The gathering was held in Asou Akiya's dormitory.
Taking into account that some preferred mild flavors while others favored heavier ones, Asou Akiya prepared a classic yin-yang hot pot.
Half sukiyaki, half Sichuan spicy broth—a combination that could truly be called a Japan-China fusion.
At the same time, he prepared a small acrylic whiteboard with a stand and a marker, placing it beside the dining table. As the hot pot simmered, he explained the fundamental common knowledge of the jujutsu world to his two juniors, using this as a lead-in to discuss the situation surrounding the "Six Eyes."
"The jujutsu world is broadly divided into four factions."
"The first faction is the jujutsu sorcerers, the second is the curse users, the third is the cursed spirits, and the fourth consists of humans who have been incarnated by cursed objects—a special existence that appears human yet is not quite human."
"Today, we'll mainly focus on the jujutsu sorcerers. You can learn about the rest in greater depth through your classes."
Asou Akiya set the theme for this small lesson.
Haibara Yu raised his hand. "I only have one question. Are all the other factions enemies of the jujutsu sorcerers?"
Getou Suguru had little appetite and was in no hurry to pick up his chopsticks. He answered on Akiya's behalf: "Of course they're enemies. When we encounter curse users, cursed spirits, or humans incarnated by cursed objects, if we can beat them, we fight; if we can't, we run."
Taking their positions into consideration, Asou Akiya did not refute Getou's statement. "Humans are complex creatures. Before everyone is capable of discerning good from evil and protecting themselves, treating them as enemies is the best approach."
Getou Suguru was surprised, understanding the underlying meaning that the juniors did not.
Akiya believed that once one possessed the ability to discern and the ability to protect oneself, there was room for negotiation between these four factions?
Nanami Kento thought deeply. "I'd heard that jujutsu sorcerers were few in number, but I didn't expect there to be so many enemies..."
Asou Akiya smiled. "Cursed spirits are the most numerous, followed by jujutsu sorcerers. Curse users and humans incarnated by cursed objects are rarities among rarities. Don't be fooled by the number of our enemies—in reality, the jujutsu sorcerer faction holds the upper hand in terms of strength. As long as the jujutsu world is willing to work together, exterminating the curse users would be a matter of minutes."
Getou Suguru was rather regretful. "Unfortunately, the jujutsu world will never work together."
After the food in the hot pot had finished boiling, Asou Akiya served Getou Suguru a vegetable and meatball. "You'll have each other from now on."
Getou Suguru lifted his head slightly. The person who always loved to tear him down had actually said something nice?
Getou Suguru: "It's truly rare to hear you praise me."
Asou Akiya: "Once you and Gojo master Reverse Cursed Technique and Domain Expansion, the two of you joining forces would be equivalent to gathering the entire jujutsu world's high-end power in one place."
"So delicious!" Haibara Yu, who had been eating with his head buried in his bowl, praised Senior Asou's cooking skills with great enthusiasm.
Nanami Kento broke out in cold sweat. Was Haibara Yu really that thick-skinned? Had he not heard how terrifying the conversation just now was?!
Turning to face the juniors, Asou Akiya continued: "I forgot to introduce the ranking system for jujutsu sorcerers to you. Although you should already know this, sorcerers are divided into five grades: Grade Four, Grade Three, Grade Two, Grade One, and at the very top, Special Grade. The reason Special Grade is called 'special' is precisely because of its uniqueness—sorcerers at this level can no longer be viewed through conventional perspectives."
"A Special Grade sorcerer is equivalent to the apex of the power pyramid."
"In the modern jujutsu world of the twenty-first century, there is one Special Grade sorcerer: Tsukumo Yuki, who has been staying abroad for a long time and not doing any work. Then there are two prodigies with astonishing talent who are quasi-Special Grade: Gojo Satoru and Getou Suguru."
Asou Akiya raised his right hand and pointed at Getou Suguru. "This is your senior Getou, a quasi-Special Grade sorcerer."
Getou Suguru very cooperatively put on a warm and approachable expression—neither arrogant nor erratic, forming a sharp contrast with Gojo Satoru.
Nanami Kento and Haibara Yu instantly felt an overwhelming sense of security.
Asou Akiya drew the organizational structure of the jujutsu world on the small whiteboard. "Let's break the jujutsu world down into finer detail."
Asou Akiya: "The Headquarters, the Three Great Sorcerer Clans, and other domestic and international jujutsu sorcerer associations."
Asou Akiya: "First, the Headquarters, who have government backing and publicly hold a dominant position. Their advantage lies in having official endorsement and deep connections with the police and government officials. Under their name, there are two schools that train jujutsu sorcerers: Tokyo Jujutsu High and Kyoto Jujutsu High. Their weakness is that they can only command the low-to-mid-tier combat strength of the jujutsu world."
Asou Akiya: "Second, there are the Three Great Sorcerer Clans of the jujutsu world, who possess a thousand years of heritage: the Zen'in Clan, the Kamo Clan, and the Gojo Clan. Your senior Gojo comes from the Gojo Clan and serves as its current proxy, making him the undisputed next head of the family. Their advantage lies in their profound foundation and unbroken lineage—they do not lack high-to-mid-tier combat strength. Their weakness is their feudal traditions; they have far too many rules and restrictions, making it difficult to form an absolute centripetal force."
Asou Akiya: "Finally, there are the orthodox sorcerers who are unwilling to join the Headquarters, the Three Great Clans, or the ranks of the curse users. They form various small groups, which are what I just referred to as jujutsu sorcerer associations. Their advantage is that while they are few in number, they are united and have deep cooperative ties with local jujutsu lineages. Their weakness is that they lack advanced cursed technique heritage and knowledge; it is virtually impossible for them to cultivate a Special Grade sorcerer, and even Grade One sorcerers are exceedingly rare among them."
Asou Akiya wove Gojo Satoru's family background into the lesson without eliciting any resistance.
Haibara Yu exclaimed in admiration: "So amazing."
Nanami Kento, upon hearing the description "feudal traditions," compared it to Gojo Satoru... the white hair that looked dyed, the blue eyes that looked like colored contacts, the sunglasses hanging from his collar—just where exactly was that senior supposed to be feudal or traditional?!
Getou Suguru listened with great interest, feeling as though he was receiving a proper lecture from Akiya.
The information he knew had always been too scattered, lacking systematic organization. Today was the perfect opportunity to clarify the structure of the jujutsu world.
Unfortunately, Asou Akiya had no intention of being a proper teacher. He gradually began to slip in personal bias, establishing viewpoints that favored Gojo Satoru, and steered the topic toward the Three Great Clans: "The Headquarters has not existed for a particularly long time, and the jujutsu sorcerer associations are fragmented groups that huddle together for warmth out of self-interest. The ones who actually hold the highest status in the jujutsu world are, paradoxically, the low-profile Three Great Clans."
Asou Akiya: "Before your senior Gojo was born, the Zen'in Clan held the strongest overall comprehensive strength among the Three Great Clans. Their 26th head was acclaimed as the strongest Grade One sorcerer. The Kamo Clan came second, and the Gojo Clan ranked last."
Asou Akiya: "In the past, the Gojo Clan was often suppressed by the other two families to the point where they could not even lift their heads."
Since Gojo Satoru would never reveal his own weaknesses, this was the first time Getou Suguru had heard that the Gojo Clan ranked dead last. He froze for a moment, the smile at the corners of his mouth widening, thinking to himself:[Satoru, your family background has been exposed.]
Asou Akiya drew multiple sets of pyramids to illustrate the situation of the Three Great Clans. It was vivid and intuitive, making everything clear at a single glance.
The first set represented comprehensive strength: Zen'in Clan > Kamo Clan > Gojo Clan.
The second set represented political influence: Kamo Clan > Zen'in Clan > Gojo Clan.
The third set represented commercial influence: Kamo Clan > Zen'in Clan > Gojo Clan.
Haibara Yu was astonished: "The Kamo Clan is number one in both politics and business!"
Nanami Kento couldn't help but want to laugh. The heir of the Gojo Clan didn't seem quite as lofty and untouchable as he had imagined.
Above these three sets of pyramids, Asou Akiya wrote: [Before December 7, 1989.]
Haibara Yu wore an innocent expression, not understanding what it meant.
Nanami Kento's heart skipped a beat: "What is this date? Does it have something to do with Senior Gojo?"
Asou Akiya: "Yes. It is Gojo Satoru's date of birth."
"Eat more, all of you. I've prepared plenty of vegetables and meat today. No one is leaving my dormitory with an empty stomach." Asou Akiya, multitasking between cooking and teaching, kept serving food to Getou Suguru, causing Getou to unconsciously eat several more bites.
Asou Akiya then rewrote three new sets of pyramids on the whiteboard and said: "This is the latest situation."
[After March 15, 2006.]
[Comprehensive Strength: Gojo Clan > Zen'in Clan > Kamo Clan.]
[Political Influence: Kamo Clan > Zen'in Clan > Gojo Clan.]
[Commercial Influence: Kamo Clan > Gojo Clan > Zen'in Clan.]
Haibara Yu was astonished: "Senior Gojo single-handedly elevated his clan's comprehensive strength and commercial influence?"
Haibara Yu eagerly asked the two seniors: "Is he a legendary business genius?"
Getou Suguru answered honestly: "...Satoru is a genius at mathematics. He learns everything quickly, but I've never heard of him having any talent in the business field."
Nanami Kento found it difficult to imagine Gojo Satoru possessing such outstanding accomplishments. Being a Semi-Special Grade sorcerer was one thing—sorcerer talent accounted for eighty percent of that—but for one person to elevate his clan's comprehensive strength and commercial influence was somewhat unbelievable. "Senior Asou, Senior Getou, is the reliability of these rankings trustworthy?"
Getou Suguru said meaningfully: "If it's Akiya speaking, I am completely certain." Whether he believed it or not, he had to.
Asou Akiya softly spoke a fact that very few people knew.
"Gojo Satoru's existence changed the entire Gojo Clan. His will is the Gojo Clan's will. The Three Great Clans, which originally lacked centripetal force and frequently engaged in internal strife, have been forced to acknowledge Gojo Satoru as their leader since his birth. He is the young master with the highest standing among the Three Great Clans, and a genius whose name resounds like thunder throughout the jujutsu world."
"The blue eyes he possesses are called the 'Six Eyes,' an extremely rare special constitution of the Gojo Clan."
"From the moment he was born, he was placed on the dark web with a bounty exceeding one hundred million yen."
Under Asou Akiya's narration, everyone present—including Getou Suguru—listened to an urban fantasy tale with "Gojo Satoru" as its protagonist.
"Since his infancy, countless people have wanted to kill him, believing that his birth shattered the balance of the jujutsu world. The curse users hated him to the bone, the Headquarters feared him to the core, and the Zen'in and Kamo Clans were consumed with jealousy toward him. He could only remain hidden for seven years, completely isolated from the world, spending his childhood deep within the Gojo Clan's barrier."
"The Gojo Clan protected him with the lives of their entire clan."
"He is the Gojo Clan's faith. The Gojo Clan regards him as the divine child, and his own parents performed prostrations before him."
"He has a father and a mother, yet he is also fatherless and motherless."
"If he wanted to watch movies, the Gojo Clan would provide him with every original film available on the market. If he wanted to surf the internet, the Gojo Clan would establish wireless networks in their clan grounds where not a single wire had previously existed, purchasing all manner of high-tech equipment to ensure he had fun and never fell behind his peers in terms of hobbies and interests."
"His various ordinary yet extraordinary wishes caused the Gojo Clan to continuously engage with the outside world, expand their commercial ventures, and break free from their self-imposed isolation."
"He is unconventional, treats men and women as equals, and admires those with true ability. Because of this, every single person in the Gojo Clan has the opportunity to receive training. As long as a woman dares to come before him and ask for her freedom, there is no situation where a female sorcerer is doomed to spend her entire life as nothing more than a breeding machine."
"Before the age of fifteen, the Gojo Satoru who had not yet enrolled in school was the divine child, a leader of the Three Great Clans in a certain sense."
"After the age of fifteen... Gojo Satoru is a student, a senior, not the divine child."
"He laughs, he gets angry, he loses his temper. On the surface, he appears to have the full range of human emotions, but inside, many parts of him are still empty. He has yet to learn how to be a good senior who earns the respect of others. Getou and I are working hard to teach him, so I ask you two juniors to be a bit more forgiving of him, for the sake of my explanation here today."
"Because, you see—"
"The people of the Three Great Clans do not need to enroll in school. They do not need to exorcise cursed spirits."
"Their ancestors have fought cursed spirits for countless years, accumulating boundless merit, guarding Kyoto, and building up formidable assets over the span of a millennium."
Asou Akiya spoke each word with deliberate weight: "Gojo Satoru's entry into the world is the jujutsu world's good fortune."
Gojo Satoru had no obligation to bear the pressure of the jujutsu world.
It was the compassion for the world that others had stirred within him that changed his mind, leading him to walk of his own accord onto the most difficult path of reform.
As Asou Akiya said these words, he glanced intentionally or unintentionally at Getou Suguru, who was deep in thought.
[Getou, your grand ideal means nothing to Gojo.]
[Our companionship, our influence—that is what became Gojo Satoru's turning point. We took the divine child who understood nothing of humanity and turned him into a thoughtless, happily attending classmate. We even taught him the proper way to get through adolescence.]
[It is precisely the gradual accumulation of positive emotions that is the true reason he is willing to be a jujutsu sorcerer.]
[—Because it's fun!]
[—Being jujutsu sorcerers together is the most fun thing in the world!]
[—Helping others, supporting the weak—though it is exhausting, if everyone says it is worth it, then it is worth it!]
...
In the dormitory, Gojo Satoru lay sprawled on his bed, his stomach growling with hunger. He refused to touch the cake in the refrigerator or the dinner Akiya had prepared, insisting on waiting for those two to return and treat him to an extra meal.
Suddenly, he lifted his face from where it had been buried in the pillow.
"It's not Akiya?"
"Did Suguru put on the red string?"
This meant he could sneak a peek at what was happening on Getou Suguru's end!
And so, Gojo Satoru perceived the flow of cursed energy in Asou Akiya's dormitory—four people, gathered for a meal.
His high-precision "cursed energy thermal imaging" condensed into distinct human shapes. One person's cursed energy was calm and steady, another's was being deliberately restrained, and the remaining two had cursed energy that fluctuated unpredictably. Getou Suguru hid his hand in his pants pocket, secretly putting on the red string before connecting with Gojo Satoru. He then pointed in Asou Akiya's direction, allowing Gojo Satoru to see another human figure blazing like crimson flames.
The other party seemed to be in a good mood, his lips moving as he spoke, further deepening Gojo Satoru's experience with lip-reading.
["Juniors, you must show respect to Senior Gojo from now on."]
["He deserves the very best of everything."]
"...Praising me again?"
He sat up like a reanimated corpse for one second, then flopped back down.
The white-haired boy hugged his pillow, rolling back and forth as though he had drunk juice filled to the brim with fizzy soda bubbles. The beds at Tokyo Jujutsu High were much softer than the tatami mats at home. Once he sank into one, even his limbs went limp and powerless.
He lay on the bed, barely alive, muttering under his breath.
"Suguru, I'm not looking anymore. You're not allowed to tempt me into making exceptions anymore. Put your middle finger away too."
He suddenly shouted.
"Akiya, Suguru, you're not allowed to feast behind my back!"
His longing for his two friends reached its peak. He grabbed his phone and sent a message.
[Tokyo Jujutsu High DK Trio]
[Gojo Satoru: Are you done talking? Come back soon.]
[Gojo Satoru: I don't want to eat ordinary rice bowl toppings. I want to eat the meatballs from the sukiyaki pot!]
[Gojo Satoru: Please, I'm about to starve to death. Don't forget there's someone here who deserves the best food in the world!]
Applying what he had just learned in real time, Gojo Satoru eagerly awaited the return of Asou Akiya and Getou Suguru. They were sure to bring back the food he loved.
As for why his spoiled act worked on the two of them every single time?
—Because I'm adorable, that's why!
Not the Gojo Clan, not the "Six Eyes"—it was simply that Gojo Satoru had two friends who were completely susceptible to this sort of thing.
Gojo Satoru cupped his cheeks in his hands, a shamelessly broad smile spreading across his face as little pink flowers seemed to float behind him.
"So embarrassing."
Tokyo Jujutsu High was such a fun place. He could play here for five whole years. How wonderful!
___________________________________________________________________________
Author's Note:
The next chapter will be updated during the day (featuring Zen'in Naoya's enrollment arc).
Once the junior enrollment arc concludes, I will need to adjust my emotional state and do my best to write the Star Plasma Vessel mission when I'm feeling emotionally fulfilled.
Please look forward to the trio's second year.
—Yu Wei.