"Cool! Cool! Cool! Cool!" Angie babbled—so loudly that my eardrums nearly burst. This Weiss was absurdly hyperactive. The fair-haired whirlwind spun around me, talking incessantly. I lost the thread by the second minute and couldn't keep up; she changed topics almost mid-monologue.
But she didn't get long to chat. Rukia finally had enough and smacked the chatterbox so hard she flew into the grass.
"How quiet," Kira sighed with relief. "If only it could always be like this."
"She'll come to in five minutes and twenty-three seconds," Hebiko stated. "Enjoy the respite."
"Ah," heavy sigh. "How did this happen?"
I was wondering the same thing. How did this loudmouth end up in our company? I had no idea how she'd gotten here. But for a month now, Angie had been following us around and refused to leave us alone. After my memorable fight with Kano, she showed up and brazenly forced her way into our group. And we couldn't get rid of her. No matter what we did, she kept coming back, as if by magic.
It got to the point where Hiro started actively studying bakudō, just so he could at least tie her up and drown her in the middle of the lake. The fact that someone as quiet and peaceful as him was already contemplating murder said a lot.
Life is funny, really. After I defeated Kano in battle, life somehow became a little easier. Sure, I was upset that I couldn't use kidō, but beating the crap out of one cocky jerk lifted my spirits. At least now I came to kidō class in a good mood—relatively good, anyway.
The glasses I'd been given were a very interesting device. Their cool appearance and impressive capabilities made them incredibly useful. They allowed me to see reatsu flows. Such glasses are usually used by scientists in research institutes—for analysis or for creating new kidō. Ordinary shinigami don't need them. Many can sense reatsu naturally, and incantations help with magic. But I was a special case.
I still didn't know how to sense other people's reatsu.
Right on cue, Angie rose like a phoenix and immediately resumed her chatter.
"But it's true, it's cool! Let's have a joint battle. We need to learn how to fight multiple opponents! A royal bat—" She didn't get to finish; Rukia delivered a second kick.
"Shut up!" growled my sister. "Speak more slowly, and don't yell like that!"
"Pfft," Weiss snorted. "Look who's talking. You yell like you've been kissed by a rhinoceros."
"What did you say?! Just you wait!" Rukia lunged at Angie, who sprang up and ran.
Two girls racing along the lakeshore is quite a sight.
"I've almost figured out how to tie her up," Hiro said with a smile. "Even better—how to silence her. Or strangle her."
"Hehehe, funny," Hebiko smiled.
"So, how are things on the personal front?" I asked Snake.
"Nothing yet," she shrugged. "It's hard to seduce anyone here."
"But you're not giving up."
"Exactly," Snake nodded. "I've got my eye on Sakamoto. He's become so quiet thanks to you."
I just chuckled.
It was true. After losing to me, he'd started acting more modest—though maybe that was the result of Doe's five-hour lecture. Yeah, she really went to town on him. Now Kano walked around gloomy, snapping at everyone and barely speaking. His friends would have been making fun of him if they weren't afraid.
I wondered what would happen to him next.
"But as long as he has you, he's unlikely to look at me," Hebiko said with a smile.
"Pff," I snorted.
Sure enough, I'd gotten myself into trouble. I'd thought that if I beat him up, he'd calm down. But no—it only provoked him. And now, in every Hakuda class, he challenged me to a fight. He wanted revenge. But Kai-sensei forbade us from using shunpo and kidō in his lessons, so we fought on relatively equal terms. I still held the title of winner, but he was learning too, so I'd started practicing Hakuda more seriously myself.
Unlike kido, I'd been lucky with Hakuda. I'd had no real problems with it. My high level of reiryoku control allowed me to concentrate spiritual power into my strikes with ease and master techniques quickly.
Tsukiyubi, in particular, came easily to me. It's a two-finger strike charged with reiryoku. When delivered, the fingers are reinforced, and a small wave of power is released, making the blow sharp like a knife. If you dull it, you can simply knock the opponent away instead. I was still learning, but I was better at precision strikes than raw power.
In Hakuda, there are point strikes—aimed at a penetrating or piercing blow—and area strikes, which rely not on fine control but on sheer infused power. The former are ideal for duels or fights with opponents who aren't very large: deadly, precise, and calculated. The latter are meant for larger foes or those with strong defenses—breaking through and crushing them. I had a solid reserve of strength, but it was better not to rely too heavily on area strikes.
For now, I was undergoing the same training as everyone else with aptitude in this discipline: push-ups, pull-ups, and walking on my toes. It was painfully exhausting, and at the same time, I still had to keep up with other training, and sparring is frequent.
In general, Hakuda isn't just about strikes—it's about technique. Joint locks, grapples, throws, and other elements borrowed from martial arts.
We're taught how to fight both opponents like ourselves and monsters. Hollows are different from us, after all. That's why we have to stay cautious and always expect the unexpected. These creatures can be cunning.