The prickly feeling in my skin wouldn't go away even as I tried to calm the slight increase in my heart rate.

What was this foreboding feeling?

I pushed down my nerves as I politely replied, "Um. Hello, Gojo-san."

He brushed me off as he spoke, "Eh, just call me sensei or Great Teacher Gojo!"

"..."

"Ya, that might be too long. Gojo-sensei is fine!" He commented as he ignored my apathy.

"Ahem!" He cleared his throat with much fanfare as he continued, "So, you're Nanami's student," his head tilted in observation.

My eyebrows jolted upwards as I asked, "You know Nanami?"

Gojo rubbed the back of his head, somehow looking befuddled behind his blindfold as he spoke, "That one got a reaction out of you?"

His lips popped as he continued, "And yup! We go way back. I'm his senpai, you know!"

His whimsical demeanor vanished as he slowly approached me.

"But that doesn't matter. I'm here on a favor."

He stopped in front of me as his head leaned in, uncomfortably close, mere inches from my face.

"!?" I leaned back slightly in surprise, but it didn't do much when he kept closing the distance.

Despite the black cloth covering his eyes, it felt like he was looking straight at my soul.

"Oh?" Our noses nearly touched as his gaze scrutinized my entire body.

"W-What?" What was he doing?

He leaned in further as he whispered in my ear, "You don't have a cursed technique, do you?"

"!"

Gojo continued unabated as he noticed my face twist at his words, "And that network in your body—"

Fushiguro's puzzled voice interrupted our impromptu talk, "Sensei, what are you doing?"

Everyone else looked at him weirdly, trying to figure out why it looked like he was acting familiar with someone he'd never met.

He scooched away as he coughed, "Ahem. Yes, I was giving tips on how to pick up girls."

Huh?

Panda and Inumaki's heads cocked to the side in question,

"Girls?"

"Salmon roe?"

He pointed at them as his voice became pompous, "Yes, yes!"

Gojo crossed his arms as he yelled, "A little man-to-man! We're all guys here, right?"

"I'm a panda."

"Salmon."

"Right! But—" The nonsensical conversation gained traction as the three looked increasingly invested in sharing their thoughts.

What just happened?

Fushiguro appeared by my side, looking contrite.

"I'm sorry about him. You might've gone without meeting him a little longer if he didn't tag along with me."

I put my hands up to appease him as I stuttered, "A-Ah, it's fine. I'm used to it."

Scarily enough.

"You too, huh?" His coal eyes gained a tinge of sympathy as the stoicism on his face slightly lessened like he was looking at a brother-in-arms.

"?"

"Wh—" My lips parted to ask what he meant, but Gojo's voice cut me off.

He abruptly stopped their debate as he turned to me and announced in a dramatic fashion, "Now, Shirou-kun!"

"...Uh, yes?"

His voice dropped an octave deeper as a smile with one too many teeth found its way onto his face, "Wanna fight?"

Everyone recoiled in surprise as we cried out,

"Huh!?"

"Hah!?"

"Tuna!?"

"Panda—!?" He paused as he gripped his chin in thought.

"Wait, that's not it. Can we do that again?"

Click Clack

Sounds of footsteps came from the doorway as Maki appeared, dressed in a purple hoodie, shorts, and black leggings with a towel wrapped around her neck.

A sheet of sweat was present on her skin as she sighed in relief,

"Ah~, that was a good workout."

Her eyelids opened as she spotted the new additions, "Oh. Satoru's here. And Megumi."

"..."

After noticing the odd stillness in the room, she looked at the rest of us weirdly as she asked,

"What? What's going on?"

Gojo Satoru, the strongest jujutsu sorcerer, stood across from me on the school's track field as he stretched his legs.

I couldn't figure out his angle.

First, he told me he knew I didn't have a cursed technique. Then, he said he wanted to fight.

He made no sense.

But what troubled me was how he found out and what he planned to do.

Gojo knew I lied, but he avoided bringing it up with the others earlier.

One minute he was all serious when he found out, and the next, he was... well, not acting his age.

I muttered under my breath, "He's too erratic."

"That's mean—"

He heard me!?

"—you could hurt my feelings, you know~? And ya, I heard you."

Was he a mind reader?

"No. You're just easy to read. Eheheehee."

I could still feel my right eye twitching even as I closed them shut and took a second to calm down.

"Phew~." I breathed out to clear the tension in my body as I suppressed my growing headache.

I looked back at him and asked, "So... why didn't you tell them about it earlier?"

"Did you want me to?" He leaned forward as he asked.

"...No." I'd rather avoid any problems resulting from that.

"Then, we're good!"

"And about my—"

"Hold on, stop!"

"What?"

"It's a pain, so I won't explain!"

I blinked owlishly in confusion. "Huh?"

"You'll find out tomorrow." Tomorrow?

The same day Nanami said we'd meet up.

...Did he plan all this?

Now that I think about it, the way Gojo acted when we first met was odd.

He went straight to me, saying something about a favor.

And he immediately found out about what I was hiding, likely from some ability or cursed technique dealing with why he hid his eyes behind a blindfold.

If I assumed he always had that ability and that his first action when we met was to uncover the truth about my cursed technique. Then he must've been informed by someone.

And the only person who knew Gojo and spent enough time around me to suspect something was Nanami.

Not only that, but his words from earlier probably meant he knew Gojo was coming.

So it was him, huh?

Did Nanami figure it out on his own?

Or did I slip up at some point when I thought he believed my lie?

Ugh. I wasn't cut out for these kinds of things.

Well, I don't think I was in any real trouble. Otherwise, Gojo wouldn't be acting so friendly... and annoying.

I looked back at him as he grinned cheekily with a wave.

I wanted to confirm everything here, but he didn't seem like he'd budge even if I kept pushing.

I guess I had to wait till I met up with Nanami again.

With that out of the way, there was only one thing left.

"So, why do you want to fight with me?" I asked with a raised brow.

"Just cuz."

"... just cuz?"

He shook his head fervently as he exclaimed, "Yes! Just cuz!"

I was beginning to understand what Maki and Nanami meant earlier.

Third Person PoV

Maki came down the concrete steps dressed in her usual black uniform as she asked the others, "Why are those two about to fight?"

Panda and Toge shook their heads and waved their hands and paws in sync.

"No idea."

"Dried bonito."

Megumi turned to face her as he spoke, "Earlier, Gojo-sensei said he wanted to meet Emiya-senpai because he was interested in his first mission. He heard from Nanami-san that Emiya-senpai easily exorcised a semi-1st-grade curse. And there's the fact that he survived an encounter against a special-grade curse."

Megumi observed the two in question as he continued, "Maybe sensei wants to fight him because he thinks he's ready for a promotion."

"—Eheheehee." Further out in the track field, Gojo pointed at Shirou as he chuckled behind his palm.

Megumi paused before continuing with less certainty, "...I think."

Panda pointed his paw toward the field as he spoke, "Oh, looks like they're starting."

Zap

Cracks of blue lightning appeared in each of Shirou's hands, striking the sand beneath his feet. The wild energy molded itself into outlines of blades before transforming into a set of white and black dao.

Maki stared longingly at his weapons as her hands twitched restlessly.

"I want to grip them."

The other 2nd-years and Megumi stared at her.

Maki crossed her arms as she defended herself.

"What? They're cool swords."

"Yes, but please pay attention to your phrasing, Zenin-senpai."

"Salmon."

She scoffed as she sat beside them and muttered irritably, "Yes. Yes. And didn't I tell you not to call me by my last name?"

Shirou's PoV

I backpedaled, dragging dust into the air after failing to connect my attacks.

I scrutinized his relaxed form in vain for any weak points. But I knew it was pointless.

Why can't I hit him?

He didn't block any of my strikes, but none connected.

Was it an invisible force field?

No, that didn't seem right.

I was sure I felt something when I tried to cut him, but it was strange.

What was with the lack of resistance?

The married blades seemed to stop after a certain point.

I didn't feel any pushback from his defense.

It was like the force from my swings dissipated instead of transferring back to me.

Was he—?

"Oh, you noticed already? You're pretty good."

I focused on his words while keeping my guard up.

"No wonder Nanami's so invested in you."

"?"

The sun's rays illuminated his form, giving him an otherworldly visage.

He gestured toward his whole body, declaring, "This is my cursed technique, Limitless."

"Limitless?"

"Mm. You noticed it when you attacked earlier. You felt something strange, didn't you?"

I nodded my head unsurely in response.

"That was the neutral form of Limitless, Infinity."

"It's not a barrier, is it?"

"Yes. It's not a barrier. To be more accurate, I'm slowing down anything that gets close to me."

"Slowing down?"

But that made no sense. Kanshou and Bakuya stopped before they reached him. For them to slow down to the point of stopping entirely, it'd have to be—

"Infinite."

He pointed at me as he dramatically declared, "Yes, yes. That's it! Because I divide the space around me infinitely, everything around me slows down infinitely. So nothing ever reaches me unless I want it to."

That's—

"That's broken."

He palmed his cheek as he looked to the side and spoke in a suggestive tone, "Aw~, stop!" Gojo wiggled in place as he continued, "You're making me blu—"

A set of the married blades quickly aimed to skewer him, but they stopped in place just before they could even make contact.

Another pair appeared in my hands as I dashed toward him and slashed at him from every angle while aiming for his legs, knees, arms, and neck.

And yet, he didn't bother to move as my blades failed to reach him.

I retreated a distance away as I rethought my approach.

Could I overpower his cursed technique using more force?

No, if he slowed everything down, the force wouldn't matter.

Would infusing more cursed energy into the blades work? Could I overpower his cursed technique by brute forcing it? It was a shot in the dark that only worked on the assumption that I could halt the aftereffects of his Infinity with cursed energy.

Though, it wasn't viable either way.

I could barely feel it, but the cursed energy Gojo emitted from his technique was negligible.

Even if he stood still and did nothing but power his Infinity as I attacked, I'd run out of cursed energy before him.

Should I—

"Is that all you can do?"

"Huh?"

I looked up at him as he stopped his little joke.

"...What do you mean?"

"Is that all you can do? I mean, I heard how you fought together against that special grade—"

This again?

"But from what I've seen, I'm not impressed. No wonder Nanami almost died. It's because you're so wea—"

SHICK~

Three pairs of Kanshou and Bakuya encircled him as they glowed an ominous blue.

In the same breath, hairline fractures littered the steel as mana flooded them to their breaking point.

"Break."

BOOM

They imploded as metal shards littered the sandy field and sent specks of dust up into the air.

His left index and middle fingers extended outward as the blast stopped before him.

"Not bad. But still not good enough." Gojo commented as the explosion slid right by him on either side.

The blast mixed the air with smoke and sand, creating a temporary smokescreen.

Archer's bow appeared in my left hand as sparks of red crackled in the other.

He was strong.

Kakyoku Sanren didn't even scratch him. I don't think any of my attacks would unless I could get past his technique or warp the space around him.

A spiral sword appeared above my right hand, replacing the outline created by the violent red mana.

Using this in a spar would usually be considered overkill, but he was an exception.

Even though it's only been a few minutes, I could tell that his title of the strongest sorcerer wasn't a boast.

He far outclassed Nanami and that unregistered special grade curse.

None of my attacks could reach him, and the same technique that heavily wounded the forest curse was useless against him. And from what I understood from the cursed energy he emitted and his cursed technique, this might not even be enough to damage him.

But he asked for more, and I originally intended to train.

The metal string loudly creaked as I drew the blade back on the bow.

The spiral blade warped under my fingertips as my magical energy reinforced it into a sleeker form, making it resemble an arrow.

More mana poured into it, flooding it past its breaking point.

Cursed energy flowed through the minute cracks forming on the sword arrow, bolstering its power even further.

As the smoke cleared around him, Gojo's ears twitched at the screeching sound coming from the matte black bow.

I met his gaze as my lips moved to utter its True Name.

Motes of red bled off my form as the calm winds that coalesced around me grew fierce from the weapon's aura.

For the second time since I met him, the expression on his covered face lost all sense of frivolity as his blindfold creased upwards in surprise.

The familiar greenish-blue aura outlined with black flared around Gojo.

He positioned his hand outward as the ground beneath him broke apart, gravitating toward him.

"Cursed Technique Lapse - Maximum Cursed Energy Output: Blue."

An invisible vortex that seemed to draw everything in it appeared in front of him, blocking the arrow's path.

CREAK~

The Noble Phantasm's tip flashed a bright red as the string screeched its release.

"Caladbolg."

SWISH

The sword arrow zoomed past the field, closing the distance between us in the blink of an eye.

At the last second, I willed three walls of swords to appear—one in front and behind me and one in front of the others, protecting us from the force of the blast.

BOOM

The force of the explosion blasted the wall in front of me, shattering it like glass.

The wind splayed my hair upwards and rattled my clothes as the metal shards sliced into parts of my uniform.

I dispelled the bow as I traced another set of the married blades and stabbed them into the dirt to stop myself from being pushed back.

But it wasn't enough.

A shard of metal nearly nicked my eye, making me shut my eyes and lose focus.

The colossal winds broke my footing and sent me flying into the sword wall behind me.

I quickly copied Archer's stats from the blades to support my doubly reinforced body as I fought against the wind pressure and stabbed the married blades into the ground again.

I forced my eyes to open as the pressure began to wane.

"...It's being sucked in?"

The explosion devastated Gojo's half of the field, obliterating everything in sight as it soared into the sky before slowly being sucked into the vortex.

"He's floating!?"

His side of the field was entirely rubble. A crater lay where he was now floating.

Could he use his Infinity to create infinite space in the air under his feet?

No. What was surprising was the damage behind Gojo.

I knew Caladbolg would cause a lot of destruction from experience. Combined with his attack, I was sure the damage would be worse.

But the forest behind him was relatively untouched except for the trees near the track field.

He drew in the explosion with that vortex technique, reducing the damage to him and his surroundings.

Gojo swiped away at the remaining smoke as he breathed out,

"Phew! That was pretty good! I'm a little invested now!" He grinned widely in fascination, but, this time, his body seemed tense as if ready to respond at a moment's notice.

His garments remained frustratingly clean as his body showed no signs of damage or fatigue.

Did it fail?

No. This time Gojo used an attack to counter. And with that burst of cursed energy, I was sure now.

He used cursed energy reinforcement before Caladbolg collided with that vortex. He wouldn't need to do either of those things with his Infinity active unless Caladbolg could bypass it.

With that in mind, I should limit myself to weapons with concepts and abilities that could work around his ability. Other weapons could be used as a smokescreen or distraction as I switched up my method of attack.

He didn't go on the offensive once during the fight, but I kept my eye trained on him as I browsed for weapons that countered him.

Gojo looked up at the sky as he rubbed his chin and muttered to himself, "Hmm... he said not to overdo it, but I don't think he'll mind."

He nodded to himself as he snapped his fingers.

"Yup! Ima go for it!"

"?"

He gently removed his blindfold as his lips parted at a snail's pace.

"Now..."

The sun shone down on him, temporarily obstructing my view of his uncovered face. Only the sight of his right index and middle fingers crossed in front of him was visible.

Wait. This feeling—!

The bow immediately appeared in my left hand while my other was already pulling the string taut.

No time to break it!

The newly traced Caladbolg already left my fingertips as he spoke the words I dreaded.

"Domain Expansion—"

It zoomed straight for him, mere inches away from his face, but I knew it was too late.

"Infinite Void."

Everything became white as the domain encroached upon the field, engulfing Gojo and me in its grasp.

Then it all faded into darkness as countless light rays assailed my eyes.

Spots of white splashed over the pure black expanse of the void. The two colors flowed in unison yet never seemed to touch.

Information in waves forced itself upon me.

Streams of fog swirled around the void as my whole body was overstimulated.

No. It was more accurate to say it was endless.

I saw, felt, heard, and knew everything.

So this was Infinity.

Gojo's PoV

My head tilted up in realization.

"Ah. Wait. I probably should've grabbed the kid beforehand."

I can't exactly help him get stronger if he can't see or do anything.

"Whoopsies~! Silly me!" I bonked my head to chastise myself.

Though, I can't let anyone know I messed up, especially Utahime and Nanami.

She'd never let me live it down. Especially since it'd give her fuel to get back at me after all the times I purposefully got on her nerves.

Nanami wouldn't say anything, but he'd give me a look that screamed disappointment.

Worse, all the students would lose respect for their favorite teacher!

"Tsk. Ya, that'd be bad." Guess I'll grab him and pretend it was part of the plan.

"What... are you saying?"

"Hm!?" My head whipped toward the unexpected sound.

...Impossible.

No one could do anything in here, let alone speak.

"Urk!" The new student spazzed in place as he struggled to move his limbs.

His face grew red from exertion as his muscles tensed from trying to fight against an infinite sensory overload.

"Huh. That's never happened before."

Someone who could resist Infinite Void without a Simple Domain?

"You're pretty interesting, Shirou-kun!"

Despite his struggle, he still had the energy to look at me in confusion.

"...Huh?"

Wait. If I remember correctly...

I looked at him as I asked, "Couldn't you have used Simple Domain to avoid this?"

"How did you know I—!" His face lit up in shock before he froze.

"Ah. You're getting redder."

"S-Shut up!"

Heh. Ya, I loved screwing with people.

"Welp, I guess that's enough for now."

Shirou's PoV

The sound of glass shattering reached my ears as the void broke away to reveal clear blue skies and debris-covered sand underfoot.

My shoulders sagged in relief as all tension in my body vanished with the barrier.

"—Phew." That was... something.

"I'm sure you have more in the tank, but I accomplished what I set out to do."

"Still any chance you'll tell me?"

"Nope~."

Worth a shot.

I just started to turn away when I heard a crunch underfoot.

Crackle

"Hm?" I lifted my foot as I saw dozens of metal scraps scattered in the sand around me.

Was this from that sword wall I made earlier?

I almost forgot it shattered during the blast.

Well, there was no way it could've withstood Caladbolg's explosion from this distance.

I'm glad I traced some blades behind me beforehand as well. Otherwise, the explosion would've blown me away, no matter how prepared I was.

Wait.

"Gojo-san!"

"Hm?" His head turned toward me as his eyes probed me for an answer.

"The others—!"

The sword wall behind me dispersed into specks of blue as we looked back to the stairs leading into the field and saw the 2nd-years and Fushiguro sprawled over as various pieces of debris lay around them.

Chunks of it were missing as large cracks stained its previous pristine appearance.

Shattered pieces of blades and hilts littered the sand and concrete. The well-maintained pockets of grass circling the field were torn up, ruining its previous flat surface with rubble and blades.

Panda's behind was up in the air as he groaned pitifully next to Inumaki's dirt-covered form.

Fushiguro lay upside down against the entrance as pieces of it crumbled down next to him.

...I probably should've warned them so they could prepare for the blast.

Gojo noticed my guilty expression as he glanced at them and tried to play everything off.

"Don't worry, they look fine!"

As if to prove him wrong, they all groaned in unison.

""""Ugh~.""""

"Okay, maybe not."

Maki lifted her head upward from her sprawled position on the ground as her irate face greeted Gojo and me.

Her glasses lay crookedly on her nose as hairline fractures marked its lenses.

"You—!" She looked ready to scream her head off before her eyes glazed over and rolled back in exhaustion as her head fell back into the debris-covered sand.

Ah.

Gojo and my eyes met once again as our perplexed expressions slowly morphed into unease as we realized what lay in store for us.

""Shit.""

"Grrm!"

My hand twitched involuntarily at the displeased grunt coming from the person in front of me.

"Care to explain yourselves?" A rugged voice booming with authority phrased his words as a question despite the blatant demand for an answer.

The candle lamps attached to each wooden pillar illuminated the burly man's visage.

Principal Yaga towered over us as we sat seiza-style on the tatami mats of the temple-style building.

"He did it!" Gojo quickly commented as he pointed at me.

"Wha—you!" Traitor!

He stuck his tongue out as he giggled at my misfortune.

"Hehee—Ack!" Principal Yaga held him under a chokehold as he spoke in fluent English, "Shut up!"

His voice boomed with anger and no small amount of exasperation as he continued, "I heard from the students that you started the spar and egged him on!" His arms rippled with force as he squeezed further.

Tap Tap

Gojo's hand smacked against the Principal's back in protest, trying to get him to quit.

I rubbed the back of my hand, unsure of what to think of the situation before me.

Wait, how did the Principal get past his Infinity?

The Principal turned his angry gaze toward me as he continued to keep Gojo contained.

"And you! This is the second time this has happened! First, you made a commotion and destroyed the forest. And now you blew up the track field with half of it in ruins!"

"Umm, at least you still have the other half?"

"Grrm!" Ya, I should probably stop talking.

"Hahaha! Ah~. This kid is hilarious! Say, old man, where'd you find him—Ow! Stop that hurts!"

The Principal tightened his hold as he raised his chin in thought. His shades glinted under the ambient light as he spoke,

"Emiya-kun!"

"Yes?"

"Satoru!"

"N-k, y-yes?"

"You're both cleaning up the field."

I nodded my head as I accepted my punishment.

Well, I guess I couldn't complain since it was our fault.

"But no cursed techniques!"

""Damn it.""

We cursed in unison before our eyes met again.

"Hmph." He childishly turned his head away as he pouted.

This man-child...

"And Satoru, it's coming out of your pocket!"

"Ehh!?" he whined in protest before the hold tightened further.

"U-Urk! I mean, yes!"

The sun had barely begun to set as clouds from above covered the tattered field in its silhouettes.

Sweep~

Sweep~

I methodically swept chunks of dirt and concrete into a massive pile of rubble.

I had already dispelled all my swords before the meeting, so there was less to deal with. But I still had to find a way to get rid of all the debris.

"Oi, look over here. It's a rock-shaped Megumi!" he waved me over as he pointed to a slanted-eyed spiky-haired chibi face made of rocks on the ground beside him.

I was going to be stuck here cleaning this mess all day with him, wasn't I?

Fortunately, Gojo was often busy and had a mission overseas, so after a few hours of complaining—from him—we were allowed to finish it quickly with our cursed techniques—and my magecraft.

A day passed as I waited for the familiar cursed energy signature to arrive at the dojo.

Slide

Nanami came through the shoji door dressed in his usual attire.

He slid the door shut as he sat down in front of me.

"We need to talk."

"Yes." I nodded my head in agreement.

It was time to get answers—for both of us.

AN: Thanks for reading, and I'm grateful for all the support! I hope you enjoyed the holidays and liked the chapter! The chapter schedule is two weeks again, so I have more time to think and write. And sorry it took a day longer. I ended up spraining my wrist about a week ago.

Feedback and criticism are always welcome to improve the story!

Explanation:

The fight wasn't fast-paced because it was supposed to be a light spar—by Gojo's standards—and nothing serious. And there were a few pauses in the spar because Shirou couldn't touch him till he pulled out Caladbolg, and Gojo didn't bother attacking because he was only trying to see what Shirou could do.

Shirou could struggle and not be a complete vegetable inside Infinite Void because he's had experience processing and receiving unlimited information/everything when he looked at a piece of the Root. But it doesn't mean much since he can't move.

Shirou pulling out Caladbolg for a spar may be unlike him, but I'd say he felt Gojo could take it since he couldn't be touched, and him confirming Gojo's strength based on him realizing that he wasn't wasting any cursed energy. The others were somewhat nearby, but he had the swords shield them.

Caladbolg didn't seriously injure the others—mostly scrapes and bruises, but they weren't prepared for the shock waves. So they got sent flying despite Shirou putting a reinforced sword wall in front of them.

And I'm planning to address Shirou's fixation on using nothing but the married blades in the story (the explanation for it is in the reviews) when he talks with Nanami or as something he realizes himself.

I also responded to your comments from the last chapter in the review section.

The wiki says semi-1st-grade curses are above 2nd-grade ones because they can use cursed techniques.

To Hendra, Mayke, & Mikhail Sharon: I'm glad you enjoyed everything so far! No promises on pairing(s) since it'll take a while to develop everything to that point.