"Aiyan..."
"I really underestimated his talent."
"I thought it would take him around nine months to graduate early from the Spiritual Arts Academy. But now it seems... he might only need half a year."
Jūshirō Ukitake looked at Aiyan, who had just accepted Part 2 of the Kidō Encyclopedia, and couldn't help but think this to himself.
[You've received Part 2 of the Kidō Encyclopedia. Your Kidō is excited. However, it dislikes your attempt to interfere with its training.]
As soon as he heard that, Aiyan immediately gave up the thought of personally using the No. 60 Kidō spells just to satisfy his craving for cultivation.
Rather than risking Kidō's temper just to feed his temporary obsession, he decided to hold back. It was better to let Kidō train itself at its own pace.
[Your Kidō has already read the second volume of the Kidō Encyclopedia. It began training without distraction and has now mastered Bakudō #61 — Rikujōkōrō (Six-Rod Light Restraint).]
It seemed that after sensing Aiyan would no longer interfere, Kidō had a sense of pride, as if to say, "See? I can handle this on my own!"
It threw the completed Bakudō No. 61 right back at him like a show-off gift.
"I just finished the first volume of the Kidō Encyclopedia, and Kidō already mastered all the Hadō and Bakudō from No. 1 to No. 60…"
"And now, it has already learned the first spell from the second volume, Six-Rod Light Restraint?"
Aiyan was slightly stunned, then quickly understood.
After all, for his Kidō, anything below No. 60 was already very easy. He had just read the first part, and meanwhile Kidō had gone ahead and practiced all the spells below 60 over and over again—chanting and chantless versions.
But once it reached the 60s, the speed noticeably slowed down.
Based on how long it took Kidō to learn Rikujōkōrō, it would probably take ten to fifteen days to master all Kidō from No. 60 to No. 99 without rest.
And if it wanted to learn all of them without chanting, it might take half a month longer.
After all, to use chantless Kidō at full power, it required not only skill, but very high-level Reiatsu as well.
Clack—
While Aiyan was thinking about how to further improve his Kidō and Reiatsu, the sound of approaching footsteps snapped him out of his thoughts.
"You need something, Kuchiki?"
Aiyan leaned lazily against the tree, lifting his chin slightly as he looked at Byakuya walking over.
"Did you finish training already?"
Byakuya Kuchiki glanced at Part 2 of the Kidō Encyclopedia placed on the grass beside Aiyan. His expression was complicated, but he didn't answer the question. Instead, he asked one of his own.
"Of course not. I only practiced one spell."
"I guess I underestimated how hard Kidō gets after level 60."
"But it makes sense. These are high-level Kidō after all—of course they're harder than the ones before 60."
Aiyan shook his head and let out a small laugh at himself.
But...
That self-deprecating laugh hit Byakuya's heart like a hammer.
"Practiced... again?"
"The spells in the second part of the encyclopedia are all high-level Kidō."
"How is it possible to learn even one right after reading it?"
Shihōin Yoruichi, Komamura Sajin, and others nearby also turned pale with shock when they heard Aiyan's casual words.
"So careless… I really underestimated him."
"If what Aiyan said is true, he might graduate early in just three months instead of six."
"Captain Yamamoto… if you don't act soon, there might be nothing left to teach him."
Jūshirō Ukitake was once again stunned by Aiyan's monstrous talent.
He felt that Aiyan had surprised him more in the past two days than anyone else had in the last few hundred years.
"...So?"
Aiyan narrowed his eyes and looked at Byakuya, who was still standing in front of him without saying anything else or walking away.
"I admit that in the area of Kidō, I'm no match for you."
"But the pride of the Kuchiki family cannot be trampled on. I will take back this humiliation."
"One day, I will return the favor using my Zanpakutō."
"Until then, Aiyan Sōsuke… don't you dare slack off."
Byakuya took a deep breath and spoke with cold determination, then turned and walked away without looking back.
He still hadn't fully accepted the loss, but as the heir of the noble Kuchiki family, he wouldn't throw a tantrum or keep pestering after a defeat.
He still had that much dignity.
"Looks like something good came out of this after all."
"If this battle helps Byakuya lose his temper and stop acting spoiled, then he'll be one step closer to becoming the next head of the Kuchiki clan."
Jūshirō Ukitake, who was prepared to step in if things escalated, breathed a small sigh of relief.
As someone who knew the Kuchiki family well, he understood just how sheltered Byakuya had been.
A single defeat like this could be a blessing in disguise.
As the school bell rang, Aiyan and Aizen finished their culture class and strolled side by side toward the dormitories.
As top students, both of them had their own dorms—right next to each other.
Along the way, many students passed by, but all kept their distance. They only stared with awe, not daring to come close.
This gave the two of them space to speak freely.
"Brother… did you notice?"
"During the Kidō lesson this morning, Byakuya Kuchiki's reaction was way too aggressive."
"It felt like he wasn't just mad at what you said—more like he was looking for an excuse to challenge you. He acted way too fast, like he was ready from the start."
Aizen's eyes gleamed behind his glasses.
"You and I… we've already entered the view of the Kuchiki clan."
"No, more accurately, the view of all four noble families."
"This was just a test. Next time, it might be something stronger."
"It seems there's something in us they don't fully understand—maybe they think it's just talent. But if it was only that, they'd just keep watching quietly. There would be no need to act so soon."
His tone was soft, almost friendly, and his smile was as calm as a spring breeze.
But the words he spoke were cold and sharp.
"As expected from you… the King of Kings."
Aiyan listened quietly, and couldn't help but admire him.
He originally thought Byakuya's challenge during class was just emotional—something that had been hidden well.
But Aizen had not only seen through it instantly, he had picked it apart from every angle—like he could read Byakuya's heart better than Byakuya himself.