The travel-worn group watched as the South Gate of the Seireitei, Shuwamon, slowly appeared before their eyes.
The moment they stepped through the massive gates, everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief.
The taut nerves they had carried for the past few days could finally relax. The familiar atmosphere of the Seireitei made them feel incredibly secure.
The wounded were transferred to the Fourth Division barracks. Unohana ordered the squad members to rest and handle the follow-up tasks before she returned to the captain's office alone.
The following days were peaceful.
Hasumi Ren rested in the Fourth Division barracks. He spent his time fruitfully, occasionally helping out in the herb garden or discussing medical treatments with the other squad members.
However, Unohana's kendo instruction for him did not cease.
Since returning from the Rukongai, Unohana Retsu had become incredibly busy.
The daily medical duties of the Fourth Division, treating the wounded, and investigating the abnormal movements of the Hollow horde kept her on her feet almost constantly.
But even so, she carved out time once a week to instruct Ren in kendo at a clearing in the back mountains of the Fourth Division.
Unohana never used real swords; they still used two wooden bokken.
Yet, her attacks were even sharper and trickier than they had been in the Rukongai.
That killing intent was also much denser. Ren could feel it gradually escalating with every session.
On the training ground, Unohana Retsu's wooden sword slapped against Ren's forearm, casually knocking his weapon away and instantly neutralizing his offensive.
"Your problem lies in pursuing precision too much, which causes you to lose the fluidity of kendo."
"You practice swordsmanship with the mindset of a healer, allowing you to accurately pinpoint the enemy's weaknesses. This is your advantage, but it has also become your shackle."
"The way of the sword is different from the way of medicine; it doesn't require step-by-step precision. Being a bit wilder and more ruthless will actually allow you to catch your opponent off guard."
Ren picked up the wooden sword from the ground and nodded.
In the ensuing training, under Unohana's guidance, Ren slowly began to break through his own shackles.
He no longer deliberately pursued precision, but instead tried to let his body move in tandem with his mind, allowing his killing intent to drive the momentum of his blade.
System notification chimes rang out continuously during his sword practice.
The moment the system prompt sounded, Ren clearly felt a qualitative leap in his kendo.
A much denser, more profound sword momentum surged from within his body, perfectly merging his spiritual pressure with the trajectory of his blade.
He could clearly sense that his swordsmanship had reached an entirely new level.
In terms of pure kendo proficiency, he had long surpassed ordinary Vice-Captains.
He was already approaching a Captain-level standard of swordsmanship.
When that day's training concluded, Unohana Retsu looked at Ren, a distinct flash of surprise in her eyes.
She could clearly feel the shift in his sword momentum—a natural, seamless metamorphosis.
Such a rapid rate of progress made even her feel a sense of astonishment.
Following that, a strange sense of satisfaction welled up within her.
It was like watching a piece of flawless jade gradually take on a more perfect form under her carving.
So much so that it made her hands...
Itch a little.
"Not bad."
Unohana suppressed the emotions in her heart and spoke flatly, her tone carrying a rare hint of approval.
"Your talent in kendo somewhat exceeds my expectations."
Ren bowed respectfully.
"It is all thanks to the Captain's excellent teaching."
Unohana gave a slight nod.
"Your foundation is solid enough. Starting today, I can teach you true swordsmanship."
As she spoke, the wooden sword in her hand blurred into an afterimage, thrusting straight toward Ren's face.
Ren instinctively raised his arm to block. The moment the wooden swords clashed, he felt a tremendous force transmit through the wood, leaving his wrist completely numb.
But before he could even react, a slight sting flared in his shoulder.
It was a small stone flicked from Unohana's left hand, striking his shoulder with pinpoint accuracy.
*Smack!*
The wooden sword slipped from Ren's grasp once more, falling heavily to the ground.
Unohana lowered her sword and stood straight, looking at him calmly.
"Your attention is too focused on the blade in front of you, causing you to ignore the movements of my left hand."
"A real battle is never a fair, one-on-one frontal clash."
"Any single detail, any tiny movement, could become the key to victory, or a fatal flaw."
Ren rubbed his shoulder, picked up his wooden sword, and nodded.
"I'll remember that."
He assumed his stance once more and launched an attack at Unohana Retsu.
This time, he not only paid attention to the wooden sword in front of him but also kept a constant watch on everything around him.
However, Unohana Retsu's attacks were far more treacherous than he had imagined.
The trajectory of her wooden sword was unpredictable—sometimes sweeping and grand, other times insidious and cunning.
Frontal assaults, flanking sneak attacks; she used every trick in the book.
Occasionally, she would even mix in hidden weapons and Kido interference, making it impossible for him to defend against everything.
An unknown amount of time passed before the clashing of wooden swords on the training ground gradually subsided.
Ren was drenched in sweat, panting heavily. He still gripped his wooden sword tightly, but his eyes shone brighter than ever.
Unohana Retsu looked at him and gave a slight nod.
"Not bad. At the very least, you can hold your own for a few rounds now."
Ren smiled and wiped the sweat from his brow.
"Thank you for holding back, Captain. By the way, Captain, your swordsmanship is so brilliant. Does it have a style or a name?"
Hearing this, Unohana's figure paused slightly.
Her gaze fell upon the distant mountain forest, a trace of reminiscence flashing in her eyes, as if recalling those years from a millennium ago.
After a long silence, she slowly uttered a single name. Her voice was so light it seemed it might be blown away by the wind, yet it reached Ren's ears with absolute clarity.
"Yachiru."
"Yachiru..."
Ren softly repeated the name.
"That will be all for today."
Unohana withdrew her gaze.
"Go back and get some good rest. We will continue next time."
"Yes, Captain."
Early the next morning, just as Ren finished his morning practice and was preparing to help out in the clinic, a Fourth Division member came to deliver a message.
They said someone was looking for him and was currently waiting at the entrance of the barracks.
Ren was slightly taken aback. He didn't have many acquaintances in the Seireitei, so he wondered who could be looking for him.
He walked briskly to the entrance of the compound. Looking up, he saw a figure with light blonde hair, wearing a slightly lazy smile on his face.
Urahara Kisuke.
Ren certainly hadn't expected the visitor to be Urahara Kisuke.
Since their last parting, the two had had no interactions. Urahara Kisuke's sudden visit came as a bit of a surprise.
"Hasumi Ren, long time no see."
Seeing Ren, Urahara Kisuke smiled and waved. His expression was as casual as ever as he took a few steps forward to greet him.
"Third Seat Urahara, what brings you to see me today?"
"Nothing important, really. I just had some free time and thought I'd come see you."
Ren looked at Urahara Kisuke, a thoughtful gleam flashing in his eyes.
He recalled the previous incident with the Hollowfication fragment.
The source of that had been Urahara Kisuke.
This made Ren suspect whether this guy had discovered some special trait of his...
In his eyes, the current Urahara Kisuke now carried a hint of danger.
Subsequently, Ren cleared his throat. Although his gaze didn't show any overt alienation, his attitude had noticeably shifted.
"You wouldn't come out of your way to find me for no reason. Just tell me what it is; I still have squad duties to attend to."
"Haha, I really can't hide anything from you."
Urahara Kisuke chuckled. He leaned in close to Ren and lowered his voice, his tone carrying a trace of mystery.
He looked directly into Ren's eyes and enunciated every word clearly.
"The Spirit Spring project we discussed before... there's been progress."