Soul Society, Seireitei, the Executive Militia training grounds.
The enormous training ground was completely surrounded by members of the Executive Militia, forming an impenetrable circle around the two people currently fighting at its center.
One of them wore a pure white captain’s haori with a large number two emblazoned across the back.
It was none other than Tansei Shihōin.
His opponent had short purple hair that reached her ears, healthy tan skin, and wore the tight-fitting combat uniform of the Executive Militia.
She was Yoruichi Shihōin.
Calling it a fight was perhaps a little generous, because from beginning to end, Tansei had completely suppressed Yoruichi using only one hand.
It wasn’t that Yoruichi was weak.
The title of Flash Goddess that had begun spreading recently hadn’t come from nowhere.
Ultimately, however, Yoruichi was simply still too young.
“Bang!” With a single side kick, Tansei sent Yoruichi flying.
She didn’t lose her balance, however.
She flipped through the air, landed, and slid backward across the ground.
From a corner of the training ground, Shadow had been watching the overwhelmingly one-sided battle the entire time.
He shook his head, vanished from where he stood, caught Yoruichi, and landed with her safely on the ground.
Tansei stepped forward twice, his expression stern.
“Your attacks are too slow, and they don’t hit hard enough.
So what if your movement speed is fast?
In a real battle, if you can’t actually hit your enemy, you’ll be the one who dies.
Yoruichi, again!” Yoruichi gritted her teeth and pushed Shadow’s hand away.
Shadow let out an almost imperceptible sigh before grabbing her just as she was about to charge forward again.
“Shadow, what is it?” Yoruichi asked, startled.
“Yoruichi-sama, watch closely.” With those words, Shadow planted one foot against the ground and shot straight toward Tansei.
“Konoha Reppū!” His kick tore through the air with a fierce gust of wind, accompanied by a faint, low whistle as it broke through the air.
The destructive power behind the technique was obvious.
Tansei’s heart tightened.
Not daring to underestimate the attack in the slightest, he flipped backward and narrowly avoided it.
Boom!
Shadow’s foot struck a large stone instead, instantly smashing it into pieces.
“That’s insane…” Everyone watching couldn’t help swallowing hard.
Was this really still Hakuda (Hand-to-Hand Combat)?
The destructive power was ridiculous.
If a kick like that landed on a person…
They looked at the shattered boulder and suddenly felt a chill.
“Konoha Senpū!” Shadow’s assault wasn’t over.
His attacks were sharp and relentless.
He spun into a roundhouse kick so fast that only a series of afterimages remained behind him.
Bang!
Tansei’s fist slammed heavily into Shadow’s incoming leg.
The tremendous force transmitted through the impact forced Tansei back two steps, but he immediately retaliated with a vicious kick of his own.
Shadow’s expression remained completely unchanged.
“Hōken (Crushing Fist)!” He punched forward.
Thud!
Fist and foot collided, releasing a powerful shockwave that spread outward.
Both men were forced several steps backward.
“Impressive Hakuda (Hand-to-Hand Combat),” Tansei said with a grave expression.
“You didn’t use any of these techniques the last time we fought.
Why?” “You’re annoying.” Shadow moved again.
He didn’t use Shunpo (Flash Step), yet his speed was still astonishing.
“Konoha Daisenpū!” “What?!
Damn brat!” Tansei immediately realized that he couldn’t dodge the attack and cursed under his breath.
One figure dressed in black and the other in white collided like two raging whirlwinds.
Their fists and feet crashed together again and again, producing a series of deep impacts.
“Konoha Gōriki Senpū!” “Konoha Shōfū!” A powerful upward kick erupted from below.
Bang!
Tansei leaped away, but that was exactly what Shadow had been waiting for.
Shadow instantly blurred forward.
“Kage Buyō!” “Damn it!” Tansei’s pupils contracted sharply.
But his body was already high in the air.
There was nothing beneath his feet to push against, much less any way for him to change direction.
A tremendous impact, almost like a storm, slammed violently into Tansei’s body.
Bang!
Tansei was sent flying by the sheer force of the kick.
As an experienced captain, however, he immediately regained control of his body.
Even so, he was still driven several meters backward before finally stopping.
Breathing heavily, Tansei glared furiously at Shadow.
Shadow, meanwhile, wasn’t flushed and wasn’t even breathing hard.
He completely ignored Tansei’s glare without so much as twitching an eyebrow.
A faint layer of Reiatsu (Spiritual Pressure) gathered around Shadow’s right hand.
Then he smashed his fist toward Tansei.
As the punch tore through the air, a deep vibrating hum echoed around it.
“Kairyokuken!” “Wait, Shadow, you little brat!” Tansei’s expression instantly changed.
He knew exactly how terrifyingly destructive that technique was.
But before he could finish speaking, Shadow’s fist had already arrived.
Tansei didn’t dare receive it head-on.
He immediately used Shunpo (Flash Step) to retreat far into the distance.
BOOM!
Shadow’s fist crashed into the ground.
The surrounding air violently shook as a deafening sonic boom erupted.
A fierce blast of wind swept outward, carrying a massive cloud of dust with it.
When the dust finally cleared, a gigantic crater several dozen meters across had appeared where Shadow stood.
The ground had collapsed inward, and countless cracks stretched outward in every direction.
Tansei’s eyelid twitched.
He had known this would happen.
The members of the Executive Militia, whose faces had previously remained expressionless and utterly composed, were now staring at the destruction in shock.
They knew Shadow was strong.
They simply hadn’t imagined that one ordinary-looking attack could possess this much destructive power.
Compared to him, what they were doing felt like children playing pretend.
Ignoring Tansei’s resentful expression and the stunned members of the Executive Militia, Shadow returned to Yoruichi’s side.
“Did you see everything clearly, Yoruichi-sama?” “I managed to understand the first few techniques,” Yoruichi said, looking troubled.
“But I couldn’t figure out the last one at all.” “That’s normal.” Shadow nodded.
“The earlier techniques are just relatively ordinary Taijutsu (Body Techniques).
Kairyokuken, however, incorporates Reiatsu into the attack.” “Reiatsu?” Yoruichi frowned.
“But even if you’re adding Reiatsu, it shouldn’t produce that much power.
And wouldn’t fighting like that consume an enormous amount of Reiatsu?” Soul Society had experimented before with coating the hands and feet in Reiatsu to increase the power of Hakuda (Hand-to-Hand Combat).
However, the method had never been widely used in actual combat.
The reason was simple.
It consumed far too much Reiatsu.
And in battle, exhausting one’s Reiatsu meant defeat.
Defeat, in turn, usually meant death.
“If you simply gather Reiatsu around your hands and feet while fighting, then you have to continuously supply more Reiatsu to maintain it.
Of course that’s going to consume a huge amount,” Shadow explained in a serious voice.
“The principle behind Kairyokuken is different.
You gather Reiatsu into your fists, then reinforce it through a special method of circulation before releasing the technique.” Shadow looked directly at Yoruichi.
“Because of that, it can be performed without consuming very much Reiatsu.
But there’s one crucial requirement.” “Extremely precise Reiatsu control.” “Reiatsu control…” Understanding dawned on Yoruichi’s face.
“You mean controlling Reiatsu with extreme precision?” “Exactly.” Shadow nodded.
“Kidō (Demon Arts) and Shunpo (Flash Step) both demand extremely precise Reiatsu control, but even their requirements are still somewhat lower than Kairyokuken’s.” He looked at her calmly.
“But Yoruichi-sama, your control is already good enough.” “You mean…” Yoruichi’s eyes lit up.
“I can learn it now?” “Yes, Yoruichi-sama.” Shadow nodded.