That night, Hasumi Ren stepped into the Second Division's training grounds for the first time in a while, only to find Soi Fon already standing in the center of the field.
The Executive Militia uniform accentuated her upright posture. Every move and stance she made was exceptionally sharp, her short black hair fluttering in the wind.
A fine layer of sweat already covered her forehead, making it clear she had been training for quite some time.
Sensing Ren's arrival, she looked up, a barely noticeable flash of joy crossing her eyes.
Then, as if realizing her own emotions, she hastily suppressed them and shot him a cold glare.
"You're finally here. I've been waiting for ages."
"By the way, there's an update on the people who tried to frame you."
Soi Fon paused before slowly recounting the aftermath.
"Lady Yoruichi said that Captain Kyoraku traced the incident back to the Tsunayashiro family. It caused quite a stir."
"Captain Kyoraku eventually made a special trip to Central 46 to settle the matter completely. The Tsunayashiro family lost a lot of face over it."
"Among the people you brought back, there was one named Nagano. I heard he died in the Ninth Division's prison."
Hearing this, Ren merely gave a slight nod, his expression completely unfazed.
If Tsunayashiro Tokinada was truly behind it, silencing witnesses was to be expected.
Unlike the Fourth Division, where he had given a warning, it seemed the Ninth Division had been somewhat careless.
As for the conflict with the Tsunayashiro family, Shihoin Yoruichi, Kyoraku Shunsui, and the others would handle it.
His most pressing priority right now was to improve his own strength and max out his stat experience bars.
Seeing his nonchalant attitude, Soi Fon lightly stretched her body.
She was long used to Ren's indifferent nature, so she didn't say anything more. Her spiritual pressure suddenly surged.
Seeing this, Ren also assumed a Hakuda starting stance.
"What, made some new progress on developing Shunko?"
"That's right. I want to see if your Hakuda training has fallen behind during your time in the Fourth Division."
Soi Fon's fist tore through the air, carrying condensed spiritual pressure as she attacked from her usual sharp and tricky angles.
Compared to before, her strength had improved significantly. It was clear she hadn't been slacking off lately either.
Ren's eyes narrowed. No longer holding back, he expertly executed Shunpo, his figure dodging like a phantom.
At the same time, he raised his hands to block and counterattack. His movements were concise and precise, not losing ground in the slightest.
The sound of clashing fists and kicks echoed densely across the training ground as the two figures crossed paths at high speed.
The shockwaves from their colliding spiritual pressures continuously rippled outward, sweeping up loose gravel and fallen leaves from the ground.
The longer they fought, the more shocked Soi Fon became. Beads of sweat gradually formed on her temples.
She was already using eighty percent of her strength, which was more than enough to suppress an ordinary seated officer.
Yet Ren appeared completely at ease, even launching fierce counterattacks from time to time.
Soi Fon's heart was filled with disbelief.
Three months ago, when Ren first joined the Second Division, he could barely hold his own against her.
But now, even if they weren't evenly matched, they weren't far off.
She hadn't slacked off for a moment during this time, and with the added boost from developing Shunko, her strength had been steadily rising.
Even so, she still couldn't firmly suppress Ren.
Ren's strength had skyrocketed at a visible rate, almost entirely under her watchful eye.
Such a growth rate was simply unimaginable.
Feeling Ren's increasingly dense barrage of attacks, Soi Fon found it harder and harder to parry.
*I can't let this continue...*
She gritted her teeth, and the spiritual pressure around her suddenly exploded.
The spiritual pressure nodes on her shoulders and back spun wildly. Kido-based spiritual pressure surged toward her back, erupting with an aura far beyond the ordinary.
With a low shout, Soi Fon's figure blurred into an afterimage.
Her fist, wrapped in pale green Kido flames, carried a terrifying amount of force as it smashed straight toward Ren.
Seeing this, Ren didn't dare to be careless. He pushed his spiritual pressure to the absolute limit and crossed his arms to block the blow head-on.
Bang!
A massive force struck him, sending Ren flying backward involuntarily. He stumbled back several steps before stabilizing his footing, his chest churning violently.
Soi Fon used the recoil to leap backward. That strike had consumed a significant amount of her spiritual pressure, leaving her slightly breathless.
"Wow, playing dirty, are we?"
Ren shook out his aching arms, strongly condemning Soi Fon's behavior of using her ultimate move just because she was losing.
Seeing Ren sent flying, the tension in Soi Fon's heart finally eased, and a faint smile tugged at the corners of her lips.
Just then, a gentle breeze blew past, and Soi Fon suddenly felt a chill on the back of her shoulders.
It turned out that during her Shunko outburst, the impact of the spiritual pressure on her shoulders and back had been too great, completely tearing the outer layer of her Executive Militia uniform.
The fabric slowly slipped down, revealing the backless combat uniform Yoruichi had given her underneath.
The garment clung tightly to her figure, perfectly displaying her slender yet powerful waist and her straight, toned back.
Only the slightly loose fabric over her chest fluttered gently in the breeze.
Soi Fon didn't notice at first, only realizing what had happened after she felt Ren's strange, lingering gaze on her body.
Soi Fon looked down and saw her current state.
Her face instantly flushed beet red, and she hurriedly crossed her arms over her chest to cover herself.
While shielding herself, she glared fiercely at Ren, her voice laced with embarrassment and anger as she scolded him.
"What are you looking at?!"
Startled by her shout, Ren quickly turned his head away, feeling quite awkward.
Recovering his composure a moment later, he spoke with a hint of innocence.
"It's not like anything is showing. Why can't I look?"
Flustered and burning with shame, Soi Fon kicked a stone from the ground, sending it flying straight at Ren.
Ren dodged with Shunpo. The two bickered and chased each other for a bit, and the awkward atmosphere on the field gradually dissipated.
After a long while, they finally settled down.
Soi Fon returned to the inner chambers to change her clothes. Her expression had returned to its usual calm, though the tips of her ears still bore a faint tinge of red.
She and Ren sat on the wooden posts of the training ground, gazing up at the starry sky.
Amidst their casual chat, Soi Fon's tone carried a hint of helplessness and frustration.
"Speaking of which, the development of my Shunko has hit another bottleneck."
She spoke slowly, explaining her dilemma.
"Although the direction is correct, the completion rate of the Kido formula is improving very slowly. The stability of the spiritual pressure condensing at the nodes on my shoulders and back just isn't enough."
"I'm afraid it will take a considerable amount of time to figure things out before I can completely master Shunko."
Ren looked at her slightly troubled expression and raised an eyebrow.
"Aren't you going to ask the Captain for some guidance?"
After all, Yoruichi had already mastered Shunko. With her guidance, Soi Fon would definitely be able to avoid a lot of detours.
Soi Fon shook her head without hesitation, her eyes firm and carrying a hint of stubbornness.
"I won't rely on Lady Yoruichi."
"This is an ability I chose to develop myself. I want to rely on my own strength to perfect it completely."
As she spoke, she cast a gentle glance at Ren, her tone softening slightly.
"That's why sparring with you is especially precious to me."
"Every time we fight, I can find my own shortcomings and figure out the techniques for circulating spiritual pressure much faster."
She paused, a flash of curiosity crossing her eyes as she looked at Ren.
"Come to think of it, you've been involved in the development of this ability almost the entire time. You've been learning and improving during every sparring session too."
"How is your progress coming along? Have you figured out the trick to Shunko yet?"
Hearing this, Ren's heart stirred. He silently opened his system panel and looked at the unlock conditions for Shunko.
He was only one step away from unlocking it.
He closed the panel, a mysterious smile appearing on his face as he spoke casually.
"My progress is pretty good. A bit better than you might think."
Seeing his secretive demeanor, the doubt in Soi Fon's eyes deepened.
However, she didn't press for details, though her gaze was full of skepticism.
"Is that so?"
Ren just smiled without saying a word, already beginning to look forward to when his Hakuda reached Lv6 and Shunko was unlocked.
When that time came, he wondered what kind of expression Soi Fon would make.