Dangerous Kidō Practice

Whether it was his overly perfect, affable expression or his impeccable words and deeds, everything about him gave Shinji a profound sense of unease.

He wasn't a fictional character, so how could everyone have such a uniformly good opinion of him?

It was almost as if he were putting on an act to create some kind of impression.

The crucial point was that Shinji had been watching him for so long and still hadn't discovered what was wrong.

With all those questions piling up, Shinji Hirako shook his head.

"Forget it. I'll ask Ukitake about the Reiatsu later."

"It wouldn't be right to leave you to handle it alone. I'm definitely coming with you."

"Thank you for your concern."

Smiling, Sōsuke Aizen lowered his head and resumed leafing through the documents, as quiet, gentle, and honest as ever.

But just as Shinji Hirako gradually turned his attention away, an unusual look suddenly flashed through Aizen's eyes behind his glasses.

The corners of his mouth also curled into an intriguing smile.

His captain seemed rather restless lately, didn't he?

Perfect... The tests needed a new test subject again.

Would a Captain-level Soul Reaper produce different results?

His smile growing a little more cheerful, Sōsuke Aizen continued working through the documents in his hands.

Before that, though, I should finish what I have on hand.

There was still a great deal to take care of.

Inside the Eleventh Division Barracks.

A dark-skinned, vicious-looking man with a ring of black facial hair lay in bed, snoring away.

He was the current captain of the 11th Division, Kenpachi Kiganjō.

Sensing the Reiatsu fluctuations in the distance, he snapped his eyes open and sat bolt upright.

"...An unfamiliar Captain-level Reiatsu?"

"Strange. Did a new captain appear somewhere?"

After muttering a few words, Kenpachi Kiganjō suddenly scoffed and rolled over to lie down again.

"Forget it. Captain-level Reiatsu isn't rare. No matter how strong they are, they're just a bunch of trash."

"They're no threat to me at all."

"Rather than worrying about that, I might as well get some more sleep..."

High above Soul Society.

"Hm? Captain, did you feel that?"

"What powerful Reiatsu."

Soi Fon, a black-haired woman with a delicate, beautiful face, looked curious.

Her short purple hair fluttering in the air, Yoruichi Shihōin stood on high and smiled faintly.

"Captain Yoruichi, today is a special day. You can't leave."

Seeing that her captain intended to skip work again, Soi Fon couldn't help reminding her.

"All right, all right, I know."

Yoruichi muttered helplessly, and then the two of them vanished from the sky.

The Research and Development Institute.

Kisuke Urahara blearily opened his eyes and looked into the distance.

"Strange. A powerful Reiatsu I don't recognize..."

"Is another Captain-level figure about to emerge?"

"Looks like that rumor about the Kuchiki Clan was true. No wonder Yoruichi couldn't stop praising that boy."

After muttering a few words, he fell asleep again, deep dark circles under his eyes.

Among the research papers scattered before him, the word "Hōgyoku" was faintly visible.

Not long after the test ended, Kyōsuke Kuchiki received a notice from the academy detailing when and how to report.

As expected, he was assigned directly to the first-year special class.

When the term began, Kyōsuke Kuchiki joined the other new students in the Special Class 1 classroom.

All the students here had performed exceptionally well in the Reiatsu test, and Gin Ichimaru was naturally among them.

Once the classes had been assigned, an academy instructor handed each student an Asauchi, the undeveloped form of a Zanpakuto.

Over their six years at the academy, each student would eat and sleep alongside their Asauchi, using their accumulated training to imprint the essence of their soul upon it and thus create a Zanpakuto of their own.

Kyōsuke Kuchiki was naturally no exception.

Taking the tachi-like Asauchi from the instructor, he placed it across his knees and ran his fingertips over its sharp edge.

The thought that this Asauchi would become his Zanpakuto in a few months filled him with anticipation.

I wonder what kind of ability I'll get?

Would it be the power of Kamui, which allowed one to roam the ninja world at will, an astonishingly powerful elemental ability combining offense and defense, or perhaps even an invincible Requiem that made people die and come back to life, only to die again?

As he was thinking, the distribution of the Asauchi was nearly complete.

After the homeroom instructor, Gengorō Ōunabara, went over a few matters concerning their classes, the lesson officially began.

Chapter 6: Dangerous Kidō Practice

Soul Reaper students at Shin'ō Academy had only two training requirements to complete.

First, achieve their Zanpakuto's Shikai;

Second, learn Zankensōki. They didn't need to master them, but they at least had to be able to use them.

Thanks to a certain clingy older sister, Kyōsuke Kuchiki had long since learned Shunpo, one of the Zankensōki.

He had little exposure to the other areas, though he knew something about them.

It wasn't for any particular reason. It was simply because any one of the Eight Extraordinary Skills could hang the Zankensōki up and beat them.

Had the training speed of the Eight Extraordinary Skills not now reached a bottleneck,

Kyōsuke Kuchiki wouldn't have come to Shin'ō Academy to learn the four fundamental Soul Reaper skills.

With his Captain-level Reiatsu and advanced Shunpo, the first-year curriculum posed no challenge to Kyōsuke Kuchiki.

Whether theory or practice, he grasped it at a glance and understood it as soon as he studied it.

Kyōsuke Kuchiki hadn't expected that after coming to a world of extraordinary power, he would get to experience being treated like an academic god.

There was only one way to describe the feeling: incredibly satisfying!

So he slacked off in class, coasted through lessons, and occasionally found a chance to grind his proficiency in the Heaven Communicating Talisman Art. His days promptly became leisurely.

Before he knew it, the day for Kidō instruction arrived.

The new students were quite curious about this kind of spellcasting technique. They all perked up and looked at the instructor before them.

Kyōsuke Kuchiki was naturally no stranger to Kidō.

Thus, he remained composed, only wanting to learn it to broaden his foundations.

"Hadō #31, Shakkahō!"

As spiritual power fluctuated, a flash of crimson light instantly appeared in the academy instructor's hand.

The students watching all cried out in surprise.

"So this is Kidō?"

"It really does look amazing!"

Hearing them, the academy instructor, Gengorō Ōunabara, smiled. The spiritual power in his hand immediately dispersed, and the Shakkahō vanished along with it.

"What I just used was Hadō, one of the types of Kidō. Most Hadō are used for attacking."

"But if you adjust the power properly, some can be used simply for illumination, like Shakkahō, or for other things."

"The other two types are Bakudō, which focuses on defense and binding, and Kaidō, healing Kidō."

"We'll start with Hadō."

"..."

After briefly introducing the basics of Kidō, Gengorō Ōunabara began teaching in earnest.

"Each Kidō has its own incantation. Completing the incantation increases its power and effectiveness."

"Everyone, first try the incantation for Hadō #31, Shakkahō."

"Focus, gather your spiritual power, and after reciting the incantation, fire at the Sekkiseki targets in front of you, whether you succeed or not."

Pointing at the Sekkiseki set along the edge of the courtyard, the instructor stepped aside.

The students obediently raised their hands and began reciting earnestly as they gathered their spiritual power.

"O sovereign! Mask of flesh and blood, all things in creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of man!"

"Scorching heat and strife, surge over the sea to the south, march onward!"

Awkwardly enough, though everyone recited in perfect unison, nothing appeared in most of their hands.

The few who produced anything managed only tiny clumps that gave off a faint red glow.

"Like this?"

Suddenly, Gin Ichimaru's interested voice rang out.

A bright scarlet sphere of light had already gathered in his hand. Though the distribution of its spiritual power couldn't be called perfectly stable, it was still outstanding.

With a gentle movement of his palm, the Shakkahō instantly swept through the air, leaving a dim red trail behind it.

Bang!

A dazzling red light burst forth, dissipating completely in front of the Sekkiseki without shaking it in the slightest.

Of course, that was only to be expected.

Sekkiseki could completely block Reishi and Reiatsu, so how could a group of students possibly damage it so easily?

"Well done, Ichimaru!"

"Hadō is quite complicated to use. Achieving that kind of power on your first try is already very good!"

The academy instructor smiled, but his gaze couldn't help drifting toward the back.

Gin Ichimaru, with tenth-class Reii, could easily use a Kidō of such power.

Then how powerful would it be in the hands of a Captain-level student with third-class Reii?

He looked at Kyōsuke Kuchiki, only to freeze in surprise the next moment.

"Kuchiki, what... what are you doing?"

"Huh?"

The black-haired boy had his hair tied back and one hand raised. He hadn't even begun the incantation, yet waves of immensely powerful Reiatsu were already rushing outward!

The next moment, before the academy instructor could recover, a blazing sphere of light, so red it was almost black, slowly appeared in Kyōsuke Kuchiki's palm, rotating slightly.

His immense Reiatsu had been compressed to its limit in an instant, making the fireball give off an incomparably terrifying aura.

Even the academy instructor stared at it in a daze.

Is this fucking thing still a Shakkahō?

Why does it look like a little sun?

Captain-level Reiatsu... It's actually this terrifying?!

"Kuchiki, don't move!"

He sensed that something was wrong.