"This place is really extravagant."
Natsuhiko followed the dean into the 2nd Division and couldn't help staring in surprise. Unlike the other divisions, the 2nd Division barracks were decorated lavishly, with golden light gleaming everywhere and rare bonsai plants scattered across the grounds. The courtyard was also filled with various ornaments that looked extremely expensive.
"That's only natural." The dean in front of Natsuhiko sighed with emotion. "After all, the entire barracks was built with funding from the Omaeda family."
"The Omaeda family..."
Natsuhiko nodded in understanding. The moment he heard the name "Omaeda," he understood why the barracks before him was so extravagant. In Seireitei, the surname "Omaeda" was practically synonymous with "tycoon."
Just then, a masked member of the Punishment Force approached them.
"May I ask if you are Dean Kujo of the Soul Reaper Academy?"
"That's me," Dean Kujo replied.
"Please follow me. The lieutenant captain has been waiting for you for some time." The masked member of the Punishment Force politely led the way.
Dean Kujo nodded, then whispered to Natsuhiko behind him, "Stay close to me and don't wander off. This isn't our academy."
Natsuhiko hurriedly nodded. Even though the barracks were extremely extravagant, that could not conceal the true nature of the Punishment Force. This place could be said to be where all Soul Reapers were most afraid to go.
The 2nd Division occupied an enormous area. After walking for quite a while, they finally arrived before a barracks building.
The building before them was less a barracks than a grand hall. At the head of the hall stood a huge chair, but it was empty.
Seated below it was a fat man with a topknot and gold chains around his neck. He held a large pile of snacks and kept eating.
"Lieutenant captain," the masked member of the Punishment Force said respectfully. "Dean Kujo has arrived."
"Lieutenant Captain Ōmaeda." Dean Kujo and Natsuhiko greeted him respectfully at the same time.
They were not unfamiliar with this unremarkable-looking fat man. He was not only the lieutenant captain of the 2nd Division, but also the captain of the Onmitsukidō Second Division Patrol Unit. The patrol duties at the Soul Reaper Academy were handled by him.
Crunch, crunch, crunch...
As Marechiyo Ōmaeda stuffed potato chips into his mouth, he picked up a file from the coffee table and tossed it to Dean Kujo. He said impatiently, "This is the file on the kid who runs a Yorozuya in District 38. You can ask the Punishment Force member beside you about the details."
After saying that, he ignored the two of them and continued battling the snacks in his arms.
Dean Kujo knew his personality and did not mind. Instead, he opened the file in his hands and began reading it carefully.
Seeing this, Natsuhiko hurriedly moved closer to take a look.
The reason they had come here this time was precisely because of the file before them.
Starting around half a year ago, students from the Soul Reaper Academy had, for some unknown reason, begun traveling together to Rukongai during their holidays. Among those who went were not only students born in Rukongai, but also students who had lived in Seireitei for many years.
At first, the academy did not pay much attention to this. After all, what students wanted to do during their holidays was entirely their own freedom.
But as time passed, they discovered that the students who went to Rukongai during their holidays all showed some degree of improvement in their various results after returning to school.
Only after discovering this did the academy realize that something was wrong. Yet when they questioned those students, the answer they received shocked all the teachers at the Soul Reaper Academy.
A Soul Reaper cram school specially prepared for Soul Reaper Academy students!?
It was not unheard of for students whose parents were Soul Reapers to be taught cultivation at home.
But Natsuhiko had taught at the Soul Reaper Academy for nearly two hundred years, and this was the first time he had heard of a cram school that charged money to teach students. After all, the Soul Reaper Academy was not a private school in the Human World. The things taught there were not something just anyone could teach.
When he first heard the news, Natsuhiko's first reaction was that the students had been deceived. Yet the students' improvements were genuine.
Moreover, after investigating further, he discovered that although the things the students learned at the cram school were basic knowledge, the person teaching them had broken those fundamentals down countless times, making them easier for the students to understand and control.
Some of the knowledge had even given these teachers, who had taught others for years, the feeling of suddenly seeing the light.
If the Soul Reaper Academy were a private school like the ones in Natsuhiko's memories from before his death, then the existence of such a cram school would naturally be a good thing.
But the Soul Reaper Academy was not a private school. Its purpose was not to educate people, but to serve as a training base for "Soul Reaper reserves."
Simply put, if the Thirteen Court Guard Squads were compared to a company, then the Soul Reaper Academy was that company's training base for new employees.
And this suddenly appearing cram school...
On the surface, it did indeed benefit the training of new employees. But who knew whether the other party had some ulterior motive, or whether they intended to use this opportunity to plant spies in the Thirteen Court Guard Squads?
Therefore, after learning of this, the Soul Reaper Academy immediately notified the Onmitsukidō, which was responsible for such matters.
"According to our investigation, the subject is named 'Duan Mu.' Four years ago, he suddenly fell from the sky and landed in Rukongai..." the masked member of the Punishment Force reported.
"Fell from the sky?" Dean Kujo interrupted.
"That's right. After the Onmitsukidō received the report at the time, we went to investigate. The results showed that everything was normal, and we confirmed that he was merely an ordinary soul. Based on our judgment, he likely died in the Human World and was sent to another location due to disturbances in the spirit particle passage. Later, an examination by the 12th Division discovered that the spirit particle passage had indeed shown signs of disturbance at that time."
"According to the case records from that time, when he first arrived in Rukongai, his spiritual pressure was extremely weak, no different from that of an ordinary Menos. Now, four years later, judging from the spiritual pressure he has revealed, it is merely equivalent to that of a Soul Reaper Academy student."
"However, our investigation found that he possesses extremely extensive knowledge in Kido, Zanjutsu, Shunpo, and Hakuda, and is also extremely skilled at manipulating spirit particles. Leaving everything else aside, his Hakuda alone is not inferior to that of us members of the Punishment Force who specialize in Hakuda."
"It could be said that the only difference between him and our Punishment Force is spiritual pressure."
"How is that possible!?" Natsuhiko couldn't help saying.
A soul from the Human World had gone from knowing nothing to becoming no weaker than a Soul Reaper in the four essential Soul Reaper techniques of Zanpakuto, Kido, Hakuda, and Shunpo in only four years. This could simply be described as "genius."
"According to our investigation, Duan Mu is extremely familiar with the Shiba Clan's main family, which lives in Rukongai. He goes to the Shiba Clan's main family almost every week. Because of the special nature of the Shiba Clan's main family, we have been unable to investigate further, but he may have learned that knowledge from them."
"The Shiba Clan?"
Upon hearing this, Dean Kujo and Natsuhiko exchanged a glance.
As the Shiba Clan had once been one of the "Five Great Noble Clans," it was naturally impossible for them not to have heard of it. Although the clan had fallen into decline, that could not conceal the fact that it had once produced several captains and lieutenant captains of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads.
Moreover, the Shiba Clan had not only its main family in Rukongai, but also a branch family. The previous captain of the 10th Division had come from the Shiba branch family. Even now, many members of the Shiba branch family lived in Seireitei; it was simply that, because of the Shiba Clan's decline, few people knew about them.
If that was the case, then it was not difficult to understand why he possessed theoretical knowledge more extensive than that of Soul Reaper Academy teachers.
As if he had seen through their thoughts, the masked member of the Punishment Force said, "Theoretical knowledge can be force-fed, but whether someone can master it depends solely on personal talent. What I said earlier was not that his theoretical knowledge is equal to ours in the Punishment Force, but that in a face-to-face fight, his Hakuda can completely contend with ours."
"The only unfortunate thing is that his spiritual pressure is far too weak."
The masked member of the Punishment Force shook his head. Unlike the four techniques of Zanpakuto, Kido, Hakuda, and Shunpo, spiritual pressure could indeed be strengthened through cultivation, but there was no shortage of naturally gifted people born with extremely powerful spiritual pressure. In fact, those who could become true experts were basically all such people.
Those who cultivated step by step were comparatively rare, and most of them stopped at the rank of seated officer.
However, it was not completely impossible for them to become strong. Shuhei Hisagi, who had recently been promoted to lieutenant captain of the 9th Division, was an example of someone with ordinary initial talent.
It was said that because his innate talent was so poor, he had even failed the Soul Reaper Academy entrance examination twice. In the end, however, he had relied on his own efforts to climb step by step to his current position.
But an example like his was ultimately rare. In most cases, a person's initial talent basically determined their limit.
The four techniques of Zanpakuto, Kido, Hakuda, and Shunpo could only be said to be techniques for utilizing spiritual pressure. The strength of one's spiritual pressure was the foundation of a Soul Reaper. Without powerful spiritual pressure as a base, no matter how strong one's four techniques were, it was impossible to become a true expert.
Conversely, once a person's spiritual pressure reached a certain level, they could become a captain even if they were not particularly skilled in those four techniques.
The greatest example was Kenpachi Zaraki, captain of the 11th Division. It was said that, despite not knowing Kido and without even releasing his Zanpakuto, that man had defeated the previous captain of the 11th Division through his astonishing spiritual pressure and disorderly Zanjutsu alone.
"Then why doesn't he become a Soul Reaper?" Natsuhiko asked in confusion. If what the Punishment Force member said was true, then even if his innate talent for spiritual pressure was extremely poor, he could still become a member of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads based on those four techniques alone. He might even have been capable of graduating early from the Soul Reaper Academy.
"Because of the Shiba Clan, perhaps," Dean Kujo suddenly said.
"Huh?" Natsuhiko was stunned.
Dean Kujo did not answer his question. Instead, he looked at the member of the Punishment Force and asked, "What happens next...?"
"We sent people to study under him. Based on our investigation during this period, he has not shown any purpose in interacting with the students beyond 'making money,' nor has he instilled any strange ideas in them. The only unusual thing is that he is extremely enthusiastic toward 'female students.'"
"However, he has not made any improper advances. He is simply more attentive when teaching, provides food for free, offers assistance without charge, and privately chats with the female students like friends. Toward male students, he is comparatively cold."
"Next, we will send some female officers to interact with him in batches. If he truly does anything improper, we will receive word immediately."
"That's good." Dean Kujo nodded. "If that is the case, then I will not stop the students from studying with him."
The reason he had felt nervous earlier was simply that he feared the man had some ulterior scheme.
Since he had no hidden motives, Dean Kujo naturally would not stop the students from studying with him.
"The Patrol Team's recommendation is the same."
The masked member of the Punishment Force said, "According to the information reported from Rukongai, the subject is very willing to help others, and the Yorozuya he runs is extremely famous in West Rukongai."
"The subject also did not deliberately seek out the students. At first, those few students only visited him to make a commission after being introduced by the owner of the Jurin'an Tavern, thinking that it 'seemed interesting.' Only after the news spread did his Yorozuya add 'Soul Reaper cram school' as a new service."
"At present, it does not appear that he will pose a threat to Seireitei. Of course, to prevent accidents, the Supervision Team will continue its supervision. The assigned members of the Punishment Force will also be rotated annually. Once it is confirmed that 'special supervision' is no longer necessary, they will be withdrawn."
Dean Kujo nodded. "Then I'll trouble you."
Before you continue