So he went to find Renji, who was talking with Kira at the moment. When Yoshio walked over, Renji couldn't help glancing at him.
"Senior Yoshio, do you have any further instructions?"
"Ah, no, not really."
Yoshio pondered for a moment, then said, "I appreciate you—especially your assessment of Rukia. Chasing stars across the sky—isn't that fun?"
"Although I'm just an ordinary Shinigami, I want to do my part for this. Are you coming to my place tonight?"
"Perhaps I can teach you something."
Renji exclaimed, "Huh?! Senior Yoshio, are you going to teach me to train?!"
"Not just you."
Yoshio looked at Renji, then turned to Kira and Hinamori. "But you three. You're a group, right? Wouldn't it be a bit unfair to teach only one of you?"
"Us?" Hinamori pointed at herself, puzzled. "I can go too?"
"Of course. You're all Captain Aizen's capable juniors," Yoshio said kindly.
"To be honest, after graduation you'll all be coming to the Fifth Division, right? Giving juniors a little guidance in advance is perfectly normal."
Kira, Hinamori, and Renji were all a bit baffled about what Yoshio could teach them, since he was just an ordinary Shinigami. But since he was a senior, they still wanted to check it out.
"In that case, thank you very much. I'll bring Kira and Hinamori to your place tonight."
"Then I'll see you tonight."
Yoshio waved and turned to leave.
…
The Yoshio family were minor nobles, though his parents had died in battle.
Even so, he had a house in Seireitei, not far from the Fifth Division barracks.
The patrol shift wasn't over yet, so Yoshio had to return to the Fifth Division.
On his way back, he looked at his newly acquired ability: [Strict Teacher Produces Outstanding Students.]
Once activated, this ability lasts three days. During that time, Yoshio becomes the "strongest instructor," able to easily spot students' weaknesses, while students receive a mysterious buff that enhances their ability to learn.
With this, instructing the Renji trio would be no problem.
The only small issue was that he only had time to teach at night.
Because tomorrow he had another patrol—outside Seireitei this time—in Rukongai.
So he could only teach in the evenings.
Come to think of it, while "Shinigami" in the "Gotei 13" are technically civil servants, they don't get weekends off.
There are vacations, but most are for officers on duty; ordinary squad members work most of the time—it's pretty tough when you think about it.
Back in the Fifth Division, after greeting his teammates, he saw Ichimaru Gin loitering outside.
Ichimaru Gin was currently the Fifth Division's Lieutenant, though he'd soon be transferring to the Third Division.
Shortly before Renji and the others graduated, Ichimaru Gin became the Third Division captain, and Kuchiki Byakuya took the captaincy of the Sixth Division.
Of course, that had nothing to do with Yoshio—except that right now he really wanted to befriend Ichimaru Gin!
Ichimaru Gin's ability was "Viper"!
["Viper: You can transform into a venomous serpent. In human form, your body can secrete a potent toxin capable of dissolving cells. You can also conceal your power."]
Yet another offensive skill, with transformation and power-concealment to boot. Naturally, Yoshio wanted it.
A toxin that dissolves cells—could that refer to the venom Ichimaru Gin releases in Bankai? If so, that's way too strong.
Yoshio remembered that this toxin could even dissolve the body of Hōgyoku-Aizen; even the Askin Nakk Le Vaar, the "The Deathdealing," would be poisoned to death before adapting according to Q&A #498 by Tite Kubo on his fansite "Klub Outside".
Or perhaps the toxin's potency scales with his spiritual power?
Before obtaining the ability, Yoshio couldn't access detailed information about it.
He checked and found that his favorability with Ichimaru Gin was far too low—single digits. Much too early even to obtain a temporary ability.
He really wanted to get along with Ichimaru Gin, but befriending that guy wasn't easy. Best to shelve it for now.
Besides, approaching people like "Ichimaru Gin" and "Aizen" rashly was dangerous in itself. Until he had the power to protect himself, he should limit contact with them.
So Yoshio merely glanced at Ichimaru Gin as usual and then threw himself into the next round of training.
The Fifth Division is a rescue squad; their day-to-day workload isn't that heavy. When they're in the barracks, besides patrols, they often train.
As it happened, Yoshio very much wanted to grow stronger, so he trained even harder than before.
Shinigami training mainly includes Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Shunpo, and Kido.
Of these four, the one Yoshio most wanted to improve was Shunpo. As the saying goes, "In the world of Kung Fu, speed determines the winner." - The Beast
If he were fast, everything would be easier.
And Shunpo is quite an advanced skill. Imagine: when someone attacks you, your figure vanishes and reappears behind them in an instant, and you casually say, "Too slow." Isn't that cool?
Or when an enemy retreats, you appear in front of them in a flash, place a hand on their chest, and say: "Distance between us is meaningless. Like this, I can pierce your heart at any time."
Isn't that awesome?!
Shunpo training has three stages: preparation stance, the step, and Shunpo. What Shinigami usually refer to as Shunpo is that final stage, but the first two are important too.
He didn't use his Star Chaser ability, because using it would only lead to being "swept along by the tide." Even as an acting officer, he'd still just be an ordinary Shinigami.
Better to keep Star Chaser in reserve. As long as it remains in his skill list, he can benefit from its passive—breaking his limits.
If Yoshio can never get Renji's favorability to eighty, at least Star Chaser's limit-breaking effect will continue to work on him.
…
By afternoon, dusk was settling in. Yoshio had met the seated officers in the squad and witnessed their strength. Most importantly…
He saw the Fifth Division captain, Aizen Sōsuke!
And the name of his ability was simple—
"Apotheosis."