How could one communicate with the gods?
Blessings, prayers, and sacrifices.
Unlike the Ise Clan, a family of priests, Nikkotsu Shrine was too small and remote to have many ways of communicating with the gods.
Kisaragi Akira knew of only these three methods.
The most commonly used were prayer and sacrifice.
Ise Shizune had taught him the specific rituals.
Once he had made up his mind, Kisaragi Akira immediately stood and left the dojo, carrying his Asauchi without a care for the strange looks from the Tozen instructor.
The moment he stepped outside, Aizen opened his half-closed eyes.
Watching Kisaragi Akira disappear, a flicker of confusion crossed his gaze.
What's gotten into him this time?
Considering how Kisaragi Akira often did things that were bizarre and beyond reason, the occasional skipped class was nothing unusual.
"That boy's getting more and more undisciplined!"
Seeing that he had gone, the Tozen instructor muttered in dissatisfaction.
He had meant to stop him, but after considering the difference in their strength, he swallowed his words.
After all, that boy Kisaragi Akira wasn't carrying a bamboo sword.
He was carrying a real Asauchi.
Though it hadn't yet been infused with the essence of a soul and become a true Zanpakuto, its toughness and sharpness already surpassed anything a bamboo sword could match.
If that reckless kid got carried away in the heat of the moment, the Tozen instructor could end up dead by his blade.
For the sake of his own safety, it was better to back down at critical moments.
"Teacher, I'll go bring him back."
After hesitating for a while, Aizen decided to follow and see what Kisaragi Akira was planning.
With the teacher's permission, he soon left the dojo as well.
Following the traces of Kisaragi Akira's Reiatsu, Aizen tracked him to the area near the dormitory.
But what happened next once again shattered his worldview and his understanding of how wildly different people could be.
Kisaragi Akira had arranged amulets all over the table. Candles burned, creating an atmosphere that was both eerie and sacred.
A huge black eye was carved into a banner nearby, and a brass ritual bell swayed, ringing out with a clear, metallic chime.
Then, with great care, he placed his Asauchi in the spot where an offering to the gods should have gone.
Next, under Aizen's bewildered gaze,
Kisaragi Akira, usually sunny and carefree, suddenly seemed like a different person. He became focused and solemn.
His whole bearing took on the unmistakable air of a mystic, as if he were a true Chief Priest.
"This guy..."
Aizen mused, "Is he planning to replace Tozen with a sacrificial ritual and use it to communicate with his Zanpakuto?"
Clever as he was, he had figured out roughly what Kisaragi Akira was planning just from watching him prepare.
That was partly because he had seen so much, but even more because he knew Kisaragi Akira well.
Because of the way Kisaragi Akira behaved, Aizen was his only friend at the Spiritual Arts Academy.
But wasn't Aizen in the same position?
How many people would dare to casually provoke anyone connected to Kisaragi Akira?
Even Kaede Junya, their teacher, had earned himself a private room in the infirmary. The others were even less willing to get involved with Kisaragi Akira.
"In the name of Chief Priest Kisaragi, I offer this sacrifice..."
Kisaragi Akira's fingers fluttered like butterflies, forming one strange and sacred hand sign after another. As he murmured the ritual words, he visualized the one to whom he was offering the sacrifice.
Come to think of it, what was a Zanpakuto supposed to look like?
Just a sword?
Countless images surfaced in his mind, only for Kisaragi Akira to shatter them as soon as they formed.
He wasn't sure if this method would work, but he couldn't just make up some Zanpakuto in his head and expect to fool his way through.
Suddenly, information about Zanpakuto flashed through his mind.
Since a Zanpakuto was, in essence, built from a Shinigami's soul, could he make himself the recipient of the sacrifice instead?
Could he communicate with himself?
Kisaragi Akira's eyes grew brighter and brighter, reflecting the dim candle flames, as if brilliant stars were slowly forming within them.
Once he had chosen the recipient of the sacrifice, he used the Asauchi as a medium and began the rest of the ritual.
As the brass ritual bell swayed, a sudden gale swept through the room. Countless objects were lifted into the air, colliding with one another and breaking with a series of sharp cracks.
Kisaragi Akira poured all his Reiatsu into the bell, using it to awaken the "god" he needed to communicate with.
Somewhere beyond his senses, an invisible thread seemed to connect his soul to the Asauchi.
At the sight, Aizen's eyes widened. His youthful face lost its usual composure, replaced by stunned disbelief.
It had actually worked.
He had replaced Tozen with a sacrificial ritual and established a connection between a Shinigami and his Zanpakuto.
How on earth did this guy's brain work?
How had he even thought of such an outrageous method?
Surging, multiplying, exploding!
The instant his soul connected with the Asauchi, Kisaragi Akira's Reiatsu began to rise wildly, even forming a tangible pressure that engulfed the entire dormitory room.
If he had any attention to spare, he would have noticed—
The stats on his personal panel were changing rapidly too.
[Reiatsu: lv22, lv23, lv24, lv25, lv26...]
The numbers kept climbing, as if there were no limit.
Compared to the changes on his panel, the impact of his Reiatsu on the surroundings was even more astonishing.
The wooden floor cracked apart in layers. The wallpaper and walls were torn away by the gale, then swept into its chaotic currents, where the flying objects ground them to pieces.
Even more bewildering, the loudest sound in the room wasn't the howling wind. It came from the dull pounding within Kisaragi Akira's body.
It was—
His heartbeat!
It sounded as though thunder had fallen from the sky and into his chest, rumbling and pounding as if it would burst his rib cage.
Aizen's expression changed again and again.
As expected, breaking from convention could lead to entirely different results.
By taking an unconventional path, Kisaragi Akira had landed in a situation none of them recognized.
Even with his perfect score in history, Aizen had never heard of anyone undergoing such a shocking change after communicating with a Zanpakuto.
His Reiatsu continued to rise.
From the level of a standard Shinigami recruit, it surged all the way to that of a Seated Officer.
[Reiatsu: lv45]
Twelfth-Class Spiritual Pressure!
As for Kisaragi Akira, only the whites of his eyes remained visible. His expression was dazed and blank, and he stood motionless like a wooden doll.
His consciousness, meanwhile, had arrived in a completely unfamiliar space.
More accurately, it was—
A world!
[Check-in conditions met] [Location check-in: Zanpakuto Inner World] [Reiatsu level +1, current level: lv46] [Exclusive Entry acquired: Light as a Swallow] [Light as a Swallow: Your body is light and nimble, increasing your speed by fifty percent!]
Hearing the familiar voice and gazing at the boundless world before him, confidence swelled within Kisaragi Akira.
As expected—
He was a professional when it came to sacrifices!
I was originally going to use experience points, but then I realized that system was too much of a hassle, so I decided to just raise the level directly.
Thanks to the generous supporters Mengmeng Dungdung Huanghuang Youyou and Ni Qianshang for the tips, and thanks to everyone for the monthly votes!
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