Chief of the Great Kidō Corps

Brilliant!

Even the teachers watching the match cried out in amazement. Yoruichi's response had been flawless. Pinned to the floor, the only way she could turn things around was with ground fighting, and she had actually found that tiny opening!

Yoruichi moved with incredible speed. Her legs clamped tightly around Lu Li, then coiled around him like supple vines.

Lu Li's gaze sharpened. He had not let his guard down, but Yoruichi's move had indeed caught his weakness. Of all fighting opponents, he found those skilled in ground fighting the most troublesome.

In his original world, he had defeated several experts in that field. Yet he did not think ground fighting was ineffective—it was simply because his strength had far surpassed theirs, allowing him to break technique with brute force.

But things were different now. Yoruichi's spiritual body was about as strong as his at the moment, and she had originally been even stronger. He no longer had the advantage of overwhelming power. If she wrapped him up and locked him down, he would be the one to lose.

In an instant, as though by instinct, Lu Li sprang up into a backflip. The long legs that had been winding toward his neck stalled, and the situation reversed once more.

If Yoruichi did not adjust her posture, her head would hit the floor first. But if she did adjust, her legs would not be able to lock Lu Li down.

That single moment of hesitation decided the outcome.

No one had expected Lu Li to reach down and brace himself against the floor midair. There was no impact like Yoruichi had anticipated. As she adjusted her posture, Lu Li switched moves, twisting at the waist and flinging her away.

Before Yoruichi could rise, a straight punch had already stopped before her face. The gust from it lifted the tips of her hair, and sweat slid from her forehead into her orange eyes, where the shock had yet to fade.

Lu Li slowly rose from his half-crouch. "You let me win."

Holding back at the very end was not because he had any tender feelings for a woman. He had simply remembered sparring with Teacher Fujimoto. If that punch had actually landed, the injured one probably would not have been Yoruichi, but him.

The dojo was terrifyingly quiet. Only after several breaths did gasps rise from the crowd.

"The she-devil actually lost!?"

"The Shihōin Clan's Hakuda... lost to a Transfer Student?"

"Isn't Yoruichi the Shihōin Clan's genius? How could she lose..."

"I remember... Yoruichi even beat a teacher in a Hakuda sparring match, didn't she?"

"..."

Amid the uproarious crowd, Aizen stood there expressionlessly. Yet his heart was far less calm than his face suggested, his eyes tightly following Lu Li's retreating figure.

He had actually defeated Yoruichi Shihouin... Was he this formidable even in Hakuda?

What exactly was there that you were not good at?

"You really never learned Hakuda?"

After getting up, Yoruichi looked at Lu Li with a complicated expression. From the conversations around her, she roughly understood his situation. He had previously been nothing more than a drifter from Rukongai District.

"No one in Rukongai District would teach me Hakuda. I just figured out a few fighting techniques on my own."

Lu Li explained. Naturally, he could not reveal that he came from another world, so he could only gloss it over.

And if he wanted to graduate early, he could not hide his abilities like Aizen, playing weak while concealing his strength. He had to shine with everything he had in order to earn early graduation.

"Hmph, don't get cocky. I was a little careless at the start. Next time, I'll definitely beat you!"

Yoruichi snorted. She clearly did not quite believe Lu Li's explanation. In her eyes, Lu Li's fighting style seemed wild, as though he fought purely on instinct, but it actually had structure. He had definitely received systematic training.

Looking at Yoruichi's expression, Lu Li found it somewhat amusing. He had not expected the mature, alluring Yoruichi from the original story to have had such a girlish period. She was just like a child. "Talk after you beat me."

With that, he walked toward Aizen. "Sōsuke, want to spar?"

Yoruichi watched Lu Li's back, grinding her teeth in anger. She truly had been careless at the beginning, but she did not dare claim that she could have certainly beaten Lu Li even if she had gone all out from the start. This Transfer Student really was a Hakuda expert.

Since childhood, she had never lost to anyone in Hakuda. No, she had to win. Not for the Shihōin Clan's honor—she simply could not swallow this insult.

Thinking of Lu Li's kicks aimed below the belt made her grit her teeth in fury. She swore that next time, she would kick his balls apart!

Lu Li, who was sparring with Aizen, suddenly felt a chill run down his spine. His movements slowed by a fraction, and Aizen's seemingly casual fist struck him in the chest.

Aizen also gave Lu Li a strange look, wondering whether Lu-kun was going easy on him to save his pride.

For the rest of the class, Lu Li sparred with Aizen, and Aizen humbly asked Lu Li many questions about Hakuda.

Of course, Lu Li did not actually know this world's Hakuda. Still, he taught Aizen some practical fighting techniques as he understood them. Aizen's performance during their sparring was ordinary, though, so Lu Li could not tell whether he had truly learned them.

Several times, Lu Li nearly could not stop himself from asking Aizen whether it was tiring to keep up this act and whether he could just fight properly.

"Lu-kun might make a good teacher. I learned a great deal in this class."

After class, Aizen praised him. He truly had gained quite a bit, though he had not shown it during their sparring.

Lu Li's unconstrained and imaginative combat mindset was something Aizen felt he needed to study. Perhaps it would be of great use to his future endeavors.

"By the way, Lu-kun, have you encountered Kido before?"

Aizen asked. Their next class was Kido.

As Lu Li looked at the tall middle-aged man before him—wearing reflective glasses, sporting a strange horn-like hairstyle, and dressed in a dark blue robe—he felt that this world really was fascinating.

Good heavens, wasn't this Hachigen Ushōda, the Chief of the Great Kidō Corps? He was actually still teaching at the True Spirit Arts Academy at this time?

"Lu-kun, you can't lose focus in this class. Teacher Ushōda is the Chief of the Great Kidō Corps, and he only teaches at the academy for one month each year."

Aizen reminded him.

Lu Li internally cried out in amazement. He had not expected that this uncle, who would later work at Manager Urahara's shop, had already become the Chief of the Great Kidō Corps so early on.

One glance at the students' reverent attitudes showed his standing in their hearts. Every one of them sat ramrod straight and listened intently, afraid of missing some "truth of Kido."

"I heard we have a Transfer Student today, so I'll first go over the basic principles of Kido. Those of you who have heard this before need not be disappointed, because truth is often contained within the fundamentals..."

As Hachigen Ushōda spoke, his gaze paused on Lu Li for a moment. Though it was only Lu Li's first day at the academy, he had already become a prominent figure there, and Hachigen had heard about him.

The other students were not impatient, either. They listened earnestly as Hachigen Ushōda explained the basics.

Lu Li listened with great interest as well. This was his first encounter with supernatural abilities. Though he was a fervent martial arts enthusiast, he was not uninterested in the Kido abilities of the Shinigami world. If used well, Kido might have remarkable effects in battle.

This strangely dressed uncle was unexpectedly good at teaching. Through his clear and accessible explanations, Lu Li quickly understood what Kido was.

First, Kido was divided into three types: Hadō, Bakudō, and Healing Kidō.

Simply put, one manipulated the spiritual power within one's body through incantations, thereby forming all kinds of Kido.

Incantations were not necessary for casting Kido. Their greatest purpose was like constructing a mold, helping a Shinigami shape their Kido. If one was highly proficient in a particular Kido, one could forgo the incantation and cast it instantly.

Ordinary Shinigami, however, did not possess such exceptional talent in spiritual power control, and most could not cast Kido instantly. Those with greater talent could only forgo the incantations for some low-level Kido. Only people with freakish talent in Kido could cast high-level Kido without incantations.

For example, the seemingly harmless classmate Sōsuke Aizen beside him.

"Aizen, you seem to be fairly close with the new student. You can guide him in casting low-level Kido."

When the lesson was nearly over, Hachigen Ushōda spoke from the front of the room, calling on Aizen by name.

Aizen did not seem surprised. He had indeed concealed his abilities in every subject, but even so, his Kido grades still ranked among the best.

And he was also very curious about Lu Li's talent in Kido. This time, he could test it with his own hands.