[STAT PAGE — Updated]
Name: Katsu Joro
Race: Soul (Transmigrator)
Affiliation: Shin'ō Academy — First Year
Zanpakutō: Kage – "Shadow"
Shikai Abilities:
Yami no Shihai ( "Stealth in Darkness")
Kage Kudaki ("Shadow Shatter")
Current Stats:
Strength: A-
Endurance: B+
Perception: A+
Agility: C
Reiatsu Control: D
Zanjutsu: C
Hakuda: D+
Kido: E+
Hohō: D
Intelligence: C
Charisma: D
Available Stat Points: 0
System Notes:
"You are being watched."
Next Weekly Quest unlocks in: 2 Days
---
The sky was still dark when I arrived at the secluded training yard.
An east wind ran low through the grass, and the silence was broken only by the low hum of kido barriers being erected around the field.
Instructor Genda stood in the middle, arms crossed.
"You came early," he said.
"I'm used to it."
He smiled.
"Good."
With a wave of his hand, pale blue threads shimmered into view — a private training seal formed of advanced Bakudō and a silence field. No one outside this space would see or hear what happened within.
Then he reached over his shoulder and slowly drew a blade.
His Zanpakutō.
Without hesitation, he murmured the release command.
"Reveal untainted justice — Kurohakama."
His blade dissolved into two long, jagged cleavers — each glowing faintly at the edge, steam curling off like breath.
I blinked.
Not only had the man actually achieved Shikai… it was clearly combat-based. Heavy, dual-wield. Pressure rolled off him like waves.
I instinctively adjusted my stance. But inside, a whisper pulsed behind my ribs.
"You can't win like this."
And for the first time since coming here…
I wanted to win.
Not for stats. Not for a reward. Not for survival.
Just because the blade in my hand asked me to.
And I answered.
"Let the shadows swallow the sun…"
"…Kage."
---
My sword melted into black smoke, reforming in hand as a long, obsidian blade with a chainlike edge. The metal was cold, unnaturally silent. I felt the familiar tug — the pull of the shadows behind me.
Genda's brow lifted.
He chuckled.
"I knew it."
---
He didn't wait.
He charged — full-body, blade-first, testing my Zanjutsu immediately. His Shikai didn't just enhance his cutting power — his attacks came with blunt force pressure, driving me back with every step.
C-rank zanjutsu or not, I had to use everything I had just to block.
My arm numbed.
He swept low, reversed his right blade mid-swing, and aimed for my ankle. I leapt over it — barely — and landed half a second from another flurry.
My thoughts raced.
My movements couldn't keep up.
I had strength and perception… but my technique was lagging behind.
So I gambled.
Yami no Shihai
(Stealth in Darkness)
My body dissolved into shadow.
Gone.
Genda blinked — just a fraction — but by then, I was already behind him. I reappeared in a burst of dark particles, blade lowered, and tapped the flat side against his shoulder.
Silence.
Then… laughter.
He turned, slow and full of mirth.
"I see now. You're not just hiding power. You understand how to use it."
He looked at his own Zanpakutō, then sheathed both halves with a single fluid motion.
"No flash. No flourish. Just a clean tactical victory. I love that."
---
We both stood in the dim morning light as the kido field fell away, the sun finally cracking the horizon.
He pointed at me.
"I could still tell you were holding something back."
I didn't answer. Just bowed.
"Hah! Very well. As of the end of this semester, I'll personally file the paperwork. You'll be moved up to Class A."
---
System Notification
Special Duel Victory (Instructor Genda) — +20 Stat Points
Ranked #1 in Class C Combat Midterms — +2 Stat Points
Total Stat Points Gained: 22
---
I walked back to the dorms, the black steel of my Zanpakutō humming softly at my back.
The sun was rising.
And for the first time in this life, I felt like I belonged.
---