~ Next Bonus, 100!

--------------------------------------------------

Shin had assumed Yoruichi was just talking, but she actually went to see Yamamoto about resigning.

The result, of course, was that Yamamoto refused. Yoruichi returned with a gloomy look on her face.

"I'm in a bad mood. Let's spar. And you're not allowed to fight back," Yoruichi said to Shin.

"You want to spar, but you won't let me fight back? You want me to stand here and let you hit me?" Shin gave her an exasperated look.

He wasn't about to just be a punching bag. He wasn't an idiot.

"But if you're the one who wants to get hit, I don't mind sparring with you. I guarantee you'll be satisfied."

Shin smiled, raising a fist as if he were about to strike.

"Hold on." Seeing his movement, Yoruichi immediately stopped him. A beating was definitely not what she wanted. And she knew Shin was more than capable of delivering one. The words "chivalry" and "going easy on a woman" didn't seem to exist in his dictionary.

"I have no interest in fighting you. I have work to do."

With that, Yoruichi walked towards her office. Shin didn't believe for a second that she had any actual work to do. She had never done anything before. If she suddenly started working now, Shin would be the first to call her out on it. The entire burden of the 2nd Division was about to fall on Soi Fon's shoulders.

'The Lieutenant of the 2nd Division is a slacker. Looks like Soi Fon's in for a rough time. Maybe I should find someone to handle the paperwork for her?'

In most squads, the lieutenant was the busiest, not the captain. But in the 2nd Division, the lieutenant was a slacker. And Soi Fon would never force Yoruichi to do anything. The future of the 2nd Division rested entirely on Soi Fon's shoulders.

Well, it had been the same when Shin was captain. All the work had been left to Soi Fon. Now, at least, she was finally the captain.

"Is Captain Shin here?"

Just as Shin was looking for a place to slack off, someone came to the 2nd Division looking for him.

"It's you, Rangiku. What's up?" Shin's eyes roamed over Matsumoto Rangiku. It wasn't that he couldn't control his gaze—it was that she was just that eye-catching.

"And Rangiku, you don't have to call me Captain anymore. I've stepped down."

"You're not a captain anymore? Why?"

The news came as a complete shock to Rangiku.

"Because I didn't want to be one. I gave the position to someone more suitable. And now I'm completely free."

And he really was free. Before, even though he had left most of the work to Soi Fon, there were still some captain-specific duties he had to handle himself. Now, he was completely liberated.

"That's such a shame," Rangiku said, shaking her head. But from his expression, it was clear he truly didn't want the position.

"In that case, you have free time now, don't you, Captain Shin? I was wondering if you might have a moment to give me some pointers."

Her main reason for coming here, aside from a small personal agenda, was to ask for his guidance.

"Pointers? Sure, I'm free anyway."

Shin said with a smile. If it were a guy asking for his help, like Hitsugaya Tōshirō, Shin would have sent him packing. But for a beautiful woman, Shin didn't mind at all.

Hearing him agree, Rangiku was overjoyed. She had been worried he would refuse. It had taken a lot of courage to ask, and being rejected would have been quite embarrassing.

"Let's go to the 2nd Division training grounds," Shin said.

He led Rangiku to the training grounds and began to instruct her. Rangiku's current strength wasn't bad—she was quite talented. Compared to a true genius, she might fall short, but compared to an average academy student, she was definitely a prodigy.

Rangiku had asked for guidance in Kidō. She didn't know many spells at the moment, mainly because she had limited access to them. Not just anyone could learn the more powerful Kidō. If Shin hadn't gone to the Great Spirit Book Gallery, he wouldn't know so many either.

"Your current Reiatsu isn't very strong. You can probably cast two high-level Kidō at most."

Shin explained to Rangiku. In terms of spiritual pressure, Rangiku had no particular advantage. Unleashing two high-level spells would be her limit. The higher the level of the Kidō, the more Reiatsu it consumed. If she tried to use a Hadō #90 like Black Coffin, she'd probably only manage one before being completely drained.

As he trained her, Shin found that Rangiku was average in all aspects—no real weaknesses, but no outstanding strengths either. As for her Zanpakutō ability, while not weak, it wasn't particularly strong either.

"Shin, how did I do?" Rangiku asked. Since he was no longer a captain, she felt bold enough to use his name.

Shin didn't mind, but when she asked about her performance, he could only shake his head. He wasn't very satisfied.

Seeing him shake his head, a look of disappointment crossed Rangiku's face. She knew she wasn't that strong, but seeing his reaction was still disheartening.

"Although you're not particularly strong in any area right now, you have a lot of potential," Shin told her honestly.

"Really?" A hint of joy appeared on Rangiku's face. Just a little praise from him was enough to make her happy.

"But how do you want to develop? Which area of your skills do you want to improve? I can give you specific training," Shin said.

Rangiku considered her options. Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Hohō, and Kidō—the four basic combat forms of a Soul Reaper.

She had already given up on swordsmanship and hand-to-hand combat. She knew her own limitations—her physique wasn't suited for them. In the end, Rangiku asked Shin to teach her Kidō and Shunpo techniques.

--------------------------------------------------

~ Every 100 PS = Bonus Chapter!

~ 80 Advanced Chapters Available on Patreon!

https://p-atreon.com/dragonnx

(Just remove the hyphen to access Patreon normally.)