"Did... did Fushiguro-san do this?!"
Although he had already guessed the answer, the assistant manager still asked the question out of formality after swallowing hard.
All of this had to be truthfully reported to the higher-ups in the Jujutsu world. If this mess was really caused by the boy in front of him, then without a doubt, his strength already met the standards of a special-grade sorcerer.
But… wasn't he supposed to be someone without cursed energy?
"Uh… more or less," Mukuro replied casually. "There were just too many curses, so I thought I'd take care of them all at once instead of one by one."
He then turned his head to look at the mountain, now half missing after Ibaraki-dōji's explosive attack, and his eye twitched slightly.
He couldn't help but wonder if that guy had misunderstood what "keep it quiet" meant.
"You really can't judge a genius like Fushiguro-san by common sense…" the assistant manager muttered as he wiped the nonexistent sweat from his forehead. Then, as if remembering something, he quickly took out his phone to send a message back to Jujutsu High.
It had only been a little over ten minutes since Mukuro went in. Even if backup had been dispatched, they'd barely be on the road by now.
"Let's go, Fushiguro-san. I'll take you back to Jujutsu High."
As messages exchanged rapidly on his phone, a drop of cold sweat slid down the man's face. He looked at Mukuro, a bit nervous.
"Sure."
Though puzzled, Mukuro didn't ask much. He simply got into the back seat and closed his eyes.
Sleeping during school or work was one of life's greatest pleasures.
* * *
By the time Mukuro opened his eyes again, two hours had passed. They were already back at Jujutsu High.
"Um… Mr. Yaga wants to see you in his office," the assistant manager said, rolling down his window before driving off.
"Got it."
Mukuro waved lazily, then started walking toward the office while wondering what his teacher wanted with him.
The Star Plasma Vessel incident, maybe?
Could be.
After all, he had just taken care of a high-risk special grade case on his own in just over ten minutes.
But as far as he knew, Master Tengen didn't even recognize him yet…
Lost in thought, he soon reached Masamichi's office.
"Teacher, I heard you were looking for me?"
The office was large, but Masamichi was the only one inside. Mukuro walked in and sat across from him.
"Yes," Masamichi replied seriously, rubbing his short hair. "I heard from the assistant manager that you took down a special grade cursed spirit and a bunch of its offspring in under twenty minutes… and blew off half a mountain in the process?"
Mukuro grinned. "It's no big deal. I just used a bit too much powe—"
Bang!
Before he could finish, Masamichi's iron fist of love came crashing down on his head.
"That was way too dangerous! You're just a first-year rookie! How could you go alone to handle an unidentified special grade curse, and make such a huge scene on top of it!"
Black lines of irritation covered Masamichi's forehead.
He had already applied for a helicopter to go rescue the kid, but before he even took off, the message came saying everything was already handled.
At first, he was relieved Mukuro was safe, but when he saw the photo of the half-missing mountain and that smug grin on his student's face, his frustration shot right back up.
"What's so dangerous about it? I had the ability, so I did it. Nothing unreasonable there." Mukuro rubbed his head, still not taking the matter seriously.
"Sigh…"
Having just finished scolding a few second-years and now dealing with a reckless first-year, Masamichi let out a deep sigh. But then his tone suddenly changed.
"The Star Plasma Vessel. Ever heard of it?"
"Yeah." Mukuro straightened his posture and met his gaze.
"Using an innocent person to save countless others… are we really doing the right thing?"
For the first time, uncertainty clouded Masamichi's face. As the next principal of Tokyo Jujutsu High, he had already sent Suguru and Satoru to handle the matter under Master Tengen's orders. It was a mission, a duty, there was no room to refuse.
Sacrificing Riko Amanai alone could stabilize the barrier and make life safer for the majority of ordinary people. By any logic, this was a guaranteed win.
But why did it have to be Riko? Her life only comes once. Why should she be the one sacrificed?
Masamichi couldn't understand. He couldn't say this to Satoru or Suguru either. He had to pretend everything was fine, that it was all natural. He wanted his two best students to make the judgment themselves. He had lived through too much to equate lives so easily.
"Who knows?" Mukuro said lightly, not giving a real answer.
He stood up, clearly ready to leave.
"You little brat…" Masamichi murmured, feeling even more exasperated watching the boy walk away after listening to his rambling without a hint of concern.
"Teacher, don't overthink it. If you're tired, wash your face and get some sleep. The sun will rise again tomorrow."
Before leaving, Mukuro turned back briefly and offered that strange reassurance.
'That kid…' Masamichi frowned slightly but soon relaxed.
Mukuro, Satoru, Suguru… the future belonged to them.
Maybe it wasn't such a bad thing to let them face problems like this, while they still had that youthful fire in them.
He lowered his head and looked at his phone. A message from the higher-ups read: Meeting tomorrow. Reassessment of Mukuro Fushiguro's sorcerer ranking.
* * *
The next day, at Okinawa Airport.
"Seriously, does this seem like a mission first-years should be handling?" Nanami complained, looking exhausted as he patrolled the terminal for any sign of Star Religious Group members or curse users.
"I'm fired up! I messed up my first mission, but this time I'll show Geto-senpai what I can really do!" Haibara next to him exclaimed, his bright energy completely opposite of Nanami's deadpan demeanor.
Beep! Beep!
Haibara's phone buzzed.
"Huh? Gojo-senpai says they're staying an extra day. Did something happen?" he asked as he blinked innocently at Nanami, looking confused.
Nanami's face darkened. "Should've sent Fushiguro instead…"
Being sent to another city to work overtime was already bad enough, now they had to stay even longer!
"Speaking of which, Fushiguro really is impressive. Today, he stayed at school waiting for instructions, right? If you go beyond grade 1 sorcerer… do you go straight to special grade?"
Haibara's eyes lit up with admiration. He couldn't afford to be left behind.
He had to become strong enough to stand beside them someday.
**
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