Omniverse: The Martial Artist

Sasakibe was visibly surprised by what he heard. "You… are planning to reopen Genryū?"

The Head Captain shook his head.

"Of course not. I don't have the time to run a school anymore. I'm only stepping in to substitute for a few classes as the head of the Academy."

Though it wasn't a full revival of the Genryūsai-style training hall, Sasakibe was still shocked. He hadn't expected the Head Captain to take such an interest.

Meanwhile, the match on the field had just come to an end. Although Hao's overall speed was slower than Yoruichi's, he had nonetheless won the hand-to-hand spar.

"Interesting," the Head Captain commented. "The little girl from the Shihōin family didn't lose because her hakuda technique was inferior."

"She lost in judgment."

"Judgment?" Sasakibe hadn't paid close attention to the fight earlier, so he asked curiously.

"Combat is like answering multiple-choice questions," the Head Captain explained. "How you break down an opponent's move, how you follow up your own, and so on—every exchange is a process of decision-making."

He continued, "Chōjirō, let me ask you: how do you make decisions in battle?"

Sasakibe paused for a moment before replying, "Real combat is very complex. If you break it down, every move becomes a matter of calculation. I suppose I rely on reacting to my opponent's moves. For example, if someone launches a frontal slash and I know I can't parry in time, I'd withdraw and defend. But if I see an opening and believe I can strike first, I'll go for a vital spot…"

He stopped briefly, then added,

"But if you really think of combat like a multiple-choice test, there are too many options. The opponent also has many, and one change from them affects everything. So in reality, it's all instinct. I don't think—I just react."

"Instinct, hmm?"

The Head Captain looked at him with a hint of amusement, making Sasakibe feel a little unsure.

Sasakibe thought it over again and added, "In short, daily training is vital. Most of the time, it's muscle memory that helps me make those decisions. So yes, I suppose you could say it's instinct."

"You're not entirely right, but you're not wrong either," said the Head Captain with a nod. "Which is why a proper shinigami should train every single day without slack. The skills etched into your bones will be what save you in life-or-death battles. But…"

Hearing that tone, Sasakibe knew something important was coming. He straightened his posture, listening intently.

"…But, Chōjirō," the Head Captain said slowly, "some people don't rely on refined techniques or years of muscle memory. They rely on something else entirely—instinct."

His old eyes narrowed as he looked down at Hao, who was wiping sweat with a towel. "Every move that boy made was instinctively the best possible option. So even though the girl from the Shihōin clan had the advantage in speed, he still won."

"Instinct, huh…"

Sasakibe mulled over the word. Come to think of it, there really wasn't time to consciously think during battle. Even if you had strategies, those were usually long-term plans. The individual exchanges were too fast for deliberation.

In the instant blades clashed, no one had the luxury of deep thought. All you could rely on… was instinct. Or perhaps what he had previously described as the subconscious.

His expression grew heavy as he looked again at Hao.

If that young man truly had the instinct to always choose the best possible action in battle, then… wouldn't that mean that, under equal spiritual pressure, he was practically invincible?

According to the Head Captain, combat technique and decision-making ability should be viewed separately.

To put it simply: if both Hao and Yoruichi had equal spiritual pressure, but Yoruichi could defeat ten Hollows with a single punch while Hao could only defeat eight, that would mean Yoruichi had superior hakuda technique.

But the choice of whether to punch or kick during a fight? That's where decision-making comes in. If Yoruichi made the wrong call and missed her attack, while Hao made the right one—even if his technique wasn't as powerful—he'd still land a hit while avoiding harm himself.

With that in mind, the ability to make the right choices in combat might actually matter more than technique alone.

Instinct…

"Let's go. We'll return the day after tomorrow," the Head Captain said.

The class was over, and he decided he'd give that arrogant young man a proper lesson during the next hakuda session.

---

"Why do I suddenly feel a chill…? Did I not eat enough at lunch?" Hao muttered.

He felt an ominous shiver run down his spine, as though something terrifying had just set its eyes on him. He glanced around but saw no such threat.

"Hao, let's go. Next class is Zanpakutō Resonance," Aizen called out.

After two months together, the two had grown quite close. And Aizen had to admit: aside from spiritual pressure, Hao's talent in every other area was just as good—if not greater—than his own.

But what really frustrated him was Hao's lack of progress in spiritual pressure training. From Aizen's perspective, Hao clearly had the aptitude for it—yet he'd been slacking these past two months, not even joining their late-night training sessions anymore.

It's all Captain Unohana's fault…

Aizen just couldn't understand Hao's obsession with Kaidō. In his eyes, rather than mastering a technique meant for after one gets injured, it made more sense to become so powerful that one never got injured to begin with.

And it's not like Hao lacked the desire to grow stronger—quite the opposite, in fact. Which made his decision to neglect spiritual pressure training all the more confusing.

Well… calling it neglect might be too harsh. Hao still showed up for the three weekly spiritual pressure classes and trained properly. The real reason he stopped attending their nighttime training was—

He always looked drained.

Aizen had no clue what Hao and Captain Unohana were doing during her private tutoring sessions, but every night Hao would return to the dorm pale-faced and stumbling, collapse onto his bed, and fall asleep mid-conversation—no energy left to train.

He's really into Kaidō… could it be—does Hao have a crush on Captain Unohana?

Aizen felt he'd uncovered the truth at last. Otherwise, how could he explain why a hot-blooded battle junkie like Hao was devoting all his energy to healing magic?

With that in mind, Aizen couldn't help but speak up. "Hao… maybe you should take it easy for a while."

"Huh? Take it easy with what?" Hao looked confused, having no idea what Aizen was referring to.

After a brief pause to choose his words carefully, Aizen said, "I know Captain Unohana is… quite alluring. And sure, doing forbidden experiments with a beautiful older teacher might be exciting—but if you keep draining yourself like this every day, when are you ever going to reach Shikai?"

Hao: ???

Captain Unohana had explicitly told him her after-class guidance must remain confidential, so he'd never mentioned to Aizen that he was getting slashed repeatedly every night.

Sōsuke, how the hell did you know I've been doing forbidden experiments with Captain Unohana?

And wait—what the hell kind of misunderstanding is this?!

It's not like I'm into weird stuff! How could getting chopped up possibly be exciting?!

°°°

Hungry for more chaps? Then check out our pătreon!

Link: Påtreon.com/BaphometFiction

I post 20 advanced chapters of this fanfic there.

If you do subscribe, please do so in the web patreon, not the ios app.