But this thing can't be used all the time.
If you want to use The Animals without it affecting you, it's best to space it out by a year.
Of course, having them fuse with a Seed of Light first is no problem.
It was already late for elementary schoolers at this hour, but for adults, the night was just beginning.
So, everyone from Brainleaf Co swallowed a Seed of Light.
…
The next day, when Yoshio was sending Nezuko to school, Yoshio took out two more Seeds of Light.
"Seeds of Light?" Nezuko accepted the two seeds from Yoshio with curiosity and asked, "Am I supposed to take them to school?"
"You can fuse with one. As for the other, find a way to get Kurosaki Ichigo to eat it."
Yoshio figured this was the sort of thing Nezuko could handle.
At the mention of "Kurosaki Ichigo," Nezuko's face fell.
"Kurosaki Ichigo again—always Kurosaki Ichigo!" Nezuko stomped her foot. "Just who is that guy!"
"Well…" Seeing that Nezuko looked a bit jealous, Yoshio said, "If you don't want to do it, forget it."
"Who says I don't want to?" Nezuko still clenched the Seeds of Light. "Hmph, I'm member of Brainleaf too. I can complete the mission!"
"Don't let him notice the Seed of Light."
Yoshio waved and watched Nezuko enter the school.
This task wasn't difficult for her, so Yoshio felt fairly at ease.
Thinking it over, he felt there were plenty of people in Karakura Town who were qualified to fuse with a Seed of Light.
For example, the Inoue siblings, Chad, Ishida—maybe even Don Kanonji?
Although Yoshio didn't much like that kind of Satan-style hero, he had to admit the guy did possess commendable qualities like courage.
But as for this kind of job, he could leave it to Azashiro.
Sōya Azashiro's abilities made this sort of thing extremely covert—no one would notice.
However, without Yoshio's The Animals, a Seed of Light wouldn't take effect immediately. It might take years, even more than a decade, to activate.
So there was no need to worry about turning Karakura Town into some gods-and-demons battle royale.
With that thought, Yoshio returned to the Soul Society.
…
"You've really been busy lately. Central 46 seems to trust you a lot—they dump everything on you."
This time when he came back, Rangiku didn't lose her temper; she just asked curiously.
"Who knows." Yoshio said idly, "If I'd known being a captain would be this much hassle, I'd never have taken the job."
"Haha, who told you to learn Bankai!" Rangiku laughed. "The capable take the seat!"
Yoshio sighed. "I really don't want to go to the World of the Living. The environment's awful."
"Huh? So you were on a mission in the Living World? Are you even allowed to say that?"
"Probably not, but whatever." Yoshio scratched his head. "And I have to deal with those weirdos in the R&D Bureau. Life is suffering."
Hearing that, Rangiku actually felt a bit sorry for him.
Dealing with the Tech Bureau wasn't easy.
Come to think of it, she'd rather do paperwork in the squad than go to the Living World and deal with R&D.
"Just enjoy your life as a captain."
Rangiku patted Yoshio's shoulder, gloating.
Yoshio sprawled in his chair, feigning total burnout.
After she left, he let a smile slip.
The implantation went smoothly.
He had just secretly implanted a Seed of Light into Rangiku's body.
Originally, Yoshio thought his The Animals might be able to fill the missing part of Rangiku's soul. But now that he had Seeds of Light, he felt they were the better material.
Within the Gotei 13, the candidates he'd thought of for implantation were Rangiku, Hitsugaya, Rukia, Renji…
For now, just those four. Better not implant too many—if he did, someone might notice.
So he headed over to Division 13.
…
"Yoshio-san? You're coming here way too often."
This time, Hitsugaya actually wasn't working—he was inspecting the corridor.
Seeing Yoshio, he couldn't help but grumble, "You're the Tenth Division captain, not the Thirteenth."
"I only came yesterday because some brat was looking for me. Today I'm here on official business."
Yoshio chuckled.
"Official business?" Hitsugaya asked, surprised. "What business?"
"Has anyone in Division 13 seen this person?"
Yoshio took out a photo—Gabriel, from when Mayuri secretly snapped her saving Soken Ishida.
Hitsugaya took the photo, frowned after one glance.
In the picture, Gabriel wore black shihakushō, was petite, and most strikingly, had vivid blonde hair.
He shook his head. "If someone like this were in Division 13, there's no way I wouldn't remember."
In the Seireitei, a blonde stands out.
"What about her?"
"Classified. You just need to know she's dangerous." Yoshio sighed. "What a pain. Can't the Onmitsukidō handle this? Why am I, a Tenth Division captain, doing this every day?"
"I think you're enjoying it." Hitsugaya sneered. "With this kind of job, no one can tell if you're slacking or not. You'll milk it to rest as long as you can."
"Busted. You're a sharp kid." Yoshio suddenly lifted Hitsugaya up.
Hitsugaya was dumbfounded. He struggled free, face red. "What the hell are you doing?!"
"What're you shy about? It's not like I haven't lifted you before." Yoshio pouted.
"Idiot!" Hitsugaya snapped. "It's different now!"
"Okay, okay, I get it. Where's Rukia? I'll go see her."
"She's working." Hitsugaya said impatiently. "I'm going back to work too. You, Captain of the Tenth—stop bothering us!"
"Yeah, yeah." Yoshio waved it off and went to find Rukia.
When he'd lifted Hitsugaya, he'd slipped the Seed of Light into him.
Rukia was now the Thirteenth Division Lieutenant. When Yoshio arrived, she was processing paperwork.
"Captain Yoshio?"
Hearing the door, Rukia looked up, surprised to see him.
"I came to ask Tōshirō about a mission for Division 13 and thought I'd check on you."
"By the way, here's a little snack from the Living World. I think you'll like it." Yoshio pulled a chocolate from his pocket.
Rukia loved sweets, so he catered to her taste. Yoshio had hidden the Seed of Light inside the chocolate.
Rukia carefully accepted it, then bowed. "Thank you very much!"
"No need to be so stiff—we're old acquaintances." Yoshio smiled. "How's it feel being a Lieutenant?"
"I always doubted…" Rukia said softly. "Whether I'm fit for the position. But Captain Hitsugaya kept reassuring me, so I persisted."
"Having him as a captain is a good thing." Yoshio mused. "Alright, I'm off to the next squad. We'll talk later."
He stood, waved, and left.
Next target: Renji—so, Division 11.
…
"Captain Yoshio?"
In Division 11, Renji was practicing his swordsmanship. With Rukia now a Lieutenant, he had to work harder.
Seeing Yoshio, he relaxed a bit, curious.
Yoshio was a rare guest in the Eleventh—in fact, he'd probably never visited.
Sometimes he'd go drinking with Ikkaku and Yoshio, but they rarely dropped in on each other's barracks.
Seeing Renji, Yoshio patted his shoulder and asked in a low voice, "Your captain isn't here, is he?"
"You mean Captain Zaraki? Of course—"
"He is."
A voice suddenly came from behind Yoshio.
He turned to see a towering, vicious-looking man.
Yoshio was about 180 cm tall, but this man was over two meters, exuding oppressive force.
His hair jutted up like spikes, a black eyepatch over his right eye, and a savage aura poured from him.
The Eleventh's Shinigami hurriedly bowed. "Captain Zaraki!"
Only Yoshio remained calm. He coughed and said, "Good, you're here. I'm acting under orders from Central 46. Have you seen the woman in this photo?"
He produced Gabriel's photo. Kenpachi glanced and said, "No. Is she strong?"
"And you…"
Kenpachi's mouth curled into a grin. "Are you strong too?"
"She's strong, yes. As for me—so-so." Yoshio chuckled. "Since you haven't seen her, Captain Zaraki, I'll be going."
"Hold it!"
Kenpachi barked, chopping down with his blade.
He was so fast that the Eleventh's Shinigami stared wide-eyed.
But at the last instant, Yoshio's blade was also out.
Steel met steel, but there wasn't much reiatsu shock.
Kenpachi's swing was fast, but to his squad it wasn't anything—he just wanted to stall Yoshio.
"I've wanted to fight you for a long time. The Seireitei's most low-key genius. How about it? Spar with me!" Kenpachi snarled.
"I'd love to, but I'm on duty." Yoshio held his sword one-handed across his body, blocking the blow.
"If you're interested, Captain Zaraki, go after this woman. She should give you a very enjoyable fight."
"Boring!" Kenpachi said when Yoshio wouldn't bite. "I'll cut her, sure—but I also really want to cut you!"
Yoshio sighed. "I'd love to fight the strongest Shinigami too, but I have a mission. Next time."
With that, he flash-stepped away from Division 11.
With that, the four candidates were set.
As for Gabriel, Yoshio had no intention of really digging up leads.
…
Time passed.
A year later, Central 46 gave up the search for Gabriel after finding nothing.
Another year passed, and Baelz caught another of Aizen's collaborators.
In the Wandenreich…
Over these two years, Baelz had produced three more Evil Node: the Quarreler, the Burner, and the Disturber of Souls. In two months, he should obtain the Concealer.
But soon, Yhwach would fully awaken.
During this time, he studied ancient Quincy incantations, practiced Sankt Zwinger and Sankt Bogen, and spent the rest of his time hunting moles.
At least he wanted some warning for what was coming.
That mole wasn't hard to guess: Robert Accutrone—One of the Sternritter.
As one of the longest-serving under Yhwach, Robert knew Yhwach's character well.
He knew that once he became useless, Yhwach would discard him mercilessly.
But… he was in too deep to escape.
He'd taken on too many of his power. If Yhwach initiated Auswählen, he'd turn into a desiccated skeleton in an instant.
Aizen's appearance offered him a new possibility.
Aizen might not be able to immunize Robert against Auswählen, but he could at least help him survive it.
Besides him, Baelz suspected Askin might also be in league with Aizen.
Askin… in the original, even became Royal Guard-level. But that position had now been taken by Baelz.
Like Robert, Askin understood Yhwach's nature—once you're useless, he Auswählen's you. A smart man like Askin would naturally prepare a plan B.
Stay with Yhwach, and you might survive Auswählen, maybe even become Schutzstaffel—promoted as someone useful to Yhwach.
Work with Aizen, and you're guaranteed to survive Auswählen, and might even grow stronger; even if Yhwach Auswählen'd you, stripping your power and Vollständig, the Hōgyoku might make you stronger still.
Baelz had evidence of Robert's collaboration with Aizen, but Askin was more careful, so Baelz only suspected him.
Aizen had a grasp of psychology; among the Sternritter, he precisely identified suitable partners.
Others might look rebellious or disloyal to the Empire, but they weren't quality partners.
Bazz-B, for instance—resentful of Yhwach, but Aizen wouldn't pick someone who might explode at any moment.
Gremmy was locked up alone most of the time.
Robert—an old fox over a thousand years, afraid of death, unwilling to be soil because Yhwach tossed him aside.
Askin—clever and agile of mind, able to grasp Yhwach's intent.
These three were quality picks.
Baelz set these thoughts aside.
Replicating Sōken Ishida's method to evade Yhwach wasn't easy.
Over two years, he'd managed to grasp the earlier parts of the notes Tsukishima obtained, but extending them into a complete system was beyond him.
And… time was running out.
Two months until Yhwach's full awakening.
Though he had nothing to hide from Yhwach now within the Wandenreich, he still had to be cautious.
He had broken the soul boundary through atavism and shadow, raising his upper limit—but how to push his reiatsu to that limit?
Time was too short.
He had absorbed far fewer fragments of the Soul King than Angra Mainyu; Angra could also absorb others' malice to convert into reiatsu. His Evil Node could do similarly, but he hadn't indulged.
So the fastest way to level up was still through Yhwach's Auswählen.
When necessary, Yhwach would Auswählen the Sternritter and allocate their power to the Schutzstaffel.
Baelz, being Schutzstaffel, would naturally receive the gift pack.
"Gerard!"
With that in mind, Baelz greeted Gerard ahead.
The burly Gerard turned and laughed loudly. "I thought you'd have gone ahead already. You're late today—not like you!"
"As the day of His Majesty's full awakening approaches, we should mind our appearance." Baelz smiled. "I wonder what He wants from us today?"
Just now, Yhwach had summoned the Schutzstaffel to his palace.
"Who can fathom His Majesty's mind?" Gerard boomed. "But I think it's about dealing with the Shinigami."
"In theory, with the medallions, the Shinigami are already helpless," said Baelz.
"Just killing them isn't enough. We must make them suffer!"
Gerard had a high opinion of Baelz—since joining the Schutzstaffel, Baelz had been grinding Gerard's favor.
His soul ability, "God Descends," was too strong, and Gerard's open nature made him easier to befriend.
Now Gerard's favor was over 60; to reach 80 for permanent "God Descends," Baelz would need more effort.