"Haven't you been sleeping well lately?"
Eichi looked at Suguru, who had dark circles under his eyes.
"Yeah, too many Cursed Spirits have been appearing lately, so I haven't been able to get proper rest."
Suguru sat on the bench next to the vending machine, his topknot slightly loosened, giving his face a touch of gentle femininity.
It was like a fox briefly turning into a rabbit.
"You really need to take care of your body. If you don't want to take a mission, just reject it like Satoru does."
Eichi smoothly handed Suguru a bottle of honey tea.
"Thanks."
Suguru took it and sipped.
"Satoru has been working pretty hard too lately. He's also been out exorcising Cursed Spirits."
"That's true."
The missions Satoru refused were always the troublesome ones assigned by the old geezers at Jujutsu Headquarters. He never turned down regular exorcism missions.
Although he seemed arrogant and unreliable on the surface, Satoru was surprisingly rational.
Perhaps this was why Satoru wanted to change the Jujutsu world but never outright killed all the higher-ups.
In reality, overthrowing the current higher-ups wouldn't be difficult for either Eichi or Satoru.
But then what?
Who would manage the Jujutsu world?
Eichi, who had worked in various organizations before, knew that the hardest thing in the world was managing people.
It was like the one-third theory of the workplace.
In any group, one-third of the people work, one-third slack off, and one-third actively hold others back.
Getting everyone aligned and motivated is incredibly difficult.
And the larger the organization, the harder it gets. By the time you realize it, factions have already formed.
Each faction with its own goals.
Eichi and Satoru were neither Sukuna nor Kenjaku. They had no interest in rivers of blood.
So, Eichi intended to wait until he had gathered enough power before flipping the current system.
But speaking of management... Eichi narrowed his eyes slightly.
Among the Heroic Spirits, there were many who excelled at ruling.
Kings, emperors, pharaohs... If possible, he could focus on that area in the future.
However, that was still too far away. Without the internet fully developed, collecting points was painfully slow.
'Now that I think about it, there should be a good opportunity to make money next year, in 2008. I'll find a way to profit and start investing in the internet. The money isn't the point. Once the internet takes off, my strength will soar.'
As Eichi was spacing out and Suguru was lost in thought, Yu Haibara came over, humming a tune.
"Ah, it's Geto-senpai and Eichi-senpai."
"...Haibara?"
Suguru opened his tired eyes.
"I told you, there's no need to call me 'Senpai'."
Everyone around Eichi just called him by name, so he had told Haibara to do the same.
But this overly polite and cheerful junior insisted on using 'Senpai' every time.
"Senpais, you've worked hard."
Haibara looked at the tired Suguru and Eichi resting in the chairs, admiration in his eyes.
Right now, it was a period of concentrated Cursed Spirit outbreaks. The students at Tokyo Jujutsu High had stepped onto the frontlines.
And the third-years' performance had stunned many.
At this point, nearly all Grade 1 and above Cursed Spirits were being handled by the third-year students.
Among them, Suguru was the busiest. After all, taming Cursed Spirits could increase his power, and he couldn't miss this yearly opportunity.
Yu Haibara, who had already admired them to some extent, was even more moved seeing how hard his Seniors worked to exorcise Cursed Spirits.
Of course, most importantly, Haibara only focused on others' strengths. And the students in Satoru's year were monsters whose strength spoke for itself.
"Here, honey tea."
Eichi handed him a bottle, and Haibara sat beside them with a slightly embarrassed smile.
"Haibara, you've been busy lately too, right? Still holding up?"
Suguru asked with concern.
Nanami and Haibara had also received a lot of missions lately.
Only Ieiri Kiyotaka remained mostly at school due to his lack of strength.
"It's been a bit rough..."
"But being able to give it my all, to do what I want with everything I've got, that feeling is amazing."
Haibara's expression was like that of a textbook protagonist.
Bright and full of confidence, smiling no matter how tough things got.
Hearing this, Suguru's tired eyes also widened.
"Is that so? Then keep at it."
A genuine smile appeared on Suguru's face.
'These are the kinds of people I want to protect, aren't they?'
"Haibara, how's your sister doing? Is she still set on becoming a Jujutsu Sorcerer?"
Eichi asked curiously.
"My sister, huh..."
The cheerful boy showed a troubled expression for the first time.
"I'm going to convince her to give up on becoming a Jujutsu Sorcerer."
Haibara had a younger sister who, like him, lacked talent.
Perhaps wanting to share the burden with her brother, she also wanted to become a Jujutsu Sorcerer.
But Haibara would never agree to it.
He himself hadn't initially wanted to become a Jujutsu Sorcerer either.
But coming from a regular family, with no strong background and limited talent compared to Suguru, he eventually enrolled at Tokyo Jujutsu High.
Partly for his sister, who could see Curses, and partly to support his family.
"Is that so? Good luck."
Eichi also felt it wasn't right for a girl from a regular family to step into the world of Jujutsu.
He thought of Miwa Kasumi, the girl who, even while terrified, swung her katana desperately just to support her family.
Tap, tap, tap.
As the group chatted idly.
A set of footsteps reached their ears.
'That sounds like a woman's leather shoes... Is it Shoko?'
They looked toward the sound.
A tall blonde woman appeared before them.
She looked to be about 180 centimeters tall, the same height as Suguru.
Judging by her features, she didn't look Japanese. She had more of a Western appearance.
Her long golden hair was a good color but slightly unkempt, with several strands separated.
She had a great figure. Her athletic build was visible through her tight black outfit, and the exposed arms of her sleeveless top revealed toned muscles.
Her stance resembled that of a warrior. A Valkyrie from Western mythology.
Not the soft, buxom female warriors often seen in anime, but a realistic Western-style warrior woman.
Tap, tap, tap.
Yuki Tsukumo.
"Are you Suguru-kun and Eichi-kun?"
Yuki approached the three and coolly tossed her jacket over her shoulder.
"What kind of women do you like?"
(To be continued.)
◇◇◇
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)