Chapter 17

"A fragment of a Vasto Lorde Menos Grande's Reiatsu."

"..."

Haruto was genuinely shocked this time.

He knew that the Seireitei Research Institute founded by Kirio Hikifune was the predecessor of the Research and Development Institute that Kisuke Urahara would later establish.

But who would have thought that research into Hollows had begun this early... Analyzing opponents was perfectly normal, but turning part of a Hollow into food seemed to Haruto no less extreme than Hollowfication.

And as the highest class of Menos Grande, fewer than ten Vasto Lorde had ever existed in Hueco Mundo's entire history. Where had Kirio Hikifune gotten a fragment of one's Reiatsu?

"A Vasto Lorde..."

"Captain Hikifune couldn't have gone straight to Hueco Mundo and killed one, then brought back a fragment to study, could she?"

Haruto chose his words carefully as he asked.

Haruto had no doubt about Kirio Hikifune's fighting ability. Although the requirement for joining the Zero Division was to create something of great significance to Soul Society, personal strength was just as fundamental a requirement.

She certainly couldn't compare to her strength after joining the Zero Division and undergoing Ōken modification, but she was far beyond any ordinary Captain-level fighter.

Defeating a Vasto Lorde...

Kirio Hikifune was capable of it.

"No, that's not what happened."

Byakuya shook his head.

"I don't know the details, but Father mentioned it once. It should have been obtained through our family's channels."

"..."

That was just how obscenely wealthy the great noble clans were.

It made sense, really: without the Kuchiki Clan's backing, Kirio Hikifune's experiment certainly wouldn't have been approved by the Central 46 Chambers so easily in the first place. And if the most important material hadn't come from the Kuchiki Clan, they wouldn't have obtained this from Kirio Hikifune so easily either.

Perhaps...

The Heavenly Bedding Pill had been intended for Kuchiki Sōjun in the first place.

"Nice."

Haruto gave Byakuya a thumbs-up.

"And then?"

"Did this Heavenly Bedding Pill actually work? Otherwise, how did something so valuable end up in your hands?"

"Of course it worked!"

Byakuya immediately retorted at Haruto's question.

"It's just..."

"There were a few minor side effects."

Haruto had known things wouldn't be that simple, though that didn't stop him from teasing Byakuya.

"Do you start putting on a mask without realizing it?"

"What are you talking about?"

Byakuya looked at Haruto in complete bewilderment.

"Nothing, nothing. Go on, go on—"

"..."

Byakuya glanced at Haruto, resisting the urge to take the Heavenly Bedding Pill back.

"A body modified by the Heavenly Bedding Pill will continuously absorb Reiatsu to strengthen the body and muscles. The effect is most pronounced when it's first taken. After that, the amount absorbed each time decreases significantly, but you can't stop it at will."

"And taking more doesn't help."

"Those were all the conclusions my father reached after taking it."

Byakuya conveyed this information to Haruto very seriously.

"So, basically..."

Haruto thought for a moment, then picked up the conversation.

"After I swallow this Heavenly Bedding Pill, my Reiatsu will accumulate more slowly, but my body will grow stronger by absorbing Reiatsu?"

"That's right."

Byakuya nodded in confirmation.

"...Then I understand."

Considering Kirio Hikifune's ability and Kuchiki Sōjun's physical condition, the Heavenly Bedding Pill's effect was indeed suited to the problem.

"This thing..."

Haruto gently tossed the Heavenly Bedding Pill into the air.

"I really can use it."

His teeth closed around the Heavenly Bedding Pill, catching it cleanly, and he rolled it forcefully down his throat.

"Gulp."

He swallowed it.

Haruto knew his own condition well.

His talent for accumulating and using Reiatsu was first-rate; otherwise, he couldn't have reached Seventh-Class Reii in just five years. But on the other hand, even with the benefit of his "dual souls," his physical abilities hadn't improved in the slightest—

Of course, it was also possible that his body was struggling under the burden of the dual souls.

It was his body, not his Reiatsu, that limited his performance. If Haruto had Kenpachi's body, he could fire Byakurai continuously like a heavy machine gun.

If he could sacrifice some of his Reiatsu growth for a better body, Haruto considered it a deal he couldn't lose on.

"How is it?"

Byakuya had never expected Haruto to act so decisively.

Soul Reapers placed great importance on Reiatsu. Normally, when faced with a medicine that negatively affected it, they would certainly deliberate for a long time before making a decision.

If not for how severely his physical condition affected him, his father, Kuchiki Sōjun, would never have considered taking it.

Of the Heavenly Bedding Pills Kirio Hikifune had made, the one Haruto had just swallowed was actually the last.

As for the first one...

A seriously ill member of the Thirteenth Division had volunteered to be the first test subject.

"..."

Haruto looked down at his fingers and flexed them nimbly. After giving it some thought, he answered:

"It's working, but it's different from what you described."

His physical condition hadn't improved immediately, but his body was indeed growing stronger in exchange for slower Reiatsu growth.

"It's different from Father's condition... Could it be because your Reiatsu is too weak?"

Byakuya was clearly very curious about Haruto's condition as well.

"Couldn't it be that your father's Reiatsu and physical abilities were too far apart?"

"It's not like you're much better, you know?"

Byakuya looked Haruto up and down before retorting:

"I can't help feeling it was a bit of a waste to give you such a precious pill."

"Why didn't you say that before you gave it to me?"

Haruto promptly rolled his eyes at Byakuya. As for whether the brat saw it, that depended entirely on how observant he was; it definitely wasn't because Haruto's eyes were too small.

"It's true. I only swiped the Heavenly Bedding Pill from home because your Hakuda and Shunpo hadn't improved in six months."

"Now that I look at it, this is pretty different from what I imagined."

After Byakuya's father took the Heavenly Bedding Pill, his complexion had visibly improved, and in about a week, he'd been able to attend meetings with Grandfather as usual.

Haruto, on the other hand—

"By the time you've made any progress in all four of Zankensōki, I'll probably already be a captain in the Gotei 13."

"Keep dreaming."

Haruto rose from his cross-legged position. In Byakuya's blind spot, tiny sparks emerged from his fingertips, which rested against the hem of his skirt.

"As for which of us will become a captain first..."

"That's really hard to say."

Byakuya had left.

Though his words were harsh, he actually valued their friendship greatly.

On the surface, he had come to show Haruto his Shikai, but his main purpose had been to give him the valuable Heavenly Bedding Pill.

Otherwise, there would have been no need to deliberately choose a secluded place that only nobles knew about. As Haruto knew him, Byakuya was the sort who would have loved for all of Seireitei to know he could use Shikai.

"Kirio Hikifune."

Haruto was still quietly feeling the changes in his body.

After saying, "Remember to close the door when you leave," Byakuya had left the place entirely to Haruto.

"She's someone the Zero Division chose. Just look at the members selected for the Zero Division before her: the inventor of the Zanpakuto, the inventor of the Shihakushō, and the user of the strongest Kaidō and fastest Shunpo among Soul Reapers, who also invented the White Bone Blood Pond."

"How could the Kuchiki Clan guard an important item obtained from her so loosely that Byakuya could get his hands on it so easily?"

For anyone else,

It might have been impossible to understand how formidable Kirio Hikifune was before her promotion to the Zero Division, but Haruto was different.

"I owe the Kuchiki Clan a huge favor."

Haruto shook his head, a little helplessly.

"If the secret Byakurai teachings and Shunpo techniques were just small favors, then this Heavenly Bedding Pill was definitely worth a fortune."

Byakuya seemed impulsive in what he did, but he was extremely loyal when it came to keeping secrets. He certainly wouldn't repeat the information Haruto had told him to his family.

That meant the Kuchiki Clan's kindness wasn't the sort of wager nobles loved to make—

"Kuchiki Sōjun."

Haruto recalled the gentle, kindly face of Byakuya's father. He had first met Kuchiki Sōjun in a traditional room at the Kuchiki residence.

"He really spoils Byakuya."

Haruto couldn't help remarking on it.

"..."

"Whew!"

Haruto stood there for a long time. Finally, he stopped dwelling on it and regained the mindset he needed.

"Hadō #4."

Haruto raised his index finger toward the distant wall.

"Byakurai!"

A dazzling bolt of electricity instantly pierced the air, creating a clear flicker of light and shadow on the wall.

"..."

The changes in his body before and after casting the Kidō were plain to see.

The Reiatsu-enhanced Byakurai was no different in power, but the damage and pain in his body's channels were more than fifty percent less than from the shot at the training ground. Not only that, the numbness, which had originally taken three or four seconds to wear off, vanished in less than half a second.

It had consumed some additional Reiatsu, presumably to repair his body.

"Unlike what Byakuya said, the change wasn't very obvious when I first took it."