"We're here, look." Utahime said, crossing her arms.
Before them, the massive training field was filled with students sparring.
Bang... Bang...
The sound of fists hitting flesh echoed across the open ground. The Cursed Energy of Third-Grade Sorcerers and Second-Grade Sorcerers filled the training field.
Most of the first-year students at Kyoto Jujutsu High were Third-Grade Sorcerers, with only a few being Second-Grade.
However, among the second and third-year students, there were far more Second-Grade Sorcerers. After all, a Third-Grade Sorcerer only needs to complete one year of study and exorcise a Grade 2 Cursed Spirit to be promoted, so most second-years were Second-Grade Sorcerers.
Just as Renji was mulling over the information he had gained from the real world in his past life, a sudden whistling sound sliced through the air from the distance.
Bang!
Renji instantly raised his hand.
A specialized Cursed Energy baseball came to a halt in his palm.
For a moment, the surrounding noise vanished instantly.
Even Utahime, who was standing beside him, blinked in confusion. Within her perception, there was only a flicker of a First-Grade Sorcerer's Cursed Energy that vanished in an instant, followed by a loud sound in the next second.
"Eh? What happened?" Utahime blinked.
A set of footsteps approached from the distance.
Tap... Tap... Tap...
"As expected of a so-called Special Grade Sorcerer. I've heard your name, Okkotsu Renji—the one who exorcised a Grade 1 Cursed Spirit that was on the verge of becoming a Special Grade alongside Ieiri Shoko from the Tokyo school, and was ranked as Special Grade by the higher-ups." A man with short blonde hair sneered, continuing with contempt.
"However, according to information from the Zenin clan, that Cursed Spirit that was nearing Special Grade, had already been heavily wounded by six First-Grade Sorcerers."
As the man finished speaking, a wave of exclamations immediately broke out around them.
"What! Seriously?! He's a fake Special Grade?!"
"What kind of tricks did the Tokyo school use to get the higher-ups to give him that rank? How underhanded!"
"If Zenin-senpai hadn't said anything, we all would have been deceived by him."
Renji let out a long breath.
Previously, he might have hesitated over whether to contact Suguru for help, but now, he had an upgraded Heavenly Restriction.
"To be honest, I don't have much of an opinion on rankings. Whether it's Special Grade or Third-Grade, Jujutsu Sorcerers have their mission, and so do others. By the way, what's your name?" Renji reached out and lightly gripped the long sword on his back.
Vroom!
The ground beneath his feet instantly shattered into a spiderweb pattern.
In the next second, six First-Grade Sorcerers, who had long since been exposed, appeared instantly around Renji.
"Special Grade Sorcerer Okkotsi Renji, please retract your Cursed Energy immediately." One of the men wearing glasses said, cold sweat dripping from his forehead.
Utahime blinked frantically.
"Spe... Special Grade?!"
Utahime seemed to have only just registered the fact that Renji, who was standing beside her, was a Special Grade Sorcerer.
I was putting on the airs of a senior earlier. If he has such terrifying strength, why didn't he talk back to me?
And he seems to know me. Did he investigate me?
Could it be...
This junior...
Is interested in me?!
A blush instantly crept onto Utahime's cheeks.
[Ding! Iori Utahime Favorability +5]
[Current favorability: 15]
Seeing Renji slowly draw his sword, the people surrounding him tensed.
"I repeat, Special Grade Sorcerer Okkotsu Renji, please put down your Cursed Tool and retract your Cursed Energy. Otherwise, you will harm fifty-one people, including all the first-year students, and you will be expelled from the Jujutsu World." The glasses-wearing man's legs were trembling involuntarily.
Although he was a First-Grade Sorcerer, he had never seen the Cursed Energy of a Special Grade Sorcerer before.
Yuki was always traveling the world, and there was never a trace of her to be seen.
"Your name."
Renji's gaze locked onto the man in the distance.
Even without the man saying it, Renji remembered who he was.
The son of the Zenin clan head, Zenin Naoya. He had inherited the Cursed Technique—Projection Sorcery. He was arrogant, overbearing, and had no respect for his elders.
"Zenin Naoya." Naoya sneered from a distance.
He had been sent to the first year of Kyoto Jujutsu High by Naobito. In the spring, he had arrogantly gone to challenge Satoru, only to be slapped away.
This time, he, Zenin Naoya, would reclaim his sense of superiority from another student of Tokyo Jujutsu High.
In the next second—
Slap!
A crisp slapping sound rang out.
Bang!
The previously arrogant Naoya was now lying in the spectator stands of the training field with a look of disbelief. Beneath him, the stone slabs had shattered into countless pieces.
"What?!"
A wave of exclamations came from the surrounding students.
Back where he stood, Renji slowly sheathed the long sword he was holding and spoke, "Utahime-senpai, I'm hungry. Is there anything good to eat nearby?"
Utahime only then snapped back to her senses.
"Ah, yes, there's a place nearby with really good sushi. Let's go together."
The surrounding students watched silently as Renji left.
Until one person sighed, "So that's what a Special Grade is like. Truly terrifying. Even as a Second-Grade Sorcerer, I couldn't even see him raise his hand."
Only then did the surrounding noise return.
The teacher with glasses jogged over to Naoya's side, who was still immersed in a sense of defeat. "Naoya-sama, are you alright?"
"I saw it... an afterimage... I saw... the afterimage of the sword hilt..." Naoya gritted his teeth, his expression becoming increasingly distorted as he swatted away the man's hand.
"If it's a battle of Cursed Techniques... I will definitely win." Naoya brushed the dust off himself, leaving only his back to them as he walked away.
The technique Naoya had inherited, Projection Sorcery, was a technique based on restricting the target's speed. He believed that Renji must be a physical-type sorcerer. After all, his speed was so terrifying.
Therefore, as long as he restricted his speed, he could use Cursed Tools and other techniques to kill this... ant, who was unworthy of the title of Special Grade Sorcerer.
...
Sendai.
Inside the Intensive Care Unit of Sendai Private First Hospital, heavy breathing sounded from beneath the cold medical equipment.
"Let me... die..."
The weak voice of a young boy who had lost his limbs echoed through the room via the monitors.
"Mama won't let you die. Mama will definitely save you... sob... sob..."
The woman wiped her tears, looking at her son who had lost the will to live. She then reached into her pocket with a trembling hand and pulled out a business card.
On it was written a specific name: Kamo Noritoshi.
It was followed by a line of text: A physician with special healing abilities, a God who brings healing to the world, fee depends on the person.
As the call was picked up, a man's calm voice came from the other end.
"Hello, this is Kamo Noritoshi. Who is this?"
On the other side of the phone, a middle-aged man in a light black suit with a beard slowly looked up. He looked into the mirror in front of the operating room. The mirror reflected his face, and on his forehead, a narrow star-shaped scar was particularly prominent.