"…?!"
"A request from Captain Soi Fon herself? That's way too rare!"
At that moment, upon hearing Soi Fon's words—
Both Shiba Isshin and Matsumoto Rangiku, fellow captains in their own right, instinctively thought they had misheard.
That couldn't be right.
Among all the captains, Soi Fon was infamous for her coldness—
the only one whose aloofness rivaled Byakuya Kuchiki himself.
And as the Captain of the Second Division, as well as the Commander of the Stealth Force—
There was no reason for her to lower her stance and ask someone else for help.
Especially not an academy student.
Of course, Isshin and Rangiku weren't the only ones puzzled.
Bai Chen himself was equally confused.
"Help?"
"I haven't even graduated yet—what could I possibly help with?"
Bai Chen fell into thought.
Assassination?
Execution?
Capturing traitors?
Intelligence gathering?
Judging from the duties of the Second Division and the Stealth Force—
There was no way something so specialized would require Soi Fon to personally seek out an outsider like him.
Otherwise, wouldn't that imply—
That the entire Second Division and Stealth Force were incompetent freeloaders?
That was impossible.
No matter how tsundere Soi Fon was, she wouldn't destroy her own reputation.
"Stop guessing."
Standing at the entrance of the hidden base,
Soi Fon's petite figure was sharply outlined by the light behind her.
She raised her eyes and went straight to the point.
"Bai Chen."
"You should remember this."
"About half a month ago—on the very first day of classes."
"You used a completely new White Combat method in class."
"And with a single punch, you shattered the entire training field."
"That incident caused an enormous uproar throughout Seireitei."
As she spoke, the coldness in her expression faded, replaced by seriousness.
"Oh."
"So it's about that incident."
Bai Chen immediately understood.
Of course he remembered.
Wasn't that incident the very reason Isshin and Rangiku had become his instructors?
"So…"
"Captain Soi Fon, you're curious about my White Combat, aren't you?"
Bai Chen asked calmly.
"Yes."
Soi Fon nodded without hesitation.
"White Combat is my specialty."
"At one point, I had a sudden idea."
"To further increase its power and refine its offensive application…"
"I attempted countless times to combine White Combat with Kidō."
"But every attempt ended in failure."
She looked straight at Bai Chen.
The icy clarity in her eyes now burned with intensity.
"Bai Chen."
"When I first heard about what you did, I was immediately intrigued."
"After conducting my own investigation and confirming that you truly fused reiatsu with White Combat…"
"I decided I had to meet you in person."
"But by then, you had already left the academy for isolated training."
She explained everything in one breath.
Because this base was absurdly well hidden—
She had spent days searching nearly all of Seireitei just to find him.
"…That sounds rough."
Bai Chen smiled helplessly.
So that was it.
She was stuck on Shunkō.
Her understanding simply hadn't reached the final step yet.
But to Bai Chen—
Especially after half a month of intensive training—
Combining Kidō with White Combat was honestly easier than breathing.
"Captain Soi Fon."
"What you're envisioning… should look something like this, right?"
Without hesitation, Bai Chen released his reiatsu.
In that instant—
BOOM!
Dense, tangible reiatsu erupted outward, glowing with emerald light.
Under Bai Chen's precise control, it flowed along his arms—
coiling, wrapping, and climbing upward.
Soi Fon's eyes widened instantly.
Her heartbeat spiked. Her breathing quickened.
"Captain—!"
"He did it just like that?! This is—!"
Ōmaeda barely had time to speak before Soi Fon snapped sharply:
"Ōmaeda, shut up!"
"This is an extremely high-level technique—do not interfere with him!"
She didn't even turn her head, eyes locked onto Bai Chen.
But the one she was worried about…
Looked completely relaxed.
"…Huh?"
"High difficulty? Not really."
Bai Chen chuckled, scratching his head slightly.
"Wrapping reiatsu is just the most basic version."
"I can also compress elemental Kidō—lightning, fire, wind…"
"High-density Kidō, layered onto my arms, shoulders, even my back."
Those words struck Soi Fon like a thunderbolt.
Her mental state detonated.
"…What?"
"A problem that tormented me night after night…"
"In your eyes… it's just 'simple'?"
She froze completely.
On her way here, Soi Fon had assumed—
That Bai Chen might've only stumbled upon the technique by chance.
That they would research and refine it together.
Instead—
He didn't even give her the opportunity.
He spoke as if the problem had never existed.
At that moment, Soi Fon couldn't tell—
Whether she was lacking talent…
Or Bai Chen was simply monstrous.
Then came the truly devastating blow.
"Captain Soi Fon."
"If you don't believe me, I can demonstrate everything."
Without waiting for her reply—
Bai Chen gathered his reiatsu again.
"Hadō #33: Sōkatsui!"
"Hadō #58: Tenran!"
"Hadō #63: Raikōhō!"
Fire. Wind. Lightning.
None of them were released.
Instead, they wrapped around his arms just like before—
climbing upward, covering his shoulders and back.
His presence skyrocketed.
The pressure alone distorted the surrounding air.
And after doing all that—
Bai Chen remained calm.
No strain. No sweat.
Then, with a faint smile, he delivered a soul-crushing question
to everyone present—
Isshin. Rangiku. Soi Fon. Ōmaeda.
"Honestly…"
"Combining Kidō with White Combat isn't difficult at all."
"As captains…"
"Don't tell me none of you can manage something this simple?"
Silence.
Absolute, suffocating silence.
Even Shiba Isshin and Matsumoto Rangiku
were rendered completely speechless.
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