Jujutsu Kaisen: Reincarnated as Hajime Kashimo Chapter 31 31: The State of the World (Bonus Chapter)

Three months passed.

The morning sun hit the grass, turning the frost on the leaves into crystalline patterns before they lted into droplets and rolled away. Two figures walked through the quiet landscape.

Kashimo led the way, a tiger-skin shawl draped over his shoulders. The thick, orange fur frad his neck, making his teal hair stand out even more than usual. He carried the erald staff over one shoulder.

Fuka followed half a step behind. She wore red and white robes tied with a black sash, her movents light and practiced. The Soul Split Katana was strapped to her back, its dark hilt occasionally catching a cold, tallic glint from the sun.

"Well," Kashimo said, looking up at the weak sun and the frost-bitten weeds at his feet. He let out a sharp, cold breath. "Winter is coming."

Three months was a short ti. It was barely enough for the leaves to turn yellow or for the first frosts of the season to settle. But for the jujutsu world, it had been long enough for everything to change.

Arashi Gojo's death had been a massive stone dropped into a still lake. Once the news was confird, the ripples had spread with terrifying speed. Factions that had once balanced themselves between the Gojo and Zenin clans didn't hesitate. They defected to the Zenin imdiately. The logic was simple: the Gojo clan was led by a ghost, while the Zenin had a living master of the Ten Shadows.

In a single month, the hierarchy of the jujutsu world was rewritten. Zenin Sawara sat at the head of it all, his smile deepening as forr allies of the Gojo clan arrived one by one to swear their loyalty.

As for the Shogunate.

Two months ago, the Tokugawa elders were still panicking over their missing princess. They had sent waves of n to scour the roads between Edo and Kyoto, but they had found nothing.

The reason was that for the last three months, Fuka had been trailing Kashimo across the country. One day they were hunting curses in the mountains of Kai, the next they were resting in a village in Shinano, and the day after that they were wandering through so naless corner of the provinces. Every ti the Shogunate's investigators found a lead, the pair had already vanished. By now, the authorities had nearly given up hope.

Kashimo hadn't been idle either.

He had refined his control over his cursed energy. Before, his attacks were a blunt discharge of power. Now, he could split his current into hundreds of fine branches, making lightning dance at his fingertips. He had spent two months practicing how to dump his entire electrical charge into a single strike. He no longer needed three points of contact to trigger an explosion, he could make his first punch detonate on impact.

He had finally perfected the technique. Now, if he landed a solid blow, his opponent was lucky if there was enough left of them to put in a casket.

Fuka had also progressed. Her use of the spatial slash was more intuitive. She had moved beyond cutting stationary targets and was now able to predict an opponent's movent in the middle of a frantic exchange. She had spent three months drilling the taijutsu basics Kashimo had given her, and she had reached a level of competence that surprised even herself.

There wasn't much left to teach her. Sotis Kashimo watched her train and rembered the girl who had cried about her sore muscles three months ago. The change was significant, though he would never tell her that.

Fuka remained silent as they walked. She stayed half a step behind him, her gaze fixed on his tiger-skin shawl, lost in her own thoughts. The morning light cast long shadows across her face, highlighting her quiet, pensive expression.

Lately, they had stopped talking.

Kashimo was never much for conversation. During the early days of her apprenticeship, he would offer occasional corrections or explain the flow of energy. Now that she understood the chanics, he didn't see the point in repeating himself.

As for bonding, it wasn't in his nature. Kashimo's philosophy of strength and isolation didn't leave room for small talk. He wasn't the type to check in on a student's feelings.

Fuka had changed, too. When she first started following him, her energy was like a fla. She had been relentless with her questions, asking about output, technique, and every cursed tool she saw. When she asked too many questions and Kashimo refused to answer, she would puzzle it out herself and then co back for more.

But at so point, the questions stopped.

It wasn't that she had lost interest. She had simply realized that she wouldn't get a response. Kashimo's answers were always short. Yes, no, figure it out yourself. Eventually, her enthusiasm hit the wall of his indifference.

So, they settled into a routine. They walked together, ate together, and killed whatever curses crossed their path. They spoke when they had to, and the rest of the ti, they existed in silence.

Fuka didn't know if this was normal. She only knew that as long as he didn't tell her to leave, she would keep following.

The sun stretched their shadows across the frosted grass. One shadow carried a staff and moved with a steady, lazy gait. The other carried a sword and followed every step.

They were in Izumo Province. Not long ago, Kenjaku had sent a ssage. According to the old scher:

"The martial arts and swordsmanship of Izumo are sothing you will definitely find interesting."

Kashimo thought of Kenjaku's permanent smile and that stitched scar on his forehead. He shook his head to clear the image. Regardless of the source, it was worth investigating. He didn't have anything better to do.

A breeze blew through the trees, carrying the first real chill of winter. The grass gave way to a cleared road, and the horizon opened up.

A massive fortress stood before them.

The gray stone walls caught the morning light, and the gatehouse towered over the surrounding land. A moat circled the structure, the water reflecting the jagged silhouette of the battlents.

Matsue Domain.

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A/n: Thanks to everyone who voted with power stones. Your support helps keep the quality of this fic high. Along with the 200 stones bonus chapter, the new goal is 350 stones. 350 power stones = 1 bonus chapter. I think we can do it, drop as many stones as u want, appreciate u all!

For early access to 15 chapters ahead: p@tre~~/Demonic_Fiction (Link is in the synopsis and my profile).