Five in the afternoon.
Araki stopped his lesson with Aizen right on time.
"I lost!"
Aizen lay amid the ruins, staring blankly up at the azure sky with his neck craned back. At that moment, he looked utterly worked to the limit by Araki.
"Do you understand how weak you are now?!"
Araki looked at the mentally scattered Aizen and asked with a smile.
"I do!"
After hearing Araki's words, Aizen immediately nodded.
"That's good! Remember your weakness, cherish your current weakness, and then strive to climb upward!"
"Sōsuke, in my eyes, you have the potential to reach the summit..."
Araki looked at the sprawled-out Aizen Sōsuke, a faint smile on his lips as he spoke softly.
"It seems you really think highly of me, Teacher Araki."
After hearing Araki's words, Aizen could not help but reveal a bitter smile.
Aizen did not know whether it was merely his imagination, but he always felt that Araki, his teacher, had more faith in his talent than he did himself.
"Let's leave it at that for today~"
"Remember, come find me in the 1st Division Captain's Office at the same time tomorrow."
With that, Araki turned and prepared to leave.
From one to five in the afternoon, four hours of training was already enough for Aizen at his current level. He could spend the remaining time figuring things out and training on his own...
"Teacher Araki..."
Just as Araki was about to leave, Aizen, who had been beaten to the ground by Araki's barrage of punches, gritted his teeth and used sheer willpower to overcome the pain flooding his body. He forced his exhausted body upright and called out to Araki.
"Hm?! Sōsuke, do you still need something?"
Hearing Aizen's voice, Araki raised a brow slightly, then turned around and looked at