Chapter 11 Knife
Rukia had a strange feeling. She looked at the senior students sitting there, and her gaze finally fell on Tachikawa Shin.
Aside from seeing him in the crowd at the entrance ceremony, this was their first formal meeting.
But the way he looked at her was as if he already knew her.
She lowered her eyes, feeling slightly uncomfortable, and bowed to the people there.
Hisagi Shuuhei said as a matter of routine, "Please introduce yourself first…"
"Hello, seniors. I am Rukia from Class B, Freshman year, from District 78 of South Rukongai. I don't have any particular hobbies. I hope to become an excellent Shinigami through my studies at the Spiritual Arts Academy. If I can join the Student Council, any department is fine."
Compared to Hinamori Momo just now, Rukia's performance was not as good. Shin had already noticed that Kasumi Kōji Kogoro next to him gave Rukia the lowest impression score.
Born in Rukongai and a student of Class B, Kasumi Kōji Kogoro had probably already eliminated her in his mind.
"Please answer the first question."
"I will choose to stay and resist the Menos Grande with the senior."
"Please explain your reasoning."
Rukia pursed her lips and said, "I just feel that at such a time, I shouldn't abandon the senior to face it alone. Even if it means sacrifice, it would be good if someone could accompany him. I am not an excellent student. For the Soul Society, the loss of the senior would definitely be greater than losing me. If I stay, it should reduce the risk the senior faces."
After listening to her answer, Shin couldn't help but raise his eyebrows slightly and suddenly said, "That's very well said."
Everyone present was startled, only to hear Shin continue, "It's very rare for a Freshman like you to have such an awareness."
Kasumi Kōji Kogoro, sitting beside him, frowned and remained silent. He looked at the girl named Rukia again. Aside from being somewhat presentable, there was nothing special about her, and she was still a Class B student.
But after a moment of hesitation, Kasumi Kōji Kogoro still changed Rukia's score on his notebook.
So far, not many people have passed. Half of the spots for Freshmen were already internally decided by noble students, and Tachikawa Shin couldn't change them. As for the other candidates, he could do whatever he wanted with them.
And after hearing Shin's words, the Student Council cadres seemed to understand something, and some began to write in their notebooks again.
Shin had a smile on his face, and Hisagi Shuuhei then said, "Please continue to answer the second question."
Regarding the remaining two questions, Hinamori's answer earlier was quite standard. For the second question, she described specific actions, and for the third question, Hinamori Momo cleverly said she would first ask the President's opinion.
However, Rukia's answer was considerably worse than Hinamori Momo's, but the cadres present didn't rush to score her; instead, they first looked at Shin.
Seeing that Shin still gave encouragement, they continued their scoring.
Hisagi Shuuhei finally said, "After our evaluation, Rukia, congratulations, you have passed the interview."
Rukia hadn't expected to pass so smoothly. She herself felt that her later performance was very poor, and for a moment, her eyes couldn't help but show surprise.
"Thank you, seniors," she said, bowing repeatedly.
"You should indeed thank this President. He was very lenient with you," Kasumi Kōji Kogoro suddenly couldn't help but mock.
Shin wasn't angry; instead, he chuckled, "We should always give juniors more opportunities. I believe I won't be mistaken."
Even Rukia, despite her slowness, realized at this moment that it seemed her scores had been raised by the others because of the Student Council President's encouragement, and she immediately felt a lot of gratitude.
And Shin sensed something, his smile growing wider.
"Alright, remember to report on time tomorrow."
"Yes!"
After Rukia left, Shin still chuckled and glanced at Kasumi Kōji Kogoro, which made Kasumi Kōji Kogoro wonder if that guy had a problem with his brain, as he had clearly been mocking him just now.
What he naturally didn't know was that because of his mockery, Rukia's favorability instantly rose to 15 points.
[Reiatsu Level: Lv: 17]
[Zanpakuto Unlock Progress: 10%]
Rukia walked out of the interview room and saw Hinamori Momo waiting for her in the corridor.
"Rukia!"
"Hina… Momo."
"How was it? How was it?" Hinamori asked eagerly.
"Ah, I passed too!" Rukia said with a smile.
"Really! That's great!" Hinamori excitedly couldn't help but hug Rukia and cheer!
Although the two had only just met, Hinamori's warm personality made Rukia feel no discomfort at all; instead, she felt the other person was very kind.
"Thanks to Momo's encouragement, I originally thought I was going to be eliminated," Rukia thanked her sincerely.
Hinamori said with a smile, "You're welcome, you're welcome. However, your passing is also due to your own strong ability! It doesn't have much to do with others."
Rukia still said with some lingering fear, "I was so nervous when I first walked in just now. The seniors seemed so scary."
Hinamori Momo also said, "Right? I also think it's quite nerve-wracking when those seniors sit together without smiling, but that President is a very kind person."
Tachikawa Shin's image flashed through Rukia's mind, and she mused, "The President is indeed a very good person. I didn't perform very well originally, but he encouraged me, and then the other seniors also seemed to be more lenient with their requirements for me because of his encouragement."
Hinamori Momo excitedly said, "Right? You also think the President is very good, don't you? I heard that this Student Council was also primarily advocated for by the President! And the President himself is a famous genius student at the Spiritual Arts Academy! He is best at Swordsmanship, and even his Swordsmanship teacher is no longer his match!"
"You know so much?"
Hinamori Momo said naturally, "Because I inquired in advance! I thought I would see the President during the interview, and knowing more about him should help with the interview."
Rukia thought to herself that the other person was truly well-prepared. In contrast, she herself was really lucky to have passed this interview assessment.
Thanks to President Shin's generosity and kindness.
As the two chatted, they walked out of the teaching building. Hinamori also asked Rukia which department she wanted to join in the Student Council.
"I haven't decided yet. I don't know enough about these departments."
"It would be great if we both got assigned to the same department."
"Mhm."
#
There were still many remaining students to interview, and it took Shin and the others another hour or two to finish.
In the end, a total of nineteen Freshmen passed the interview assessment.
These 19 people would be evenly distributed among the six departments: Disciplinary Inspection, Organization, Finance, Publicity, Study, and Arts & Culture.
Calculated, each department would have three Freshmen.
After finishing the final personnel allocation work in the Student Council headquarters office, Shin leaned back in his chair and stretched.
"I'm exhausted, that was really hard work."
Kasumi Kōji Kogoro left with his people.
"Are you going to eat?" Shūhei asked, and Kanisawa also looked over.
"You go first, I have something else to do."
Shūhei asked in surprise, "What is it?"
Shin just smiled, "It's a secret."
Shūhei looked strange, "You're not going to see that Freshman junior from earlier, are you?"
Shin rolled his eyes at him, too lazy to explain.
Hisagi Shuuhei and Kanisawa left the office together. On the way to the cafeteria, Kanisawa suddenly asked Shūhei, "Does Shin really like the junior who was interviewed today?"
Shūhei was momentarily stunned by the sudden question, scratched his head, and said, "That Hinamori girl is indeed quite cute… it seems quite possible."
Shin also left the Student Council headquarters office. It was already afternoon mealtime, and the students' classes for the day had ended.
He went alone to the Swordplay Classroom, entering smoothly by relying on the Student Council's special privileges.
Next to the Swordplay Classroom was the sword storage room, where countless black blades were neatly and densely arranged throughout the entire room, each with a serial number marked below it.
Spiritual Arts Academy students could not always carry Asauchi; they could only use them during Swordsmanship classes and practical combat classes, because in the six years at the Spiritual Arts Academy, instances of awakening one's Zanpakuto were extremely rare. 99% of people awakened their Zanpakuto slowly after graduating and being issued their own Asauchi.
However, a large majority of Shinigami Soldier never had their own Zanpakuto throughout their lives, and having a Zanpakuto was equivalent to having the capital to become a seated officer.
The so-called Zanpakuto is forged from the Shinigami's own soul as a prototype. After obtaining an Asauchi, Shinigami continuously infuse their spiritual power into the Asauchi over time, eventually being able to communicate with it mentally and gain power.
Shin slowly moved among countless Asauchi. He stopped before the serial number of the Asauchi he usually used in his Swordsmanship classes, but when he reached out to grasp it, he felt nothing special.
After a moment of silence, he put the Asauchi back in its original place.
[Zanpakuto Unlock Progress: 11% (Partial Shikai)]
[Zanpakuto Unlocked, call its true name to reveal its true form]
Call its true name… call its true name…
Shin scanned all the Asauchi in the sword storage room. In his eyes, these swords were all the same; none of them gave him that so-called spiritual connection.
It's not here?
Shin frowned in thought, looking at his system interface over and over again. Suddenly, he realized something.
[Reiatsu Level: Lv: 18]
[Reiryoku Reserve: 15%]
This so-called Reiryoku Reserve was exactly what it meant. His Reiryoku was always in an unfulfilled state because he was constantly releasing Reiryoku, like a ball with a small hole constantly leaking air. This hole was very small, so small that it would basically go unnoticed.
The reason he did this was that his current Reiatsu level far exceeded that of his peers. He didn't believe that any method of concealing Reiatsu could fool those stronger than him.
And as long as his Reiryoku remained in an unfulfilled state, his total Reiryoku would always be the same, and outsiders wouldn't be able to tell anything.
He returned to the Swordplay Classroom, sat cross-legged in the center of the classroom, and slowly closed his eyes.
[Reiryoku Reserve: 16%]