Teacher Unohana's Lesson

Teacher Unohana's Lesson

"Ah? Why?"

Lu Li asked. After spending two days with Aizen, he had found it quite convenient to treat him as a little encyclopedia of shinigami knowledge. Yet now, Aizen was going to part ways with him.

"The first class this afternoon is an Elective Course. I chose Calligraphy. Didn't you want to study Healing Kidō, Lu-kun? The two classes conflict."

Only as Aizen explained did Lu Li notice that he had been carrying a small bag all day. Inside were his calligraphy supplies.

"Who's substituting for Healing Kidō now?"

Lu Li curiously asked the Aizen-brand encyclopedia.

"Lu-kun..."

Aizen looked at Lu Li somewhat helplessly. "I don't know everything. The teachers for Elective Courses are always changing. Whoever has time fills in, basically. How could I possibly know who it is today?"

"Oh, I see. No problem. I'll find out once class starts."

Lu Li got up and rubbed his stomach. "I'm not going back to the dorm at noon. I want to get a better feel for Shunpo."

Watching Lu Li's retreating figure, Aizen muttered inwardly that he had always thought he worked hard enough. He had never expected his roommate to be such a hard worker too.

The only difference was that Aizen worked hard in secret, while Lu Li did it openly.

"We meet again. Have you adjusted to life at the Spirit Arts Academy?"

A gentle, pleasant voice came from the podium at the front. Its owner was smiling at Lu Li.

Lu Li glanced at the 'Luck: 1' on his personal menu. Did he count as one of the lucky ones?

He had to, right? He had just wanted to learn Healing Kidō, and the substitute teacher for this class had turned out to be a supreme master of the art.

"I have Captain Unohana to thank. Otherwise, I'd still be going hungry in Rukongai District. The Spirit Arts Academy's food is very good."

Lu Li thanked her sincerely. Without Unohana, even if he could have entered the Seireitei, joining the True Spirit Arts Academy would have taken some effort. Most terrifyingly, he would probably have gone hungry for another two days.

"Your main concern is actually the food? Also, you should call me Teacher here."

Unohana thought he was truly an unusual child. Over the past two days, she had heard quite a few things about Lu Li's performance at the True Spirit Arts Academy, and she found it very interesting.

That was why she had specifically come to the True Spirit Arts Academy to substitute for a class today. She mainly wanted to see Lu Li again, but she had not expected to find him right in her classroom.

She had thought he was merely a promising student with exceptional combat talent, but he had also chosen Healing Kidō as an elective.

Then... was your purpose in choosing Healing Kidō to become a support specialist, or... to become like me?

At that thought, a dangerous curve lifted at the corner of Unohana's lips, sending a chill through Lu Li.

"Bakudō and Hadō have relatively rigorous ranking systems, but Healing Kidō does not. It is a form of Kido used for healing and requires no incantation..."

Unohana explained the fundamentals of Healing Kidō from the podium. Although many of the students present already knew the basics by heart, no one voiced any objection.

Most of the students admired the gentle and beautiful Captain Unohana. A small number found Captain Unohana rather frightening at times and did not dare act out of line.

Lu Li listened with great interest, constantly taking notes in the new notebook he had 'borrowed' from Aizen.

After listening to Unohana finish the basics, he realized that Healing Kidō might be the most difficult of the three forms of Kido.

Precisely because it required no incantation, Healing Kidō was more difficult to cast. After all, it relied even more heavily on a shinigami's control.

As Healing Kidō was currently understood in Soul Society, it was the repair of spiritual bodies—using Spirit Particles to mend them. This was an extremely precise operation, not something an ordinary person could accomplish.

According to Aizen, more than a hundred students across all grades chose Healing Kidō each year, yet fewer than ten shinigami ultimately earned a passing grade in the course.

Simply put, Healing Kidō was the most talent-dependent of the three forms of Kido. Without some talent, one simply could not handle it.

"I'll demonstrate a simple Healing Kidō technique next. I need a volunteer."

The moment Unohana finished speaking, several students raised their hands. Clearly, they were Teacher Unohana's fervent fans.

But Unohana did not choose any of the students who had raised their hands. Her gaze shifted and settled on Lu Li. "Let the new student experience it first. Lu Li, come up."

Lu Li did not resist. This was a good opportunity to experience Healing Kidō up close. If his own body were used for the demonstration, he could also more carefully feel Teacher Unohana's... technique.

Unohana smiled at Lu Li and said, "Hold out your hand."

Lu Li obediently extended his hand, and Teacher Unohana grabbed it. The hand that looked as warm and smooth as white jade possessed such great strength that Lu Li could not resist. In an instant, he was pulled forward, closer to Unohana.

Next, Unohana held Lu Li's wrist with one hand while her other hand swept upward from his cuff. Amid the ticklish friction, the sleeve of Lu Li's academy uniform was rolled up, exposing his perfectly defined arm.

"You've trained well..."

Unohana said with a gentle smile, yet it made Lu Li's scalp tingle.

Unohana extended a finger and lightly traced it over Lu Li's arm. Lu Li knew exactly what she was about to do, but inwardly he pleaded for her to hurry up. It was too ticklish!

Just as Lu Li was about to ask, a stabbing pain struck him. Crimson blood slid down his arm, while the pain continued to spread along it.

Unohana's finger moved from his wrist all the way to the middle of his arm, leaving behind a long, deep gash.

Lu Li did not frown or lose focus because of the pain. Since beginning martial arts training, he had suffered countless injuries and developed an extremely high tolerance for pain. At this moment, he was fully focused, because he knew Unohana was about to demonstrate Healing Kidō.

Seeing that Lu Li had not reacted in the slightest to the pain, Unohana's eyes gained several more shades of color where no one could see them... as though yearning for something.

Yet her movements did not pause. "Watch carefully, students."

As she spoke, a gentle pale blue glow lit up in her hand. Slowly and softly, it passed over Lu Li's wound.

As if by magic, the wound vanished wherever Unohana's delicate hand passed, leaving only the bloodstains behind.

Lu Li's expression turned solemn, because he discovered that although Unohana was only giving a simple demonstration, her methods and techniques were exquisitely refined. As for the actual healing effect, it was already extraordinary to him.

Even after his wound had fully healed, Lu Li had yet to recover from his daze, carefully savoring the sensation from moments ago.

"All right, Student Lu. You may return now."

Only when Unohana released the hand holding Lu Li's and spoke did Lu Li slowly come back to himself.

Ignoring several baffled, envious gazes, he returned to his seat deep in thought.

So this was Healing Kidō...

But how exactly had Unohana succeeded?

Yes, that was the greatest question in Lu Li's mind right now, because he knew that he was not a spiritual body at all. He was a living person, through and through!