(T/N: This is chapter 3 out of 3!
Hope you guys enjoyed the read! and Thanks for the support!!
Don't forget to drop power stones and add this novel to your collection!! It helps greatly!)
Shiba Isshin's attempt to act pitiful didn't work. He had no choice but to stay in Katori Nanatsuki's office and copy the class notes.
"Sensei, I actually did something amazing just now!" Shiba Isshin had barely written a few words before he couldn't help but start bragging about his exploits.
"What did you do?" Nanatsuki asked while reading the documents in his hand.
He had brought back an overwhelming amount of material from Miyamoto Tetsuya's lab, and even now, he had yet to get through a tenth of it.
"I ran into Tsunayashiro Tokinada harassing Kakyō, so I stepped in to stop him!" Shiba Isshin gave himself a thumbs-up.
"Tsunayashiro Tokinada again? I bumped into him on the first day of term too," Nanatsuki raised an eyebrow. It had already been several days—clearly, the Tsunayashiro Clan still hadn't given up.
There were so many fluctuations in Reiatsu within the Shin'o Spiritual Arts Academy that it interfered with spiritual perception. Unless one focused intently, it was difficult to sense outsiders.
"Kakyō already rejected Tsunayashiro Tokinada, and yet he still keeps pestering her!" Shiba Isshin made a face of disgust. "That guy's reputation is garbage. If Kakyō got fooled by him, she'd be in for a world of pain. Good thing Sosuke and I ran into them—we drove him off!"
"Sosuke skipped class with you?" Nanatsuki stroked his chin, curious why the usually truant Aizen Sosuke hadn't been punished by Shirai-sensei. "You did well. I reminded Kakyō that day too—to come to me if anything happens. I guess she's still hesitant to trouble her teacher."
He understood her reasoning. She probably didn't want to appear needy right after formally taking him as her teacher, fearing it would leave a bad impression.
"So can I stop copying notes now?" Shiba Isshin looked hopeful, his true motive laid bare.
"Nice try. Helping out a classmate means I won't punish you back at the dojo," Nanatsuki said with a smile. "But you still ditched class, so you'd better finish Shirai-sensei's punishment properly!"
"I still have to write?!" Shiba Isshin's face collapsed in dismay.
"Copy it here. I'm going to speak with the vice-dean. Don't even think about slacking off—I'll be checking what you've written when I get back." With that, Nanatsuki left the office.
Kakyō had already made her stance clear, yet the Tsunayashiro Clan seemed unwilling to abandon the idea of marrying her into their family. Nanatsuki intended to have a word with the vice-dean.
The vice-dean's office was in the same building, so he quickly arrived at Tsunayashiro Chū's office.
"Ah, Katori-sensei! Please, come in." Vice-Dean Tsunayashiro greeted him with great enthusiasm and poured him a cup of tea. "I was just thinking of paying you a visit myself. I didn't expect you to beat me to it."
"Vice-Dean Tsunayashiro, you had something to discuss with me?" Nanatsuki asked.
"I just heard from Tokinada that you've taken Kakyō as your disciple," the vice-dean said with a warm smile. "We knew she had potential, but to be chosen by you confirms it."
"Kakyō is indeed quite talented and a very hard-working student," Nanatsuki nodded lightly.
"Gifted and diligent—students like that deserve to be nurtured with all your effort, Katori-sensei!" the vice-dean exclaimed. "Tokinada is a student of Head Captain Yamamoto. He's strong, capable, though perhaps a little immature. But that's just youth—he'll mature after marriage."
"I believe Tokinada and Kakyō are a good match. Katori-sensei, could you help bring them together? With the Tsunayashiro Clan's support, Kakyō will surely grow even faster." He began to paint grand promises. "With our backing, she could even rise to captain someday. That kind of achievement would certainly make it easier for you to become head of the academy."
Upon hearing that Kakyō had become Nanatsuki's disciple, the vice-dean had quickly changed tactics.
He wanted to use Kakyō to rope in Katori Nanatsuki.
If he could marry Tokinada and Kakyō together, the Tsunayashiro Clan would be willing to lower themselves. Through Kakyō, they could forge a powerful alliance with Nanatsuki and take full control of the Shin'o Spiritual Arts Academy.
As for the fact that Kakyō possessed a fragment of the Soul King—well, she wasn't the only one in the Soul Society who did. It didn't have to be her they used for experiments.
"Sorry, but I respect Kakyō's personal wishes," Nanatsuki replied, feeling speechless that the vice-dean would even suggest he convince her. The Tsunayashiro family clearly had too much confidence in their own importance.
The vice-dean's smile turned a little stiff, but Nanatsuki ignored it and continued:
"That's also the reason I came today—to be clear about this matter. Right now, Kakyō only wants to focus on her training. She has no interest in marriage. I ask that the Tsunayashiro Clan refrain from interfering with her cultivation going forward."
"Only those with magnanimity can go far, Katori-sensei." The vice-dean's tone grew cold.
In his mind, Nanatsuki's refusal of what was clearly a win-win situation could only mean one thing: he was still holding a grudge from when Tokinada competed with him for the position of department head.
The vice-dean was furious. In truth, it was the Tsunayashiro Clan who had lost out during that competition. Their carefully-laid plans had been snatched away by a newly arrived teacher. If not for the fact that Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto had been watching the situation closely, they would've long since taken underhanded action against Nanatsuki.
What they didn't expect was how rapidly Nanatsuki's power and reputation would grow. In just a few years, he had become someone even the Tsunayashiro Clan had to tread carefully around.
Any move against him now would come at a steep price. That's why the clan had shelved their plans for revenge.
They had already decided to let bygones be bygones—yet Nanatsuki still bore a grudge?
"I won't sacrifice my student for personal gain," Nanatsuki said as he stood to leave. His gaze flicked subtly toward the back room of the office. "I've said my piece. I hope the Tsunayashiro Clan won't bother Kakyō again."
After he left, Vice-Dean Tsunayashiro's expression darkened.
"Insolent fool!"
BAM!
The desk was smashed to pieces by his furious strike.
"I told you he wouldn't agree. All you've done is waste time," Tsunayashiro Tokinada said, arms crossed, as he stepped out from the back room.
Unlike the other faculty offices, the vice-dean's included a private chamber.
Tokinada had never left—he'd been there the whole time.