You're Such a Good Actor. Does Your Family Know?

The girl onstage was youthful and radiant, while the boy below sat in a daze.

In Kisaragi Akira's mind, Shihoin Yoruichi should have been a sultry, mature beauty.

But after hearing her introduction, he suddenly felt as if he'd been transported to another time.

Still, judging by her behavior, she was just as cheerful as ever—and when it came to pranks and messing with people, no one could hold a candle to her.

"Shihoin Yoruichi? Is she an esteemed member of the Shihoin Clan?"

Someone among the students gasped.

Quite a few of them came from noble families, so they naturally knew the weight those three words carried.

The true pinnacle of the Soul Society—one of the supreme powers that stood above countless nobles and factions.

One of the Five Noble Families: the Shihoin Clan.

A subtle look crossed Aizen's face, and his warm smile faded a little.

But when his attention shifted to Kisaragi Akira beside him, his gaze couldn't help but linger.

The boy sat ramrod straight, eyes forward, his posture impeccable.

He looked every bit the model student—until you noticed where his eyes were fixed. Then that image fell apart completely.

"What are you looking at?" Aizen asked curiously in a low voice.

Kisaragi Akira glanced sideways and grinned. "Hey, what kind of question is that?"

"Of course I'm admiring the most beautiful sight in the world."

Aizen's expression stiffened. He didn't take the bait.

He suddenly realized that he and Kisaragi Akira were often on completely different wavelengths.

While everyone else was still reeling from Shihoin Yoruichi's identity, this guy had already begun admiring her body.

It was hard to know what to make of that.

Onstage, Shihoin Yoruichi swept her gaze around.

As the designated heir to the Shihoin Clan, she was naturally exceptionally capable.

A gaze as boldly appreciative as Kisaragi Akira's was something she noticed at once.

The dark-skinned girl grinned, her delicate little canine teeth glinting dangerously in the sunlight.

"Let's start with the person on my left."

Kisaragi Akira glanced around and suddenly realized that if they were going in order, he and Aizen seemed to be the last two.

The test began in earnest.

Shihoin Yoruichi wore a tight black outfit that showed off her lovely curves. She was still a girl, not yet the captivating beauty she would become a century later.

Even so, she was more than enough to keep anyone's eyes fixed on her.

But because of her status, the student facing her in a Hakuda match didn't dare look up for more than a moment. He was afraid Marechiyo would catch him at it and use Omaeda Guillotine on him.

"Are you ready?"

"Y-yes..."

Yoruichi chuckled. Her figure darted forward like a phantom, and her slender fingers, as if brushing the strings of a harp, pressed against the other student's unguarded chest.

The move looked utterly harmless, yet the next instant it unleashed a shocking force.

Flesh struck flesh. The sheer power of the blow rang out like thunder.

In the next moment,

the student's fair face turned bright red, as though all the blood in his body had rushed to his head.

After a brief struggle, he shot backward like a cannonball and slammed into the classroom wall, sticking to it like a painting.

She hit him so hard he became wall art.

A one-sided knockout, without the slightest suspense!

Kisaragi Akira's eyes widened.

Good grief!

Shihoin Yoruichi was already this brutally strong at this point?

"Unsteady footing. Weak limbs."

Yoruichi delivered her verdict. "You don't even have the most basic sense of caution. Marechiyo, the students you're teaching are getting worse and worse."

Marechiyo broke into a cold sweat and could only offer an awkward smile. He didn't dare argue.

No one understood better than him just how strong Shihoin Yoruichi was.

Even setting aside Reiatsu, the deciding factor, he couldn't match her in technique alone.

The difference in talent was simply too great.

"Next!"

Shihoin Yoruichi looked delighted, as though beating up weaklings were some kind of hobby.

Knowing her personality, she might really have been doing it for fun.

After the first student showed them what awaited, the rest went up one after another to get beaten.

Most were knocked down in a single move. Only a handful of talented students managed to withstand a second.

Of course, they were using pure technique, without any Reiatsu.

Once the classroom was littered with students sprawled every which way, Yoruichi's gaze finally fell on Aizen and Kisaragi Akira.

"Next."

Yoruichi grinned.

Aizen hesitated for a moment, then calmly stepped forward.

As before, Yoruichi simply asked if he was ready. When Aizen nodded, she attacked at once.

Something unexpected happened.

Kisaragi Akira's eyes widened, disbelief flashing across them.

The invincible Aizen had fallen?!

Just like the other weaklings, he'd been knocked out in one move, without the slightest suspense.

It made Kisaragi Akira reassess his understanding of this world all over again.

Others might not know, but he did.

In terms of sheer talent, there were few in the entire Soul Society who could compare to Aizen.

Not even the Five Noble Families!

That much was beyond question.

Yet as he stared at Aizen lying on the ground, barely breathing and seemingly at death's door, Kisaragi Akira was once again dazed.

You're such a good actor. Does your family know?

"Another rookie."

Yoruichi barely glanced at Aizen. Instead, she turned her attention to Kisaragi Akira, and a dangerous aura immediately coiled around him.

"You're the only one left."

Her gaze was playful, like a cat toying with its prey. The tip of one canine showed, gleaming with unmistakable menace.

Yoruichi beckoned to Kisaragi Akira.

"Come on, kid. Let's see your Hakuda skills!"

Kisaragi Akira forced out a painfully strained smile.

He might think his talent was already no worse than anyone else's, but turning talent into strength took time.

As he hesitated, Marechiyo urged him loudly,

"Hurry up, Kisaragi Akira!"

"Don't think you can use those lowbrow tricks to dodge the test!"

Kisaragi Akira steadied himself and walked forward, his expression resolute.

So what if he got beaten?

It wasn't like he'd never been hit before!

All he had to do was learn from Aizen, and he'd be fine.

He'd already worked out a plan: take one hit, then fall straight to the ground.

But...

Looking at the dark-skinned girl's teasing gaze, Kisaragi Akira suddenly grew intensely wary. His Danger Instinct erupted with a piercing alarm.

Damn it!

She was going to get serious!

Kisaragi Akira's pupils contracted. He sharpened his senses to their limit and instinctively entered combat mode.

No questions. No warning.

Yoruichi's slender fingers brushed lightly as if plucking harp strings, then curled into a fist. The instant her light steps carried her forward,

her thin fist tore through the air with a piercing whistle, unleashing a burst of force as it shot straight for Kisaragi Akira's face!