Chapter 32 — Thirty-Two Punch
"Here should be fine."
Zenin Maki led Saitama directly to a corner of the campus. There stood a gigantic stone several meters tall, its surface covered in irregular marks of varying depths.
The other two second-years and Genos, who was holding a small flag, followed along. The three first-years remained on the training field to practice on their own.
"This stone is called a Cursed Power Testing Stone. You've tested your cursed energy with Principal Yaga's cursed corpses before, right? This stone works in a similar way. What it measures is the destructive power of cursed energy."
Zenin Maki pointed at the massive rock. "Attack that stone, and then we can judge the destructive power of your cursed energy based on the depth of the marks left on it."
"A stone?" Saitama tilted his head up to look at the enormous rock. "If we test with a stone, won't it just break really quickly?"
"It won't," Panda chimed in from the side. "Because this stone has Master Tengen's technique applied to it. Sorcerers below Grade 3 can't leave any marks on it even if they attack with all their strength. To completely destroy this stone, I think you'd at least have to be a Special Grade sorcerer."
"Who's Master Tengen?" Saitama turned to Panda and asked in confusion. "Is he someone really strong?"
"No way, you don't even know Master Tengen?"
Panda covered his face with his paw in shock. "Master Tengen is an extremely important figure who maintains Japan's stability—and the very foundation of the jujutsu world!"
"Master Tengen's cursed technique is 'Immortality.' No one knows how many years he's lived. But the defensive barriers at Tokyo and Kyoto Jujutsu High, as well as many important jujutsu locations, are all reinforced by Master Tengen." Panda solemnly raised a claw. "By the way, the techniques on these stones are derived from the barrier techniques Master Tengen uses for security."
"Oh…" Saitama nodded, looking slightly interested. "So that Master Tengen is pretty strong, huh?"
"Salmon, salmon!" Inumaki Toge nodded vigorously.
Saitama turned back and looked again at the stones used for testing cursed energy's destructive power.
"In that case, I'll give it a try." he said eagerly.
Saitama stepped toward the stone. The cape on his shoulders fluttered slightly with his movement, and as he tightened his red rubber gloves, they made a faint creak creak sound of rubber friction.
But just as Saitama was about to throw a punch at the stone, a voice suddenly called out from the side, "Wait a second!"
"Huh?" Saitama froze and turned around.
It was Zenin Maki. The girl with glasses set down the long bag she had been carrying over her shoulder. With a zip sound, she opened it, rummaged around inside, and pulled out a Japanese sword, which she handed to him.
Although Saitama had even less cursed energy than she did, Zenin Maki didn't mind helping him follow the path she herself had proven workable—that of becoming a cursed tool user. As long as Saitama could use cursed tools, he could still become part of their combat strength.
"Use this first," she said, raising an eyebrow at him. "No need to thank me. Just give it back when you're done."
"What's this?" Saitama took the sword and turned it over curiously in his hands—nearly dropping it before hurriedly grabbing the hilt again.
"A cursed tool, a cursed tool! It's a weapon that already has cursed energy infused into it!" Zenin Maki looked astonished. "You can't even recognize a cursed tool?"
"Mm…" Saitama silently looked away.
"Honestly, you're hopeless. Let me explain."
Zenin Maki pointed at him. "You don't have cursed energy, right? To be honest, if you rely only on physical strength without cursed energy, it's absolutely impossible to leave a mark on this Cursed Power Testing Stone that has Master Tengen's technique on it. And if you want to participate in the exchange event and fight sorcerers, you'll need cursed tools."
"Why?"
"Because your opponent can use cursed energy, and if you don't, you'll immediately be at a disadvantage!"
Zenin Maki pointed at Saitama, then at herself. "People with little or no cursed energy, like you and me—even if our physical abilities are several times greater than ordinary people's—still can't fight sorcerers who can freely generate cursed energy. Compared to ordinary physical strength, cursed energy is a completely higher-dimensional power."
"But even people like us can fight on equal footing with other sorcerers, curses, and curse users as long as we use cursed tools that already contain cursed energy."
She took the sword back from Saitama and swiftly spun it in her hand in a flourish before handing the hilt back to him.
"This Japanese sword is a cursed tool I'm quite fond of," Zenin Maki said with a slight smile. "Its name is Kiga. It's not a Special Grade cursed tool, but it's easy to use and the blade is sturdy. If you handle it well, I'll lend it to you for the exchange event."
"Uh…"
Holding the Grade 2 cursed tool Kiga, Saitama's face showed a troubled expression.
He had always solved enemies with a single punch before—he'd never used a sword.
"Hey," Zenin Maki's expression darkened. "What's with that sour look? Are you looking down on my Kiga?"
"Ah, no, that's not it."
Seeing Saitama hesitate, Zenin Maki urged loudly, "Don't be so timid. I've used Kiga plenty of times, and it's always been fine. At least swing it with some force and see if it feels right."
As she spoke, a glint flashed across the edge of her glasses.
Let's see how deep a mark this guy can cut into the Cursed Power Testing Stone. If it reaches Grade 3 or above, I'll spar with him afterward.
Saitama withdrew his gaze from Zenin Maki and looked down at Kiga in his hands.
She's right, Saitama thought silently. Maybe the emptiness I've always felt from defeating enemies with a single punch… maybe trying something new like sword-swinging will give it some meaning.
"In that case, I'll give it a good swing."
Saitama had no idea how people who used Japanese swords normally swung them. Under everyone's watchful eyes—and Genos cheering him on with his little flag—he thought for a moment and then raised the sword high above his head.
"If you're swinging a sword, it's probably like this, right?" he muttered to himself as his raised arm came crashing down.
In that instant, Saitama's red glove became a blur. Then, with a thunderous boom, a massive cloud of dust exploded outward from around him, spreading so fast that it swallowed everything in sight.
"…What just happened?" Zenin Maki gasped in shock, hurriedly raising her arm to wave away the spreading dust before looking ahead.
As the smoke gradually cleared, Saitama stood there frozen in the pose of a downward slash, his expression blank. In his hand, all that remained was a bare sword hilt.
With a soft ting, the last fragment of the blade loosened from the end of the hilt and fell to the ground.
Saitama looked down at the hilt in his hand, a bead of sweat running down his forehead. "Ah…"
Zenin Maki's eyes flew wide open, blood vessels instantly spreading across the whites. Slowly, in disbelief, she lowered her gaze—and saw the shattered fragments of the blade scattered across the ground, faintly reflecting the light.
"Y-you… I…"
By now, the smoke had completely cleared. Hearing Zenin Maki's muttering, Inumaki Toge and Panda instinctively looked over—and then both froze in stunned disbelief.
"My Kiga—!"
Zenin Maki cried out in shock, rushing forward in two quick steps and snatching the sword hilt from Saitama's hand. Saitama stood silently beside her, looking somewhat nervous.
In the heavy silence, the sound of clapping suddenly rang out from the side.
Still wearing expressions of shock, everyone turned to look and saw Genos standing there with a serious expression, clapping his hands at high speed.
"What are you clapping for, you idiot?!" Zenin Maki roared at Genos. "My Kiga is broken into five or six pieces! If I sold it, it'd be worth at least twenty or thirty million yen!"
"Twenty or thirty million…" Saitama froze.
"Because this is Sensei's first time using a Japanese sword," Genos said expressionlessly as he continued clapping. "It is a memorable first. I will record this event in my notes later."
"Record my ass!"
"H-hey, calm down…" Saitama snapped back to his senses, cold sweat pouring down his face as he instinctively raised his hands toward Zenin Maki. "Don't get angry yet. We can still fix it. I've got glue at home… I think. Maybe?"
"Genos!" Saitama turned nervously toward Genos, who was still clapping. "Go buy some glue!"
"Yes, Sensei!" Without hesitation, Genos turned and prepared to run off immediately.
"Buy what glue?!" Zenin Maki lowered her head, clutching the hilt of Kiga, and roared through gritted teeth. "This is a cursed tool! Do you think cursed tools can be fixed with glue after they break?!"
"Then…" Saitama quickly corrected himself. "Then use tape! Genos, don't buy glue—buy tape!"
"Understood, Sensei!" Genos replied loudly, once again preparing to run off.
"…Get back here! Honestly, that's enough! Once a cursed tool is completely destroyed, it can't be repaired!"
Zenin Maki tightened her grip on the lone remaining hilt and took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down.
After about half a minute of steady breathing, she finally turned back toward Saitama, who was watching her nervously as if walking on thin ice.
"You just swung the cursed tool earlier," she said. "So it… probably wasn't your fault. Normally speaking, simply swinging a blade shouldn't damage a cursed tool. Kiga must have had some hidden damage from before that I didn't notice."
It was the only logical explanation. And yet, even Zenin Maki herself found it hard to believe. She maintained her cursed tools carefully every day—there was no way she would overlook hidden damage.
But if she didn't explain it this way, there was no other possibility.
It couldn't be that Kiga had broken because it couldn't withstand the force of that bald guy's swing, right? It was just a swing. How could that be possible?
…Right?
"Then…" Seeing that she didn't seem to be asking for compensation, Saitama let out a small sigh of relief, though he still wasn't fully at ease. "About the exchange event…"
"As for you," Zenin Maki turned back to him expressionlessly, "if you can't even use cursed tools, then there's really no helping it."
"If the other side brings six people, we already have six without you. One-on-one should be enough. But having one more person might be better, so you can stay on standby as a substitute."
Saitama said nothing. He stood there silently, his expression stiff.
I kind of want to go home…
…
In the afternoon, the sunlight was bright, and the leaves of the plants gave off a fresh, green fragrance under the warm rays.
On the training field, the second-years were sparring with Yuji Itadori and the others. The lively voices of the boys and girls echoed throughout the large stadium.
"…"
Saitama sat silently on the steps at the edge of the stadium, using his long cape as a cushion while staring into space.
"Don't take it too hard."
A round shadow fell over him. Saitama looked up and saw Panda beside him, scratching his head awkwardly.
"Oh—" Seeing Panda, Saitama still couldn't help letting out a small sound of amazement.
"Maki can be pretty strict. That's because she also has a Heavenly Restriction physique. After meeting you, she might've been reminded of her past self, so she ended up holding you to the same standards she sets for herself."
Panda looked toward Zenin Maki, who was swinging a wooden sword and sparring alone against both Megumi Fushiguro and Nobara Kugisaki, and spoke softly.
"Maki comes from one of the Big Three Families. Because she doesn't have cursed energy, she went through a lot of hardship even within her own clan. She once said that the teachers and classmates at the school feel closer to her than her own blood relatives."
"For Maki, this is her first exchange event. It's one where she's determined to prove her strength to the Zenin family no matter what and earn their recognition. So sometimes she gets a bit impatient. Don't be mad at her."
Saitama kept his blank expression and said nothing. Panda smiled at him and then ran back toward the field.
"Pandarush!"
"Saitama-sensei, is this really okay?" Genos asked from the side, still holding two small cheering flags.
"It's not really a matter of okay or not. Right now, there's nothing I can help with anyway." Saitama looked at the boys and girls training on the field. "I'm used to finishing enemies with one punch. But when the opponents are just ordinary students and I can't hurt them, maybe there's really no chance for me to participate."
"And the training they're doing on the field right now isn't useful for me."
"Besides, there are still two hours until the supermarket sale. I'm free anyway."
A summer breeze blew past. Genos's blond hair fluttered in the wind, while Saitama's bald head remained completely unmoved.
"Sensei, about that."
"Hm?"
"The time remaining until the supermarket sale is not two hours, but twenty minutes," Genos said solemnly.
Saitama whipped his head around. "…Huh?"
"There's no mistake. I'm a cyborg, and I also possess precise timekeeping capabilities."
"…"
Saitama pulled out his old flip phone and glanced at it.
"Ah, my phone screen must have frozen at some point."
Silence lingered for a moment.
Suddenly, Saitama jumped to his feet and bolted toward the school gate in a panic. "Hurry up, Genos! Batteries are on sale at the supermarket today! Perfect for the TV remote!"
"Yes, Sensei!" Genos immediately put away the small flags and followed after him.
"Eh? Why did they leave?" The people training in the middle of the field also noticed Saitama and Genos running off. Yuji Itadori called out in surprise.
"Maybe he felt left out…"
Holding her wooden practice sword, Zenin Maki stared thoughtfully at the direction Saitama and Genos had disappeared.
"But if he has no cursed energy and can't use cursed tools, then it's actually better for him to avoid contact with the Kyoto school. After Okkotsu beat them so badly last year, and with Sukuna appearing now, Kyoto is itching to beat us up this time. If Saitama gets beaten the moment he steps onto the field, he might not even be able to stay at the school anymore."
—No, that wouldn't happen. If it were Saitama, things would probably turn out the exact opposite.
The most dangerous presence on the Kyoto side was Tōdō Aoi. But if they combined the strength of the first- and second-years here along with Saitama, even that terrifying Tōdō would probably be completely crushed…
Megumi Fushiguro and Nobara Kugisaki exchanged glances, seeing the same thought reflected in each other's eyes.
However, Satoru Gojo and Kiyotaka Ijichi had instructed them that Saitama was a secret weapon. They weren't allowed to reveal his strength to anyone, and that included the second-years.
But when the exchange event arrived, their seniors would find out soon enough.
That was what Megumi and Nobara thought—but Yuji Itadori didn't bother thinking that far. Tossing aside the sandbag in his hands, he ran toward the direction where Saitama and Genos had disappeared.
"I'll go check it out!"
…
Tokyo Jujutsu High — Front Gate
Junpei Yoshino stood at the entrance wearing a neat white shirt and black trousers, a backpack slung over his shoulders. Nervously, he gazed at the buildings inside the campus.
—Finally, the moment had come.
After defeating the bullies who had tormented him for so long at Satōzakura High, Junpei had been hospitalized for over a week due to his injuries.
Once he had mostly recovered, he completed his discharge procedures and immediately came here using the address he had found.
The school Saitama mentioned—Tokyo Metropolitan Jujutsu Technical High School—stood right before him. The buildings inside all appeared to be in traditional Japanese style. Although information online described it as a religious school, Junpei couldn't tell which religion it was associated with.
"Deep breath… deep breath… deep breath…"
Junpei muttered to himself as he inhaled and exhaled forcefully. Only when his pounding heart gradually returned to a steady rhythm did he tighten his grip on his backpack straps, his gaze turning firm.
He had become braver, more cheerful—and stronger than before. It was time to say goodbye to his gloomy past self and take a step toward a new life.
He wanted to become someone like Saitama.
"Time to enroll."
Bathed in the afternoon sunlight, Junpei Yoshino's eyes were filled with hope. Like the protagonist of a shonen manga, he stepped forward into the campus.
In the very next second, a red-and-yellow blur mixed with white and a steel-colored shadow shot past him like lightning. As they passed, a violent gust of wind carrying dust slammed into Junpei, instantly filling the school entrance with swirling debris.
Riiip—
"Huh?"
As the dust gradually settled, Junpei suddenly felt a chill on his skin. He stood frozen in place and slowly looked down.
His neatly buttoned white shirt had been shredded to pieces by the wind pressure created by the two passing figures.
Now, he stood there wearing only his black uniform trousers. The white shirt remained intact only at the collar and cuffs, while the rest of the fabric had been torn away and was drifting through the air with the lingering gust.
"…"
Junpei stared blankly, then stiffly withdrew the foot he had just stepped into the school gate. His face flushed red as he turned around, clutching his chest with both arms, and slowly walked back the way he had come.
He couldn't exactly enroll while half-naked.
"I-I guess I'll come back tomorrow with a different set of clothes…"
Just as Junpei trembled his way down the road with his arms crossed over his chest, a voice suddenly called out from behind him.
"Um…"
"Wah!"
Startled, he spun around and saw a pink-haired boy standing at the gate, looking at him awkwardly.
Yuji Itadori had come out to see what was going on after noticing Saitama and Genos suddenly run off. He hadn't caught up with them—but instead found Junpei Yoshino at the entrance.
"You… uh…" Yuji's eyes drifted awkwardly to the side. "Why are you standing here? And half-naked…"
"…" Junpei replied quietly, "I came to enroll, but my clothes suddenly got torn."
"Oh—" Yuji froze for a moment. "You want to become a student here?"
"Y-yeah."
"In that case, no time to waste—come on in!" Yuji quickly said. "I've got clothes you can borrow!"
"Huh? Really?" Junpei was stunned by the sudden kindness and instinctively followed Yuji. "That's great! Thank you so much!"
"No problem, no problem!" Yuji grinned brightly. "My name's Yuji Itadori! If you enroll, we'll probably be classmates! Helping each other out is only natural!"
"By the way, you look kind of skinny, but if you look closely, your muscles aren't bad," he added.
Sunlight slid down along Yuji's pink hair, making him seem almost radiant. Junpei's eyes widened slightly.
He had never met such a warm stranger before.
No—not a stranger. Someone different from his old classmates. A future classmate.
—If he could study at this school… would he be able to stay surrounded by this precious warmth from now on?
…
Half an hour later.
Wearing a T-shirt printed with a sexy swimsuit photo of Jennifer Lawrence, Junpei Yoshino stood trembling in front of Masamichi Yaga, who radiated an oppressive aura of irritation, while Yuji pushed him forward from behind.
If he had known, he would've just come back tomorrow with a fresh set of clothes…
---
7:00 PM.
The culprit behind Junpei Yoshino's shredded shirt, Saitama, sat eating a bowl of oyakodon made from leftover chicken and eggs from the fridge while pressing the buttons on his TV remote, flipping through the few free channels available.
With each press of his finger, the channels switched quickly and smoothly.
"After changing the batteries, the remote really works a lot better," he remarked happily as he continued flipping channels.
"Being able to get the discounted batteries was truly fortunate, Sensei," Genos said seriously.
"Yeah!"