After listening to Sasuke’s narration, Kisuke Urahara propped his chin with a fan bone, falling into deep thought.
After a moment, he explained, half-truthfully and half-falsely, “Hmm, this situation is indeed rare, but not impossible.”
“In some people’s Bloodline, there might be some innate special powers hidden, perhaps Ichigo is such a case.”
“After all, to be chosen by Young Miss Kuchiki and entrusted with Shinigami power, he must have some extraordinary qualities himself.”
Uchiha Sasuke let out a faint snort, noncommittal about this ambiguous explanation, but he did not press further.
He knew it was impossible to easily get the whole truth from this old fox.
However, everything that had happened recently had indeed made him soberly realize another thing.
Whether it was the demon fox inside Uzumaki Naruto or the black power inside Kurosaki ichigo…
both were very strong.
His current strength was still far from enough.
It was insufficient to deal with these situations, let alone take revenge on that man.
He needed to become stronger.
“Shopkeeper Urahara.”
Sasuke raised his head, “How about we make a deal?”
“A deal?” Kisuke Urahara became somewhat interested.
“That’s right, regarding the power system of that world, I can demonstrate it to you without reservation for your research.”
Sasuke paused, then stated his conditions.
“In exchange, I hope you help me find a stable way to go to that world, and also provide training guidance that can make me stronger.”
Kisuke Urahara looked at the sharp-eyed young man in front of him, the curve of his mouth widening.
“Oh my, what a frank request.”
He smiled and shook his head, “However, I’m just a down-and-out merchant running a general store; I have nothing to teach a Genius like Sasuke-kun.”
Sasuke’s gaze turned cold.
“Kisuke Urahara.”
He directly called out the other’s name, “You are the former Captain of the Twelfth Division and the founder of the Research and Development Institute.
There’s no need to continue with these boring tests.”
The smile on Kisuke Urahara’s face froze for a moment, then turned into a helpless bitter smile.
Sasuke continued, “I need your guidance on everything about Shinigami, more profound Kido, and Swordsmanship Technique, and even…”
“Bankai!”
The air fell into a brief silence.
After a long while, Kisuke Urahara finally let out a long sigh, revealing a serious expression.
“Alright, alright, there’s no getting around you.”
He reopened his fan, covering half of his face.
“Since Sasuke-kun has said so, it would be too heartless for me to refuse again.”
He closed his fan and pointed to the floor.
“Coincidentally, there’s a rather spacious training ground beneath my small shop.”
Sasuke followed Kisuke Urahara through a secret door and entered the basement of the shop.
The basement was a surprisingly huge space, a stark contrast to the small general store above ground.
Underfoot was solid rock, and overhead was a simulated clear blue sky.
The vastness of this space was almost comparable to an entire training forest outside Konoha Village.
“Oh my, the place is a bit crude, please don’t mind it.”
Kisuke Urahara said with a smile, fanning himself, “It’s usually just used to research some interesting little things, so I made it a bit bigger.”
Sasuke was not surprised; for a former Captain to have such a grand setup seemed only natural.
“Then, as per our agreement.”
Sasuke stood in the center of the open space, looking directly at Urahara, “As the first step of our transaction, let me show you the power of that world.”
He quickly formed hand signs in front of his chest.
“Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique!”
Several ferocious dragon heads made of flames roared out from his mouth, carrying scorching heatwaves, and slammed into the distant rock wall.
A violent explosion echoed throughout the entire underground space.
“I see, is this the power you call ‘Chakra’?”
Kisuke Urahara paced around Sasuke, his instruments continuously recording data, “A completely new energy, capable of various effects by changing its ‘nature’ and ‘form’…”
“It’s almost like another manifestation of Kido, but the underlying principles are completely different.”
He stopped and posed the most crucial question: “So, Sasuke-kun, where does this energy called ‘Chakra’ come from?
Is it like reishi, spread throughout the air?”
Sasuke replied calmly, “No, it originates from oneself.”
“From oneself?”
“That’s right.”
Sasuke began to explain, “Every living being possesses physical energy, which can be enhanced through cultivation and training, and also mental energy, which grows stronger through the tempering of will.”
“Extracting these two energies from every cell within the body, then fusing them internally, ultimately forms Chakra.”
Sasuke glanced at Kisuke Urahara, who was listening intently, “Theoretically, any life form with a Soul and a physical body can refine this energy.”
“Extract and fuse from every cell?” Kisuke Urahara’s breathing quickened slightly.
He eagerly closed his eyes and, following the method Sasuke provided, tried to sense the energy within his body.
As a top Shinigami, he quickly felt the presence of those two distinct energies.
Then, he began to try and extract them.
However, the next second, Kisuke Urahara’s brows furrowed tightly.
He suddenly opened his eyes, a look of unprecedented confusion on his face.
“It’s not working.”
He looked at his hands, muttering, “Why can I clearly feel the existence of these two energies, yet I cannot effectively extract them?”
Sasuke looked at Kisuke Urahara’s bewildered expression, a hint of confusion flashing in his own mind.
He had fully disclosed the method for refining Chakra, which was practically a compulsory course for every child in the Ninja Academy in the Ninja world, with no difficulty whatsoever.
Why was it not working for Kisuke Urahara?
“Perhaps…”
Kisuke Urahara suddenly seemed to have figured something out.
He gave a helpless smile and began fanning himself again.
“Perhaps there’s something special in that world that’s influencing it, like an unknown component in the air, or perhaps, the rules of the world itself are different.”
He consoled himself, “It seems that to fully understand it, we’ll have to wait until we find a way to go back, and I go there myself.
Oh my, it’s getting more and more exciting.”
Sasuke snorted coldly, not responding, implicitly agreeing with this statement.
Kisuke Urahara circled Sasuke, the smile on his face becoming a bit more serious.
“Since Sasuke-kun has fulfilled the first step of the transaction, it’s now my turn.”
“However, in order to provide you with the most suitable training, I first need to get a comprehensive understanding of your strength as a Shinigami.”
…..