Amamiya Miyako slowly woke up, his gaze falling on the glass of water beside his futon. He stretched his hand toward it, a faint frown forming.
If the Hōgyoku can really do it…
Instead of drawing reishi from the atmosphere as he usually did, Miyako attempted something different. He focused his Reishi Manipulation, directing his will not at the ambient particles, but at the water inside the cup.
The result, however, was disappointing. No matter how much he tried, the reishi in the atmosphere obediently gathered in his palm, while the water remained utterly still.
"Tch… damn it. Did I get the method wrong?" Miyako muttered with a helpless sigh. The Hōgyoku can only guide… it doesn't just hand me power on a silver plate.
Everything in Soul Society, whether solid or liquid, was made of reishi. The Quincies proved this fact through their ultimate evolution. At the stage of Quincy: Letzt Stil, a Quincy could forcibly decompose any object in Soul Society back into reishi and convert it into usable power.
What Miyako had just attempted was precisely that — to strip the water of its form, revert it into reishi, and then collect it.
Is my control just not good enough…? he thought, rubbing his temple. Without the help of a Sanrei Glove, my ability to gather reishi is clumsy in high-density reishi environments. I can't reach true reishi subordination like this.
The Sanrei Glove, after all, wasn't just a Quincy artifact — it was a limiter, a weight. By forcing the user to gather reishi under suppressive conditions, it trained their ability. The moment the glove was removed, the sudden release of restriction allowed their Reishi Manipulation to skyrocket, culminating in the legendary Letzt Stil.
But that state was fleeting. The burden was too high. Like a body shackled for years suddenly freed, the explosive burst of strength overwhelmed the Quincy's soul, leading to permanent loss of their powers.
Unless… one trained long enough in a high-density reishi environment to truly adapt to the "weight." In such conditions, the burden could be managed. And that was why the hidden fortress of the Quincies, the Wandenreich, produced warriors who had mastered the more refined Quincy: Vollständig instead of burning themselves out with Letzt Stil.
"…So it comes down to this." Miyako let out a slow breath. "I need a place with absurdly high reishi concentration. Somewhere so thick it's difficult to gather properly. That's where I can polish my control."
But such a place? He couldn't think of one. His brows knitted tighter the more he considered it.
Even with the Hōgyoku in his possession, the reality was harsh. It didn't grant him instant mastery — it only opened the door, giving him the potential. To step through required his own growth.
If he could endure, then he could achieve Letzt Stil without relying on the Sanrei Glove. And beyond that… perhaps even reach the true evolution, Vollständig.
"…Maybe I should ask Ishida Ryūken next time I visit the Human World," Miyako thought aloud. "That old man should know how to artificially construct a reishi-dense space. Training there would be ideal."
When he had rushed to learn from Ryūken, his lessons had been brief and focused on basics. Miyako hadn't had time to probe the more advanced theories behind Quincy craft. That was a mistake he would need to correct.
Fortunately, the timeline had shifted. With Aizen's Hōgyoku already in Miyako's hands, the winter war Aizen had originally planned for would surely be delayed. That bought him time.
Time to train Bankai. Time to master Quincy.
He lifted the water glass absentmindedly, swishing the liquid around. The faint ripples caught the light as his eyes narrowed.
"Water, water… you're made of reishi too. Why won't you obey me?" he whispered.
He had started with liquids for a reason. Compared to solids, their form was malleable, easier to visualize as reishi particles waiting to be scattered. Yet even this supposedly simpler challenge was proving beyond him.
"Water, water… high concentration… diffusion… reishi in the air…" he murmured, almost chanting.
Then, his eyes widened as realization struck.
"Oi oi… yare yare, am I an idiot?" Miyako slapped his forehead, laughing bitterly. "Why did it take me so damn long to think of it?! Have I been stuck in this old-fashioned Soul Society for so long that my brain rusted over?!"
The answer had been right before him the entire time.
In Soul Society, everything was reishi — the stones beneath his feet, the air he breathed, even the smallest drop of water. But Quincies had never treated this fact as anything extraordinary. Their ability to gather reishi, was as natural to them as breathing. It wasn't about force. It was about flow.
But in Soul Society, breathing itself became difficult for a Quincy. The reishi density was too high, too overwhelming to control naturally. Yet wasn't that the very key? If one could adapt, if one could "breathe" in such a suffocating environment, wouldn't that mean reaching the true essence of a Quincy?
Miyako clenched his fist in realization.
"Water! That's it! If there's a body of water—deep enough, wide enough—then I'll be submerged in a sea of condensed reishi! A river… a lake… yes, that would become my training ground!"
Excitement welled up in him until he could barely stay seated. The special structure of the Soul Society made this possible—water here wasn't just water, it was reishi given liquid form. If he trained by submerging himself and forcing his spirit to adapt, he might truly cultivate the Quincy: Letzt Stil. That forbidden, ultimate form.
The thought made his pulse race.
There weren't many rivers or lakes within Seireitei itself, but out in Rukongai… yes, he had seen them before. And if not? He smirked to himself.
"I'll dig one out myself if I have to."
Still, Miyako knew this was just a hypothesis. To make it real, he'd need not only to test it himself but also compare notes with someone who truly understood the depths of Quincy power—someone like Ishida Ryūken.
Learning directly from the Wandenreich crossed his mind, but he quickly dismissed it. If he tied himself to them, he'd be shackled by their control. If he could master this path on his own, then he could stand before them as an equal, not a pawn.
His gaze sharpened as he remembered.
Kirge Opie's words to Kurosaki Ichigo… they had already been watching Ishida Uryū for a long time. It wasn't coincidence. Uryū's use of Letzt Stil back in the Soul Society arc—yes, that must have been what drew their true attention.
That was why Miyako had intentionally revealed his own ability to manipulate reishi in front of Ishida Uryū. If no one noticed, fine—he'd keep training in secret. But if the Wandenreich's eyes turned toward him… then his backup plan would unfold.
"This is why I have to master Quincy power," he whispered, gripping the water glass tighter. "The sooner, the better. When the Wandenreich comes, I won't just be a target—I'll be the storm they didn't expect."
A sly grin tugged at his lips.
"That's right… that's the look I want to see—the disbelief on their faces when they realize a Shinigami can wield the ultimate power of a Quincy. Fufufu… their shock will be priceless."
But the fire in his eyes dimmed slightly as he shifted on the futon. His injuries still ached, stubborn reminders of his last battle.
"Che… my body isn't healed yet…" He clicked his tongue in annoyance. What he needed now was recovery. If Ishida Uryū could pass word to Inoue Orihime, then maybe she could come and heal him. Only then could he move forward quickly.
Escaping the Fourth Division before being fully healed was impossible—especially under the watchful eyes of Unohana Retsu. That woman was terrifyingly thorough.
Miyako groaned softly and flopped back against his pillow.
"If Uryū-san doesn't help, then I'll find Inoue-san myself tomorrow… hopefully she has some energy left after treating Kurosaki Ichigo."
His eyelids grew heavy, thoughts of rivers and Letzt Stil still swirling in his head. Slowly, Amamiya Miyako drifted into sleep, dreaming of battles yet to come.