First year
(Nobutsuna Shigyō POV)
I checked out the recruits today. It's something I've been doing since becoming a Captain of this rule-infested place. Ever since Yamamoto started the Gotei 13 the rules seem to have taken hold over ... almost everything.
I can't even have a serious battle anymore. The Cetnral 46 shits their pants otherwise. Furōfushi and I haven't had a good fight in forever. And you couldn't ask Unohana. That woman went all serious when you fought her.
I noticed that since the war with the Quincy has passed the new Shinigami are all ... weak. They don't know the pressure of war that we know and the lawlessness that forced the strong to survive and the weak to die.
But that's changed now. I can tell how this will ruin us Shinigami in the future. I sure hope I don't get to see it.
Now as I sit here on the roof of the Shinigami Academy that Yamamoto founded, I notice that most recruits are still as I expected, weak. There are some children of minor noble houses attending. Their Reiatsu is higher than others, but other than that ... there is no one interesting.
Well, that was until 'he' arrived. That kid with a lean and musculature build had some serious Reiatsu. It even made the crystal ball explode. He was not even in the Academy and already had Reiatsu comparable to a Lieutenant. Maybe even that of Saizō, when he doesn't have his Shikai activated. But Saizō is not a Captain for his Reiatsu reserves.
I was interested the moment I saw this kid. Toji Fushiguro was his name. I wanted to have him in my squad. I observed him for the rest of the day and the kid was seriously talented.
It took him all of 30 minutes to figure the basics of Zanjutsu out and also controlling his spirit energy came naturally to him. I was sure of one thing ... he will become a monster in the future. And I know a monster when I see one.
.
.
(3rd Person POV)
The time passed in the Academy. Toji was making waves in the Seireitei as a future Captain candidate. His talent and prowess were known to the Captains as soon as the second week. The Instructors reported how the students did once a month and special talents were always brought up and discussed.
So with Toji casually learning things for the first time after seeing them, he was getting some attention. After the Captain of the 7th Division, Nobutsuna Shigyō had observed him, others also got interested.
Three were especially interested in Toji. That was one Furōfushi Saitō, the Captain of the 6th Division. When the instructors reported his talent of Toji to the Headcaptain Yamamoto, she got interested as well.
After seeing him in action, her battle lust ignited and she wanted to fight him. And what's more, the brat actually looked at her ... and he didn't cower at all. Oh, she wanted to fight this one so badly. But Yamamoto would get angry with her and probably kill her if she attacked a student ... Eh, she'll wait.
But Furōfushi Saitō was not the only one who watched Toji. Another one was Yachiru Unohana the Captain of the 11th Division and the current Kenpachi.
.
.
(Unohana POV)
I watched as the Fushiguro boy spared with the Zanjutsu instructor. He had some real talent and he was not arrogant ... yet. She was interested in seeing him when he got stronger. She had yet to find someone who might become the next Kenpachi.
This Toji Fushiguro was in a dangerous spot right now. There were at least four Captains eying him right now. And all of them were equally twisted in their own way.
Nobutsuna Shigyō and Furōfushi Saitō were two battle maniacs like I was. But they didn't know when to restrain themselves. I also went around and killed anything that attacked when roaming the Rukongai districts, but they were crazy and their lack of restraint would get them killed in the future.
The last one that was eying Toji Fushiguro was ... Saizō Sakahone. The Captain of the 13th Division was one disgusting man. She would not have offered him a position. This perverse need to kill anything that was strong and had potential was what was repulsing.
'Devour' is what he called his actions. And I am sure that he truly did that. His Zanpakuto had to be an abomination for this man to do such things. I was always ready to kill her fellow Captains at a moment's notice. They were all dangerous.
I would wait for Toji Fushiguro to grow stronger to fight him. Maybe I should meet him ... we shall see.
.
.
(3rd Person POV)
The years passed slowly and without much happening. The captains were all still going around and looking for the next thing to entertain their blades.
The classes of Hakuda and Hoho were interesting to Toji as he had never tried such a fighting style. The movement technique was cool as well. But he would have to make some changes in the future. It was far too linear of a movement.
Hohō is an important skill for most Shinigami, which incorporates speed and agility. The skill level of Hohō can be enhanced and improved through concentration, training, and mastery of it.
Shunpo or 'Flash Step' is the greatest expression of the Hohō technique; however, there are variations even within Shunpo, which only master Hohō practitioners can use. I was going to master this and then improve and change it slightly.
Shunpo is a movement technique which allows the user to move faster than the eye can follow. As speed is the main factor of the technique, the method is best characterized by how fast one can get from point A to point B in the least amount of steps. Training and skill are what determines how fast a user of Shunpo can move.
But that was very simple and uninteresting. It reminded Toji of 'Soru' from the Rokushiki, from One Piece. Sure you were fast for a short moment but it was still linear.
He wanted to make the movement unpredictable. Like flowing water or the wind that could get through the best defences. And to be honest it wouldn't take that much for him to come up with something like that.
He just had to imagine such a technique and then learn it and voila ... he just improved the Shunpo.
.
Hakuda is a close-combat style of fighting, in which one is unarmed and uses only one's body, and is one of the four basic fighting styles of the Shinigami.
High-speed Taijutsu attacks are used to overwhelm the opponent. Physical strength and skill are determined by this class. It seemed to be a combination of several martial arts that Toji didn't care to learn the names of.
He was a bit underwhelmed with Hakuda. He hoped it would be more impressive but it focused mostly on speed and stealth to fight. That was probably why it was mostly used by the Executive Militia of the Onmitsukidō.
The Onmitsukidō was also called the stealth force and was connected to the 2nd Division under Captain Chika Shihōin. The Onmitsukidō was older than the Gotei 13 and the reason that they were now connected to the 2nd Division was because the leaders of the Onmitsukidō were always members of the Shihōin clan. And the current head of the Shihōin clan, Chika Shihōin happened to become the Captain of the 2nd Division.
That was all there was to it and normally this should not yet be common knowledge apart from the Captains. Toji knew this because he had ways to find out information that no one else could imagine.
.
.
Toji had finally gotten his Asauchi. All the members of his year got their Asauchi. It was during the Zanjutsu class that instructor Yoshinori handed them out to everyone and explained to them what they had to do.
(Flashback)
"These are what are called Asauchi. You all will get one each. To make an Asauchi your Zanpakuto you must spend every waking moment with your own Asauchi.
As you progress in your training, you will try to slowly and methodically imprint the essence of your soul into the Asauchi. This is how you guide and mould your own unique Zanpakuto.
Remember that this is not something that will come right away, it will take time and patience. Someone who is not able to imprint their essence into their Asauchi needs more patience and understanding of themselves and their Zanpakuto."
Yoshinori stopped for a moment to see whether everyone was paying attention. Young Shinigami tend to get far too excited and try to rush. This will have the opposite effect and slow down their progress or downright stop it.
"I repeat ... do NOT rush this process. The longer you spend with your Asauchi, the more familiar you will become with it and the better you can imprint your essence into it.
This takes time and-"
Yoshinori had to stop because unrest went through the students. He looked at the centre of the commotion and walked towards it.
"What is going on?!", he asked and pushed the students aside. There he saw something that he won't forget his entire life.
He was looking at Toji Fushiguro, the genius of the current generation, on the same level as the personal disciples of the Headcaptain. But what he was seeing right now was unlike anything he had ever seen or heard.
Standing before him was Toji ... holding ... a Zanpakuto!!!
What? It hadn't even been 10 minutes since he had handed out the Asuachi and this ... monster had already imprinted his essence into it and gotten his Zapakuto. That was unheard of!!! What broken talent is this?
What's worse is that now every one of the others will try to do the same and rush because of that. Only to then realise that that isn't possible ... normally.
He had to go and report this to Headcaptain Yamamoto. Something like this was beyond genius talent.
.
.
(Toji POV)
I was very excited when we finally got our Asauchi. I had waited for this for an entire year now. But now, I got his hands on my Asauchi and I would try and imprint my essence into it and make it a Zanpakuto.
But how could I think things would go so ... fast and ... easy? I imagined myself to be a Shinigami and Quincy as well as a Hollow tribrid since entering Soul Society and it had gotten something I no longer had to focus on.
And thanks to the Blank he could learn any skill, so even getting a Zanpakuto as a Quincy should be possible, but for it to happen so ... quickly. Now that was insane.
I looked at my Zanpakto. It looked beautiful. My Zanpakuto takes the form of a slender, ornate katana with a jet-black sheath. The hilt is wrapped in deep indigo fabric, adorned with intricate silver and gold accents. The guard resembles a stylized eye, symbolizing the gateway to my imagination.
I could only look at it in wonder. I didn't even notice the commotion going on around me and only woke up when the instructor called out to me.
"Fushiguro!"
"Yes, Sensei?"
"Come with me, there is someone we have to see right now. As for the others, continue practising Zanjutsu with your Asauchi. You can also start trying to imprint your essence into it."
.
Yoshinori-sensei took me away from the Shinigami Academy and we walked towards the 1st Division quarters. It seems he's going to show me to Yamamoto.
This was so exciting, I would get to see some Captains and the Headcaptain when he was young.
Yoshinori-sensei led me to a bigger door that must have been the assembly hall or something.
We waited until the meeting was over. After a while the doors opened and the Captains walked out. Some looked at us and I saw Unohana looking at my Zanpakuto in wonder and ... intrigue. Or was that lust ... oh goodness please no.
And then a voice was heard from inside, calling to Yoshinori-sensei.
"Instructor Yoshinori, enter."