Another one of Satoru’s fans confidently said, "Yeah, Blood Manipulation is strong early on, but in terms of long-term growth, the Gojo clan’s Limitless and the Zenin clan’s Ten Shadows are the true pinnacle of jujutsu."
"What’s more, Satoru is the strongest genius in a thousand years."
"Once he masters the Reverse Cursed Technique and reduces the burden of the Six Eyes on his brain, I doubt even Satoshi could beat him."
"Tch, didn’t you just say once he masters the Reverse Cursed Technique? That’s a big ’if.’ You know how rare it is for a Six Eyes user to also master that technique? They only appear once every four hundred years. You really think Satoru can do it?"
"Alright, enough. Either way, the winner is definitely going to come from one of the five brothers," someone said, glancing at the two red-faced debaters, clearly bored of the argument.
"By the way, is no one placing their hopes on Kyoto Jujutsu High? With Iori Utahime’s cursed technique enhancing him, Kamo Kenshin isn’t necessarily weaker than the Gojo brothers," said a Kyoto student indignantly.
Everyone was momentarily stunned. It was true—they had all been ignoring the Kyoto team.
If you actually took a closer look, their lineup wasn’t weak at all.
Kamo Kenshin, Iori Utahime, Mei Mei—this was one of the stronger rosters in the history of the Goodwill Event.
"Yeah, now that you mention it, Kyoto’s lineup is solid. They might really stand a chance."
"It’s still hard to say."
"It’s not about whether they’re weak. It’s about who they’re up against—Satoru and Satoshi."
Everyone suddenly fell silent, casting sympathetic looks at Kenshin on the broadcast screen.
Being peers with geniuses like Satoru and Satoshi... was miserable.
Anyone with a discerning eye could see it clearly.
The talent of the five brothers was unmatched among the younger generation.
If Kenshin had awakened Blood Manipulation, he might have stood a chance. But unfortunately, he hadn’t. Despite his current strength, he was... average.
"It’s not really his fault. It’s just bad luck. Any sorcerer in the past thousand years, if born in the same era as those five, would’ve ended up overshadowed for life," someone commented with a sigh.
"The match is finally about to begin," Yuto said, standing at the edge of the platform.
"Kyoto Jujutsu High really drew the short straw this year. They’re up against Suguru, Shoko, Satoru... and Satoshi, who’s made even greater progress over the past nine years," Toji remarked, glancing at the blonde woman beside him. "Aren’t you going to cheer for your students?"
As Kyoto’s lead teacher, she should’ve taken this event seriously.
But clearly, she didn’t.
"This match is meaningless," Yuki said, shaking her head.
Seeing the confused looks on Toji and Yuto’s faces, she explained.
"Isn’t it obvious? Satoshi’s going to win. Cheering for Utahime and the others will only put more pressure on them."
"That’s kind of dull," Toji muttered, scratching his chin. "Now I don’t even feel like cheering for Satoshi anymore."
Yuto smiled helplessly. "Even if they were facing the strongest duo of this generation, Satoshi would still win."
"Yeah, that’s probably true," Toji said with a smirk.
"Still, it’s better not to get too confident." Yuki turned her tablet toward them.
"Gojo Satoshi vs. Jujutsu High School teams..."
It was a betting board.
In the underground jujutsu scene, black-market arenas had long existed for gambling on loophole-ridden matches.
And now, in the black market...
The stakes for this battle had exceeded 1 billion yen.
Of that, Tokyo Jujutsu High’s Team 1 had a staggering 93% support rate.
"Not many people are betting on Satoshi," Toji said, sounding slightly surprised.
Yuto, however, remained calm. He had seen this coming.
Satoshi was powerful.
But just based on the black-market odds, he was facing off against the Gojo-Geto duo—legends who had been famous for the past nine years.
Other people simply weren’t as optimistic about Satoshi as they were.
One person challenging both jujutsu academies...
That was something many geniuses dreamed of, but no one had ever done it.
Jujutsu High never lacked geniuses.
The only thing more terrifying than one monster... was a team of monsters.
"My student even placed a bet on this," Yuki added. "She said this is her closest shot at financial freedom. She couldn’t miss it."
"Now that makes it interesting," Toji said with a grin, eyes narrowing.
The weather that morning was unexpectedly pleasant.
The sun had risen above the clouds, casting warm golden rays through the sky.
Those waiting on the teleportation platform basked in the glow.
The match was about to begin.
On Tokyo’s side, the audience burst into excited cheers.
Satoru and the others waved casually in response.
"After Satoshi woke up, I lost to him once in a real duel," Satoru said seriously, glancing at his two teammates.
Suguru blinked, a bit surprised.
After a brief silence, he offered a bit of comfort. "It’s fine. Look, we’ve got so much support. We’ll win this time."
Satoru yawned and tuned into the live feed through the Cursed Corpse broadcast. "Yeah, the weather’s a good omen. Shoko, Suguru, get ready. We need to give Satoshi a proper beatdown."
"Sure. I’ve been itching to smack him around for a while now," Suguru said with a smile.
He needed to beat Satoshi... at least once.
Shoko was also getting ready. She pulled out her Zanpakutō and stood by to release it the moment the barrier activated.
She didn’t want to be caught off guard the moment they entered.