Chapter 15: Graduation exams begin!

Grayson stood before the head instructors of the academy, being told that he would soon be graduating and joining a new squad due to his display against the powerful Hollow, as well as, displaying that he could release his Zanpakuto, proving that he was way above the ability of the other students, and ready to perform the duties of a soul reaper.

"Sorry, but which squad is it that I will be joining exactly?" Grayson asked, having not been told by the instructors.

"Ah yes. You will be joining squad five, under captain Aizen's command."

"You have one week to prepare, then you shall take your final exam." They then said, standing from their seats.

Grayson nodded and lowered his head in respect as the instructors had clearly finished with him, leaving the room as he bid them a good day.

"Squad five..." Grayson said to himself, as he walked down the hallway, heading back to his classroom.

Grayson didn't really have time to think about the whole thing as he reached his classroom doors, snapping him out of his thoughts.

"Guess there is nothing to be done but wait." He said to himself, taking a deep breath before he slid the door open and stepped inside.

The entire class stopped what they were doing at the sight of him, including the teacher, who had been mid-lecture.

"G-Greyson..." Kimiko said, seeing him standing there in good health.

"Ah yes, Grayson?" The instructor asked, having already been briefed about him.

"Yes, sensei?" Grayson said.

"Yes, please feel free to take a seat." The instructor said.

Grayson nodded and began to walk towards his old seat, feeling the eyes of everyone in the classroom on him, whispering about what had happened.

Clearly, the story had spread around the entire academy and Grayson wasn't sure if it was a good or a bad thing yet.

"Alright everyone, settle down." The instructor said, getting their attention back before he carried on with his lecture.

Grayson could still feel everyone looking at him, catching the eyes of both Izumi and Kimiko who gave him a small smile, trying not to be awaked towards him.

"Did you hear? He's being allowed to graduate after just one year." Someone said.

"Rumor is he is stronger than even the sixth years, and he has already awakened his Zanpakuto." Another whispered.

Grayson felt a little awkward being the topic of conversation and could feel himself falling lower into his chair.

"Yeah, somehow he survived, but let everyone else die..." Another person said, causing Grayson to snap out of it and clench his fists.

"You have no idea what happened!" Kimiko suddenly shouted, shutting everyone up.

"K-Kimiko..." Grayson said, surprised by her sudden outburst.

Even the teacher was shocked at her sudden outburst, not sure what was going on.

"He saved us alright! He did his best and if not for him I would be dead just like the others!" Kimiko suddenly yelled.

"Kimiko..." Izumi said, feeling the same way as she did.

"Hey, its alright Kimiko." Grayson suddenly said as he stood up and placed her hand on her shoulder.

Kimiko had tears in her eyes, holding her hands to her chest as she slowly looked into his.

"I'm sorry Kimiko," Grayson said, knowing that she was suffering from the loss of Jaku and Rocko.

"Will the two of you sit down or leave!" The teacher suddenly yelled, pointing his chalk at them.

Grayson nodded and took Kimiko's hand.

"We will talk about this later, ok?" He said, looking into her eyes and getting a small nod from her.

"Ok." She said, slowly backing away as she sat back down, Grayson doing the same before the teacher cleared his throat again.

"Very well, back to the lesson." He then said with a stern voice, getting everyone's attention.

The next class was zanjutsu and the entire class headed towards the training ground. Today each year of the academy was taking part in the training, allowing the more senior students to help teach the younger years.

Kimiko, Izumi and Grayson had headed to one side of the training ground so that they could have some space away from the others.

"It looks like we really are the topic of the academy," Grayson said, feeling everyone looking at him still.

Izumi stood holding one arm with the other, seeming a little withdrawn.

"Everyone is talking about how you pushed back a Hollow that even a captain could not defeat... Your famous, Grayson." She said, seeming down.

Kimiko was no better, also feeling down due to the whole event.

"Are you really graduating?" She asked, looking at him with questioning eyes.

Grayson suddenly realised that that was the reason both of them seemed off around him.

"I am... As long as I pass the exam at the end of the week." He spoke.

Izumi and Kimiko remained silent, not saying a word.

"What's the matter you two?" Grayson asked, knowing something was wrong.

"N-Nothing... I'm sorry!" Izumi said, trying to snap out of it and be happy for him.

"It's just... I-I will be sad to see you go so soon." She spoke.

"Yeah... We still have six years here." Kimiko said, sitting on the ground as she looked into the sky.

"Is this what it means to be a soul reaper? To watch those, you love to be killed or taken away from you?" She spoke.

Grayson sat next to her, also looking up into the blue sky.

"No, Kimiko. It's not what being a soul reaper is. That is not why Jaku and Rocko died." He said, causing Kimiko to turn her head towards him.

"They died because we weren't strong enough to protect the people that are important to us." He said.

"I wasn't strong enough to protect them, any of you." He added.

Kimiko shook her head.

"That's not true... You are strong." She spoke.

"Grayson, you are so strong that you are being allowed to graduate after just one year here, do you know how amazing that is!" She said, feeling almost jealous.

Izumi felt the same way and sat on the other side of him.

"I just need you to promise me one thing before you leave," Kimiko said, looking at both Grayson and Izumi.

"I want all of us to promise." She said, getting their attention.

"I want us all to promise that we will train as hard as we can so that we never have to watch our friends die again," Kimiko said.

Both Grayson and Izumi smiled and slowly nodded their head.

"I promise." They both said, taking each other's hands as they all sat and smiled together.

The rest of the week passed quickly for Grayson, Kimiko and Izumi. Both of them knew that they wouldn't see Grayson again until they were able to graduate from the academy.

However, they didn't let that get in the way of the time they had left, seeming to spend every minute together training, eating and laughing together.

They may have experienced a great loss, but I what they lost together, they also gained together, building an even greater bond that would outlast all of the pain they felt.

The day of Grayson's final exam had arrived, and even though he felt nervous, both Izumi and Kimiko had told him not to worry.

Grayson had been invited to the exam hall with the sixth-years that would also be graduating today. Everyone was less than impressed that Grayson was among them, each of them knowing he had only completed one year compared to their six.

"This is bullshit." One of them said, looking over at Grayson.

"Hey, we don't make the rules, if he's here it's because he is strong, that's all." Another said, not seeming to care.

Suddenly the head instructor took the centre of the room and stood on the platform, getting everyone's attention.

"Welcome everyone. You are here today to take the final graduation exam. Once completed you will be granted permission to join one of the 13 divisions depending on your results. However, those of you who fail will be forced to repeat the year." The instructor said.

Everyone remained silent as they listened to his words.

"The exam will be split into three parts. Each exam will score a number of points that will help you to reach a passing grade. Even if you fail one, so long as you pass the other two, you may still make the mark. Your results in each area of the exams will also reflect upon which squad you may or may not be able to apply to." He then explained.

Grayson thought about it, knowing that not everyone was an allrounder from the get-go, with some being gifted with the sword, or with kidō.

"With that said, we will start the first exam, which will be the written exam." The instructor said.

"If you will, you shall find a piece of paper and a pencil under your tables. You have one hour to complete the questions; you may begin now!" He shouted, causing everyone in the room to quickly flip their paper over and start the exam.

Grayson did the same and started to fill his information onto the paper before scanning the paper.

"Only twenty questions..." He thought, taking a quick glance at each of them.

Most of the questions were basic problem-solving simulations, revolving around teamwork and acting as a squad member. Nothing that Grayson found overly hard, quickly breezing his way through them.

Grayson had finished after only half an hour and got up to go and hand his paper in, getting strange looks from everyone again, something he was getting used to now.

"Thank you, you may proceed to the next exam and wait for the others." The instructor said, taking his paper from him.

Grayson nodded and headed to the kidō field, where they would clearly be taking an exam on their kidō control.

Soon enough everyone else from the exam had finished and started to fill up the kidō practice court, along with the instructors who held clipboards and pens.

"As you may have guessed, your next exam will be on kidō. When your name is called, you may come to the from and demonstrate one spell of your choosing." The instructor said.

Grayson was pretty sure that anyone who had been here for six years would know more than just the Shakkahō, and decided to open his stats menu quickly.

Name: Grayson.

Level 23. (2600/8000).

Class: Student of the Shinōreijutsuin.

Health: 225/225

Stamina: 225/225

Reiatsu: 235/235

Skills- Hadō 31 Shakkahō level 2/10.

Flash step 1/10

Strength: 25/100 (1/10)

Speed: 15/100 (1/10)

Intelligence: 15/100 (1/10)

Enhanced skills -

Zanjutsu: 1/10 (1/10)

Zanpakuto name: Jūryoku no Megami.

Hakuda: 5/10 (0/10)

Kidō: 3/10 (0/10)

Skill points available: 2.

Grayson quickly opened his kidō menu, taking a look at the options he currently had under Hadō spells. Grayson studied the spells that he could see in a standard skill tree layout, seeing which could currently be unlocked.

He could see that the Hadō spells were not in number order either, seeming to be placed in difficulty order.

Looks like I can currently unlock, Hadō 1, 4, 5, 12, 15, and 33..." He said, trying to look over each of them to see what they did.

"Hadō 1, called Shō." (Meaning thrust.) Grayson said, seeing that it was a simple spell, but could be useful if used effectively.

"I guess no one will ask any questions about using Hadō 1..." He thought as he used one skill point to unlock the spell.

"Grayson, please step up to the stand." One of the instructors suddenly said, cutting his train of thought off.

"Y-Yes, sir."

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Alright that's the end of this chapter.

I hope you enjoyed, please leave a review if you did!