Seed of the Forest

As the saying went: one tree did not make a forest!

The soul body Chiba Makoto had arrived in possessed no exceptional talent whatsoever; it could even be called utterly ordinary. He had only barely managed to get into Shin'ō Academy.

If nothing unexpected happened, Chiba Makoto would probably become one of the most ordinary members of the Thirteen Divisions with his mediocre abilities, then meet with some accident one day and end his unremarkable life as a Shinigami.

After all, Chiba Makoto understood very well that, for a Shinigami, a Zanpakuto's ability might determine their lower limit, but what truly determined their upper limit was the Reiryoku and spiritual pressure within them!

Even though the Zanpakuto Chiba Makoto had awakened, "All Things in Nature," was quite peculiar and possessed all sorts of wood-manipulation abilities—somewhat similar to the "Wood Release" from his memories of his previous life—

Chiba Makoto's own soul body had far too little talent for Reiryoku. He simply did not have the potential to reach the level of a captain-class Shinigami, and could not even sustain the Reiryoku needed to fully release "All Things in Nature."

Thus, using his awakened Zanpakuto, "All Things in Nature," Chiba Makoto had specifically developed the "Seed of the Forest," which could merge with other soul bodies.

In a sense, the "Seed of the Forest" was like a seed rooted in the earth. It could slowly and covertly absorb a soul body's Reiryoku, then use "All Things in Nature" as a relay to send it into Chiba Makoto's soul body.

Of course, the "Seed of the Forest" posed no harm to the soul body hosting it. Being only the size of a single spirit particle, the "Seed of the Forest" could not actively seize Reiryoku by force. It mostly absorbed the Reiryoku that the host soul body constantly passively dispersed into the air.

Since every soul body differed in both Reiryoku talent and strength, the benefits the "Seed of the Forest" could obtain were completely different as well.

The instant the "Seed of the Forest" completely merged with Zaraki Kenpachi's soul body, Chiba Makoto immediately sensed a distinct difference!

If the Reiryoku he had previously drawn collectively from all those Shin'ō Academy students could be compared to drops of water, then the Reiryoku he was drawing now was almost like opening a faucet partway.

The difference in quantity was nearly more than tenfold!

As expected, even the naturally dispersed Reiryoku from several hundred Shin'ō Academy students combined is nowhere near comparable to a captain-class Shinigami!

Chiba Makoto's eyes subtly lit up, and his gaze could not help but fall upon Kusajishi Yachiru, who was sprawled over Zaraki Kenpachi's shoulder, sucking on her little finger while staring at his abdomen.

Zaraki Kenpachi is an outright monster, and that pink little girl, Kusajishi Yachiru, is definitely no slouch either. Looks like I'll have to find a way to plant a seed in Kusajishi Yachiru too...

Chiba Makoto thought to himself.

Unfortunately, the essence of the "Seed of the Forest" was a special spirit particle, and it came with far too many restrictions. To truly merge it with a soul body, it had to be "planted" through a wound; otherwise, the soul body would easily reject it.

Moreover, producing the "Seed of the Forest" was rather troublesome. At present, Chiba Makoto could make at most one "Seed of the Forest" per day.

Naturally, Zaraki Kenpachi had no idea that, in that brief moment, countless thoughts had already flashed through the mind of the seemingly gentle, sunny youth before him. Instead, he directly pulled open his Shinigami uniform, revealing where the wound had been.

Yet in just a few breaths, the wound had already completely healed!

At that moment, not only did Zaraki Kenpachi's eyes light up, but even the seated officers from the surrounding divisions who were watching were astonished.

Though it was only a simple wound and had not truly damaged any internal organs, this rate of recovery was already fully comparable to a Shinigami proficient in Kaido treating someone at full strength.

More importantly, Chiba Makoto's healing ability came from his Zanpakuto. In other words, it had the potential to heal an entire group, and to provide continuous healing during large-scale battles.

An exceedingly rare ability...

If this kid's spiritual pressure can sustain his Zanpakuto for long enough, this is absolutely a strategic healing ability capable of changing the course of a local battle.

I wonder how effective it is against severe injuries?

For a moment, the eyes of some division seated officers flickered. Clearly, they too had recognized the potential displayed by the "All Things in Nature" in Chiba Makoto's hands.

After Zaraki Kenpachi forcefully slapped his healed abdomen, the originally savage and ferocious expression on his face gradually shifted into a somewhat incongruous smile as he announced, "Good, kid. I approve your application to join the division."

At those words, Madarame Ikkaku excitedly slapped Chiba Makoto on the shoulder and laughed loudly.

"Ahahaha, great! Chiba, you're one of the Eleventh Division now. I'll definitely protect you properly from now on."

Ayasegawa Yumichika, beautiful as a flower, also revealed a pleased yet charming smile and said, "Chiba, what a splendid result. I hope we'll have an opportunity for a deeper exchange in the future."

"Um..."

Chiba Makoto slowly raised a hand, his face showing a trace of apology and regret as he said, "The division I want to join is the Fourth Division."

"Hm?! Kid, what did you say?"

Zaraki Kenpachi narrowed his eyes and stared at Chiba Makoto. An invisible pressure of spiritual power surged toward him.

Chiba Makoto felt his body sink slightly. The spiritual pressure emanating from Zaraki Kenpachi seemed to transform into some vicious demon beast, roaring at him.

Compared to Zaraki Kenpachi, Chiba Makoto looked like a fragile, tiny blade of grass that could be snapped at any moment.

Yet Chiba Makoto's expression did not change from beginning to end. He merely repeated himself. "Sorry, Captain Kenpachi. My dream is to join the Fourth Division and become a physician."

A few breaths passed. By then, quite a number of the surrounding graduates had already been forced to their knees by the spiritual pressure Zaraki Kenpachi had unconsciously leaked, gasping heavily and struggling to breathe. As the entire hall fell into obvious chaos, the oppressive spiritual pressure from Zaraki Kenpachi suddenly vanished.

Then Zaraki Kenpachi patted his empty shoulder, a particularly ferocious-looking smile appearing on his face as he invited him, "Kid, I underestimated you just now. Come to the Eleventh Division. I'll give you the same status as Yachiru. If you're worried about getting hurt in battle, then whenever you go on missions from now on, just sit on my shoulder. I'll look after you."

???

Chiba Makoto.

At that moment, hearing Zaraki Kenpachi's words, Chiba Makoto's mind went blank almost instinctively. Then, the image Zaraki Kenpachi had described gradually surfaced in his mind...