Inside his dorm, Natsuro curiously examined his Zanpakutō.
According to what the instructors had said in Zanpakutō class, after Shikai was released, the blade should revert back to the standard asauchi form, and only transform again the next time Shikai was invoked.
But he hadn't used Shikai just now, and yet Meikyō Shisui still retained its transformed appearance, looking exactly as he remembered.
And it showed no signs of reverting.
"So… it's just as I thought. The instructors at Shin'ō Academy have limited knowledge. There are probably many cases they don't even understand themselves." Natsuro sighed, though he still felt this academy was a good place to train.
He had looked into the Gotei 13, and after learning more, Natsuro had no intention of joining them anytime soon.
Joining a squad meant taking on a "job," and each squad had its own specific duties.
For example, the famous 11th Division was a combat unit responsible for fighting Hollows in the Soul Society.
The 4th Division handled logistics and medical care, and generally didn't engage in combat with Hollows.
Miyako Shiba, the one who performed Natsuro's soul burial, should be a member of the 13th Division, whose task was cleansing Hollows in the human world and guiding souls to the Soul Society.
Natsuro saw no real benefit to graduating early. Sure, he might gain early access to higher-level Kidō.
At Shin'ō Academy, students could only learn intermediate-level Kidō. The advanced ones… well, the instructors probably couldn't use them either, so there was no one to teach them.
But that didn't matter much to Natsuro. Kidō wasn't going anywhere, learning it sooner or later made little difference. His top priority now was refining his control over spiritual energy, so he could fully master all of his power.
He had come to realize: whether it was Kidō or swordsmanship, everything fundamentally came down to Reiatsu (spiritual pressure). The stronger your reiatsu, the stronger your Kidō and your sword strikes. It probably even determined your soul's "health bar."
To train his reiatsu, he didn't need the Gotei 13. Quietly cultivating in the Academy was perfectly fine.
It wasn't that Natsuro feared being exposed, he just saw no point in needlessly throwing himself into battle. There was no benefit in charging in headfirst.
So Natsuro glanced down at his Zanpakutō. Both his Shikai and Bankai were best kept hidden. Revealing Shikai might still allow him to stay and train peacefully in the Academy. But if he revealed Bankai, he'd probably be forcibly graduated and conscripted into a squad.
And not just as an ordinary seated officer, at least a vice-captain, possibly even a direct replacement for any captain who stepped down. That's how rare and valued Bankai was.
Shaking the thoughts from his mind, he gripped the hilt and slowly closed his eyes, entering the Meikyō Shisui state.
Before long, he opened his eyes again, this time filled with delight.
Since awakening his Zanpakutō, he hadn't had much time to explore its abilities in detail. But now, after carefully attuning to the state, he found that entering Meikyō Shisui was a massive help to his training, especially in terms of control. His precision instantly jumped to another level.
Although the effect faded somewhat after leaving the state, once you experienced it, it became much easier to replicate through training.
As for his Bankai...
A sudden realization dawned on Natsuro. No wonder he felt that Meikyō Shisui was holding back during their fight.
The issue was the Bankai itself.
Bankai: Jin Dan (Absolute Severance)
"When the mind's eye sees through, there is no escape, no evasion, only absolute severance."
That was the ability of his Bankai: Absolute severance. You could call it a rule-type power.
It seemed disconnected from his Shikai, but it had a critical precondition, he must see through the opponent's ability before activating the severance. If he couldn't, then the sword simply became sharper… nothing more.
During their fight, Meikyō Shisui had tried to see through Natsuro the whole time. But he wasn't someone who could be easily read, so she had been unable to unleash her true power and was defeated.
"Feels kinda… underwhelming," Natsuro muttered.
With his reiatsu, was there anyone he couldn't cut down directly? Did he even need such an ability? It seemed more trouble than it was worth…
That said, his Bankai still aligned with his core philosophy, consolidating all power into himself. So it suited him just fine.
The strength of a Zanpakutō's Shikai or Bankai didn't matter. What mattered was whether he was strong.
If someone else had Meikyō Shisui, it might not be a very useful power. In terms of combat enhancement, it was just a support ability, if the swordmaster wasn't strong, then this ability meant nothing.
And "Absolute Severance"? A rule-type power?
It sounded strong, sure.
But even Natsuro found it kind of lackluster. Against weaker enemies, just cut them. Against stronger ones, it's not easy to see through them, so the power is useless.
Like his fight with Meikyō Shisui, she never managed to see through him.
Natsuro thought it over. His Shikai and Bankai both focused entirely on enhancing his personal ability, so training techniques designed to improve a Zanpakutō's unique powers probably didn't apply to him.
What he needed was to improve his reiatsu, and create the perfect sword style.
For most Zanpakutō, sword techniques weren't a big deal. But for Natsuro, whose power was internalized, they were ideal.
Of course, creating the perfect sword style was easier said than done.
"First Form: Thunderclap and Flash… I guess that counts as my opener," Natsuro murmured.
He reflected on his past "sword techniques", most of them wouldn't work here. They were based on chakra, combining ninjutsu and kenjutsu.
Now that he no longer had chakra, and used spiritual energy instead, those moves were incompatible.
Still, he knew the principles behind those techniques. If he found suitable Kidō in the future, he might be able to fuse them and develop brand-new sword arts.
For example: Vacuum Slash, Shattering Space, and… the ultimate, Dimensional Blade.
Actually, Dimensional Blade might still be viable. It wasn't tied to Wind Release, but rather to spatial techniques. His current space-based powers hadn't diminished much. He just couldn't use Flying Thunder God anymore.
But spatial portals, those he could still open.
"Guess I've got my hands full," Natsuro chuckled.
Even if his current strength in the Bleach world couldn't compare to his Naruto-world self, he was still growing stronger. That alone made this journey worthwhile.
Truthfully, he wasn't even sure he could achieve a final breakthrough in this world. But even if he couldn't, at least it wasn't boring.
Having now awakened his Zanpakutō, Natsuro had a clear path forward. He once again laid Meikyō Shisui across his lap, entered a still-water state of mind, and resumed his training.
In the days that followed, during Class A's swordsmanship lessons, a curious sight emerged....
Natsuro would simply stand still, gripping the hilt of his sword without moving.
Previously, although he rarely sparred in class, he'd at least perform the basic cutting drills. Now? Not even those.
Even in mandatory partner matches, he'd only use a bit of Kidō, and win effortlessly each time.
His mastery of Kidō left opponents in awe. After all, the same spells he used were so much more powerful than when cast by others.
Most students assumed Natsuro had abandoned swordsmanship entirely and chosen to pursue the path of a Kidō Corps member.
No one looked down on this. On the contrary, choosing your path early was seen as admirable.
In truth, every time he entered that motionless state, he was sparring inside his Zanpakutō's inner world, training with Meikyō Shisui.
Training with a partner was far more effective than solo practice.
As for Meikyō Shisui's outward appearance, the change wasn't drastic. Since Natsuro rarely unsheathed his sword, only those very close to him would even notice that its form had changed.
Even Renji, who was on relatively good terms with Natsuro, hadn't noticed. After getting utterly defeated last time and failing to make any breakthroughs since, he hadn't challenged Natsuro again, and was unaware of any changes.
Perhaps… only when Natsuro faced an enemy that forced him to draw his Zanpakutō, would people realize he had already achieved Shikai.
On this day, all the students at Shin'ō Academy gathered in the Academy's largest courtyard.
The entire place was decked out in lights and festive decorations.
Natsuro, who usually paid little attention to external events, looked around in confusion.Was today some kind of festival in the Soul Society?
"What's going on today?" Natsuro asked Renji curiously.
Immediately, Renji looked at him like he was some kind of alien. "You seriously don't know?"
"Do I need to know?" Natsuro raised an eyebrow.
"…Fine." Renji felt like he was about to be struck by lightning, then explained, "You know about the Gotei 13, right?"
Natsuro nodded. The Gotei 13 was so well-known in the Soul Society that there wasn't a single soul who didn't know of it.
"Well, the Captain and Lieutenant of the 5th Division are coming to visit. That's why everyone's headed over there. Want to come see what a captain-level Soul Reaper is really like?" Renji offered.
"You only just heard that from one of the upperclassmen, didn't you?" Rukia immediately exposed him without hesitation.
"A captain and a lieutenant, huh?" Natsuro murmured in slight surprise. After thinking about it, he nodded. He was indeed curious about the strength of captain-class Soul Reapers. Up until now, he hadn't seen one himself.
And so, Natsuro joined Renji, Izuru, and Rukia as they walked toward the gathering crowd.
Soon, a man appeared at the front, short brown hair, brown eyes, a gentle and warm appearance, wearing black-rimmed glasses and smiling softly like sunshine.
His black shihakushō was draped with a long-sleeved white haori, embroidered with the number 5, clearly marking him as the Captain of the 5th Division.
Looking at him, Natsuro felt a strange sense of familiarity. But what truly shocked him was that he couldn't read the man's spiritual energy at all, he could only sense that his reiatsu was immense.
Just one captain, and he was already beyond Natsuro's perception?
Unfortunately, Natsuro didn't know the man's name.
If he knew the Captain of the 5th Division was Aizen Sōsuke, he wouldn't have been so surprised.
After all, Aizen was one of the main boss-level characters in Bleach, known for his overpowering reiatsu and ranked as one of the five Special War Powers.
Even though Aizen wasn't at his future peak yet, his spiritual pressure was still far beyond what Natsuro, whose full strength hadn't even returned, could see through.
Next, he turned his gaze to the lieutenant walking behind Aizen.
This man had short, pale-purple hair, slender build, squinting eyes, a sharp face, and wore a smile, that despite its gentleness, gave off an eerie vibe.
Compared to the 5th Division's captain, the lieutenant's reiatsu wasn't nearly as strong.
Still, it exceeded Natsuro's expectations. He examined the captain and lieutenant carefully and quietly let go of the faint pride he'd unknowingly held.
Just one division captain and lieutenant already had this level of power. And there were still thirteen divisions in the Gotei 13...
Not to mention the legendary Head Captain and the Royal Guard.
"The strength of the Soul Reapers… might be even greater than I imagined," Natsuro murmured as he watched the two walk past without sparing a word to the students.
Which made sense. People at that level wouldn't casually converse with students, many of whom might not even make it into the Gotei 13.
"So that's what a captain-level Soul Reaper looks like!" Renji exclaimed beside him, eyes burning with admiration. "Just standing nearby, I can feel how their reiatsu is on an entirely different level from ours."
"Yeah… captain-level strength really is something else," Izuru echoed in awe.
"One day, I'm going to become a captain-level Soul Reaper too!" Renji declared loudly.
"A captain…" Momo muttered, staring longingly at the now-vanished figures. She clenched her fists and said firmly, "I've made up my mind, I'm going to become a Soul Reaper and join the 5th Division when I graduate!"
"Captain-level... certainly not bad," Natsuro whispered softly.
But no one heard his words.
Now that he had felt a sliver of pressure, …it was time to keep pushing forward.
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Currently on Chapter 468 - The Akatsuki Live On