Blade

Rukia felt an inexplicably strange sensation. She looked at the group of upperclassmen seated there, her gaze finally settling on Tachikawa Shin.

Aside from seeing him in the crowd during the entrance ceremony, this was probably their first formal meeting.

Yet the way he looked at her made it seem as though he already knew her.

Feeling slightly uncomfortable, she lowered her eyes and bowed to those present.

Hisagi Shūhei went through the usual procedure. "Please introduce yourself first..."

"Hello, seniors. I'm Rukia from Class B, a first-year student from Inuzuri in District 78 of the South Rukon District. I don't have any particular hobbies. I hope to become an outstanding Soul Reaper through my studies at the Spirit Training Academy. If I can join the Student Council, I'm fine with being assigned to any department."

Compared to Hinamori Momo just now, Rukia's performance was far from outstanding. Shin had already caught sight of Kōgorō beside him giving Rukia the lowest initial score.

Born in the Rukon District and a Class B student, Kasumi Oji Gorō had probably already eliminated her in his mind.

"Please answer the first question."

"I would choose to stay and resist the Menos Grande alongside my senior."

"Please explain your reasoning."

Rukia pursed her lips. "I just feel that, at a time like that, I shouldn't leave my senior behind alone. Even if sacrifice is necessary, having someone by your side would still be a good thing. I'm not an exceptional student. Compared to me, Soul Society would certainly suffer a greater loss if it lost my senior. If I stay, I should be able to reduce the danger my senior faces."

After hearing her answer, Shin raised an eyebrow slightly before suddenly speaking. "Very well said."

Everyone present was startled as Shin continued, "For a freshman who has only just enrolled, it's truly rare to possess such conviction."

Kōgorō, seated beside him, frowned silently. He looked again at the girl named Rukia. Aside from being reasonably pretty, there was nothing remarkable about her. She was even a Class B student.

But after hesitating for a moment, Kōgorō still changed Rukia's score in his notebook.

So far, there had not been many qualified candidates. Half the first-year slots had already been reserved for noble students, and Tachikawa Shin had no power to change that. As for the remaining candidates, he could do whatever he wanted with them.

After hearing Shin's words, the Student Council officers seemed to understand something as well. Some began writing in their notebooks again.

Shin wore a smile as Hisagi Shūhei said, "Please continue with the second question."

As for the remaining two questions, Hinamori had given highly standard answers just now. For the second question, she described a specific course of action, while for the third, Hinamori Momo cleverly said that she would first seek the President's instructions.

However, Rukia's answers were much poorer than Hinamori Momo's. Yet the officers present did not rush to score her. Instead, they first looked toward Shin.

Only after seeing that Shin continued to encourage her did they resume their evaluations.

Hisagi Shūhei finally said, "Following our assessment, Rukia, congratulations. You have passed the interview."

Rukia had never expected to pass so smoothly. She herself felt that her later performance had been terrible, and delight immediately surfaced in her eyes.

"Thank you, seniors." She bowed repeatedly as she spoke.

"You really should thank this President. He's certainly been generous with you," Kōgorō suddenly said mockingly.

Shin did not get angry. Instead, he chuckled. "We should always give our junior students more opportunities. I believe my judgment won't be wrong."

Even Rukia, slow as she was, realized that the Student Council President's earlier encouragement had apparently caused the others to raise her score. Gratitude immediately filled her heart.

Sensing something, Shin's smile deepened.

"All right. Remember to report in on time tomorrow."

"Yes!"

After Rukia left, Shin smiled at Kōgorō again, making Kōgorō privately wonder whether something was wrong with this guy's brain. He had obviously been mocking him just now.

Naturally, he had no idea that his sarcastic remark had caused Rukia's Affection to jump to 15 points.

Spiritual Pressure Level: Lv. 17

Zanpakutō Unlock Progress: 10%

Rukia walked out of the interview classroom and found Hinamori Momo waiting for her in the corridor.

"Rukia!"

"Hina... Momo."

"How did it go?" Hinamori asked impatiently.

"Ah, I passed too!" Rukia said with a smile.

"Really? That's wonderful!" Hinamori excitedly threw her arms around Rukia and cheered!

Though they had only known each other for a short time, Hinamori's warm personality did not make Rukia uncomfortable in the slightest. Instead, she felt that Hinamori was a very nice person.

"Thanks to Momo's encouragement, I'd already thought I was about to be eliminated," Rukia said earnestly.

Hinamori smiled brightly. "You're welcome, you're welcome. But you passed because you're capable! It didn't have much to do with anyone else."

Still somewhat shaken, Rukia said, "When I first walked in, I was so nervous I nearly died. The seniors all seemed so intimidating."

Hinamori Momo said, "Right? I also thought it was pretty nerve-racking to see all those seniors sitting together with such serious expressions. But that President seemed like a very kind person."

Tachikawa Shin's image flashed through Rukia's mind. After pondering for a moment, she said, "The President really is a very good person. I didn't perform very well to begin with. He encouraged me, and then the other seniors seemed to relax their standards for me because of his encouragement."

Hinamori Momo said excitedly, "See? You think the President is great too, right? I heard that he was the first one to advocate founding this Student Council! And he's also a famous genius student at the Spirit Training Academy. Swordsmanship is what he's best at. Even his Swordsmanship Class instructor is no longer a match for him!"

"You know so much?"

Hinamori Momo answered as though it were only natural, "Because I looked into it beforehand. I thought we might meet the President during the interview, and knowing more about him should help with it."

Rukia thought that Hinamori had prepared incredibly thoroughly. Compared to her, passing this interview really had been nothing but a stroke of luck.

Luckily, President Shin was generous and kind. He was a good person.

The two chatted as they walked out of the school building. Hinamori also asked Rukia which Student Council department she wanted to join.

"I haven't decided yet. I don't know enough about the departments."

"It would be great if we were assigned to the same department."

"Mm."

There were still quite a few students left to interview, and it took Shin's group another hour or two to finish.

In the end, a total of nineteen freshmen passed the interview assessment.

These nineteen people would be distributed evenly among the Discipline, Organization, Finance, Publicity, Studies, and Arts departments.

That worked out to three freshmen per department.

After completing the final personnel assignments in the Student Council headquarters office, Shin leaned back in his chair and stretched.

"I'm exhausted. That was seriously tiring."

Kōgorō left with his people.

"Want to go eat?" Shūbīng asked. Kanazawa looked over as well.

"You two go ahead. I have something else to do."

Shūbīng asked in surprise, "What is it?"

Shin merely smiled. "A secret."

Shūbīng wore a strange expression. "Don't tell me you're going to see one of the freshman girls from today's interviews?"

Shin rolled his eyes at him and could not be bothered to explain.

Hisagi Shūhei and Kanazawa left the office together. On their way to the cafeteria, Kanazawa suddenly asked Shūbīng, "Does Shin really like one of the junior girls he interviewed today?"

Caught off guard by the sudden question, Shūbīng scratched his head. "That girl named Hinamori was pretty cute... It actually does seem possible."

Shin also left the Student Council headquarters office. It was now dinnertime, and the students' classes for the day had ended.

He went alone to the swordsmanship classroom and entered without issue using the Student Council's privileges.

Beside the swordsmanship classroom was the sword storage room. Countless black blades were arranged neatly and densely throughout the room, each one marked with a serial number beneath it.

Students of the Spirit Training Academy could not carry Asauchi regularly. They could only use them during Swordsmanship Class and practical combat classes. This was because, during the Academy's six years of study, it was extremely rare for anyone to awaken their own Zanpakutō. Ninety-nine percent of people only gradually awakened their Zanpakutō after graduation, once they had been issued an Asauchi of their own.

However, the overwhelming majority of Soul Reaper soldiers never obtained their own Zanpakutō in their entire lives. Having one was equivalent to possessing the foundation needed to become a Seated Officer.

A Zanpakutō was forged with a Soul Reaper's own soul as its template. After obtaining an Asauchi, a Soul Reaper continuously infused it with their spiritual power over time. Eventually, they could communicate with it spiritually and thereby obtain its power.

Shin moved slowly among the countless Asauchi. He stopped before the serial number of the Asauchi he had often used in Swordsmanship Class, but when he reached out and gripped it, he felt nothing unusual.

After a moment of silence, he put the Asauchi back in its place.

Zanpakutō Unlock Progress: 11% (Half-Release)

Zanpakutō unlocked. Call its true name to reveal its true form.

Call its true name... Call its true name...

Shin swept his gaze across every Asauchi in the storage room. To him, these blades were no different from one another. Not a single one gave him that so-called spiritual resonance.

It isn't here?

Shin frowned in thought, looking over his system interface again and again. Suddenly, he realized something.

Spiritual Pressure Level: Lv. 18

Spirit Energy Reserve: 15%

This so-called Spirit Energy Reserve meant exactly what it sounded like. The spiritual energy within him had always remained below full capacity because he constantly released spiritual energy outward. It was like puncturing a small hole in a ball and letting the air leak out continuously. The opening was tiny, something most people would not notice at all.

He did this because his current spiritual pressure had already far surpassed that of students in his year. He did not believe any method of concealing spiritual pressure could fool those stronger than himself.

As long as his spiritual energy remained below full capacity, the total amount of energy inside him would be limited. Outsiders would not be able to discern anything.

He returned to the swordsmanship classroom, sat cross-legged in its center, and slowly closed his eyes.

Spirit Energy Reserve: 16%