Jujutsu Dragon Emperor Chapter 5 - Cursed Technique Extension

Ogi looked at him with fury in his eyes, which was something Naoto had never seen before, the man usually hid his emotions and carried himself with the cold discipline of a clan elder, yet now he looked as though the only thing he wanted was to kill him. Naoto, however, was not fazed in the slightest, he had faced worse threats than his uncle, and he understood that Ogi was not acting out of strength but out of shame and rage.

Naobito stepped forward. "Enough. Both of you. There will be no fighting in the middle of this compound."

Ogi's jaw tightened, and he disregarded his brother's words immediately. "He disrespected me. He struck me. I will not stop until the boy pays for it."

Naoto tilted his head slightly. "You're acting like a child. You should be ashamed of yourself. Your wife just went through labour, and instead of checking on her you're out here screaming like a child. You should be glad you have two daughters."

Ogi spat on the ground, and his voice rose in a harsh growl. "Those things are not my daughters. If you hadn't gotten in the way, I would have smashed their heads in and watched the blood drip."

The words made Naoto's cursed energy surge hotter through his body, and he stepped forward. "Say that again, and I'll beat you until some part of your mind returns."

Ogi laughed in his face, though his grip on his sword tightened until his knuckles whitened. "You're just a child. You think you're strong, but you're not. You have a weak technique yet you think you can threaten me?"

Naoto braced himself, his energy was already spreading across his arms and legs in preparation, and Ogi, who was already pulling the blade free of its sheath, let flames erupt up its length until the courtyard lit up. Naobito's eyes narrowed, and he snapped forward with a burst of Projection Sorcery, which carried him between them in less than a blink, and he growled. "You won't do this that is the command of your clan head. If you want a fight, then you'll fight me instead. There will be no death match in this compound not while I still lead this family."

Ogi snarled back. "I will not let this go. If I must fight, then you then I will."

Naobito's jaw moved as he grumbled, he thought for a moment before finally speaking, "If you both insist on a fight, then I'll allow it, but under strict conditions. It will not be to the death, and once it is finished there will be no bad blood carried beyond it."

Naoto spoke without hesitation. "I'll agree. But I have conditions of my own."

Naobito turned his head toward him. "What conditions?"

"If I win," Naoto said with an angry expresssion on his face, "I will take custody of both daughters."

Murmurs spread instantly, the demand was something none of them expected. Naobito looked toward his brother. "Do you accept this?"

Ogi's face twisted, yet after a pause he gave a nod. "Fine. But when I win, I will take that foreigner, Mirajane, as my personal servant."

Naoto's body tensed hard, and for a moment it looked as though he would launch forward there and then, but he ground his teeth and stopped himself. The fight would mean nothing if it began outside of the terms. He exhaled sharply and gave a nod. "Agreed."

Naobito let out a long breath and said, "Then it's decided. The fight will be held tomorrow, and it ends tomorrow. There will be no blood feud between family after this is done." The courtyard remained silent, though the servants whispered among themselves while the elders kept their eyes forward no doubt unhappy with the disrespect they were indirectly receiving.

Naoto walked toward Mirajane, who was still holding the twins close to her chest, and he noticed immediately that her expression carried unease, which was something she rarely showed in front of others; it told him more than words could have that she had been shaken by what had just unfolded in the courtyard. When he reached her, there was only one thing he could do. He lowered his head slightly and said, "I'm sorry for getting you involved in this. But I can't let him get his hands on them," he added, glancing at the two newborns in her arms.

Mirajane gave him a small smile, though he could see that it cost her some effort. "I understand, Naoto," she said. "I would've done the same in your place."

Even as she said it, he could tell she was not completely at ease, because her grip on the children tightened slightly and her eyes kept flicking toward the courtyard where Ogi still stood with his sword in hand. That hesitation was not like her, which made him ask the obvious question. "Is something wrong?"

Mirajane adjusted her hold on the twins and let out a slow breath. "I just feel uneasy... Your uncle is very strong Naoto. He's a Grade 1 sorcerer."

Naoto nodded slowly, she was right and he had no reason to deny it. "He is strong. People in the clan whisper that Ogi is close to my father's level. The only thing that separates them is their techniques, Projection Sorcery gives my father the advantage."

Mirajane looked down at the babies for a moment, then raised her eyes back to him. "Do you think you can win?"

Naoto studied her face, she was not asking out of doubt in him but because she needed to hear his certainty for her own sake. He let a faint smile pull at his lips.

"Yeah. I'd win."

...

Naoto returned to his room with Mirajane walking beside him, still carrying the twins carefully in her arms, the moment he stepped inside he lowered himself down onto the floor and collapsed backward, because the weight of the day caught up to him all at once after holding himself together for so long. He had been out nearly the entire day, and between the underground arena, the sudden chaos in the compound, and standing against Ogi, his body demanded rest even if his mind didn't.

"I wouldn't relax if I were you," Mirajane said, as she adjusted the twins in her arms and looked down at him.

Naoto let out a low grumble in response. He knew she was right, tomorrow wasn't going to give him any breaks, but his body felt like it was already shutting down. "You're right," he said finally. "I'm just gonna get an hour of shut-eye, and then I'll start planning for tomorrow."

"I didn't mean that," Mirajane replied immediately.

Naoto looked up at her from where he lay and frowned. "What do you mean then?"

Mirajane raised one eyebrow and said, "I mean you've got two children now. You have to care for them. Or did you expect me to do everything?"

Naoto sat up quickly, his face tightening as he shook his head. "No, of course not," he said a little nervously.

The twins, who had been oddly quiet through the entire exchange, began to cry suddenly, drawing the attention of both of them. Mirajane, without missing a beat, shifted them into Naoto's arms. "Then you'd better start now. I'll be back soon with some supplies for you and the babies," she said, before turning toward the door.

Naoto stood there holding them stiffly, his arms locked as if he had no idea what to do. He swallowed and thought to himself, 'What the hell did I just get myself into?' The babies' cries grew louder, so he tried to rock them gently back and forth, and to his surprise their voices softened until both of them began to quiet down in his arms. He sighed, it was clear he wouldn't be getting any sleep tonight. So he carried them across the room and sat down at his desk, keeping both of them close to his chest as his mind moved back to Ogi. He thought about what he knew. Ogi's cursed technique was simple but effective. He could generate flames from his katana, Naoto doubted it went much further than that, if Ogi had domain expansion or any high-level techniques, the clan would never stop talking about it. The more likely truth was that his flames were limited to his sword—though he wasn't certain. It  didn't make him any less dangerous though; the real threat however came from his experience and his mastery of cursed energy manipulation.

Naoto had one idea for neutralising the flames, but it was shaky. He could try to use one of his talismans, though whether it would work or not was something he couldn't be sure of until the moment arrived. His other option was to rely on Principle of Domination. A four-times boost should be enough to overwhelm Ogi, but even that wasn't guaranteed, because Naoto still wasn't fully grown, and there was a real chance that Ogi carried more cursed energy reserves than he did. If that was the case, then he might have to burn boosts just to keep pace with him.

"Shit," Naoto muttered under his breath. "Why'd he have to throw a tantrum? This didn't happen in canon, did it? It couldn't have, Maki and Mai lived. So maybe I just made it worse by getting involved when I should've stayed out of it. Shit." He shook his head. "Well, no use thinking about it now. I just need to prepare and make sure I can win."

One of the babies began to fuss again, her face scrunching as she started crying louder. Naoto rocked her back and forth, shifting his grip until both of them settled against his chest, and little by little their small bodies relaxed until they fell asleep. Out in the corridor, Mirajane stood quietly watching through the open door, and when she saw Naoto sitting at his desk with both babies asleep in his arms, she allowed herself a small smile.

_____________________________________

The next afternoon the duel was finally upon them, and it took place on one of the clan compound's training fields, which had been cleared of all but the bare necessities so that there would be no interruptions or excuses once the fight began. Nearly the entire family had gathered, with elders standing in silence, servants pressed to the edges of the field, and younger members whispering to each other, though none of them looked particularly happy about the situation. The only one who showed any excitement was Naoya, who stood with a wide grin on his face as if he had been waiting for the chance to see something like this all his life, for him violence was not something to shy from but something to celebrate.

Naobito stood in the middle of the field with his arms crossed, his gaze moving between his son and his brother. "I want a respectable fight between the both of you. I do not want anyone trying to grievously harm or kill the other," he said sternly.

Neither Ogi nor Naoto said a word in response, neither of them cared for his warning. Both stood opposite one another with their cursed energy already starting to stir; both of them only saw the other, as though no one else existed in the entire compound.

Ogi's eyes narrowed. "I hope you're ready, boy. I'm going to teach you a lesson you'll never forget."

Naoto smirked slightly, his arms loose at his sides. "I hope you're ready to have your status in the clan drop down next to mine. Maybe they'll move you into the place Toji used to live."

Ogi's teeth ground together and his face twisted in rage, that was the one comparison he would not tolerate, and with a wuick motion he pulled his sword free from its sheath. Naobito's eyes lowered for a moment, and his shoulders shifted slightly as though he prepared for Ogi to strike before the proper time. When he didn't he just sighed, he had hoped it would not come to this, but there was nothing more he could say that would stop them now. Instead he gave the order. "The fight will begin at the time of the bell."

He stepped back, moving to the edge of the field, and lowered himself onto a seat beside Naoya, who leaned forward eagerly while the clan head kept his face neutral, though there was no mistaking the disappointment in his eyes. The field then went quiet, the servants holding their breath and the younger clan members waiting with tense silence until finally the bell was struck.

*Ding*

Naoto surged forward immediately, his cursed energy exploding out of his body as his feet dug into the ground and kicked it up behind him, he drove straight toward Ogi. His uncle did the same, rushing forward with his sword arched back and his body coiled to deliver a swing the moment they crossed. The blade came down fast, cutting the air with a single motion, but Naoto tucked under the swing at the last possible instant, the edge missing him by only a couple of inches. He pivoted sharply and drove two hard punches into Ogi's side, both targeting the liver, before snapping back just in time to avoid a kick that Ogi threw out in retaliation, as his feet slid back across the dirt he also managed to lean away from another slash that came down where his head had been only a heartbeat earlier.

Before he had steadied his footing Ogi snapped his leg forward, aiming a kick at his ribs. Naoto caught the strike on his forearm and slid away, then came back in with a fast left hook, but Ogi shifted his head aside and shoved his shoulder forward, sending Naoto stumbling back a step before the katana came down again, which Naoto narrowly avoided by rolling to the side.

"You made a mistake crossing me boy, now when you lose I'm going to kill those mistakes and spawn some new children inside that foreign slut of yours," Ogi said with an almost demonic expression on his face.

Naoto ignored the statement he knew it was just an attempt to get him to get mad, but it did surprise him that he'd say such crude things; it wasn't very becoming of an elder. "I don't think even Mira could produce a strong sorcerer if it's with your seed, who knows maybe you'll get another heavenly restriction," he replied with a grin.

Ogi growled before pressing forward again, his sword rising and falling in a sequence of strikes that chased Naoto across the field. Naoto bent back to let one cut pass across his chest, then dropped under the next, his hands brushing the dirt as he pushed up and snapped a kick toward Ogi's thigh, which landed clean but didn't slow the older man for long. The katana swept across from right to left, and Naoto twisted sharply, letting the blade pass within an inch of his stomach as he closed the gap and drove two quick punches toward Ogi's face. The older man leaned back from the first and caught the second on his shoulder, then slammed the hilt of the sword toward Naoto's temple, which forced Naoto to slip his head back. He responded with a sharp kick to Ogi's shin, but Ogi yanked his leg up to absorb the strike and cut down vertically, forcing Naoto to leap back before the blade split the ground between them.

"To think you actually thought you could be clan head," Naoto commented.

"RAAAAAHHHHHHH!!!" Ogi's cursed energy surged harder, he grew faster and stronger and his weapon much more dangerous. He cut across Naoto's head, forcing him to duck, then slashed at his legs, which Naoto jumped over with a small hop, but the older man pressed forward without pause, driving a thrust straight toward his stomach. Naoto twisted his body aside, letting the blade skim past his ribs, and countered with a right hook that landed across Ogi's jaw. Ogi's head snapped with the strike, but he recovered immediately, driving his knee up into Naoto's stomach and following it with a clean slash aimed at his throat, which Naoto just barely evaded by leaning back as far as his body allowed.

He was losing ground. Ogi's cursed energy was larger and more refined than his was, his body moving with a speed that Naoto couldn't match as he was.

[Boost]

The katana swept down toward his shoulder again, but this time Naoto ducked under and rushed into Ogi's guard, driving three quick punches into his ribs before spinning behind him. He tried to sweep Ogi's legs out, but the older man leapt over the attempt, twisting in the air to bring the blade down. Naoto shifted out of the way just in time, catching Ogi on the landing with a sharp knee to the stomach, then grabbed the back of his head and drove it down toward his rising knee. Ogi braced his free arm against Naoto's leg, deflecting the blow, and rammed his shoulder into Naoto's chest, forcing him backward.

Naoto pressed forward again before Ogi could swing, snapping a kick toward his ribs, but the older man caught his ankle with one hand, pulled him off balance, and swung the blade horizontally toward his head. Naoto tucked his body into a roll, twisting in midair so that the sword passed inches from his face, and when his feet hit the dirt he shot upward, driving an uppercut toward Ogi's chin. The blow landed, rocking the older man's head back, but the katana came down again before Naoto could follow up, and he had to leap back quickly as the blade carved across the space between them. Though it seemed he wasn't quick enough and Ogi had managed to slash him.

"Shit..." Naoto muttered to himself.

"There's more where that came from boy," Ogi growled. Ogi lunged forward again and continued to press him. His sword came down once, twice, three times. Each strike flowed into the next. Naoto bent back from the first, ducked the second, twisted away from the third. Ogi followed with a thrust to his stomach. Naoto turned his body and felt the blade skim past his ribs.

Naoto circled, breathing a lot heavier than he did before. Ogi's stance shifted. His cursed energy built again. Heat shimmered faintly along the edge of his sword. The crowd was roaring. Naoya laughed the loudest. Both fighters stood across from each other, their cursed energy shaking the field, each one ready to go again. Ogi lowered his stance and his cursed energy spiked. His sword erupted in flames, fire coating the blade and running down his arms, then spreading across his body until it wrapped around his legs. The heat crawled into the dirt, burning it black. His eyes narrowed, and he stepped forward.

His speed tripled.

Ogi blurred across the ground, the flames at his feet kicking him forward. The sword came in from the side. Naoto ducked just in time, the fire licking past his face. Ogi spun and slashed again, the flames dragging behind the blade. Naoto rolled back, but Ogi was already there, thrusting for his stomach. Naoto twisted, the blade ripping his shirt open, and countered with a hook toward Ogi's face. Ogi caught his arm with the flat of his sword and shoved him back, then launched a sharp kick to his ribs. Naoto crossed his arms to block but was thrown across the dirt.

Naoto pushed back to his feet but Ogi was on him instantly. The sword slashed down, Naoto stepping aside barely in time. A follow-up slash came low, forcing him to jump. Ogi's flames burst from his feet, propelling him upward, and his knee smashed into Naoto's stomach mid-air. Naoto fell hard, rolling across the ground, while Ogi dropped after him with another slash. Naoto twisted away, fire cutting into the dirt where he lay, and kicked up to his feet again.

Ogi pressed with a storm of strikes. High, low, across, thrust, cut again. Each one faster than the last. Naoto dodged left, right, bent back, ducked low, leapt high. His arms snapped out with jabs and hooks when he saw openings, but Ogi either twisted away or cut across the counters. Every exchange ended with Naoto retreating a step further back. 'I have to do it again,' he thought to himself.

[Boost]

The surge ripped through his body again, his muscles swelling with cursed energy, his speed doubling on top of the last boost.

The next swing came down. Naoto stepped inside, faster than Ogi expected, his fist driving into his ribs once, twice, then a rising knee into the chin. Ogi staggered but slashed down with fire roaring off the blade. Naoto ducked, twisted, and rammed his elbow into his uncle's stomach, then snapped a kick into his side. The flames flared, Ogi sliding back before rushing forward again.

Naoto knew the longer this went on the worse it would get for him, he needed to end this now.

[Boost]

The surge tore through him harder than before, his body screaming as his speed and strength doubled a third time, and he shot forward before Ogi could react. The sword came down in a flaming arc but Naoto slipped under it and drove three punches straight into his ribs in rapid fire, the first sinking in deep, the second snapping him sideways, and the third forcing him off balance, and Naoto didn't stop as he grabbed his uncle's arm, twisted his wrist down, and rammed his knee into the stomach before yanking the man forward and smashing his elbow across the jaw. Ogi staggered but Naoto followed immediately, hooking his leg around his uncle's and sweeping him to the ground, then planting his knee into his chest and hammering down with punches to his face, one after another, until Ogi flared cursed energy and shoved him off, but Naoto rolled with it and came back in with a spinning kick that crashed into his head and spun him halfway around.

Ogi tried to slash back but Naoto caught his arm, twisted it behind his back, and hurled him over his shoulder, the older man slamming into the dirt hard, and before he could rise Naoto stomped down toward his ribs, Ogi rolling away just in time, but Naoto followed him, throwing a fast punch to his jaw, then another to his chest, then snapping a kick into his thigh, then hooking his other leg up and around his neck to drag him down to the ground again. Ogi tried to cut free but Naoto yanked on his arm and drove his fist into his face before rolling and throwing him across the dirt.

Naoto chased him without pause, sliding across the field and slamming a kick into his stomach that folded him in half, then grabbing the back of his neck and driving his knee up into his chin, then pulling him down and spinning with a suplex that slammed him onto his back. Ogi gasped and rolled but Naoto was already there, stomping on his wrist to pin the sword to the dirt and hammering his fists down into his chest again, then grabbing his arm and yanking it into a lock, twisting it until the bones creaked, and when Ogi resisted he let go, and delivered a powerful rising kick that sent him flipping backward across the ground.

Naoto stood there, his chest heaving, his body trembling from the strain of holding three boosts at once, his arms shaking from the force he had poured into every blow. He watched carefully as Ogi struggled to his knees, his sword barely still in his grip. His body was bloody and bruised, bis clothing torn and barely clinging onto his body, but his cursed energy spiked again, fire exploding off him. The crowd gasped as the heat ripped through the air, Ogi raising his blade high, his stance loooser than it had been all fight.

"NO ONE HAS EVER BEATEN THIS FORM BOY!!! READY YOURSELF!!!" Ogi shouted.

Naoto cursed under his breath. If he didn't end it now, his body was going to give out. He pushed off the ground, cursed energy roaring through his legs as he shot forward one last time this time as the fastest he had moved. He threw a straight punch for Ogi's chest, aiming to finish it in onr punch.

When his fist got within an inch or too of Ogi.

Ogi's sword moved on its own.

*Falling Blossom Emotion*

The blade snapped into a perfect counter, faster than Naoto could register. The katana cut across his chest in one clean arc, tearing through his shirt and slicing deep into flesh, blood spraying as the strike carried through. Naoto groaned as his momentum carried him onwards onto the ground behind his uncle. Ogi stood tall as he watched it happen a laugh escaping his mouth. "You've got guts, boy. More than I gave you credit for. You pushed me harder than I thought you could. But don't get the wrong idea. You're still just green. You're strong, but you can't compare to me."

Naoto groaned as he pushed himself off the dirt, one hand still pressed against the cut across his chest, blood dripping between his fingers. He straightened, spat on the ground and glared at his uncle. "Shut up already. You're giving me a headache."

Ogi narrowed his eyes, though his smile never left his face. "You've done enough. Surrender. I'll even let you walk away still breathing."

Naoto tilted his head and smirked. "Surrender? What the hell are you talking about? I'm just getting started."

He reached into his shirt and pulled out a small paper talisman. The crowd murmured, the elders leaned forward, and even Naobito's eyes flickered toward the slip of paper. Naoto poured cursed energy into it, the ink glowing faintly before the talisman tore itself apart in his hand, the scraps of paper dissolving in the air as a shape began to form on the dirt in front of him.

The air turned cold. A small mist rolled outward as a cursed spirit rose from the ground, its body pale blue and jagged, almost like ice formed into flesh. Its arms were short and thick, ending in claw-like hands, and its back carried spikes of frozen crystal that glistened as they shifted. Its face was stretched and distorted, a hollow cavity where its mouth should be, and every breath it gave let out a burst of cold air that made frost spread across the ground beneath its feet.

Gasps rippled through the servants and lower-ranked sorcerers watching. Ogi stared at it, then threw his head back and laughed. "This? This is your trump card? A half-formed cursed spirit? If this is all you've got, then I'm severely disappointed."

Naoto grinned, the blood still running down his chest. "That's not my trump card. This is."

He walked up to the cursed spirit without hesitation and pressed his hand against its jagged, frozen chest. His cursed energy surged out, wrapping around the spirit, its body twitching and shifting as it roared in a distorted voice that echoed through the field.

"Cursed Technique Extension: Transfer."

The spirit convulsed, its ice-crystal body expanding, shards jutting out sharper and larger as its form tripled in size. The mist thickened around it, covering half the field in a blanket of cold. Its claws grew longer, the spikes on its back curved into jagged armor, and the hollow in its face glowed with a deep blue light. What had been a weak grade 4 creature now radiated power equal to a semi-grade 1.

Naoto's grin widened. "Still disappointed, old man?"

Ogi's smile finally dropped, his jaw tightening as he let out a low growl. He raised his flaming sword again, fire wrapping around his body and his feet. "You're playing with things you don't understand, boy."

Naoto ignored him, pointing toward his uncle. "Let's shut him up."

The cursed spirit roared as the ground beneath it froze solid, and in the same instant Naoto pushed off the dirt, his body flaring with cursed energy again. Together they charged at Ogi, Naoto taking the right while the cursed spirit charged full steam ahead like a bull.

Ogi stood in the center of the field with his sword blazing, the fire still wrapping around his arms and feet, but already the cold rolling off the cursed spirit was starting to work its way into his technique as the flames hissed and cracked every time they touched the frost-covered ground, and although he tried to push more cursed energy into the blade the ice mist was leeching heat from it, dulling the burn and slowing the speed that had carried him moments ago.

Naoto shot forward first, throwing a straight punch toward Ogi's ribs that forced the older man to block with his forearm, but before he could counter the ice spirit stepped in with a sweeping claw that dragged across his shoulder and forced him sideways, and Naoto capitalised by stepping in again with a kick to his shin followed by a rising elbow to the jaw, yet Ogi managed to twist and bring his sword up to cut between them, only for the spirit to grab the flat of the blade with its claw and yank it off course while Naoto ducked under and snapped two fast punches into his ribs before rolling back out of range.

Ogi roared in frustration, his flames flaring again as he swung the sword hard to break free from the spirit's grip, the heat forcing the ice back for a moment, but Naoto came in low and tackled his leg, driving him off balance, and the spirit slammed its other claw down onto his back to keep him pinned long enough for Naoto to spin behind him and drive his knee into his spine before shoving him forward into the dirt. Ogi rolled, his sword cutting up to scatter them both, but the spirit lunged again, its claws raking across his chest as Naoto leapt over the blade and hammered a kick down into his temple, forcing him back another step.

They worked together like that over and over. The shikigami naoto had summoned as linked to him and so he could issue orders as easily as breathing. This lead to Ogi being trapped in a seamlessly endless combination that kept on injuring him more and more.

Then Naoto saw his chance. He drove forward with a jab to Ogi's ribs, followed by a hook to his face, then a spinning back kick to his stomach, and when Ogi staggered from the blow the spirit smashed him across the back with its arm, sending him stumbling toward Naoto again, who hammered a straight punch into his jaw before crouching low and sweeping his legs out from under him, and when Ogi hit the dirt Naoto stomped down into his chest and followed with a hammer fist to his temple before dragging him back up by the collar and driving a knee into his stomach. The beatdown didn't stop there as Naoto turned him with the pull and threw an elbow into his spine, then pivoted to drive another kick into his ribs, then smashed him across the face with his forearm, and when Ogi stumbled again the cursed spirit caught him with a flat slap of its claw that sent him flying up into the air.

Naoto wasted no time, 'Throw me.' He commanded mentally.

The cursed spirit grabbed him by the waist without hesitation and hurled him upward with all its strength, Naoto flew forward,  his body streaking forward like a shot, and in the air he twisted once, twice, unleashing three consecutive kicks into Ogi's chest and stomach that broke several more of his ribs. As they reached the apex of their height, Naoto pushed his body one last time.

[Boost]

The cursed technique roared alive again, doubling everything for one final instant, and Naoto raised his leg high before slamming it down in a brutal axe kick that crashed directly into Ogi's midsection, the force smashing him out of the air and driving him into the ground so hard that the field split open and a crater burst outward from the impact.The whole compound shook from the collision, dust and frost blasting into the air, and when it cleared Ogi lay in the center of the pit, his body broken and his flames snuffed out by the cold mist still hanging over the field. Naoto landed back on the ground being caught by his shikigami that disappeared shortly after.

Naobito stood as soon as the dust settled, his eyes fixed on the crater in the center of the field where Ogi lay unmoving with his sword broken and flames gone, and after a long silence he raised his hand. "The duel is over," he said firmly. "Naoto Zenin is the winner."

Needless to say this was a massive upset, the servants had already begun whispering about it and the elders were already voicing their outrage. Though Naoto didn't much care, he'd won. The doctor rushed past everyone and slid down into the pit to check on Ogi, already summoning reversed cursed energy into his hands as he began working on the bruises and broken bones that covered him.

Naoto stood hunched, his chest still bleeding from the cut and his body aching from the quadruple boost, but before he could take another breath Mirajane sprinted across the field, the twins still safe in the arms of another servant she had passed them to. She didn't hesitate, throwing her arms around him and pulling him into a tight hug. "You did it!" she said. "You actually did it!"

Naoto grinned through the pain, leaning slightly into her hold. "Told you I'd win."

(AN: Okay so I think that's enough of the childhood arc. Next arc will be around when he first gets into Jujutsu Tech so around 15 I think. Anyway that's going to be the true start of the story. This has basically just been some exposition. Anyway the chapters from now on will be better paced.)