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Chapter 6: Shinigami Academy I
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"Without control, power is meaningless. And make no mistake; many of you have power, but very few of you have control."
Hoshino raised a hand, and a faint blue aura shimmered to life around him. It expanded outward briefly before he pulled it back, condensing it into a glowing sphere of energy no larger than a marble.
"We begin with the simplest exercise; focusing and condensing your spiritual energy into a stable form."
The students watched intently as Hoshino flicked the sphere into the air, letting it dissolve harmlessly.
"Step one is to extend your energy outward. Step two is to gather it into a shape. Start small. Anything larger than this," He held up the space between his thumb and forefinger, "Means you lack control."
The students dispersed into smaller groups, each finding a clear spot on the field to practice. Akashi chose a space at random though someone did join him.
"Akashi! Can we join you?" It was none other than Renji and Rukia.
"Of course," Akashi nodded, turning his attention to Rukia who seemed to be ignoring him, "Hey, twelve."
"Hey," Seeing as he took the initiative to say hey, Rukia had to respond, taking her a while to realize what he said; though Renji realized very quickly.
"Pfft hahaha," He couldn't help but burst out in laughter.
"I'm not twelve!!" Rukia erupted yet again.
"I have never seen such a way of learning to control your spiritual power... Guess you learn something new every day," Without them realizing it, and as if he had teleported, the instructor appeared behind them.
Hoshino looked down on them, scrutinizing them, especially the nervous Rukia.
"Sorry, Teacher," Akashi was the first to apologize, "It's my fault."
"Get to work," Hoshino nodded and instructed, walking away to survey the other students.
Akashi released a faint smile as he turned his gaze to Rukia, "Sorry, but you're just so easy to tease."
Rukia's eyes lit up ablaze, eyeing him venomously but unable to say a word, so she started showing off by letting out her energy and forming a ball, then challenged him with her eyes to do the same.
Akashi couldn't help but chuckle, his eyes those of amusement. Renji was amused as well, but he also showed off.
Akashi, on the other hand, closed his eyes briefly, centering himself as he had done countless times in Rukongai when training alone.
Stretching out his hand, he allowed his spiritual energy to flow outward. A faint dark aura surrounded his palm.
Slowly, the energy coalesced into a small sphere, bright and steady.
Akashi opened his eyes, and scrutinized the sphere, trying to perfect it while keeping it steady.
It was obvious that Akashi wasn't interested in a competition, so Renji and Rukia focused as well.
Akashi sought comparison, noticing that nobles excelled. It's evident that they have been taught such things since young.
Most, however, struggled, often only forming whisps of energy that easily fell apart.
"Impressive," Hoshino remarked, appearing beside the three with the quiet grace of a seasoned combatant.
His gaze lingered on the results before pointing out to Renji and Rukia, "Your control is strong, but your shape is inefficient. Energy is leaking from the edges."
He then turned his attention to Akashi, "Try to compact the sphere til its limit, and try to go beyond."
Akashi nodded and continued, compressing the sphere as much as he could, and the more he compressed, the less he felt in control.
After an hour of practice, Hoshino clapped his hands, drawing the students' attention.
"Once you can create a stable sphere, the next step is shaping your energy. A sphere is basic. A Shinigami must be adaptable, able to manipulate their energy into forms that suit their needs."
He extended his hand again, and this time his energy molded itself into the shape of a blade.
It hovered in the air for a moment before reshaping into a shield, then a whip-like tendril.
"Begin with simple shapes: cubes, cylinders, triangles. Do not attempt anything advanced until you've mastered the basics. Precision matters more than creativity at this stage."
"I stress, begin small. You are training your Reiatsu control. In reality, forming a shield of energy is useless and inefficient. Any Zanpakuto with even a fraction of Reiatsu injected into it would spear right through it."
"This is a basic class that prepares you for all the ways you'll use your Reiatsu in the future, a thousand years of studies and refinement showed us the way... The way of Shinigami!!"
With a swift, almost undetectable move, Hoshino unsheathed his blade, and swung it ever so slightly, releasing a burst of aura that enveloped the entire area.
"The four major Shinigami combat forms! Starting with Zanjutsu, the fighting style for the Zanpakutō... The way of the blade."
"Then Hakudo! An unarmed fighting technique that makes use of one's own body in a fight."
"Hohō! The name for all high-speed fighting movements based on the art of Shunpo."
"Lastly, Kidō; Advanced spells that require strong spiritual power split into Hadō, Bakudō, and Kaido, also known as Healing Kaido."
"Therefore, your priority is to learn how to make use of your Reiatsu!"
'Much better than expected,' Akashi noted. The environment and the teaching of the academy were honestly way better than his expectations.
He dove into the exercise with quiet. A cube was his first attempt; clean and precise. A cylinder followed, then a triangle.
It wasn't his first time forming such shapes, but it was his first time trying to cycle through them quickly.
He was basically trying to mimic the nobles who were showing off, and they were indeed better than everyone else.
By midday, most of the students were exhausted, their energy reserves depleted by repeated failures.
Hoshino, however, showed no mercy, "Control is not just about concentration; it is about efficiency. If you exhaust yourselves creating a single shape, what will you do in the heat of battle?"
"Your next task is to extend your energy into threads and waves. Do not just release your energy like an idiot! Only release as much as you need."
This exercise proved far more challenging. Threads required a delicate touch, the energy stretched thin and fine without breaking.
Akashi started with threads, narrowing his focus until his energy extended outward in a single strand.
Akashi felt it again, that resistance that he always feels when trying something new, as if his own energy is rejecting him... He couldn't understand, why?
Still, he continued, just as before. Just try again and again til the end of time, and you'll eventually succeed.
The threads wavered briefly before stabilizing, slicing cleanly through the air. He added a second thread, then a third, and poof, he lost control.
After trying a few more times, he switched to waves to see how it'd feel... He struggled more.
The problem was that what he ended up releasing was no wave but simply uncontrolled harmless chaos.
He looked around and realized that practically everyone except the nobles was experiencing the same thing.
Before he could continue, he heard the Teacher's voice resounding about, "Alright! We're done here. Go have a meal, rest, then head to your second class!"
Everyone was exhausted. Releasing their energy for so long left them drained.
Even Akashi felt exhaustion though he noticed that nobles had no such trouble, largely because they didn't need to practice, having learned most of these methods under their noble families.
Akashi, traced his eyes around, soon landing on a target, a blonde-haired noble.
He stood up and made his way to him without a sliver of hesitation.
Renji and Rukia looked at each other and then watched Akashi walk to the group of nobles, the first one to do so in their class.
"Akashi," Akashi extended his hand for a handshake, standing right before the man.
"Izuru?" Izuku reflexively responded, and since he already responded, he had to shake his hand, although he still asked, "Do you need something?"
"Just wanna make friends," Akashi smiled and didn't allow the man to either refuse or agree as he added, "By the way, I saw that you are the best in here with the waves trick, any advice?"
"The best? Hahahahaha," That wasn't Izuru's voice, but another noble who scoffed in laughter.
Akashi's voice was loud enough that the noble heard him, and he didn't like what he said one bit, "Are you blind, my friend?"
"If I'm blind, then I am sorry. I was merely looking for advice from the best. Are you the best?" Akashi was very polite, his mannerisms that of a gentleman, and he could very well fit with them right in.
The noble spoke with actions rather than words as he waved his, releasing a clear wave of Reiatsu toward him.
Akashi felt it collide with him gently, harmless, yet excellent. He released a gentle smile and extended his hand for a handshake, "Akashi."
"Shin," The noble didn't hesitate much as he shook his hand.
The reality is that Izuru was born into a family of lesser nobility. He was good, but Akashi must've certainly noticed someone better... He just needed a tool to help him fit in.