Mysterious as always…
Haruki curled his lips.
Fine, don't tell me. It's not like I care.
This time, White's favorability toward him wasn't as high.
The first-generation White's favorability had increased quickly because it contained fragments of Haruki's soul.
The second-generation White didn't have any of Haruki's soul fragments, so its favorability was back to normal.
Moreover, the second-generation White wasn't fully transformed yet and hadn't even generated a soul ability.
Once the second-generation White generated a soul ability, Haruki might be able to figure out some clues.
And those clues didn't take long to appear.
About a month later, Haruki returned to the lab.
He saw that the second-generation White was no longer in the incubation pod but had been moved to another device—one that allowed it to stand upright, submerged in an unknown liquid.
Haruki looked over and noticed that the second-generation White's soul ability was "Cocoon Transformation."
'Cocoon Transformation: Can be used upon reaching a new stage. After activation, the user will be enveloped in a white cocoon. Upon breaking free, the user's spiritual pressure, slashing power, speed, defense, and recovery will all be enhanced.'
'Note: The stronger the user, the longer it takes to break free from the cocoon.'
"…" Haruki stared at the ability, feeling like he was drooling.
I want it, I want it, I want this ability!
He turned to Aizen and couldn't help but ask, "Captain Aizen, is White II complete?"
Aizen nodded. "Whether it can be considered a finished product still requires further testing."
"Let me handle the testing, okay?" Haruki said. "I don't have much going on right now. I'll take responsibility for White II's growth."
If he wanted to obtain the second-generation White's soul ability, he needed to spend more time with it. How else could he raise its favorability?
That's why he made the offer to Aizen.
"It's rare to see you so enthusiastic about something like this." Aizen smiled. "I was originally going to assign this task to Tōsen, but since you've offered, I'll leave it to you, Murakami."
"Thank you, Captain Aizen." Haruki expressed his gratitude. "I'll need you to use your ability to cover for me, though. Just during the day. If someone asks me out for drinks, I'll still go."
"Haha… You've been spending quite a bit of time with Kyōraku lately."
"Not really. Captain Kyōraku isn't the easiest person to get along with."
After chatting with Aizen for a bit, Haruki left the lab.
From now on, Haruki would likely spend most of his time in the lab.
Aizen would use Kyōka Suigetsu to create a fake version of Haruki to cover for him in the outside world.
All Haruki needed to do was focus on building a relationship with White.
With that in mind, Haruki walked up to White.
According to Aizen, the second-generation White was created by fusing the souls of 133 Shinigami. From birth, it possessed spiritual pressure and combat power equivalent to a high-ranking seated officer.
Both in terms of technology and the quality and quantity of the souls used, the second-generation White was superior to the first-generation White.
Well, the only advantage the first-generation White had was the "soul supplement pill" Haruki had contributed.
Haruki had originally wanted to raise the first-generation White's favorability further, but before he could make much progress, the first-generation White had transferred into Rukia Kuchiki's body. Who knew what would happen to it now?
Tsk. Following Aizen's instructions, Haruki sent the second-generation White to the human world.
The second-generation White would capture souls in the human world—whether they were human souls, Shinigami souls, or Hollow souls…
Haruki's job was to record all of its combat data and observe its changes.
This work was incredibly boring, especially since the second-generation White didn't communicate with Haruki.
Although it had intelligence, and its intelligence grew with each battle, it didn't seem to have the ability to speak.
However, Haruki wasn't discouraged. He patiently accompanied the second-generation White.
As time passed, Haruki spent most of his time in the lab, occasionally going out to drink with Rangiku and the others.
During this time, Hitsugaya Tōshirō graduated.
Yes, the prodigy Hitsugaya Tōshirō graduated from the Shin'ō Academy and caused quite a stir.
But Hitsugaya decided to join the 5th Division, as Haruki had been the one to bring him out of the Rukongai.
By the time he graduated, Hitsugaya had already mastered Bankai. Haruki couldn't help but marvel at his talent.
Even Haruki himself, after repeatedly using Hitsugaya's "Prodigy" ability, felt that he was approaching Bankai.
This wasn't to say that the "Prodigy" ability was inferior to Hitsugaya's talent. Rather, Haruki's studies were more diverse. He didn't just focus on training.
He often used the ability to study various theories, as well as to delve into Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Hohō, and Kidō. These activities took up about a third of the time he spent using the ability.
The remaining two-thirds of the time were spent increasing his spiritual power and communicating with his Zanpakutō.
Moreover, the ability had a one-day cooldown.
Still, even though he hadn't achieved Bankai, Haruki's strength wasn't heavily reliant on it.
He now possessed many soul abilities, several of which were combat-related. Even without Bankai, his combat power was on par with some captains.
On the day Hitsugaya graduated, Haruki took him to the 6th District for a good meal. After they parted ways, Haruki returned to the lab.
While monitoring White, Haruki noticed that it seemed to sense something and then opened a Garganta, entering Hueco Mundo.
Fortunately, Aizen's surveillance was flawless, allowing them to monitor White even in Hueco Mundo.
In Hueco Mundo, White stood still.
"What's it doing?"
Gin asked curiously.
"It's searching for something." Haruki had spent a lot of time with the second-generation White and had a decent understanding of its thoughts.
Even though White couldn't speak, Haruki could understand its intentions.
White was searching for something, something that had caught its interest.
"Interesting. Something that can attract White…"
Aizen walked over at this point. It was a time when their little group was usually together.
Aizen looked at the screen, where White seemed to have found its target and began moving.
Haruki said, "It seems whatever's attracting it is quite significant."
Then, he saw White stop in a certain area. Looking at the two figures on the screen facing White, Haruki narrowed his eyes.
It's you two…
...
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