Gojo led Jin into a building resembling a shrine.
The wooden doors were heavy and ancient, the bronze rings fixed to them giving off a dim glow beneath the evening light.
BANG!
The moment the two crossed the threshold, the doors behind them suddenly closed on their own.
The loud sound echoed throughout the empty shrine.
The interior was dark, illuminated only by weak candlelight flickering in stone lanterns on both sides.
Masamichi Yaga sat cross-legged in the center of the shrine wearing sunglasses.
Dressed in Jujutsu High’s black uniform, he held a long thin needle and a bundle of cotton thread, his head lowered as he stitched together a doll.
“You’re finally here, Satoru.”
The needle in Yaga’s hand paused for a moment before continuing through the fabric.
His eyes slowly lifted behind his sunglasses and settled on Gojo, his voice low.
“Explain yourself.
I told you to bring him back.
I didn’t tell you to cause that much destruction.”
Gojo stood with one hand in his pocket, a pair of round sunglasses of unknown origin perched on his nose.
“It’s just one forest.
It was a training ground for students anyway.
Think of it as giving him an entrance test in advance.”
He leaned forward slightly and looked down at Yaga, a smug curve appearing at the corner of his mouth.
“Well?
What did you think of that destructive power?
I found a real rough diamond this time.”
Yaga put down his needle and the doll, gently placing the unfinished product on a tray beside him.
“A rough diamond…”
His gaze moved from Gojo to Jin.
Behind the sunglasses, his eyes examined the boy standing within the candlelit shadows from head to toe.
“More like trouble.”
Yaga frowned deeply, dissatisfaction entering his voice.
“A brat who thinks having a few special abilities means he can do whatever he wants.”
Gojo curled his lips and muttered quietly.
“Here we go again.”
He stepped aside and spread his hands toward Jin, indicating that he couldn’t help him here.
“Do whatever I want…
heh…”
Jin chuckled dismissively and slowly walked toward one of the stone lanterns.
He took out a cigarette, placed it between his lips, and lowered his head toward the lantern, using its candle to light it.
Jin casually exhaled smoke and glanced sideways at Yaga.
“If I hadn’t caused some noise, you people wouldn’t have found me this quickly, would you?”
Yaga’s tightly furrowed brows relaxed slightly.
‘Did he do it deliberately?’
He stood up, his huge frame casting an enormous shadow across the floor.
Yaga looked down at Jin, not a trace of a smile on his angular face.
“Do you know what it means to become a jujutsu sorcerer?”
His voice was deep, carrying a heavy question that refused to be ignored.
“It doesn’t only mean exorcising cursed spirits.
It also means protecting ordinary people’s lives, maintaining order in the jujutsu world, and preventing civilians from falling into panic.”
Yaga suddenly swung one arm and barked sharply.
“Judging solely from the way you exorcised cursed spirits on your own, your performance was terrible!
Completely unacceptable!”
“Large-scale structural damage, and you started several fires on top of that.”
He glared at Jin, the sharpness of his gaze clearly perceptible even through the sunglasses.
“The only reason nobody died is that there weren’t civilians at the scenes.
If there had been, were you planning to burn them to ash along with everything else?!”
Spittle flew through the air.
Yaga’s voice was terrifyingly loud, his anger nearly overflowing.
“If we hadn’t been cleaning up after you, do you know how many people could have been harmed because of your recklessness, you bastard?!”
Jin yawned and casually flicked some ash from his cigarette.
Seeing how completely unconcerned he looked, the brows Yaga had just relaxed tightened again.
He stepped forward and looked down at Jin as powerful cursed energy fluctuations emerged from his body.
The eyes of the cursed corpses behind him lit up with dark-red light one after another, an oppressive aura rushing forward.
“Answer me.
Are you a jujutsu sorcerer, or a walking natural disaster?”
A heavy, oppressive atmosphere filled the shrine.
Masamichi Yaga, a Grade 1 jujutsu sorcerer.
Because he had created fully autonomous cursed corpses, even the higher-ups believed he possessed Special Grade potential.
Someone capable of becoming principal of the Tokyo school naturally wasn’t weak himself.
The pressure created by his cursed energy combined with his sheer presence was almost suffocating.
Jin frowned.
He had already consumed most of his cursed energy during the fight.
Trying to push back against Yaga with cursed energy alone really wasn’t possible.
[Quest Reward: Beginner Conqueror’s Haki.
Claim?
Yes/No]
“Yes!”
Jin raised his head and glanced at Yaga, pulling his lips back into a grin that exposed his white teeth.
“Quit showing off your dolls in front of me, old man!”
Before the words had finished leaving his mouth, golden light burst from Jin’s eyes.
An overwhelming pressure erupted from his body, whipping up a violent wind.
BOOM!!
A dull explosion rang out.
There was no physical shockwave capable of destroying the building, yet the “pressure” filling the air was completely torn apart in that instant.
The candle flames inside every stone lantern on both sides were extinguished at exactly the same moment, plunging the entire hall into complete darkness.
Only two golden points of light remained dazzlingly bright.
Yaga felt as though he had run headfirst into an invisible fortress wall.
His short hair was blown backward by the rushing air, his clothes snapping violently as one foot involuntarily slid back a step.
The moment Yaga retreated, the group of cursed corpses behind him reacted as though someone had grabbed them by the throat.
The dark-red lights in their eyes flickered violently.
Some produced clicking sounds from their joints, while others simply collapsed to the ground unconscious.
The overwhelming pressure disappeared almost as quickly as it had arrived.
Only the extinguished candles on either side proved that anything had happened at all.
Behind his sunglasses, Yaga’s pupils contracted to pinpoints.
‘That wasn’t an explosion of cursed energy.
It was…
pure force of will?’
The round sunglasses on Gojo’s nose slid downward slightly, and his jaw nearly dropped.
Jin had already given him more than enough surprises today.
He hadn’t expected the boy to still be hiding something else.
Yaga glanced sideways at the cursed corpses behind him, turbulent emotions surging in his heart.
Even cursed corpses personally created by him couldn’t withstand that impact and had passed out.
If ordinary people were hit by it…
With the questioning having escalated to this point, there no longer seemed to be much reason to continue.
Gojo straightened and lightly clapped his hands.
“Hahaha!
Impressive.
That’s one hell of a presence.”
He stepped forward, patted Jin’s shoulder, and casually led him toward the exit.
With his back to Yaga, Gojo’s frivolous voice drifted over.
“Principal, let’s stop here.
It’s getting late, and it’s dinner time.”
Yaga expressionlessly watched the two about to leave before suddenly speaking.
“Satoru.
Wait a moment.
I have something to say to you.”
Gojo’s footsteps stopped.
He glanced toward Jin.
“Could you wait outside for me?”
He paused and added,
“…One minute.”
With the cigarette still between his lips, Jin lightly nodded and walked outside without looking back.
Gojo turned around and looked at Yaga.
Their eyes met behind their respective sunglasses.
Yaga remained silent for a moment before finally speaking, no emotion discernible in his voice.
“You’ve known him for less than a day and you’re already protecting him this much.
Satoru, do you see your younger self in him?”
Gojo tilted his head as though seriously considering the question.
Then he slipped his hand back into his pocket and a faint smile appeared on his lips.
“Don’t be so harsh on young people.
With an ability like that, being a little arrogant is normal.”
Gojo waved casually and walked toward the exit, directly ending the topic.
“Leave him to me.
People change, don’t they?”
Yaga watched Gojo disappear into the distance.
The room fell silent again.
The cursed corpses that had been huddled together like frightened quails immediately crowded around Yaga, trying to obtain the slightest sense of safety from their “father.”
Yaga crouched down and patted their heads before letting out a long breath.
“Another troublesome guy to worry about…”