Chapter 6: First Battle
"What a day," he muttered, taking a deep breath. "I think I've used up all my seriousness for the next ten years."
Shoko Ieri, who was sitting next to him, lazily flipping through a magazine, only looked up at him.
"You? Serious? That's new," she chuckled, putting the magazine aside. "So, why are you trying so hard for that boy?"
Gojo raised his head slightly, glancing sideways at Shoko.
"Didn't I tell you?" He paused, as if trying to remember. "Oh, yes, I did, but you keep forgetting."
"No, you didn't tell me," Shoko said irritably, crossing her legs.
Gojo, ignoring Shoko's irritation, calmly replied, "He has vast reserves of cursed energy, much greater than mine, and there is also the factor of origin," Gojo replied, suddenly becoming serious. "This boy is a descendant of one of the three vengeful spirits. Sugawara no Michizane. Which makes us relatives, albeit distant ones." After a short pause, he continued, "Eighty percent of a shaman's power depends on his lineage and internal abilities. And Yuta has both. He will become a key player in the coming future.
"Are you so sure?" Shoko pursed her lips, but her eyes showed that she was listening.
"Of course I'm sure. Have you ever seen me make a mistake?" he replied, putting on his trademark smile again.
Shoko rolled her eyes, muttering something about his giant ego, but said nothing more. Gojo closed his eyes again, and Shoko returned to her journal.
---
Meanwhile, Yuta Okkotsu sat in his room, examining the katana his parents had recently brought him. Carefully running his fingers along the hilt, he felt the cool steel of the guard and the tight leather straps wrapped around it. It was brand new, and looked a little out of place in the cozy atmosphere of home.
"How strange," he thought. "I was just an ordinary schoolboy not long ago, and now... everything has changed."
The past weeks had become routine for him: training, school, and home. Gojo had explained that cursed energy was a byproduct of negative emotions like fear, anger, and sadness. Controlling it required not only willpower, but also an inner understanding of one's emotions.
Yuta closed his eyes, holding the katana in his hand. He tried to focus, imagining the flow of energy inside him moving down his arm, through his palm, and finally into the blade of the katana. It was harder than it looked. For a second, he felt a slight vibration in the blade, but immediately lost his concentration.
"Too unstable," Yuta thought with irritation, opening his eyes.
His attention was distracted by light footsteps outside the door. It was his sister, Yui. She peered into the room with a smile, holding a sketchbook in her hands.
"Yuta, are you training again?" she asked, coming closer.
"Yes," he replied, sheathing the katana. — I'm training.
Yui sat down next to me, placing the album on the table.
—Can I see it? — she asked with interest, nodding at the katana.
"Not now," Yuta replied softly. "It's not a toy."
She frowned, but didn't argue. After a few minutes, Yuta decided he needed a distraction. He helped his sister color the picture, and then went for a walk with her in the yard.
---
4 years later
Yuta Okkotsu sat at his desk, concentrating on solving physics problems. Black ink lay neatly on the pages of his notebook, and despite his tense appearance, he was enjoying the quiet evening. Suddenly, the air behind him seemed to sparkle. The vibration of cursed energy enveloped the room, and Yuta immediately tensed.
He stood up instantly, turning towards the source of the energy. His eyes narrowed, and his hand reflexively reached for the katana standing against the wall.
"Gojo-san, you could have warned me before you came in so suddenly "he said softly but reproachfully, seeing a familiar silhouette in a black suit.
"Well, I really wanted to see my favorite student! " Gojo Satoru answered with a wide smile, standing on the windowsill with the look of a man who was clearly not going to apologize for his suddenness.
Yuta relaxed, removing his hand from the katana, but continued to look at his teacher reproachfully.
"You could have come in through the door."
" I could have, " Gojo easily admitted, jumping off the windowsill and casually brushing the dust off his pants. "But then I wouldn't have made an impression. And today is a special day, isn't it?"
Yuta frowned, not understanding what they were talking about.
"What special day? " he asked, sitting back down at the table.
Gojo sat on the edge of the table, crossing his legs cheekily.
"Remember how many times I've come to check on you over the last four years," he began.
Yuta was distracted for a second, replaying the events of the last few years in his head. Gojo did come by often to watch him train, and gave him advice when he encountered difficulties.
At first, he had a hard time working with the cursed energy. Controlling the cursed energy seemed almost impossible - the energy either leaked out or exploded chaotically. But everything changed the moment he awakened his technique. It became much easier for him to use the cursed energy, as if he instinctively understood how to use the cursed energy correctly.
Yuta Okkotsu's cursed technique is copying. He can copy the cursed techniques of others. The condition for copying is that a part of the cursed technique's owner is absorbed, and that part must not be restored. This makes it impossible for methods such as blood absorption and healing with the reverse cursed technique of the part that was absorbed to work. This makes it difficult to use this technique on allies. The cursed techniques that his body can store, not counting his own copy technique, are three. And if you count them all, he can hold four. And he can use them all at once.
"You have awakened your technique, you are evolving," Gojo continued, interrupting his train of thought. "Now it's time to prove that you are ready to become a true shaman."
"What do you mean?" Yuta felt a slight anxiety begin to build inside him.
"I have a surprise for you," Gojo said mysteriously, standing up and heading for the exit. "Put on your coat and let's go.
Yuta, though not thrilled by the sudden offer, complied.
---
When they reached an abandoned park on the outskirts of the city, Yuta immediately realized that this was not just a walk. The air here was filled with cursed energy, heavy and ominous.
"Here?" he asked quietly.
"Here," Gojo confirmed, stopping by the old swing. He turned to his student with that trademark smile. "This is a second-tier cursed spirit. Don't be afraid, I'll be watching, but I won't interfere."
Yuta swallowed, feeling his insides tighten. Second tier. These weren't the training phantoms he'd dealt with before.
"I…" he began, but stopped when he saw a giant figure emerge from the shadows in front of him.
It was a curse in the form of an ugly beast, reminiscent of a hyena. Its mouth was lined with blade-like teeth, and its red eyes burned with hatred. It let out a low growl that sent shivers down Yuta's spine.
"Come on, Yuta, show me what you've learned," Gojo said, leaning against a nearby tree with a slight mockery in his voice.
Yuta drew his katana and got into a fighting stance. The curse didn't take long to strike, rushing forward with incredible speed. Yuta barely managed to dodge, feeling the monster's claws pierce the air a millimeter from his shoulder.
"Focus," he reminded himself. "Don't panic."
He took a deep breath, feeling the cursed energy fill his body. Feeling its control, he stepped forward and struck. The blade of the katana was enveloped in a blue aura, and it left a deep gash on the monster's side.
The creature howled, but did not retreat. It attacked again, opening its mouth. Yuta instinctively jumped back, but did not have time to fully dodge. Pain burned his shoulder - the curse still caught him with its claws.
- Yuta, don't panic, stay calm, you're much stronger than him, there's no reason to panic, and even if you were to meet a stronger opponent, panic wouldn't help - Gojo commented without moving.
"Thanks for the advice, I'm trying "Yuta said through clenched teeth.
He realized that if he continued to be so stupid, he would lose. He needed to use what Gojo taught him.
Yuta closed his eyes for milliseconds, concentrating on his energy. Then he opened them and put as much force as he could into the katana. The blade began to vibrate, creating a resonance.
When the monster rushed forward again, Yuta jumped towards it. At the last moment, he abruptly changed the direction of the blow, delivering a horizontal blow. The energy put into the blade flared up, easily cutting the monster in two. The monster let out a pained roar and disintegrated, turning into black smoke.
Yuta was breathing heavily, sinking to his knees more from intense excitement and adrenaline than from fatigue or pain. His body was shaking, but inside he felt pride.
"Well done," Gojo said, coming closer.
Yuta looked up at his teacher, expecting another joke, but instead saw a warm smile.
"You have officially exorcised your first cursed spirit. Welcome to the world of shamans, Yuta."
These words meant everything to him.
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