Urahara vs. Yoruichi!

Half a month later, at the Shihoin training grounds.

"Boom!"

Yoruichi, her body wrapped in white lightning, slammed her fist into the ground, shattering the entire training ground. Dust billowed into the air, mixed with fist-sized chunks of stone.

Urahara's figure flickered as he dodged each attack. Holding his unreleased Zanpakuto, he wore a carefree smile. "Goodness, that was close. So this is Shunko? That kind of power seems a little unfair, doesn't it?"

"Heh. Don't give me that. You wouldn't take this level seriously, would you? It's only a prototype." Yoruichi, white lightning crackling around her, smiled as she watched Urahara rub his fist.

"Again!"

As soon as she spoke, Yoruichi shattered the ground beneath her feet and charged at Urahara!

"Tsk, tsk. You're really tying him up! Benihime!"

Several black-and-red ribbons shot out from where Urahara's Zanpakuto crossed the ground, flying swiftly toward the charging Yoruichi!

Heh. The same move won't work twice!

"Whoosh!"

Just as the ribbons were about to touch Yoruichi, she vanished. When she appeared again, she was behind Urahara!

You think the same move won't work twice, huh? Awaken, Benihime!

"Clang!"

"Whoosh!"

Urahara instantly changed the shape of his Zanpakuto, turned, and struck!

The moment their attacks met, gusts of wind swept through the training grounds!

Not a scratch? She's not only made progress with Shunko, she's added Ichiro's idea—the Spirit Armor? Yoruichi, you're finally taking action. Urahara's lips curled slightly. He flickered away, changing the shape of his Zanpakuto once more.

"Sing, Benihime!"

"Razor Benihime!"

Several crimson blades flew toward Yoruichi, cutting off every avenue of escape!

Urahara knew Yoruichi well, so he knew just how powerful her Shunpo was. That was why he'd simply sealed off her chance to escape with Shunpo!

After all, Shunpo was a technique for moving at high speed, not teleportation.

But Urahara had clearly underestimated Yoruichi's mastery of Shunpo. And in the end, a slash only traveled in one direction. Even if Benihime's impressive capabilities let one slash miraculously fly behind Yoruichi,

it was still just one slash.

Yoruichi turned and smashed her fist into the red blade. On one side was the full force of her white light; on the other, Urahara's red light, divided into many slashes. The outcome was beyond doubt.

Yoruichi shattered the red slash. A hole ripped through the nearly perfect encirclement, and in an instant, she vanished.

After using Shunpo to escape, Yoruichi used the smoke kicked up by the other red slashes as cover and swiftly closed in on Urahara.

Urahara's Zanpakuto had a wide variety of forms. That was an advantage, but also a weakness. Singing Benihime excelled at varied mid- to long-range combat, which meant it was bound to be poor at close range.

Urahara understood that, of course, so he'd mastered the ability to switch forms quickly, changing his Zanpakuto's state in a single thought and nearly eliminating this weakness.

But only nearly.

Changing forms frequently consumed a great deal of Reiryoku. So Yoruichi's strategy was simple: use Shunpo to keep closing in on Urahara, forcing him to change his Zanpakuto's form again and again.

Her partial Shunko also took a lot out of her, but this was only a training match. Using it at high intensity could also expose some flaws, giving her a chance to adjust them.

And so, the two of them all but disappeared from the training grounds. All anyone could make out were two big rats darting around. After nearly thirty seconds of stalemate, Yoruichi finally outmatched Urahara in Shunpo and managed to close the distance!

But when she got close, Urahara didn't switch to Awaken, Benihime. He switched to Binding Benihime!

"Bind him! Benihime!"

Urahara's lips curled as he called out the command!

Several black-and-red ribbons burst from the spot where Yoruichi landed after her Shunpo and curled upward around her!

Damn! A trap!

That was her first thought.

Mimicry Shikai, activate!

That was her second thought—and her next move!

Fierce Reiryoku suddenly surged from Yoruichi. The tremendous force scattered the black-and-red bands of Reiryoku that had just taken shape, and sent Urahara flying far away!

That was another powerful feature of Mimicry Shikai.

It needed no preparation. As long as she could still control her Reiryoku, she could activate it instantly. In gaming terms, there was no wind-up.

For a Soul Reaper like Yoruichi, who excelled at Hakuda, this was perfect!

Drawing her sword before a fight just to get a Reiryoku buff, then sheathing it afterward? By the time she did that, the opportunity would be gone. And since she'd made the source of the Reiryoku herself, she could keep using the buff as long as she had money. It was even better than ordinary Shikai!

The only downside was that it cost a lot.

But would the Shihoin family ever be short of money?

So, the moment Urahara finished his experiment, she'd asked him to make one for her. She'd also come up with several ways to use it in combat. But when she put it to the test for the first time, Yoruichi realized she'd been too hasty.

Mimicry Shikai's technology was still far from perfect. Her control over Reiryoku wasn't as fluid as it was with a Zanpakuto's Shikai. That was usually fine, but when she activated it in the middle of a fight, her slightly clumsy control made her partial Shunko go out of control and dissipate.

And just like that, the fight was over.

Nearby, Urahara had been preparing to counterattack. Seeing what happened, he could only put away his Zanpakuto with a regretful look. There was no point continuing the fight. He could gather and refine the data on Mimicry Shikai himself; the main purpose of this match had been to help Yoruichi develop partial Shunko.

Even so, Urahara went over to collect what little data he could from Yoruichi. He still had some ideas about Mimicry Shikai. As a genius, how could he be content with merely refining Ichiro's invention?

Aside from Reiryoku control, Mimicry Shikai had another problem: it couldn't coexist with a Zanpakuto's Shikai. That greatly reduced its value. So, to Urahara, the ideal version of Mimicry Shikai would amplify Reiryoku in the same way as a Zanpakuto's Shikai while also allowing both to be used at once!

That would make Mimicry Shikai useful to him, while also greatly increasing its strategic value!

It would also face less resistance when it came time to make it widely available. After all, if it could coexist with Shikai, Mimicry Shikai would no longer be a substitute for a Zanpakuto. Instead, it would simply be an invention that could greatly enhance a Soul Reaper's combat power and rate of growth.

Urahara knew Ichiro well. He understood that, to Ichiro, an invention that couldn't be made widely available was meaningless—unless it was an extremely dangerous "weapon."

So he was willing to help Ichiro with this. He believed that Ichiro would make the same choice.

"Are you okay? Shunko seems to have burned you again. Which part malfunctioned?"

"I don't think it could withstand that much Reiryoku. A lot of the nodes in partial Shunko collapsed in that instant."

"I see. Then write down exactly which parts they were later, and I'll help you study them."

"What about your research?"

"I'm fine. I've finished the Tenshintai research, and now I'm mainly working on Mimicry Shikai. I can help you with this."

"Okay. The nodes were mainly these."

The two supported each other as they walked into the house and began another round of research. Compared to the two of them working together, Ichiro had it much worse.

Not only was his environment harsh, but he was lonely, too. The only one keeping him company was a Simpleton Dragon who did nothing but eat.