The dark red water blade hovering beside Mei Mei's pale carotid artery collapsed without warning.
Once the cursed energy sustaining it disappeared, the liquid mixed with threads of blood became a few muddy droplets, sliding down the edge of Mei Mei's purple high collar before falling into the soil and sinking among the grass roots.
Kaede slowly lowered his arm. His body remained angled, ready to move at any moment, but the rise and fall of his chest had settled into a particular rhythm.
As he breathed, the fine moisture that had risen into the air during the fierce exchange seemed to be drawn by some invisible whirlpool. It became an almost imperceptible current, silently clinging to his faintly sweating body and sinking in.
His cursed energy, which had nearly hit bottom, was returning at a steady, unmistakable pace.
Mei Mei lifted her right hand and lazily wiped her thumb across the shallow cut on the side of her neck.
Looking at the smear of red on her fingertip, she let out a low, husky laugh. Then she bent, hooked one hand around the axe haft, and easily lifted the heavy weapon back onto her shoulder.
Clap, clap, clap!
A crisp, leisurely round of applause suddenly cut through the tension still lingering in the woods.
With the faint crunch of dress shoes stepping over dead leaves, a tall, slender figure in black strolled out from the shadow of the trees.
Short white hair gleamed under the sunlight filtering through the leaves. A black blindfold covered the famous eyes of the jujutsu world without leaving even a gap.
But that did nothing to hide the bright, openly interested smile on Gojo's face.
"Wonderful. Absolutely wonderful!"
Gojo walked toward the center of the training ground with long, relaxed strides, both hands tucked casually into his uniform pockets. His voice rose as though he had just watched an especially entertaining stage play.
"Under an overwhelming disadvantage in hand-to-hand combat, you traded minimal cursed energy loss for the removal of her field of vision, then used the binding vow of revealing your technique to land a checkmate counter.
That whole string of tactical exchanges was smoother than the newest limited-edition daifuku."
Mei Mei turned her head slightly. Through the fall of her braid, her pale blue eyes swept toward Gojo, who had stopped several yards away, sharp with the calculation unique to a top-class businesswoman.
"Since his guardian was watching for free the whole time, this makes things simple."
Mei Mei tapped the side of her neck with her free left hand, her tone carrying the kind of commercial directness that left no room for refusal.
"Gojo-kun, the combat loss from the total destruction of my surveillance crows, plus the emotional distress fee for nearly having my carotid artery cut, means the price of training this rookie must be reevaluated.
With his gambler's habit of biting back from a disadvantage and his danger rating, ordinary Grade 1 rates won't cover it. I'll need more. Double."
Gojo's smile deepened.
Not only did he show no annoyance at Mei Mei raising the price on the spot, he tilted his head slightly.
His blindfolded gaze remained fixed on Kaede, who was recovering his cursed energy, as if he were admiring a rare work of art that had exceeded every expectation.
Ten steps away beneath the trees, Megumi did not join the adults' negotiation.
His dark green pupils had tightened, his gaze fixed on the area around Kaede.
As someone the same age, he noticed the strange inconsistency at once.
For an ordinary sorcerer, recovering after such severe cursed energy depletion was usually slow and accompanied by deep exhaustion.
But the boy in front of him was simply standing there quietly.
The moisture in the air seemed to be kissing his body of its own accord, filling in the dry cracks.
"He doesn't need deliberate refinement. He can naturally recover cursed energy just from the moisture in the environment?"
Gojo's hidden gaze stayed on the boy for a moment.
In the vision of the Six Eyes, the cursed energy mixed with moisture was filling the gaps in a very peculiar circular pattern.
He did not point out that abnormal recovery mechanism. Instead, he suddenly broke into a bright smile that somehow made the spine go cold.
"No problem, no problem. Double it is. I'll throw the bill straight onto those rotten old fossils' desks. After all, spending a little money to cultivate a precious 'exception' is only natural."
Gojo casually waved off Mei Mei before she could continue itemizing the damages.
Then he strode forward, shoes crunching over the broken remains of the staff, and reached Kaede in just a few steps.
His tall body leaned forward slightly, and the invisible pressure belonging to the strongest sorcerer settled over them.
"I only meant for Mei Mei to test the lower limit of your practical combat ability a little. I didn't expect you to hand me such a big surprise."
Gojo's long fingers caught his chin as he put on a troubled thinking face, though the upward curve of his mouth completely betrayed his real mood.
"If your hand-to-hand combat, tactics, and fine control over your technique have already reached this level, then making you follow the normal route with Megumi and the others, exorcising low-grade curses step by step, would be a waste of talent."
Gojo straightened and clapped his hands sharply, the sound startling several birds from the trees.
"Decided. In a few days, I'll arrange a slightly more 'difficult' solo mission for you.
Think of it as your official entrance assessment. Look forward to it."
Megumi, who had been standing under the trees all this time, finally could not hold back and stepped forward.
His dark green eyes showed undisguised doubt as his gaze moved between Gojo and the black-haired boy.
"Gojo-sensei, even if his practical combat ability is strong, jujutsu mission ratings aren't a game.
Sending someone who only entered the jujutsu world a few days ago on a difficult solo mission doesn't follow procedure, and the risk is far too unpredictable."
Megumi's hands slipped unconsciously into his pockets, his brow tightly furrowed.
It was not jealousy. He was objecting from a purely rational tactical standpoint.
"At minimum, one or two assistant supervisors should be assigned, or a second-year should lead the team and observe him for a while.
If he runs into an unknown curse with a domain or a special mechanism during the mission, solo combat leaves too little room for error.
No matter how careful his tactics are, his cursed energy reserves can still be forcibly exhausted."
Faced with his student's objection, Gojo only reached out and roughly ruffled Megumi's sea-urchin hair, making the already messy spikes even worse.
"You really do worry too much, Megumi. But rules exist to be broken.
A greenhouse isn't going to grow the kind of monster that can overturn this world."
Mei Mei slung the giant axe back over her shoulder and walked past them with elegant steps.
When she passed Kaede, she stopped. A meaningful light flickered in her pale blue eyes.
"A difficult solo mission? It seems Gojo-kun really is making a heavy investment in you.
Good luck, rookie. I hope that when we meet next time, you'll still be able to afford my appearance fee."
"I understand..." Kaede nodded lightly.
A high-difficulty mission was exactly what he wanted.
Flowers raised in a greenhouse could not survive storms.
Although part of his memory of the future was missing, Kaede was certain of one thing deep down.
If he lacked the strength to face what was coming, the future would not treat him kindly.
So he had to keep getting stronger.
Again and again.
Strong enough to protect the people he needed to protect.