Chapter 4: A Man's Little Blue Bottle
"By the way, why has Kisei been training so desperately all this time?"
In the cafeteria, Aoga voiced his question after eating and drinking his fill.
Kanisawa paused from flipping through her book. "Shūhei would be more qualified to answer that question."
"After all, you've been roommates for six years."
As the only female in their group of four, Kanisawa actually knew Kisei the least.
Over these six years, she had exchanged fewer than ten private words with Kisei, mostly communicating only during classes.
However, Shūhei shook his head when named.
"I'm afraid I'll disappoint you."
"I don't know much more about Kisei than you do."
"Even though we shared a dorm, our conversations never went beyond trivial greetings like 'good morning'."
In Shūhei's memory, Kisei rose earlier than anyone else and returned later than anyone else. Even after classes ended, he would go to the teachers' office for guidance before heading to the training grounds for extra practice.
He frequently pushed his body beyond its limits, becoming a regular at the infirmary. This eventually forced Vice Dean Shibato to revise school regulations overnight, strictly prohibiting students from entering training grounds after dark.
Only then did Kisei's hellish training moderate slightly, though he still trained far more desperately than anyone else.
"Perhaps he realizes his talent is relatively lacking, so he's trying to compensate through extraordinary effort," Shūhei offered as a barely reasonable conjecture.
Kanisawa agreed. She had memorized most students' entrance exam results since the first day of school.
Shūhei had the highest among them, already measuring tenth-class spiritual pressure upon enrollment.
He had received invitations to join the Gotei 13 even before graduation.
Her and Aoga's results were slightly lower, but both possessed twelfth-class spiritual pressure.
If nothing unexpected happened, all three would likely grow into seated officer-level Shinigami.
Only Kisei had the poorest talent—nineteenth-class spiritual pressure.
Just one level above the minimum twentieth-class requirement for Shinigami, nearly the lowest among their peers.
"But he's maintained the top academic rank for two consecutive years. Does he still need to work this hard?"
"It's almost as if... there's a Shinigami with a scythe constantly driving him forward, hahaha."
"You fool, what nonsense are you talking? We are the Shinigami!"
"Kanisawa really has no sense of humor. If you're too serious, you'll never get marri—"
"Aoga, have you not been beaten enough lately?!"
"Ouch ouch ouch—"
Watching his two quarreling companions, even the usually stoic-faced Shūhei couldn't help but laugh.
Though unintentional from the speaker, Aoga's joke sparked different thoughts in Shūhei's mind.
A life-threatening situation?
But the Soul Society had been peaceful for so many years—where would such a threat come from?
Shūhei couldn't find an answer.
Perhaps he simply enjoys training.
...
"Ca-Captain Unohana, let's rest for a moment..."
Kisei gasped heavily, his body completely drained from prolonged sword practice.
Even with the Soul King Bloodline aiding his recovery, he had to beg for mercy, collapsing onto the ground with a thud.
"Ara, ending so soon?"
A massive shadow fell across his vision. Focusing his eyes, Kisei realized it was Unohana's Shinigami uniform.
She was bending over to look down at him, examining him as if he were a precious piece of jade.
His eyes burned with intense desire—the craving to continue fighting.
"It seems besides swordsmanship, Kisei-kun also needs proper guidance in hand-to-hand combat," Unohana remarked with a cheerful smile, her expression filled with pleasant surprise. "After all, endurance and physical strength are crucial factors affecting a Shinigami's combat ability..."
Poor fundamentals, lacking physical training, but an astonishingly fast learning speed.
This was the conclusion she'd drawn from their hour of practical combat.
In just sixty minutes, he had rebuilt his foundational swordsmanship skills.
Though her deliberate coaching played a role, it couldn't overshadow Kisei's monstrous talent reminiscent of "Kenpachi."
That such promising material had been overlooked and not reported to the Seireitei could only indicate shoddy teaching standards at the academy.
The ability to constantly push and recover his stamina during combat felt exhilarating, but the price was extreme exhaustion and depletion afterward.
Fortunately, this ability was controllable. Kisei trusted Unohana completely, which was why he repeatedly pushed his limits.
"Than..." Kisei lacked even the strength to speak. After barely uttering a single syllable of gratitude, he immediately lost consciousness.
When he opened his eyes again, he had no idea how much time had passed.
The ceiling had shifted from pure black to stark white, and the air was thick with the scent of medicine and cooked food.
Looking down, Kisei found himself shirtless on the bed, his muscular torso covered in white patch-like adhesives.
"Ara..."
"Awake already?"
Noticing movement from the bed, Unohana approached leisurely.
She had changed out of her training Shinigami Uniform and now wore a plain kimono.
Her jade-like fingers gently brushed his muscles as she peeled off one of the white patches.
After checking the data monitor by the bedside—which displayed a glaring row of zeros—she commented:
"The medical patches haven't even taken effect yet, but your body has already healed naturally."
"If Captain Kurotsuchi finds out about this, he'll surely insist on dissecting Kisei-kun for research."
"After all, this hardly seems like the physical capability of a student who ranked at the bottom in entrance exams..."
Kisei's mouth twitched.
Damn, she must have investigated while he was unconscious.
How else would she know about his bottom-tier exam results?
Gurgle...
Unable to fabricate an excuse, Kisei was saved by his stomach's timely rumble, breaking the awkward atmosphere.
Unohana tactfully refrained from further questioning.
Everyone had their secrets.
To her present self, Kisei was merely uncut jade worth polishing—an amusing...
Toy?
Other matters didn't particularly concern her, nor did she care to interfere.
"Let's eat first. After intense training, you need substantial nutrition."
"I've prepared many medicinal dishes. Kisei-kun must finish them all."
Unohana arranged the cooked food on the table and invited Kisei to join her.
Unable to locate his clothes, Kisei had no choice but to sit shirtless across from her.
The sight of the lavish spread—visually appealing and aromatic—left him inwardly astonished.
Since when was Unohana this skilled at cooking?
This image completely clashed with the notorious killer she'd been a millennium ago.
"Please enjoy to your heart's content, all of this was prepared for you." Unohana smiled brightly.
Kisei's eyes sparkled, "Then... I'll dig in!"
The moment the first bite of food entered his mouth, Kisei realized he could never leave this woman.
The delicious taste was secondary—what truly mattered was the gentle, flowing energy contained within the food, continuously replenishing the physical strength and Reiatsu he had depleted during training.
"This is?!"
Kisei looked at Unohana in surprise.
"Ara, you noticed so quickly?"
"It's Reiatsu essence. I added Reiatsu essence to the food."
Unohana produced a small blue bottle from beneath her clothes, containing a thick, flowing blue liquid.
"Simply put, it's something that can help your body quickly recover Reiatsu."
"Several decades ago, when Captain Hikifune was still here, she gave me some. They say the cost to produce just one bottle could buy an entire shop."
Kisei was stunned for a moment. So this was Kirio Hikifune's creation? That explained everything.
"Captain Unohana, going to such expense... how could I ever repay you..."
"So tonight during training, Kisei-kun, you must persist for just a little longer no matter what." Unohana said gently, using her hand to draw a long straight line in the air.
Hearing this, Kisei's face instantly turned pale as he thought to himself: This is bad.
I'm done for!