"Burning down the dojo, beating up his teacher."
Kaede Junya chewed hard on the blood-pressure medicine he'd specially asked Unohana Retsu to make, breathing heavily as he glared at the boy before him with bulging eyes.
"Tell me, what is there that you wouldn't dare do?!"
At that, Kisaragi Akira pondered for a moment, then answered with a serious expression:
"I haven't kissed the academy's prettiest girl yet..."
Those words made Kaede Junya's vision go black. His blood pressure shot through the roof, and he could barely catch his breath.
Luckily, the blood-pressure medicine Unohana Retsu had made to order was expensive but highly effective, and it brought his pressure under control in time.
"I'm giving you a major demerit this time."
After finally recovering, Teacher Kaede waved his hand and issued the major demerit.
"If you do this again, you can forget about graduating from the Spiritual Arts Academy!"
Kisaragi Akira took the disciplinary notice and glanced over the list of school rules he'd broken.
Wait!
"Why am I being blamed for last Saturday's theft at the Shin'o Cafeteria too?" Kisaragi Akira protested.
He'd occasionally gone to the Shin'o Cafeteria for a bite before, but ever since taking over the Azashiro Clan's assets, he'd stopped doing anything so beneath him.
These days, whenever he went to the cafeteria to hunt for food, he ordered double portions.
Don't ask. He was loaded, and when you had money, you could do whatever you wanted.
Kaede Junya's expression froze, then he frowned as he came to his senses.
"Wasn't it you?"
"The Shin'o Cafeteria was missing nearly three days' worth of meat that day. As far as I can remember, you were the only one who could eat that much."
Kisaragi Akira was outraged.
Did Teacher Kaede think he was a bottomless pit?!
Even if Sosuke joined him, the two of them couldn't finish three days' worth of meat.
"Forget it. I've got enough debts already."
Kaede Junya waved a hand and said wearily, "Let's leave it at that. I'm sure you've broken plenty of other rules without getting caught, so we'll count this as making up for those."
With that, Teacher Kaede began shooing him out.
Just seeing Kisaragi Akira gave him a headache. He was almost developing a conditioned response.
How had he not realized at the time of enrollment that the boy would be such a troublemaker?
Carrying the disciplinary notice, Kisaragi Akira walked back to his dormitory with a troubled expression.
He'd never expected that his casual chat with Sosuke would turn out to be prophetic, confirming the path his future would take.
At this rate, if he broke the rules a few more times, even if Teacher Kaede wanted to protect him, it would be difficult.
After all, the academy director, Okikiba Genshiro, was famous throughout the Spiritual Arts Academy for his impartiality.
Of course, cases like Kisaragi Akira's—where someone nearly got expelled for breaking school rules—were extremely rare.
He hadn't even done anything. It was all just an accident.
After all, who could have imagined that the future Grand Kido Chief would be burned to a crisp by a student's Hado?
But when he thought about it that way, he felt a little proud.
He hadn't even joined a squad yet, and he'd already taken down a Captain-level fighter. What would happen in another couple of years?
Fortunately, Kisaragi Akira still had a shred of self-awareness.
Hikifune Tessai had taken the full force of the attack without defending himself and suffered only minor injuries.
There was still a considerable gap between them.
"I've still got a lot of work to do."
He muttered to himself, "But before I get to work, let's see what I got from today's sign-in."
Three seconds later, Kisaragi Akira slammed a book onto the ground and shouted furiously:
"Great One-Eyed Deity above, can someone tell me what I'm supposed to do with a Complete Cookbook?"
"Am I supposed to whip up a couple of glowing dishes?"
He stared at the cookbook on the floor, hesitated for a moment, then obediently picked it back up.
It might be useless to him, but in the hands of someone who knew what to do with it, it could still be put to some use.
Three minutes later.
"Sosuke!"
Someone burst into the dormitory, brimming with excitement. "Look what I brought you!"
"A cookbook?"
Aizen was taken aback, unable to understand what had gotten this guy so worked up now.
"That's right!"
Kisaragi Akira said proudly, "I found it among the Azashiro Clan's collection. It has all kinds of delicious dishes in it, and there are as many as..."
"Uh, anyway, there are a lot of tofu dishes."
He'd always remembered that Aizen liked tofu dishes.
As expected, Aizen took the cookbook and began leafing through it attentively.
"Let me ask you something."
"Did the Azashiro Clan collect this Great Magic Panda Tofu recipe too?"
Kisaragi Akira's expression stiffened, and cold sweat slid down his forehead.
That damned cookbook really did have a recipe for glowing food?!
"Ha, the name is a little strange."
He gave an awkward laugh. "But the Azashiro Clan is a family with a long history. It's only natural that they'd have all sorts of things recorded."
"Study it carefully. I won't disturb you."
Before Aizen could say anything else, Kisaragi Akira had already vanished from the dormitory.
Watching him disappear, Aizen's smile faded slightly. He furrowed his brow, and a barely audible murmur echoed through the empty room.
"Coincidence?"
"Or has he noticed something..."
He'd been extremely careful with his movements lately. Even Captain-level individuals would find it difficult to detect his traces.
With Kisaragi Akira's Reiatsu and ability to investigate, he shouldn't...
Suddenly, a glint seemed to appear in Aizen's eyes, as if he'd thought of something important.
"Is it that strange, instinctive intuition again?"
"Looks like I'll have to be even more careful with my actions from now on..."
Aizen's gaze shifted, finally settling on the Complete Cookbook on the table. After a moment's thought, the corners of his mouth lifted.
"Perhaps this is a pretty good excuse, too..."
After fleeing the dormitory, Kisaragi Akira wandered around the Spiritual Arts Academy, wondering whether he should bring some eggs to visit Hikifune Tessai.
He was his Kido teacher, after all, and he'd been injured because of him.
"Hopefully, Teacher Tessai likes eggs."
Seeing that no one was around, Kisaragi Akira conjured three boxes of premium eggs out of thin air.
As far as the items he'd received from the sign-in went, never mind anything else—the quality alone was absolutely top-notch.
Perfect for visiting friends, traveling, and killing people or setting fires.
When Kisaragi Akira carried the eggs to the infirmary ward and was about to push open the door, he happened to hear voices from inside.
"Is Kisaragi Akira's talent in Kido really that absurd too?"
"That's not all. His self-created Hado, Red Smoke Byakurai, has even shaken up the existing Kido system to some extent."
Kisaragi Akira recognized Hikifune Tessai's voice. Driven by curiosity, he pressed himself against the door and carefully listened in.
"He perfectly combined Hado #4, Byakurai, with Bakudo #21, Red Smoke Escape, and developed a new Kido. Its power is astonishing, and its range is frightening too."
"As far as talent in Kido goes, I'm no match for him..."
Kisaragi Akira nodded in agreement.
But as he waited for what would come next, he suddenly realized the room had gone silent. Even the sound of breathing had become almost imperceptible.
His heart gave a sudden lurch.
Before Kisaragi Akira could react, the tightly shut door was yanked open.
Caught off guard, he pitched forward, his whole face burying itself in something soft...
Before you continue