Soul Society, Seireitei, the Kawasaki Family estate, training grounds.
Boom!
With a thunderous impact, a figure slammed violently into the solid ground, throwing up a cloud of dust.
When the haze finally cleared, the figure was revealed to be a young boy.
His entire body was covered by nothing more than a ragged robe, now stained with footprints and blood.
Messy hair concealed most of his face, leaving only a pair of lifeless black eyes visible beneath it.
“Shima Kawasaki, you worthless piece of trash.
You’re a disgrace to the Kawasaki Family.” An older boy stood nearby holding a heavy blade nearly a meter long.
His gaze toward Shima was filled with contempt and disgust, along with the faintest trace of killing intent.
“Exactly.
Trash like you who doesn’t have even the slightest bit of Reiatsu (Spiritual Pressure) doesn’t deserve to carry the noble Kawasaki name.” “Young Master Akira is an outstanding student at the Shin’ō Academy, and he’ll be the sole future head of the Kawasaki Family.
Who do you think you are compared to him?” “You’re nothing but the bastard child of some servant, yet you actually think you can call yourself a young master of the Kawasaki Family?
Keep dreaming.” “…” The moment Akira Kawasaki finished speaking, several lackeys behind him immediately joined in, each trying to insult Shima more viciously than the last.
They cursed until their faces turned red, acting as though Shima had personally wronged their entire families.
Everyone present understood the real reason they were trying so hard.
They simply wanted to impress Akira Kawasaki, a boy who might one day become head of the Kawasaki Family.
Yet Shima didn’t move at all.
It was as though he hadn’t heard a single word.
Blood seeped from the wound on his head, running down his face before dripping onto the ground.
Even that failed to make his brow twitch.
“Doesn’t hurt, huh?” Akira’s expression darkened.
Shima’s utter lack of reaction seemed to infuriate him even further.
“Then your big brother will use you for a little more practice.” He raised his voice.
“Beat him!
Beat him until he’s half dead.
If anything happens, I’ll take responsibility!” “Yes, Young Master Akira!” His followers immediately cracked their knuckles, grinning viciously as they rushed forward together.
Thud!
Thud!
Thud!
The training grounds once again filled with the sounds of fists and feet striking flesh, mixed with vicious curses.
Only one sound was missing.
The boy’s voice.
…
At that same moment, a large group arrived outside the Kawasaki Family estate.
Every one of them wore immaculate clothing and carried themselves with the unmistakable arrogance of people accustomed to standing above others.
Yet whenever their gazes shifted toward the man walking at the very front, that arrogance disappeared, replaced by respect and even a trace of fear.
The man had a square face, straight eyebrows, and tightly pressed lips.
His features radiated the imposing authority of someone who had spent his life commanding others.
He wore a Shihakushō beneath a pure white captain’s haori.
A large number two was emblazoned across its back, clearly displaying his position.
Captain of the Second Division of the Gotei 13.
Commander-in-Chief of the Onmitsukidō.
Commander of its First Branch, the Keigun (Punishment Force).
Current head of the Shihōin Clan, one of Soul Society’s Four Great Noble Clans.
Tansei Shihōin.
Following behind him were the current heads and important members of various minor and middle-ranking noble families throughout Soul Society.
They all shared one thing in common.
Every family represented there was subordinate to the Shihōin Clan.
Among them was Kai Kawasaki, current head of the minor noble Kawasaki Family and a seated officer of the Second Division.
“Father, hurry up!” A girl who had been skipping ahead of the group and had already opened a sizable distance suddenly turned around and called to him.
“Yoruichi…” The imposing expression on Tansei Shihōin’s face gave way to helplessness.
“My precious daughter, what exactly are you planning?
You dragged all these people out here when there’s still plenty of work waiting for us back at the division.” “What does that have to do with me?” Yoruichi Shihōin puffed out her cheeks.
“I didn’t ask them to come.
They insisted on following you themselves.
I only asked Father to come with me.
I never invited any of them.” “And as for what I’m planning…” She raised her chin with a mischievous grin.
“That’s a secret.
I’m not telling you.” With that, Yoruichi turned around and continued walking.
Yoruichi Shihōin.
Princess of the Shihōin Clan and its sole heir.
Her warm brown complexion suited her striking appearance perfectly.
Short purple hair framed her face, while the bold, uninhibited temperament characteristic of the Shihōin Clan gave her an infectious sense of energy.
Her golden eyes, bright as topaz, gleamed with intelligence and mischief, along with a subtle trace of untamed wildness hidden deep within them.
Hearing his daughter’s answer, Tansei Shihōin could only shake his head helplessly.
He turned toward Kai Kawasaki, who was walking several steps behind him.
“Then I’ll have to trouble you, Tenth Seat Kawasaki.” “No trouble at all.
None whatsoever.” Kai Kawasaki hurriedly waved his hands, lowering his head respectfully.
“Having Lady Yoruichi visit the Kawasaki Family is an honor for us.” “Mm.” Tansei Shihōin gave a small nod and was just about to say something else when…
Boom!
A sudden crash interrupted him.
Part of the wall beside the estate entrance exploded outward as a figure was hurled straight through it.
The body flew across the path and smashed into another wall.
Bright red blood poured from the boy’s forehead, the bridge of his nose, the corner of his mouth, and numerous wounds across his body.
Within moments, a pool of blood had begun forming beneath him.
Yet strangely enough, the boy didn’t make a sound.
He didn’t even move.
Yoruichi, who had been standing closest to the impact, jumped in surprise.
Annoyance immediately appeared on her face, and she opened her mouth to demand an explanation.
Then her gaze met his.
A pair of pitch-black eyes without the slightest ripple of emotion.
There was no vitality in them.
Only darkness.
Only deathly silence.
Yes.
Deathly silence.
If she hadn’t known the boy in front of her was alive, Yoruichi would never have believed it.
Then she noticed the wounds covering his body and all the blood staining his clothes.
Disbelief flickered across her face.
But what she felt far more strongly was sympathy.
At that moment, Akira Kawasaki emerged from the estate with several followers, still cursing loudly.
The moment he saw Yoruichi Shihōin, Tansei Shihōin, his own father Kai Kawasaki, and the many nobles gathered outside, however, his insults stopped immediately.
He hurried over.
“Lord Shihōin.
Esteemed family heads.
Honored elders.” Akira bowed with the formal etiquette expected of a noble.
Then he turned toward Yoruichi.
“Lady Yoruichi.” “Don’t call me that.” Yoruichi didn’t give him even the slightest bit of courtesy.
Given her status, she had no reason to care whether Akira Kawasaki found that insulting.
The moment she had seen him emerge while still spewing curses, she’d already understood what had happened.
He was the one who had beaten the boy into this condition.
How cruel did someone have to be to do something like this?
“Head Kawasaki, what is the meaning of this?” Tansei Shihōin’s expression had darkened as well.
He wasn’t blind or foolish.
If even Yoruichi could immediately understand what had happened, there was no chance he had missed it.
The Shihōin Clan, much like the Shiba Clan, one of the Four Great Noble Clans that had since fallen from prominence, had always possessed an open and uninhibited temperament at their core.
They cared little for unnecessary formalities.
“Lord Shihōin.” Feeling Tansei Shihōin’s displeasure, Kai Kawasaki immediately noticed the way he had addressed him as “Head Kawasaki.” That meant Tansei was questioning him not as captain of the Second Division, but as head of the Shihōin Clan.
In that case, Kai could only answer as the head of one of the Shihōin Clan’s subordinate families.
“This is my youngest son.
He’s the same age as Lady Yoruichi.” Kai lowered his head as he answered, but the disgust in his voice was impossible to hide.
“It’s just that he was born without even the slightest trace of Reiryoku (Spiritual Power), and…” “So what if he doesn’t have Reiryoku (Spiritual Power)?!” Before Kai could finish, Yoruichi interrupted him with an angry shout.
“If he doesn’t have Reiryoku, does that suddenly mean he isn’t your son anymore?!” Yes.
In Soul Society, strength was unquestionably important.
But relationships between people weren’t determined by strength alone.
There were bonds between parents and children.
Bonds between siblings.
As a noble herself, Yoruichi understood the importance of power better than most.
For a child born into nobility, possessing no strength could mean losing practically everything.
Even so, Yoruichi had always believed that there were things beyond power.
Family.
Friendship.
Love.
“Lady Yoruichi,” Akira Kawasaki began quietly.
“But…” “I already told you not to call me that!” Yoruichi snapped furiously.
“Shut up!” “I…
don’t need…
your sympathy…”