21 Senbonzakura Kageyoshi
Shuji was currently heading toward the Ten Thousand Beast Mountains near the Phoenix Trial Ground. It had been about a week since he first spoke to Albion and Ddraig. Over this time he went into much more depth about what was happening in this world and what he knew. He explained to them that he knew some of what would happen in this world but it was subject to change.
Shuji then proceed to tell them everything he had done so far with Albion adding in every once in a while for more info. They had also learned of the faction he was making and they actually liked the idea lot. It seems like they were actually quite chunni. Shuji had also briefly discussed what he planned to do in the future as well. He couldn't explain everything due to his restrictions, but Ddriag and Albion understood.
Due to this, they had become much closer. Ever since then, he, Albion, and Ddriag had been getting along really well. Ddraig and Albion were already friends but they were just being tsundere about it. As he was walking he saw some mercenaries up ahead.
The mercenaries at this moment felt a presence behind them. They turned their heads to see a young man in a black robe with red clouds. They were first wary of him but after feeling no Profound Qi inside him they relaxed and smiled wickedly.
"Hey, you! Your robe isn't bad…" a mercenary approached and told him. While this was happening Shuji was currently bickering with Ddraig and Albion.
"Bwahaha, partner! You're getting mugged!" Ddraig laughed at him. "It must be because you look like such a pretty boy right now! BWAHAHA" he said.
"HEY! I told you this isn't my real appearance already!" shouted Shuji.
"But you did say you thought he looked cool Shuji," said Albion.
"Sigh… I can't deal with you two right now I have to handle these idiots…" he said in a resigned tone. Ever since these guys had become friends again they had seemingly decided to make fun of him whenever possible. Albion liked to say he took no part in it, but when he made comments like that it seemed lacking sincerity.
The mercenary walked towards Itachi when suddenly he saw his eyes turn dark red with three tomoe. The mercenary immediately stopped and felt cold sweat flowing down his forehead. He felt that his life was on the edge. Sadly stopping wasn't enough. Itachi swiftly used shunpo to get close and broke the first mercenary's neck.
"Ddraig you want some action?" asked Shuji while running towards the rest of the mercenaries at high speed.
"HAHA! I thought you would never ask Shuji!" he said boisterously.
Suddenly upon Itachi's hand appeared a slim red gauntlet with two large golden fingernails at the end of the middle and index finger. Just seeing the gauntlet gave the last few mercenaries an unprecedented amount of fear.
"Shuji, how rude of you not to ask me to join as well… I was here first after all." Albion said in a calm tone.
"Sheesh ya, big crybaby. Here you can both have some action," said Shuji.
The mercenaries who saw that they couldn't run started trying to launch attacks at the man with no Profound Qi. They couldn't understand how he was able to dispatch everybody so fast. As their attacks were nearing the enemy, blue wings sprouted from his back!
[DIVIDE!]
Suddenly their attacks divided in half!
[DIVIDE!]
Their attacks had now fully disappeared and they could do nothing but look on in horror as the young man continued running towards them unbridled.
[BOOST!]
Shuji suddenly became twice as fast and he lunged towards the nearest mercenary stabbing him through the chest. He didn't stop there and continued to run around like the wind and stab them through the chest. After two more minutes of clean-up, there was only one mercenary left. Around him lay the bodies of dozens of mercenaries with holes straight through their chests. It was a blood bath and the young man looked like he was enjoying it. The stoic face that he had held for most of the time now sported a wicked grin.
"W-What are you…" the last mercenary stuttered out.
"Meh… Just a guy with two stupid dragons in him…" he said simply.
A couple of minutes later Shuji was walking out of the forest with some shades he bought from the system and fire behind him. This was the first time he acted like himself in a long time. With Jasmine in the Sky Poison Pearl, he always had to keep on some airs, but with her asleep, he was finally free of the Itachi burden as he called it. As much as he loved being Itachi times he needed his own body soon. He didn't want to have to act like this much longer and wanted to start being cool in his own body. I mean he had soul clones to act like the anime characters he wanted to impersonate… Right?
"So… uhh… Why did we have to light the fire behind us again Shuji?" Ddraig asked.
"This is why your so stupid Ddraig. Obviously, he was cleaning the evidence," said Albion.
"Pshh… you guy's know nothing about acting cool," Shuji said sulking. "Whatever we got no time to waste… we gotta reach Bankai in 3 months," he said.
*****************************
Shuji was currently sitting cross-legged with his Zanpakuto on his lap. He was currently performing Jinzen which is a training method that allows you to have a conversation with his Zanpakuto. He had already met Senbonzakura and unlocked his Shikai but he was currently trying to increase his Zanjutsu a bit more before then. When he first met Senbonzakura he got his a** handed to him.
At the time he had been performing the kata's and he had proper form but no experience. It took him 3 months until he finally heard his Zanpakuto's name. While he already knew the name he had to be able to hear it himself to be worthy. What he was currently training to do was materialize his Zanpakuto into the real world. This would allow him to use it at its full potential and strength.
It had been 2 weeks since he practiced trying to materialize his Zanpakuto and today he finally felt he was close. Now you may be curious as to how he was so close when it was said to take 10 years to achieve Bankai. This is actually due to the system offering an option for an accelerated time while using Jinzen and reducing the time needed to 1 year. This sadly cost 2000 CP in total but he felt it was worth it.
Because of this, he was able to spend a lot of time inside his spiritual world often clashing Senbonzakura and getting to know him better. They had gotten really close and would often sit in the garden that was in his spiritual world and drink tea or sake. The relationship between a spirit and its user was important because only with a strong bond could he advance further.
Suddenly the air around Shuji blew fiercely as his Spiritual Pressure rose.
"SENBONZAKURA KAGEYOSHI!" he yelled.
From around him rose multiple large swords from the ground before they scattered into millions of sakura petals. These petals were very sharp and were always connected with his soul. The more powerful his soul the more powerful the petals were. He performed multiple movements practicing and getting a feel for its control. After a while, he stopped and sheathed his Zanpakuto. This year had been really beneficial to him. He had increased his Zanjutsu to captain level and had also increased his ability in Shunpo. Due to the close bond he had with Senbonzakura, he also had strengthened his soul.
"It seems like you accomplished what you were trying to do Shuji," said Albion.
"Bahh… Why does he need some sword when he's got us!" shouted Ddraig who was ignored by both Shuji and Albion.
"I'm ignoring you two…" Shuji said.
***************************************
Today Jasmine had woken up and was thinking about Itachi. She didn't know about his training but figured he was doing something. Complex emotions surged in her heart every time she thought of Itachi. She felt a little guilty about her actions from when they first met. Even if he actually stole the Evil God's blood he had actually helped her. If he wanted to, he could have taken the blood and left her to die.
However not only did he save her, but he also offered her an agreement to help her and didn't even ask for anything in return. She knew that he was very strong and probably had skills that would shake the Divine Realm if they were released but she felt lost. He found the Purple Veined Crystal for her… he always cared for her… He even made delicious food for her whenever she wanted!
He never complained about her and he would always tell her to "rest well" because he was worried about her. Almost every question she asked he would answer even if it involved his strength. For a cultivator, their strength was their biggest secret. She saw that he was hesitant about explaining the Boosted Gear and Divine Dividing, but he still disclosed the information to her. To do this was proof of his trust. He had done all of this for her but what had she done for him?
The barrier? She would have done this anyway as this involved the stake of the planet! No matter how much she thought about it, she had done nothing for him. This thought made her very frustrated. She thought about giving him the Great Way of the Buddha but this Profound Art was only possible for someone who had inherited Profound Veins from a True God.
"Maybe he has special Profound Veins? After all, the speed of his training is completely abnormal… should I ask him?" she thought. "But if I ask him he might think that I want to know another secret…" she hesitated.
"I will just tell him the truth. If he told me the truth, I'll tell him the truth." she nodded to herself.
*******************************
Itachi who felt that Jasmine was out of the Sky Poison Pearl looked towards her. "Your up! Do you want me to make you some sweets?" he said lightly. Jasmine smiled lightly and her heart warmed. "It's not about that…" she said. He slowly looked at her and asked, "What can I do for you then?"
She felt warm but also guilty due to the care he showed. She resolved herself before saying, "Itachi, I have a Profound Art which I think will be very beneficial for you but I need to know whether you have normal Profound Veins. This is because one of the conditions is to have Profound Veins of True Gods." she told him.
"My Profound Veins meet the requirements," he said simply. Jasmine was stunned and happy at the same time. She had hoped that he would be able to fulfill the requirements but didn't have high hopes. At least now she could be useful to him. She gave it to him, but he spoke as she was about to explain.
"I know you feel that you haven't done anything for me but you are wrong. Just being around you had made me incredibly happy and reminded me of my past… so don't ever think that you're useless to me," he said lightly. Jasmine was shocked but immediately began to blush. "I know roughly what this skill does but I believe I know someone better to carry on this legacy. I know this is a lot for me to ask but I feel that you would be more satisfied seeing him use it. After all, a skill like this was practically made for him." he said. Jasmine bit her lip and didn't know what to say to that. She had a lot of questions but she decided to trust him. She knew that he wouldn't give away a skill like this if he didn't trust them but decided to ask one question.
"What's the name of the person you want to give this to?" she asked.
"He goes by many names…" he spoke. "He has been called the Black Swordsman, The-Hundred-Man-Slayer, and the Berserker," Itachi said. "Now I think just goes by his name…"
"His name is Guts!" he spoke with a fire in his eyes.
Jasmine didn't know who this was but knew that Itachi respected him immensely. Suddenly they both felt someone near them. Shuji used Shunpo to appear where he felt them. He found a woman who was beautiful but she had a veil on her face. She seemed to be hurt and wasn't doing well. Shuji looked on with suspicion.
"Could it be… Chu Yuechan?" he thought.
************************
************************
That's the end of the chapter. Please comment and tell me how I did with the interactions between Ddraig, Albion, and Shuji. This was one of the first times I really fully showed his full personality in a normal setting which he will be using in the near future. Anyways thanks for reading!
