Sui-Feng

If he copied Sode no Shirayuki or Hyōrinmaru, what difficulty would there be in creating the Demon's Extract Imperial Arms?

If he copied Ichigo Kurosaki's Zangetsu and Kenpachi Zaraki's Nozarashi, would the Kogatana: Yoru he forged possess slashes capable of splitting mountains and cleaving peaks?

After copying Hōgurō, what kind of effect would Tensōjū have when forged?

The thought set Ailin's heart ablaze.

Moreover, now that Ailin had already forged Tetsusaiga, he no longer cared about letting his Zanpakuto's ability become known.

As long as no other Zanpakuto from the world of Shinigami appeared in his hands, so what if everyone knew that his ability was "Sword Forging"?

Once he copied more Zanpakuto and raised his strength beyond Yamamoto's, beyond the Monk's, so what if he revealed his ability to create identical Zanpakuto?

After leaving the Mindscape, Ailin slept soundly.

The next day, after getting himself ready, Ailin headed for the Second Division captain's office.

At its core, the Gotei 13 was an institution of force and violence.

It followed one principle: the strong rose, and the weak fell.

Even for the position of captain, if you could defeat one before more than two hundred division members, you could take their place.

A captain was the strongest person in a division.

To gain the freedom to go out, Ailin needed only to display his strength.

Challenging a Seat Officer, defeating them, and becoming a Seat Officer was the most direct and effective method.

During this time, Ailin had already chosen his target.

It was the Second Division's Vice-Captain, Marechiyo Ōmaeda, head of the Oomaeda Family of the lower nobility.

Marechiyo Ōmaeda's strength was worthy of his position.

As with a captain's challenge, a challenge for a Seat Officer required enough people to be present and had to be witnessed by the captain to be valid.

Ailin made his way smoothly to the Second Division captain's office.

However, contrary to his expectations, there was only a little girl who looked eleven or twelve years old inside. With short, cropped hair, she was seriously reviewing case files, occasionally writing something on one document after another.

Although it was Ailin's first time seeing this little girl, he was very familiar with her.

She was the next head of the Fon Family of the lower nobility, and the person who would succeed Shihoin Yoruichi as captain of the Second Division after Yoruichi and Urahara Kisuke fled the Soul Society: Soifon.

Of course, Soifon had yet to inherit the position of Fon Family head, so she was not called Soifon yet.

Her name was Sui-Feng!

"If you have documents, just put them over here. I'll look at them after I finish handling these."

Hearing Ailin's footsteps, Sui-Feng assumed someone had brought over the division's files. She casually called out without lifting her head and continued processing the documents.

Every division had matters each day that required the captain's personal attention.

Unfortunately, Shihoin Yoruichi was not particularly willing to handle division affairs.

Before Sui-Feng came along, the Second Division's affairs had basically been handled by Urahara Kisuke on Yoruichi's behalf.

Only after Sui-Feng came to Yoruichi's side was Urahara Kisuke freed from those duties.

Sui-Feng was very happy to be able to help Lord Yoruichi.

But whenever she thought about how her help allowed Lord Yoruichi to spend so much time with that timid, stinking man, she felt an inexplicable irritation.

She could not bear to be angry with Lord Yoruichi, so she could only vent all her resentment on that man.

"Just wait. Once I finish all these division duties, I'll investigate that man right away. I absolutely won't let Lord Yoruichi stay with someone like him."

"I need to let Lord Yoruichi see that man's true face sooner. Otherwise, Lord Yoruichi will definitely be led astray by him."

With that thought, Sui-Feng's hands moved even faster.

But what surprised Sui-Feng was this: what was wrong with the Shinigami delivering the division files today?

Why had he not put down the documents and left after so long?

Was he trying to delay her work on the division's affairs?

Thinking that dealing with these files today might cut short the time she could spend with Lord Yoruichi, Sui-Feng's expression immediately darkened.

She raised her head and said coldly, "I said, what I just said..."

"Huh?"

Before she could finish, Sui-Feng realized that she seemed to have mistaken him for someone else.

The man standing before her was not the person who usually delivered documents.

Furthermore, though he wore a Second Division uniform, Sui-Feng had no memory of him.

Though embarrassed, Sui-Feng quickly composed herself, straightened her posture, and asked Ailin, "May I ask who you are?"

"Hello. I'm Ailin, Punishment Corps number 120358. I wish to challenge Vice-Captain Marechiyo Ōmaeda. How do I register?"

That was right. Ailin had come here to register his challenge.

After all, challenges for Seat Officers, Vice-Captains, and captains required a certain number of division members to be present for the result to be valid.

Generally speaking, after coordinating the challenge date with both parties, the division captain would issue a notice to the entire division. Any interested members could then come watch and serve as witnesses.

If the number of spectators on the challenge day did not meet the requirement, the captain would temporarily assign people to attend.

However, challenges for a division's Seat Officer generally never lacked spectators.

After all, it was one of the few forms of entertainment available to them. Besides, as members of the same division, understanding the strength of the powerful people within it would help them make choices during future missions.

"What? You're that Ailin who's been making quite a name for himself lately?"

Hearing Ailin's introduction, Sui-Feng looked at him in surprise.

The Second Division was a Secret Movement unit, best known for infiltration, assassination, and execution.

Yet in this division founded on assassination, an oddity like Ailin had appeared.

Well, to the people of the Second Division, Ailin truly was an oddity.

That was because Ailin had not become famous for his strength, but for his exceptional Healing Art.

During the Kasumiōji Clan attack a year ago, around fifty Punishment Corps members had received support orders.

Seven of them died, while the remaining forty-odd suffered injuries of varying severity.

At the time, Ailin had relied on his powerful Healing Art to forcibly pull more than a dozen critically wounded people back from the brink of death.

When those wounded were later sent to the Fourth Division, Fourth Division captain Retsu Unohana had said that the person who treated them possessed Healing Art skills that, even within the Fourth Division, were not in the least inferior to Vice-Captain Kiyōnosuke Yamada.