NOVEL NEXT Chapter 7: Improvement
Four years had passed in the blink of an eye, and Naoya was now eleven. In that time, he had mastered both Falling Blossom Emotion and Simple Domain at a staggering pace—far faster than most sorcerers could ever hope to. He had also pushed himself relentlessly to refine his cursed energy control, striving for even the smallest improvements. But no matter how hard he trained, he couldn't escape the harsh truth of the jujutsu world: strength was 80% innate talent.
Naoya had been born with every advantage—a powerful technique, insane talent, and vast cursed energy reserves. Most sorcerers would kill for just one of those. And yet, even with all that, it still wasn't enough to stand among the strongest.
In jujutsu, your technique and natural talent decided your future. If you were born with a weak technique, good luck ever rising above Grade 2. This world was brutally unfair, and no amount of effort could close the gap between someone like him and monsters like Sukuna or Gojo at their peak.
Binding Vows.
Most sorcerers avoided them, using them sparingly—if at all—out of fear of the consequences. But Naoya saw them for what they truly were: an opportunity. A binding vow was a trade, a contract where sacrifice led to greater power. Used correctly, it could push a sorcerer far beyond their natural limits.
With the help of binding vows, he developed a new application of Projection Sorcery. Now, he could "record" a fraction of his movements as cursed energy afterimages that lasted for a brief moment—one second. These decoys mimicked his exact movements, throwing off his opponent and forcing them to guess which one was real.
The afterimages had no actual strength of their own.
But Naoya didn't stop there. He made two additional binding vows to push his combat ability even further.
The first was the Vow of Predatory Restraint:" I will not strike first in any battle". By giving up the initiative, Naoya gained a massive boost in cursed energy output and speed the moment his opponent attacked him. It fit perfectly with his philosophy—the weak strike first. However, the risk was just as great: he had to endure his opponent's first blow before counterattacking. And this vow only activated in real battles—fights where Naoya truly believed he could win. It wouldn't trigger in sparring or training, where the stakes weren't high enough.
The second was the Vow of Temporal Perfection: "I will end all battles within 120 seconds." For those two minutes, Naoya's cursed energy reserves and physical abilities skyrocketed, allowing him to overwhelm almost anyone. But if the fight dragged on past the time limit, his cursed energy would drop to nearly zero for ten minutes, leaving him completely vulnerable. Like the first vow, it only activated when Naoya recognized the fight as a true threat—an opponent on his level or stronger.
These vows were risky, but Naoya had never been afraid to take risks.
But even with all these enhancements, Naoya wasn't satisfied. He was working on something far greater—an application of Projection Sorcery that would make him Literally untouchable. However, it remained beyond his reach. One of the key requirements was mastering Reverse Cursed Technique, a skill that even elite sorcerers struggled to perfect. For now, it was an impossible goal. For now.
Today marked the end of an era—his final training session with Naobito. The old man had made it clear: there was nothing more he could teach him. The only gap in Naoya's skill set was hand-to-hand combat, but Naobito had been too lazy to bother with it. In typical fashion, he had simply shrugged and said, "You'll figure it out on your own anyway."
And he wasn't wrong.
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Naoya stood facing Naobito in the training grounds, his hair slightly disheveled and falling over his eyes. He took a long, steady breath, his sharp gaze locking onto Naobito's. The air between them was thick with tension.
"Two minutes," Naoya said calmly, lifting his hand and holding up two fingers.
Naobito raised an eyebrow, his usual lazy smirk faltering for a moment. "Hmm?" he grunted, clearly confused. But before he could say anything more, he felt it—Naoya's cursed energy surging with unnatural speed, a palpable wave of power that made the air around them crackle.
In an instant, Naobito's demeanor shifted. He tossed aside his bottle of sake, the glass shattering against the ground as he straightened up, his sharp eyes narrowing. For the first time in a long while, Naobito looked serious.
"I'll give it my all in those two minutes," Naoya declared.
"Well, well," Naobito muttered, a faint smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. "Let's see what you've got."
Naoya didn't respond. His expression was calm,The Vow of Temporal Perfection had been activated, and the clock was ticking.
Naobito, despite facing an 11-year-old, felt a rare flicker of caution. He wasn't one to underestimate opponents, even if they were decades younger than him. The way Naoya's cursed energy surged, the way his eyes gleamed with focus—it was enough to make Naobito tighten his guard. He knew that if he let his guard down, even for a moment, he could find himself in a bad situation.
The battle between them was unique. Both wielded Projection Sorcery, a technique that allowed them to break down movements into frames. However, their identical techniques canceled each other out, meaning neither could freeze the other in a frame. This meant the fight would come down to raw speed and power—who could move faster, hit harder, and outmaneuver the other.
Naoya knew that Naobito was still faster than him. Even with the Vow of Temporal Perfection amplifying his cursed energy and physical stats, Naobito's decades of experience and natural speed gave him the edge. But Naoya had a plan. If he could activate his Vow of Predatory Restraint, he might be able to close the gap in speed, at least temporarily. If he could match Naobito's speed, he might have a chance to land a decisive blow.
Naobito, for his part, was no pushover. In his seventies, he had been strong enough to be able to solo Dagon, a Special Grade curse, without even allowing it to open its Domain Expansion. Now, 16 years younger, he was even more formidable. His speed, precision, and raw power were almost at their peak, and he had no intention of letting some upstart brat—even one as talented as Naoya—get the better of him.
The two stood facing each other, the air crackling with cursed energy. Naobito's usual lazy smirk was gone, replaced by a focused, almost predatory expression. Naoya, on the other hand, remained calm, his mind racing as he calculated his next move.
"I'll give you the first blow. Go ahead," Naoya said, his smirk widening as he spread his arms slightly, inviting the attack.
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