Bleach: Gazing Mirage

Chapter 42

As their voices resonated in unison, a surge of reiatsu enveloped the room, and they could feel the effects of their combined kido taking shape. The air seemed to dim and distort around them, and Yuichi and Niko seemed to melt into the shadows.

They exchanged a triumphant glance as they realized they had succeeded in creating a more powerful and refined version of the kido.

"It works well but we still need to test if it works well. Let deactivate it and I go outside while you use it, release some of your reiatsu, and make noise." said Niko

"Alright," said Yuichi as he and Niko stopped the flow of their reiryoku canceling the Cloak of Darkness kido.

"Okay I going out now so activate it and do all that you can for a minute or two." said Niko as she exited the room

Yuichi then recited the incantation and felt quite a bit of his reiryoku drain away due to him activating the spell alone. He started to yell, clap his hands loudly, and release his reiatsu. When he finished and was about to release the kido he heard a mumble of someone saying something like "Your Majesty."

Yuichi quickly deactivated the kido. Yuichi couldn't tell if he wanted to laugh loudly or scream as he realized what had just happened. It seemed the kido he had just created allowed him to enter a space that was close to the shadows that the Quincies were hiding inside.

The Quincies are human beings that have the ability to detect the existence of Hollows and other Souls. Most of the Quincy were exterminated by the Soul Reapers some time ago in the past to prevent the collapse of the worlds due to the Quincy overhunting and destroying the Hollows they encountered. The difference between a Soul Reaper and Quincy killing a hollow was that Soul Reapers either sent a hollow to the Soul Society or Hell completing the cycle. Quincies however destroy the soul of the hollow eliminating it from the cycle, slowly damaging all three worlds.

Yuichi's realization was both surprising and concerning. The unintended effect of his kido meant that it somehow interacted with the spiritual shadow plane that Quincies were able to perceive. However, he didn't know if the Quincies could sense him or if he stayed there long enough they could find him. It also wasn't something he could test.

Niko re-entered the room, her curious expression turning into concern as she noticed Yuichi's reaction. "What's wrong?"

Yuichi took a deep breath, his mind racing as he quickly decided on what to say to Niko. "It's nothing it's just that the spell drains quite a bit of the user's reiryoku so I was thinking of a way to reduce the burden. Oh yeah, how were the effects?"

'The Quincies can observe and hear everything within the Soul Society. If this really can let me spy on them then it's better to keep it a secret.'

"Hmmm, that's a problem. If the reiryoku consumption ratio is high then it will be a difficult spell to use. As for the effect I couldn't hear any sounds or feel your reiatsu." said Niko as she pondered ways to fix this issue

"Also I had a thought. If there are not enough shadows around then this spell would be rendered useless correct? So we should come up with another one that works with light. Although it's getting late so we'll work more another time." said Yuichi

Niko nodded, her brow furrowed as she considered the reiryoku consumption issue. "You're right it's getting late. High reiryoku consumption can limit the practicality of a kido spell, especially in a critical situation. We'll need to find a way to optimize its efficiency while still maintaining its effectiveness."

As Yuichi mentioned an alternative idea, Niko's eyes lit up with interest. "What about creating a kido that uses light as its medium instead of shadows? We could develop a kido that manipulates light to create an illusionary camouflage. I'm not sure if that will be easier to use than shadows so it might reduce the reiryoku consumption to acceptable levels."

Niko nodded at Yuichi's suggestion. "That's a great idea. Light manipulation might offer a more efficient alternative to the shadow-based kido. It would still provide us with the ability to create illusions and conceal without the drain on reiryoku."

Yuichi smiled as he saw that Niko's attention was diverted as she continued to brainstorm. "Exactly. Light manipulation can be more versatile, and we can adjust the intensity and direction of light to create illusions that match our surroundings. It's definitely worth exploring as an alternative to the current kido."

"Agreed. Let's focus on that as our next project. For now, though, we should get some rest. We've made significant progress today, and we can continue refining our new kido another time. I better get back to the girl's dorm before I get punished." said Niko as she stood up and yawned

As Niko mentioned needing to return to the girl's dormitory, Yuichi walked her to the door and bid her farewell. Once he was alone, he sealed his room using the reiatsu-blocking kido. Picking up his zanpakuto, he settled into a meditative pose. With a focused precision, Yuichi began to channel his reiryoku into his zanpakuto, practicing retrieving it repeatedly to improve his control and increase the amount of reishi he could store within his body.

For nearly thirty minutes, Yuichi persisted in his training, pushing his limits and testing his newfound abilities. Suddenly, he felt a profound shift, as if something had forcefully crashed within him. It was an unfamiliar sensation, yet he instinctively recognized that his capacity to harness reiryoku had grown significantly. He estimated that his reiryoku had increased by around 100%, pushing him from the Basic Spiritual Power or Below Average-class to the early stages of Average Spiritual Power or Average-class.

This level of power was common among low-ranking seated and non-seated members of the Gotei 13, the Thirteen Court Guard Squads. Yuichi however was unaware of this detail and assumed his potential had pushed him to new heights.

Yuichi couldn't help but feel a surge of pride and excitement. He had managed to make considerable progress in honing his spiritual abilities, which would serve him well in the uncertain times ahead.

With a contented smile, Yuichi sheathed his zanpakuto and released the reiatsu-blocking kido. He decided that it was time to rest and allow his body to fully integrate the newfound strength.