Chapter 71: Black Coffin
From the moment he agreed to Kuchiki Byakuya's request and accepted Kuchiki Rukia into the division.
Ukitake Jushiro had already considered her a member of the Thirteenth Division.
However, as captain, he couldn't personally look after her, lest it further provoke others' resentment toward her.
At this moment, his heart also carried some trepidation, because Suoh Tsukasa was also a Shinigami who'd originated from Rukongai.
He feared his words might displease Suoh as well, and couldn't help feeling somewhat regretful.
The words already spoken, Ukitake Jushiro only belatedly realized this layer of complexity after finishing.
The next moment, Suoh's words made him doubt his own ears.
"Rukia? I know her. Please don't worry, Captain."
Having received a definitive answer, Suoh also perceived his concerns and worries.
No longer holding back, he replied with a smile.
"Ah, really? That's wonderful!"
"Tsukasa, I'm counting on you!"
Not expecting this unexpected bonus, Ukitake Jushiro's spirits immediately lifted. Without asking how they knew each other, surprise flashed in his eyes as he solemnly patted Suoh's shoulder.
"Mm."
"Captain, if there's nothing else, I'll take my leave. Please rest well."
Suoh nodded in acknowledgment, stood, bowed, and took his leave.
"Very well."
The main building's paper door opened and closed. Suoh's figure gradually disappeared into the distance.
Ukitake Jushiro sat quietly in place, his gaze still lingering in the direction Suoh had departed, a gentle smile appearing in his eyes.
Calm, vitality, a spirited smile, and excellent leadership abilities.
As captain, he could demand that he treat all division squad members equally, but that didn't prevent him from personally appreciating and liking Suoh.
"Aah..."
Withdrawing his gaze, Ukitake Jushiro looked down at his own pale palms.
As Thirteenth Division captain, he naturally should oversee division affairs, and cultivating squad members was also part of his responsibilities.
Upon joining, after reviewing Suoh's file showing excellent marks in zanjutsu, hakuda, hoho, and kido along with teachers' evaluations, he'd conceived thoughts of personally cultivating and guiding him.
With his body now eroded by illness, daily reviews already left him somewhat overwhelmed. Cultivating successors was even more difficult for him.
Yet merely adding annotations to a Kido book had consumed several months of his time.
Thinking of this, Ukitake Jushiro sighed deeply, carrying the melancholy of powerlessness.
He pondered for a moment.
Suddenly.
Ukitake Jushiro seemed to have an idea. He picked up paper and brush, and his brush fell.
"Respectfully addressed—"
His brush tip withdrew. He repeatedly confirmed the wording before summoning an attendant to take this letter away for delivery.
His captain's complex, indescribable feelings—the current Suoh couldn't appreciate them.
Hugging the book to his chest, his footsteps were light.
His fingertips pressed against the book's substantial cover, his lips unconsciously curving upward slightly.
At this moment, he very much wanted to burst into song about "Good Days."
But considering his persona before the squad members, to avoid social death, he decided against it.
"Good evening, Suoh 3rd Seat."
On the way back to his quarters, many squad members seeing Suoh stopped to acknowledge him.
But he only nodded in response, his steps never pausing, flashing past everyone in a moment.
After that figure quickly disappeared, several squad members remaining in place couldn't help gathering together, whispering.
"What do you think happened to Suoh 3rd Seat?"
Usually, they'd never seen Suoh walk like this.
When greeting him daily, he generally responded, and if lucky, they could even ask for his guidance and instruction.
This rare appearance today was a first.
At this moment, a sharp-eyed squad member's eyes brightened as he proposed.
"Don't know, but looking at his expression he seems very happy. Plus he's coming back from the captain's place—probably received commendation."
"Then because he stayed too long and got hungry, if he doesn't get to the dining hall there won't be much food left, so that's why he's walking so fast!"
"Ooh, I see. That makes sense. You're sharp!"
Everyone nodded, all finding this speculation reasonable, praising him.
The squad members' speculation, though not precise, wasn't far off either.
Having eaten a plate of hagi mochi at Ugendo, Suoh actually wasn't too hungry.
With something on his mind, he didn't want to cook for himself today.
After eating dinner at the dining hall, Suoh hurried back to his courtyard without stopping.
He pushed open the door and turned on the lights.
Thanks to mission rewards and connections, his room was no longer as simple and plain as when he'd first joined the division.
Exquisite chandeliers, comfortable sofas, a convenient refrigerator—everything available in the Seireitei, he'd arranged for himself. He'd comprehensively entered a comfortable lifestyle.
On the sofa.
Suoh lay back and couldn't wait to open the pages.
Besides the original printed text on the pages, many small characters were carefully written beside them. He knew this was sentiment from the captain.
His gaze didn't linger long. Skipping parts already familiar to his heart, he began focusing his search among the high-numbered Hado techniques.
Suddenly, Suoh froze.
His fingertip stopped at the page corner. The large characters of the title immediately locked Suoh's gaze.
"Hado Number Ninety: Black Coffin."
The next second, a scene flashed through Suoh's mind—himself raising his hand toward the sky as a pitch-black coffin rose from the ground. He couldn't help sighing in admiration.
"Too perfect!"
Reading the text and annotations on the page carefully, burning light ignited in his eyes.
If asked what Kido he most wanted to learn, the answer had only ever been one: Black Coffin!
Should be Black Coffin! Must be Black Coffin!
Even though it wasn't the highest-numbered Hado technique, even though there were more profound forbidden Kido—none could shake Suoh's devotion to it.
From the day he mastered spirit particle orbs, this desire had been planted in his heart.
At the Shinoreijutsuin, he'd learned Hado techniques below number sixty. Number ninety Hado had seemed so unattainably distant to him.
Taking on Hollow threat missions wasn't just to accomplish his goals—his heart also harbored thoughts of accumulating merit to exchange for opportunities to learn Black Coffin.
He hadn't expected his wish could be realized this quickly.
"Captain Ukitake, banzai!"
Deep gratitude for his captain flashing through his heart, Suoh began carefully reading Black Coffin's incantation and techniques.
After a long while, Suoh closed the book in his hands, his expression calming.
Not that he couldn't learn it, nor that his strength was insufficient to cast it.
Use it, continuously use it—the method for training Kido was just that simple and plain.
As long as he could understand the technique and precisely control his spiritual pressure release.
From one-thousandth to one-hundredth, from one-hundredth to one-tenth, finally until completely mastering the Kido.
But currently Suoh faced a very awkward problem: the training location.
The Seireitei comprehensively prohibited Shinigami above seated officer rank from releasing their Zanpakuto daily, because it could easily cause major damage to the Seireitei's architecture. Similarly, releasing high-numbered Hado for practice was also forbidden.
Forget Black Coffin—if he released a number sixty-three Raikōhō in the Seireitei this second, blowing through several walls, the next second his name would be on the Onmitsukidō's capture list.
But the long-desired Black Coffin was right before him. His heart truly couldn't restrain itself.
Right now, what Suoh lacked was a place where he could legally practice Kido within the Seireitei.
Awkwardly, though Hollow threat missions were numerous, missions where he actually led expeditions weren't that frequent.
Based on past expedition frequency, at least another ten days to two weeks. And while out on expedition, personal training wasn't convenient either.
Suoh looked toward the ceiling light, faint glimmers floating in his dark eyes.
With no mission assigned and no leave, he couldn't exit the Seireitei recently.
He was so anxious!
He desperately wanted to quickly try casting Black Coffin.
"Whew—"
But reality was just this cruel. Taking a deep breath, he forcefully suppressed the thoughts in his heart.
Putting away the book, Suoh began his evening training practice.
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