The Headmaster of the Shin'ō Academy was not a high-ranking or powerful figure in the Seireitei.
Take, for example, a future Headmaster, who was merely a 3rd Seat from the 5th Division who had transferred.
The current Headmaster was a practical, seated officer who had retired from the 1st Division.
There were many Shinigami like him in the Soul Society—diligently dedicating themselves but never getting a moment in the spotlight.
Especially in the near future, he, along with most of the teachers, would die at the hands of the Wandenreich's Sternritter while protecting the students, never to have his day to shine.
But this hard-line old man, who upheld the "Genryū" (Original Style) spirit, never cared about such things.
He only hoped that the Academy could produce more outstanding students to contribute to the great cause of protecting the Soul Society and maintaining the balance of the three worlds.
Therefore, every year at this time, the Headmaster personally supervised the front lines of the admissions assessment.
He did this every day until the assessment was over.
"Sigh. Ever since Captain Hitsugaya graduated, the quality of students has been declining year after year. How am I supposed to report this to Lord Genryūsai?"
Even though he treated all students equally, he knew that special talents like Kyoraku Shunsui and Ukitake Jushiro, with their paired Zanpakuto; pure geniuses like Shiba Kaien and Ichimaru Gin; and a once-in-a-millennium super-genius like Hitsugaya Toshiro were all anomalies.
The current lukewarm situation was the norm.
But the Headmaster was still dissatisfied. He wasn't dissatisfied with the students, but with the current teaching methods.
In his view, work should be like the Way of the Sword—advancing boldly and relentlessly, never slacking. Once you stop, it means you've gone down the wrong path or reached your limit.
With those geniuses as precedents, it proved that the Academy's ability to unearth talent had not yet reached its limit. There must be promising talents waiting to be discovered in unknown places.
The Academy needed to reform its philosophy, make some new changes, and bring these talents into its fold.
This way, the strength of the Gotei 13 could visibly grow.
Unfortunately, although he had the courage to reform, the Academy was ultimately just one of the many institutions under the jurisdiction of Central 46. As the Headmaster, he did not have the authority to change the rules.
This left him feeling helpless.
Seeing this, the elite teacher at his side, Ōunabara Gen'gorō, offered some comfort:
"Headmaster, don't lose heart. Don't we have two new students with a Reii (Spiritual Class) of Seventh this year? And in the upper years, we have the heir of the Shihōin family and other noble elites. Overall, it's much better than before."
"You don't understand. This is just a temporary flourish; it changes nothing. Besides, we can't expect much from the noble talents. It's expected of them to be outstanding. The Academy can't teach them much."
The Headmaster shook his head.
"Although those two new students aren't as outstanding as the famous graduates of the past, and they're severely specialized—true 'problem children'—if I had to choose between them and the great nobles, I'd rather have them."
"Speaking of nobles, I heard that the one from the Kuchiki family has been stationed in the human world?"
"It seems so."
"She also came from the Rukongai and was in Class 2. Although many people don't think highly of her now, I trust Captain Ukitake's judgment. She will be the best choice to succeed the Vice-Captain."
"Her? A Vice-Captain?"
Ōunabara Gen'gorō didn't dare to agree. But with the Kuchiki family backing her, it wasn't impossible.
However, she was destined to be outshone by her peers like Abarai. They were already Vice-Captains.
Even those two new students this year, "Yayahara Kumanaru" and "Rindo Itaru," would be able to become high-ranking seated officers and aim for the Vice-Captain position based on raw strength as soon as they graduated.
No matter how you looked at it, they had more of a future than the Kuchiki family's adopted daughter.
The topic of nobles didn't last long.
For the rest of the time, the two toured the examination hall and saw some candidates who were being screened out for being "illiterate"—unable to recognize or write words, with poor cultural literacy.
This kind of candidate appeared every year.
The human world had only just entered the 21st century, and many people couldn't afford to go to school. This was even more true in the Rukongai, where resources were scarce and education lagged far behind.
While the natives born from the union of souls were more likely to have spiritual potential, they had no innate advantage in cultural cultivation.
The Academy would not relax its requirements for this.
The total curriculum was six years.
That amount of time was barely enough to learn the basic skills of a Shinigami.
If they had to take time out of that to set up literacy classes, it would inevitably affect the progress of the combat skills courses, leading to a decline in the overall combat effectiveness of the graduates.
This was not conducive to the "great cause of protecting the Gotei."
For the sake of the Gotei 13 and their own personal safety, they could only ruthlessly eliminate this group of people.
The Headmaster had no objection to this.
The admission assessment was not hard, but it wasn't simple either.
First, one needed a certain level of spiritual potential and basic cultural literacy. These were hard requirements.
Then, they were scored based on physical ability, sensitivity to Kido, and other combat skills. The top several dozen students with the best scores were selected and divided into Class 1 and Class 2. The rest were eliminated.
Those who were eliminated were simply not as skilled as others; there was nothing to complain about.
In a sense, not letting them pass was a kindness. The same went for the illiterate.
The Headmaster wanted to change the admission method and expand the scale, but he never thought about watering down the difficulty.
On this point, he was firmly on the same side as the sages of Central 46.
Mentioning change, the Headmaster couldn't help but sigh, "The detection devices produced by the Shinigami Research and Development Institute (SRDI) are much better than the old methods."
"You just sit in the chair, and all the data comes out. It solves the labor cost and eliminates the possibility of human error."
It was precisely the convenience brought by science and technology that gave the Headmaster hope for successful reform. Unfortunately, Central 46 didn't see it that way.
"It's good, but it's too expensive," Ōunabara Gen'gorō muttered. He seriously suspected that the SRDI had inflated the price and ripped off the Academy.
"Hmm... that face looks a bit familiar."
They were now standing in the detection room, observing the candidates inside through a lab-like glass window.
The Headmaster couldn't help but rub his chin as he looked at the orange-haired teenager.
Suddenly, the assessment officer cried out in alarm: "Spiritual Class: Fourth?! Potential... data conversion failed. Unable to assess?!"
The Headmaster and Ōunabara Gen'gorō froze. When they reacted, they looked at each other, both seeing the undisguisable surprise in the other's eyes.
And the surprises weren't over.
The next candidate to enter brought even more shock to everyone present.
"Spiritual Class: Fourth... Potential... data conversion failed... Also unable to assess..."
The assessment officer gulped, looking somewhat at a loss as he turned to the Headmaster.
The Headmaster himself was also stunned, frozen in place. It took him a long while to recover. He took a deep breath, barely managing to calm himself.
"Have the background checks on these two candidates been completed?"
"Yes, sir. They are souls who were just guided to the Soul Society yesterday. They are currently staying in Junrinan. The local elder served as their referrer to get the Seireitei pass. There are no problems with their vouchers or procedures."
The assessment officer quickly replied.
"Good, good, as long as there are no problems..."
The Headmaster muttered to himself, appearing calm, but Ōunabara Gen'gorō couldn't help but glance at him.
How is this 'no problem'?!
They weren't natives born in the Rukongai, nor were they from the Four Great Noble Families.
They were just the souls of dead humans, yet they possessed such high-concentration souls. Was this normal?
A Spiritual Class of Fifth or Fourth was something only Vice-Captain level Shinigami possessed.
They hadn't even received their Zanpakuto or come into contact with Shinigami powers, yet they could already rival Vice-Captain level Shinigami. Was this normal?!
What would Abarai and the others, who had struggled for decades to reach the rank of Vice-Captain, think of this?
Ōunabara Gen'gorō's feelings were complicated.
On one hand, he felt a pang of bitterness that the students he was so proud of were being surpassed by "mere" humans.
On the other hand, he was thrilled because these two freaks would 100% be placed in Class 1, replacing Abarai and the others as the students he would be most proud of in the future.
"But, Headmaster..."
At this moment, the assessment officer hesitated, seeming to have something difficult to say.
"What is it?" The Headmaster frowned.
"Please see for yourself."
The officer handed over a report.
The Headmaster took it, and Ōunabara Gen'gorō leaned in curiously.
"Kurosaki Ichigo... Kurosaki, never heard of the surname. Looks like the resemblance was just a coincidence. Spiritual Class: Fourth. Overall evaluation: Excellent."
"Shigū Takeru. Spiritual Class: Fourth. Overall evaluation: Excellent."
"All the points were deducted from Kido aptitude... but compared to other freshmen, they are still far ahead. There's no such thing as a perfect genius. I believe that when they become Captains in the future, they will definitely be flawless."
Wait!
The Headmaster suddenly saw a note at the bottom of Kurosaki Ichigo's report: "Cultural Literacy: Failed." His eyes widened.
Ōunabara Gen'gorō adjusted his glasses, his face also filled with astonishment.
"This..."
The two looked at each other, their expressions shifting from extreme excitement to extreme gloom in an instant.
"I thought the human world was very developed now..."
"Headmaster, Teacher Ōunabara, the human world is developing too quickly. It's possible that the grammar has... undergone some 'minor' changes."
The assessment officer explained tactfully.
"Then why wasn't the other one affected?"
"This... perhaps there is also a 'minor' difference in their educational levels."
"Is that so? Is there a difference?" The Headmaster asked, puzzled.
"..." The assessment officer blinked, a little dazed.
"Ahem, Headmaster, your insight is sharp. There is a three-year age gap between these two candidates. The so-called 'difference' wouldn't exist if they were the same age. It's like you can't compare a teenager to an adult; the former naturally lacks the latter's life experience."
Ōunabara Gen'gorō explained seriously.
"But the Academy is a place for teaching and learning. We cannot turn away someone just because they lack experience. In fact, it should be the opposite."
"Furthermore, the Academy's mission is to cultivate Shinigami. This candidate's talent for Shinigami arts is unparalleled. Besides, prodigies are intelligent and quick-witted. They will catch up on this small deficit in no time."
"Well said! We cannot miss out on outstanding students due to rigid stereotypes and formalism. That would violate Lord Genryūsai's original intention for founding the Academy."
The Headmaster casually tucked the report into his robe and instructed the assessment officer: "File the results as soon as you've prepared them. Also, don't mention such 'erroneous' remarks in the future. Otherwise, I'll have to consider reassigning you to a different post to 'reflect'."
"...The Headmaster is wise."
The officer was about to say, "Didn't you just take the report?" but when he heard the last part of the sentence, his eyelids twitched.
...
"Why do you know classical Japanese?!"
In the hallway outside the Academy's exam hall, it was common for candidates to discuss the test content and their performance.
And it was an inevitable result to feel distraught upon discovering that your roommate was a secret academic elite.
"I am a man of culture, after all."
Facing the frustrated Ichigo, Shigū Takeru was perfectly composed.
"Am I not? My grades were at the top of my class at school!"
"But I was set to become a folklorist. The archaeology research lab at Todai's Faculty of Letters had already opened its doors for me."
"...I have nothing to say to that."
Ichigo had to concede.
"By the way, I'm not going to fail just because of that, am I? I just guessed on a lot of the questions based on my gut feeling."
"Gut feeling is the right way to go. Trust me, your instincts are definitely fine. If there's a problem, it's the Academy's problem. And if it's their problem, let them solve it."
"I hope so. I really don't want to go through the 11th Division's channel. Dealing with those battle-crazed maniacs... spare me. I hate fighting more than anything."
"Exactly. We're both honest guys. The higher-ups at the Academy are also well-versed in the art of education. As wielders of the teaching rod, they must also be of high moral character. They certainly won't mind... bending the rules for us, just this once."
Shigū Takeru nodded in deep agreement.
-------
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