Chapter 35 The Thoughts of Two Girls
Hinamori seemed to be earnestly feeling the warm touch on her head, but her tightly closed eyelids were trembling unconsciously.
Just as Shin was about to withdraw his hand, Hinamori, from who knows where, suddenly gripped Shin's palm with both hands.
"President..."
Shin, taking the opportunity, lightly brushed her cheek with his knuckles, which caused Hinamori to look somewhat forlorn.
She suddenly felt a bit of regret, perhaps she really should have made a more advanced request.
"Hinamori?"
Shin called out with a light chuckle.
Hinamori then slowly released Shin's tightly held hand.
She pursed her lips and said, "If it were anyone else making such a request, would the President still agree?"
Shin thought to himself, of course not; if Shūhei made such a request, he would just kick him away.
He lightly flicked Hinamori's forehead and said, "What are you thinking about all day?"
Hinamori mumbled something Shin couldn't quite hear.
"What did you say?"
Hinamori covered her forehead and shook her head repeatedly: "Nothing..."
[Hinamori Momo]
[Affection: 70]
Hinamori's affection finally settled at a number, and this was the highest affection level Shin had encountered among all the girls he knew.
Rukia had only just reached 60.
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And during this period, with the steady increase in affection for both girls, Shin also received more and more rewards.
[Reiatsu Level: Lv29]
[Zanpakuto Unlock Progress: 24% (Semi-Shikai)]
Shin, relying on his own training, had only managed to raise his Reiatsu level by one, and the Zanpakuto Unlock Progress had only increased by an additional 2%.
All the remaining improvements came from system rewards.
A Reiatsu level of Lv29, when converted to Soul Society's power classification, is estimated to be above Fourth-Class Spiritual Power.
Captains are at least Third-Class Spiritual Power, while Fourth-Class Spiritual Power and Fifth-Class Spiritual Power are generally the levels of Vice-Captains.
Shin had achieved progress in this extremely short period that others would take decades, or even a century, to attain.
If he were to set aside the system, his current Reiatsu would probably still not be as good as Hitsugaya's innate Sixth-Class Spiritual Power.
The growth of Reiatsu is different from Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Shunpo, and Kido; while these four courses might see rapid progress if one possesses astonishing talent and comprehension, Reiatsu can only be improved through accumulation of daily training.
Fortunately, there's the system.
The afternoon class was Kido theory, with several classes attending together in a large lecture hall.
Upon entering the classroom, Hinamori saw Rukia sitting alone by the window.
She proactively walked over.
"Momo... Momo..."
Rukia was initially happy to see her, then seemed hesitant to speak.
Hinamori's emotions were a bit complex, but she still smiled: "Why didn't you wait for me? Did you eat lunch?"
Rukia nodded: "I ate with Renji and Kira. I thought you and the President had something to discuss, so I left first."
Renji and Kira Iziru's relationship was quite close now. Renji mentioned that during a Kendo class, he accidentally injured Kira, but Kira didn't mind. Instead, he even approached him to show goodwill, and the two became good friends because of it.
Rukia hesitated for a moment and said to Hinamori, "Momo, I have something I want to tell you."
Hinamori sat beside her and interrupted with a smile, "No need."
"Eh?" Rukia was startled. "But I haven't said..."
"I know what you want to say, but there's no need," Hinamori Momo said. "Rukia, there are no misunderstandings between us, and there never will be. Rukia, I know your character very well, and I trust you."
Rukia remained silent, remembering the words she had overheard outside the Student Council office. She unconsciously clenched her hands, then slowly released them.
"Mm," she responded softly.
Just then, a book traced a graceful arc through the air and landed precisely on Rukia's head.
Rukia cried out in pain, then immediately knew whose prank it was.
"Renji!"
She looked furiously at the two people standing not far away, who were indeed Renji and Kira.
Renji merely waved at her: "Save a spot for me and Kira!"
With that, he and Kira left the lecture hall.
Rukia casually tossed Renji's textbook onto a nearby desk and said huffily, "Renji, that bastard! So annoying!"
Hinamori, however, smiled: "But Renji only acts that way towards one person, Rukia. You're special to Renji, and he is to you, isn't he? You're only truly relaxed when you're with Renji."
Rukia was startled by the words. In fact, Hinamori had teased her and Renji about their relationship more than once, but hearing these words now, Rukia felt that Hinamori had some ulterior motive.
Is she really trying to set her up with Renji...
During class.
Hinamori and Kira were both diligently listening and taking notes, while Renji was dozing off, and Rukia was somewhat lost in thought.
She was thinking about the Kuchiki Family looking for her.
Rukia didn't know anyone from the Kuchiki Family, and there was no one with the surname Kuchiki in her class, nor apparently in Class A.
So why exactly were the Kuchiki Family looking for her?
Could it be because someone from the Kuchiki Family was among the audience when she performed at the Cultural Festival?
Because of what Shin had told her earlier, she subconsciously thought that the Kuchiki Family's purpose in looking for her was related to that.
But Momo should be prettier than her, so why would they specifically look for her?
Rukia wasn't very confident about her looks or figure; she was the shortest among all the people she knew.
The President told her not to worry, he would definitely protect her...
After class, Renji seemed to have slept enough and stretched lazily.
Rukia also belatedly came to her senses, regretting having wasted a whole class like that.
Renji called Kira to go practice Kendo, but Kira said it was his turn on Student Council duty today and he couldn't go.
Renji pouted and said he would go alone.
"Do you want to see my notes?" Hinamori handed her notebook to Rukia.
"Thank you, Momo, you've been a great help," Rukia quickly said.
"What were you thinking about during class?" Hinamori asked with a wry smile.
Rukia pondered: "It's just about the Kuchiki Family, one of the Four Great Noble Families, coming to the Student Council today. The President said they were looking for me, and I'm a little worried..."
Hinamori comforted her: "Don't worry, nothing will happen. The President is here."
Rukia still nodded with a worried expression. She watched Renji's retreating back, realizing she hadn't told him about this yet.
Two more days passed.
The Kuchiki Family came again, and this time they still headed straight for the Student Council office.
Coincidentally, both Shin and Rukia were there this time.
Rukia immediately became nervous upon seeing them and instinctively hid behind Shin.
"Vice-Captain Kuchiki, we meet again," Shin said with a light smile.
Kuchiki Byakuya silently observed Rukia standing behind Shin. In the past two days, he had learned all the information about Shin and Rukia.
There was nothing special about Rukia; she was an orphan from Rukongai's Inuzuri District, who came to the Central Spirit Art Academy with a fellow named Abarai Renji and joined the Student Council.
Her resume had no outstanding points whatsoever, and she was only in Class B.
In Kuchiki Byakuya's view, a position like Student Council Assistant was definitely not outstanding.
However, this Tachikawa Shin was quite surprising.
Kuchiki Byakuya spoke expressionlessly: "Tachikawa Shin, I have some matters to discuss with Rukia. Could you please excuse us?"
Rukia immediately tugged at Shin's sleeve upon hearing this.
Shin's expression was calm, and he said, "Rukia is my assistant. This is the Student Council. There's nothing here that requires my absence."
Rukia also mustered her courage and spoke: "If you have something to say, please speak directly."
Kuchiki Byakuya showed no emotion on his face, merely gesturing to the old man beside him. The old man then stepped forward and spoke to Rukia.
"Rukia, are you willing to enter the Kuchiki Family and become a member of the Kuchiki Family as an adopted child from now on?"