Hearing Panda's explanation, Akira suddenly remembered something.
In Volume 0 of *Jujutsu Kaisen*, there had been a similar incident involving a powerful Cursed Spirit hiding inside a school. Unfortunately for that Cursed Spirit, it had encountered Yuta Okkotsu, the protagonist of the prequel and someone whose abilities were even more ridiculous than most Jujutsu Sorcerers.
If Akira remembered correctly, Maki Zenin had also participated in that mission.
*Don't tell me it's actually the same incident.*
Surely the coincidence could not be that ridiculous.
With that thought, Akira turned his attention toward Maki. Coincidentally, she was already looking at him.
Maki pushed up her glasses, studying him with obvious interest.
Akira had no reason to avoid her gaze. After all, establishing contact with the Jujutsu world had been part of his plan from the beginning. Since an opportunity had presented itself, there was no point pretending otherwise.
"If you're talking about someone going around clearing urban legends, then yes, that was me."
"Why would you do something like that?" Maki asked immediately.
Akira raised an eyebrow. "Do you need a special reason to exorcise Cursed Spirits?"
"Don't you?"
The two stared at each other.
Neither seemed willing to back down.
It was worth mentioning that narrow eyes were practically a hereditary feature of the Kamo Clan. Akira had inherited that particular trait, although it did nothing to diminish his handsome appearance.
Unfortunately, looking handsome did not make Maki any less suspicious of him.
"Ahem. Maki, remember that he just saved your life."
Panda stepped forward at the right moment, interrupting the increasingly awkward exchange before Maki could completely ruin the conversation.
"Sorry about that. Don't take it personally," Panda said, scratching his head. "We don't mean anything bad by asking. We're just curious."
He paused before continuing.
"You see, most Jujutsu Sorcerers are pretty self-centered. They usually have a reason for doing what they do, whether it's money, fame, personal interests, or something else."
"And when an unregistered Jujutsu Sorcerer suddenly appears, Tokyo Jujutsu High naturally needs to understand what kind of person we're dealing with."
"I see. That makes sense."
Akira nodded.
Panda's explanation was not particularly pleasant to hear, but Akira understood what he meant.
Jujutsu Sorcerers were people who used Cursed Energy, a power born from humanity's negative emotions. They spent their lives fighting dangerous Cursed Spirits, often putting themselves in situations where a single mistake could cost them their lives.
Under those circumstances, having a strong sense of self was especially important.
Without something to hold on to, it was easy for a Sorcerer to lose their way.
Some ended up cursing themselves. Others went even further and became Curse Users who used their abilities to harm ordinary people.
Compared to grand ideals, practical goals such as money, fame, or personal ambition were often easier to understand. At the very least, such goals gave people something concrete to pursue.
Of course, that did not mean ideals were worthless.
There were still people willing to dedicate their entire lives to an ideal, even if doing so meant sacrificing themselves. Akira genuinely admired such people.
Unfortunately, admiration was one thing, and following their example was another.
Most people could not live that way, and Akira had never considered himself an exception.
He had his own goals, and they were firmly grounded in reality.
"Well, I have my reasons too," Akira said with a smile. "I'm training my partner, and I'm collecting a few materials while I'm at it."
As he spoke, he opened his palm toward Gardevoir.
"Little Sha."
"Sha~"
Gardevoir immediately understood what he wanted.
She reached out and gently placed a small crystal into his waiting hand.
It was the Z Pure Crystal she had retrieved earlier, after using Magical Leaf and before the Road Roller marker became the center of the battlefield.
More importantly, this was no ordinary fragment.
It was a complete Z Pure Crystal.
Akira examined the crystal with growing interest.
*Oh? So complete crystals can drop directly?*
He had collected quite a few materials during his previous hunts, but obtaining a complete crystal was still a pleasant surprise.
*Does that mean stronger Cursed Spirits have better drop rates?*
From the perspective of a game-like System, that seemed reasonable enough.
After all, stronger enemies were supposed to give better rewards.
The problem was that stronger Cursed Spirits were also far more dangerous. Even if the rewards improved, Akira had no intention of risking his life just to test the theory.
There was also another issue.
The crystal in his hand was a Dark-type Z Crystal.
Again.
*Seriously?*
Akira's mouth twitched.
He had been hoping for either a Psychic-type or a Fairy-type crystal, something Gardevoir could actually make good use of.
Instead, the System had once again given him something completely unrelated to his current needs.
*What kind of garbage mobile game System is this?*
Akira silently added another complaint to the growing list of grievances he had accumulated over the past eight years.
While he was busy examining his latest reward, however, Maki and the others were paying absolutely no attention to the crystal.
Their eyes were fixed on Gardevoir.
After all, they had witnessed her strength with their own eyes.
Even taking into account the preparation time she had been given, the fact remained that Gardevoir had defeated a Grade 1 Cursed Spirit with a combination of three consecutive attacks.
And she had done it so quickly that the three students had barely managed to understand what was happening before the battle ended.
For rookie Jujutsu Sorcerers like them, the experience had been quite a shock.
Especially for Maki.
She opened her mouth, seemingly wanting to ask something, only to close it again.
A moment later, she tried once more.
And stopped herself again.
Maki was straightforward by nature, but that did not mean she was stupid.
She knew perfectly well that the boy standing before her and the mysterious woman beside him were powerful enough to kill a Grade 1 Cursed Spirit in a matter of moments.
Even if Akira had saved her life, deliberately provoking someone that strong would be foolish.
Unfortunately, holding back her curiosity was proving rather difficult.
Akira noticed her expression and chuckled.
"If you want to ask something, just ask. I don't mind."
Maki immediately looked up.
"Then I'll be direct."
She pointed toward Gardevoir.
"What exactly is this lady? She's obviously not human, but she doesn't look like a Cursed Spirit either."
"And she's not a cursed corpse like me," Panda added, looking equally curious.
"Salmon."
Inumaki nodded in agreement.
The three of them waited for an answer.
Unfortunately, Akira had no intention of satisfying their curiosity so easily.
"Well, that's my biggest secret," he replied with a smile. "It's not something I can conveniently explain right now."
He deliberately left his answer vague.
Maintaining a little mystery was useful, especially when dealing with people from the Jujutsu world.
Besides, even if Akira wanted to give them a proper explanation, he would have trouble doing so.
What exactly were Pokémon supposed to be in this world?
They were living creatures with abilities that ordinary humans could never possess. Some could manipulate the elements, some could control minds, and others possessed powers that would look completely unreasonable even to experienced Jujutsu Sorcerers.
Yet they were neither Cursed Spirits nor cursed corpses.
Akira himself had no idea how the Jujutsu world would classify them.
And honestly, he did not care.
Neither did his mother, Akemi Aki.
As far as the two of them were concerned, Gardevoir was Gardevoir. Her race had never been particularly important to their family.
"That's not a very Jujutsu Sorcerer-like answer," Maki commented.
Akira understood what she meant.
Among Jujutsu Sorcerers, there was a practice of revealing one's technique to an opponent. By voluntarily explaining how a Cursed Technique worked, the user could strengthen its effects through a binding vow.
It was a useful practice, although Akira personally found the idea of revealing important information about his abilities rather questionable.
"I'm not exactly a mainstream Jujutsu Sorcerer," he replied casually.
Maki had no immediate answer to that.
Seeing that the conversation had reached a suitable stopping point, Akira decided there was no reason to remain any longer.
"Well, if there's nothing else, I'll be leaving now."
He gave the three students a small wave.
"Until we meet again."
"Sha~"
Gardevoir also raised her hand and gave a soft farewell.
The two then turned and walked away, leaving the three students standing beside the ruined battlefield.
For a while, nobody spoke.
Panda was the first to break the silence.
"Hmm..."
He scratched his nose with one claw while watching Akira and Gardevoir disappear into the distance.
"He seems like a pretty good guy. What do you two think?"
"He's strong," Maki answered without hesitation. "Really strong. And he's smart when it comes to fighting."
Her gaze shifted toward the Road Roller marker.
The traces of the battle were still visible, reminding her just how close she had come to dying.
"Back at Yoshiwara Shrine, I wasn't convinced," she admitted. "I knew they were strong, but I didn't think the gap between us would be this big."
After all, hearing about someone's abilities and witnessing them firsthand were two completely different things.
Maki had always believed in judging strength through actual combat.
This time, the result had been clear enough.
"Mentaiko."
Inumaki spoke quietly.
Although he only said a rice ball ingredient, Maki understood what he meant.
Be careful.
"Yeah, I know."
She sighed and adjusted her glasses.
"Sorry, Panda. Toge. I was the one who insisted on chasing after them."
If she had not been so stubborn, the three of them might never have ended up in such a dangerous situation.
Panda waved a paw dismissively.
"Come on, there's no need to apologize. I agreed to it too, remember?"
"Salmon roe."
Inumaki nodded several times.
His meaning was obvious.
*Yeah, yeah, that's right.*
Maki looked at her two companions.
For a moment, she did not know what to say.
She had to admit that she was fortunate to have met them.
When she first arrived at Tokyo Jujutsu High, she had thought her classmates were a rather strange bunch.
One was a talking panda who was actually a cursed corpse.
The other was a Cursed Speech user who communicated almost entirely through rice ball ingredients.
Neither could be considered normal, even by the standards of Jujutsu Sorcerers.
But after spending time together, Maki had gradually realized just how good they were.
They were dependable, considerate, and willing to stand beside her even when things became dangerous.
Having companions like that was something she genuinely appreciated.
If possible, she hoped they could remain friends for the rest of their lives.
Of course, there was absolutely no way she would say something that embarrassing out loud.
"All right, let's head back," Maki said, turning away before either of them could notice her expression.
She adjusted the weapon in her hand.
"Even if that idiot teacher makes fun of me when we report what happened, I'll just have to put up with it."
Panda laughed.
"Knowing Gojo, he's definitely going to have something to say."
"Salmon."
"Don't agree with him so quickly, Toge!"
Their voices gradually faded as the three students prepared to return to Tokyo Jujutsu High.
Meanwhile, the sky above the school finally began to clear.
The clouds parted, allowing warm sunlight to spill across the buildings and the surrounding grounds.
At the edge of the area, Akira reached out and pulled out the wedge maintaining the Curtain.
With its foundation removed, the barrier quickly dissolved.
The outside world returned to normal.
Gardevoir, who had been walking quietly beside him, suddenly turned her head.
She glanced in the direction where Maki and the others had gone.
"Sha... Sha~"
Akira looked at her and smiled.
"You like those three quite a lot, don't you?"
"Sha."
Gardevoir nodded.
Akira was not surprised.
The reason was simple.
Those three were good people.
Despite their strange appearances and personalities, they were bright, straightforward, and genuinely cared about their companions.
For Gardevoir, who was naturally sensitive to the emotions of others, recognizing such people was even easier.
"Don't worry. We'll probably see them again soon," Akira reassured her.
He then glanced at the translucent interface floating before his eyes.
"But before that, I still have a few things I need to take care of."
In fact, the System interface had been open for quite some time.
Ever since the three students introduced themselves, Akira had been keeping an eye on a new notification that had suddenly appeared.
And this time, the System had finally given him something worth getting excited about.
On the interface was a small thumbnail.
It showed an egg with a distinctive black-and-white pattern.
There was no mistaking what it was.
A Pokémon Egg!
*Finally!*
Akira could barely contain his excitement.
After eight years, his unreliable System had finally produced something that could potentially give him another Pokémon.
To be fair, despite constantly calling it a garbage System, Akira had to admit that at least one part of its design made sense.
Pokémon Eggs did not drop from killing monsters.
That was perfectly reasonable.
After all, this was the world of *Jujutsu Kaisen*.
The wild enemies here were Cursed Spirits, creatures formed from accumulated negative emotions.
What connection could those disgusting things possibly have to the cute and charming Pokémon he remembered?
Imagine killing a hideous Cursed Spirit and having a perfectly healthy Pokémon Egg suddenly pop out of its corpse.
Just thinking about it felt wrong.
If the System really insisted on producing Pokémon from Cursed Spirits, then Ghost-types like Gastly, Misdreavus, or Shuppet would make far more sense.
And if that happened every time, Akira could already imagine his future.
Instead of raising a balanced team of Pokémon, he would end up walking the path of a Ghost-type Master for the rest of his life.
*No, thank you.*
Fortunately, the System had shown some restraint in that regard.
The key to obtaining new Pokémon was apparently not Cursed Spirits.
It was living beings.
Or, to be more precise, it was somehow related to the three students he had just met.
Maki Zenin.
Panda.
Toge Inumaki.
Akira thought back over what had happened.
He had spent quite some time traveling around and clearing places rumored to be haunted. He had exorcised numerous Cursed Spirits, collected materials, and accumulated plenty of combat experience with Gardevoir.
Yet throughout that entire process, the System had shown no response related to obtaining another Pokémon.
Not even once.
But the moment those three introduced themselves, something changed.
A new message appeared before his eyes.
[Pokémon meme detected.]
[Conversion in progress...]
[Conversion successful!]
[Congratulations! You have obtained a Pokémon Egg!]
That was all.
No detailed explanation.
No instructions.
Not even a hint about what kind of Pokémon might hatch from the egg.
Akira had stared at the notification for several seconds, trying to understand what had triggered it.
A Pokémon meme?
What did that have to do with Maki, Panda, and Inumaki?
At first, the connection seemed completely unreasonable.
But after thinking about it carefully, Akira remembered something.
Something that had happened eight years ago, when his System had first awakened.
*Wait a minute...*
A possibility gradually formed in his mind.
If his guess was correct, then the conditions for obtaining new Pokémon might be very different from what he had originally assumed.
And more importantly, there might be a way to reproduce the process.
However, there was still one problem.
He had no proof.
Whether his guess was right or wrong would depend on what actually hatched from the egg.
Until then, everything was speculation.
That was also the main reason Akira had been so eager to return home.
He wanted to hatch the egg as quickly as possible.
Unfortunately, obtaining a Pokémon Egg was only the beginning of the problem.
How was he supposed to hatch it?
According to what Akira remembered about the Pokémon world, artificial incubation was not something that could be done carelessly.
Professional breeding facilities had specialized equipment, carefully controlled environments, and established procedures for handling Pokémon Eggs.
Even ordinary trainers usually had access to information or experienced people who could help them.
Akira had none of those things.
And his shameless System, despite being responsible for producing the egg in the first place, had not provided a single piece of incubation equipment.
Not even the cheapest incubator.
*You gave me an egg, but you're not going to tell me how to hatch it?*
Akira stared at the System interface.
*What kind of irresponsible developer designed this thing?*
Naturally, the System did not respond.
By now, Akira was already used to being ignored.
Since relying on the System was pointless, he could only fall back on his own understanding of Pokémon.
Unfortunately, that understanding mostly came from watching the anime and playing the games in his previous life.
Neither was particularly useful when it came to raising a real Pokémon Egg.
Still, he had a few ideas.
For example, talking to the egg regularly.
Or sleeping while holding it.
Those things seemed appropriate enough.
After all, the relationship between trainers and Pokémon had always been an important part of the series.
If emotional bonds really mattered to Pokémon, then showing care and affection toward an unhatched Pokémon should not be a bad thing.
At least, that was what Akira hoped.
Of course, he knew he was basically relying on superstition at this point.
But what other choice did he have?
He could hardly walk into an ordinary pet store and ask the owner how to hatch a Pokémon Egg.
As for more recent developments in the franchise, such as *Pokémon Journeys*, or references to things like *One-Punch Man* and convenient built-in charms, Akira had no experience with them.
He had crossed into this world far too early.
Back in his previous life, *Pokémon Sun and Moon* had already been the final series he watched.
Anything that came afterward was completely unfamiliar to him.
Even names like Goh meant absolutely nothing.
In other words, whatever useful knowledge future Pokémon stories might have introduced, Akira had missed all of it.
He looked at the black-and-white egg displayed on the System interface again.
Then he sighed.
*Well, there's no point complaining about it now.*
Whatever the egg contained, he would find out once it hatched.
And if his guess about the System turned out to be correct...
Akira's eyes brightened slightly.
*Then getting my next Pokémon might be much easier than I thought.*
"Come on, Little Sha. Let's hurry home."
"Sha~"
Gardevoir nodded and followed him, looking just as pleased as he was.
After all, if everything went well, their small family might soon have a new member.