Bleach: Watch Closely, This Is How You Use a Zanpakutō

Yoruichi Shihōin shook her head. "No need to go to the Soul King Palace. We're heading to the 4th Division."

Masatsuki Aozaki raised a brow. "The 4th Division? Are you saying they have a healing hot spring there? But Captain Unohana has never mentioned anything like that..."

"That's because Tenjirō Kirinji only left behind a tiny amount of the hot spring water—barely enough to be useful," Yoruichi said, pinching her fingers together to illustrate the point.

"When Kirinji was still in Seireitei, the Urahara family had a good relationship with him. He also saw great potential in Kisuke, so he specifically left a portion of the hot spring for him."

"But Kisuke was still a kid back then, so it was temporarily stored in the 4th Division until he grew up and joined the Gotei 13."

"Then why not just let Kisuke take it himself? Why go through the trouble of stealing it?" Masatsuki asked.

"Because this way is more fun," Yoruichi grinned. "See? I'm good to you—I always think of you first when there's something exciting to do."

Masatsuki sighed and covered his face. He really should have expected this.

Then, something caught his eye—a black cloak hanging on the wall. His gaze brightened.

"If I go along with this, what's in it for me?"

"That hot spring belongs to Kisuke. At most, we'd just be borrowing it. It's not really ours."

"If I'm going to get dragged into your antics, you should at least offer me something in return."

"Oh? And what exactly do you want?" Yoruichi blinked, caught off guard. She hadn't considered this at all.

"I want you… to teach me your cat transformation technique."

Masatsuki deliberately stretched out his words, and halfway through, Yoruichi visibly tensed.

Originally, he had planned to ask for Shunkō, but since Yoruichi had already promised to teach him that, he decided to switch to something more interesting instead.

"What do you even need that for?" Yoruichi looked uncomfortable, as if recalling something unpleasant. "I barely use it myself these days."

She was genuinely puzzled. The cat transformation technique didn't enhance combat ability—Masatsuki shouldn't have any interest in it.

"You wouldn't understand. I have my own plans. Just teach it to me." Masatsuki sounded completely serious.

"You're not eyeing some little female cat, are you?" Yoruichi narrowed her eyes suspiciously. His reasoning seemed dubious at best, and she had a feeling this so-called "plan" wasn't simple.

Masatsuki met her gaze directly. "That's right. The one standing in front of me."

Yoruichi's face flushed slightly, and her voice dropped to a near whisper. "You really are insufferable..."

"What was that?"

"Nothing!" Yoruichi quickly shook her head and huffed. "Fine, I'll teach you—just back off a little."

"But I'll warn you, this technique is extremely difficult. Yūshirō trained for years and still couldn't master it."

"No worries, just teach me the method. If I can't learn it, then it just means I lack talent. I won't force it," Masatsuki said with a shrug.

"Well, in that case, I'll teach you the secret art of cat transformation." Yoruichi smirked and looked up at him. "But don't come crying to me if you fail."

"Hearing you say that makes me even less eager to learn it."

"You're impossible..."

...

For the next quarter of an hour, Yoruichi carefully explained the principles and training method of the cat transformation technique.

After listening, Masatsuki finally understood why even a genius like Yūshirō had failed to master it.

To learn this technique, one needed an extraordinary level of control over Reishi—enough to alter the spiritual structure of the soul at its very core.

Mastering Reishi was Masatsuki's specialty, but he had never attempted to manipulate the Reishi that made up his own body.

He carefully went over Yoruichi's method in his mind, and suddenly, something clicked.

Raising one hand, he gave his head a slight shake, unsure of what he was feeling. Just as he was about to withdraw his hand, he suddenly froze.

His palm had changed—shortening, growing fur, and developing a small paw pad in the center.

Yoruichi was sipping her tea when she caught sight of this. Her eyes widened in shock, and she immediately choked, coughing uncontrollably.

This was clearly a feline transformation—but she had only just finished explaining the technique! He hadn't even begun proper practice!

Masatsuki's right hand had fully transformed, looking somewhat comical at first, but that was only temporary.

Because the transformation was spreading—fast.

Under Yoruichi's astonished gaze, Masatsuki's body rapidly shrank.

In the blink of an eye, the handsome man sitting before her was gone.

She leaned forward, only to see a small figure slowly shifting under a pile of clothing.

Reaching in with both hands, Yoruichi gently lifted the tiny creature and placed it on the tatami mat.

To human eyes, it was a sleek, handsome little cat with black-and-white fur. Whether it looked just as impressive to other cats was another matter.

Masatsuki looked up, only to be met with Yoruichi's stunned expression.

The difference now was that the woman who was usually half a head shorter than him suddenly loomed over him like a towering giant.

Lowering his gaze, he saw his own paws, covered in a soft gradient of black and white fur.

Then, glancing back, his attention was immediately drawn to the long tail swishing behind him. Following it down, he took in the full sight of his newly fur-covered body.

His instincts kicked in, and he subconsciously lowered his thick, bushy tail to cover his most vulnerable spot—just in case of any sudden "attacks."

"I did it." Masatsuki nodded to himself, flexing his small, retractable claws as he accepted his new form.

"Hey, hey! How the hell did you do that so fast?!" Yoruichi leaned in, excitement in her voice. "Don't tell me you already knew how to do this?"

"No way. If I did, I wouldn't have asked you to teach me. Do I look like someone who would willingly take a loss?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Masatsuki wobbled and fell flat on the ground.

Adjusting to walking on all fours for the first time was… a challenge.

Just as he was about to stand up again, he realized something soft was pressing down on him, making it impossible to move.

He wriggled a little, still adjusting to the strange sensation of transformation—when suddenly, the weight lifted.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to do that just now." Thinking Yoruichi might be upset, Masatsuki quickly looked up to apologize.

But Yoruichi only smirked and pinched his tiny feline face. "Oh, I think you did it on purpose. Time for your punishment."

She scooped him up into her arms, taking full advantage of the fact that he couldn't shift back to his human form yet, and shamelessly started rubbing and petting him.

The cat Masatsuki had transformed into resembled a Norwegian Forest Cat—long, silky fur with an irresistibly soft texture.

And once Yoruichi started petting him, she couldn't stop.

She ran her hands over his fur again and again, completely captivated.

Masatsuki, meanwhile, was torn between embarrassment and undeniable comfort.

The sensation left him trapped in indecision—should he push her away or just enjoy it?

"Ugh, geniuses are the worst," Yoruichi muttered, still playing with his fur. "Do you even realize how many years it took to develop this technique? No one in the Shihōin Clan—aside from me—has ever learned it. And you? You pull it off on your first try."

She huffed, ruffling his fur aggressively before exclaiming,

"This is so unfair!"

(40 Chapters Ahead)

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