JJK: Wheel of Time

Chapter 1: Rebirth

Something is wrong—this world is not right!

In 2009, at the Sunflower Children's Welfare Home, an eight-year-old boy named Shin Shuichi gazed at the welfare home under the cover of night. The once familiar place now seemed strangely unfamiliar. The many children and adults who once filled the home had all disappeared. As shadows cloaked the building, Shin Shuichi noticed something odd: the structure of the welfare home appeared... different.

Shin Shuichi recalled the complex simplicity of his current life. In his previous life, he had been an ordinary person, but he succumbed to a terminal illness at a young age and died. When he regained consciousness, he had been reborn as a child here in Japan. His memories had almost no trace of his parents. From the time he could remember, he had always lived in this welfare home.

Perhaps due to his reincarnation, his past life felt like a vivid dream—extremely real, but with a boundary separating reality from illusion. As he learned more about this world, he realized it was entirely different from the one he knew, despite some similarities. Could this be a parallel world?

The most crucial piece of evidence: Shin discovered that he had "superpowers." He called it telekinesis, although any name would do. Its main use was enhancing his body, allowing him, even as a small child, to perform incredible feats.

To avoid overusing his powers, which might harm his still-growing body, Shin rarely used his abilities. After all, he was just a child, and his body was still developing. What if his powers stunted his growth? Most of these concerns were just his wild imagination, as no one was there to guide him.

Life at the welfare home was peaceful, with little need for superpowers. Even using them sparingly made him the king among the children at the home. His telekinesis appeared as a faint blue energy, and he could sometimes move at near-instantaneous speeds. However, this often left him feeling strange afterward, so he avoided using it recklessly. When he moved at such speeds, everything around him seemed to freeze, reminding him of super-speed abilities he'd seen in the past, which initially thrilled him.

The second piece of evidence: in this world, there are ghosts!

Shin had considered that his superpowers might not be unique, imagining there could be others like him, hidden from ordinary people, much like the characters in movies and novels. But he never expected there to be actual ghosts.

Over the years, he had encountered ghosts five or six times. However, they were not like the ghosts from his previous life's knowledge—not like Sadako or Kayako. These ghosts were bizarre, and oddly enough, they seemed weak. Other people couldn't see them, like the time a couple came to the welfare home to adopt a child. There was a strange creature lurking beside them, resembling an oversized mosquito, with wings like hands and a needle-sharp proboscis. Shin named it "Mosquito" based on its appearance.

When he first saw it, he was shocked. None of the children or adults seemed able to see it. Could it be that only those with superpowers could see these ghosts?

Now, Shin had encountered what seemed to be a stronger ghost, one capable of altering the environment around it. Fear, anger, and frustration surged within him.

"Why now, when I'm still weak? I haven't grown strong yet! I can't give up! I've been reborn and given powers—I refuse to die now!"

Shin forced his telekinetic power to surge through his body, pushing beyond his limits. His speed, strength, and durability now far exceeded that of an ordinary child. He could easily defeat several adult men. In this unknown situation, he needed to remain extremely vigilant and use all his strength to survive.

...

"Hmm, got it. Don't forget the promised reward. It's confirmed as a Level 1, possibly a Special Grade Curse Womb. I'll notify you if anything comes up. Gojo, that's it."

A beautiful white-haired woman stood not far from the Sunflower Welfare Home. Dense cursed energy and ominous auras swirled around the building in her eyes. Yet, the white-haired woman showed no fear—only a look of admiration for something precious.

"Born from the darkness, into the deepest dark. All filth, be purified."

As she chanted, a grayish-black barrier, resembling a water ripple or curtain, expanded rapidly from a point in the sky, enveloping the entire welfare home. The white-haired woman then gracefully stepped inside and disappeared.

...

"It's over."

Shin stared at the grotesque, vanishing small body on the ground. Five minutes ago, he had encountered his first "ghost"—a hybrid of a dog and a child, which charged at him wailing. After his initial panic, Shin attacked it with his telekinetically enhanced body, and the results were surprisingly effective. A few punches were all it took to kill the creature, turning the scene into a child beating up a deformed monster.

The way out had disappeared. Shin had tried to find an exit but couldn't escape the transformed welfare home, like being trapped in an endless loop. He had no choice but to go further in, hoping to destroy the ghost or find another way out.

As he progressed, he encountered more creatures, all different in appearance, but they shared one thing in common—they all had child-like features. Shin speculated that these ghosts might be born from the grudges of children, much like the stories in movies and novels. Although their grotesque forms initially scared him, after defeating them easily, Shin lost his fear. After all, when you can destroy ghosts with superpowers, they seem far less terrifying.

...

Shin suddenly heard the faint cries of a child as he walked down the hallway of the staff dormitory. His first instinct, always on alert, was that another ghost had appeared. However, he soon realized he was wrong.

In front of a cabinet, he pinpointed the source of the sobbing. It didn't sound like the ghosts, so could there be other survivors?

Preparing for an attack, Shin cautiously opened the cabinet door. Screams erupted as two small, trembling figures huddled inside. It wasn't a ghost but two unlucky children trapped in the same situation as him.

"Hey! Stop screaming! Do you want to attract the ghosts?"

At his words, the two kids stopped their cries, recognizing Shin's voice. One was a boy, the other a girl. He vaguely remembered the girl—her name was Kumiko. She had almost been adopted by the couple with the strange ghost, but a birthmark on her left cheek had led to her rejection.

Both children knew Shin, which was only natural. Although the welfare home was decent, with caring staff, it housed many children. The staff couldn't manage everything. Shin, because of his powers, had once beaten up a group of troublemakers, earning a reputation as the toughest kid in the home.

As for why he hadn't been adopted, it was by his own choice. Despite his cute, intelligent appearance, which made him highly adoptable, he couldn't bring himself to integrate into a new family. The director, a kind and gentle woman, had planned to adopt him herself and send him to school. The welfare home only taught children up to elementary school, but some kids had gone on to succeed in life with the director's help.

Of course, that's a story for another time. After calming the two children, Shin tried to gather information from them, but they were too scared and confused to provide anything useful. They had no idea how they ended up here, and after seeing the roaming monsters, they had hidden in the cabinet.

Shortly after their conversation, a series of hurried noises echoed from nearby. Shin's expression changed, and he quickly told the two children to hide back in the cabinet. Since they hadn't been found while hiding, staying there was safer than following him. While he could defeat the smaller ghosts, protecting two vulnerable kids at the same time would be a challenge.

After they were safely hidden, Shin listened to the growing sounds of movement and sprinted in the opposite direction. His footsteps echoed through the empty hallway.

Strange cries and the sound of limbs scraping the ground followed him, drawing closer. The narrow space didn't bode well—he needed to find an open area to fight.