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Yamada Hanatarō.
He was the Seventh Seated Officer of the Fourth Division of the Gotei 13, and also the Squad Leader of the '14th Upper Relief Squad' where Nao was stationed.
Ishikawa Katori looked at the young man on the sofa, who was timid and didn't know where to put his hands, with a somewhat strange gaze… Strictly speaking, this timid guy was the first Seated Officer Ishikawa Katori had encountered up close. Based on first impressions alone, it was hard to imagine he was the Seventh Seated Officer of the Fourth Division.
"With your Kaido proficiency, you shouldn't need to 'exchange' with me, right?" Ishikawa Katori asked, somewhat puzzled.
When he taught Nao Kaido, he had just entered the Low Level, and the knowledge he taught was the most superficial, not to mention a Seventh Seated Officer, even many Squad members might not have found it useful.
Originally, Ishikawa Katori's plan was to first attract some newly joined Squad members, and then through them, attract some older Squad members to come here. Yamada Hanatarō's arrival was truly beyond Ishikawa Katori's expectations.
However…
If he could be persuaded to stay, the possibility of approaching the target would also become greater.
Thinking of this, Ishikawa Katori looked at Yamada Hanatarō, whose small face was flushed red and who was still trying to organize his words, and smiled gently: "Don't be nervous. It is my honor that you, as the Seventh Seated Officer of the Fourth Division, are willing to come and exchange Kaido with me. However, I wonder if you have inquired about the price."
"Yes."
Yamada Hanatarō nodded hastily: "When Nao was exchanging with her peers, I heard her mention it. It costs 10,000 Kan per hour."
"I apologize, but that price is for Shin'ō Academy students."
Although he really wanted to keep Yamada Hanatarō, Ishikawa Katori was not prepared to lower the price too much, especially since the other party was a male who could not provide him with experience points.
"Given your Kaido proficiency, Mr. Yamada, an hour of exchange will cost 30,000 Kan." Ishikawa Katori paused, then added: "Of course, the 10% discount I mentioned earlier is still valid, so an hour of exchange will cost 27,000 Kan."
"Alright."
Yamada Hanatarō's reaction was somewhat unexpected by Ishikawa Katori; he didn't bargain, nor did he hesitate because of the price. Instead, he directly took out a wad of money from his cross-body bag, counted it, and then handed a portion of it to Ishikawa Katori with both hands, his attitude very respectful, showing no hint of a Seated Officer's demeanor.
Ishikawa Katori subconsciously took it, checked it, and found it was exactly 27 bills; then, he looked at the backpack slung across Yamada Hanatarō's shoulder, and three words immediately appeared in his mind.
I asked for too little!
Although he gave off a very honest impression, Hanatarō's mind was surprisingly flexible. This could be seen from the wad of money in his bag; he had already anticipated that the price might change before coming here, otherwise there would have been no need to bring so much money.
And judging by the thickness of that wad of money…
Even if he asked for double, he should still be able to pay it.
Ishikawa Katori put the money away. Since the price had been agreed upon, he naturally wouldn't go back on his word, especially since this was already Ishikawa Katori's psychological asking price.
The salary of a Seated Officer is even higher than I imagined.
Damned old society!!
Ishikawa Katori secretly complained in his heart, though he didn't know that taking out 270,000 Kan at once, while not enough to cripple a Seated Officer, was certainly not a small sum.
The reason Yamada Hanatarō was so straightforward was partly because his personal expenses were very low, and partly because he also thought the 10,000 Kan price was too cheap.
From what Nao exchanged with her fellow Squad members, this Everything Store owner was not only proficient in emergency Kaido, but also had his own unique insights into subsequent treatments like compounding medicines. Moreover, the other party explained some basic knowledge in a refreshing way, which made him feel enlightened after listening to it.
In his eyes, this knowledge was extremely valuable and could not be measured by money.
"Two hours a day, you can come whenever you arrange, but it's best to schedule a time in advance, because besides exchanging with you, I have many other tasks to do."
"Okay, Mr. Ishikawa Katori…"
"Don't call me teacher." Ishikawa Katori interrupted directly: "You are different from Nao; you are not a student, so we are merely 'exchanging' with each other. You can also understand this as a fee-based academic discussion. Just call me by my name, or Manager Ishikawa Katori, or Boss Ishikawa Katori will do."
No matter how timid the person himself was, it couldn't change the fact that the other party was a Seated Officer of the Gotei 13. Ishikawa Katori didn't want to arouse the vigilance of the Onmitsukidō because of a single 'teacher'; in fact, to avoid misunderstanding, he didn't even intend to have any contact with members of the Fourth Division beyond 'academic discussions'.
Of course…
If the other party was a female, that would be a different story.
Anyway, if there were no surprises, the Onmitsukidō should have already evaluated him as a lecher who 'likes to make friends with female Shinigami', otherwise the people they sent wouldn't be prettier one after another.
"Then…" Yamada Hanatarō hesitated for a moment, and finally chose a respectful address: "Mr. Ishikawa Katori."
"Then let's begin today's exchange now."
Ishikawa Katori nodded, no longer dwelling on the issue of address, but instead got up and entered the empty room next to the reception room.
"What are you still standing there for? Come over."
"Huh?"
Hanatarō was stunned, not expecting Ishikawa Katori to start guiding him so quickly. He hurriedly walked into the room.
"Close the door."
Hanatarō complied. As soon as he closed the door, he heard a rustling sound of clothes being removed behind him. Hanatarō turned around in confusion, only to find Ishikawa Katori in the center of the room, having taken off his upper garment, revealing his fair and smooth back.
"???" Hanatarō blinked his eyes in confusion.
He was innocent and didn't think crookedly like many people; he just didn't understand why he needed to take off his clothes to learn Kaido.
But then he saw the bandages on Ishikawa Katori's body, and a look of realization flashed in his eyes. In fact, when he first met Ishikawa Katori, he smelled the scent of herbs, but there were many Squad members in the Fourth Division who made medicines for injuries and carried similar scents, so he didn't think much of it.
Ishikawa Katori in the room untied the bandages wrapped around his body, revealing the large, scarred sword wound on his chest, and said: "Try to heal it with Kaido. I want to see your mastery of Kaido."
Kaido is different from Kido; it does not possess destructive power, so it naturally cannot be judged by spiritual pressure intensity and release power; the best testing method is practice. Only by understanding the other party's level can one provide targeted guidance based on the actual situation.
Once a commission is accepted, it must be done to the customer's satisfaction, so that more customers can be attracted. Only by doing well enough can his name potentially reach the ears of the Fourth Division's Captain.
Thinking of this, Ishikawa Katori's gaze towards Hanatarō became even gentler.
However, at this moment, Hanatarō's attention was entirely on the bandages that Ishikawa Katori had removed, his expression full of exploratory intent.
The herbs on the bandages were not complicated; he could even distinguish what herbs were in them just by their scent.
But combining these herbs in this way, he had never seen anyone do it before, and judging by the medicinal properties and Reishi fluctuations emitted after combining them, the healing ability might be stronger than most of the injury medicines he had seen.
Indeed, it wasn't a wasted trip!
The more Hanatarō studied, the brighter his eyes became.
"Stop looking, I'll teach you how to compound herbs later," Ishikawa Katori said.
Although the medical practices in Soul Society have many traces of the Human World, such as scalpels, intravenous injections, medicines, etc., there are fundamental differences. Take intravenous injections, commonly known as 'infusions,' for example; the liquids within them are all formulated using spiritual power, and even special Kaido techniques.
Because the plants in Soul Society, like living beings, contain Reishi. The presence of Reishi, while making the effects of the herbs themselves incredibly profound, also increases the difficulty of compounding them.
Simply put, the medicines of Soul Society are somewhat like the exotic flowers and rare herbs that only existed in novels in Ishikawa Katori's previous life.
By combining various medicines using special methods, it is even possible to create many drugs or other things that seem impossible to ordinary people, such as Mukuro and so on.
Ishikawa Katori wasn't very interested in these; after all, he wasn't one of those mad scientists. Compared to these, he preferred knowledge about combat techniques.
However, the knowledge infused by the system completely disregarded his preferences; anything related to Kaido would be poured into Ishikawa Katori's mind.
"Really?"
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