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Chapter 119 - Chapter 119: Team-Building for Squad Four

Katori Nanatsuki had come to Squad Four. He needed a few people to help provide medical support for the upcoming live-blade matches.

In Squad Four's courtyard, a black-haired girl was lazily sweeping the ground.

When the girl noticed Nanatsuki, she cried out in surprise and joy:

"Lord Katori!"

She trotted up to him and continued,

"This morning I saw a magpie outside my window and thought something good might happen today—turns out I get to see Lord Katori!"

Nanatsuki replied warmly,

"Is it your turn on duty today, Eimi?"

The sweeping girl nodded repeatedly.

"Yes, it is!"

Nanatsuki asked,

"How many patients are still in the intensive care ward?"

"Almost all have been discharged," she said. "The ones left behind are those who've developed permanent injuries and need long-term care. The Captain thinks they're not yet fit to care for themselves, so they were transferred to the recovery ward instead of being sent home."

She tilted her head, "Does Lord Katori not have class today?"

"We thought you'd be busy since the new semester just started, so we didn't dare bother you."

"Everyone's been exhausted lately, but we can finally rest. Lots of people are on break now."

"A few days from now we're hosting a tea party—we hope Lord Katori can attend!"

The girl couldn't hide her excitement after seeing Katori Nanatsuki and just kept talking.

Nanatsuki smiled.

"If I don't have class, I'll definitely come. I'm free today because the Academy is holding a swordsmanship exam."

"But this time, the swordsmanship test is a live-blade duel."

"To prevent any accidents, I came to Squad Four to recruit a few helpers for medical support."

The sweeping girl immediately raised her hand.

"I want to help!"

"But aren't you on duty today?" Nanatsuki asked.

"It's fine! I'll finish sweeping quickly!" The girl began swinging her broom at lightning speed, the complete opposite of how lazily she had been working moments before.

"Thank you, Eimi. But there are quite a few participants, so I'll still need to find a few more people," Nanatsuki said.

"I know who's on break! I'll take you to them!" the girl offered.

She led Nanatsuki to the dorms.

Each Squad Four member had their own room, but the courtyard was a shared responsibility.

As soon as Nanatsuki arrived in the dormitory courtyard, he was quickly noticed.

"Lord Katori's here!"

"It's Lord Katori!"

Nanatsuki smiled.

"So this is where you've all been. No wonder the front courtyard was empty."

A few Squad Four Shinigami answered,

"There hasn't been much going on lately, so we're taking some time off."

Nanatsuki explained his reason for visiting.

"I hope I'm not disturbing your break. I came to ask for help—since the swordsmanship exam at the Academy is now a live-blade match, we'll need some medical support."

One of the Squad Four Shinigami said,

"How could this be a disturbance? Lord Katori, you even taught me Kaido recently—I haven't had a chance to repay you! If you need help, just say the word!"

"Exactly! It's great to be of help!"

"I'm in too!"

Several Shinigami in the courtyard immediately volunteered. The commotion even drew the attention of those inside.

When the people inside realized it was Katori Nanatsuki, they all came out to join.

Before long, the courtyard was filled with several dozen Shinigami.

"What! You're going to the Spiritual Arts Academy to watch Lord Katori supervise the live-blade matches?"

"Don't leave me behind on something this good—I'm going too!"

There were too many who wanted to go with him, to the point it caught the attention of Unohana Retsu herself.

"My, Katori-kun really is popular. Looks like you're emptying out Squad Four~"

Though her tone remained gentle as always, Nanatsuki couldn't help but feel a chill.

After a moment, Unohana said,

"I'll escort them over myself. Even if we don't need this many people, we can treat it as an outing to watch the matches."

After all, the live-blade matches intrigued her too.

"Director Kotetsu, I've gathered Squad Four's support… though maybe a bit too much," Nanatsuki reported.

Kotetsu Ayane exclaimed,

"Katori-kun, you're amazing! To have such high esteem in Squad Four. But then again, with how gentle you are, of course the girls love you."

It seemed today's swordsmanship test had become a Squad Four team-building event.

Ayane was quite surprised by how many people Nanatsuki had managed to bring.

She even had to start considering whether the Academy's swordsmanship hall could accommodate such a crowd.

Fortunately, the Academy had already set up an outdoor stage in preparation for inviting squad captains and nobles. If they activated it early—

—it would be enough for this many spectators.

"We'll hold the matches on the outdoor stage from here on out," Ayane said.

The student participants were quickly notified and made their way to the open-air arena.

"Why are there suddenly so many people?!" Muguruma Kensei was a bit stunned. Now he understood why the venue had changed.

There was no way the swordsmanship hall could fit this many.

"That's Captain Unohana over there. I see Rie too—must've been all brought by sensei from Squad Four," said Azashiro Kana.

"Pfft. That bunch from the Shin'o Kaido department thought the matches would fall apart without them. But with just one move, sensei pulled the entire Squad Four!" Hirako Shinji laughed.

"With so many spectators, I've gotta put on a good show!" Kensei clenched his fists. No way was he going to embarrass himself in front of a crowd like this.

"Go get 'em, Kensei! Man, I'm so jealous that sensei knows so many Squad Four girls!" Kobane Jin'emon was pumped, itching to take Kensei's place in the ring.

"You're married, aren't you, Kobane?" Hirako said.

Kobane Jin'emon was an older student who had already married and had kids when he enrolled.

Among Nanatsuki's disciples, he was the oldest, but he liked calling stronger peers "big bro" or "big sis."

"Can't I be jealous even if I'm married?" Jin'emon scratched his cheek.

Kensei's match was the second of the day. Before long, it was his turn to enter the ring.

His opponent was Madarame Ichirō.

Ichirō had previously lost to Ōmaeda Kishinosuke, landing him in the losers' bracket.

But that didn't mean Ichirō was weak—he'd made the quarterfinals in the last exam.

This time was just bad luck with the bracket. Within Class 1, he was still considered a top contender.

"Hope this opponent doesn't fall too fast." Kensei loosened his wrists and walked toward the stage.

"This Ichirō guy's pretty strong. Do your best, Kensei!" Jin'emon shouted.

"Relax, I'll end it quickly." Kensei didn't turn around but lifted his hand and waved back at his teammates.

Nanatsuki twitched at the corner of his eye.

'There he goes again, raising a flag.'

 

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