In the secret base beneath Sōkyoku Hill.
The brush in Mirai's hand moved through the air. His spiritual pressure condensed into ink, leaving glowing trails in the atmosphere.
"Water Blade."
The moment the two words took shape, the moisture in the air gathered instantly. It turned into three spinning water blades that hissed through the air. They left deep marks on the distant rock wall.
Before the water marks could dry, his brush tip turned again.
"Fire Tornado."
Flames erupted from the tip of the brush. They turned into a fire tornado several meters wide. The heat distorted the air, and the glowing rocks at the top of the cave seemed to dim for a moment.
Mirai flicked his wrist, and the style of his brush changed again.
"High-Speed Drill."
Spiritual pressure condensed into a spiral of air. The sharp tip made a humming sound as it bored into the rock wall. Rocks flew everywhere and dust filled the room.
He stopped and looked at the new marks on the wall. He was silent for a moment before pulling the brush back into his hand.
The Zanpakutō returned to its Asauchi form. It hung quietly at his waist.
The power was good, and there were many variations.
By using Raijin Seisho to write the names of techniques, he could turn concepts into real attacks. This ability was very difficult for enemies to handle in a real fight.
But...
Mirai sat down cross-legged and closed his eyes.
His consciousness sank into his inner world. The chaotic landscape appeared before him again.
Ice fields and volcanoes existed together. Flowers bloomed next to dead trees. The sun, moon, and stars all hung in the sky at the same time.
He stood in the center of this world that had no logic. He shouted:
"Raijin Seisho, come out and talk."
There was no response.
"I know you are here," Mirai continued. "Can you stop playing hide and seek? My spiritual power is already at the 4th-class level. Logically, we should be talking about Bankai, right?"
The wind blew sand and dust past him. The sun and moon shone together. The stars twinkled in the daylight.
"...Fine then."
Mirai left the inner world and opened his eyes. He let out a sigh.
Actually, he had a secret that he never told anyone.
His Zanpakutō was not something that grew slowly after he got an Asauchi at the Shinigami Academy.
Many years ago, when he first arrived in the Soul Society, he was in a corner of the Rukongai. He was worried about the fact that even dead people could feel hungry. One day, while looking for food, he suddenly found a brush in his clothes.
It had a smooth handle and a soft tip. It looked very old, but it was so clean that it didn't look like something he had just found.
Later, a teacher from the Shinigami Academy passed by and found him. After a test, he was told, "You have spiritual power; you can become a Shinigami." Only then did he realize where he was.
After entering the academy and receiving a standard Asauchi, the teacher explained "how to communicate with a Zanpakutō." Only then did he slowly realize the truth.
That brush was likely his Zanpakutō.
Later, he tried to fuse the brush with the Asauchi. The process was incredibly smooth.
There were no long conversations or difficult connections. It was like putting a key into a lock. With a "click," it was done.
As for growing together? Or talking?
Even the name Raijin Seisho was something that naturally appeared in his mind one time when he called out subconsciously.
Over the years, life in the Soul Society had been very peaceful.
Shinigami have long lives and few battles. He spent his time writing novels, drinking, and playing with Yoruichi. He had a relaxing life.
Standing at the top? Becoming the strongest? He never seriously thought about those things.
"What do you really want?" Mirai asked quietly to the empty cave.
The brush lay quietly in his palm. The glow of the spirit particles at the tip flowed slowly, like it was breathing.
"Ding-dong!"
A loud doorbell rang behind him.
Mirai turned around. The disguised rock wall at the entrance slid open. Yoruichi Shihōin stood at the door looking annoyed.
"That Urahara guy," she said as she walked in with big steps. "Why did he install such a loud doorbell? I can't even sneak in anymore."
"That was exactly why I asked him to install it," Mirai said as he stood up. He brushed the dust off his clothes. "You don't have to go to the Shiba house today?"
"Not for now." Yoruichi walked up to him and looked him up and down.
"Kuchiki Koga was appointed as the commander of a direct unit by Head Captain Yamamoto. He takes people on patrols in the Rukongai every day. He is very hardworking. Those troublemakers have all hidden away."
She moved closer and stared at Mirai's face for a few seconds. Suddenly, she laughed.
"What? Still can't talk to your Zanpakutō?"
Mirai nodded. A few days ago, he had asked Yoruichi for advice about this. Even though he didn't tell her the details, it was true that his communication with his sword was not going well.
"If you can't talk to it, then don't talk to it," Yoruichi said with a shrug. She acted like it didn't matter.
She rarely relied on her own Zanpakutō. The fighting style of the 2nd Division relied more on physical skills and Hakuda.
"More importantly, I made a breakthrough on that idea we talked about before."
Mirai's eyes lit up.
"Really?"
"Why would I lie to you?" Yoruichi grinned, showing her white teeth. "Want to try it sometime? But before that..."
She suddenly reached out to grab the Zanpakutō at Mirai's waist.
Mirai stepped back half a step. His Zanpakutō was in his hand instantly. The blade drew a half-circle in the air.
Spiritual pressure formed an invisible barrier between the two of them.
Yoruichi's hand stopped an inch away from the barrier. Then she pulled it back and laughed even harder.
"Your reaction speed has improved. It looks like you haven't been lazy lately."
"Being lazy in front of you leads to a bad ending," Mirai said as he put his sword away. "So, what exactly is the breakthrough?"
Yoruichi threw her Captain's haori onto a nearby stone table.
She turned around and stood with her hands on her hips.
The Shinigami uniform she wore was different from the standard style. The sleeves only went to just above her elbows. The fabric was tight against her body, and her waist was wrapped tightly. The bottom of the uniform only reached the middle of her thighs, showing her athletic legs.
"I finally made a breakthrough in merging Kidō into Hakuda."
As she spoke, she held her hands up in front of her chest and made slight fists.
A white light began to glow in her palms. Small bolts of electricity jumped between her fingers, making a light popping sound.
"I tried Kidō with many different traits, but lightning suits me best."
Mirai nodded.
The essence of Kidō was a technique to add a certain trait to spiritual power.
Hadō gives it destructive power. Bakudō gives it binding power. Kaidō gives it healing power.
By using specific spirit particle arrangements and incantations, spiritual power can take on different forms.
His own fake Shikai, Fall—Fūsetsu Egaki, was actually created using Kidō techniques. He added the traits of wind and cold to his spiritual power. Then, he combined it with his Zanpakutō's ability to create a flashy disguise.
However, every Shinigami's body has a different level of adaptation to these traits.
It is like how some people are naturally good at swimming while others are better at running.
Yoruichi's adaptation to the lightning trait was incredibly high. Even when she used a basic spell like Byakurai, it was much stronger than when others at her level used it.
Urahara sometimes used a scientific way to explain it. He said Yoruichi had the lowest "loss" when adding the lightning trait to her spiritual power.
Other people might lose 30% of their power when turning it into lightning, but she could keep over 90%.
"Watch closely."
The corners of Yoruichi's mouth curled up.
Spiritual power erupted from her body. Silver-white electricity wrapped around her, flickering and lighting up the entire cave. The air began to hum, and small rocks on the ground started to vibrate.
Mirai took a few steps back to keep his distance.
The lightning trait was very violent. He didn't want to be hit by a stray bolt of electricity.
Yoruichi pulled her hands back to her waist. She leaned forward and focused her eyes.
"This is the first step of our idea."
She took a deep breath.
"Shunkō!"
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