Due to Tōshirō drawing his Zanpakutō, Ailin’s teachings expanded beyond reiatsu control. He began introducing Tōshirō to Zanjutsu and Shunpo.

As for Hakuda and Kidō…

Well, with Tōshirō’s current height, practicing Hakuda would be extremely inefficient, a waste of time and energy.

And Kidō, before Tōshirō could completely control his reiatsu at will, would only result in harming both himself and others.

Later on, besides practicing Zanjutsu and reiatsu control, Ailin and Tōshirō traveled using Shunpo.

Even without Ailin’s guidance, they only took three months to reach Seireitei.

Of course, every night, after Tōshirō fell asleep, Ailin would return to the Kuchiki Manor and leave again before Tōshirō woke up the next morning.

Otherwise, even though Ailin had already told Haruko about Tōshirō, he couldn’t guarantee she wouldn’t overthink things.

…

Tōshirō’s astonishment was understandable.

In fact, even Ailin, who frequently traveled between Rukongai and Seireitei, felt a sense of disconnect every time he returned to Seireitei from Rukongai.

Seireitei was located in the center of Soul Society, covering an area of 133,000 square reiri, with a radius of about 365 reiri.

Perhaps the concept of "reiri" was unfamiliar, but to understand the sheer size of Seireitei, consider this: Karakura Town, where the protagonist Ichigo Kurosaki resided, didn’t even cover 0.5 square reiri.

It would take an ordinary Shinigami forty days to walk around Seireitei.

Encircling Seireitei was a white wall over five meters tall, with only four exits.

These walls were built using "Sekkiseki," a special stone that could release a "killing intent" to disrupt and decompose reiryoku. The residents of Rukongai, who lacked reiryoku, couldn't even approach the walls.

These walls divided Seireitei and the rest of Soul Society into two distinct worlds.

Beyond Seireitei lay the dwelling places of countless souls. In Rukongai, even in the safest and most orderly district, the homes of the souls were still made of wood.

The tallest buildings were only two or three stories high.

However, within Seireitei, towering structures and magnificent mansions were commonplace.

And unlike the "dirty," "chaotic," and "poor" conditions of Rukongai, Seireitei was almost entirely pristine white, occasionally adorned with red glazed tiles. It was clean and orderly.

Besides the architectural differences, what was even more striking was the contrast in living conditions between the residents of Seireitei and Rukongai.

Outside of Seireitei, even in the safest district closest to the walls, occasional Hollow attacks occurred.

The residents of Rukongai lived in constant fear, afraid that one day they might be unlucky enough to encounter a Hollow descending from Hueco Mundo.

Although the Shinigami within Seireitei would quickly deal with any invading Hollows, those who had already been devoured wouldn’t come back to life even if the Hollow was slain and purified.

For the people living in Rukongai, there was little difference from their lives before death.

After all, unlike the few souls who retained their memories from their previous lives upon entering Soul Society, nearly ninety percent of souls were sent to Soul Society by Shinigami using the insignia on their Zanpakutō hilts.

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Only by letting go of their attachments could they be guided to Soul Society.

Therefore, the method Shinigami used to send souls from the Human World to Soul Society was quite crude.

They simply erased the souls’ memories of their previous lives.

Without memories, they naturally had no attachments.

This was why it was rare to encounter someone in Soul Society who retained their memories from the Human World.

Here, those without memories simply repeated the lives of their predecessors. While the Human World had undergone several transformations over millions of years, Soul Society remained unchanged.

Well, Seireitei, in the hands of the nobles, had become even more prosperous and magnificent.

In comparison, Rukongai was like a remote and impoverished backwater, far from a modern metropolis.

After buying Tōshirō a new set of clothes, Ailin took him back to the Kuchiki Manor.

"Let's go, Tōshirō. You'll live with me until you enroll in the academy. I'll also introduce you to your teacher's wife. Ah, what a pity. When I mentioned you to her, I had hoped to take you in as our child."

Tōshirō turned his head, pretending not to hear his teacher's last sentence.

He was grateful to Teacher Ailin for taking him away from his grandmother before he could cause her irreparable harm.

However, having been given a second life by his grandmother, he couldn't abandon her surname and become his teacher’s family.

His teacher had a wife, other relatives, and friends. But his grandmother only had him! If he left, she would be heartbroken.

As Ailin led Tōshirō along, their appearance quickly attracted attention.

Although Ailin rarely ventured out, as the most enigmatic and powerful captain in Seireitei, he had countless admirers.

Therefore, everyone was familiar with his appearance.

Even those who didn't recognize Ailin would recognize his captain's haori.

It was an attire exclusive to Gotei 13 captains, representing their supreme status.

In terms of social standing, a captain was no less than a high-ranking noble.

Seeing the young boy Ailin was leading by the hand, the gazes directed towards them were filled with envy.

To be personally escorted by Captain Ailin, this must be his new disciple, right?

Having lived in Rukongai for many years, Tōshirō Hitsugaya was sensitive to the gazes of others.

When Teacher Ailin took his hand, he clearly sensed that many eyes were scrutinizing him.

It made him uncomfortable. He had never experienced such attention before.

Feeling uneasy, Tōshirō subtly hid behind Ailin, as if doing so could shield him from those prying eyes.

"Hehe…"

Amused by Tōshirō’s adorable reaction, Ailin chuckled softly.

At that moment, he realized the inconvenience of having only one arm.

Otherwise, a head pat would be incredibly comforting for Tōshirō now.

"Tōshirō, as my disciple, you will attract a lot of attention in the future. You need to learn to get used to it, either ignoring those gazes or bearing the weight of their expectations."

"Ah? Ignoring or bearing?"

"Yes."

Ailin nodded, then explained, "I have five disciples in Seireitei, including you."

"Three of them have already become captains in the Gotei 13. Naturally, the remaining two, you and the other, will receive even more attention. They are all eager to see what kind of accomplishments those chosen as my disciples can achieve.

If you cannot reach the level of the first three, then ignore those gazes. Because they will mock you, ridicule you, and subject you to endless mental torment. But if you have the confidence to reach or even surpass the achievements of the first three, then learn to bear the weight of their doubt, scrutiny, and expectations."

"Teacher Ailin, what kind of accomplishment is it to become a captain in the Gotei 13?"

Instead of answering how he would handle those gazes, Tōshirō first wanted to know how significant the achievements of his senior disciples were.

"A captain…"

"Hmm…"

"Let's just say, the Gotei 13 are the strongest armed forces in Seireitei, shouldering the responsibility of protecting it. At the same time, the Gotei 13 are also the first line of defense for the Soul King.

The thirteen divisions each have their own duties. Each division has at least a thousand Shinigami, and some even have tens of thousands. And the strongest individuals within these thirteen divisions are their respective captains. It can be said that the captains of the Gotei 13 are the most powerful fighters in all of Seireitei."

"Wow..."

A spark of admiration flickered in Tōshirō’s eyes.

He didn’t fully understand everything else yet. But he understood the meaning of "most powerful fighters."

So, his three senior disciples had become one of the thirteen strongest individuals in Seireitei?

"Teacher, you were able to train three captains. Are you a captain too?"

"Hahaha... Tōshirō, we've walked a long way, and you've seen many Shinigami. Tell me, what's the difference between them and me?"

"Difference?"

Tōshirō suddenly realized what Ailin was getting at.

"I know! Those Shinigami all wear black clothes, but Teacher has a white coat over your black clothes."

"That's right. In Seireitei, Shinigami attire is basically limited to these two types. The black one is called a Shihakushō. The white one is called a captain's haori. As the name suggests, a captain's haori is something only captains can wear."

Ailin laughed heartily and turned around, showing Tōshirō the number on the back of his haori.

"Tōshirō, what number do you see on my back?"

"Eleven."

Tōshirō had already seen the number, but he didn't know what it represented.

"The number on the back of a captain's haori represents their division. The number on my back means I am the captain of the 11th Division."