The training grounds fell silent, the air thick with the weight of Akio's words. His voice, edged with Rukongai grit yet laced with a calculated boldness, hung like a drawn blade. Every student's gaze snapped to him, their whispers swallowed by the sudden hush. Ikkaku's grin froze, half-cocked, his eyes glinting with a mix of surprise and approval. Yumichika's delicate brows arched, his lips parting in faint amusement. Even the instructors—Tanaka's scowl deepening, Miko's eyes narrowing—seemed caught off guard.
Shunsui Kyōraku, sake gourd still raised, tilted his hat back further, revealing a glint in his half-lidded eyes. The lazy smile didn't waver, but a spark of intrigue danced beneath it. "Well, now," he drawled, voice smooth as a spring breeze, "you've got a point, kid. Topping the exam deserves a reward. I'll ask Old Man Yama—"
"Since it's my reward, shouldn't I get to choose it?" Akio interjected, his voice soft but deliberate, eyes wide with practiced puppy-like innocence. His face was a mask of Rukongai earnestness, but inside, his mind churned. 'Push, but not too far. Shunsui's laid-back, not stupid. This is my shot.'
The courtyard went deathly quiet. Ikkaku and Yumichika's jaws dropped, their hearts practically in their throats. Tanaka and Miko stood frozen, their hearts pounding as if the ground might split beneath them. The other students stared, some clutching their Asauchi like lifelines. Shunsui's gourd paused mid-air, his lazy grin twitching with surprise.
But before Shunsui could say anything Akio continued," Could you teach me personally?"
shinsui shocked by the shamlessness of akio thought oi oi kid when did i said i would reward u with anything you want? even the reward thing wasn't in the script. shit i knew it something was off about this kid
The air seemed to choke. Ikkaku coughed, nearly choking on his own spit. Yumichika's fan froze mid-flutter, his violet eyes wide. Tanaka's scar twitched; Miko's hands clenched. A captain—teaching a second-year personally? The audacity was unthinkable.
Akio pressed on, ignoring the stunned silence, his expression shifting to a thoughtful frown, as if weighing a simple request. "Next year we will be learning hakudo and hoho and since you are here and ready to give me any reward I wanted I thought why not ask you for guidance in them?"
Shunsui blinked, shocked by the shamelessness of the kid, 'Oi oi kid, when did I say I would reward u with anything you want? Even the reward thing wasn't in the script. Shit i knew it something was off about this kid.' Then something changed in him demeanor. He tilted his head, his smile sharpening, eyes glinting like a blade catching moonlight. "You're a bold one, Kurozume Akio. Topping the exam and asking for a reward is one thing. But asking a captain to train you? Do you think you've got the guts to face the consequences of those words?"
Then suddenly something shifted in Akio. His posture straightened, his innocent mask melting away. His sharp blue eyes burned with a fire that hadn't surfaced before, his Rukongai drawl hardening into steel. "I don't want to be mediocre," he said, voice low but resonant, cutting through the silence like a blade. "I want to be the best. And if I have the chance to learn from the best, I'll take it—even if I have to fight for it." His hand moved, deliberate and swift, drawing his Asauchi from its sheath with a soft shing. "If you're asking me to prove my guts, Captain… I can."
The air exploded with Reiatsu.
It poured from Akio, a torrent of raw, unbridled energy that shook the training grounds. The weaker students staggered, some collapsing to their knees, gasping under the weight. The air warped, heavy with a dark, almost tangible edge—his full power, unrestrained for the first time. Black threads of reiryoku flickered around his blade, curling like smoke, invisible to most but unmistakable to those with sharp senses.
Ikkaku's eyes widened, his grin vanishing, replaced by raw shock. "What the hell is that?!" he muttered, gripping his own Asauchi tighter. Yumichika's breath hitched, his elegant composure cracking as he stared at Akio's transformed demeanor. "This… isn't the runt we know," he whispered, voice tinged with awe and unease.
Tanaka's scar twitched violently; Miko's hands trembled, her Kidō instincts flaring as if sensing a threat. The other students were frozen, some fainting outright, their faces pale as if staring at a ghost. But Shunsui—Shunsui was the most shocked. His lazy smile faltered, replaced by something new: a sharp, genuine grin, not the playful mask he usually wore. 'This kid', he thought, eyes narrowing. 'Shameless enough to demand what he wants, clever enough to outwit a crowd, and that will… to be the strongest. He's special.'
Then, like a mountain crashing down, Shunsui's Reiatsu hit.
It slammed into Akio, a crushing tide of power that drove him to one knee. The air thickened, the ground seeming to groan under the weight. His Asauchi clattered against the stone, his arms shaking as he fought to stay upright. Inside, his mind screamed. 'Shit, did I go too far? I thought Shunsui's laid-back nature would let me push this—until the Quincy war, he's not supposed to be this intense! Did I miscalculate? Did I blow my chance to get him to train me?'
He gritted his teeth, forcing his trembling body to rise, one agonizing inch at a time. 'No. I won't fold. Not now.' His dark reiryoku flickered, a faint shield against the onslaught, but it wasn't enough. Shunsui's power was a storm, vast and unrelenting, a reminder of the chasm between them.
Then, as suddenly as it came, the Reiatsu vanished—like it had never existed. The air lightened, the pressure gone. Akio gasped, nearly collapsing, his Asauchi the only thing keeping him upright.
Shunsui lowered his gourd, his sharp grin softening back to its lazy warmth. "You got me, kid," he said, voice carrying a playful lilt but laced with respect. "Meet me at Squad 8's training field tomorrow. Don't be late." With a flicker of pink kimono and a soft whoosh of Shunpo, he was gone.
The courtyard remained silent, the students staring at Akio like he was a specter. Ikkaku and Yumichika exchanged glances, their shock melting into grins—Ikkaku's feral, Yumichika's intrigued. Tanaka and Miko stood rigid, their hearts still pounding, but neither spoke. The exam was over.
Akio sheathed his Asauchi, his face unreadable, and walked off the field. The other students parted for him, their eyes wide, whispers trailing in his wake. He didn't meet their gazes, didn't speak to Ikkaku or Yumichika, didn't acknowledge the weight of what he'd done. He returned to the dorm alone, the pulse of his Asauchi warm against his hip, the dark reiryoku stirring faintly within.
The scene shifted.
In a dimly lit room, shelves lined with scrolls and the faint scent of ink lingering in the air, a figure sat at a low desk. A single lantern cast long shadows, illuminating a sheet of parchment covered in neat, precise handwriting. Details of a student: Kurozume Akio. Rukongai origin, District 78. Exceptional Reiryoku control, abnormal density for a second-year. Brought to Shino Academy by Shiba Isshin. Convinced Shunsui to teach him.
The figure's glasses glinted as he leaned forward, a faint smile curling his lips. The light shifted, revealing the calm, calculating face of Sōsuke Aizen.
"Aren't you an interesting character, Kurozume Akio," he murmured, his voice soft but laced with a dangerous curiosity. His fingers tapped the parchment once, twice, then stilled. "What are you hiding… and why?"
[End of Chapter]