Before this training began, Ishikawa had imagined that the guidance, while certainly involving hard-hitting sparring, would mostly be… Unohana gently teaching him Zanjutsu techniques, as she always did.
The result…
After the training started, the guidance Ishikawa received could be summed up in two words.
—Being slashed!
Constantly being slashed, until he was severely injured and on the verge of death.
But with Ishikawa's self-healing ability, it was easy to kill him, yet extremely difficult to bring him to the brink of death.
This also led to…
Ishikawa spent all his time being slashed. He even ate a reagent provided by Unohana every day; after crushing it, he would feel as if he were in Hueco Mundo, completely devoid of hunger for a short period.
As for sleeping…
Sorry, none at all!
From beginning to end, Unohana, apart from expressing her views on him on the first day, remained silent and relentlessly attacked him. This assault would continue until Ishikawa's self-healing ability could no longer recover quickly, causing him to lose consciousness and faint without investing experience points…
However, this unconsciousness wouldn't last long before Ishikawa would wake up again.
Then, he would continue to face a storm-like assault!
He didn't even have a moment to speak to Unohana Retsu; the instant he awoke from unconsciousness, he would see Unohana Retsu's eyes, filled with killing intent and gloom.
Nevertheless, Ishikawa's proficiency in Zanjutsu rapidly improved as a result.
Originally, Ishikawa's plan was to continuously invest nearly 160,000 experience points into his physique to make himself more durable.
But the moment he truly faced Unohana, Ishikawa realized he had thought too simply of her.
A curved blade in her hand could be described as ever-changing; various styles were wielded effortlessly. If he were to simply counter with Zanjutsu, let alone 160,000, even 1.6 million experience points wouldn't last more than a few days under Unohana Retsu's level of assault.
So Ishikawa simply gave up on the method of adding points to his physique and instead began to study the various styles Unohana used.
Ishikawa's memory, comprehension, and concentration during combat were brought to their full potential during this relentless… being-slashed process.
Basically, he relied on himself for anything he could thoroughly understand, and if he encountered something he couldn't break through, he would use a small amount of experience points to aid his comprehension.
This caused Ishikawa's Zanjutsu to advance by leaps and bounds.
In just a few days, it rose from its original advanced level to top-tier.
However…
It was still useless!
Whenever Ishikawa broke through and mastered a style, barely able to contend with Unohana using the same level of Reiatsu, Unohana would immediately switch to the next style.
Her Zanjutsu techniques were constantly changing.
No matter how fast Ishikawa's Zanjutsu improved, she always managed to suppress him perfectly.
He wondered if it was just his imagination…
He always felt that as the styles continuously changed, the killing intent in Unohana's gaze grew even stronger.
This made Ishikawa feel a little panicked. He was genuinely afraid that she might suddenly lose control of her killing intent and accidentally kill him.
Although like Unohana, Ishikawa didn't use any techniques other than Zanjutsu, in Ishikawa's perception…
Even if he gave his all, he might not be able to last long under Unohana's hand.
Within the entire Gotei 13, this captain of the 'Medical Squad,' who never participated in battles, could be said to be second only to Captain-Commander Yamamoto in Seireitei.
In terms of Zanjutsu alone, she was even stronger than Captain-Commander Yamamoto!
As Aizen said, all four Shinigami techniques—Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Kido, and Hoho—have their limits.
And Unohana's Zanjutsu had undoubtedly reached its intensity limit, truly touching that barrier.
The top of the top!
Only then would his already top-tier Zanjutsu appear so vulnerable before her.
Ishikawa could no longer recall how many styles Unohana had used. Since the guidance began, facing the increasingly intense killing intent in Unohana's blade, Ishikawa had poured all his focus into the training.
Because…
The woman before him truly had killing intent towards him, wanting to erase his existence.
Although the reason for her killing intent made Ishikawa feel very wronged.
But under the continuous assaults, Ishikawa didn't even have a chance to explain, remaining clear-headed almost only at the moment of waking.
It wasn't that he couldn't stay clear-headed at other times; rather, to withstand Unohana's attacks, Ishikawa had to be highly focused and enter that inexplicable state of deathly stillness.
In this state, Ishikawa was single-mindedly fighting Unohana, completely disregarding any other factors.
Kill, kill, kill…
The battle between him and Unohana had deviated from the scope of guidance from the very beginning, and was gradually evolving into a deadly struggle.
As time passed, Unohana became more and more in tune. She didn't even bother to re-braid her hair when her braid came undone, letting it fall freely.
The killing intent intensified!
The gentle, mature, considerate Fourth Division Captain, who gave people a sense of saintly compassion, gradually disappeared from Ishikawa's memory.
In her place was…
The First Zaraki, Unohana.
Her narrow eyes, just a glance from them, would give one the illusion of a blade piercing through their body.
Her gloomy face had lost all its original beauty, instead instilling a chill in one's heart.
The aura that emanated from her…
It no longer had that gentle, kind, unique medicinal scent.
Instead, it was…
A pungent, nauseating smell of blood. This blood smell seemed to penetrate the skin, the bones, and even the soul. Each time she moved, it would stir up a bloody gust of wind, and blood rain would bloom from Ishikawa's body.
Her whole being was like an Asura!!
It was hard to imagine how many people she had killed.
Although Ishikawa had killed many people over the past decade or so, in front of Unohana, it was like a drop of water compared to the ocean; they couldn't be compared at all.
This monster became increasingly dangerous, increasingly terrifying.
It was as if she was replaying her past opponents one by one, and watching 'them' retreat caused her to gradually awaken.
There were even many times when Unohana would momentarily forget to hold back. Her killing intent, Reiatsu, Zanjutsu… everything would peak at that instant, only to disappear just as quickly, as if it were an illusion.
But once or twice, it could be explained as an illusion.
However, as this phenomenon became more frequent, Ishikawa understood…
If he didn't end this guidance soon, he was very likely to die here.
His favorability didn't increase, but the killing intent grew stronger.
This was clearly not right.
Ishikawa wanted to call for help, wanted to escape, but Unohana simply wouldn't give him the chance.
The moment he regained consciousness, this madwoman would charge at him with her blade, forcing him into a combat state.
The entire underground space was now a mess.
Its area had expanded significantly from its original size. Fortunately, it was located nearly two thousand meters beneath the center of Sōkyoku Hill, and there were no signs of collapse.
The entire space was filled with the tangible killing intent emanating from Unohana, which spread like mist, shrouding the whole world in a bloody hue at that moment.
Ishikawa had only ever felt this kind of aura from Zaraki.
But it was nowhere near as dense as this.
And around Ishikawa, the Gray Fog that had always been hidden deep within his soul, which even Ishikawa himself couldn't force out, was slowly being unearthed under the relentless pressure of this madwoman.
Even Ishikawa himself didn't notice that the color of his Reiatsu had changed from its original azure to purple, filled with an ominous and terrifying sense of gloom.
Most importantly…
His spiritual world, which had always been isolated from the outside, was also rapidly awakening. As his reforged Zanpakuto truly began to awaken, Ishikawa's Reiatsu became even more bizarre.
They complemented each other!
Without Ishikawa even noticing, his Reiatsu and the nascent Zanpakuto within his spiritual world, like breathing, achieved a certain shared frequency, helping the Zanpakuto continuously reassemble itself.
Ishikawa was completely unaware of all these changes.
But the madwoman in Ishikawa's eyes…
She was far more aware than Ishikawa of the changes gradually occurring within him.
Dangerous… but not entirely dangerous.
The Gray Fog formed by that eerie aura did indeed feel very dangerous, as if it wanted to destroy everything.
But as it continuously integrated into Ishikawa's Reiatsu, the Gray Fog emanating from the depths of Ishikawa's soul also continuously diminished.
Although the Reiatsu's intensity hadn't changed, the feeling it gave off was completely different.
At this moment, Ishikawa gave her the feeling of being in a biological 'metamorphosis' stage, gradually undergoing a transformation. What would emerge when he broke out of his cocoon…
This was no longer within Unohana's consideration.
Because she had a feeling that she was gradually cultivating a monster, a monster incredibly similar to herself, perhaps even one that would surpass her.
He was experiencing everything she had once experienced, and growing rapidly at a speed that even shocked her!
Originally, according to Unohana's estimation, Ishikawa wouldn't be able to last long against her former 'enemies,' and a month's time wouldn't be enough to replay all of her past.
But Ishikawa had endured under this intensity and gradually adapted.
From initially being unable to cope with even one person a day, to now 'defeating' dozens, or even hundreds, of people a day.
His terrifying self-healing speed, his seemingly inexhaustible Reiatsu, his extreme mental concentration during battle, and his emotionless killing…
Every one of his slashes was aimed at killing her.
There was not the slightest hesitation in them!
More and more similar…
She wondered if it was due to a habit she unintentionally revealed, causing his blade to become more and more similar to hers.
So similar that she almost lost control several times, wanting to kill him.
But the reason she didn't do so wasn't because it was a training session, nor because of Ishikawa's contributions to Soul Society, or any other reason.
She simply…
Just wanted to see what this monster would eventually become.
Even if she ultimately died at the hands of this monster, it wouldn't matter at all.
Just like Zaraki once!
As for what impact this monster might have, Unohana didn't care at all.
Because the monster she personally cultivated… no, excavated, she would be the first to stand before him.
This made Unohana even more excited.
Must maintain restraint…
Not enough…
It's not harvest season yet!
Although when the harvest season arrives, it might be her downfall.
But there was no fear or regret.
Only happiness…
Extreme happiness!
Meeting Zaraki made her feel unprecedented joy; fighting him was like her own child fighting her.
And excavating all of Ishikawa's potential, watching him become more and more like herself, even foreseeing the possibility of him surpassing her instead of stagnating like her, Unohana Retsu felt an unprecedented sense of happiness.
The more intense her happiness, the more she wanted to kill Ishikawa.
Or…
To be killed by him!
All this time, Unohana had been waiting, waiting for a true inheritance, waiting for the day Zaraki truly inherited 'Zaraki,' waiting for… her own death.
Because that was the sin she had to atone for.
Atoning for her sin was indeed Unohana's long-held hope.
But the extreme happiness Ishikawa's growth process gave her made her want to…
Step over his corpse before atoning for her sin.
Or…
Let him step over her corpse to help her atone for her sin!
A spray of blood bloomed silently.
Ishikawa once again fell into a pool of blood, the blood beneath him forming a bewitching and eerie flower before Unohana.
The curved blade trembled slightly, then lifted and gradually lowered.
Not enough~
Far from enough!
…
At this moment, Ishikawa didn't know he was constantly dancing on the line between life and death.
This time, he didn't completely lose consciousness as usual.
Instead, he entered a space.
This was a forest, a grey forest, filled with towering giant trees that reached into the clouds.
The giant trees formed a continuous expanse, with hardly any gaps to walk through.
As far as the eye could see, everything was grey.
The soil was grey, the grass was grey, the flowers were grey… The entire space gave off a suffocating sense of deathly stillness, devoid of any vitality.
But…
The sky was azure, white clouds drifted, the sun and moon shone brightly, and the stars sparkled!
It was filled with vibrant life.
Death and vitality, two completely different pictures, combined, gave Ishikawa an inexplicable sense of eeriness.
And just then, a rustling sound suddenly came from this silent space.
Ishikawa, startled by the scene before him, instinctively looked towards the sound, only to see a small dog rolling out of the grey grass, barking happily, bounding and leaping with great joy!
The puppy was completely white, about the size of Ishikawa's palm, with a pair of sparkling purple eyes full of lively vitality.
When it appeared, the sky seemed to brighten even more, as if the sun and moon were shining their light upon it.
Even the surrounding silent giant trees began to sway at its arrival, their leaves rustling with a pleasant sound.
However…
All of this came to an abrupt halt the next second!
"Woof!"
The dog saw Ishikawa, suddenly let out a yelp, trembling all over, yet it didn't run away. Its big eyes looked at Ishikawa, brimming with tears.
Its tail and ears drooped at that moment.
"Woof~"
Looking at the trembling dog, Ishikawa's expression suddenly became a little strange.
Although it was completely different from what he remembered, when he appeared here, he had vaguely realized where this place was.
But…
What the hell is this thing?
"Woof woof woof~"
As if sensing Ishikawa's thoughts, the dog suddenly put on a fierce look and barked a few times, proving its identity.
"I…"
Just as Ishikawa was about to say something, he felt the surrounding space darken, and he felt as if he was suddenly pushed, flying out.
Then…
Buzz~
The sound of a blade cutting through the air came, leaving Ishikawa no time to think. He slapped the ground with his palm, sprang up, and a Kido Blade instantly condensed!
Clang—!