After the spiritual power level test, the newly enrolled students were divided into two groups: one named 'Associate' and the other 'Reserve'.
First, new students with a spiritual power level of three or below would enter the Reserve group, meaning they were preparing to enter the Gotei 13—essentially serving as the Gotei 13's reserve force.
Those above level three naturally fell into the Associate group, designating them as associate members of the Gotei 13. As long as these students completed their six years of study here, they would automatically enter the squads.
Of course, as long as your spiritual power reached level six, you could apply for early graduation at any time and join the Gotei 13.
Although those in the Associate group were guaranteed entry into the Gotei 13, the treatment between different levels was worlds apart.
If your spiritual power was only at level four, some squad captains might look down on you, meaning you wouldn't be able to join the squad of your choice. For example, Squad 1, known as the head squad, would absolutely never accept someone at level four.
If your spiritual power was at level five, however, the doors to any squad would be open to you, allowing you to choose whichever one you wished to join.
Level six was entirely different. It was a certainty that all squads would covet you and actively invite you to join. On the surface, the outcome seemed identical to that of a level five, but in reality, the difference was like night and day.
First, upon joining a squad, a level five recruit would have to start from the very bottom just like a level four, living in the communal barracks. Only after a year of training would they earn the right to challenge for a Seated Officer position within the squad.
Although the Gotei 13 possessed authority equal to that of the Five Great Noble Families, this power was actually concentrated in the hands of the captains, lieutenants, and the top five Seated Officers of each squad. This alone illustrated just how crucial the right to challenge for a seat truly was.
Meanwhile, someone with a level six spiritual power possessed the right to challenge any Seated Officer at any time, right from the moment they joined.
Even if the challenge failed, the captain would personally instruct them. This meant that as long as you weren't a completely hopeless case, becoming a capable Shinigami was an absolute certainty. While there was no explicit rule stating this, it was an established, unspoken custom within the Gotei 13.
Therefore, people like Kōe and Yoruichi, who hit level six right upon enrollment—oh, and Urahara too, since he was nearly at level six—should have been sent directly to the Gotei 13 for their initiation ceremonies. Keeping them at the Shin'ō Academy was purely to crush the other students' self-esteem.
Because of this, Kōe felt a constant chill running down his spine along the way. It was the jealous, resentful glares of the other students behind him. Perhaps there was some reverence mixed in, but if so, it was very little.
After the spiritual power test, their destination was the Sword Room. It sounded like a place for Kendō classes, but it wasn't. The Kendō classroom was one thing, but the Sword Room served an entirely different purpose.
"Arrive for the sword, welcome the sword. Sword Room, open!" the leading instructor chanted loudly. A faint white light emanated from his hand as he pressed it directly against the massive stone lock on the Sword Room's doors.
The stone lock fell to the ground with a loud *thud*. The tightly shut doors of the Sword Room slowly opened inward, and a sharp, piercing aura instantly surged out, causing everyone's robes to flutter wildly in the wind.
The doors did not open completely, only leaving a gap of about a third of the way. Even so, it was wide enough for six or seven people to walk through side by side.
"Do not push, and do not run around! Just follow behind me!" the instructor turned and shouted his instructions before taking the lead into the Sword Room. The crowd hurriedly followed.
The interior of the Sword Room was incredibly dark. There was only a stone-paved path as wide as the gap in the doors, with pitch-black darkness flanking both sides. Perhaps boundless treasures were hidden in that dark, or perhaps it was a bottomless abyss where a single misstep meant certain death. Even with a thousand burning questions of curiosity, the students were too intimidated by the instructor's authority to step out of line.
At the end of the path was an empty, circular stone platform—a massive stage large enough to accommodate the scattered standing of both the 'Associate' and 'Reserve' groups of new students.
Once everyone was standing on the platform, the candles along the stone path they had just traversed extinguished one by one, from near to far. Darkness flooded in like a rising tide, swallowing the route back to the outside world and leaving only the solitary circular stone platform beneath their feet.
"You can only enter the Sword Room once in your entire lives," the instructor said, his voice rising a notch. "So, keep your eyes wide open and watch closely!"
Light—from an unknown source—slowly spilled over the stone platform, sweeping away the surrounding darkness.
The stone path they had arrived on did not reappear. Instead, the platform was now surrounded by a boundless, mirror-like lake. Thrust into the surface of the lake were longswords—likely numbering in the hundreds.
"The Zanpakutō. A Shinigami's best friend, and the very symbol of a Shinigami," the instructor's voice chimed in at the perfect moment. "But right now, you are not Shinigami, and these are not Zanpakutō."
"Their name is Asauchi. They possess the potential to become Zanpakutō."
"Now, follow the voices in your hearts and go choose one." The instructor's voice grew louder, carrying a trace of sacred reverence. "The moment it transforms into a Zanpakutō will be the day you truly become Shinigami!"
Accompanied by a chorus of excited shouts, the new students on the platform flushed red with anticipation. Rubbing their hands together eagerly, they stepped off the stone platform and waded through the Asauchi planted in the lake, searching for the one they believed would become the strongest Zanpakutō in the future.
There were exceptions, however. Kōe and his two friends remained on the stone platform, their faces completely calm.
It wasn't that they weren't thrilled about the prospect of obtaining a Zanpakutō. In fact, even though all three were considered geniuses in the eyes of their respective elders, they had been just as excited as any ordinary child when they first received their Asauchi.
Yes, the three of them had actually possessed Asauchi for a long time now. Furthermore, the Asauchi they owned had already successfully transformed into Zanpakutō not too long ago.
Before the Shin'ō Academy was established, the bestowing of an Asauchi was the most important part of the Gotei 13's initiation ceremony. In truth, this custom hadn't changed even now.
The Asauchi in the academy were actually only temporarily loaned to the students, as it was best to begin bonding with an Asauchi as early as possible. Once they graduated from the academy, if they managed to enter the Gotei 13, the loaned Asauchi would officially be bestowed upon them, truly becoming their own.
Of course, this was only the official procedure on paper. In reality, the top factions within the Seireitei possessed the right to independently bestow Asauchi. For example, certain high-ranking noble families and Captain-Commander Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni had this authority. The Five Great Noble Families went without saying; controlling nearly half of the Seireitei, they naturally had the power to independently grant Asauchi.
Therefore, whether it was Yoruichi or Urahara, and including Kōe, they all already possessed their own Zanpakutō. They were, in fact, already true Shinigami; they just hadn't officially joined the Gotei 13 yet.
They knew that picking another Asauchi now would be pointless. After all, it was impossible for a Shinigami to have two different Zanpakutō. That was the reason for their calm expressions.
They knew this themselves, and the elders in their families knew it, but others certainly did not—such as the leading instructor currently standing with them on the stone platform.