Chapter 23: Spiritual Power Rating
Evening approached, the last rays of sunlight filtering through the tall windows of the Shinoreijutsuin, casting mottled patterns of light and shadow across the wooden floorboards of the long corridor.
Having finished the written examination, Suoh Tsukasa followed the flow of students out of the lecture hall and into the hallway to wait.
They were awaiting staff members to lead them to the next phase: the spiritual pressure level assessment.
The test questions had been straightforward—mostly general knowledge about the Soul Society. Even the sections covering the four Shinigami combat arts of swordsmanship, hand-to-hand combat, movement techniques, and demon arts only touched on basic concepts. For him, the entire exam had posed no real challenge.
"Aside from Toshiro, not a single promising one among them."
Suoh's expression remained relaxed as he walked to the window and leaned against the frame, enjoying the cool breeze that carried the last breath of spring.
From this position, he could observe the entire corridor.
Among the new students, not a single one could escape his spiritual sense.
Most examinees in the corridor were still absorbed in post-test discussions, clustering in small groups of three to five as they chatted casually.
But they maintained a basic pattern—those from within the Seireitei stuck together in their own groups, while those from the same Rukongai districts formed separate clusters. The divisions were clear and absolute, with no exceptions.
There weren't many dressed as noble offspring, because most of them took different paths to becoming Shinigami, or chose not to become Shinigami at all. They had plenty of options.
Among the Seireitei nobility, only those from lower-ranking noble families would actually enroll in the Central Spiritual Arts Academy.
Beyond them stood people like himself and Hitsugaya Toshiro—individuals standing alone in the corners.
The silver-haired boy currently leaned against a pillar on the opposite side, arms crossed as his emerald eyes coldly surveyed his surroundings.
In this new environment, many people were pointing and whispering about his unusual appearance, making him as wary and defensive as a wounded young beast guarding against everything around him.
His mood was particularly foul at the moment—not just because of the others' rejection, which he'd long grown accustomed to. The written test he'd just taken hadn't gone as well as he'd hoped.
Unlike Suoh, he hadn't received thoughtful gift books from someone like Shiba Miyako.
The carefree Matsumoto Rangiku had simply told him to take the elite class examination directly, guaranteeing he'd pass.
Anxiety about whether he could actually enroll made him irritable. He had to become a Shinigami as quickly as possible.
Suoh had keenly noticed Hitsugaya Toshiro's current emotional state.
The reason he hadn't approached to say hello was precisely because getting too close at this moment might cause the young lion to bristle defensively.
However, Suoh felt no concern whatsoever about whether Hitsugaya Toshiro would pass enrollment. After all, the written test was worth a maximum of 100 points, while the spiritual pressure assessment had no upper limit on its scoring.
With the level of spiritual pressure currently contained in Hitsugaya Toshiro's body, he could write his name on the test paper, throw it on the ground and stomp on it, and still pass.
Before long, a sharp command silenced the noisy corridor.
"All examinees, attention. We will now proceed to the training grounds for spiritual pressure level assessment."
"Please line up in two rows according to your examination number. Odd numbers on the left, even numbers on the right."
The instructor's voice echoed through the corridor. The crowd began to stir as examinees searched for their positions.
Suoh unhurriedly took his place at the end of the right-side queue, finding himself standing shoulder to shoulder with Hitsugaya Toshiro on the left.
"Hitsugaya Toshiro."
The silver-haired boy had obviously noticed this coincidence. Looking at this not-quite-stranger beside him, his emerald eyes flickered as he instinctively tensed—but still offered his name first.
"I'm Suoh Tsukasa. Hello."
Somewhat surprised by the other's initiative, Suoh responded with a gentle smile before naturally shifting his gaze away, as if this were merely the most ordinary chance encounter.
After the queues were properly arranged, both lines began moving toward the adjacent training grounds.
The procession arrived before a building resembling a gymnasium.
The large doors stood open, revealing a glimpse of metal equipment with display screens embedded within.
As the people ahead steadily decreased in number, the two positioned near the rear soon entered the facility.
Suoh stood in line, his gaze sweeping across the entire training ground.
Inside, a staff member wearing square-framed glasses stood beside the testing device, the recording board in his hands gleaming with a cold, hard luster under the equipment's lights.
At the front of the queue, an examinee placed their trembling hand against the device.
The numbers on the screen began rising, finally stopping at the lower end between thirteen and fourteen.
"Spiritual Power Rating: Fourteenth Class."
"Next."
The staff member recorded the data with an expressionless face.
The queue continued moving forward. Most examinees' test results hovered between the thirteenth and sixteenth classes.
When an occasional twelfth-class reading appeared, it drew gasps from the surrounding crowd.
The device's principle was simple—measuring the density of spirit particles within spiritual pressure, working much like a scale.
The queue progressed quickly, and before long it was Hitsugaya Toshiro's turn.
He pressed his hand against the metal plate with an expressionless face, though his other hand's tightly clenched knuckles revealed he wasn't as calm as he appeared.
Hmmm—
The numbers on the screen began changing rapidly, blinking past the boundary of ten in an instant before finally freezing at a value that left everyone stunned speechless.
"Spiritual Power: Fifth Class."
The staff member adjusted his glasses, his dry voice carrying undeniable shock.
Though Hitsugaya Toshiro couldn't fully comprehend what Fifth Class spiritual power meant, the staff member's excited gaze—like someone who'd discovered treasure—and the instant explosion of noise around him said everything.
Only now did he understand what Matsumoto Rangiku had meant by "guaranteed to pass."
"Silence!"
"Next."
Without questioning the device's results, the staff member quickly regained his composure and recorded the score faithfully before calling out loudly.
"Spiritual Power... Sixth Class."
The same scene repeated itself, only Suoh's spiritual power reading stopped at a slightly lower position.
With such an impressive precedent set, Suoh saw no need to hold back, displaying his true spiritual pressure level.
Besides wanting to know his approximate spiritual pressure strength, he'd never intended to complete the full six-year curriculum at the Shinoreijutsuin anyway.
He'd deeply understood one principle since his time in Rukongai: only with sufficient resources could one grow stronger quickly.
The favoritism and guidance of excellent teachers was also an indispensable resource.
"Very good."
The staff member wrote rapidly on his recording board, a flash of delight crossing his eyes.
Two exceptionally gifted talents appearing in the same incoming class—as a member of the Shinoreijutsuin, he naturally felt pleased about this.
The training ground fell silent as a graveyard. The successive shocks had left them unable to speak.
"Next."
Quite satisfied with the test results, Suoh smiled as he withdrew his hand, nodded courteously to the staff member, and turned to join the queue of those who'd finished testing.
He could feel gazes from all directions—admiration, astonishment, jealousy, even resentment.
But none of it mattered to him.
Hitsugaya Toshiro stood in the other queue, a flash of surprise and joy crossing his emerald eyes.
He hadn't expected this seemingly gentle black-haired youth to possess spiritual pressure on the same astonishing level as his own.
After that, under the radiance of the two geniuses, all remaining examinees' test results lost their luster.
"All examinees return to the classroom to await the announcement of results."
After recording the last new student's test results, the staff member made the final arrangement.
****
20+advance chapters at patreon.com/Eatinpieces