Bleach: Getting Stronger Starting from Teaching at the Spiritual Arts Academy.

The bedroom door by the courtyard was half-open. By the moonlight, one could see that Unohana on the bed was pale, as if the injuries caused by the poison during the day had not yet fully recovered.

In the courtyard, a dark figure emerged from the shadows and slowly approached Unohana's bedroom.

The dark figure suddenly paused slightly, a sudden, bone-chilling coldness causing her to stop in her tracks.

A silver light flashed from inside the bedroom door, and a blade swept in with a violent gust of wind.

The shadowy figure instantly drew his Zanpakuto and held it in front of him.

clang!

The two Zanpakuto clashed together, and Unohana pinned the shadowy figure down with her crossed blades.

The poison used when lecturing the Huidao training class during the day was prepared by Mao Zhihua herself.

But then that unexpected situation occurred, and Unohana felt that the person who replaced the poisoner must have come for her.

Unohana had a hunch that the person who replaced the Void Poison was still hiding in the Fourth Division.

The bottle of illusory poison is stored in the Fourth Division's storage room, and no outsiders are allowed to enter except for members of the Fourth Division.

Therefore, she pretended that her injuries were not fully healed, to see if the person who replaced the poison would appear.

The method of the flower of the rabbit is very effective. Just as criminals like to return to the crime scene, the person who replaces the poison also wants to come and reap the rewards.

By the moonlight, Unohana saw the other person's face clearly, and her pupils widened in shock.

“A spirit body…” Unohana’s face turned cold. “Wasn’t the ‘Captain’s Instrumentality Project’ stopped a long time ago?”

The Shinigami pinned beneath her Zanpakuto was actually a Shinigami who looked exactly like her!

Unohana immediately realized that someone was collecting her scattered spiritual particles to create a "spirit body".

The Quincy War hundreds of years ago caused heavy losses to the first Gotei 13.

After the war, the 13th Guard Division couldn't even muster thirteen captains.

Therefore, in order to complete the Captain-level forces, the Seireitei launched the "Captain Instrumentality Project".

But Unohana remembers that the "Captain Instrumentality Project" should have stopped because of technical problems. The "spirit bodies" that were created were very weak and could not even release their Zanpakuto.

With the rise of a new generation of Shinigami, the number of Captain-level Shinigami was replenished, and the Seireitei no longer wanted to invest resources in the "Captain Instrumentality Project," so the development of the "Spirit Body" was put on hold.

"You used this appearance to fool the Fourth Division members and walk into the storage room openly, didn't you?" Unohana understood how the other party had changed the Hollow Poison, but her questions only grew. "Are you a 'Spirit Corpse' created by Shutara Senjumaru?"

"It seems that the bottle of illusory poison didn't seriously injure you. I failed after all." The spirit body did not answer Unohana's question.

"Why did you do this?" Unohana continued to ask.

"why?"

"Of course it's to have a real spirit body! You have so much spiritual pressure, why can't you give me some!" The spirit body's expression turned ferocious as it pushed Unohana off its body and swung its sword at Unohana's neck.

“An emotionally unstable ‘spirit body,’ you are an initial product.” Unohana frowned and casually blocked the knife.

Although the development of the spirit body was shelved, several generations of products were developed before the project was stopped. In addition to the fact that the early spirit bodies had very weak spiritual pressure and could not meet the standard for releasing the Zanpakuto, they also had many other problems such as unstable emotions.

"I am not a product!!!" The spirit body's emotions were completely ignited, and it lost all reason, frantically slashing at Unohana.

However, although the spirit body of the spirit skeleton was made from Unohana's spirit particles, she did not inherit Unohana's abilities, and this chaotic slashing was no threat to Unohana.

However, in the early stages of the "spirit body" product, the spirit body would quickly collapse after emotional agitation, so Unohana did not continue to ask questions.

"Boring."

A flash of silver light, and the spirit body felt a chill at its waist before instantly breaking in two.

The broken body of the spirit fell to the ground and slowly dissipated.

Unohana looked up at the night sky, remaining silent.

This spirit body is very weak; a Vasto Lorde-level Hollow is clearly beyond her capabilities, so the source of that bottle of Hollow poison is highly suspicious.

...

The following day, at the Spirit Arts Academy.

Today is the day of the autumn assessment. The assessment will be conducted over several days, with one subject assessed each day. Today's subject is swordsmanship.

The office was unusually lively, as the teachers were discussing the fall assessments.

"Shikatori-sensei, do you have confidence in your students? Tsuna-yayo-sensei's class has a huge advantage; most of them are from Seireitei, right?" Kobayashi-sensei exclaimed.

The class she taught was the same one that July taught, except that she taught the return-to-the-path class.

"The students' progress in basic swordsmanship training is not bad, but compared to the students in Teacher Tsunayoshi's class, they are probably still far behind, after all, their training time is still too short," July said helplessly.

Most of his students came from Rukongai and had little prior experience with kendo, so they had to start training from scratch.

However, the students he mentioned did not include his disciples.

Geniuses grow at different rates, and even though their training time is still short, July is confident that they will achieve good results.

"Yes, it's the same with the lessons I teach; very few students can actually listen..." Ms. Kobayashi said, quite distressed.

"There's nothing we can do about it. The entry requirements for the medical profession are quite high, requiring students to learn a lot of basic medical knowledge. It's normal that students don't like to learn this," July comforted her.

"That's how it is when you teach students. Don't expect them to do well on the exams this year." Ms. Sakai was very easygoing.

She taught the same class as Ms. Kobayashi and Ms. Shichitori; she taught the Kido (Demon Way) class.

However, those students from Seireitei already possessed some Kido before entering the school, while her students had only learned one Hado and one Bakudo, making them no match for her.

"It's the fall assessment today, and Ms. Tsunayoshi isn't even here..." Ms. Kobayashi looked at an empty seat inside and clicked her tongue in amazement.

Although everyone understands the significance of the surname Tsunayoshiro, one of the five noble families, and knows that Tsunayoshiro-sensei is just here to gain experience, this nonchalant attitude is something they've never seen before.

"Today is the swordsmanship test, Shikatori-sensei. Among the students in our class, who do you think has the best chance? Your disciples have quite a bit of talent in swordsmanship, right?" Sakai-sensei changed the subject, as discussing the Tsuna-Yashiro family was a rather sensitive matter.

The news of Shikatri Nanatsu accepting disciples spread among several teachers who were familiar with him, since they would go to the Shikatri Dojo together to train every day and would inevitably be seen by others.

Chapter 34 Autumn Assessment

“If we only look at swordsmanship, my disciples should be able to get good rankings.” July paused and said, “Besides them, Kotsubaki Jin’emon also practices swordsmanship very diligently.”

"Is Shikatori-sensei so confident? They haven't been practicing swordsmanship for very long, have they? Most of the students in Tsuna-yayo-sensei's class have been practicing swordsmanship since they were little." Kobayashi-sensei was not very skeptical.

Even geniuses need time to grow. It's unrealistic to expect someone who has only been practicing swordsmanship for two months to defeat a student who has been practicing since childhood.

Ms. Kobayashi felt that only a genius with at least the potential to be a vice-captain could accomplish that; it was impossible for several geniuses with the potential to be vice-captains to appear in this class at once.

"Yes, I have high hopes for Kuchiki Sojun, Ōmaeda Kinosuke, and Kasumi Ōji Gosuke from Tsunayoshi's class. They are all very talented students, and I heard that their families are grooming them as successors. The top three in this fall exam should be the three of them," said Sakai-sensei.

"Since Mr. Shikatori is so confident, why don't we place a bet?" Mr. Kobayashi's eyes lit up, and an idea came to him. "Let's bet on whether any of our students can make it into the top ten."

“If it’s a bet on who will take first place, I’m not really confident, after all, their training time is still too short, but if it’s just the top ten…” July said with a smile, “I still have a lot of confidence in them.”

His three disciples are making good progress in their cultivation. They have all learned the techniques of controlling spiritual pressure and can already wield the sailfish spirit for more than an hour.

Don't be fooled by the fact that they mastered this skill in just one or two weeks. In reality, it's very difficult to do. If other students in the class were to train using the same methods for one or two years, they might not be able to master the spiritual pressure control technique.

Furthermore, the recipe for making the sailfish wooden sword is a secret recipe of the Shikatori Dojo, and the training methods taught at the Spirit Arts Academy are far less effective than the sailfish sonic training method. Therefore, many students who study spiritual pressure control techniques from the third year of their studies still haven't mastered them by graduation.

"I heard from Shizushiro Kana that Mr. Shikatori's cooking skills are excellent. If none of our students make it into the top ten, Mr. Shikatori will cook for us personally. If any of our students make it into the top ten, then I will treat you to a meal!" Ms. Kobayashi said with a smile.

She wanted to find an opportunity to have a meal with Shikagori Nanatsuki to improve their relationship.

After witnessing Shikatori Nanatsuki's display of his Daoist prowess, she developed a certain admiration for him.

At such a young age, he already has a level of response that is close to that of Captain Unohana. What will he be like in another hundred years or so? Who knows, after Captain Unohana retires, the position of Captain of the Fourth Division might be taken over by Shikatori Nanatsuki.

"I think it's a good idea." Ms. Sakai nodded vigorously. Anyway, no matter who wins or loses, she can still get a free meal.

...

Before the competition, July decided to give her students a pep talk.

After all, if he loses, he'll have to treat his colleagues to dinner.

"After two months of training, you have grown a lot, and I have a lot of confidence in you." July said with a smile. "I took the opportunity to observe the training of Class 1-1. There are three opponents you need to be careful of—Kuchiki Sojun, Omaeda Kinosuke, and Kasumi Oji Gosuke. They have good swordsmanship talent and have been practicing swordsmanship since they were young. They will be your formidable rivals."

"I'm very confident!" Cilantro Mochi rolled up her sleeves, clenched her little fist, and said confidently, "Don't worry, teacher, I'll get first place!"

Kana Mochi recently learned the "Instant Strike" sword technique. In her sparring sessions with Kensei Muguruma and Shinji Hirako, they were unable to defend themselves whenever she successfully used the "Instant Strike" technique, so she is now brimming with confidence.

"Hmph, first place is definitely mine. Kana, you can only compete with Mako for second place," Kensei Muguruma said defiantly.

Although he hasn't mastered the "Instant Strike" sword technique yet, he has figured out some tricks in his training to cut grass mats with a wooden sword and is about to learn the "Spirit Pressure Blade" technique. He is not without a chance of winning against Kana Azashiro.

The "Instant Strike" sword technique is powerful, but Kana's "Instant Strike" is not yet proficient. It takes her two or three seconds to complete the charging action, during which time there are many openings.

He only needs to launch a strong offensive and suppress her, preventing her from using her "Instant Strike" sword technique, and he will have a chance to win.

"Hey, I won't compete with you guys for first place in this swordsmanship assessment. I think I have a bigger advantage in the Kido assessment." Hirako Shinji started learning relatively late and has only just begun training to cut grass mats with a wooden sword. He knows nothing about the "spiritual pressure blade" technique, which puts him at a disadvantage in the competition. This means he needs to use more spiritual pressure to protect the wooden sword in case they cut it with their "spiritual pressure blade".

However, he made better progress in Kido than the other two, neither of whom were skilled in Kido.

"It seems you are all very confident. If you can make it into the top ten in this assessment, I will cook a delicious dish that you have never tasted before as a reward. If you can make it into the top three..." July paused, and under their expectant expressions, she slowly said, "I will teach you a new sword technique."

"Delicious food and a new sword technique..." Cilantro Mochishiro hesitated. "If I get into the top three, will I only get the new sword technique as a reward?"

"The rewards for the top three and the top ten can be combined," July said with a smile.

"Yay—I want both the delicious meal and the new sword technique!" Cilantro Mochi was thrilled.

"Top three?" Kensei Muguruma laughed confidently. "That's too easy!"

"Looks like I'll have to work harder..." Hirako Shinji said helplessly.

...

The swordsmanship assessment was held in a large swordsmanship room.

The two classes participating in the assessment will determine their opponents by drawing lots. There are a total of 63 students in the two classes, so one student will inevitably be drawn to receive a bye.

The teachers sat at a long table, waiting for the students who were lined up to draw lots.

Minister Asido also took time out of his busy schedule to preside over the assessment.

Even Tsunayoshi Tokinada, who often takes leave, made a rare appearance here.

Minister Asito had just sent someone to summon Tsunayoshi Tokina, which made Tsunayoshi Tokina somewhat displeased, and a hint of impatience was evident between his brows.

In addition to the teachers from the fencing department, teachers from other courses also watched the matches in the fencing room.

"My turn." Kensei Rokusha reached into the lottery box and pulled out a crumpled piece of paper. "Let me see which unlucky guy it is."