"Brilliant!"
Even the teacher couldn't help but exclaim—Yoruichi's counterattack was perfect. Pinned to the floor, her only chance was grappling, and she found the tiny opening!
Yoruichi moved quickly, locking her legs tightly around Gusion, then winding up like a soft vine.
Gusion's eyes narrowed—he hadn't underestimated her, but this move exploited his weakness. Of all fighting styles, grapplers were the hardest to deal with.
He'd beaten a few grappling experts in his old world, but only because he was much stronger—he could break their holds with brute force.
But now, Yoruichi's strength was about equal to his, maybe even greater. He had no such advantage; if she locked him, he'd lose.
Instinctively, Gusion leaped into a backflip, causing Yoruichi's legs, which were about to lock around his neck, to falter—turning the tables again.
If Yoruichi didn't reposition, her head would hit the floor first. But if she did, her legs would lose their grip.
A moment's hesitation decided the outcome.
No one expected Gusion to prop himself up in midair instead of falling as Yoruichi predicted. As she adjusted, Gusion changed tactics, throwing her off with a twist of his waist.
Before she could get up, his fist stopped just in front of her face, the wind from the punch tousling her hair as sweat dripped into her orange eyes, still wide with surprise.
Gusion slowly straightened from his crouch. "Thank you for the match."
He pulled his punch at the last moment—not out of mercy, but remembering the earlier spar with Teacher Fujimoto. If he'd landed it, he'd probably have hurt himself, not her.
The dojo was eerily quiet. After a few moments came the sound of people gasping.
"The demon girl lost!?"
"Shihōin family's hakuda… lost to a transfer student?"
"Isn't Yoruichi the Shihōin family genius? How could she lose…"
"I remember… didn't Yoruichi beat the teacher in a hakuda spar?"
"…"
Amid the commotion, Aizen stood expressionless, though he was far less calm inside, his eyes glued to Gusion.
He beat Yoruichi… Is there anything he's not good at?
"You never learned hakuda?"
Yoruichi stood up, looking at Gusion with a complicated expression. From the chatter around, she'd roughly pieced together his background—a street soul from Rukongai.
"No one taught me hakuda in Rukongai, I just figured out some fighting techniques on my own."
Gusion explained, hiding his otherworldly origin with a vague answer.
If he wanted to graduate early, he couldn't hide his strength like Aizen; he had to shine in every way to achieve early graduation.
"Hmph, don't get cocky. I was just careless at the start. Next time, I'll win!"
Yoruichi huffed, not quite believing his story. To her, Gusion's moves, though wild and instinctive, had a clear system—he must have had formal training.
Gusion found her attitude amusing—it was funny to see the mature, flirtatious Yoruichi from the manga acting like a little girl. "Beat me first, then we'll talk."
He turned to Aizen. "Sōsuke, want to spar?"
Yoruichi, fuming, watched him go. She'd never lost in hakuda—she couldn't accept it! Not for the Shihōin family's honor, but for her pride.
Remembering how Gusion targeted her lower body, she gritted her teeth and vowed to crush his balls next time!
While sparring with Aizen, Gusion suddenly felt a chill, causing him to slow for a moment and get punched in the chest.
Aizen glanced at him curiously, wondering if Gusion was pulling his punches.
For the rest of the class, Gusion sparred with Aizen, who humbly asked many questions about hakuda.
Of course, Gusion didn't know this world's hakuda, but he taught Aizen some practical fighting techniques from his understanding. In sparring, though, Aizen performed only so-so, making it hard to judge if he'd learned.
Gusion was tempted to ask if Aizen ever got tired of pretending—could he just fight seriously?
"Gusion-kun, you might make a good teacher. I learned a lot this class,"
Aizen praised after class. He had gained something, even if he didn't show it while sparring.
Gusion's unconventional combat mindset seemed worth learning—maybe it'd help in his future career.
…
"By the way, Gusion-kun, have you ever tried kidō?"
Aizen asked as the next class was Kidō.
Gusion looked at the tall, middle-aged man before him—reflective glasses, weird horn-like hair, dark blue robe—and marveled at the strangeness of this world.
Isn't this Grand Kidō Chief Tessai Tsukabishi? He's still teaching at the Academy?
"Gusion-kun, don't space out in this class. Teacher Tessai Tsukabishi is the Grand Kidō Chief—he only teaches here for a month each year," Aizen reminded him.
Gusion hadn't expected this future subordinate at Urahara's shop to already be the Grand Kidō Chief.
Judging by the students' reverent attitudes, everyone sat up straight, focused, afraid to miss any kidō lesson. That showed how respected Tessai Tsukabishi was.
"I hear there's a transfer student today. I'll briefly explain the basics of kidō. Those who've heard it before, don't be disappointed—the truth often lies in the basics…"
Tessai's gaze lingered on Gusion for a moment—clearly, word of the new star had spread quickly.
The other students weren't impatient, listening attentively.
Gusion also listened with relish. It was his first exposure to supernatural powers. Though he was passionate about martial arts, he was interested in Bleach's kidō—used skillfully, it could be very useful in battle.
Tessai, in his strange getup, was a surprisingly good teacher. Under his clear explanations, Gusion quickly understood what kidō was.
First, kidō was divided into hadō (destruction), bakudō (binding), and kaidō (healing).
In simple terms, through chanting, one manipulates spiritual energy to form various kidō spells.
Chanting isn't strictly necessary, but it acts as a mold, helping shape the kidō. If you're very skilled, you can skip chanting and cast instantly.
But most shinigami lack the control to do this. Even the talented can only omit chants on low-level kidō. Only true prodigies can skip chanting for high-level spells.
Yes, like the seemingly harmless classmate Aizen Sōsuke.
"Aizen, you seem to get along well with the new student. Why don't you guide him in low-level kidō?"
Near the end of class, Tessai called on Aizen.
Aizen wasn't surprised. Despite always holding back, he still ranked among the top in kidō.
He was curious to see how talented Gusion was at kidō—now he could find out firsthand.