"Ethan’s swordsmanship is quite good."

Unohana wiped the sweat from her forehead with a towel, looking completely satisfied. Ethan, on the other hand, was not doing so well. His clothes were soaked with sweat, and aside from breathing, he didn’t want to move a single finger.

As for the captain’s praise, Ethan just wanted to roll his eyes.

He had been suppressed the entire time, only managing to counterattack a few times. Was that kind of performance really worth praising?

He knew Unohana’s hidden identity as the first Kenpachi of the 11th Division of the Gotei 13. The title "Kenpachi" symbolized the strongest Shinigami and was reserved only for the captain of the combat-centric 11th Division. Although she had since shed that identity, changing her demeanor entirely, Ethan knew she was still hiding her true strength. For her, this had merely been a warm-up.

Even so, he had been completely overwhelmed. Ethan understood clearly that if he wanted to survive in this world and achieve his goals, his current strength was nowhere near enough.

"I remember Ethan’s Hakuda and Kidō abilities are both quite good. Coupled with his swordsmanship training, it’s already enough to serve as a seated officer."

After a while, Ethan’s breathing had returned to normal and he no longer felt like he was about to collapse.

Still, he had little interest in the seated officer position Unohana mentioned.

"I just joined the 4th Division, and there’s still a lot I need to learn. As for being a seated officer..."

He hadn’t even finished speaking when Unohana cut him off, having already made her decision.

"Based on your current strength, serving as the 10th Seat is absolutely no problem. I’ll announce this within the division tomorrow. Keep up the good work, Ethan, 10th Seat."

"..."

Apart from the 1st Division, each division in the Gotei 13 had a captain and a lieutenant. Below them were the seated officers, ranked from 3rd Seat to 20th Seat.

Seated officers served as the backbone of each division and were responsible for various administrative duties.

For example, the higher-ranked seated officers in the 2nd Division served as heads and deputy heads of its sub-divisions, while in the 4th Division, they were responsible for leading and assisting medical teams.

Additionally, aside from the top few, there could be multiple officers at the same rank in the lower seats. There could be more than one 10th Seat officer, which was why Unohana could promote Ethan so casually without needing to consult anyone.

"As for the specific work you’ll be responsible for..."

She tapped her chin with a finger before deciding that it would be best for Ethan to temporarily serve as her assistant. In theory, that position belonged to the lieutenant, and the higher-ranking seated officers were supposed to assist the lieutenant. But she was clearly saying, "I want to personally train Ethan." It was normal for her to arrange a special assignment like this.

"For now, just stay by my side. After all, you’re the only one in the 4th Division who can spar with me using a sword."

She even clapped her hands happily as she spoke.

"As expected of this year’s strongest graduate from the Shin’ō Reijutsu Academy."

I don’t feel happy at all being praised like that by you, okay?

Ethan noticed that Unohana didn’t care what he thought. She simply made arrangements as she saw fit, and it just happened to be the most exhausting job in the entire 4th Division.

Sparring with Unohana, the first Kenpachi... Even if she was holding back, it was still incredibly draining.

Ethan noticed that Unohana had been deliberately controlling her speed and strength. She maintained just enough pressure to suppress Ethan while still allowing him to react. That was the only reason she could overwhelm him from start to finish without instantly defeating him.

"This is really... Thank you, Captain, for your appreciation and guidance."

"It’s good that you understand."

If Ethan wasn’t completely certain of his own senses, he would have thought he was imagining things. He was sure her aura had changed slightly just now.

The former villain... the first Kenpachi...

As his thoughts wandered, Ethan suddenly realized Unohana was still standing there. He had assumed the captain would leave once the spar was over.

"Captain, don’t you have anything to do?"

"The 4th Division is usually pretty relaxed."

Occasionally, Shinigami injured on missions would come in for treatment, but those cases rarely needed the captain’s attention.

Most of the tasks were handled by the division members. Paperwork was compiled by the lieutenant and only required the captain’s final approval. If the captain was lazy, even that could be handed off, leaving only decisions that absolutely needed the captain’s input.

"So, from now on, I’ll be troubling you, Ethan, 10th Seat, to keep me company and practice with me often to pass the time."

"..."

Fortunately, aside from the daily sparring, Ethan didn’t have much else to do. At most, he helped out occasionally when something unexpected came up.

The overall atmosphere of the 4th Division was very good. Almost everyone had a calm and friendly demeanor, probably from their extensive medical training.

On top of that, hot-tempered people couldn’t last long in the 4th Division. Many of the combat-focused Shinigami had fiery tempers. After getting injured, they often complained that treatment was too slow or too troublesome, and it wasn’t rare for them to curse at the medical staff. A short-tempered healer would never tolerate that. They would probably just draw their weapon and strike back instead of treating the patient.

Ethan had done something similar. Less than three days after his official promotion to 10th Seat, a few Shinigami from the 11th Division kept swearing and complaining during treatment, constantly disrupting the process. As the poor treatment results made them more irritable, they took it out on the 4th Division members.

This kind of situation was common in the 4th Division, and most were used to it. Normally, the medical staff would just try to pacify the angry patients. But Ethan was an exception. He went straight over and beat them until they couldn’t move, then let others continue treating them.

Ethan didn’t think it was a big deal, but it stirred up a hornet’s nest. Since then, battle maniacs from the 11th Division would come looking for trouble every few days.

He couldn’t be bothered to deal with these idiots. He just continued doing his own thing. If he didn’t hear their provocations, he ignored them. But if he did hear it, he didn’t mind offering them a free bone-setting session. It also helped him release some of the frustration from being bullied by Unohana every day.

He thought this cycle would continue, but unexpectedly, the 11th Division stopped coming. After a few days of peace, Ethan started to feel something was off.

"Ethan, 10th Seat, are you waiting for someone?"

Seeing Ethan often hanging around the division gate, a kind 4th Division member thought he was expecting someone. They offered to help him keep watch and promised to notify him if anyone came so he wouldn’t have to run back and forth.

Ethan casually explained without thinking much of it.

"I’m just wondering why those idiots from the 11th Division haven’t shown up lately."

"..."

That member started to sweat. Ethan, 10th Seat, really was different from most people here. Anyone else being constantly provoked and challenged by the 11th Division would be hiding inside the building, refusing to come out. Who would actually fight back and even beat them up?

After hearing that the 11th Division had stopped showing up, most people would be relieved. But Ethan actually came over to check why they weren’t coming anymore?

"Um... didn’t you notice?"

"Notice what?"

"You beat the 7th Seat of the 11th Division. I guess the regular members are too scared to challenge you now."

"Is that so?"

"..."

Such a calm reaction? You defeated the 7th Seat of the 11th Division! That’s the strongest combat division in all of Seireitei!

"Still, knowing how they are, they’ll be back eventually."

Ethan figured he knew why the 11th Division had stopped coming. They were probably still deciding who to send next. The captain and lieutenant couldn’t be bothered with such trivial matters, and the 3rd and 4th Seats likely didn’t want to lose face.

More importantly, those two probably weren’t much stronger than the 7th Seat. After seeing how easily Ethan won, they were worried they’d lose too. That would be embarrassing. Being beaten by someone from the medical division? How would they live that down?

The 11th Division was stuck, and Ethan welcomed another peaceful stretch.

"But still... was the 7th Seat of the 11th Division really that weak?"

Ethan had been feeling that his strength wasn’t anything special lately, especially with Unohana beating him in every possible way. Even though he knew her true identity, the fact that she wasn’t using her full power made him misjudge his own level. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

"Then again, most seated officers aren’t that strong."

In the storyline, only a few seated officers had power close to lieutenant level, and the gap between lieutenants and captains was massive. So, it was normal that he could defeat the 7th Seat of the 11th Division but still be helpless against Unohana.

Just as Ethan was about to head back, he spotted a familiar face at the gate.

"Yo! Long time no see. Did you miss me?"

Yoruichi, wearing a sleeveless outfit that showed off her tanned skin, completely ignored the 4th Division members at the gate. She used Shunpo to instantly appear in front of Ethan.

Ethan looked at the others who were about to rush over, then turned to Yoruichi with a helpless expression and asked why she was here.

"You said you’d find time for me and Kisuke to see your Zanpakutō, but you never showed up. Did you forget?"

"Yes."

"..."

(To be continued.)

◇◇◇

◇ One bonus Chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.

◇ You can read the ahead Chapter on Pat if you’re interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)