fault and show absolutely no remorse.