"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Oi Rimi, currently the Eighteenth Seat of the Ninth Division. Today, I will be supervising all of you for the Soul Burial practical assessment. Now, please step forward in an orderly manner to receive your Asauchi!"
On the stage, a middle-aged woman wearing the standard Shinigami uniform spoke briskly. Her face was dotted with freckles, and her voice carried the strict tone of someone accustomed to maintaining discipline. Beside her stood two male Shinigami, each carrying a large bundle.
They dropped the bundles to the ground and untied them, revealing dozens of Asauchi stacked neatly inside.
"Form a line and come forward one by one to collect your Asauchi. You will use the blade you receive to travel to the Human World and perform the Soul Burial assessment."
The young male Shinigami standing beside her repeated the instructions in a firm voice.
"Why does this sword have so many chips along the edge? Can I exchange it for another one?" a petite female cadet asked nervously while holding up her Asauchi.
Once she spoke, murmurs erupted from the line. Several other students began voicing similar complaints, clamoring to trade their swords for better ones.
"Silence!"
Seeing the disorder spread, Oi Rimi released a thin wave of spiritual pressure, immediately restoring control over the situation.
Although her Reiatsu was weak enough to make Raizen Kō inwardly amused, he did not dare to relax. Ichimaru Gin's earlier warning echoed repeatedly in his mind: 'Be careful during the Soul Burial assessment.'
Raizen Kō had no doubt that Aizen was once again pulling strings behind the scenes.
"Why is it that trouble always follows me wherever I go?" Raizen Kō muttered under his breath with a resigned expression.
"Rest assured," Oi Rimi continued, "the Asauchi being distributed today are temporary blades stored at the Spiritual Arts Academy. They have been passed down through generations solely for the purpose of student examinations. Once you officially join a division, you will be granted your own personalized Zanpakuto."
Hearing this explanation, the cadets finally settled down.
Before long, Raizen Kō received his own Asauchi. It looked somewhat aged, but the blade itself was in good condition.
In front of the towering Senkaimon, Oi Rimi carefully counted the assembled students.
"For this Soul Burial assessment, thirty-three cadets were scheduled to participate. Thirty-three are present. No absences."
After confirming the attendance, she began outlining the details of the exam.
"The Technological Development Bureau has selected an isolated area in the Human World and erected a containment barrier.
Each of you will be assigned a spiritual dummy as a target to protect. Your mission is to defend the dummy while eliminating the Hollows assigned to you!"
"Your final score will be calculated based on the amount of damage the dummy sustains.
If your dummy is destroyed, or if you are unable to defeat the Hollows, you will fail and be required to repeat another year at the Academy."
"Next, I will distribute World-Breaking Pills to everyone. These are emergency items used to forcibly shatter the barrier and retreat if your life is in danger. However, be warned: the moment a World-Breaking Pill is used, your assessment will automatically be recorded as a failure."
"Although we have taken every precaution, unforeseen events can always occur. You must all be mentally prepared for any situation."
Her words caused a ripple of tension among the students. Even so, none of them hesitated. This assessment was a mandatory step toward becoming full-fledged Shinigami.
"If there are no further questions, then we shall begin!"
With a wave of her hand, the massive Senkaimon slowly opened. Brilliant white light poured out like flowing mist as the gateway to the Human World was activated.
So this is the Senkaimon? Raizen Kō thought silently. Honestly, Hueco Mundo's Garganta looks far more impressive.
Human World – Mihua Town
The night sky was calm and dark, dotted with faint stars. Beneath it stretched a chain of quiet mountains, wrapped in an invisible barrier prepared by the Twelfth Division.
Without warning, a massive gate tore open above the mountains. As the doors of the Senkaimon slid apart, figures began emerging one after another.
At the front were three Shinigami in standard black uniforms. Behind them followed a group of cadets dressed in white-and-blue or white-and-red Academy attire.
Gazing down at the unfamiliar scenery of the Human World, many of the students let out amazed whispers.
Oi Rimi stepped forward and addressed them loudly.
"Your assessment will take place in the mountains below. We will evaluate your performance based on completion time and the condition of your dummy. Remember, your score will directly affect your future placement and advancement within the Gotei Thirteen!"
"Now then I hereby declare the Soul Burial assessment officially begun!"
With her signal, the male Shinigami beside her released thirty-three glowing spirit orbs. Each orb flew toward a different student.
Raizen Kō caught his own orb and followed its guidance down into a dense forest.
Upon landing, the orb transformed into a small humanoid dummy radiating faint spiritual light. An invisible protective barrier rose around it.
"Roar!"
A Hollow suddenly lunged out from the darkness, charging directly toward the glowing dummy.
Raizen Kō didn't even bother drawing his sword. He simply raised a finger.
"Hado #4 Byakurai!"
A streak of brilliant white lightning shot forward, instantly reducing the Hollow to ashes. The moment it was destroyed, the barrier around the dummy vanished.
"So far, so good. No accidents yet."
Raizen Kō had remained alert from the very beginning, expecting something to go wrong at any moment. Yet everything appeared smooth and routine.
"Is that Raizen Kō? The prodigy who finished six years of coursework in only one?
Incredible!"
Observing from above, Oi Rimi couldn't help but praise him. From the moment Raizen Kō entered the barrier to the moment he completed his objective, less than three minutes had passed.
Just as Raizen Kō prepared to regroup with the supervising Shinigami, his expression abruptly changed.
A strange, malevolent Reiatsu suddenly surged into his senses.
"Get out of the way!" Raizen Kō shouted toward the examiners.
At that very instant, space tore open behind them. A black Garganta ripped through the sky, and three enormous tentacles shot out, aiming directly for their backs.
Oi Rimi reacted instantly, barely dodging in time. Even so, her left shoulder was pierced clean through.
The two Shinigami beside her were not so fortunate. The tentacles impaled them effortlessly, lifting their bodies into the air.
"Damn it!"
Oi Rimi retreated rapidly. From the open Garganta, a grotesque mass of writhing flesh crawled out— a monstrous sphere covered entirely in twisting tentacles.
"This is… an incomplete Arrancar-class
Gillian!"
With a single glance, Raizen Kō recognized the creature's nature. Its Reiatsu was chaotic and unstable, far beyond that of an ordinary Menos.
"Strike them down Twin Scythes!"
Oi Rimi released her Zanpakuto. Her blade split into two curved throwing knives, which she hurled with all her strength at the monstrous Arrancar.
However, the blades bounced harmlessly off its Hierro, sending out only a shower of sparks.
The creature retaliated immediately, lashing out with a storm of tentacles.
At the critical moment
"Hado #31 Shakkahō!"
A blazing crimson sphere erupted from Raizen Kō's palm without incantation, vaporizing several of the tentacles in an instant.
As a Shinigami, even if this body was only a clone, Raizen Kō could not stand idly by while comrades were slaughtered.
He acted without hesitation.
But before he could move further, screams suddenly echoed from all directions.
Raizen Kō looked down in shock.
Within every barrier below, the Hollows originally prepared for the examination were undergoing grotesque transformations each one showing varying degrees of forced Arrancar evolution.
Aizen's hand had finally revealed itself.
And the real test had only just begun.