["Apotheosis: You will become a god."]
For Aizen, a character personally certified by the author as "god," such an ability felt almost natural.
Yoshio was, of course, extremely keen on this ability—he couldn't wait to possess it—but Aizen Sōsuke was an even more dangerous man than Ichimaru Gin.
With Ichimaru Gin, his favorability was at least in the single digits. With Aizen Sōsuke… it was 0!
You could say there was no favorability whatsoever.
Favorability can be negative—he'd even seen a guy he disliked more, whose favorability toward him was -20.
But Aizen Sōsuke neither disliked nor liked him; it was a flat zero.
Just like a god who doesn't concern himself with mortals—however benevolent he might appear on the surface, he feels no emotional ripple toward you.
In Aizen's eyes, he must be like an ant. He was far beneath Renji, Kira, and Hinamori. At least those three would make Aizen think, "They're useful."
As for himself, he was an ant—unable to attract any attention.
For someone like that, obtaining his ability was exceedingly difficult.
But Aizen's ability was undeniably powerful. Use it and become a god—how strong, how tempting must that be?
No—he had to find a way to befriend Aizen!
Soul Society, sorry, I'm joining Aizen's faction!
Yoshio fell into deep thought.
As for the other seated officers—even those unnamed in the original work—they all had abilities of their own.
Naturally, Yoshio wanted those abilities too. So after training for a while, he sought out the sixth seat responsible for their drills to chat.
The sixth seat was named Tanimoto Toru, with the ability "Special Beam Cannon."
[Special Beam Cannon: Fire a black beam of destruction from your fingertip. The beam ignores defenses and pierces an opponent's body.]
This was exactly the offensive ability Yoshio needed right now. Since Tanimoto was also a squad officer and they already had a decent rapport, a brief chat pushed favorability to sixty.
He then received a one-time Special Beam Cannon.
After work, he returned home in high spirits, picking up some sake on the way.
The Yoshio family had once been low-ranking nobility. Their house was still large, with a big front yard and two trees. One of them was…
Well, both were persimmon trees.
The house was large, but only Yoshio lived there.
He brought some food and drinks home and switched on the lights.
It wasn't dark yet, but turning on the lights was absolutely necessary.
Because a group of Quincy spies lurked in Seireitei's shadows at all times. While it was unlikely they'd pay attention to a small fry like him, the thought of being watched made Yoshio uneasy.
So he made a habit of walking only where there were no shadows, and when he got home, he turned on all the lights to make sure there was no darkness around.
Starting today, he'd even sleep with the lights on.
Back home, Yoshio took out a book on Kido techniques and began to read.
The original owner had been a scion of a noble family, intent on revitalizing his house, but unfortunately his talent was limited—no matter how hard he tried, he remained mediocre.
Still, the family had amassed many instructional books.
About half an hour after he got home, Renji arrived with Kira and Hinamori. Yoshio greeted them warmly.
"Come, come, I just bought a jug of sake. Let's have a drink together."
He happily set out the sake and food, then said to Hinamori, "Hinamori, if you don't drink, I got dorayaki monaka just for you."
"Dorayaki monaka?" Hinamori Momo's eyes lit up. "Wow, that's pricey! Senior Yoshio, aren't you spending a bit much?"
Dorayaki monaka is a popular Soul Society snack, similar to a chocolate liqueur confection. The filling is made from sake lees—very high quality ones at that.
It tastes great, but it's also quite alcoholic. If your tolerance is low, one piece will get you drunk.
"Senior Yoshio has money. Don't worry about it, Hinamori," Renji said casually. "But is it okay to exercise after drinking?"
"Of course—so I'll guide you first."
With that, Yoshio activated [Strict Teacher Produces Outstanding Students]. While the ability was active, he could easily see what others needed to improve.
Those he taught would also gain a powerful learning boost. The ability lasted three days, and Yoshio was confident he could earn Hinamori's and Kira's friendship in that time.
Yoshio led the three into the yard and began drilling them.
"Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Shunpo, and Kido are the Shinigami's core skills, but every Shinigami has strengths and weaknesses. Renji, I know you best, so I know you're not good at Kido."
He said to Renji first, "So I'll start by teaching you how to improve your Zanjutsu."
"You two can watch as well. Everyone has their own way to progress, but you can learn a lot from what I'm teaching Renji."
The three nodded excitedly, and Renji drew his Zanpakuto. Since he hadn't learned Shikai yet, the blade was still in its basic form.
With his ability active, Yoshio immediately noticed several incorrect force applications in Renji's movements and began to teach in earnest.
Under Yoshio's guidance, many things that had puzzled Renji at the academy clicked into place. Renji finally realized that the senior who patrolled with him might actually be expert.
Even the instructors—seated officers at the academy—couldn't pinpoint his issues with such precision!
Renji's favorability: 73.
In no time, Renji's favorability had surpassed seventy. Delighted, Yoshio taught with even greater zeal.
After Renji, it was Kira and Momo's turn. Kira was a top student in Class One, a rare all-rounder who excelled across the board.
So Yoshio taught him all four—Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Shunpo, and Kido—while Momo, who excelled at Kido, also learned some Kaidō techniques from him.
And during the lessons, Yoshio discovered that not only were his three students improving rapidly—he, as their teacher, was also benefiting greatly from the act of teaching!