Stories

A week had passed since the start of classes at Tokyo Jujutsu High.

"I'm so bored..."

Shoko sat on a bench beneath a large tree, idly typing on her phone.

"Shoko!" A voice rang out, and someone quickly hugged her from behind.

"Oh, it's you, Utahime~"

Shoko looked helplessly at Utahime, who was nuzzling against her. "Did something happen?"

"Of course. I came to hang out with my dear junior."

Utahime pouted and said indignantly, "Is there something wrong with coming to see my adorable junior?"

"Of course not."

Already used to this, Shoko smiled at Utahime.

"Though I'm more curious about those new cigarettes you mentioned last time..."

"What are you two talking about?"

A woman in a black uniform approached, her bluish-white hair tied in a ponytail. "Keeping secrets from me? I'm heartbroken..."

"Mei Mei!" Utahime looked as though she had found an ally. "Let's find some time for the three of us to go out together..."

"Doing missions all day is so boring!"

"Oh? Skipping class?"

Mei Mei considered it, then looked at Utahime with teasing eyes.

"That'll cost you, you know."

"Thinking about money again?" Utahime complained.

"You're still too young to understand its allure..."

The three walked toward the first-year classroom together. The only three girls currently at the school got along quite well.

But before they even entered, they heard Satoru Gojo's voice.

"Ze, why the hell does this Sasuke Uchiha guy sound so much like you?!"

Honestly, I think he sounds a lot like Zenin too...

Suguru Geto kept that rude remark to himself, only making the comment in his head.

He glanced at the boisterous Satoru Gojo beside him and sighed.

Gojo's way too unpredictable. Without Zenin around, I wouldn't even know how to get along with him.

In just one week, he had nearly come to blows with Satoru Gojo over whether they ought to protect the weak, along with a few minor disagreements.

Fortunately, Ze Zenin, whose strength was in a league of its own, had held them both down by their heads.

"I'm telling you the facts."

Ze Zenin folded his arms and said calmly:

"Stop interrupting. I'd just reached the part where Naruto and Sasuke each used their strongest techniques..."

"What are you talking about?"

Shoko entered first and said, sounding a little unhappy:

"You're telling a good story without inviting your own classmate?"

Miss Shoko Ieiri suddenly felt as though her fellow first-years were abandoning her...

"Of course not!"

Satoru Gojo put on a mysterious air and formed a hand seal. "This is the romance of being a ninja..."

Shoko ignored Satoru Gojo and stared at Ze Zenin instead.

"You want to hear it?"

He hadn't expected this girl to take an interest in anything outside her studies.

"Of course!"

Mei Mei and Utahime stood to one side, watching Ze Zenin with interest.

So this is the future head of the Zenin Clan?

Mei Mei narrowed her eyes. "He looks like someone with money."

Utahime, meanwhile, was making her own calculations. She had heard he could beat Satoru Gojo to a pulp...

Wouldn't getting on his good side mean I could have Gojo beaten up every day?

"All right, all right."

Ze Zenin regained his composure and said calmly, "Then I'll start from the beginning."

"Huh? That's not fair!" Satoru Gojo shouted.

"Satoru... I didn't really remember much of the earlier story either."

"Geto, you betrayed me..."

Ze Zenin ignored Satoru Gojo and began telling the story on his own, as though immersed in it.

"Legend has it that the Nine-Tailed Fox wreaked havoc in a ninja village called Konoha..."

"And so Sasuke defected from Konoha and chose to join Orochimaru..."

Ze Zenin paused at that point.

His mouth twitched as he looked at his engrossed audience. All that talking had nearly dried his mouth out.

"To find out what happened next, tune in next time."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"You little punk!"

Ignoring their complaints, Ze Zenin walked straight out of the classroom. After talking for almost an entire day, his mouth was unbearably dry.

Shoko looked at the two cups of cola lying in her bag. After a moment of hesitation, she followed him.

Satoru Gojo raised an eyebrow and grabbed Suguru Geto with a mischievous grin.

"Geto, look..."

Ze Zenin sat on a bench outside, preparing to form hand seals and summon Max Elephant so it could spray water for him to drink.

"Thirsty?"

A hand reached out and offered Ze Zenin a cup of cola.

"Geto said you like cola. I happened to have two cups, so I brought you one."

Ze Zenin looked up and met Shoko's pretty face. The sight of her smile made him freeze for a moment.

But he quickly recovered and said calmly, "Thank you, Ieiri."

"No problem." Shoko Ieiri smiled faintly and took the opportunity to sit beside him.

Watching Ze Zenin gulp down the cola, she asked:

"How did you come up with the story you told this afternoon?"

Ze Zenin froze mid-sip and turned his gaze toward Ieiri.

Suddenly... his long-dormant mischievous streak stirred.

"I was just sitting around with nothing to do, and whoosh, zip, it popped into my head..."

Ze Zenin looked at Shoko Ieiri with a perfectly straight face.

Somehow, though, Shoko could see the teasing glint in his eyes.

"You... you..."

Feigning anger, Shoko thumped Ze Zenin with her fist.

But the blow was so soft that she wasn't even sure he had felt it.

"And here I was, kind enough to bring you a drink." Shoko puffed out her cheeks and stood to leave.

I think I took that too far... Clueless about girls, Ze Zenin realized how serious the situation had become.

Ze Zenin caught Shoko's wrist and pulled her back. "To make it up to you, I'll tell you another story, one girls like!"

"One girls like?" Shoko tilted her head in confusion. "Do you tell this one specifically to other girls?"

"I'm a respectable man. Naturally, I only tell this story to respectable people, and you're the only one!"

Ze Zenin adopted an utterly solemn tone.

"Pfft... oh, give it a rest." Shoko covered her mouth and giggled. Ever since he had started teasing her, she had known the guy in front of her wasn't entirely serious.

"Once upon a time, there was a kingdom of ponies. In that kingdom lived a pony named Twilight Sparkle..."

Looking at Ze Zenin's handsome face, Shoko couldn't help becoming absorbed in the story. She quietly listened as he told it.

The two sat together on the bench beneath the light. The boy gently told a story he knew well, while the girl gazed at his face and imagined a story in this world that belonged to her alone.

"Just as Twilight Sparkle..."

As Ze Zenin reached an exciting part, he suddenly felt a weight on his shoulder. Turning his head, he found that Shoko had fallen asleep against him.

"She said she'd listen to my story, and now she's already asleep..."

Feeling rather helpless, Ze Zenin draped his jacket over Shoko and scooped her into his arms.

"At this hour, she probably can't get into the dorm anymore... I'll book her a hotel room for the night."

Ze Zenin took out his phone and wielded the Zenin Clan's financial superpower to book Shoko a room at a five-star hotel.

Ze Zenin gently laid Shoko on the bed. After tucking her in, he glanced back at her.

He had no idea what she was dreaming about, but her pale face wore a happy smile.

Ze Zenin gave her a casual glance and took out his phone. Looking up at the bright moon in the sky, he murmured:

"It's been a while. Time to go home and take a look." (A meme reference.)

What Ze Zenin hadn't expected was that, just after he left...

The sleeping Shoko suddenly opened her eyes, her face burning like a freshly boiled egg.

"His chest was actually pretty broad..."

As Shoko dwelled on it, she remembered how Ze Zenin had kept holding her hand while telling the story, and she buried her face under the covers again.

She picked up her phone and composed another email to Utahime.

For Shoko, tonight was sure to be a very late night...