Teaming Up  

With a snap of his fingers, Ailin closed the Senkaimon and resumed his exploration of the ever-changing World of the Living.

"Damn it!" Yūma Matsubashi kicked a nearby stone pillar, shattering it into pieces.

"My, my, what's wrong, Yūma? You seem upset." Matsuri Kudo, returning from her patrol, witnessed Yūma's outburst and asked curiously, "Did Captain Aizen scold you for something?"

"Hahaha…" The surrounding Shinigami burst into laughter.

One of them, after regaining his composure, explained to Matsuri, "Kudo, did you hear what Captain Aizen said earlier?"

"Oh?" Matsuri's eyes lit up with interest. "Are you involved in this, Yūma?"

"Yes, Kudo. Captain Aizen was talking about the Shinigami who rescued Kitada Yōsuke. He's been sentenced to three months in detention for being backstabbed by that ungrateful wretch."

Since everyone already knew, Yūma had no choice but to explain the situation to Matsuri.

"Kudo, I made a mistake. I admit it. But Captain Aizen wants me to protect that bastard? That's just rubbing salt in the wound! I'd rather see him dead! Why would I protect him?!"

"Hahaha, Yūma, you're misunderstanding Captain Aizen!" Matsuri, hearing Yūma's complaints, patted him on the shoulder. "Don't you see why he wants you to 'protect' Kitada?"

"Why?"

"Because he wants you to 'protect' him, of course!" Matsuri emphasized the word "protect," but seeing Yūma's still-confused expression, she couldn't help but sigh.

Honestly, were all Shinigami this dense?

"Yūma, Captain Aizen said that we can only intervene after 'seeing' a distress flare, right? So, if you don't 'see' a distress flare, you don't have to intervene… Think about it."

With that, Matsuri skipped away, her heart lighter than it had been in days.

What a pleasant surprise! She had never expected Captain Aizen to have such a mischievous side…

"See a flare? Don't see a flare? What does that even mean?" Yūma furrowed his brows, unable to grasp the meaning behind Matsuri's cryptic words.

After pondering for a while, he shook his head in frustration.

"Forget it. I'll figure it out later. I should go find that bastard. If I'm late to the rescue again, Captain Aizen might punish me…"

He looked up, then froze.

"Wait, which way did he go?"

…

"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!"

The voice in Yōsuke's ear had faded. Captain Aizen had dispelled the Kidō spell.

He clenched his fists in rage. He had never expected Captain Aizen to retaliate in such a manner.

He had exploited the rescue squad member's compassion to regain his eligibility, but his actions had undoubtedly increased the risk of casualties for the remaining students.

After all, in the heat of battle against Hollows, launching a distress flare was rarely a priority.

Now, thanks to Yōsuke's machinations, the rescue squad wouldn't intervene unless they saw a distress flare.

Who would want to risk being backstabbed, facing the same fate as Matsubashi?

Serving a three-month sentence for saving a stranger's life? No one would sign up for that.

As he moved through the city, Yōsuke encountered several groups of students.

However, the moment they saw him, their expressions turned cold. He had practically condemned them to death to secure his own future.

They politely declined his requests to join their teams, claiming that his ability to single-handedly defeat a medium-sized Hollow was too intimidating for them to keep up.

After several rejections, Yōsuke had no choice but to retreat. He needed to find a safe hiding spot and lay low for the remaining days of the exam.

He knew his own limits. To regain his eligibility, he had boasted to Captain Aizen and the others that he could have killed that Hollow before its jaws closed on him.

In reality, he had been terrified, his legs trembling. If not for the Shinigami's intervention, he would be dead. But for the sake of his future, he had to throw that Shinigami under the bus.

He would make it up to him later. When he became a captain, he would appoint that Shinigami as a seated officer. It would be his way of compensating him for his suffering.

However, remembering how that Shinigami had humiliated him, revealing his fear in front of everyone, Yōsuke decided that once he achieved a position of authority, he would send that Shinigami on the most dangerous missions imaginable.

But first, he had to survive this graduation exam.

…

"Bakudō #26 – Kyokkō!" A shadowy student with yellow hair, Izuru Kira, chanted an incantation, launching a red burst of flames from his left hand. The flames expanded rapidly, forming a five-meter-tall, three-meter-wide wall of fire before him.

Boom!

A four-meter-tall Hollow charged into the Kyokkō barrier, its impact nearly shattering the flames. However, it failed to break through.

Behind the barrier, Momo Hinamori had completed her Kidō incantation. She leaped over the wall of flames, aiming the volleyball-sized fireball in her left hand at the Hollow's head.

"Hadō #31 – Shakkahō!"

Boom!

The red fireball shot from Momo's hand, striking the Hollow's chest. A violent explosion rocked the surroundings.

Roar!

The force of the blast tore a gaping wound in the Hollow's chest.

However, while the injury was severe, it wasn't fatal for a four-meter-tall beast-like Hollow.

"Coming through! Coming through!" As the Hollow howled in pain, a red-haired youth, Renji Abarai, emerged from the shattered flames, his Zanpakutō gripped tightly in both hands. He used Shunpo to launch himself into the air, then brought his sword down on the Hollow's mask.

Swish!

Roar!

The blow cleaved the Hollow's mask in two. With a final, agonizing shriek, the Hollow dissolved into reishi.

"Whew…" Momo let out a sigh of relief, wiping the sweat from her brow.

"Kira, Renji, thank goodness you were here. I would have been in trouble without you."

As the exam progressed, the number of Hollows drawn to the city continued to increase. The strength and size of the medium-sized Hollows were also rising.

Even Momo could no longer guarantee victory against her next opponent. That was why, when Kira and Renji had approached her, proposing a team, she had readily agreed.

They had been close friends at the academy, familiar with each other's strengths and weaknesses.

Momo's Kidō was the most powerful of the trio, making her the primary attacker.

Kira's Kidō, while not as potent as Momo's, was still formidable. He also possessed decent Zanjutsu, making him the team's support. His primary role was defense and keeping the Hollows at bay.

Renji's Zanjutsu was unmatched among this year's graduating class. He was the team's shield, blocking the Hollows' attacks while Momo and Kira sought opportunities to unleash their Kidō.

Their teamwork, thus far, had been flawless, allowing them to defeat numerous medium-sized Hollows.

Undeniably, combat was a catalyst for growth, pushing talented individuals to their limits.

After over twenty days and more than a hundred battles, Renji, Kira, and Momo had improved tremendously.

Their current strength surpassed that of most ordinary Shinigami. They were closing in on the level of elite Shinigami.

"Don't say that, Momo." Kira shook his head. "You're invaluable to us.

"Without your Kidō, Renji and I would have struggled to kill that Hollow. It would have taken us at least five minutes."

"He's right, Momo." Renji rested his Zanpakutō on his shoulder, nodding in agreement with Kira. "Your Kidō attacks pack a much bigger punch than Kira's. You severely wounded that Hollow with a single blast. If it had been Kira, he would have needed at least three Hadō spells to achieve the same result."

"Oh, you two are exaggerating…" Momo waved her hands dismissively.

But the upward curve of her lips betrayed her true feelings. It was clear that she was delighted by her teammates' praise.

"Still, Kira, Renji, this exam is incredibly difficult. I wonder how many of us will pass."

"I don't know. But if it were easy to become a Shinigami, we wouldn't have left Rukongai and come to the Seireitei, would we?" Renji replied.

"That's true…"

The people of Rukongai came to the Seireitei to gamble on a chance, a chance to change their destinies.

However, Renji's words caused Kira's head to droop even lower.

He had never shared his background with his friends at the academy.

His perpetually gloomy expression had made him appear unapproachable, so only the boisterous Renji Abarai, born and raised in Rukongai, and the cheerful and optimistic Momo Hinamori had befriended him.