"This isn't a big deal?"
Zenin Maki, always quick with a comeback, instinctively retorted, but then quickly realized.
"It really doesn't seem like a big deal."
"Why isn't it a big deal? Aren't you happy about leveling up?" asked Okkotsu Yuta, the most inexperienced of the group, confused.
"It's just Grade 3. You're a Special Grade sorcerer, aren't you? Show some pride," Maki said, slapping Yuta on the back so hard that he nearly fell over.
"Actually, it's—"
With Panda's explanation, Yuta finally understood the situation.
Akira's strength was obvious to everyone. Moving from Grade 4 to Grade 3? That was nothing. Even bumping him up to Grade 1 wouldn't be out of place; the only debate would be whether he could be classified as Special Grade.
After all, in their first year, they already had one Special Grade and one Grade 2. Grade 3… that rank was only significant. No one else would care.
"That's odd."
As he spoke, Panda furrowed his brow, scooping up the mischievous Playful Panda off the ground with one hand while scratching his chin with the other in thought.
"Even though I don't know all the specifics of the mission, confidential missions are never low-ranked. And considering Akira pulled off a Black Flash and all his previous achievements, he shouldn't be stuck at Grade 3. Even if Grade 2 requires review, he should at least be considered Pre-Grade 2."
As Principal Yaga's son, born and raised at Jujutsu High, Panda knew all the ins and outs of the system. His information was always reliable.
"Satoru, is there a problem somewhere?" Panda asked, looking to Gojo.
At this, Gojo's expression turned cold, and a playful smile crept onto his face.
"It's because those old fossils in charge used outdated rules that should've been thrown out ages ago. They claimed a Grade 4 sorcerer shouldn't have been on a confidential mission, so they didn't count Akira's recent achievements. Pretty outrageous, right?"
In other words, Akira's rank-up came from his previous efforts cleaning up cursed spirits, not from the recent big mission.
"What? So, it was your mistake?" Maki sneered, her face full of disdain. "You should've figured that out before assigning the mission."
"No, no, it might not have been a mistake. The higher-ups could've done it on purpose because I'm Gojo-sensei's student, and I was sent by Gojo-sensei," Akira calmly explained, showing his sharp mind. Panda had only seen the second layer, while Akira was already thinking on the third.
"As expected from my brightest student," Gojo grinned, flashing his teeth, which gleamed under the sun. "The better the outcome of this incident, the more embarrassed those higher-ups feel."
"It's a shame it was all done via long-distance communication, or I could've enjoyed watching them try to kill me but fail miserably. Still, at least they didn't cut the mission rewards. If they had, I would've had a nice little chat with them."
"That's more like it—wait, what?" Akira suddenly caught on. "This isn't lenient; this is a classic case of giving an inch to gain a mile. They're using a multi-layered strategy."
"What do you mean?" Gojo, who was used to being invincible, didn't understand these workplace maneuvers.
"Sensei, did you report all my achievements, including this mission, to the higher-ups, hoping to scare them a bit?" Akira asked.
"Why don't you change your name to 'Gojo Kuu' and say you're my long-lost brother? We could debut as the 'Satoru-Kuu' duo," Gojo said, his reply confirming Akira's suspicions.
"You'd have to convince my mom first," Akira muttered, brushing off the nonsense. "Second point: it was against the rules for me to take part in this mission. Not paying me would actually be justified. Even if you said you'd have a chat with them, they'd likely wait for you to show up, hoping you'd cause enough trouble for them to claim the moral high ground."
In other words, the higher-ups were banking on two things: that Gojo wouldn't actually kill them and that rotten rules were still rules.
"Good thing you're not one of the higher-ups," Gojo grimaced, even someone as carefree as him showing some irritation.
"I think I get it now," Panda chimed in, catching up to Akira's train of thought. "Not counting your achievements is a way to suppress Gojo, but giving you the mission rewards shows that they control the rules. Basically, they're saying, 'As long as you leave Gojo and join us, we'll make you rich and powerful.'"
"Keep dreaming!" Akira blurted out.
"Relax, I'm not angry. Why are you?" Gojo asked, trying to calm him down.
"…"
Should I say it's in my DNA to be this way?
After a moment's thought, Akira explained, "If they hadn't meddled and had just given me what I earned, I might've had some respect for them, thinking maybe you were just too extreme. But now—only caring about their authority and ignoring the development of the jujutsu world? You were right, Sensei, they're just a bunch of useless old fogeys."
"So, by that logic, as long as you guys remain my students, this kind of thing will keep happening—afraid yet? You can still quit now, you know," Gojo teased, though his attempt at reverse psychology fell flat.
Maki shot back, "Quit talking nonsense, you idiot teacher. Without your backing, I'd have even less chance of standing out. I've already mentally prepared myself to stay at Grade 4 forever. Beating a Grade 1 while still being ranked at 4 would make them even more embarrassed."
Panda added, "I'm a panda, so human rankings don't really matter to me."
Yuta began, "I—"
"Don't even start, Special Grade," Maki cut him off mercilessly.
Born at the top, Yuta's situation was even more absurd than Gojo's. At least Gojo climbed the ranks step by step, only becoming Special Grade after nearly graduating.
"Tuna mayo," Inumaki chimed in, holding up his phone, where he had typed a sentence. Because of his speech limitation, he had to use his phone for longer conversations.
"I'll work hard to reach Grade 1, and then I'll recommend you all along with Yuta."
In the jujutsu world, the jump from Grade 2 to Grade 1 was a huge leap.
To become Grade 1, a sorcerer needed to meet three conditions:
Be recommended by two Grade 1 sorcerers.Complete several missions alongside existing Grade 1 sorcerers and be evaluated as suitable, after which they would become Pre-Grade 1 and be eligible for Grade 1 missions.The results of these missions would determine if the sorcerer could be officially promoted to Grade 1.
This rule held the highest priority, and no exceptions were allowed.
Without two Grade 1 recommendations, no matter how strong a sorcerer was, they couldn't advance to Grade 1.
However, once a sorcerer received two recommendations, the higher-ups were required to initiate the evaluation process, no matter how reluctant they might be.
There were also a few additional clauses:
The recommended sorcerer wouldn't be paired with their recommenders to avoid bias.A teacher couldn't recommend their own student, to prevent favoritism. This applied to all grades, not just Grade 1, which meant Gojo and Principal Yaga could only watch.
But with Inumaki's family backing him, his promotion path wouldn't face many obstacles.
"Am I… capable of this?" Yuta asked, still uncertain about his rank among jujutsu sorcerers.
"Right now, you're still a little short. So keep working hard, Yuta. Once you're as strong as I am, those old fogeys won't be able to keep their mouths shut," Gojo encouraged, patting Yuta on the shoulder.
"Isn't that a bit too exaggerated?" Yuta mumbled. Even though Rika listened to him now, he still lacked confidence.
Unfortunately, the influence of Gojo Satoru had spread to all of Tokyo Jujutsu High.
"We're counting on you, Yuta," Panda said, giving Yuta a solid smack.
"You're our hope, Yuta-bro," Akira followed, delivering another smack.
"Go for it, Yuta-boss," Maki added, also joining in.
"Wan~" Playful Panda jumped in as well, throwing an enthusiastic slap.
Each hit was harder than the last, and Playful Panda, with no sense of restraint, sent the frail boy flying.
Thus—
"Don't bully Yuta!!!"
The vengeful spirit of a Special Grade curse, Rika Orimoto, appeared!