Tokyo Jujutsu High, student dorms.
"South Wind." Yoshino Junpei played a tile.
"Four Characters." Kugisaki Nobara discarded a Four Characters tile after drawing a Three Characters, then casually said, "By the way, did you guys hear? They're saying the Tokyo and Kyoto schools might merge."
"Huh, Four Characters pong." Itadori Yuji squinted at his hand for a long time before finally discarding a One Dot. "One Dot. Wait, seriously? Why?"
"Nine Bamboos." Fushiguro Megumi, his face unreadable, smoothly drew and played his tiles. After a brief pause, a vein popped on his forehead. "By the way, why are you guys playing mahjong in my room? You even went as far as bringing a whole mahjong table in here."
"Your room is the biggest, and it looks kinda lonely." Itadori Yuji grinned. "My room has a game console, Junpei's room is packed with DVDs and manga, and Kugisaki's room… well, we can't exactly hang out in a girl's room, can we?"
"Nine Characters." Yoshino Junpei chuckled awkwardly as he played his tile.
"Exactly! What, Fushiguro, are you saying you actually want to go into a girl's room? Oh wait, you've never even seen what a girl's room looks like, have you? If you beg me, I *might* be kind enough to let you take a peek from the doorway."
Kugisaki Nobara narrowed her eyes with a sly grin. "One Man. Riichi! Hah!"
"That was fast!" Itadori Yuji played a tile, staring in shock at the tea-haired girl sitting across from him.
"Come on, of course I've been in a girl's room before. But every girl's room is different, right? And besides, that mahjong table is huge—it's making my room feel cramped." Fushiguro Megumi's face darkened. "Red Dragon."
The spiky-haired boy looked down at his tiles, waiting for the others to play, but the room was suddenly silent. Confused, he looked up—only to find all three of them staring at him.
"…What?"
"You've been in a girl's room?!"
"Who was it?!"
"Wait, Fushiguro, does that mean you've actually dated someone before?!"
The three of them leaned in so close their faces were practically in his, bombarding him with questions. Fushiguro Megumi instinctively leaned back, looking disgusted.
"It was Tsumiki's room, you idiots."
"Ugh." x3
Instantly, all three of them lost interest. The sound of mahjong tiles clacking against the table resumed.
"Back to what we were talking about—are the two schools really merging?" Itadori Yuji asked curiously. "Kugisaki, where'd you hear that from?"
"I heard it from Maki-senpai. She said the info came from Gojo-sensei, so it's probably true."
As Kugisaki Nobara spoke, her face suddenly twisted in anger, as if she had just remembered someone she really disliked. "Maki-senpai's sister—that awful woman—is coming too, right? I hope her dorm isn't too close to mine. If it is, I'll make sure she knows what real bullying feels like!"
"That's scary, Kugisaki," Itadori Yuji commented, but his mind drifted to some rather unsettling memories.
Like…
Walking down the street, only for a towering figure to suddenly appear beside him, shouting, "BRAAAAZZAA!!"
Or…
Doing his daily workout, when out of nowhere, that same huge figure jumps out and yells, "BRAAAAZZAA!!"
Or even…
Taking a shower in the dorm bathroom, only to see that massive, shirtless figure appear by the window and whisper in a deep voice, "Braaazaa…"
A shiver ran down his spine. The pink-haired boy frantically shook his head, trying to erase those horrifying images from his mind.
"Do people not get along with the Kyoto students?"
Since he enrolled later and didn't participate in the exchange event, Yoshino Junpei asked curiously.
Kugisaki Nobara immediately scowled. "Of course not! They're all so full of themselves! Especially that smug-looking guy, Maki-senpai's sister, and that blonde brat!"
"It's nothing, really. We just don't interact much," Fushiguro Megumi said calmly.
"It's not like I hate them… I mean, how should I put it? The Kyoto guys are actually kinda okay," Itadori Yuji said, scratching his cheek. After all, he got along pretty well with Todo Aoi.
Just as he was about to play his turn, the pink-haired boy suddenly noticed something.
After carefully checking his cards and glancing at the others, he frowned. "Wait… why do I have even-numbered cards while all of you have odd-numbered ones?"
"Did you forget to draw a card when you played?" Yoshino Junpei reminded him.
"Ah!" Itadori Yuji gasped in realization.
Almost the moment he made that sound, the ground shook violently, followed by a deafening explosion.
Their expressions changed instantly as they rushed out of the room and into the hallway.
Through the glass walls of the corridor, they could clearly see thick black smoke rising from the nearby forest.
"What the hell is going on?!" Itadori Yuji shouted in shock.
"An attack?" Fushiguro Megumi looked just as stunned. "That's impossible—this is Jujutsu High!"
Would a curse user really be dumb enough to attack Jujutsu High? Especially with Gojo Satoru around?
His face quickly darkened.
If the enemy wasn't a complete idiot… then that meant they came prepared.
Could they have someone strong enough to fight Gojo-sensei?
That didn't seem likely. As far as Fushiguro Megumi knew, the only person who had ever fought Gojo Satoru on equal footing—or even won—was Hayashizaki.
Other than Hayashizaki, the only one here who could actually challenge Gojo-sensei was—
A sudden realization struck him like lightning.
His eyes widened as he snapped his head toward the pink-haired boy beside him, who was about to run outside in a panic.
"Itadori! The enemy's target is probably you!"
"Huh?" Itadori Yuji turned around, looking confused.
The next second, the sound of shattering glass filled the air.
A dark figure, moving like a cannonball, crashed through the glass wall of the hallway and slammed straight into Itadori Yuji, smashing through the dorm wall and sending him flying into his own room.
"Itadori!"
There was no time to worry about their friend.
More and more cursed energy signatures appeared one after another.
As they turned their gaze toward the dorm's backyard, they saw curses emerging from the forest, surrounding the entire dorm area.
Their faces tensed.
"This many curses… is this just like the Shinjuku attack?"
…
(End of Chapter)
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