Bleach: Reborn — Chapter 124 - Taking a Master

In the pitch-black forest, beneath the Hollow Beast's mask, two blood-red eyes burned like twin ghost-fires, flickering without rest. Its braided, segmented neck swayed back and forth, searching for the right angle to strike.

"Kira. Today's lesson is live combat."

Wayne shifted his long blade and advanced on the Hollow Beast, step by deliberate step.

"In battle, focus comes first. But that doesn't mean locking your whole body rigid with caution. Before you engage, you dismiss your opponent. Your body, though, your body stays ready at all times. Outward contempt cannot become a real opening. In a duel between masters, every opening is a performance. A genuine one gets you killed in an instant."

His footsteps dragged. Nothing about his approach said he was about to attack.

The Hollow Beast's gaze turned savage. Its swaying neck snapped down like a war-axe, the sharp beak driving straight at Wayne's face. The speed was so brutal that Izuru Kira couldn't even track it.

BOOM!

The beak slammed into the ground. Sand and stone exploded outward.

"Big Brother Tsukishiro!" Kira shouted from the sidelines, voice tight with panic. That strike had been too fast, his eyes simply couldn't follow. If he'd been the target, he'd be dead already.

"Now. Step two."

Wayne's voice came from within the dust cloud. As visibility returned, Kira saw him standing beside the Hollow Beast, completely unharmed. In the instant of the attack, Wayne had tilted sharply left, raised his blade in a side-parry against the creature's mask, and deflected the strike. His long blade was now buried deep in the side of the Hollow Beast's face. Scarlet blood ran down the fuller. The creature shrieked, convulsing with pain.

Wayne's left arm flared with Reiatsu. He rode the blade's edge upward in a rising slash along the Hollow Beast's skull. The wound tore open to the bone. The beast spasmed in agony.

"Beyond basic attacks, the second technique you need is this: when your enemy is down, finish him."

He launched forward at blinding speed. Just before contact, he triggered Shadow Step, closing the gap in an instant and pressing himself against the Hollow Beast's chest. One thrust. The blade sank to the hilt.

Both hands on the grip, Wayne drove the blade downward with brutal force, carving a deep gash across the creature's oval body. Blood gushed like a spring, drenching the ground red in moments.

"A-amazing..." Kira stared, utterly dumbstruck. A Hollow Beast he'd thought nearly impossible to fight, this blind man had dismantled it in a handful of moves. It defied everything he'd expected.

Strong. Extremely strong. Stronger than his own teachers.

That was Kira's verdict. He'd stumbled onto a treasure, and he was not letting this man slip away. He had to learn from him, had to. This was his path to standing out in the Shin'ō Academy entrance exams.

With the Hollow Beast already critically wounded, Wayne reversed his grip, spun sharply, and brought the blade down in a heavy slash across the creature's neck.

A sharp crack rang out from the protective bone. The struck point split open.

"Tch. Tough bone." Wayne clicked his tongue. That slash was meant to sever the neck clean through, instead it had only cut through one ring of the cervical armor. His Reiatsu was still far too thin. Otherwise, cutting down small fry wouldn't be this much work.

Still, the blow had done its damage. The neck wouldn't lift anymore; the long cervical spine was clearly compromised. The head and neck crashed heavily to the ground. Only the four blade-like appendages beneath the body kept twitching.

"That's enough. Kira — final step."

Wayne pulled his blade free and stepped forward, the tip aimed at the Hollow Beast's skull.

"In battle, unless it's absolutely necessary, don't waste a single word on your enemy."

One slash. The head came off. Wayne tore away its mask.

"Save your words for the dead."

Kira hadn't brought a Zanpakutō, so Wayne could take the mask just as he had last time. And Kira, still reeling, was in no state to notice the small maneuver after the kill.

"So? As a first lesson — did my demonstration pass?"

Wayne shook the blood from the blade and handed it back to Kira, who was still gaping.

"Come on. Back to the clearing. The Hollow Beast will dissipate on its own."

He turned and headed back. It took Kira a moment to snap out of his daze before he hurried to catch up.

"Big Brother Tsukishiro, you're incredible." All the way back, Kira couldn't stop marveling. "Can I become like you someday?"

"The fundamentals don't change. What changes is how you use them." Wayne's voice was calm as still water. "When you become a Soul Reaper, the Zanpakutō that stays with you for life will grant you specific abilities. Everything you're building now — the fundamentals — lays the groundwork for that future power. Once you've awakened your Zanpakutō, you'll adjust your techniques to match its nature: whether you lean toward power, speed, or something else entirely. But drilling the fundamentals is never wrong."

"Yes, Big Brother Tsukishiro." Kira's voice turned solemn. "Please — teach me."

"I'll say this again. This is a transaction. I take your food and money. In return, I give you combat experience, guide your fundamentals, and temper your will and courage. Nothing beyond that. And everything I just listed, you could learn it from your own family's instructors. Are you sure?"

"Yes!"

"Good. Then perform the ceremony. Take me as your master."

"Eh?" Kira blinked, baffled.

"We should at least go through the formalities." A sly curve tugged at the corner of Wayne's mouth.

"Ah, right." Caught completely off guard, Kira frantically patted himself down. Not a single copper coin on him.

"I do seem to be short a proper blade," Wayne said, activating freeloader mode.

"Ah, yes!" Kira dropped to his knees and presented his standard-issue katana with both hands. "Master, please accept this!"

"Mm." Wayne took the blade with an amused look, then helped Kira to his feet.

He had to admit, Izuru Kira was a genuinely upright person. Even knowing full well that Wayne was blind, he had performed the ceremony without the slightest deviation.

"A blade knows its master. Keep this one. Bring me a new one tomorrow." Wayne smiled and pushed the katana back toward Kira.

"Did you want to start formal training tomorrow, or...?"

"I want to start now." Kira's voice was dead serious.

"That works too. Drive is a good thing." Wayne nodded and told him to get ready.

"Before any technique comes the foundation. Earlier, when you were slashing, your footwork was stiff, your lower body unstable. So today, we start with the Horse Stance."

And so Wayne began teaching Izuru Kira. The truth was, in his previous life as a Hollow, he had never undergone any of this training. It had all been Hollow Beast instinct, abilities he was born knowing. Everything he was teaching now came from his life before that, as a human: things he'd heard from others, read in books, picked up online. Combined with his experience in the Hollow world and his understanding of Reiryoku, he was confident he could teach Kira correctly. He wouldn't lead a student astray.

While Kira held the Horse Stance, Wayne went looking for game.

By the time the sky began to lighten, he'd bagged two wild rabbits. He called a halt to Kira, who had been holding the stance the entire time.

"Even practicing fundamentals burns a fair amount of Reiatsu. And this is your first time using Reiryoku while training this way. By now, the Reishi in your body should be flooding into your legs, increasing their endurance. Correct?"

"Yes, Master." Kira nodded.

"Call me Tsukishiro. The ceremony was just a formality." Wayne waved a hand.

"Uh... yes, Big Brother Tsukishiro." Kira continued. "With muscle strength alone, I don't think I could have held the Horse Stance that long carrying over two hundred jin. But after you explained the Reiryoku circulation method, Big Brother Tsukishiro, my legs felt a steady flow of power. My Reiryoku is draining, but my legs can endure far longer."

"Good. Controlling your muscles while circulating Reiryoku, over time, you're not just building muscle strength. You're sharpening your mastery of Reiryoku itself." Wayne smiled, satisfied with Kira's diligence.

"That's enough for today. You've grasped how to control Reiryoku, that's enough for now. The rest is up to you to practice on your own. Come eat."

He beckoned Kira over, set up a fire rack, and used his Reiatsu to ignite the dry grass beneath it. With his cleaver, he quickly skinned one rabbit and began dressing the meat. As it roasted, Kira stared fixedly at the sizzling, fat-dripping meat on the rack. Accustomed to fine food, he had never craved a meal this badly before.

"Replenishing yourself after burning Reiatsu is good for you. Keeps you from feeling hollow and drained after a long day." Wayne chopped one rabbit in half down the middle and handed a portion to Kira. "Make do. No seasoning, no salt, it'll taste a little gamey. But it'll restore your strength."

"Mm!" Kira nodded hard and tore into the meat, stuffing piece after piece into his mouth. Watching him wolf it down, Wayne couldn't help but find it amusing, and a little ironic. He'd come here to freeload. How had he ended up roping himself into all this? But whatever. Every lesson meant a full stomach and a decent blade. That was pure profit. All he had to do was talk and occasionally demonstrate a move. Why not?

"Big Brother Tsukishiro, the Shin'ō Academy entrance exam is in three months. Will you be taking it too?" Kira asked, cheeks bulging as he chewed.

"Barring the unexpected, yes." Wayne tossed a few dead branches onto the fire. "I have a younger sister. Younger than you. But like you, she wants to become a Soul Reaper. To stay by her side, I chose this path too." His ability to spin a lie on the spot remained flawless. "In three months, I'll take the exam with her. Whether we pass... that's up to fate."

"You're so skilled, Big Brother Tsukishiro. You'll definitely pass." Kira's faith in Wayne was absolute.

"I'll take the good wishes." Wayne chuckled softly. Truthfully, he wasn't so sure.

It wasn't the exam itself that worried him, it was whether the Hollow power inside him could be detected. Entering Shin'ō Academy meant stepping directly into Aizen's territory. The 5th Division held a degree of oversight over Academy students. He was no longer a Hollow Beast; no one could see any trace of his reincarnation. But the Hollow Reiatsu he'd recently absorbed? If that were discovered, it would mean serious trouble.

Yet if he didn't enter the Academy, didn't become a Soul Reaper, his rate of improvement would plummet, and then he'd have even less chance of getting close to Aizen.

So beneath whatever half-hearted justifications he offered himself, Wayne had only one real path forward: Shin'ō Academy. Become a Soul Reaper.

"The sky's bright. Head back. Today's lesson was simple, but keep practicing on your own when you have the time. There's only so much I can teach you, most of it comes down to you. Practice. Feel it out."

"I understand, Big Brother Tsukishiro." Kira nodded, gratitude in his voice. From the moment he'd taken Wayne as his master, a new confidence had taken root, the confidence that he could enter Shin'ō Academy with outstanding results. And in Wayne's eyes, that was exactly what Kira needed most: unshakable confidence and resilient will.

"Then we'll meet again tomorrow night. Same place. Don't forget, new blade, and food."

"Yes!"

Wayne nodded, hoisted the wild boar lying nearby and the remaining rabbit onto his shoulder, and walked off toward Rukongai.

"Big Brother Tsukishiro..." Kira watched him go, admiration rising in his chest once more. A blind man, relying on nothing but hearing and Reiatsu perception, possessing combat skills this formidable before even becoming a Soul Reaper, one day, the Gotei 13 would surely choose him. He would become an outstanding Soul Reaper.

"I wonder which division Big Brother Tsukishiro will end up in... Bah, no. I need to focus on how I'm going to get into the Academy myself!" Kira scratched his head, stuffed the last scraps of rabbit into his mouth, grabbed his pack and blade, and headed home.

"What kind of blade should I have forged for my teacher...?"

➤ Next: Granny's Past