Amamiya Miyako, who was sitting cross-legged on the bed, suddenly opened her eyes. Then she gasped for air; the feeling of being shot through was truly unpleasant.
'I was too presumptuous, thinking that once I understood my Zanpakuto, calling its true name would be an easy feat.' Amamiya Miyako smiled bitterly. Her days studying at the True Spiritual Arts Academy had been quite smooth, giving Amamiya Miyako a sense of effortless progress.
However, the release of her Zanpakuto gave Amamiya Miyako a rude awakening. Moreover, her Zanpakuto had been fighting her using only Quincy abilities, revealing no other information. It seemed that the Zanpakuto training might continue for some time.
'But I don't have that much time, and the future won't give me so much time for peaceful training.' Amamiya Miyako couldn't help but shake her head.
'He said I was unilaterally understanding him, which means I haven't truly understood my own Zanpakuto?' Amamiya Miyako thought with a frown.
Amamiya Miyako sighed and looked out the window. It was already night, so she decided to call it a day. Amamiya Miyako lay down on the bed and fell asleep.
...
In the morning, Amamiya Miyako arrived at the Thirteenth Division's training ground, contemplating countermeasures against Quincy abilities as she walked.
Soul Society and the Quincy had fought many times, so dealing with the Quincy was an extremely familiar topic. But how could Amamiya Miyako explain that her Zanpakuto possessed Quincy-like abilities? She decided against it; the risk was too great.
'Perhaps I can ask Captain Ukitake how to deal with long-range attacks?' Consulting the Captain was a good method. Although Ukitake was often bedridden, as a disciple of Genryusai Shigekuni Yamamoto, his hundreds of years of Captain experience were not for show.
When Amamiya Miyako arrived at the training ground, she found someone already training there. It was still barely light, and she hadn't expected anyone to be there even earlier.
Amamiya Miyako walked closer and discovered that the person training was none other than Rukia Kuchiki, whom she had met yesterday.
"Rukia-senpai, good morning. Training so early, Rukia-senpai is truly amazing."
"Good morning, Miyako Amemiya. Amazing? I'm not really. I just wanted to train a bit more, after all..." Rukia's initially smiling face gradually became melancholic.
Amamiya Miyako guessed that Rukia might not have been like this for just a day or two, but rather every day since Kaien Vice-Captain died.
"Rukia-senpai, if I'm not mistaken, you wake up this early to train every day, don't you?" Amamiya Miyako asked.
"Eh? How did you know?" Rukia looked puzzled.
Amamiya Miyako pondered. Rukia Kuchiki's talent as a Shinigami was actually quite good, but in the early stages, due to issues with her state of mind, she couldn't use her Zanpakuto's Shikai. Later, after reconciling with Kuchiki Byakuya, she was immediately able to use her Zanpakuto's Shikai again.
"Yesterday, Kiyone-senpai told me about the former Kaien Vice-Captain," Amamiya Miyako said.
Rukia's pupils dilated, and she seemed lost in thought.
"Is that so... You already know, huh? Yes, you were bound to find out sooner or later." Rukia's smile was a bit forced, but she still tried to sound cheerful as she replied.
"Rukia-senpai, when Kaien Vice-Captain died by your blade, what was his expression like?" Amamiya Miyako still intended to try and persuade her.
"Expression?" Rukia looked puzzled, then continued, "Kaien Vice-Captain, he... he deliberately ran into my sword, and at the end, he smiled and apologized to me."
"But that doesn't change the fact that I killed Kaien Vice-Captain. Perhaps I shouldn't be a Shinigami..." Rukia lowered her head and became dejected again.
Seeing her like this, Amamiya Miyako decided to administer a strong dose of medicine. "How disgraceful, Rukia-senpai."
Amamiya Miyako looked coldly at Rukia.
"What did you say?" Rukia looked at Amamiya Miyako in disbelief.
"Although I haven't met Kaien Vice-Captain, I can probably guess that before his death, Kaien Vice-Captain maintained his dignity as a Shinigami, and he also wanted to pass on his will. However, his last words before his death were not heard by you at all."
"Look at what you're doing now. Even though you train yourself day after day, you haven't learned anything from Kaien Vice-Captain's spirit. There's been no growth in your heart. Every time Kaien Vice-Captain is mentioned, you just wallow in self-pity. It's truly laughable," Amamiya Miyako said coldly.
"If you are only at this level, then Kaien Vice-Captain's will shall be inherited by me. I heard that the Thirteenth Division hasn't had a formal Vice Captain successor in a long time. Then I will become the new Vice Captain, a Shinigami even more outstanding than the former Kaien Vice-Captain."
Rukia, upon hearing this, began to get angry. Not only had he misinterpreted her, but he also audaciously claimed he would be more excellent than Kaien Vice-Captain.
Before she could speak, Amamiya Miyako interrupted her. "No matter how sharp your tongue, if you don't have the strength to match it, it's nothing but empty bluster."
Amamiya Miyako drew the Asauchi from her waist. "Rukia-senpai, let's fight. Prove through battle that you haven't wasted your time."
Amamiya Miyako had actually wanted to fight someone to properly assess her current level for a long time. If it weren't for this incident with Rukia, Amamiya Miyako would have sought out other seated officers of the Thirteenth Division anyway. Now, it just happened to give her an opportunity.
Rukia also became serious. She tightly gripped the sword in her hand and faced Amamiya Miyako.
"I will make you understand that I have not betrayed Kaien Vice-Captain's will. I will make you retract what you just said. Kaien Vice-Captain's excellence is not something you can easily catch up to."
The two said nothing more. Then, Amamiya Miyako used Shunpo to quickly close in on Rukia.
'This speed, so fast!' Rukia was astonished. The level of Shunpo Amamiya Miyako displayed was not like that of a Shinigami who had just graduated from the True Spiritual Arts Academy. At least when she graduated, she had never seen this level.
'However, this level alone is far from enough.' Rukia quickly held her sword horizontally, actively moving to meet Amamiya Miyako.
As the two swords clashed, a piercing metallic sound rang in their ears.
Amamiya Miyako did not underestimate Rukia. She knew that although Rukia, as a Shinigami, was not as outstanding as Abarai Renji from the same period, she still possessed the level of an upper-seated officer.
After her downward slash was blocked, Amamiya Miyako quickly jumped backward.
"Bakudo No. 21: Sekienton," Amamiya Miyako quickly chanted the incantation, using Sekienton.
'He wants to block my vision?' Rukia frowned, not intending to let him succeed.
"Bakudo No. 4: Hainawa" Rukia also used a Bakudo. A rope formed of reishi quickly flew towards Amamiya Miyako's sword-wielding hand.
Amamiya Miyako did not evade. Before the rope could entangle her hand, Sekienton had already been released, and a large cloud of smoke instantly formed.
"It's useless. Even if my vision is blocked, I've already caught you with Hainawa." Rukia held the rope, intending to pull Amamiya Miyako forcefully, but the rope went slack, pulling nothing.
'How is that possible? I clearly had him!' Rukia looked surprised.
"Bakudo No. 4: Hainawa" The incantation was clearly audible. Rukia quickly turned to dodge, avoiding being caught by Hainawa.
But Hainawa's target was not Rukia herself. As Rukia turned sideways, a rope swiftly grabbed a sword, which quickly returned to Amamiya Miyako's hand. After Amamiya Miyako grasped the hilt, she immediately swung horizontally towards Rukia.
'I was tricked.' Only then did Rukia understand that Amamiya Miyako had intentionally dropped the sword in his hand just now, which caused Hainawa to catch nothing.
As the sword approached, blocking it with her own blade was extremely difficult. Rukia forcefully lowered her body, barely dodging the strike, but Amamiya Miyako's sword also took a strand of Rukia's hair.
Rukia quickly retreated with Shunpo, already breaking out in a cold sweat. Although Amamiya Miyako's Zanjustu and Shunpo levels were both very good, they weren't overly exaggerated. However, Amamiya Miyako's combat intelligence made Rukia dare not underestimate this newly joined Shinigami.
"What's wrong, Rukia 'senpai'? Are you just going to dodge when facing a newcomer?" Amamiya Miyako asked with a smile.
Rukia dared not be careless. She looked at him, tightening her grip on her sword.