The matches proceeded in an orderly fashion. Kobane Jin'emon won his bout with absolute dominance.
However, even after the first round of eliminations had ended, Muguruma Kensei still hadn't woken up.
"Why isn't he awake yet?" Azashiro Kana frowned. Their teacher had just told them that Kensei's injuries weren't serious—he should've woken up already.
"This blockhead better not be oversleeping again. The revival matches are about to start!" Hirako Shinji raised a hand to fan his face. "Hey, hey, if you don't wake up soon, you're gonna miss the revival round!"
Smack! Several slaps landed hard across Kensei's face, leaving his cheeks swollen, but there was still no sign of him waking.
"What the hell? How can he be sleeping this deep?" Hirako rubbed his hand. He hadn't held back just now, yet Kensei didn't budge.
"If Kensei doesn't wake up soon, he'll miss the revival match. I'll go call the teacher," said Kobane Jin'emon as he left the temporary infirmary to look for his instructor by the tournament ring.
The matches at the arena were nearing their end. Katori Nanatsuki was presiding over the final bout.
Jin'emon didn't interrupt the match and waited until it concluded before rushing over. "Teacher! Kensei still hasn't woken up for some reason. If he doesn't wake soon, he won't make it to the next round!"
"Kensei still isn't awake?" Nanatsuki was surprised. He'd examined Kensei's injuries before the medics carried him away, and by all accounts, he shouldn't have been unconscious for this long.
'Are the Kaido students from Shin'o Spiritual Arts Academy really this sloppy?' Nanatsuki thought.
With injuries like that, even Kobayashi-sensei could've handled them easily.
There was a short break between rounds, so Nanatsuki used the time to visit the temporary infirmary to check on Kensei's condition.
Once inside, he first examined Kensei's wounds—all injuries caused by Kuchiki Sōjun had already been healed.
He lifted Kensei's eyelid and summoned a light source using Reiatsu.
"Dilated pupils… no pupillary light reflex..." Nanatsuki's expression turned grim. "Kensei is in a deep coma."
"Huh? Didn't you say his injuries weren't serious, teacher?" Azashiro Kana asked.
Nanatsuki nodded. "He only fell into a coma due to heavy blood loss in a short period. After receiving blood replenishment and treatment, he should have awakened quickly."
"Unless..." Hirako Shinji's expression darkened. "Did Kuchiki Sōjun's Zanpakutō have some kind of sedative effect?"
"I won't rule that out," Nanatsuki said, checking Kensei's Reiatsu flow. "It's not the injury that caused the coma… there's an abnormal fluctuation in his Reiatsu. Something external is suppressing him."
"I'm going to ask Kuchiki Sōjun directly." Hirako left the infirmary at once.
Meanwhile, Nanatsuki took out a medical kit and drew a sample of Kensei's blood.
The moment the blood was extracted, Nanatsuki's sharp spiritual sense detected something off.
He added a catalyst to the blood. Soon, a pale white substance separated and floated on the surface.
Just then, Hirako returned—with Kuchiki Sōjun in tow.
"Kuchiki-kun, can your Zanpakutō inject a target with excessive sedatives?" Nanatsuki swirled the vial—more pale fluid floated to the top.
Sōjun shook his head. "The Chiecho pollen can cause allergic reactions, but not sedation. Besides, I didn't use any pollen in that fight."
Nanatsuki was a bit surprised by his blunt honesty—Sōjun openly revealed his Zanpakutō's ability in front of his students.
Nanatsuki said, "There's a high concentration of sedative in Kensei's blood. It's a common sleep-inducing drug. That's why he's sleeping so deeply."
"Then this must be the work of the Shin'o medics. They were the only ones besides us who had contact with Kensei," Hirako said with disdain. "Kuchiki Sōjun, did you bribe someone at the Kaido unit?"
"You afraid of Kensei now that he unlocked Shikai? Worried he'd fight his way back from the losers' bracket and beat you?"
Sōjun's expression turned solemn. "I swear on the Kuchiki name—I, Kuchiki Sōjun, would never resort to such despicable tactics."
"If I'm going to win, I'll win fair and square!"
Seeing his serious demeanor, and recalling Sōjun's upright reputation, Hirako's doubts mostly faded. But he still muttered, "If not you, then who? Not many have the pull to manipulate Kaido staff… they serve nobles, don't they?"
"This matter has nothing to do with Kuchiki-kun," Nanatsuki said. "Focus on your upcoming matches. I'll get to the bottom of this."
He already had a suspect in mind: Tsunayashiro.
Nanatsuki had kept the Tsunayashiro family's bid for the Swordsmanship Department Head position from his disciples, not wanting to pressure them.
After Sōjun left, Hirako asked, "Teacher, how long until Kensei wakes up?"
Nanatsuki nodded slowly. "There's too much sedative in his system. It'll take time to flush it out—but the losers' bracket is about to begin."
Removing a drug already mixed into the bloodstream was delicate work. Even with his skill, it would take at least an hour or two.
Nanatsuki's reputation for Kaido proficiency had spread. Whoever targeted Kensei clearly accounted for this.
A crude method—but effective.
"Kensei's going to be out after just one round," Kobane Jin'emon said with regret.
Nanatsuki felt the same. Thinking of how hard Kensei had trained lately, he decided to fight for him.
Kensei had learned Senmai-Oroshi through sheer effort, determined to prove himself in this swordsmanship evaluation.
And Senmai-Oroshi was a difficult technique—Hirako hadn't even mastered it yet.
Nanatsuki found Kotetsu Ayane, and handed her the catalyst-treated blood sample. "Dean Kotetsu, my student Muguruma Kensei has been unconscious since his match."
"After examination, I discovered the cause was an overdose of sedatives."
"This vial contains the extracted sedative from his blood. Please verify it."
His statement stunned the spectators.
"I can't believe this happened!" Kotetsu Ayane's face darkened. She took the vial and studied it, but couldn't identify the substance floating inside.
Then Yamada, head of the Kaido division, arrived. He sniffed the vial and his expression shifted. "The floating substance is indeed a sedative!"
"My disciples have been watching over Kensei in the infirmary. Aside from the Shin'o Kaido staff, no one else had access to him."
Nanatsuki turned to the dean of the Kaido Institute.
"Dean Amamimon, can you explain what happened here?"
"Did someone from the Kaido unit act on external orders to prevent Kensei from continuing in the tournament?"
"Or is it that… the Kaido staff are now so incompetent they can't even use sedatives properly?"