After listening to Yumichika Ayasegawa recount what happened while trying not to laugh, Muten Natsu finally learned that Keigo Asano could now see Hollows.
His first thought was that it might have something to do with him, but he had had very little contact with Keigo Asano.
Compared to that, Keigo Asano was much closer to Ichigo Kurosaki.
And since Karakura Town was a Jūreichi, it was only natural for Keigo Asano's spiritual power to awaken.
With Ikkaku Madarame around, there was no need to worry about Keigo Asano being attacked by a Hollow.
The arrival of those Shinigami had brought a lot of convenience.
Now, if a Hollow showed up, Muten Natsu did not need to deal with it at all. Any one of them could take care of it with ease.
The time that saved was used to improve his strength.
"Ye lord! Mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man! Inferno and pandemonium, the sea barrier surges, march on to the south!" Flames roiled and compressed before Rukia Kuchiki's raised palm, condensing into a ball of fire. "Hadō #31. Shakkahō!"
The crimson fireball flew from her palm toward Orihime Inoue.
"Santen Kesshun." Orihime Inoue thrust both hands forward. "I reject!"
A golden triangular barrier appeared in front of her. Shakkahō slammed into it and shattered into scattered sparks.
"The strength of Santen Kesshun has gone up again." Rukia Kuchiki looked at Orihime Inoue with some surprise.
"It is all thanks to your special training, Rukia," Orihime Inoue replied with a smile.
"No..."
"Huh?"
"Your strength itself has been improving steadily." Rukia Kuchiki gestured with her hand. "But the rate of improvement is clearly much higher now than before. Did you figure out some kind of trick?"
"A trick?" Orihime Inoue tilted her head and thought for a moment. "It does feel a lot easier to use than before, but if you are asking about a trick... I do not think there is any special technique."
"Then have you done anything unusual lately? It might be related to this sudden jump in your strength."
If they could find the factor behind the increase, they could try to maintain that rate of growth.
"Something unusual..." Orihime Inoue immediately thought of one thing, and her face turned red.
The moment Rukia Kuchiki saw the blush rise on Orihime Inoue's face, she thought of it too.
Orihime Inoue had slept with Muten Natsu.
But there was no way sleeping once could raise someone's power that much... Huh?
Actually, maybe it could.
…
"So..." Muten Natsu looked at Rukia Kuchiki sitting on his bed. "What exactly is going on here?"
Rukia Kuchiki was wearing a short sleeved nightgown. It was white with light blue stripes, basically shaped like an oversized short sleeved T shirt with an extra long hem. Loose and comfortable, it made the already slender Rukia Kuchiki look even smaller and cuter.
Rukia Kuchiki kept a straight face. "I am staying here to keep an eye on you, so you do not bully Orihime."
"I already told you, I only sang a song..." Muten Natsu felt exhausted.
"Hmph." Rukia Kuchiki gave a small snort, too lazy to argue with him, then seriously explained why she was there. "Actually, I have a theory."
"What theory?"
"Sleeping with you can increase someone's strength."
Muten Natsu: "???"
"Orihime's power improved far more during training today than it did over the past few days."
"It is probably because of her mood." Muten Natsu guessed. "After getting rid of her worries, she felt better, and her power improved too."
"That might be part of it, but it does not rule out my theory." Rukia Kuchiki picked up the sketchpad beside her. "An ordinary Shinigami stops absorbing Reishi after recovering from a weakened state. But because you have Myōki, you can keep absorbing the Reishi around you. Do you remember the theory you had about Orihime awakening spiritual power?"
"I was always absorbing Reishi. Since Orihime spent a lot of time with me, part of the Reishi I absorbed was also absorbed by her body, which caused her spiritual power to awaken." Muten Natsu looked at Rukia Kuchiki's sketchpad. "That logic makes sense, but why am I a big gray wolf?"
On the sketchpad was a big gray wolf, with blue lines stretching toward it to represent the Reishi being absorbed.
Next to the big gray wolf was a little white rabbit, which was absorbing some Reishi too.
"You recognized yourself right away, which proves I drew it very vividly."
Muten Natsu: "..."
"Based on your theory, if that kind of situation could help Orihime awaken spiritual power, then it should naturally also help her become stronger." Rukia Kuchiki came to a conclusion. "The sharp increase in Orihime's strength likely follows the same process as when her power awakened."
"Now that you put it that way, it actually does make sense."
Rukia Kuchiki made her declaration with a completely serious face. "So I am going to test it for myself and verify my theory."
And as for how to test it... by sleeping, of course.
Rukia Kuchiki's reasoning was so solid that Muten Natsu had absolutely no reason to refuse.
And no desire to refuse either.
He casually switched off the light and climbed into bed.
Feeling Rukia Kuchiki's body warmth, Muten Natsu suddenly remembered their days back in Rukongai.
Back then, he used to hold Rukia Kuchiki while they slept too.
"Rukia..."
"Mm?" There was a faint tremor in Rukia Kuchiki's voice.
What is going on? Rukia Kuchiki did not understand. She had slept with Muten Natsu before, so why did it somehow feel a little... different now?
"If we get a little closer... would the effect be better?"
Rukia Kuchiki puffed out her cheeks slightly and stared at Muten Natsu, who was right in front of her. "You are just using that as an excuse because you want to..."
"I want to hold you."
"Guh..." Caught completely off guard, Rukia Kuchiki choked on her words and muttered softly, "You are the one who asked for this..."
You are the one who wants to hold me. It is not like I want to hold you.
Thinking that, Rukia Kuchiki shifted her small body beneath the blanket and burrowed into Muten Natsu's arms.
So warm...
Feeling Muten Natsu's arms tighten around her a little, Rukia Kuchiki suddenly felt dazed. "It feels like... it has been a long time since we slept like this."
"I think so too." Muten Natsu thought back for a moment. "We have not slept like this since we grew up."
"Grew up..." Rukia Kuchiki lightly pressed her lips together. Her soft body rested against Muten Natsu as she listened to his heartbeat. "Did we really grow up?"
Did we really grow to the point where we no longer needed to hold each other to stay warm?
"I definitely grew up." Muten Natsu felt like his body had changed quite a bit.
Rukia Kuchiki glared at him with her bright wide eyes. "What is that supposed to mean?"
Sorry for not growing up into someone like Rangiku Matsumoto or Orihime Inoue!
Muten Natsu blinked innocently. "Exactly what it sounds like."
Why is she angry again?