Chapter 97

"I see, I understand now."

In the dojo behind the Shin'ō Academy, Aizen nodded lightly after listening to Kaelith's account, then his expression turned thoughtful.

Seeing Aizen's serious demeanor, Kaelith sighed.

"There's no need to worry that much, Shunsui can't be everywhere. Just time your outings well, and you won't run into him."

Aizen shook his head: "I'm not thinking about Kyōraku Shunsui."

Under Kaelith's gaze, Aizen looked at him calmly.

"Kaelith, you need to remember a principle."

"When planning something, never hope that the enemy will act according to your preset plans."

"Normally, the Tsunayashiro family wouldn't risk much for the sake of Shihōin Yoruichi."

"But what if there's something on Yoruichi worth their gamble, something they'd risk everything for?"

Hearing this, Kaelith was slightly startled.

Something on Yoruichi worth gambling for?

What else could someone covet from her besides the Shihōin surname?

In terms of power and position, the current Tsunayashiro family far surpassed the Shihōin.

The position of the head of the Punishment Force?

To the Tsunayashiro family, that hardly seemed significant.

Besides...

Could it be her body, which despite being under a hundred years old, already showed promising potential and was starting to develop? 

In some ways, this indeed was a rare treasure in the Soul Society.

If that's truly what the Tsunayashiro family was after, then he would deeply despise them.

The dirty nobles of the Soul Society, to think they had such perverse desires! 

The thought of such disgusting beings existing in this world made Kaelith feel a profound sense of disgust.

Watching Kaelith's changing expressions and his distracted demeanor, Aizen shook his head helplessly.

He tapped the floor beside him, bringing Kaelith back from his reverie.

"Do you remember what you said before about the Central 46 seats?"

Hearing this, Kaelith first blinked, then his eyes widened.

Seeing that Kaelith seemed to have figured it out, Aizen nodded almost imperceptibly.

"According to what you said earlier, the Tsunayashiro family already holds about forty percent of the Central 46 seats."

"If they could somehow control Shihōin Yoruichi, they could use that to threaten the Shihōin family and gain the support of the seats belonging to the Shihōin family."

"The decrees issued by the Central 46 are winner-takes-all. If the Tsunayashiro family could control more than half the votes, the situation would turn around instantly."

"The Gotei 13, which originally had the moral high ground, could even instantly become seen as the rebel side."

"Of course, this is just a possibility, for your reference."

"I don't know much about the nobility, and I'm in a critical phase of my research, so I can't spare much effort to help you."

"The only advice I can give you is this."

At this point, Aizen's gaze became very serious.

"If it becomes untenable, withdraw in time."

"Survive first, then think about what comes next."

Under his gaze, Kaelith chuckled and gave a thumbs up.

"Don't worry, I don't mean to boast, but when it comes to clinging to life, I've always been very conscious."

Kaelith was not speaking lightly.

When he first crossed over, knowing that his classmate was Sōsuke Aizen, he was quite frightened for a while.

For nearly a month, Kaelith spent every day besides training pondering how to survive.

Although his relationship with Aizen has changed now, he hasn't forgotten the realization he had at the beginning.

After a good night's sleep, Kaelith got up early the next day, washed up, and went to the First Division barracks. After becoming an official disciple, he no longer had classes once a week like before.

Now he had to attend at least twice.

Using Yamamoto's words—"Since you learn fast, you should learn more, knowledge doesn't burden the body."

To Kaelith's surprise, even though his coursework had increased, he didn't feel any resistance.

Every time he learned with Yamamoto, feeling himself become gradually stronger gave him a pleasant sense of fulfillment.

Although the pace of strengthening wasn't as rapid as the occasional power synchronization from Aizen, it was undoubtedly his own wealth.

Aizen's power did not drown out this wealth but instead increased the speed at which he accumulated it.

Lying back and enjoying the benefits from Aizen was indeed a good choice.

But Kaelith preferred to use these benefits as a foundation to cultivate a stronger and tougher self!

In the spacious dojo, Kaelith, holding a bamboo sword, launched a torrential onslaught at Yamamoto.

Yamamoto remained calm, parrying Kaelith's attacks one after another.

After dozens of rounds, he spotted an opening and struck with a sword, hitting Kaelith's wrist and knocking the bamboo sword from his hand.

Putting down the bamboo sword, he showed a somewhat peculiar expression.

After thinking for a moment, Yamamoto also dropped his bamboo sword.

"Let's practice hand-to-hand combat next."

Upon hearing this, Kaelith exclaimed energetically: "Oss!"

Under Yamamoto's gaze, he pulled at his chest, removing his upper garment and tying it around his waist.

When he first crossed over, he had a somewhat slender build.

Exercising up to now, his body had undergone significant changes.

Muscles had begun to appear prominently on his body.

Although young, he already possessed the charm of a man.

Following protocol, he bowed slightly.

Then, he stomped on the floor fiercely, instantly appearing in front of Yamamoto, and threw a punch!

The punch, filled with spirit energy, possessed a destructive power comparable to a cannonball.

If it hit an ordinary Shinigami, it would instantly create a bloody hole!

Yamamoto also raised his spirit energy, covering his body, and swung his fist to meet the attack.

For a time, their figures collided repeatedly in the dojo, with the spirit energy bursts spreading outward, whipping up gusts of wind.

Continuously throwing punches, Kaelith couldn't help feeling exhilarated—

"Ora ora ora ora!!" (t/n I might have never watched Jojo but I got this one ;) ) 

He roared, accelerating his punching speed.

Yamamoto's forehead broke into a sweat.

He had said countless times not to make these strange noises while fighting.

It was not only embarrassing, but it also leaked his energy, affecting his output.

Just as he was thinking about this, distracted for a moment, he suddenly sensed something.

Yamamoto quickly regained his focus.

Unbeknownst to him, Kaelith's shadow on the ground had already disappeared.

He made a subtle charging motion and launched a powerful punch at Yamamoto—

That's the one!

Yamamoto's eyes lit up.

He roared, and his already muscular arm suddenly grew even larger.

Accompanied by a brilliant display of spirit energy, Yamamoto threw an even more ferocious punch.

Boom!!!!

Outside the dojo, Chōjirō Sasakibe quietly stood there.

Watching the roof of the dojo that was almost blown off, he silently looked up to the sky.

The budget for repairing the dojo, it seemed, was going to increase again...