The students of Tokyo Jujutsu High were all straightforward people, so Akira had no reason to hold back. He spoke calmly as he listed the points.
"Because you lack Cursed Energy, you must put in extra work on equipment and tools. You need options so that no matter the situation, you are not left helpless, whether against large Cursed Spirit, small ones, fast ones, or many at once."
"And also against Jujutsu Sorcerer. Unlike Cursed Spirit, people can be seen and touched even without Cursed Energy, so you have more methods to choose from. Take the advice I gave to Inumaki earlier and think about it three times over."
"That..." Maki Zenin hesitated.
Akira hinted pointedly, "What, are you still thinking about so-called fairness? Do not forget your position and your natural limits."
"No," Maki Zenin said unexpectedly as she shook her head. "I was just thinking about how to strike back at people like that. Something like, even the technology you look down on can stop you, so your precious Jujutsu is nothing special. What do you think?"
Akira clicked his tongue in approval. "Nice. Just remember to say it after you knock them flat. If possible, break their arms and legs too."
"Hahahaha!" Satoru Gojo had already turned into a laughing machine and could not stop. "Awesome indeed. You two should just pair up and flip the Three Great Clans upside down."
"Your Gojo family is also part of the Three Great Clans," Akira shot back.
"Does not matter. If you can surpass me, I would be very happy."
Satoru Gojo flicked his hair, looking one step away from carrying a speaker and blasting music about invincibility. His carefree attitude filled the training ground.
"Pair up?" Panda lit up immediately, eyes sparkling.
Maki Zenin did not think much of it. "You said it yourself, assistant teacher. Do you think I really have that possibility?"
"The chance is extremely low, but not zero if you prepare thoroughly," Akira said with a cold smile. "First push your physical ability to the limit, then prepare the right tactics. That includes neutralizing Jujutsu, countering domains, dealing with ultimate techniques, and preventing escape."
"Not zero is enough," Maki Zenin said as she rubbed her hands together, eager to try.
"I will help too," Panda said, raising a paw.
"Salmon, mentaiko," Inumaki said, meaning he was in and that they should be careful.
"Then I will give you a bit more motivation," Satoru Gojo added, casually joining the discussion on how to defeat Satoru Gojo himself. "The examples Ari mentioned all have corresponding Cursed Tools. I was once beaten to the brink of death, and if that person had struck a bit harder and not given me time to use reversed techniques, you would not be seeing me today."
"There is someone like that?" Maki Zenin was shocked. "What kind of monster was that?"
"Someone like you, without Cursed Energy," Satoru Gojo said, his expression complicated and hard to read. "Maki Zenin, when you applied for admission, you said you did not need pity. I told you it was not pity, that I truly believed in you. This is why."
"Who was he, and where is he now?" Maki Zenin asked.
"He has been dead for almost ten years. It is all in the past," Satoru Gojo replied lightly. "I will tell you another time if there is a chance. I have something to do, so I will leave today's class to the assistant."
He waved his hand as if to brush the topic away and turned to leave. Maki Zenin was curious, but since Satoru Gojo would not say more, she could not press him.
As for Akira, he naturally knew exactly who Satoru Gojo meant. That person was the second figure from the Zenin Clan he used as a benchmark, and the only one who had ever forced Satoru Gojo into a fight for his life. Many of the suggestions he gave to Maki Zenin were built on that very example.
The relationship between that person and Satoru Gojo was complicated. Since Satoru Gojo chose not to speak, Akira would not meddle. He knew clearly what should be said, what should not, and which jokes were acceptable.
"Let us ignore the unqualified teacher," he said calmly. "Maki Zenin, my second piece of advice is to learn how to sense Cursed Spirit. Not seeing does not mean you cannot sense them. Vision is only one of the five senses, and beyond them there is also intuition."
"If you can reach a point where you can perceive Cursed Spirit without relying on special glasses, your understanding of them, your control over yourself, and every related condition will rise to another level." His tone was steady and certain.
This was something Maki Zenin had never considered before. "Is that really possible?" she asked seriously.
"Of course. I have seen more than one example," Akira replied without hesitation.
One was the person who had nearly killed Satoru Gojo. The other was an utterly ordinary waiter with no Jujutsu Sorcerer talent at all, not even worthy of having his name remembered.
The only thing known about him was that he had four sworn younger sisters.
Akira's campus life began.
Calling it campus life was not quite right, because it was not much different from living at home. There were so few people that there was no separation between male and female dorms, just one building where everyone picked a room they liked, each with a private bathroom, and some even had kitchens. Aside from not being allowed to hire a renovation crew, people could arrange things almost however they wanted.
The three members of Ake Clan directly took over an entire floor and made full use of it. As for the fourth member, Pancham, it had already become the campus pet of Tokyo Jujutsu High. The whole school counted as its home.
There was no helping it, since Gardevoir only doted on Akira, while Panda's charm was on a global level. If not for legal restrictions, who would not want to raise a cute and fluffy Panda? If it were not for Akira's trainer System having a built in positioning function, he would fail to see, well, Panda, for at least half the day.
Pancham's daily routine went something like this.
It woke up first every day. Yes, first. Although a normal Panda loved sleeping in, Pancham was always full of energy, likely influenced by its older "brother" Panda, who theoretically did not need sleep.
At dawn, the two Panda would practice boxing in the open space in front of the dormitory, shouting "ora ora" as they punched. Sometimes, Panda's creator and father, Principal Masamichi Yaga, would join them. At that point, the shouts would turn into everyone getting hyped together.
By the way, Panda's boxing was taught by Masamichi Yaga, and Pancham happened to be a fighting type, so sparring and boxing came naturally to it. As a result, the one human and two Panda were always in high spirits every morning. Even though it was still new to training, Pancham could already trade moves with Toge Inumaki, who was learning close combat from scratch, which made Akira feel very satisfied.
Sure enough, a professional caretaker really was different.
As boxing practice went on, others would gradually wake up and join the training. Maki Zenin, Akira, Toge Inumaki, and others each trained on their own or sparred, depending on their condition and mood. There were one on one bouts, one against many, and messy free for alls.
After eating the breakfast provided by the school, formal classes began.