Yachiru

The group, weary from their journey, slowly came into view of the Seireitei – Shuwamon.

The moment they stepped through the gate, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

The tension that had been building for days finally eased, and the familiar atmosphere within the Seireitei brought a sense of peace.

The wounded were transferred to the Fourth Division's barracks. Unohana instructed the team members to rest and take care of the follow-up work before returning to the captain's office alone.

The next few days were peaceful.

Wang Xun rested in the Fourth Division's barracks, occasionally helping to tend to the herbs in the herb garden, or exchanging medical insights with the members of the Fourth Division. His days were very fulfilling.

However, Unohana's guidance in Kendō never ceased.

Since returning from Rukongai, Retsu Unohana has become very busy.

The Fourth Division's daily medical treatment and wounded care, as well as the investigation into the Hollow Group's unusual activities, kept her almost constantly on the go.

Even so, she still made time once a week to instruct Wang Xun in Kendō in an open space behind the Fourth Division.

Unohana never uses real swords; she always uses two wooden swords.

However, her attacks were more ferocious and more incisive than they had been in Rukongai.

The killing intent grew even stronger, and Wang Xun could feel it gradually increasing with each strike.

On the sword-fighting field, Retsu Unohana's wooden sword struck Wang Xun's forearm, and she casually flicked the sword away, instantly neutralizing his attack.

"Your problem is that you pursue precision too much, which makes you lose the fluidity of Kendō."

"You practice swordsmanship with the mindset of a healer, which allows you to accurately pinpoint the enemy's weaknesses. This is your advantage, but it has also become your constraint."

"The Kendō is different from the way of medicine; it doesn't require perfect precision in every step. Being a little wild and ruthless can actually catch you off guard."

Wang Xun picked up the wooden sword from the ground and nodded.

In the following training, under the guidance of Unohana, Wang Xun gradually broke through his own limitations.

He no longer deliberately pursued precision, but tried to let his body move with his mind, letting his killing intent drive the sword's momentum.

The system notification sounds continued to ring out during the sword practice.

[Kendō level increased]

[Kendō: Iv7 (Experience: 120/20000)]

The moment the system notification sounded, Wang Xun clearly felt that his Kendō had undergone a qualitative leap.

An even more powerful sword aura surged from within him, perfectly merging his Reiatsu with the sword aura.

He could clearly feel that his Kendō had reached another level.

In Kendō alone, he has already surpassed that of an ordinary vice-captain.

His swordsmanship level is already close to that of Captain-level.

After finishing his sword practice that day, Retsu Unohana looked at Wang Xun with a clear look of surprise in his eyes.

She could clearly sense the change in Wang Xun's sword aura; it was a transformation that came naturally.

Even she was surprised by such a rapid pace of progress.

Then, a strange sense of satisfaction arose spontaneously.

Like a flawless piece of raw jade, under her carving, it gradually reveals a more perfect form.

So much so that it made her a little...

My palms are itchy.

"Good."

Unohana suppressed her emotions and spoke softly, her tone carrying a rare hint of approval.

"Your talent in Kendō has somewhat exceeded my expectations."

Wang Xun bowed respectfully.

"It's all thanks to the captain's excellent guidance."

Unohana nodded slightly.

"Your foundation is sufficient. From today onward, I can teach you true swordsmanship."

As she spoke, the wooden knife in her hand flashed, turning into a blur as it hurtled straight toward Wang Xun's face.

Wang Xun instinctively raised his hand to block, and the instant the wooden swords clashed, he felt a tremendous force and his wrist went numb.

Before he could react, a slight pain shot through his shoulder.

It was a pebble flicked from Unohana's left hand that struck him precisely on the shoulder.

Snap!

The wooden sword slipped from Wang Xun's hand again and fell heavily to the ground.

Unohana sheathed her sword and stood there, looking at him calmly.

"Your attention is too focused on the knife in front, and you're ignoring the movements of my left hand."

"A real battle is never a one-on-one head-on confrontation."

"Any detail, any small action, can be the key to victory, or it can be a fatal flaw."

Wang Xun rubbed his shoulders, picked up the wooden sword, and nodded.

"I've got it."

He assumed a fighting stance once more and attacked Retsu Unohana.

This time, he not only paid attention to the wooden knife in front of him, but also kept a close eye on everything around him.

But Retsu Unohana's attack was more unpredictable than he had imagined.

The wooden sword's attacks were unpredictable, sometimes wide and sweeping, sometimes treacherous and cunning.

They employed every tactic imaginable: frontal assaults and flanking maneuvers.

Occasionally, it would even involve hidden weapons and interference from Kidō, making it impossible for him to defend against them.

After an unknown amount of time, the clanging of wooden swords on the training ground gradually subsided.

Wang Xun was covered in sweat, panting heavily, still gripping the wooden knife tightly in his hand, but his eyes grew even brighter.

Retsu Unohana looked at him and nodded slightly.

"Not bad, at least you can hold your own for a few rounds."

Wang Xun smiled and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"Thank you for your mercy, Captain. By the way, Captain, your swordsmanship is so superb, do you have a school of swordsmanship or a name for it?"

Upon hearing Unohana, Unohana paused slightly.

Her gaze fell upon the distant mountains and forests, a hint of reminiscence flashing in her eyes, as if recalling those years from a thousand years ago.

After a long silence, he slowly uttered three words, his voice so soft it seemed as if it would be blown away by the wind, yet it clearly reached Wang Xun's ears.

"Yachiru"

"Yachiru..."

Wang Xun repeated the name softly.

That's all for today.

Unohana withdrew her gaze.

Go back and get some rest. We'll try again next time.

"Yes, Captain."

The next morning, Wang Xun had just finished his morning exercise and was about to go to the clinic to help when a member of the Fourth Division came to deliver a message.

He said someone was looking for him, and he was waiting at the entrance of the barracks.

Wang Xun was slightly taken aback. He didn't know many people in the Seireitei, and he wondered who would come looking for him.

He strode to the entrance of the camp, looked up, and saw a figure with light yellow hair and a slightly lazy smile on his face.

Kisuke Urahara.

Wang Xun never expected that the person who came to find him would be Kisuke Urahara.

The two had not crossed paths since their last parting, so Kisuke Urahara's sudden visit came as a slight surprise to him.

"Wang Xun, it's been a long time."

Kisuke Urahara saw Wang Xun, smiled and waved, his expression unchanged, and took a few steps to greet him.

"Third Seat Urahara, what brings you to me today?"

"It's nothing important, I just had some free time and thought I'd come see you."

Wang Xun looked at Kisuke Urahara, a thoughtful look flashing in his eyes.

He recalled the incident involving the Hollowfication Fragment.

The origin lies with Kisuke Urahara.

This made Wang Xun wonder if this guy had discovered some of his special qualities.

In his eyes, Kisuke Urahara now possessed a hint of danger.

Then, Wang Xun cleared his voice. Although his eyes did not show any signs of aloofness, his attitude had changed.

"You came all this way to see me, there must be something wrong. What is it? Tell me quickly, I still have team matters to attend to."

"Haha, you really can't hide that from me."

Kisuke Urahara chuckled softly, moved closer to Wang Xun, lowered his voice, and spoke with a hint of mystery.

He looked into Wang Xun's eyes and spoke, word by word.

"There's been progress on the Spirit Spring Project we discussed before."