The Alchemist in Bleach

So Ichiro only thought about it for now. Now, he has a general understanding of what the Soul Burial Training mainly does. To put it bluntly, it's about fulfilling the wishes of the remaining souls as much as possible, and then letting them ascend to heaven to start a new life in the Soul Society. As for whether this life is good or bad, that's a matter of opinion...

It's foreseeable that their upcoming soul burial training will focus on this, and they're unlikely to encounter ordinary soul burials. However, Ichiro still has some doubts; this seems somewhat inconsistent with the philosophy of the soul burial course...

While Ichiro was deep in thought, Mob A had already walked up to the tearful little girl, gently knelt down, and hugged her: "I'm sorry I'm late..."

"Dad... I miss you so much..."

At this moment, under the influence of the demonic illusion, the little girl's image of the extra A has changed to that of the father she has been waiting for for many years.

Under the current circumstances, this is the only way to fulfill her wish, and the method is very effective. After being deceived by the illusion, the little girl's heart was satisfied, and the causal chain that was constantly being eroded on her chest slowly returned to its original state. Then, before the little girl could react, the hilt of the Zanpakuto was imprinted on her forehead.

I silently said to myself, 'I'm sorry...'

"..."

"..."

Ichiro and the others watched the little girl ascend to heaven from afar, their emotions shifting. For the first time, they gained a new perspective on the profession of Grim Reaper, a perspective that, though still naive, had taken root...

In the following days, just as Ichiro had predicted, their targets were all slightly problematic, not the kind that could be solved with a tap on the hilt of a knife.

However, one thing surprised Ichiro: throughout the entire process, none of his students participated; it was all handled by the members of Team 13. Ichiro and his group were only responsible for watching and listening to the commentary from extra B.

Until the last day...

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Chapter 8 begins with the Soul Burial

"This is the last one. You've seen enough along the way. Now, combine what you've learned and complete this last project."

The team leader, a minor character, looked at the ruins not far away and said with a smile.

Everyone tensed up; the moment had finally arrived!

The group exchanged glances, nodded, and quietly made their way towards the ruins.

First of all, you need to know the full situation before you can make contact. Putting aside your psychological state, just the fact that there are thirty of them, all armed with knives, would make any normal person nervous.

So the group stopped at the edge of the ruins and quietly watched a little boy huddled in a corner, partly to observe his condition and partly to observe the surroundings, perhaps the key to fulfilling the vow lay within him.

Ichiro was also observing his surroundings, but unlike the others, he not only looked but also took action!

Every now and then, he would pick up the white stones and pieces of iron from the ground and put them into a small bag at his waist. Before long, the small bag was full.

This unusual scene made everyone's lips twitch. Wait, it's only been a few decades since you came back? What, are you going to bring back local specialties?

And can matter be brought into Soul Society? Use your brain, okay?

"Huh? Why are you looking at me? You guys continue." With that, Ichiro put another stone into his pocket. That's the bad thing about ancient times: iron is scarce, which is very unfriendly to an iron alchemist like him. He can't use the iron he brought from Soul Society, which is very annoying.

"Um... Tianxin, do you have a solution?" A nobleman wearing a star-binding ornament on his head frowned.

"There is a method, but you probably won't use it."

"What method?"

"Make him a phantom, then cut him down; the effect is the same."

"Are you kidding me!"

"Keep your voice down, don't disturb him. That's why I said you don't need to ask me for my opinion if you don't know how to use this method. I don't have much patience for such a sentimental child. Just say so if you need help."

After saying that, Ichiro lowered his head again and began digging through the trash on the ground. Seeing this, Urahara and Yoruichi shook their heads, smiled at each other, and walked over to Ichiro to express their stance.

After attending classes for a few days, they understood that this was both a course and an assessment—an assessment for the Thirteenth Division. Yoruichi and Urahara were obviously going to the Second Division, while Ichiro needed to conduct some of his research in the Fourth Division.

Therefore, the three of them were not very attentive to this course. Although the others also noticed this, most of them did not have the right to choose which team to join. Those who did have the right to choose had to consider their noble status and could not act recklessly. Not everyone is Yoruichi.

The others exchanged glances, shook their heads without saying anything, and began to seriously consider their strategy. In the end, they unanimously decided to have a girl with glasses and braids go up and talk to her. Given their limited knowledge of the Ghost Path, girls did indeed have a natural advantage over boys in this regard.

Meanwhile, Ichiro picked up a piece of iron from the ground with delight; such things were rare in this era.

Urahara squatted down beside him, resting his chin on his hand with curiosity, and asked, "Does your ability also work on matter in the real world?"

"Of course, after all, this is a power I possessed in my previous life. However, it's a bit of a pity that I have to start all over again in Soul Society now."

"Oh, so that's why you're looking forward to Soul Burial practice. You're hoping to have data to reference, right?"

"Hmm, by the way, aren't you guys okay not going? You don't need to come with me."

"I'm not really interested. Yoruichi and I aren't going to the Thirteenth Squad, and we generally don't get to do things like Soul Burial. If we do get involved, we can just use unconventional methods, so it doesn't matter to us."

Urahara shrugged, and Yoruichi smiled as well. For the two of them, there was indeed no need to care about such comments. Seeing this, Ichiro no longer stood on ceremony and told the two of them his needs.

Thus, the first scavenging team of the True Central Spiritual Arts Academy in the present world was established!

In the distance, watching the three who didn't fit in, the leader of the group, Mob B, frowned. He knew that Urahara and Yoruichi were destined to become nobles who would enter the Second Division or even take charge of it in the future, so although he didn't like their attitude, he could still accept it.

But the other Ichiro gave him a very bad impression, which was also the first impression most teachers had of Ichiro over the past year.

Following the leader's gaze, Ichiro's teacher smiled and explained, "His name is Tenshin Ichiro. He's a person with clear goals, but he's also a bit aloof. Things outside of his goals rarely attract his attention. And don't let his appearance fool you, he's quite outstanding."

The teacher felt somewhat proud, but also a bit of a headache.

In the eyes of some teachers at the school, these three problem children were quite notorious. They were clearly very talented, but they refused to skip grades. Countless teachers had tried to persuade them, made countless promises, and even the Shihouin family had spoken on their behalf. In the end, the three of them still refused to skip grades and continued to attend school in the usual way...

This left them quite helpless, because if three geniuses emerged at once, even if one of them was from one of the four great noble families, there would still be two others, which would allow the True Central Spiritual Arts Academy to receive a considerable amount of funding.

Unfortunately, no amount of persuasion could change their minds. However, after seeing that the three men's progress in strength had not been affected, they gradually gave up the idea. But the three of them were put on the school's observation list, especially Tenshin Ichiro.

To prevent him from being bullied because of his background, the teacher took this into consideration when taking charge of the class.

Hearing the teacher's words, Extra B turned to look at the teacher in confusion and asked, "Tianxin? He's from the Tianxin clan?"

"No, he comes from the mortal world. It's just a coincidence that we have the same surname. But I recently heard that the Tenshin Clan is planning to adopt him. By the way, Ichiro recently submitted an application to intern at the Fourth Division, so let's give him a break regarding the course assessment."

“That’s no problem, but…” Extra B raised an eyebrow, “He’s only just been promoted to the second class, right? How can he apply to join the Fourth Division?”

"Well, otherwise, he wouldn't have the confidence to be so carefree."

"That's true, geniuses are bound to have strange ideas, it's normal."

Immediately, the two shifted their gaze from Ichiro and his group to another group of students, who had already begun interacting with the little boy.

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Chapter Nine: Siri Nicholas!

"Hello, little friend, what are you doing here?"

The girl with glasses tossed her hair, squatted down in front of the little boy, and asked gently.

However, the little boy only raised his head and glanced at her timidly before lowering his head again and burying it between his knees.

The girl with glasses looked back at her teammates somewhat awkwardly. After receiving instructions, she said with a slightly embarrassed smile, "Well... I have something to do, goodbye."

After saying that, they returned to the base as instructed to discuss the action plan again.

"What should we do? That child seems difficult to talk to, and we don't have much time."

"Let me think..." The nobleman with the Star-Connecting Clamp stroked his chin and pondered for a moment before raising a question, "How did those predecessors communicate before? They were able to start a conversation directly. Even with their extensive experience, it's impossible to do it that way, right?"

"Could they have used demonic arts?"

“But I always ask permission before using the Ghost Path, so it shouldn’t be like that,” a boy immediately objected. However, the nobleman wearing the Star-Pulling Clamp’s eyes lit up when he heard this, and he said.

"No! It definitely used the Ghost Path! Think about it carefully, don't all the Ghost Paths applied for have one thing in common? They change or completely bewitch the will of others. But not all Ghost Paths are like this. Some Binding Paths have a slight bewitching effect, which should be able to be used to increase favorability."

The boy became more and more excited as he spoke, feeling that he had found the crux of the problem!

Unfortunately, Tenshin Ichiro then poured cold water on his enthusiasm: "So, does anyone among us know a similar ghostly path?"

"..."

"..."

A long silence followed; naturally, no one would…

If any of them knew how, they would have brought this up for discussion from the beginning. After exchanging glances for a moment, everyone turned their attention to Ichiro and his group, or more precisely, Yoruichi.

As the next head of the Shihouin family, Yoruichi's talent was renowned among the nobles, and this kind of minor demonic arts was really not a problem for her.

"Um... Lord Yoruichi, I wonder if you know the Sixteenth Path of Binding: Bewitching God? We need your help."

"Binding Spell Sixteen?" Yoruichi handed the metal plate she had just taken out to Ichiro, and together with Ichiro and the others, they turned to look at the crowd with curiosity.

"Ichiro, come on!"

"???" Ichiro looked at Yoruichi in confusion. They were calling you Yoruichi, what does that have to do with me, Tenshin Ichiro?

“I will not break the chant, you do it.”

"???" Ichiro's doubt deepened. "A mere number sixteen binding spell, and you're telling me it won't break the incantation?"

Yoruichi's lips twitched, and she gritted her teeth, saying, "Breaking the incantation isn't that simple. Not everyone is like you! Generally speaking, most Shinigami can break the incantation because they are proficient in using it, and their Kido level is far below their own. Not all Kido that has been learned can be broken!"

"..." This time it was Ichiro's turn to twitch his lips. He had never understood Yoruichi and the others' thoughts. Kido, is it that difficult?

Of course, he was somewhat aware of his own talent in the demonic arts, so he stopped pursuing the mortal path and instead extended his right hand towards the bespectacled girl not far away, with his index and middle fingers together, his thumb straight, and his ring and little fingers bent, palm facing her, and casually chanted: "Binding Path Sixteen - Bewitching God!"

"Splash!"

After saying that, he put down his right hand, shook the dusty bag at his waist, and continued to fill it with stones and iron pieces. Without turning his head, he said, "It will last for an hour. Go. Although it is a broken incantation, it should be enough to deal with that little guy."

While the three continued scavenging, the others were not so calm...

Sixteenth Ghost Path... Abandoning the Incantation...

What kind of monsters are these?!

You've only been studying for a year!

At this moment, they also understood why Ichiro could hang out with Yoruichi Urahara every day. It wasn't about climbing the social ladder, but rather an instinctive gathering of geniuses...

The nobleman with the Star-Pulling Clamp clenched his fists, took a deep breath, suppressed his resentment, and turned to say, "Alright, let's try again. Let's all think about how to guide him."

"Hmm!" xn

……

As the girl with glasses and her friends began a new round of "operations," Ichiro's small, gray-black pouch at his waist was also full. After signaling to the teacher, he, Urahara Yoruichi, and the other two moved away from the rest of the class and stopped some distance away.

The three of them squatted down in a circle. Yoruichi and Urahara watched quietly as Ichiro carefully selected and laid out the materials from the bag on the ground.

"Iron... various stones... wood... what are you trying to do?" After a year of contact, Urahara roughly knew Ichiro's ironclad rule of alchemy—equivalent exchange.

The things he makes must be composed of these substances; it's impossible for other substances to appear out of thin air. Therefore, he was still looking forward to seeing what Ichiro would make.