Satoru Gojo trained Sherlock for nearly half a month, and during that time, Sherlock's combat ability improved by leaps and bounds.
He went from lasting only one move against Satoru Gojo even with his cursed technique to lasting two or three moves when he went all out.
It might have only been an extra two or three moves, but Sherlock was facing Satoru Gojo, the strongest sorcerer of the modern age! If nothing else, he could at least protect himself against a Grade 2 cursed spirit now.
Of course, Satoru Gojo had specifically tested it: if Sherlock wanted to run, he could generally escape as long as no domain had been opened.
Even against curse users, Sherlock should have been relatively safe, provided they hadn't lowered a curtain with a specific binding vow targeting him.
The only problem was that, convenient as Sherlock's cursed technique truly was, he clearly lacked ways to attack.
To make up for Sherlock's lack of offensive power, Satoru Gojo went back to the Gojo Clan and brought him a katana-shaped Grade 1 cursed tool, Sayafushi.
Its ability was simple: sharpness.
As long as cursed energy was channeled into it, the blade could cut through most objects.
The reason it was only a Grade 1 cursed tool rather than a special grade was simple, too. The blade had an upper limit; it couldn't ignore defenses and hardness when attacking the way Toji's Soul Liberation Blade could.
Still, it was enough to tide Sherlock over.
He also guided Sherlock in imitating Tobirama, the Second Hokage and creator of Flying Thunder God in Naruto, to develop a move called Flying Thunder God Slash.
Put simply, it was a two-stage attack. He threw Sayafushi for the first attack, then accelerated and used Flying Thunder God to grab Sayafushi for the second.
It wasn't powerful, but with the element of surprise, it was enough to deal with most cursed spirits or curse users.
Just when Sherlock thought his quiet little life would continue like this, he received word early the next morning that Satoru Gojo was away on business.
That was right. The ever-busy Teacher Gojo, the greatest teacher, had once again begun his life of slaving away, leaving Sherlock to train alone.
The good news was that, before leaving this time, Satoru Gojo had asked Masamichi Yaga to cover his theory lessons.
Sherlock didn't have to worry at all about falling behind in proper theory classes, and Masamichi Yaga's lessons occasionally even taught him something genuinely useful about controlling cursed energy.
The bad news was that, after a morning of classes, Masamichi Yaga told Sherlock something that wasn't exactly good news.
His grading mission had been decided. In two days, he would undergo his Grade 2 Jujutsu Sorcerer assessment, with a Grade 2 cursed spirit lurking in a hospital as his target.
Sherlock was somewhat nervous when he heard this.
No joke-ever since awakening his cursed technique, Sherlock had seen plenty of cursed spirits, of all sorts of grades, but until now, he had only ever made one choice: run.
This would be Sherlock's first time facing a cursed spirit head-on, fighting it, and exorcising it.
As an experienced teacher, Masamichi Yaga naturally noticed the boy's nerves. After some thought, he ultimately softened and gave the boy, who was about to fight a cursed spirit for the first time, a few mission details he shouldn't have disclosed.
"The cursed spirit you need to exorcise this time is in Yokohama. It was born from a fear of nurses in an abandoned children's hospital. Cursed spirits like this aren't actually that strong. Their main means of attack are physical, and it's rare for one to have a cursed technique.
"Children are simply afraid of the medicine and needles nurses bring. Deep down, they know these are only necessary means of treating them, so there's no need to worry too much."
At this point, Masamichi Yaga seemed to remember something. His expression grew a little graver, and a trace of guilt entered the eyes behind his sunglasses as he spoke to Sherlock with utmost seriousness.
"If you notice anything wrong, don't try to tough it out. Retreating in time is the best option. Remember, Sherlock, a stronger jujutsu sorcerer can exorcise a cursed spirit, but if you die as a jujutsu sorcerer, there really will be nothing left.
"On a mission, always put your own life first! No exceptions!"
Masamichi Yaga spoke with great seriousness, and his words were rebellious, too. They had nothing at all to do with the 'proper principles' in the textbooks, yet he still stood openly at the lectern as a teacher and said them to Sherlock.
"I understand, Principal Yaga."
Sherlock didn't know what was going through Masamichi Yaga's mind as he said this, but unexpectedly, he could sense a teacher's concern for his student, as well as deeply hidden regret, in the words of this teacher who looked like a gangster.
After two days of intensive training under Masamichi Yaga, Sherlock arrived alone at the gates of Jujutsu High early in the morning two days later.
At the bottom of the long flight of steps, a black Toyota was already waiting for Sherlock.
A man stood beside the car. His hair was dyed golden blond and slicked back meticulously, and his suit was so crisp that it didn't have a single crease.
"Mr. Sherlock, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm your assistant supervisor, Ichijo Watanabe. I'll be assisting you with the upcoming mission."
Ichijo Watanabe spoke with rigid formality. Even the bow he gave Sherlock in greeting was an utterly flawless, textbook forty-five-degree bow.
Sherlock merely nodded without saying anything, quietly took the sword bag off his back, and climbed into the back seat.
Seeing Sherlock's response, Ichijo Watanabe said nothing more either. He simply jogged around to the driver's side, sat down, and started the car.
Soon, the car entered the expressway. Neither of them spoke throughout the journey, and the silence inside the car felt suffocating.
Tokyo's metropolitan area had expanded rapidly and now bordered Yokohama. There was no suburban area to be seen between them, nor did one exist.
With Ichijo Watanabe driving, they soon parked beside an abandoned building in central Yokohama. The painted lettering on its windows, reading Yasuda Pediatric Clinic, was still faintly recognizable.
After Sherlock got out, Ichijo Watanabe took a document from inside his jacket and handed it to him.
"Mr. Sherlock, this is the intelligence gathered by the Window for this mission. Please review it."
Sherlock took the intelligence from Watanabe and skimmed it. Finding no difference from what Masamichi Yaga had told him, he handed the documents back to Watanabe and nodded.
Receiving Sherlock's signal, Ichijo Watanabe gave him another slight bow.
"May fortune favor you in battle!"
Only after saying this did Ichijo Watanabe form a hand sign and begin lowering the curtain.
"Born from darkness, blacker than black. Purify all that is impure."