"Sensei, are you going to war?" Azashiro Kana asked worriedly.
The other disciples looked equally concerned. War was never a game—especially not a war against the Quincy. To Shinigami, the danger posed by Quincy could even surpass that of Hollows.
When they heard their sensei was joining the war effort, they couldn’t help but worry about his safety.
Nanatsuki laughed. "What, don’t you all believe in your sensei’s strength?"
Aizen Sōsuke responded seriously, "It’s not that. I read Master Batsu’unsai’s battlefield memoirs in the dojo’s archive."
"The Quincy War centuries ago was extremely bloody. Several of the first-generation captains died on the battlefield."
"And some suffered incurable injuries. Master Batsu’unsai’s own wounds came from that very war."
"Please, be careful, sensei. Never underestimate the Quincy."
Aizen Sōsuke loved reading in his spare time.
The Katori-ryu Dojo, passed down through generations, had preserved many books written by its past masters—most of them personal biographies left behind by Katori-ryu disciples.
He was especially fond of them because they offered insight into the history of Soul Society.
Nanatsuki smiled warmly. "Relax. I’ve fought Quincy before—I know better than to take them lightly."
"You really don’t need to worry. This time is different from the war centuries ago."
"That war was led by the Quincy King himself. It gathered nearly all of the Quincy’s forces."
"But the one I’m participating in now is just a cleanup mission—to wipe out the last remnants of the Quincy in the World of the Living."
"Alright, back to training. Just because I’m heading to the World of the Living doesn’t mean you get to slack off!"
His words reassured the disciples a little.
One event after another had pushed them to train even harder.
They were determined to grow stronger—so they could help their sensei someday.
Shihōin-san seemed distracted, as if something had come to mind.
That night, Nanatsuki and the disciples cooked together and prepared a huge feast.
Azashiro Kana took one bite of the traditionally steamed grouper and immediately teared up.
"This is amazing! It’s so good... my Zanpakutō just told me its name!"
Her Inner World had stabilized in the past few days, and she had been working to communicate with her Zanpakutō.
"What?! You achieved Shikai just from eating?!" Muguruma Kensei was stunned.
"You were the one eating, not your Zanpakutō!"
Everyone was baffled. How were these two things even connected?
Kana set down her chopsticks and drew her Zanpakutō.
"Taste this—Fourfold Feast!"
Her Zanpakutō hadn’t changed much in appearance.
"This is your Shikai?" Kensei asked. "Doesn’t look any different."
Kana smirked. "Wanna try it? The ability only activates when I land a hit."
Kensei glanced at Nanatsuki. Figuring sensei wouldn’t let things get out of hand, he held out his arm.
"Alright, hit me."
Kana raised her Zanpakutō and made a shallow cut on Kensei’s forearm.
He looked at the wound, puzzled. "Huh? I didn’t feel anything..."
"Don’t rush... just give it a second," Kana said.
About ten seconds later, Kensei’s expression turned odd.
Hirako Shinji raised a brow. "You feeling something?"
"I... I think I’m getting really hungry... Your Zanpakutō makes people hungry?" he said uncertainly.
"Kana, your ability seems kinda weak..."
Kana pouted. "’Fourfold Feast’ is offended. It wants me to slash you again."
"This really is the ability?" Kensei scoffed and offered his arm.
"Fine, go ahead."
Kana slashed him again.
A few seconds later, Kensei furrowed his brow. The hunger in his belly grew stronger, though still tolerable.
If this was the sword’s full ability, it wasn’t going to break his will.
"That’s all?" he asked.
"It’s working," Kana said.
"Then keep going. I want to see the limits of this Zanpakutō."
Kana cut him a few more times. Eventually, Kensei couldn’t take it anymore. A whole table of delicious food sat before him—far too tempting. He picked up his bowl and chopsticks and started devouring everything.
He ate quickly, but even with that speed, the hunger didn’t lessen.
At first, he didn’t think much of it. His appetite was naturally big anyway.
But after a while, the hunger just wouldn’t go away.
"Why am I still starving?!" Kensei cried in horror.
"Admit it now!" Kana laughed. "’Fourfold Feast’ controls your senses! No matter how much you eat, you’ll only feel hungrier!"
Aizen Sōsuke’s gaze sharpened slightly. An ability that tampers with sensory perception... that was worth noting.
"I surrender!" Kensei shouted. "Sensei, save me!!"
He was so ravenous he wanted to eat the bowl itself, but it did nothing.
"A brilliant ability," Nanatsuki said with a smile.
"The longer the battle drags on, the greater the advantage."
Nanatsuki had just counted silently—Kana had hit Kensei eight times in total, and the whole process had only lasted a little over ten minutes before he couldn’t take it anymore.
Of course, the effect would vary depending on the target. The stronger one’s will, the longer they could endure. The weaker, the quicker they’d break down.
Kana finally released the Zanpakutō’s effect.
"Thank the gods..." Kensei sighed in relief.
"I’ve never been that hungry in my life... it was worse than actual starvation!"
Just then, Nanatsuki’s Status Interface popped up with several messages:
[Guided Azashiro Kana to complete Shikai training. Reward calculated.]
[Reward obtained: 10,000 General Ability EXP]
[Reward obtained: Bloodline Extractor]
Going from level 80 to 85 in Reiatsu required 50,000 General Ability EXP per level.
But thanks to the reward from the graduation class, he had some EXP left over after leveling up—and Shihōin-san had also learned Shunkō.
He’d saved all of those EXP rewards.
Now, with the new 10,000 EXP, he could afford another level-up.
Nanatsuki dumped all his General Ability EXP into Reiatsu, raising it to level 81.
He also noticed that Shikai training rewards always seemed to include an item in addition to EXP.
Last time, Shihōin-san received the Spiritual Pill Formula, which had proven very useful. Naturally, he was curious what the Bloodline Extractor could do.
Nanatsuki examined its effects.
The Bloodline Extractor was a single-use item, shaped like a syringe. It could extract and preserve special bloodlines.
’Special bloodlines?’ Nanatsuki thought.
Soul Society had a few of those...
For example, the Ise clan—an ancient priestly family—was one such bloodline.
They were bound to the divine weapon Eight Mirror Blade, which only Ise descendants could wield.
But that particular bloodline wasn’t useful to Nanatsuki, so he didn’t consider it further.