Chapter 318: Enrollment

"Ah..."

Shunsui Kyōraku was scratching his head as he found dealing with these kids exasperating.

Among them, only Rangiku was somewhat easy to handle.

Gin Ichimaru was practically a precocious little adult, seeing things clearly and striking straight at the heart.

As for H'el, there was no need to mention him. Though Shunsui couldn't fathom why old man Yamamoto let him off, it seemed they really couldn't pursue that matter any further.

"Well... maybe in the future, when you're older and have experienced enough in positions of responsibility, you'll understand it all. It's quite complicated, so I won't go into it," Shunsui said, scratching his chin stubble and pondering how to placate Gin. "If you don't want others to go through what you've experienced, perhaps when you become a Shinigami, you might change things."

Gin wasn't buying Shunsui's pitch.

"Other people's matters have nothing to do with me." Gin smiled, showing no hint of emotion. Born in poverty and struggling to survive, he wasn't well-suited to the rigid rules of this feudal society.

He knew he would adapt quickly.

Asking these questions was merely to ascertain their attitude towards H'el.

He thought deeply.

It seemed these Shinigami didn't dare to go too far in dealing with H'el.

Even the rigidly rule-bound Seireitei could only lightly brush off H'el.

At that moment, Gin fully realized the power behind H'el's words: "It doesn't matter, I'll handle it."

Maybe they didn't want H'el to act, couldn't allow H'el to act, and wouldn't let H'el act.

H'el was far more formidable than Aizen on the surface.

Shunsui was at a loss.

Truly at a loss.

Kids being too smart wasn't always a good thing, especially for someone like Gin who lacked empathy.

"Let's not discuss this anymore. Anyway, you're safe now." Shunsui clapped his hands, awkwardly changing the subject. "Next, I'll take you to tour the Shin'ō Academy. The enrollment period just passed, but I should have enough influence to get you in as transfer students. Although you'll be starting late, I'm confident that with your intelligence, you'll catch up quickly."

Gin remained silent, smiling.

Rangiku's eyes lit up at the thought of becoming a student and learning the Shinigami arts.

The breathing technique taught by H'el was too advanced. Although Rangiku had just started, she could sense her own spiritual particles but couldn't control them perfectly, far less adept than Gin.

Gin could already freely manipulate spiritual particles, forming spiritual balls and moving them at will.

In terms of talent, Gin truly possessed a top-tier gift in this world.

Rangiku was slightly less gifted but still had captain-level talent stronger than most captains, making her a genius. She found practicing H'el's breathing technique quite challenging, but pairing it with the Shinigami techniques would noticeably improve her.

H'el opened his eyes, placed his hand on Gin's shoulder, and patted twice, "Let's go, time to start your learning journey."

Kyoraku Shunsui breathed a sigh of relief.

If Gin had bombarded him with questions, he really wouldn't have known how to answer.

Shinigami don't represent justice.

Shinigami merely maintain order.

This is hard for children to understand, but Gin would surely get it, though Shunsui didn't want to elaborate.

Shunsui then led the three children through several squad areas, lazily explaining the responsibilities and regions of each of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads also known as the Gotei 13.

Rangiku's eyes sparkled with curiosity, like a country girl visiting the city, gazing around as Shunsui explained.

Gin kept his smile, quietly following along, listening, and memorizing every turn and detail Shunsui mentioned. Sometimes, he asked questions even Shunsui found hard to answer, and when Shunsui responded vaguely, Gin knew Shunsui didn't fully understand either.

H'el simply looked around appreciatively, glancing at the austere environment of Seireitei without much feeling.

If he looked closely, he could see that every building was composed of microscopic spiritual particles; to his eyes, there was no difference in appearance.

Many Shinigami passed by, saluting Shunsui as they saw him.

Finally, Shunsui brought them to the Shin'o Academy.

The Shin'o Academy's campus was like a walled city, surrounded by outer walls and separated by gates.

Inside the walls, there were trees and other vegetation, creating a beautiful environment. The classrooms were spacious, with windows allowing sunlight to stream in despite the lack of ceiling lights. There were blackboards and podiums, with desks and chairs arranged in rows facing the front. The ceilings, corridors, classroom floors, and doors were all made of wood, giving it a mix of modernity and a serious, ancient atmosphere.

Kyoraku Shunsui brought H'el and the others to the faculty office to report in, causing quite a stir among the teachers. They wondered why a noble and captain-level Shinigami like Shunsui was there. It was only after learning that he had received permission from Head Captain Yamamoto to bring three children to enroll that they relaxed. The teachers offered to take the children on a tour of the campus, but Shunsui politely declined with a smile.

The teachers, surprised but understanding, noted that these children were important to Shunsui, a high-ranking noble. They quickly registered H'el and the others, prepared their training uniforms, and arranged for their dormitories. They even asked Shunsui if he had any specific requirements.

Shunsui had no special requests, saying that ordinary arrangements would suffice.

This left the teachers puzzled.

Ordinary?

What kind of ordinary?

Did he mean ordinary by noble standards or commoner standards?

What did a high-ranking noble like Shunsui consider ordinary?

Ultimately, after registering the children's information and showing them around the classrooms, the teachers held a serious meeting titled "What Does Kyoraku Shunsui Mean by Ordinary?"

After three hours of discussion, they couldn't decide on the exact meaning of ordinary. The head instructor decided to treat the children as regular students, providing them with standard dormitories and training uniforms while discreetly paying more attention to their guidance and education.

After leaving the faculty office, Shunsui took H'el and the others to visit the elite class they would be joining, introducing them to everyone.

At this moment, Gin understood why a captain-level figure had been guiding them around the campus, inspecting each classroom.

It was to signal to the teachers and students that these three children were under the protection of Kyoraku Shunsui, a high-ranking noble. Any lesser nobles should be cautious not to offend them. If anyone did provoke H'el and got killed, Shunsui could only say they were blind for not noticing his earlier tour. He wouldn't be able to save them.

The combined prestige of a high-ranking noble and an Eighth Division captain carried considerable weight.

Thus, H'el, Rangiku, and Gin began their student life.

°°°

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