Unohana Felt a Little Repressed

The morning mist had not yet dissipated at the sword-training grounds behind the Fourth Division.

Wang Xun stood in the center of the arena, holding his Zanpakuto in his hand.

Retsu Unohana stood opposite him, dressed in plain-colored training clothes.

The Zanpakuto in her hand gleamed with a faint, cold light, keeping Wang Xun on edge from the very beginning.

But today's Unohana is a little different from usual.

"Your Reiatsu has increased again."

She spoke, her tone as gentle and calm as ever.

"Fourth-Class Spiritual Pressure... progressing very quickly."

"There have been some recent breakthroughs."

Wang Xun answered truthfully.

He looked up at the woman opposite him; the morning mist clung to the tips of her hair, condensing into tiny droplets.

Those eyes, which always carried a gentle smile, were now calmly fixed on him.

Unohana didn't speak, she just looked at him.

"Bring it on."

She slowly raised the knife, holding the blade horizontally in front of her.

Wang Xun gripped the hilt of the knife tightly and took a deep breath.

His chest was filled with a damp, cool mist, but it couldn't suppress the fighting spirit surging up from the bottom of his heart.

The next moment, his figure vanished from the spot.

The soft sound of the air being torn apart still lingered, and the sharp glint of the blade had already pierced through the morning mist, aiming straight for Unohana's side.

Unohana her body slightly to the side, easily dodging the fatal blow.

At the same time, with a slight flick of his wrist, the Zanpakuto in his hand parried the attack smoothly.

The two Zanpakuto clashed violently, the ear-piercing metallic scraping sound breaking the silence of the morning mist.

Sparks flew everywhere, making Wang Xun's hand go numb, and the solid ground beneath his feet instantly cracked with fine lines.

Unohana's brow twitched very slightly.

"Not bad, your strength has increased as well."

Her tone remained calm, but a barely perceptible ripple finally appeared in her eyes.

Wang Xun stood still, his hand gripping the knife slightly numb.

He could sense that Unohana hadn't used her full strength in that last strike, but she was still much stronger than usual.

Unohana testing his limits.

Wang Xun a deep breath, gripped the hilt of his sword, and activated his Shunpo.

The blade flashed like a bolt of lightning, slashing towards Unohana's waist from the side.

The Unohana did not fade.

She parried Wang Xun's slash with her knife and then countered by cutting his wrist.

Wang Xun stepped back, the blade grazing his sleeve.

He didn't stop; he spun around, and the tip of his knife stabbed at Unohana's ribs from another angle.

With a clang, Unohana's sword steadily blocked his attack.

Wang Xun felt the force emanating from the blade was much greater than before, and it was actually pushing back towards his body.

Wang Xun gritted his teeth and activated his Reiatsu.

The Reiatsu on the blade suddenly surged, forcefully pushing Unohana's blade away by an inch.

He kicked her knee while simultaneously slashing down with his blade, aiming straight for her shoulder.

Unohana dodged to the side and casually slashed at his neck with her sword.

Wang Xun up, and the blade grazed his chin, severing a few strands of hair.

Before he could even regain his footing, Unohana's second slash was already upon him.

This strike carried Reiatsu.

Wang Xun's pupils contracted, and he activated his Shunpo at full power, his figure flashing backward.

The blade struck the spot where he had just stood, cutting a deep gash in the ground.

Pebbles flew everywhere, and dust billowed.

Wang Xun looked down at his chest.

The Death Knight's armor was cut open by the wind from the blade, leaving a shallow bloodstain on the skin.

If it had been just a fraction of a second slower, this cut would have been far more than a mere scrape.

He looked up at Unohana.

What made him even more uneasy was that he could feel an increasingly intense Reiatsu slowly emanating from Unohana's body.

It wasn't the gentle, healing Reiatsu of the past.

It was cold and smelled of blood.

Like an abyss, the Reiatsu belongs to the killer.

Unohana remained silent.

Something was slowly flowing in those eyes.

Wang Xun couldn't say what it was, but he knew it wasn't the usual Unohana.

This time, she didn't wait for Wang Xun attack.

Her figure vanished from the spot, so fast that Wang Xun only had time to catch a glimpse of her afterimage.

He instinctively raised his knife to block, but a tremendous force came from the blade, making his hand go numb.

Each strike was faster and heavier than the last.

Wang Xun was so shocked that he staggered backward, leaving deep footprints on the ground beneath his feet.

His hand was split open, and blood was dripping down the hilt of the knife, but he dared not let go.

What shocked him even more was that he could sense that Unohana was becoming increasingly excited.

The next cut from Unohana is coming.

This strike was extremely sharp, and a dark red Reiatsu even emanated from the blade.

Wang Xun gritted his teeth, pushed his Reiatsu to the limit, gripped his sword with both hands, and faced the attack head-on.

A loud bang.

The moment the two Zanpakuto clashed, a shockwave exploded from the point of impact, sending all the surrounding fallen leaves and pebbles flying.

Wang Xun felt as if his arm had been struck by an iron hammer, and he flew backward, sliding several feet on the ground before regaining his balance.

His hands were trembling, and blood was flowing uncontrollably from the mouth of his hands.

He leaned on his sword, slowly raised his head, and looked at Unohana.

The cold blade pressed against his skin, its sharp edge having already cut through the flesh of his neck, and a trickle of warm blood slowly slid down the blade.

He could even feel the Reiatsu belonging to Unohana on the blade, carrying undisguised killing intent, drilling into his bone marrow along his neck.

Wang Xun's voice was a little hoarse, but he tried his best to keep his tone calm.

"Captain, if we keep releasing our Reiatsu like this, we'll attract attention."

Unohana's fingers twitched slightly.

She lowered her head, looked at her hand holding the knife, and remained silent for a moment.

Then, she released the hilt of the sword, her Reiatsu slowly receding, and the suffocating oppressive feeling dissipated.

"Ah, that's true."

She spoke softly, a hint of regret in her voice.

Wang Xun stood not far away, watching her figure.

He could sense that Unohana suppressing herself.

He suppressed the desire to fight that surged from the depths of his soul.

That concludes today's practice.

Unohana turned around, her expression returning to its usual gentleness.

"Perfect timing, there's something I need to tell you."

Wang Xun sheathed his sword and finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"What's up?"

"People from the Shin'ō Medical Institute are coming to the Fourth Division for an inspection, ostensibly to exchange experiences, but actually..."

She didn't finish speaking, but Wang Xun already understood.

"Are you here to cause trouble?"

Unohana glanced at him but did not deny it.

"When?"

"A few days later, not many people came, but they were of great importance. The representative of the Shin'ō Medical Institute, and several sages from the Central 46."

Wang Xun fell silent.

He knew perfectly well who was behind it.

Tsunayashiro Tokinada.

It wasn't enough that they kicked him out of the Kidō Corps last time; this time they're trying to get their hands on the Fourth Division.

"I understand, I'll be prepared."

Wang Xun said in a deep voice.

Unohana nodded, looking at Wang Xun with a calm gaze, but Wang Xun could see the concern in her eyes.

"Don't worry about anything. They can't cause any trouble in the Fourth Division."

Wang Xun nodded.

"I see.