The main approach road.
Momo Hinamori and Rukia were slowly acclimatizing to the crushing pressure of the Royal Palace. Beads of sweat rolled down their foreheads, traced the lines of their chins, and fell to the ground, blooming into small dark stains on the stone below.
Bracing themselves on their sword sheaths, the two of them forced their bodies upright and took their first labored steps through the Royal Palace, making their way toward where Soifon and Ichibē Hyōsube sat waiting on the ground.
"Let's race, dummy Rukia."
Banking on her naturally stronger spirit body — and the higher HP that came with it — Hinamori pulled ahead of Rukia by half a step.
"Dummy Momo, what scheme are you cooking up now."
Rukia hadn't agreed to any race, but her feet were already speeding up all the same, gradually drawing level with Hinamori.
"Hmm... whoever reaches Teacher Soifon first gets to kiss her on the cheek. What do you say."
Even as she spoke, Hinamori raised her hand against the crushing weight of the pressure and quietly fired a Bakudō: Sai at Rukia beside her.
At the exact same moment, Rukia lifted her own hand with matching reflexes, releasing a Spiritual Pressure wave at the same frequency to cancel out the Bakudō her friend had launched.
——Mutual annihilation!
"Naturally evil Rukia — you had a counter ready the whole time?! You were clearly planning to use Kidō for underhanded purposes all along!"
Her first strike having failed, Hinamori bit back immediately.
"Heh heh, sneaky Momo — did you really think I hadn't noticed your little trick?"
While Hinamori was still processing that, Rukia jabbed her in the foot with her sword sheath, then continued her painfully slow advance.
"Ow!"
Taking a hit right on the toe, Hinamori somehow overrode the crushing pressure bearing down on her entire body and leapt several meters into the air on one foot.
With every step they took forward, the spirit particles saturating the Royal Palace tempered their spirit bodies — refining them in increments too small for the naked eye to detect, but steadily, surely making them stronger.
Victory was right in front of them.
Meanwhile, Ichibē Hyōsube, in the middle of his conversation with Soifon, tilted his round head sideways and peered over her shoulder at Rukia and Hinamori, who were inching their way toward them:
"Oh my, looks like your two students have managed to get themselves moving."
"Not even a hundred years old, yet already sitting at the 4th Spiritual Rank edging toward the 3rd — that's not bad at all."
"One meal at Kirinji's place should be enough to push them through to the 3rd Spiritual Rank..."
Their strength was nowhere near enough to impress him, of course — but these two were Soifon's students, so a few words of encouragement couldn't hurt.
Soifon turned to look as well. Sure enough, her two students were shuffling toward them with unsteady feet — though with every step, their stride grew a little more certain.
"I should bring them over to Hikifune's place soon. There's still a lot left unfinished down below, and once they've learned their Shikai, it'll be about time to head back."
Soifon stood, and together with Ichibē Hyōsube waited where they were for the two students making their way over.
"Ha ha ha — why not just stay, Soifon?"
The moment those words left Ichibē Hyōsube's mouth, he felt a killing intent flash off her like a cold blade — and immediately realized he'd put his foot in it.
"No no no — you've misread me entirely, what I meant was..."
"How about joining the Zero Division? With your strength, I could build you your very own satellite palace..."
He waved his hands quickly, trying to clarify the unfortunate ambiguity of what he'd said.
"Could you please stop saying things that invite that kind of misreading, monk." Soifon rolled her eyes and waved off the offer. "I'm not joining the Zero Division. Spending my days cooped up in a place this dull would be worse than dying."
"What a shame — back in the day, Kiganjō Kenpachi turned me down with the exact same reason..."
Ichibē Hyōsube sighed.
"As I understand it, when you invited Kiganjō Kenpachi, you only wanted him to come guard the gate of the Royal Palace?"
"You didn't even offer him a satellite palace. No wonder he said no."
Soifon ignored Ichibē Hyōsube's embarrassed expression and stepped forward to meet Rukia and Hinamori, who had finally made it close enough.
"..."
Having made himself look foolish, Ichibē Hyōsube quietly faded from the spot and vanished.
Looking at her two students who had finally, painstakingly shuffled to stand before her, Soifon noticed that the hair at their temples was plastered to their flushed skin, soaked through with sweat.
Soifon reached out and gently wiped the droplets sliding down their foreheads and cheeks.
"Still holding up?"
Soifon asked, her voice a touch softer than usual.
Rukia and Hinamori exchanged a look and nodded firmly.
"Good."
Soifon gave a small, satisfied nod.
The next second, without any warning, she extended both arms and hooked them around the waists of her two students — one on each side. Then, lightly touching the tip of her foot to the smooth stone of the main approach road...
"Eek——!"
"Teacher Soifon?!"
Rukia and Hinamori felt the ground drop away beneath them, and then they were airborne — sweeping along the main approach road toward the distant [Sleeping Pig Palace].
"This is bad, Teacher Soifon!" Hinamori flailed her dangling legs in a panic. "We're both covered in sweat — we'll get your Captain's Haori dirty..."
Rukia chimed in, which was rare for her: "She's right, and we were lying on the ground earlier, so we're..."
Rather than letting go, Soifon gave the two of them a playful little bounce in her arms mid-flight, sending them into another round of shrieking panic.
"What are you on about." Soifon's voice rang out with particular clarity through the rushing wind. "Do I really strike you as the kind of person who'd turn her nose up at her girlfriend just because she worked up a sweat?"
"Girl— girlfriend——?!"
The word — coming from Soifon's own mouth — detonated simultaneously inside both Rukia's and Hinamori's heads.
Their faces, already flushed from exertion, turned so red they looked ready to steam. Their brains felt like they were overheating and about to short-circuit.
Muffled, flustered sounds escaped from within Soifon's arms:
"W-wait... Teacher Soifon just casually said 'girlfriend' like that..."
"We... we haven't even had time to fully adjust to this... relationship yet..."
Soifon glanced down at the two flustered little bundles nestled in her arms and said, with deliberate mischief: "Weren't you the ones who confessed first? I'm just fulfilling my duties as a girlfriend."
Rukia and Hinamori were completely routed. They buried their scorching faces deep into Soifon's shoulder and chest respectively.
After that, Soifon stopped teasing them and flew on at a steady, unhurried pace.
Before long, the three of them descended gently before the distinctive entrance of the [Sleeping Pig Palace].
Rukia and Hinamori, who had seemed limp with exhaustion and shyness just a moment ago, felt their eyes light up the instant a rich, enticing aroma reached them. They swallowed involuntarily, and found themselves standing a little straighter.
At that moment, Tenjirō Kirinji leaned out from inside, her face warm with welcome. "Captain Soifon, and two guests — please, come right in."
Once inside, after a brief exchange of pleasantries, Tenjirō Kirinji learned that Soifon had not come as a diner this time. The visible relief on her face caused even the soft, chubby cheeks on either side to tremble slightly:
"It seems my hard-won fat reserves are safe for today, Captain Soifon."
Soifon cleared her throat with a mildly guilty cough. "Last time... the circumstances were unusual. I apologize for the trouble I caused you, Miss Kirinji."
After Tenjirō Kirinji explained the properties of the food, Rukia and Hinamori took seats on either side of the long table and began eating, one careful bite at a time.
At first, both of them kept their table manners firmly in mind — small bites, thorough chewing, doing their best to maintain a composed and elegant appearance.
But then the first mouthful went down. It dissolved into a wave of warmth that spread through their spirit bodies, and the crushing pressure of the Royal Palace seemed to genuinely ease — just a fraction. Their bodies felt lighter, brimming with energy.
That tangible, immediate sense of growing stronger — combined with the utterly irresistible taste of the food itself — swiftly demolished every last shred of their restraint.
Their pace grew faster and faster. In the end they gave up entirely on that scrap of dignity they'd been clinging to and began eating with unrestrained, unladylike enthusiasm.
Tenjirō Kirinji watched from the side with a cheerful smile, her plump fingers tapping idly on the table. "Captain Soifon's two students — both appetite and potential are quite respectable... Although by the look of things, I probably won't need to pull an all-nighter restocking supplies today."
A beautifully high-EQ observation.
When the last morsel had been vanquished, Rukia and Hinamori practically simultaneously leaned back in their chairs and slumped there, both patting their round, stuffed bellies in unison.
...
Two days later. Seireitei.
After both of them had learned the true names of their Zanpakutō from Ōetsu Nimaiya's [Phoenix Palace] and descended from the Royal Palace with Soifon, it was well past dinnertime.
A golden meteor streaked across the night sky of the Seireitei and plunged straight down into the Captain's courtyard of the Second Division.
"You two go freshen up."
The moment they touched down, Soifon pinched her nose and released Rukia and Hinamori.
During their time in the Royal Palace, Hinamori and Rukia had barely had a moment's rest — nothing but eating and training, and they had spent a full day and night training in the dusty underground chamber of the Phoenix Palace.
Soifon pulled off her Captain's Haori and tossed it at the two of them, then headed toward the Captain's private hot spring bath, clad in her backless halter-neck Shihakushō.
In the time Soifon had been away from the Second Division, however, that hot spring had already become a place Rukia and Hinamori frequented regularly.
Clutching the Haori in their arms, Hinamori and Rukia exchanged a glance. They waited until Soifon's figure had completely disappeared through the hot spring's door before they began whispering conspiracies.
Hinamori pressed the Captain's Haori to her face and inhaled deeply. "Hmph — Teacher Soifon, we've learned Bankai now, and you're still sending us off to do laundry?!"
"Hey, Momo — how's your stamina holding up right now?"
Rukia also took a deep sniff of the Haori — which had been replenished with Soifon's energy — then gave her friend a meaningful, significant look.
Their soaring power, the Bankai of their Zanpakutō — all of it had given the two of them a confidence that, strictly speaking, they had no business possessing.
——A feeling that they could actually beat Teacher Soifon.
"Hmm... it's time Teacher Soifon learned just what we're made of, Rukia."
"Who's on top and who's on the bottom — let's settle that tonight."
The two shared a look and cackled their scheming cackles — "kehkehkeh" — then turned and headed for the shower stalls behind them to rinse off the dust first.
As everyone knows: wherever two people plot in secret, there is always someone eavesdropping.
Inside the hot spring, Soifon's supernaturally keen ears twitched almost imperceptibly, catching every word of their scheme with perfect clarity.
"Oh dear..." Soifon leaned back against the stone, draping a towel over her eyes. "You're going to regret this, Rukia, Momo..."
Meanwhile.
Rinsed clean of dust and sweat, Hinamori and Rukia each wrapped themselves in a large white bath towel. Suppressing their Spiritual Pressure as completely as they could, they crept stealthily toward the entrance of the Captain's private hot spring.
Misty vapour seeped through the gap in the door. The two of them pressed themselves against the wall beside the doorway, carefully peeking their heads halfway around to peer inside.
Inside the spring pool, Soifon had her back to them, lounging lazily against the smooth stone wall of the pool with her eyes closed, her damp black hair clinging to her pale shoulders and the clean lines of her back.
Hinamori and Rukia exchanged one look — now's their chance!
In perfect, wordless sync, both of them gave a single nod, drew a deep breath at the same time, and then yanked off the towels obstructing them!
From two different angles — left and right — they launched themselves simultaneously at the seemingly unguarded figure in the pool!
Splash!
Water flew everywhere.
The next instant — the world flipped upside down!
"?!"
"Uwah!"
Splash splash splash——!
A massive wave of warm water was knocked outward by the impact, soaking the stone slabs around the pool's edge.
Hinamori and Rukia felt their vision blur — and when the dizziness cleared, they found themselves pressed firmly against the stone wall of the pool, one on the left, one on the right.
At the same moment, a semicircular transparent golden barrier blazed to life with the hot spring at its center, sealing the entire bath area off from the outside world.
Soifon leaned close to their ears. Her voice came out low and quietly menacing:
"Well, aren't you two bold."
"I brought you all the way to the Royal Palace. I put in all that effort to make you stronger, to get you to Bankai..."
"Was it all just so the two of you could sneak in and ambush your teacher tonight? Hm?"
A pale, holy light dissolved into mist, veiling the three bodies within. Soifon pressed down on the shoulders of her two students, as if mocking them for their overconfidence.
But in the next instant, Hinamori and Rukia moved in almost perfect unison — a move that even caught Soifon off guard.
Both of them leaned forward at the same time, rising ever so slightly onto their tiptoes.
Soft, warm lips — carrying the sweet, fresh fragrance unique to Shinigami girls who had lived a century — pressed themselves against the left and right corners of Soifon's mouth simultaneously.
Splash——
Defeated by her two students' perfectly coordinated double-kiss technique, the invincible Soifon toppled backward into the hot spring water below.
In the next instant, the roles of attacker and defender reversed entirely.
Rukia and Hinamori suddenly changed expression. Their eyes fell to Soifon's neatly manicured fingernails. Their mouths fell open of their own accord. White bubbles rose from their lips and floated up to the surface.
Fortunately, ordinary spring water is not enough to drown a Shinigami.
Seconds ticked by, one after another. Rukia and Hinamori, their eyes glazed and distant, floated up from the bottom of the pool to the surface, cheeks aglow.
Soifon rinsed her left and right hands in the hot spring water, then stepped out of the pool and slipped on her bathrobe.
"Who's on top and who's on the bottom?" Soifon turned to look at her two students floating there like dead fish. "With the level you two are at right now, you'll need another twenty thousand years before you can even think about getting the better of me."
____
👻🔥+40 ch: Walnut-chan🔥👻
🔥 New history: COTE: Confessing to Sakayanagi From the Start
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