The First Day of Training (Part 1)

Inner world, atop the Demon World Tree.

Hu lay on the ground, while the Zanpakutō spirit stood with his sword sheathed.

"How are you so strong? How am I supposed to win?"

"What's wrong, Hu? Giving up already? And you want to use Judgment Cut with that kind of stamina?"

"You're cheating! You've got Beowulf's weapons, Summoned Swords, and Yamato, and you keep throwing Summoned Swords at me. You just had me dangling in the air while you beat me up forever." Hu remembered being beaten while suspended in the air. Luckily, they were in his inner world, so he hadn't suffered any real damage, but it still hurt too much to bear.

"All of these are your powers too. In theory, you can perform every one of those moves. You only have three days to learn my true name and master the power of Shikai. You'll have to go through all of this. The night is still long, and you have a lot to learn." The sword in the Zanpakutō spirit's hand flashed, transforming into gauntlets and greaves on his limbs. He assumed the exact same stance Hu had used against the masked man. "Let's start by getting you familiar with this power you've used before!"

"Ugh..." Hu sighed and took up almost the same stance. "Bring it on, then!"

The two fought once again...

A long time passed. The sun was already high in the sky when Hu opened his eyes in his room and got out of bed with a sigh. Mastering Beowulf meant fighting constantly, accumulating combat experience, tempering his fighting spirit, and forging an aura of his own. It truly lived up to the name Beowulf. "Beowulf, you're really hard to master," Hu muttered to himself.

"Beowulf? Is that the name of your Zanpakuto?"

A man's voice sounded beside Hu.

Startled by the sudden voice, Hu turned around and saw a one-armed man sitting beside his bed. The man wore a purple haori, had his hair tied in a high ponytail, and wore a patch over his right eye.

"Excuse my intrusion. Princess Shaoling ordered me to come and instruct you in Zanjutsu. I'm also the examiner for your 'Zanjutsu' assessment. My name is Cilian." The man bowed slightly in greeting and continued,

"Three hours ago, I was supposed to teach you how to perform Zanjutsu meditation and begin your Zanjutsu practice. But when I entered your room, I found that you were already in a state of Zanjutsu meditation. Were you drawn into your inner world by your Zanpakuto?"

"Yeah. That guy dragged me in as soon as I fell asleep last night. He said he was helping me get familiar with my powers, then beat me to a pulp." Hu almost wanted to cry, but had no tears.

"What an impatient Zanpakuto. Returning to my earlier question, is Beowulf your sword's name? Have you already reached Shikai?" Cilian asked.

"No, Beowulf is one of my sword's fighting styles. I still don't know its true name," Hu explained.

"Fighting styles? Does your sword have multiple forms?"

"Not exactly. There's only one sword, but it has a lot of fighting techniques, four styles in all. According to him, after Shikai, although each has its own corresponding weapon, its main form is still a single katana."

"Then is the condition for learning its true name to master all four styles?"

"He didn't say outright. He just started training me as hard as he could, so I think that's probably it."

"Not necessarily." Cilian stroked his sword with his only hand, his right. "Your Zanpakuto knows you better than anyone in this world, and cares about you more than anyone else. They act according to their master's deepest wishes, not the reality of the situation. What they take the initiative to do for us is always for our own good, but it won't necessarily help you reach your current goal...

"Is your deepest wish right now to learn its true name and pass the 'Zanjutsu' assessment?"

Hu pondered that. Probably not? Then why was he training him so hard?

Cilian sighed. "Zanjutsu training takes up four hours in the morning and two hours before bed. There isn't enough time left this morning to teach you much. I'll come teach you Zanjutsu meditation tonight. For now, get up and go to the training hall to practice basic Zanjutsu."

With that, Cilian handed him the training clothes he had prepared. Once Hu had put them on, Cilian ignored his complaints and dragged him straight to the training hall.

"I haven't even eaten breakfast. How am I supposed to have the strength to train?" Hu complained as he was dragged into a small training hall.

"Training in the Fon Clan is no joke. Because you could communicate with your Zanpakuto from the start, you've been given an extremely short time for your 'Zanjutsu' assessment. Normally, the 'Zanjutsu' assessment requires the longest training period, so ordinary instruction might not be suitable for you." Cilian pulled his sword from behind his back.

"Um..." Seeing Cilian like this, Hu knew exactly what he intended. "I've never studied Kendo systematically. Isn't using a real sword a bit..."

Cilian thrust his sword at him without another word. Hu instinctively raised his Zanpakuto and parried the thrust with his sheathed Asauchi.

"You've never studied swordsmanship systematically? That's quite a joke. The way you hold your sword, your instinctive reaction just now, and the shape of the muscles beneath your clothes all prove that not only have you practiced swordsmanship for years, you also have your own habits and style." Cilian attacked as he spoke, while Hu kept blocking instinctively. "I don't know why you'd tell such a lie, and I'm not interested in finding out. The only thing I need to do is raise the skills you acquired as a mortal to a Soul Reaper's level!"

Hu was at a loss for words. He'd been beaten up in his sleep, and now he had to take another beating after waking up? With no other choice, he drew his sword and met Cilian's blade.

"A Zanpakuto is a reflection of a Soul Reaper's heart. Since your sword has four different fighting styles... that means the beginnings of those four styles exist within you." Cilian pressed his blade against Hu's, sending sparks flying as the steel scraped together. "Show me this Beowulf you mentioned..."

There was a rational firmness in both Cilian's single eye and his words. Though he had only one arm, his Zanjutsu was nimble and fierce, attacking Hu continuously from multiple angles.

Hu grinned. You want to see Beowulf? Then I'll show you.

Cilian gathered his strength and thrust straight at Hu.

At that moment, a violet, lightning-like light flashed in Hu's eyes. Both hands abruptly released his sword! Before it hit the floor, his forward momentum not only continued, but surged as he twisted his waist and drove his hips forward. The fingers of his freed hands drew together, and his knuckles were instantly coated in a dark, steel-like sheen with faint blue patterns flowing through it. A terrifying pressure rippled outward as if it were solid, and the air grew heavy.

His right fist! With no flourish, he pivoted from his shoulder and bent his body like a bow, driving a punch straight at Cilian's exposed chest. The air compressed around his fist with a muffled boom, and the invisible pressure of the wind swept up Cilian's bangs before the punch even reached him. It was a primal, violent force, as though it could shatter a mountain!

Faced with the sudden blow, Cilian's gaze was violently disturbed, like a boulder plunging into a deep pool, mingling astonishment with the sharpness of finally seeing the real thing. He retreated, his single arm tracing a semicircle before him as his blade flashed like a ribbon, trying to deflect the straightforward punch. But the fist was too fast and too fierce. The blade barely scraped along its outer edge with an ear-splitting screech, failing to divert it completely.

"Bang—!"

A muffled impact rang out, utterly unlike the clear ringing of blades before, like a heavy hammer striking a leather-wrapped anvil. Cilian's body drifted smoothly backward, both feet carving two clear, shallow tracks into the floor before he steadied himself. A clear fist-shaped outline had been strangely scorched into the clothing over his left chest, wisps of heat rising from its edges.

"That's Beowulf! Pretty amazing, isn't it? Hahaha!"

Hu laughed smugly. Though Cilian had been shocked by the blow, he quickly recovered and glanced at Hu. "Did you forget this is Zanjutsu training?"

Hu's laughter stopped abruptly.

"Why didn't you say Beowulf was a hand-to-hand fighting technique sooner?"

"You didn't ask..."

"All right, all right." Cilian put away his sword. "The morning's about over. Go eat lunch, and come back here before one this afternoon. Starting today, this training hall is your training room. Your Hakuda instructor will be waiting for you here this afternoon. Show them your Beowulf then."