The leaden sky hung low, and bare branches swayed silently in the wind.
Fine, powdery snow fell outside the Zenin mansion. The wind slipped in through the cracks of the window, carrying a biting chill. The mont it touched sweat-damp skin, it made the whole body tense up.
There was no warmth at all inside the dojo.
The only sound echoing through the empty training hall was a man's heavy breathing.
Naoya Zenin ran a hand through his damp hair.
After such intense exercise, the figure in the mirror was already soaked through.
In the past, he would not have cared in the slightest. Now, though, it felt like countless tiny insects were crawling across his body. The mix of winter cold and clammy sweat was so unpleasant that he could not help frowning.
After carefully drying himself off with a towel, he checked his pocket watch.
6:00 a.m.
It was still not ti to leave for school.
Naoya Zenin had been up training since 4:00 a.m. Ever since his transmigration, he had not dared let up for even a mont from this disciplined, monotonous routine.
He stood before the full-length mirror and carefully examined his body.
The results of his training were obvious.
Every muscle on him was practical and perfectly shaped, neither bulky nor heavy, almost like sothing carved from stone.
He might not have the sa sheer mass as professional bodybuilders, but if he really stepped into a cage to fight one of them, the bodybuilding world would be the one getting bad news.
Give it another month or two at this pace, and Naoya Zenin was confident that, on raw athletic ability alone, he could easily surpass those famous athletes.
After all, in this world, Jujutsu Sorcerers were anything but soft. Unlike the stereotype of fragile, backline mages, their close-quarters Taijutsu was first-rate. Otherwise, it would not be called "Jujutsu Kaisen - Sorcery Fight."
And [Projection Sorcery] placed even harsher demands on Taijutsu. If even a single fra of movent went wrong, the entire technique would collapse on the spot.
The original host had already been in the golden years of youth. Although he had slacked off in training over the past few years and his level had declined, Naoya was gradually making up for that flaw through doubled effort.
There was no helping it.
Since he could not co up with anything new in his research into Cursed Techniques, the only thing he could do was push his physical condition as close to its peak as possible.
Ever since witnessing Mai's breakthrough, Naoya Zenin had begun to feel that he could vaguely touch the threshold of that higher realm.
Whether it was [Cursed Technique Reversal] or [Reverse Cursed Technique].
He always felt like he could almost reach it if he stood on tiptoe.
But that vague, slippery sensation was simply too elusive.
Every ti Naoya Zenin felt like he was on the verge of an epiphany, that sense of breakthrough slipped right through his fingers.
The accumulation had not yet reached the point where it could trigger a true qualitative change.
If he had to put it in scientific terms, that was probably the best way to describe it.
It was like a cloud download stuck at 99.9999%, with the last 0.0001% refusing to finish no matter what.
An awkward state where it would not quite go through, but would not quite fail either.
What made Naoya Zenin even more anxious was sothing else.
He was worried that [Projection Sorcery] might simply be incapable of achieving [Cursed Technique Reversal].
In the original work, not every [Innate Technique] had a [Cursed Technique Reversal] form.
Not everything had a direct opposite.
A technique like the [Ten Shadows Technique], which summons Shikigami, simply could not achieve [Cursed Technique Reversal].
And [Projection Sorcery], a modern technique born from the concept of video fras, made it even harder to imagine what [Cursed Technique Reversal] would actually look like.
Was it the concept of [dividing one second into 24 fras] that could be reversed?
Or the concept of [freezing one second]?
Even Naoya Zenin had no clear picture of that right now.
Still, the real priority was [Reverse Cursed Technique].
[Projection Sorcery] was already a highly technical ability with an absurdly high ceiling. There was no need for him to waste energy on the even more complicated [Cursed Technique Reversal].
What he needed to do now was integrate Cursed Tools into the technique.
"The next part of today's routine is..."
Naoya Zenin lowered his eyes to the weapons lined up across the table.
He had dug them out of the Cursed Warehouse, relics from ancient tis.
They were exactly what suited Naoya Zenin's needs best. Weapons that could be thrown in large numbers and were easy to saturate with Cursed Energy.
Shuriken.
These were concealed weapons that ninjas carried during the Warring States period.
Their shape resembled a windmill, blades on both sides. Put simply, they were sharpened four-pointed weapons.
Every edge was razor-sharp, every point viciously keen, and they took Cursed Energy extrely well.
Stabbing, slashing, piercing, throwing. They handled all of it with ease. When necessary, they could even serve as makeshift shields for defense.
In short, until Mai could create a personal Cursed Tool suited specifically to him, Naoya Zenin would keep using these as his weapon of choice.
He casually picked up a few, weighed them lightly on his fingertips, then smoothly slipped them into the hidden sheaths attached to his body.
He had already modified the strap along the inside of his elbow. Fine elastic fasteners were sewn into the lining, holding several shuriken snug against his skin. Once covered by clothing, they vanished completely. Whether he raised his arm, bent his elbow, or swung, they did not shift in the slightest or make a single sound.
His ankles had been worked over with the sa care.
Between the inner lining of his pant legs and the shafts of his boots were specially made straps, just enough to lock several shuriken firmly in place. They rested tight against his calves and ankle bones, stable as part of his body whether he was walking, kicking, or leaping. They would not slip loose, nor would they make the slightest extra noise.
Naoya Zenin's recent training had focused on carrying these shuriken while putting himself through high-intensity [Projection Sorcery] drills.
To hurl every shuriken on his body at an enemy from different angles with perfect accuracy in a single second. Even for a trained ninja, that kind of demand for precision and difficulty would sound like pure fantasy.
And yet [Projection Sorcery] made that wild idea sothing that could actually be realized.
"[Projection Sorcery]. Activate!!!"
The mont the thought flashed through his mind, Naoya Zenin's figure instantly blurred and overlapped, splitting into twenty-four shadowy afterimages, each holding a shuriken.
The twenty-four figures surrounded the wooden post, and in the next instant, twenty-four shuriken shot into the air.
"Clang. Clang. Ting. Bang!!"
The activation of [Projection Sorcery] itself had gone perfectly, but the flight paths of the shuriken were not quite what Naoya Zenin had pictured.
Several shuriken collided midair, then ricocheted violently away.
One grazed Naoya Zenin's cheek. The next one buried itself straight into his thigh.
"...Damn it."
Muttering under his breath, Naoya Zenin endured the pain and looked down at his hands.
His palms had taken the worst of it. During the technique's execution, the sharp edges of the shuriken had sliced them open until they were slick with blood.
For a young master as proud as he was, such a miserable showing was impossible to accept.
And of course, he knew exactly why.
This was because the shuriken all left his hand at slightly different speeds, causing them to drop off early and turn the whole attempt into a disaster.
Still, it also let Naoya Zenin understand just how destructive they could be.
With the acceleration of [Projection Sorcery], these otherwise ordinary hidden weapons were enough to kill a person in an instant, with ease.
"Hiss!!"
Naoya Zenin drew in a sharp breath and pulled the shuriken out of his thigh.
"One more ti."
Before any of the wounds on his body had even been bandaged, he started the training over again.
"Whoosh!"
The shuriken moved like lightning. The mont the technique ended, before even he as the caster could react, one of them drove straight into his shoulder.
But he neither ground his teeth nor let out a scream.
Because this was one of [Projection Sorcery]'s drawbacks.
If he wanted to dodge the shuriken at the last second, he would have to alter the trajectory he had already set in advance.
But doing that would only put the cart before the horse. Instead, it would trigger [Projection Sorcery]'s backlash and freeze him for one second.
And if he slowed them down, then these hidden weapons, which were supposed to kill on first contact, would lose their edge and beco nothing more than cheap, diocre tricks.
The more injured his body beca, the more he had to keep going.
Because only by teaching his body exactly what kind of throwing force caused pain would it learn to avoid that behavior on instinct.
But after he continued training for a while, an urgent pounding suddenly ca from outside the door.
"Young master, th-there's a guest outside asking to see you!"
Oda knocked on the door, calling anxiously to Naoya Zenin inside.
"What are you panicking for? Who is it?"
"It-it's Yuki Tsukumo, young master! She's definitely here to settle scores with you! Run!!!"
"...Tell her to wait for a bit."
The mont Naoya Zenin heard Yuki Tsukumo's na, his heart sank.
Not because he was worried she had co to take revenge.
On the contrary, Yuki Tsukumo had most likely co specifically to talk to him.
So it seed his earlier words really had provoked this Special Grade Sorcerer. She had definitely gone to investigate the matter of [Ryon Sukuna's Finger].
And as long as she looked into it seriously, she would definitely notice traces of Kenjaku.
It looked like her uninvited visit today ant she had discovered sothing major.
Yuki Tsukumo was leaning against a pillar in the courtyard, leisurely smoking.
"I an... did you really have to make this this big of a welco?"
The Special Grade Sorcerer blew out a ring of smoke and lazily looked around.
A large number of Kukuru Unit mbers were watching her with open vigilance.
The mbers of the [Hei] had arrived as well.
"That brat Naoya Zenin, I told him to watch his mouth every now and then. Well, now look what happened..."
Jinichi Zenin stroked the beard on his chin. He was grumbling, but there was unmistakable schadenfreude in his tone.
"...The Clan Head-sama still hasn't woken up?"
Ranta Zenin asked the servant beside him.
"You barged into the Zenin family grounds early in the morning without warning, Yuki Tsukumo. May we take this as a declaration of war?"
Ogi Zenin's face was cold, his right hand already gripping the katana at his waist.
After all, any Special Grade Sorcerer possessed power enough to overturn a nation.
And among them, Yuki Tsukumo was one of the most inscrutable of all.
The Zenin family had never had any dealings with Yuki Tsukumo.
The only connection was that a few days ago, at the Kyoto Imperial Palace, Naoya Zenin had humiliated this Special Grade Sorcerer.
With that in mind, Yuki Tsukumo suddenly appearing inside the Zenin family estate without invitation really could be taken as coming to settle scores.
"Hm, really? Are the rules that strict? Well, I usually go wherever I want. When I went to the White House, I didn't notify the U.S. president either."
Yuki Tsukumo arched her brows and made the joke lightly.
But obviously, this was not the right ti for that joke.
Because the last person who went wherever he pleased was called Satoru Gojo.
And he was the Zenin family's hereditary enemy.
The atmosphere instantly tightened to the extre.
"All of you, stand down. This woman's here to pick a fight with ."
Naoya Zenin finally arrived, fashionably late.
He was genuinely speechless.
What exactly was wrong with Yuki Tsukumo's brain?
There was a front gate, and she just refused to use it.
She had to make an airborne entrance instead?
Early in the morning, she had thrown the entire Zenin household into chaos. Everyone had thought she was here to wipe out the whole family.
Naoya Zenin was already in a bad mood.
He had been in the middle of an intense, high-stakes training session, only for it to get interrupted halfway through. That felt like losing montum right in the middle of things. Anyone would be irritated.
But what he never expected was that the closer he got, the more every mber of the Zenin family around him stepped back, their faces filling with sheer horror.
...What was going on?
Had the original host's reputation really gotten this bad?
"???"
Even Yuki Tsukumo failed to hold it together. The cigarette in her mouth fell straight to the ground.
Because the sight of Naoya Zenin walking into the courtyard was genuinely shocking.
A long, narrow cut on his handso cheek had already crusted over.
The high collar of his inner shirt was darkened with bloodstains. His right shoulder had been pierced through, and the wound was still faintly bleeding.
His hands, exposed beyond his sleeves, looked even worse. His knuckles, palms, and the webbing between thumb and index finger were covered in cuts of varying depth. So had already clotted dark, while others were still slowly seeping blood.
One corner of his pant leg had been rolled up. The wound on his thigh had been treated only perfunctorily, and the fabric was stuck tightly to the flesh. Every step should have been pulling at it with a dull ache, yet his posture remained straight, without the slightest hint of hunching or dishevelnt.
Though he was covered in wounds, the young master's face showed no extra emotion. Only his eyes were colder than usual, mixed with a frightening hostility and impatient anger.
The courtyard fell so silent that a pin drop could have been heard.
The mbers of the Zenin family looked at each other, then back at Naoya Zenin, and the look in their eyes completely changed.
Anyone could tell that the injuries covering his body were no ordinary bumps and scrapes.
And when they connected that with the way this Special Grade Sorcerer had barged in without warning, a horrifying thought surfaced in everyone's mind at the sa ti.
Holy shit.
Could it be... the two of them had already fought a battle sowhere inside the Zenin estate?!
And the fight had already ended without anyone noticing?!
Was that cigarette actually a post-fight cigarette?
Just how strong was this young master of the Zenin family now?
He had actually managed to walk away from a Special Grade Sorcerer in one piece?!
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