Late at night, the two of them had talked for a long time, yet they still couldn't figure out what exactly had happened to Kisaragi Akira.
One thing, however, was absolutely certain—
Compared to the moment before he completed shallow communion with his spirit, he was now dozens of times stronger.His spiritual pressure alone had skyrocketed so dramatically that he could practically graduate on the spot, even qualify for a seated-officer position in one of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads.
And beyond that—
The changes within his spirit body allowed him to unleash combat power far beyond what his current spiritual-pressure realm should permit.
After thinking himself into a headache, Akira finally gave up on this brain-murdering puzzle and shifted to something easier: summarizing the growth of his strength over the past weeks.
He lay on his back, staring blankly at the patterned cloth ceiling. With a thought, his personal panel appeared before his eyes.
[Name: Kisaragi Akira][Identity: Priest of the Rebellious Shrine / Rukongai Civilian / First-Year Student at Shin'ō Spirit Arts Academy][Reiryoku: Lv46 (Grade Twelve)][Swordsmanship: Lv32][Hand-to-Hand Combat: Lv21][Shunpo: Lv20][Kidō: Lv23][Exclusive Traits: Spirit Particle Affinity / Danger Instinct / Heart of the Kami / Miracle Touch / Light as a Swallow]
Compared to the crude panel he had on his first day, this one looked absolutely luxurious.
Not only had his reiryoku skyrocketed, but even the basic combat skills—swordsmanship, hand-to-hand, shunpo, kidō—had risen significantly.
Sure, occasionally he struck gold with a lucky daily or monthly sign-in reward,but most of his improvement came from tireless practice.
His talent wasn't bad to begin with, and with Heart of the Kami, his cultivation aptitude was fully maxed out.Add Spirit Particle Affinity, a massive buff to reiryoku training…
As long as Akira didn't suddenly decide to ruin his own life, he was guaranteed to reach at least Sixth-Seat level strength in the future.
Of course, he had no intention of stopping there.
Even though Akira wasn't entirely clear on how the future of this world played out, he knew one thing from the early stages—
A Sixth-Seat officer was pure cannon fodder.
A slightly stronger, somewhat shinier cannon-fodder, but still cannon-fodder.
"Looks like I don't really have any major weaknesses,"Akira muttered, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.
"I wonder how I compare to Aizen, though.""From what I've seen so far… that guy seems kinda mediocre.""Mid-tier swordsmanship, mid-tier hand-to-hand, mid-tier kidō… His spiritual pressure is ordinary too.""With that level of ability, he really doesn't deserve the ridiculous prestige he gets later."
While Akira was deep in his self-analysis, the boy on the opposite bed—Aizen Sōsuke—was also lying flat, fingers interlaced over his chest as he stared at the ceiling with quiet intensity.
Countless thoughts churned in his mind—comparisons, deductions, hypotheses—each possibility evaluated against the next.
Curiosity drove him to chase the true answer behind Akira's sudden leap in strength.
But just as his mind reached maximum speed—
A low, rumbling growl shattered the silence of the dorm room.
Guu… guu-guru…
And then, a shameless voice followed:
"Hehehe, Sōsuke… you think at this hour…""…the cafeteria staff at Shin'ō Academy are already asleep?"
…
The Next Morning — Shin'ō Academy Cafeteria
Kisaragi Akira weakly poked at the rice ball on his tray, his sorrowful gaze fixed on the lonely pickled cucumber beside it.
At this moment, he felt that life was meaningless, and death was the destiny of all living beings.
Aizen sat across from him, the sweet aroma of plum soup and the savory scent of grilled pork drifting from his tray—instantly hooking Akira's attention.
"You owe the academy three hundred ninety thousand kan, but does it really warrant this level of despair?"Aizen sighed as he glanced at Akira's half-dead expression, once again reminded that this guy's thought process did not match normal human logic.
"And even if you did do all this, it's not like it saves you much money."
Akira raised his head from the plum soup and pork, expression blank.
"You're right.""I may only be a first-year, but I already have enough wealth to live in comfort for the rest of my life.""Incredible, isn't it?""At my age, I can eat whatever I want, buy whatever I want… and if I died tomorrow—"
Aizen didn't let him finish.He simply shook his head and began eating elegantly, entirely ignoring the progressively more tragic look on his friend's face.
He knew perfectly well that Akira was only pretending to be pitiful.
After their conversation last night, Akira had dragged him to sneak into the academy cafeteria.After assigning Aizen to stand guard, Akira had entered a full glutton state—his ferocious eating style something no ordinary human (or Shinigami) should ever have to witness.
The reason Akira only took two rice balls and a dish of pickled cucumber this morning…
Was not frugality.
It was simply because he was still too full to eat more.
As a Shinigami with high spiritual potential, Aizen still needed to consume far more food than a normal Rukongai civilian.The same went for Akira—if not worse.
Suppressing nausea, Akira forced himself to finish the rice balls and pickles, upholding his personal rule of never wasting food.
Then the two of them headed to their morning class together.
…
North Rukongai District 64 — Silent Plains
Chaotic spiritual pressures clashed violently, scorching heat spreading through the air.Deafening shouts shattered a silence that had lasted for more than a century.
Over a hundred Shinigami were locked in fierce melee combat.
Their eyes were bloodshot, wild, almost maddened.Though merely ordinary troopers in terms of skill, the brutality of this battle surpassed even some lower-seated officers.
Kidō blasts detonated continuously.Flames roared through clouds of dust and smoke.The shrill cries of the wounded were swallowed by the battlefield's overwhelming frenzy.
In the midst of the chaos, a shorter figure stood out.
The face that should have been gentle was now hardened with resolve.His smooth black mid-length hair was streaked with dark blood.
Compared to his calm demeanor in the academy, Kuchiki Sōjun's entire aura had transformed.
Sword gripped firmly in his right hand, kidō light gathering in his left, he scanned the battlefield with full vigilance.
And yet, despite all that caution… the unexpected still happened.
"Lord Sōjun—!"
A shout came from behind him.Sōjun spun around instantly, bringing his blade down in a reflexive strike—but cut nothing but air.
In the next second, a twisted, feral face filled his vision.
Shhkk—
A wet tearing sound echoed through him.Pain bloomed in his chest.
Sōjun looked down, stunned.
A blade had slipped past his attack entirely—stabbing straight into his heart.
In that instant—
A pillar of spiritual light erupted skyward, brilliant enough to illuminate the heavens.
The entire battlefield froze as if time itself had stopped.Countless eyes snapped toward the source of the explosion.
Within that blinding light, something dark and abyssal—thick and viscous like congealed blood—began to seep outward.
The darkness slowly gathered, forming the shape of a distorted, monstrous right arm towering over the battlefield.
Heaviness, terror, anguish—inky blackness spread across the sky, staining everything until the world was swallowed in shadow.
Silence became the battlefield's only color.
And then—
On the back of the monstrous hand…A single indifferent eye slowly opened.