In an apartment somewhere in Tokyo.
"Hello... Who is it?"
A girl with long, light brown hair picked up her phone, still bleary-eyed, and spoke into it.
"Shoko, did you stay up late again last night?"
A cool male voice came from the other end. "You're going to get dark circles, you know..."
"Huh?"
The moment she heard that voice, Shoko snapped awake. "Ze? H-how did you..."
"How did I what?" Ze Zenin's voice held a teasing edge. "I've been away from Tokyo for days. Can't I check in with you in the morning?"
"No, no..." Holding her phone, Shoko shook her head like a bobblehead, her cheeks warming slightly as she muttered, "It's just that someone never calls me in the morning."
"Even if we do talk every day..."
"Then should I call you every morning to wake you up?" Ze Zenin sat on a bench by the athletic field, watching Riko Amanai run past on the track. He chuckled. "Amanai... Lap twenty-seven-"
"Scumbag..." Riko Amanai shot Ze Zenin a vicious glare and shouted indignantly, "Just wait until I get to Tokyo! I'll have Gojo and Geto beat you to death!"
Behind her, Aoi Todo, who had just been three laps ahead of everyone else, felt his mouth twitch. This senior really had no idea how things stood these days...
The strongest Jujutsu Sorcerer of the modern age... That's the guy right in front of you!
"Big brother..." Mai ran over to Ze Zenin and pointed at Momo Nishimiya and Kasumi Miwa behind her, murmuring, "Could the three of us rest a little before we keep running?"
"Of course..." Ze Zenin said with a smile, cutting Riko Amanai off before she could raise her hand. "You only just became a Jujutsu Sorcerer, and your fundamentals aren't solid yet. Keep