Chapter 33: Guidance
"Alright, get up."
"You didn't just lose in ability, but also in mentality. A chaotic mind only exposes more openings. Reflect on this properly!"
Saitou Yuuichi picked up the wooden sword that had fallen at his feet, walked forward, and tossed it onto Slant-bangs with a smack.
Having crossed swords with Suoh himself, he understood clearly—that kid had held back at least seventy percent of his strength throughout. Otherwise, Slant-bangs would only have lost even faster and more miserably.
His words contained not a shred of comfort. He had no habit of indulging students, nor any obligation to carefully protect students' fragile self-esteem.
At the Shinoreijutsuin, on the arduous path to becoming Shinigami, learning how to extract lessons from failure was something they had to comprehend themselves.
He was a teacher, not a nursemaid, and not these students' father. If he really had a son like that, he'd have strangled him long ago.
'Now if he were like Suoh Tsukasa—that would be more like my son.'
Saitou Yuuichi's gaze carried appreciation as he looked toward Suoh retreating to the field's edge. This thought emerged uncontrollably.
That steady footwork, that calm bearing.
Genius. Absolutely a genius among geniuses.
Not only exceptional talent, but mental fortitude far exceeding his peers by a large margin.
That terrifyingly solid foundation absolutely couldn't have been obtained through talent alone. It had to have been built through countless amounts of sweat.
"Maybe I should find a wife and have one too.'
Single for most of his life, Saitou Yuuichi who'd always kept sake as his companion—for the first time such an absurd thought flashed through his mind. Even he found it somewhat inexplicable.
The reprimanded Slant-bangs' lips moved, but ultimately couldn't produce any sound.
He'd thought about losing, but hadn't imagined losing so disgracefully.
He only awkwardly picked up his sword and climbed from the ground, finding a spot with few people in the corner to sit down, burying his ashamed face in the crook of his arms.
"Is everyone clear?!"
Reining in his wandering thoughts, Saitou Yuuichi turned toward all the students and shouted.
The sudden sharp question made students who'd been secretly discussing that sparring match instantly shut their mouths. They straightened their backs and nodded in acknowledgment.
"When you grip a sword, don't let extra emotions into your heart. All of you, focus your minds on your blades!"
"Continue sparring!"
His stern gaze swept across the advanced group members who hadn't yet gone up, issuing instructions.
Orders given, the dojo instantly restored its previous order, though the atmosphere was clearly much more solemn than before.
Students taking the field had grave, serious expressions, sparring with all their might as if they'd rather die than not cut down their opponents.
Slant-bangs' fate was right before their eyes. No one wanted to become the next person publicly reprimanded by the teacher and humiliated before everyone.
Soon the advanced group students' sparring ended. The final pair retreated to the field's edge.
Saitou Yuuichi stood sword in hand at one side of the field, speaking toward Suoh nearby.
"Suoh, step forward."
"Yes, sir."
Hearing his name, Suoh calmly stepped forward and came to stand across from Saitou Yuuichi.
"Next, you'll spar with me."
"Don't worry. During sparring, I'll control my force properly."
"You only need to freely use your full strength and let me see your true capability."
Elite class students had privileges. The elite among the elite naturally received different treatment, worthy of him personally taking the field to feed techniques.
While speaking, Saitou Yuuichi held his sword in his right hand and assumed his stance, beckoning to Suoh with his left.
"Forgive my offense."
"Haa—"
Suoh's gaze suddenly became sharp. His right foot stamped forcefully forward onto the ground as his sword rose above his head. He exhaled lightly, adjusting his breathing.
Once again assuming the high-level kasumi stance representing full offense, his gaze and fighting spirit firmly locked onto Saitou Yuuichi ahead.
"Come—!"
Saitou Yuuichi's eyes flashed with brilliance. His gaze carried encouragement as he shouted.
The instant his words fell, Suoh moved!
When charging toward an overwhelmingly powerful enemy, one only needed to grip the sword handle and coordinate breathing properly.
Mind and body united, at the moment of greatest mental focus, attack with everything in one breath.
In observers' eyes, Suoh's figure vanished, transforming into a blue-black lightning bolt striking toward Saitou Yuuichi.
Two wooden swords collided forcefully in midair without any flourishes, releasing a deep, powerful explosive sound.
An air pressure wave spread outward from the point where the two swords met, stirring nearby students' hair.
Under the heavy impact, the swords in both their hands remained intact—they'd already tacitly used spiritual pressure to protect their weapons from breaking.
Suoh only felt a steady force like a mountain transmitting through the blade, forcibly halting his forward momentum.
Borrowing the rebounding force to retreat half a step, his wrist turned. The wooden sword instantly shifted from a downward chop to a horizontal slash, sweeping toward Saitou Yuuichi's throat.
Saitou Yuuichi's form was rock-solid. His blade turned once, precisely blocking this horizontal slash. His movements were concise without any excess.
"Good! Coherent offense! Again!"
He guided verbally while his gaze grew increasingly sharp.
Suoh's mind held no distractions, completely immersed in this exchange with a powerful opponent.
His footwork continuously moved around Saitou Yuuichi, steps swift and agile.
Simultaneously, his black eyes rotated rapidly, searching for potential openings that might appear as Saitou Yuuichi moved.
Downward strike, diagonal slash, left pheasant, right rising cut...
Attacks from various directions fluidly transitioned through his hands in rotation. His offensive was like mercury spilling across the ground.
While Saitou Yuuichi was like a reef amid stormy seas, always standing firm.
His movements weren't large in amplitude yet could accurately dissolve Suoh's fierce offensives one by one.
"Adjust your breathing and footwork! The connection between your techniques can be even faster!"
"Left flank! Your left flank defense shows brief openings after attacking!"
"And feints! Don't just attack fiercely—learn to use false moves to create opportunities!"
Saitou Yuuichi's instructional voice rang out periodically in the dojo. Each pointer hit the mark precisely.
Suoh was like a thirsty sponge, frantically absorbing these precious experiences gained through actual combat.
Continuously adjusting and improving his movements during the assault.
The field's edge instantly fell silent as a graveyard. All surrounding students watched this guidance match with dazzled fascination, even forgetting to breathe.
Slant-bangs had long since raised his head. The unwillingness, shame, and other excess emotions in his heart had already been washed completely clean. His gaze was firmly captured by Suoh's figure.
"Suoh is this strong?!"
Among those present, only Hitsugaya Toshiro alone could see the exchange between the two most clearly.
His expression somewhat frozen as he watched Suoh's figure, only now clearly understanding what an enormous chasm existed between himself and truly skilled fighters.
This recognition didn't discourage him. Instead, it instantly solidified his determination.
Discarding all distracting thoughts, he observed this rare match with complete focus, attempting to absorb every precious bit of experience from it.
"Good! Again!"
Watching Suoh's movements become increasingly precise under his guidance, the appreciation in Saitou Yuuichi's heart nearly overflowed.
He could feel that Suoh's potential was far from limited to just this.
The force in his hands increased bit by bit. His sword swings' amplitude also gradually grew larger, using this method to further draw out Suoh's potential.