The four of them stayed in Hokkaido for four full days.
Every expense at the resort came out of the compensation Sherlock had received from the higher-ups.
Gojo Satoru showed absolutely no shame about letting his student cover most of the bill.
He spent the entire vacation dragging Sherlock from one activity to another without a care in the world, and Sherlock was more than happy to join him.
Yaga and Shoko, on the other hand, felt at least a little guilty.
Unlike a certain shameless white-haired menace, neither of them was comfortable letting a teenager pay for everything.
After thinking about it for a while, Shoko quietly contacted Utahime and asked for advice.
In the end, she chose a gift that almost any teenage boy would have trouble refusing.
Why “almost”?
Because there were always exceptions.
Gojo Satoru existed, after all.
As for Shoko’s gift…
It was an engraved, large-frame Smith & Wesson Model 29 revolver.
According to Utahime, teenage boys were almost universally vulnerable to cool weapons.
It might not be particularly useful against curses, but against curse users?
That was another story.
And Utahime turned out to be completely right.
The moment Sherlock held the revolver, he fell in love with it.
He inspected the engraving.
Checked the cylinder.
Admired the weight.
He looked so pleased that Shoko suspected he might actually sleep with it beside his pillow.
Then Gojo casually informed him that jujutsu sorcerers were legally permitted to carry firearms under certain circumstances.
Sherlock immediately declared the revolver his destined weapon.
Gojo and Yaga both looked mildly skeptical.
Neither tried to argue, though.
It was obvious Sherlock genuinely loved the thing.
Sorcerers already lived under constant pressure.
Compared with some of the bizarre habits people in the jujutsu world developed, Sherlock liking weapons barely registered as unusual.
Yaga only warned Gojo not to let him become so obsessed with firearms that he neglected his own physical training.
And with that, the matter was settled.
Of course, Yaga had no way of knowing what Sherlock would eventually manage to do with that revolver.
Nor could Gojo possibly imagine how much damage one gift from Shoko would someday do to his own reputation.
But that was a problem for the future.
After Shoko gave Sherlock her present, Yaga naturally considered buying him something as well.
Sherlock refused almost immediately.
Instead, he made a different request.
“Principal Yaga, just treat us to dinner.” Gojo and Shoko supported the proposal enthusiastically.
That was how the three of them ended up at one of Hokkaido’s most expensive king crab restaurants.
And somehow…
Sherlock, Gojo, and Shoko managed to eat through nearly an entire month of Yaga’s salary.
Sherlock could at least be excused.
Gojo and Shoko?
Absolutely not.
Those two shamelessly used Reverse Cursed Technique to keep resetting the discomfort in their stomachs so they could continue eating.
All for the sole purpose of getting as much value as possible from Yaga’s wallet.
Watching Shoko get dragged onto the same path of nonsense as that ridiculous teacher-student pair, Yaga felt his fist beginning to tighten.
One month of salary later, he’d had enough.
Early on the fifth morning, Yaga firmly announced that everyone was returning to Tokyo immediately.
Gojo, who still hadn’t gotten tired of the vacation, looked utterly betrayed.
He spent several minutes sulking before muttering under his breath, “I told them we shouldn’t bring Yaga…” He received another dose of Yaga’s Fist of Righteous Guidance for that comment.
Under the overwhelming authority of Principal Yaga’s fists, Sherlock wisely abandoned any thoughts of rebellion.
He used Flying Thunder God and transported everyone back to Tokyo Jujutsu High.
It was the first time Yaga experienced Sherlock’s technique while fully conscious.
There was a brief sensation of space twisting around him, followed by a momentary rush of disorientation.
Then Hokkaido was gone.
Tokyo stood around him instead.
As both principal and an experienced sorcerer, Yaga understood the implications almost immediately.
Once Sherlock had transported everyone back one by one, Yaga sent Sherlock and Shoko to their respective rooms to unpack and rest.
Then he grabbed Gojo by the ear.
“Come with me.” “Ow, ow, ow!
Yaga, I’m a teacher now!” “That makes this worse.” Yaga dragged him straight into the principal’s office.
The moment the door closed, his expression darkened.
“Satoru.” Gojo finally stopped fooling around.
“Don’t tell me you haven’t realized Sherlock’s strategic value.” For once, Gojo’s expression became serious.
Although the faint confidence in his smile remained.
“Of course I have.” He folded his arms.
“That kid’s going to become stronger than me.” Yaga paused.
That wasn’t the answer he’d expected.
He stared at Gojo, waiting for an explanation.
Gojo didn’t disappoint him.
Under the right conditions, Sherlock’s Flying Thunder God could bypass Infinity.
Yaga’s expression became even darker.
Gojo, meanwhile, looked completely unconcerned.
That attitude only irritated Yaga further.
“Satoru, listen carefully.” His voice hardened.
“If the higher-ups learn that his technique can bypass Infinity, they will do everything they can to win him over.” “And if that fails, they’ll try to turn him into a weapon against you.” Gojo shrugged.
“Doesn’t matter.” Yaga’s eyebrow twitched.
“I’m the strongest.” “Satoru.” But when Gojo turned his gaze toward the sunlight beyond the window, something quieter appeared in his eyes.
“It’ll come out eventually, Yaga.” His voice lost its usual teasing edge.
“As long as Sherlock stays in the jujutsu world, and as long as those old fossils are still around, they’ll eventually figure out how his technique works.” “They’ll realize he can bypass Infinity.” Gojo slipped his hands into his pockets.
“What am I supposed to do then?” “Hold him back?” “Keep him weak because he might someday become dangerous to me?” A faint smile appeared on his face.
“No.” Gojo looked back at Yaga.
“He’s my student.” “My job isn’t to crush someone just because he might become strong enough to threaten me.” “My job is to protect him while he’s still growing.” “To teach him everything I know.” “And to trust him the same way I trust myself.” Yaga went silent.
He’d spent so much time dealing with Gojo’s ridiculous behavior that moments like this still caught him off guard.
For a second, he almost wanted to tell him that he’d grown up.
Then Yaga remembered exactly why Gojo had been forced to grow up so quickly.
The words died before they could leave his mouth.
In the end, all he managed was a simple warning.
“As long as you’re certain.” Gojo immediately noticed the shift in his expression.
With the Six Eyes, very little escaped him.
And just like that, the serious Gojo vanished.
The familiar grin returned.
“Relax, Yaga.” He pointed confidently at himself.
“I’m the strongest, remember?” Although…
I’ve already been left behind once.
Gojo kept that final thought to himself.
Instead, he stood there with the same fearless arrogance he’d once carried as a student.
Yaga didn’t say anything more.
He simply looked at him.
And somewhere deep inside, he silently apologized.
There had been a distance between teacher and student ever since Suguru Geto’s fall.
A crack neither of them had known how to repair.
Yet because of one troublesome, unreliable new student…
That distance had begun to close.
Only slightly.
But it was a beginning.