Chapter 124
"Leave the three strongest to me."
"The rest..."
"Consider this a test of everyone's training results over the past six months!"
Volume 1: 077, The Rain Doesn't Retreat When It Falls
"Start!"
The Vice-Captain Daijiji, who was also an examiner, gave the order.
"..."
However, the students did not immediately begin their ascent into the forest; most of the teams turned their attention to Haruto and his group's location.
Why are you looking at me?
Haruto smiled nonchalantly and said.
"I'm not going to steal your monsters, so just go wherever you want."
"..."
The two teams, clearly stronger than the others, exchanged glances, then made up their minds and charged into the dense forest without looking back.
"Whoosh!"
There's definitely no Shunpo, but the running speed is not slow.
When Soul Reaper move, they need to be careful with their Zanpakuto. They won't dart around in tree branches like in the other movie, nor will they carry their arms like wings on their backs... The strong just fly.
After setting an example, the rest of the team quickly followed suit and left.
Soon.
The already sparsely populated field was now left with Haruto and his group.
"A-Qing."
Ayaka whispered in Haruto's ear, standing on tiptoe.
"The examiner just shouted 'Start!'"
"... so what?"
Haruto turned around and glanced at Ayaka, that clever little devil.
Why don't we--
Ayaka made a very cute neck-slitting gesture.
Thump!
"Oops."
Haruto delivered a karate chop to Ayaka's forehead.
"You're always full of tricks."
"If you kick everyone out right at the start, do you think the sages will allow it... A rematch is the least of our worries; they might just ban us from playing altogether."
"Ah?"
The Ayaka are obviously fake.
"If we can't even graduate with our current level of ability, won't it be difficult to convince others?"
A girl who truly understands strategy will subtly make a boy feel that she is very clever.
"You idiot Ayaka, we'll just get you promoted to the Gotei 13 then."
At this moment, Kiyone, who interrupted, was clearly not as good at gauging her words as Ayaka.
"Eh~"
Ayaka gave Kiyone a meaningful look.
"..."
To retract my earlier statement, Kiyone's simple and unpretentious recklessness might actually be a sign of great wisdom appearing as foolishness... even if it wasn't for her own sake.
"Alright."
During the duo's usual bickering.
Nanao watched them playfully bickering with a calm expression, while Isane wore a loving yet slightly embarrassed smile.
Haruto could only stop the two of them in time.
"Two minutes..."
"That's enough for these people to run quite far."
Increased Reiatsu can enhance physical attributes, but for Soul Reaper who don't Bone Strike techniques like Hakuda, the enhancement won't be drastic.
In other words...
Without using Shunpo, the Soul Reaper's normal walking or running speed is not as disparate as the difference in combat power.
"Our classmates are scattered quite a bit..."
"Everyone, please choose a direction?"
This was part of a pre-arranged plan, and the allocation of tasks was quite swift.
"You guys go after them."
Since each person is responsible for two teams, it's essential to observe the direction beforehand.
"A-Qing, aren't you leaving?"
"I'll wait a bit longer. The strongest Hollow hasn't made a move yet, and I have a bad feeling about it."
"... Then be careful."
The void of the Fifth-Class Reii.
During the past six months of special training against the Void, Haruto has already taken down five creatures of similar strength, so no one would think that Haruto would be unable to deal with it.
"Good."
Haruto nodded.
Soon, only Haruto remained in the open space.
At this time--
"Yo!"
The Vice-Captain Daijiji, who had been observing from the sidelines, walked towards Haruto.
As soon as he gave the order to begin, he directed his ten Soul Reaper to quickly follow the last of each squad.
Although these Soul Reapers were not Seated Officers, they were all elites personally selected by the Vice-Captain Daijiji, and they all seemed to be in excellent spirits.
"Haruto, right?"
"Vice-Captain Daijiji."
Haruto bowed slightly.
With thick eyebrows, big eyes, a square face, and a towering physique exceeding two meters, this Daijiji Kū Seigen gives off a very upright impression.
"It's so good to be young!"
Looking in the direction the team had left, Daijiji sighed from the bottom of his heart.
"At such a young age, he's already managed to organize such a high-quality harem..."
Even in places where the sunlight is blocked by the trees, Daijiji still reveals its bright and shining teeth.
She even gave Haruto a thumbs-up.
"You have a bright future ahead of you, Haruto!"
As for what aspect of quality he was referring to, neither of them went into detail.
"They're partners."
Haruto corrected him decisively.
"Ha ha!"
Daijiji tried to pat Haruto on the back, but he easily dodged it with a slight shake.
"At my age, my eyesight is still very good. Anyway, the girls aren't around, so there's no need to hide it like this."
Daijiji, however, didn't seem to care about his dodging at all.
"..."
"Vice-Captain Daijiji, I suggest you watch your words."
Haruto harbored considerable wariness towards Daijiji.
After all, he was the vice-captain who had been summoned by the sages and nobles to handle some matters, and given the Tenth Division's current poor reputation...
It's always better to stay away.
But.
Haruto had to admit that talking about these kinds of topics always subtly brought men closer together.
Therefore, he had no choice but to make his point clear:
"If the Eighth Division heard what we just said, we'd both be in big trouble."
"Besides."
Haruto immediately added after speaking:
"Just say what you need to say. I'm not good at beating around the bush with older men."
The expression on Daijiji's face showed a moment of surprise.
"Huh?"
"I also think this will quickly build rapport with young people."
But there was no indication of hostility or anything like that.
"... All right."
Seeing that Haruto remained unmoved, Daijiji could only continue his one-man show.
I didn't expect you to be so wary of me.
I thought we'd be on the same wavelength.
"A fellow traveler?"
Haruto frowned almost imperceptibly.
"Yes."
Daijiji glanced silently in the direction of the audience seats, his loud voice dropping several octaves.
"They got rich by relying on the nobility. I know young people are shy, but it's not shameful at all."
Then she quickly shifted her gaze back to Haruto.
"Those guys are washed up."
The monks at Daijiji were criticizing the nobles, but their conversation remained completely audible.
Haruto was very familiar with this move:
The modified version of Tenteikūra is different from Haruto's modification in that it is more like a one-way transmission of sound.
Judging from their words and actions, they won't be of much help to my future promotion to team leader. It would be good enough if they didn't hold me back.
Daijiji's smile appeared honest and simple, but its words behind the scenes were utterly ruthless.
But you are different.