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"Oh? Captain Unohana guest-lectures at the Academy?" Lu Li asked, genuinely surprised.
Tessai Tsukabishi nodded. "Indeed. Several Captains from the Gotei 13 occasionally take time to instruct courses here. Because the Fourth Division constantly struggles to recruit Soul Reapers proficient in Kaido, Captain Unohana frequently visits to personally scout for future talent."
Glancing toward the students practicing Hado in the courtyard, Tessai continued, "Officially, my curriculum strictly covers the Destructive Arts, though I do impart some insights regarding the Binding Arts. Kaido, however, is categorized entirely as an elective course. It is almost exclusively taught by the Seated Officers and Lieutenants of the Fourth Division, or Captain Unohana herself."
Lu Li instantly understood the dynamic. Kaido was the most delicate and surgically precise of the Demon Arts; finding Soul Reapers with the natural talent for it was incredibly rare. Furthermore, the vast majority of youths enrolling in the Shin'o Academy were hot-blooded and ambitious, dreaming of crossing blades on the front lines. Very few wanted to be relegated to a rear-guard medical unit.
Because the Fourth Division desperately needed manpower, they set up Kaido as a specialized elective. Anyone who actually enrolled and mastered the coursework was practically guaranteed a spot in their squad.
...
After class, Lu Li and Aizen enjoyed another massive, satisfying feast at the cafeteria before heading back to their dorm.
"Sosuke, do we need to submit a formal application if we want to take elective courses?" Lu Li asked. Even though he was a transfer student, if the Academy offered electives, he figured he should at least get a schedule to pick from.
"There's no need for formal paperwork. The Academy offers a wide variety of electives, and you can simply walk in and audit whichever class you like," Aizen explained smoothly. "However, if you want the credits on your official record, you must formally pass the instructor's final exam. Those grades are permanently logged into your file, which the various Gotei 13 Captains will review during the recruitment draft."
Aizen paused, adjusting his glasses. "Why do you ask? Are you planning to take the Kaido elective?"
Lu Li nodded. "I'm quite interested in the Healing Arts."
"Is it so you can heal yourself and fight more recklessly? You truly are a battle-hungry man, Lu Li." Aizen chuckled.
He felt he was already starting to figure his new roommate out. Despite being a peerless genius in the same vein as himself, Lu Li didn't seem to harbor any dark, convoluted ambitions. He was just a straightforward, unapologetic brute who lived for the thrill of combat.
Aizen didn't dislike people like that. In fact, having a roommate of this caliber made his normally tedious Academy life infinitely more entertaining.
"Don't you find battle exhilarating, Sosuke? I have a feeling you'd make an excellent opponent," Lu Li smiled warmly.
Currently, Aizen was flawlessly masking his true strength. On paper, his Spiritual Class was exactly the same as Lu Li's: Class 17. According to Aizen's carefully crafted backstory, he had enrolled as a Class 19, and his current rating was simply the result of months of diligent meditation.
But Lu Li's intuition told him a completely different story. If he had to guess, Aizen's true Spiritual Class likely required deleting the '1' from that '17'.
"You joke, Lu Li. I could never compare to you. I am no match for your Zanjutsu or Hakuda, and your innate talent for Kido clearly eclipses my own," Aizen replied with perfect modesty before smoothly shifting the topic. "By the way, I noticed you were given an Asauchi. Since you haven't attended the Zanjutsu theory classes yet, would you like me to teach you the fundamentals of Zanpakuto and Reiatsu cultivation?"
"Oh?" Lu Li's eyes lit up. "Please do, Professor Sosuke."
Aizen smiled warmly. "There's no need for titles. I only know a bit of the basic theory, but I can certainly give you a primer."
Sitting across from each other, Aizen began to detail the foundational mechanics of Zanpakuto resonance and Reiatsu growth.
Aizen's motive was simple. He genuinely enjoyed his brilliant new roommate. Building a strong rapport now cost him nothing, and helping Lu Li grow stronger might inadvertently create a highly useful pawn for his grand designs in the future. Furthermore, he was deeply curious to see if Lu Li's monstrous talent extended to the spiritual realm of Zanpakuto communion.
Aizen proved to be an exceptional teacher. Lu Li found his explanations far more intuitive and digestible than the rigid lectures given by the official instructors.
First came the concept of Reiatsu cultivation. Soul Reapers were entities composed of high-density Reishi. Therefore, raising one's Spiritual Pressure fundamentally meant increasing the overall density of their spiritual body.
This could be achieved through several methods: consuming high-quality Reishi food, actively absorbing ambient Reishi from the atmosphere and refining it into the soul, or through rigorous physical conditioning.
Yes, purely physical training actually increased Reiatsu. Because a Soul Reaper's "flesh" was forged from spiritual matter, strengthening the body intrinsically condensed the soul.
Aizen, however, rarely relied on physical exertion. With his god-like Reishi manipulation, he passively absorbed the free-floating spiritual particles in the air, effortlessly compounding his soul density and skyrocketing his Reiatsu.
Aizen's theories perfectly aligned with Lu Li's meta-knowledge of the Bleach lore. During the Thousand-Year Blood War arc, Kirio Hikifune literally fed the cast high-density Reishi meals to permanently boost their power. Hollows operated on the exact same principle: they devoured each other's souls to condense their Reishi and forcibly evolve to the next stage.
Ultimately, increasing Reiatsu was simply the act of binding more Reishi to one's own soul.
Aside from steady, daily cultivation, there was one other method to achieve an explosive surge in combat power: releasing a Zanpakuto.
Aizen clarified a very common misconception. Releasing a Zanpakuto did not actually increase a Soul Reaper's total Reiatsu pool. For the vast majority of blades, the Shikai and Bankai merely optimized the output.
For example, if a Soul Reaper had a total Reiatsu pool of 100, their maximum unreleased output per strike might be 5. Upon activating Shikai, the blade acted as an amplifier, bumping that single-strike output to 10. In Bankai, that output multiplier could skyrocket to 40 or 50. This massive surge in localized energy was what caused the illusion of a sudden Reiatsu spike.
Only a microscopic fraction of Zanpakuto in existence genuinely possessed the ability to temporarily expand the wielder's absolute Reiatsu capacity upon release. Though, naturally, Lu Li mused, exceptions like Ichigo Kurosaki and Kenpachi Zaraki exist to break those rules.
Regardless, the absolute truth of the Soul Society remained: a Soul Reaper who had mastered their Shikai existed on an entirely different plane of existence from one who hadn't. For Lu Li to truly shatter the power ceiling, communing with his Asauchi was paramount.
"Sosuke, you're the top student in our year. Have you achieved Shikai yet?" Lu Li asked casually, mostly to gauge Aizen's reaction.
To Lu Li's genuine surprise, the ever-modest Aizen didn't try to hide it. He nodded, a gentle, harmless smile gracing his face. "I have. My Zanpakuto is named Kyoka Suigetsu. It is a flowing water-type Zanpakuto. By manipulating the chaotic reflections of mist and water currents, I can completely disrupt an enemy's senses and force them to turn on one another."
Sitting cross-legged on his bed, Aizen rested a hand on the hilt of the blade across his lap. He looked up, locking his deep brown eyes onto Lu Li.
"Tell me, Lu Li... would you like to see my Zanpakuto?"