Chapter 18: Incantation

Hideyoshi Tsuruno, upon seeing Yamahiko successfully abandon incantation, stood there stunned at first, thinking it might have been a fluke. However, Yamahiko's fingertip emitted another shockwave.

Although this shockwave was only one-third as powerful, it indeed did not involve incantation.

"He's a genius," Hideyoshi Tsuruno thought to himself.

Hideyoshi Tsuruno quickly approached Yamahiko, excitedly asking, "Yamahiko, did you just abandon incantation?"

Yamahiko, taken aback by Hideyoshi Tsuruno's sudden appearance, nodded and said, "Yes, teacher. Is something the matter?"

Hideyoshi Tsuruno suppressed his excitement and asked, "Yamahiko, how did you manage to do this?"

"How did I do it?"

Yamahiko recalled the process of abandoning incantation.

He couldn't find a starting point initially and didn't know how to abandon incantation. Then he thought about the purpose of incantation. Incantation served three functions: establishing a sense of ritual, creating a rhythm, and influencing one's thoughts and perception.

Understanding these points, Yamahiko attempted to simplify them.

First, the sense of ritual: He couldn't eliminate the rituals necessary for Hado and Bakudo; they were vital for invoking spiritual energy. But perhaps he could replace incantation with gestures, making gestures part of the ritual itself.

Second, the rhythm: While the rhythm could enhance power, it wasn't crucial. He decided to skip this simplification.

Third, thoughts and perception:

This was crucial. The first two points could be substituted or skipped, resulting in decreased power. However, if perception was incorrect, Hado couldn't be used. So, Yamahiko diligently tried to recreate the thought process he had during incantation and applied it to his spiritual energy, successfully unleashing Hado #1, albeit with two-thirds less power, without incantation.

However, Yamahiko wondered if he could increase the power by incorporating more gestures and using objects as substitutes for rituals.

Before he could explore these thoughts further, Hideyoshi Tsuruno interrupted him.

Yamahiko, willing to share his thought process, explained it to Hideyoshi Tsuruno. He elaborated on the three functions of incantation. As he discussed the simplification process, Hideyoshi Tsuruno nodded in agreement with each point. When Yamahiko mentioned his ideas about increasing gestures and using objects for rituals, Hideyoshi Tsuruno said, "Your thinking is correct. Most Shinigami achieve the ability to abandon incantation through countless repetitions. But in reality, they are discarding some of the rituals and rhythms. Through training, they remember the sensations invoked during Hado and Bakudo activation and simulate those sensations. That's how they achieve it."

Yamahiko, gaining Hideyoshi Tsuruno's approval, then presented his conjecture about adding gestures and using objects.

Hideyoshi Tsuruno responded, "Adding more gestures isn't necessary; the ritual aspect conveyed by gestures is relatively weak. Furthermore, using multiple gestures would increase the time required, which isn't worth it. As for your idea of using objects to replace rituals, that's a good approach. Not only that, but you can also amplify the abilities by using special materials."

"If abilities can be amplified, the increase in combat effectiveness will be significant."

Upon hearing Hideyoshi Tsuruno's response, Yamahiko couldn't help but say, "Many Shinigami avoid using Kido and Bakudo in battle because the power reduction from abandoning incantation is too great, and those who can't abandon it require too much time."

Just as when Renji Abarai first attempted to enter the Hueco Mundo Palace, he used Hado #31, Shakkaho, without incantation to attack the palace walls, resulting in just a faint glimmer of fire.

So, the likelihood of using Kido in intense battles was quite small. Unless there was a vast difference in power, like when Sosuke Aizen didn't use incantation and defeated Sajin Komamura, in a single strike.

If it were indeed possible to restore the power of Kido using objects and then have Shinigami remember the sensations when using them through training, achieving Kido with instant casting and full power might be immensely beneficial.

"That's true," Hideyoshi Tsuruno nodded in agreement.

Yamahiko, excited, said, "Then, teacher, let's research this as soon as possible."

Hideyoshi Tsuruno shook his head and replied, "It's not worth researching."

Yamahiko, puzzled, asked, "Why not?"

Hideyoshi Tsuruno looked at Yamahiko and explained, "Different Kido spells have different rituals. Using one object as the ritual and power enhancer can only enhance one specific Kido. Even Kido with similar properties cannot be invoked this way unless they are directly connected, like Hado #33, Sokatsui, and Hado #73, Souren Sokatsui, which belong to the same lineage. In other cases, you can only use the power of one Kido."

Yamahiko frowned upon hearing this but then said, "Still, achieving instant casting for a specific Kido could be greatly helpful in combat."

Hideyoshi Tsuruno smiled and said, "The battle method of using objects to harness Reishi has already been created long ago, and it was developed extensively, even becoming a unique combat style for a certain race. However, in reality, despite the various combat methods available, none can surpass the effectiveness of a Shinigami's Zanpakuto."

Yamahiko had a guess but was somewhat uncertain. He asked, "Which race is that?"

Hideyoshi Tsuruno answered, "The Quincy."

Upon hearing this, Yamahiko thought about the Quincy's combat style in the original story, before the Thousand-Year Blood War arc, when Uryu Ishida fought without receiving the Schrift and Vollstandig. Their basic combat style involved using a Spirit Bow, with a cross-shaped pendant as the medium, to create Spirit Arrows.

There were various types of Spirit Bows, including the Silver-Feathered Bow, the Short Spirit Bow from the Substitute Shinigami arc, and the Spirit Bows used in the Thousand-Year Blood War arc, all with physical embodiments.

Additionally, they used Sanrei Gloves to expend Reiryoku, cutting things with the Spirit Particle blade by generating high-frequency vibrations.

There were also items like the Silver Tubes and the Quincy's Heilig Pfeil.

All these were used to harness Reishi, converting them into Spirit Particle weapons to attack enemies.

Of course, this method of using objects to harness Reishi was quite different from what Yamahiko mentioned, where the properties were more varied. In terms of combat effectiveness, the Shinigami's Zanpakuto was superior.

But even so, in the Thousand-Year Blood War arc, the Quincy gradually abandoned this method and began using the power of the Schrift and Vollstandig for combat.

Therefore, upon careful consideration, this method of combat didn't seem to have much value. The instant casting ability for low and mid-level Kido was limited, and even for high-level Kido, it would be challenging even with object enhancement.

It was better to develop the capabilities of the Zanpakuto. After all, the Zanpakuto was a weapon infused with a Shinigami's soul, possessing unique abilities that made it more potent and useful.

Yamahiko understood this point, feeling somewhat dejected that his first idea had been shattered. However, Hideyoshi Tsuruno said, "You've come up with a lot already; that's quite impressive. You have exceptional talent in Kido. I have a question for you: would you be willing to join the Kido Corps after graduating?"