Not far away, a panda—taller than a person and walking upright—was waving enthusiastically. Despite its large size, it looked undeniably adorable and charming.
"Genichi~!" the panda called out from a distance.
Genichi put down his luggage and hugged the big, furry Panda with open arms. From this angle, Panda seemed noticeably taller than him.
After catching up briefly, Panda helped carry some of Genichi's luggage and patted him on the shoulder. "Originally, Gojo-sensei was supposed to pick you up, but you know how he is... Anyway, I'll take you to your dorm first, then introduce you to the rest of the first-years. They're all super interesting!"
Carrying the remaining bags, Genichi walked beside Panda, chatting and laughing along the way.
"Really? All the latest games? I can't wait to play!" Panda exclaimed.
Their voices gradually faded as they walked off. After dropping off Genichi's luggage in his dorm, Panda took him to a classroom.
Pushing open the door, Panda shouted, "Ohoho! Maki, Toge, the new classmate's here!"
Inside were a boy and a girl, both wearing the Jujutsu High uniform. The girl had a neat ponytail and dark green hair. Her facial features were striking, though partly hidden behind an outdated pair of round glasses.
The boy had short silver hair, and the lower half of his face was covered by his collar. He looked delicate and quiet.
As the two looked up, they saw Panda bringing in a white-haired boy wearing stylish sunglasses and a warm smile. Even with the glasses, his handsome face was unmistakable.
But... why did he look oddly familiar? Something about him sparked an unexplainable sense of déjà vu.
"This is Genichi—yes, that Genichi I'm always talking about," Panda said, gesturing with both hands.
Of course, both of them had heard the name "Genichi" before. Not only had Panda often mentioned him, but his connection to Gojo-sensei made him memorable.
Recalling something Gojo had once said, Maki couldn't help but think to herself: An adopted son, right? Has to be. That annoyingly smug smile really does resemble him…
But… he might be a bit better than that blindfolded idiot, Maki thought silently, watching Genichi politely remove his sunglasses and bow in greeting.
"Kelp!" said Toge Inumaki, politely responding with one of his typical rice ball phrases.
Panda continued the introductions: "This is Maki. Don't call her by her family name—she doesn't like it. She's super strong in close combat!"
"And this is Toge Inumaki, a Cursed Speech user. Because of his technique, he can't talk like a normal person, so he usually speaks in rice ball ingredients."
Among the group, Panda was already Genichi's old friend. Though Toge couldn't speak freely, he was easy to get along with. And despite Maki's cool, distant demeanor, she was surprisingly approachable.
As they chatted, the wooden door slid open again. In walked Gojo Satoru—hands in his pockets, white hair falling over his blindfolded eyes.
He was a few minutes late and showed absolutely no sign of guilt. Smiling, he clapped his hands to get everyone's attention.
"Alright, everyone acquainted now?"
Panda and Toge greeted him first. Maki just looked exasperated. Her expectations for the supposedly "strongest sorcerer" had been rebuilt from scratch after meeting him up close—he was as unreliable as the rumors warned.
As for Genichi, he was long used to this. Gojo's chaotic, carefree personality was something he'd endured for years. Unreliable? That was just a default setting.
"Well then," Gojo said cheerfully, "Maki's from the Zen'in clan, Panda has Principal Yaga's mentorship, Toge has inherited family techniques, and Genichi has already trained. So I'll skip the basics. For your grand welcome, I've prepared a little assignment! Stay tuned for the details!"
"How's that for a surprise? Hmm… Let's see. Maki and Genichi in one group, Panda and Toge in the other. Spend the next few days getting used to each other, alright?"
"Huh?!" Maki's face darkened. She didn't mind exorcising curses, but this was way too sudden! What kind of lunatic gives missions right at the start of the school year?
Panda scratched his head. "Wait… this is so abrupt. And why am I not in Genichi's group?"
"Salmon," Toge added.
Gojo held up a finger. "Because Maki and Panda are both close-range fighters. Balance, people—team composition matters!"
Panda drawled, "Sensei, this isn't a video game…"
Genichi, meanwhile, didn't object. With Gojo, this kind of chaos was expected. What excited him more was the upcoming field combat. After all, he'd trained in cursed techniques and martial arts for so long—it was about time to put it to the test.
"Alright, let's start training! Sensei is free today and ready to coach!"
Training Grounds
The four of them warmed up. Facing Genichi was Maki, holding a wooden staff. Looking at Genichi with his wooden sword, she asked, "According to Gojo-sensei, you're not good at hand-to-hand?"
Genichi twirled his sword with a few smooth flourishes and scratched his head. "Not exactly. My cursed technique is 'acceleration.' I can enhance my body pretty decently with cursed energy. But I'm not well-versed in formal techniques. You know how it is—training with Gojo doesn't exactly teach you the basics. He's… a bit much."
Maki spun her staff with explosive air-piercing force. "Let's just spar and see."
"No problem! Please go easy on me," Genichi replied with a bright smile.
The spar began quickly. Within a few exchanges, Maki was mentally grumbling—This is 'pretty decent'?! That power and speed…
Though neither was going all-out, Maki was clearly surprised. Her physical strength far exceeded the average due to her unique circumstances, yet Genichi held his own. He wasn't great at technique, but under pressure, his defense and counterattacks were impressive.
Wait… isn't he also a ranged fighter?
After the spar, Genichi gained a real sense of Maki's combat ability. Watching from anime was one thing—experiencing her relentless, storm-like offense in person was another.
Impressed, Genichi humbly asked for tips, which earned Maki's respect. Meanwhile, Panda and Toge didn't do much—Toge's cursed speech made traditional sparring difficult.
Somehow, Panda could understand Toge's rice ball language fluently. Judging by their banter, they got along well.
Then came Gojo's "personal training session," which really just meant he wanted to play around. This time, Genichi wasn't the only one being treated like a toy, so he was happy to go along with it.
As expected, Gojo told them to all attack him together—then effortlessly dodged and blocked everything, throwing in harmless but infuriating counters along the way.
Even Maki, now going full force, couldn't shift the tide. Panda tried to coast, but Gojo "specially" motivated him to try harder… to no avail.
Toge, whose cursed speech could backfire when used on someone like Gojo, was the only one allowed to slack off openly.
Meanwhile, Genichi used his new bow—Extermination—to provide ranged support and get used to the weapon. When he infused it with cursed energy, a glowing blue string appeared. More energy summoned a deep-blue arrow glowing with power.
The arrows exploded on impact, creating craters in the ground. Early on, he almost hit Maki and Panda by mistake, so he started regulating his cursed output more carefully.
Once the others dropped out of the "fight," Genichi had to abandon ranged combat and face Gojo up close for another round of "training."
After beating everyone into the ground, Gojo stretched and flashed a bright smile: "That was a meaningful training session. Sensei's heading out. You're free to keep practicing!"
"Finally—he's gone!"
"Salmon!"
Flat on their backs, Panda and Toge chimed in together. Maki had already recovered, now thinking Genichi was actually a great match for her.
With her engaging in melee, Genichi could offer accurate ranged support. His arrows, even weakened, were powerful—and he could hold his own in close quarters too.
Most curses lacked intelligence, but if they faced one with tactical thinking that tried to take out Genichi first… well, that curse would be in for a nasty surprise.
Seeing Maki's intense gaze, Genichi coughed awkwardly. "I'm grabbing some cold drinks. Want anything?"
Panda instantly sat up. "Cola. The colder the better, thanks!"
"Katsuobushi!" said Toge.
Panda translated: "He probably wants room-temp water. Gotta protect his throat."
Toge nodded in agreement. Genichi looked at Maki. She replied, "Hmm… green tea's fine. I'll take whatever."
Genichi returned to the dorm and grabbed everyone's drinks from his mini-fridge, plus a bottle of mineral water, and brought them back.
The four of them sipped their drinks, the exhaustion of battle fading as conversation filled the air. After fighting side-by-side, they'd already grown closer.
Panda was the kind who'd scheme pranks with Genichi while grinning like a kid. Toge was quiet, but quick to join their fun. Maki wouldn't stoop to their level—but she enjoyed watching the chaos and cared deeply for her teammates.
And she could fight like hell. That's what Panda said, his tiny panda eyes gleaming. Genichi wasn't sure why, but his hand suddenly itched…
(End of Chapter)
This is a nice animation 😍😍
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