Obtaining an Asauchi

Five years flew by, and at last, the day came for the Asauchi to be issued.

For the students of Shin'ō Academy, this was one of the most important moments of all. Receiving an Asauchi meant they were one step closer to becoming true Soul Reapers.

The ceremony was a grand affair. The students lined up and stepped forward one by one to receive their Asauchi from the instructor.

When Liu Ziyun's turn came, he took a deep breath and stepped forward.

"Liu Ziyun," the instructor called, handing him an Asauchi.

He accepted it with both hands. Feeling the chill of the scabbard, he felt a strange thrill rise in his heart.

Is this... my Zanpakuto?

Drawing on what he had learned from watching anime in his previous life, he immediately began pouring his spiritual power into the Asauchi—not in one large burst, but in a slow, steady stream.

At the same time, he kept the Asauchi with him at all times. He placed it beside his pillow when he slept, strapped it to his back when he trained, and kept it within reach when he ate. The only thing he hadn't done was take it into the bath with him. Considering that the blade might rust, he decided against it.

His roommates laughed at him when they saw this.

"Ziyun, are you dating that sword? You take it everywhere."

"It's called building a relationship," Liu Ziyun said solemnly. "Zanpakuto have souls. You have to communicate with them sincerely."

"Pfft, you make it sound real."

A month later, Liu Ziyun felt that the Asauchi in his hands really was a little different.

The hilt seemed to fit his hand better, and the weight felt more natural. Every now and then, he could even feel a faint pulse coming from the blade, like a heartbeat.

It's time to try Blade Zen.

Blade Zen involved communicating with a Zanpakuto through meditation and sensing the sword's soul, in preparation for its future Shikai.

Liu Ziyun chose a quiet night and sat cross-legged on the dormitory rooftop.

He laid the Asauchi across his legs, one hand on the hilt and the other gently stroking the blade. Closing his eyes, he focused his mind entirely on the sword.

Then... nothing happened.

No, not quite nothing. He felt faint resistance coming from the blade, as though something were rejecting his attempts to communicate.

Once, twice, three times...

Every time he practiced Blade Zen, he felt that resistance. The sword spirit seemed unwilling to speak with him.

Why? Liu Ziyun wondered. The Asauchi has already accepted my soul's imprint, so why won't it communicate with me? Am I still not strong enough? Or is it... something else?

After more than a dozen attempts, he gave up on Blade Zen for the time being and trained in Zanjutsu even more fiercely instead. Perhaps the sword spirit was testing his strength?

One evening after training, Liu Ziyun sat on a peak in the mountains behind the academy, holding his Zanpakuto as he watched the sun slowly sink below the horizon.

His body was exhausted after a full day of training, but his mind was clear.

Holding his sword, he gazed at the sunset, his thoughts drifting far away.

It's been five years since I came to Soul Society...

Training every day, hiding my strength, playing the "untalented but hardworking student"...

How much longer will this go on?

Am I going to keep hiding? Until I graduate? Until I join the Fourth Division? And then what? Keep hiding?

The last rays of the setting sun fell on his face, making his scar stand out in the light.

He felt dazed, caught between sleep and wakefulness.

Just then, a voice suddenly reached his ears. It was soft and indistinct, as though it had come from far away, yet also as though it had sounded from the depths of his heart.

What are you really afraid of?

Liu Ziyun's eyes flew open, all trace of sleep gone.

The voice came again, a little clearer this time.

Why do you still not understand...

Your fear is what's holding you back...

The voice stopped abruptly, as though it had never spoken at all.

Liu Ziyun sat frozen, his heart pounding.

He looked down at the Zanpakuto in his hands. Its blade reflected a dark red light beneath the setting sun.

Was that... the sword spirit speaking?

Was it asking me... what I'm afraid of?

He sat in silence for a long, long time.

Only when the sun had set completely did night fall and the stars appear.

After that day, Liu Ziyun made a decision.

He stopped carrying his Zanpakuto with him. Since the sword spirit was unwilling to communicate with him, there was no point in bringing it along.

He put the sword in a cabinet in his dormitory, locked it, and began a new round of training.

This time, he would not only train in Shunpo and Hakuda, but also build a "secret base."

Deep in the mountains behind Shin'ō Academy stood a long-abandoned mountain range. Liu Ziyun spent a month carving out a vast underground space inside it.

Tools? He used Kidō.

Digging? Hadō #31: Shakkahō, for directed blasts.

Reinforcement? Bakudō #37: Tsuriboshi, to form a support structure.

Soundproofing? A variety of barrier Kidō, used in turn.

A month later, an underground training ground as large as a soccer field and more than ten meters high had been born.

Liu Ziyun stood in the center of the open space, taking in the silence, and nodded in satisfaction.

This... is my own private training ground.

Here, I don't need to hide.

After two days of rest, he brought his Zanpakuto to the underground training ground.

This time, he didn't sit cross-legged and meditate. He drew his sword straight from its scabbard.

He gripped it with both hands, took a deep breath, and then—

Released his Reiatsu at full force!

For the first time in five years, he stopped suppressing himself and hiding his strength. His immense Reiatsu erupted like a volcano, flooding the entire underground space.

The air in the training ground began to warp. Loose stones were swept off the ground by his Reiatsu and hung suspended in the air.

"Hah—!!!"

Liu Ziyun swung his sword.

It was no longer the kind of feeble swing he used at the academy, but a strike with all his might! The blade tore through the air with a piercing shriek.

One slash, two, three...

He swung to his heart's content, letting everything loose. Zanjutsu, Shunpo, Hakuda, Kidō... every skill he had trained for five years was displayed here without reservation.

Sweat soaked his clothes and his breathing grew heavy, but he didn't stop.

An hour later, he stopped and leaned on his sword, panting.

That felt great! It was his only thought at that moment. Five years, and this is the first time I've felt so free!

After resting for a while, he sat cross-legged and laid the sword across his legs.

This time, he would try Blade Zen again.

But he wasn't going to make a request. He was going to... communicate.

He stroked the blade and murmured softly:

"I think... you should understand me."

"Yes, I was afraid."

"I was afraid of revealing my strength, of attracting attention, of Aizen setting his sights on me, of Yhwach making me a target..."

"But more than fear or dread..."

"I just... don't want trouble."

He paused, then continued:

"I want to join the Fourth Division because it's the safest place, the farthest from all that trouble."

"Aizen's Kyouka Suigetsu, Yhwach's The Almighty... those are all very troublesome abilities."

"Only when that trouble is far away can I show my power without restraint and avoid being done in by some underhanded scheme."

"I'm not afraid to fight them head-on... I just hate how devious they are, that's all."

He spoke earnestly and sincerely.

However...

What came from the blade was still unmistakable resistance.

And this time, the resistance also carried a certain... emotion?

Liu Ziyun paid close attention to the feeling and suddenly understood—

The sword spirit wasn't refusing to communicate. It was... sulking?

The feeling was clearly saying, "I heard your call, and I understand your explanation, but I just don't want to talk to you! Who told you to stop carrying me around like you used to for so long? Now you remember me? Hmph! I'm not talking to you!"

Liu Ziyun: "..."

He opened his eyes and looked at the sword in his hands, his expression complicated.

Damn... my Zanpakuto... is a tsundere?

He sighed and said to the sword:

"Big bro—no, big sis? That's not right either—brother sword? You're my Zanpakuto. What does it matter whether I carry you around? Whatever I do, it'd be hard for you not to know about it, wouldn't it? You're the power in the deepest part of my heart. Don't you know what I'm thinking and what I want to do?"

He paused.

"The reason I stopped carrying you around is that I know my soul has already been imprinted on the Asauchi. There's no need to carry you every moment like before to deepen the imprint."

"What I need to do now is communicate with you, call on you whenever and wherever I need you, and fight alongside you."

"Even without carrying the Asauchi, I should still be able to call you forth from within my heart. The Asauchi is only a means for you to communicate with me..."

He shook his head and sighed. "Forget it. I can't get through to you."

He returned his Zanpakuto to its scabbard and stood up.

In the underground training ground, the lingering Reiatsu was still slowly dissipating.

Liu Ziyun looked at the space he had built with his own hands and suddenly smiled.

No matter what...

There's still a long road ahead.

I'll take it slowly.

He turned and left, his footsteps echoing through the empty underground space.

In the darkness, the Zanpakuto in its scabbard flickered faintly.

As though in response.

And as though it were saying:

I heard you.

Wait a little longer.

It's not time yet.

Moonlight shone through a ventilation opening at the top of the training ground, casting a patch of silver on the floor.

The night at Shin'ō Academy was still long.

And the "tug-of-war" between Liu Ziyun and his Zanpakuto had only just begun.