“Um…” She cleared her throat, trying to cover the awkwardness.
“This ramen really is good. How did you find this place?”
“The head chef and I go back a long way,” Silas said briefly.
“If you like it, come often. Use my name for twenty percent off.”
“Really?” Kūkaku’s eyes lit up.
“Then it’s a deal!”
After they left the ramen shop, Kūkaku wandered the streets of the Rukongai with Silas for a while.
“Speaking of which, Kaien has real talent.”
Kūkaku nodded, a proud smile spreading across her face.
“My brother will be fine, no question. As strong as he is, he might even skip a year.”
The two of them talked as they walked, and before long they came to a fork in the road.
“We’ll stop here,” Silas said, halting.
“Thanks for your help today.”
Kūkaku waved a hand, then hesitated a moment.
“Um… can I come find you again? I mean, if I want ramen…”
“Of course.”
Looking at the slightly incoherent Kūkaku, Silas answered with a smile.
“I spend most of my time at the Shin’ō Academy, but I come out on weekends sometimes. If you want to find me, have your brother pass the word along.”
“Okay. I’ll come find you again!”
Kūkaku smiled, happy about it.
She turned to go, and after a few steps she looked back and waved at him.
Silas watched her walk off before turning toward the Seireitei.
A long while later, back at last in the familiar surroundings of the campus, Silas felt his mood ease a little.
But he knew some things had already changed.
From here on, he had to be more careful still.
Hide his strength and keep his head down.
At least until he had the power to protect himself, that was how it had to be…
Beyond the window, the setting sun slid slowly below the horizon, and the lights of the Seireitei flickered on once more.
Inside the Fifth Division barracks, Aizen Sōsuke sat at his desk working through the day’s paperwork.
His hand paused.
On the desk lay a roster from the Shin’ō Academy.
Aizen’s finger traced slowly over one name on it.
“Vane… fifth-year, Elite Class. Grades above average across the board, no record of exceptional performance.”
He pushed up his glasses, the faintest curve touching the corners of his mouth.
Aizen set the roster aside and went back to his documents.
As though that pause had been nothing more than an ordinary break in the work.
As the night deepened, the Seireitei sank into silence.
The next morning, Silas went to the library as usual.
It hadn’t been long since his last sweep of the training grounds for fragments, so he planned to leave it a few days before going again.
In one corner of the library, Ise Nanao’s petite figure sat where it always did.
Today Nanao wore a neat Shin’ō Academy uniform, her short black hair shimmering softly in the morning light.
She was intent on turning the pages of a heavy tome, though for some reason her gaze behind her glasses was restless, flicking toward the door now and then.
Not until that familiar figure entered the edge of her vision did a flash of delight cross her eyes, and then she quickly turned her head away.
Silas walked over quietly and sat down across from her.
“Morning, Nanao.”
Nanao didn’t so much as look up.
She gave a soft hum and kept turning pages.
Silas caught the shift at once.
The girl’s reaction today was on the cold side.
“What’s wrong?” he asked, testing the water.
“Sleep badly last night?”
“It’s nothing.”
Nanao answered curtly, though she turned the next page with a bit more force than usual.
Silas blinked, then drew the souvenir he had brought back yesterday out of his pouch and nudged it gently toward her.
“I went to the Rukongai yesterday and came across some good snacks. I brought a few back for you to try.”
Nanao’s gaze finally left the page and settled on the snacks.
She pushed up her glasses, her tone even.
“Did you buy these with that girl from the Shiba family?”
Ah.
This.
Silas thought to himself that things were looking grim, but he kept his composure on the surface.
“What are you talking about? I bought these for you specifically.”
“Really?”
Nanao looked him over, suspicious.
“Why would I lie to you?” Silas smiled and picked up a pastry.
“Try it. You should like this.”
Nanao stared at the pastry for a moment before she finally reached out and took it.
She took a small bite, and a rich, milky aroma dissolved in her mouth.
Sweet without being cloying, and exceptionally good.
“It’s nice… thank you.”
Nanao ate in small bites, and her tone softened at last.
She paused and looked at him.
“Did the trip go well?”
“Yeah… there were a few small complications, but it went smoothly enough. I just didn’t find much.”
“I see.”
The library was quiet for a spell, nothing but the sound of turning pages.
“By the way,” Nanao said suddenly, her voice back to its usual calm.
“The schedule for the beginning-of-term assessment is out.”
“Oh? When is it?”
“Next Wednesday.”
Every one of the big annual tests was a chance for Silas to harvest fragments on a large scale.
Unfortunately, the higher his level climbed, the poorer the returns on experience got.
Even so, it was good news for him.
Nanao pulled a notice from her bag and pushed it across to him.
“This test matters as much as ever. It decides the reshuffling of the Elite Class, and…”
She paused, her voice dropping a little.
“They say those who do exceptionally well might get the chance to apply early for the Division entrance exam, though it seems nobody has managed it in years.”
“Maybe somebody will in the next year or two. That Shiba Kaien kid, with his talent, certainly won’t stay the full six years.”
Silas took the notice and skimmed it.
The beginning-of-term test came in two parts, a theory assessment and a practical assessment.
The theory assessment covered Konsō in the Human World, Soul Society history, the traits of Hollows, and a few academic written papers.
The practical assessment was a full evaluation of the four basic skills: Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Shunpo, and Kidō.
“My Asauchi still hasn’t changed, even now.”
Nanao said it softly.
Her Kidō talent was among the finest in the whole Shin’ō Academy and her practical marks were consistently first…
…yet the awakening of her Zanpakutō had well and truly stumped her.
“I’ve been thinking it over. Next year I plan to try applying to the Kidō Corps.”
Silas looked at Nanao, at the shadow of worry clouding her brow.
“Don’t worry,” he said seriously.
“A Zanpakutō matters, but it isn’t everything. Your Kidō talent is strong enough that even without one, you’re more than capable of becoming an excellent Shinigami.”
“But…”
Nanao bit her lip.
“Alright. Don’t overthink it.”
Silas picked up a pastry and held it to her lips.
“There are still a few days before the test. Get yourself ready. If you need it, I’ll train with you.”
Nanao looked at the pastry held out in front of her, her face flushing faintly.
She almost opened her mouth on instinct, then hesitated.
She glanced quietly around, and seeing that nobody was paying attention, she took a small bite.
“Mm.”
The two of them talked over the details of the test a while longer, going through likely questions in advance.
Silas looked at her focused profile and let out a quiet breath of relief.
This girl, jealous and sulking at her age.
She’s going to be a handful when she grows up.