"Is he important?" Hela asked.
"More or less. He might have a way for people to survive Auswählen," Yoshio said.
At the mention of Auswählen, Gabriel's expression grew grave.
She didn't actually know exactly what Auswählen was, but instinctively felt it wasn't anything good.
Sure enough, seeing the puzzled looks on their faces, Yoshio explained:
"Auswählen is one of Yhwach, the Quincy King's, powers—essentially redistribution of power."
"He can reclaim the power and souls of all Quincies, and then allocate that power however he likes—or keep it for himself."
!
Yoshio had told them about some of the present dangers in the Three Realms: Aizen, Yhwach, Hell…
Danger breeds motivation.
So they already knew Quincies were lurking in the shadows of the Seireitei, and that the Quincy King's ultimate goal was to destroy this world.
At this, their expressions turned fully solemn.
"Then Ishida Sōken is extremely significant," Gabriel said first.
A way to circumvent Auswählen?
With that, they could stop Yhwach from continuing to absorb power!
"Something like that. But this method might not apply to others. Even so, we can't just leave it alone."
Ishida Uryū is a Quincy who can circumvent Auswählen; how he did it is probably known only to the Ishida family.
Mayuri really was wasteful—someone like Ishida Sōken, who held so many secrets, he simply toyed with to death.
"I'll go," Gabriel said. "Your status makes it inconvenient to act yourself, right?"
"Mm." Yoshio nodded.
Now that he led an organization, there was no need to handle everything personally. He didn't think doing everything himself was a virtue.
If it were anyone else, he could just have Azashiro make a move casually.
But the opponent happened to be Kurotsuchi Mayuri.
Mayuri is a smart man; he was probably monitoring Ishida Sōken already.
In that situation, it was best for Azashiro not to move if possible.
Also, a large portion of Azashiro Sōya's power was still fused into the Seireitei; as spirit particles flowed to the World of the Living, a sudden appearance of dense reiryoku in the Living World's container environment might rouse Mayuri's suspicion.
So Azashiro couldn't move either.
The easiest options were the two newcomers, Gabriel and Teresa. They had just arrived in Karakura Town; no one knew their origins or whereabouts.
Seeing Yoshio agree, Azashiro said, "The target isn't far. Seven hundred meters to the southeast."
Gabriel nodded and, in the next instant, took flight.
Seven hundred meters was indeed nothing for people like them; she was there in no time.
…
Ishida Sōken…
Gabriel knew of him—expelled from the Wandenreich decades ago—and hadn't expected him to have grown so old.
Well, once you abandon spirit-body form and return to a physical vessel, rapid aging is only natural.
She looked at Ishida Sōken, who sat beneath a tree as if lost in thought, then glanced around.
Judging by the spiritual pressure, there were indeed five Hollows nearby, but all very weak—less than even basic Menos Grande; they looked like five regular Hollows.
Mayuri would kill with just these five Hollows?
Had Ishida Sōken grown this weak?
No matter what, Ishida Sōken shouldn't be struggling against five Hollows weaker than Menos Grande, should he?
Even if he'd aged, as long as he had Ransōtengai, he could still fight even on the verge of death.
Gabriel didn't appear immediately, but waited for the five Hollows to approach.
Though Sōken was much older, even a dulled sense could feel the Hollows' evil reiryoku at this distance.
He stood, a bow of spirit particles forming in his hand.
"Whew… good thing I sent Uryū away earlier."
In the night, he looked a bit nervous.
For him, if he could just hold out for a while, Shinigami would arrive to assist.
Watching Sōken actually fall into a disadvantage against the five Hollows, Gabriel found it incredible. Too weakened!
Hollows like these should be one arrow apiece.
Gabriel frowned. She had considered that Mayuri might have another trick—but now it seemed it was just these five.
He really intended to kill Ishida Sōken with just five Hollows—because Sōken was that weak!
With that thought, Gabriel stopped hiding.
She appeared before Ishida Sōken in an instant.
Her sudden appearance shocked not only Sōken, who was about to loose a spirit arrow, but even the five clawing Hollows paused.
An instant later, without Gabriel even moving, the five Hollows' bodies split top-to-bottom.
"Raaa—!"
One Hollow uttered a confused roar, but that was all; before they could take another step, a razor wind cleaved them in half, and they slowly dissipated.
"You finally came…"
Breathless, Ishida Sōken saw Gabriel arrive and assumed a Shinigami from Soul Society had come to help. He finally relaxed.
"Don't drop your guard," Gabriel said. "These Hollows were led here by Shinigami from Soul Society to kill you and use your soul for some vile experiment."
"?" Ishida Sōken was puzzled. Though Gabriel had saved him, he didn't fully trust her words.
But the next moment, he saw several Shinigami rushing over.
One Shinigami said impatiently, "Which squad are you from?! Don't you know Squad 12 is conducting an operation?"
Expressionless, Gabriel said nothing, just waited for them to approach.
Karakura Town should be under Squad 13's jurisdiction. But these Shinigami were from Squad 12, striding over with killing intent.
"What a hassle. Whoever you are, leave now. Captain Kurotsuchi doesn't like interference during operations. I'm telling you, you'll be in trouble when you get back to Soul Society."
They hadn't realized Gabriel wasn't a member of the Gotei 13—assuming she was a different squad member who'd come to purify Hollows on sight.
At that point, Ishida Sōken sensed something off.
Those Shinigami hadn't appeared while he was fighting the five Hollows.
Now that this girl had just dispatched the Hollows, they rushed out and scolded her.
When the five were close enough, Sōken sensed a strange reiryoku, and saw the face of the nearest Shinigami looked somewhat swollen—he had a bad feeling and shouted, "Run!"
But it was a step too late!
The nearest Shinigami suddenly bulged, then exploded with a bang!
Bomb?!
Sōken's face changed. They were too close, and it came too suddenly. He had no time to defend!
Damn!
Boom!
Boom boom boom boom!
There had been five Hollows before; now there were five Shinigami, and they self-detonated almost simultaneously.
In a flash, the fire of the blasts drove back the night's darkness, massive waves of reiryoku rippling out.
At the center, flames shot into the sky as if to incinerate all within.
"…"
When the flames faded, Ishida Sōken stared in shock at the girl before him.
She looked the same as before, but water flowed around her. The water looked soft yet was unyieldingly strong; the explosions and fire, upon touching the flow, were neutralized by the power within.
Like clay oxen entering the sea—no matter how terrifying the force, once it sank into the ocean, it could only raise some trivial waves.
Gabriel looked at the five self-detonated Shinigami, then turned slightly, seeming to fix her gaze on an empty spot in the distance.
There, it was as if she were making eye contact with someone!
…
"…Hmph."
In the Seireitei, inside the R&D Bureau.
Mayuri stared at the woman on the screen, at her sea-blue eyes, and snorted coldly.
The moment he saw this woman, he knew those five idiots couldn't complete the mission, so once they got close, he made them self-detonate without hesitation.
Yet even his engineered bombs couldn't harm the woman—and she seemed to have discovered his surveillance.
Who was she?
With features and strength so distinctive, if she were a Shinigami of the Seireitei, she wouldn't be obscure.
But Mayuri had already reviewed all Gotei 13 personnel files and found nothing on her.
"Interesting!"
Madness flashed in Mayuri's eyes. He watched the woman raise her hand; the next moment, his screen filled with a water-like distortion—then nothing at all.
Through gritted teeth, he hissed, "If you choose to oppose me, spend the rest of your life tasting regret!"
Nemu stood by, watching the seemingly mad Mayuri…
Silent.
...
Back in the Living World.
"Now you see?" Gabriel said softly.
Ishida Sōken frowned. Without Gabriel, that explosion would have finished him.
In a short span, Gabriel had saved him twice.
"Who are you… exactly?"
"My name is Gabriel," she said. "The one targeting you is the second Director of the R&D Bureau and Captain of Squad 12, Kurotsuchi Mayuri. He failed this time, but he won't give up."
"Why would he do this?!" Sōken asked, baffled. "We did as the Shinigami asked!"
"Yes, you did. But that doesn't satisfy every Shinigami. At least… Mayuri's always wanted to study you Quincies."
"If you keep showing yourself outside, he'll keep sending people to attack."
"…" Ishida Sōken fell silent, perhaps thinking of his family.
If Mayuri wouldn't let him go, wouldn't that implicate his family?
But if he disappeared, Mayuri might just switch targets.
Seeing his expression, Gabriel continued, "If you decide, go to Chōbara in Naruki City. Someone there wants to see you."
With that, Gabriel's body turned to mist, and a breeze carried her away.
"…" Where a moment ago it had been so lively, Ishida Sōken now stood alone, looking at the blast marks around him, heart filled with turmoil.
He was old—so old he could do almost nothing.
But…
Someone wanted to see him?
Who?
And who was Gabriel?
Clearly a Shinigami—yet she thwarted a Shinigami plan.
Whatever the case, best to return home first.
...
Gabriel returned to the conference room.
"Why didn't you bring him?" she asked Yoshio.
"Quincies outside the Wandenreich are different," Yoshio replied. "The Wandenreich's Quincies have been brainwashed by hatred and rage. Outsiders are different; they have noble convictions."
"Getting them to talk isn't easy—unless they want to."
"…" Gabriel said no more. She had just arrived in the Living World and didn't know much about the outside Quincies.
Unless you were a pervert like Mayuri, using drugs and pain to torture them madly, it was hard to get anything from their mouths.
Especially Quincies like Ishida Sōken—no matter how Mayuri tortured him, he only kept shouting Ishida Uryū's name.
With people like that, you can only let them tell you what you want to know themselves.
So Yoshio had Azashiro Sōya tell Gabriel to direct Sōken to Chōbara in Naruki City.
Chōbara was one of his branch bases.
He hadn't linked Brainleaf Co. to the Hell Solitude, but chose another place.
Chōbara was where Kūgo Ginjō had hidden in the original story—so he decided to make use of it and refurbished the place.
Ishida Sōken would come—if only to protect his not-yet-grown grandson, he would.
Yes—Yoshio didn't plan to bring too many people into Wings of the World.
For now, they had enough.
As for future recruits…
Maybe start them as outer members.
With that thought, Yoshio briefed everyone on the current situation of the Three Realms and discussed the action plan for the coming period, then dismissed the meeting.
There were many rooms for rest on the 33rd floor; Yoshio would stay there for the next month.
…
The next day, while Yoshio was resting, he heard the door open.
He opened his eyes and saw Nezuko, already washed up.
"Are you taking me to school today?"
She looked at Yoshio.
He had planned to have Hela take her, but seeing Nezuko's eyes, he sighed.
"I'll take you, of course."
He'd be in the Living World for a month anyway—might as well indulge Nezuko a bit.
After Yoshio got ready, he walked the streets with her. "Nezuko, do you want to learn Fullbring?"
In Japan, elementary kids don't much like being escorted by parents, and even if they are, they carry their own backpacks.
But her bag didn't have much in it—she was only in first grade.
Walking ahead, backpack on, glancing left and right, Nezuko turned at his question. "What's Fullbring?"
"A human ability that can enhance your body and strengthen your skills."
Shinigami train to boost reiryoku, but raw arm and leg strength isn't much different from ordinary humans.
Of course, it's different when they use reiryoku.
But without reiryoku, even a lieutenant like Rangiku would have trouble swinging something over a hundred kilos.
Fullbring is different—it directly enhances bodily functions. Even if you perform a living-body apotheosis into a Shinigami-like state, that functional boost feeds back to the soul.
"There's something like that? I want to learn!" Hearing she could get stronger, Nezuko got excited, hopping in front of Yoshio to show she wanted to learn Fullbring.
"Wait till your break."
Ruffling her hair, he said, "I'll take you to meet some people on Saturday and Sunday. They'll teach you how to use Fullbring."
"Eh?! Daddy, you won't teach me?!" Her eyes widened.
"What are you thinking? I'm a Shinigami. Fullbring is a human combat style," Yoshio laughed.
"Okay…" Nezuko looked a bit disappointed.
A bit later, Yoshio dropped her at school.
She waved, then ran inside.
In class, Nezuko took her seat.
In Japan they value personal space, so even elementary kids sit one to a desk. Nezuko, being tall, sat second-to-last by the window.
As she set down her bag, she noticed a pack of snacks from the dagashi shop on her desk.
There was also a note.
["Sorry I bumped into you."]
Nezuko looked at the blond Kurosaki Ichigo in front of her and found him sneaking glances at her.
Boring.
She took out the latest issue of RIBON from her bag—she was following the manga "Monster Family."
The heroine's family was bizarre: a vampire father; mother and little brother were werewolves; people around them were demon princes or Medusa; and a Hades who wanted to conquer the demon world.
If only her life were as interesting as the heroine's.
Unlike now—spending every day with a bunch of kids living a boring elementary school life.
Sigh, time, hurry to Friday already. I want to learn Fullbring!