"Want some Jasmine Soda?"
As Tsukasa Hatayama pondered, a bottle of soda appeared before him, accompanied by a gentle voice.
Tsukasa Hatayama discreetly dismissed the panel no one else could see, then looked at Suguru Geto, whose gentle smile carried a hint of apology.
"This drink's on me. Think of it as an apology for being so rash this afternoon." Suguru Geto sheepishly shook the green can in his hand.
"I wouldn't call it rash, but what you did really shocked me. I thought you wanted to challenge me to a samurai duel."
Half joking, Tsukasa Hatayama accepted the green can, pulled the tab, and raised it. "I'm Tsukasa Hatayama. I look forward to getting along with you at Jujutsu High."
Suguru Geto's lingering embarrassment immediately vanished. He smiled and raised his can to clink against Tsukasa's.
"I'm Suguru Geto. Likewise, Hatayama, I look forward to getting along with you."
They exchanged a silent look, genuine smiles on their lips, and drained their drinks. In that moment, their friendship took root in the classroom.
Across the room.
Watching this unfold, Shoko Ieiri slumped over her desk with a touch of envy and began sending an email.
"Utahime, I'm suddenly looking forward to life at Jujutsu High."
Ding.
Within seconds, a reply arrived from the contact saved as Utahime.
"Looking forward to life at Jujutsu High?"
"Don't be ridiculous. All that awaits you is purple blood, followed by more purple blood. Stop listening to Yaga's inspirational speeches."
While she chatted with her senior Utahime, Tsukasa Hatayama and Suguru Geto were also deep in lively conversation.
"Tsukasa, what's your cursed technique?"
Suguru Geto plopped onto the desk and asked with open curiosity. Any technique that frightened a subdued cursed spirit had to be powerful.
Tsukasa Hatayama set down his Jasmine Soda. "My technique is Dark Manipulation. It lets me change dark matter into various forms."
Suguru Geto asked in amazement, "Is it like the Dark-Dark Fruit in One Piece? Creating dark matter out of thin air to deal damage over a huge area?"
Tsukasa Hatayama nodded. "Pretty much, but I haven't developed it far enough to use Dark Gravity yet."
Don't ask why he hadn't worked on that. The answer was that he had other things to do.
To get the most out of his Mystic Eyes of Death Perception, he had always focused on hand-to-hand combat.
Though he hadn't tested himself against anyone, he should have been able to give Toji Fushiguro a run for his money.
"Your technique is really powerful. Unlike my Cursed Spirit Manipulation. No matter how much I develop it, all I can do is subdue cursed spirits and use them."
Suguru Geto spoke with a little envy.
Dark matter sounded cool enough already, and it could change according to a jujutsu sorcerer's imagination. Didn't that mean he could create area attacks whenever he wanted?
Once Tsukasa developed gravity, wouldn't he be able to rain down meteorites like a meteor shower?
One cursed spirit, one Tengai Shinsei?
Suguru Geto's inadvertent humblebrag caught Tsukasa Hatayama completely off guard.
Cursed Spirit Manipulation was weak?
If it were weak, would Kenjaku be so obsessed with you?
Tsukasa Hatayama was inwardly speechless, but still reassured him. "A technique that controls cursed spirits isn't weak. You might even be able to control special grade cursed spirits someday."
"Special grade cursed spirits aren't that easy to subdue."
Suguru Geto shook his head with a bitter smile. "You might laugh, but I only have one semi-grade 1 cursed spirit."
"And I subdued that one alone, fully prepared to die. One little mistake, and I would've lost my life."
Hearing this, Tsukasa Hatayama couldn't help marveling inwardly at his talent.
Subduing a semi-grade 1 cursed spirit at fifteen without outside help was more than enough to prove Suguru Geto's enormous potential.
"I may only have one semi-grade 1 cursed spirit now, but I know I'll have more later. Because I've joined Jujutsu High!"
Suguru Geto, who had been smiling bitterly just moments before, suddenly regained his confidence.
He flashed a confident smile. "Once I've learned everything Jujutsu High has to teach, I'm sure my strength will skyrocket."
"Forget building a squad of special grade cursed spirits. A grand Night Parade of a Hundred Demons won't just be a dream!"
"Yeah. I believe in you."
Tsukasa Hatayama raised his can in a show of trust. There was no empty flattery in his calm expression, only genuine faith in Suguru Geto.
Suguru Geto was deeply moved. So this was what being believed in felt like-a feeling he couldn't put into words.
"Don't worry, Tsukasa. Someday, I'll show you my Night Parade of a Hundred Demons. I'll look so impressive you'll be jealous."
Suguru Geto clinked cans with Tsukasa Hatayama. As their gazes met, his eyes held unprecedented sincerity and emotion.
And so.
Whenever they came to an interesting topic, they raised their cans and clinked them together. Though Suguru Geto did all the talking, the way Tsukasa Hatayama listened so attentively...
Was truly captivating.
Bang-
But while they chatted, someone suddenly slammed a hand down on the lectern. The thunderous noise cut Suguru Geto off.
Suguru Geto frowned in displeasure. Even Shoko Ieiri, who had been listless ever since arriving, was irritated.
Tsukasa Hatayama calmly sipped his soda and looked toward the lectern along with Suguru Geto. Both wanted to see who had been so outrageously rude.
A tall, white-haired boy wearing flashy black sunglasses leaned over the lectern, his hands braced against it and defiance written all over him.
Brimming with arrogance, he grinned with absolute confidence. "The name's Satoru Gojo! You three had better remember it!"
"I'm the one you'll all be chasing after during your time at Jujutsu High!"
The boy's rudeness was bad enough, but his constant swaggering talk made Suguru Geto's blood boil. He wanted to rush over and teach him some manners.
Interrupting others was already rude, and now he was shamelessly acting like everyone's boss. Was this white-haired guy starved for affection, or did he have serious daddy issues?
Suguru Geto snorted and mocked him from atop the desk. "I understand Jujutsu High needs talent, but that's no reason to lower its admission standards."
"Just look at this prematurely aged, delusional egomaniac. You can tell at a glance he's all flash and no substance."
"Geto's right. Wearing sunglasses at night to look cool and special? He's either got something wrong with him or he's secretly desperate to show off."
Tsukasa Hatayama calmly chimed in, delivering a cutting remark quite at odds with his refined bearing.
I might not like spending time with my father, but you walked in acting like you're everyone's daddy, Satoru Gojo. Has the real world never knocked you down a peg?
Those softly delivered yet scathing remarks brought faint smiles to the irritated faces of Suguru Geto and Shoko Ieiri.
Tsukasa Hatayama had a point. Anyone who wore sunglasses at night had to have something wrong with him to do something so bizarre.
"You two bastards looking for a fight?"
Satoru Gojo strode up to Tsukasa Hatayama and Suguru Geto in irritation, looking down his nose at them as cursed energy erupted from his tall frame.
"A fight?"
"You prematurely aged poser. Do you even have what it takes?"
Naturally competitive, Suguru Geto sprang to his feet. Pure cursed energy burst from his entire body, every bit as strong as Satoru Gojo's.
"Try me and find out, weird bangs!"
Satoru Gojo shoved his face right up to Suguru Geto's, provoking him with brazen contempt.
Growing angrier, Suguru Geto refused to back down and thrust his face toward Satoru Gojo's.
"You prematurely aged egomaniac. Better watch out, or I'll flatten you in one move and send you crying to Mommy for comfort."
"You're the one who'd better watch out, weird bangs! I'll beat you so badly you'll go running to Daddy!"
"Egomaniac!"
"Weird bangs!"
Their cursed energy erupted wildly, raging through the classroom. Watching the show, Shoko Ieiri couldn't resist taking out her phone to record it.
"Mind if I join in?"
Tsukasa Hatayama, who had been sipping his soda all along, unleashed his own cursed energy and joined the fray.
That immense surge of cursed energy, carrying the power to suppress everything, shattered the classroom windows and overwhelmed their energy with unstoppable force.
Satoru Gojo and Suguru Geto briefly stopped their clash and stared at the composed Tsukasa Hatayama in disbelief.
That much cursed energy? Had Tsukasa-the vampire-grown up eating the stuff?
"Who? Who shattered the windows with cursed energy?"
A roar rang out. Masamichi Yaga stormed into the classroom with a dark expression, glaring at the four of them with glass shards still scattered over his buzz cut.
The four exchanged glances. Tsukasa Hatayama and Suguru Geto pointed at Satoru Gojo first, and Shoko Ieiri followed without hesitation.
That white-haired idiot had slammed the desk the moment he came in and nearly made her drop her brand-new phone.
"You..."
"Satoru Gojo! I knew you'd be a troublemaker!"
Before Satoru Gojo could explain, Masamichi Yaga punched him on top of the head.
Satoru Gojo sat miserably in his seat. Behind his sunglasses, he stared resentfully at Masamichi Yaga, who was writing on the blackboard.
"Violent divorced bastard. No wonder your wife ran off with someone else..."
Satoru Gojo muttered indignantly under his breath. Anyone would be annoyed after taking a heavy blow to the head for no reason.
After muttering, he turned his defiant gaze toward the weird bangs on his left and thought, Cursed Spirit Manipulation, huh? Not a bad technique.
But compared to weird bangs, Satoru Gojo was more interested in that vampire-looking bastard.
If it weren't for him, why would I have gotten hit for no reason?
Let's see what your technique is...
Satoru Gojo leaned around Suguru Geto and curiously used his Six Eyes to inspect Tsukasa Hatayama, who was daydreaming with his cheek propped on his hand.
"Huh?"
"Why's his technique all dark? I've never seen anything like this before."
Satoru Gojo took off his sunglasses, revealing beautiful azure eyes. Intrigued, he sprawled over his desk, kicking his legs as he stared at Tsukasa Hatayama.
Tsukasa Hatayama snapped out of his daze, then pointed toward the lectern with an amused smile.
Satoru Gojo suddenly sensed trouble. A heavy fist descended onto his head.
Before you continue