In the end, after much pleading and even resorting to throwing a tantrum, Rod managed to convince Alice, whose rage had her red hair flaring, to give up the idea.
But after Rod returned to rest, she quietly went to Yoruichi Shihōin's residence.
Yoruichi Shihōin sat cross-legged in the spacious living room, staring blankly at the scar on her neck.
She was summoned because she felt lonely at the peak of her swordsmanship, feeling invincible.
Yoruichi Shihōin also didn't encounter the child from Rukongai.
Rod was one of the few people in her life who made her genuinely fearful.
Yes, fear!
Even that old man hadn't made her feel this way from the bottom of her heart.
"I messed up... That kid won't be mad at me, but I should apologize properly, or maybe I can use my newly learned cooking to tease Rod a little~"
Yoruichi Shihōin sighed helplessly, but her lips couldn't help but curl upwards.
"After all, I couldn't help it~"
"At that moment, a terrifying thought suddenly popped into my head."
"If I don't fight you with all my strength now, I might not have the qualifications to fight you in the future..."
At that time, it wasn't so much that Yoruichi Shihōin had lost control and released her Bankai, but rather that under the deadly threat Rod posed, she had instinctively done so out of fear.
Thinking about this, Yoruichi Shihōin suddenly felt a bit dejected.
"I broke my promise with Ms. Rita... It seems I'm not someone who can stand side-by-side with you..."
After a brief silence, Yoruichi Shihōin suddenly spoke.
"Little one, you've been lurking at the door for so long, and you're not even trying to hide your killing intent. You wouldn't be thinking about fighting me, would you?"
"Hmph..."
Alice no longer hid, brandishing her wooden sword and charging straight towards Yoruichi Shihōin.
Yoruichi Shihōin narrowed her eyes.
Such perfect killing intent, but she didn't know how to control it.
Yoruichi Shihōin extended her index finger and easily shattered the wooden sword.
The outcome was decided... Usually, that's how it would be.
Just when Yoruichi Shihōin thought the other party would stop, Alice let out a roar and lunged towards her, barehanded.
She instinctively used her left hand's dark blade to slash at Alice's neck, but thankfully, she reacted in time and used the back of the blade.
The impact, which almost shattered her shinbone, caused Alice to spit blood and nearly faint.
However, even so... Alice still didn't stop.
"Ha-ah-ah!"
Alice aimed a punch at Yoruichi Shihōin's chin.
Yoruichi Shihōin sensed her intentions and tried to intercept it with her right hand.
But Alice actually wanted to grab her hand and then bite down with her teeth.
At this moment, Yoruichi Shihōin realized that the girl in front of her was a wild beast that wouldn't stop fighting until she died.
"Rod... is the strongest!"
Alice roared hoarsely from the depths of her throat!
At this point, she was tightly restrained by Yoruichi Shihōin, and even with all her might, her forehead bulging with veins, she couldn't do anything.
Upon hearing her words, Yoruichi Shihōin was momentarily stunned, then a faint smile appeared on her face.
"Yes, he is the strongest."
Hearing this, Alice snorted, and stopped resisting.
"I want you to take me as your student!"
Ordinary people would probably be surprised by Alice's line of thought, suddenly attacking someone and then unceremoniously asking them to be her teacher. What was that all about?
But Yoruichi Shihōin simply asked with a smile.
"Reason?"
Alice remained silent for a long time, her voice low.
"Rod is the strongest, but he can also get hurt."
"Back home, I was ridiculed as a hopeless red monkey princess, but Rod was willing to tolerate my stubbornness."
"So, I want to protect him, I want him to stop getting hurt."
Yoruichi Shihōin kicked Alice away, her tone cold.
"You're lying!"
Alice rolled over awkwardly on the ground, glaring angrily at Yoruichi Shihōin, ignoring the terrifying killing intent, and roared.
"You hurt Rod, I hate you!"
"I know I'm weak now, I can't do anything, I can't learn anything, all I have is strength!"
"So I'm going to learn all your swordsmanship, surpass you, and then, kill you!!!"
Yoruichi Shihōin was taken aback, a sense of exhilaration released completely from the depths of her soul, spreading throughout her limbs and bones, her entire body trembling with excitement!
Interesting.
Too interesting!
Everyone who merely looked at that dazzling figure couldn't help but feel despair.
No one would dare to pursue his footsteps.
But this red-haired wild beast before her had done just that, and even more so... she said she wanted to kill her.
"You're the stupidest person I've ever met."
Yoruichi Shihōin unsheathed her Zanpakutō and pressed it against Alice's forehead.
Alice clenched her lips, refusing to yield, locking eyes with Yoruichi Shihōin.
The Zanpakutō released its Shikai into a large, flat, single-eyed flying object, swallowing Alice, who was trying to resist.
"So, I've decided, from today onwards, I am your teacher."
"Remember what you said, if you can't kill me, then I'll kill you!"
From that day on, two mentally unstable individuals became an extremely awkward master-student pair.
In the days that followed, as she watched Alice rapidly grow under her tutelage, Yoruichi Shihōin became increasingly delighted.
This is the normal growth rate of a genius!
She was quite satisfied with Alice as a student in private, believing that she could truly inherit her legacy and even surpass her.
Rod, the freak who could learn swordsmanship by just glancing at it twice, was a monster beyond comprehension, completely incomparable.
Therefore, Rod had been unceremoniously kicked out of her dojo.
As for whether she thought she was unworthy of being called Rod's teacher, or other complex reasons, only the gentle Flower Sister knew for sure.
...
Rod took a sip of milk, quenching his thirst.
After recounting this past, his heart was filled with mixed emotions.
Hildegarde finally understood.
No wonder His Majesty was so doting on Ms. Alice.
It turned out that this kind of thing had happened without her knowing.
"Then Your Majesty, have you completely surpassed Captain Yoruichi now?"
Rod shrugged and smiled without answering.
"Who knows?"