Chapter 362: The Wretched Disciple Has Gone Mad
Satoru opened his eyes.
Aizen sat nearby, operating something on the computer screen.
Noticing the movement, he turned to look.
"Finished?"
Satoru stared at him for two seconds.
He grinned, revealing a profound yet triumphant smile.
"Heh heh..."
"?"
Observing the foolish-looking fellow, Aizen fell silent.
Satoru rolled out of bed and stretched vigorously.
Then he noticed the white-haired boy standing by the bedside, holding his Zanpakutō while watching him with somewhat nervous eyes.
"Yo, Tōshirō."
"Thanks for the help. Without you, I couldn't have lasted this long."
"Speaking of which, coming here to assist me must have delayed your Shin'ō Academy classes... No problem! I can personally tutor you in Hakuda, and for other subjects just find Sōsuke - he can teach you!"
Tōshirō quickly shook his head:
"No, that's not necessary."
"I... am just glad to be of help to Captain Mikami."
"Ah, this kid really knows how to talk!"
Satoru laughed heartily, reaching out to ruffle Tōshirō's white hair.
Nice texture.
After reiterating that Tōshirō could come to him directly for anything, he turned and headed toward the lab door.
After a few steps, a cabinet blocked his path.
Normally, one would detour around an obstructing cabinet.
But Satoru walked straight into it, bumping against it with a thud.
Aizen showed a puzzled expression.
Satoru also looked confused.
He rubbed his head: "Strange, why didn't it despawn?"
Then he realized: "Oh, real-world objects don't despawn..."
Muttering to himself, he circled around the cabinet and cheerfully left the laboratory.
Aizen: "..."
Has this guy stayed in the spiritual world so long he can't distinguish illusion from reality?
Next time, I shouldn't give him so much Superhuman Drug.
Shaking his head, he returned to work.
Using Central 46's authority, he had managed to obtain considerable resources from Sōya Azashiro.
By combining the intelligence provided by Sōya Azashiro with what Inaba Kagerōza has mastered, the Vanguard Project can advance to the next level!
...
...
Leaving the laboratory, Satoru returned to the Eleventh Division.
Along the way, everything he saw felt somewhat unfamiliar.
Thanks to the Superhuman Drug, he had fought thousands of life-and-death battles in the mental world.
Although he had returned to reality, his mind hadn't fully come back yet.
He even felt like slapping any passing dog he saw.
This couldn't go on... After all, he was one of Seireitei's renowned elegant swordsmen—how could he lose his composure?
With this thought, Satoru began searching around the barracks.
Soon, he found his target.
Suì-Fēng, who was handling intelligence for the Onmitsukidō!
Kneeling at her desk, she wore an expression of intense concentration.
Brush in hand, she organized documents while jotting down important notes.
Suddenly, her vision blurred as she found herself flipped horizontally!
"?!"
Someone had lifted her sideways without her noticing, holding her face-down under their arm like a piece of luggage!
After a moment of stunned silence, Suì-Fēng immediately leveraged her core strength to kick upward.
Smack!
Her lightning-fast shin was caught in a firm grip.
Snorting coldly, she was about to activate Shunkō when she noticed the hem of a Captain's Haori in front of her.
Only then did she detect the familiar spiritual pressure emanating from the person holding her.
Straining to look backward, she finally relaxed upon seeing the face above her.
Then her gaze turned icy:
"Scumbag-sama, what are you doing? Put me down this instant!"
"Heh heh, no can do. This lord is abducting a fair maiden today!"
Satoru declared triumphantly.
"I'm still working!" Suì-Fēng gritted her teeth.
"What comes next is also work - and more important at that!"
Carrying Suì-Fēng, Satoru entered the room.
Before long, various strange sounds began to emerge...
...
...
Exiting the room, Satoru let out a long breath.
Feeling refreshed and invigorated.
Inside, Suì-Fēng had fallen asleep from exhaustion.
After fetching water and cleaning her up, Satoru headed toward the training grounds.
On the way, he coincidentally encountered Rangiku returning with Rukia.
Seeing Satoru, Rangiku broke into a delighted smile, skipping over to hug him.
"Satoru, let's go... hm?"
Mid-sentence, Rangiku suddenly wrinkled her nose.
She sniffed at Satoru's clothing.
"Senior Suì-Fēng's scent... You sneaked a taste of Senior Suì-Fēng!"
"Fool, don't make it sound like I'm Hannibal Lecter."
Satoru flicked Rangiku's forehead, sending her stumbling aside.
Though the impact of twin shock absorbers against his body felt nice, he'd already achieved spiritual transcendence and wouldn't be tempted by such earthly pleasures.
Noticing Rukia standing nearby, he waved her over.
"So, Rukia, how have you been lately?"
"Y-yes, Captain Mikami!"
Rukia instinctively straightened her posture:
"I eat well every day, train with everyone, and Third Seat Rangiku takes me out... I'm very happy!"
"Is that so? Good to hear."
Satoru nodded with satisfaction.
After dinner, Satoru intended to rest briefly and enjoy the entertainment provided by LSP4.
But before reaching his quarters, he received a communication from Yamamoto.
[Boy, come to the dojo. Time to check your progress.]
Progress? What progress?
Satoru showed a contemplative expression.
After a long moment, he finally remembered.
On the day they returned to Seireitei, Yamamoto had been furious about his two disciples ruining his plans.
In retaliation, he'd ordered them to prepare for progress checks once the Inaba Kagerōza incident was mostly resolved.
Having spent too long in the spiritual world, he'd forgotten about this.
Treading under the crimson sunset glow, Satoru arrived at the First Division dojo.
Almost simultaneously, Kyōraku descended before the dojo entrance like a giant pink moth.
Looking at Yamamoto Shigekuni standing in the middle of the dojo with his back turned to them, the two exchanged a glance.
In each other's eyes, they saw the same thought—
Old Man Yama is being profound again.
"Ahem, Old Man Yama, we're here."
As the senior disciple, Shunsui spoke first.
Yamamoto slowly turned around to face them.
"The chaos caused by the modified souls has left the Seireitei with numerous affairs to handle."
"Have you two been slacking off? Have you been diligently improving yourselves as I instructed?"
Shunsui Kyōraku scratched his head:
"Well... we've been trying, but improvement isn't that easy to come by."
Yamamoto's blood pressure rose slightly.
He turned his gaze to Satoru.
The latter scratched his head:
"You've been summoning me to your study every day to stand as punishment—how could I possibly find time to improve..."
Yamamoto's blood pressure rose further.
His hands itched, his heart burned with anger, and he yearned to cut someone down.
Just then, Satoru added:
"However, despite being exploited by an unscrupulous teacher, I did manage to sneak in some training."
"I should be able to give you a little surprise, Sensei."
Upon hearing this, Yamamoto let out a low chuckle.
Having been buried in paperwork at the Eleventh Division all these days, how could he not know what this brat was up to?
Leaving early and returning late every day, it was said he had taken a child from Shin'ō Academy, bringing him into his room and keeping him there all day.
If it weren't for the fact that it was a boy, he would have already punished this lawless rogue.
Satoru had no idea what the old man was thinking.
If he knew, he would surely lament the old man's lack of imagination.
What's wrong with a boy?
Who could resist a boy as adorable as Tōshirō?
Scratch the last two lines.
Following the order of apprenticeship, Shunsui was naturally tested first.
Shunsui Kyōraku sighed and stepped into the center of the dojo.
Facing Yamamoto, he dared not be negligent.
His eyes, usually lazy and unfocused, were now intensely serious.
His pair of Zanpakutō were already drawn and ready.
Confronting his eldest disciple, Yamamoto also drew his Zanpakutō.
Before anyone realized, Satoru had positioned himself between the two:
"Round one!!"
"Ready, go!!"
With a dramatic wave of his hand, Shunsui and Yamamoto charged at each other.
In the blink of an eye, they had exchanged several blows.
In the moment they passed each other, Shunsui's pink flower-patterned haori flew high into the air.
As for Yamamoto, his haori and Shinigami uniform had long since been discarded at some point.
Then came the second round.
Satoru sat cross-legged to the side, chin resting in his hand, watching the two fight.
After a while, he couldn't help but yawn.
"Uncle Kyōraku, Sensei, you won't kill anyone like this."
"Shikai! Bankai! Bring out everything you've got! Let's liven things up!"
Shunsui: "?"
He makes it sound so easy, that bastard.
He couldn't help but feel the urge to deal with this black-hearted junior first.
However, the brat had a point—it was about time for him to use his Shikai!
Seizing an opening, Shunsui Kyōraku leaped back, crossing his blades in front of him:
"Flower wind riot, flower god roar."
"Heavenly wind riot, heavenly demon sneer!"
"Katen Kyōkotsu!"
After the lengthy incantation, the pair of gleaming Zanpakutō finally transformed into black greatswords in their Shikai state.
Satoru couldn't help but reflect.
Thankfully, this was the Shinigami world where incantations came with built-in time stops—otherwise, such a long release phrase would give the enemy more than enough time to attack over a dozen times.
Yamamoto also swung his blade, activating his Shikai.
Scorching flames instantly caused the temperature in the dojo to skyrocket.
This time, the battle between the two became far more flamboyant.
Katen Kyōkotsu's shadow abilities, game-rule powers, and Yamamoto's flames filled the dojo with dazzling visual effects.
Yamamoto stood his ground, exchanging blows with Kyōraku for a while.
Gradually, the old man's expression darkened with displeasure.
"Damn brat!"
With an angry roar, Yamamoto used Flash Step to appear directly before Kyōraku.
Before the latter could react, he had already swung his blade, sending Kyōraku flying.
Watching Kyōraku crash through the wall and land in the courtyard, the old man roared:
"Too slow! You call this training with such meager progress?!"
"At your age, I improved faster even while lying down motionless!"
Kyōraku didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
It had only been a week since Yamamoto returned to Seireitei.
Such a short time was practically a blink of an eye for a Shinigami.
While he had indeed trained diligently during this period, expecting significant improvement was bordering on wishful thinking.
Old Man Yama was clearly just looking for an excuse to beat his students - such was his miserable fate.
But then, his mood suddenly lifted.
Next, it would be his junior brother's turn.
Although last time in Dangai, Satoru had traded blows with Old Man Yama, he'd be the first to deny that Satoru's actual combat ability surpassed the old man's.
Judging by how Yamamoto had just dealt with him, the old man clearly had no intention of holding back.
The thought that someone else was about to share his fate of being beaten first and scolded later greatly improved Kyōraku's mood.
Under his watchful gaze, Satoru came to stand opposite Yamamoto.
Having just fought Kyōraku, Yamamoto was in good form.
Normally, he would have been able to thoroughly discipline this foolish disciple.
But today, as he looked at Satoru standing before him, he felt an inexplicable sense of unease.
Though the boy was merely standing there without even assuming a combat stance, he radiated an intense sense of danger.
Had this brat secretly practiced some technique and grown stronger?
Could he have mastered the fourth level of force?
Combined with his shadow swordsman enhancement, that would equate to casually striking with fivefold force.
Even if the boy was truly a genius, that would be too absurd, wouldn't it?
Though skeptical, Yamamoto still heightened his vigilance.
Under his watchful eyes, Satoru drew his Zanpakutō.
Hmm?
Yamamoto frowned slightly.
He knew exactly what kind of fighter his disciple was.
Satoru with a sword was essentially in a sealed state - far less threatening than when using his fists.
What was this brat up to?
After a brief moment of confusion, he abandoned speculation entirely.
Whatever your approach, I'll test it with a strike first!
With this thought, Yamamoto didn't hesitate. With a explosive shout, he instantly closed the distance and swung his sword down!
Kyōraku stood nearby, watching the two with great interest.
Seeing Yamamoto draw his sword and charge fiercely, he couldn't help but mentally cheer.
But just as he prepared to enjoy the show, his expression suddenly froze.
Under his gaze, his junior brother seemed to transform into a different person.
Facing Yamamoto's charge, Satoru suddenly erupted with terrifying killing intent like a wild beast!
Satoru's pupils contracted sharply. As if having practiced countless times, he instantly sidestepped, evading Yamamoto's blade while simultaneously slashing toward the old man's flank.
Yamamoto immediately brought his sword down to block.
But Satoru seemed to have anticipated even this reaction.
Before Yamamoto could complete his movement, he had already changed his slash into a thrust, driving his blade forward.
Yamamoto couldn't react in time, and the blade grazed his front, leaving a shallow cut.
Kyōraku's face showed astonishment.
What a fierce attack - executed without the slightest hesitation, as if he didn't need to observe his opponent's reactions and had simulated the entire battle beforehand!
Having wounded Yamamoto Shigekuni, Satoru showed no pause, continuing his assault with raging killing intent.
Three thousand simulated battles had engraved every one of Yamamoto Shigekuni's combat styles and counterstrategies against various attacks deep into his mind.
In these simulations, Yamamoto always went all-out from the very beginning, aiming to kill him.
So much so that the moment he saw Yamamoto strike, Satoru forgot where he was—his only thought was to eliminate the being before him!
In less than ten moves, Yamamoto—who hadn't resolved himself for a life-or-death struggle—was roared down to the ground by Satoru.
The blade of the Zanpakutō instantly reached his neck!
Staring at the nearly frenzied Satoru before him, even at this critical juncture, Yamamoto couldn't help but feel puzzled.
Was he in such a hurry to kill him and take his place?
I urged you to step up before, and you refused—what's with this madness now??