"Oof..."
"So tired."
The morning's Hakuda (Hand-to-Hand Fighting) course was declared over with Yuuki Shinnosuke's crisp dismissal.
The students were all grimacing, dragging their lead-filled legs and moving their weary bodies toward the mess hall with sighs and groans, looking like a horde of zombies.
"Suō, what exactly was Yuuki-sensei teaching?"
"I feel like I haven't learned anything at all."
Toshiro Hitsugaya walked beside Suō Tsukasa, displaying a rare look of confusion.
The exhaustion of his body left him a bit listless. Even his signature silver hair seemed to have lost its usual sharp edge, drooping lifelessly.
"Who knows? Every teacher has their own way of teaching. Just learn according to his method."
Suō Tsukasa replied easily, his breathing steady, forming a stark contrast to the state of everyone else around him.
A morning of basic training was not enough to touch his limit.
He finally understood why no upperclassmen appeared in the first class of Hakuda.
The Hakuda course wasn't divided into advanced and basic groups.
All students were treated the same by Yuuki Shinnosuke, regardless of their aptitude, starting point, or performance.
Punch, and punch until one could no longer throw a standard straight punch.
Even Suō Tsukasa, whose performance far surpassed his classmates, was likewise required to repeat this simple and brutal process.
However, by the time class was dismissed, while other students' legs were shaking, his condition remained very good.
This display seemed to have touched Yuuki Shinnosuke's emotions.
Because Suō Tsukasa clearly noticed that when the bell rang for dismissal, the teacher's eyebrow twitched, and the corner of his mouth warped slightly.
But since the man had specifically given pointers on the essence of the school's fighting style, he figured it wasn't a big deal and didn't pay it much attention.
"Let's go, time to eat."
"Rest well at noon. We have Shunpo class this afternoon."
Clapping Hitsugaya on the shoulder, the two led the slow-moving "zombie tide" towards the mess hall.
The training ground for the afternoon's Shunpo (Flash Step) class was set up in a spacious open-air plaza.
The students lined up silently by the edge of the field.
A figure instantly appeared in front of the students, demonstrating her skill as the Shunpo instructor.
She had neat, short brown hair, a beautiful face, and a pair of long, straight legs full of explosive power lightly stepping on the green grass.
Her sleeveless black teaching uniform clung to her tanned skin, perfectly outlining her smooth and powerful physique. She looked like a rare, beautiful, mature woman.
However, the all-male Class 1 showed no reaction to this, as most were already utterly exhausted, lacking even the strength to lift their heads and admire her.
"Hmm..."
Long legs, flat chest, off-the-shoulder outfit—she must indeed be fast.
Suō Tsukasa merely glanced at her before withdrawing his gaze.
The teacher's appearance perfectly matched Suō Tsukasa's idea of a Shunpo expert, just a bit too flat.
Her voice was clear and sharp. Before she could finish introducing herself, she stopped abruptly.
Noticing the abnormal state of the students in front of her, she slapped her hand over her face and roared wildly.
"Damn Shinnosuke! That guy is pulling this stunt again!"
"Why the hell is Shunpo class scheduled after Hakuda? How are they supposed to learn? So annoying!"
She vented her frustration by giving a hearty middle finger towards the Hakuda training ground.
"You must be Suō, right? You'll do."
"The rest of you sit down and rest. Listen and watch."
Having vented her emotions, her gaze landed on Suō Tsukasa again.
"Thank you, Suō! Thank goodness for you!"
Upon hearing this, everyone immediately cast grateful looks towards the pride of their class and promptly sat down to rest.
"Sensei, what do you need me to do?"
Although Suō Tsukasa hadn't caught her full name, calling her 'Sensei' was correct. He walked leisurely to her side.
"That Yuichi guy's eye for talent is truly sharp."
"To be in this condition after Shinnosuke's drill, your foundation is genuinely excellent."
The female teacher sized him up, her eyes showing a trace of approval.
She then pointed to the finish line marker at the far end of the field.
"Use your fastest speed, use Shunpo to rush from the starting point to the finish line. Let me see how well you perform."
"Understood."
Suō Tsukasa nodded, went to the starting point, and performed simple stretches to loosen his limbs.
He took the opportunity to recall and review the key points from his Advanced Shunpo Techniques manual.
"Power-up, take-off, Shunpo."
The basic usage of Shunpo is divided into these three stages, though the actual process is over in a flash.
The fundamental principle is the simultaneous burst of Reiatsu and physical function, along with precise timing for lifting the foot.
The more advanced application involves concurrently forming a Reishi foothold at the landing spot, which is the basis for moving through the air.
"Hiss—"
Ready, Suō Tsukasa took a deep breath, and his eyes instantly became focused.
The leg muscles beneath his clothing instantly tensed, accumulating power. His knee slightly lowered, his ankle was stable, his arch was poised, and his entire body was ready to spring forth.
Shuā—
There was no astonishing commotion, only the sound of clothes flapping as he cut through the air.
Suō Tsukasa's figure vanished from the spot in an instant.
The next second, his figure appeared halfway through, only to vanish immediately again. Before the onlookers could react, his figure stabilized firmly at the finish line.
"Eh, where did Sensei go?"
Many students were startled to find that the female teacher beside them had also suddenly disappeared.
They turned their eyes toward Suō Tsukasa's position and noticed a second figure had appeared at the finish line.
"Interesting..."
"You already know the advanced techniques. You're quite something, kid."
"From now on, in Shunpo class, you will receive individual instruction from me."
"Wait for me..."
The female teacher stopped directly in front of Suō Tsukasa, looking him straight in the eyes, which were filled with the delight of finding a worthy target.
Her tone was no longer as casual as before, and her face held a degree of professorial seriousness.
Shunpo is easy to learn but hard to master. It is already difficult for ordinary Shinigami to achieve the simultaneous burst of both body and Reiatsu, as the two often fail to fully synchronize.
It's even more challenging to add the formation of a Reishi foothold at the landing point on top of that. Focusing on three things at once is certainly not a simple $1 + 1 + 1$ difficulty.
Just the two steps Suō Tsukasa had just performed surpassed the level of most ordinary Shinigami in the Seireitei, genuinely giving her a thrill of the hunt.
No sooner had her words finished than her figure instantly vanished again before everyone's eyes.
"She's certainly whirlwind-like..."
"Eh, why did Sensei suddenly leave?"
"Wasn't she supposed to lecture? I haven't heard anything yet."
She left no instructions, leaving behind a baffled Suō Tsukasa and the students on the sideline.
He had no choice but to return to the crowd and wait with his classmates.
"Suō-kun, what did the teacher say to you? Why did she leave so suddenly?"
"Suō-kun, how did you practice your Shunpo? It felt even faster than my father's!"
As soon as he returned to the group, someone immediately asked, and bolder ones inquired about Suō Tsukasa's Shunpo experience.
"She didn't say much, just that she'll be back later."
"As for Shunpo, it still comes down to the most basic things: body, Reiatsu, posture, and footwork."
The training ground temporarily fell into a peculiar atmosphere.
With the teacher nowhere to be found, the students gathered around Suō Tsukasa, listening to him share his insights.