Sparring and a Change of Seats!

"Natsuki, the 9th Seat, is as cold as ever!"

Akagi Ryosuke had a head of fiery red hair that stood straight up like a hedgehog's. Two intersecting scars crossed his cheek, making his otherwise fairly decent-looking face seem a little fierce.

He was tall, and he carried a Zanpakuto as he walked up to Natsuki.

"At the party before, I actually wanted to have a drink with you, but you always hid in a corner. You didn't seem to like drinking, either, so I had to give up."

"Still, I've always been curious about the 9th Seat's strength."

Akagi Ryosuke came to stand before Natsuki and spoke at length, his tone gentle.

"Your strength should be more than that of a mere 9th Seat, right?"

"But I haven't seen any ambition in you to climb higher. It's as though, to you, being the 9th Seat is already enough."

Feeling Akagi Ryosuke's gaze on him, Natsuki replied calmly, "That's right. Being the 9th Seat is enough for me. We're all Seated Officers anyway, so there's not much difference, is there?"

"That's true!" Akagi Ryosuke nodded. "Still, I really want to see your true strength. I want to know just how strong the junior whom Watanabe-senpai has such high hopes for really is."

At those words, Natsuki immediately understood why Akagi Ryosuke had sought him out.

It was because of Watanabe Yuji.

"Do you have a grudge against Watanabe?" Natsuki raised an eyebrow and asked Akagi Ryosuke.

Akagi Ryosuke froze, then hurriedly said, "Why would you think that, 9th Seat Natsuki? Back when Watanabe-senpai was still in the 11th Division, he taught me a great deal. His guidance was what made my strength improve by leaps and bounds. After Watanabe-senpai joined the Expeditionary Force, I became the Third Seat. I've always been grateful to him."

"I see!" Natsuki nodded.

That meant he and Akagi Ryosuke were, in a sense, fellow disciples.

Still, neither he nor Akagi Ryosuke brought it up or tried to use it to grow closer.

"Let's begin!"

Natsuki didn't waste time on unnecessary words. He addressed Akagi Ryosuke.

Akagi Ryosuke drew his Zanpakuto.

They stood some distance apart. Then they moved at the same time and swung their swords.

Since Akagi Ryosuke had come forward to spar with Natsuki, the 9th Seat, many Soul Reapers who had been practicing in the training ground stopped their matches to watch. Quite a few Soul Reapers in the barracks also heard the news and hurried over.

Before long, the training ground was surrounded by a bustling crowd.

Under everyone's gaze, afterimages flashed. The two blades met, then the pair separated and swung at each other again.

The 11th Division favored close combat, so its members preferred Hakuda. During battle, they rarely used Ghost Way, relying instead on clashes of Zanjutsu.

Thus, in their fight, both Natsuki and Akagi Ryosuke used only Shunpo, Zanjutsu, and Hakuda.

Their Zanpakuto, still in Asauchi form, clashed again and again. Between the crossings of their blades, they threw punches, trading blows in close combat.

As they fought, they used Shunpo, their figures constantly shifting.

"Wow, they're amazing!"

Watching the two evenly matched fighters dart around the training ground, one squad member gaped in amazement.

For lower-ranking squad members, becoming a Seated Officer was the goal they pursued all their lives.

But there were only so many seats, and becoming a Seated Officer was no easy task.

Now that he had witnessed a fight between Seated Officers with his own eyes, he understood the gap between himself and them.

The gap was in every regard.

He was no match for either fighter in Shunpo, Hakuda, or Zanjutsu.

After one squad member voiced his amazement, another praised Natsuki's strength.

"The 9th Seat Natsuki is incredibly strong!"

"His opponent is the Third Seat, Akagi, but he still hasn't fallen behind, even after all this time."

Those words won the agreement of many squad members.

It was true. Though they were both Seated Officers, there was a huge difference between the 9th Seat and the Third Seat.

Yet Natsuki could hold his own against a Third Seat. That proved his strength was far beyond what his position suggested.

Thinking back to the brief exchange between Akagi Ryosuke and Natsuki, many Soul Reapers saw Natsuki in a new light.

He was clearly a powerful Soul Reaper, yet he didn't seem to have any ambition to climb higher.

They knew how Natsuki had become the 9th Seat. He had won a sparring match against the former 9th Seat, who had then handed over the position.

That was also a tradition in the 11th Division.

Might made right. If you could defeat a Seated Officer in a head-on fight, you became the new Seated Officer.

The former Seated Officer would then drop down one position.

As for the lowest-ranked Seated Officer, if he was dissatisfied, he could challenge one of the officers above him.

"Do you think that if Natsuki wins, he'll become the Third Seat right away?"

Someone suddenly thought of the question and couldn't help asking.

"No way. Akagi isn't that easy to defeat." One squad member had complete faith in Akagi Ryosuke.

While they were discussing this,

in the middle of the training ground,

after Akagi Ryosuke proved to be Natsuki's equal in Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Shunpo, and the rest, he said, "Let's decide it with one strike, 9th Seat Natsuki!"

As he spoke, his Reiatsu surged into the Asauchi in his hand.

"Fine!"

Natsuki replied calmly, releasing his own Reiatsu as well.

Their powerful Reiatsu collided.

The squad members all looked grave.

"I knew it. Your strength is definitely far beyond that of a 9th Seat."

Feeling Natsuki's Reiatsu, Akagi Ryosuke said this.

As he spoke, he swung the Asauchi in his hand, sending a burst of Sword Pressure flying through the air.

Natsuki swung his sword as well, releasing a burst of Sword Pressure.

Boom!!

The two waves of Sword Pressure collided. The raging Reishi Storm spread in every direction, then abruptly subsided. When the dust settled,

everyone saw that Akagi Ryosuke was panting.

Natsuki, on the other hand, was completely unharmed.

After taking some time to steady his breathing, Akagi Ryosuke said to Natsuki, "I lost."

"From now on, the Third Seat is yours, Natsuki!"

He no longer called Natsuki the 9th Seat.

The many squad members watching from around the training ground heard him, too.

They were shocked.

Utterly shocked.

After a long while, someone finally couldn't contain his astonishment and blurted out, "The Third Seat Akagi actually... lost?"

Natsuki had been the 9th Seat before, but his true strength still left them utterly stunned.