Chapter 20

"In just half a day, my physical condition has already improved enough to see with the naked eye. The change wasn't as immediate or obvious as when I took it, but compared to how I was before, it's a world of difference."

Haruto had spent the entire afternoon experimenting with advanced Kidō he had never tried before.

It wasn't that he hadn't wanted to before. Training in advanced Kidō placed an enormous burden and strain on the body, and Haruto's physical condition simply hadn't allowed him to last long enough to cast a complete advanced Kidō.

But now, things had finally changed.

"Very nice."

Haruto's Reiatsu had fallen slightly, but it remained at the level of Seventh-Class Reii—when Haruto had been tested six months ago, he had already been past the entry level of Seventh-Class Reii, and before taking the Heavenly Bedding Pill, he had been close to reaching Sixth-Class Spiritual Pressure. In exchange, his physical condition, especially his ability to recover, had improved tremendously:

That morning, using the strengthened Byakurai had left Haruto's body numb and uncomfortable, but those symptoms had now vanished.

"Although I haven't had a chance to learn any of the higher advanced Kidō numbered seventy-five and above, the advanced Kidō in the sixties are enough to keep me studying for a long time... Learning them and mastering them are two different things."

The highest-numbered Kidō recorded in Nanao Ise's Kidō book was number seventy-five. Anything higher could only be found in various secret collections.

Haruto was accustomed to mastering a select few Kidō.

So.

When choosing advanced Kidō, he had stuck to the same approach: Hadō #63: Raikōhō, an advanced lightning-type Kidō that was a "super-enhanced" version of Byakurai; and Bakudō #63: Sajo Sabaku, an advanced spirit-binding Kidō that was a "super-enhanced" version of Hainawa.

Haruto also had a hidden compulsive streak, so his Hadō and Bakudō had matching numbers... As long as he had a choice, Haruto would almost certainly do this—

Of course, he was joking.

The main reason was that the other Kidō numbered in the sixties didn't suit Haruto's current needs very well.

Take Hadō #67, Raimeisan. Although it was also a lightning-type Kidō, rather than the powerful direct attacks common to that type, it leaned more toward attacking groups and also had some concealment capabilities.

Having too many effects meant it wasn't particularly strong in any one area.

Then there was Bakudō #61, Rikujōkōrō. Byakuya might have looked ridiculously cool using it, but the technique was actually very easy to miss with: the slightest error in judging space and distance would send the Bakudō, cast at the cost of a great deal of Reiatsu, straight into empty air.

For someone like Haruto, who cared so much about looking impressive, he would certainly have chosen Rikujōkōrō long ago if he weren't so bad at it.

Just then.

"Grrr~"

"..."

Haruto rubbed his empty stomach, a little embarrassed.

"I'll put that aside for now."

"Advanced Kidō isn't so easy to master. I'd better find somewhere to fill my stomach first. I spent noon practicing Shikai with Byakuya, and I still haven't eaten lunch."

That said.

Although the gates of Shin'ō Academy were still open, the free academy cafeteria had already closed.

If Haruto wanted to fill his stomach, he would have to find somewhere to eat in Rukongai... Prices inside Seireitei were simply outrageous.

But.

"Have I forgotten something?"

"..."

"Nanao!"

Haruto suddenly remembered.

Although Nanao Ise had gone to Shin'ō's main auditorium to get Lisa Yadōmaru's autograph, that wouldn't have taken long, and Nanao would surely have returned to the main training ground to watch—Haruto had been in a hurry to slip out of the crowd's sight, and had rushed all the way out with his rather unrefined Shunpo. By the time he reached the dormitory, Byakuya had latched onto him.

"I promised to study Hadō with her..."

In exchange for borrowing Nanao's Kidō book, Haruto helped her with her Kidō training. What had once been a deal between them had become their usual arrangement for several years now.

In particular, after each year's assessment, the two would find time to review it together.

Today's circumstances had been somewhat unusual, but since neither of them had objected, they should still have done it as usual.

"This is going to cost me again."

Haruto rubbed his forehead and headed for the gates of Shin'ō Academy.

Southeast Seireitei.

At the boundary between the noble district and the Seventh Division barracks lay a rather prosperous shopping street. Most of Soul Society's more famous shops had branches here, and some had even established their headquarters here outright.

As night fell, colorful lights began to illuminate the shopping street in brilliant splendor.

Haruto's destination was a mobile ramen stand located on the shopping street... at the corner, called Ōmae Kagura Ramen.

As its name suggested, it was property of the Ōmaeda Clan, and its proprietor was none other than Shinichiraku Ōmaeda, younger brother of the current lieutenant of the Second Division, Marechiyo Ōmaeda. The second son of the mid-ranking noble Ōmaeda Clan, he wore a pompadour like his older brother and was an imposing man who was enormous in every respect.

"Swish."

The curtain painted with white waves was slowly pulled aside, and Haruto entered the ramen shop he hadn't visited in a long time.

"Boss!"

"Clink."

Metal struck oil-soaked wood with a pleasant sound.

There were clearly no other customers in the shop, so Haruto picked a seat at random—the four high round stools, pressed close together, were quite crudely made and didn't look at all like furnishings someone of the owner's standing would use. Haruto placed a square, gleaming gold koban firmly on the counter.

"One Grand Slam!"

"Oh?"

Haruto's voice did catch the proprietor's attention, but the latter's tone made it clear he didn't care much.

"Kid, where did you get this?"

Shinichiraku Ōmaeda picked up the gold koban on the counter, which was barely larger than his fingernail.

"Young Master Byakuya's treat."

Haruto answered casually.

The valuable gold koban was the very coin Byakuya had used to signal the start of their match.

"...Tsk."

Hearing Haruto's answer, the proprietor, Ōmaeda, curled his lip in an unreadable expression.

Clearly, this wasn't his first time dealing with Haruto, either.

"Go on."

The gold koban dropped into Ōmaeda's pocket.

His massive body moved nimbly around the tiny shop, and his hands quickly got busy.

"What information do you need this time?"

This ramen shop's prices were even higher than those elsewhere on the shopping street, but the "goods" it sold were well worth the price. The Second Division and Eighth Division were undoubtedly Seireitei's best-informed organizations, and because of the Stealth Force, the Ōmaeda Clan always had access to certain special business opportunities and channels.

Using those to turn a profit...

Was also part of the "family business."

Of course.

Marechiyo Ōmaeda, as clan head and lieutenant of the Second Division, certainly couldn't handle such matters personally. At times like these, the importance of a younger brother became apparent.

"I want information on the Ise Clan of priests."

Haruto spoke directly.

"Not enough."

As expected, Ōmaeda shook his head, though his hands never stopped working. Whether or not the information deal went through, he certainly couldn't neglect Kagura Ramen's "Grand Slam"... That was the basis for doing business in the shop.

"You only need to tell me the address of the elderly couple who adopted Nanao Ise."

"What do you need that for?"

A professional information broker shouldn't, in principle, ask what the information would be used for... But Shinichiraku Ōmaeda was clearly only running the shop out of interest, and besides, Haruto, his junior, owed him a favor. So Ōmaeda had no qualms about asking.

"I missed an appointment this afternoon."

Haruto scratched the back of his head and spoke with some embarrassment.

"If I can, I plan to visit as soon as possible. Otherwise, it'll keep nagging at me."

"...That's it?"

Ōmaeda narrowed his eyes and asked in some disbelief.

He knew the kid before him wasn't well-off. One gold koban would be enough for him to live comfortably in Seireitei for quite some time, but now, this guy had come to buy expensive information from him just so he wouldn't "break a promise"—

"That's it."

Haruto nodded, then immediately added:

"If I had to give another reason..."

Haruto looked at Ōmaeda quite sincerely.

Although the first time he had seen Haruto, Ōmaeda had, like anyone else, thought that his narrowed eyes meant he was about to draw his sword and cut someone down, after dealing with him for so long, he could now make out enough of a smile through those narrow slits.

"Of course, it's because your ramen is tempting enough."

"...Hmph!"

Ōmaeda huffed through his nose in a very tsundere manner.

"At least you know what to say."

One minute and a quarter of an hour later, a bowl as large as an adult's head landed on the counter before Haruto with a "Duang."

"That'll be your bill!"

Pork-bone ramen.

A rich, heavy broth topped with a mountain of chashu, accompanied by generous portions of chopped scallions, bean sprouts, and sheets of seaweed—

This was Ōmae Kagura Ramen's Grand Slam, a super-sized bowl of ramen that could satisfy a big eater for an entire day.

"..."

Looking at the Grand Slam before him, Haruto, who had been eating light meals for nearly half a year, couldn't help swallowing hard.

It wasn't simply that he was craving it.

The food at Shin'ō Academy's cafeteria was quite good. Both the portions and the flavor were more than enough to meet the students' ordinary needs.

But the meals served in the cafeteria had no special effects, after all, and were very different from the super-sized bowl of ramen before him:

Eating was already one way for Soul Reapers to replenish their Reiatsu, and infusing food with Reiatsu was not something Captain Hikifune had pioneered.

The real difficulty lay in whether the person eating it could absorb a large amount of the infused Reiatsu.

Before hearing about Captain Kirio Hikifune from Byakuya today, Haruto had never thought along those lines. But when he remembered Ōmae Kagura Ramen, he realized what made the "Ōmaeda second-in-command" so formidable:

The ramen he made contained far more Reishi than any other food Haruto had eaten.

Such an ability...

Whether he had learned it from Captain Kirio Hikifune or developed it himself, it was quite monstrous.

The Ōmaeda Clan had some real ability to have stood firm as a subordinate family of the Shihoin Clan while controlling so much wealth.

"Let's eat!"

Two matches and half a day of training.

Haruto might not have been starving, but he had been hungry for quite a while.

Seireitei, southeastern noble district.

This area was near the edge of Seireitei and was more sparsely populated than other noble residential areas. But because the surroundings were relatively quiet, many elderly people who no longer concerned themselves with noble affairs lived here in retirement.

Of course.

Considering that anyone below the rank of mid-ranking noble wasn't even qualified to own a residence in Seireitei, those qualified to retire here were basically all high-ranking nobles.

"Hadō #31: Shakkahō!"