It had taken Kouki and Hinata a while to find out when and where the monthly entrance exam would be taking place for the Shinigami Academy, but luckily it was only a single day away. It wasn't too difficult to find a new block of communal housing in one of the closer districts either. Kouki had a difficult time getting to sleep that night. His thoughts were plagued about what he'd been faced with, the death of his friends and the very idea that he would soon be devoting his life to fighting and killing Hollows, risking his life in mortal combat.

He shook his head. He'd already made too many broken promises in his life. He needed to change that. This new life was a second chance. A way to begin again. He was going to do this right.

The next day, Kouki and Hinata had arrived at the hall where the entrance exam was taking place. There were a good few people there. Some looked quite shabby or rough-and-tumble, presumably coming from the outer districts, while others looked more like Kouki and Hinata. A few looked like they were quite wealthy, with clothes and accoutrements that looked as if they'd only just been bought.

The tests were simple. The first was a simple swordsmanship test, to see if the applicants knew anything about swordplay. Secondly was a written test to see if the applicant could correctly identify a Hollow, which was no more than a single page. Thirdly, and most likely the most difficult, was the pressure test, as in Spiritual Pressure. Kouki, having absolutely no experience with the matter nor any idea of how to do such things as even focus his reiatsu, felt like this test would prove very difficult and may be the biggest stumbling block he would have to overcome with his application.

"It's probably just like magic or something." He muttered to himself before slouching. "That really doesn't make it any easier…"

"What was that?" Hinata asked, taking notice of Kouki's mutterings.

"I'm just a little concerned about this pressure test they talked about. I don't actually know how to do any of that stuff." He admitted.

Hinata also shared a moment of worry. "Me neither…"

Suddenly both of them were clapped on the back by a stranger, who was grinning widely.

"Hey, don't sweat it you two. From what I've seen it's a two outta three thing." They said. "I should know! I've probably failed more times than anyone else here!"

Kouki got a good look at this new stranger. Whatever gender they were, they had a lean and strong build and looked to be covered in several small pink scars on their arms that stood out in contrast to their tanned skin. Their hair was a deep green spiky mess held out of their face by a white linen bandanna stained by what Kouki assumed was decades upon decades worth of sweat. Their clothing was also fairly ragged, a thin sleeveless shirt and raggedy pants held up by a frayed rope serving as a belt, and their feet were bare but covered in the dirt of a hundred paths.

"Really? How many times have you applied?" Hinata asked.

"I dunno. Never bothered to count." They said. After saying this, their eyes slowly shifted from Hinata's face to her chest. "Hey, you got a nice rack."

At hearing this, Hinata's face lit up like a Christmas tree. Kouki was also visibly shocked as well.

"Dude! There's such a thing called tact y'know?!"

The newcomer slowly turned their head to Kouki with a fairly deadpan expression.

"I'm a chick."

"Whaaaaaaaaaaa-" was Kouki's only slack-jawed response. He honestly couldn't see it one way or the other. Whatever this person's gender was, they looked perfectly androgynous. Frankly, it scared him a little.

"You are the definition of uncultured." Hinata huffed, having tried to regain some of her dignity.

"Culture? I ain't really got time for that stuff." She said, putting her hands behind her head. "Not out at district eighty anyway."

"District eighty? I'm guessing that's about as far away from the Seireitei as you can get." Kouki said.

"Yep. It's crazy out there. Luckily I learned to take care of myself." She said as she wiped her nose. "I'm the best damn fistfighter out there. So one day I got to thinkin' I might make a good Soul Reaper. Been running down here every month to see if they'll take me on. But these guys all seem to use swords, not their fists. Damn shame too. I could punch every one of these instructors through the wall if I wanted to!"

'Huh. That's actually kind of a good point.' Kouki thought as he ran his fingers through his goatee. 'If they teach hand to hand combat in the Academy then why don't they test for it in the exam? Weird.'

"So who are you anyway?" asked Hinata.

"Huh? Oh right! I forgot to introduce myself!" she said, lightly tapping herself on the head. "The name's Midori! Midori Momoko!"

"Cool. I'm Kouki Shin," he said before indicating towards Hinata. "And this is my friend Hinata Hasu."

"Good to meet you." Midori said. "I'll see you in the exams!"

With that, Midori disappeared back into the crowded hall. About ten minutes later a few Soul Reapers walked into the room and announced their presence.

"Alright all of you listen up! We're going to be your instructors for this afternoon's examination. My name is Gengoro Onabara and I will be leading this examination. All applicants will be given a number and after that, we'll begin."

Kouki gave Hinata a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "Here we go."

As the numbers were designated to their applicants, Kouki found that he and Hinata were given the numbers 23 and 27 respectively, meaning that he had about 22 people before him to learn the basic nuances of the swordsmanship test. Luckily the test seemed rather simple. Both the applicant and the instructor were given wooden swords before you were tasked on either blocking or dodging five of the instructor's attacks and making five attacks of your own. It didn't matter if your attacks hit or not, they just had to be decent. If you succeeded you were given a ticket and moved on to the next instructor. There were some fairly ridiculous things that some of the applicants did though. One of Kouki's personal favourites was one guy who tried to do a spin attack Legend of Zelda style, but ended up tripping and landing on his face with a twisted ankle. Needless to say, the instructor was not impressed. After a while, the instructor called out once more to the crowd.

"Number twenty three! You're up!"

Kouki breathed in and out a few times as he was handed the wooden sword, numerous dents and chips along its edge. He stood across from the instructor who looked about as fresh as he'd been since the start of the examination.

"Alright number twenty three, are you ready?" he asked.

Tightening his grip on the sword and moving it to a defensive position, Kouki nodded. "Ready."

With that, the instructor moved forward and immediately swung at Kouki's side. Kouki knelt slightly, angling his wooden blade so the instructor's slid off it and overhead. The instructor took a step back to his starting position.

"Not bad." He remarked. "The next few won't be so easy."

He wasn't lying. As soon as he'd said that he launched himself into an overhead strike. As the training sword came down Kouki stepped to the side, the sword almost hitting his toes. Wordlessly the instructor stepped back again before thrusting at Kouki, who sidestepped the attack again. But then the instructor's grip shifted as he suddenly brought the blade back around aiming for Kouki's exposed side! Kouki was just fast enough to block the strike, although he was knocked off balance by the surprise attack. The instructor didn't stop however and attacked with another overhead strike, but Kouki managed to bring his sword up just enough to deflect the blow. The instructor stood back with a nod, his wooden sword at the ready.

"Good. Now it's your turn to attack."

Kouki's grip tightened even more before suddenly Arata's words popped into his mind.

'You'll want to put a little less power into your swing. Fishing is a graceful art after all.'

His grip relaxed. If he put too much strength into his attacks it'd be wild and uncontrollable, thus easy to deflect or block. He'd have to do this with a level head. He swung forcefully, but not too hard, at the instructor's shoulder, who reached up and blocked it effortlessly. Kouki took a small step back before advancing again with a thrust which the instructor blocked with his vertical blade. Seeing an opportunity, Kouki took another step forward and pushed with the handle, trying for a bludgeoning attack on the instructor's chest. The instructor's eyes widened as he moved his hand from his blade to catch the strike, Kouki's attack struggling against his palm.

"A suitable enough attack for a human opponent, but not something you should try against a Hollow. Keep that in mind." He warned as Kouki took a step back. "Either way, that should be enough. Well done."

With that, he reached into his robe and handed Kouki a small green ticket with a circle in a lighter green colour imprinted upon it. He felt a sense of pride swell within him as he handed back the wooden sword, clutching his ticket in the other as he was ushered towards the next test. This instructor, a man with long cornrows and a thin moustache, handed him a sheet of paper and some kind of charcoal pencil and asked him to mark down the most correct answer. It was essentially a multiple choice quiz where the questions had fairly obvious answers. To himself at least.

Once that was done he handed it back to the instructor, whose eyebrows raised slightly upon looking over it. Wordlessly he handed Kouki another green ticket and he was on his way once more. This time he was funnelled into a small cornered off area in the hall where a slightly exasperated looking woman was standing. Near her was a disturbingly realistic looking mannequin, although it didn't have any face to speak of.

"Ah, there you are." She said, her smile just a little bit strained. "Welcome to the pressure test. Tell me, do you have any experience with manipulating your own reiatsu?"

Kouki shook his head. "Nope. At least, I don't think so."

The woman gave a sigh. "Well at least you're honest. In that case I'll teach you a little and then we can measure your reiatsu levels."

For about two minutes the instructor walked Kouki through a basic form of channelling his reiatsu, which constituted forming an orb of light between his hands. It fizzled out the first few times he'd tried it but by the third try it was stable.

"Alright, now that you've learned how to control your reiatsu I'll just measure its intensity." She said, taking a large camera-like device from a box. After mucking about with a few dials, she gave a pleasantly surprised hum. "It appears I was mistaken. This is much better than I thought."

"What is it?" Kouki asked.

"It appears you have a decent level of spiritual pressure, slightly above average for most beginning Soul Reapers. The only thing you lack is control over it, but that in and of itself isn't unusual." She said before digging into her pocket and handing Kouki another green ticket. "I'm pleased to say you've passed. Good work!"

Kouki was grinning ear to ear as he took his last ticket. While not exceptional, he'd gotten three green tickets! Not only that but he'd apparently had above average levels of spiritual pressure, meaning he would be able to learn Kido! This excited him quite a bit. Magic was fun.

Kouki made his way to a desk that was sitting by the entrance of the hall, another Soul Reaper sitting there with an ink pad and a square seal. Kouki presented the tickets to the Soul Reaper, who adjusted his round glasses.

"Congratulations, you managed to pass all three tests. That gives you access to the advanced classes." He said, taking a small sheet of paper from a pile. "What was your name and number?"

"Kouki Shin, number twenty three."

The Soul Reaper jotted this down and stamped the sheet. "There you are. This ticket will give you admission to the Seireitei and the Shinigami Academy at sundown tonight. You'll receive your timetable, uniform and zanpakuto upon arrival at the Academy. Welcome aboard."

"Wait, you're just given a zanpakuto?" Kouki asked, taking the ticket.

"I'm surprised. Most of the people that join are most excited about that part." He mused. "Truth be told, it's only an Asauchi which is essentially a blank zanpakuto with no transformations, and it's on loan from the Academy. But while it's entrusted to you you'll have to take great care of it and keep it on your person at all times."

"Alright. Good to know." Kouki nodded before leaving the hall. "Thank you!"

"No problem!"

Kouki left the hall, but remained outside. He read over the ticket with a growing sense of anticipation. He'd actually managed to gain entrance to the Shinigami Academy. Now he just wondered if Hinata would make it. He only had to wait a quarter of an hour until Hinata emerged with her ticket in hand.

"So, did you make it?" Kouki asked as she approached.

Hinata showed off her ticket with a smile. "I made it into the advanced class."

"Same here." Kouki said with a grin.

"Should we go cue for admission to the Seireitei?" Hinata asked.

Kouki looked back at the examination hall. "Not just yet. I kind of want to see how Midori did on her exam."

The two waited for a while until about an hour later, when Midori practically sprinted out of the hall before leaping into the air, fists raised in victory and releasing a cry of pure joy.

"Yeeaaaah!" she cheered as she hit the ground.

"Hey, you passed?" Kouki asked as he and Hinata approached her.

"Huh? Oh hey Sakana." She said cheerfully.

"Sakana?" Kouki echoed.

"Yeah, Sakana. It's cuz you've got that fish on your back." Midori explained. "Anyway yeah, I finally passed!"

"What classes did you get in?" Hinata asked.

"Advanced." Midori shrugged before realising something. "Oh crud, I gotta go home and pack my things!"

"Wait, you're going to run to district eighty?" Kouki asked.

"Uh, yeah." She said, as if it were obvious. "Anyway, time's a wasting! See ya!"

And then she took off at the pace of an Olympic sprinter. Maybe even faster. Kouki watched in awe at her speed as Midori kicked up an admirably large dust cloud behind her as she ran.

"You know, somehow I don't doubt that she did get into the advanced classes." Hinata murmured.

"Right. I guess we don't really need to pack anything do we?" Kouki added.

Hinata shook her head.

"In that case we'd better get going."

*v*v*v*

*v*v*v*

By evening, a small group had gathered by the entrance to the Seireitei. Kouki, Hinata and Midori had grouped up again and were standing by the gate with seven others. Only ten people had managed to pass the exams. It was honestly a little surprising to Kouki, but then he remembered that there were probably many recruitment halls around the Rukongai. The majority of the new recruits were like himself and Hinata, not too wealthy and not too poor, at least in their outward appearance. About three looked like they were originally from the Seireitei, dressed in silks and finery. Midori was the only one who looked like she was from the outer districts, although this fact didn't really seem to bother her. Really, she just looked happy to be there.

While they had been waiting, Kouki had managed to find out why Midori had failed so many times. In truth she hadn't actually failed, but instead just gotten into the basic classes. So she rejected them and tried again next month. He wouldn't have pegged this strange, energetic and feisty woman for being a perfectionist, but appearances were deceiving as always.

By the time stars could be seen dotting the night sky, a door opened in front of the massive gate to the Seireitei, another Soul Reaper stepping out from it with an oddly bright paper lantern in his hand.

"Your attention please!" he shouted. "I'll be leading you to the Shinigami Academy. Please follow me and step lively."

The group of ten funnelled in through the door before emerging in the Seireitei. Almost every surface was clean and smooth, from the tiled walkways to the pure white walls. Midori gave an impressed whistle.

"Man, it must suck to keep this place clean." She mused.

As they continued through the twisting streets, they arrived at a huge building with sloping golden roofs. Many thin rectangular windows lined the institute, the building itself bending around to form a courtyard inside it.

"This must be it. The Shinigami Academy." Kouki said, craning his neck up to see the extent of the great building.

"It's huge." Hinata gasped.

They were all led inside before meeting another Soul Reaper.

"Alright, we're going to lead you to your dorms. Tomorrow you'll be woken up and taken to the entrance ceremony where you'll be split up into your classes and from there your time at the academy will begin. After the entrance ceremony you'll all be issued your zanpakutos and given a safety tutorial as well as the strict rulings that apply to them." The first Soul Reaper said. "Women will follow Ai while the men will follow me to your dorms."

The group split, four men to the six women. Kouki waved goodbye to Midori and Hinata as they headed in the opposite direction. The men that Kouki had found himself with were a surprisingly varied bunch. Firstly there was a man that shorter than all of them with a bald head and scraggly beard, his arms and legs stocky with calloused hands. Next to him was a much taller and thin man, a fair bit taller thank Kouki with straight cut black hair, sharp features and a serious expression. Honestly, he looked like he was trying to emulate Byakuya Kuchki. Finally there was one that was about Kouki's height, although he was very fat from the looks of things, easily twice the size of Kouki horizontal-wise. His expression gave a sense of calmness and serenity that was actually a little infectious.

"I must say, you're one of the smallest and strangest groups we've had at the academy for a while now." The Soul Reaper said. "Usually we get upwards of fifteen or twenty new recruits from each hall. Maybe this is a case of quality over quantity."

"Of course it is. I've been training for this since birth." The lanky man said with an air of aloofness that lightly flicked at Kouki's nerves.

"I only wish to do what I can to help." The fat one said.

The short man gave a grunt. "Help isn't what these people need. It's protection."

"I'm guessing you heard about what happened to Hokutan then?" Kouki asked.

"Heard about? I was there!" the short man laughed bitterly. "I was down in my cellar taking stock when I hear someone screaming bloody murder out in the streets! By the time I get up there I see that all hell has broke loose on the streets!"

"I was there too." Kouki nodded. "My friend and I barely made it out of that mess alive. I… I lost some good friends in that attack."

The large man gave a friendly pat on Kouki's shoulder. "Don't worry. Everyone goes through grief. You'll become stronger through it."

It wasn't much longer until they arrived at their rooms. Each room was remarkably small with two double bunks each, a single desk separating them. Two wardrobes flanked the door as they entered, claiming a bed each.

"Alright, here's the room you'll be staying in for the night." The Soul Reaper said. "We'll be around to wake you up for the entrance ceremony. Your uniforms are in the wardrobes and you'll be expected to wear them for the ceremony. Be sure to get some rest."

With that, he shut the door and left them. Kouki went over to the wardrobe and inspected its insides, pulling out a uniform that he guessed was his size. A blue undershirt, white shirt with a circular marking on each side, blue trousers, white socks and sandals. Putting it back into the wardrobe, Kouki clambered into a bed. It was going to be a long day tomorrow.

*v*v*v*

*v*v*v*

The next morning the four in the dorm were awoken by the sound of rapid knocking at their door. Once they had donned their uniforms they were ushered to an auditorium where they were to be introduced to their teachers. Kouki spotted Hinata and Midori and took a seat next to them. Hinata looked quite nervous while Midori was also looking a little bit uncomfortable. The three made conversation for a little while, talking about the academy itself and the people they'd been grouped up with in their dorms. Kouki hadn't learned the names of the others in his dorm yet, but he'd probably learn soon enough.

A hush went through the large auditorium as a Soul Reaper took the stand and made a few opening statements. But then Kouki spotted an old man hunched over a gnarled walking stick with a beard that reached his waist waiting in the wings, a pristine white coat draped over him. Head Captain Yamamoto was here. Why?

His question was answered when the man himself was offered the stand and he stepped up to speak. The entire auditorium was so silent, the sound of a pin dropping would be deafening.

"To begin, I will say this. I will not offer you my congratulations for getting this far." The Head Captain said. "The beginning is vitally important, yes. And all things must have a beginning. But that beginning is rarely impressive. Instead I will tell you this. Your will is the only thing that may carry you to success. If you falter or are lacking in your abilities, but you do not give up, that is the quality that will bring you success. Patience. Persistence. Courage. These qualities will make you a great Soul Reaper. But you will not succeed with these alone. You will do well to remember that. This institution was created so that you may learn talents to purify wayward souls and bring balance to the human world and to ours. And this is to be your main instrument in that goal."

Holding his walking stick high, the wooden cane dissipated to reveal a large katana. Several people in the crowd gasped at this as Yamamoto continued.

"This is a zanpakuto. By no means is it a toy. It is a unique weapon given to all of you to fulfil your sacred duty. You will spend each of your days with it, learning how to use it, to care for it, and communicate with it. A zanpakuto is by no means an ordinary tool, it is a living being that becomes as much a part of your soul as your own thoughts. In fact, by imprinting your soul's very essence upon the zanpakuto you are given you will make it your own. That is why that you must keep it with you every waking moment during your time here at the academy. By doing so you will unlock its true potential and with any luck, yours as well." He continued before reconjuring the walking stick around the sheathed blade. "I hope that during your studies here that you will become Soul Reapers that your future Captains will be proud to call a part of their Squad. I will conclude by saying this. Even I am still learning."

With that, Yamamoto left the raised dais and shuffled off out of the building. Kouki felt both inspired and a little bit afraid of the man. A being that had lived for so long and attained such immense power… And for some reason he wasn't burned to a crisp by the man's mere presence. The ability to contain that much spiritual power would probably take more skill and effort than everyone else in the room had combined.

After a few other teachers introduced themselves and made a few statements, the students were directed to a room where one by one they were handed a zanpakuto. The safety debriefing was quite simple. They had to keep their zanpakutos on them at all times, but when they were outside of classes or were not communicating with it they were required to keep their zanpakutos tied within their scabbards as well as keeping it within a special carrying bag that they had also been issued. There were also some fairly obvious rules as well, such as don't use zanpakutos to harm other students, don't use zanpakutos in an argument, don't cut your food with zanpakutos, don't clean your fingernails with your zanpakuto, the list went on. After the debriefing the instructor told them that they were allowed a day to get used to the academy and explore and that their timetables would be issued to them in the evening in their rooms. Kouki slung the asauchi bag over his shoulder he met with Hinata and Midori.

"Hey guys. Excited?" Kouki asked, holding the bag's string.

"Yeah! This is gonna be great." Midori grinned with her bagged blade clutched in her hands.

"We're not really here just for fun." Hinata said.

"You can't deny it's exciting though." Kouki shrugged.

"So, any plans?" Midori asked.

"I was just going to get to know the place. Maybe find a library. I think I'll need to study a few things to fill in the gaps in my knowledge." Kouki said. "Hopefully I'll see you guys around in my classes."

Bidding the two goodbye, Kouki began walking the halls of the academy. There were a lot of other students here, their age and appearance varying greatly. The academy seemed to have no restriction on age, but then again age was a little bit confusing here in the Soul Society. After getting directions from some fellow students he found his way to a crowded library, crammed with hundreds if not thousands of records, tomes, scrolls, textbooks and manuscripts. Despite the number of people inside it was almost dead silent, the only noise the rustling of papers or the occasional cough. This silence was perfect for Kouki to think.

After finding a space deep within the shelves of the library, he began to ponder his future. Specifically, the events of the Ryoka Invasion. He had quite potentially the most powerful weapon of any Soul Reaper, maybe even more so than the Hogyoku. Foresight on a scale incomparable even to Aizen. Kouki furrowed his brow. Speaking of that masterful manipulator, what was he going to do about him? He had the potential to keep Aizen from attaining the Hogyoku, preventing everything that happened in Las Noches and thus beyond. But did he even need to stop Aizen in the first place? Everything worked out in the end after all, despite great misery on their side and the kidnapping of Orihime. That was the thing about these kinds of situations. Besides, what story would there be if there was no conflict?

If he put one foot out of place he could either cancel out all of Aizen's plotting or bring ruination to everything depending on his actions, and he had no idea what would do what. But all of that would be for naught if he was caught by Aizen. He would surely be assassinated or worse if Aizen caught wind that Kouki knew about his plots. Perhaps Aizen already knew? Kouki shook his head rapidly. He didn't need to be paranoid. He needed to be rational. There was no possible way Aizen could know that Kouki was onto him. Slowly Kouki's thoughts turned to Aizen's seemingly all-powerful zanpakuto, Kyoka Suigetsu. From what he could recall, he knew that the weapon's abilities initially relied on victim's sight. If he saw the Shikai as it was initially unleashed, it was over for him, as Aizen's illusions were permanent for all intents and purposes. Fortunately he couldn't foresee himself being in any situation that warranted that. But there was also the matter of Gin and Tousen. Kouki knew that Gin was only following Aizen so he could betray and assassinate him later, but that didn't mean he wouldn't kill Kouki just to keep up appearances. And Tousen's warped sense of justice couldn't especially be trusted either. So any potential allies or methods on that front were non-existent.

Kouki frowned again. Even if he wanted to expose Aizen, what proof did he have? More importantly, how could he get said proof without being branded a traitor himself? He suspected talking to Kisuke would be difficult, even more challenging would be convincing him that he knew what Aizen was up to and getting the exiled captain to help him out. Then again, there were the Visoreds, but from what he could remember they had little idea of who caused them to become Hollowfied, not to mention he had no idea where they were and they didn't show up until months after Aizen's betrayal.

Perhaps he could throw a wrench in Aizen's plan somehow? Maybe he could kill Rukia before she had the chance to be executed? Kouki facepalmed at the very idea. Not only would that be next to impossible, even if he somehow succeeded he'd be executed himself as a traitor. Even if he lived he'd be hunted down by not only the entire Thirteen Court Guard Squads, but Ichigo and his friends as well. He wasn't sure which was scarier. Maybe he could confront Kisuke about the Hogyoku? How could he? He had no way of knowing. He could try to bullshit Kisuke, but there was a good chance that the wily shopkeeper would see straight through him. Kouki mentally groaned. Why couldn't his stupid amnesia have taken away everything he knew about the Soul Society as well? While he'd be subject to all of Aizen's manipulation it would also mean he wouldn't have to think about it.

Kouki frowned. No, he couldn't afford to think like that. He'd figure out something. He had plenty of time to do so after all.