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CHAPTER START---
---9 AM, Taiyo Daburu's Home…
Taiyo Daburu was at a loss, staring up at the ceiling as he lay in bed, without a single thought in his mind.
All his life, he'd trained to be a perfect shot, followed instructions, remained disciplined, worked, and studied hard.
He made history time and time again, and drank in the adoration of the world on the greatest stage humanity has ever built.
But now, he realizes that his entire life was all so…small.
Raising his hand to the ceiling, he snaps his fingers, and a small blood-red flame forms at the tip of his fingers, instantly warming the entire room.
Luckily, his newfound immunity to extreme temperatures made this harmless, even as the air around him showed ripples of heat.
Taiyo closes his hand, dispelling the flames and lying sprawled out on the bed, atop his sheets.
"I couldn't find anything about this 'Magic' online, but if grandma had that finger thing in her care, there must be more people like me," Taiyo says. "Unless it's just my family."
Taiyo sits up, annoyed by that idea.
"Tch, but that would be so boring," he says while looking at the poster of himself on the wall, standing on the podium with his first gold medal, from four years ago. "It's no fun without people to compete against, without seeing them looking up at you."
With that, he hops out of bed and pulls on some shorts, remaining shirtless as he wears his slippers and walks out of his room.
He grabs his phone before walking into the kitchen and preparing breakfast.
Walking into the kitchen, he looks through the window to the backyard, seeing bits of corpses remaining, along with the destroyed landscape.
Craters and scorched earth were all around his home, and only by careful consideration and much luck did the house stay intact.
"I got carried away playing with my superpowers," Taiyo grumbles as he mixes a protein shake. "Since I'll be moving somewhere closer to the city, I can just convert this place to a training field instead. That'd be nice…"
After mixing his protein shake, he places the dishes in the sink and turns on the tap, only to look through the window to see three crows land in the backyard.
"Crows?" he mutters as they pick at pieces of the monsters, which he's already tested with his phone and knows regular people can't see them. But the birds can see and move them normally. "I guess those monsters are what dogs bark at, so animals can see them, but not regular humans."
He washes the dishes and prepares his oatmeal, then moves to the living room to watch some TV and make his plans for the day.
As he turns on the TV, his interview from yesterday is playing, so he lowers the volume and puts his feet up on the coffee table while having breakfast.
"I should have added more sugar to this," Taiyo mutters as he eats his oatmeal, scrolling through his phone to find the best private tutors he can afford. "Oh, I know what I'll do…"
He quickly pulls up a map of every shrine similar to what his family once guarded, "Maybe these things or the people guarding them have magic too, so I can probably learn more by going to them, but I'll have to be sneaky about it."
After a few minutes of planning his trip around Japan, there is a short knock on the front door, which surprises him.
Both because of how remote this location is, and the fact that very few people would think to look for him here, and they'd all call first.
Taiyo mutes the TV and remains silent, focusing on the door. As if doubting his own senses.
Only for three more gentle knocks to reach him.
"What the hell?" he sets down his oatmeal and gets up, walking over to the door.
He opens the door, still only wearing shorts and his slippers, and he's met with a peculiar collection of people.
Standing in the middle of the walkway is a short old man, bald head with a white beard, and white eyebrows that are long enough to frame his face. He was dressed like a monk of some kind and had a walking stick.
To his right is a young, tall man with white hair, kept upward by the wide blindfold he wears, and almost all of his body is hidden beneath an all-black outfit consisting of long pants and a long-sleeved shirt with a high collar reaching his chin.
And to his left is another man, what he guessed to be early 40s, with tan skin and a black suit with a white undershirt, wearing no tie and a pair of small sunglasses.
Taiyo looks between the three of them, giving the man with the blindfold a strange look as they all stand there silently, as if waiting for him.
But then he looked past them, down to the steps leading up to his front door, where three all-black and heavily tinted cars were parked.
Leaning against the middle car was a nervous, thin man with black hair, kneading his hands as he discussed something with the woman.
And the woman was who caught Taiyo's eye.
But not because of the beauty of her pale blue hair tied in a long braid at her back, and a strange braid covering the right side of her face.
But because she had what he assumed was one of the crows from earlier on her shoulder, and was discussing a piece of the monster's flesh the crow was picking at in his backyard, talking curiously about it with the other man.
"Ahh, I see," Taiyo nods, looking between them all nervously. "So, you're all 'wizards' too, right?"
"We're not called 'wizards', but yes," the old man in the middle says. "Now, may we please enter? We have much to discuss."
"Sure," Taiyo steps aside, keeping his eyes on the men as they walk into his home. "The living room is that way," he directs them to the couches.
'Okay, so a bunch of wizards are in my house. Great, now I just need to focus on not pissing anyone off,' Taiyo takes a deep breath as he closes the door behind the men and follows them to the living room.
As they get to the living room, the tan man speaks up first.
"I am Principal Yaga, this is Principal Gakuganji, and he is—"
"Satoru Gojo, but you can just call me 'Gojo'. Nice to meet you," says Gojo as he sits in one of the single seats.
"Satoru," Principal Yaga frowns at the younger man. "How many times have I told you, wait for permission before sitting."
"It's fine," Taiyo moves his oatmeal over to the other single seat and sits down. "I figure we don't have time to waste, so, what is this about?"
Both principals sit at opposite ends of the longer couch, leaving an empty seat between them.
"Are you not going to offer us tea?" Principal Gakuganji asks.
"No," Taiyo says. "I'm not looking away from the three wizards in my home."
"Well, first, we're not called 'wizards'," Principal Yaga says. "We're technically Jujutsu Sorcerers."
'Aren't sorcerers just wizards with no books?' Taiyo thinks, but decides not to ask aloud.
"Understood, Jujutsu Sorcerers," he says.
"Yes," Principal Yaga holds out his hand, and a wisp of translucent blue energy forms on his palm, causing Taiyo's eyes to widen.
"So it's not just me," he mutters.
"No, there are hundreds of us," Principal Yaga says. "Not all of us are capable of actually using this energy, which we call Cursed Energy, to fight, but those who can, use it to protect regular humans from the Cursed Spirits, which are the monsters you fought last night."
"Hmm, 'Cursed Energy,' and 'Cursed Spirits', so instead of magic, do we use 'Curses'?" Taiyo asks.
"Essentially yes," Principal Yaga says. "All members of Jujutsu Society can see curses, but not all of us can control our Cursed Energy, and even fewer have what we call an 'Innate Technique', which you can think of as a special superpower."
"I see," Taiyo leans back in his chair and thinks about it for a moment, "So you're like the Men In Black, and Harry Potter, right?"
Gojo laughs, "Yeah, basically, pretty cool, right? Do you like Harry Potter?"
"No," Taiyo says. "But that means either you're here to kill me, or to recruit me. And since your titles are 'Principal', well…"
"There are two schools," Principal Yaga says. "One in Tokyo, which I run, and one in Kyoto, the sacred land of Jujutsu, which Principal Gakuganji runs."
"Ok, this is a lot to take in," Taiyo sighs as he rubs his head. "So you're here to ask me to join a school, and some secret society?"
"Jujutsu Tech is the best place to learn about Cursed Energy and Jujutsu," Gojo says. "And you can get paid for it, too. Plus, since we're a secret branch of the government, you'll have access to a lot of things regular civilians can't get."
"Is Cursed Energy different from Jujutsu?" Taiyo asks.
This time, Principal Gakuganji speaks up, "Cursed Energy is within us all, but Jujutsu is the application of cursed energy."
"I see, and what will I learn there?"
"How to control and utilize your Innate Technique," Principal Gakuganji says. "And depending on your talent and discipline, many universal Jujutsu Techniques."
"Will I be allowed to have a regular life? And will you kill me if I don't go?"
"We won't kill you," Gojo says. "But if you don't join Jujutsu Tech, then you can't use your Cursed Energy. We can't risk the public learning about it."
"Why not?"
"Cursed Spirits feed on negative energy," Principal Gakuganji says. "Cursed Energy is inherently negative energy. If humans learn about us and Cursed Spirits it will cause a loop of negative energy which makes Cursed Spirits more rampant, leading to mass casualties."
"Okay, when you put it like that, it makes more sense than things like Harry Potter keeping magic hidden," Taiyo says. "And how will attending this school affect my regular life?"
"It really won't," Principal Yaga says. "You can still have a social life once you attend classes, train, and handle your missions to deal with Cursed Spirits properly."
"Alright, this all sounds too good to be true right now, so, what's the catch?" Taiyo asks.
"You will have to retire from your sports and Olympic career," Principal Gakugaji says. "We can't risk you accidentally revealing Cursed Energy to the world at one of your events."
"Seriously?" Taiyo furrows his brow at the trio. "I've been working toward this my entire life, and now, because of something I haven't even had for a month, I have to throw it all away?"
"I've already begun making the arrangements," Principal Gakuganji says. "Medical records can be made to state that you had a spinal injury, which makes it too difficult for you to compete. No honor will be lost."
The room falls silent as Taiyo considers his options.
'I worked my ass off to get to the top of the world, to become King and have everyone look up at me, and now they want me to throw it all away and get shoved into some box like Japan's dirty secret forever.
No way, and I can probably figure out anything they can teach, anyway. It'll just take a bit more time. That way I can keep competing and learn about this Jujutsu on my own—'
"Young man," Principal Gakuganji snaps him out of his thoughts. "Do not think I cannot recognize the stench of the insolent youth. There will be dire consequences for breaking the rules of Jujutsu Society."
"Was that a threat?" Taiyo asks.
In response, Principal Gakuganji glares at the boy.
Principal Yaga coughs into his hand to break the tension and pull their attention onto himself.
"Perhaps after a few more minutes of discussion and some more questions are answered, we can all come to a sensible understanding and decide the best path forward," he says, causing both of them to relax.
"I'm not giving up my career, or my contracts and sponsor," Taiyo says.
Principal Gakuganji glares at the boy. "You can't have it all."
"Watch me," he says.
This time, Gojo claps his hands together. "Okay, this won't get us anywhere, and I've spent enough of my day with this annoying fossil."
"Gojo," Principal Yaga begins to scold him on behalf of Principal Gakuganji, but the man cuts him off.
"This kid doesn't care about our rules," Gojo says. "And he sure as shit doesn't care about what some stubborn old people think is right. I can see it in his eyes."
Taiyo looks at the man, who then lowers his blindfold to reveal his bright blue eyes. "And what do you see?"
"Someone who wants everything, and is trying to figure out what it will take to have the freedom to live how he wants," Gojo says.
"Yeah, well, how do I do it?"
Gojo smiles, "That's simple, just be the strongest."
"That was always the plan," Taiyo says. "You don't get to the Olympics without always aiming to be the best, and whatever realm of competition I exist in, I'll never settle for silver."
"That's exactly the kind of mentality you need to survive as a Jujutsu Sorcerer," Gojo says. "The only problem with that is, right now, I'm the strongest."
"Then surpassing you is the goal."
"Yes, but you can't do that without studying at Jujutsu Tech," Gojo shrugs. "I mean, you could try to go about it solo, but then I'd grow faster than you, and with the lead I have, you'd never even touch the podium."
"I see," Taiyo looks thoughtful as he considers his options once again.
"But don't worry," Gojo gives him another cheerful smile. "You can keep competing and even go to the next Olympics."
"Absolutely not!" Principal Gakuganji knocks his staff to the floor. "That is a complete affront to everything Jujutsu Society stands for."
"Well, I don't think anyone has the right to steal a kid's hopes, dreams, and damn near his entire life from him just because they feel like it," Gojo says. "And once he attends, he'll learn to control his Cursed Energy to prevent any accidents, so it'll be fine."
"Can you really do this? Can you make this deal?" Taiyo asks.
"Yes, because I'm the strongest," Gojo says. "And I, Satoru Gojo, on my name, promise to do everything in my power to ensure you may keep competing while attending Jujutsu High."
Taiyo looks at the man for a moment, not sure what to make of this, then smiles, even as Principal Gakuganji is fuming.
Then Taiyo smiles and gets up, "Alright, let me get my shoes and a t-shirt, then we'll head to the backyard."
"What for?" Principal Yaga asks.
"Because before we go, I want to see if I really need this school, and what better way to test that than by having a spar with 'The Strongest'," Taiyo says. "Besides, if I'm aiming for the top, I need to know how far I have to go."
Gojo laughs as he gets up. "Right now, as you are, the distance between us is infinity, but I'm hopeful that you'll reach me someday."
"Right, I'll be back in a minute," Taiyo says as he leaves the three men in his living room.
As he leaves, Principal Gakuganji glares at Gojo, but is unable to do anything, simply because, he is the strongest.
"Settle down, you useless fossil," Gojo says, putting his blindfold back on. "It was either we compromise or he'd refuse, then the moment we leave some other Curse Users would come to recruit him."
"Suguru Geto," Principal Gakuganji grumbles, causing both men to frown. "It would be best to execute the boy rather than risk Jujutsu Society like this."
"Not an option," Gojo says. "We have no right to ruin or end his life because you old idiots can't get your heads out of your asses and realize we're not in the 1000s anymore."
"Tch," Principal Gakuganji gets up and leaves the room, walking to the backyard.
"So, is what I sensed true?" Principal Yaga asks.
"Yeah, he's just like Panda," Gojo says. "But instead of three, he has two souls in one body, a binary being."
"A naturally occurring one, that shouldn't be possible," Principal Yaga says. "We'll investigate this further when we're back at the school, away from Gakuganji and other Conservative spies."
Gojo nods as he hears Taiyo walking toward them, and can't help but wonder how interesting this development will make the world.
END CHAPTER---
Discord: discord .gg /eHuxNeZfyS [Come chat with me]
pat.reon: Keanu_Eugene [Read ahead & support me]
You.tube: @KeanuEugene [Giving away all my writing knowledge]