~ Next Bonus, 200!
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In the Second Division's training grounds, Shin and Soi Fon stood facing each other. The surrounding division members watched them curiously.
It looked like they were about to fight—no, it was more like a sparring match. Shin and Soi Fon sparred often, mainly because Soi Fon wanted to improve her skills by fighting him.
"Come on, Soi Fon. Just give it everything you've got," Shin said to her.
Soi Fon nodded slightly, her expression turning serious. First, she released her Zanpakuto, Suzumebachi, and then quickly charged at Shin.
She had no intention of holding back because she knew that against Shin, holding back would mean instant defeat.
Besides, her strength couldn't hurt Shin anyway, so she didn't need to worry about that.
The sparring was just to let Shin discover her shortcomings and point them out so she could correct them and improve further.
"Your speed is fast enough, but your strength is too weak."
Shin raised his hand, catching Soi Fon as she used Shunpo to appear in front of him, and then casually tossed her aside.
Soi Fon flipped in the air and landed safely. She wasn't hurt, as Shin had never intended to harm her.
"Your speed is sufficient, but your strength is still lacking in many areas," Shin reminded her.
"But my strength doesn't seem to increase much. It's hard to improve," Soi Fon admitted helplessly.
With her petite build, Soi Fon wasn't naturally gifted with immense physical strength. She was born to be an assassin, which suited the Second Division perfectly.
"True. Increasing physical strength through training alone isn't always effective," Shin agreed, nodding.
Since that was the case, they would have to focus on explosive power. Using Reiatsu to generate bursts of strength could compensate for some of Soi Fon's weaknesses.
"Continue."
Shin gestured for Soi Fon to continue. Afterward, no matter how Soi Fon attacked, Shin didn't move a single step, blocking all her attacks completely.
At the same time, Shin identified all of her weaknesses. The technical flaws were easy to fix with a little guidance.
However, there were two weaknesses that even Shin found difficult to resolve.
For example, Soi Fon's Reiatsu issue and her physical strength issue. These were hard to solve and required Shin's careful consideration.
"Soi Fon has improved," Yoruichi observed from a distance.
As an onlooker, Yoruichi could see that Soi Fon was much stronger than the last time she sparred with Shin.
"If she keeps this up, she might catch up to me. Looks like I can't keep slacking off."
Yoruichi hadn't been focused on improving her strength lately, slacking off instead. Although her skills hadn't declined, they hadn't improved either.
"Shin-sama, how is my current strength?" Soi Fon asked expectantly, hoping for an answer from Shin.
Of course, what she wanted most was for Shin to be satisfied. If he was, that would be the best outcome.
"How should I put it? You're stronger than an average captain, probably around eighteen Kenseis."
After considering it, Shin gave her an answer. Hearing this, Soi Fon stared wide-eyed, stunned.
"What kind of bizarre comparison is that?" Yoruichi looked at Shin speechlessly. Eighteen Kenseis? He must be referring to the original Ninth Division Captain, Kensei Muguruma.
Yes, Kensei was a unit of measurement. The King of background characters, with a terrible combat record—he could only serve as a measuring stick.
So, eighteen Kenseis meant she was three times as strong as six Kenseis. Soi Fon's current combat power was equivalent to three Kenseis.
"Then how many Kenseis do you think I'm worth?" Yoruichi asked Shin after her retort.
"Thirty Kenseis, I guess. Can't be more than that; we have to give Kensei a little face," Shin said with a laugh.
"If Kensei were here and heard that, he'd definitely fight you to the death."
"What use is fighting to the death? He's not my match anyway."
Shin said dismissively. If he were compared to Kensei in terms of combat power, the gap would be at least a trainload of Kenseis.
"I'm going to research something for the next few days, so don't disturb me. You two handle the work," Shin told Yoruichi and Soi Fon.
"You're not just trying to slack off, are you?" Yoruichi asked suspiciously.
"Wrong. I'm not slacking off; I really have something to do. Believe it or not."
Shin really did have something to do. Having identified Soi Fon's weaknesses, he needed to find a way to solve them. She couldn't do it on her own.
The solution was to develop a few auxiliary Kidō spells that could boost explosive power.
"I think Shin is slacking off," Yoruichi said, watching Shin's retreating figure.
"He probably isn't. Shin-sama must really have something to do. Yoruichi-sama, please don't disturb him," Soi Fon said, stopping Yoruichi from going after him.
Yoruichi turned and looked at Soi Fon. Hmm, it felt a bit strange to be stopped by her.
It seemed that in Soi Fon's heart, Shin's status had surpassed hers. Yoruichi felt a twinge of jealousy and discomfort.
Meanwhile, Shin went to his room, pondering what kind of Kidō to create.
"I've got it. The Yin Seal and Chakra Enhanced Strength. If I can develop Reiatsu versions of these two jutsu, it should cover Soi Fon's shortcomings."
"But researching this will be a bit troublesome."
Shin patted his head. He didn't think converting the Yin Seal and Chakra Enhanced Strength into Reiatsu versions would be easy.
After all, they were two different power systems. To make them work, he would have to completely overhaul them.
"Forget it. I'll do it for that little girl, Soi Fon." Shin didn't mind the trouble for her sake.
Although he hated troublesome things, helping Soi Fon was a different matter.
Soi Fon had been a huge help to him before, handling all the Second Division's affairs.
Without her, Shin would have had a lot more work to do. It could be said that Soi Fon had liberated him. Since that was the case, Shin naturally wanted to help her improve her strength as much as possible. A little effort was worth it.
Although the research wouldn't be easy, he had references, making it simpler than creating a Kidō from scratch. Most importantly, Shin had a cheat code.
The cheat code was the Shadow Clone Technique. By using the Multi-Shadow Clone Technique, he had a group of people helping him research, so it wouldn't waste too much time.
Shadow Clones were indeed a perfect cheat for creating techniques. If Shin switched careers to research, he could probably develop the Hōgyoku himself.
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