Chapter 2: Shin’o Spiritual Arts Academy

"Shin'o Spiritual Arts Academy." Katori Nanatsuki looked up at the plaque hanging above the gate. The Shin'o Spiritual Arts Academy was the school in the Soul Society where Shinigami were trained. After graduating, students would be assigned to various divisions and officially become Shinigami. However, Nanatsuki had never actually studied at this academy. He was directly brought into the 8th Division by Katori Batsu'unsai and trained personally. "Stop right there!" A cute, petite Shinigami stood in the gatekeeper's office. She had shoulder-length, wavy brown hair and radiated energetic charm. "This is the Shin'o Spiritual Arts Academy. You can't enter without permi—eh?" As she stepped out, she tripped over the doorframe and landed with a loud thud. "—Owww!" "Miss, are you alright?" Nanatsuki scratched his cheek awkwardly. 'No need for such a dramatic greeting.' The petite Shinigami scrambled to her feet, rubbing her forehead. "I'm fine... Huh? Why do you look kind of familiar?" she muttered, massaging her temple and trying to place where she'd seen him before. "I'm Katori Nanatsuki. I'm here to apply for the position of swordsmanship instructor," he said gently. With a thought, a semi-transparent interface only visible to him appeared before his eyes. [Shirai Riko] [Talent: C] [Spiritual Pressure: Lv20] [Reputation Level: Stranger] [Status: Dizzy (Ouch ouch ouch!!!)] Ever since activating the Teacher System, Nanatsuki could view his own and others' status panels. Whenever he met an unfamiliar Shinigami, he instinctively checked their panel first. From his observations, a C-rank talent was the most common among Shinigami. Most likely, anyone with a talent rank lower than C couldn't become a Shinigami at all. Nanatsuki casually opened his own panel. [Katori Nanatsuki] [Base Attributes: Spiritual Pressure Lv5, Swordsmanship Lv50, Kido Lv20, Hakuda Lv10, Shunpo Lv20] [Sword Techniques: Shun Strike (Mastered), Flowlight (Proficient), Senmai-Oroshi (Novice), Shunpo Iaido (Novice), Blade Catch (Novice)...] [Kido: Kaido (Proficient), Hadō #1: Shō (Novice), Bakudō #1: Sai (Novice)...] [Disciples: None (Apprenticeship function not yet activated)] His own panel was more detailed than others', listing his mastered sword and Kido techniques. Among his base attributes, swordsmanship clearly stood out the most. But aside from that, the rest were fairly average. His biggest shortcoming was his Spiritual Pressure—only level 5. If translated into Soul Society's ranking system, that was equivalent to Level 20 Reiatsu: the level of a typical foot soldier. "Katori Nanatsuki? Oh—now I remember!" The petite Shinigami clenched her tiny fists. "I heard from someone in the 8th Division—Captain Katori has a younger brother! No wonder you looked so familiar—you two look alike!" "We do look a little similar." Nanatsuki held up two fingers, mimicking a cosmic pinch. Not many Shinigami were familiar with Nanatsuki. Though he was technically part of the 8th Division, Batsu'unsai never assigned him any missions—he had just told him to train hard in the dojo. After Batsu'unsai retired, the new Captain, Kyōraku Shunsui, gave Nanatsuki a long-term mission: to take care of the former captain, who was now seriously ill. "You said you're here to apply as a swordsmanship instructor?" the petite Shinigami asked as she grabbed a pen. "Yes. Could you tell me where the headmaster's office is?" Nanatsuki nodded. "Ah, of course. Headmaster Kotetsu's office is on the second floor of that building—second room on the left." She recorded his name in the visitor log and pointed the way. "Thank you." Following her directions, Nanatsuki soon found the headmaster's office. Sitting behind the desk was a silver-haired woman—Kotetsu Ayane, the headmaster of the academy. She wore her long hair with blunt bangs, and two slender braids tucked along the side of her face. A pair of red, rectangular earrings adorned her ears. Instead of the standard black Shihakushō, she wore an elegant white kimono, giving her a serene and graceful presence. Kotetsu Ayane closely resembled the future 4th Division captain, Kotetsu Isane. Which made sense—because she was Isane's mother. Though Ayane looked only in her twenties, she was actually a widow raising two daughters. "I'm here to apply as a swordsmanship instructor," Nanatsuki said. He instinctively checked her panel as well. [Kotetsu Ayane] [Talent: S-] [Spiritual Pressure: Lv89] [Reputation Level: Friendly] [Status: Spiritual Pressure has reached the Vice-Captain threshold, with slight room for growth] Her Spiritual Pressure was overwhelming—the highest Nanatsuki had seen on anyone so far. "No need to be so formal, Katori-kun. Please, have a seat." Kotetsu Ayane lit a kettle and began preparing tea. "How is Captain Katori doing?" she asked as she poured him a cup. "When I visited a few days ago, she still seemed very weak. Has her condition worsened?" "Thank you," Nanatsuki said, accepting the tea. He replied with a heavy tone, "It took thirty-two days to stabilize her somewhat. Captain Unohana told me... things aren't looking good." "Do make time to visit her more often," Ayane said with a sigh. She knew in her heart that Katori Batsu'unsai didn't have much time left. And if even Captain Unohana couldn't help her, there was little hope anyone else could. "I've already heard about your swordsmanship skills," Ayane continued. "You'll have no trouble serving as an instructor at the academy. We have a lot of new students this year. You'll be responsible for one of the classes—and aside from teaching swordsmanship, you'll also serve as their homeroom teacher." She flipped through a student roster. New instructors were expected to lead a first-year class. It was tradition at the academy. Starting in the third year, each class would take part in live-combat missions—led by their homeroom teacher—to gain real-world Shinigami experience. "Hmm—Kuchiki... Kasumioji... Ōmaeda... Amamimon..." Ayane frowned. "The promising students have already been assigned. There's still one from the Chijō family, but... they haven't been doing well these past years." "I wanted to assign you a class that'd be easy to manage, but Vice Headmaster Tsunayashiro already finalized the placements. In our experience, students from Seireitei are usually easier to teach," she added with some regret. Class assignments weren't usually her responsibility—they fell to the vice headmaster. She had hoped to give Nanatsuki a class with strong prospects, but all the "good seedlings" had already been taken. Generally speaking, noble-born students or those with Shinigami parents already had some foundation, making them easier to train. Students from Rukongai often had to be taught from scratch. The remaining class, still unassigned a sword instructor, consisted almost entirely of students from Rukongai. "It's alright. Students from Rukongai deserve just as much attention. I'll teach them well," Nanatsuki said confidently, sipping his tea. After activating the Teacher System, all he wanted was to begin instructing as soon as possible. This position was his goal. Kotetsu Ayane gave a faint smile. She appreciated Nanatsuki's confidence. 'A steady heart comes before a steady blade. Those who waver in spirit rarely succeed in swordsmanship.' "I'll leave this class to you, then," she said, picking up her pen and writing his name into the roster. "Looks like we're coworkers now, Katori-kun." [Appointed as Swordsmanship Instructor at Shin'o Spiritual Arts Academy] [Teaching students will earn feedback rewards] [Apprenticeship system activated: mentor students to earn rewards] [Note: students must acknowledge you as their mentor]