"Rukia, what are you looking at?"
A red-haired boy with a wild, eye-catching hairstyle shoved through the crowd and stepped beside his companion, also turning his eyes toward the bulletin board.
"They mentioned it during the ceremony. The Student Council."
Beside him stood a petite, striking girl with short black hair that curled upward at the ends. Her deep violet eyes were fixed on the notice, her expression contemplative.
"Huh? You thinking about joining the Student Council?" Renji asked.
"I haven't really thought about it. Just looking."
"Well, if you're joining, I'll join too!"
"It's not that simple. They said there'd be a screening process."
Renji just shrugged with confidence. "Come on, we'll pass for sure!"
As the two chatted, a tall figure stepped in front of them.
"Are the two of you first-years interested in joining the Student Council?"
The man was towering, with a remarkably long face and nearly-shut squinty eyes—his odd appearance made an immediate impression.
"I'm Aoka, fifth-year. If you'd like to apply, I'll need your names."
He was already flipping open a roster without waiting for consent.
Renji grinned brightly. "I'm Abarai Renji! She's Rukia!"
"Renji, you…"
Rukia wasn't ready. She didn't even know what the Student Council was. She'd only come over out of curiosity after seeing the crowd.
Aoka jotted their names down and asked, "Which classes?"
"I'm in Class A, she's Class B."
At that, Aoka's pen paused for just a moment. Without a word, he scribbled "Lower-Tier" beside Rukia's name and "Upper-Tier" next to Renji's.
Class A in every year was the elite section—students with the highest spiritual pressure upon admission. There were no grades yet, but that alone spoke volumes.
The Council's selection criteria were already decided: those with outstanding performance were given priority.
That wasn't Shin's doing—it was a decision made at higher levels, along with all other regulations for the Council.
"The written exam will be held in three days. If you pass, you'll move on to the interview. Clear that, and you'll be accepted."
"So much hassle," Renji grumbled.
"Excellence must be proven," Aoka replied with a smile.
After they walked away from the crowd, Rukia immediately started scolding him.
"Idiot! I told you I wasn't sure yet! Why'd you sign me up?!"
Renji scratched his head. "Don't overthink it. If you're interested, just go for it."
"I saw tons of other first-years already signed up," she muttered. "The competition's gonna be brutal. I'll probably get cut early."
"They didn't seem all that impressive to me. We'll be fine."
Rukia said nothing.
Being placed in Class B meant her starting spiritual pressure and potential were lower than Renji's. She didn't even know how this Council was going to evaluate anyone…
Shin'ō Academy had designated a spacious classroom as the official headquarters of the Student Council. They clearly took it seriously—every facility and condition was top-tier.
For example, the chair Shin was currently lounging in, and the expensive wooden desk in front of him.
When Kasugōri Mitsugorō entered the room, his face darkened at the sight of President Tachikawa Shin with his feet up on the desk like some delinquent.
"Yo, Mitsugorō!"
Shin greeted him cheerfully, all smiles.
Mitsugorō's face remained stoic as he approached. Much of the furniture in this room had been sponsored by his noble family—including that desk, which he had personally selected.
Barely restraining his anger, he said through gritted teeth, "Tachikawa Shin, you have no dignity as a President. You're utterly unrefined."
Shin tilted his head and smirked. "Well, what can I say? I am the President."
"You—!"
Mitsugorō's breath caught in his throat.
Only then did Shin slowly lower his legs, grinning. "Man, the Kasugōri really are rich. It's great having you as my Vice President. I'll be counting on you to keep the Council funded!"
Mitsugorō merely scoffed. The "wealth" Shin referred to was just the office furniture—but the Kasugōri were an upper Seireitei noble clan, masters of weapon-forging techniques, just beneath the Four Great Houses.
Shin could barely comprehend their influence.
Mitsugorō placed a thick file down on the desk. "I just retrieved the application files of all the new first-years."
"That many?!" Shin whistled.
"Most of them signed up to join the Council."
Shin casually flipped through the pages. He noticed the files had been sorted—one pile set aside from the others.
"These are all the Class A students. We'll only be selecting candidates from this group," Mitsugorō stated.
Shin wordlessly removed the paperclip separating the piles, mixing all the files together.
"What are you doing?" Mitsugorō frowned.
Shin leaned back and asked, "You know what'll happen if all the first-year Council members are from Class A?"
"…What's your point?"
"If we do that, the Council will become a privileged elite group, set above the rest of the students."
Mitsugorō didn't answer.
"There aren't that many in Class A to begin with. If most of them join, then what does Class A become?"
"You're well aware of the Council's recruitment standards."
"I am. But who's to say which first-years are truly the best yet? You know Class A sees the most reshuffling in second year."
"If you're set on this, I'll report it to the Headmaster."
Shin chuckled. "The Headmaster's busy. No need to bother him with this. I've already decided. If the Class A kids are good enough, they'll pass the tests like anyone else."
Mitsugorō didn't argue further. After a moment, he turned to leave.
"Also—don't put your feet on the desk again. It's disgraceful."
After he left, Shin continued flipping through the files.
He knew: if Mitsugorō truly held deep bias, he wouldn't have brought files for the non-A students at all.
Not a bad guy.
And very rich.
Besides Rukia and Renji—whom Shin had already seen at the plaza—he also spotted two more familiar names among the first-years.
Hinamori Momo.Kira Izuru.
Both were in Class A. Their profiles listed their origins in mid-ranking districts of Rukongai.
Shin's eyes lingered on their files. His fingers lightly stroked the paper.
Then the door opened. Hisagi Shūhei and Kanisawa walked in.
"You sure look relaxed."
Hisagi eyed Shin's leg-stretching posture and instantly felt a pang of irritation.
"Who said I'm relaxing? I'm working," Shin replied, gesturing at the mountain of files.
The two approached the desk and saw the pile. Hisagi's eyes widened.
"All these applied to the Council?"
"Yep."
"This'll take forever to interview…"
Kanisawa, ever calm, said, "We'll eliminate 90% in the written exam."
Hisagi gawked. "That much?!"
"Fierce competition," Shin said. "These kids are fresh off the boat. Everything excites them."
He put down the file and stretched.
Kanisawa, meanwhile, noticed the top file on the stack featured a girl's photo. Round cheeks, cute face, hair in a tidy bun.
She glanced at Shin and said dryly, "She's kinda cute."
Shin immediately nodded, stroking his chin. "Right? I thought so too. I happen to need an assistant…"
Hisagi gave him a blank stare.
Three days later — The Written Exam.
Due to the sheer number of applicants, they used a large lecture hall for the test.
Since the students had just entered, the test didn't cover advanced subjects. Instead, it focused on critical thinking and hypothetical scenarios—no right answers, just judgment calls.
One question stood out:
"Have you received any spiritual pressure training before enrollment?If yes, turn to page 2.If no, leave it blank. No penalty for blank. Wrong answers will result in deduction.Correct answers will not add points."
After grading, over 90% of applicants were immediately cut.
One of them was Abarai Renji.
Hisagi had graded his exam.
Q: You are placed into a squad different from your preferred choice. What do you do?Renji's Answer: I'll apply to transfer squads.
Q: You've remained an unseated officer for 10 years. Discuss your thoughts and course of action.Renji's Answer: No way I'd go 10 years without getting seated.
Q: A friend tells you your superior is taking bribes and abusing authority. What do you do?Renji's Answer: Report him!
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