The first thing Hasegumo did upon joining the dojo was undergo the formal apprenticeship ceremony. The attendees were few: two elderly masters of the Shingen-ryu line, Gen Ijichi, and his three senior disciples.
According to Gen, since it was inevitable that Hasegumo would surpass him in a very short time, it was better to give him a master with high seniority. That way, when Hasegumo eventually made a name for himself, people wouldn't wag their tongues about the student being better than the teacher. By the time Hasegumo was famous, the old masters would likely have passed on to the great beyond. The public would simply fantasize about how powerful the "late master" must have been in his youth to produce such a monstrous disciple.
Gen Ijichi would simply act as the "instructor-in-absentia," teaching on the master's behalf. Once the name of Shingen-ryu spread across Japan, he could sit back and recruit more disciples to bolster the family legacy.
"Hold steady! Don't shake!"
Gen was currently poking and prodding Hasegumo's posture with a staff that looked suspiciously like Sun Wukong's Power Pole.
Hasegumo was standing atop a wooden post—barely wider than two fists and as tall as a man—while holding a bucket of water in each hand. The surface area for his feet was miniscule. According to Gen, this was the first step in training his balance.
It took only two hours before Hasegumo was practically flying between the different posts, buckets in hand, without spilling a single drop.
Standing to the side, Gen's grin was so wide the scars on his face bunched together, making him look like a fox that had successfully raided a henhouse. He then turned to look at his other disciples and began to sigh. These boys had been practicing martial arts since they were children; if even one of them had half this talent, Gen wouldn't have had to scour the city for a successor.
Unfortunately, these disciples were just like him. Though they were dedicated heart and soul to the martial arts, their potential had a visible ceiling.
The second task: breaking stone slabs. However, a row of eggs was placed beneath the slab, and a ring of stones surrounded the eggs to keep them in place. Below the table was a hole with a bowl placed underneath.
The goal was to shatter the stone slab without crushing the eggs. If he failed, the broken eggs would become his lunch.
Not quite grasping the nuance, Hasegumo applied a bit of force and threw a punch. He didn't even break the slab, but he managed to pulverize most of the eggs.
Seeing his bewildered expression, Gen stepped forward to explain. "This exercise is for force control. You need to strike with full power, but concentrate that power entirely at the point of impact rather than letting it penetrate through."
He demonstrated with a punch of his own. Pivoting from the waist, he drove a fist into the slab with blistering speed. There was no sign of him pulling his punch, yet the stone slab snapped cleanly while the eggs beneath remained perfectly intact.
Clap, clap. Hasegumo began to applaud.
"Whoa, you're actually super strong, Old-Timer! When I saw you fighting that Curse the other day, you couldn't even break its defense. I thought you were one of those 'all theory, no practice' types."
Gen promptly rapped Hasegumo over the head with the staff.
"Maintain your seriousness in the dojo. I have mastered every exercise I'm asking you to do. Being an Assistant Director is about finding talent; it doesn't mean my combat skills are weak."
"Right, right. But hey, I think martial arts should be practiced with a smile. It's my choice, after all," Hasegumo replied with a grin.
Gen didn't argue. He simply continued the explanation and set Hasegumo back to work.
"I've already filed a report with the Jujutsu Association on your behalf. Because of your training, you'll stay at the dojo for now. Once our agreement is fulfilled, you'll transfer to Tokyo Jujutsu High to begin your formal studies. Also, your current sorcerer rank is officially Grade 2."
Gen and Hasegumo were chatting at the dojo entrance.
"Why Tokyo? I heard there's a Jujutsu High here in Kyoto, isn't there?" Hasegumo asked, puzzled.
"Kyoto's teaching style doesn't really suit you. From what I know, it's a very traditional school with a strict hierarchy. Plus, my cousin is an Assistant Director at the Tokyo branch. Because of your Cursed Technique's nature, you don't really need to study the finer points of Cursed Energy properties or innate techniques. Barrier Techniques should be your focus in the future, and Tokyo has a better track record for teaching them," Gen replied.
"You're a remarkably reliable teacher, Uncle Gen. So, shall we start today's training?"
"Today's training isn't in the dojo. You've mastered force control, and I believe your mental fortitude is ready for the real thing. Today, you will be exorcising a Grade 2 Curse. For the duration of your time at the dojo, I will act as your Assistant Director."
Gen pointed to the car parked nearby. "Get in."
When Hasegumo hopped into the car, he realized there was someone else in the back seat. The man had short hair and wore a mask and glasses, with a messenger bag slung over his shoulder. He looked incredibly refined and gentle.
Hasegumo thought the man looked strangely familiar. "This is Tetsuya Yamagami, a Grade 1 Sorcerer."
"According to Association rules, your promotion to Grade 2 requires you to solo a Grade 2 Curse. Yamagami-senpai will accompany you on this mission, and he will be the one to decide if you pass the evaluation," Gen explained while driving.
What is up with this world? Hasegumo thought. I knew he looked familiar. Yamagami-senpai... in another life, you'd be the world's most famous marksman.
"Eh? Am I already that famous? Even you've heard of me?"
Tetsuya Yamagami sounded genuinely surprised. "My technique is called Double Tap. The first shot is a warning shot to the sky; within three seconds, it marks a 'weak point' on the target. The second shot, if it hits that weak point, ignores all Cursed Energy defenses to deal damage. The downside is that my gun can only hold two bullets at a time."
"Wait, isn't Japan strict about firearms? Is your gun a Cursed Tool, Senpai?"
"Nope. I built the gun myself. The bullets are manifested using my technique," Yamagami replied. "Just so we're clear, I'm only here to watch. I'll only step in if it looks like you can't handle the exorcism on your own."
The car pulled up to a dilapidated, abandoned vegetable market. "This is the place. Yun-kun, you know how to cast a Curtain, right?" Gen asked as they stepped out.
"I have to do that myself too?" Hasegumo asked. "Don't Assistant Directors usually handle the barriers?"
"For a sorcerer capable of solo operations, Barrier Techniques are part of the exam," Yamagami answered for Gen.
"Fair enough."
Hasegumo gave a helpless shrug. He brought his hands together, crossing his ring and pinky fingers with his thumbs while keeping his index and middle fingers pointed upward.
"Emerge from darkness, blacker than darkness. Purify that which is impure."
As Hasegumo's Cursed Energy flared, a black shroud slowly descended from the sky. Gen returned to the car, while Yamagami and Hasegumo walked into the market.
"Senpai, is this really a Grade 2? The Cursed Energy I'm sensing feels incredibly weak. It's not even as strong as the Grade 3 I ran into the other day," Hasegumo noted.
"It seems your common knowledge regarding Curses needs some work. Do you know the difference between a sorcerer and a normal human?"
Yamagami asked as he pulled out a classic, short-barreled double-barreled shotgun, snapping the breach open to load his rounds.
"Uh... sorcerers have innate techniques and can manipulate Cursed Energy?"
"Correct. But the most important point is how they manipulate it. Sorcerers can prevent their Cursed Energy from leaking out unconsciously. That's why a sorcerer's negative emotions don't create Curses."
"You should understand this: controlling the flow of energy has a slight delay. If you suppress your energy completely, deploying it for an attack becomes slow. To avoid being vulnerable, high-level Curses—just like sorcerers—consciously contract their energy. They only release it without reservation once they enter a combat state. In a battle between sorcerers and Curses, observing the flow of energy allows you to predict your opponent's next move," Yamagami explained.
Hasegumo pressed his hands together in gratitude. "Thank you for the lesson, Senpai. I understand."
As they moved deeper into the market, a Curse roughly two meters tall appeared before them.
"It's a mirror that came to life," Hasegumo muttered.
The Curse's body was like a honeycomb—specifically, a hexagonal pillar with arms and legs but no head. Every one of its six faces was a reflective mirror. Upon spotting the two intruders, a pillar of Cursed Energy erupted from the creature. The sheer malice of its aura made Hasegumo feel a prickle of discomfort.
Yamagami simply stood back and leveled his gun. "Good luck, Yun-kun."
Hasegumo performed his "Revealing One's Hand" ritual as usual, then activated his technique and charged.
I don't know if this thing has an innate technique. Let's probe it first.
He adjusted his output to a standard level and threw a straight punch at one of the mirrors. The moment his fist made contact, a force equal to his own surged back at him, though it didn't cause any real damage.
The Six-Sided Mirror Demon. It possessed the Cursed Energy of a Semi-Grade 1, but its technique was Mirror Inversion. It could perfectly reflect any technique-based attack that didn't exceed its total Cursed Energy pool, or any physical attack that didn't break its mirror's physical durability. Because its offensive capabilities were passive and weak, it was ranked as a Grade 2.
Hasegumo thought for a moment. It didn't break? With my normal output, that shouldn't happen. It definitely has a technique. In that case...
Hasegumo dialed up his output and aimed a punch at the pillar's left arm. The limb shattered instantly, but within a heartbeat, a new arm sprouted from the mirror body.
At the same time, as if a condition had been met, the Mirror Demon's Cursed Energy output suddenly spiked.
Seems like it has no openings. Let's try one more.
Circulating his energy, Hasegumo adjusted the output in his fists to his maximum. The Mirror Demon's energy remained like a stagnant pool of water, concentrated entirely on its surface with no sign of movement.
Hasegumo slowly raised his hands, settled into a stance, and lunged. With his technique fully active, a massive amount of Cursed Energy condensed in his right hand. Coordinating his body's rotation, he drove a punch straight into the center of the mirror face.
The Mirror Demon was completely unharmed. Hasegumo, however, was sent flying five meters by the reflected force of his own strike.
"I think my right hand is pulverized," Hasegumo said as he slowly stood up, his arm twisted at an unnatural angle.
Crunch. Snap. With a few stomach-turning sounds, Hasegumo's Reverse Cursed Technique finished its work, fully restoring the limb.
Maximum output won't break its defense. If it's a battle of attrition, I need RCT to heal, but its total energy pool seems larger than mine.
"Need a hand, Yun-kun?" Yamagami asked from the sidelines. "My technique ignores Cursed Energy defense. I can crack that shell for you."
"Not yet, Senpai. I'm not finished," Hasegumo replied.
He charged again. Left jab, right hook, right roundhouse, left snap kick.
Unlike before, the Mirror Demon's reflection didn't send Hasegumo flying.
It's within a manageable range.
The Mirror Demon's technique had a reaction time. If he delayed his own Cursed Energy—creating a gap between the physical impact and the cursed impact—the reflection would target the physical blow while the cursed impact landed a split second later.
Hasegumo relied on his sheer physical durability to tank the reflected physical damage while his energy strikes left fine cracks on the mirror's surface. Unfortunately, they were repaired almost instantly.
In another timeline, Satoru Gojo would eventually teach Yuji Itadori a similar technique called Divergent Fist. However, the utility of such a move was narrow. Against a weak opponent with slow energy manipulation, the double-impact might actually hit right when the opponent finally reinforces their defense, resulting in a standard clash. If the opponent was skilled and maintained a steady defense, it was still just a battle of energy versus energy.
Divergent Fist was only truly effective in high-speed combat against top-tier sorcerers who were low on energy and forced to reallocate their defense instantly. In short, it was a very niche tool.
I can win, Hasegumo thought, watching the cracks repair themselves. He maintained his relentless assault. Because of RCT, he ignored the pain of the reflected impacts entirely.
But just as he felt he was making progress, the Mirror Demon changed its behavior. It moved suddenly, its left hand parrying his punch. When Hasegumo's right fist hit the mirror face this time, the sound of breaking bone echoed through the market. He was sent flying again.
The Mirror Demon pursued him with blistering speed, following up with a heavy punch to his torso. Hasegumo slammed into the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust. He rolled to his feet and spat out a mouthful of blood.
"The damn thing can actually move? It was playing dumb the whole time?"
"It's more interesting when they fight back," Hasegumo said, standing up and activating his RCT once more before charging back in. "Otherwise, it's just like hitting a training post. Boring."
The only dummy here is the one who got tricked, Yamagami thought. The kid still isn't sensitive enough. The Curse suddenly concentrated all its energy on the front, massively boosting the reflection damage, and he didn't even notice it was a prelude to an attack.
Yamagami looked back at the battlefield. The two were locked in close-quarters combat—fists and legs flying—but they had reached an awkward stalemate. Hasegumo was blocking all the Mirror Demon's active attacks. Without an offensive technique, the Curse's raw output was far lower than what Hasegumo could output with his liberation. However, by concentrating its energy on the reflective surface, the Demon was reflecting forces far beyond the intensity of Hasegumo's strikes, making him hesitant to go all-out.
Seems like a deadlock. Still, the kid has done well enough; he's gathered all the intel on this Curse. I guess it's time for me to—
Before Japan's #1 Marksman could join the fray, the situation on the ground shifted once again.