The next students stepping up for a sparring match were Chijō Kana and Kasumioji Gojō.
At this point, Kasumioji Gojō had lost all the arrogance and flippancy he showed at the beginning. His expression had turned much gloomier.
To him, being sent to the losers' bracket in the first round was humiliating beyond words.
Kasumioji Gojō took a deep breath. He couldn't afford to lose again. He believed that if he fought seriously, he could at least make the top four.
He still needed to get a sense of his opponent's capabilities. After a few rounds of elimination, the winners' bracket was no longer filled with pushovers. If he let his guard down, he might trip up again.
Since he'd been participating in the losers' bracket matches in the adjacent swordsmanship room, he hadn't seen Chijō Kana in action. He could only ask his lackey about her.
That thought alone sent another pang of frustration through him—even his own lackey had made it into the winners' bracket!
"Heizō, you've seen Chijō Kana fight, right? How strong is she?" Kasumioji Gojō asked.
"Master Gojō, she's tough. Her Reiatsu is strong. She knocked out Amamimon Tomoya with just one strike," said Kasashiro Heizō, his tone serious.
"Strong Reiatsu, huh..." Kasumioji Gojō nodded grimly. His thoughts drifted to Hirako Shinji, the one who'd sent him to the losers' bracket. That guy was also a monster with overwhelming Reiatsu.
The two stepped onto the stage, bowed, and drew their swords.
"I've heard your Reiatsu is strong," Kasumioji Gojō said coldly. "But I won't give you the chance to pit it against mine. I'll defeat you with swordsmanship."
Since his opponent had strong Reiatsu, he wouldn't make the same mistake again by trying to match force with force.
Kasumioji Gojō was confident in his sword skills. After all, even his private tutor—someone at a seated officer level—had praised his form as textbook-perfect.
He didn't believe he lost to Hirako Shinji because his swordsmanship was lacking. He thought it was simply because he wasn't taking things seriously and let Hirako sneak a point. Then he got caught off guard and was suppressed by Reiatsu.
"Ah, can we start now?" Chijō Kana tilted her head slightly.
Kasumioji Gojō's face darkened. He felt disrespected. Looks like this woman needed to be taught a painful lesson to recognize his strength.
He raised his wooden sword, stepped forward, and unleashed a triple strike:
A horizontal slash.
An upward cut.
A diagonal kesagiri slash!
It was a killer combo built from three basic sword forms.
Only those who had thoroughly mastered the fundamentals could chain these three attacks together this quickly.
Even many lower-rank Shinigami couldn't pull off this kind of clean and rapid combo.
What's more, his final attack—the full-power kesagiri—was aimed at more than just scoring a point. If it landed, it would be enough to shatter Chijō Kana's shoulder bone and take her out of the fight entirely.
However, Chijō Kana proved to be far trickier than he expected.
This kind of basic combo? Nanatsuki often used it in sparring sessions with his disciples.
Except Nanatsuki's strikes were even faster, stronger, and more ruthless!
After enduring intense sparring under those conditions, dealing with Kasumioji Gojō's attacks felt like a walk in the park for her.
She stepped back half a pace to dodge the horizontal slash, shifted sideways to avoid the upward cut, then raised her wooden sword and let out a crisp shout:
"Opening!"
In that fleeting moment, Chijō Kana spotted the gap in Kasumioji Gojō's form as he transitioned between attacks. Before his kesagiri could land, she had already struck.
The pristine white sleeve of her uniform fluttered in the air. Her arm moved faster than the fabric could follow, exposing nearly her entire pale forearm.
The wooden blade in her hand landed squarely on Kasumioji Gojō's abdomen.
His face instantly contorted in pain. The sword slipped from his grip and clattered onto the floor. A searing jolt radiated from his gut, curling his entire body into a "<" shape as he collapsed.
Chijō Kana's sweat hadn't gone to waste.
She had practiced thrusts relentlessly in order to master Shun Strike. Even though she hadn't assumed a formal Shun Strike stance this time, she'd still been able to unleash a swift and precisely powered thrust.
"Kasumioji Gojō, can you continue the fight?" Nanatsuki asked.
Kasumioji Gojō didn't even hear the question. That heavy stab just now had likely ruptured some of his internal organs. He couldn't even get to his feet.
After asking three times without a response, Nanatsuki finally declared Chijō Kana the winner:
"Chijō Kana—victory!"
Impossible!
Many students watching were exchanging confused looks. They couldn't understand how a single, seemingly ordinary thrust could end the fight so decisively.
"Was that swordsmanship?" Danmu Zōsuke narrowed his eyes.
"No... not quite," said Asido, the instructor, shaking his head. After a moment's thought, he added, "But the speed, accuracy, and force of that strike—it all had to come from rigorous training. Chijō Kana's technique might actually surpass Katori-sensei's other two disciples."
"She's not just strong in Reiatsu—her sword skills are solid too. And that strike style would be perfect for the 2nd Division..." said Nakano, sounding impressed. "That division's all about one-hit kills."
"Nakano, are you already trying to recruit students again?" Asido chuckled. "Strong swordsmanship and impressive Reiatsu? Sounds like a perfect fit for the 11th Division to me."
"This year's batch is full of talent," said Yamada, scanning the group of students. He looked like he was mentally trying to pick out who might have potential in Kaido.
Tsunayashiro Tokitani stared expressionlessly at Kasumioji Gojō's crumpled form. He didn't even step forward to check his condition.
Only after Nanatsuki had Kasumioji carried off the stage and handed over to Kobayashi-sensei for treatment did Tokitani finally look away.
He'd already given up hope on that useless idiot. Luckily, Kuchiki Sōjun was still in his class—and with his overwhelming strength, Sōjun could easily take first place in the tournament.
As long as the top spot belonged to someone from his class for both years, the rest would be much easier to manage.
Soon after, the remaining matches wrapped up one by one.
The final list of the Top 8 was confirmed:
Hirako Shinji, Chijō Kana, Kuchiki Sōjun, Kasashiro Heizō, Iba Jirō, Madarame Ichirō, Yukinoki Yūnosuke, and Ōmaeda Kishinosuke.
Kensei finally woke up on his stretcher, rubbing his temples to ease the lingering dizziness in his head.
"You're awake?"
"So... I lost, huh... gah, it hurts... that guy's way too strong... Guess I'll have to join the losers' bracket..."
"Losers' bracket ended a while ago! We're down to the Final Four now!"
"What?!"
Kensei reeled in shock. His head spun even harder, and a loud buzzing seemed to echo in his mind.
The losers' bracket was over? That meant—
He didn't even get the chance to fight again?
He woke up… and he was already dead last?