He got up at five thirty in the morning, washed up, warmed up, swung his sword for half an hour, and ate breakfast.
After breakfast, he warmed up again and swung his sword for an hour.
After a fifteen-minute break, he sparred in Hakuda with his senior Yuzu for an hour.
He used Shunpo to get to the Shunpo training ground and trained in Shunpo for an hour.
After a fifteen-minute break, he practiced swordsmanship with Yuzu for an hour.
Lunch.
Two hours of Kidō practice after lunch.
An hour's rest in the Journal Hall.
Then another two hours of Kidō practice.
Dinner.
An hour of Kidō practice after dinner.
About two hours of reading in the Journal Hall.
Sleep.
That was Jun's daily schedule. Kidō practice generally had to be done at the Kidō training ground, but hardly anyone ever came to the Journal Hall. Aizen had told Jun that he could practice Kidō that didn't make too much noise there. It had originally been Aizen's own practice spot, but now the two of them shared it.
Even so, Aizen still went to the training ground for serious practice. After all, he had been studying for thirty-five years, and he himself said his Kidō ability was +4. His subsequent practice made quite a commotion, so it had to be done at the training ground.
Jun, however, didn't believe a single digit of Aizen's claim that he was at +4. According to common understanding in Soul Society, the difference between casting with an incantation and using Incantation Abandonment was about twenty levels. By that reckoning, Aizen's ability to cast a level-90 spell using Incantation Abandonment in the original work meant his level had already reached 110.
Yet later on, Aizen cast even a level-99 spell using Incantation Abandonment, so his level with an incantation was probably 120. Who knew whether Aizen could cast a level-100 Kidō spell using Incantation Abandonment if he knew one?
Only three people in the original work could match Kidō ability at that level. The first was that philosophical middle-aged man at Kisuke Urahara's side, the Kidō Corps' chief, Tessai Tsukabishi. The second was the pink-haired fat man in the Visored, the Deputy Kidō Chief Hachigen Ushōda. The last was the Captain-Commander, Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto.
The Captain-Commander could be left out of consideration among the three. He had lived for two thousand years, so his accumulation was on a different level. The other two Kidō Corps captains were only about evenly matched with Aizen. What did that mean? There was only one reason: Aizen had an insanely strong grasp of Kidō! That kind of comprehension could be called talent. There was no way his level had been only that high at the academy. Aizen was hiding his abilities even now.
Kidō really did require talent. It was like the sciences in the real world: math, physics, and chemistry. At school, some people could get perfect scores, while others couldn't pass no matter how hard they studied. Take Yumichika Ayasegawa of the 11th Division in the original work. He came from the 11th Division, a wasteland for Kidō, and as mentioned before, its members had spent little time at the academy. Yet his Kidō ability was no worse than the experts in the other divisions. That was talent.
Aizen was even more talented than Yumichika, and so was Jun. After spending more than half a month with Aizen, Jun finally reached this day.
"Crumbled beast's teeth, madman's ravings. Gather, turn back, and become a beast! Scatter! Hadō #10: Roar!"
A loud boom rang out. Aizen, who had been reading in the Journal Hall, suddenly rushed out and appeared at Jun's side in an instant, looking at what Jun had just done.
"Ah, um, haha..." Jun didn't know what to say. Today was his first time trying Hadō #10, the first Hadō that had an incantation. The previous Hadō had none, so Jun hadn't known this would make such a loud noise. Its power was also quite a bit greater than that of the Kidō he had used before.
Aizen looked at Jun in surprise. "Was that your first time casting number ten?"
"Yeah. Yesterday I thought I'd gotten pretty good at Wind Cut—Hadō #9: Wind Cut—so I wanted to try it today. Uh, I really didn't know it was this strong."
"Just as I thought..." Aizen sighed softly, then explained it to Jun.
Whether Hadō or Bakudō, the highest Kidō an ordinary Shinigami could generally learn was number 99. As for the final Kidō, ordinary Shinigami had never even heard of it, much less learned it.
The first three spells were basic instruction. The next six, up to number nine, were intermediate. Starting at number ten, the difficulty and power rose by one tier with every ten spells.
Numbers 1–3 were basic.
Numbers 4–9 were intermediate.
Numbers 10–19 were the first tier of power.
Numbers 20–29 were the second tier of power.
This continued up to number 89, making eight tiers of power.
Then, starting with number 90, Kurohitsugi, each Kidō represented a separate level of power, all the way up to number 99, Five Dragon Destruction, for a total of eighteen levels.
Of course, Aizen hadn't told Jun all that yet. He had only told Jun that the power changed starting with number ten, and that if he was practicing Hadō, he couldn't keep doing it here. Bakudō, however, wasn't a problem.
"Huh? Why?" Jun naturally objected. How could he give up such a good spot? "Whenever I go to the training ground, everyone gathers around to watch me. Ugh, I don't want to go."
Aizen didn't know whether to laugh or cry. "There's no helping it. Any more power could affect the mountain. The training ground is protected by a special barrier, but you absolutely can't practice higher-level Hadō here anymore."
"Power?" Jun had a clever idea. "Then I can just reduce the power, right?"
"Uh..." Aizen had no answer. "You're not wrong."
"Haha! Then I'll practice casting number ten without an incantation!"
Jun jumped for joy, while Aizen didn't know what expression to make. He could only fulfill his duty as a senior. "Jun, Incantation Abandonment is very difficult. The instructor requires us to wait until we can cast number twenty with an incantation before we start practicing it. Right now, you..."
"Why? Didn't the first nine spells have no incantations either? Haven't we actually been using Incantation Abandonment all along?"
"Uh..."
"Besides, I've never understood why casting with an incantation is stronger than using Incantation Abandonment."
As Jun spoke, he began to draw on Reishi, bit by bit, in the way number ten required and following the feeling he had gotten when he successfully cast it the first time. It was very slow, indeed much, much slower than using an incantation. The time difference could be as much as five to seven times.
But as he drew on the Reishi, he continued, "Hey, Aizen, when we use an incantation, we have to speak. Isn't the time spent speaking a waste? For example, if you want to cast Kidō in a fight, doesn't the time spent chanting give the enemy a chance to attack?"
"You're right about that."
"Then what's the point of an incantation? Do you have to work with others to use Kidō? Have your teammates hold the enemy off while you spend ages chanting before you attack? No wonder the Kidō Corps isn't as popular as the Gotei 13. Don't you think so?"
"Uh, I suppose that's how it is."
"Speaking of which, what do you think, Aizen?"
"What do I think? Um, pretty much the same as you, I suppose?"
"Hadō #10: Roar!"
Jun succeeded in casting it again—or rather, succeeded in using Incantation Abandonment for the first time. With such ability and talent, even Aizen had to see him in a new light. Jun looked over excitedly and saw the shocked expression on Aizen's face.
"Aizen! I did it!!"
"Uh, yes. Congratulations, Jun. Um, was today really your first time casting number ten?"
"Yeah, of course it was."
"That's amazing..."
Jun had been observing Aizen without interruption since the first time he met him. After all, the Aizen in the original work had left too deep an impression on Jun, and the original work had said nothing about Aizen's past. What had Aizen's past really been like? Jun was very curious.
All these days, including now, Jun had been watching him. What Jun had done today was deliberate. He had learned about the difference starting at number ten from Yuzu long ago. How could Yuzu and Isuzu not have told him about something like that? Even Nana knew.
It had been just over a month since Jun started practicing Kidō. From what he had learned, reaching number ten in a month was practically unprecedented. Isuzu Takasugi, who had the best aptitude for Kidō among the three girls, had taken three months to reach number ten and a full year to use Incantation Abandonment.
Jun didn't know exactly what Aizen's level was, but he knew his own performance was absolutely terrifying. So he wanted to shock Aizen with it and see if he could make him slip up. After all, this was still a young Aizen.
Jun was disappointed, however. Aizen's behavior fit his current persona perfectly: his congratulations to Jun, his shocked stammering, and his earlier well-meaning reminder. If all of that was acting too, then if Aizen had become an actor in Jun's previous life, every Oscar for best actor would surely have been his.
Casting without an incantation was indeed much less powerful than casting with one, and that had all been part of the plan. But Jun was a little disappointed that he hadn't gotten the information he wanted from Aizen. Still, disappointed or not, he had to keep up the act. "Hey, Aizen, if number ten is only this powerful, I can keep practicing here, right?"
Aizen paused again, then nodded. "That level of power is fine. Just remember not to blast the mountain with Kidō, and there shouldn't be any other problems."
"I understand."
"Then keep practicing, Jun. I'll go read the notes for a while longer."
"Okay, see you later, Aizen."
Jun watched Aizen return to the Journal Hall. On the surface, he was smiling as brightly as a beam of light, but inside, he was as dark as night.
That wasn't enough to make you drop the act? Or are you not yet the person you'll become? Which one is the truth? What did you go through to turn from someone harmless into the final boss? Or is everything a disguise?
If I can't learn the truth, I won't have a moment's peace. I don't want you suddenly appearing behind me when I'm hiding myself so well. This test failed, but that's all right. I have plenty of time and ways to try. As long as you don't graduate, we'll see.
Jun looked away, corrected his stance, and resumed practicing. Testing Aizen wasn't his only goal. Strengthening himself was the foundation of everything, just as Aizen had said to Ichigo on Sōkyoku Hill in the original work:
"Distance in a fight only has meaning when the opponents are equal in strength. So the distance between you and me means nothing."
Strength was what really mattered. Without enough strength, nothing meant anything.