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Ishikawa Katori's injuries healed quickly. Kukaku used many precious herbs when treating him, and coupled with Ishikawa Katori's proficiency in Kaido, which was not inferior to the Fourth Division, he fully recovered in just three days.
He didn't idle during these three days of recovery. Although he couldn't cultivate, he was able to calm down and thoroughly master the newly acquired knowledge.
After his Intermediate Kido reached the 'Intermediate' level, Ishikawa Katori's 'Reishi Control' bottleneck, which had been holding back his Byakurai, leveled up again. By analogy, his Byakurai proficiency also surged by nearly a hundred points. If he were to fight Daimaru again, the latter would definitely not be able to withstand his Byakurai head-on.
Shiba Kūkaku hadn't appeared these past few days. According to Ganju, she had been busy with something underground.
During this time, Uzuki also visited Ishikawa Katori and, while there, scolded the lively Ganju. As for the scolded Ganju… Ishikawa Katori always felt that he seemed quite happy about it.
Having been in Rukongai for four years, this was the first time Ishikawa Katori had rested for such a long continuous period without taking on any commissions, which made him feel like something was missing.
Just as Ishikawa Katori was preparing to bid farewell and leave, Shiba Kūkaku, who had been mysteriously busy, finally appeared.
In the living room, Kukaku, holding a pipe, looked at Ishikawa Katori and asked, "How are your injuries?"
"They're all healed!" Ishikawa Katori waved his arms to show he was almost completely recovered.
Kukaku tapped her pipe into an ashtray, extinguished it, stood up, and said, "Perfect, I'm ready on my end too. You and Ganju come with me!"
"Huh?"
Ishikawa Katori was startled and turned to look at Ganju beside him, only to find that Ganju looked as bewildered as he did.
"What are you two standing around for? Do you want me to drag you both down?" Noticing they hadn't followed, Kukaku turned back and snapped.
Ganju's expression changed, and he quickly walked a few steps to catch up with Kukaku.
I was here to say goodbye…
Ishikawa Katori's eyelid twitched. He swallowed the words he was about to say to bid farewell, as this big sister truly had a fiery temper, and he didn't want to be pinned to the ground like Daimaru.
Kukaku led the two down the stairs. The stairs seemed endless; they walked for nearly five minutes without seeing the bottom.
"Big Sister, just how deep did you dig??" Ganju, who had been holding it in for a long time, finally couldn't help but ask.
"About a thousand meters."
"A thousand meters??"
Ishikawa Katori clicked his tongue. This architectural capability was indeed incomprehensible. She dug so deep in just three days.
After walking for a few more minutes, a glimmer of light finally appeared at the end of the stairs.
"We're here."
Kukaku turned around, pointed behind her with a self-satisfied expression, and said, "This is my latest creation, the 'Ōkaku Training Hall'!"
That name is as simple and direct as ever, and her narcissism is off the charts!
Ishikawa Katori silently complained in his heart, then looked at the incredibly vast space behind Kukaku.
The Ōkaku Training Hall was extremely wide; from the entrance, it was impossible to see the full extent of the space. Moreover, the top of the training hall was covered with something unknown, making the entire space incredibly bright. If he hadn't known this was a thousand meters underground, Ishikawa Katori might have thought it was an outdoor area on the surface.
It looked somewhat like the amusement park built by Urahara Kisuke, but compared to the 'Urahara Amusement Park' in Ishikawa Katori's memory, this place was much more organized. In the center, there were several arenas, each surrounded by glowing Spiritual Crests that constantly emitted Reishi fluctuations.
Looking at the space before him, Ganju seemed to recall something, and his face instantly turned pale. He stammered, "Big Sister, you're not trying to…"
"This time it won't be like last time."
Kukaku chuckled oddly, "Until I'm satisfied, whether you cry or wail, you won't leave." With that, she turned and glanced at Ishikawa Katori, who looked bewildered, "You're no exception."
"Huh?"
Ishikawa Katori and Ganju were both stunned simultaneously, but unlike Ganju's fear, Ishikawa Katori's eyes immediately lit up with wild joy after understanding Kukaku's words.
These past few days, Ishikawa Katori had been thinking about where to learn Intermediate Kido.
He had considered asking Shiba Kūkaku to teach him, as Shiba Kūkaku was an 'expert in Kido' acknowledged even by the Shinigami of Seireitei, but he didn't know how to ask for help.
Although asking Shiba Kūkaku to teach him Kido based on this incident probably wouldn't be refused, doing so would clearly be an attempt to repay a favor, turning this incident from 'mutual help between friends' into a 'transaction,' and possibly even losing Kukaku's friendship.
Compared to learning Kido, Kukaku's friendship was clearly more important to Ishikawa Katori.
Now that Kukaku had taken the initiative, how could Ishikawa Katori not be overjoyed!
"Big Sister, actually, I can cultivate on my own…" Ganju said softly.
"Can you?"
Kukaku sneered, "A guy whose Reishi strength is only equivalent to a High Level Seated Officer, and whose actual combat power is only slightly stronger than a Low Level Seated Officer, was already utterly helpless against him. Where do you get the courage to say you can?"
Ganju opened his mouth, unable to retort.
"You go to the last arena in the southwest corner. That arena is a sealing platform I built with Spirit Walls, reinforced with stabilizing and sealing Spiritual Crests around it. It's specifically prepared for practicing Shiba secret techniques. When you can successfully turn that arena to sand, then move on to the next one."
"There are ten arenas in the southwest corner in total, with gradually increasing intensity. Only when you pass all ten arenas can you leave, otherwise, you'll just live here!"
"Big Sister, this is too…"
"Get up there!!"
Accompanied by Shiba Kūkaku's furious shout, Ganju scurried towards the southwest corner of the training hall.
"As for you…"
Meeting Kukaku's gaze, Ishikawa Katori suddenly felt the kind of nervousness he had experienced in his previous life when called upon to read aloud in elementary school. Shiba Kūkaku, as the head of the Shiba, one of the former Five Great Noble Families, rarely displayed it, but she certainly did not lack the dignity of a great noble family head.
"I saw your fight. You have a good grasp of Hakuda, Kido, and even Shunpo." Kukaku paused, then suddenly changed her tone, speaking seriously, "I don't know where you learned them, and I'm not interested in knowing, but if anyone asks in the future, you must say…"
"These techniques were all taught to you by me, Shiba Kūkaku!"
Ishikawa Katori was startled upon hearing this, then nodded, "Thank you, Big Sister Kukaku."
Zankensoki is called the 'Four Great Shinigami Techniques' precisely because they are techniques that only Shinigami can master.
Zanjutsu, Shunpo, and Hakuda are fine, but Kido includes various complex knowledge such as 'incantations,' 'Reishi manipulation,' and 'attribute transformation,' which cannot be self-taught without guidance.
Although acquiring this knowledge through the system was convenient, there was no way to explain its origin. That's why Ishikawa Katori frequently visited the Shiba, to give people the illusion that he had learned these skills from the Shiba.
Shiba Kūkaku had clearly seen this long ago, and from Kukaku's recent words, it's possible that she even knew about the Onmitsukido monitoring him, but had always maintained an attitude of neither denying nor admitting it.
"There's nothing to thank me for."
Kukaku waved her hand indifferently, "Actually, I've never really liked you."
Ishikawa Katori chuckled nervously. He had noticed this from Kukaku's consistently stagnant favorability, but he could only pretend not to notice and shamelessly continue to visit…
"Ganju is an idiot, and you…"
Kukaku paused, then sighed, "You're too mysterious. I had people secretly investigate you. Both the way you appeared in Rukongai and the way you became stronger are very mysterious. I even meticulously studied every day of your four years in Rukongai, but I couldn't find any trace of you learning Zankensoki from anyone."
"The few times you interacted with Shinigami, you were merely observing from the side, without forming any connections with them. It's as if you were born knowing these things."
"And…"
Shiba Kūkaku snorted, thinking of something, "I've never had a good impression of people with a 'gentle and kind' image."
"Furthermore, although you disguise yourself extremely well, the gloominess accumulated over years, and your indifference towards people, events, and even life, cannot be changed in a short time. Although you have indeed changed a lot over the past few years, it's also possible that you've just become better at disguising yourself."
"So, it's perfectly reasonable for me to consider you a dangerous person."
Shiba Kūkaku was quite straightforward, directly and unreservedly stating her reasons for not liking Ishikawa Katori, leaving Ishikawa Katori, who had been trying to argue, speechless. In the end, he could only chuckle nervously, "Um… actually, I'm still a good person at heart."
Kukaku smiled noncommittally and said to herself, "Your performance in this battle might seem dangerous to others, but after seeing it, I actually felt at ease. If you had chosen to hide in that situation, then I would truly have to consider having Ganju cut ties with you."
"There are many strange people in Soul Society. Even among the captains of the Gotei 13, there are many strange people you can't imagine, so one more of you doesn't matter. As long as you don't become an enemy of Seireitei and don't become a Shinigami, at most you'll just be monitored, so there's no need to live so cautiously."
"Of course, continuing to hide what needs to be hidden is also good. It can have an unexpected effect when necessary."
"I understand, Big Sister Kukaku!!" Ishikawa Katori replied loudly, as if making a promise.
"What are you shouting for? Are you looking for death?!"
Ishikawa Katori immediately shut up. As for what kind of person he truly was, Ishikawa Katori himself wasn't entirely sure.
There's a type of person in this world, it's said they can only change after they die.
So, after coming here, Ishikawa Katori had always been trying to change, but whether he had actually changed, he didn't know himself.
But one thing, Ishikawa Katori was very clear about.
That was…
He really liked his current life.
"Tell me," Kukaku, who had pulled out a chair from somewhere, sat with her legs crossed and her pipe in her mouth, "What Kido do you know?"
Ishikawa Katori immediately listed all the Kido he knew.
After listening, Shiba Kūkaku was surprised, "If I didn't know you'd never been to Shin'ō Academy, I might have thought you were a Shin'ō Academy student."
All the Kido Ishikawa Katori mentioned were, without exception, Kido taught at the Shin'ō Academy.
Although the Shin'ō Academy is a training ground for newcomers before they start their jobs, it doesn't mean that graduating from there makes one omnipotent. On the contrary, after graduating from the Shin'ō Academy, the real training, or internship period, begins.
During the internship, each Squad conducts long-term secondary training for these newcomers, but unlike the initial training at the academy, secondary training involves countless real battles.
Therefore, most advanced techniques are taught by the Seat Officers in each Squad, not by the academy.
The Kido Ishikawa Katori knew were clearly those of an 'academy type,' and specifically, an academy type from Rukongai with no background whatsoever.
With that, she seemed to think of something, and her gaze towards Ishikawa Katori suddenly became a bit strange: "I think I somewhat understand why you started that 'Shinigami Cram School'."
"Hehehe~~"
Ishikawa Katori chuckled, taking the opportunity to flatter her, "As expected, nothing can be hidden from you, Big Sister Kukaku."
...
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