Unohana Retsu walked through the Seireitei as Isane's constant nagging rang in her ears, giving her a pounding headache. Those idiots from Squad 11 had once again caused her more work with their constant brawling. To make matters worse, one of Squad 4's top members had recently been poached by the damn Central Medical Institute—an organization reserved exclusively for the treatment of nobles.
A string of tedious and frustrating events had left Unohana in a foul mood. And when Unohana was in a foul mood, she really wanted to cut someone. But she had promised the old man—Yamamoto—that she wouldn't, and Unohana always kept her word. So instead, she took to wandering the Seireitei, trying to walk off the overwhelming bloodlust burning inside her.
Unfortunately, the stroll didn't help—if anything, it made her anger boil even hotter. Just as she was on the verge of giving in to her murderous urges, she spotted a figure that caught her attention.
It was a youth who looked to be in his early twenties, wearing the uniform of the Shin'ō Spiritual Arts Academy. That alone wasn't unusual—many noble families had estates within the Seireitei, and Jidanbō wouldn't dare stop a noble's child from entering. If that was all, Unohana wouldn't have spared Asano Kiyoshi a second glance.
But she sensed something from him—an aura of spiritual pressure that felt as if it could incinerate everything. It was the unmistakable spiritual pressure of the Head Captain.
This boy carried Yamamoto's spiritual pressure. And that made him worth investigating.
The last person to carry that kind of pressure had been the only man who ever brought her genuine joy. Unohana understood why Yamamoto had taken that man under his wing—his power was almost eerie, and mentoring him was a way to both maintain control and ensure the stability of the Soul Society.
In truth, Yamamoto had been merciful. A thousand years ago, he would have erased someone like Kenpachi Zaraki the moment he appeared.
But the boy before her now was different. His spiritual pressure was still weak, which meant Yamamoto valued his potential. And if Yamamoto was placing his hopes in this youth… could it be that he intended for Asano Kiyoshi to succeed him?
Ukitake was too sickly. Kyōraku, too free-spirited. Unless something major happened, Kyōraku would never change. As long as the old man lived, Kyōraku had a pillar to lean on, and he would never truly grow up.
In this context, it wasn't unreasonable for the aging Head Captain to be grooming a successor.
Kenpachi didn't have the brains for leadership. But this boy… he just might be the one Yamamoto was betting on.
And to become Head Captain, one needed more than intellect. They needed something else far more critical—
The strength to crush all the other captains.
Looking at the boy, Unohana thought she might be seeing another man who could bring her… joy.
So she took the initiative to speak with him—and offered to guide him to his destination.
Kiyoshi accepted with a smile, knowing full well he didn't have the right to refuse.
Unohana didn't speak the entire way, but Kiyoshi could feel an overwhelming, terrifying pressure swirling around him. It was like a demon from hell was breathing down his neck, chilling him to the bone. It felt like even his blood might freeze over.
Trembling, he walked with her until they reached the back of the Squad 1 barracks. Kiyoshi turned to her and said:
"Thank you very much for your help, Captain Unohana."
Unohana looked at him, gave a slight nod, and smiled warmly.
"It's no problem. I look forward to seeing your future. Truly."
With that, she gave him a long, lingering look, then turned and left—just as the Head Captain appeared.
Thinking back on Unohana's gaze, Kiyoshi felt a bitter chill in his heart. He subtly activated his scroll's power to try reading Unohana's stats.
The scroll rippled and displayed:
Name: Unohana RetsuZanpakutō: MinazukiZanjutsu: ???Hakuda: ???Kidō: ???Shunpō: ???Reiryoku: ???Overall Evaluation: ???
Note: The host's power is too weak to analyze this individual. Scan failed due to insufficient reiryoku. No spiritual energy was deducted.
Looking at the wall of question marks, Kiyoshi twitched slightly. Well, it was expected. For beings with overwhelming power, he simply couldn't analyze them yet. At least it didn't drain his energy. That much, he'd learned from Ukitake-sensei.
After Unohana left, an elderly figure appeared behind Kiyoshi. The Head Captain looked at him and said calmly:
"Come with me. This will be your training ground for the foreseeable future."
Kiyoshi immediately straightened up, sensing the weight behind those words.
Inside the room, Kiyoshi found it resembled a traditional Japanese kendō hall. The walls were covered in slash marks, each one still radiating an oppressive, soul-shaking pressure.
The Head Captain stopped and spoke in his deep, commanding voice:
"Every top graduate of the Academy is granted three days in the Great Spirit Book Archive. Though the Tsunayashiro family manages it, access requires approval from the Central 46 and a majority vote from the Golden Seal Nobles."
Author's Note: The Golden Seal Noble Council is made up of the Five Great Noble Houses and the high-ranking aristocracy. It is only answerable to those noble families—mentioned in the official novels.
"The Tsunayashiro have been searching for something inside the Archive. This time, they even sent their most talented heir—Tsunayashiro Kojirō—to the Academy. I don't care what they're after, but I won't allow them to obtain that item. Do you understand what I'm saying?"
As he finished, Yamamoto turned to look at Kiyoshi, his gaze filled with calm, gravity, and a flicker of hope—like a pie chart of expectations.
Kiyoshi understood completely. He straightened and declared:
"I will earn the right to enter the Great Spirit Book Archive."