Shin’ō Academy, outside the main gate.
At this ti, Sōsuke Aizen had completed his inspection and was walking out with his Lieutenant, bidding farewell to the crowd of Shin’ō Academy students who had been following behind.
As the two made their way back toward the Fifth Division’s barracks, they finally left all the chatter behind and entered a state of solitude.
Only then did the always-smiling Lieutenant walking behind Aizen break the silence.
"You’re just leaving like that, Captain Aizen?"
His deeply aningful question did not cause Sōsuke Aizen to stop walking.
"What, is there sothing else you want to do, Gin?" Aizen chuckled without turning his head. "If so, you can go back—after all, that place was your alma mater, wasn’t it?"
"Well, I did graduate from Shin’ō Academy, but I only stayed there for a year. I don’t really have any attachnts to the place," Ichimaru Gin said, hands spread. "I an, are we really heading back just like this?"
"You ca all the way just to see that little genius, Captain, and now you’ve only exchanged a few words with him and done nothing more?"
"At the very least, shouldn’t you have shown him your Zanpakutō? That would make it easier to control him, right?"
Ichimaru Gin asked three questions in a row, but still, Sōsuke Aizen didn’t stop walking.
"If we’re too obvious, people will grow suspicious, Gin," Aizen said, perhaps answering Gin’s question, or perhaps simply speaking to himself. "Though still young, a genius is a genius. It seems his excellence isn’t limited to his Spiritual Pressure—his temperant is exceptional too."
"Even though I tried to guide him subtly with my words several tis, he never let down his guard against soone he was eting for the first ti. Perhaps that’s to be expected of soone from the Zaraki District."
"As I thought—he doesn’t easily trust others."
"That’s true," Ichimaru Gin said, recalling the boy’s deanor, and whether his tone was one of praise or mockery was unclear. "Just a first-year student newly enrolled in Shin’ō Academy, and yet he could face Captain Aizen so calmly, so composed... definitely not soone to underestimate."
"He’s already caught the Captain Commander’s attention, and many within Seireitei are watching him as well. So it’s best we don’t act rashly." Aizen continued walking forward, still smiling. "We’ll leave it at that for now. Next ti, I’ll make sure to prepare a proper gift."
"Ha, so Captain Aizen’s taken a liking to him after all." Ichimaru Gin wore a predictable smile, sly and cunning. "Only seventeen when he died, and he’s only been in Soul Society for less than half a year, yet he’s already a Second-Class Spiritual. That’s so terrifying talent."
"If he continues to grow, he might beco a figure who rivals even you or the Captain Commander, huh?"
"Really wouldn’t want to face soone like that as an enemy."
He spoke with a tone of mock fear, but the ever-smiling expression on his face made it clear he was just acting—it couldn’t have been more fake.
"He’s a Shinigami in the end. Even if he reaches his full potential, so what?" Aizen pushed up his black-rimd glasses, their lenses catching the light and concealing his eyes. "Unless one surpasses the very existence known as ’Shinigami,’ then they will forever remain a prisoner of this false world. Whether it’s or Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto—we’ve already proven this."
"Well, that’s a sha. I really would’ve liked to see what kind of future that genius has," Ichimaru Gin said noncommittally. "Captain Aizen, are you planning to test him with a gift? Need to do anything?"
"I already told you, Gin, this much is enough for now." Aizen replied at a leisurely pace. "Too many people are watching him right now. It’s not the ti to act."
"Wait until he leaves Shin’ō Academy—or even Soul Society—before we proceed."
"This batch of new students is quite interesting. Though none of them are as outrageous as him, there are still a few with decent potential. With proper guidance, they could rise to considerable positions in the Gotei 13 in the future."
"When they all leave Soul Society together, I’ll send them the gifts I’ve prepared."
As he said this, Aizen still wore his gentle smile, but it gave off an inexplicable, bone-chilling feeling.
Of course, Ichimaru Gin’s ever-smiling face was equally unsettling.
"Well, since Captain has already made up his mind, I’ll stop ddling and go back to doing my job as Lieutenant."
At those words, Aizen neither confird nor denied, but he did say this:
"Before long, I’ll recomnd you for promotion to Captain."
Even so, Ichimaru Gin’s expression didn’t change in the slightest.
That look—it was as if a Captaincy, sothing revered by all others, was no more than sothing easily within reach for him.
Aizen continued.
"The Sixth Squad Captain is also due to be replaced. Gin, you can ascend along with him."
To Aizen’s arrangent, Ichimaru Gin responded only with a smile, expressing neither agreent nor objection.
It didn’t seem like Aizen was seeking Gin’s consent anyway. After finishing his arrangents, he looked up toward the sky.
"Now then... I wonder if you’ll bring amusent and surprise?"
As if speaking to soone not present, Sōsuke Aizen revealed a thought-provoking expression.
"Let see what your potential is, Kaiser-kun..."
...
Sōsuke Aizen’s inspection didn’t remain a topic of discussion for long at Shin’ō Academy.
Because he often ca to Shin’ō Academy for inspections and lectures, this wasn’t all that unusual.
By the next day, no one was really talking about it anymore—aside from a few girls whispering about how gentle and handso he was, saying they absolutely wanted to join the Fifth Division after graduation.
As for Kaiser, though he knew better than anyone what Aizen’s true nature was, it was still far from the start of the original plot. He himself was rely a newly enrolled first-year student at Shin’ō Academy. With no real entanglent with Sōsuke Aizen for now, he soon forgot the encounter and returned to his own routine.
Daily lectures, Shunpo and Kidō training, casual strolls around campus, and the occasional Hakuda session—Kaiser’s days remained peaceful and fulfilling, completely unaffected by Aizen’s presence.
In this manner, several months passed, and at last, Kaiser welcod sothing he’d been eagerly awaiting.
...
That day, all classes for First-Year Class 1 were temporarily canceled.
All students in the elite class were ordered to gather in the classroom. No absences or requests for leave were permitted—leaving the students looking at one another in confusion.
"Did sothing happen?"
"Why are all classes suddenly canceled?"
"There was supposed to be a swordsmanship class today... and I love that one..."
"Haha, I’m actually glad. We had Shunpo class this afternoon, and I still haven’t even gotten the hang of it. If I went, the teacher would definitely yell at !"
"Sa here. Shunpo is really hard. I think it’s even harder than Kidō."
"What can you do? Even in our class, barely anyone can successfully use Shunpo. I heard even among Gotei 13 mbers, many can’t use it proficiently."
"Seriously? It’s that hard?"
"Actually, we’re not doing too bad. I heard so other classes haven’t even officially started Shunpo training. The teachers said there’s no point teaching them yet since they wouldn’t get it anyway."
"Then I guess we’re doing pretty well. At least we’ve got a few people who managed to pull off Shunpo."
"Too bad it’s only occasional success. No one can use it proficiently yet."
The students chatted idly, quickly setting aside their initial confusion as they gossiped about the other classes.
The truth was, the other classes were far behind Class 1 in terms of progress. And the gap only widened over ti. Even Class 2 lagged far behind Class 1—let alone those further down the line.
Many of the other classes hadn’t even begun Shunpo lessons, and their Kidō training was also way behind. Only swordsmanship and Hakuda were more or less on the sa pace.
As for other lessons—such as Konsō and actual combat training—those hadn’t even started for Class 1, let alone for the others.
Under such circumstances, Class 1’s atmosphere was rather relaxed—not too tense or pressured. Many students wore a laid-back look on their faces.
"Haa~~~"
Kaiser didn’t join any of the conversations. He sat alone in the corner of the classroom, yawning lazily.
"Clack!"
Just then, the classroom door swung open.
The Class 1 horoom teacher entered from outside, carrying a heavy load, drawing held breaths from the students.
"W-What is...?!"
Led by Renji Abarai, many students lit up the mont they saw the teacher, their faces showing excitent.
Even Kaiser stopped mid-yawn, the corner of his mouth curving upward.
The teacher brought the large bundle to the front podium.
Clatter clatter—!
He set the items down, the sound of clashing tal ringing out.
Looking closely—it was a pile of swords, all sheathed.
Not wooden swords—real ones.
"Sensei!"
Renji Abarai couldn’t help but stand up and shout excitedly toward the instructor.
"T-This is...?!"
The others reacted similarly, visibly thrilled.
Seeing this, the teacher smiled.
"Looks like you’ve already guessed what this is."
As he arranged the swords in front of him, he finally said the words everyone was dying to hear.
"That’s right—these are Zanpakutō."
"More precisely, they’re Asauchi—the unshaped forms of Zanpakutō."
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