Infinite Chimera Creation

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Chapter Thirteen: Arrogance

"Hey, hey, hey, have you heard? Two third-year students have applied to graduate early?"

"Really? It's been a long time since we've seen people graduate early, and suddenly two of them have appeared?"

"Of course it's true, and it's said that the two people who applied are the same two people who competed a couple of days ago."

"Huh? I heard the exam for early graduation is really difficult. I can't tell how strong Yuan Yuan is, but Tachibana Koimaru's strength doesn't seem enough to graduate early. Why would the teacher agree to help him apply?"

"The teacher had the same idea as you. At the time, there was no intention to apply for that little nobleman's services. But then he made a move and easily defeated the strongest teacher. His strength is worlds apart from what it was a couple of days ago."

"How is this possible? His strength has increased so much in just two days? This is unbelievable!"

"You don't know, it's said that the young nobleman went to find Yuan Yuan on the second day of the competition, and when he reappeared at school, his strength had greatly increased."

"Impossible, right? A huge increase in strength in just two days? It must be a lie."

"If you want to know if it's a scam, just go to the training ground and see for yourself. The early graduation assessment doesn't prohibit watching."

"That makes sense. Let's hurry up and get a good spot at the training ground!"

A group of ordinary students were enthusiastically discussing things that had nothing to do with them and thinking about people who had nothing to do with them, without any awareness that they were wasting their time.

The two main figures being discussed by these people were, one with a cold face, scrutinizing the captains in the audience who clearly didn't have thirteen members, seemingly lost in thought, and the other putting on a gentle demeanor, smiling at everyone who looked over, appearing harmless.

"Quiet."

A simple, understated sentence, without a loud shout, was enough to drown out the voices of everyone present, aided only by the Captain-Commander's spiritual power. The training ground fell silent. Yamamoto Genryusai, however, showed no sign of satisfaction; his face remained impassive.

"Next, we will begin the assessment for early graduation. Tachibana Koi-maru, Yuan Yuan, please step forward."

The two walked to the front of the stage as instructed, looking up at the captains above. However, anyone who saw their eyes would not have the feeling that they were looking up at them.

"You two arrogant brats, tell me which seat you want to challenge. I will arrange for someone suitable to assess you later."

Although the Captain-Commander said "two" brats, all the captains knew that the old man only truly valued Yuan Yuan. Some captains had witnessed Yuan Yuan kill Killian firsthand, while others had heard about the battle from other captains.

While Killian might be nothing more than easy minions to the captains, he remains extremely dangerous to ordinary Shinigami. Even some non-combat squad officers might not be able to kill a Killian in a one-on-one fight.

As if he hadn't heard the captain's question, Yuan Yuan remained silent with a cold expression. Seeing Yuan Yuan's reaction, Tachibana Koimaru seemed somewhat embarrassed, scratching his cheek and smiling as he spoke.

"Yuan Jun and I both want to challenge for the captain's seat. Although I would prefer to be Yuan Jun's adjutant rather than the captain, Yuan Jun said that my strength is not good enough to be an adjutant. So, I have no choice but to challenge for the captain's seat as well."

The short-tempered old man slightly opened his eyes, his gaze fixed on the two people standing below the stage, his eyes seemingly churning with magma.

"You ignorant brat, do you think the captain is joking? But rules are rules. You made your requests, and I will naturally arrange the corresponding assessments for you. Chunshui, you are in charge of that noble brat. Shisilang, you are in charge of that brat named Yuan Yuan."

Upon hearing the captain's words, Uncle Hua, standing next to him, adjusted his straw hat and began to complain in a flippant tone.

"Oh dear, you've been forced into hard labor. Old man Shan, you're really unfair, tricking your own student like this. Why don't you just leave this troublesome task to someone else? Fourteen, shall we go first or should I?"

Standing on the other side of Yamamoto Genryusai, the man with long silver hair wore a helpless, bitter smile, seemingly used to his friend's complaints.

"You go first. I can tell you're really looking forward to seeing that little guy who comes from the same background as you, aren't you?"

Kyoraku Shunsui, who had been seen through by his friend, showed no embarrassment. He lightly touched his straw hat and jumped off the platform.

"Captain of the Peking Opera Band, please enlighten me."

Tachibana Koimaru bowed respectfully to Kyoraku Shunsui, showing no trace of the arrogance often associated with young people who have achieved great success. Seeing Tachibana Koimaru's demeanor, Kyoraku Shunsui nodded inwardly. Just for this humility, even if Tachibana Koimaru's strength was only at the level of a fifth seat, he would still recruit this young fellow from a minor noble family, just like himself, into his eighth division.

He didn't believe the boy possessed the skills of a captain. During his internship a few days prior, he had been one of the captains responsible for student safety, and it was then that he noticed Tachibana Koimaru, a genius with a small reputation among the nobles. He had clearly seen the young genius's hand gripping the knife tighten and loosen repeatedly.

If Yuan Yuan hadn't so swiftly killed the three-headed Gillian, perhaps this young genius, after some internal struggle, would have bravely faced the Hollows. Although he wouldn't have won, his character would undoubtedly have grown significantly, and his strength might have advanced by leaps and bounds after some time.

However, there are never "what ifs" in life. Just as Kyoraku Shunsui was thinking about the gloomy look in that minor nobleman's eyes and sighing inwardly that a genius might be crushed by this, news arrived: "[Students have applied for early graduation. The applicants are Yuan Yuan, a commoner from Class 3-A, and Tachibana Koimaru, a nobleman from Class 3-A.]"

Thinking of that little guy, just like himself, born into a minor noble family and burdened with the hopes of his family's prosperity, who not only didn't become depressed but also made headlines in just two days, Kyoraku Shunsui couldn't help but feel a surge of joy.

"No need for such formalities. Show your strength. The captains on stage and I will decide your final seat based on your performance."

With his usual nonchalant smile still on his face, Kyoraku Shunsui acted like a friendly neighbor from the tavern, indicating to Tachibana Koimaru that there was no need to be nervous.

"Then, I'll leave it to you seniors."

After bowing politely as always, Tachibana Koimaru stepped back with his left foot, bent forward with his right, held his Zanpakuto horizontally in front of his chest, and, to the astonishment of the captains, uttered a word that shouldn't have come from the mouth of a third-year student.

"Swastika, Wanli Leiyuan!"

Instantly, a violent and immense spiritual pressure swept across the entire training ground.

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Chapter Fourteen: Surprise

"The solution to the swastika is the thundery abyss of thousands of miles"

As Kyoraku Shunsui stared in disbelief, the Zanpakuto in the hand of the minor nobleman he had not thought highly of disappeared, and at the same time, dark clouds rolled in from the sky, and deafening thunder resounded throughout the entire training ground.

Beneath the dark clouds, the air became incredibly oppressive. The once slightly noisy training ground instantly fell silent due to Tachibana Koimaru's terrifyingly immense spiritual pressure.

Seeing the surprised expression on Kyoraku Shunsui's face, Tachibana Koimaru smiled slightly and recited the lines that Yuan Yuan had already prepared for him.

"Do you see this amazing power? Captain Kyoraku, this is the power I gained at the cost of my life, the power that will prevent my Tachibana family from continuing to decline."

Kyoku Shunsui snapped out of his reverie at Tachibana Koimaru's words, frowning as he stared intently at the boy who clearly carried the weight of his entire clan on his shoulders.

"Paying a near-death price? What do you mean? Did you use some forbidden technique to quickly increase your strength?"

With a slight smile, Tachibana Koimaru maintained his humble attitude and began to explain to Kyoraku Shunsui.

"Captain Kyoraku is joking. As a veteran captain, don't you know best? Forbidden techniques can at most increase spiritual pressure, but you can't obtain Bankai through trickery."

Hearing Tachibana Koimaru's explanation, Kyoraku Shunsui's furrowed brows relaxed. Just as Tachibana Koimaru said, as a veteran captain skilled in Bankai, he knew clearly that there were no shortcuts to Bankai; one could only honestly accumulate spiritual power while communicating with one's Zanpakuto. This was a slow and steady process, and couldn't be rushed.

Kyoraku Shunsui asked Tachibana Koimaru a question he already knew the answer to simply because he was extremely surprised. In the past five hundred years, he had seen many geniuses, but he had never seen anyone who could master Bankai in the third year.

Kyoraku Shunsui tossed his straw hat aside, his mischievous smile returning to his face.

"So what did you mean by the price you mentioned earlier, the price of almost dying? Could you explain it to the senior?"

Neither Tachibana Koimaru nor the audience was surprised by Kyoraku Shunsui's self-designation as "senpai." They all knew that after Tachibana Koimaru unleashed his Bankai, this young man's position as captain was now secure.

With a humble smile on her face, Tachibana Koimaru turned to look at Yuan Yuan, who stood below the stage with a still indifferent expression, bowed deeply to him, and spoke in a slightly excited voice.

"It all started during my internship. During my internship, I witnessed Yuan Jun's formidable strength and also realized my own weakness. In order to regain my confidence, I arrogantly challenged Yuan Jun. As you all probably already know, I was defeated by Yuan Jun without any suspense."

Even as he spoke of his cowardice and weakness, Tachibana Koimaru's face remained devoid of any negative emotion; he still looked at Yuan Yuan with gratitude.

"Because of my resentment at my own weakness, I mustered all my courage and found Yuan Jun on the second day of the competition, hoping that he could train me. To my surprise, Yuan Jun did not refuse me, but said that his training was very dangerous and there was a high possibility of death. He asked me to carefully consider whether I wanted to participate in his training."

A hint of lingering fear appeared on his face. Tachibana Koimaru took a deep breath, a touch of emotion in his voice, and continued his story.

"At the time, I was completely immersed in the desire for power and did not hesitate for a moment before choosing to participate. Then... I saw hell. In the short two days of training with Yuan Jun, I touched death more than once. Fortunately, my sense of responsibility to my family helped me get through it. I finally succeeded and gained the power to protect my family."

After hearing what Tachibana Koimaru said, even the Captain-Commander looked at Yuan Yuan with surprise in his eyes, and the others began to discuss it without any pretense.

If someone had told them before today that they could master Bankai in just two days of training, they would have thought that person was crazy. But looking at Tachibana Koimaru, whose strength was at most fifteen seats a few days ago, and who has now mastered Bankai and is about to become a captain, no matter how absurd it was, they could only choose to believe it.

In an instant, everyone's gaze towards Yuan Yuan burned with fervor. Bankai was what every Shinigami pursued, the pinnacle of Shinigami power. At least in the eyes of ordinary Shinigami, Bankai was the ultimate Shinigami power they dreamed of.

Even though Tachibana Koimaru mentioned death more than once while recounting his experiences, it didn't dampen these people's enthusiasm. Faced with power, any intelligent life would lose its reason. Gaining power is the most primal desire of all life.

Unaffected by the noisy discussion below the stage, Tachibana Koimaru bowed deeply again, looked at Yuan Yuan, and spoke with sincere eyes.

"Thank you, Mr. Yuan!"

Neither the fervent gazes of those people nor Tachibana Koimaru's thanks could change Yuan Yuan's expression in the slightest. The man simply stared coldly at Tachibana Koimaru and spoke in a cold voice.

"No need to thank me, thank yourself. If you hadn't made it through back then, you'd be a corpse by now. Now, continue your assessment and receive the honor that belongs to you."

Listening to Yuan Yuan's words, and combining them with what Tachibana Koi-maru had said before, everyone easily formed an image of a cold-faced but warm-hearted person in their minds.

Kyoraku Shunsui lazily squinted his eyes, turned to look at Yamamoto Genryusai, and spoke in a completely unenthusiastic voice.

"Hey old man, is there any need to continue this assessment? With Bankai, even if Shunpo, Hakuda, and Kido are a bit lacking, he should be able to serve as the team leader without any problem. I already had a general understanding of this kid's strength; his Zanken and Kisou aren't bad either."

The captain, who had been squinting, slightly opened his eyes, looked at his apprentice who was clearly trying to slack off, and snorted coldly.

"Tachibana Koimaru has passed the graduation exam ahead of schedule and will be assigned to a different squad later."

Even knowing that Kyoraku Shunsui wanted to slack off, Yamamoto Genryusai had nothing to say. Just as Kyoraku Shunsui said, a Shinigami who has mastered Bankai is good enough to be the leader of a squad, even if his other abilities are not perfect.

The captain, whose mood had noticeably improved with the addition of a new captain, turned to look at Yuan Yuan.

"Kid, you've trained another kid to master Bankai, so you must have mastered Bankai yourself. Show me your Bankai, and the test can end."

Yuan Yuan rubbed his temples, seemingly suffering from a headache.

"Although I do possess Bankai, my Bankai comes at a great cost. I'm unwilling to use it unless I'm in a life-or-death situation. Therefore..."

Looking up at Ukitake Jushiro, Yuan Yuan seemed somewhat helpless.

"Captain Ukitake, I'm afraid I'll have to trouble you to fight me again."

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Chapter Fifteen: The Way of the Ghosts

Ukitake Jushiro turned to look at his teacher, Yamamoto Genryusai, and only after the teacher nodded did he jump down from the platform and enter the training ground. Even when facing a cold-faced fellow like Yuan Yuan, this refined man still wore a gentle, warm smile.

"It's really frustrating. I thought I could take a break like Chunshui, but I didn't expect I would still have to fight a match."

Yuan Yuan knew that Fu Zhu only wanted to ease the tension and didn't really mean to complain, so he walked into the training ground without a word, slowly assumed a fighting stance, and looked directly at Fu Zhu.

"Captain Ukitake, please."

Fu Zhu frowned slightly, watching Yuan Yuan's actions, and spoke with some dissatisfaction.

"You...aren't you planning to use your Zanpakuto?"

Just as Ukitake Jushiro said, Yuan Yuan's Zanpakuto was still tucked at his waist, showing no intention of drawing it.

Yuan Yuan maintained his starting stance in boxing, looking directly into Fu Zhu's eyes.

"Captain Ukitake is overthinking it. No matter how arrogant I am, I would never want to challenge a veteran captain like you with my weaknesses. You should know that Bankai abilities are generally enhanced versions of Shikai abilities. My Bankai has great limitations and costs, and my Shikai naturally has considerable limitations as well."