"The Captain means that the Captain-Commander called you over just to ask if I am willing to follow him to learn swordsmanship?"
Suzuki Makoto put down his teacup, his expression subtle.
"Yes. It was likely the battle between you and Zaraki earlier that attracted the Captain-Commander's attention. Faced with talent and combat power like yours, as well as your age, the Captain-Commander surely wants to help you utilize your gifts to their absolute limit."
Retsu Unohana brewed another cup of tea for Suzuki Makoto, moving with the standard grace and etiquette of the tea ceremony.
"However, this matter still depends on your own will. The Captain-Commander never forces anyone to do things against their wishes. Previously, he also considered teaching Kenpachi Zaraki, but the other party refused because he disliked that kind of dull teaching method. The Captain-Commander didn't say anything about it either."
Suzuki Makoto wasn't worried that Old Man Yamamoto would be petty. Although the man's tolerance for the nobles had reached a level many couldn't understand these days, he was very clear-headed when it came to truly important matters.
It was just that he had recently gotten mixed up with Aizen, chasing down all sorts of strangely shaped Hollows with messy abilities in Hueco Mundo every night. Now that Shigekuni Yamamoto wanted to take him as a student, he was actually a bit reluctant to part with the opponents over in Hueco Mundo.
"Can it wait for a while? I still want to stay here and learn from you, Captain. At least let me learn all of your knowledge before going to the 1st Division."
"Even if you go to become the Captain-Commander's disciple, you are still the Lieutenant of the 4th Division; this position will not change. However, since you feel this way, I will relay it to Lord Captain-Commander. Rest assured, he won't mind."
Retsu Unohana, of course, was also reluctant to part with Suzuki Makoto as a sparring partner. One must know that she had even wanted to use the first Bankai, which she intended to save for Kenpachi Zaraki, directly on Suzuki Makoto. This alone showed her attitude towards this man.
Although point-stop sparring was a bit like scratching an itch from outside the boot, Suzuki Makoto's learning speed and application of techniques made up for it well. She found considerable joy even in this purest form of blade clashing.
"Then I will trouble you, Captain."
Leaving Unohana's room and opening the door to his own quarters, Aizen was already sitting in the living room, brewing tea with practiced familiarity.
"You're back a bit late today."
"The Captain called me for tea. She said the Captain-Commander wants to take me as a disciple and asked for my opinion."
Aizen frowned slightly, though the motion of his hand pouring the tea didn't pause in the slightest.
"This is also quite normal. Shigekuni Yamamoto has been famous for a thousand years. Although he is the dignified Captain-Commander, he has always liked teaching and nurturing people. Shunsui Kyoraku and Jushiro Ukitake, those two veteran Captains, were personally trained by him.
"He likely took a fancy to your talent. It was the same with Kenpachi Zaraki before; perhaps he wants another student of his own to control a Division."
The Gotei 13 currently maintained a delicate balance. The 2nd and 6th Divisions were basically the private territories of the Shihoin and Kuchiki families. Even though the previous head of the Shihoin family had fled the Soul Society, it only changed the Captain of the 2nd Division to a member of the Fon family, a retainer of the Shihoin. Meanwhile, the Captain of the 6th Division had always been a Kuchiki.
Aside from that, the head of the Shiba branch family, Isshin Shiba, was also the Captain of the 10th Division. Even Shunsui Kyoraku was the second son of the high-ranking noble Kyoraku family. The noble atmosphere within the entire Gotei 13 was still very thick.
Over these years, Shigekuni Yamamoto had been vigorously pushing for Shinigami from the Rukongai to enter the Gotei 13, and he had promoted them to a considerable degree. Nowadays, most Division Captains actually had no ties to the nobles. Compared to Central 46, they were obviously more obedient to the Captain-Commander's orders.
Originally, the situation could be said to be excellent, but because of Aizen's existence, all of this only looked good.
The Captain-Commander was not unaware that there was an undercurrent within the Seireitei. Although Aizen hid himself well, the things he had done could not simply disappear—at most, they couldn't be found. But it was impossible to ignore the existence of such an ambitious schemer. So, it was not surprising that Shigekuni Yamamoto made an exception to cultivate people with cleaner backgrounds from the Rukongai, like Kenpachi Zaraki and Suzuki Makoto.
"So I probably won't have time to go to Hueco Mundo for a while. It's a pity; there are still many places I haven't been. There should be more interesting guys hiding there, right?"
"It doesn't matter. Those places can be saved for you to explore later. To be honest, the Adjuchas-level Hollows you've been catching lately have already overwhelmed Kaname Tosen a bit. Gin Ichimaru has been constantly helping him manage and cultivate them.
"Coupled with the construction of Las Noches, I actually wanted you to slow down your progress for a bit, but it wasn't easy to say."
The man smiled; his words were always so pleasant to the ear.
"Compared to Hueco Mundo, the Captain-Commander's side is more important. Because no matter how many Hollows we gather or how strong an army we build, Genryusai Shigekuni Yamamoto is a mountain we cannot bypass.
"And the only ones qualified to cross hands with this mountain are nothing more than you and me. Others, or Hollows, are nothing but weeds in front of him."
This was the reason Aizen had always been cautious in speech and action. Before having a true method to counter Shigekuni Yamamoto's Ryujin Jakka, he would absolutely not make his plan public.
A Bankai capable of destroying the entire Seireitei... Since the founding of the Gotei 13, there had only been two people who possessed such power.
"Suzuki-kun, although saying this might make you uncomfortable, I still hope you can help me probe more of Shigekuni Yamamoto's strength. Not just his Zanpakuto, but the four great arts of the Shinigami: Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Hoho, and Kidō.
"Aside from Hadō, the Captain-Commander should have reached the peak of perfection in all of them. But exactly what height he has reached, I still know nothing."
Suzuki Makoto nodded casually. Shigekuni Yamamoto was indeed the strongest Shinigami in a thousand years. His Shunpo could suppress Shunsui Kyoraku, his Hakuda could tear apart Adjuchas, and although his Kidō wasn't very clear, just thinking about his Reiatsu and control over Reishi, one could know it would definitely not be inferior to the former Grand Kidō Chief—at most, he just didn't like using it.
"No problem. I'm interested in Old Man Yamamoto anyway. I won't refuse this invitation. After all, besides Retsu Unohana, there is no one else in the Seireitei except the Captain-Commander who interests me enough to follow and learn from."
"Perhaps there are none in the Seireitei, but above that, there should still be some."
Aizen hinted with a smile.
"Among the Zero Division that guards the Soul King, there was once a genius swordsmith who invented the Asauchi. I imagine with his swordsmanship, he might be able to interest you."
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