Katori Nanatsuki didn't take the completed Bakkōtō with him when he left. The side effects were far too severe—he definitely wasn't planning on using it.
Besides, the fact that the Kasumioji Clan dared to release those unfinished blades meant they likely had some method to track them.
That's why Nanatsuki chose to leave it behind… and wait for the fish to bite.
After the two left, the forest once again fell into silence.
More than an hour passed before there was movement again.
Two Shinigami in black cloaks pulled back their hoods, revealing their faces.
They were here to retrieve the unfinished blades.
Each Bakkōtō had a tracking signature embedded into it during its creation.
The two of them examined the four blades on the ground.
"This one was successfully forged," one of the cloaked Shinigami said, slipping on a pair of specially-made gloves and picking up the Bakkōtō.
"The ones over here are all damaged," the other replied after inspecting the blades left behind by Katō and the others. Cracks ran along their surfaces.
The success rate for forging Bakkōtōs was never high. Even one success out of these four could be considered lucky.
"Let's go. The batch deployed in the Inverse Bone District should be yielding results soon too." The first Shinigami stowed away the Bakkōtō.
He didn't notice that, the moment he picked it up, something from within the blade's shadow silently slipped into his own.
The Reiatsu that Katori Nanatsuki had hidden in the Bakkōtō's shadow… transferred into the Shinigami's.
Even though Nanatsuki wasn't physically present and couldn't manipulate the shadow's form or move the "surveillance point" directly—
As long as the cloaked Shinigami's shadow overlapped with the blade's, the Reiatsu embedded in it could transfer.
The Shinigami pulled his hood back on and vanished into the shadows.
Outwardly, it appeared he had no shadow—but beneath his cloak, darkness swirled.
And so, as he moved… he was unknowingly carrying Nanatsuki's "surveillance point" with him!
Nanatsuki could now track the Shinigami's location through the Reiatsu signature he had left behind.
As soon as they entered the Kasumioji Clan's experimental base, Nanatsuki would immediately gain its location.
Nanatsuki didn't know when they'd return to the base, so he infused the surveillance point with enough Reiatsu to sustain it for several months.
Fortunately, his ability had a strong concealment effect that masked the fluctuations in Reiatsu. Otherwise, it would've been far too obvious.
It would take someone with at least Captain-class power to possibly detect the hidden Reiatsu inside the shadow.
Several days later, at the Katori-ryu Dojo—
"I did it!"
An excited voice rang out from the backyard.
Hands in his sleeves, Nanatsuki stepped into the courtyard. "Kana, you didn't return to the Spiritual Arts Academy last night?"
Azashiro Kana often stayed over at the dojo, but her Kidō class this morning started quite early.
Muguruma Kensei, Hirako Shinji, and Kobane Jin'emon had all returned to the dorms last night to avoid oversleeping.
"After dinner, I suddenly had a breakthrough, so I trained all night!" Despite looking a little worn out, Kana's spirit was high. "Sensei, I've mastered Flowlight!"
"Let me feel your Flowlight," Nanatsuki gestured for her to strike.
Azashiro Kana sheathed her blade, preparing to give a live demonstration.
To use the Flowlight sword technique, one must first seal Reiatsu into the blade.
She couldn't do it as quickly as her teacher yet—Nanatsuki could complete the process in just seconds.
Since she was still unfamiliar with the technique, she had to rely on the scabbard to compress the Reiatsu.
The method was simple: use the sheath like a mold, injecting Reiatsu into the blade within. It reduced the difficulty of casting Flowlight.
"I'm coming, Sensei!" Kana called out as she unsheathed and slashed.
A pale blue sword light flared from the scabbard.
However, the expected clang of steel-on-steel never came.
Kana's eyes widened in disbelief.
She had clearly seen her teacher raise his hand—and catch the Reiatsu Blade barehanded.
"Sensei caught it… with just his hand?" Kana was stunned. "Was my Flowlight too weak?"
"Your Flowlight was strong enough," Nanatsuki said, pinching the Reiatsu Blade between his thumb and palm. "But my control and power over Reiatsu surpass yours by too much—that's why it looked so easy."
The glowing blade was just shy of cutting into the web of his thumb—less than a centimeter away. Yet that tiny gap felt like an unbridgeable chasm.
"I see... Looks like I've still got a long way to go," Kana muttered. She had grown so much recently, yet she still couldn't grasp the depth of her teacher's strength.
Nanatsuki glanced at his Status Interface.
[Disciple Azashiro Kana has mastered the sword technique: Flowlight]
[Guided Azashiro Kana through a sword technique practice – Reward Calculated]
[Reward Acquired: 5000 General Ability EXP]
[Reward Acquired: Sword Technique: Dust Blade (Novice Level)]
Dust Blade, like Raikiri, was a sword technique fused with Kidō.
When cast, the slash would whip up a cloud of dust—imbued with a special effect that temporarily blinded the enemy.
"Alright, you'd better get to the Academy—you're almost late." Nanatsuki smiled.
"Aahh!!" Kana looked up. The sun had already risen. "I'm off, Sensei!"
"You probably won't make it to the dining hall. There's some leftover brown sugar cakes from last night in the pot…" Nanatsuki offered.
Kana had barely rushed out the gate before dashing back inside and veering into the kitchen.
When she emerged again, she was chewing on a cake, with another in each hand.
With a muffled "Thank you!" through a full mouth, she sprinted off.
"She's probably going to get detention again," Nanatsuki chuckled.
Kana didn't really like Kidō class—especially the morning ones that required memorizing long incantations.
She hated reciting them… which is why she was late almost every week.
"Good morning, Sensei! No classes today?" Aizen Sōsuke strolled into the courtyard.
"Morning, Sōsuke," Nanatsuki nodded. "I've got one this afternoon. Since I'm free now, I thought I'd help you with Kidō. I hear early morning's the best time for memory work—perfect for incantations..."
Suddenly, his voice stopped short. Aizen noticed the sharp glint in his teacher's eyes.
"The rats are back in their holes... Sōsuke, looks like I won't be able to teach you today..."
The surveillance vision hidden in the cloaked Shinigami's shadow had just borne fruit.
That group had finally returned to the forging experiment base.
Now that he had confirmed the location, Nanatsuki wouldn't be foolish enough to go in alone.
A moment later, Katori Batsu'unsai reached out to Kyōraku Shunsui.