Gosuke Shigure heard the curiosity in his own voice reflected in Soi Fon's expression.
She did not evade the question.
"Although I have become Captain of the Second Division," she said calmly, "according to what you once told me… Yoruichi-sama mastered Shunko long ago. If I intend to capture her as I am now, it would be nothing more than wishful thinking."
Her eyes did not waver.
"I do not know when I will encounter her again."
"But when that time comes… I must have enough power."
There was no hesitation in her tone.
For Soi Fon, Shihōin Yoruichi was not merely a former superior.
She was conviction.
Obsession.
The reason she had entered the Onmitsukidō.
The reason she had joined the Second Division.
The reason she endured merciless training.
Even now, as captain
Everything traced back to Yoruichi.
Gosuke nodded slightly.
"I see."
"So you intend to use the limiter to suppress your own Reiatsu… placing yourself at a disadvantage in order to refine your fundamentals?"
Soi Fon inclined her head.
"After achieving Bankai, I realized something."
"My Reiatsu has stabilized. Its growth is no longer dramatic."
She spoke plainly.
"The battles of Shinigami are often said to be battles of Reiatsu."
"But they are also battles of execution."
"Zanjutsu. Hakuda. Hohō. Kidō."
"Each must be honed."
She looked toward him.
"After your training in Hohō and close-quarters combat, I understood something clearly. If I wish to surpass my current limits, it will not be through increasing spiritual pressure alone."
"Then it will be through refinement."
Suppressing output.
Forcing precision.
Sharpening reactions under constraint.
Gosuke's lips curved faintly.
He agreed.
Aizen's philosophy that Shinigami battles were battles of Reiatsu was not incorrect.
But Aizen's Reiatsu existed in a realm far beyond ordinary captains.
For most captain-class Shinigami, spiritual pressure plateaued upon maturity.
Growth thereafter was incremental.
Without extraordinary catalysts Hollowfication, fusion with external forces, divine intervention raw Reiatsu would not multiply exponentially.
What remained was technique.
The Four Shinigami Arts:
Zanjutsu – swordsmanship.
Hakuda – hand-to-hand combat.
Hohō – movement techniques.
Kidō – spiritual spells.
When refined to their limits, they could rival brute force.
The Shihōin family was proof.
Their lineage was not famed for overwhelming Zanpakutō releases, yet through mastery of Hohō and Hakuda, they consistently stood at captain-class.
Yoruichi herself embodied that principle.
Gosuke folded his arms.
"Your reasoning is sound."
Then he added casually
"I have little to occupy my time lately. If you wish, I can oversee your training."
Soi Fon blinked.
"You… will?"
"What? Doubt my qualifications?"
She shook her head immediately.
"Of course not."
She knew very well who stood before her.
A former Kenpachi.
A man who had ruled the Eleventh Division for over a century.
Someone whose combat intuition bordered on instinct.
During their previous month of training, she had personally experienced the gap between them.
His understanding of Hohō transitions alone had dismantled her assumptions.
For him to offer continued guidance
It was beyond expectation.
Yet inside her thoughts, a quiet conclusion formed.
It must be because of Yoruichi-sama.
Gosuke Shigure had once trained Yoruichi.
Yoruichi had left Soul Society alongside Urahara Kisuke.
Surely he still carried regret.
Surely he wished for her return.
Therefore
He must want Soi Fon to grow strong enough to capture her.
That had to be it.
The reasoning satisfied her.
Externally, she addressed him by name as requested.
Internally, her respect remained unchanged.
Becoming captain was merely a title.
Strength was what determined outcome.
Even captains could fall
Isshin Shiba's mysterious disappearance in the World of the Living had proven that.
If one lacked power, rank meant nothing.
"I will not waste this opportunity," she said firmly.
Gosuke merely smiled faintly.
She did not linger in the commercial district.
Unlike many women in Seireitei, Soi Fon had no fondness for browsing stalls or sampling delicacies.
Training interested her.
Nothing else.
Together, they moved toward a familiar place.
Sōkyoku Hill.
The execution grounds of Seireitei.
A location heavy with history.
It was also here, in earlier years, that Yoruichi and Urahara had conducted secret training sessions refining advanced Hohō techniques far from prying eyes.
It was here that Gosuke had first introduced Soi Fon to the fundamentals underlying Shunko's structure not teaching her the full art, but guiding her understanding of Reiatsu circulation and body-channel harmonization.
She had never imagined she would return under these circumstances.
Now
This desolate plateau became her personal crucible.
Soi Fon fastened the Reiatsu suppression bracelet around her wrist.
With a soft click, she activated the first stage.
Immediately, the outward flow of her Reiatsu compressed.
Her spiritual pressure sank.
Gosuke observed silently.
"Raise it to the second stage."
She complied.
Her movements grew heavier.
Air resistance felt thicker.
Reiatsu flow through her limbs slowed.
"Good," he said.
"Now attack."
Without hesitation, she vanished in a burst of Shunpo.
Even suppressed, her Hohō remained sharp.
She appeared behind him
Palm strike aimed at his spine.
He sidestepped effortlessly.
"Too direct."
She adjusted mid-motion, chaining footwork.
He blocked with minimal movement.
"Your center shifts when you compensate for reduced output."
She attacked again.
And again.
Each time
He countered calmly.
Under suppression, flaws surfaced.
Her Hakuda combinations lacked flexibility when deprived of explosive Reiatsu reinforcement.
Her Shunpo rhythm faltered when forced to rely purely on physical mechanics rather than spiritual propulsion.
And most critically
Her Bankai's recoil had conditioned her to rely on overwhelming finishing strikes.
Gosuke stopped her with a light tap to the shoulder.
"You fight like someone expecting decisive impact."
She breathed steadily, sweat forming along her brow.
"Under constraint," he continued, "you must think in layers. Setup. Feint. Redirection."
He stepped back.
"Again."
Hours passed.
Soi Fon gradually realized something unsettling.
Gosuke's mastery of the Four Arts was not merely broad
It was integrated.
His transitions between Zanjutsu, Hakuda, and Hohō were seamless.
His Reiatsu control remained stable even while deliberately lowering his own output to match her suppression level.
He was not overpowering her.
He was dissecting her.
With each exchange, her movements grew tighter.
Cleaner.
More economical.
The sun dipped lower over Sōkyoku Hill.
As she deactivated the second-stage limiter and allowed her Reiatsu to expand naturally again, she felt the difference immediately.
Her control had sharpened.
Her footing steadied.
Her perception clarified.
She exhaled slowly.
Gosuke looked toward the horizon.
The Gotei Thirteen believed itself stable once more.
New captains.
New lieutenants.
New order.
But the undercurrents were shifting.
And when the storm arrived
Only those who had sharpened themselves beneath pressure would stand.
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