Chapter 122
"Hmph, I'm very close to reaching the Seventh Class!"
The two of them started bickering happily.
The final decision reached by everyone was to have Haruto use the Kakushitsuijaku to determine the void's spirit.
The hierarchy is as follows: if someone's status is higher than Ayaka's, then all the other students are kicked out; otherwise, a few students are secretly favored.
It has to be said.
After working hard in the second half of the semester and constantly engaging in real combat, Ayaka became the only member among them to achieve a breakthrough in Reiatsu.
She was promoted from Ninth Class to Eighth Class.
At the same time, this also means that the bottom two have become two people – the best friends' bickering has increased significantly, and they have also started to train like crazy in secret... Haruto never knew before that these two could be so cunning.
"..."
Are they that bored?
Nanao looked helplessly at Ayaka and Kiyone.
"Mutsuki- sensei didn't say where we were going, and we don't know how far it is to get there. We need to find something to do."
"Isn't it true that love is something else?"
Haruto replied with a smile.
"If you don't find it interesting..."
Haruto's hand clenched and unclenched in mid-air.
Tōzanshō, about the size of a coffee table, appeared and floated in the air, moving with his steps while maintaining a relatively fixed position relative to his body.
"Shall we play a round of 'Protect the Emperor'?"
Haruto took out the box filled with thin bamboo strips.
"..."
Isane and Nanao looked at Haruto speechlessly, under their intense gazes—
"Or just ignore them..."
Haruto then took out another stack of even thinner bamboo strips.
"Shall we play Dou Dizhu?"
They say no, but their actions tell a different story.
The five people at the front of the group showed no signs of nervousness about their upcoming graduation exams. They were playing a game of "Protect the King" so enthusiastically that they almost wore Tōzanshō had set up. If the journey hadn't been shorter than expected, Haruto would have had to consider getting a new table or making a new deck of cards on the spot.
The team, which set off in the early morning, finally arrived at its destination near noon.
"A-Qing."
Nanao patted Haruto's hand:
Do you remember where this is?
"The forest buffer zone between East District 6 and East District 7, the wild animals nearby were cleared out by the two of us three and a half months ago."
Haruto's partner in that practical exercise was Nanao.
"Unless a new Garganta appears, there isn't even a single wild hair in this place."
Did they migrate from the nearby area?
It does not exist.
The Hollows in the first 22 wards of East Rukongai had long been eliminated by Haruto and his group as test subjects.
Completely clean.
"Um."
Nanao nodded.
Although he didn't say much, Haruto understood Nanao's meaning: if a Hollow Group appeared here, it could only be an experimental subject from the Twelfth Division —this information wasn't important for the graduation exam, but it was crucial for protecting his own safety.
The sixth-grade students continued forward, passing through the last layer of trees that obscured their view.
"..."
"This is interesting."
The "exhibition" stage set up on site, and the members of the Twelfth Division operating the giant screen in the center of the stage...
All of this made Haruto raise his eyebrows involuntarily.
Volume 1: Chapter 76, Stars Sweep Across the Grassland on a Cold Night
"These people..."
Haruto carefully observed his surroundings.
Although its appearance is very different from what Haruto knew, its basic functions can be roughly determined by looking at its structure.
"Looks like they want to get into the live streaming industry."
Haruto gave a cold laugh.
"Live streaming?"
Isane clearly didn't understand this newly coined term.
"Do you see those Hell Butterflies over there?"
Haruto pointed to the swarms of Hell Butterflies encircling the edge of the clearing.
Hmm... it seems a bit different from what we usually see?
"It's clearly a modified version of the Twelfth Division; they're used to collect images and sounds and then project them onto that big screen."
"Like Ayaka's description of a World of the Living movie?"
"Pretty much, but what's playing here is our real-time hunting of Hollows."
"!?"
While Isane was still in surprise, Kiyone suddenly interrupted:
"What's the difference between this and the Colosseum?"
The Seireitei contains several arenas.
That place is where Soul Reaper who have committed crimes fight against captured Hollows—this bloody and barbaric competition was once very popular among the nobles, but in recent years, due to the Hollows' excessive activity in Soul Society, it has become less lively.
After all...
Nowadays, many nobles are so terrified by the mere sight of a ghost that they wet their pants.
"That's right."
Although it's disguised as an exam, it's essentially no different from a gladiatorial arena.
Haruto glanced at the area directly opposite.
Two haughty men and one woman, accompanied by a dozen or so nobles of slightly lower status, were coming from another...
They walked towards the inside of the field.
"To come up with such a stupid suggestion, these 'wise men' must have once been beneficiaries of the Colosseum."
"Then why is Dean Mutsuki...?"
Isane asked, somewhat puzzled.
"Mutsuki- sensei can't have the final say."
Haruto shook his head.
"The fact that these sages were able to leave the Seijōtōkyorin already represented the attitude of some nobles, and even Captain Seigen would probably find it difficult to refute."
Especially in the last year.
The chaotic killings unleashed by the puppet regime cast a long shadow over the nobility, who were trying to regain their confidence through this method.
Instead of looking at military achievements, let's look at the stage...
Haruto didn't even bother to comment on them.
"If it weren't for Captain-Commander Yamamoto being so busy lately--"
Internally, there are several unruly squads; externally, there are the demands for accountability from noble forces.
"We absolutely cannot let these guys get their hands on the Shin'ō Academy."
"Is that all?"
This site, built in the forest, is not small.
However, the huge auditorium was not furnished with many seats; instead, it was filled with various luxurious and expensive furniture and entertainment items.
"What, can they really allow their juniors to come and observe the ceremony?"
"But this is a rule set by Captain-Commander Yamamoto!"
Isane didn't quite understand this behavior.
Although she was from a noble family, her way of thinking was no different from that of an ordinary student.
"Once this hunting operation is over, they can edit the live stream content according to their own wishes."
"Playing it on graduation day... that doesn't violate the viewing requirements."
"This works?"
There are many ways to adapt.
Haruto's explanation ends here.
After the three sages led the nobles into the arena, the vice-captain of the Tenth Division Daijiji Kū Seigen, also led his men in.
"You all wait here."
Mutsuki Shōkaku gestured for the sixth-year students to stop, and then walked towards the other side alone.
Her silent demeanor on the way revealed that Ms. Mutsuki was extremely dissatisfied with the arrangements made by the higher-ups; if it weren't for the fact that Haruto and the Haruto sixth-year students could provide a safety net, Mutsuki Shōkaku would probably have already lost her temper and quit.
Even more so.
The above-mentioned dog poop was worried that she would be overprotective and affect the students' performance, so she specifically adjusted...
The vice-captain, who wasn't affiliated with the Spiritual Arts Academy, was in charge of the exams; and she could only sit there, forcing a smile, while watching the students she had managed to rescue from the Konsō incident six months ago fight the Void.
This feeling is simply...
"Mutsuki- sensei."
Haruto quietly patted Mutsuki- sensei on the shoulder, stopping her.
"Um?"
As Mutsuki Shōkaku turned back...
"During the Konsō incident six months ago, my job wasn't much easier than yours."
"This time..."
"I will bring them all back, without missing a single one."
Haruto said with a smile.
"..."
"Good!"
What should we do after everyone is here?