The Inumaki Clan Prodigy [Jujutsu Kaisen]

"So, a lot of stuff happened and people even died. Whaddaya guys think? Should we continue the event?" Gojo asked the room full of event participants. Yuji stood closest to him in the center of the room.

To Yuji's right was Miwa, sitting on a couch. Directly behind him was a table which Toga and Panda sat at. Maki stood near the table, leaning on a nearby wall. Next to her stood Isamu whose shoulder she used as a head rest.

Not far away from the table was a set of stairs leading up to the next level of the lobby. Megumi stood by the railing while Kamo and Momo sat on the stairs near the top.

"Huh? What kind of question is that?" Yuji asked.

"Yeah. We should continue." Came a voice from the corner. All eyes turned towards the area behind Gojo to find Todo, sat on the floor with his back leaning on the wall, his arms crossed, and his legs out stretched and crossed over one another.

"What makes you say that?" Asked Gojo, curious about, but not disagreeing with, his answer.

"First off, mourning should be reserved for those close to the dead. It's none of our concern." He said as he raised a hand and outstretched a finger.

"Second, if there were fatalities, what could be expected of use it to get stronger." Todo continued as he stuck up another finger.

"Acquired strength is dictated by the accumulation of results. To suffer defeat or experience victory — we grow regardless. Results are important because they exist as results." Todo said, delivering his speech skillfully, summing up Isamu's own thoughts on the matter quite well.

"Third!" He yelled as he extended another finger. "This unsettling feeling of having unfinished business during our school days will stick with us until the day we die!"

"I don't mind." Megumi commented.

"We'll win anyway." Nobara said, just as unbothered as Megumi.

"He sounds ridiculous but he does have a point." Kamo contributed to the conversation.

"No objections here." Panda said.

"Salmon." Toga said, also agreeing to continue while Isamu just nodded.

"Are the pairings for the individual battles drawn at random?" Maki asked, already knowing they would continue with the individual battles. She really didn't want to be matched up with Isamu, she didn't want to lose so soon.

"Yup. The Tokyo school has one more participant than the Kyoto though. So we'll have to kick someone out. Who will it be?" Gojo asked, looking around the room. Eventually, Toga raised his hand.

Isamu understood the reasoning behind it. Out of all of them, Toga would probably do the worst. Everyone knew what his technique was and how to counter it. And without his technique, Toga would have a hard time winning against anyone.

"Alright Toga. Thanks for taking one for the team. You can just be our mascot. For the rest of you, follow me!" Gojo shouted before turning around and marching out the door.

——

Eventually, both the Kyoto and Tokyo participants, Mei Mei, both principals, along with the strongest sorcerer of the current age, arrived at their battle ground.

Unlike other individuals sports like boxing and mixed martial arts, the individual battles jujutsu high would be practicing would not take place in a ring. Instead, they would battle in an arena similar to the environment they would encounter a cursed spirit in.

They all stood in front of an abandoned warehouse. It was filled with boxes and crates but was in a state of disrepair to put it lightly.

"This is where we're fight?" Mai asked, sort of disgusted by the environment.

"Yeah. It wouldn't do for you to fight in a ring. It's rare, especially when fighting curses of high grades, that you'll be fighting straight on. In an environment like this, it gives you opportunities to employ, and fight against, more underhanded, sneaky strategies." Gojo explained to Mai and the student body as a whole.

"Makes enough sense." Yuji said, nodding.

"Can we draw the match ups already?" Nobara asked, wanting to get it over with already.

"Sure." Gojo said casually as he tossed a small box to Yuji, small, folded strips of paper rustling around inside. "Draw two."

"Inumaki." Yuji said after promptly doing what he was told. Drawing Isamu's , Maki's , and pretty much everyone else's attention, they all wanted to see who'd be the first to fight probably the strongest present.

"Aaaannnnnndddd!!!" Yuji hyped up as he gradually opened the folded paper. "Momo…" he said with less excitement.

"I quit!" Momo shouted. No way in hell would she fight that dude. She stood no chance.

"Alright, draw again." Gojo said, not lingering on the subject for long. Yuji handed the two slips over to Gojo, keeping them for future use.

"Maki." Yuji said before drawing again. "And Mechamaru."

"That's a win for you, Maki. Mechamaru was destroyed in the team event and he doesn't have any spares in Tokyo." Todo said.

"Alright, one more time." Yuji said, just wanting to get to the action.

"Miwa and… me!!" Yuji said, happy we was picked. "Come on, let's get going."

"Actually, I give up. I know I can't beat you." Miwa said.

"Huh? But… aren't sorcerers meant to be brave or something?" Yuji said, trying to convince Miwa to fight.

"Yuji. A part of being a jujutsu sorcerer, and a fighter in general, is knowing how to pick your battles. Miwa knows she would not beat you, so it is best if she doesn't fight. If she were on a mission and came across a powerful curse, it would be better for her to retreat and report it so that a more powerful sorcerer may take it down. There is no point in fighting someone you have no hope against." Kamo said, explaining to Yuji, the rookie, some of the ways of sorcerers.

"Oh, I guess that makes sense. I'll draw again I guess." Yuji said before reaching into the box once more.

"Nobara and Todo." Yuji said. A moment passed, no one saying anything, before Yuji just drew again. It was clear who would win that fight as well.

"Finally, an actual fight. Kamo and Panda." Yuji said with relief, glad he would finally get to see some action.

"Actually Yuji. I'm much weaker now than I was before the team event due to my fight with Mecamaru. Maybe if this was full power me, I would stand a chance. But as I am, Kamo would win. So… try again." Panda said, disappointing Yuji immensely.

"Finne. Mai vs Megumi is all that's left." Yuji looked over at the two he'd just named to find Mai rolled her eyes before shaking her head. And just like that, the entire first bracket of their little tournament was over, without anyone actually fighting.

"Alright, please please please!" Yuji chanted as he began to draw again after he'd replaced the fighters that'd made it to the second round.

"Me! And! Inumaki!" Yuji shouted, excited. He looked over at Isamu, and after receiving a nod and a thumbs up, he got even more excited. He would finally get to fight someone.

"Cool. Play a game of rock, paper, scissors. The winner gets to go in first while the other goes in second. Basically, it determines the defender and the attacker." Gojo explained.

"Ok!" Yuji said boyishly as he stuck his hand out in a fist, ready to play. Isamu extended his arm more casually and shook it slower than Yuji's excited manner once they began.

The first round of their little game was a draw, both of them choosing rock. The second was in Isamu's favor where he threw paper to Yuji's repeated rock.

"Man." Yuji said, a bit bummed. Isamu just walked towards the building, wanting to take advantage of his good fortune right away. As Isamu walked in, Maki turned to Yuji.

"Just so you know, you're gonna get your ass kicked. But as a word of advice, learn as much as you can from this fight. That's Isamu's best quality as a jujutsu sorcerer. He learns from every battle, win or lose. Don't expect him to be the same combatant he was when you fought alongside us." Maki said, giving a mini lecture, her instructor habits kicking in once more.

"Alright, I'll learn as much as I can. But I don't like how you're so sure that I'll lose." Yuji exclamation, grateful for the words of advice and peeved at her words of doubt. Maki just rolled her eyes.

After a few minutes spent chatting with Todo, Yuji was given the signal by Gojo, indicating Isamu's preparation time had run out.

Yuji walked into the building and instantly wanted to pinch his nose at the smell. He probably would've if he didn't want his hands as free as possible in the event of a sneak attack.

Yuji, despite what some might say, wasn't stupid. He knew Isamu was smart and his preparation wouldn't only extended to finding a good place to fight like Yuji's preparations might have.

Yuji expected a sneak attack, or maybe a booby trap. Perhaps a spike pit or a log with wooden spikes on it would come swinging from the ceiling.

Even after walking through the many rows of crates which were stacked high, resulting in a layout similar to a super market but with way higher shelves, Yuji found none of these things.

Instead, after turning a corner, he found Isamu just standing there. He stood in a cleared out space which he had obviously cleared himself.

"What are you doing? I thought you'd ambush me or something. Or maybe you are! And the person I see in front of me is a fake!" Yuji questioned before quickly talking himself into a slightly paranoid state.

Isamu just shook his head before patting his chest. As if to show that he was not some illusion or cardboard cut out. He was the real deal and he had no elaborate plan or traps.

Isamu just extended his hand and gestured Yuji to "come at me". Yuji just smiled. Wasting no time, he rushed forward. On his way towards his opponent, he grabbed quite a large box and tossed it at him.

The sheer weight of the box would do a good amount of damage, despite Yuji not throwing it at high speeds. Isamu just ducked it, allowing the box to fly over him.

He partially unsheathed his sword, holding it in a reverse grip, as he stood. He blocked Yuji punch with the flat of his blade and honestly, he was surprised his sword hadn't snapped.

Through great effort, Isamu was able to stop his right fist without being pushed back and attempted to counter attack. Quickly drawing his sword the rest of the way, Isamu lashed out at Yuji.

Isamu was able to draw first blood, nicking Yuji on the cheek with the tip of his blade. Yuji was about to rush him before Isamu could pull his sword back but Isamu prevented the tactic with a straight kick.

Yuji blocked the kick with his forearm but the attack had done its job, to regain the range advantage and to give Isamu time to retract his sword.

Yuji didn't give Isamu a second to strategize or to catch his breath. He charged forward once more.

——

"It makes no sense. Why would Inumaki not take advantage of his prep time? Why would he engage in close quarters combat when he knows he has the disadvantage there?" Momo asked, unbelievably confused at the fight she was watching through Mei Mei's black bird manipulation.

"It's simple. Inumaki would grow no stronger if he took Yuji down with a trap or two in combination with his technique. Instead, he wishes to face Yuji in close combat, where Yuji has the advantage, and where he will learn the most. As I said before. Results. He doesn't care about winning or losing right now. He just wants results." Todo explained rather accurately.

"It's still a reckless decision. Would it not be better to advance to the later rounds where he may learn from more powerful, experienced fighters like you or me?" Kamo asked.

"Nah. Yuji's the only one Isamu doesn't know a whole lot about. He's already fought you, Kamo, and the techniques of the Kamo clan aren't exactly unknown. He probably knows how a fight with Todo would go and already fought him briefly before the team event. And he's sparred with me a million times." Maki explained her boyfriend's thoughts.

"Yeah, you're probably right. Out of every category, Isamu lacks physical might the most. So fighting a superhuman fighter like Yuji who surpasses even Maki and Todo in physical power would be the best environment for him to improve that area of power. In all honesty, Isamu will lose unless he makes some serious improvements" Gojo nodded along.

Maki just scoffed.

——

Yuji ducked under a horizontal swing and attempted to sweep Isamu off his feet. Isamu raised his foot out of the way before swinging towards Yuji once more.

Yuji dodged before launching another attack, they continued their back and forth. Isamu swinging only to hit air in between blocking or slipping attacks from Yuji.

Isamu knew the current status quo wouldn't lead to his victory. Sure, he was technically winning at the moment. The small cuts he left on Yuji whenever he wasn't quite fast enough to move out of the way would add up.

But all it took was one clean hit from Yuji and he'd be on the back foot, all of the minor damage taken would be more than worth it just to land that one hit.

Isamu knew how powerful Yuji's punches were. A regular punch from Yuji could leave dents in the cursed spirit that'd attacked the team event. And to say Isamu's durability was far worse than the curses would be an understatement.

Hell, if Yuji got lucky and landed a clean black flash, Isamu might just end up dying. So Isamu knew he needed to do something to turn the tables in his favor. But for now, he'd test the rest of his arsenal on Yuji.

Isamu launched a flurry of slashes and cuts towards Yuji. None of them landed but that was not their purpose, Isamu just needed a bit of space.

"New Shadow Style: Simple domain." Isamu said, crouching low as he sheathed his sword. Yuji stood back, knowing from his brief encounter with Miwa in the team event that getting within the range of simple domain would be a bad idea.

So the best thing to do now was keep his distance and find something to throw at Isamu. And that would've been a good strategy if he was fighting Miwa. But the difference in Isamu's and Miwa's skill in the school of New Shadow Style was immense to say the least.

"New Shadow Style: Evening Moon Sword Drawing." Isamu said as he unsheathed his sword and pounced. Evening Moon Sword Drawing was a high level new shadow style technique. If Isamu had to give it a ranking, he'd say it's about a 8 out of 10 in terms of its difficulty to learn.

The attack itself wasn't all that hard in comparison to other new shadow style techniques like Batto Sword Drawing. The real problem was the speed. When using Evening Moon Sword Drawing, the user boosted the output of cursed energy into their legs up to 110%, a number Isamu raised to 120% when using New Shadow Style: Nihongō.

So the technique was quick, deadly, and in this situation, unexpected. Isamu sprung forward, his sword raised in the air and quickly descending. It would cut clean through Yuji's shoulder and cleave his arm from his body if Yuji didn't do anything about it.

Luckily, or maybe unlucky for Isamu, he did do something. He hopped backwards just in time to prevent a game ending blow. Instead, a long, vertical but shallow cut expanded from Yuji's left shoulder all the way down to the left side of his hip.

Yuji didn't falter, completely dismissing the pain. Instead, he dashed forward, taking advantage of Isamu's sword being outstretched instead of in front of him.

Yuji threw a head kick at Isamu which was easily ducked. Which was exactly what Yuji wanted to happen. He'd purposefully decelerated the kick so it'd be easier to dodge and redirect.

Yuji easily and quickly transitioned his high kick into a downwards axe kick aimed right for Isamu's head. Isamu looked up, surprise written all over his face. Fortunately, Isamu was just barely able to roll backwards in time to avoid a debilitating injury.

Unfortunately, however, his hand was caught by the kick. Yuji's foot struck the ground, creaking it and kicking up dust as Isamu stood. Isamu looked down at his left hand to find it completely crushed and bloody.

"New Shadow Style: Simple Domain." Isamu said, crouching and sheathing his sword once more, glad his sword arm wasn't the one that was crushed. Just as he finished the technique, a large box came flying out of the dust, seeking to use up his simple domain.

"New Shadow Style: Morning Sun Sword Drawing." Isamu spoke once more just as Yuji's projectile reached him. Isamu cut right through the box with ease, each of its sides flying past Isamu on either side of him.

Yuji had now entered the domain, no longer fearing the auto reflex of the simple domain. He rushed towards Isamu, ready to take advantage of Isamu's position. Unexpectedly, a second slash was sent Yuji's way. Then a third, and a fourth. Isamu went on to attack 6 times, including the first time which had cut through the box.

Morning Sun Sword Drawing was the sister technique of Evening Moon Sword Drawing. Instead of speed, Morning Sun Sword Drawing enhanced one's strength and instead of a single blow, it was able to perform six. During which, the output in the users arms was raised to 110%.

Yuji's arms, chest, and even his right leg were cut deeply and for a lesser fighter, they would've been fight ending injuries. But for Yuji and his heavenly restriction like body, they were only flesh wounds.

Yuji rushed at him anyway and was able to land a punch on the side of the surprised Isamu. It was a weakened hit as Isamu was able to partially block it with his sword but it still did significantly damage. Isamu would have to end this fight soon.

Isamu slashed out at Yuji, forcing him back while he back stepped. Isamu might be able to do it, he just needed some room.

In the school of New Shadow Style, Evening Moon Sword Drawing and Morning Sun Sword Drawing were expert techniques, only tought to high ranking disciplines like Isamu.

But there was one more technique which was even more advanced, one only tought to masters. Isamu had yet to be tought this technique but he'd seen it a few times and he was confident in replicating it.

"New Shadow Style: Simple Domain." Isamu said, quickly getting into position as Yuji rushed, wanting to attack before Isamu could sheath his sword. He was too late.

"New Shadow Style: Noon Eclipse Sword Drawing."

——

"Damn. I didn't know Kusakabe tought him that already." Gojo said, watching the fight rapidly come to an end.

"What is it? I've never seen or heard about it before." Megumi asked as he too watched on, feeling a bit bad for his classmate.

"It's the most advanced technique in the school of New Shadow Style. Noon Eclipse Sword Drawing. It combines Evening Moon Sword Drawing and Morning Sun Sword Drawing. Not only do you benefit from the strengths of both techniques, you end up with a technique more powerful than the sum of its parts." The surprisingly knowledgeable Mei Mei explained.

"Morning Sun Sword Drawing enhances the output in your arms to 110%, increasing the power of each of the following 6 sword swings. Evening Moon Sword Drawing enhances the output in your legs to 110%, increasing your speed for a single, deadly attack. Noon Eclipse Sword Drawing enhances the output in both your legs and arms to 120% for a total of 8 swings, each of which surpassing the speed of even the extremely fast Batto Sword Drawing." Mei Mei continued.

"Damn. That idiot's screwed." Nobara said as she watched her classmate get cut to pieces.

——

Faster than Yuji could even perceive, blood erupted from his chest as Isamu delivered 8 incredibly powerful slashes. Yuji, unable to move properly or even see Isamu through the blood that'd gotten in his eyes, couldn't stop the sword pommel from striking him directly in the temple, knocking him out.