Morning in Seireitei always carried a soft stillness, but today the air felt like it was vibrating. Ethan lay flat on his back in the Division 4 training field, chest heaving, limbs twitching from leftover shockwaves. The crater around him wasn't large, but it was deep—the ground had folded inward as if punched by a deity.
Standing at the crater's rim, hands folded neatly as ever, Unohana observed him with serene disappointment.
"Ethan," she said sweetly, "that was… sloppy."
He groaned. "It was the phrase, wasn't it? I'm pretty sure I said it right."
"You did." She smiled. "And that is the problem. You said it correctly… but your spirit obeyed you while you were terrified."
Ethan flopped one hand upward in half-hearted protest. "Akahana doesn't listen to nuance. She's like… like a bomb with legs."
"That is why," Unohana said as she began stepping into the crater, "we are going to teach you how to handle her."
As she crouched beside him, Ethan could feel her reiatsu press down—light enough not to crush him, heavy enough to remind him his life depended entirely on her mood.
"Sit," she commanded gently.
Ethan obeyed instantly.
---
Akahana's Power — Before Training
Shikai: Hōkabana (Burst Blossom)
Release phrase: "Bloom, Akahana."
Ability: Generates explosive energy that blooms outward in shockwaves or projectile blasts.
Problem: The output is influenced heavily by Ethan's emotional state—fear, adrenaline, or uncertainty cause overblasts.
---
Unohana placed her hand on his shoulder. "Tell me, Ethan… why did you fear your own power?"
He hesitated. "…Because she wants to blow everything up. Including me."
Unohana chuckled, and it was soft but cold enough to freeze his spine. "And that frightens you?"
"Yes! Why wouldn't it?!"
"Because," she said, "your spirit is not trying to destroy you. She is trying to teach you."
Ethan blinked. "By almost vaporizing me?"
Unohana smiled. "She is a passionate woman."
"Passionate? She talks like she's flirting while lighting fuses!"
"Mm." Unohana nodded thoughtfully. "Then match her passion."
Ethan stared. "How?"
"That is what we will learn today." She stood. "Activate your Shikai again."
Ethan paled. "Now?"
She gave him a look that said there was no alternative in the universe.
He raised his sword reluctantly.
"Hōkabana…"
A pulse traveled through the blade.
"…Bloom, Akahana."
Crimson petals of reiatsu unfurled from the blade, swirling into a spiraling glow. Sparks flickered. The ground trembled.
"I SWEAR IF YOU FLINCH AGAIN I'M GOING TO BLOOM YOUR FACE OFF!" Akahana's voice roared inside his mind.
"See?" Ethan hissed. "She's in a mood."
Unohana stood behind him, hand on his back. "Control, Ethan. Do not suppress it—shape it."
"How?!"
"Breathe." Her voice softened. "And don't fight the fire. Embrace it."
The blade glowed hotter—red, then gold. Akahana's laughter echoed through him, wild and intoxicating.
Ethan's knees almost buckled. "It's—It's too much—"
Unohana's hand pressed harder on his back. A flood of her reiatsu washed like a river into his spine.
"Stand."
He gasped—his legs straightened instantly, not by choice.
"You will not collapse. Not today."
Ethan felt the panic, the rising fear—then he remembered her words: Do not fear her. Match her.
He grit his teeth.
"Akahana," he muttered. "Let's do this right."
"Oh? Found your backbone?" she purred in his mind.
The blade's glow stabilized—slightly.
---
Training Phase 1 — Breathing with Explosions
Unohana snapped her fingers.
BOOM.
A shockwave burst from Ethan's blade, but this time it didn't send him flying. His heels dug in, teeth clenched, lungs steady.
"Good," Unohana said. "Again."
BOOM.
He held steady.
"Again."
BOOOOOOM.
He staggered but stayed upright.
Akahana hummed inside him. "Mmm. He's learning to handle me. How cute."
Ethan snarled back, "You're the one trying to roast me!"
"Because you're worth roasting, darling."
Unohana nodded. "Your spirit approves."
"That's approval?!"
---
Training Phase 2 — Directional Control
Unohana didn't wait for him to breathe.
She rushed forward, sword unsheathed.
Ethan yelped, "WHY ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL ME?!"
"I am trying to teach you." Her blade swung.
Instinctively, Ethan pointed Hōkabana—
"DON'T PANIC—" Akahana screamed—
BOOOOOOOOM.
A blast rocketed toward Unohana.
She dodged casually, landing behind him. "Wrong direction."
Ethan spun. "You moved!"
"That is what opponents do."
He groaned.
Unohana raised her blade slightly. "Try again."
---
Training Phase 3 — Precision Explosions
Ethan inhaled through his nose, exhaled between clenched teeth.
"Akahana," he whispered, "help me. Just this once."
She chuckled warmly. "I help you every day, sweet thing."
He aimed at a boulder. Narrowed his focus.
Not fear. Not panic. Intent.
"Bloom."
A small, focused explosion shot out—clean, directed—obliterating only the center of the rock.
Unohana's eyes lit up. "Excellent."
Ethan blinked. "…I did it?"
"You did. Again."
He repeated it—three times, then five. Each blast cleaner, tighter, more controlled.
The difference felt like going from holding a firecracker to controlling a shaped charge.
Akahana sounded genuinely proud. "See? You can handle me. You just needed to stop squealing."
"I don't squeal."
"You did, actually."
Unohana strolled over, hands behind her back. "Now, Ethan… one final test."
"Final? Already?"
"Oh no," Unohana said sweetly. "Not for today. For this phase."
She gestured at a row of wooden dummies in different directions.
"Hit each target at different angles with precise output. If you destroy anything else, we begin from the start."
Ethan felt the horror rise.
Akahana whispered, "Let's make her proud."
Ethan braced himself, adjusted his grip, and whispered—
"Bloom."
BOOM—first target obliterated.
He pivoted—BOOM—second one gone.
He spun—BOOM—third.
Unohana watched with serene interest.
Fourth shot—
BOOM.
Fifth—
BOOM.
The last dummy exploded cleanly with zero collateral damage.
Ethan fell to his knees, sweating, trembling, exhausted.
Unohana crouched beside him, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear.
"You did wonderfully today, Ethan."
He breathed a laugh. "So… training's over?"
She smiled softly.
"No."
He died inside.
"We are merely finished with step one."
Akahana cackled in his mind. "Oh, this is going to be fun."
Ethan groaned into the dirt.