The three children found themselves once again staring awkwardly at one another. Tsumiki looked at the large white dog sitting obediently at Kamihara Hajime's feet. She had to admit, as long as it wasn't acting silly, the dog looked pretty cool.
Having found a topic to break the silence, Tsumiki spoke up:
"Hi, I'm Tsumiki Fushiguro, and this is my younger brother, Megumi. Is this your dog?"
Kamihara nodded slightly. "My name is Kamihara Hajime. This dog was given to me by an older man. His name is White Wolf."
Tsumiki smiled sweetly. "Can I call you Hajime? Megumi has two dogs too—though I can't see them. He says one is black and the other is white. But your dog, I can see clearly!"
Kamihara didn't bother explaining that White Wolf was a cursed corpse. At a glance, it looked like a normal dog anyway.
White Wolf sat on the ground panting, and whether it truly understood Tsumiki or not, its tail wagged even more enthusiastically. Megumi, who usually wore a cold expression, remained fairly quiet and polite with his sister around.
Thanks to White Wolf, the three gradually grew more comfortable with each other. At Tsumiki's gentle urging, Megumi reluctantly summoned one of his own dogs—a large white one.
Kamihara watched as Megumi clasped his hands together, forming a dog's head-like silhouette, and then his shadow rippled. From it, the white dog—one of the Divine Dogs—emerged.
Perhaps because White Wolf was a cursed corpse and possessed cursed energy, it got along relatively well with the Divine Dog. The real glue was Tsumiki herself—young, but remarkably kind and warm to others. The way her cold-faced brother acted so obediently around her said it all.
They spent nearly the entire afternoon playing together. Just as Kamihara was about to say his goodbyes, he was invited to stay for dinner. From his memories, he figured he could cook, though reaching the stove might be a challenge. But seeing the sour look on Megumi's face, he smiled and agreed.
Dinner was made by Tsumiki—simple and homey. Still, Kamihara ate heartily, even nearly fighting with Megumi for food. Megumi glared at the boy across the table. This guy... so clingy. Why won't he leave? At this rate, he'll steal my sister away...
Remembering what Gojo said about attending school with him, Megumi stabbed at his food even harder. Seeing this, Tsumiki chided gently, "Megumi, eat properly. Don't play with your food." That only made him more frustrated.
After saying goodbye to the Fushiguro siblings, Kamihara returned to what would be his future home. The place was surprisingly spacious—especially for a single child. The emptiness gave it a quiet, slightly lonely feeling. But Kamihara wasn't scared in the slightest. If anything, he silently thought that Gojo really was as unreliable as Yaga Masamichi had said.
White Wolf scampered around the house, exploring. Kamihara also wandered through the three-story home, eventually choosing a sunlit room on the second floor to be his bedroom. It was spotless, with working electricity and plumbing—someone had clearly cleaned and prepared it. Maybe Gojo wasn't completely unreliable after all.
That night was his first in this unfamiliar home. The next morning, Kamihara got up, made himself a simple breakfast—fried eggs, toast, and milk—using the ingredients in the fridge. Not long after he finished eating, someone knocked on the door.
It was Gojo, grinning cheerfully. Before Kamihara could say a word, Gojo spoke up,
"Get ready. I'm taking you to test your cursed technique. I'll also fill you in on some basic jujutsu knowledge."
Kamihara turned, picked up White Wolf, and just like that, the scene changed. Gojo had brought him—presumably—to Tokyo Jujutsu High again. Kamihara spotted Yaga standing a short distance away. However, this wasn't the school grounds—it was a deserted plot of land.
Once Kamihara was set down, he heard Yaga's dissatisfied voice:
"Gojo, he's just a kid. Do you really have to rush this?"
Gojo waved it off. "Don't worry. Hajime's got talent. Plus, his technique is... a bit unusual. We need to understand it better."
Clapping his hands, Gojo smiled. "Yaga-sensei here is an excellent teacher. He's going to explain the basics of the jujutsu world to you."
Yaga stepped forward, ignoring the White Wolf frolicking around him, and adopted a serious tone.
"I'll start with the basics."
"Human negative emotions create cursed energy, which in turn births curses. Every year, over ten thousand people go missing or die under mysterious circumstances in Japan—most due to curses. Some people are born with the innate talent to control cursed energy. Once they learn to channel this energy into techniques to exorcise curses, they're called jujutsu sorcerers."
"Cursed techniques are fascinating—think of them like superpowers. Techniques, cursed energy, and martial skills are all fundamental to a sorcerer's training."
"For example, Gojo's technique is called Limitless. It's a bit complex, but basically, the closer something gets to him, the slower it moves—so it can never actually touch him. Most sorcerers' techniques are made public knowledge. This serves as a form of self-imposed binding, which in turn boosts their power. Gojo also possesses the inherited Six Eyes, which lets him see the flow of cursed energy and the mechanics of techniques."
"But your technique is still unknown. To figure it out, you'll need to use it more—or let Gojo analyze it."
Gojo chimed in, "Exactly~ Alright Hajime, show us your technique."
Kamihara was also eager to learn the truth. He nodded. "Sometimes, I enter a special state. I move incredibly fast, and everything around me feels frozen."
As he spoke, he activated his technique. Feeling the cursed energy stir within him, that familiar state returned. Surprisingly, Gojo seemed able to keep up, while Yaga struggled to track him.
After only a dozen seconds, the state ended. Yaga's expression turned serious. Gojo's usual playful demeanor faded slightly, and the bandage over his eyes was gone. Raising his right hand, a blue flame of cursed energy ignited at his fingertip.
"Try to do this," Gojo instructed. "Channel your cursed energy outward."
Kamihara had some experience with this, and now, with Gojo's (somewhat questionable) guidance, he gave it a try. Before long, he had successfully formed a stable ball of cursed energy at his fingertip.
"Now," Gojo continued, "try applying your technique to that cursed energy. Let's see what happens."
Kamihara concentrated. The feeling was... peculiar. A technique, he realized, is like an extension of your body—like arms or legs. You don't normally notice them unless you focus. But the moment you activate it, its presence becomes vivid.
Now, Kamihara could sense it clearly. He applied his technique to the cursed energy.
The cursed energy vanished from his finger—just disappeared. Then, a visible streak appeared in the air. Strangely, the sound that followed was not loud, only sharp and piercing.
Yaga silently analyzed what had just happened. When Kamihara moved at high speed, he could still barely track him. But this cursed energy attack? He couldn't see it at all.
The cursed energy disappeared and the trajectory appeared simultaneously. If Kamihara had been aiming at him, the only option would've been defense. There would've been no time to dodge or counterattack.
Purely defense. And while the attack hadn't been that powerful, it was clear Kamihara hadn't gone all out. After all, he was still just a kid—barely trained in using cursed energy.
Kamihara looked somewhat fatigued. In truth, he hadn't been holding back in terms of power. What he had done was focus entirely on speed—on activating his technique, not raw force.
Even he couldn't see the trajectory just now.
Gojo watched the fading cursed energy trail in the sky, shielding his eyes, then turned to Kamihara. His ice-blue eyes shimmered with something rare—interest, maybe even awe.
"Pretty incredible…"
Yaga, curious now, couldn't help but ask, "Gojo, what exactly is his technique?"
Gojo looked more serious now, though he still smiled. "Time. It's time."
"Hajime's technique materializes the concept of time. He's not using cursed energy to enhance his body and speed up. He's literally accelerating his own time—or the time of an object. That's why his movement and attacks seem impossibly fast—his time doesn't align with ours."
Yaga's expression turned to shock. Throughout jujutsu history, there had been many powerful techniques. For example, Master Tengen's technique granted a form of immortality, and when his body ages too far, he evolves into a higher being. Gojo's Limitless was another absurdly powerful technique.
But a technique that directly manipulates time? This was the first he'd seen.
While a sorcerer's strength isn't determined solely by their technique, it certainly plays a large role in their future potential. And Kamihara wasn't just about the technique—his cursed energy was massive too.
Almost reading his mind, Gojo added, "Hajime's cursed energy is also influenced by his technique. I think, even unknowingly, his cursed energy generation has been affected by time—so it regenerates incredibly fast."
"If my Six Eyes make my cursed energy use nearly zero, then maybe—just maybe—Hajime will someday generate cursed energy faster than he consumes it. In a way, that would be... infinite cursed energy."
Hearing this, Kamihara looked down at his hands.
"Time... My technique is time?"
In that moment, many images and thoughts flashed through his mind.
Time… It sounded like something truly extraordinary.
Before he could process it further, Gojo pulled him close, grinning brightly.
"How's that? Your technique is a first! Want to give it a name?"
Kamihara paused, then said:
"Let's call it... Wheel of Time."
(End of Chapter)
This is a nice story to read
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