Chapter 24: The Captain-Commander's Verdict
The vast examination hall, beneath Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni's stern and unsmiling face, gained an inexplicable sense of oppression.
His posture—leaning on his cane with narrowed eyes—perfectly confirmed the old saying: Every(narrow-eyed person) is a monster.
At least in Yamamoto's case, as time passed, his aura truly carried a suffocating pressure.
Especially those examinees farther away—sweat began seeping from their palms the moment his gaze swept over them.
"Captain-Commander Yamamoto, it's about time… you should go meet His Majesty the Soul King," Chōjirō Sasakibe reminded in a low voice.
Beside him, a faint, imperceptible glint flashed deep in Aizen's eyes.
But it was quickly masked by his masterful acting.
Only Kuroha—who already knew Aizen's true intentions—instinctively glanced at him.
Hm?
Aizen raised an eyebrow, showing slight surprise, then quickly put on his warm smile and nodded.
Toward Kuroha's look, a fleeting thought crossed Aizen's mind.
But Aizen was confident—he had always acted so perfectly that even he sometimes doubted himself. He wasn't worried that his brief emotional fluctuation had been noticed.
Close call… he won't target me and drag me off for "sword training" and "Shikai demonstration," right?
Kuroha's expression stiffened for a moment. He muttered inwardly, then forced an awkward smile in return.
As a transmigrator, Kuroha knew full well: Aizen was one of the major behind-the-scenes bosses.
To achieve his goals, he had perfected the art of acting to the extreme.
And any strong individual he set his sights on would be "guided"—and subtly hypnotized with Kyōka Suigetsu without them noticing.
Recalling everything that had just happened, Kuroha was certain: Once Yamamoto approved his results as valid and he smoothly graduated from the Shin'ō Academy, with his displayed Extreme Hakuda and ten-bamboo reiatsu, he would absolutely end up on Aizen's "mentorship" list.
Facing such an almost unsolvable hypnosis technique, Kuroha needed to think of a countermeasure in advance.
"Considering that Shiba Kuroha caused a disturbance in the examination hall and participated in the Shin'ō Academy exam while intoxicated, all of this should result in disqualification and permanent exile to Rukongai."
Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni finally spoke.
His heavy words rang out. As his gaze shifted, his narrowed eyes suddenly opened wide. A piercing, soul-seizing light flashed in his turbid pupils.
"However—taking into account the past contributions of the Shiba family to the Gotei 13, Captain Ukitake Jūshirō's personal guarantee, and Captain Kuchiki Byakuya—model of nobility—exercising his special noble privilege to approve…"
"And also considering this is Shiba Kuroha's first offense, along with his impressive performance, which may allow the Gotei 13 to gain a capable Shinigami, this Captain-Commander now rules: Shiba Kuroha's results are valid."
"But while the death penalty may be forgiven, living punishment cannot be escaped. Shiba Kuroha relied on talent and became arrogant, disrupted the examination hall, and showed contempt for the Shin'ō Academy's rules. Therefore, this Captain-Commander decrees: if within one year Shiba Kuroha cannot successfully graduate from the Shin'ō Academy, he will be permanently stripped of the right to take the Shinigami exam, exiled to Rukongai for life, forbidden from setting foot in the Seireitei again—on pain of death."
The long, solemn words ended with a chilling, murderous tone.
Everyone's expressions froze.
Only Byakuya Kuchiki—the big brother-in-law—darkened even further.
Just moments ago he had wanted to beat Kuroha himself. Now, in Yamamoto's verdict, he had been named one of the people who vouched for Kuroha's exam eligibility.
If there were regret medicine, Byakuya would raise both hands and feet in refusal. This was basically him personally handing his little sister over.
However, facing Yamamoto's harsh final conditions, many in the crowd burst into an uproar.
Anyone planning to enter the Shin'ō Academy knew: the standard program was six years.
Some exceptionally talented students could, with an instructor's guarantee, apply for early graduation two or three years ahead.
Only an extremely small number could complete their studies and pass the exam within one year to become true Shinigami.
Those people were all heaven-defying prodigies.
Kuroha had just shown astonishing Hakuda and reiatsu talent—close to genius level.
But thinking of his alcoholism and drunken behavior… people secretly shook their heads.
That was a fatal flaw.
"What's wrong, Shiba Kuroha? Why aren't you speaking? Do you have objections to this old man's ruling?"
Yamamoto slammed his cane into the floor with a heavy thud.
"Back then, Kaien Shiba of the Shiba family—with only seven-bamboo reiatsu—completed his studies in one year and became vice-captain of the Thirteenth Division.
Isshin Shiba also finished his studies in one year and became captain of the Tenth Division.
I believe if you quit drinking, there might be a slim chance you could graduate within one year."
As soon as the words fell, the hall erupted again.
Many examinees had initially thought Yamamoto's conditions were extremely harsh.
But hearing the precedent set by Kaien and Isshin—both finishing in one year—made the "impossible" suddenly feel a little possible.
In their eyes, perhaps Yamamoto—seeing the ten-bamboo reiatsu result—had felt pity for talent.
That was why he imposed such strict conditions: to force Shiba Kuroha to break his drinking habit.
Nearby, Rukia—who had just recovered from her inner explosion—bit her lip, face full of thin anger. Hearing Yamamoto speak of Kaien Shiba's glorious achievement, a trace of inexplicable pride rose in her heart.
Facing the outstanding record of graduating in one year, she desperately wanted to see Kuroha suffer.
"Ah… I feel like drinking would let me graduate faster…" Kuroha suddenly jolted awake, quickly realizing his slip. "Ahem, cough—can I strive to graduate in one and a half years instead?"
Everyone froze.
Even Shunsui couldn't help covering his forehead, glancing sideways at Yamamoto—whose face had now turned completely black—and once again admiring Kuroha's god-tier talent for causing trouble.
In the future, he'd at least have to call him "little troublemaker."
"You bastard—you dare show contempt for my ruling? It seems you still don't know repentance."
Yamamoto's cane nearly cracked the floor. His cold voice boomed:
"Since you are so full of confidence, then within one year—if you cannot reach proficiency in all four arts (Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Hohō, Kidō), it will be considered graduation failure. This old man will personally exile you, so you can taste the consequences of scorning the rules."
The furious roar shook the testing hall several times.
Seeing the graduation difficulty suddenly raised by an entire level, many people's first thought was the same:
This guy is walking further and further down the path of self-destruction.
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