What Are You Yelling About This Early?

The dormitory was especially quiet in the predawn hours, and Qingxiao was fast asleep. After spending yesterday relaxing and having fun, he was enjoying a rare night of peaceful sleep, his long-strained nerves completely unwound.

Suddenly, frantic pounding thundered against his door, accompanied by Satoru Gojo's piercingly loud voice, excitedly shattering the morning stillness. "Qingxiao! Qingxiao, wake up! Get up already! Something big's happened!"

The grating noise instantly dragged Qingxiao back to consciousness, heavy sleepiness and grogginess sweeping through his entire body. He sat up with a frown and looked out the window.

The sky was a murky gray, the morning light yet to break through the darkness. All of Jujutsu High was still shrouded in the cold silence of the predawn hours, and a bitterly cold wind battered the windows.

What the hell? It wasn't even light out. What was he going crazy about this early?

Qingxiao was filled with exasperation. He honestly had no idea where Satoru Gojo got all his energy. Other people were sleepy when they woke up, but the colder it got, the more energetic this guy became, making trouble for people first thing in the morning.

He rubbed his aching brow, got up, and opened the door, his voice sluggish and impatient from sleep. "What are you yelling about this early?"

Outside, Satoru Gojo was already fully dressed, his white hair neat and his eyes astonishingly bright. Excitement radiated from him, without a trace of sleepiness.

"Six thirty!" he rattled off impatiently. "Stop sleeping! Emergency mission!"

Qingxiao's brow furrowed deeper. "Six thirty? It's not even fully light yet. Since when did Jujutsu High start springing predawn missions on us?"

Satoru Gojo clapped him on the shoulder, his voice bubbling with excitement. "This one's different! An urgent official notice-Grade 1 at minimum! We get to fight!"

Those few words instantly swept away Qingxiao's drowsiness.

A Grade 1 Mission? No wonder he was in such a rush.

A flicker of fighting spirit crossed his eyes. Without the slightest hesitation, he put on his uniform, fastened his belt, washed up, tidied himself, and strapped his Cursed Tool to his back. The whole sequence flowed seamlessly, and he was fully ready in less than a minute.

Beside him, Satoru Gojo was dumbstruck, his eyes wide, his mouth slightly open, and his face full of disbelief.

Catching sight of his stunned expression, Qingxiao casually raked a hand through his slightly mussed bangs and said calmly, "Then what are we waiting for? Let's go."

This would be a good chance to see just how much progress all his hard training lately had brought him in a real fight.

A faint sense of anticipation stirred inside him. After so much monotonous training, this tough battle had come at just the right time.

The two walked out of the dormitory side by side. The cold predawn wind struck their faces, blowing away the last remnants of sleepiness. The chill cut to the bone, but it also made their minds all the clearer.

They had barely stepped out of the dormitory building's corridor when they came face-to-face with two more familiar figures.

Suguru Geto stood ahead, neatly dressed and standing straight, as steady and composed as ever. Clearly, he had also received the urgent notice and gotten ready early. Shoko, beside him, was in an entirely different state.

She had clearly only just been woken up. Her expression was slack and sleepy, her long hair slightly disheveled, and a coat was carelessly wrapped around her. She looked drowsy and soft, her figure especially slight.

Seeing her like that, Qingxiao felt a pang of tenderness.

She had only just celebrated her birthday yesterday and spent a day properly relaxing. She should have been sleeping peacefully and enjoying a lie-in, only to be woken up and dragged into things first thing in the morning.

It was so cold and so dark. Standing in this wind had to be terribly uncomfortable.

At the same time, a trace of confusion rose in his mind. Qingxiao frowned slightly and looked at Suguru Geto beside him. "This is a combat mission rated at least Grade 1, right? Why did those lousy higher-ups call Shoko out too?"

Shoko was a healer and wasn't good at direct combat. There was absolutely no need for her to get up early and rush around with them, facing danger head-on.

Suguru Geto smiled gently and shook his head as he explained, "Shoko isn't going on the mission. All three of us have to leave on an emergency mission, and we're leaving in such a hurry. It didn't feel right to go without saying anything, so I sent her a message to let her know. She insisted on coming over."

After hearing his explanation, Qingxiao immediately understood, and his brow slowly relaxed.

He looked up at Shoko in front of him and softened his tone, his voice gentle. "It's not even light yet, and it's too cold outside. Go back and rest. You don't have to wait here."

Shoko shook her head lightly, still sleepy. "It's fine. I came to see you off."

Satoru Gojo immediately waved a hand beside them, his signature confident smile on his face and his tone brash. "Don't worry! We're the strongest! A mere Grade 1 Mission? We'll handle it easily!"

Suguru Geto smiled and nodded at that, clearly agreeing with Satoru Gojo.

At that moment, Qingxiao felt like an old general in an opera, his back bristling with flags of doom.

Looking at how completely confident the two were, he couldn't help remarking, "Saying stuff like that first thing in the morning sounds like bad luck any way you look at it."

At his words, the others all froze for a moment, then burst into laughter together. The cool morning atmosphere became light and lively, easing the tension brought on by the mission.

They stood downstairs chatting for a while, exchanging a few casual, lighthearted remarks that eased their morning drowsiness and the tension of the mission.

Soon, Jujutsu High's designated transport car slowly approached and stopped in front of them.

Suguru Geto stepped forward first, naturally opened the front passenger door, and got in. Satoru Gojo, meanwhile, tugged Qingxiao toward the back with practiced ease, and the two sat down side by side in the rear seats.

Qingxiao turned his head to look at Shoko standing outside the car. In the dim light, the cold wind gently stirred her loose hair, her slight figure standing beneath the building in the empty space.

It wasn't even light yet. There really was no need for her to come out into the wind just to see us off.

He sighed inwardly and spoke a soft farewell through the window, his voice quiet and gentle. "We're heading out. Go back inside. Don't get cold."

Shoko looked up at him in the car, her eyes especially soft beneath their lingering sleepiness. She nodded lightly, her gentle voice drifting over on the wind. "Mm. Be careful on the way. Come back soon."

A trace of tenderness flashed in Qingxiao's eyes, and he nodded with a smile.

It was only an ordinary Grade 1 Mission, yet somehow it left a little concern tucked away in his heart.

The window was partly open, and the cool morning breeze occasionally brushed inside. Qingxiao leaned back in his seat, the fighting spirit in his eyes slowly settling.