Kurosaki Rei took the fresh clothes from Aizen's hands.
"Thanks. Done with your exam?"
Aizen nodded, his gaze lingering on the bloodstains still marking Kurosaki Rei's bare, well-built torso.
"Don't be discouraged. Being alive is what matters. Graduating two years later would've been fine too."
He had just finished his own assessment and come over to check on Kurosaki Rei. In his worst-case imagination, he would be arriving to collect his roommate's corpse.
Seeing Kurosaki Rei still standing, he inexplicably let out a quiet sigh of relief.
"Sōsuke, what are you talking about?" Kurosaki Rei said as he put on his clothes.
"I've already passed the assessment. All that's left are the graduation procedures."
A flicker of surprise crossed Aizen's eyes.
"You mean you… passed? You beat Captain Unohana?"
When Aizen arrived earlier, he had seen Unohana. Perhaps because the battle had just ended, the aura around her hadn't fully settled yet.
After merely exchanging a glance with her, Aizen realized how utterly wrong his previous judgment had been. Captain Unohana was not some 'best possible draw' among examiners—she was an absolutely terrifying woman.
When he noticed the large patches of blood on her body, he had already prepared himself to retrieve Kurosaki Rei's remains.
And yet here Kurosaki Rei stood, alive—and claiming victory.
"I wouldn't really say I beat her," Kurosaki Rei said modestly.
"Captain Unohana's reiatsu was restricted, and during the early probing stage she didn't go all out. Otherwise, I probably wouldn't have lasted until Shikai to turn things around."
He then looked at Aizen.
"Sōsuke, I really owe this one to you. Without your help, awakening my Zanpakutō wouldn't have been nearly as easy."
Only then did Aizen notice the changes in the sword at Kurosaki Rei's waist. It was no longer an ordinary Asauchi—it had become a true, personal Zanpakutō.
Suppressing the shock in his heart, Aizen accepted the reality.
His roommate really was absurdly monstrous—actually defeating a captain in a same-tier challenge.
"I didn't help that much," Aizen said with a smile.
"It was your own effort, Rei-kun."
"Congratulations on passing the assessment and rewriting the academy's history. I suppose I'll have to call you 'senpai' from now on. By the way, have you decided which division you want to join?"
Kurosaki Rei shook his head.
"Not yet. Let's eat first."
Which division of the Gotei Thirteen he joined didn't really matter to him right now. In two days, he would be leaving this world anyway.
No matter which division he entered, at most he'd hang around for a day—maybe take a trip to the World of the Living for some sightseeing—before returning to the Space.
In the cafeteria, countless gazes turned toward Kurosaki Rei, all filled with awe and reverence. The news that he had passed the assessment—and even defeated Captain Unohana—had spread with incredible speed. As for who leaked it, no one knew.
"If you don't have a clear goal, Rei-kun, how about the Fifth Division?" Aizen suggested.
"Vice-Captain Hirako would take good care of you."
Aizen himself planned to join the Fifth Division after graduation. Letting Kurosaki Rei go there first to wait for him didn't sound bad at all.
"That does sound like a good choice," Kurosaki Rei said after swallowing a bite of steak.
"Then Fifth Division it is."
Aizen was a little surprised.
"So decisive? You're not going to ask about the Fifth Division's atmosphere, internal structure, benefits, or anything like that?"
Kurosaki Rei smiled.
"I haven't really thought it through. And I trust your judgment, Sōsuke."
Besides, he'd be leaving in two days anyway. It didn't matter where he went—this was just indulging his roommate a little.
...
"Good kid. You actually pulled it off."
At the Shin'ō Academy's graduation ceremony, the Captain-Commander looked at Kurosaki Rei with a face full of emotion.
He had thought he'd given Kurosaki Rei an impossible challenge—yet somehow, Kurosaki Rei had really won.
When Unohana volunteered to serve as the examiner, the Captain-Commander had felt a twinge of regret, convinced that this promising sapling was probably going to die.
He genuinely admired Kurosaki Rei's talent, but he wasn't a soft-hearted man either. This trial was something Kurosaki Rei had sought out himself.
If he made it through, then the sky was wide open for him.
If he didn't, then he would simply have died of his own arrogance.
"I also have Captain Unohana to thank for showing mercy," Kurosaki Rei said humbly.
At the academy's annual graduation ceremony, most of the captains were in attendance. Unohana was here as well.
But the captains weren't present merely to observe and offer congratulations—they were here to recruit.
At that moment, Kurosaki Rei could clearly feel several burning gazes fixed on him from different directions.
He was hot property.
Three months to speedrun the Shin'ō Academy.
Mastery of zanjutsu, hakuda, kidō, hohō—everything.
Victory over Unohana Retsu in a same-tier battle.
Though still technically a student, Kurosaki Rei's name was already known throughout Seireitei.
The captains all wanted this promising talent. With some cultivation, he could quickly become a competent seated officer—and given the aptitude he'd displayed, many believed he could reach vice-captain or even captain level in time.
"Hahaha, no need to be modest now," the Captain-Commander laughed.
"But you've certainly caught a lot of eyes."
He swept his gaze across the captains staring at Kurosaki Rei, then smiled.
"Well, kid—how about the First Division?"
The moment those words left his mouth, the expressions of several captains changed. Their anticipation instantly evaporated.
They had all come here for Kurosaki Rei. But once the Captain-Commander spoke, it was obvious there'd be no share left for them.
The graduation venue erupted in quiet astonishment—even the captains were surprised.
This was the first time anyone had seen old man Yamamoto personally invite a graduate to join the First Division.
It was clear how highly he regarded Kurosaki Rei. One could already foresee it—the Captain-Commander likely intended to keep Kurosaki Rei by his side for personal instruction. Perhaps in a hundred years, another captain-level powerhouse would be born.
"Thank you for the offer, Captain-Commander," Kurosaki Rei said.
"But I've already decided which division I want to join."
To everyone's surprise, Kurosaki Rei actually refused the invitation.
The students looked at him strangely, as if asking whether he even understood what he had just turned down.
But Kurosaki Rei had his own considerations.
To be honest, he could join almost any division in the Gotei Thirteen—except the First Division.
The Captain-Commander was clearly planning to continue educating him, possibly keeping him close at all times.
When he eventually returned to the Space, that could become… awkward.
After obtaining return eligibility, he could choose to leave voluntarily. But once the allotted stay expired, the Terminal Space would forcibly extract him—without allowing even a second of delay.
And Kurosaki Rei had a vague premonition that he might come back to this world again someday.
He didn't want to "disappear" right under the Captain-Commander's nose.
"Oh? You've already decided?" the Captain-Commander asked.
"Is it the Fourth Division?"
He knew Unohana had brought Kurosaki Rei into the academy, and she had also served as his examiner. In that sense, Unohana was undeniably Kurosaki Rei's benefactor.
If Kurosaki Rei wanted to follow her out of gratitude, it was perfectly understandable.
Though personally, the Captain-Commander felt it would be a waste of Kurosaki Rei's combat talent to send him to a medical-support division.
Kurosaki Rei turned his gaze toward the captains' section. When his eyes met Unohana's, she smiled gently and nodded at him.
"No," Kurosaki Rei said.
"I want to join the Fifth Division."
Unohana's smile stiffened for just a moment.
She had already been prepared to personally train Kurosaki Rei.
It didn't make sense—Kurosaki Rei had no prior connection with the Fifth Division. Even if he wanted a combat-focused unit, the Eleventh Division would've been the more obvious choice.
"Excellent choice! The Fifth Division has the best待遇!"
At that moment, the current Fifth Division captain, Akimoto Yoshitaka, couldn't help but stride forward, using shunpo to appear beside Kurosaki Rei. The joy on his face was impossible to hide.
He had assumed someone like Kurosaki Rei was completely out of his reach. If not the Captain-Commander, then surely Captain Unohana—either way, there was no way it would be his turn.
And yet Kurosaki Rei had named the Fifth Division himself.
A gift from the heavens.
Kurosaki Rei looked at this Fifth Division captain—someone who never appeared in the original canon—and thought to himself: That really is a background-character face.
Give it another hundred years, and Hirako Shinji would probably replace him.
Seeing that Kurosaki Rei had already spoken, and that Akimoto looked ready to cling to him and never let go, the Captain-Commander abandoned any further persuasion.
In his view, with Kurosaki Rei's talent, becoming a captain was only a matter of time. He wouldn't remain in the Fifth Division forever.
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