Facing Kaien

After weighing his options, Ye Yang decided to fight Kaien with the Half-Step Crushing Fist. Yoruichi had used it when they sparred, so it wouldn't seem out of place for him to use it too.

Having made up his mind, Ye Yang took his stance and stepped forward to seize the initiative. Unlike Tai Chi, which countered an opponent's attack, the Crushing Fist focused on drawing the opponent into its own rhythm and using its explosive power to overwhelm them with its momentum and finish them in a single blow.

Ye Yang shot out a straight punch, but who was his opponent? Kaien was a genius acknowledged throughout Soul Society. Seeing Ye Yang attack, Kaien advanced instead of retreating and knocked the punch aside. Ye Yang stepped forward half a pace with his left foot, blocking Kaien's position, then suddenly struck with his left fist held vertically, thumb side up and palm facing inward. The blow was so sudden, and he only extended his fist halfway, which made it even faster. Kaien Shiba turned pale at the sight. It was too late to dodge, so he could only move his vital spots out of the way. The punch struck his left shoulder, and he grunted as Ye Yang's blow sent him stumbling back.

Kaien clutched his left shoulder with his right hand, inwardly marveling at the force of Ye Yang's punch. Aloud, he said, "Wow, that's a lot of power. Again!"

This time, Kaien attacked first. His leg arrived before the rest of him as he launched a side kick. Without thinking, Ye Yang blocked it with his arm and immediately followed up with a Crushing Fist. This time it failed, but that didn't surprise Ye Yang. If Kaien could be beaten by the same move twice, he wouldn't be called a genius. For his part, Kaien had no easy time dealing with Ye Yang pressing him at every step. The two exchanged blows, neither gaining much of an advantage.

As they fought, neither knew that the three examiners had been stunned. Kaien wasn't called a genius just because of his high Spiritual Pressure; all his skills were first-rate as well. Kaien Shiba only needed to find his Zanpakuto. If he did, he could immediately become a Seated Officer in a squad. The three examiners had originally lamented Ye Yang's bad luck and even discussed privately how long this examinee could last against Kaien. They had concluded that it would be no more than a minute. But reality was often that unexpected. This examinee had actually fought Kaien for so long, and Kaien was even slightly on the back foot!

The sight before them made the three examiners' brains freeze. Once they recovered, they hurriedly recorded his information and sent it up. Meanwhile, Ye Yang was still fighting Kaien, completely unaware of the storm he had caused.

They had been fighting for over ten minutes, and both had inevitably picked up a few injuries. Kaien grimaced and said, "You really are tough to deal with. Your breathing hasn't even changed." An ordinary person would surely be panting after fighting for over ten minutes, but Ye Yang's regular training had long since accustomed him to high-intensity combat, so his breathing remained steady.

"Aren't you the same?" Ye Yang said. After all, no one knew how much effort a genius put in behind the scenes.

"At this rate, we could fight until dark without a result. So let me end this fight."

Seeing the confidence on Kaien's face, Ye Yang asked in puzzlement, "From the sound of it, do you still have a trump card?"

"You'll find out soon enough," Kaien said, then charged straight at him.

Ye Yang could clearly feel that Kaien was different this time. If Kaien's attacks before had been like a small, flowing stream, now they were like the surging, endless waters of the Yellow River. He attacked with a determination to press ever forward, as though he meant to swallow his opponent whole. Ye Yang didn't dare take him lightly and fought with all his strength, but Kaien's stormy momentum quickly broke through his defenses. With a muffled grunt, Ye Yang was sent flying. He lay on the ground in a sorry state as Kaien stood before him and said, "It's over."

Ye Yang kipped up and said to Kaien, "Not necessarily."

"Don't push yourself, Ye Yang. Your fist technique is formidable, but it can't stop these wave-like attacks of mine. I'm a little embarrassed to say this, but this was originally a move I use with my Zanpakuto. Even though I only used its underlying principle and no Spiritual Pressure, I'm really sorry to use it against someone like you who hasn't even encountered a Zanpakuto." Kaien scratched his head as he spoke.

Ye Yang smiled. "It's all right. Since it's your move, it doesn't matter what you use. But I said 'not necessarily,' didn't I? Kaien, the real fight is only starting now." As he spoke, he assumed the opening stance of Tai Chi, intending to use it against him.

Seeing Ye Yang take a new stance, Kaien could only attack. But this time, it felt completely different. His continuous attacks were like punches landing on cotton, leaving him unable to exert his strength. And every time Ye Yang attacked, the force felt so familiar. When he paid closer attention, wasn't it his own power? How was it attacking him?

Ye Yang was simply absorbing Kaien's power and sending it back at him, taking the principle of returning an opponent's methods against them to its utmost. This time, Kaien was the one being suppressed, much to his frustration. "Hey, Ye Yang, what is this? How come I've never seen you use it before?"

Ye Yang remained as calm and unruffled as ever. "Tai Chi. This is my best skill, so watch out." With that, he attacked. Although Tai Chi was a fist technique that used defense as offense, it also had many offensive moves. Seeing Ye Yang throw a punch, Kaien dodged and immediately struck back with his palm. Ye Yang calmly caught the palm, then closed his hand around it and seized Kaien's right arm with both hands. This is bad! Kaien cried inwardly. Ye Yang pulled him in, taking further control of his body. Kaien could no longer control himself and could only let Ye Yang move him as he pleased. With a pull and a push, Ye Yang sent Kaien several yards away.

Kaien scrambled to his feet and said, "Tai Chi? This stuff really ticks me off. It's just like punching cotton. Having strength but being unable to use it is so frustrating."

"Can't be helped. Tai Chi is mainly defensive to begin with, and it focuses on turning an opponent's methods against them. But your reaction is pretty much the same as Yoruichi's. Every time we spar, she demands that I don't use Tai Chi."

Kaien knew he would definitely lose if they kept fighting like this, so he said, "I'm done, I'm done. You pass. The way you fight is too infuriating."

Ye Yang was happy to stop, and to give Kaien a graceful way out, he said, "All right. Who knows when this would end if we kept going? Let's go have a drink to celebrate. My treat."

Kaien looked at Ye Yang gratefully. "Let's go, let's go. Yoruichi must still be waiting for us." With that, the two walked out of the training ground side by side, leaving the three examiners bewildered in their wake...

Yoruichi had been waiting outside for a long time. When she saw them come out, she asked, "How did it go? What was the result? Little brother, did you win?"

The question made it sound as though she was sure Ye Yang would win. Kaien grimaced. "Hey, Yoruichi, that really hurts. Do you have that little faith in me? Or are you just favoring your brother?"

Yoruichi glanced at Kaien and said, "Hey! It's not that I don't have faith in you. It's that you were up against my little brother." Yoruichi had an inexplicable confidence in Ye Yang. For some reason, she thought he seemed capable of anything. Even if someone said Ye Yang had defeated Captain-Commander Yamamoto, she would believe it without a doubt.

Ye Yang smiled at that. "Of course. I'm your little brother, after all. When have you ever seen me lose?" His words made the result of the fight clear. With Yoruichi, Kaien no longer cared about saving face.

Kaien looked as dejected as a defeated rooster. Seeing this, Yoruichi patted him on the shoulder and said, "Don't lose heart. You didn't use your Spiritual Pressure or your Zanpakuto, or even Kidō, so it doesn't really count as a loss. Besides, losing to this ** isn't anything to be ashamed of. I've never beaten him myself."

"Is that supposed to comfort me?" Kaien said. "Even if I'd used Kidō and Spiritual Pressure, I still might not have won. And speaking of Spiritual Pressure, your little brother's probably isn't any lower than mine, is it?"

Yoruichi lowered her head and thought about it. He had a point. As time went by, she found herself increasingly unable to understand her unscrupulous little brother. Ye Yang's Spiritual Pressure always seemed to be at the same level as hers, but Yoruichi felt it was far from that simple. She believed her brother's Spiritual Pressure should be higher than her own. Since Ye Yang was ahead of her in every other respect, how could his Spiritual Pressure cultivation be lower than hers?

The answer was actually quite simple. Ye Yang cultivated differently from other Soul Reapers. He stored all his Spiritual Power in his dantian, while other Soul Reapers spread theirs throughout their bodies. This kind of Spiritual Power was often difficult to contain, so it formed an aura around the body. The pressure others felt from this aura was called Spiritual Pressure. Ye Yang only needed to spread a certain amount of Spiritual Power throughout his body, and the Spiritual Pressure others sensed from him would consist only of the Spiritual Power he released outside his body. In other words, if Ye Yang wanted to hide his strength, no one could possibly detect it—not even Captain-Commander Yamamoto!

After all, storing Spiritual Pressure in the dantian like this was unique in Soul Society.

Ye Yang said helplessly, "Sis, how can you comfort someone like that? Besides, how am I **?"

Yoruichi glanced at him. "If you're not **, who is? You're clearly just a brat, yet you're so scheming. And I can see through your strength less and less. Can't you wait for me?" Yoruichi said the last sentence so quietly that only she could hear it.

Watching the siblings play off each other, Kaien gave a helpless cough. "Ahem, we're getting off topic. Let's go have a drink to celebrate your admission." As expected of Kaien Shiba, who was known for his sunny disposition, he quickly returned to his usual self.

"We haven't even passed yet, and you're already celebrating. Isn't that a little early?" Ye Yang asked.

"Do you think there'll be any problem passing?" Kaien asked in return.

Ye Yang and Yoruichi exchanged a knowing smile. "Of course not."

"Then what are we waiting for? Let's go."