Akira's school life had begun.
Although calling it "school life" wasn't that much different from just living at home.
Due to the small number of people, there was no distinction between boys' and girls' dorms. There was just one building, and you could choose whichever room you liked. Each room came with a private bathroom, and if you wanted, you could even pick one with a kitchen.
Aside from not being able to hire a renovation team, you could pretty much do whatever you wanted.
The Akira family of three took over an entire floor, doing as they pleased.
What about the fourth member, Naughty Pancham?
Well, it had become the beloved pet of the entire Jujutsu High. The whole campus was its home.
Unfortunately, while Gardevoir only had control over Akira, Pancham's charm was worldwide. If it weren't for the law, who wouldn't want to adopt an adorable, mischievous panda?
If it weren't for Akira's Trainer system, which had a built-in tracking function, there were at least half the day when neither a human nor a panda could be seen.
Pancham's daily routine went something like this:
First to wake up.
Yes, you read that right—first.
While real pandas are known for sleeping a lot, Naughty Pancham was always energetic, perhaps influenced by its "big brother," Panda, who theoretically didn't need to sleep.
At the break of dawn, the two pandas would be in front of the dorm, practicing their punches while shouting "Ora Ora!"
Sometimes, Panda's dad, Principal Masamichi Yaga, would join in.
And so, "Ora Ora" would turn into a massive "Ora Muda" free-for-all.
By the way, Panda's martial arts were taught by Yaga, and since Pancham was a Fighting-type, practicing punches was practically in its DNA.
As such, both pandas were always in high spirits.
Although Pancham was still new to martial arts, it had already reached the point where it could spar with Toge Inumaki, who had just begun learning martial arts. Watching them go at it filled Akira with pride.
Indeed, there's nothing like a professional dad.
While the punching practice continued, others would gradually wake up and join the training.
Maki, Akira, Toge...
Whether they practiced solo, sparred, or engaged in chaotic free-for-alls depended on their mood.
After the school-provided breakfast, the official classes began.
Previously, the class schedule revolved entirely around Gojo Satoru's availability. He would teach whatever he wanted when he showed up, and when he didn't, it was self-study—either reading books to learn knowledge or heading to the training grounds. The freedom was quite high.
However, since two new assistant instructors had been hired, the schedule became relatively fixed.
Morning was for theory, and the afternoon was for practical combat.
Though most students were from prominent families and already had some foundation, Jujutsu High had a unique value, which justified its existence.
By organizing jujutsu knowledge using modern teaching methods, it was far broader and more accessible than the traditional family systems.
It wasn't until now that Akira realized his mother, Hayami, was not just low-ranked in jujutsu combat—her theoretical knowledge was top-notch.
As she put it, "If you're bad at fighting, you make up for it in other areas."
"When I was younger, I had dreams too," she added.
Although Akira was curious about how his ambitious mother had been worn down by reality and ended up with his useless father, he figured it was better not to ask. Just thinking about it was enough.
As long as his mother was happy, Akira felt everything was fine. Besides, she was in much better shape than when she was living in seclusion in the countryside.
The saying "dreams make people beautiful" was no lie.
It didn't just apply to his mother, Hayami, but also to Maki.
What could one say about Maki Zen'in?
She was pretty, but her personality was hard to describe as "good." She was blunt, direct, and constantly stepped on landmines—while Gojo Satoru might deserve a punch, Maki was just oblivious, not realizing when she was crossing a line.
For example, she once asked Akira, "Who's your dad? Is he dead?"
She had even challenged Hayami to a sparring match.
That was when Akira truly understood the phrase "carefree devil."
Yet, despite being a "carefree devil," she had moments where she shone brightly.
When she was in battle or training, her focus and dedication were unmatched.
Neither Akira, Toge, nor even Panda could compare.
Whenever Akira saw Maki in action, he felt like dragging over the sound system from Fairy Tail and blasting "I'm the queen, full of confidence and shining."
Because of that purity and confidence, Maki became the third person Gardevoir was willing to get close to.
Maki's cursed spirit sensing training was assigned to Gardevoir for protection and support.
Gardevoir's telekinetic control was convenient, and after training, it could easily eliminate the cursed spirits on the spot, converting them into experience.
Pancham also participated. The spirits used for training were mostly weak, making them perfect for a rookie to level up. Soon, Pancham hit double digits, its combat power reaching the minimum standard for a Grade 4 jujutsu sorcerer.
Another ten levels or so, and Pancham could start entering battlefields solo like Gardevoir.
Thus, time passed smoothly in these daily routines.
Training, classes, missions.
Chatting together, sweating together, laughing together, and roasting Gojo Satoru together.
The world of teenagers was simpler than that of adults. Surrounded by such good people, Akira easily blended in and found his days peaceful.
Of course, having the soul of an adult, Akira still had to handle some different matters.
Like publishing books.
Though Gojo Satoru's role as an editor was part-time, he was surprisingly competent.
He had already contacted a printing company, and the initial print run was set at 50,000 copies, as per industry norms. The groundwork for in-store promotions and online sales was also progressing steadily.
Given the necessity for differences between the physical and web versions (identical versions hurt sales), Gojo often stayed up late with Akira discussing the plot. His vast knowledge and keen understanding of readers' tastes left Akira, an old hand in the anime community, thoroughly impressed.
All he could say was, as expected of you, Gojo Satoru.
Of course, in every other area where Gojo should be reliable, he remained as unreliable as ever.
One evening, Gojo specifically waited until after school to rush over, shouting from afar, "Haven't seen me for a few days! Miss me yet, students?"
As usual, he was promptly ignored. Then, with a swoosh, he appeared in front of everyone. "Don't be so cold! Your busy teacher Gojo Satoru has made time to join his adorable students for dinner!"
"No thanks. Seeing you kills my appetite."
Maki, ever the sharp-tongued one, was the first to fire shots. With Gojo as the perfect target, Maki's sass became an endearing trait.
"Come on now, I've even brought treats for you. Ta-da~! Kyoto's famous Kyo no Tori desserts. They're delicious!"
Gojo waved a bag of sweets like a trophy, but the students weren't buying it.
With a face of disdain, Akira sighed, "Just spit it out—what do you need us to do this time?"
Ever since Akira enrolled, Gojo had walked further and further down the path of a hands-off teacher. Unless the issue required a Special Grade sorcerer's expertise, Gojo didn't bother dealing with it.
That was fine, but the real problem was Gojo would occasionally assign random tasks under the guise of "student training," when in reality, everyone knew what was going on.
As the most reliable, strongest, and most responsible student, Akira naturally bore the brunt of this.
"You caught me," Gojo stuck out his tongue. "This time, it's a personal favor. My kid has recently entered their rebellious phase and doesn't want to talk to me. So, could you help out?"
"What?! You have a kid???"
PS: By the time Maki was born, Toji had likely already left the Zen'in family. Given the Zen'in family's atmosphere, they probably didn't discuss him much. That's why Maki might not know much about Toji. Otherwise, her level would be much higher—Toji is the true pinnacle of hand-to-hand combat.