The Number's Wrong!

As the largest educational institution in the Seireitei, the Shino Academy possessed no experience in handling emergencies.

For instance, the theft of Zanpakuto.

The instructor responsible for distributing the Zanpakuto stood on the platform, his face drained of color, his eyes darting frantically between the stage and the crowd below.

All the other students had completely lost their composure as well.

"That sword...?!"

"Why is the sword in his hand made of bamboo?"

"You've got to be kidding me, right? My old man sent me here to study, and this is the piece of junk bamboo I get? Are they running a scam?"

Amidst the clamor, Lin Nan tossed the fake bamboo sword he held onto the floor, grabbed another one from the side, and drew it—

Fake.

He grabbed another and drew it—

Bamboo.

He picked up yet another, and it was still a fake!

After verifying nearly ten swords in a row, every single one was a fake!!

Lin Nan's face was as dark as water as he strolled back to the row of sword racks where he had just collected his Asauchi.

Down below, Kyoraku suddenly remembered something and shouted to Lin Nan, "Don't just waste your time checking the others, look at your own!"

Ukitake frowned deeply and added, "We haven't officially started the lesson yet. Due to the barrier's influence, he shouldn't be able to draw his sword!"

Kyoraku paused, then realized, "The ones that could be drawn earlier were all fakes. If his won't come out, doesn't that mean it's the real one?"

Ukitake finally caught on, "Ah! That seems right!"

Following Kyoraku's reminder, Lin Nan didn't hesitate. He pressed his left hand against the scabbard, gave it a slight twist, and used his right hand to pull with a sudden, forceful motion.

"Clang~"

The crisp sound of a blade leaving its scabbard echoed throughout the dojo; the blade reflected a chilling light that shone upon Lin Nan's face.

The entire hall fell into a deathly silence.

They could no longer tell if they should be shocked by Lin Nan's audacity in violating school regulations to draw his Asauchi on the spot, or worried that the Asauchi had been swapped.

But one thing was certain: everyone's gaze and attention were locked firmly onto the white-haired youth on the platform.

Lin Nan sheathed his sword with an expressionless face and turned to face the rack. He picked up the sword that had been placed behind his own and drew it—

A flash of steel; the real thing.

He drew the next one—

Real.

He drew the third—fake!

Below the stage, there was total silence. Lin Nan stared coldly at the fake sword in his hand before throwing it onto the ground. He then walked over to the stunned instructor and gave a slight nod, "Teacher, you've seen it for yourself. This is no small matter. You should find someone to handle this immediately!"

The instructor was already drenched in cold sweat. With such an incident occurring in his class, he likely wouldn't be retiring safely, and he might even be implicated in the fallout.

"Stay here and don't move; I'll be right back!" He said in a panic before turning and running out of the dojo.

The students below were now in an uproar.

Some were loudly complaining that Zanpakuto could even be faked; others were shouting that they had spent so much money and pulled so many strings to get into the Shino Academy, only to find they couldn't even get a real sword.

Ukitake watched the chaotic students, a flicker of worry crossing his brow as he asked Kyoraku:

"Although I'm not very familiar with the Seireitei yet, is this matter particularly serious?"

Kyoraku frowned slightly and nodded, "It is. In any case, this is the first time I've heard of such a thing. Have you ever heard of this before?"

He turned his gaze toward Tsunayashiro Tokinada behind him.

If there was any family in the Seireitei, or even the Soul Society, that possessed the most information, it was undoubtedly the Tsunayashiro Clan.

Tsunayashiro Tokinada maintained his calm, faint smile and shook his head, "As far as I know, this has never happened. It seems this year's Shino Academy is truly interesting!"

Kyoraku curled his lip, "Tsunayashiro-san, you really should be mindful of the optics. Even for the Four Great Noble Houses, one shouldn't be smiling in the face of such an event, should they?"

Tsunayashiro glanced at Kyoraku with his long, sharp eyes and said meaningfully, "Haven't you noticed that Lin Nan is already able to draw his Asauchi?"

"Ah?!" Kyoraku and Ukitake finally realized what they had overlooked and stared at Lin Nan in disbelief.

"He drew his sword so easily just now, that sword wasn't a fake???"

"Come to think of it, I did seem to see a flash of steel..."

The two of them spiraled into increasingly absurd thoughts. They had all enrolled on the same day, so why was there such a massive gap between them?

As for the other students in the dojo, they didn't even know of the barrier's existence and were only concerned with the missing Asauchi.

"Under normal circumstances, the Sword Zen and test-cutting courses aren't opened until the fourth year. Most students only reach the point where they can barely resist the barrier's influence and draw their swords at that stage."

Tsunayashiro watched Lin Nan's slowly approaching figure, his voice tinged with a hint of excitement:

"Yet Lin Nan can draw his sword already! Could the rumors be true—is he the one who actually dueled Unohana?"

The incident report regarding the missing Asauchi at Shino Academy was promptly delivered to Yamamoto Genryūsai.

As Captain-Commander, he immediately dispatched 3rd Seat Okiya Genshiro to lead a team to Shino Academy and secure the scene.

He then ordered Sasakibe to draft a situation report and relay the news to the other six captains, before preparing to take the report to Central 46 for a briefing.

2nd Division Captain Shihoin Sennichi arrived at the Captain-Commander's quarters immediately for consultation. The other captains were still in the Rukon District carrying out their respective duties; even if they wished to return, they could not do so quickly.

Yamamoto and Shihoin sat opposite each other at the tea table. Sasakibe Chojiro had already drafted the situation report and presented it to Yamamoto.

Shihoin Sennichi waited for Yamamoto to finish reading, his usual playful expression turning serious for the first time: "How many were lost in total?"

Yamamoto's face was livid. He raised his eyes and said, "This year's class is the smallest in years, yet there are still one hundred and ninety-five students. It is now confirmed that only the first five Asauchi were not swapped."

Shihoin Sennichi gave a bitter laugh: "A cunning method! By using the first five real blades to deceive the inspectors, the rest of the swords could be swapped with impunity!"

Yamamoto lowered his head in helplessness, his dark, drooping mustache appearing somewhat dim:

"I never imagined that once removed from my direct oversight, the operations at Shino Academy would become so negligent."

"If I am not mistaken, this must have something to do with the rebels."

"There can be no one else—if one hundred and ninety blades were to appear on the battlefield, they would cause no small amount of trouble for our division members."

Shihoin Sennichi lowered his head in contemplation, his gaze suddenly darkening: "No... it is not one hundred and ninety."

A flash of sharp light crossed Yamamoto's eyes: "What do you mean?"

Shihoin Sennichi tilted his head slightly, looking at Genryūsai's face through his snow-white bangs: "Do not forget, students at the academy do not begin their Sword Meditation and test-cutting classes until their fourth year!"

Yamamoto's pupils dilated instantly.

Shino Academy.

1st Division Assistant Okiya Genshiro had already led his team to detain all the teachers at Shino Academy.

The massive academy was now under martial law.

At the same time, the four gates of the Seireitei were placed under strict control.

Okiya Genshiro and his 1st Division members were currently busy in the Academy Principal's office, preparing to examine all administrative files to see if they could uncover any clues.

At that moment, the office door was lightly knocked.

"Come in."

Lin Nan and his two companions walked into the room and stood before Okiya.

Okiya Genshiro was focused on flipping through the piles of documents before him and asked offhandedly: "What do you three want?"

"We are Captain Yamamoto's personal disciples. We wanted to see if there is anything we can do to assist you," replied Ukitake, who had a more easygoing personality.

"You had best not interfere. The severity of this matter is beyond what you can imagine." Okiya was busy checking the data and did not once raise his eyes.

"The loss of one hundred and ninety Asauchi from the entire freshman group is not something you children can help with. Not even as the Captain's personal disciples."

"That is not the case, 3rd Seat Okiya. It is not one hundred and ninety," Lin Nan said in a deep voice.

Feeling overwhelmed, Okiya Genshiro looked up with some impatience:

"Children, do not hinder the investigation here. The academy's incident report clearly states one hundred and ninety; surely you do not think you know the numbers better than the teachers in charge?"

Lin Nan shook his head, his gaze fixed firmly on Okiya: "The number is certainly higher. Throughout the academy, only fourth-year students who have begun Sword Meditation and test-cutting are permitted to draw their blades.

In other words, for the first three years, practically no one can draw an Asauchi from its scabbard, and thus no one would have discovered the blades were swapped.

Therefore, 3rd Seat Okiya, if I were you, I would begin the investigation with the first three years."